by Dan Goldin (@post_trash_) and David Anthony (@dbanthony)

Welcome to FUZZY MEADOWS, our weekly recap of this week's new music. We're sharing our favorite releases of the week in the form of albums, singles, and music videos along with the "further listening" section of new and notable releases from around the web. It's generally written in the early hours of the morning and semi-unedited... but full of love and heart. The number rankings are arbitrary and we sincerely recommend checking out all the music included. There's a lot of great new music being released. Support the bands you love. Spread the word and buy some new music.

*Disclaimer: We are making a conscious effort not to include any artist in our countdown on back-to-back weeks in order to diversify the feature, so be sure to check the "further listening" as well because it's often of "countdown" quality too.

1. ANNA MCCLELLAN | "Heart Of Hearts"

Ever since I first heard Anna McClellan's debut album, I've been enamored with both her incredible voice and her amazing songwriting. The Brooklyn-via-Omaha musician uses her voice with the greatest of control, drifting between highs and lows, shaky cracks and perfect melodies, offered with a degree of timelessness. "Heart of Hearts," the first single from her Father/Daughter Records debut is a genuine classic, a plinking piano led song that allows McClellan's melody to skip along without a care in the world. It's a stream-of-conscious ballad that pulls at every heart string simultaneously. It doesn't get much better. - Dan Goldin

2. WATER FROM YOUR EYES | "We're Set Up"

Brooklyn duo Water From Your Eyes create perfect blends of electro pop, post-punk, and krautrock, a welcome soundtrack for late night dancing (or any time of the day really). Their songs are hypnotic and expansive, pulling you into their web of dark slinky pop and building the night around you. Nate Amos' (Anthony Fremont's Garden Solutions, This Is Lorelei) programmed rhythms and bouncing synths wrap themselves around Rachel Brown's (Thanks For Coming) ominous lyrics and sweet melodies, the two swirling together with mechanical grooves and a casual indifference. - Dan Goldin

3. DUDS | "The Nose/Keine"

Released back in September via Castle Face Records, Duds' full length debut, Of A Nature Or Degree, is post-punk at it's most jagged and jerky, disrupting everything in its path and leaving it slightly bent in return. It sputters and darts in every direction, a release as "angular" as they come. The video for "The Nose" and "Keine" pairs the songs together in two separate acts; both under the guise of a dismal director as they stoically work toward mundane tasks as the band's disjointed fury sets a tone opposite of the visuals. It's weird, and Duds are great. - Dan Goldin

4. RED DEATH | "Formidable Darkness" LP

Famously considered part of The New Wave of D.C. Hardcore, Red Death’s sound has always ebbed closer to hardcore’s crossover period. On Formidable Darkness, the band delves even deeper to the realm of thrash metal, even if it’s played by a bunch of hardcore kids. The riffs aren’t especially technical, but that’s part of the charm with Red Death. These songs don’t feel overly calculated, instead allowing for the immediacy of hardcore to meld with metal’s brute force, creating a sound that—while not unique—gives the band a place in two different discussions about revived genres. Formidable Darkness never downshifts or lags, and it’s all the better off because of it. - David Anthony

5. SHADY BUG | "Walk Me Home"

There's a tag on Shady Bug's Bandcamp that says "warm rippers" and it's a fitting description for the quartet and their lulling but twisted pop convulsions. Their music is infinitely repeatable, relatable, and tbh idk could be one of the year's best kept secrets; twenty five minutes heavy on swooning bliss. "Walk Me Home's" music video is a gentle and heartwarming clip that features the band rocking out the backyard, sad with no dogs. As things continue though, all hope is restored and a gang of puppies join the band for a nice stroll. Rainey's gorgeous vocals waver in splendid melodies and unique phrasing between ripples of distorted guitars and a persistent rhythm. - Dan Goldin

6. TY SEGALL | "The Main Pretender"

Ty Segall stays busy. We know. It's not news at this point. After this year's release of his second fantastic self-titled album, he's since shared a 7" single, a surprise EP (Fried Shallots), and a new single each month since September. The four singles he's released (each with their own solid colored "album art") have each been recklessly different than the last, a spring of ideas that are potentially best left as singular statements of Segall in his vast glory. "The Main Pretender" may just be the best yet, a sleazy post-punk ripper with squealing sax (courtesy of Mikal Cronin) and the classic depravity of garage rock excess. Scrapes of distorted guitar and atonal blasts of sordid sax have never sounded so refined. - Dan Goldin

7. MAMMOTH GRINDER | "Superior Firepower"

It’s been four years since we last heard from Mammoth Grinder, but not because frontman Chris Ulsh has been slacking. As the drummer of Power Trip, Ulsh has spent a fair amount of time behind the kit, but with a reactivated Mammoth Grinder—which now features members of Iron Reagan—he shows he’s a force on the mic as well. “Superior Firepower” shows not only why the band has been so beloved, it shows the latest version of the band is still adept at making primitive, uncompromising death metal. The song is able to take elements of punk and fling them into the mix without it ever feeling alien, and that perfect blend of styles is what makes Mammoth Grinder’s return so welcome. - David Anthony

Further Listening:

Fuzzy Meadows: The Week's Best New Music (November 27th - December 3rd)