Album Review - Ryan Beatty's 'Sweet Fortune'; U.S. Tour Includes LA, San Diego Dates

Ryan Beatty

Sweet Fortune

(Atlantic)

Possessing a voice that's often as captivating as the late Jeff Buckley and a picturesque way with words like Rufus Wainwright, Ryan Beatty's fourth album Sweet Fortune is easily the best of his career. 

In contrast to past forays into bedroom pop, and alt-R&B, Beatty leans even more into an Americana-minded sound than on 2023's Calico and impressively recalls Seventies singer/songwriters too. 

In recent years, the artist has collaborated with Beyonce (four co-writes on the latter's Cowboy Carter, netting a Grammy for Album of the Year), Miley Cyrus, Bleachers, Marcus Mumford, Brockhampton, and others.

Beatty, 30, has said in interviews that he wrote the new album's songs from a positive perspective of being in a relationship. He had assists from Clairo, Amy Allen, returning producer/multi-instrumentalist Ethan Gruska (Phoebe Bridgers, Weezer, Mumford and Sons, Conan Gray), and others. Esteemed session musicians Matt Chamberlain and Greg Leisz contribute (drums; pedal steel/dobro) respectively to a handful of tunes.   

Opening with the quietly elegant "Phantom," which Beatty has described as a "farewell and hello at the same time," he follows it with the alluring "White Lightning" and whispery falsetto while singing "you can stay if you don't break my heart" as soft harmonica plays in the background. 

The upbeat, folkish "Virtuoso" is colored by mandolin, dulcimer, synth and mellotron. Here, Beatty sings that "trying to hold me down is like trying to hold onto rain" before ending the verses with some "whoo hoos." It channels Kacey Musgraves, as does the sensual single "Secret Language" (be sure to check out the video where Beatty runs for his life across the country).

"Too Many Ways" - about being apart from the one you love - is a stunning Glen Campbell-styled acoustic-guitar led shuffle, where Beatty's lyrics include references to being a Central California native and then, "I've got a man in Massachusetts/Who comes to see me when he can/And he holds me in the morning/And he holds me through the night/So many ways to say I love you/Too many ways to say goodbye." 

Elsewhere, the captivating, nearly jazzy "Delancey" details a night of passion; a delicate "Dust" deals in dichotomies (love/hate relationships with New York, where the album was made and the music business), and the upbeat idyllic closer "Fleur de Lis," sort of a cross between chamber pop and country, contains fluttering orchestration. Definitely a contender for best albums of the year.   

Ryan Beatty - North American Tour Dates:

Sep 9 — Vancouver, BC — Vogue Theatre
Sep 10 — Seattle, WA — The Neptune Theatre
Sep 12 — San Francisco, CA — The Masonic
Sep 13 — Los Angeles, CA — Greek Theatre
Sep 15 — San Diego, CA — The Observatory San Diego
Sep 16 — Phoenix, AZ — Crescent Ballroom
Sep 18 — Salt Lake City, UT — The Depot
Sep 19 — Denver, CO — Summit Music Hall
Sep 21 — Minneapolis, MN — Varsity Theater
Sep 22 — Chicago, IL — House of Blues
Sep 25 — Toronto, ON — HISTORY
Sep 27 — Columbia, MD — All Things Go Festival
Sep 30 — Charlotte, NC — The Underground
Oct 1 — Nashville, TN — Ryman Auditorium
Oct 3 — Austin, TX — Austin City Limits — Weekend 1
Oct 7 — Houston, TX — White Oak Music Hall
Oct 8 — Dallas, TX — Majestic Theatre
Oct 10 — Austin, TX — Austin City Limits — Weekend 2
Oct 12 — Atlanta, GA — Buckhead Theatre
Oct 14 — Philadelphia, PA — Theatre of Living Arts
Oct 16 — Boston, MA — House of Blues
Oct 17 — Brooklyn, NY — Brooklyn Paramount

Album Review - The Alarm's 'Transformation'

The Alarm

Transformation

(21^st Century Recordings)

Transformation is a powerful final rock music statement from a musician who felt he still had plenty more life to live. Mike Peters valiantly battled cancer for decades but never stopped touring or recording new music. He finished Transformation early last year but sadly succumbed to the disease that spring, after an innovative medical treatment failed.

From 1981-91, Peters led the original incarnation of The Alarm, which created some of the period’s most indelible alt-rock anthems: “68 Guns,” “Where Were You Hiding (When the Storm Broke),” “Strength,” “Spirit of ’76,” “Rain in the Summertime” and “Sold Me Down the River,” to name a few.

