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- [00:00]
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- [00:17]
Celia Gregory
A quick note before the show.
- [00:19]
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This podcast contains explicit language.
- [00:23]
Stephen Thompson
Happy Friday, everyone, from NPR Music. It's NEW MUSIC Friday. I'm Stephen Thompson here with C. Celia Gregory from WNXP in Nashville. Hey, Celia.
- [00:32]
Guest Speaker
Hey.
- [00:32]
Celia Gregory
It's so good to be back. Stephen. Happy middle of the summer.
- [00:35]
Stephen Thompson
Happy middle of the summer to you. It's kind of the pop culture doldrums. You know, we've kind of gotten through the meat of the summer movie season. The pop hits are kind of already cemented. A lot of the kind of summer monoculture has already passed us by by the time we get to mid July. Musically speaking, at least in our world, that is not the case.
- [00:54]
Celia Gregory
Yes, absolutely. I love it being an outlier this summer. Give us something to latch onto.
- [00:59]
Stephen Thompson
We've got some big, big, amazing records this week, including Wet Leg and Clips and the Swell Season and a bunch of other great stuff. Plus, you've been hearing a little bit of music from the Beta band. The beta band's kind of classic 3 EPS was reissued today on vinyl.
- [01:17]
Celia Gregory
Yeah, Steven, of course, I'm like so many folks that first learned of this band because of high fidelity, even though this album was now then a couple years old. But this many years later, I feel like it really holds up. And I think the virtue of this band is that they were so short and potent. It was like eight years, three albums basically. And so to hear this with fresh ears and done in a really nice way for audiophiles is going to be really special today.
- [01:47]
Stephen Thompson
One of the great things about these reissues is it's never too late to discover these artists. If you weren't around, you know, during this band's heyday, if you're kind of picking it up later, you know, it's actually one of the really nice things about, you know, the TikTok generation and streaming is that these things are just sitting there waiting for people to revisit them and rediscover them. And the fact that this record is kind of getting this official, you know, vinyl reissue, it's a beautiful thing. Let's kick off the show officially with one of the biggest records out today, July 11th. Wet leg has a new album. It's called Moisturizer.
- [02:28]
Guest Speaker
Can you catch your medicine fall? Can you catch yourself when you fall? You should be Careful. Do you catch my drift? Cause what I really want to know is can you catch these fists? Level up. I know all too well just what you're like.
- [03:06]
Celia Gregory
Steven. We knew when we got that first single that Moisturizer was gonna be a banger, but it's always a worry. With a band like Wet Legs, the Sophomore Slump, happening, how can you get catchier than Shay's Long and Wet Dream and such? But this Isle of White band has formed all of their powers because it's not just the two primary songwriters, Hester and Rhian, anymore. It's a whole band effort, and it really shines on. Not just songs like Catch these Fists, but a whole slate of love songs. I think this follow up is really going to surprise folks in sort of the lyrical and musical depth, but it doesn't lose that catchy Wet Leg side eye that we're also excited to hear more from.
- [03:57]
Stephen Thompson
We get a lot of press releases, and you kind of get, you know, this general sense of kind of the context surrounding these records, you know, that the bands and the labels kind of want us to know about. One thing that they said was they worked as a band and they really focused on sounds that would be fun to play live. What is gonna have energy when we put it on stage? Listening to this record, you can feel that there's such wiry, spiky, horny energy.
- [04:37]
Celia Gregory
Dang it. You said horny first. That was gonna be my.
- [04:53]
Stephen Thompson
You really get the sense, listening to this, that these songs are made to entertain them as well as us. These are songs that are fun, but also this kind of swoony, sexy quality. You mentioned kind of love songs coming up again and again. But you also have, you know, you also have Kiss Offs that are just fun.
- [05:13]
Celia Gregory
I got to talk to Rhian before I'd heard the full record and just a couple singles. She's an interesting, fun person because she really seems so nonchalant about this astronomical rise that they've had. And she insisted. Not only are these love songs and from a queer perspective, which makes them different maybe, than what people think Wet Leg would be, but also, yes, what you've said about the full band approach and wanting to still have fun. She even insisted that with this busy festival season, she wanted a chance to be at festivals and enjoy time with her bandmates. And so they'd really been straight with management about that. And I think this is a band knowing what they want, which is to keep the spirit of fun around this band.
