5 May 2026 - Maya Hawke - To Love A Boy

On July 4th, 2019, Season 3 of the Netflix hit show Stanger Things dropped. That is when so many people were introduced to a new character named Robin Buckley, who inspired a LOT of 2019 Halloween costumes.

You all had one friend who dressed like this that year.  ADMIT IT!

That character was played by actress (and daughter of Uma Thurman) Maya Hawke.  

Now, when you all saw the name of the artist, a lot of you didn't need me to tell you that this was Robin.  I learned the name of the artist, and I wondered if she was related to Ethan Hawke (she is - that's her dad). Because, you see, I've seen maybe five minutes of Stranger Things. 

This isn't an actor's blog.  It's a music blog.  So, where am I going with this?

On August 16th, 2019 - just a month later - Maya Hawke started her music career with two songs that she co-wrote with Jesse Harris.  She was a young singer-songwriter, but was already showing a maturity in her storytelling.  

Despite her continued busy acting schedule, Hawke does perform live, as she did in 2020 - and her voice was just breathtaking.

Her new album, MAITREYA CORSO, was released last week, so she's also still making music - and the album is excellent. 

4 May 2026 - sleepazoid - NEW AGE

The absolute best thing about this blog is learning about new music that I would not have otherwise heard.  

Lately, that journey has taken me to Australia an awful lot.  Take this band, who formed in Melbourne in 2024 and just released their second EP, NEW AGE, this February. Combining post-punk and showgaze elements, they bring a fresh energy to their music.

Sounds like this don't come out of nowhere. This very tight five piece was performing this song last September - and you can see and hear the raw energy, and the wall of three guitars creating a rich, layered rock sound. 

1 May 2026 - Mikaela Davis ft. Madison Cunningham & Tim Heidecker - (Looking Through) Rose Colored Glasses

I listened to this album - Graceland Way - on the day it came out - last Friday, April 24th - without knowing a single thing about Mikaela Davis.  The cover did tell me something about the album, though. 

Can we guess the genre?

What I did NOT guess was that Davis was a classically trained harpist, which is really cool. And she actually plays it - on the album and on stage. 

What I did NOT guess is that Davis's record label is Kill Rock Stars, famous home to the riot grrl revolution of the 1990s.

What I REALLY did NOT guess is that Davis is performing at the Lilac Festival in Rochester, NY on May 13th - a Wednesday night, so I likely won't be there, but that does not mean I'm not going to try - because, and this is the kicker, she's actually FROM Rochester, NY. 

Without knowing ANY of that, I listened to what is an excellent album.  This is the second single from that album - featuring Tim Heidecker (of the comedy duo Tim & Eric) and Grammy winning artist Madison Cunningham - and it is a sweet, bright, throwback of a country song... complete with harp. 

30 April 2026 (Special Edition) - David Allan Coe - Take This Job and Shove It / Take This Job and Shove It Too

To be fair, he DID write it, and he DID record it first - in 1978.  It's HIS song. 

And, after Johnny Paycheck made it a monster hit and everyone assumed he wrote the song - and Johnny Paycheck HIMSELF implied this was true and definitely downplayed the actual songwriter - David Allan Coe wrote a sequel.

I'm not saying this was the reason, but Johnny Paycheck would never have another #1 hit song. 

30 April 2026 (Special Edition) - David Allan Coe - You Never Even Called Me By My Name

It feels a little weird to pay tribute to a great outlaw country singer-songwriter like David Allan Coe - whose biggest hit wasn't made popular by his own recording of the song. ("Take This Job And Shove It", by Johnny Paycheck, by the way). 

But no.  This perfect country and western song - co-written by Steve Goodman and an uncredited-by-choice John Prine, would end up being Coe's biggest personally recorded hit song. It hit #8 on the Country charts in 1975, and ended up being one of the biggest hits of the year.

This live performance of the song - despite the fact that he didn't write it - illustrates just how great a storyteller Coe was.  

David Allan Coe passed away yesterday.  His voice and his songwriting will be missed. 

30 April 2026 - *NSYNC - It's Gonna Be Me

Roses are red

The skies are grey

But come tomorrow....

Justin Timberlake is absolutely saying "me".  

OK, I'm clearly posting this because it's gonna be May.  But also, it's a fun song.  It was also the ONLY #1 song by *NSYNC - and they charted a LOT.  This was their biggest hit, and it still endures every late April to this day. 

Here they are performing it "live".

29 April 2026 - Carla dal Forno - Going Out

 Wikipedia calls Australian artist Carla dal Forno an "electro-pop singer".

Yeah.  Maybe.

But she's much more than that. 

Her latest album, Confession, was released on Friday, and it is one of my favorites of 2026 so far.  It's dreamy and skilled.  Her fourth solo album (after three as lead vocalist for the band F Ingers (and a release or two with Mole House)), it is a lush masterpiece.

Today's song leads off the album, and it is an ethereal opus that sets the tone for the entire album.