![NewDad’s Julie Dawson worships at the Altar of “Robert Smith, Karen O, beer [and] Geese.”](https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/11cb9b1/2147483647/strip/true/crop/5074x2854+0+0/resize/1920x1080!/format/webp/quality/90/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnpr-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F41%2F05%2Fa6a29f564efb919ebcd89566244b%2Fjulie-dawson.jpg)
Anthony Scanga
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Studio One
Julie Dawson, lead singer of the dreamy Irish alternative band NewDad, gushes over The Cure, considers a second solo album and finally reveals: What is a Roobosh?
![“I didn't expect music would happen, so I don't know what else will happen,” said Xenya Genovese, aka Freak Slug, about being open to universe. “We don't know [with] the state of the world what can happen."](https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/aae95cf/2147483647/strip/true/crop/5472x3078+0+77/resize/960x540!/format/webp/quality/90/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnpr-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F69%2Faf%2F42cf55be4d1da829a0ec56cb45ab%2Fan0i8632.jpg)
Manchester indie sleazeball Xenya Genovese, AKA Freak Slug, explains her radio habits, favorite Gallagher brother and switching from murals to music: “This is my destiny.”
Central Iowa duo Beggars Bargain has arrived with a soulful indie-rock style and an album fueled by relentless positivity.
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Musicians to watch in 2026 include Sophia Isella, Die Spitz, Buffalo Traffic Jam, Pink Siifu, Haute & Freddie and more. -
Blvck Bunnie started THOT SQUAD as a joke. Now, it's anything but. Flint, MI's raunchy rap sensation reflects on her Iowa debut at Alternating Currents, providing catharsis and making music with her husband. -
Minneapolis garage band Durry’s second album, This Movie Sucks, is caked in pop-punk millennial nostalgia. Siblings Austin and Taryn Durry discuss their new record, its "secret track" and the biggest tour of their careers.
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Fans of Erykah Badu, Sleep Token, FKA Twigs, Lorde, Young Thug, Syd and GWAR can all find common cause in Dua Saleh, a nonbinary nonconformist making darkly-decadent dance music for high society and thrift shop riff-raff alike. -
Iowa-based Weary Ramblers have been having a good past year, with an explosively successful debut album and folk music awards as evidence of their success. Contributing writer Joe Alton takes a look at the super duo, their dynamic and friendship, and what's ahead for them. -
New bands pop up every day, which makes keeping up with artists is a full time job. Here to help, we've got five artists we're keeping an eye on in 2025.
