Welcome to AP&R, where we highlight rising artists who are on their way to becoming your new favorite. Below, we’ve rounded up a handful of names from around the world who either just dropped music or have new music on the way very soon. These are the December up-and-comers, artists picked for their standout sound, from woozy dream pop and lo-fi indie to sugary slacker rock.
Read more: 25 best albums of 2023 so far
Yungatita
Yungatita, a burgeoning crew out of East LA, hark back to the days of cassette mixtapes, dial-up, and meticulously fast-forwarding VHS tapes to get to a specific part. Led by Valentina Zapata, the band joyride between slacker pop and dreamier impulses but are at their best when they play loud and loose. “WHIPLASH,” one of the latest singles from their debut LP, Shoelace & a Knot (out Jan. 3), is exceptionally catchy and raw, evoking a swirl of sugary vocals, grainy production, and guitar shredding that captures the blow of an unrequited crush. RIYL Pavement, Courtney Barnett, and Pardoner. —Neville Hardman
Death Lens
Hailing from East LA, Death Lens make pummeling, DIY-minded punk with a pop stickiness. On their 2022 album, No Luck, the band spun songs couched in anxiety and grief while pointing to a glass half-full. They’re proof that life gets better, as they grew up threatened by constant police harassment and gang violence but turned toward positivity and strived to set a new standard instead. Death Lens signed to Epitaph earlier this year, where they made their label debut with the sober anthem “Vacant” and followed it up with the simmering “Limousine.” As they prepare to open for Militarie Gun on tour next year, their star is bound to rise. —Neville Hardman
crushed
crushed are a dynamic duo if there ever were one. The brainchild of Shaun Durkan of SoCal shoegaze outfit Weekend and Bre Morell of woozy, gothic group Temple of Angels, the band have been destined to give dream pop a fresh new face. Shrugging off the genre’s muddiest, and most common cliches, the two have thoughtfully crafted a sound inspired by trip-hop and ’90s pop that refreshingly and inherently remains their own. This month, they will be supporting Deafheaven on their Sunbather 10th anniversary tour. —Anna Zanes
late night drive home
El Paso indie outfit late night drive home have a lot to celebrate. Their bilingual, Strokes-esque track “Stress Relief” racked up over 60 million streams, building a viral buzz around the band that started as a lo-fi project between two friends, and became the beloved foursome that were recently signed to Epitaph Records. While the swiftly rising quartet cite Car Seat Headrest and twenty one pilots, among other 2000s garage-rock greats, as inspiration, their sound, and goals, are all their own — reinventing indie music for a modern age while increasing representation for Latin artists in the genre. They have a holiday show in Los Angeles coming up this month, a trippy new video out, and international dates on the horizon for 2024. —Anna Zanes
Haux
Berkshires native and singer-songwriter Woodson Black has been creating impeccable dream-folk under the alias Haux since 2016. Throughout, his music has found a delicate balance between heavy, personal lyricism and soft melodies embroidered with Black’s trademark falsetto. When it comes to both sound and ethos, Black sums Haux up best himself: “You gotta dance through the dark times.” In pursuit of his tender debut album in 2020, last month HAUX released “Carte Blanche,” the title track off his sophomore full-length, to arrive in the spring of 2024. —Anna Zanes
Friko
Friko — the duo of vocalist/guitarist Niko Kapetan and drummer Bailey Minzenberger — are making their mark within Chicago’s bubbling indie-rock scene. With their debut studio album, Where we’ve been, Where we go from here (out Feb. 16 via ATO), the band use a mix of varying genres (baroque pop, post-punk) that swerve between tempos and moods. On their latest, “For Ella,” they take a heel-turn and nod to classical music through a satisfying, cathartic slow build that proves emotional intensity is just as enthralling as crushing loudness. The result is a gorgeous, romantic ode that sounds totally timeless. —Neville Hardman
