New Releases & Staff Picks - 8/28/26

STAFF PICKS 
DARIO - Asher White 
JAKE - Interpol
KIMBER - Allah-Las 
MARY - Jim James and Lusine reissues
ZACH - Genesis Uwusu and Allah-Las 
DREW - Die Kreuzen reissues
PAT- HTRK

INTERPOL - This Mirror Weighs A Ton CD/LP (Partisan Records)  
This Mirror Weighs a Ton, Interpol's first album in four years and debut for Partisan Records, finds the band turning inward while continuing to move forward. Across the record, reflection, distortion and perception become a lens through which familiar shapes are refracted into something slightly alien, as if seen through a different kind of light.

LINDA LINDAS - Gotta Get Out CD/LP (Reprise)  
The Linda Lindas' third album, Gotta Get Out, captures the urgent, restless energy of breaking free to discover a bold, new identity. Pressed on Eco Mix Orange vinyl, the record evolves their signature Gen-Z punk grit with adventurous synth textures and anthemic, sing-along grooves. Gotta Get Out is the definitive statement from a band fully coming into their own, showcasing the most ambitious and wide-ranging sound of their career.

DINOSAUR JR. - There Near CD/LP (Jagjaguwar)   
Finally! The sixth studio album Dinosaur Jr. have recorded in the 20 years since their triumphal rebirth. Created in short, intense bursts over the course of a year at Amherst's Bisquiteen Studio, There Near was recorded almost entirely by Dino's core trio - king of the thunder tubs, Murph, human tornado Lou Barlow on bass/vocals and the inimitable J Mascis on guitar/vocals - with a bit of piano and organ work by local master musician, Ken Mauri. And the album roars from start to finish.

JIM JAMES - Wowed Out CD/LP (ATO Records)  
The fifth solo LP from My Morning Jacket frontman Jim James explores the psychic fallout of the digital age. After unearthing a vast archive of music he'd composed for two major film-scoring projects in the early 2010s, James experienced a sudden rush of inspiration and transformed those fragments into an immersive work of soulful psychedelia. His first new solo album in eight years, Wowed Out arrives as a visionary new offering from one of the most adventurous artists in 21st century rock music.

BILLY STRINGS - So Much For Goodbyes CD/LP (Reprise)
So Much For Goodbyes is the fifth studio album by American bluegrass musician Billy Strings. - Produced by T Bone Burnett and Billy Strings

PULP - Live LP (Rough Trade)   
When Pulp made their return last year promising more, they really weren't kidding. More was the title of the Sheffield band's first album in 24 years, and with songs that swooned, swaggered, sashayed and strutted, it quickly became a fan favorite amongst the group's starred catalog, topping charts at home and abroad. Then there was more... and More... onstage. Following the record's release last summer, Pulp hit the road, playing their own shows and headlining festivals the globe over. Songs from the new album enthralled and dazzled, while the modern masterpieces drawn from across Pulp's career moved hearts and minds as one. To celebrate and capture those moments of musical brilliance, and to offer listeners yet more again, this summer Pulp release Live!, an album of recordings drawn from their iconic show at The O2 in London on 13 June 2025.

JAYHAWKS - Sanctuary Park  (Sham)  
Sanctuary Park reunites The Jayhawks with legendary Producer Bob Ezrin. Gary Louris' songs are supported by impeccable vocal harmonies, and the rootsy groove of the band's longtime rhythm section.

ALLAH-LAS - Sirenas CD/LP (Mexican Summer)   
On Sirenas, Los Angeles quartet Allah-Las explore psychic vistas of atmospheric instrumental storytelling. The band's sixth album coalesces around a more spontaneous soundscape shaped by freeform experimentation, intuitive vibrations, and open-ended moments of inner and outer worlding. Channeling a fluid sweep of influences, from The Durutti Column, I.A.O., and Popol Vuh's scores for Werner Herzog to Jacques Cousteau's expansion of The Silent World beneath the ocean's surface, Sirenas mediates on subconscious grooves loosely imagined and deeply felt, and opens up previously unimagined pathways in the process.

PESO PLUMA - Dinastia LP (Double P Records Inc) 
Following their consolidation as defining projects in today's Mexican music landscape, Peso Pluma and Tito Double P expand their universe with Dinastía (Deluxe), a new phase that deepens their legacy while broadening the conversation through strategic collaborations. The focus track, "Ganga," represents this next chapter through a refined and ambitious visual approach. The record conveys confidence and control, supported by a carefully curated visual treatment that elevates the project's narrative. Dinastía is presented through sophisticated power expressed as creative direction, clarity of vision, and precision.

