5 new releases we love: A pop visionary’s reprise, a flamenco summer jam, and more

Cardi B, “Press”

[Warner Music Group, May 30]

A song like “Press” from just about any other artist would likely register as boastful theatrics. But from Cardi B, it’s a viable warning shot, backed by a technicolor life that has played in various forms of media for years. Every high-octane bar can be easily paired with a majorly publicized, heavily scrutinized moment that has informed her raw attitude. It’s no wonder why the Grammy-winning rapper chose to release the song the same day she was due in court, aside from the stroke of PR brilliance: It would be another moment that would ultimately invite the kind of judgment that has caused people to underestimate her. If “Press” is indicative of anything, it’s that Cardi B’s staying power supersedes negative attention—and it’s effective enough for us to ignore the heaps of irony long enough to praise it. [Shannon Miller]

Roísín Murphy, “Incapable”

[Warner Music Group, June 4]

It’s been three years since Roísín Murphy’s last full-length, the great, eclectic Take Her Up To Monto, but the Irish singer-songwriter (and all-around multi-hyphenate) has been far from inactive. In fact, she put out some of last year’s most memorable grooves via four Maurice Fulton-produced 12-inch singles (“Plaything”/“Like” was a particular favorite). And this week she returned to the dance floor with the stunning DJ Parrot collab “Incapable,” a panoramic house cut that takes you so deep, eight minutes isn’t nearly long enough to climb back out. Murphy gives a beguiling performance, delivering soulful glints of Dusty and Chaka among the stone-cold detachment of someone who’s “Never had a broken heart… might be incapable of love.” More than singing, she has a way of hosting tracks like these, drawing you in, giving you a 360-degree tour of its interior, then leaving plenty of room for you to explore on your own. [Kelsey J. Waite]