New Music Reviews (5/26)

Each week, Music Director Chris Sanley and Associate Music Director Alex Ruder share brief insights on new and upcoming releases for KEXP's rotation. These reviews help our DJs decide on what they want to play. See what we added this week below (and on our Charts page), including new releases from Stereolab, Artificial Go, Florry, and more. 

Stereolab - Instant Holograms On Metal Film (Duophonic UHF Disks/Warp)
“Fully human, fully divine”... that captures Stereolab in a nutshell. On their first album in 15 years, the band weaves dynamic arrangements with Lætitia Sadier’s otherworldly vocals, creating a kaleidoscopic avant-pop freefall. The result is a sound that swirls through obscurity while evoking the feeling of being lost, yet still hopeful. With a lush soundscape that includes keys, woodwinds, horns, guitars, vibraphone, glockenspiel, and more, Instant Holograms On Metal Film paints a vivid picture and marks a thrilling return for Stereolab.  –CS

Artificial Go - Musical Chairs (Feel It)
The second album from this Cincinnati-based band is a sharp, super fun set that blends playful post-punk, groovy art-pop, clever jangle-pop, and cheeky mod-pop into an existential dance party. Wonderfully weird, Musical Chairs off-kilter sound pairs perfectly with frontwoman Angie Willcutt’s striking, distinctive vocal delivery. -AR

Florry - Sounds Like... (Dear Life)
The sophomore album from Francie Medosch’s Florry project is a glorious romp through lush Americana soundscapes. With bouncy basslines, rockin’ guitars, and propulsive percussion, the band weaves in fiddle, pedal steel, piano, harmonica, harp, organ, and mandolin to craft robust, vivid sonic imagery. With Medosch’s signature, lively vocals leading the way, you better believe this Sounds Like… Florry! –CS

lavender - we’re having a barn dance (Night Time Stories)
The debut album from charming UK duo lavender is a sensation. Seamlessly genre-hopping from indie-folk to soulful electronica, the bond between these longtime friends is palpable. Throughout we’re having a barn dance, Adam Jackson’s emotive vocals hold listeners tightly in his grasp, while Oskar Rice’s masterful production keeps them on edge with each note. On their debut album, lavender share: “It’s a deeply personal work, a journey and reflection on transitions of love, home and the duality of companionship/isolation. There are layers upon layers lovingly sewed into this record and we hope it’s an album to live with and continues to unravel over time!" –CS

Now Always Fades - Into the Doldrums (Northern Underground)
Now Always Fades is a new project from Melbourne-born singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, producer and mix engineer Xavier Bacash, fka Sonny Ism. His debut album is a sweet set of murky trip-hop, gritty soul, and woozy art-pop with Xavier stepping more firmly into his craft as a producer to create hypnotic, nostalgic, nocturnal-minded beats for vocalists Lili Hall and Tilly Vickers, who each appear on multiple tracks. -AR

Sparks - MAD! (Transgressive)
Avant-garde sonic shapeshifters Sparks return with their exhilarating 26th studio album, MAD!. Blending new-wave, synth-pop, and art-rock, the Mael brothers showcase their musical wizardry across 12 adventurous tracks that delve into contemporary social and societal behaviors. –CS

Bacao Rhythm & Steel Band - Big Crown Vaults Vol. 4 (Big Crown)
The fourth volume in Brooklyn-based label Big Crown’s Vaults series spotlights the tropical, transportive sounds of mysterious Hamburg, Germany steel pan outfit Bacao Rhythm & Steel Band and conveniently collects various non-album songs from their catalog dating back to 2008. It’s a covers-heavy set that finds BRSB applying their trademark sound to iconic songs originally by Khruangbin, Jackson 5, J Dilla, 50 Cent, Rakim, Mtume, Bob James, The Sugarhill Gang, El Michels Affair, and more. -AR

Carwyn Ellis & Rio 18 - Fontana Rosa (Légère Recordings)
The latest collaborative album from veteran Welsh musician Carwyn Ellis alongside the multi-national collective Rio 18 continues to bounce around a colorful, vibrant, Latin-influenced sound that combines funk, disco, bossa nova, soul, and psychedelic flavors into an expansive, transportive, era-spanning experience. Welsh singer Elan Rhys and Venezuelan singer Baldo Verdú each appear on multiple songs, giving ‘Fontana Rosa’ an eclectic balance. -AR

DJ Dadaman & Moscow Dollar - Ka Gaza (Nyege Nyege Tapes)
This collaborative album between South African DJ/producer DJ Dadaman and South African vocalist, DJ, and songwriter Moses Masaba (aka Moscow Dollar) showcases their lively synergy and charismatic energy over a standout set of bacardi music, a “potent cocktail of kwaito, house and synth pop” that was spearheaded in the early 2000s by DJ Spoko and dominated the South African scene before the arrival of amapiano and gqom. Hailed as a “bacardi milestone,” Ka Gaza features Moscow Dollar singing in the Bantu language Xitsonga over DJ Dadaman’s fierce, hypnotic, hard-hitting rhythms, offering up another gem in Ugandan label Nyege Nyege Tapes’ adventurous catalog. -AR

