Best New Tracks May 2025

Top releases for May 2025 from Halftone Magazine with a few from April snuck in too.

A round up and list of some sorts featuring the best new music of May 2025. It will be nowhere near exhaustive, but we’ll try to include as many standout releases as possible.

Jenny Hval - Lay Down

There is something timeless about Jenny Hval. Here she is pretty Enya-like. Vocals are piercing and calming at the same time.

We’ve been huge fans for years here at Halftone. This track comes alongside 3 others, all of which feature cinematic-like sounds, moody drums and a surprising amount of electronic elements. Jenny’s new album Iris Silver Mist is out now.

Check out the latest Jenny Hval release.

Ulrika Spacek - Interesting Corners

The English Alt-Rock band are back with a new track. Released May 2nd, Interesting Corners is a chill, low tempo floaty track perfect for any of those summer playlists or just for driving about.

We caught them back at the Botanique last year and their perfromance was great! For fans of shoegaze, psych rock, dream pop and more.

Have a listen here.

TOPS - ICU2

Jazzy one this. Upbeat and driven by this organ-piano sound. It honestly sounds close to City Pop and something that would sit well in the likes of Blue Giant.

Technically this was out April 30th, but we didn’t get seeing it until today, so who cares.

TOPS are set to play Capital Ballroom Victoria, BC on Jun 16, 2025 and Sled Island Calgary, Canada on Jun 18, 2025.

Check out their website for more info.

Panda Bear Remixes Hooh Beat by Kassie Krut

Have a listen to Panda Bear’s newest track.

New York trio Kassie Krut will release Kassie Krut (Expanded EP) on June 6 via Fire Talk Records, featuring remixes of tracks from their 2024 debut. The band previewed the project with “Hooh Beat (Panda Bear Remix),” a reworked version featuring Animal Collective’s Noah Lennox.

The EP also includes contributions from DJ Travella, Container, COIDO, and Kero Kero Bonito’s JLB, offering a mix of experimental noise, club rhythms, and genre-bending textures.

Kassie Krut formed in 2023 after the end of Palm, and their debut EP earned praise from Pitchfork, NPR, The Guardian, and others. They’ll tour with Panda Bear and Toro y Moi in May, with headlining dates to follow.

Stereolab - Melodie Is A Wound

Despite the AI video they released with their album, we are all pretty excited to see a new Stereolab album.

The Instant Holograms On Metal Film Album features 13 tracks is the groups first in 15 years and is released May 23, 2025.

The groups is set to play Botanique Sunday 25th of May 2025 alongside POiSON GiRL FRiEND, WU LYF, Moin, Still House Plants, Double Virgo, NINA & Quiet Light.

Ichiko Aoba - Looking at Design

“Looking at Design” is a track from Design Ah! neo, a soundtrack released on April 18, 2025, via NHK Educational.

Though Ichiko Aoba is credited as a primary artist, she contributes to just one track—”Looking at Design”—which blends her signature acoustic subtlety with the album’s playful, instructional tone. The project accompanies NHK’s updated version of the educational series Design Ah!, known for its minimalist design focus and musical experimentation.

Aoba remains active with her Luminescent Creatures World Tour throughout 2025, performing in North America, Mexico, New Zealand, and Europe. She played Ancienne Belgique in Brussels on March 20. Full details on Design Ah! neo and tour updates can be found on her Bandcamp page and website.

Model/Actriz- Vespers

Released May 2, 2025, via True Panther and Dirty Hit, Pirouette is the second album from Brooklyn-based four-piece Model/Actriz. It follows 2023’s Dogsbody with a shift toward more rhythm-driven structures and emotionally direct songwriting.

Produced with Seth Manchester and recorded at Machines With Magnets in Rhode Island, the album blends dance-punk, industrial rock, and experimental textures, with moments that lean into confessional storytelling and warped pop hooks.

Tracks like “Vespers” and “Diva” highlight the band’s evolving sound—less opaque, but still confrontational. The release captures the physicality of their live sets, with club-influenced beats layered under dissonant guitars and spoken-word passages.

Model/Actriz are currently touring in support of Pirouette, with shows across Europe and North America through late 2025. They played Botanique in Brussels on May 10.

Full album details, vinyl editions, and tour dates are available on Bandcamp and the band’s official site.

Preoccupations - Sken

Released May 9, 2025, via Born Losers Records, Sken is a key track from Ill At Ease, the fifth album by Canadian post-punk band Preoccupations. The song blends industrial sounds with synth-pop elements, reflecting the band’s shift toward more polished, emotionally direct music.