- [05:51]
Stephen Thompson
You listen to a track like Liquid Eyes, you get this really kind of timeless guitar line that almost feels like it's been ported in from kind of the New wave era. Celia, you go to music festivals, you can just imagine a song like that kind of shimmering out over like a giant field. At one of these outdoor festivals.
- [06:38]
Celia Gregory
They are doing this Rolling Stone, Gather no Moss tour and the Nashville date includes Wet Leg. Very stoked and grateful for that, but can't wait to see these in any setting. I really love to Don't Speak in a Different Way was one of my highlights. And then of course, the H word you mentioned, Pillow Talk says, hey, don't think that we're too sweet. Now here's exactly what I'm trying to say about how I'm feeling about my partner.
- [07:03]
Guest Speaker
Every night I kiss my pillow, I wish I was kissing you Every night I lick my pillow, I wish I was licking you Every night I my pillow I was shy with you.
- [07:18]
Stephen Thompson
Pillow Talk it is. You know, it's a sexier song. It also just still builds up into this vibrant, crunchy chorus. It's still just like a rock banger at the same time. I'm glad you mentioned the song Don't Speak, which pops up near the end of this record. That song has this languid quality where they're toying around with their sound. For the first, probably two thirds of the record. You're really getting all killer. No filler, just anthem after anthem, banger after banger. But they're also, they're exploring a little bit more of like a dream pop sound. They're still stretching what they do. They're not working within a narrow sonic framework where the album starts to feel samey.
- [08:01]
Celia Gregory
Yeah, stretch was exactly the word I thought of too. We're sharing a brain. Just my second episode. We're gonna let them stretch, right? It feels good to watch them and hear them stretch and still retain, like we said, what we hoped to hear, which was more. More of what we got on that debut.
- [08:32]
Stephen Thompson
The farthest thing from a sophomore slump. It feels like an extension, an expansion, and just a total thrill to listen to. That is Wetleg. Their terrific new album is called Moisturizer. Next up, the swell season is back after a long hiatus with a new album called Forward.
- [08:52]
Guest Speaker
That's another day over. Go to sleep now, my son. It's a full blown solid gold miracle you've come and your mother's a beauty. Your dad's a fortunate man and he'll be back to hold you just as soon as he can. He'll come to find you, come to remind you Remind you that we all play our part oh, now we'll come to find you Come to remember Remind you that I'm not very far those Factory Street.
- [09:47]
Stephen Thompson
The Swell Season kind of formed in the. In the mid aughts as the duo of Glenn Hansard and Marketa Erglova, for those who weren't around, for the explosion of this band around the movie. Once, Glenn Hansard was the lead singer of a fantastic Irish rock band called the Frames. They were one of my favorite bands from the 90s into the early aughts. The Swell Season had this statelier sound to them. Glenn Hansard and Marketa Erglova, you know, starred in the movie once, won an Oscar for the song Falling Slowly Once, you know, obviously became this huge phenomenon. It spawned a Broadway musical. And the Swell Season, you know, put out a couple of records. The last one was strict joy in 2009, and it has now been 16 years since they put out a record together. And so you're hearing these voices blend for the first time, you know, in this really familiar way, in this really comforting way, in songs that are reflecting on the time that has passed between now and the last time they worked together.
- [10:47]
Celia Gregory
Yeah, Stephen, I have to admit, because I was radicalized by the movie once. I mean, it totally. It destroyed me in the best way. And I've been a fan since. And then gone back right to his career and the frames.
- [11:02]
Guest Speaker
Take this in, Kimble, and pour it home. We've still got time. How I miss the people We Used to be.
- [11:20]
Celia Gregory
Glen Hansard could just keep writing out, especially in Ireland. People don't know on this side of the pond how big the frames are. Right. He could just keep writing that out and have the swell season and be past tense. And I love that he said, I missed her. I missed working with her. And so let's get together. They just started trading ideas. I think they recorded in Iceland in her studio. And this is only eight tracks. They didn't try to, like, expand it and lose the spirit.
- [11:46]
Stephen Thompson
They kind of trade lead a little bit on this record. You mentioned it as eight songs, and they kind of alternate factory. Street Bells kicks off the record. It feels a little bit like one of his solo songs. And then they shift gears where she takes the. The lead in a song called People We Used To Be. You get a sense of what you gain by having them work together. He's been pretty prolific. He's been putting out records consistently since the early 90s, you know, when he was, like, in the Commitments. I remember that so much he's been around for a really, really long time, and he has certain qualities that come out in most of his music. Right. There's a rawness on the fly quality, deep well of emotions, that he's very Irish, you know, and that comes out again and again. And she's a little bit more restrained and a little more refined. There's a delicacy and a direct, kind of a directness in her lyrics. And so when you bring them together, that's a really nice combination of sensibilities.
