New Music Friday: The best albums out April 3

Summary

NPR Music – New Music Friday: The Best Albums Out April 3

Release Date: April 3, 2026
Hosts: Stephen Thompson (NPR Music), Aaron Wolfe (Radio Milwaukee)
Episode Theme:
This week’s episode delves into the most compelling new albums released April 3, 2026. Stephen Thompson and guest Aaron Wolfe offer in-depth reviews, highlight memorable collaborations, and recommend standout tracks across genres—from indie folk and dance pop, to avant-garde jazz and conceptual hip-hop. The episode concludes with a rapid-fire “lightning round” featuring picks from other NPR Music staff.

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Featured Albums: In-Depth Discussion

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Bon Iver – Volumes 1: Selections from Music Concerts 2019–2023

Segment Starts: 00:50

Overview:
Bon Iver returns with a seamless, live compilation traversing performances over several years, blending tracks in a way that makes each show feel like part of a unified, transcendent experience.

Key Points:

• Stephen praises the band’s lasting impact:

  “The title…sounds kind of like the title of a Borat movie, but the music is gorgeous.” (00:56, Stephen Thompson)

• Aaron on the album’s cohesion:

  “You can’t even tell that the album features tracks that weren’t part of the same show because it’s just done so tastefully and blended so well back to back.” (01:29, Aaron Wolfe)

Memorable Moment:
Ongoing inside joke about the “Iver jar” from NPR’s All Songs Considered. (01:56)

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Arlo Parks – Ambiguous Desire

Segment Starts: 02:32

Overview:
Arlo Parks’ third album marks a dramatic sonic expansion from bedroom pop into dance-infused territory. Exploring heartbreak and self-discovery, the album balances cathartic bops with deep introspection.

Key Points:

• Stephen on Parks’ evolution:

  “She started out as like a bedroom folk pop singer, but over time and especially on this record, her sound has really expanded and bloomed…” (03:33)

• Aaron highlights Parks’ emotional breakthrough:

  “The songs…really represent that this is the first time she’s been able to embrace stillness since age 17…born out of the club scene…it’s also born out of her finding herself.” (04:04, Aaron Wolfe)

• Stephen: Breakup albums can be inward-looking, but this record "takes it in the opposite direction: it’s about losing yourself in something cathartic and celebratory…" (04:47)

Notable Quote:

“You take a song like 'Get Go' and there’s a soaring quality to it…not necessarily what you’d call EDM…but it does have this sleek, propulsive quality.”
— Stephen Thompson (04:47)

Standout Track:
“Senses” (feat. Sampha) praised for vocal chemistry and lyrical encouragement.

• Aaron: “Senses was one of my favorites…the two have been friends a little while…their voices just really complement each other.” (06:41)

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Dermot Kennedy – The Weight of the Woods

Segment Starts: 08:00

Overview:
Irish singer-songwriter Dermot Kennedy’s third album, produced by Gabe Simon, draws on folk instrumentation and themes of loss, nature, and devotion.

Key Points:

• Recorded between Ireland and Nashville; highlights Irish bouzouki, fiddle, and bodhrán.
• Aaron dubs Kennedy "the Irish Bon Iver" for his emotive folk-pop sound. (09:05)
• Stephen coins the “Northern Men of Feelings” genre:
  “Dermot Kennedy, Justin Vernon, Noah Kahn…These guys who sing, like extremely emotionally expressive songs, but that also seem to emerge from kind of colder, gloomier climates…” (09:53)
• The record is described as “no skips” with every song delivering emotional commitment. (10:55)
• Aaron shares personal history fun fact: Kennedy’s school choir ties. (11:14)
• Stephen on Kennedy’s songwriting:

  “His songs have this through line of deep, deep devotion…The music is all saying, I would die for you…” (12:07)

Song Highlight:
“Refuge” — characterized by rousing, fist-raising intensity. (12:54)

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Thundercat – Distracted

Segment Starts: 14:39

Overview:
Multi-instrumentalist Thundercat’s fifth album teems with high-profile collaborations, whimsical production details, and a deep focus on themes of distraction and contemporary overstimulation.

Key Points:

• Guests: Tame Impala, Lil Yachty, Mac Miller, Willow, A$AP Rocky, Domi & JD Beck.
• Stephen celebrates Thundercat as the “quintessential collaborator.” (16:13)
• Emotional resonance of late Mac Miller’s inclusion; their past Tiny Desk concert praised. (16:50)
• Musical references range from Beach Boys (“Pozole”) to Bee Gees (“What Is Left to Say”).
• Aaron:

  “He is so mischievous and devious…the themes of being distracted…it really speaks to kind of a commonality of feelings and a whirlwind of our modern society right now.” (18:05)

• Noteworthy production quirks: water effects in “Thunderwave” (feat. Willow), playful cat noises in “Great Americans.” (19:18)

Notable Quote:

"There are these little odd asides and effects and just little notes of playfulness kind of peppered throughout this record.”
— Stephen Thompson (19:22)

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Joe Pernice – Sonny I Was Wrong

Segment Starts: 20:14

Overview:
Americana stalwart Joe Pernice brings an intimate, lived-in, and collaborative album, drawing together influences, guests, and sounds from decades of indie and alt-country history.