During the early 2000s, the passionate Welsh singer/guitarist reinstituted the band name with a revolving cast of musicians. He was highly prolific in the ensuing years, often releasing a studio or live album or two every year. I was fortunate to interview him three times over the entire Alarm/solo career run, and those chats were some of my most memorable with any musician.

The invigorating Transformation was produced by longtime Peters associate George Williams, (who also played bass, keyboards, and effects on a song. The musicians include Mike Peters (vocals/guitar), his wife Jules Jones Peters (piano/backing vocals), and Dave Morait (drums), plus Mike and Jules’ son Evan Peters (drums on one song).

“New Life” - originally intended to be a triumph over Mike Peters beating cancer again – now has a more poignant meaning. With a glam rock thrust and eerie, clarion call guitar work, it finds him singing, “100ml of pure life blood/designed for new life” and later, “I’ll see you in the new life/if not before.”

Similarly, “Chimera” was planned as a rebirth song upon release in January ‘25 - the exact day Peters’ CAR-T (Chimeric Antigen Receptor T-Cell) therapy began. Symbolically encapsulating the Greek mythos of a chimera, which embodies the characteristics of different animals into one body, Peters thought he would become like the fabled creature. The intense song is punctuated by keyboards, searing guitar, and gritty vocals. A combined sense of desperation and optimism infuses “Outlier,” as Peters ably hammers home the point that he’s a “decider,” “finisher” and “still here.”

A high spirited, inspirational tone is at the heart of “Savior,” while “Metaverse” features fuzztone guitar snatches and - along with the hip-hop beat-driven “Wired” – deftly uses modern technology lyrical references (the thought-provoking latter song namechecks Alexa and Siri).

Elsewhere, “One in a Million” has a rabble-rousing vibe and autobiographical bent. Despite the realistic lyrics, a harmonious, organ-infused “Soul Town” should put a smile to any Alarm fan’s face as it seemingly pays tribute to The Jam’s “A Town Called Malice” (or classic Motown).

The fact that Transformation has less than 100,000 Spotify streams to date it a travesty. It is definitely an “all killer, no filler” album that should appeal to Alarm or Peters solo fans from any era.

Photo courtesy Reybee PR

Medium Build, currently touring with Mumford & Sons, reveals September album details

Island Records

Medium Build—a.k.a. acclaimed singer-songwriter Nick Carpenter— is set for the release of his new album King of Having Fun on September 4 via slowplay/Island Records. The first single is “Armor;” listen HERE/share HERE. Pre-order/pre-save the album HERE.

“‘Armor’ is the first song I knew was on the album. The most transparent look into my no filter stream of consciousness,” says Carpenter of the track. “The lyrics and the music pair up to imprint the feeling of unease and awareness that comes with being alive nowadays. If you listen to the lyrics there’s a lot to chew on, if you just vibe the music there’s a lot to bop to. Hope it leaves you better than it found you.”

King of Having Fun marks Carpenter’s first full length album since 2024’s Country. It often approaching each song from a perspective of playing live in bigger rooms and focusing on “rock and roll moments.” Carpenter explores multiple genres with traces of ’90s pop-country, modern country, rock, indie and more across the 14 tracks.

“I’m swinging for some big ideas, and I’m proud of how I showed up lyrically, leaving it all out there,” Carpenter details. “There’s a playfulness, sonically, and it’s a big collaboration, with six or seven people involved on almost every tune.”

He goes on to explain, “I’ve had no problem describing how sucky it is to be with someone; I’ve never been good at writing about how nice it can be. So this record feels like the first time I was able to say, in an artistic way that didn’t feel cloying, ‘Thank you for loving me”… This album has a genuine love song for my partner and a genuine love song for my mom… I guess it’s a sign of my growth. It’s maybe the best and most important thing I’ve ever made…. It’s a celebration of life.”

Medium Build is on the road supporting Mumford & Sons this August ahead of a fall headline tour. See below for a list of dates.

Born and raised in Georgia, Carpenter now splits his time between hometowns in Nashville, Tennessee and Anchorage, Alaska. Creating Medium Build in 2015, Nick Carpenter has gone on to release five studio albums to date. He has become a favorite across the creative community, with artists including John Mayer, Zach Bryan, Elton John, boygenius and more counting themselves amongst his fans. 

He has toured with the likes of Role Model, Tyler Childers, FINNEAS, Holly Humberstone and Briston Maroney, and found himself in a highly coveted slot on Zane Lowe’s Artists to Watch 2024 list. In 2025, he was nominated for Emerging Act of the Year at the 24th Annual Americana Honors & Awards.

