With the elusive Leap Day looming, you’ll have one extra February day to soak in this week’s new releases. Fleet-footed art-rockers MGMT construct another layer to their psychedelic cosmos on their fifth LP, Loss of Life. On The Past is Still Alive, Hurray for the Riff Raff works with collaborators like S.G. Goodman and Conor Oberst to offer vibrant portraits of travelers and sacred vistas. Real Estate’s trademark melodicism is thoughtfully deployed on Daniel, recorded with namesake producer Daniel Tashian in Nashville. Not only is DC guitar icon Mary Timony’s Untame the Tiger a musical victory lap for the Ex Hex/Wild Flag member, it’s her proper first solo album in more than 15 years.
Modern English previewed 1 2 3 4 at a late-2023 Free at Noon concert; the full album is a strong showing by the new wave icons. Stepping away from Stereolab (and a myriad of essential collaborations), Lætitia Sadier’s Rooting for Love furthers the singer’s exploration of the natural world through song. Danish singer/producer Erika de Casier incorporates liquid funk, jungle, and guests like They Hate Change and Blood Orange into the sumptuous mix of her third album, Still. Built off unfinished recordings by Those Darlins’ Jessi Zazu, Mama Zu’s Quilt Floor is both a thrilling listen and a loving tribute to the much-missed Nashville singer-songwriter.
PRESS PLAY on these new releases below. Listen for spotlights on new records like these (and more) every week on the XPN Morning Show and Indie Rock Hit Parade.
MGMT – Loss of Life
CHECK OUT: “Mother Nature” “Dancing in Babylon (feat. Christine and the Queens)”
Hurray for the Ruff Raff – The Past is Still Alive
CHECK OUT: “Alibi” “Colossus of Roads”
Real Estate – Daniel
CHECK OUT: “Water Underground” “Haunted World”
Mary Timony – Untame the Tiger
CHECK OUT: “Dominoes” “The Guest”
Modern English – 1 2 3 4
CHECK OUT: “Long in the Tooth” “Not My Leader”
Lætitia Sadier – Rooting for Love
CHECK OUT: “Une Autre Attente” “Who + What”
Erika de Casier – Still
CHECK OUT: “Lucky” “ice (feat. They Hate Change)”
Mama Zu – Quilt Floor
CHECK OUT: “Lip” “Safe Place to Stay”
FURTHER LISTENING:
Ace Frehley – 10,000 Volts, Allie X – Girl with No Face, Bill Fay Group – Tomorrow Tomorrow and Tomorrow (Reissue), Bombay Bicycle Club – Fantasies EP, CAN – Live in Paris 1973, Church Chords – elvis, he was Schlager, Colouring – Love to You, Mate, Corb Lund – El Viejo EP, Dinah – Dinah!, Elephant Stone – Back Into the Dream, Eric Hilton – Sound Vagabond, Geographer – A Mirror Brightly, Geotic – The Anchorite, Ghost Funk Orchestra – A Trip to the Moon, Glitterer – Rationale, Grackles – Grackles, iDKHOW – Gloom Division, JJ Grey – Olustee, Joe Wong – Mere Survival, L.A.B. – L.A.B. IV, Liam Bailey – Zero Grace, Mark Trecka – The Bloom of Performance, Mick Mars – The Other Side of Mars, Motörhead – The Löst Tapes, Nadine Shah – Filthy Underneath, Psymon Spine – Head Body Connector, Rebecca Pidgeon – Songs of LA, Rod Stewart with Jools Holland – Swing Fever, Shania Hayes – Kindergarten Heart, The Snuts – Millenials, Steve Gunn & David Moore – Live in London, The Waterboys – 1985