Key Points:

• Noted for bands like Scud Mountain Boys & Pernice Brothers; this is his fourth “solo” release.
• Star guests: Amy Mann, Rodney Crowell, Norman Blake (Teenage Fanclub), and Jimmy Webb.
• Aaron describes it as “a comfy record to listen to…recorded live…relaxed feel, dishing out the lyrics of, like, the ups and downs of life.” (22:30)
• Stephen connects “The Black and the Blue” to Pernice’s earlier classic “The Weakest Shade of Blue”—nostalgic but not dated. (23:07)
• Aaron loves “Deep into the Dawn” with Amy Mann:

  “Love the way they sound together…slide guitar, a nice little piano solo…reminded me of the 60s Donovan song called Jennifer Juniper.” (24:13)

Song Highlight:
“It Won’t Be Me” (feat. Rodney Crowell) — “approachable folk pop…just blending you combined.” (25:32)

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Mike & Earl Sweatshirt (with Surf Gang) – Pompeii // Utility

Segment Starts: 27:34

Overview:
A double album uniting two avant-rap talents—Mike and Earl Sweatshirt—each delivering a side produced entirely by Surf Gang, featuring brief, experimental tracks and expressive, fragmented storytelling.

Key Points:

• Two solo projects in one package: “Pompeii” (Mike), “Utility” (Earl Sweatshirt), with two shared tracks.
• Aaron:

  “33-track double LP…unlike most collaborative albums…Mike and Earl tie things together by trading bars on two tracks…Surf Gang adds some cohesive samples throughout for continuity.” (28:08)

• Stephen on brevity and coherence:

  “There are a lot of fragments…80 seconds of this kind of dense, but also mumbly wordplay…somehow feels really evocative and really complete, even though it’s 80 seconds long.” (28:54)

• Surf Gang’s production—quirky drops, recurring sound motifs, and modern beats—pulls the project together even when the styles shift. (30:14)
• Stephen:

  “It feels like there’s not a wasted moment on it. Which on a 33 song album is really impressive.” (31:03)

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Lightning Round: Other Notable Releases

Segment Starts: 31:44

Maria Taylor – Stories End

• Veteran singer-songwriter, half of Azure Ray, frequent Bright Eyes collaborator.
• Stephen: “Her new solo record is just lovely.” (31:44)

Wendy Eisenberg – Wendy Eisenberg

• Brooklyn-based; acoustic, banjo, jazz percussion, and folk.
• Aaron:

  “Delightfully akin to Lamb Chop’s Kurt Wagner and in brief moments, Joanna Newsom…warm and intimate.” (32:59)

SUNN O))) – SUNN O)))

• Drone/doom band returns to duo roots.
• Lars Gottrich:

  “It’s vibrating your soul in order to achieve a certain transcendence…going to get inside your soul, I’m going to rip it out and put it back together again.” (35:01)

Room Full of Teeth – Elevator Songs

• Avant-garde vocal group collaborates with Gabriel Kahane.
• Tom Huizenga:

  “Very high concept…meet all kinds of quirky guests in an imaginary hotel…totally infectious refrain.” (36:04)

Sofia Rei – Antónima

• Argentina-born, NY-based vocalist explores layered choral and global sounds.
• Felix Contreras:

  “Celebration of the human voice…it’s just a magnificent record.” (37:33)

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Notable Quotes & Fun Moments

• “Dermot Kennedy definitely belongs to this genre that exists entirely in my head, which is Northern Men of Feelings.”
  — Stephen Thompson (09:53)

• “You just get a sense listening to this record of that sense of collaboration…”
  — Stephen Thompson on Thundercat (17:21)

• On Joe Pernice: “You just wear them like an old Carhartt jacket.”
  — Stephen Thompson (21:28)

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Timestamps for Key Segments

• Bon Iver: 00:50
• Arlo Parks: 02:32
• Dermot Kennedy: 08:00
• Thundercat: 14:39
• Joe Pernice: 20:14
• Mike & Earl Sweatshirt w/ Surf Gang: 27:34
• Lightning Round – Maria Taylor: 31:44
• Wendy Eisenberg: 32:59
• SUNN O))) (Lars Gottrich): 34:29
• Room Full of Teeth (Tom Huizenga): 36:04
• Sofia Rei (Felix Contreras): 37:33

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Episode Takeaway

This New Music Friday offers a spectrum of emotional, sonic, and genre-spanning releases: from the celebratory and expansive (Arlo Parks, Thundercat), through deep devotion and storytelling (Dermot Kennedy), to avant-garde ambition and warmth (Joe Pernice, Mike & Earl Sweatshirt). The hosts' candid banter and passionate recommendations, punctuated by memorable quotes and sharp insights, ensure even casual music fans leave with new artists and sounds to discover.

