WBRU

09/18/2026

It is Rex's favorite day!

09/18/2026

You oughta know that 1995 was a watershed year for alternative rock, heavy, even crushing, eyeliner, and convincing ourselves that standard-definition CGI toys had souls.

God didn’t usually feature heavily on our radio, but this year we wondered if he was one of us—or if he was just stuck in a dorm room listening to the Empire Records soundtrack.

Despite all our rage, 1995 yielded an absurd run of classic records. It wasn’t just a year for the usual suspects, either; a Brown University grad ended up in our top ten (extra credit if you can name the band).

Over in the UK, Oasis and Blur were throwing literal punches in the Great Britpop War, but stateside, Noel and Liam won in a landslide. Meanwhile, Microsoft spent millions licensing the Rolling Stones for the Windows 95 launch—proving that even with Seattle’s grunge scene exploding right down the road, tech billionaires were stuck in 1979.

A lot holds up well: 11, 35, 36 are Retro Lunch regulars. We’re still scratching our heads over how Dave Matthews Band placed 30 spots above Radiohead. Things were different then.

Scroll the full list on wbru.substack.com for easier reading and links to stream the playlist, and drop your hottest takes in the comments. Who got robbed? 👇

09/17/2026

this is wbru

09/16/2026

New music always picks up once school's back in session. We’ve got five new songs for you covering a range of styles on WBRU 📻 and our Today’s Top Indie playlist 🎧.

🕹 Cage The Elephant — “Dying In Reverse”

As G put it: this feels like an instant classic. It could be about missing the person that you used to be. Cage’s “Beaches In Tennessee” has been our top song for several weeks now. We’re thinking a new album is in the offing, but still no official word.

👰 Ashe – “Stop the Wedding!”

This dramatic song, with shades of The Last Dinner Party to one set of ears, was an unexpected favorite in our weekly music meeting. “We should definitely put this on” was Lucas’s comment, something he’s never said before. Ashe’s “Moral of the Story” was #5 on WBRU’s Top 100 of 2020.

🫂Noah Kahan – “Willing and Able”

This Noah Kahan track has his signature blend of heartache and family tension — this time some sibling rivalry. In a word: relatable.

✨ The Womack Sisters – “If I Let You”

This groove-y slice of retro soul shows a more infectious side of dealing with your siblings. If Thee Sacred Souls is up your alley or vintage Amy Winehouse hits the spot, this will really send you. The sisters are technically nepo babies, but very high cred ones — their grandfather is Sam Cooke. WBRU debut.

🌆 The War On Drugs – “Who’s That”

This song was our first add this week. Masha compared its big eighties sound to the closing song in THE BREAKFAST CLUB — the best war we’ve heard in awhile.

YouTube playlist https://bit.ly/4b7AZNE
Spotify playlist: sptfy.bio/todaystopindie
Apple Music playlist https://bit.ly/4oLrQQG

09/15/2026

Possibly answers your ??? about 🌎 4 minutes at a time. You can check out this episode from last week at wbru.substack.com The next question and answer will debut on WBRU at 6:56 and 8:56 AM on Tuesday.

09/14/2026

09/11/2026

Greg emailed these to us along with this note: "I won a 'Lenny Kravitz prize pack' from you back in maybe 1994 or 1995 with his first two albums (everyone had his third!) and a VHS concert video of his that had just been released. Can’t find the VHS, but came across the CDs. I know you’re sharing/posting a lot of clothing, but not sure if you’d like to see these too!" We did, Greg.

09/10/2026

we've seen this design before -- we think late 1970s -- but never on a baseball shirt hat tip, AFTR retail on IG

09/09/2026

This week we’ve added new songs on WBRU 📻 and our Today’s Top Indie playlist 🎧 from two of our favorite artists with new albums this year. They are also both on tour and visiting New England soon.

🐝 beabadoobee — “memories”

“memories” finds bea embracing her guitar in a midtempo groove. What’s it about: “He ended up losing her because ultimately, he was fighting himself all along. She deserved someone who was at peace with themselves.” Her album PYTHON is due shortly and she’s got upcoming shows at the TD Garden and Mohegan Sun.

🚰🏠 Suki Waterhouse – “Notting Hill”

This song was a favorite in our weekly music meeting. A bit of a lazy Sunday morning, a bit of Oasis maybe. As one other put it “so dreamy, summerly, twirling and smiling”. Her album LOVELAND came out recently and she’s got an upcoming gig at MGM Music Hall in Boston.

Elsewhere, “Marianne” from Fontaines D.C. vaults into our top 10 and one of our favorite songs from a new artist “Kick Stones (The Boys)” reenters — interest in Westside Cowboy (from Manchester UK) has surged with the release of their debut album IT GOES ON.

Featuring beabadoobee Suki Waterhouse Fontaines D.C.

Let us know how you feel in the comments.

YouTube playlist https://bit.ly/4b7AZNE
Spotify playlist: sptfy.bio/todaystopindie
Apple Music playlist https://bit.ly/4oLrQQG
More links wbru.substack.com