LA PRIEST - Into The Sky LP (Domino) 
I'm not sure which way I'm going, but it's exciting - that's the spirit of this album, says Sam Eastgate of his latest La Priest record, Into The Sky. And Into The Sky does feel genuinely exciting, not least because it finds Eastgate trying a new approach and in the process making some of the most satisfying music of his career. By composing these ten tracks on his custom-built Polygene synth and Gene 616 drum machine, he uses a distinctive sound palette to intuitively fashion a set of laser-guided pop songs on which he sings of love and liberation, swathed in pulsing electronics. For a long time, I wanted to make stuff for your mind. This one is more for the mind and the body, he says. I made this record to dance to. I haven't really done one that you could put on and dance all the way through before. To that end, he worked closely with his friend Alex Ridha - Boys Noize - who produced the album with Eastgate and also mixed it.

CZARFACE - Czarface Meets Frankie Pulitzer  (Czarface Silver Age)  
A Collision of Worlds. A Convergence of Sound. Czarface opens another portal. On Czarface Meets Frankie Pulitzer, the boundary between comic book canon and hip-hop reality dissolves. Frankie Pulitzer, also known in certain dimensions as FacePuller, is no ordinary collaborator, character, or catalyst. He is a hybrid entity: part human, part alien force, fully embedded in the expanding Czarface universe. Following landmark team-ups with MF DOOM and Ghostface Killah, Czarface continues it's Meets saga with a full-scale crossover event that pushes deeper into story and sound. Frankie's presence is both lyrical and mythological, bringing a chaotic, shape-shifting energy that challenges and complements Czarface's razor-sharp precision. Dusty drums, cinematic soundscapes, and razor-edged bars bring the classic Czarface sound, yet mutated.The universe widens with appearances from Busta Rhymes, Method Man, and El-P (of Run the Jewels), each adding their own gravitational pull to the project, thus grounding it in hip-hop legacy while amplifying it's larger-than-life scope.

PRINCE - Timeless LP (Sony Legacy)  
Timeless is a brand-new 10-track compilation featuring rare and unreleased studio recordings from Prince's legendary vault. This unprecedented album encompasses tracks spanning every phase of Prince's illustrious career, from 1977 to 2016. The project has been meticulously mastered by Grammy-nominated engineer and producer Chris James, a former Prince engineer whose notable credits include HITnRUN Phase Two, Art Official Age, and Plectrumelectrum.

ASHER WHITE - Love Aggregates LP (Joyful Noise Records)  
For any other artist, an album like Asher White's Love Aggregates might come out of a conscious push to treat no idea as off-limits, to make something bold and new. Jubilant art-funk about cocaine addiction-absolutely. Swooning orchestral pop about Jerry Garcia-why not? Rippling electronic noise, jazzy brushed drums, an elderly motorcyclist with dementia, a profoundly emotional bass solo-put them all in one song. There are threadbare folk tunes, glammed-up power-pop bangers, Sir Duke horn charts, Morton Feldman string arrangements, layers of guitar feedback like violins made of liquid chrome. Yes, for another artist, Love Aggregates might be the most adventurous album in their catalog. For Asher White, it's what passes for settling down.

SERA CAHOONE - I've Missed You All These Years LP (Sub Pop)  
The eight years that shaped I've Missed You All These Years were marked by profound change: Sera Cahoone lost her best friend, her father, and her dog all within a short time period. But this record is emphatically not about the darkness; it's about what happens after the storm clears, the moment when you begin to come back into your body after a dark winter. This sense of lightness is evident on the piano and electric guitar that rev to life on ‘Say Something’ and the intricate portrait of 'Hits Right.’ On her sixth record, Cahoone is in full command of her powers. In it's ability to hold loss and connection in the same hand, I've Missed You All These Years is triumphant, a celebration of life rooted in the knowledge of it's fleeting nature. The product of a lifetime spent performing and producing music, the album traverses blues, folk, pop, and country, evoking Loretta Lynn in one song and Lucinda Williams in the next. It's a testament to the strength that creativity and community brings, a portrait of an artist who knows herself completely.

