Amoeba Music

On All of Us Flames, singer-songwriter Ezra Furman unpacks her own experience with religion, gender, and life in a voice reminiscent of Television’s Tom Verlaine, her passion and storytelling creating a sincere intimacy with the listener. Whether it’s finding a connection with an ‘80s film star (“Ally Sheedy in the Breakfast Club”) or a rousing anthem to her trans community (“Lilac And Black”), Furman cements her heart to her sleeve and blazes ahead.

Ibeyi’s Spell 31 is vibrant, urgent, and (yes) spellbinding. The French Afro-Cuban twin singers Lisa-Kainde and Naomi Diaz possess lovely, dexterous voices that seamlessly shift from otherworldly highs to earthbound lows. The music itself pulls from such a vast array of influences that it feels like the duo has crafted a genre all their own: futuristic, globally-influenced, percussion-driven, experimental soul. This is a gorgeous, powerful release that you need to hear for yourself so you can understand why artists like Beyonce, Angelique Kidjo, and Erykah Badu count themselves as fans.

El Mirador is the evocative, imaginative new album from cross-cultural indie rockers Calexico. The band conjures the beauty and romance of the desert through their usual blend of Americana, rock, cumbia, and Tejano genres, this time throwing in a bit of a mid-century lounge vibe at times. The album feels both celebratory and searching—a fitting mix for a collection of songs the band has described as a response to the way the pandemic highlighted our human need for connection. The music of El Mirador feels vibrant and alive, richly textured with the small beauties and heartaches of life, each made more beautiful through their relationship to one another.

Allison Russell’s Outside Child is so assured it’s hard to believe this is the Montreal singer-songwriter’s debut album. Russell fuses Americana, blues, and soul to create a sometimes haunting, sometimes joyful sound uniquely her own. In this way, the melodies mirror her lyrical concerns as well as the overarching themes of the album—namely transcendence, healing, and hope, all springing from a place of deep-rooted trauma. Powerful, moving, and devastatingly beautiful, Outside Child marks Allison Russell as one to watch.

UK metalcore titans Architects are back with a monstrous new album. Mixing in industrial, electronic and post-rock elements with insanely catchy Rammstein-like machine gun riffs, they have leveled up on tracks like lead single “when we were young” and “tear gas.”

Architects performed their 2021 album For Those That Wish to Exist live at Abbey Road Studios, adding a healthy gravitas to their metalcore sound. The orchestral elements on the live tracks lend a dramatic airiness to the crushing choruses on “Animals” and “Impermanence.” “Little Wonder” maintains its urgency but takes on a haunting atmosphere. Fans of the British band should enjoy comparing these heightened live tracks with the album versions.

Gothic Luxury is the striking new debut from Meechy Darko of Flatbush Zombies. Working with Dot Da Genius (Lil Nas X, Kid Cudi, Jhené Aiko), the production is ice cold, the lyrics incisive, the overall vibe cathartic. It’s a powerful, hard-hitting album, written in the aftermath of Meechy’s father’s killing by the Miami police in 2020. Gothic Luxury is compelling from beginning to end, filled with nuance, emotion, and impact.

Cass McCombs’ Heartmind is a warm, intimate album that displays some of his best lyrical storytelling yet. These are the types of songs that sneak up on you and haunt the mind long after the last note has rung out; although the melodies are seemingly easy-going and gentle, the lyrics have teeth, and when combined, these folk-tinged numbers pack a punch. “Unproud Warrior” chronicles a veteran’s return from war and the emotions he grapples with as he tries to make sense of his own actions and how they fit into great societal narratives. “Karaoke” is a clever, moving look at whether a connection is real or just the facsimile of a connection. Heartmind is a slow burner with great emotional depth and lovely melodies.

City and Colour's new album, The Love Still Held Me Dear, features some of Dallas Green's most intimate, electrifying songwriting to date. Written as a way of processing the loss of his best friend, Green shares his journey through heartbreak, grief, and eventually finding comfort and hope. Elements of blues and country add sweeping emotion, grit, and fierceness to these well-crafted tracks. The songs feel like old friends, even on first listen, which is a testament both to Green's musicianship and to the real inspiration behind these songs. Fans will treasure this one.

This Must Be the Place is Apollo Brown's first instrumental album since 2014's Thirty Eight. It's a warm, summery collection of songs with a nostalgic sheen, imbued with beauty, love, and hope for a brighter tomorrow. Brown crafted these songs from compositions solicited from his colleagues, chopping, looping, and deconstructing their original work to create yearning jazz-funk numbers and hazy, dreamy soul pieces. This Must Be the Place is cinematic and striking, the soundtrack to a place and a mood you'll want to revisit again and again.

Eddie Chacon's Sundown is the aural equivalent of that languid, magical final moment of the day when the world is bathed in golden light. Chacon and John Carroll Kirby teamed up in Ibiza to record the first half of the album, listening to Pharaoh Sander's "Greeting to Saud" as a daily ritual, and luxuriating in the natural beauty of the beach. The album feels fittingly woozy, sensual, and joyous, the songs harkening back to the golden age of funk and soul. Sundown is a dream for music fans, a showcase for the talents of these two artists, and an album that feels like a future classic.

When punk rock needed a new hero, Fake Names answered the call. Expendables is the latest album from the supergroup, comprised of Brian Baker (Minor Threat, Bad Religion, Dag Nasty), Dennis Lyxzén (Refused, INVSN, The [International] Noise Conspiracy), Michael Hampton (S.O.A., Embrace), Johnny Temple (Girls Against Boys, Soulside) and new member Brendan Canty (Fugazi, Rites of Spring). With a crew like that, you'd expect this to be good, but even so, you wouldn't be prepared for how instantly likable this album is, how instantly the songs get under your skin. Expendables has the energy and ethos of classic punk with the genre heritage of hardcore, post-hardcore, and post-punk to keep things fresh, urgent, and impactful.

Multi-instrumentalist, olde time music expert, and erstwhile member of the Carolina Chocolate Drops, Dom Flemons returns with another rousing and riveting solo album, Traveling Wildfire. On this collection of original songs, Flemons' ability to conjure the mood of a different time and place is spotlighted, as he melds bluegrass, folk, country, and Americana into timeless tracks that could be from today or 100 years ago. Opener "Slow Dance with You" is a heartfelt, one-moment-in-time ballad. "It's Cold Outside" is a haunting, melancholy charmer. And "Guess I'm Doing Fine" feat. Sam Bush feels like a true stomper, with fast fiddle and lyrical banjo. An excellent album from an artist who deeply understands his chosen genre.