It’s the first week of summer. Chances are you’ll be celebrating some sort of national holiday in a few days. Nobody needs to be inundated with a to-do list of new tunes and albums. So I’ll just keep this simple, short and sweet: Here are the three albums you probably want to hear next Friday. Now, get out there and relax, dammit!
Boris
NO
THE PRESS RELEASE: “The title of this album is NO. People have a system whereby they unconsciously grow accustomed to things and adapt to them. But, this same system is also cursed in the way it allows inconvenient or troubling things to be disregarded as if they were never there to begin with and goes by other names such as ‘resignation,’ ‘subordination,’ and ‘forgetfulness.’ We renounce this system. ‘Is this something I felt on my own? Is this idea something I came up with on my own? Is this something I chose to act upon myself?’ Everything begins with questioning and denying oneself. That is the proper stance for people to adopt. Music and culture possess incredible power. The anger and discontent we had no outlet for in our youth shone through in our music, helping us to channel negative energy channeled towards creative ends and leading us to new means of expression and artistry. We hope this latest album can be a mirror that gathers and reflects people’s negative energy at a different angle, one that is positive. That is the power and potential of the dark, extreme, and brutal noise music that we have experienced up to this point. Today’s society is littered with words that may or may not be true, making it easy to want to just not listen to what anyone has to say. But, that’s all the more reason why we hope that you will at least open your ears to these songs sung in the language of another land. These shouts that have no proper meaning as words will help release the raw, unshaped emotions within you. This is ‘extreme healing music.’ “
Willie Nelson
First Rose of Spring
THE PRESS RELEASE: “First Rose of Spring is Willie Nelson’s 70th solo studio album. An atmospheric soulful showcase of beautifully written songs and poignant performances produced by Buddy Cannon, First Rose Of Spring is the artist’s first new release since winning the 2020 Best Country Solo Performance Grammy Award — Willie’s 10th overall, not including his Grammy Legend and Lifetime Achievement Awards – for Ride Me Back Home, the title track from his 2019 release. The previous year, My Way — Willie’s musical homage to Frank Sinatra — took home the Grammy for Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album. First Rose Of Spring includes the already released singles First Rose of Spring, I’m the Only Hell My Mama Ever Raised & the Chris Stapleton-penned Our Song.”
Paul Weller
On Sunset
THE PRESS RELEASE: “With a creative peak that continues to shoot skyward, Paul Weller releases his 15th studio album On Sunset. On Sunset features 10 classic yet modern Paul Weller songs. On Sunset is a soul album. At the same time it’s also an electronic album, an orchestral album, an album packed with masterly pop songs and heart-tugging ballads, and an album filled with touches of experimentalism. It’s also an album that sees Weller taking a rare glance into the rear-view mirror as he speeds into the 2020s. As ever, Weller retains a rigorous forward-looking focus when it comes to seeking out the best contemporary sounds and music. But lyrically, Weller is also starting to look back on the past with the insight of age. Most of the album sees Weller multi-tasking on various instruments with accompaniment from his regular band.”
