With so much good music being released all the time, it can be hard to determine what to listen to first. Every week, Pitchfork offers a run-down of significant new releases available on streaming services. This week’s batch includes new albums from Lorde, Pi’erre Bourne, Nick León, Frankie Cosmos, Blonde Redhead, Gelli Haha, Merzbow, and Smut. Subscribe to Pitchfork’s New Music Friday newsletter to get our recommendations in your inbox every week. (All releases featured here are independently selected by our editors. When you buy something through our affiliate links, however, Pitchfork earns an affiliate commission.)
Lorde: Virgin [Republic]
Though self-described as an album where “language is plain and unsentimental” and “sounds are the same wherever possible,” Lorde’s fourth album, Virgin, embeds its pounding electropop beats and openhearted lyrics with the energy of someone rejuvenated. From the wordless coos-turned-calls in opener “Hammer” to the simplicity-as-transparency approach of single “Man of the Year,” the New Zealand pop star sounds raw and unbarred, like the breezy commercial songs of Solar Power were a hallucination. Co-produced by Lorde and Jim-E Stack, Virgin also features contributions from Daniel Nigro, Bon Iver’s Justin Vernon, Blood Orange’s Devonté Hynes, Fabiana Palladino, Buddy Ross, and Inc. No World’s Andrew Aged.
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