Lorde | photo by Thistle Brown, courtesy of the artist
PRESS PLAY: New Albums out June 27th
Reconstitute your melted self with this week’s new albums…
Before you set out for the shore or the barbecue pit, fire up one (or all) of this week’s new releases. With a new batch of collaborators and a focus on recentering herself, Lorde’s fourth album, Virgin, reflects on the New Zealand artist’s grappling with her mental health. Madison McFerrin’s SCORPIO is a bold statement of independence; the adventurous vocalist picks up the pieces with grace and purpose across a set of slinky R&B. Alabama combo The Pollies crossed paths with journeyman vocalist Billy Allen by chance; their debut, Black Noise, was recorded at the storied FAME studios in Muscle Shoals.
Frankie Cosmos’ latest release, Different Talking, sees Greta Kline sharing more of the spotlight with her bandmates, though her distinctive lyrics and economical arrangements remain at the project’s core. On his second collection of Boleros Psicodélicos, Black Pumas guitarist Adrian Quesada gives mid-century-inspired Latin ballads a modern makeover with help from Hermanos Gutiérrez, Angélica Garcia, and others. Unearthing seven albums’ worth of material recorded between 1983 and 2018, Bruce Springsteen’s Tracks II: The Lost Albums presents an alternate history of one of America’s most cherished songwriters.
Listen for spotlights on new records like these (and more) every week on the XPN Morning Show and Indie Rock Hit Parade.
PRESS PLAY on these new releases
Lorde – Virgin
CHECK OUT: “What Was That”
“Man of the Year”
Madison McFerrin – SCORPIO
CHECK OUT: “Ain’t it Nice”
“I Don’t”
Billy Allen + the Pollies – Black Noise
CHECK OUT: “If You Want Me to Stay”
“All of Me”
Frankie Cosmos – Different Talking
CHECK OUT: “Vanity”
“Pressed Flower”
Adrian Quesada – Boleros Psicodélicos II
CHECK OUT: “Primos
(feat. Hermanos Gutiérrez)”
“No Juego (feat. Angélica Garcia)”
Bruce Springsteen –
Tracks II: The Lost Albums
CHECK OUT: “Rain in the River”
“Repo Man”
The PRESS PLAY-list
FURTHER LISTENING
Barbra Streisand – The Secret of Life: Partners, Volume 2, B.C. Camplight – A Sober Conversation, Blonde Redhead – The Shadow of the Guest, Cold Spring – A Prayer for Derek Jarman, Daisychain – All in a Name, Daisy the Great – The Rubber Teeth Talk, Durand Jones & the Indications – Flowers, Fishbone – Stockholm Syndrome, Gelli Haha – Switcheroo, Greet Death – Die in Love, HLLLYH – URUBURU, Jakko M. Jakszyk – Son of Glen, Jeanines – How Long Can it Last, Kevin Abstract – BLUSH, Late Night Drive Home – As I Watch My Life Online, Lightheaded – Thinking, Dreaming, Scheming!, Merzbow – Sedonis, Pan American & Kramer – Interior of an Edifice Under the Sea, Penny & the Pits – Liquid Compactor, Robert Randolph – Preacher Kids, Sean Nicholas Savage – The Knowing, Seedbed – Stalemate, Sons of the East – SONS, Syd Taylor – After the Fact, Willi Carlisle – Winged Victory