Each week, KEXP’s Music Director Don Yates (joined this week by DJ Abbie) shares brief insights on new and upcoming releases. See what's coming up this week below, including reviews for new releases from Weyes Blood, Lee Fields & the Expressions, Crows, and more.
Weyes Blood – Titanic Rising (Sub Pop)
The fourth album from this LA artist (aka Natalie Mering) is a gorgeously crafted set of orchestral folk-pop, combining a lush, sophisticated sound with her elegant vocals and sharply crafted lyrics revolving around climate change, environmental devastation, human connections, and isolation. — DY
Lee Fields & The Expressions – It Rains Love (Big Crown)
This Plainfield, NJ-based artist’s latest album (and fifth with The Expressions) is a rock-solid set of old-school soul combining warm horns, guitars, and keyboards with his fiery vocals and lyrics of love lost and found. — DY
Crows – Silver Tongues (Balley Records)
After a series of EPs, this North London four-piece soars in with a thrashing, psych-tinged, cathartic debut that was recorded in literal darkness at various recording spaces and East London's Moth Club to capture their live energy and chemistry. The group caught the ear of Joe Talbot from IDLES who has released the album via his label, Balley Records. — AG
Unlikely Friends – We Blast Last! A Love Letter to the Fabulous Bands of the Pacific Northwest (Bill Clinton)
This Tacoma band led by Dee Crain of BOAT and Charles Bert of Math and Physics Club pays loving tribute to their musical Northwest forebears on their latest album, from ‘60s garage-rockers The Sonics, The Wailers and The Ventures to a slew of ‘80s and ‘90s Northwest rock from Young Fresh Fellows and The Posies to Wipers and Mudhoney. — DY
Flume – Hi This Is Flume (Future Classic)
The latest mixtape from this Australian electronic producer (aka Harley Streten) is his most adventurous release to date, combining a variety of deconstructed, bass-heavy beats and squelchy synths with soaring melodies. A few special guests contribute, including SOPHIE, slowthai, JPEGMAFIA and Eprom. — DY
Laura Stevenson – The Big Freeze (Don Giovanni)
This New York artist’s fifth album is a well-crafted set of emotionally powerful folk-pop with a haunting, spare sound combining guitars and occasional cello, violin and French horn with deeply personal lyrics of anxiety, isolation, self-harm and other dark subjects. — DY
The Murlocs – Manic Candid Episode (Flightless/ATO)
The fourth album from this Melbourne, Australia band led by King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard’s Ambrose Kenny-Smith and also featuring King Gizz lead guitarist Cook Craig is a potent set of bluesy garage-rock with blazing guitars, wailing harmonica and fist-pumping song hooks. — DY
Sonny & The Sunsets – Hairdressers From Heaven (Rocks In My Head)
Produced by The Shins’ James Mercer and Yuuki Matthews, the latest album from this San Francisco project led by Sonny Smith is a fine set of breezy psych and folk-pop. — DY
The Proper Ornaments – 6 Lenins (Tapete)
The fourth album from this London band led by James Hoare (Ultimate Painting/Veronica Falls) and Max Oscarnold is a well-crafted set of gentle psych-pop with jangly guitars, hushed harmonies, and wistful melodies. — DY
Mekons – Deserted (Bloodshot)
This veteran British band’s latest album is a diverse set ranging from anthemic folk-rock to ominous cabaret-pop to wistful country-folk, unified by often-dystopian lyrics for these troubled times. — DY
Chris Cohen – Chris Cohen (Captured Tracks)
The third solo album from this multi-instrumentalist (and former Deerhoof member) is a fine set of low-key, psych-tinged folk-pop with jangly guitars, atmospheric keyboards, and occasional sax accompanying his modest vocals and often-dark lyrics revolving around pain, loss, and acceptance. — DY
Garcia Peoples – Natural Facts (Beyond Beyond Is Beyond)
This Rutherford, NJ-bred band’s second album is a solid set of ‘60s-steeped psych-rock ranging from shapeshifting folk-rock to riff-heavy hard-rock. — DY
Tyler Ramsey – For The Morning (Fantasy)
The latest solo album (and first in eight years) from the Asheville, NC-based former Band Of Horses guitarist is a well-crafted set of country-tinged folk-pop with acoustic guitars, piano, occasional pedal steel, warm harmonies, and wistful melodies. — DY
White Denim – Side Effects (City Slang)
This Austin band’s eighth studio album is a fine set of riff-heavy, rhythmically complex garage-rock inflected with prog, psych-rock and more.
K A R Y Y N – The Quanta Series (Mute)
This Syrian-American artist’s debut album is an adventurous set of experimental electro-pop combining a haunting, often-spare sound with her fluid, operatic vocals and lyrics of love and loss. — DY
Spice Boys – Speed 2 (PNKSLM)
The second and final album from this Swedish band is a solid set of swirling, densely produced psych-tinged garage-punk. — DY
Each week, KEXP’s Music Director Don Yates (joined this week by DJ Abbie) shares brief insights on new and upcoming releases. See what's coming up this week below, including reviews for new releases from Nilüfer Yanya, Ex Hex, Jenny Lewis, and more.
Each week, KEXP’s Music Director Don Yates shares brief insights on new and upcoming releases. See what's coming up this week below, including reviews for new releases from Karen O & Danger Mouse, Andrew Bird, Ibibio Sound Machine, and more.
Each week, KEXP’s Music Director Don Yates shares brief insights on new and upcoming releases. See what's coming up this week below, including reviews for new releases from Little Simz, Foals, Stella Donnelly, and more.
