Happy Monday! Hope you had an amazin’ weekend! It’s Cinco de Mayo and we kickoff the first day of the week with Jeff Morad from WEQX/Manchester, VT-Albany, NY sharing his fun stories on #HAPPENS Famous Firsts. 

Lorde “What Was That” is the #1 Most Picked song this week on Alternative Picks. Ax And The Hatchetmen “Blurry Lights” is also buzzing right now at Alternative. Find the rest of the Top 5 songs on Alternative Picks. 

Lorde “What Was That” is also the highest chart debut at 29* this week on the Mediabase Alternative Chart. There are two other chart debuts this week: Badflower “Paws” debuts at 39 and Winona Fighter “You Look Like A Drunk Phoebe Bridgers” debuts at 40*.  

The Black Keys “The Night Before” lands the #1 song this week on the Mediabase Alternative Chart. Congrats to Warner’s Rob Goldklang, David Ravikoff & The Black Keys team! It’s a pretty big week for the Warner crew. They now have 3 songs in the Top 10 on the chart with Linkin Park “Up From The Bottom” is up to 6* and sombr “Back To Friends” enters the Top 10 this week. 

Your latest Alternative New Music Discovery #HAPPENS with new music from Lorde “What Was That”, The Ataris “Car Song”, The All-American Rejects “Sandbox”, Deep Sea Diver “What Do I Know”, and Cameron Whitcomb “Bad Apple”. Listen, download, and get song info on the #HAPPENS Alternative Downloads page. 

Shocked to hear that Bill Gamble had his position eliminated last week at Mid-West Family. Did you hear about KBZT (ALT 94.9)/San Diego’s “Louder New Music Hour” on Sunday nights hosted by Jeremy Pritchard? Get the 411 on Alternative News.

Dropkick Murphys will headline D-Day Rally on June 6th. Glassnote Records has opened an online store. Find more info on Alternative Music Info. 

WWDC (DC101)/Washington had Wilderado in-studio last week. Kiernan from WRIS (106.7 The Resistance)/Madison was out at the sold out Sylvee to see Djo a week ago. Check out the smiles on Alternative Photos. Got photos to share? Send them to me HERE.

KVIL (ALT 103.7)/Dallas has its “ALTERIUM” with 311, The Beaches, Badflower, and almost monday this coming Saturday, May 10th.

ALTERNATIVE NEW MUSIC DISCOVERY  

Lorde “What Was That” (Republic)

Listen & Download HERE.

New Zealand’s Lorde released “What Was That” on April 24th. It’s from Lorde’s highly-anticipated fourth album, Virgin, that will be released on June 27th. 

It’s the first new music in four years and co-produced by Lorde, Jim-E Stack and Dan Nigro. The music video was shot on location in New York, including Washington Square Park, where Lorde surprised fans with a pop-up performance ahead of release.

Lorde’s breakthrough single “Royals” was from her debut album, Pure Heroine in 2013. It won 2 Grammy Awards. 

The Ataris “Car Song” (Double Helix/Regime)

Listen & Download HERE.

Anderson, Indiana 4-piece The Ataris released “Car Song” on May 1st. It will be on the band’s first album since 2007. Recorded organically using vintage tones and brought to life through the warmth of analog tape, this heartfelt track is dedicated to frontman Kristopher Roe’s father, a lifelong supporter of the band, who passed away in 2014. 

He says, “My dad was always the biggest supporter of The Ataris. He was a regular on our original website’s message board, sending out VHS bootlegs of live sets he would film and interacting with everyone—everyone knew him. He truly lived and breathed our music. When I saw an article a few years back about a place that would press a loved one’s ashes into vinyl, I immediately knew—that’s what I’m going to do. What better way to celebrate my father’s life than to make him an actual physical part of the music he always supported and encouraged me to create?” 

In honor of his father’s memory, who passed away from complications related to alcoholism, a portion of the profits from the “Car Song” 7-inch release will be donated to Shatterproof, a national nonprofit dedicated to ending addiction. Donations from the 7-inch release will benefit Shatterproof through 2025 and 2026, supporting their mission to help individuals and families struggling with substance use disorders. An iconic vehicle—literally—inspired the band’s return to the studio. Roe, a longtime fan of Breaking Bad, was given the opportunity to purchase the Volvo driven by Bryan Cranston’s character, Walter White, in the series finale. “I like to say that Walter White’s Volvo was the key to recording ‘Car Song’ and starting this album,” Roe says with a laugh. “A friend who worked on the show wanted to sell the Volvo to a fan. Since Breaking Bad is one of my favorites, I bought it. There was even a receipt left in the glovebox signed by Bryan Cranston as Walter White!” 

The Ataris had a massive breakthrough in 2003 with “In This Diary”, “The Saddest Song”, and their gold-certified cover of “The Boys of Summer”. The Ataris will play at Riot Fest in September and on the main stage at Aftershock Festival in October.

The All-American Rejects “Sandbox” (Slick Shoes)

Listen & Download HERE.

Stillwater, Oklahoma 4-piece The All-American Rejects released “Sandbox” on April 24th. “Sandbox” is the first taste from the band’s upcoming new album with the first single “Easy Come, Easy Go” coming in June.  

On the new music, lead singer Tyson Ritter says, “War through the lens of a child. Exploding cereal, jump rope trip wires, water balloon grandes, pigtails – crosshairs.”  It’s the band’s first new music in over a decade. Last September, The All-American Rejects released a cover of “Flagpole Sitta” around a fall tour and festival appearances. 

The new music balances The All-American Rejects legacy of massive, anthemic songs with a refined, evolved sound. The band’s first breakthrough singles include “Swing, Swing,” “Dirty Little Secret,” “Move Along,” and “Gives You Hell.” 

Cameron Whitcomb “Bad Apple” (Atlantic)

Listen & Download HERE.

Canada’s Cameron Whitcomb released “Bad Apple” on May 2nd. The track sees Cameron pushing his intensely personal sound towards an alternative direction, employing the age-old bad apple metaphor to grapple with the idea of how things can be so good, yet so bad at the same time. 

The 21 year old Nanaimo, BC-based artist just wrapped up his Hundred Mile High sold out tour dates in March and April in support of his 2024 debut EP Quitter — a fearlessly candid collection of songs inspired by his journey in overcoming addiction. “I was probably 12 the first time I had a drink or smoked weed, and within a few years I was doing cocaine and meth and whatever else I could find,” says Cameron Whitcomb. 

“I grew up in a family of addicts, and drugs have always been a big part of my environment. My best friend went into treatment and it changed his whole life, and I knew I had to do the same thing for my own mental health.”

Deep Sea Diver “What Do I Know” (Sub Pop)

Listen & Download HERE.

Seattle’s Deep Sea Diver released “What Do I Know” on April 30th. It’s from the band’s fourth album, Billboard Heart, released on February 28th. 

Lead singer Jessica Dobson says, “The song ‘What Do I Know’ came out of a very playful and existential place. I needed a reminder to not take myself so seriously and I ran with that theme in the recording and production of the song. Most of it was recorded very quickly by me at my home studio and it is comprised almost entirely of first takes on drums, guitar and synth. I also loved exploring some of my guitar influences like Television, Brian Eno, Wilco and mashing all of those up into my own rock song. I had fun being free with the lyrics and adding in strange vivid lines like ‘there’s a spider in the milkshake’…” 

Deep Sea Diver has Spring Tour dates through May 17th and recently announced Summer US Tour dates from July 8-30. Find the tour dates HERE.