GENESIS OWUSU - Redstar Wu & The Worldwide Scourge LP (Ourness)  
Over the past five years, Ghanaian-Australian artist Genesis Owusu has emerged as one of the most exciting artists of the moment. Back-to-back albums Smiling with No Teeth (2021) and Struggler (2023) were released to critical acclaim, cementing him as one of the most distinct and innovative artists to have risen from the Australia scene in recent years. Now, at 27, he readies himself to release his third album, Redstar Wu & The Worldwide Scourge.

NECHAZZ - Habibi Funk 036: Pieces Of A Dream CD/LP (HABIBI FUNK)  
Recorded between 1988 and 1989 in a small 8-track home studio in Amman, Pieces of a Dream captures a side of the Arab music scene that is rarely documented: a group of musicians deeply inspired by jazz, soul, yacht rock, and city pop, creating music that sounds closer to late-night Los Angeles or London than what most would associate with Jordan at the time. Nechazz was formed by Palestinian-Jordanian musicians Basim Said and Khaldoon Nasser, and Iraqi singer and guitarist Kassim Sabounchi. While the trio became locally known for their live shows at the iconic Amman club Rumours, the music they wrote and recorded together was never officially released and remained unheard-even among friends and family. The album blends smooth R&B, jazz, and sophisticated pop arrangements, drawing inspiration from artists such as Bobby Caldwell, Steely Dan, Michael Franks, early George Michael, Tears for Fears, Level 42, and Stevie Wonder, while still sounding entirely like their own creation.

A CERTAIN RATIO - Force Majeure LP  (Mute U.S.) 
A Certain Ratio (ACR) revisit one of their most influential works, Force, with the new, accompanying companion album Force Majeure, out via Mute. Offering a fresh perspective on ACR's enduring legacy, it celebrates the 40th anniversary since it's release. Force Majeure is a deep dive, featuring unreleased original versions of tracks from the album, which differs from the 1986 release, including the title track ‘Force,’ which never appeared on the original album.

A CERTAIN RATIO - Joy Of Sextet LP (MUTE U.S.)  
A Certain Ratio (ACR) revisit one of their most influential works, Sextet, with the new, accompanying companion album The Joy of Sextet out via Mute. Offering a fresh perspective on ACR's enduring legacy, it celebrates the 45th anniversary since it's recording, featuring a new mix of the original Sextet album session tapes by longtime collaborator Andy Meecham (The Emperor Machine). The tracklist includes beloved songs such as ‘Lucinda’ and 'Knife Slits Water.’ Take up your favorite position in front of the speaker and enjoy this fresh take on the classic album.

COLD DIAMOND & MINK - Organ-Ized LP (Timmion Records)  
Through the ages, several people from moustachioed party boat troubadours to jazz elite like Jimmy Smith/McGriff and Shirley Scott have wielded the power of the electric organ to hypnotize listeners. Now, taking all the possible cues from these musical heavyweights, and breaking through the musical sound barrier to organ-ize your mind comes Mr. Sophisticated Fingers. Together with the ever-faithful Cold Diamond & Mink this mystical key stroker rephrases ten of the greatest hits from Emilia Sisco's debut album Introducing in a unique lyrical style. In Organ-ized's Slow Dance & Soul album these songs continue for further greatness.

DIE KREUZEN - Die Kreuzen [Reissue/1981] (Touch & Go Records)  
Formed in 1981 by two Rockford, Illinois, and two Brookfield, Wisconsin, natives in the midpoint of Milwaukee, Die Kreuzen (pronounced dee kroyt-zen) chose their name specifically to avoid stereotyping because no one knows what it means. 'Die Kreuzen' roughly translates out of German meaning 'to intersect' or 'to hybridize,' which is exactly what they did on their five LP's for Touch and Go. Their self titled debut is considered one of the most seminal hardcore records of the early 80's. As far as their second album October File is concerned, remember that flannel shirt movement in the 90's? This is what those guys were listening to.

GRAHAM HUNT - American Pyramid LP (Run For Cover)  
Graham Hunt can't stop making records. Since 2019, the Madison, WI-based songwriter has been amassing a dense catalog of singular music at a pace rivaled only by the quality of the output itself. Now already on his sixth album, American Pyramid, Hunt pushed himself out of his comfort zones, eschewing the home-spun, computer-oriented explorations of his previous work and instead entering Minnesota's legendary Pachyderm Studio with an nine-piece band to try and capture a different side of his boundless creativity. The result is an album that stretches out musically and lyrically, with Hunt using his surrealist spin to dissect both the traditions of American indie rock as well as the unnerving detachment of the American experience itself.