Transcript

[Aaron Wolfe]

Do you ever wish you could predict the future? Well, some scientists try to do that every year, forecasting when cherry blossom trees will bloom each spring.

[Stephen Thompson]

It's a wild guess, but there is

[Aaron Wolfe]

some science involved in that and there is a lot riding on the peak bloom forecast, tourism, climate change models and more. Listen to Short Wave on the NPR app or wherever you get your podcast to hear how scientists are predicting the future.

[Guest Vocalist / Singer]

Ever since I heard the howling, I didn't need to go in no Bible

[Rapper Mike]

with

[Stephen Thompson]

Happy Friday everyone, from NPR Music, I'm Stephen Thompson here with Aaron Wolfe of Radio Milwaukee. Welcome back to the show, Aaron.

[Aaron Wolfe]

Hey, Stephen. I'm so glad to be back with you again.

[Stephen Thompson]

It is a pleasure. And you may have noticed the music that we are listening to is from our shared home state of Wisconsin, but Bon Iver has a new live collection. It is called and it is a mouthful, volumes one, selections from music concerts 2019 to 2023. Bon Iver six piece band, the title of which sounds kind of like the title of a Borat movie, but the music is gorgeous.

[Guest Vocalist / Singer]

Heavenly Father, Stephanie Lava, but you don't carry other name.

[Aaron Wolfe]

Absolutely. Like, the band is so tight knit and you can feel like this sense of wholeness, as Justin Vernon described it, like it comes across like in this album that's like sequenced really seamlessly. You can't even tell that the album features tracks that weren't part of the same show because it's, it's just done so tastefully and blended so well back to back.

[Stephen Thompson]

Yeah. Highly recommend it. We've been talking we've been talking about Bon Iver on All Songs considered for almost 20 years now. And you know, we used to joke on All Songs Considered with Bob Boylan and Robin Hilton and Carrie Brownstein that every time somebody mentioned Bon Iver, they had to put a quarter in the Iver jar. So we've been plugging this band for a real long time, but delighted to have this new record. So to kick off the show for real, we've got a new record, wonderful new record from Arlo Park. Arlo Parks new album is called Ambiguous Desire.

[Guest Vocalist / Singer]

I wish I had the language to tell you the way this feels, this feels you're inviting me like the star My arm under the bridge watching Kelly spin play. Bodies in the summer breeze Concrete washing with metallic gre let's get involved, let's get in full body D My friends spilling out into the streets. Let's get involved, let's get.

[Stephen Thompson]

So Arlo Parks is an English singer songwriter now based in LA she broke through in 2021 with a terrific album called Collapsed in Sunbeams. She ended up winning the Mercury Prize for that record in 2021. This is now her third record and her career trajectory is sort of fascinating. She started out as like a bedroom folk pop singer, but over time and especially on this record, her sound has really expanded and bloomed and there are moments record that are like fully danceable.

[Aaron Wolfe]

Yeah, absolutely. She went to the club and kind of never came out, you know, like kind of reaching the pinnacle of fame almost like at such a young age. She quickly like ramped up from the bedroom pop style to just like worldwide fame, opening for some pretty hefty artists. And the 25 year old park shared that the songs on Ambiguous Desire really represent that this is the first time she's been able to embrace stillness since age 17. And even though this album was born out of the club scene, it's like also born out of her finding herself and giving herself some well deserved piece.

[Stephen Thompson]

Yeah, I mean it is a breakup record and it's really interesting, you know, when artists take a breakup and use that as a catalyst for a record, you can go in many different directions with that and very often artists will do that kind of. Well, we mentioned Bon Iver at the top of this show, but like the classic retreating to the cabin and looking inward and kind of rebuilding myself from the ashes, this record kind of takes it in the opposite direction. It's about losing yourself in something cathartic and celebratory, but also, you know, like so much dance music is rooted in melancholy, is rooted in sadness. And so she's able to let her sound kind of billow outward even as she is reflecting. Take a song like Get Go and there's a soaring quality to it. It's not necessarily what you'd call edm, but it does have this sleek, propulsive quality that is so far removed from the kind of bedroom pop of her, you know, that she was originally making. But it still feels consistent with it. It still feels of a piece with this kind of larger catalog that she's put together.

