A new year is not only a great time for resolutions and fresh starts, but also new beginnings and surprises. 2015 may have begun almost a solid 4 months ago at this point, but surprises and new beginnings with alternative bands and artists are still just getting started! Philly’s Radio 104.5, a station many Padua students and teachers enjoy listening to, loves to make new releases of indie and alternative bands albums and songs known.

Jumping the gun on December 2nd, 2014, a month before 2015 even began, the band Walk the Moon released their newest album Talking is Hard. Popular songs from this album that can be heard on Radio 104.5 or other alternative music stations include “Shut up and Dance” and “Different Colors.”

Following Walk the Moon, the up and coming band Catfish and the Bottleman released their first album, The Balcony, on January 6th, 2015. Their catchy single “Kathleen” is frequently played on Radio 104.5 and has sparked interest in the band for many of their new fans. After Walk the Moon and Catfish and the Bottleman made their new marks on alternative music, many other bands simultaneously followed.

Modest Mouse released their newest single “Lampshades on Fire” on March 3rd, along with another album Strangers to Ourselves ten days later on March 13th. On March 6th, three days after “Lampshades on Fire” premiered, Of Monsters and Men stepped up to the plate and released “Crystals,” a new song that will keep their fans on their toes until their next album Beneath the Skin is out on June 9th. Mumford and Sons fans will also be kept on their toes as well, as the band released their newest single “Believe” on March 9th, only to spark excitement in their fans for their next album Wilder Mind on May 4th. One thing that sets Wilder Mind apart from the rest of these albums though is that Mumford and Sons have removed their signature folk sounding instruments of the banjo, acoustic strumming, and the kick drum, to replace them with a more electric feel, using guitars, synths, mellotrons and drum machines.

All of this new music can only make fans of these bands have more of a drive to not only gain a stronger passion for them, but also see them live in concert. Walk the Moon and Of Monsters and Men can be seen at 8th Annual Radio 104.5 Birthday Show at The Susquehanna Bank Center in Camden, New Jersey on May 10th. Catfish and the Bottleman fans don’t have to have that much patience though, as they will be playing the first Radio 104.5 2015 Summer Block Party at Festival Pier on May 3rd. The second day (June 19th) of the 2015 Firefly Music Festival in Dover, Delaware would be the nearest time for Modest Mouse fans to see them, along with other bands as well. Mumford and Sons have left local fans hanging a bit though, as they announced 2015 tour dates but with no shows more local than the GOTR Seaside Heights Stopover in Seaside Heights, New Jersey on June 5th and 6th.

Alternative music fans should definitely keep their eyes and ears open though, especially to Radio 104.5. If the first mere 3 months of 2015 have brought this much already, one can only hope that there will be plenty more of surprises in store as the year continues!