Home Is Where - Hunting Season (Wax Bodega)
The third full-length from Home Is Where is a rough-and-tumble fusion of emo, alt-country, punk, and post-hardcore. The urgency of Hunting Season highlights Bea MacDonald’s fervent vocals, while rippin’ guitars, explosive drums, and flourishes of keys, harmonica, singing saw, and pedal steel add dynamic texture. With the quartet’s expansive influences on full display, ‘Hunting Season’ is big, bold, and commanding.  –CS

Ken Pomeroy - Cruel Joke (Rounder)  
The new album from 22-year-old Cherokee singer-songwriter Ken Pomeroy is a perfect slice of dusty alt-country that honors her Native American heritage. Her rich, twang-tinged vocals reveal her vivid storytelling, while her undeniable guitar prowess shapes a timeless soundscape enhanced with pedal steel and banjo. Cruel Joke is completely captivating, standing out as an instant classic.  –CS

Kills Birds - Crave (Lucky Number)
The latest EP from this Los Angeles band fronted by Bosnian-Canadian singer/filmmaker Nina Ljeti is a solid set of visceral, explosive, gripping alternative rock. The Yeah Yeah Yeahs-esque “Trace” and the soaring heaviness of “Pyre” offer up highlights within a confident, rock-solid 5-song set.  -AR

Maria Usbeck - Naturaleza (Cascine)
The new album from Brooklyn-based Ecuadorian singer-songwriter Maria Usbeck is a magnetic set of art-pop gems. Following “a forced, fake retirement” and a period of reconnecting with nature, Naturaleza has a beautiful organic quality, with her inviting vocals soaring over smooth cadences and undeniable grooves. Reflecting upon the album, she shares: “Humanity stands at a breaking point; we've lost our bond with the natural world. We deem ourselves superior, advanced, yet it’s only through harmony and a symbiotic relationship with nature that we can avert an inevitable doom. I propose we learn to reconnect, to rediscover the balance we've forgotten. That's what I've been up to and what this record is about. Healing.” –CS

pablopablo - Canciones En Mí (Mom+Pop)
The debut album from London/Madrid-based producer and singer-songwriter Pablo Dexter – aka pablopablo – is an ornate, intimate collection of alternative Latin pop. Featuring his dreamy vocals, beautiful melodies, and piano and guitar-driven arrangements, Canciones En Mí blends organic and synthesized sounds to create a breathtaking introduction to his remarkable craft. –CS

Pachyman - Another Place (ATO)
The fifth studio album from Puerto Rican-born, Los Angeles-based musician Pachy Garcia – aka Pachyman – is a groove-forward blend of dub, reggae, electronic, funk, synth-pop, and chillwave. Mostly instrumental, Another Place features vibrant synths and syncopated rhythms that create a futuristic fever dream filled with all the right vibes. –CS

S.3.R - N?C EP (self-released)
S.3.R is a new solo alias of Camilo Medina, a Colombian musician who’s lead singer of psych-pop outfit Divino Niño. Written amidst his recent turbulent transition to NYC after years of living in Chicago, his debut EP is a fast-paced set of gritty, dizzying, experimental pop tunes that push genres together in exciting fashion. It’s aptly described as “the perfect soundtrack for power walking through crowded streets, stepping over trash and finding beauty in the chaos,” and its cool, kinetic nature also makes it great skateboarding video soundtrack fare.  -AR

Say Sue Me - Time is Not Yours (Damnably)
The latest EP from this Busan, South Korea band is another strong set of surf-inspired indie rock and shoegaze-slacker hybrid jams that are fuzzy, propulsive, and charming. “Mexico” offers a ripping, propulsive instrumental number amongst the vocal-laced songs. -AR

Sedona - Getting Into Heaven (Kiss This)
The debut album from California’s Rachel Stewart (aka Sedona) taps into an expansive singer/songwriter realm that filters folk-pop, Americana, angsty rock, dream-pop, and nostalgic alt-pop through her romantic, rootsy prism. An earthy, deeply-felt honestness pervades Getting Into Heaven as the album “explores the complexity of womanhood and how it relates to the pastoral sensuality of nature.” Claud appears on the standout single “She’s So Pretty.” -AR

Shamir - Ten (Kill Rock Stars)
On the 10-year anniversary of his debut album, Ratchet, Philadelphia-based Shamir released his final, aptly titled solo project. A clear love letter to his friends, the album highlights his expressive vocals and raw lyricism that command attention from start to finish, while guitar strums range from urgent to intimate. Ten is an immaculate swan song – one that, hopefully, signals the beginning of a new era of Shamir to come. –CS

Shanti Celeste - Romance (METHOD 808)
The second full-length album from Chilean-born, London-based DJ, producer and Peach Discs Records founder Shanti Celeste finds her expanding upon her strong roots in the house and techno realms with an expansive, pop-minded vision that finds her voice front and center for the first time. From pillowy, sublime, ambient-leaning passages to sweet, buoyant, catchy housy grooves, Romance covers a vast electronic landscape while serving as “an ode to the transformative power of opening your heart.” -AR