[Guest Vocalist / Singer]

Says I could only tell you this I don' what the hell I need I kind of wish I wasn't me. Yeah Baby, could you pull me out? Yeah could you stay in dance with me? Yeah I don't want to ever leave I knew we had it from the get go and I don't want to let go

yeah I don't want to let go.

[Aaron Wolfe]

I also really liked the song she did with Sampha called Senses. That one really grabbed me. The two have been friends for a little while. Friends in music. They're also fellow Londoners. She said that he offered her encouragement with his lyrical contributions, like encouraging her to swim from the demons, but wisely choosing pain as a way to get past things. And their voices just really complement each other on this particular track. I think Senses was one of my favorites.

[Guest Vocalist / Singer]

I love.

[Stephen Thompson]

I don't love no love for myself, That is Arlo Parks. Her fantastic new record is called Ambiguous Desire. Next up, the singer songwriter, Dermot Kennedy. Dermot Kennedy's new album is called the Weight of the Woods.

[Guest Vocalist / Singer]

Oh, I raced head first down the old stone road to the bridge outside Kilty and I held my breath on that frosty morning dream and maybe you're still there now I know in my heart that the original sin was never showing you my mind before you crossed that sea you left this land and left my love behind but my heart's too honest all my colors spilling out Cuz I know you're all I want

one

have we missed our moment? How could fate be so unfair? Cuz I know you're all I want.

[Aaron Wolfe]

So Dermot Kennedy's the Way to the woods was produced by Gabe Simon, who's worked with Noah Khan and Lana Del Rey. The new songs for Dermot are said to be more raw, more folk centric, and Dermot recorded the full album between Ireland and Nashville. There's themes of grief, growth and nature with focus on Irish storytelling and instrumentation. You can hear the Irish bouzouki and the fiddle and the boderon drum and long walks in the eerie woods, as he describes it, in sessions with a trusted collaborator. Also in form, this new album, if we're talking about, you know, Bonaver at the beginning of the show, I feel like this is a good answer to Bonaver. Like, he's kind of the Irish Bonaver on this one.

[Stephen Thompson]

Yeah, I mean, Dermot Kennedy definitely belongs to this genre that exists entirely in my head, which is Northern Men of Feelings. Dermot Kennedy, Justin Vernon, Noah Kahn, these. These guys who sing, like extremely emotionally expressive songs, but that also seem to emerge from kind of colder, gloomier climates, and that really comes through on this record. I've been a fan of this guy since, I would say, 2018. He put out this song called Moments Past that I was totally obsessed with. Brought him to the Tiny desk. He put on this glorious Tiny Desk concert with a gospel choir behind him. And his music is very much in the vein of a lot of, like, Irish singer songwriters that I love. Right. Damian Rice, Glen Hansard, Hozier. Again, Northern Men of Feelings. And this record, I think, is just him at the top of his game, Right? Like, he's able to, like, pour this, this intensity into all of his vocals in songs that are enormously hooky and grabby and you just, just listening through it, you're like, that song works. That song works. That song works. It's a no Skips record. And every song is just invested with complete emotional commitment.

[Aaron Wolfe]

Yeah, there's definitely an emotional commitment. There's a strong storyline. The opening scene, it's a reprise of the Way to the Woods. It has a chamber choir, which, incidentally is Kennedy's alma mater. And he tried out for that choir, which I find amazing. But he decided to diss the choir to go out for football, AKA soccer. And so, I don't know, it feels like he's true to himself. He's taking his own history and he's telling his own story, and it just feels really special.

[Guest Vocalist / Singer]

Get me back to my home ground Let me add to it all.

[Stephen Thompson]

Well, and his songs have this through line of deep, deep devotion. Right. Like, you know how in the movie Inside out, the girl in the movie, in her brain, her early vision of what love is is a beautiful boy saying, I would die for you. And I feel like Dermot Kennedy's music is all saying, I would die for you. It's just these big songs of just deep, deep devotion. And you take a song like Refuge and like, this guy just knows how to make this rousing, bellowing, kind of fist raising song of devotion in a way that is so hooky and so compelling and you just want to, like, crank all your windows down and just scream along with the guy.

[Guest Vocalist / Singer]

It's all alive, darling. I'm shaking tonight Chasing a dream But I'm tired if we never make it at least we can say we die trying Die trying, die trying if we never make it at least we can say we died. Right?

[Stephen Thompson]

That is Dermot Kennedy. His new album is the Weight of the Woods. We've got more records we're going to get to. First we're going to take a quick break. From NPR Music, it's New Music Friday. I'm Stephen Thompson here with Aaron Wolfe of Radio Milwaukee. Aaron, tell us what's going on at the station. It's gonna be spring soon in Wisconsin, right?

