Bon Iver’s Justin Vernon (photo by Ben Kaye) and Ruth Bader Ginsburg (photo via WikiCommons) Ever the political advocator, Justin Vernon recently launched For Wisconsin, a get-out-the-vote initiative in his home state. As part of the registration drive, the Bon Iver frontman is hosting “A Visit with Vernon”, in which fans nominate a friend who is undecided about voting to have a conversation with Vernon. Video of the first visit has been revealed, and it includes the debut a new Bon Iver song dedicated to Ruth Bader Ginsburg. Entitled “Your Honor”, the song came about shortly after RBG’s passing two weeks ago. Though Vernon said writing new music is something “I never do anymore,” he was compelled to recognize the late Supreme Court Justice’s legacy. “Times getting sho...
Joni Mitchell has shared a rare piece of folk history today: the first-ever demo from he illustrious career. The track is titled “Day After Day” and it comes from Mitchell’s forthcoming collection Joni Mitchell Archives Vol. 1: The Early Years (1963-1967), which is due out October 30th. Stream it below. “It was my firstborn,” said Mitchell of the track. “I didn’t know whether it was a good song or a bad song. It was just the first one that came out.” “Day After Day” was recorded as a demo for Elektra records co-founder Jac Holzman back on August 24th, 1965. While it’s not her earliest-known recording — that title goes to her cover of “House of the Rising Sun” from 1963, which is also included in the upcoming collection — it is her first original demo and one that was previously unavailable...
Back in August, Dua Lipa teamed with Madonna and Missy Elliott for a remix of her Future Nostalgia track “Levitating”. Now she’s back with another new version of the song, this one featuring rapper DaBaby. Unlike the Madge and Missy take, which vastly altered the song’s sound for the Club Future Nostalgia remix album, this rendition of “Levitating” isn’t really a remix. The electro-disco vibes, equal parts bubbly and sexy, are very much intact. The only real difference is the appearance of DaBaby, who drops in for a verse in which he raps, “I had to lace my shoes for all the blessings I was chasin’/ If I ever slip, I’ll fall into a better situation/ So catch up, go put some cheese on it/ Get out and get your bread up.” The Charlotte MC also appears in the single’s music video, which was ma...
Nick Murphy is back with new music, except this time it’s under his Chet Faker alter ego. After five long years, the Australian artist has revived the old moniker for a new single called “Low”. A bluesy track that grooves and stomps with purpose, it finds Faker soulfully crooning uplifting lines like, “Just because I feel low right now/ It doesn’t mean all that I’ve got has run out.” He later addresses his listeners, who also may be overwhelmed with doubt, saying, “I think you got purpose/ I think you got song/ You know that I think you should/ Do whatever is worth it/ Just to get to that place there.” Stream it below via its official video. “Low” is out via the musician’s own Detail Records in partnership with ADA/Warner and BMG Australia. “For Nick Murphy to bring the Chet Faker project ...
Indie folk outfit Woods have returned with a new rarities collection called Reflections Vol. 1 (Bumble Bee Crown King). The full album is available to purchase for Bandcamp Friday, and you can stream a few of its tracks below. The project follows Woods’ 11th studio effort, Strange To Explain, from this past May. In normal, pre-coronavirus times, they’d be touring the world in support of it, but they decided to roll with the punches and unlock some unreleased material from the vault. In a statement, Woods summarized all the goodies that can be found on Reflections, which they consider “a lost record”: “With no touring this year, and possibly next, we decided to take a deep dive into our archives and put together the first volume of our much discussed archival series, Reflections. Featuring ...
Back in June, Denzel Curry lent his fury to the protest song “PIG FEET”, featuring Terrace Martin and Kamasi Washington. Judging by his newest single, “Live from the Abyss”, the Florida rapper is still very much up in arms over our current state of affairs. Although a slow-burning affair production-wise, Curry’s raging bars carry intense heat. “I don’t fuck with my president,” he declares at one point, echoing a majority of Americans. As his anger over Trump and racism mounts, Curry closes the track nearly scream-growling into the mic. “Live from the Abyss” is officially the mood for 2020. Stream the track below. To coincide with Bandcamp Friday, all net proceeds through the month of October will be donated to the protest group Dream Defenders. Its mission reads: “We are an uprising of reb...
