With the new month of August starting tomorrow, summer
release season continues to rage on. That means there is a whole new roster of album
releases to get excited for.
August is filled with a lot of highly anticipated new
albums. Ariana Grande and Nicki Minaj both have huge releases slated to come
out in the next month. The same goes for rock bands Alice in Chains and Death
Cab for Cutie. Lovelytheband is slated to release its debut album, as is Bon
Iver / The National side project Big Red Machine. Jason Mraz is releasing a new
album sure to fit the warmth of the summer sun. August will also see some
unexpected new music from the likes of Alkaline Trio, Plain White T’s and Blue
October.
Vinyl Bay 777, Long Island’s music outlet, loves new music.
That’s why we’re taking a look ahead at some of August’s hot new releases. Here
are nine that we think will be worth picking up in the coming month.
1.
Lovelytheband, ‘Finding It Hard to Smile’: Lovelytheband
had a breakout year in 2017, with their debut single “Broken” becoming a huge
alt-rock hit. Though their second single “These Are My Friends” hasn’t hit
quite the same level of success, the song hits the same pop-y, easily consumable
notes as the first. If the rest of the album is like this, than the band could
have one of the biggest underground albums of the summer. (8/3)
2.
Jason Mraz, ‘Know’: Jason Mraz consistently comes
out with amazing, catchy, laid-back tunes from album to album and from what I’ve
heard of ‘Know’ so far, his latest album will be no different. “Have It All” in
particular merges the fast-talking wordplay of his early work with the
acoustic, happy-go-lucky feel of his more recent fare, making for a
well-rounded sound. (8/10)
3.
Nicki Minaj, ‘Queen’: It seems like Nicki Minaj
has been everywhere on everyone else’s albums over the last few years, but
keeping quiet about the progress of her own work. That changed in April when
the rapper announced a new album, ‘Queen,’ and released two back-to-back singles.
Minaj continues to keep many of the album’s details quiet though, as she has
not released an official track list yet. However, with Minaj’s unique flow and
style, there is no doubt that theis album will sit on top of the sales charts. (8/10)
4.
Death Cab for Cutie, ‘Thank You for Today’: A
lot has happened with Death Cab for Cutie since they released 2015’s ‘Kintsugi,’
the biggest of which was the departure of founding member Chris Walla. Now with
Ben Gibbard as the sole original member, the band comes back with their ninth
studio album, ‘Thank You for Today,’ this August. The album’s first single, “Gold
Rush,” which is described as a “requiem” for changing neighborhoods and
features a sample from Yoko Ono’s “Mind Train,” is memorable and the proper
continuation of the indie-rock sound the band has helped define. (8/17)
5.
Ariana
Grande, ‘Sweetener’: Ariana Grande’s upcoming fourth album, ‘Sweetener,’ is
one of the most anticipated albums of the summer. Having released three singles
from the album so far, each has charted on the Billboard Hot 100 and people
have been especially enthusiastic about the innovativeness of “No Tears Left to
Cry” and “God Is a Woman.” Sales also won’t be hurt by the fact that she has
been in the public eye for more than her music lately; she recently got engaged
to comedian Pete Davidson, for whom she wrote the namesake song on the album. (8/17)
6.
Blue October, ‘I Hope You’re Happy’: Blue
October took a more positive approach with their upcoming album, ‘I Hope You’re
Happy.’ While many of the band’s previous songs have dealt with pain and mental
strife, the title track seems to find frontman Justin Furstenfeld reconciling
with life. The sound is less dark too, adding in a bit more synth and pep. It
will be interesting to hear were this new sound takes them. (8/17)
7.
Alice
in Chains, ‘Rainier Fog’: It’s been five years, but Alice in Chains is back
with a brand new album. ‘Rainier Fog’ is the grunge / metal band’s sixth album
and first for the BMG label. According to a Rolling Stone interview feature, vocalist
/ guitarist Jerry Cantrell said that much of the album is a look back at where
the band came from, with inspiration coming from the Seattle music scene, as
well as the bands that inspired them to play (especially on the title track). (8/24)
8.
Alkaline
Trio, ‘Is This Thing Cursed?’: Alkaline Trio have been quietly at work on a
new album, ‘Is This Thing Cursed?’,” their first in five years. Now the band is
ready to share what they’ve come up with. According to an interview with the
band in New Noise Magazine, the writing for the album was very similar to that
of their second album, ‘Maybe I’ll Catch Fire,’ with vocalist / bassist Dan
Andriano saying “I really feel like we made a record that the old school fans
are going to dig.” (8/31)
9.
Big Red Machine, ‘Big Red Machine’: Earlier this
year, Bon Iver frontman Justin Vernon and The
National’s Aaron and Bryce Dessner started a new side project called Big
Red Machine, releasing four songs through a new streaming website they created,
PEOPLE. Now the group is putting out an official, self-titled album. This could
be an interesting collaboration considering the two bands’ very different sounds.
(8/31)
August is gearing up to be a great month for new music. With
highly anticipated pop, rock and rap albums on the horizon, there is a lot to
look forward to. Keep an eye out for some of the albums above and let us know
which new releases you can’t wait to check out.
---
Find music new and old from your favorite artists at Vinyl
Bay 777, Long Island’s favorite new independent record shop. We have thousands
of titles to choose from in a wide variety of genres. Browse our selection of
new and used vinyl records, CDs, cassettes, music DVDs and memorabilia in store
at our Plainview location or online at vinylbay777.com. Whether you’re looking
to find something new or to reacquaint yourself with the classics, we have you
covered. And with more titles being added to our selection all the time, you
never know what you might find at Vinyl Bay 777.
No comments:
Post a Comment