Welcome to New Music Friday, NPR Music’s podcast dedicated to sharing the best albums out each week. We listen to dozens of new releases in advance, identify the ones we think you need to hear, and highlight our favorite five in a brisk mix of clips, context and commentary.
The podcast is normally hosted by NPR Music’s Stephen Thompson, but this week NPR Music editor and critic Hazel Cills steps in to steer the ship alongside our guest, Nastia Voynovskaya from KQED in San Francisco.
Scroll down to see which albums we discussed this week and links to our New Music Friday playlists, where you can hear singles from each album. Then scroll down to see the long list and Dora’s Corner, where NPR Music production assistant Dora Levite shares her favorite albums that didn’t make the podcast.
The Starting Five
🎵 Honey Dijon, The Nightlife (SOS / Blacktopia)
- Recommended If You Like: Sofia Kourtesis, Channel Tres
🎵 Jessie Ware, Superbloom (Interscope)
- RIYL: Robyn, Kylie Minogue
🎵 Sofia Isella, Something is a shell EP (self-released)
- RIYL: Ashnikko, Princess Nokia
🎵 Eaves Wilder, Little Miss Sunshine (Secretly Canadian)
- RIYL: The Marías, Hatchie
🎵 Yaya Bey, Fidelity (drink sum wtr)
- RIYL: Hiatus Kaiyote, Cleo Sol
New Music Friday is a feature of NPR’s All Songs Considered podcast. Hear the discussion on the NPR App, Apple, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.
The Lightning Round
Five more albums we wish we could have discussed on the podcast, recommended by NPR Music’s staff:
⚡ Kathryn Mohr, Carve (The Flenser)
⚡ Protoje, The Art of Acceptance (In.Digg.Nation/Ineffable)
⚡ PPJ, Joker EP (Recherche & Développement)
⚡ Adrian Younge, Younge (Linear Labs)
⚡ Iceland Symphony Orchestra, Eva Ollikainen & Arvo Pärt, Arvo Pärt: Complete Symphonies
Listen to each album’s best songs on our New Music Friday playlists on Spotify and Apple, or wherever you stream music.
Dora’s Corner
Dora Levite is New Music Friday’s production assistant, an occasional All Songs Considered guest, and 17 years old according to her Spotify wrapped. Below are her picks for the best albums not featured on the show.
💿 Tokischa, AMOR & DROGA (Warner Music Latina)
💿 Lucy Liyou, Mr Cobra (Orange Milk)
💿 Kuru, Backstage Hologram (deadAir)
The Long List
Rock/Alt/Indie
- Accessory, Dust (ACX)
- Bliss Abyss, Bliss Abyss (Rainbow Ranch)
- Fiona-Lee, Every Woman (Capitol/Universal)
- Foxtide, Entropy (Position)
- Frog, Frog For Sale (tapewormies)
- Golomb, The Beat Goes On and On and On (No Quarter)
- John-Robert, Where Do You Wanna Go? EP (Don’t Give Them Four)
- LØLØ, god forbid a girl spits out her feelings (Fearless)
- Matt Corby, Tragic Magic (Rainbow Valley/Universal)
- Penny Arcade, Double Exposure (Tapete)
- Sam Blasucci, Physical Dream (Doubleplay)
- Sean Griffin, People Are Mad (Right Track/Universal)
- Sean Solomon, The World Is Not Good Enough (Anti-)
- Tanya Donelly & Chris Brokaw, The Undone Is Done Again (Fire)
- Teen Suicide, Nude descending staircase headless (Run For Cover)
- They Might Be Giants, The World Is to Dig (Upward Spiral)
- This is Lorelei, Box for Buddy, Box for Star (Super Deluxe) (Double Double Whammy)
- Trimmo, Arizona (Heaven)
- Winston Hightower, 100 Acre Wood (K/Perennial)
Classical
- The Jupiter String Quartet, Undreamed Shores (Orchid Classics)
- Yolanda Kondonassis, Terra Infirma (Azica)
Country/Folk/Americana
- I’m With Her, Sing Me Alive (Concord)
- Owen Riegling, In The Feeling
- Souled American, Sanctions (Jealous Butcher)
Electronic/Out There
- Los Pulpitos, Tentacletek (Crammed Discs)
- Nine Inch Nails and Boys Noize, Nine Inch Noize (The Null Corporation/Boysnoize Records)
- Rikki G. Godd, Cost of Living (Slime Door)
- Tiga, Hotlife (Secret City)
- TOMORA, COME CLOSER (Capitol)
- Baby Pantera, Desidia (Slagwerk)
Global
- Rādhikā Dās, Lightfall EP (self-released)
Jazz
- Bill Wells, Dreams ’24/’25 (Karaoke Kalk)
- Hedvig Mollestad Weejuns, B****** Blues (Rune Grammofon)
Pop
- Anne Hathaway, Mother Mary: Greatest Hits (OST) (A24)
- DANNA, Lucid Dreams EP (Universal)
- Gary Klebe, Out Loud (Missing Piece)
- Gem Club, Emerald Press (self-released)
- Vanessa Carlton, Veils (Liberman)
- Yves, NAIL EP (PAIX PER MAIL)
- Zayn, Konnakol (Mercury Records)
Rap/Hip-Hop
- M.I.A., M.I.7 (OhmniMusic)
- NARCY, TO BE AN (ARAB) (We Are The Medium)
- Sexyy Red, Richer Den Alla My Opps (Rebel/gamma)
- Tezzus / diamond*, UY SCUTI BØYZ (YSL)
Credits
Host: Hazel Cills • Guest: Nastia Voynovskaya, KQED • Audio: Noah Caldwell, Alina Edwards • Producer: Elle Mannion • Production Assistant: Dora Levite • Editor: Otis Hart • Executive Producer: Suraya Mohamed • Executive Director: Sonali Mehta
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