At Today Radio there is only one thing we love more than new music, and that's GREAT new music!
So lend an ear and tuck into our pick of some of this week’s most prominent music releases. You never know, your new favourite record may be in there!
SINGLES
Tate McRae, Greedy
Channeling a fair bit of Nelly Furtardo and her favoured Timbaland production touches, Canada’s multi-talented Tate McRae delivers a smoothly paced, slickly produced slice of R&B pop in the form of latest single “Greedy”, her first new music since last year’s guest appearance on Tiësto’s “10:35”. Worth multiple spins, “Greedy” is out now on RCA records.
Chris Lake Feat. Aluna, More Baby
Eminent British DJ Chris Lake returns with singer Aluna to deliver an almost 21st century, stripped-back update on Madison Avenue’s classic 90s club banger “Don’t Call Me Baby”. Featuring all the right sounds, drops and treatments to guarantee success on any dance floor, “More Baby” sees Lake deliver a prime cut of extremely danceable electro-disco-pop. Pick this one up from Black Book Records/Astrel Werks and get it into your rotation.
Sufjan Stevens, Will Anybody Love Me
Sufjan’s back with a new album and if lead single “Will Anybody Love Me” is anything to go by, we’re in for an absolute treat when his 10th longplayer ‘Javelin’ drops early next month. Beginning with a simple, husky vocal line and some delightful banjo, “Will Anybody Love Me” gradually builds into another richly produced, melancholy gem from the Detroit-born multi-instrumentalist. Beautiful stuff. Out now Asthmatic Kitty Records.
ALBUMS
Mitski, The Land Is Inhospitable And So Are We
Having recently waxed lyrical about Mitski’s last single “Bug Like An Angel”, we’ve been anxiously awaiting the release of ‘The Land Is Inhospitable And So Are We’, and it most certainly delivers. It may contain distant twangs of Alt. Country but that’s merely one aural aspect of this delightful collection of 11 songs filled with absolute craft and invention. I’d proclaim that this is ‘peak Mitski’ but I have a feeling that despite the quality of this album there’s still much to be mined and brought to the surface, but that’s for the future. Here, despite never really rising above a gentle pace, this is one for the late nights by the fire; a deep, absorbing measure for the pallet served in just the right measure. And I’ve no issues with that. Check out “Buffalo Replaced” for a feel of that inhospitable land and the impossible beauty of Mitski. ‘The Land Is Inhospitable And So Are We‘ is out now on Dead Oceans. And why not take a moment and to enjoy Stephen 'Steps' Lowe's interview with Mitski following the release of ‘Laurel Hell’ in 2022.
The National, Laugh Track
The habit of releasing multiple albums in the same year/tour period seems to be making a bit of a comeback, with both The Coral and now The National releasing multiple LP’s merely months after another. This approach makes ‘Laugh Track’ The National’s tenth official studio album but does leave one wondering if this is a case of ‘Amnesiac over Kid A’ (let’s leave that for the Radiohead acolytes to argue). The band have stated that the recent pandemic certainly screwed with the songs they had written and how they wanted to approach their first album after 2019’s highly acclaimed ‘I Am Easy To Find’ but it would seem that this year’s other release ‘First Two Pages Of Frankenstein’ didn’t truly fulfill what they had hoped to achieve, and now we have ‘Laugh Track’ to either make up for it or bookend the whole period/experience. Personally, I’d rather an amalgam of both albums where the wheat and chaff were very much separated, but music is both personal and highly subjective. I could easily understand why this would be somebody’s favourite album from The National. So, sorry folks, but you’ll have to decide for yourself on this one. Here’s the title track - featuring Phoebe Bridgers - to help you decide for yourself. ‘Laugh Track’ is out now on 4AD.
Explosions In The Sky, End
Texas’ finest post-rock instrumentalists are finally back with ‘End’, their first album since 2016’s understated epic ‘The Wilderness’. Perfectly attuned to riding waves of contrast and building atmospheric tension, EITS can’t help but deliver an album of sublime dynamics and genuinely interesting and absorbing music. There’s no lyrical hooks here. There’s no pop rock riffs. There’s certainly no dance floor remix in the near future. This is pure aural aesthetic in its finest, full-grown form. Like a weirdly energised and engaging version of Mogwai, but so much more in their own right, Explosions In The Sky deliver yet again. ‘End’ is out now on Pias/UMG and, for all the aural atmospheric engagement you could possibly ask for, do check out “The Fight” (featured on this week's LOUDER - our weekly rock show), because if you’re new to EITS, ‘End’ may just turn out to be the start.
If you've found some new tunes recently, have any recommendations for what we should be checking out, or simply have an earworm that you just can't shift, then why not drop us the details via WhatsApp (+352 621 525 000) and, as our esteemed colleague Stephen 'Steps' Lowe always says, if we have it - we'll play it!
