New Music Friday - September 30, 2016

Be sure to view a list of upcoming releases here!

Essential Full-Length Releases

BANKS - The Altar BANKS had a break-out album with her 2014 debut, Goddess. The record charted respectably and earned her praise from a number of music critics. She's looking to continue the magic on her sophomore follow-up. It's a more personal affair, as she lays herself bare. So far, the album has charted fairly well, though it hasn't yet hit the same level as her debut. Watch: "Fuck with Myself" Watch: "Gemini Feed"

Bon Iver - 22, A Million It's been a little while since we last heard from Justin Vernon in the form of his Bon Iver project; five years have passed since the last record, though there have been one-off songs and shows since. Vernon has focused on other projects including The Shouting Matches, Volcano Choir, Jason Feathers, and a new label, Chigliak. With 22, A Million, he returns to the project that made him famous, with a collection of oddly-named, but still spectacular, songs. Watch: "33 ‘God’" Watch: "00000 Million"

Danny Brown - Atrocity Exhibition Danny Brown is a bit of a hip-hop outlier. His style, influences, and personality makes him stand apart from his contemporaries, but he has flow to rival any of them. His fourth record, and first for Warp Records, has him rejoining with producer Paul White. He mines influences like Talking Heads and Joy Division (the album is named for one of their songs), but works with other celebrated hip-hop artists like Earl Sweatshirt, Kelela, and Kendrick Lamar. Watch: "When It Rain" Watch: "Really Doe" (featuring Kendrick Lamar, Ab-Soul, & Earl Sweatshirt)

Regina Spektor - Remember Us to Life Regina Spektor may always be best known for her 2006 single, "Fidelity," but she was an active and consistent artist before and has remained so after. Remember Us to Life is her seventh album. The record doesn't see her straying far from her distinctive voice and sound, though she does record for the first time with a full orchestra. Watch: "Small Bill$" Listen: "Bleeding Heart"

Solange - A Seat at the Table Following the release of this third album from Solange, the Knowles sisters made history. Both released number one albums this year. Beyoncé topped the charts with Lemonade in April, an album with immensely personal subject matter. Solange went number one last month with this record, one that is at times deeply personal and at other, taking on broader themes. Both sisters have released spectacular work this year. Watch: "Cranes in the Sky" Watch: "Don’t Touch My Hair"

Other Full-Length Releases

Aldous Harding - Aldous Harding Watch: "Stop Your Tears" Watch: "No Peace"

Bob Weir - Blue Mountain Listen: "Only a River" Listen: "Lay My Lily Down"

DJ Mustard - Cold Summer Watch: "Want Her" (featuring Quavo & YG) Listen: "Party" (featuring Young Thug & YG)

Emma Ruth Rundle - Marked for Death Watch: "Real Big Sky" Listen: "Marked for Death"

EZTV - High in Place Watch: "Racing Country" (featuring Jenny Lewis) Listen: "Reason to Run" (featuring Martin Courtney)

The Growlers - City Club Watch: "Going Gets Tough" Listen: "City Club"

Itasca - Open to Chance Listen: "Buddy" Listen: "No Consequence"

Jenny Hval - Blood Bitch Watch: "Conceptual Romance" Watch: "Female Vampire"

Kestrels - Kestrels

Machinedrum - Human Energy Watch: "Tell U" (featuring Rochelle Jordan) Watch: "Celestial Levels" (featuring Jesse Boykins III)

Mr. Oizo - All Wet Watch: "Hand in the Fire" (featuring Charli XCX)

Nicolas Jaar - Sirens Listen: "No" Listen: "Three Sides of Nazareth"

Pixies - Head Carrier Watch: "Tenement Song" Watch: "Classic Masher"

Tycho - Epoch Listen: "Epoch" Listen: "Horizon"

Van Morrison - Keep Me Singing Watch: "Too Late" Listen: "Keep Me Singing"

Singles, EPs, Soundtracks, etc.