- [12:52]
Guest Speaker
I will not stand by and watch this fire burn down Everything we worked so hard to be if you keep willing those flames to go high, you know they will. I will not stand by and watch.
- [13:21]
Celia Gregory
This fire Obviously, they wouldn't have returned to that just for nostalgia's sake if it didn't work. And I think it. There's so many instruments on this album. You look at the credits and they really did the most. But you still have that core charm of the two of them and their absolute chemistry. So no matter where they've come from, they called this forward because they want to say, well, this is where we're going. This is where we are now, and here's all our talents meshed together. And yes, I love this album.
- [13:50]
Guest Speaker
Can we go backwards Back to the days before for the going got rose I know there's no going back now I tried to move on But I got stuck in rivers so go There's a world of changes so many bridges stood to get over Ruben car stood.
- [14:26]
Stephen Thompson
To crumb they used to be romantically linked. They eventually broke up and started families with other people and kind of moved ahead separately. You're really able to read into the lyrics a sense of shared history and a friendship that is very, very hard won. It's called forward. It's not an ending, but it does feel like a beautiful coda to their story.
- [14:50]
Guest Speaker
Everything I ever knew I passed it on to you the good and the.
- [14:59]
Celia Gregory
Bad I think this is the summer of reunions, and this one should not be eclipsed by the other important stuff happening on the.
- [15:08]
Stephen Thompson
Oh, it should not be. It should not be eclipsed. You say, wow, this is like jazz. What a segue. When we come back from break, we're gonna talk about the new album from Clips, another one that follows a long hiatus. But first, let's take a quick break.
- [15:24]
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- [15:54]
Stephen Thompson
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- [16:22]
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- [16:49]
Stephen Thompson
From NPR Music, it's NEW MUSIC Friday. I'm Stephen Thompson here with Celia Gregory from WNXP in Nashville. Celia, tell me what's going on at the station.
- [16:58]
Celia Gregory
We are doing our second summer of a rooftop concert series called the Backyard Sessions in collaboration with the Bobby Hotel downtown Nashville. And yeah, that launches this month and goes into September. So really pumped about that as well as just all the great new music coming out that we can spin on the radio. Our first one is next week with Samia, who used to live in Nashville, has moved away, but we love her so much. Former Nashville Artist of the Month and a great local artist named Josh Gilligan. We also coming up have sets from Broncho touring through Nashville, Bartis Strange and Samara Sin. So it's really genre, you know, diverse and also going to be a great time on the rooftop. You can just rsvp@wnxp.org BackyardSessions love us.
- [17:45]
Guest Speaker
And rain. Rain.
- [17:48]
Stephen Thompson
Wonderful. Well, let's kick off our next segment with the new album from Clips, their first since 2009. The new one is called Let God sort him out how I'm doing all.
- [18:02]
Pusha T
Things considered, let's be specific. My mama cheek I miss it. I want to kiss it Nig asking for siblings. I know he meant it. V miscarry we hit it. I'm glad he missed it. Hundred thousand or maybe you stick with it pre order the strollers I face in it I pays for my stalk with the baby in it. If the sky's not your limit, you'll never get it turn statistics I'm so sadistic so Religious that's so malicious no division still snow magicians blitzin for riches like 4th initiatives pay attention from let.
- [18:39]
Celia Gregory
God sort em out that's the new Clipse record I mentioned. It's reunion time, Steven and I think this one was a long time coming. They've actually been on the record saying they've been asked to do new music over the years, but they needed sort of like the spiritual push, not just the financial push to get there. And I think it was worth the wait. I really appreciate they were so thoughtful about getting back together and so we get this batch of tunes and not just say, cash grab Drip, drip, drip over the last few years.
- [19:05]
Pusha T
Ballerinas doing pirouettes inside of my snow globe Shopping sprees in Soho you had to see it Strippers shaking ass and watching the dough blow ace trumpets and rose molds Yellow diamonds look like pee pee Bitches fly from DC on my private to Waikiki three peat Niggas is my sons and that's on repeat Sins of the father so I call you Lord Little meechies it's easy how could you and me be ever seen as peers? Can't compare you just CC don't you know these clairs in my and it.
