New Release Round-Up 04-10-20

The Strokes - The New Abnormal - RCA
The New Abnormal is the long awaited new album from The Strokes, and the band’s first album in seven years. The album was announced with the first track and video, “At The Door.” The New Abnormal is The Strokes’ sixth studio album and was recorded at Shangri-La Studios in Malibu, California, with producer Rick Rubin. The album’s cover artwork is a painting called ‘Bird on Money,’ by famed artist Jean-Michel Basquiat. The Strokes are singer Julian Casablancas, guitarists Nick Valensi and Albert Hammond Jr, bassist Nikolai Fraiture and drummer Fabrizio Moretti.

Pokey LaFarge - Rock Bottom Rhapsody - New West Records
'The man singing these songs isn't exactly the same man who wrote them,' says Pokey LaFarge of Rock Bottom Rhapsody, his eighth and latest studio release. 'This album is about the story of who I used to be.' In early 2018, LaFarge ' searching for the sort of artistic freedom and inspiration he wasn't finding in the Midwest ' relocated from his longtime home base of St. Louis, Missouri, to Los Angeles, California. New songs came quickly to LaFarge in his new environment, but new temptations soon found him, as well. Though he declines to get into specifics, LaFarge admits that he experienced a significant 'fall from grace' during the last months of 2018. 'Things sort of started to unravel in my mind,' Shortly before the recording of Rock Bottom Rhapsody began, LaFarge experienced a spiritual awakening ' and the faith he re-embraced in his hour of darkness helped to buoy him through the making of the album. Though he was struggling for spiritual equilibrium at the time, LaFarge at least had some rock-solid musical support to lean on. Recorded primarily at Reliable Recorders on Chicago's Northwest side, Rock Bottom Rhapsody was produced by LaFarge's friend and collaborator Chris Seefried (who also co-wrote several of the album's tracks), and features the considerable talents of guitarist Joel Paterson, keyboardist Scott Ligon, upright/electric bassist Jimmy Sutton, and drummer Alex Hall. Musically, LaFarge continues to mix and match a wide variety of styles and traditions, while never losing track of his own vision This record is kind of like Roy Orbison and Bob Dylan hanging out with chanson singers and French jazz bands in like the forties, but I was never trying to make it sound like a particular person. Despite the trying period that preceded its recording, Rock Bottom Rhapsody is ultimately far more uplifting and life-affirming than its title would suggest. 'That desperation, that struggle,' LaFarge ponders, 'Did it add something to the record? It certainly did. I mean, I don't know if it made it better; it just is what it is. It's not up to me to decide if people are going to feel that'

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Watkins Family Hour - Brother Sister - Family Hour Records
Returning to the studio as Watkins Family Hour, Sean and Sara Watkins consider 'Brother Sister' a duo-centric record - yet one that feels bigger than just two people. With Sean primarily on guitar and Sara on fiddle, and with both of them sharing vocals, the siblings enlisted producer Mike Viola (Jenny Lewis, Mandy Moore, J.S. Ondara) and mixer-engineer Clay Blair to harness the energy and honesty of their live sound.

Joe Satriani - Shapeshifting - Sony Legacy
Shapeshifting is the 18th studio album from the acclaimed guitarist. The single 'Nineteen Eighty' is a song that harks back to the period of his first band, the Squares, and to the sounds of that time. "I've always been a huge fan of Eddie Van Halen," Joe Satriani says. "In my mind, he just crystalized that era. The late '70s and early '80s, he kind of saved rock guitar. So that's what I would have been doing."

Sparta - Trust The River - Dine Alone Records
Trust The River is the first album in 14 years from Sparta, the El Paso band featuring Jim Ward. Includes the single "Believe." Of the single Ward notes, "'Believe' is a song that's been on my desk for 10 years, I've recorded numerous versions but couldn't quite get it where I thought it was ready until now. Once we had the basic track I sent it to my friend Carlos Arevalo from Chicano Batman for some guitar touches and was over the moon with his contribution. I couldn't think of a better song from Trust The River to kick this new chapter off."

