NEWS
Acoustic soul rocker Buggy Jive set to release new single ‘This Will Never Be On the Radio’ Aug. 15
Buggy Jive’s new tongue-in-cheek folk funk rocker with a Bonham beat arrives as a preview of sorts to the vibe and sonics of the forthcoming album Icarus Ascending, which is tentatively set for a Fall 2025 release.
Song and lyric video serve as teasers for forthcoming album 'Icarus Ascending'
Still image from the lyric video for Buggy Jive’s new single “This Will Never Be On the Radio.” Yes, he actually left the house for this one.
ALBANY, NY – Wednesday, Aug. 6 – Acoustic soul rock singer-songwriter Buggy Jive will release his latest single Friday, August 15, 2025.
"This Will Never Be On the Radio" is a tongue-in-cheek funky folk rocker with a Bonham beat, as if Bill Withers got into an intense argument with Led Zeppelin. It drops this month as a preview of sorts to the vibe and sonics of the forthcoming album Icarus Ascending, which is tentatively set for a Fall 2025 release.
The lyric video for the song follows Buggy walking across the Brooklyn Bridge and reciting his inside-jokey lyrics to oblivious passersby. It was spontaneously shot in a single take on a 360-degree camera, with a gritty 1970s B-movie aesthetic added in post-production. The video includes cameo appearances by a certain Snake Man, a Freestyling "Rules" Man and yes, even Spider Man. Only in New York.
"Lyrically, 'Radio' came to me as a stream of consciousness meditation on resisting the business and marketing side of making music," says the artist with a straight face as if he's not the one writing this damn press release.
Like many of the songs on the forthcoming album, the B-side to “Radio” – the acoustic pop rocker “When the Thang Ain’t Enough” – investigates similar themes of art versus commerce versus the existentialism of the current moment.
“I don’t know if it’s art, but she likes it,” he sings. “And she’s calling my bluff.”
The new songs arrive in the aftermath of the somewhat reclusive artist's emergence from his basement studio for several high profile solo-acoustic shows – including opening slots for Macy Gray and Ben Folds; official and curated main stage showcases at the midwest (FARM) and northeast (NERFA) regional conferences of Folk Alliance International; a tribute show for Joni Mitchell curated by Michael Paz at the legendary Riot House in West Hollywood on the eve of Mitchell’s 2024 Hollywood Bowl shows; and a special tribute show for Tracy Chapman curated by Joy Clark at Space in Evanston, IL, as part of the Evanston Folk Festival.
In addition to the lyric video, a video of a live, solo-acoustic performance of "This Will Never Be On the Radio" is also in the works. A second single, "What Do Y'all Know About Shakespeare?" is tentatively set to drop on September 15. Beware the Ides.
Next up? Buggy Jive will be at Mojo’s Cafe in Troy, NY Saturday, Aug. 9, to co-host an evening of solo soul rock with his west coast doppelganger, multilingual singer-songwriter and cultural storyteller Amelia Ray, in support of her “Soulveillance” Tour. Details here.
ABOUT BUGGY JIVE
BUGGY JIVE is a soul rock singer-songwriter quietly uploading music from a basement somewhere in Upstate New York. Equal parts Zeppelin and D’Angelo and Prince and Joni in sound and sensibility, his lyrics often mine the literature of the past to make sense of the present – from Ellison to Morrison to Eliot to Didion – delicately balancing the heaviness with humor.
Set for a Fall 2025 release, his forthcoming album Icarus Ascending promises 13 new acoustic soul rock songs contemplating songwriting and storytelling, love and literature, and the festering fears of a divided nation.
Recent accomplishments include opening slots for Macy Gray’s “Reset” tour and Ben Folds' New Year's Eve show; a feature as a “Top Shelf” entry for NPR’s Tiny Desk Contest; Songwriter of the Year, Album of the Year and Music Video of the Year wins for Upstate New York’s “Eddie” Awards; and official and curated main stage showcases at Folk Alliance International’s northeast and midwest regional conferences (NERFA and FARM).
The artist is a graduate of Niskayuna High School in Schenectady, NY and Middlebury College in Middlebury, VT. The songwriter behind the Tiny Desk Contest fave "Don't Quit Your Day Job" may have recently quit his long time day job in digital communications at an educational non-profit headquartered in New York's Capital Region. He lives in Delmar, NY, with his wife and two daughters.
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