Assorted ramblings from the world of entertainment:

• I drink my coffee black, but I had it with a little Sugar Wednesday morning.

Sugar, the band Bob Mould formed with David Barbe and Malcolm Travis in the early ’90s, released its first new song in about 30 years with “House of Dead Memories.”

The band also announced two shows in New York City on May 2 and 3, 2026, and London later that month.

Mould started with Husker Du and has released many solo albums before and after Sugar’s brief tenure, but Sugar was the closest Mould ever came to mainstream success, with songs like “Helpless,” “If I Can’t Change Your Mind” and “Your Favorite Thing” all getting extensive airplay on alt-rock radio and MTV.

I saw Sugar live a couple of times in the ’90s (one or both at the old downtown Cleveland club Empire), and I have seen Mould solo electric or with his band (Jon Wurster and Jason Narducy) at least a half dozen times, including a show in Washington, D.C., about a decade ago when he played Sugar’s “Copper Blue” album in its entirety.

In a Rolling Stone interview coinciding with the single’s release, Mould said, “I don’t want to get out too far in front of the skis, as they say. People’s reactions will probably guide a lot of the possibilities in front of us, whether it’s more songs or more shows. All three of us are all in for whatever feels right. I just want to see if people are still interested.”

Considering the new website (sugarcopperblue.com) was overwhelmed with traffic following the song’s release, hopefully that means I won’t have to contemplate a roadtrip for another spoonful of Sugar.

• Speaking of power pop with a punk edge or loud rock with a sense of melody, I had a great time Saturday at Westside Bowl for a double bill of Infidels and The Jellybricks.

It’s hard to imagine a more perfect pairing. Infidels are Youngstown legends who’ve toured internationally and been playing together off and on for more than 40 years.

It’s also the rare band anywhere that features four musicians — Pete Drivere and Dave Lisko, guitars; John Hlumyk, bass; and John Koury, drums — who all are songwriters and all sing lead vocals, depending on the song.

The Jellybricks are based in Harrisburg, Pa., but the group features Valley native Larry Kennedy, who played with Infidels at one point and formed a band in Harrisburg that follows the same ethos — four guys who all write and sing.

“Age of Stupid,” from The Jellybricks’ latest album, “Dreaming in Stereo,” was named “Coolest Song in the World” for 2024 by listeners to Stevie Van Zandt’s syndication radio show “Little Steven’s Underground Garage.” It closed the band’s opening set, which leaned heavily on songs from “Dreaming in Stereo” and “Some Kind of Lucky” but also dipped back to some early material.

Infidels showcased at least half of the songs from its 2025 album “Never Forever,” its first release in more than 20 years (I was off the clock and had a beer in hand, not a notebook, so I didn’t scribble down a setlist). It’s by far the most played album in the Gray household in 2025, and I’m always amazed how four musicians with distinctive voices and overlapping, but not identical, influences create albums that work so well as a cohesive whole.

I picked up the Jellybricks’ last two albums on vinyl Saturday along with Lisko’s solo release, “Spiders & the Sun,” which has some very Indifels-ish songs on it but also explores some different ideas. Give all four albums a spin wherever you stream music — or better yet, buy a physical copy and support great local music.

And it was all over by about 10:30 p.m., which is before the opening act would have taken the stage for an Infidels’ show back in the day at Cedars Lounge.

For those who missed them at Westside Bowl, Infidels will play a Cleveland record release show on Nov. 1 at Beachland Tavern.

Andy Gray is the entertainment editor of Ticket. Write to him at agray@tribtoday.com.