Maddie & Tae - The Way It Feels - Mercury Nashville
Award-winning duo Maddie & Tae are drawing praise for their new music “anchored around their stellar vocal pairings and some of the tightest harmonies on Music Row” (Rolling Stone). Maddie & Tae first broke out in 2013 with their brilliant take down of bro-country, “Girl In A Country Song,” which took Country radio by storm, skyrocketing to the top of the charts and quickly going PLATINUM. The duo became only the third female duo in 70 years to top the Country Airplay charts, also earning trophies from the Country Music Academy and Radio Disney Music Awards along with multiple ACM, CMA and CMT Award nominations. Receiving widespread praise from NPR, Billboard, Entertainment Weekly, The Washington Post, Glamour and others, country music’s hottest stars including Dierks Bentley, Lee Brice and Brad Paisley have welcomed Maddie & Tae on the road, with Carrie Underwood recently inviting the duo out as direct support on her 2019 The Cry Pretty Tour 360. This week, Maddie & Tae release their new album, "The Way It Feels". CD packaging includes a free poster offer, valid thru 10/1/20.

 

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Nightwish - HUMAN. :II: NATURE. - Nuclear Blast America
When Finnish sextet Nightwish announce a new studio album people tend to take notice. They know that something special is brewing. Band leader Tuomas Holopainen once said that whenever he creates a new record he has the intention of capturing something rare and unique, a monument and a true album experience. In 2020 he’s certain to achieve his objective once again. NIGHTWISH have completed the recordings for “HUMAN. :II: NATURE.”, their 9th studio album. “HUMAN. :II: NATURE.” is released this week. The long-awaited record, following 2015’s critically-acclaimed, conceptual masterpiece “Endless Forms Most Beautiful”, will be a double album containing 9 tracks on the main CD and one long track, divided into eight chapters on CD 2. “HUMAN. :II: NATURE.” was recorded from August to October 2019 at Röskö campsite, Petrax Studios and Troykington Castle, as well as Finnvox Studios, by Tero Kinnunen, Mikko Karmila and Troy Donockley. The mixing was done by Mikko Karmila at Finnvox, with Tuomas Holopainen and Tero Kinnunen. Mastering was done by Mika Jussila at Finnvox.

 

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For more information on these and other releases out this week, check out our New Releases charts by week section.

New Release Round-Up 04-03-20

M. Ward - Migration Stories - Anti
"It was in winter 18/19 - I flew to Montreal to meet with Tim Kingsbury, Richard Reed Parry, Craig Silvey and Teddy Impakt at Le Studio Du Arcade Fire. It was a fine time with a dream team in a city I love. Winter in beautiful Quebec. Les semaines les plus froides de ma vie. I had a bunch of demos that were inspired by migration stories I had heard from friends or read in newspapers while on tour in Europe and North America. I remember being struck by the similarities of the stories I heard from both continents and how really only the names of the powerful and the powerless had changed - thinking, "Is this the future? Is this our future?" Some time went by, the stories wove together and I remember them now closer to characters in a dream of how people could treat each other than any kind of front-page news realism. I think music subconsciously - whether writing or listening - is a filter for me - helping to process all the bad news into something new to build from - some records to me are like self-fulfilling prophecies - visualizing change to wish something into being - those records inspired this one." - M. Ward 

 

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Thievery Corporation - Symphonik - Eighteenth Street
Thievery Corporation's historic concert in 2017 at The JFK Center in Washington, D.C saw their songs re-imagined with orchestral arrangements from some of today's leading young classical composers. The show is now legendary, and those fortunate to attend heard Thievery Corporation in an entirely new way. To honor this show and inspiration it provided, Hilton and Garza have created Symphonik - recorded with Prague's FILMHarmonic Orchestra; engineering and co-production by Gianmaria Conti.

