Back in the day, new music was released every Tuesday. Now, every Friday. Here at YEW!, our music team needs the weekend to digest and recommend the best NEW MUSIC For YEW!
From RADIOHEAD to WAR ON DRUGS to ARCADE FIRE, here are this week’s most #YEWworthy releases.
Radiohead, “I Promise”
Roger Waters, “Is This the Life We Really Want?”
Speaking of Radiohead, for Roger Waters’ (Pink Floyd) first solo album in 25 years, he joined forces with Radiohead producer/collaborator Nigel Godrich. With tons of audible nods to Pink Floyd, “Is This the Life We Really Want?” plays out like free-form poetry set to Radiohead — which, is pretty awesome considering the source.
Arcade Fire, “Everything Now”
The War on Drugs, “Holding On”
No question, one of my favorite albums of 2014 was The War On Drugs‘ Lost in the Dream. From the Philly band’s upcoming album A Deeper Understanding, out August 25, this meandering track picks up where the aforementioned album left off.
Benjamin Booker, “Witness”
For his new album, 27-year-old soulful rocker Benjamin Booker left New Orleans for Mexico City in search of creative freedom. The result ? 10 deeply personal songs about racism, isolation, and social responsibility — but, the raddest part of Witness is its title track, in which Booker recruits gospel legend Mavis Staples.
Amber Coffman, “City of No Reply”
The former Dirty Projectors singer-songwriter-guitarist releases her debut album. Full of sweet indie-pop gems, it touches on the end of her long-term relationship with Dirty Projectors’ Dave Longstreth, but don’t call it a breakup album. “There’s certainly a lot of breakup songs, but it’s not about one person in particular,” Coffman said in an interview with Pitchfork.