Don’t Miss New Albums From Lorde, Adrian Quesada, Durand Jones & The Indications + Others

Lorde’s long-awaited new album, Virgin, arrived today. Virgin marks Lorde’s fourth studio album and first since 2021’s Solar Power. The New Zealand singer-songwriter co-produced the album with Jim-E Stack. Additional production and songwriting came from Fabiana Palladino, Andrew Aged, Buddy Ross, Dan Nigro and Dev Hynes. In statement about Virgin, Lorde revealed:

“The color of the album is clear. Like bathwater, windows, ice, spit. Full transparency. The language is plain and unsentimental. The sounds are the same wherever possible. I was trying to see myself, all the way through. I was trying to make a document that reflected my femininity: raw, primal, innocent, elegant, openhearted, spiritual, masc.

“I’m proud and scared of this album. There’s nowhere to hide. I believe that putting the deepest parts of ourselves to music is what sets us free.”

Black Pumas co-founder Adrian Quesada returns with another guest-filled solo album, Boleros Psicodélicos II, released today through ATO Records. All but one of the 12 tracks on the sequel to 2022’s Boleros Psicodélicos features a guest Latin alternative musician. Contributions came from iLe, Angelica Garcia, Mireya Ramos, Ed Maverick, Hermanos Gutiérrez, Trish Toledo, Monsieur Periné, Gepe, Natalia Clavier and Daymé Arocena. The Texas native Quesada is coming off an Academy Award nomination for his song “Like A Bird,” from the feature film, Sing Sing. The producer, composer and multi-instrumentalist shared the below statement regarding Boleros Psicodélicos II:

“I was surprised at how many people knew about Boleros Psicodélicos. In record stores and radio stations, people all over the world were asking me if I was doing a volume two. But I definitely needed another perspective, because I didn’t want to make the same album twice.

“I gave Alex Goose one of the tracks to see what he could do with it, and the following day sat behind him in the studio and watched him work. It was like handing the project to a hip-hop producer. He kept the essence of it, but made some really bold decisions.

“I still wanted the album to feel timeless, but I didn’t want to pretend like it was recorded in the ’70s anymore. I wanted it to play just as loud next to a Bad Bunny record.

“The first Boleros Psicodélicos was done remotely during the pandemic, and no one was in the studio with me. I had written more songs in that same style, and wanted to give myself the opportunity to expand. I could write a hundred songs in this same vein. It’s just where I’ve been, both sonically and mentally. It’s my favorite place to be.”

Durand Jones & The Indications issued their fourth album, Flowers, through Dead Oceans. The band — Durand Jones, Aaron Frazer and Blake Rhein — self-produced the follow-up to 2021’s Private Space. The trio wrote the new album at Rhein’s home studio in Chicago, recording single-take demos that evolved into Flowers tracks. Jones provided a look into the lyrical themes found within the 11-song effort:

“All of these songs touch on such mature topics, things that we never got to sing about before. We are all in our 30s, have all been through ups and downs in our personal lives and professional lives, and flowers are a sign of maturity, growth, spring, productivity.

“I had spent the last year and a half laying everything out that I felt insecure about — I felt insecure about my sexuality, growing up poor; about a myriad of things. I laid all of that out on the table and it made me such a stronger person, to the point that I got back to the Indications and I was way more sure of myself.”

Sacred steel ace Robert Randolph makes his album debut on the storied Sun Records label with today’s release of, Preacher Kids. The Shooter Jennings-produced LP was tracked at Sunset Sound Studios in Los Angeles. The album sees guest spots from Margo Price and Judith Hill and includes contributions from guitarist Tash Neal, bassist Jay White and drummer Willie Barthel. Randolph passed along his thoughts on joining Sun Records and recording the new album:

“This album’s gritty and swampy roots vibe makes it the perfect record to kick off my journey with Sun Records. It’s a full-circle moment for me to team up with a label that not only shaped the foundation of American music but continues to champion artists pushing that legacy forward.

“Everyone involved in this record — from the band to the people who inspired it — shares a similar story. We’re all preacher’s kids. This album feels like our collective diary, rooted in gospel and shaped by the journey from the church to the stages of rock and blues.

“Over the years, I have heard people talk about how Jimi Hendrix and Led Zeppelin would just roll the tape and write songs while jamming. That’s what we did on this album. Everybody was like ‘what was that thing you played?’ and we’d be like ‘we just made it up!’”

Bruce Springsteen shared the massive Tracks II: The Lost Albums collection featuring seven previously-unheard albums spanning 1983 – 2018 via Columbia/Sony Music. The 83-track set archival set presents 74 songs that have never been officially released in any form. The Boss dug into his archives to work on the long-awaited follow-up to 1998’s Tracks while locked down during the pandemic. Springsteen completed the compilation at his Thrill Hill Recording facility in New Jersey with producer Ron Aniello, engineer Rob Lebret and supervising producer Jon Landau.Tracks II begins with LA Garage Sessions ’83, recorded in advance of Springsteen’s blockbuster Born In The U.S.A. album. The set also includes albums entitled Streets Of Philadelphia Sessions, Faithless, Somewhere North Of Nashville, Inyo, Twilight Hours and Perfect World.

“’The Lost Albums’ were full records, some of them even to the point of being mixed and not released,” explained Springsteen. “I’ve played this music to myself and often close friends for years now. I’m glad you’ll get a chance to finally hear them. I hope you enjoy them.”

Vanity is the sophomore full length release from Honduran-born pop musician Isabella Lovestory, available now through Giant Music. The 13-track record follows her 2022 debut LP, Amor Hardcore. The Vanity single, “Putita Boutique” features a guest appearance by Taichu. In statement discussing Vanity, Lovestory stated:

“Vanity has a metallic analog vibe: a robotic funeral. Ghost in the Shell mixed with a poppy ultra-feminine sound. Shiny yet rusty, fancy yet trashy, like ancient encrusted diamonds. Thematically, this album explores fragility, how easily a mirror shatters, but it also explores the indestructible and eternal essence of beauty. I don’t mind when things break, I like to collect the pieces and create something new.”

Miami-native electronic producer Nick León released his latest album, A Tropical Entropy, today through the TraTraTrx label. León recruited several special guests while expanded his self-described “Arquitectronica” approach across the album’s 11 tracks. The new release finds León collaborating with Ela Minus, Casey MQ, Erika de Casier, Xander Amahd, Jonny from Space, Esty & Mediopicky and Lavurn. Notes accompanying the new album provided insight into A Tropical Entropy:

Inspired by Joan Didion’s novel Miami and his unique energy, as well as altered states of consciousness — both chemically induced and sleep-deprived — the album reflects León’s personal experience of witnessing life and love fall apart against the backdrop of a crumbling society.

Rose Ganache, the indie-folk duo of MeShell Wolf and James Coburn, released a new EP, Horizon Line, marking the pair’s first new music in three years. The new release joins Rose Ganache’s 2021 EP Madness From Two and its 2022 follow-up, Acoustic. Grammy-winning producer/engineer Ray Bardani, who produced the previous EPs, served as the Horizon Line executive producer and mixing engineer. Wolf and Coburn were residing in Denver in 2023 when they began performing concerts with drummer Allen Aucoin (the Disco Biscuits) and bassist Roger Len Smith (Phil Cody Band). The following year saw the same musicians convene at Colorado Sound to workshop the songs that became Horizon Line with producer/engineer Josh Fairman of Sunsquabi. Keyboardist Joe Delia (David Johansen, Dave Edmunds) remotely recorded his parts from his home studio in Montauk, New York. The EP was mastered by Reuben Cohen of Lurssen Mastering in L.A.