February 2022 has turned out to be one of the most prolific months for new music in recent memory. Today, the streak continues with Beach House’s mammoth new album Once Twice Melody. Released in parts over the past few months, today we get the final chapter as the album arrives in its final, 18-track form. It’s another staggering achievement in the discography of perhaps the most consistent band of the past two decades.
Widely considered to be the first openly-Gay country act, Lavender Country’s second album, and first in nearly fifty years, is out today for the masses and there are new ones from Hurray for the Riff Raff and Sally Shapiro as well. We also have the follow-up collaborative EP from Khruangbin & Leon Bridges.
Cult icons Godspeed You! Black Emperor’s long-rumored and mythical “debut” recording finally was given an official release this week by the band after leaking to YouTube earlier in the year. This is a remarkable, unearthed gem for diehard fans that many assumed would never find the light of day. We’re also treated to another rediscovered album this week from jazz legend Cecil Taylor. It’s a live recording from Carnegie Hall and spotlights an unruly performance at one of New York City’s most iconic spaces.
Widowspeak shared the title-track to their upcoming album, the dream-folk inspired “The Jacket,” Nilüfer Yanya released “anotherlife” which continues her exploration of blending R&B with indie rock with big, heavy rewards, and Hatchie previewed her new album with another smoldering song called “Giving the World Away.”
Kurt Vile announced his newest album and shared the highly spaced-out lead single, “Like Exploding Stones.” We also have a new song from the synth-rock heroes of Future Islands and another from the shoegazey trio Dehd.
Tomberlin announced her sophomore record and shared “happy accident,” her sharpest, most confident song to date. Just for a special occasion, Snail Mail dropped the demo version of last year’s smash “Valentine” on Monday (for the holiday) and gave us a look at how the song came to be.
Finally, Tame Impala has a deluxe edition of their most recent album, The Slow Rush, and it features remixes as well as the b-side “The Boat I Row.”
Albums:
Beach House | Once Twice Melody
Hurray For The Riff Raff | Life On Earth
Lavender Country | Blackberry Rose
Sally Shapiro | Sad Cities
Khruangbin & Leon Bridges | Texas Moon EP
Godspeed You! Black Emperor | all lights fucked on the hairy amp drooling
Cecil Taylor Unit | The Complete, Legendary, Live Return Concert
Songs:
Widowspeak | “The Jacket”
Kurt Vile | “Like Exploding Stones”
Tomberlin | “happy accident”
Future Islands | “King of Sweden”
Nilüfer Yanya | “anotherlife”
Vince Staples | “MAGIC” (ft Mustard)
Dehd | “Bad Love”
Snail Mail | “Adore You” (Valentine demo)
Tinashe | “Naturally”
Hatchie | “Giving the World Away”
HEALTH / Lamb of God | “COLD BLOOD”
Tame Impala | “The Boat I Row”
If you’re a Spotify user, you can listen to these songs (and more from 2022) here!