New Music Reviews (3/16)

Each week, Music Director Chris Sanley and Associate Music Director Alex Ruder share brief insights on new and upcoming releases for KEXP's rotation. These reviews help our DJs decide on what they want to play. See what we added this week below (and on our Charts page), including new releases from Kim Gordon, Chalk, Cut Worms, and more. 

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Kim Gordon - PLAY ME (Matador)

The third solo album from visionary Kim Gordon is a fierce statement on the current sociopolitical climate. Through her limitless innovation, Gordon crafts dark, punk-infused alt-pop soundscapes with trance-inducing beats, menacing distortions, and her signature deadpan vocal delivery as she explores the terrors of facism, AI, late-stage capitalism, big tech, and the billionaire class. Clocking in at under 30 minutes, Kim Gordon is not here to mince words or tread lightly, stating plainly: “I’ll sucker punch you.” –CS

Chalk - Crystalpunk (ALTER Music)

The highly anticipated debut album from Belfast duo Chalk swirls with an intoxicating, frenetic energy. Their exhilarating electro-punk sound weaves post-punk, darkwave, industrial, techno, and noise into a sinister web of catharsis. With reverb-soaked guitars, punishing synths, and emphatic vocals, ‘Crystalpunk’ perfectly encapsulates their distinct vision and artistry.  –CS

Cut Worms - Transmitter (Jagjaguwar)

“Timeless” and “retro” are words often used to describe the musical stylings of Brooklyn-based singer-songwriter Max Clarke, aka Cut Worms. And while apt, this project is so much more than that. His fourth album, ‘Transmitter,’ serves as a portal, guiding listeners through time, space, and genre, as his heartfelt, guitar-driven, and yes, timeless tunes cut straight to the heart. Produced by Jeff Tweedy at his Chicago studio, these ten tracks feature jangly guitars, pedal steel, accordion, piano, strings, and percussion, with sweet melodies that linger long after each measure. –CS

James Blake - Trying Times (Good Boy Records)

The seventh studio album from British singer, songwriter, and producer James Blake is a breathtaking exploration of electronic-tinged alt-R&B. Marking his first self-released collection, his expression unfurls with a palpable freedom and fluidity. Through masterful production featuring moody synths, strings, piano, and beats carried by Blake’s airy, emotive vocals, ‘Trying Times’ feels deceptively minimal, revealing its depth in the finer details. –CS

kiss facility - KHAZNA (ambient tweets)

kiss facility is a Paris-based duo composed of Emirati-Egyptian singer/poetess Mayah Alkhateri and visionary Irish-Chilean musician/producer Sega Bodega aka Salvador Navarrete. A harmonious pairing of Mayah’s riveting voice and Arabic lyricism with Sega Bodega’s multi-dimensional backdrops, their brilliant debut album blurs the lines between Arabic pop, shoegaze, moody indie rock, and scintillating alt-pop. Arabic for “treasure” or “vault,” ‘KHAZNA’ emerges as one of most mesmerizing debut albums of this new year that exists in its own cinematic, sweeping, magnetic lane. -AR

midori jaeger - (Un)planted EP (self-released)

The new EP from Japanese-born, London-based cellist, singer, and songwriter midori jaeger is a soulful breath of fresh air. With tantalizing textures, seductive vocals, and mesmerizing cello picking, ‘(Un)planted’ showcases jaeger’s captivating blend of folk, pop, jazz, and alt-R&B, harnessing her classical training to craft a unique, introspective alt-pop soundscape. –CS

Mt Fog - Every Stone is Green (Save the Forest for the Trees)

The fourth album from this Seattle trio led by Carolyn B. is another transportive set of soaring art-pop and  bewitching synth-pop with an experimental, exploratory edge. Carolyn’s acrobatic vocals continue to nimbly dance, leap, dart, and skip through an ethereal terrain, and the trio’s adventurous and wonderfully eccentric compositions are both locked-in and freewheeling, unafraid to sometimes tiptoe the fringes of jazz, ambient, and Krautrock along their mystical journey. -AR

Ora Cogan - Hard Hearted Woman (Sacred Bones)

The Sacred Bones debut from British Columbia’s Ora Cogan is an immersive set of eerie experimental folk sorcery. Now, don’t let the title fool you. While veering into dark, haunting territory at times, ‘Hard Hearted Woman’ is warm and vivid, with ornate, meditative ruminations featuring strings, guitars, dynamic percussion, and Cogan’s spellbinding vocals. This entrancing ten-track collection invites listeners into the liminal spaces, celebrating life, love, and magic (“it’s the most important part, the magic”), especially during dark times. –CS

Sun Spots - Dog Is Calling EP (Den Tapes)

The second EP from Seattle outfit Sun Spots is a thrilling set of fuzzy, pop-infused indie rock. Boasting infectious melodies, incendiary guitars, and driving drums, ‘Dog Is Calling’ is steeped in ‘90s nostalgia through a contemporary lens, showcasing their endlessly catchy, self-dubbed “pop songs for hardcore fans.” –CS

The Notwist - News from Planet Zombie (Morr Music)

The 10th studio album from veteran German band The Notwist is a strong showcase of their brilliant homespun sound that welcomes magnetic experimental rock, melancholic chamber-folk, propulsive Krautrock jams, and tender indie-pop ballads into their clever, versatile, singular sonic world. Now 35+ years into their winding and quietly influential journey, The Notwist and lead singer Markus Acher continue to stay curious and explore new shades and textures on an album “reflecting a chaotic world, but responding with warmth and generosity, to achieve creative and spiritual consolidation.” -AR

