Local Music Singles Roundup: August 2026
Local Music Reviews
What’s that? It’s August, and you still haven’t taken our picks for the best in local music? Let us remind you that we’ve carefully curated and analyzed each track with almost sniper accuracy, and we promise you that you’ll be humming once you’re done. Enjoy the August edition of Local Music Singles Roundup!
Die Shiny
“GOLD STAR, GOOD CITIZEN”
Self-Released
Street: 07.03.2026
Die Shiny = Nine Inch Nails + Imogen Heap
Released the day before America’s 250th birthday, “GOLD STAR, GOOD CITIZEN” is a nightmarish snapshot of the dystopia we’re conditioned into not seeing. With the incisive lyricism and THX-worthy sound engineering, the track addresses the wealth disparity gripping our streets, the ICE raids kidnapping our neighbors, the overturning of Roe v. Wade and the war crimes committed in our names. Instead of simply summarizing these atrocities, though, singer Callie Crofts makes the song searingly intimate by speaking directly to the frightened human being inside all of us whose desire to get by makes them complacent — and complicit. And what is the well-behaved taxpayer’s reward for stifling their soul to comply with fascism? A worthless and patronizing cheer of “Gold star, good citizen.” Crofts ends the song with, “Sorry. We have to learn how to fight. / ‘Cuz we’re the providers of the house, / and the house is white,” reminding us of both our collective power and responsibility in this dark moment. —Joe Roberts
Drama Llama
“The Count”
Self-Released
Street: 08.28.2025
Drama Llama = Wallows + Jason Isbell
Salt Lake City’s Drama Llama arrives with “The Count,” an indie folk single that hits like the drive home from a lake day when the windows are down, and nobody’s ready for it to be over. The track sits comfortably where heartfelt songwriting meets soft country texture. Drama Llama sounds like a band that took a summer road trip through the Southwest and never quite came back the same. The standout moment comes when the narrator plants himself firmly in the present: “I’m in my new place in the city proper, all the life that it has to offer.” It’s a small lyric doing heavy lifting, capturing the quiet thrill of starting over without overstating it. Drama Llama understands that new beginnings don’t always arrive with fanfare. Sometimes they arrive with the windows down and the right song already playing. —Indi Tejeda
Mavisse
“Shitty Love”
GAARD Records
Street: 06.20.2025
Mavisse = Mariah Carey + Kimbra
If you need a song that will snap you out of a not-great relationship, “Shitty Love” will remind you that you deserve better. The track opens with distorted vocals that combine with a variety of percussion, acoustic piano and a low synth bass. The track sounds amazing with headphones, the beats bouncing back and forth. Mavisse’s vocals break through the distortion and add a gorgeous contrast to the rhythm with a sonorous flow. Her voice absolutely blew me away – completely angelic! She sings of waking up and realizing her relationship is lackluster: “I’ve waited enough / you don’t know how to love.” One of my favorite lines was “No excuses, now you’re done / I need to love myself more,” a reminder that leaving a bad relationship is an act of self-love. I’ll be keeping an eye out for more music by Mavisse. —Rebekah Bowman
Mexican Hockey
“Chinese Takeout”
Half Caster Records
Street: 03.01.2026
Mexican Hockey = Free Throw + The Story So Far
Mexican Hockey does a stellar job putting their humor on display with their first single by — in signature fourth wave emo fashion — beginning a song with audio from a meme; specifically the Australian Democracy Manifest meme that says, “What is the charge? Eating a meal? A succulent Chinese meal?” over the instrumental and then following that up with the lyrics, “I’m so tired of starting over / Watching another year slip away / Terrified of getting older / I’m still lost in what is left of yesterday,” and it’s awesome. “Chinese Takeout” is pretty much exactly what I want an emo track to be. It’s got strong vocals, relatable lyrics that are honest without being cringy and an engaging instrumental that allows space for every performance to shine on its own and together. I encourage listeners to throw this on their emo playlist and get their two-step ready. —Hans Magleby
The Attic
“VHS”
Bz Records
Street: 01.09.2026
The Attic = OneRepublic + The Strokes
“VHS” was the lead single from The Attic’s EP of the same name, and it doesn’t waste any time giving listeners something to catch onto with a really tight and groovy 30-second instrumental introduction before jumping into the track’s verses. Keeping a steady pace over the course of its four-minute run-time, complete with both instrumental changes and auditory tone shifts that back the song’s chorus, this track is a great example of a band with a solid foundation, performing at a high level. The band describes it as, “a little song about the fun styles and ways of a VHS tape,” and all in all I think it serves as a great introduction to not only this EP but to The Attic, too. —Hans Magleby
Vex.
“HOTGIRLSDOCOCAINE”
Milk
Street: 05.22.2026
Vex. = Bleachers + early Post Malone
Whether it’s a “Kate Moss is back” kind of situation or a coincidence, “HOTGIRLSDOCOCAINE” could be interpreted as the latest dialogue on a delicate topic, but I heard a vibe. Just like a white line, this song electrifies with the chorus after a groggy bit of synthesizer to start the night off. Sonically, Vex. transcribed the feeling of the anxious adrenaline one gets ahead of a night out, as it lingers in the slow-moving e-drum and helplessly ethereal synth. The first chorus is followed immediately by the… bridge? Which feels like the “alphabet backwards when you’re high” myth to me — perfect for this. The indie-turns-R&B vocals tell a foggy story of a night that climaxes at the same brilliant moment the instrumentation does, where the bridge should have been — where, iconically, Kate Moss always was. —Mary Culbertson
Read more Local Music Singles Roundup:
Local Music Singles Roundup: July 2026
Local Music Singles Roundup: June 2026
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