Our regular look at artists worth paying attention to now.
Three acts with new music, growing momentum and a reason to get on your radar before everybody else catches up.
– WORDS BY JAMBALOO EDITORIAL TEAM
Wishy
Indianapolis band Wishy are already moving toward album number two. Nature’s Pill arrives October 2, following their 2024 debut Triple Seven and last year’s Planet Popstar EP, continuing a run that has quickly pushed them beyond being another promising new guitar band.
New single “All The Rage” keeps their mix of shoegaze, dream-pop and ’90s alternative rock intact, but Wishy have always been more interested in hooks than hiding behind distortion. The guitars are fuzzy and bright, while the song underneath stays direct and melodic. There is plenty of texture, but very little gets in the way of the chorus.
That balance is becoming their strongest trait. Wishy can sound hazy without disappearing into the haze, and “All The Rage” suggests Nature’s Pill could push that even further.
VEAUX
Nashville trio VEAUX sit somewhere between indie rock and alternative pop, building songs from synths, guitars, programmed elements and big choruses without leaning too heavily into any one of them.
Their latest single “Yours Tonight” is short, immediate and bigger than its two-minute runtime suggests. It is polished without feeling overly clean, with enough movement in the production to keep the track from settling into straightforward pop.
The band are spending much of 2026 on the road, including a Dallas stop at Puzzles Deep Ellum on August 20 supporting Emarosa on the High Horse Heaven Tour. It comes at a good time for VEAUX, whose sound has gradually become sleeker and more electronic while still retaining the feel of three people playing together. They have been around long enough to know what works, but still sound like a band figuring out how far they can push it.
Mallory Hawk
Mallory Hawk’s debut album Chinook arrived in July after years spent working around independent music, including time playing with Customer, Trace Mountains and M(h)aol, alongside her work at Double Double Whammy.
That experience gives Chinook the feel of a debut made without much interest in sounding tentative. Hawk moves between indie rock, post-punk, new wave and noisier guitar music, often shifting direction before any one influence has time to take over.
“Revolver” is an easy way in, built around a strong guitar line and a vocal that keeps things grounded, but the record becomes more interesting as it opens up. Some songs are sharper and more rhythmic, others messier and more abrasive, giving Chinook the feeling of somebody finally getting the chance to put several years of musical ideas in one place.
It may be Hawk’s first album under her own name, but very little about it sounds like a first attempt.