- [19:38]
Stephen Thompson
Feels like it's kind of picking up where they left off, but it doesn't sound dated. If you look at this group's legacy, it is bigger than their discography. You know, this is. This is clips fourth album. Clips formed in 1994. This is not a group that has, like, been churning out music. Their Last record was 2009's Til the Casket Drops. But in the intervening years, they have gotten back together briefly to kind of do the occasional kind of guest spot. They guested on Kanye West's gospel record Jesus Is King. But to make the inevitable connection of the many inevitable connections between Clips and the swell season.
- [20:20]
Celia Gregory
Everybody's talking about it.
- [20:21]
Stephen Thompson
Everybody's talking about it. This was not a hiatus born out of animosity. This is not Oasis. The core of Clips is Pusha T and Malice, and they're brothers. They've musically somewhat drifted apart. You know, Pusha T, you know, made a string of really magnificent solo records while Malice, you know, kind of explored his spirituality more. Actually changed his name for a time to no Malice, to reflect, you know, his kind of religious awakening. But they came back together, I think, really organically. They made a record that spoke to, you know, the time that has passed and the changes that have happened in their lives. And at the same time, because these are hip Hop legends and you know, the roots of clips. You know, they worked with the Neptunes, they worked with Pharrell. They're from Virginia Beach. You know where. Where Pharrell is from. They have a deep Rolodex and there is a ton of amazing guests that pop up. Kendrick Lamar pops up on the song Chains and whips. It rolls along. It really feels like a clip song. And then all of a sudden, Kendrick pops up in this late verse and gives this song like the kind of momentum that can only come from a Kendrick Lamar feature.
- [21:36]
Celia Gregory
Absolutely. The energy is high. And like you said, lest we get nostalgic about old records or, you know, for me, it's just like the early aughts. Such an exciting time for music discovery based on my age and being in college radio and whatnot. But this still feels fresh because of features like that from Kendrick. There's actually been quite a lot of drama around this record, but what we know is that this has been a long time coming and it absolutely slaps. I mean, the rhymes on that first single that we got called Ace Trumpets. It's just like I kept rewinding to hear, like, did I hear that right? They also have a tour coming up. I feel like people are really, really hyped, whether from Virginia, like Shout Out. Our engineer Michael Pollard's very stoked on this because he's calls that home too. Or. Or just even the casual fan. I think the tour is probably going to be enormous.
- [22:19]
Pusha T
Panama fishing village visiting with papa with chapas all of you in pasta Simply just Ferrari window shoppers the one that I just thought it looked like it was built by NASA over half a mil we call Fakasha Reaching for Akasha Never leaving home without my peace Like I'm a hotma from the tribe of.
- [22:39]
Stephen Thompson
Judah really take time with the lyrics like they are superior rappers. There is wordplay. There are names getting dropped. There are references within references. There's also the depth that comes with that 16 year gap between records where they're reflecting on their lives and looking back on changes that have come up. There's a track called the Birds Don't Sing, which features John Legend and Voices of Fire. That has, you know, kind of this soul gospel sweep to it. But if you listen to it closely, the song is about the deaths of their parents. Each one of them is rapping about a different parent. That really gives this record a lived in quality. That gives you a sense of they waited until they really had something to say together.
- [23:27]
Guest Speaker
The birds don't sing the birds don't.
- [23:30]
Celia Gregory
Sing they screech in pain.
- [23:37]
Pusha T
Your car was in the driveway I knew you were home by the third knock A chill ran through my bones the way you miss mama I guess I should have known.
- [23:46]
Celia Gregory
And one more note, Steven. Lest we think, oh, this is just a down home record from these down home boys. I mean, part of it was recorded at the Louis Vuitton headquarters in Paris.
- [23:55]
Stephen Thompson
I mean, Pharrell produced it.
- [23:57]
Celia Gregory
Yeah. Much like my next record with Pharrell partially recorded at Louis Vuitton. So, I mean, they're getting both and. Right. They have all of the access and this warm welcome in the community and in hip hop. But also, I think old fans of this group are gonna appreciate this record.
- [24:12]
Stephen Thompson
Old fans, but also, you know, you can't sleep on these features. You know, you've got pov brings in Tyler the creator. That's somebody who's gonna bring an enormous amount of energy to anything he touches. You have this mix where it like a cross generational conversation led by two guys who are still totally vital at what they're doing.