HTRK - Work (Work, Work) LP [Reissue/2011] (Ghostly Int'l)  
HTRK's Work (Work, Work), a cult classic pressed for it's 15th anniversary, emerged from grief after the sudden loss of founding member Sean Stewart in 2010. Marked by achingly slow 808 beats, eerie synth arpeggios, and vaporous guitar noise, with Jonnine Standish's singular sense of detachment, Work (Work, Work) registered as bleak, abrasive, and melancholic. Yet deeper listens through the murky, minimalist set reveal a romantic core. Something they'd surface further in the years to follow. Centered around the project's 21st Anniversary, Ghostly is reissuing a deluxe obi edition in a new Clear Ash colored vinyl variant.

JONATHAN BREE - Don't Call It Love LP (Lil' Chief Records)  
Officially a double album spanning 17 tracks, Don't Call It Love is an erotic concept driven work exploring sexuality and featuring collaborations with women across music, film, photography, and dance. The album's steamy standard was set with single 'Live To Dance,' featuring Princess Chelsea, which was accompanied by a strictly adults-only video which paid homage to Duran Duran's ‘The Chauffeur,’ featuring ballerina and cabaret artist Bella Filbey, whose exposed, erotic pose is the centerpiece of Don't Call It Love's striking cover. Fans have drawn comparisons to the darkly nostalgic tones of New Order and Siouxsie & The Banshees, with Bree's sound reaching an '80s-soaked, melancholic destination - his trademark orchestral arrangements now paired with a stark noir aesthetic, cinematic instrumentation, and his brooding baritone.

KLAUS NOMI - Klaus Nomi LP [Reissue/1981] (Omnivore Recordings)  
The classic debut album by German countertenor Klaus Nomi. • Contains the singles ‘You Don't Own Me,’ ‘Total Eclispe,’ ‘Nomi Song,’ 'Lighting Strikes,’ and 'The Cold Song.’ Long out-of-print in the U.S. Bavarian born Klaus Sperber emigrated to New York City in 1972, and soon became a staple in the East Village art scene, adopting the new last name of Nomi (fashioned after the popular science magazine Omni). After working on a production with Kristian Hoffman, whose band Mumps were playing Max's Kansas City and CBGB, the two began working together-with Hoffman writing originals and picking cover versions of popular songs that would showcase Nomi's multi-octave vocal range.

KLAUS NOMI - Simple Man LP [Reissue/1982] (Omnivore Recordings)  
1982 album by German countertenor Klaus Nomi. Mind bending mix of art rock, new wave, and disco. Contains the singles Simple Man, Ding Dong, Just One Look, and Icurok. Long out-of-print in the U.S. Bavarian born Klaus Sperber emigrated to New York City in 1972, and soon became a staple in the East Village art scene, adopting the new last name of Nomi (fashioned after the popular science magazine Omni). After working on a production with Kristian Hoffman, whose band Mumps were playing Max's Kansas City and CBGB, the two began working together-with Hoffman writing originals and picking cover versions of popular songs that would showcase Nomi's multi-octave vocal range. Nomi's second album, Simple Man, appeared in 1982 featuring Hoffman's title track and covers of Doris Troy's Just One Look and Ding Dong The Witch Is Dead from The Wizard Of Oz-plus songs from renaissance composers John Dowland and Henry Purcell. It would sadly be Nomi's last album of original material before his AIDS-related death in 1983.

ALEX WARREN - Wildchild CD/LP (Atlantic) 
Alex Warren returns with his highly anticipated sophomore album, Wildchild, following the success of his critically acclaimed debut You’ll Be Alright, Kid, which featured the chart-topping, record-breaking hit “Ordinary” and established Warren as one of music’s biggest global breakout stars. Inspired by the nickname his late father gave him growing up, Wildchild is Warren’s most vulnerable but also most joyous work to date — a raw, cinematic collection exploring grief, growth, love, and self-discovery. Blending heart-stopping ballads with infectious pop anthems, the album captures Warren at his most honest yet, pairing deeply personal storytelling with soaring vocals and expansive production. Featuring recordings of his father’s voice woven throughout the project, Wildchild offers an intimate portrait of an artist moving from heartbreak toward healing. 