[Aaron Wolfe]

Yeah. I mean, it technically is spring, but we've had like the gamut of snow, rain, beautiful weather. It's just, it's a whirlwind over here.

[Stephen Thompson]

Well, what's going on station.

[Aaron Wolfe]

We had recent sessions with the band's twin, Cash's Culpepper too. We're looking forward to Speaking of Spring. Spring Membership drive coming up April 22nd through May 1st. Our theme this year is a riff off of one of 88Nine's special segments for the afternoon drive called the 5 o' clock shadow, where we play back to back covers. And we're already like mining our library for lots and lots of covers. I think we have like 11,000. Oh geez pulled up at this point so we got lots of fodder.

[Stephen Thompson]

Nice. Well, next up we have a new record from Thundercat. Thundercats new album is called Distracted.

[Guest Vocalist / Singer]

Maybe I'm out of touch maybe it's just too much if I could only show you what goes on in my mind you could see how hard it was to leave the past behind Am I asking too much? Do you understand I could only show you exactly who I am,

Who I

am

[Aaron Wolfe]

distracted is Thundercats fifth full length and it comes following 2000 and 20s it is what it is. Guests include Tame Impala, Lil Yachty, Mac Miller and Willow. Distracted was produced by Thundercat and Greg Kirsten with additional credits from Flying Lotus, Kenny Beets and the Lemon Twigs on this very Beach Boys esque vocal harmony song called Pozole. There's also contributions from A$AP Rocky on the most alterna rock sounding song called Funny Friends, and Domi and JD Beck also make an appearance too.

[Stephen Thompson]

Yeah, I mean, when I think of Thundercat, I think immediately of collaboration, right? Like he's a bass player and he has performed with so many different artists. He's played the Tiny Desk multiple times, including with Mac Miller, who of course died in 2018. So having Mac Miller on this record really feels like, wow, how long has this thing been in the works, right? But it ends up being this lovely tribute to their friendship. If you haven't seen the video for the song, she Knows Too Much, it's this kind of animated kind of claymation video of Thundercat and Mac Miller hanging out. And it's really cool animation. It's even got like a little visual shout out to their Tiny Desk concert together, which is kind of a one of the most classic tiny desks recorded just a few weeks before Mac Miller died.

[Guest Vocalist / Singer]

We dancing on the boulevard Girl am I crazy, I must be crazy.

[Stephen Thompson]

You just get a sense listening to this record of that sense of collaboration, right? Like you, you listed all those guests and they turn up on a bunch of songs. But at the same time, the songs that are anchored by Thundercat himself have this really distinct quality. You mentioned the Beach Boys, but honestly, I also have to shout out in a song like, what is left to say? Connections to the Bee Gees, right?

[Aaron Wolfe]

Oh, yeah, I hear that. I hear that a lot.

[Guest Vocalist / Singer]

What is left to say when you made up your mind you could spend whole life trying to find the way that you feel inside.

[Aaron Wolfe]

He is so mischievous and devious. Like the collaborations, you know, are kind of built in, but he just has this very mischievous, devious air about him. And it feels like very now I feel like also the themes of being distracted and titles like Add through the Roof, it really speaks to kind of like a commonality of feelings and a whirlwind of our modern society right now. And there's also momentary sweetness found with Willow on Thunderwave. Just her voice is so incredible. She just released an album that is amazing of her own in her own right. And I don't know because this record has been so long in the making, if this record or her record came first, but it just feels like really great timing if you're a fan of Willow.

[Guest Vocalist / Singer]

Until we raise our shoulder.

[Stephen Thompson]

One thing I love about the song Thunder Wave is it's kind of this, you know, you just heard a little piece of it, this kind of sexy mid tempo jam. But it's got these kind of sloshing water sound effects through it. And like Thundercat is such a fluid bassist, right? Like you've got these big kind of liquid hooks and you know, like bass lines that are running through this record. But then to just make that literal with the sound of sloshing water or in a track like Great Americans, you get cat noises will pop up. There are these little odd asides and effects and just little notes of playfulness kind of peppered throughout this record.

[Guest Vocalist / Singer]

Dear Lord, send help I'm talking to my cats I keep vacuuming and nothing's getting clean Because I move on.

[Stephen Thompson]

That is Thundercat. His new album is called Distracted. Next up, Joe Pernice. His new album is called Sonny. I was wrong.