Track listing:

1. Every Noise Is You
2. Do Something Productive
3. Perceived
4. Bird Woman
5. Home Depot
6. It’s Not Easy (Falling In Love)
7. Cone Off
8. Feed the Boys
9. In My Gut
10. Chill
11. Downpour
12. Armor
13. King of Having Fun
14. Thank You, Cook

Tour Dates: 

July 31—Shakopee, MN—Mystic Lake Amphitheater*
August 2—Riverside, MO—Morton Amphitheater*
August 4—Atlanta, GA—State Farm Arena*
August 6—Hollywood, FL—Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino*
August 7—Tampa, FL—Benchmark International Arena*
August 9—Charlotte, NC—Spectrum Center*
August 11—Madison Square Garden—New York, NY*
August 12—Madison Square Garden—New York, NY*
August 13—Madison Square Garden—New York, NY*
August 15—Gilford, NH—Bank of New Hampshire Pavilion*
October 4—Washington, DC—9:30 Club†
October 5—Pittsburgh, PA—Mr. Small's Theater†
October 6—Philadelphia, PA—Theatre of the Living Arts†
October 9—New York, NY—Webster Hall†
October 10—Cambridge, MA—Royale†
October 12—Toronto, ON—The Concert Hall†
October 13—Detroit, MI—St. Andrews‡
October 16—Chicago, IL—Metro‡
October 17—Madison, WI—Majestic Theatre‡
October 18—Minneapolis, MN—First Avenue‡
October 21—Oklahoma City, OK—Tower Theater‡
October 23—Denver, CO—Gothic‡
October 24—Salt Lake City, UT—Soundwell‡
October 26—Vancouver, BC—Vogue§
October 28—Seattle, WA—The Showbox§
October 29—Portland, OR—Roseland Theatre§
October 31—San Francisco, CA—The Regency Ballroom*
November 2—San Diego, CA—The Observatory*
November 5—Los Angeles, CA—The Bellwether*
November 6—Phoenix, AZ—The Van Buren*
November 9—Dallas, TX—Studio at the Bomb Factory*
November 10—Austin, TX—Emo’s*
November 12—Memphis, TN—Satellite Music Hall††
November 13—Louisville, KY—Mercury Ballroom††
November 16—Columbus, OH—Newport Music Hall††
November 17—Indianapolis, IN—Deluxe††
November 20—Nashville, TN—Brooklyn Bowl††

*supporting Mumford & Sons
†with Ken Kates
‡with Bella White
§with Merle Law
**with The Scratch
††with Eden Joel

Sam Smith returns with 'Hazel Eyes' in August

Capitol Records

Multiple award-winning pop/R&B singer and songwriter Sam Smith - of "Stay with Me" and "I'm Not the Only One" fame - has detailed fifth studio album Hazel Eyes, set for release on August 21. 

New single “My Guy” is out now via Capitol Records and accompanied by an official music video. Go HERE to pre-order Hazel Eyes, listen to “My Guy” HERE, and watch the video HERE.

“This album is an incredibly special record to me,” says Sam. “I have been writing it for over three years with a very small group of beautiful, dear friends of mine. This album is very personal, and I feel I have deepened myself as an artist through the making of it, through being a producer on the record, to walking alongside this record from the start to the finish and pushing myself at every single turn. This record and this music is incredibly romantic. I’ve learned so many life lessons through making this album, and I’ve documented it all through the music.”

Hazel Eyes was co-produced by the UK artist. Most of it took shape in New York, where Sam was joined by guest Feist, and draws from baroque pop, British folk, outlaw country, and R&B. 

“My Guy” (co-written by Sam, Feist, and Shahzad Ismaily), is a portrait of fully requited love as Sam proclaims their all-out affection for the one they adore. Feist and Moses Sumney join in on girl-group-esque harmonies. Earlier this week Sam performed “My Guy” on Later…with Jools Holland, watch HERE.

Said Sam of “My Guy”:

 ”This is a song that I feel I have been waiting a lifetime to write and sing. Written with beautiful friends on a summer’s day in New York, this one fell out of the sky. In this sometimes cold and distant world, I hope you can feel the love and the closeness of this recording. I tried to capture the glow and the warmth of love in this one, it makes me cry, maybe it will make you feel a little love too.”

In a kickoff to NYC Pride Weekend, Sam is performing tonight at The Booking.com Theater at the Stonewall National Monument Visitor Center (SNMVC). The first LGBTQ+ visitor center within the National Park Service, the SNMVC honors the legacy of the 1969 Stonewall Uprising and serves as a vital physical sanctuary dedicated to protecting and preserving LGBTQ+ history. 

