June

Sonic Youth stretch, Elvis Costello shines and Brody Dalle steps out.

Posted Mar 20, 2009 10:50 AM

We've already previewed new summer heat from the Dave Matthews Band, Black Eyes Peas, the Jonas Brothers, Regina Spektor and Jack White's new band, The Dead Weather. But June will also see Sonic Youth soldier on, Brody Dalle unveil Spinnerette and Dinosaur Jr. continue to defy the odds by staying intact. Here's what else is on deck:

Sonic Youth

The Eternal 6/9

Sonic Youth's 16th studio album is their most diverse set of tunes in more than a decade, ranging from melodic rock & roll ("Antenna") to experimental noise assaults ("Thunderclap for Bobby Pyn") to nine-minute-plus acoustic-tinged reveries ("Massage the History"). "Our last few records were super-song-oriented," says guitarist Thurston Moore. "With this one, I thought we should do more avant-garde rock & roll." Pavement bassist Mark Ibold has joined the band, freeing up Kim Gordon to play more guitar and to sing; on the Britney Spears tribute "Malibu Gas Station," she howls, "The breasts are bangin'/Abdominal master."

• Listen to selections from The Eternal
Courtesy of Matador Records

Elvis Costello

Secret, Profane & Sugarcane 6/2

Working with T Bone Burnett for the third time, Elvis Costello made this new album in Nashville with a string band that included several players from the Plant-Krauss collaboration, Raising Sand. The track list is a mix of new and old material, including two songs Costello penned for Johnny Cash, one tune co-written with Loretta Lynn ("I Felt the Chill") and several from his unfinished opera about the life of Hans Christian Andersen.

Mos Def

The Ecstatic 6/9

On "Life in Marvelous Times," the new single from Mos Def's first album in three years, he raps, "We are alive in amazing times....It's just too much more for your mind to absorb." It's one of several tracks inspired by Obama's win. "A lot of things I've been writing about are in the air since Barack's candidacy," he says. "I feel good about all of it." The Ecstatic is also the rapper's most accessible set since 1999's Black on Both Sides, and features contributions from Slick Rick, Talib Kweli, the late J Dilla and the Neptunes' Chad Hugo.

Rob Thomas

Cradlesong 6/30

On the follow-up to his chart-topping 2005 solo debut, Rob Thomas tries on New Wave (the synthy, Devo-esque "Gasoline"), country ("Getting Late") and world music ("Her Diamonds," featuring Japanese taiko drums). "I recorded all these moments when I felt, like, 'I'm Paul Simon,' or 'I'm INXS,' " says the Matchbox Twenty singer. "But I still retained my identity as a songwriter — I just dressed it up."

• Listen to an excerpt of a track from Cradlesong, "Give Me the Meltdown"
Courtesy of Atlantic Records

Damian Marley and Nas

Title TBD June

Nas and Damian Marley first collaborated on "Road to Zion," from Marley's 2005 breakout set, Welcome to Jamrock. It went so well, the pair have reunited for an entire album. "We're trying to have a sound that's reminiscent of both of us, but not exactly like either," says Marley, who adds they cut the disc with a live band. Proceeds will go to a project in Africa — possibly building a school in the Congo — and songs like "Count Your Blessings" reflect on the plight of the continent. "A lot of charity albums come off corny," says Marley. "We want this to be something you'd play in your car."

Dinosaur Jr.

Farm June

The 2005 reunion of the famously fractious original Dinosaur Jr. lineup — and subsequent album — was such a success, the trio went into Mascis' studio. The result is another blast of propulsive rock & roll anchored by frontman J. Mascis' stoner drawl and his fiery guitar solos on tracks like the nine-minute-plus, "I Don't Wanna Go There." "That one's a bit of a jam," says Mascis. "We still get on each others nerves — but when we play music, we get along just fine."

Spinnerette

Spinnerette June

Four years after the Distillers' breakup, singer Brody Dalle returns with Spinnerette and a debut album less straight-ahead punk than bruising, eccentric rock about difficult relationships. For Ghetto Love, Dalle and multi-instrumentalist Alain Johannes blend melody and wild, frazzled guitar effects on the title song, turn gloomy and explosive on "Cupid" and experiment with urgent "Gaelic disco" for "Baptized By Fire." They're joined on the album's dozen tracks by drummer Jack Irons (Pearl Jam, Chili Peppers) and guitarist Tony Bevilacqua (Distillers), recording in Burbank, Calif., at Pink Duck, the studio built by Dalle and husband Joshua Homme (Queens of the Stone Age). "I couldn't imagine making a Distillers record right now. It's so far away," says Dalle, whose new recordings show the influence of Blondie and Cibo Matto. "I'm more into the musicality of something now. I love writing songs . . . I'm honing in and making it my craft and discovering new things."

UP NEXT: 50 Cent, the Flaming Lips and more July/August releases

SPRING MUSIC PREVIEW INDEX

PHOTOS
• Go inside the studio with Green Day, Wilco, Dave Matthews and more in our exclusive shots.