New music: Put these 3 cool albums on your must-listen-to list for July

Here are three albums with July release dates that should definitely be on your radar:

“X’s,” Cigarettes After Sex

The fact that this twee dream-pop outfit from El Paso, Texas has suddenly turned into a massively hot arena headliner has to rank as one of the biggest didn’t-see-it-coming storylines in recent pop music history. But we’ll just chalk it up as a triumph of good taste — since Cigarettes After Sex is, indeed, quite excellent — and get ready to see the band when it performs at Oakland Arena on Oct. 5. Greg Gonzalez and company are supporting their third album, “X’s,” which hits stores July 12.

“Still Waters,” Leanna Crawford

Christian music fans have been waiting for quite some time for this Pacific Northwest native to deliver her full-length debut and, now, the release date — July 19 —  is just around the corner. So, get ready to dive into “Still Waters,” which features a stunning title track that is every bit as memorable as such past triumphs as “How Can You Not” and “Truth I’m Standing On.” The debut follows a pair of really nice EPs  — “Crazy Beautiful You” from 2018 and Crawford’s self-titled outing from 2020.

“Dr. Dog,” Dr. Dog

After releasing 10 full-length albums over the course of a recording career that dates back to the early 2000s, this Philadelphia rock act is finally set to deliver a self-titled outing on July 19. The work follows such top 10-charting indie offerings as 2012’s “Be the Void” and 2018’s “Critical Equation.”