[Guest Vocalist / Singer]

If you go back to California Please don't take my honey sunshine. How many times must I warn you that it the death of me? That'd be the death of me. If you go back to California Please don't take my honey sunshine. How many times must I warn you that'd be the death of me that'd be the death of me

[Stephen Thompson]

so Joe Pernice has been floating around for, gosh, about 30 years now. He was at the head of bands like Scud Mountain Boys. He had a project called Chappaquiddick Skyline, which I really loved. And of course, he was the lead singer of the Pernice Brothers. And those bands all kind of played around a little bit in that, like, alt country, Americana singer, songwriter space. And for, like, 30 years, he's just been churning out enormously timeless and compelling and collaborative music. And this particular record, this is his fourth solo album, though what counts as solo has always been a little bit fungible with this guy. But it brings in. And we talked about collaboration with Thundercat, we've talked about collaboration elsewhere. And here you've got guest appearances by Amy Mann, Rodney Crowell, Norman Blake from Teenage Fan Club, and Jimmy Webb. And so, you know, these voices are woven in to these beautiful, approachable. You just wear them like an old Carhartt jacket.

[Aaron Wolfe]

Yeah, I like that description. That's what it feels like. And while I was listening to this record, it was mostly en route places driving, and I just found myself turning back to it again and again for repeat listens because it was just such a comfy record to listen to. The thing that I really like about this record, that it was recorded live. So there's, like, this intimacy, this relaxed feel dishing out the lyrics of, like, the ups and downs of life. Looking in the rear view it might be a little resigned, but it's not bitter in any way.

[Stephen Thompson]

Yeah, and it's interesting. I mean, I've been a fan of Joe Pernice's music for a really long time, and I've been a fan of really, like, all three of the bands for which he's best known. And, like, one of my favorite Pernice Brothers is this gorgeous song from 2003 called the Weakest Shade of Blue. And there's a track here called the Black and the Blue, and it's very. It's very reminiscent of that song. It's not repeating ideas or, like, stealing from his catalog, but it. It's reminding you of Pernice Brothers music you loved. And so for me, it felt so comfortable to swim around in. Doesn't feel dated, it still feels current, but it's tapping into nostalgia for a record I loved more than 20 years ago.

[Guest Vocalist / Singer]

I've got a box full of bridges that we sold I've got a box full of stories that we told I've got a box for the ruins of the morning It's Labele, me and you Sorting out the black in the blue

[Aaron Wolfe]

I feel like, too, having, like, these guests from around that era, like Amy, man, for example, her collab with him on Deep into the Dawn. I love the way they sound together when they sing. I also just love the sonics of this mid tempo song. It's got like a little slide guitar, a nice little piano solo three quarters of the way through that I found myself like going back to and repeating just because I really liked. Also reminded me a little bit of the 60s Donovan song called Jennifer Juniper. I don't know why exactly, but I really was delighted by Deep into the Dawn. It's talking about how those were good times, couldn't even recognize them for what they were. Kind of that vibe. I think we all can relate to feelings like that.

[Guest Vocalist / Singer]

Deep into the dawn, restless in all time. Couldn't even recognize them for what it was. It was a sure sign. Couldn't even recognize it then for what it was.

[Stephen Thompson]

Not only do I find his music completely timeless, I find the music of these collaborators really timeless. And so when he pairs up with the great country singer Rodney Crowell. I've been listening to Rodney Crowell's music for 40 years now. And so they pair up on this track called It Won't Be Me. And it's just this really approachable folk pop song where it's just blending you combined. It's like, well, I've been listening to their music for 70 years. I'm not even that old. And, and so there really is, you know, I mean, we've kind of said this in different ways over and over again. There's just something so comforting about these songs.

[Guest Vocalist / Singer]

Half hearted living is a waste of life. They say that once is plenty if you're doing it right. Sure bet money I can guarantee you might settle for someone, but it won't be me. Half hearted loving is a waste of life. They say that once is plenty if you're doing it right. Sure bet money I can guarantee you might settle for someone, but it won't be me.

[Rapper Earl Sweatshirt]

Won't be.

[Stephen Thompson]

That is Joe Pernice. His new record is called Sonny I Was Wrong. We've got one more record we're gonna talk about in depth, as well as a lightning round of some of our and the NPR Music staff's favorite new albums out today, April 3rd. But we're gonna take one last quick break from NPR Music. It's NEW MUSIC Friday. I'm Stephen Thompson here with Aaron Wolfe of Radio Milwaukee. Before we get to our lightning round of some of our other favorite records out today, April 3rd, we got one more Want to Talk About. It is a collaboration with the rappers Mike and Earl Sweatshirt, they are working with Surf Gang on a collaborative double album called Pompeii Slash Slash Utility.

[Rapper Mike]

From this point forward no second chance Touring the globe and taking a piss I know what I wanted at a glance I need it all in my

[Rapper Earl Sweatshirt]

hand I need it all, nigga in advance I let them bar but I made a jam Know what I saw in the trance don't do the talking

[Rapper Mike]

it's fan this shit was all a part of the plan Please do not step out of rank Put the food on my fart can Tell him to scram Clean up the mess in the sink I'm facing the northeast Deeper prayer the bus is just casual to me I see the same shit everywhere I go it's kind of greasy I told Tony better than me I still got Vendetta's to see through.