- [24:34]
Pusha T
So be it. Clap. I could show you how to bust a break if you let me I monogram like confetti switch is ready she leaning on celine cause she ain't stepping into sepi catch up buck 50 like each Pirelli I got eight of them called me andretti funknot in the telly selling the yeti Then I'm twirling your bitch like she and spaghetti heavy circle back and come and get this kelly and your ears too if you want them blue like belly lotta jetting Prada bedding 9 11s I'm the who's who with what's what papa heaven fuck around and get your body trace trying to test me cause niggas that I'm with like to draw when it's sketchy if.
- [25:14]
Stephen Thompson
They catch me don't forget me that is clips. Their new album, first in 16 years is called let God sort em out. Next up, Celia. What is with the hayeti? What is with these bands? Coming back after long breaks, Aloe Darlin has their first record since 2014. It's called Bright nights.
- [25:41]
Guest Speaker
It took forever to get dark to the summer sky was full of stars? You told me I'd been looking tired under a lover's moon I felt inspired and you'd been asking tricky questions I had no words although I tried.
- [26:07]
Stephen Thompson
To.
- [26:07]
Guest Speaker
See the back of her depression? It felt so good to be alive it felt so good to be alive it felt so good to be alive.
- [26:28]
Celia Gregory
Alo darlin is another one of those. Where have I been? Like, why wasn't I attuned to this? It sounds so much like so many other things I like. Right. Very recommended if you like Waxahachie. And this just earnest sounding music is really meeting the moment this summer. Like you said, it's kind of a reunion of sorts. Everybody coming back around in July 2025 and giving us these treats to be able to slog through the summer. But I think, as they described it, timeless and joyous, but at other times, reflective and emotional.
- [27:04]
Stephen Thompson
For those who aren't familiar with Ello Darlin', for me, they were kind of a name that kept floating around. And every time I heard a song, I liked it. But I hadn't spent a ton of time digging into their individual records. When I'm looking at comparisons, I was thinking about, like, bands like Camera Obscura, you know, that mix kind of jangly, catchy, sweet, timeless pop songs that are always doing more than it sounds at first. Where there's depth that kind of sneaks in and cleverness that sneaks in.
- [27:31]
Guest Speaker
Six o' clock in the morning you look weary Come lay your head next to mine I got a secret I've been trying to tell you for some.
- [27:47]
Stephen Thompson
Time the singer Elizabeth Morris Inset is Australian, fronting a band from England. They're just tapping into so much kind of joyful folk and little hints of Americana and country. The songs really just sparkle, but they also go deep.
- [28:06]
Guest Speaker
And I am breaking, like, a wave.
- [28:09]
Celia Gregory
Americana can mean, you know, like sort of pastoral, sort of homey, sensing songs from any place. Right. So her being from Australia and longing for that, it comes through. It could also feel very British countryside in time. So I really love that. My Love Will Bring youg Home track.
- [28:27]
Stephen Thompson
Yes.
- [28:27]
Celia Gregory
Basically from a mother's perspective. Although it could be disguised as a love song between lovers in this kind of country twang tradition.
- [28:35]
Guest Speaker
Every night when you're asleep I still check that you're breathing Before I lay my head and I'll never know Just how it feels to be all flesh and blood but you're part of me so throw your arms around me Darling let me be your rock.
- [29:10]
Stephen Thompson
I immediately picked up on Parenthood. It is very much centered on unconditional love, but also this deep well of anxiety and fear. And so you get a deep and permanent and unconditional love. But it's still fraught.
- [29:25]
Celia Gregory
Yeah. And I know the point of this program isn't to have a stark contrast between all of the albums we highlight. It just so happens that this ends up being a nice contrast to, say, one of these hip hop releases or A Wet Leg because of its, as you said, timeless quality. It sounds like it could have been made at any time in their career or any time in any century, really. They're doing more, but sounding like less.
- [29:47]
Stephen Thompson
Yeah. And there's just real warmth to it. You take a song like Northern Waters, it feels sonically like a perfect companion piece to My Love Will Bring youg Home, just like a warm hug from a friend.
- [29:59]
Guest Speaker
2:00Am Annalisa goes down to the sea Stars like diamonds Laughing at gravity.
- [30:12]
Stephen Thompson
I love this band kind of coming back together after this long break, after more than a decade, which, you know, definitely a recurring theme. We're in this moment where everybody is taking stock and reflecting and realizing the parts of their lives that they that they want to relive and the parts of their lives where they feel like there's there's something left unsaid and just a reminder that our lives are long. And sometimes we we let go of pieces of ourselves as we roll through our lives. You know, often we're shedding things that need to be shed, but sometimes, sometimes we get away from parts of ourselves that are due to be rekindled. That's a lovely kind of lesson to take from a lot of these records.
