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10 Albums You Can Hear Now: How to Destroy Angels, Johnny Marr, Atoms for Peace, More

atoms for peace, johnny marr, how to destroy angels

Friday’s finally here! Celebrate the oncoming weekend by strapping on a pair of headphones and streaming the 10 albums below.

1) How to Destroy Angels, Welcome Oblivion. “[How to Destroy Angels’] almost robotic approach to music, creating a detached atmosphere with… melancholy surrounding it, gives enough style and aplomb to distance themselves from Nine Inch Nails… The key member, however, is [Trent] Reznor’s spouse Mariqueen Maandig, who showcases her vocal versatility, ranging from the soft whispers of ‘Keep It Together,’ beautiful melodic singing on “Strings And Attractors’ or ‘Ice Age,’ to powerful outbursts… on the title track.” — Sputnikmusic (via Pitchfork)

2) Atoms For Peace, Amok. “[Thom] Yorke lays his weary-but-soaring vocals over an assortment of sounds that whir, clatter, click, twitch and sprawl… Amok finds a way to meet in the middle between a buzzy bedroom project like The Eraser and Radiohead’s own full-blooded grandiosity — in part because the new album so effectively blurs the lines between electronics and live instrumentation.” (via NPR)

3) Johnny Marr, The Messenger. “[The Messenger is] filled with Brit-pop melodies and reverbed post-punk jangles. ‘European Me’ shimmers with guitars and bobs with a swaying snare beat, and ‘Generate! Generate!’ barrels through with luminous textures and Marr’s unstrained vocals. ‘New Town Velocity’ slows things down in lush, meandering pop.” (via Rolling Stone)

4) Chelsea Light Moving, Chelsea Light Moving. “It’s tempting to view Chelsea Light Moving as a low-stakes act of liberation following the indefinite hiatus of Sonic Youth after 30 years… [but] Thurston Moore has always been free to pursue musical whims like the ones he chases here… Loose but jagged, playful but menacing, the music… still finds room for glimmers of beauty.” (via NPR)

5) Mogwai, Les Revenants Soundtrack. “Mogwai’s latest scoring work, for French TV thriller Les Revenants, arrives with the terrifying premise that children killed in a bus crash keep coming back to life without knowing they’ve died, so the moody keyboards and glinting guitars… are a bit less tempestuous than might be expected. Then, on penultimate gospel cover ‘What Are They Doing in Heaven Today?,’ the band known for its instrumentals offers warmly elegiac vocals for a powerful track… Hardcore might not ever die, but Mogwai have found grace.” (via SPIN)

6) Caitlin Rose, The Stand-In. On “I Was Cruel,” the LP’s second track: “[Rose’s] voice begins with a quiet quaver, curves ever-so-softly into the sweetest notes, then goes wide for the panoramic harmonies and soaring melodies that the song’s buff Americana arrangement deserves. ‘Lovin’ you is the hardest thing to do,’ Rose sings, but the same could not be said in return.” — SPIN (via The Independent)

7) Stacy Barthe, P.S. I Love You EP. “Stacy Barthe pens a love letter to her fans this Valentine’s Day with her fourth EP P.S. I Love You. The Grammy-nominated singer-songwriter, who has written for T.I. (‘Sorry’), Rihanna (‘Cheers’), and Katy Perry, crafts eight songs, with contributions from Rick Ross (‘Hell Yeah’), Jhené Aiko, Oren Yoel, Supa Dups, J.U.S.T.I.C.E. League, Malay, K. Roosevelt, and more.” (via Rap-Up)

8) Shout Out Louds, Optica. “Particularly in its first half, Optica… plays like a marvelous ’80s mixtape, albeit one with modern production values and a good deal of subtlety. The references aren’t all pop, either — the album-opening ‘Sugar’ sounds like The Cure’s Robert Smith stepping in to lead The Smiths — but the results, in all their sweet and sunny glory, invariably chime and shine.” (via NPR)

9) Doldrums, Lesser Evil. “Lesser Evil… is a riot of color and hiccups and cowbells, of wonky time signatures and upended breakbeats, of sawtooth rainbows exploding into cotton-candy lightning bolts — a crazy quilt of the Beach Boys and Animal Collective and O.M.D. and Dan Deacon that’s been tie-dyed, batiked, beaded, bedazzled, and sliced up into ticker tape for good measure.” — SPIN (via Pitchfork)

10) Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, Let the Day Begin EP. “[Let the Day Begin] EP features the new album track ‘Returning’ as well as both the studio recording and Live from the Troubadour recording of ‘Let The Day Begin’ [BRMC’s upcoming LP, Specter at the Feast, is out March 19].” — Black Rebel Motorcycle Club’s Facebook (via Black Rebel Motorcycle Club’s website)