New Music Reviews (5/18)

Each week, Music Director Chris Sanley and Associate Music Director Alex Ruder share brief insights on new and upcoming releases for KEXP's rotation. These reviews help our DJs decide on what they want to play. See what we added this week below (and on our Charts page), including new releases from Telehealth, Dua Saleh, Kevin Morby, and more. 

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Telehealth - Green World Image (Sub Pop)
If you’re in need of local, quirky, post-punk heaters, look no further than Green World Image. Seattle five-piece Telehealth crafts an intoxicating, innovative art-rock sonic universe built from spacey synths, angular guitars, propulsive percussion, sharp lyricism, and emphatic vocals from band founders Alexander Attitude and Kendra Cox. This all-killer-no-filler sophomore album delivers the anti-capitalist, pro-people anthems that are essential for the modern age. –CS

Dua Saleh - Of Earth & Wires (Ghostly International)
The sophomore album from LA-based Sudanese-American multi-hyphenate Dua Saleh is a transfixing collection of otherworldly alt-R&B delights. With shapeshifting vocals that move from delicate and breathy to rich and warm, lush arrangements with magnetic synths and beats, and substantial contributions from Bon Iver, aja monet, and Gaidaa, Of Earth & Wires is an exceptional body of work from an artist forging their own genre-defying lane, reminding listeners with every step that “ALL IS LOVE.” –CS

Kevin Morby - Little Wide Open (Dead Oceans) 
The eighth studio album from Kansas City-based singer-songwriter Kevin Morby is a touching love letter to the Midwest. From lush barn burners like album centerpiece “Javelin” to tender ballads like the title track, Little Wide Open weaves together guitar, fiddle, pedal steel, harp, banjo, keys, and percussion to propel his heartfelt lyricism. Throughout thirteen gripping tracks, Morby’s expansive sound cracks open a little bit wider with each note, bringing in legends like Aaron Dessner, Justin Vernon, Amelia Meath, and Lucinda Williams, among many other collaborators, to bring this ornate collection to life. He shares: “There’s something unintentionally musical about the Midwest; cicadas chirping in the trees, a train passing, a tornado siren going off. If you listen, there are these almost ominous sounds taking place beneath the wide-open sky — its ugliness and its beauty and how the two are often working together simultaneously. And while the Midwest isn’t technically the badlands, it’s my badlands.” –CS

Little Simz - Sugar Girl EP (AWAL)
Following last year’s ferocious sixth studio album, Little Simz returns with a dynamic collaborative EP. Produced with Jakwob and featuring appearances from JT, DEELA, and 070 Shake, Sugar Girl showcases a playful Simz, moving fluidly from flexing to intimacy and hip-hop to Afro-tech, claiming her space with memorable bars while giving her guests their proper shine. –CS

Blu & Exile - Time Heals Everything (Dirty Science)
For their fifth collaborative studio album, LA-based rapper Blu and LA-based DJ/producer Exile continue to bring the top-shelf underground hip-hop they’ve been creating since their seminal 2007 debut record Below The Heavens. Over its concise and razor-sharp 10-track run, Time Heals Everything proves Blu and Exile’s creative, insightful, soulful chemistry runs deep as they welcome guest appearances from Black Thought, Mach-Hommy, Saba, Fashawn, Jimetta Rose & The Voices of Creation, and more. –AR

Brooklyn Funk Essentials - Black Butterfly (Dorado Records)
The eighth studio album from Brooklyn Funk Essentials is a groovy blend of classic funk, R&B, soul, and jazz. With vocal contributions from Alison Limerick, Desmond Foster, and Ebba Åsman, Black Butterfly delivers messages of hope, love, and growth through vibrant, densely layered arrangements featuring magnetic polyrhythms and top-tier musicianship  –CS

Genesis Owusu - REDSTAR WU & THE WORLDWIDE SCOURGE (OURNESS)
The third studio album from innovative Ghanaian-Australian visionary Genesis Owusu is an all-consuming exploration of every nook and cranny of his singular sound. With an experimental blend of rock, pop, hip-hop, soul, and funk, REDSTAR WU & THE WORLDWIDE SCOURGE is fierce and emotionally resonant, deconstructing societal ailments while building a genre-bending utopia for listeners to revel in. –CS 

Isaiah Rashad - IT’S BEEN AWFUL (Top Dawg Entertainment/Warner)
The third studio album (and first in five years) from Chattanooga-born rapper Isaiah Rashad is another strong set of immersive hip-hop that proudly captures his unique Southern rap slant within TDE’s West Coast landscape. Isaiah’s honest, personable, vulnerable lyrics consistently shine bright while touching upon his struggles with substance abuse and his evolving sexuality, and his versatile vocal style pairs nimbly with the album’s fresh, wide-ranging beats that don’t  shy away from tapping into pop-tinted terrain on standout team-ups with SZA (“BOY IN RED”) and Dominic Fike (“CAMERAS”). –AR