SARA BAREILLES - Good Grief CD/LP (Epic)  
Double vinyl LP pressing housed in gatefold jacket. Sara Bareilles returns with Good Grief, her seventh studio album and her first since 2019's Amidst The Chaos. As the title implies, the 14-track collection is deeply informed by loss. It comes in different varieties, some belonging to Bareilles, some borrowed in service of beautiful storytelling. Sometimes the loss is more one of equilibrium or the inability to search for silver linings in storm clouds. But as the title also implies Good Grief has, even at it's darkest depth, a glimmering golden lifeline that runs through the album pointing toward hope on the surface. My deepest hope, Sara says, is that Good Grief just provides some kind of comfort or catharsis for somebody. It feels like it's really close to me and my hope is that people feel closer to themselves listening to this record.

SON VOLT - Sound Signal Serenades LP (Transmit Sound)  
Son Volt - Sound Signal Serenades (Transmit Sound) Son Volt's Sound Signal Serenades is a 2026 album blending folk-rock, country, and electric grit, released on Transmit Sound.

LUSINE - A Certain Distance LP [Reissue/2009] (Ghostly)
A Certain Distance (2009) is considered perhaps Lusine's most beloved album which includes the seminal single "Two Dots" and more. From his early releases as Lusine onward, Jeff McIlwain’s electronic explorations make up one of the more diverse discographies of the past decade and a half. Effortlessly blurring the lines between techno, electro-pop, and experimental composition, the Seattle-based producer’s arrangements are meticulously constructed, but also filled with emotion and soul.  “But never has weird been as enjoyable as on A Certain Distance. The blending of ambient, experimental electronica, lush melodies, and considered beats makes for compelling listening…the album also has a filmic quality to it. Images flood into your head as you listen – a soundtrack to a thousand imagined scenes.” - Clash Magazine

LUSINE - Sensorimotor LP [Reissue/2017] (GHOSTLY)
Sensorimotor (2017) is perhaps Lusine's most inviting album, featuring the singles "Just a Cloud" and more. From his early releases as Lusine onward, Jeff McIlwain’s electronic explorations make up one of the more diverse discographies of the past decade and a half. Effortlessly blurring the lines between techno, electro-pop, and experimental composition, the Seattle-based producer’s arrangements are meticulously constructed, but also filled with emotion and soul.  "Sensorimotor is an album worthy of its namesake, equally sensory and motor skill-based -- and a document that is equally founded in intimate textures as it is bold rhythms.” - KEXP

MARCI - Mask Lady And Late Night Girl LP (Arbutus)
When we last heard from Marci (aka Marta Cikojevic of Montreal soft-rock group TOPS), she was dancing the pain away on 2022’s Marci. Four years later, Cikojevic returns with Mask Lady and Late Night Girl, a record of party girl anthems for when the party is over, delivered with love and compassion for the good times and great memories.  Collaborating again with TOPS bandmate David Carriere, Mask Lady has elements drawn from both the Y2k-era messy pop girlies like Uffie and Kesha and Cikojevic’s love of 80’s power balladeers like White Snake and Def Leppard, along with the vintage synths that gave Marci a warmly futuristic aesthetic. Glam metal influences come to the fore on “Chaotic Princess,” written and produced with Mike Silver (CFCF), an over-the-top guitar-driven banger about a crazy night out on which Cikojevic begs an officer not to take her to jail—Eddie Van Halen riding shotgun with Britney at the wheel.

COMING NEXT WEEK
TY SEGALL - Chrome CD/LP
ALABAMA SHAKES - I Must Be Dreaming CD/LP
RUSSIAN CIRCLES - Nine CD/LP
ARAB STRAP - Rock Action CD/LP
CHAT PILE - Who Loves The Sun CD/LP
MORT GARSON - Plantasia (50 Year Anniversary) LP
CORTO ALTO - Some Small Fortune CD/LP
LILY SEABIRD - Lightspheres On Their Way LP
AMYL & THE SNIFFERS - Truth Or Consequence LP Reissue
TALK TALK - Colour Of Spring LP REISSUE
MASSIVE ATTACK & TOM WAITS - Boots On The Ground 12”
VARIOUS - Songs In The Key Of Springfield LP
OK GO - Oh No CD/LP Reissue
CASE/LANG/VEIRS - S/T LP Reissue