Going through this week’s (metaphorical) pile of new releases for New Music Friday was a challenge because there’s so much new product out there. I did my best.
Singles
1. The Cure, Endsong (Fiction)
Will there be a bigger album than The Cure’s return? The first single from Songs of a Lost World, Alone, is nothing short of magnificent. Endsong, the second single, points to more greatness. It’s ten minutes long, so strap in. Robert Smith was miserable and terribly unhappy when he was writing this record. That’s good news for all of us.
2. Dashboard Confessional & Boys Like Girls, Watch the Fire (Nettwerk)
You want more of the emo revival? Here you go. As an aside, Boys Like Girls singer Martin Dashboard considers this to be a dream come true. He remembers: “The year is 2002. I’m a sophomore in high school destroying the family PC to illegally download the early Dashboard Confessional EPs off Limewire. I heard something interesting on those recordings that I had no idea would alter the rest of my career as a songwriter and guitar player — a certain tuning where all the strings were played open and strummed top to bottom. I studied the way Chris played and the interesting voicings I had never heard before and applied them to my playing.”
3. Owen Riegling, Bobcaygeon (Universal)
I’m not about country, but given that The Tragically Hip is huge right now–their No Dress Rehearsal doc is #2 on Amazon the last time I checked and sales/streams of their back catalogue have exploded-I thought I’d add to the fire by offering up this cover of Bobcaygeon by country singer Owen Riegling. It shows the power and the breadth of this song. There’s a charity aspect to this, too.
4. Bartees Strange, Sober (4AD)
Strange is an English-born singer now working out of Washington DC. He was once part of a hardcore band called Stay Inside but started veering into more melodic territory in 2017. Touring with Metric, Courtney Barnett, Phoebe Bridgers, and Cat Seat Headrest has brought he a whole new audience. He also nailed down Jack Antonoff to produce his new album, Horror, which is due February 14. This is the second advance single from that record.
5. Halsey, Ego (Columbia)
Halsey is one of those rare artists who can credibly leap from genre to genre. After starting in a pop vein, her sound has become tougher and with more of a hard edge. Hey, here 2001 album, If I Can’t Have Love, I Want Power was produced by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross. Three years on (and after battling some health issues), she’s back with a record entitled The Great Impersonator. What genres is she mining this time? This single has been added by some alt-rock stations. Sounds like Avril Lavinge, no?
Albums
1. Coldplay, Moon Music (Atlantic)
What is Coldplay these days? When they began, they were a Britpop-adjacent indie-rock band. Now, though, they’ve pretty much tied themselves to the pop world. Not only has their sound morphed, but they’re now working with pop super-producer Max Martin and relying on multiple writers for each song. One track features no fewer than fourteen writers and five producers. Whatever the case, there will be two more albums after this (their tenth) before Coldplay follows through on their promise of retiring after 12 records.
2. The Smile, Cutouts (XL Recordings)
We might see a new Radiohead album–eventually. Until then, we’ve got Thom Yorke and Jonny Greenwood in their spin-off group, The Smile (the group also features Sons of Kemet drummer Tom Skinner). This is their third album and second this year.
3. Abstract Crimewave, The Longest Night (Chimp Limbs)
Remember Peter Bjorn and John? This is the third album from Björn Yttling and oakim Åhlund of Caesars. The guest lineup looks great: Chrissie Hynde, Lykke Lee, and more. There’s not as much whistling as we had in PB&J, but the driving synths are still here. And yes, the title of the album was inspired by the D-Day landing.
4. Fever 333, Darker White (Century Media)
If you think we’ll ever see Rage Against the Machine make another record, forget it. Move on. The good news is that there are bands like LA’s Fever 333 to carry that attitude and aesthetic forward. This rocks. Hard.
5. Motley Crue, Fight for Your Right (Big Machine Rock)
Yeah, it’s a cover of the Beastie Boys song. Yeah, it’s from a three-song EP produced by Bob Rock. No, thanks–but I’ll present it to you, anyway.
6. Caribou, Honey (Merge)
Dundas, Ontario’s Dan Snaith–a Polaris Prize Winner–is back with his sixth album (not counting his work under the names Manitoba and Daphni) and first in four years. A Caribou album is always interesting and this time, he was looking to create “huge dancefloor tracks.”
7. Godspeed You! Black Emperor, NO TITLE AS OF 13 FEBRUARY 2024 28,340 DEAD (Constellation)
Speaking of Polaris Prize winners, Montreal’s Godspeed You! Black Emperor has just released their eighth album with a title that refers to the current crisis in Gaza. That’ll give you an idea of where this album will take you. Sweeping, dramatic stuff.
“NO TITLE AS OF 13 FEBRUARY 2024 28,340 DEAD” by Godspeed You! Black Emperor
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