Kelley Stoltz - If You Don’t Know Me, Buy Now! (Dandy Boy)
The 19th (!!!) full-length album from veteran Bay Area musician and KEXP DJ Kelley Stoltz is a stellar set of kaleidoscopic psych-pop with touches of power-pop, garage rock and Krautrock that’s consistently clever, catchy, eclectic, and groovy. With a deep discography that has graced revered labels such as Sub Pop, Third Man, and Castle Face over his 25+ year career, Kelley’s latest cheekily-titled record is his second on Oakland-based indie label Dandy Boy Records and it’s a nod to his witty seen-it-all DIY outlook as well as an immaculate display of his studio craftsmanship and ability to write classic timeless-sounding songs. –AR

Khun Narin - III (Innovative Leisure) 
The third full-length album from Thai psych ensemble Khun Narin marks their first new release in over a decade, and their first time recording in a professional studio. Produced by powerhouse Tommy Brenneck, III is a captivating set of groove-forward instrumental jams. Initially formed as a community celebration band, this rotating group of players, ranging from teenagers to elders, blend elements of psych, surf, and garage rock while honoring traditional Thai sounds by centering the electrified phin. The result is an engrossing collection of refined psychedelia that feels equally meditative and celebratory. –CS

Alela Diane - Who’s Keeping Time? (Fluff & Gravy/Loose Music) 
Portland, OR-based singer-songwriter Alela Diane returns with her stunning seventh studio album, entirely written and recorded in her 19th-century Victorian home. Diane’s rich, enchanting vocals dance atop layered guitars, keys, lap steel, banjo, clarinet, and violin as she flexes her skills as a storyteller. Inspired by the passing of local folk legend Michael Hurley, Who’s Keeping Time? serves as a reminder to be kind, stay connected, and do what it takes to feel truly alive during our short time on this earth. –CS

Esa Williams - Dala What We Must (BBE)
The debut album from London-based South African producer, DJ, and sound designer Esa Williams is a vibrant collection of soulful global grooves with a rich electro-acoustic foundation that touches upon jazz, funk, Afrobeat, Amapiano, and broken beat styles. Co-created with multi-instrumentalist Robin G. Breeze and featuring contributions from musicians across London, Oaxaca, Nairobi, and Cape Town, ‘Dala What We Must’ is a globetrotting collective affair. –AR

Johnny Dynamite - Johnny Dynamite (Born Losers)
The fourth album from this Philadelphia-based artist is a prime showcase of his anthemic '80s-soaked pop vision. Packed with soaring hooks, windswept vocals, and a sweeping, cinematic, nostalgic sound that revels in a synthy, glammy New Wave lane, Johnny Dynamite’s eponymous offering would be right at home in the soundtrack to a John Hughes flick. –AR

Madeline Goldstein - Speaking to the Body (Artoffact)
The second full-length album from this LA-based artist is a strong set of transportive '80s-steeped synth-pop bolstered by Madeline’s soaring old-school synths and dreamy vocals. –AR

New Constellations - It Comes In Waves (Nettwerk)
The debut album from this Portland-based duo composed of singer/songwriter Harlee Case and multi-instrumentalist/producer Josh Smith is a solid set of shimmery, sparkly, catchy synth-pop that recalls the likes of Phantogram and Cannons. It Comes In Waves also includes New Constellations’ breakthrough debut single “Hot Blooded,” an organic viral success story originally released on New Year’s Day 2021 that has since garnered 100+ million streams and it slots in seamlessly here alongside their newer material. –AR

Olof Dreijer - Loud Bloom (dh2)
Following a trio of evocative EPs over the past few years, veteran Swedish electronic producer and The Knife member Olof Dreijer unveils his debut solo full-length album and it’s a colorful, transportive, tropical-tinted set of expansive electronic grooves distinguished by his wonderfully bright synths, predominantly propulsive rhythms, and a progressive worldly vision. Vocal appearances come from Stockholm-based Colombian MC/percussionist Diva Cruz, South African MC Toya Delazy, and Cairo-based Sudanese singer MaMan, each artist lending their own distinctive global flair to Olof’s vibrant productions, and the back half of Loud Bloom features a handful of drifting, meditative, ambient-leaning pieces that offer momentary breathers from his kinetic tech-house aesthetic. –AR

Poolgirl - Still Not Getting What I Want EP (Petit Village)
The second EP from this Montreal-based band is a rad set of blistering DIY punk rock with a snarling Riot Grrrl energy and a deceptively groovy post-punk undercurrent. Fronted by the magnetic presence and commanding delivery of lead vocalist Miranda “Randy” Powell-New, Poolgirl burst out with a skip-free, all-too-brief collection of explosive, urgent, catchy jams. –AR

Touch Girl Apple Blossom - Graceful (K/perennialdeath)
The debut album from this Austin, TX band fronted by Olivia Garner is a sweet set of fuzzy lo-fi indie pop, charming jangle-pop, and spritely twee that adds another DIY gem to the K/perennialdeath discography alongside kindred labelmates like Sharp Pins and Slippers. –AR