- [30:52]
Celia Gregory
Imagine if you hadn't taken Pen to page for 10 years, and then you're trying to summarize what you've learned, what you've felt. All of these records, but especially this Aloe Darlin, really do justice to that of, like, how can we take inventory of where we've come from? It's also quite a lovely listen at.
- [31:09]
Guest Speaker
The end of a A long day with 40 degrees in the shade, that.
- [31:17]
Stephen Thompson
Is bright nights from Alo Darlin. We've got one more record we want to talk about in depth, as well as a lightning round of some of our other favorite records out today, July 11th. But first, let's take a quick break.
- [31:29]
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- [32:21]
Stephen Thompson
From NPR Music. It's New Music Friday. I'm Stephen Thompson here with Celia Gregory from WNXP in Nashville. We got one more record we wanted to talk about in some detail. It's the new album by Burna Boy. It's called no Sign of Weakness. So Burna Boy is a Nigerian Afrobeat star, really one of the biggest African musicians on the planet. He's been streamed billions of times. He's won Grammys. He's a huge, huge star. And this record, no Sign of Weakness, really feels like yet another just packed star turn, you know, full of special guests and songs that mix Afrobeat, reggae, soul, funk, even bits of country, like country. Really pops up when Shibuzzi appears in a track called Change youe Mind, which almost feels like Shaboozi featuring Burna Boy. I thought the same thing, you know, Like, I think when bring in Shaboozi, it's gonna sound like a Shaboozi song. You have so many genres swirling together in a record that just, that just really kind of keeps unfurling and just feels like hit after hit after hit.
- [34:03]
Celia Gregory
That Shabuzi track is going to blow up. It just came out this week. And, you know, it's going to be everywhere, right? It's going to be a crossover hit. And so good on both of them for teaming up in this way.
- [34:20]
Guest Speaker
I'm always going to be there for you don't give up on me when the love runs out and the lights go off Want to leave things all behind I'm hoping I could change your mind I'm hoping I could change your mind I know I brought your heart.
- [34:39]
Stephen Thompson
If this means that, that, that something takes Shaboozi's a bar song tipsy off of radio playlists, I, I, I like that song, but, oh, I'm so tired of that.
- [34:49]
Celia Gregory
You ready for the replacement?
- [34:51]
Stephen Thompson
Yeah, just really ready for that song to be replaced. So, you know, I don't want Shaboozi out of my life. I'm just done with that song.
- [34:58]
Celia Gregory
I was thinking, Stephen, just as a radio dj, Burna Boy's come up a lot for me because I don't do a specialty show as a featured artist, right. With like Angeli Kitcho and, and Georgia Smith. He's so versatile, but I think his Vocals really shine bright on this record. He's popular and he's famous now globally for a reason. Like Come Gimme is a highlight for me. And also Sweet Love, where you find his vocal range.
- [35:28]
Guest Speaker
Sweet, sweet love I don't wanna make.
- [35:33]
Celia Gregory
No mistake.
- [35:38]
Guest Speaker
Got to get it right every time.
- [35:51]
Stephen Thompson
Talk about a wide range of artists who are kind of brought in to kind of bring their sound to mix in with what Burna Boy does. You've got a song called Empty Chairs that has Mick Jagger.
- [36:04]
Celia Gregory
No big deal, right?
- [36:05]
Stephen Thompson
No big deal. No big deal. It, like, opens with Mick Jagger's voice. I would say it incorporates him a little bit more like a sample than really, like, an interaction of their. Of their voices. But he is definitely a strong presence.
- [36:21]
Guest Speaker
You might think that you're sitting on the throne, but to me, you're just an empty chair. And that's my IC10. Last time I checked, it was nobody there took my place without fear Seems unfair, but this is warfare.
- [36:35]
Celia Gregory
Troops on the loose, no civilian.
- [36:41]
Stephen Thompson
Then you have a song called Ta Ta Ta, which has Travis Scott. And, you know, he gets a verse, he kind of lends the song his sound, that kind of blurry trap sound, but it meets at the middle between what Travis Scott does and what Burna Boy does. And I feel like it's really kind of a gateway between hip hop and Afrobeat, where it. It speaks really well to what both artists do. And then you've got Pardon, which brings in the Belgian artist Strome, who is a phenomenal artist, who is really, like, one of the best live performers I've ever seen, and a voice that I'm. That I'm always welcoming anytime he's guesting anywhere or anytime he puts out a record. And Strome, you know, Pardon feels like a Strome song, but it is still giving space for what Burna Boy does.