Anjimile - You’re Free To Go (4AD)

The third studio album from Texas-born, North Carolina-based singer-songwriter Anjimile is a dynamic tour de force. Seamlessly shifting from acoustic ballads to lush, textured pop expressions, his tender, evocative vocals propel twelve shape-shifting tracks that explore themes of love, identity, personal freedom, and the curiosity required to achieve it. Boldly honest and deeply profound, ‘You’re Free To Go,’ is a true treasure. –CS

Calm Down Party - Lemon Light (self-released)

The debut album from this Seattle four-piece band is a solid set of winsome, jangly, melodic indie rock with a charming indie pop core that’s accented by the band’s smart balance of male and female vocals. -AR

Endearments - An Always Open Door (Trash Casual)

The debut album from this Brooklyn trio is a solid set of dreamy, emotive, cinematic indie rock inflected with New Wave, power pop, and synth-pop elements that’s all “embedded with a John Hughes-ian romanticism.” Early single “Real Deal” is a soaring highlight, and there’s a wonderfully nostalgic Passion Pit-ish vibe on “Woolgathering.” -AR

Jon Hood - Pieces of Reality (Oh, Sister)

The second album (and 1st in 9 years) from this Zurich-based four-piece band centered around Swiss-Costa Rican singer Joan Seiler is an impressive set of arty dream-pop. The moments when the band leans into their Krautrock, Latin alt-pop, and psych-pop tendencies – “Loud and Clear,” “Cambio Fluido,” and “Ocean” – yields some sweet highlights reminiscent of Blonde Redhead, Mt. Fog, and Lali Puna. -AR

Jackie West - Silent Century (Ruination Record Co.)

The second album from this Brooklyn-based singer-songwriter is a lovely set of dreamy folk and ornate Americana that carries a warm, earthy, atmospheric charm. The album closes with the stunning and nearly 10-minute song “Offer” that finds West delivering a thoroughly entertaining, existential stream-of-consciousness musing on “generational trauma, quantum theory, and friendship with reflective grace and humor.” -AR

Melodi Ghazal - Idol Melodies (Anyines)

The debut album from this Copenhagen-based Danish-Iranian artist is an impressive set of dreamy art-pop that fuses her crystalline R&B-tinted vocals with painterly electro-acoustic backdrops and subtle Middle Eastern flourishes. -AR

Moonchild - Waves (Tru Thoughts)

The sixth album from this LA-based trio continues to float in their lush R&B and dreamy neo-soul lane with front-woman Amber Navran’s hushed, feathery vocals nimbly gliding atop the group’s pillowy, jazzy, downtempo beats. Moonchild invite a bunch of talented friends for the album’s wavy cruise, including Jill Scott, Rapsody, Robert Glasper, Rae Khalil, Chris Dave, PJ Morton, Lalah Hathaway, and Elena Pinderhughes. -AR

Morgan Nagler - I've Got Nothing to Lose, and I'm Losing It (Little Operation Records)

LA-based singer-songwriter Morgan Nagler lets it all hang out on her stellar debut solo album. After co-writing with the likes of Phoebe Bridgers, Margo Price, and Kim Deal, and focusing on her band projects Whispertown and Supermoon, she set out to craft her most personal collection to date in the wake of a devastating breakup. With clever, diaristic lyricism, gripping hooks, and arrangements that range from lush to minimal, ‘I've Got Nothing to Lose, and I'm Losing It’ is perfectly rough around the edges, embodying the raw, confessional nature of these songs as she’s “rollin’ through the wreckage,” blending folk, bedroom pop, and indie rock with striking emotional clarity and a cunning sense of humor. –CS

Olive Jones - For Mary (Nettwerk)

The debut album from this London-based singer, songwriter, and guitarist is a warm, welcoming, and frequently lovely set of timeless soul, earthy folk, and sumptuous vocal jazz that fully introduces an impressive new voice in the British soul scene to rest alongside the likes of Cleo Sol, Rosie Lowe, Momoko Gill, and Olivia Dean. -AR

Tinariwen - Hoggar (Wedge)

The tenth full-length album from Tuareg legends Tinariwen is a beautiful celebration of the band’s evolution. Bridging the past present, and future, founding members Ibrahim Ag Alhabib, Abdallah Ag Alhousseyni and Touhami Ag Alhassane invited younger Tuareg musicians like Imarhan’s Iyad Moussa Ben Abderrahmane, Hicham Bouhasse and Haiballah Akhamouk to help carry forward their revered desert blues and rock legacy. Featuring virtuosic guitars, soulful communal singing, and guest appearances from José Gonzalez and Sulafa Elyas, ‘Hoggar,’ stands as a testament to the enduring impact and longevity of Tinariwen. –CS

TRAITRS - POSSESSOR (Furniture Records)

The new album from Toronto duo TRAITRS is a compelling set of gothic post-punk and coldwave. With dark synths, entrancing drum loops, angular guitars, and emotive lyricism, ‘POSSESSOR,’ is moody, melodic, and awash in melancholy.  –CS

Various Artists - HELP(2) (War Child)

31 years after War Child’s inaugural monumental ‘HELP’ compilation came together in the wake of the Bosnian War, the British organization offers their second charity compilation featuring some of the biggest names in music, especially in the UK, to help draw attention to their efforts in aiding children affected by war across the globe. There’s an understandably melancholic, morose, soul-searching tone to this 23-track setlist, and it’s an undeniable collection of talent coming together for an incredibly worthy cause. All songs were recorded in Abbey Road Studios over the course of a week in November 2025 with production guided by James Ford (of Simian Mobile Disco and Last Shadow Puppets). -AR