[Aaron Wolfe]

So earlier this year, like back in January, it was announced that there might be a project between Mike and Surf Gang. And while there was like this big question mark hanging over that possibility, the project and the release eventually came out of the fog to take the shape of this 33 track double LP between Mike and Earl's Sweatshirt with Surf Gang at the production helm. And unlike most collaborative albums, it's a double album consisting of two solo projects. Pompeii by Mike and Utility by Earl Sweatshirt, both fully produced by Surf Gate. And Mike and Earl tie things together by trading bars on two tracks, Kirkland and Lead Belly, which we heard. And Surf Gang adds some cohesive samples throughout for continuity.

[Stephen Thompson]

Yeah, there's a lot of continuity on this record. For a record that really can be cleaved into kind of two different records, there's still. Not only do you have that Surf Gang production, but you can tell that Mike and Earl Sweatshirt have been collaborating together for a long time. They've toured together, they've recorded together, clearly friends. And there are some similar qualities in the structure of this record, these tracks. It's 33 songs, but it's not that much more than an hour. There are a lot of fragments. There are a lot of pieces of music here that you know like a song, like My worst rebuke. It's 80 seconds of this kind of dense, but also mumbly wordplay and references. And it somehow feels like really evocative and really complete, even though it's 80 seconds long. A lot of these songs unfurl as these kind of jagged fragments, but they don't necessarily feel incomplete or unfinished.

[Rapper Earl Sweatshirt]

Yeah, couple GS of that where I'm communing with. I've been keeping My dirt who I do with you ain't leave me on earth you the stewardess I keep thinking they working, assuming shit. You know me getting nervous ain't new to this on your feet I been lurking, I'm true to it I' ma creep up in Kirk to get through to him when his beat no to serve in my pseudonym they ain't see me in person they google and need a gleam when I purchase a turmeric time I feel on the cur of my crucifix For a fee you could

[Aaron Wolfe]

learn I'll be tutoring and then you get that goofy glossed production by Surf Gang. They're dropping in these, like, samples that are kind of keeping everything cohesive. There's like the sound of a phone being plugged in to charge throughout the songs. What else? Surf Gang's trademark drop of surfs up, um, pops up at the intro of a lot of trap. So it does feel like there's a lot of continuity, even when the sides switch.

[Stephen Thompson]

Yeah. And these arrangements are doing a lot of work. You take, you know, home on the range, and that's on the Earl Sweatshirt side of this record. And it has this kind of strange ticking wobble to it. One effect that you really come out of it with as you listen to the whole thing over the course of more than an hour is you.

[Felix Contreras]

It.

[Stephen Thompson]

It feels like there's not a wasted moment on it. Which on a 33 song album is really impressive.

[Rapper Mike]

I'm accelerating events I feel better saying what it is. Hold your breath, you die waiting for them we had a file of the sticks trying to stack it up tall as a building birds I view you watch over the city I'm too much instrument of a 16 you got disorder and I got the fix what's this? Feelings find a home to win hard wide open for real not quite over the hill yeah Hard line held at the entrance God watching over the shield all my battery defenses hardwired up from the start. I'm not going so think ours got going.

[Stephen Thompson]

That is Pompeii Utility, a new record. Records by the rappers Mike and Earl Sweatshirt with production from Surfgang. So, Aaron, we could not possibly get to every great record out today, April 3rd. So we wanted to do a lightning round of our other favorite albums out today. I'm going to kick us off with a veteran singer songwriter by the name of Maria Taylor. She's one half of the dream pop band Azure Ray. She's a longtime collaborator with Bright Eyes in the Connor Oberst cinematic universe. And she's a solo artist with a string of gorgeous and underappreciated albums. She's also a very early tiny desk performer. I booked her for a beautiful little show way back in 2009 in case you feel like like plumbing the NPR archives for something wonderful. Maria Taylor's new solo record is just lovely. It's called Stories End.

[Guest Vocalist / Singer]

Oh, thoughts keep me awake in the dust Where I flake all the sandless space and my heart starts to race.

[Stephen Thompson]

Aaron, what do you got?

[Aaron Wolfe]

Well, I have a new to me artist that I'm really excited about. The Brooklyn singer songwriter Wendy Eisenberg's new self titled album grew from this like deep self examination and acceptance, however. So Eisenberg was like able to step outside of that deeply personal space and invite like a tight knit crew of friends for a communal and really delightfully improvisational project that features features a pile of instruments like acoustic guitar, banjos, strings, synths, pedals and jazz influenced percussion. And this pastoral light touch sound complements her easygoing voice and songwriting that's delightfully akin to Lamb Chop's Kurt Wagner and in brief moments, Joanna Newsom. Baroque, country and folk come together as like this warm and intimate environment is created. It has you leaning in to catch Wendy Eisenberg and what she's so personally sharing with you. That's Wendy Eisenberg with her self titled

[Guest Vocalist / Singer]

album Everything Got Better but the World. For the very first time.

