New Releases We Can't Wait to Dig Into

There are album drops a-plenty from Chicago this week! The sounds and feels are all over the place this week and we love it! Take a look at the list and let us know if you’re more on the hip-hop sounds Mother Nature just put out or do you prefer jovial whimsy of E.R. Jurkin.

As we scan upcoming release lists, singles and endlessly scrolling through Instagram, we are still very much interested in hearing from you about Chicago music on the horizon. 

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Mother Nature (Chicago)
SZNZ
Closed Sessions

This album came out on 4/20, but deserves some face time on our list. Co-produced with lablemate Boathouse, this is a mixtape that brings together collaborations from fellow Chicago artists like Valee (featured on the track, “GOOFIEZ”) and Sir Michael Rocks (featured on “CLOUDZ”). Both tracks are incredible and showcase Mother Nature’s sleek style.

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Rob Frye (Chicago)
Exoplanet 
Self Release

The jazz scene in Chicago is vast, and free-flow aficionado Rob Frye occupies the experimental space with Exoplanet. The single “Sunrise on Pruhina” hits that nail right on the head, whereas single “XC175020” spends a little more time with dedicated loops with sprinklings of brass exploring its ranges in pitch and tone. The later single stands out a little more with a very subtle afrobeat tilt underneath the layers of sound.

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MAKS the Fox (Chicago)
That We Exist  
Marlon Recording

MAKS the Fox is a multi-instrumental quartet known for their fuzzy folk melodies. Though any glimmer of a single drop doesn’t seem to exist, the band promises an album in the same vein as Soccer Mommy with emotive melodies and introspective lyrics. Sounds like the soul searching was deep during COVID.  

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E.R. Jurkin (Chicago)
I Stand Corrected 
Country Thyme 

Dropping on Country Thyme under Drag City, new artist E.R. Jurkin is showcasing their talents on I Stand Corrected. The single “Colonels Of The Morning” is playful and reminiscent of the mid-century British invasion of yester-millenium. The theme continues in “Maine Man” but with a slower tempo and southern drawl of a muted trumpet.

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Remember Sports (Philadelphia)
Like a Stone  
Father/Daughter

Right from the first listen of single “Pinky Ring” you immediately get what makes Remember Sports an undeniably top-notch basement rock band. The depth of writing and music composition pounds out freely in “Materialistic” where Carmen Perry’s voice comes through pure and clear, flowing effortlessly through an intrinsic four minutes of varying soundscapes. Fingers crossed this album gets toured in Chicago sometime in the near future.  

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Topaz Jones (New Jersey)
Don’t Go Tellin’ Your Momma
Self Released

Self represented and released, Topaz Jones is an artist that deserves the world’s attention. This album is the score to a 38-minute short telling the story of the Black ABCs developed by Chicago school teachers in the ‘70s. Don’t Go Tellin’ Your Momma, is a concept album telling the modernized version with an all-ages exploration of Black identity where fashion and music play key roles.

We wanted to give some honorable mentions to our friends to the north, check out British Columbia artist, Art D’ecco and a rapper that everyone on this planet should listen to, DijaSB out of Toronto. Come back next week for more new music picks from your trusty Crowd Surfer crew.

It bears repeating, we want to cover Chicago music, so if you have something coming out, please submit it!