Featured Crucial Releases (Apr 26 edition)

A pretty darn good week of music, considering the only record that was a must listen to start was St. Vincent’s All Born Screaming. I am glad I investigated other new releases, as I added two of them to my end of year consideration list, as well as two other albums I will definitely be revisiting. Let’s dig in to my two favorites:

All Born Screaming by St. Vincent (Listen)

St. Vincent is one of those artists you stand in amazement and awe when you see them perform in person. Melisa and I caught her in 2015 on tour for her self-titled album and it just absolutely blew us away. Her guitar playing and stage show are top notch for sure. We’ve been big fans ever since.

I didn’t quite care for her last album Daddy’s Home, though I thoroughly enjoyed all of her other releases. Top to bottom, this album may be one of her best, though. If you aren’t familiar, do yourself a favor and get acquainted with the female rock star of our generation.

Favorite tracks: “Broken Man”, “Flea”, “Sweetest Fruit”, “Violent Times”, and “All Born Screaming”

Water’s Here in You by Babehoven (Listen)

In contrast to St. Vincent, Babehoven are a band I haven’t spent any time with to date, which is kind of surprising. This new record blew me away, though. It’s the perfect mix of indie folk, shoegaze, and quirkiness that I love. I will definitely be digging into their back catalog next.

Favorite tracks include: “Birdseye”, “My Best Friend Needs”, “Chariot”, and “Ella’s From Somewhere Else”

Honorable Mentions

• s/t by Hovvdy (Listen) – this album would have made it into my top two recommendations pretty much any other week. Indie pop, indie folk, slowcore, whatever you want to call it, this is good and a double album’s worth of music to boot. Highly recommended.
• Light Verse by Iron & Wine (Listen) – Iron & Wine’s first “solo” album since Beast Epic, almost seven years ago. This record is closest to the magic of those first three albums, so if you are a long time Iron & Wine fan, you will certainly enjoy these songs.
• Let’s Start Degeneracy by Microwave (Listen) – Another band I wasn’t familiar with, but glad I did. A very solid release of pop punk and emo crossed with some dream pop elements. I will definitely be revisiting.
• Cope – Live at the Earl by Manchester Orchestra (Listen) – not new in terms of the songs (Cope came out in 2013) but this live edition shows off exactly what makes Manchester Orchestra a band worth paying attention to: their live show. They are a “must see” in my opinion. (And I’ve changed the minds of more than a few friends on this subject!)