New Music Friday: Trey Anastasio, Def Leppard, EL VY
Heads up: It’s Friday! That means a tasty crop of new music releases available on your favorite digital retailer, streaming service, or even at a real, live record store if you can find one. Check out these brand-new albums, all out today, October 30th.
Phish frontman Trey Anastasio spent this summer subbing in for the late Jerry Garcia at the Grateful Dead’s 50th anniversary shows. His new solo album, Paper Wheels, shows off what he learned.
The National’s Matt Berninger is another rock frontman having some fun on the side. EL VY, his new project with Portland indie-rocker Brent Knopf, releases its Taylor Swift-approved Return to the Moon today.
Def Leppard are nearing the 30th anniversary of their 1987 megasmash Hysteria, and they’re still going. Their latest album is simply titled Def Leppard. Pour some sugar on that!
Sports are a great band with an un-Googleable name. Don’t hold it against them: Their excellent new album, All of Something, is full of sharp, sweet songwriting that will make you want to listen to it again as soon as it’s over.
Seattle’s Will Toledo, a.k.a. Car Seat Headrest, has attracted a devoted online cult following over 11 self-released albums. Teens of Style is his first album for indie powerhouse Matador Records, and it’s a stunning showcase for his dorm-room-Brian-Wilson arrangements and strikingly personal lyrics.
Ryan Adams’ full-album cover of Taylor Swift’s 1989 is getting its physical release on CD and vinyl today after blowing up the Internet a few weeks ago….
…but wait! Don’t confuse that with the new album from Bryan Adams, which is called Get Up and produced by ELO’s Jeff Lynne.
J Dilla was one of the most influential and far-sighted producers in hip-hop before his untimely death from a rare blood illness in 2006. He left behind a huge archive of unreleased music; his latest posthumous release is called Dillatronic.
G. Love and Special Sauce have a new album out today, modestly titled Love Saves the Day.
Trailblazing noise act Wolf Eyes recently signed to Jack White’s Third Man Records. Their first album on their new home is I Am a Problem: Mind in Pieces.
It feels like one out of every five people in Philadelphia is a member of a great indie-rock band these days. One of the best is Beach Slang, whose debut is called The Things We Do to Find People Who Feel Like Us. (Step One: Move to Philly?)
Steve Martin and Edie Brickell, who teamed up for an album of bluegrass originals in 2013, are back with a second one. So Familiar features a guest appearance from Bela Fleck.
Another comedian putting on his music hat this week is Seth MacFarlane, who continues his surprising second act as a crooner with No One Ever Tells You.
The Chills were one of the leading bands in New Zealand’s influential indie-pop scene in the 1980s and 1990s. Silver Bullets is their first new album since ’96.
The Neighbourhood scored a sleeper hit in 2013 with “Sweater Weather.” Their second album, Wipe Out!, swerves into psychedelic space.
Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings have a holiday album called, appropriately enough, It’s a Holiday Soul Party. Get on down!
New York groove collective Escort are keeping disco alive. Their second album, Animal Nature, is out now.