The follow-up to Gloria (a 2023 LP featuring their global smash single “Unholy” with Kim Petras), Hazel Eyes also includes the previously released “Love Is A Stillness” and “To Be Free.” 

Track listing: 

1. Everlasting Love
2. Hazel Eyes
3. Moondance (feat. Feist)
4. My Guy
5. When He’s Gone
6. Thief
7. Love Is A Stillness
8. Sugar Rush
9. Oh Mother (feat. The TwoCity Chorus)
10. Constant Companion
11. Hold On
12. To Be Free

UK alt-rock band Editors explore 'Surface, Echo & Sound' in October

Editors' 8th studio album, Surface, Echo & Sound, is slated for release on October 30 through Play It Again Sam. The latest single is "The Rush." 

Watch the video HERE

Following 2022’s EBM, a collaboration with electronic producer Benjamin John Power, aka Blanck Mass, on Surface, Echo & Sound, Editors have found themselves somewhere new entirely. When the band regrouped in summer 2025 to work on a follow-up, after three albums written and recorded very much as in-the-studio projects, Editors felt they wanted to go back to a more natural approach, something that harked back to their earliest days, sat in a practice room in Stafford, facing each other as they worked through songs together.

Like on last year’s solo record There is Nothing In The Dark That Isn’t There In The Light, frontman Tom Smith took a similar stripped back, acoustic-based approach to the new Editors material, bringing a selection of songs to the band for them to play together, trying different things out, and seeing where they went. 

In terms of creating the record, “It was a very productive summer, ” says Smith. “The sun was out for the most part, we were in greenest Gloucestershire, not far from where I live, on this innocuous little industrial estate – it was pretty much the opposite of being in Berghain!”

"The Rush" is described by the frontman as an imagined bar scene of two people talking about life, drinking, and thinking about all the ups and downs. Smith continues, “that idea of finding comfort in people close to me, friends and loved ones and family, is a theme that comes up all the time. It’s a theme that is in everything to a degree.”

The track features Smith on mandolin, an instrument that provides a more organic core to Surface, Echo & Sound. “It’s not used in a folky kind of way, but it brings a warm element that can spike through anything in the mix,” says the band’s guitarist Justin Lockey who also recorded and produced the album. “As a texture, it’s definitely a big character on this record. A lot of the rhythms come from the mandolin and the acoustic as much as they do from the drums.”

The single arrives alongside an official video, shot in Tokyo and directed by Henry Ehara.

Pre-Order / Save The Album HERE

Formed in 2002, having met at university in Birmingham, Editors have released seven studio albums all of which achieved top 10 status in the UK. Their debut album, The Back Room (2005) received a Mercury Prize nomination and the 2007 follow up, An End Has A Start, reached number 1 in the UK and went on to earn a Brit Award nomination. Their 2009 album In This Light And On This Evening also hit the top spot in the UK album charts.

Track list:

Surface, Echo & Sound
Call It In
The Rush
Rescue
Shadow
Real
Happiness
Much Love
Butterfly Wings
Seriously
The Hills We Died Upon

Mammoth box set of Joy Division rarities set for September

Joy Division's ETERNAL (LIVE), the first-ever official collection of live concert recordings, is out on Sept. 25. 

The box set is available to pre-order now via Warner Music. It brings together audio from 16 live performances across 14 CDs, sourced from audience recorded cassettes, soundboard tapes and broadcast recordings, all mastered at Abbey Road Studios.

ETERNAL (LIVE) documents two previously unreleased shows, Hope & Anchor and Acklam Hall, and three previously unheard recordings: The Factory, Lyceum, and Moonlight Club (2nd April). It also features the band’s final live performance, at High Hall Birmingham in 1980.

There are two DVDs featuring over 2hrs 30mins of live shows, including the previously unseen Plan K, Brussels concert and two concerts and soundcheck from the Apollo Theatre, Manchester that have only been partially released on VHS (in 1982) and a brand new edit of Joy Division - A Malcolm Whitehead Film.

Go to rhino.com for full track listing.

PRE-ORDER ETERNAL (LIVE)

STREAM "TRANSMISSION"
(LES BAINS DOUCHES,
PARIS) 12/18/79

In related news, "Ian Curtis: Insight" is now showing in NYC. The major exhibition exploring the life and legacy of Ian Curtis brings rare archival material to the United States for the first time.

Presented through a revealing selection of handwritten lyrics, photographs, personal letters, ephemera and artefacts drawn from the Ian Curtis archive, held by The John Rylands Library at The University of Manchester as part of the British Pop Archive.

