The year kicked-off with a new album from one of the biggest names in the business and this week isn’t anything to be upset about either. Earl Sweatshirt has a new album and FKA twigs has a new mixtape out as well. Cat Power is back with another album of covers and Broken Social Scene are sharing b-sides and other rarities from over the years.
However, this week really belongs to songs! There is a real treasure trove of offerings this week and no matter what you’re into, I’m sure something on this list will satisfy your wants and needs.
Mitski continues her dive into synth-pop grandeur with her latest “Love Me More” and Spiritualized settle into a country waltz with “Crazy.” Spoon’s “Wild” continues to prove that they’re one of the most consistent bands in indie rock over the past two decades and continues to build the hype for their next album which is out in February. Parquet Courts dropped by Ellen to perform and share a really great b-side from last year’s Sympathy for Life called “Watching Strangers Smile.”
Jack White is set to release two new albums this year and his newest single is an acoustic track from July’s Entering Heaven Alive. Saba has a new, blissful tune out which features Krayzie Bone and its a breezy jam with stellar flow. New Zealand’s Yumi Zouma have announced a new record and accompanied that with a new song called “In the Eyes of Our Love.” Aldous Harding also shared plans for her new record along with the new track “Lawn.”
Indie rock icons Pavement are set to return later this year with a reunion tour and have announced a reissue of their final studio album, 1999’s Terror Twilight. Included in the 2X CD / 4X LP are demos, b-sides, and the previously unreleased song “Be the Hook.” Lavender Country, widely considered to be the first openly-gay country act, also announced a new album which is out next month on Don Giovanni.
In local news, the city has been devastated by fires that have had horrendous impacts on the community of New York. Notably, a fire in the Bronx results in numerous casualties and displaced many families due to poor housing conditions and negligent management that lead to deadly living conditions. You can support the people impacted here. A fire in Brooklyn also has caused severe damage to the venue Bossa Nova Civic Club which is now closed indefinitely as a result. You can support the venue and its staff here. Sending lots of love across the city.
Finally, this week we said goodbye to the legendary Ronnie Spector who rose to fame as the front-woman of The Ronettes. A hugely influential artist, she was best known for her incredible voice and gave us, what I consider to be, one of the greatest pop songs of all time, “Be My Baby.” Pioneers in the girl group sound of the early ‘60s, her voice was a singular element, a wicked force, and its own entry in the canon of popular music. Everyone from Adele to the Ramones counted the Ronettes as an influence and it’s impossible to imagine pop and rock music without her.
Albums:
Earl Sweatshirt | SICK!
FKA Twigs | CAPRISONGS
Cat Power | Covers
Elvis Costello & The Imposters | The Boy Named If
Broken Social Scene | Old Dead Young: B-Sides & Rarities
Bonobo | Fragments
Sun June | Somewhere+3
Songs:
Mitski | “Love Me More”
Jack White | “Selfish”
Spiritualized | “Crazy”
Pavement | “Be the Hook”
Spoon | ”Wild”
Saba | “Come My Way” (ft Krayzie Bone)
Eddie Vedder | “Brother the Cloud”
Parquet Courts | “Watching Strangers Smile”
Cloakroom | “Fear of Being Fixed”
Lavender Country | “I Can’t Shake the Stranger Out of You”
Yumi Zouma | “In the Eyes of Our Love”
Empath | “Passing Stranger”
Jacques Greene | “Taurus”
Christian Lee Hutchins | “Rubberneckers”
Shamir | “Reproductive”
Tyondai Braxton | “Multiplay”
Aldous Harding | “Lawn”
If you’re a Spotify user, you can listen to these songs (and more from 2022) here!