Cage The Elephant, the best rock band winning Grammys these days, is back with its first studio release since 2015’s Tell Me I’m Pretty. Recorded in the aftermath of lead singer Matt Shultz’s divorce, the album was reportedly born from “a fair amount of self-medication and intense isolation.” Early singles “Ready To Let Go” and “House Of Glass” most certainly signal a more turbulent direction, as do influences like Nick Cave, John Carpenter, ’50s-era gangster Ronnie Kray, and the Netflix series I Am A Killer. “Cigarette Daydreams,” these songs are not. [Randall Colburn]
Is the world finally catching up to Lizzo? It sure seems like it: The “Good As Hell” singer preemptively claimed “song of the summer” status with the fresh-squeezed retro bop “Juice” back in January, leading to a series of TV appearances as well as her debut on the Billboard R&B and U.K. Top 40 charts. Now, with a sold-out tour and a flute battle with Ron Burgundy to look forward to, Lizzo is preparing for the release of her third album, Cuz I Love You. The three singles that have been released so far are all wildly different—in addition to the sunny ’80s vibes of “Juice,” she’s dropped the soulful ballad “Cuz I Love You” and the trap-influenced club banger “Tempo”—so the contents of the rest of the album are, for the moment, anyone’s guess. But whatever she does, one thing’s for sure: Lizzo’s going to shine doing it. [Katie Rife]
Also due April 19: Jade Bird, Jade Bird; Fat White Family, Serfs Up; Kelsey Lu, Blood; Daniel Norgren, Wooh Dang; TR/ST, The Destroyer – Pt 1
Chattanooga rapper Bbymutha, née Brittnee Moore, follows up a prolific 2018—in which she released EPs Muthaz Day 2 and 3, BbyShoe, Free Brittnee, and The Bastard Tape, Vol. 1—with Muthaland. It’s not Christine, the eminent debut LP Moore described to Ssense as a “concept album [centered] around a woman who’s in love with the devil”—which we can’t wait to hear. But judging from titles like “Roaches Don’t Die” and “Bbymutha’s Body,” it will hold us over with more of Moore’s raw takes on sex, love, and motherhood, delivered in her syrupy Southern flow. [Kelsey J. Waite]
Aldous Harding is a spellbinding singer-songwriter with rare lyrical and vocal range. Her sophomore album, 2017’s Party, was intensely spare, and marked a clear evolution for the New Zealander as she moved to 4AD. She and producer John Parish (PJ Harvey) return to the label for follow-up Designer, which was announced in February with the delightfully odd video for “The Barrel.” The song is fuller and brighter than anything on Party, and a welcome reminder of Harding’s unique perspective in modern indie folk. Designer, it seems, will be bolder in that vision than ever. [Kelsey J. Waite]
Local Natives, the California-based purveyors of earnest, melancholic pop, return with their fourth studio LP and first since 2016’s major-label debut Sunlit Youth. Those looking for a left turn, stylistically speaking, are advised to look elsewhere: If you were a fan of the increasingly groove-heavy and synth-laden sounds of the last record, this one appears to continue the trend, at least if lead-off single “When Am I Gonna Lose You” is any indication. Barring any unexpected reinventions, Violet Street should continue the group’s tradition of soulful indie rock pitched straight toward a sunset-at-Bonnaroo vibe. [Alex Mclevy]
Marina leaves The Diamonds behind for Love + Fear, her fourth studio album and the result of a four-year musical hiatus where she sought to reinvent herself as an artist and “rediscover her authentic self.” Apparently, she found it: The record will be a double album, with two parts each consisting of eight tracks based around psychologist Elisabeth Kübler-Ross’ theory that love and fear are the two most basic human emotions. The songs on Love all deal with what Marina calls the “longing to enjoy life,” while Fear, perhaps predictably, deals with weightier issues like gender equality and the meaning of human existence. Marina’s latest single, “Orange Trees,” is definitely in the former mode, a sun-kissed synth-pop track perfect for lounging poolside with drink in hand. [Katie Rife]
In League With Dragons started off as a rock opera in the mind of Mountain Goats frontman John Darnielle, but as he delved into his latest ambitious foray into musical storytelling, it morphed into something else entirely. This “dragon noir,” the first of its kind (or at least, to be referred to by that term), is a mix of palace intrigue and shadowy plots brought to light by brave adventurers, cut from molds made by Gary Gygax and Leonardo Sciascia alike. The themes are universal: courage in the face of overwhelming odds paired with Darnielle’s own path toward greater trust in his musical partners. Lead single “Younger” has an almost pastoral feel, while “Cadaver Sniffing Dog” is darker, faster, more urgent. They’re both strong leading tracks, suggesting this “dragon noir” is more a work of alchemy. [Danette Chavez]
Gloomy goth-folk and mind-bending progressive metal are like chocolate and peanut butter for the clinically depressed. So perhaps it’s not surprising that Marissa Nadler and Stephen Brodsky, two luminaries in their respective subgenres, became fast friends after meeting for the first time at a goth bar in Brooklyn. Now, five years later, the two come together for Droneflower, a collaborative album on Nadler’s home label of Sacred Bones Records that weaves Nadler’s ethereal vocals in and out of Brodsky’s clanging, doom-metal-influenced guitar like a cold wind passing through bare tree branches. Although we’ll be deep into sunny springtime by the time Droneflower is released, this bracing blast of chilling ambience should cheer those who start counting down to Halloween on November 1. [Katie Rife]
Also due April 26: JJ Cale, Stay Around; Hannah Cohen, Welcome Home; Craig Finn, I Need A New War; Foxygen, Seeing Other People; Kevin Morby, Oh My God; Otoboke Beaver, Itekoma Hits; SOAK, Grim Town
Rico Nasty’s sixth mixtape, Nasty, was one of our favorite hip-hop releases of 2018. As our own Clayton Purdom described it: “Kenny Beats throws Neptunes funk, screaming electric guitars, and atomic bass booms at Rico Nasty, and she tears literally every one of them to shreds.” So it’s a given that when the D.C.-area rapper re-teams with the prolific producer (Vince Staples, Freddie Gibbs, 03 Greedo) for Anger Management, we’re going to cue it up. In the Instagram post announcing the project, Rico promised “stuff that’s never been heard before,” and at minimum we expect it to rip like recent single “Sandy.” [Kelsey J. Waite]
The third Revenge Of The Dreamers compilation under J. Cole’s Interscope imprint, Dreamville Records, promises to be as ambitious as its predecessors. And even if it turns out as spotty as the last one, there should be some moments worth witnessing: In addition to recording Dreamville signees Bas, Lute, Ari Lennox, and J.I.D., Cole invited over 100 artists and producers to the Atlanta session (famously known as “rap camp”) from No I.D. to Mike Will Made It to Saba to 9th Wonder. Apparently 124 different tracks and ideas were generated, and we’re certainly curious to learn what makes the final cut. [Kelsey J. Waite]
Also TBA in April: Sunn O))), Life Metal