Thundercat - It Is What It Is - Brainfeeder
Thundercat releases his new album It Is What It Is on Brainfeeder Records. The album, produced by Flying Lotus and Thundercat, features musical contributions from Ty Dolla $ign, Childish Gambino, Lil B, Kamasi Washington, Steve Lacy, Steve Arrington, BADBADNOTGOOD, Louis Cole and Zack Fox. It Is What It Is follows his game-changing third album Drunk (2017). That record completed his transition from virtuoso bassist to bonafide star and cemented his reputation as a unique voice that transcends genre. 'This album is about love, loss, life and the ups and downs that come with that,' Bruner says. 'It's a bit tongue-in-cheek, but at different points in life you come across places that you don't necessarily understand' some things just aren't meant to be understood.'

  

Dua Lipa - Future Nostalgia - Brainfeeder
Global Pop superstar Dua Lipa is back with Future Nostalgia. Dua arrived in style in 2015 with her self-titled, chart topping debut album which eclipsed 4 million sales worldwide with single sales reaching over 40 million. Dua Lipa is also officially the most streamed album by a female artist in Spotify history. Dua made Brit Award history in 2018 by becoming the first female artist to pick up five nominations, with two wins for British Breakthrough Act and British Female Solo Artist, all while selling out tours around the world. In early 2019, she received two Grammy awards for best new artist and best dance recording.

Logan Ledger - Logan Ledger - Rounder
Produced by Grammy Award winning producer T Bone Burnett, Logan Ledger’s self-titled full-length debut album matches his moody noir lyricism with a darkly toned take on country music, a sound that’s stylistically wayward yet deeply grounded in classic songmanship.

Sam Hunt - SOUTHSIDE - MCA Nashville
Multi-Platinum-selling country star Sam Hunt releases his eagerly-awaited sophomore album SOUTHSIDE, on MCA Nashville. The album features his Top 5 radio hit “Kinfolks,” the introspective ballad “Sinning With You,” and more from the award-winning artist. SOUTHSIDE is the first full album since Hunt’s critically acclaimed, GRAMMY-nominated, Triple Platinum-selling debut, Montevallo.

 

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Nina Simone - Fodder On My Wings - Verve
Recorded in 1982, not long after she moved to Paris, Fodder On My Wings was one of Nina Simone's favorite albums. In addition to having written the music and lyrics for all but one of the album's 13 songs, the back cover proudly states that she 'arranged, conducted and conceived' all of them. Originally recorded for a small French label and only sporadically available since its initial release, Fodder On My Wings is a lesser known but important part of Nina's musical history. The album contains deeply personal songs, including 'I Sing Just To Know That I'm Alive' and 'I Was Just A Stupid Dog To Them', as well a searing lyrical improvisation about the death of her father on 'Alone Again, Naturally'. Recorded at a time when Nina was feeling rejuvenated by her surroundings and the African musicians she met in Paris, Fodder On My Wings is an essential Nina Simone album that is making a long overdue reappearance.

 

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The Monkees - The Mike & Micky Show Live - Rhino
Produced by The Monkees' archivist Andrew Sandoval and mixed by Christian Nesmith, The Monkees - The Mike & Micky Show Live was recorded live in March 2019. The collection includes performances of all three of the band's #1 hits: "Last Train To Clarksville," "I'm A Believer" and "Daydream Believer." In addition to those hits, the live album also spotlights many of Nesmith's finest compositions, including several songs that were never performed live during the Monkees' heyday, like "St. Matthew" and "Auntie's Municipal Court." Other Nesmith-penned tunes on the collection include live versions of "The Girl I Knew Somewhere," "Listen To The Band," "Papa Gene's Blues," "You Just May Be The One" and "You Told Me." Dolenz takes the spotlight singing hits like "Pleasant Valley Sunday," "Randy Scouse Git," "Mary, Mary," "Goin' Down," "For Pete's Sake," and "Porpoise Song." The collection also features live versions of "Me & Magdelena" and "Birth Of An Accidental Hipster" from The Monkees' most-recent studio album, Good Times (2016).

