hear [t]here: 08•07•25

the act of just streaming [t]here

Aug 07, 2025

Look, I know everyone’s a playlist curator these days, and this isn’t exactly an act of radical originality. But hear me out: this hear [t]here playlist isn’t meant to break new ground, it’s meant to mark where I’m at musically in the moment. Think of it as a lightly haunted jukebox of what’s currently echoing in my head: some new, some old, some weird little in-betweens. I’ll be updating it regularly (ish), but I’m not making any grand promises about schedules. Just good music, shared when it feels right.

Right now, it feels right releasing this as an Apple Music playlist exclusively. I still have a Spotify account, and I use it, but I’ve been feeling increasingly uneasy about the platform. If you missed it: Spotify CEO Daniel Ek has invested heavily in defence tech, including a company developing AI-driven military tools, which has led several artists to pull their music and speak out against the platform. Add that to the longstanding frustration with how little most artists earn from Spotify streaming, and it’s hard not to feel conflicted. None of this is tidy, and I don’t have a grand statement to make here. I’ve just been spending more time with Apple Music lately, and for now, that’s where hear [t]here lives (click image).

Here’s what’s on hear [t]here right now:

The Hidden Cameras “Quantify”

Joel Gibb and the Hidden Cameras are back and fully into their club era. Their new album, BRONTO, is out on September 12, and the tease has been long, slow, and so, so seductive. Last week, they shared the track “Quantify,” which has been my absolute favourite of the three preview releases from BRONTO so far. A far cry from the indie-orchestral pop sound of The Smell of Our Own, this latest phase of the Hidden Cameras is all phasers, synths, and synthetic style, and I am down for it. Laser beam me up.

Saint Etienne, “Take Me To The Pilot”

Another very recent drop (it came out on Tuesday), “Take Me To The Pilot” is the second single from the forthcoming final Saint Etienne album, International (out September 5). I have a lot of feelings to process after having written that last sentence (the final album part), but in terms of upcoming releases, International is at the top of my highly anticipated list. Between “Take Me To The Pilot” and the previous single, “Glad,” I’m expecting this to be a powerhouse culmination of a thirty-plus-year career of immaculate pop, eclectic experimentation, and a peerless musical and visual aesthetic.

Vivek Shraya, “When I’m Overcome”

Speaking of welcome returns, the indomitable Vivek Shraya is set for a comeback with New Models on October 9, and has shared the first single, “When I’m Overcome.” The album is written, performed, and produced by Shraya, and she’s releasing it via Twin Fang Records, a label focused on representation for women, queer, non-binary and trans folks. I won’t call this synth-based and slower-paced sound a stylistic shift for Shraya, but anyone more familiar with her last couple of albums and less with her very early work is in for a treat.

Nation of Language, “I’m Not Ready for the Change”

It’s a couple of months old now, but so far, I’m most into “I’m Not Ready For The Change” from the forthcoming Nation Of Language album, Dance Called Memory (September 19 for those keeping track). The band have also shared two other tracks (“Inept Apollo” and “Under the Water”), but this delicate synthy song has all the hallmarks of what I love most about Nation of Language. Where so many synth-based bands end up sounding cold and clinical, Nation of Language have always felt innately human and flawed (in a good way), as if their synths are all held together by rubber bands and masking tape and powered by a couple of hamsters running on a wheel.

Jane Inc., “elastic”

Carlyn Bezic is back with a new Jane Inc. album on October 17. A Rupture A Canyon A Birth (how’s that for a title?) is inspired by a near-death car accident, a cancer diagnosis, and a breakup, and judging by the lead single, “elastic,” Bezic has bounced back from all those ordeals with a renewed sense of purpose, power, and presence.

Casey MQ, “Head Over Heels”

At some point in the Substack’s existence, I will discuss the important and persistent place Tears For Fears’ Songs From the Big Chair plays in my life, but for right now, let’s enjoy this subtle and synthy cover by Canadian composer/producer Casey MQ. Like the original, MQ’s version doesn’t end in the same place that it starts, but he comes to the track with a clear affinity for the band and the era that birthed it. That MQ’s also associated with Spoons, another artist from the 80s that’s played an important and persistent part of my musical foundation, will also likely be a topic of conversation around here before too long.

TOPS, “Annihilation”

I can’t wait for these Montreal-based pop purveyors to blow me away with their forthcoming album, Bury the Key (August 22). I had missed the fact that they had a new album coming until just recently (my attention has been elsewhere), and based on “Annihilation” and the handful of other tracks they’ve already shared, Bury the Key is dialling up the TOPs aesthetic of vintage chills, synthy thrills, and sugary bellyaches to 11.

wihtikow, “9”

amiskwaciy (the traditional name for the area referred to as Edmonton, Alberta) is home to electronic music producer wihtikow, who dropped ᐊᐦᒐᕽ (which translates in English as “soul”) earlier this year. He calls the album “a love letter to nature in all its beauty and ugliness,” and “9” is one of its most textured, shifting between those two poles.

Daphni, “Clap Your Hands”

Dan “Caribou” Snaith is sharing his first new music under the Daphni moniker since 2022. It’s a club-ready banger crafted specifically for a set at Japan’s Rainbow Disco Club, and Sanith says he’s “been playing it everywhere ever since,” prompting fans to ask for a recorded version. Presumably, there’s more coming from Daphni soon, as Snaith has “a whole bunch of unreleased stuff” ready for public consumption.

Big Thief, “All Night All Day”

I’ve never been a fan of Big Thief, which doesn’t mean I disliked their records; I just never got into them during the peak of hype around the band. But I’m digging what “All Night All Day” is putting down (or ‘going down on’ as per the lyrics?), and am curious enough to check out their forthcoming Double Infinity. “Swallow poison, swallow sugar / Sometimes they taste the same,” sings Adrianne Lenker, a line that hits the gut with a wallop.

Luke Haines and Peter Buck, “The Pink Floyd Research Group”

I had no idea Luke Haines and Peter Buck were collaborators, let alone that they’ve had multiple releases together over the last number of years. I’m still in the discovery stage of this curious collaboration, but I am intrigued by “The Pink Floyd Research Group,” the lead track off their latest release, Going Down to the River… To Blow My Mind, and thought it would be a nice fit here.

Included from recent posts:

Fortunato Durutti Marinetti, “A Perfect Pair”
The Tears, “Refugees”
Tami Neilson, “Borrow My Boots (feat. Ashley McBryde, Grace Bowers & Shelly Fairchild)”
Quinton Barnes, “Sober for the Weekend”
Ghostkeeper, “Astum Ota”
Ribbon Skirt, “Off Rez”
KAYTRANADA, “Call U Up (feat. Lou Phelps)”
Devours, “Canada's Next Top Fat Otter”
Michael Cloud Duguay, “Holy Mountains of Disbelief”
Suede, “My Insatiable One”