By: Music Journalism Club

Every week our Music Director, Allison, chooses new releases to add to our music library. Here are some recent highlights, presented to you by WSUM’s Music Journalism Club.

Snuggle, Goodbyehouse

HIGHLIGHT TRACKS: “Sun Tan”, “Sticks”, “Water in a pond”

GENRE: Alternative

RIYL: Astrid Sonne, girlpuppy, ML Buch

Snuggle’s Goodbyehouse is a beautiful and existential-feeling project. Each and every song has its own unique impression, featuring dissonant sounds and incredible vocal delivery. The group’s debut album is a melancholy and cozy representation of familiar feelings while saying goodbye: to friends, lovers, homes, places, things people care about. Highlight track “Sun Tan” shows Snuggle’s talent for creating bittersweet melodies, which opens the album and sets the vibes for the rest of the songs. Listeners can sense the mix of both joy and mourning within the music, and this is an album I would definitely recommend to all, but especially homesick college students feeling nostalgic. 

— Evie Swenson

claire rousay, a little death

HIGHLIGHT TRACKS: “night one”, “somehow”, “somewhat burdensome”

GENRE: Ambient, Alternative/ Indie

RIYL: Laraaji, Gretchen Korsmo, Ethel Cain

Claire Rousay’s a little death is a beautifully detached yet extremely captivating ambient album. Rousay does an amazing job of creating a blended soundscape. It allows listeners to feel the change she’s depicting in a gentle way; she recorded much of the used sounds at dusk, emphasizing the shift between light and dark as we see outside and feel within ourselves. It builds off of her other albums and musical work as an artist, as this album is the final one in an unofficial trilogy. a little death follows rousay’s other albums A Heavenly Touch and a softer focus, which are also great albums I definitely recommend checking out. Each song on this album is so beautifully layered, creating a textured and atmospheric sound. Rousay uses found audio as well as field recordings and other ambient sounds to create this processed sound. She also uses instruments to further the compositions, and all of the sounds she blends together work so well, and are sure to leave an impression on you. a little death is a really well done and thoughtful ambient album, resonating with raw feeling.

— Julia Klima

Oklou, choke enough (deluxe)

HIGHLIGHT TRACKS: “viscus (feat. FKA twigs)”, “what’s good”, “dance 2”

GENRE: hypnagogic pop, synth pop, art pop

RIYL: Caroline Polachek, Smerz, ear, FKA twigs, After

Oklou reenlivens her hypnagogic pop record of this past winter full of electronic lullabies from the future with a quartet of sweet songs on the deluxe edition of choke enough, just in time to comfort us as the days get shorter, colder and grayer. “viscus (feat. FKA twigs)” continues the strange sugary melancholy present in much of the original collection of tracks with an extra ethereal voice gifted by another musical angel. The following track, “what’s good” gets even dreamier with thick resonant piano arpeggios, transporting the listener to a fairytale, deep blues, solitary evening. Oklou strips it back on the acoustic  track, “the fishsong unplugged,” which gives listeners a more open and vulnerable sound from the artist right before the growing synths of the last track blossom. “dance 2” takes the infectious melodies underlying many of the tracks on the main album and allows them to flourish in full form–this song begs to be played in front of a crowded dance floor. Oklou offers a song for any sort of listener in the extra tracks of choke enough (deluxe), perfect for any of us who can’t get enough of her.

— Dasha Berezhanskiy

2hollis, Star

HIGHLIGHT TRACKS: “flash”, “you”, “safe”

GENRE: Experimental hip-hop, EDM

RIYL: Jane Remover, Frost Children, 100 gecs

Star, Hollis’ fourth album, uses heavy bass and energetic beats to explore the album’s theme of the benefits and drawbacks of being in the spotlight. Songs like “flash”, “you”, and “safe” give you a sense of 2hollis’ more experimental productions, and other songs like “tell me”, “girl” and “sidekick” are good examples of how Hollis incorporates hip-hop influences with his electronic production to create a sound similar to other underground rap artists. Hollis also makes his 2010s EDM influences clear in songs like “burn”, “nice”, and “nerve”, which all have synths and bass drops that sound like they could have been produced by Skrillex or Diplo. Star manages to have a diverse sound while still maintaining its consistency, which is due in part to the repeated elements like Hollis’ spoken word moments and sounds of racing cars, but is ultimately due to 2hollis’ unique approach to songwriting and production.

— Henry Wolfe

HighSchool, HighSchool

HIGHLIGHT TRACKS: “Dipped”, “One Lucky Man”

GENRE: Alternative post-punk, indie, indie rock

RIYL: Hers, Strawberry guy, the Strokes

HighSchool released their debut album HighSchool on October 31, 2025. Listening to this album sent me back to my highschool days, as it reminded me of some of my favorite high school bands such as Hers and Strawberry Guy with their slightly reverbed vocals. HighSchool has an angsty feel to it, which is very reminiscent of the feelings of high school. I think that almost anyone could listen to this album and be reminded of bits of their high school selves. This album is perfect for an angsty and gloomy fall evening and I highly recommend that you give it a listen.

— Christine VanDen Heuvel