[Stephen Thompson]

All right, thank you, Aaron. Lars Gottrich, welcome to the studio. Hey Steven, give us your lightning round pick, buddy.

[Lars Gottrich]

Steven, have you ever breathed a frequency

[Stephen Thompson]

you know you'd have to ask those around me.

[Lars Gottrich]

Okay, the band sun, that's S, U N, N and then O and then multiple parentheses.

[Tom Huizenga]

Yes.

[Lars Gottrich]

You don't pronounce the O or the parentheses. It's named after the amp head They've been around for almost 30 years. And so for this record they just slim back down to the duo of Greg Anderson and Stephen o'.

[Stephen Thompson]

Malley.

[Lars Gottrich]

With two guitars, a ridiculous amount of feedback and just the loudest, most towering, most terrifying drone that you can ever conjure. But what I love about this record is that that previous records when they were just working as the duo, felt like them just trying to make the coolest, heaviest drone imaginable to like vibrate your body. This new record feels like it is vibrating your soul in order to achieve like a certain transcendence on the level of like an Alice Coltrane or Pauline Oliveiros. Like it's much more heady but it still is like very much about like I'M going to get inside your soul, I'm going to rip it out and I'm going to put it back together again. That is the self titled album by Sun.

[Stephen Thompson]

Thank you. Lars Gotrich, Tom Heise what do you got for us?

[Tom Huizenga]

I've got a new album by the experimental vocal group called Room Full of Teeth and you know they can sing just about anything right from like Tuvan throat singing traditions to contemporary classical. But this new record is called Elevator Songs and it's a very different sound for the group. They're collaborating with songwriter Gabriel Kahane and he's written these very pop infused songs specifically for individual members of Room Full of Tea, Teeth and then like the rest of the singers, provide really, really super cool, very nuanced backup. The album is a very high concept. It's set in an imaginary hotel where we meet all kinds of quirky guests, including the one we're going to hear now, a fashionista podcaster in the song called Valiz featuring Teeth vocalist Jodi Landau. And just wait till you hear the refrain. It's like totally infectious. I really love it. It's Room Full of Teeth. Valise from Elevator Songs.

[Guest Vocalist / Singer]

Start with a sexy pair of underwear. Ride them low so folks won't even know you got them there. Add some jeggings in a faux fur blazer just for fun. You're ready for the Runway. More isn't one girl put it in my Belize, Put it in my black bag Put it in my Cuccinelli maps.

[Stephen Thompson]

Great. Thank you. Tom Huizenga, Felix Contreras. Hey man in the studio, Face to face. What is happening? I'm not even sitting in my closet.

[Felix Contreras]

Let's see. So what I brought is Sophia Ray. She's a vocalist from Argentina originally. She's New York based. She has a series of albums out. We've been following her on Alt Latino for a number of years and I've been a big fan of hers mostly because of what she does. She explores the sonic possibility of the human voice, her own and others. All these different ways she layers them like a chorus. Her new album's called Antonima and it's this amazing collection of what I consider Latino All Stars, man. Daime Arucena, Senor Rubinos, Juana Luna, Mirea Ramos, all of these great vocalists and what she's done is like she's either layered them like a chorus like I said, or she has them. Just the beauty of their voices against hers are combined with hers is it's just all again, it's a celebration of the human voice. It's just a magnificent record. It's called Antonima, and the artist is Sophia Ray.

[Stephen Thompson]

Thank you, Felix Contreras. That is our show for this week. Thank you everyone who's joined me for the lightning round, Lars Gottrich, Felix Contreras, Tom Huizenga, and of course, our dear guest, Aaron Wolfe. Thank you so much for taking time out of your week at Radio Milwaukee.

[Aaron Wolfe]

Such a pleasure to be back with you again.

[Stephen Thompson]

It is always a joy if you enjoyed this week's show. We always appreciate a positive review on Apple or Spotify or whatever app you are listening to right now. This episode was produced by Noah Caldwell, Elle Mannion and Alina Edwards and edited by Otis Hart. Our production assistant is Dora Levitt. The executive producer of NPR Music is Soraya Muhammad. We'll be back next week to discuss more new music with Chloe Kimes from WMOT in Tennessee. Until then, take a moment to be well, snag yourself some discounted Easter candy on Monday and treat yourself to lots of great music. Music.

[Guest Vocalist / Singer]

Intendarambora to my soul in the paramor. I think that.