Japanese indie pop band CHAI have signed to Sub Pop Records, and are now sharing their first song on the label, “Donuts Mind If I Do”. The track is the latest in a string of singles from Nagoya-based band, following “Ready Cheeky Pretty”, “keep on rocking”, and their Hinds collaboration “UNITED GIRLS ROCK’N’ROLL CLUB”, among others. Compared to their 2019 album Punk, and even their 2017 debut Pink, “Donuts Mind If I Do” has a much more relaxed vibe that might be signaling a new direction for the quartet. Instead of their usual blend of eccentric pop and giddy punk, this tune moves at a gentle sway and is stuffed with ’80s-esque synths and percussion that create a sense of dreamy lushness. The soaring harmonies are sung in the way of ’70s girl groups, but everything else about the song...
Back in March, Hamilton Leithauser introduced us to his new album, The Loves of Your Life, with the lead single “Isabella”. Now, half a year later, the former Walkmen frontman has delivered a new version of the track, this time featuring Lucy Dacus. Originally, “Isabella” was built of a plucky piano and swaying pedal steel, giving it a breezy country-pop feel. This new take started as a simple guitar groove Leithauser was toying with in his home studio, The Struggle Hut. Realizing it fit “Isabella”, he decided to record “a whole new version” of the single. “I guess this amounts to the kind of evolving a new song goes through after a few months on tour… but without the tour,” he said in a press release. A female vocalist also appears on the album version of the song, but for this remake, Le...
Sigur Rós frontman Jónsi has unveiled his first solo album in 10 years, Shiver. Stream it in full down below via Apple Music and Spotify. Out through Krunk Records, Shiver is Jónsi’s second full-length to date following Go from 2010. It spans a total of 11 tracks and features vocal contributions from Robyn (“Salt Licorice”) and Liz Fraser of the Cocteau Twins (“Cannibal”). All of the album’s production was handled by A. G. Cook, the PC Music founder and pop futurist known for his collaborations with Charli XCX as well as 100 gecs. Per a statement, Shiver “plumbs the depths of the human experience and our connection to the natural world.” Nature seems to be a frequently explored theme for the Icelandic artist as of late; as Dark Morph, his p...
YG has let loose his new album, My Life 4Hunnid. Stream the Def Jams release below via Apple Music or Spotify. Today’s release serves as YG’s fifth full-length to date and follow-up to 4REAL from 2019. It features a solid list of guests like Lil Wayne (“Blood Walk”), Lil Tjay (“Hate On Me”), and Gunna and Ty Dolla $ign (“Surgery”). In the lead-up to today’s drop, YG shared a number of promising singles, including the flexing “SWAG” and the timely ACAB anthem “FTP”. The 13-song LP also contains “Out on Bail”, drawn from the Compton rapper’s own real-life experience with the prison system. Earlier this year, YG was arrested and charged for robbery. The MC was released shortly after — just in time for his Grammys tribute performance to Nipsey Hussle — but clearly those events have stuck ...
Young Thug (photo by Philip Cosores) and Megan Thee Stallion (photo via Instagram) Megan Thee Stallion and Young Thug have teamed up to release a new collaborative single called “Don’t Stop”. Take a listen below via its accompanying video. “Don’t Stop” is the latest in what feels like dozens of collaborations for Megan this year. Throughout 2020, she’s dropped new music with Beyoncé, DaBaby, Juicy J, and of course Cardi B. The viral hit she made with the latter has stirred up plenty of controversy, with Republican congressional candidates, infamous Fox anchors, and reality TV stars alike all freaking out over the sexually fueled number. “Don’t Stop” also comes in anticipation of Megan’s first-ever appearance on Saturday Night Live this weekend. Editors’ Picks Unfortunately, Mega...
Raise your hand if you thought this day would never come: New Order have released a deluxe reissue of their famed 1983 album Power, Corruption & Lies. A massive release fit for a massive fan, the box set boasts two CDs, two DVDs, and one vinyl LP. Stream the digital “definitive edition” below via Apple Music and Spotify. For the reissue, Power, Corruption & Lies was remastered from the band’s original analog tape recordings for the very first time and pressed on CD and vinyl. The second disc, dubbed “Extras”, features New Order’s 1982 John Peel Sessions, which were just released separately back in August as part of Record Store Day. There are also previously unreleased tracks, including an early instrumental version of “Blue Monday” and a demo of “Thieves Like Us” which was re...