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UPCOMING RELEASES

Maddie & Tae - The Way It Feels - Mercury Nashville
Award-winning duo Maddie & Tae are drawing praise for their new music “anchored around their stellar vocal pairings and some of the tightest harmonies on Music Row” (Rolling Stone). Maddie & Tae first broke out in 2013 with their brilliant take down of bro-country, “Girl In A Country Song,” which took Country radio by storm, skyrocketing to the top of the charts and quickly going PLATINUM. The duo became only the third female duo in 70 years to top the Country Airplay charts, also earning trophies from the Country Music Academy and Radio Disney Music Awards along with multiple ACM, CMA and CMT Award nominations. Receiving widespread praise from NPR, Billboard, Entertainment Weekly, The Washington Post, Glamour and others, country music’s hottest stars including Dierks Bentley, Lee Brice and Brad Paisley have welcomed Maddie & Tae on the road, with Carrie Underwood recently inviting the duo out as direct support on her 2019 The Cry Pretty Tour 360. On April 10th, Maddie & Tae will release new album, "The Way It Feels". CD packaging includes a free poster offer, valid thru 10/1/20.

 

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Pokey LaFarge - Rock Bottom Rhapsody - New West Records
'The man singing these songs isn't exactly the same man who wrote them,' says Pokey LaFarge of Rock Bottom Rhapsody, his eighth and latest studio release. 'This album is about the story of who I used to be.' In early 2018, LaFarge ' searching for the sort of artistic freedom and inspiration he wasn't finding in the Midwest ' relocated from his longtime home base of St. Louis, Missouri, to Los Angeles, California. New songs came quickly to LaFarge in his new environment, but new temptations soon found him, as well. Though he declines to get into specifics, LaFarge admits that he experienced a significant 'fall from grace' during the last months of 2018. 'Things sort of started to unravel in my mind,' Shortly before the recording of Rock Bottom Rhapsody began, LaFarge experienced a spiritual awakening ' and the faith he re-embraced in his hour of darkness helped to buoy him through the making of the album. Though he was struggling for spiritual equilibrium at the time, LaFarge at least had some rock-solid musical support to lean on. Recorded primarily at Reliable Recorders on Chicago's Northwest side, Rock Bottom Rhapsody was produced by LaFarge's friend and collaborator Chris Seefried (who also co-wrote several of the album's tracks), and features the considerable talents of guitarist Joel Paterson, keyboardist Scott Ligon, upright/electric bassist Jimmy Sutton, and drummer Alex Hall. Musically, LaFarge continues to mix and match a wide variety of styles and traditions, while never losing track of his own vision This record is kind of like Roy Orbison and Bob Dylan hanging out with chanson singers and French jazz bands in like the forties, but I was never trying to make it sound like a particular person. Despite the trying period that preceded its recording, Rock Bottom Rhapsody is ultimately far more uplifting and life-affirming than its title would suggest. 'That desperation, that struggle,' LaFarge ponders, 'Did it add something to the record? It certainly did. I mean, I don't know if it made it better; it just is what it is. It's not up to me to decide if people are going to feel that'

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Nightwish - HUMAN. :II: NATURE. - Nuclear Blast America
When Finnish sextet Nightwish announce a new studio album people tend to take notice. They know that something special is brewing. Band leader Tuomas Holopainen once said that whenever he creates a new record he has the intention of capturing something rare and unique, a monument and a true album experience. In 2020 he’s certain to achieve his objective once again. NIGHTWISH have completed the recordings for “HUMAN. :II: NATURE.”, their 9th studio album. “HUMAN. :II: NATURE.” will be released on 10th April 2020. The long-awaited record, following 2015’s critically-acclaimed, conceptual masterpiece “Endless Forms Most Beautiful”, will be a double album containing 9 tracks on the main CD and one long track, divided into eight chapters on CD 2. “HUMAN. :II: NATURE.” was recorded from August to October 2019 at Röskö campsite, Petrax Studios and Troykington Castle, as well as Finnvox Studios, by Tero Kinnunen, Mikko Karmila and Troy Donockley. The mixing was done by Mikko Karmila at Finnvox, with Tuomas Holopainen and Tero Kinnunen. Mastering was done by Mika Jussila at Finnvox.

 

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For more information on these and other releases out this week, check out our New Releases charts by week section.