Gold Soundz: May 6, 2022

This week's suggested new music, curated by omg!nyc

May 06, 2022

Earlier this week, a leaked draft signaled that the Supreme Court is set to overturn Roe v Wade and restrict abortion access across the country. This is a music newsletter, but I cannot overstate how terrifying this ruling is for this country and our future. Abortion is healthcare and a basic human right. If you disagree with my opinions, please feel free to unsubscribe from this newsletter. Everyone else, I implore you to do what you can to help fight and keep abortions safe and legal.

Now, on with the show.

This week we see the triumphant return of Arcade Fire. The band’s sixth record, WE, is out today and critics are calling it a return to form and what will hopefully be viewed as their back-to-basics album. Proceeded by the illustrious singles “The Lightning I, II” and the sorta-cheesy, but still hopeful and joyous “Unconditional I (Lookout Kid),” this is the rebound moment many have been waiting for since the lackluster Everything Now.

Sharon Van Etten has released a few singles this year, but none of them are on her new album, We’ve Been Going About This All Wrong, out today. Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever have a new one today as well that finds them well within their groove of straight-forward guitar-heavy indie rock that is certain to scratch the itch of anyone looking to rock out this week.

25 years after their debut, Yasiin Bey (fka Mos Def) and Talib Kweli are back as Black Star with their long-rumored and forever-delayed sophomore record. The new album, which is streaming exclusively on Luminary(!?) was produced by Madlib.

Jens Lekman returns this week, again, with another updated record. This time he’s released the new version of Night Falls Over Kortedala under the new name The Linden Trees Are Still In Blossom.

Neil Young makes an epic splash this week with THREE new live albums as part of his ever-expanding archive project. These releases are part of his Bootleg Series and each one features a live recording of a concert from the early ‘70s.

‘90s indie vets Afghan Whigs have announced their first new album in five years. It features the new, more mellow, track “The Getaway.” Hovvdy also announced a new EP and shared the blissed-out single, “Hide.”

Shabaka Hutchings, a prominent figure in the rising London jazz scene and band lead in Sons of Kemet, The Comet is Coming, and of course Shabaka and the Ancestors announced a solo EP and shared the moody, reflective piece “Black meditation” along with the announcement.

Carly Rae Jepsen is back with a new song called “Western Wind” which doesn’t quite reach the banging heights of some of her previous anthems, but rather finds her embracing a ballad. Tirzah continues to blend R&B with minimal pop to create soundscapes that are uniquely her own and “Ribs” is just her latest example.

If you’re a Spotify user, you can listen to these songs (and more from 2022) here!

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