~j~ - Will2Change

Alex Frankel - Negative Space Listen: "Negative Space" Listen: "Get Back"

Blonde Redhead - Masculin Féminin Listen: "Slogan Attempt" Listen: "Not Too Late"

Cashmere Cat - "Trust Nobody" Listen: "Trust Nobody" (featuring Selena Gomez & Troy Lanez)

Cut Copy - January Tape

Fucked Up - The Mother Forever

La Sera - Queens EP Listen: "I Really Need an Angel" Listen: "Queens"

Low - The Exit Papers Reissue Listen: "Untitled 1" Listen: "Untitled 4"

Marissa Nadler - Bury Your Name Listen: "The Best You Ever Had" Listen: "Give Me Your Gun"

Moses Sumney - Lamentations Watch: "Lonely World" Listen: "Ascension"

Pional - When Love Hurts Listen: "The Way That You Like It" (featuring Empress Of) Listen: "Casualty"

Wyclef Jean - J’ouvert Watch: "Hendrix"

New Music Tuesday - 07/09/2013

New Full-Length Releases

Hebronix - Unreal I was heartbroken to hear that Daniel Blumberg quit as the lead singer of Yuck. The band had been one of the better to come out of the 90s-style indie rock revival a couple of years ago. My fears were salved, somewhat, upon discovering that both sides would be continuing on. The band would continue under the same name and Daniel under the name of Hebronix. The project takes a slightly different direction than that of his former band, but it's still apparent that this is a Blumberg project. Listen: "Unreal"

Jay-Z - Magna Carta Holy Grail Jay-Z took a very different approach to the release of this album. Samsung purchased one million copies of the record at $5 a pop and released it for free to subscribers. It was a boon to Jay-Z, he had a platinum record before it was even out. It didn't work as well for Samsung, though. The app crashed and there were numerous privacy concerns. It's a fairly new approach, so Samsung will live and learn. Although, it is disconcerting to think of the corporate influence involved. Listen: "Holy Grail" (featuring Justin Timberlake)

Robert Pollard - Honey Locust Honky Tonk Holy crap, this dude is prolific! He is the lead singer of Guided By Voices, who released three albums last year and already have an album and EP out this year. As a solo artist, he's put out two albums every year since 2006. I guess that he has a lot to say (or nothing else to do). Listen: "Airs"

Sweet Valley - SV Nathan Williams, of Wavves, started this side project with his brother Kynan last year. They released three albums for free that year, but this is their first release this year. They released the albums in a fairly short time frame last year, so expect more from them soon! Listen: "Kingdom of Heaven"

Other New Releases

Beck - "I Won't Be Long" Beck will be releasing a new acoustic album later this year (the exact date hasn't yet been announced). In the meantime, he is releasing a series of singles that are definitely not acoustic, so I'm guessing these won't be on the album. This is the second this year, following "Defriended." Listen: "I Won't Be Long"

Moderat - "Bad Kingdom" Moderat (the combination of Modeselektor and Apparat) are releasing an album later this year, creatively title Moderat II. "Bad Kingdom" is the first single released from that album. I haven't been very familiar with either artists' work, or their work together. But, if this is the sound they have, I'm pretty psyched for the album! Listen/Watch: "Bad Kingdom"

Regina Spektor - "You've Got Time" It's only been a little over a year since Regina released her most recent album, What We Saw from the Cheap Seats. This single does not come from that album however. I'm not sure if this heralds a new album later this year, but I like this sound from her, it's a bit like early Yeah Yeah Yeahs! Listen: "You've Got Time"

Thriftstore Masterpiece: Trouble Is a Lonesome Town Thriftstore Masterpiece is a music project dedicated to honoring lesser-known records from the past. This edition is dedicated to Lee Hazlewood's 1963 debut album, Trouble is a Lonesome Town. The album features covers from Black Francis (of the Pixies), Art Brut and Isaac Brock (of Modest Mouse), among others. Listen: Isaac Brock - "Railroad"

Woods - "Be All Be Easy"/"God's Children" The latest single from Woods features a re-recorded version of a song from their second most recent album, Sun and Shade. The B-side of the single features a cover of a song by The Kinks. Listen: "Be All Be Easy"