With a driving, synth-heavy sound reminiscent of Depeche Mode, Sken captures a mix of anxiety and vulnerability. Lyrics like “You’re the only thing that’s keeping me calm” add a personal touch amid the dark, apocalyptic themes.

Ill At Ease marks a maturing in Preoccupations’ songwriting, balancing bleakness with moments of warmth. The album is available in several vinyl editions, digital, and cassette formats. The band is currently touring in support of the release.

More details and tour dates are on Preoccupations’ Bandcamp and official website.

Wire - Song 1

Wire’s Nine Sevens arrives April 12, 2025, as a limited-edition 2xLP on Pink Flag Records. Pressed to 1,200 copies, this Record Store Day exclusive compiles the band’s 7” singles from 1977-1980, including early hits and rare tracks. It’s the first time most of these songs appear on LP, with one 1980 track previously unreleased on vinyl.

The set highlights Wire’s evolution from sharp post-punk pop to more experimental, textured sounds. The first disc features many well-known singles, while the second dives into less conventional, more ambient territory, showcasing the band’s range and influence on art rock and post-punk. Small Electric Piece being a good example.

Fans and collectors regard this compilation as essential, especially those drawn to Wire’s first three albums—Pink Flag, Chairs Missing, and 154. The 7” singles capture the band’s knack for combining catchy melodies with avant-garde experimentation, making them one of post-punk’s most innovative acts.

Discussion on fan forums confirms high interest, with many praising the compilation’s sound and packaging. Some noted the “BioVinyl” pressing material but reported good quality. Several buyers expressed excitement over finally having these tracks in a more accessible vinyl format.

Nine Sevens is a strong pick for fans of Wire and post-punk, and a highlight of Record Store Day 2025’s offerings.

Deerhoof - Kingtoe

Deerhoof, the U.S.-Japanese experimental rock band, released Noble and Godlike in Ruin on April 25, 2025. The album, issued by Polyvinyl, continues the group’s tradition of blending catchy hard-rock riffs, free-jazz percussion, J-pop influences, and dissonant sounds.

The 10-track album features frontwoman Satomi Matsuzaki’s distinctive alto vocals, which provide a calm contrast to the band’s complex sound. Poet Saul Williams appears as a guest on the track “Under Rats.”

Deerhoof wrote, recorded, and mixed the album themselves. Members on the project include Matsuzaki, Ed Rodriguez, John Dieterich, and Greg Saunier. Photography was done by Satoru Eguchi, with a face collage created by Matsuzaki.

The band is touring Europe this summer with stops in the U.K., Belgium, Norway, Sweden, and Denmark. Dates include July 30 in Margate, England, and early August festival appearances in Genk and Liège, Belgium.

Deerhoof encourages fans to listen to the album all the way through and play it loud.

Moin - You Leave Me Breathless

London-based trio Moin released their EP Belly Up in 2025 via AD 93, following their critically acclaimed album You Never End. The six-track project continues to blend post-punk, jazz, and experimental noise with fresh energy.

Belly Up features guest appearances from Qatari-American artist and poet Sophia Al-Maria and frequent collaborator Ben Vince on horns. The EP’s opener, “See,” highlights Al-Maria’s distinctive spoken word layered over Valentina Magaletti’s intricate rhythms and Vince’s saxophone loops. Vince also appears on “I’m Really Flagging (or I Trusted U),” complementing the band’s dynamic live percussion.

Joe Andrews, Tom Halstead, and Magaletti build on their signature style of jazz shapes infused with hardcore and industrial textures. Tracks like “X.U.Y.” revisit the no-wave funk sound of their previous work, while “You Leave Me Breathless” offers arguably a more spacious, improvised feel with some intricate drumming.

Moin continues to push boundaries by blending improvisation with meticulous production. They’ve been listened to on repeat here at Halftone Magazine and would be appreciated by fans of artists like Slint, Water From Your Eyes, and more. They play alongside Stereolab just a few weeks from now.

Listen to the new Moin track here.

Heavy Lungs - Into the Fire

Heavy Lungs’ “Into the Fire” is taken from their new album Cavier.

The band recently played Ancienne Belgique on the 11th of May 2025 alongside STEVE.

The band, often releasing on Balley Records, has U.K. and European tour dates, including Exit Festival Serbia, Pretty Pissed Festival in the Netherlanfds and Tundra in Norway.

Listen to “Into the Fire” here.

2025 tour details can be found on the Heavy Lungs official website.

Viagra Boys - viagr aboys

Viagra Boys released their new album viagr aboys on April 25, 2025, through YEAR0001. The band supports the release with their Infinite Wisdom global tour, covering Europe and North America into early 2026. They played Ancienne Belgique in Brussels on May 2, 2025.

Explore the album and tour options via their website.

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