- [37:51]
Celia Gregory
Yes.
- [37:54]
Guest Speaker
Okay, so I.
- [37:55]
Celia Gregory
1000 roses realized it was. I'm always curious when it's like, a huge release like this, like you said, a global superstar, how many other features did they imagine, and how did they end up with this diverse track list? Right. Because this is still pretty lengthy record in terms of number of tracks and all these diversity of different artists on it. So I think folks might have many entry points to this record, but might appreciate sort of the tried and true Burn A Boy sound the most.
- [38:37]
Stephen Thompson
You know, we don't necessarily talk too much about kind of commercial potential when we're talking about these records. Generally, what we're talking about on New Music Friday is just albums that Sparked some sort of joy for us and that that made us excited and that is definitely TR in the case of this record. But also like, this is going to be a colossal hit. This record is going to be streamed an absolutely ungodly number of times. One of the things that gives it that I think extreme commercial potential is a sense of nostalgia. Is a sense that what it's throwing back to and where it's throwing back to provide more entry points for it and more ways for people to connect with it. There's a track called Update that interpolates Back to Life by the group Soul to Soul. And if you are a person who is older than, I don't know, 35, that is going to immediately send you in a. In a summery, sepia toned place. And you really get a sense like he has a lot of young fans. But there are many entry points into this record for older fans, whether it's Back to Life by Soul to Soul or the presence of Mick Jagger, which gives you an age range basically of 8 to infinity.
- [39:46]
Celia Gregory
Infinity, Infinity. Yes. I heard Update and I was like fists in the air. I cannot wait to play that on the radio. I'm so glad folks get to hear it today. And yeah, what a fun record. I'm really glad that we have it right now. As he said, in the sweaty summer, we might as well move to it.
- [40:21]
Stephen Thompson
Exactly. It raises the temperature five degrees and you're not even complaining. That is Burna Boy. His new album is called no Sign of Weakness. Celia, this is a packed release date. We had to kill our darlings. We had to leave some really, really great records on the cutting room floor. Even beyond this lightning round. I mean, the Mel Blum record we're not even going to get to. There's a bunch of really great stuff. But we wanted to do a lightning round of some of our favorites just to give people a taste of records that they should also check out. I'm going to kick us off with a record I really, really loved. I have an assignment for everyone listening the next chance you get. The next quiet morning when you're making your coffee or staring pensively out the window, however you kick off your day, whatever you do to relax, put on this absolutely gorgeous new record from Olafur Arnolds and Talos. Olafur Arnolds is an Icelandic composer and producer. Talos was an Irish singer songwriter who died after a short illness last year. The two of them did a bunch of recordings together as Talos fell ill and Arnold's finished the album with the help of an orchestra after Talos's death. And to me this record is very reminiscent of of one of my favorite records, an album called Diamond Mine by King Creosote and John Hopkins. Both records run about half an hour. Both are melancholy and swoony and just impeccably beautiful. And now they are both part of my Sunday morning listening. It is so bittersweet listening to it now, but it's also just a profound joy. Olafur and Talos's new album together is called A Dawning.
- [42:13]
Celia Gregory
Next up, Steven, a British band called Martha Standing Where It All Began. This is a singles and B sides retrospective and once again I feel absolutely humbled that I didn't really know about this band till this jumped off the list. This band is from Durham in the UK and you know, it's always humbling to be like why wasn't I on top of this? This is exactly my stuff. There's even a column in our prep sheet that said are they British? Which is. I feel very seen to have that be like, this is a British band I didn't, didn't know about. Well, once again, it's not too late. This is a really nice introduction to this band because it's from 2012 to just now including some new covers. It's harmony, rich power pop, pop punk. You know, they cover Jimmy World and the Lemon Hill in addition to originals and I'm just all over it. It's like 20 tracks and they're currently touring with the American band Cheek Face, so that gives them some cred too on this side of the pond. Definitely check out Martha, go back to, then go forward and hopefully lap up the new stuff they'll create next. This again is called Standing Where It All Began.
- [43:28]
Stephen Thompson
One, two, Open Mike Eagle is such a fascinating character. He's a rapper, a comedian, a podcaster, and an all around artist who never comes close to making the same record twice. His music is witty and insightful and strange and often very high concept and his new record is no different. It has childhood trauma at its core, but it's also bursting with asides and ideas. It expects listeners to put in a little bit of work to unpack it. And as with everything Open Mike Eagle touches, it is worth it. His new album is called Neighborhood Gods Unlimited. We can sketch a little piggy South I'll draw the short straw every time.
