July '24 Monthly Music Recap

With the release of already iconic albums like Billie Eilish’s HIT ME HARD AND SOFT and Charli xcx’s Brat, summer 2024 has been the gift that keeps on giving, and July is no exception.

As we head into the last month of the season, July new music has allowed us to marinate in the contemplative, vibrant and hypnotic sounds of summer. After all, who said a Brat Summer and a Clairo Summer can’t coexist?

Listen to Charm on Spotify.

Clairo charms listeners with reflective insight in “Terrapin”

With the release of her third album, Charm, indie singer-songwriter Claire Cottrill, known professionally as Clairo, redefined tenderness and yearning with her whimsical musicality. Reflecting her time in upstate New York, Charm exudes vulnerability and is teeming with Cottrill’s jazz influences.

Track six, “Terrapin,” contains perhaps the most simplistically mature songwriting on the album. Cottrill paints a picture of nonchalance when she sings “You can say whatever you want / I don’t care, I’m already gone,” suggesting an acceptance of a bygone relationship. Later on, the lyrics “It’s a simple thing, we’re all afraid and shy away / Now I find / I guess I don’t shy,” speak to Cottrill’s personal growth. While the soothing melody is enough to entrance listeners in “Terrapin,” sparkling piano interjections and relaxed drum fills add those extra elements that make the track so sonically satisfying.

Other songs from Charm like “Juna” and “Add Up My Love” have gained popularity due to their infectious nature. From introspective to retrospective and dance-worthy to heartbreaking, Charm invites listeners to experience a range of emotions and nostalgic sounds perfectly crafted by Cottrill.

Listen to X's on Spotify.

X marks the romantic spot for Cigarettes After Sex in “Holding you, Holding me”

Back in February, Cigarettes After Sex announced their new album, X’s, with the release of “Tejano Blue.” In an interview with the New York Times earlier this month, leading man Greg Gonzalez said the record “is music that’s meant for emotional people that are in love.”

Holding you, Holding me,” one of the album's standouts, is an obvious example of this — a more upbeat take on the band’s usual dream pop sound, the song depicts a longing for physical intimacy, connection and the beauty of romantic relationships. The lyrics are charming in their simplicity: “Give me just a little more, just a little more, just a little more to calm me,” Gonzalez pleads on the bridge, detailing the peace and sense of home only a partner can bring.

The album is warm and honest, with tracks like “Baby Blue Movie” helping build the strikingly personal yet universal themes of the band’s latest record.

- Cassidy LaPointe

Listen to My Light, My Destroyer on Spotify.

Cassandra Jenkins wanders an existential plane in “Devotion”

In her third full-length album, My Light, My Destroyer, Brooklyn-born Cassandra Jenkins set her songwriting ablaze with thought-provoking imagery and wide-ranging production.

The album’s theme of existential lyrics is introduced by the opening track, “Devotion.” Laden with poetic symbolism, “Devotion” explores what it means to walk the line of emotional complexity with lyrics like “Don’t mistake my breaking open / Breaking open / For broken.” Though a simple acoustic strumming underlies the entire track, dashes of other instrumentals add a certain sonic flair to the track. From swelling horn melodies to meditation-like triangle dings, Jenkins delivers a satisfying listen to open the album.

With tracks like “Clams Casino” and “Petco” leaning more indie rock, Jenkins created a thematically cohesive record with songs for all ears in My Light, My Destroyer.

Listen to "Fake Romantic" on Spotify.

New York band melts down situationships in “Fake Romantic”

In preparation for their September-releasing debut album, the four-member band Melt dropped “Fake Romantic” as a second single this month. With upbeat indie rock instrumentals masking the heartbreaking lyrics, Melt blends a nostalgic sound with the all-too-familiar story of unrequited love.

Chockfull of harpsichord melodies and groovy bass lines, “Fake Romantic” creates a catchy listen that anybody could bop along to. Lead singer Veronica Stewart-Frommer even pulls out all the vocal stops as she graces the last 30 seconds of the track with impressive whistle tones. Despite the bright elements of the song, the main refrain — “You twirl me on the subway / But keep me at an arms length” — encapsulates the true meaning of the song. Lyrics like “I have my heart in my hand and I give it to somebody every day” flex the band’s symbolic songwriting muscles to paint the true picture of being resigned to longing in a world of non-commitment.

Along with “Fake Romantic,” Melt released “Plant The Garden,” the lead single for their album If There’s a Heaven, last month. The two tracks set an exciting tone for the band’s first record, dropping Sept. 13.

Staff Picks:

  • Sara Huynh - Bando Stone and The New World by Childish Gambino

  • Suma Sesay - “Alone in Miami” by Remi Wolf

  • Tabita Bernardus - “Glory of the Snow” by Clairo

  • Lucy Curtis - “TV Car Chase” by Sunday(1994)

  • Caroline McKenzie - “Slipfast” by ROLE MODEL

  • Madison Avery - “Hottest Summer on Record” by Beach Weather

  • Amesha Tiwari - “Lost in the Ocean” by Glass Animals

  • Cassidy LaPointe - “Cocoon” by Dayglow

  • Dany Mireles - “Aftertaste” by Katie gavin

  • Christina Ryan-Wilson - “Slow Dance” by Clairo

  • Mikayla Galaviz - “Mountain On The Sky” by Javier Reyes

  • Peyton Mott - “cherry cola” by Devon Again

  • Abra Richardson - “Up All Night” by James Bay, The Lumineers and Noah Kahan

August releases to look forward to:

  • 8/2 - Sincere by Khalid

  • 8/9 - Double Dog EP by Emory

  • 8/9 - Birds Eye by Ravyn Lenae

  • 8/9 - CAN’T EXPLAIN EP by Sun Room

  • 8/16 - This Is How Tomorrow Moves by beabadoobee

  • 8/16 - F-1 Trillion by Post Malone

  • 8/16 - Paradise State Of Mind by Foster The People

  • 8/16 - Romance by Fontaines D.C.

  • 8/16 - Imaginal Disk by Magdalena Bay

  • 8/23 - Short n’ Sweet by Sabrina Carpenter

  • 8/29 - Isotope by Wasia Project

  • 8/30 - It’s PRINCIPLE! by Mondo Cozmo

Listen to our staff picks on Spotify!

Brooke Shapiro

Brooke Shapiro is the Music Extras Editor and Monthly Recap columnist for Off The Record and is double majoring in journalism and music at George Washington University. Besides music extras, she writes new music reviews, music news, and show reviews.

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August '24 Monthly Music Recap

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June '24 Monthly Music Recap