New Music Reviews (10/5)

Each week KEXP’s Music Director Don Yates shares brief insights on new and upcoming releases. See what's coming up this week below, including reviews for new releases from Phosphorescent, Swearin’, Cat Power, and more.

Phosphorescent - C’est La Vie (Dead Oceans)

The seventh Phosphorescent album (and first in five years) from the now Nashville-based Matthew Houck is another masterful set of psych-tinged roots-rock with an atmospheric sound featuring guitars, organ, piano, synths and more accompanying his frayed vocals, wistful melodies and well-crafted lyrics of love, life, struggle and maturation.

Swearin’ - Fall Into The Sun (Merge)

The third album (and first in five years) from this reunited Philly band led by Allison Crutchfield and Kyle Gilbride is a potent set of ‘90s-influenced indie-rock with buzzing guitars, alternating lead vocals and emotive lyrics of lost love, loneliness and mortality often juxtaposed with buoyant song hooks.

The Joy Formidable – AAARTH (Seradom)

This Welsh trio’s fourth studio album is their most adventurous and wide-ranging set to date, featuring a variety of dynamic, hard-hitting, psych-tinged rock songs with skyscraping, effects-laden guitars and synths accompanying Ritzy Bryan’s often-hushed vocals and lyrics of struggle, division, empathy and resilience.

Cat Power – Wanderer (Domino)

The 10th studio album (and first in six years) from Chan Marshall (aka Cat Power) is a strong set of minimalist folk-pop. Produced by Marshall, the album features a spare, intimate sound with acoustic guitar and piano accompanying her smoky vocals and often-desolate lyrics blending the political and the personal.

Petite Noir – La Maison Noir EP (Roya)

The latest release from this London-based South African artist (aka Yannick Ilunga) is an impressive six-song EP featuring an expansive, rhythm-driven blend of various African styles with R&B, hip hop, electronic, post-punk and more.

Viagra Boys – Street Worms (YEAR0001)

This Swedish band’s debut album is a fierce, darkly humorous set of satirical post-punk with grimy guitars, bright synths, skronky sax, propulsive rhythms, snarling vocals and politically charged lyrics sending up toxic masculinity, classism and other societal ills.

GØGGS - Pre-Strike Sweep (In The Red)

The second album from this LA band featuring Ex-Cult's Chris Shaw on vocals, Ty Segall on guitar, Charlie Moothart on drums and Michael Anderson on bass is another potent set of raw, noise-addled garage-punk with blistering guitar riffs and driving rhythms accompanying Shaw’s snarling bark.

Kero Kero Bonito – Time ‘n’ Place (Polyvinyl)

This London-based trio’s second album brings a more raw and aggressive rock edge at times to their colorful synth-pop, combining buzzing, fuzzy guitars with sparkling synths and buoyant pop melodies.

Tokyo Police Club – TPC (Dine Alone)

This Newmarket, Ontario-bred band’s fourth album is a fine set of energetic, hook-filled indie-rock.

Madeline Kenney – Perfect Shapes (Carpark)

This Seattle-bred, Oakland-based artist’s second album is a fine set of intricately crafted dream-pop that was produced by Wye Oak’s Jenn Wasner (who also plays on the record).

Kikagaku Moyo – Masana Temples (Guruguru Brain)

Renowned for their fiery live shows, this Tokyo-bred band have toned it down considerably for their fourth album. Produced by Portugese jazz musician Bruno Pernadas, the album is a fine set of breezy, jazz-tinged psych-rock, motorik space-pop and acoustic folk-pop.

Death Valley Girls – Darkness Rains (Suicide Squeeze)

This LA band’s third album is a fierce set of psych-tinged garage-punk with fuzzy guitar riffs, urgent rhythms, gang-vocal choruses and fist-pumping song hooks.

Haerts – New Compassion (Arts & Crafts)

This Brooklyn-based duo’s second album is a solid set of widescreen indie-pop with glittering keyboards, sleek guitars, propulsive rhythms, sweeping pop hooks, anthemic choruses, plaintive vocals and lyrics of love, loss and resilience.

All Them Witches – ATW (ATO)

This Nashville-based band’s fifth album is a fine set of heavy psych-rock ranging from driving stoner-rock to atmospheric, blues-tinged ballads.

Calvin Johnson – A Wonderful Beast (K)

The latest solo album from the Beat Happening leader (and founder of Olympia’s K Records) was recorded with The Black Keys’ Patrick Carney, who produced, co-wrote and played on the album. The end result is a fine set of buoyant, beat-driven rock inflected with funk, New Wave, psych-rock and other styles.

Bottle Rockets – Bit Logic (Bloodshot)

This veteran St. Louis band’s 13th album is another smartly crafted set of blue-collar roots-rock ranging from wry roadhouse rockers to bittersweet, acoustic-oriented ballads.

AlunaGeorge – Champagne Eyes EP (self-released)

This London-based duo’s latest release is a solid six-song EP blending sultry R&B with various hip hop and electronic beats.

Winter & Triptides – Estrela Magica (OAR)

Samira Winter (aka Winter) teamed up with fellow LA artist Glenn Brigman (aka Triptides) for this well-crafted blend of breezy psych-pop with samba and bossa nova.

Raz Simone – Drive Theory (Black Umbrella)

This Seattle artist’s latest album is a fine set of gritty hip hop combining cinematic beats with his grainy vocals and reflective rhymes of street life.

Kristin Hersh – Possible Dust Clouds (Fire)

The 10th studio solo album from the Throwing Muses leader is a solid set of raw, brooding rock with discordant guitars, off-kilter rhythms and often-distorted vocals.