- [44:07]
Pusha T
Going through the motions like an empty.
- [44:09]
Stephen Thompson
Handed pantomime on a dime Tina Turner.
- [44:11]
Pusha T
Eat the cake and have it all.
- [44:13]
Stephen Thompson
Supposedly Father, I have sinned I'll count the rosary beads Committing to ways and.
- [44:17]
Pusha T
Means or wants and needs the tax.
- [44:19]
Stephen Thompson
Man separates I'll kill it if it.
- [44:21]
Guest Speaker
Bleeds I've got the ips he's got the Yep, I can't see shit. I need to find out who's responsible for this.
- [44:30]
Celia Gregory
My next pick, Steven, is from an artist that I admit I've not seen live and I've not really followed up until this point. But I really like this new record from Petey usa, formerly known as Petey. It's called the Yips. And for folks that don't know that as a name, he is this social media star that emerged during COVID Really quirky, he's got long hair and a beard. He had some really cool artists guests in his reels like Bob Weir, but he was making music all the while. And what we have here is a collection of quite vulnerable, hard on your sleeve emo rock and I don't hate it. It varies from catchy, but also to truly emotional like as Two People Drift Apart, which was one of the singles we got already. Notably, he worked with Chris Walla, formerly of Death Cab for Cutie, so there's some. Some credibility there too. I think you should check out the Yips if you like that sort of thing.
- [45:26]
Stephen Thompson
Finally, the British Nigerian singer, songwriter and composer Tony Njoku is extremely hard to pin down in a few sentences. His work is prismatic. It's expansive, it's stuffed with sonic ideas and grand emotion and flourishes that span psychedelia, neoclassical music and so much more. This is music to bend and expand the mind, complete with inventive guests like Ghost Poet and Tricky. It is highly recommended. Tony and Joku's new album is called All Our Knives Are Always Sharp. So, Celia, we listen to a ton of music. This is where we put ourselves on the spot and ask, what is your favorite song that you listen to in preparation for this episode?
- [46:33]
Celia Gregory
I guess I am more excited about this Swell Season reunion than I really let on, Stephen, because I still keep ruminating over this track called the Great Weight. I was especially surprised to hear the sneaky little F bomb because I think we think the Swell Season or this really sort of clean cut buttoned up and on this one they get a little darker. I think it's a nice entree to the Swell Season where they're going, which as we discussed based on the album title is Forward.
- [46:59]
Guest Speaker
The mighty Empire gone up and smoke. Well, fuck them if they can't take a joke. The great rate is lifted. Great rate is gone.
- [47:12]
Stephen Thompson
I think it's maybe been a while since you've seen Once Glenn Hanser drops that F bomb about 600 times in that movie. That's a gorgeous record. It's really this this time. This is a really, really tricky one to pin down because almost every track on that Wet Leg I could talk about as, as a standout. That is a record I'm going to go back to again and again. But I have to say, Celia, the one that just got its hooks in me that I could not let go of is that Olafur and Talos record. Honestly, the whole thing, I could drop the needle really anywhere in that record. It is such a compact, emotionally rich half hour of just beautiful, transporting music. I'm gonna pick a track called West Cork 12 February, which just has this beautiful atmospheric quality that just made my heart swell. That is our show for this week. Celia Gregory, thank you so much for taking time out of your week at wnxp.
- [48:17]
Celia Gregory
Thanks. It's such a blessing and I love this show. So Here we are, July 11th. Let's go.
- [48:23]
Stephen Thompson
We love having you on. You are officially a friend of the show.
- [48:27]
Celia Gregory
Oh, goodness. I'm glad I didn't overstay my welcome the first time. It'll be good to be back again.
- [48:32]
Stephen Thompson
We are going to keep bringing you back again and again. If you enjoyed this week's show, we always appreciate a positive review on Apple or Spotify or whatever app you're listening to right now. This episode was produced by Simon Rentner and edited by Otis Hart. The executive producer of NPR Music is Soraya Muhammad. We'll be back next week to discuss new albums by Alex G. And others with host Chelsea O. Of the Bridge in Buffalo, Buffalo, New York. Until then, take a moment to be well support public media in all its forms and treat yourself to lots of great music.
- [49:19]
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