The exhibition shows Ian Curtis as a writer and observer whose words captured a time and place while speaking to themes of alienation, vulnerability and connection. Curated with full access to the archive, the exhibition reveals the tension, tenderness and energy that defined his – and Joy Division’s – short life and enduring influence.

Runs through July 22.

Phoebe Bridgers takes fans on a 'Lost Weekend' later this summer, tour in the fall

Phoebe Bridgers' third album. Lost Weekend arrives August 14th on Dead Oceans. New single, “Lost Boys” is now available on streaming platforms with a video directed by Lance Oppenheim and Pablo Rochat. 

Stream “Lost Boys” Here
Watch the Video

“Lost Boys” marks the four-time GRAMMY winner’s first original material to be released since 2022’s “Sidelines” single.

The news comes after a run of surprise ‘pop-up’ shows across the US, which culminated earlier this month with a sold out show at New York City’s Madison Square Garden. Her newly announced arena tour sold out in North America and the UK within hours of the general on-sale. All dates below.

Lost Weekend is the first Phoebe Bridgers album since her multi-GRAMMY nominated sophomore album, Punisher. 

Pre-Order Lost Weekend

Before her recent pop up shows, Bridgers was last seen on stage with boygenius, her group with Lucy Dacus and Julien Baker, collecting their GRAMMY Awards for 2023’s the record, including ‘Best Alternative Music Album’ and both ‘Best Rock Song’ and ‘Best Rock Performance’ for their song “Not Strong Enough.” 

Bridgers, it turns out, left the building as the evening’s most awarded artist; she won her fourth GRAMMY ‘Best Pop Duo/Group Performance,’ for the song “Ghost in the Machine,” a feature on SZA’s SOS. Before that, a stint of dates opening for Taylor Swift on The Eras Tour. And before that, for nearly two years, her solo Reunion Tour, featuring three sold-out legs in North America, thirty shows in Europe, and a finale of dates in South America, Asia, and Australia. 

Tour dates:

09.14.26 — Indianapolis, IN @ Gainbridge Fieldhouse* (SOLD OUT)

09.15.26 — Indianapolis, IN @ Gainbridge Fieldhouse* (SOLD OUT)
09.17.26 — St. Paul, MN @ Grand Casino Arena* (SOLD OUT)
09.18.26 — Chicago, IL @ United Center* (SOLD OUT)
09.19.26 — Chicago, IL @ United Center* (SOLD OUT)
09.22.26 — Columbus, OH @ Nationwide Arena* (SOLD OUT)
09.24.26 — Brooklyn, NY @ Barclays Center* (SOLD OUT)
09.25.26 — Brooklyn, NY @ Barclays Center* (SOLD OUT)
09.26.26 — Brooklyn, NY @ Barclays Center* (SOLD OUT)
09.28.26 — Philadelphia, PA @ Xfinity Mobile Arena* (SOLD OUT)
09.29.26 — Washington, DC @ Capital One Arena* (SOLD OUT)
10.01.26 — Toronto, ON @Scotiabank Arena* (SOLD OUT)
10.02.26 — Toronto, ON @Scotiabank Arena* (SOLD OUT)
10.03.26 — Detroit, MI @ Little Caesars Arena* (SOLD OUT)
10.06.26 — Boston, MA @TD Garden* (SOLD OUT)
10.07.26 — Boston, MA @TD Garden* (SOLD OUT)
10.09.26 — Charlotte, NC @ Spectrum Center* (SOLD OUT)
10.10.26 — Nashville, TN @ Bridgestone Arena* (SOLD OUT)
10.11.26 — Nashville, TN @ Bridgestone Arena* (SOLD OUT)
10.13.26 — Atlanta, GA @ State Farm Arena* (SOLD OUT)
10.16.26 — Austin, TX @ Moody Center* (SOLD OUT)
10.17.26 — Fort Worth, TX @ Dickies Arena* (SOLD OUT)
10.19.26 — Denver, CO @ Ball Arena* (SOLD OUT)
10.21.26 — Salt Lake City, UT @ Delta Center* (SOLD OUT)
10.23.26 — Seattle, WA @ Climate Pledge Arena* (SOLD OUT)
10.24.26 — Vancouver, BC @ Rogers Arena* (SOLD OUT)
10.27.26 — San Francisco, CA @ Chase Center* (SOLD OUT)
10.28.26 — San Francisco, CA @ Chase Center* (SOLD OUT)
10.30.26 — Los Angeles, CA @ Intuit Dome* (SOLD OUT)
10.31.26 — Los Angeles, CA @ Intuit Dome* (SOLD OUT)
11.01.26 — Los Angeles, CA @ Intuit Dome* (SOLD OUT)
* with Alex G