New Music April

The first new music Friday of April was a busy one. Bon Iver released a live album in the form of 11 performances that were recorded from 2019-2023, Thundercat is back with Distracted, his first album since 2020’s It Is What it Is, and Arlo Parks has returned with Ambiguous Desire, a fun look into the life she let herself enjoy living during the three years between her two most recent projects, and Earl Sweatshirt, MIKE, and Surf Gang released the 33 song odyssey, Pompeii // Utility, a marker of years of collaboration and friendship. These albums are all incredible, please go listen to them! And just like the first week, the rest of the month doesn’t disappoint.

Ambiguous Desire Album Cover

On the 17th, both Jessie Ware and Honey Dijon are back with full-length albums, Ware’s entitled Superbloom and Dijon’s, The Nightlife. Both women are masters of their individual sounds: Jessie Ware takes a more disco-influenced route, whereas Honey Dijon remains an enduring icon of house music. The day before that, on the 16th, Dominican rapper Tokischa is set to release her debut album, AMOR & DROGA. The announcement came after she shaved her head onstage at Madison Square Garden while opening for FKA twigs two weeks ago. The album to be an intimate and very vulnerable moment of expression for Tokischa, and I couldn’t be more excited.

Later in the month, on the 22nd, Dorian Electra returns with their self-titled album. Self-titling this album is a hilarious choice considering the fact that it’s a cover album. This album is probably the most aligned with my music taste, at least as of late. I’ve been sucked back into hyperpop, and really all kinds of electronic music, lately.The album is a cover album, and the three pre-released singles (one of which being a cover of Bob Dylan’s Mr. Tambourine Man) promise that this record will be weird and very self-indulgently fun.

Dorian Electra Album Cover

However, there is still one album I’m most excited for: Kehlani’s upcoming self-titled album. Lucky for me, both albums are being released on the same day. Kehlani promises to be a big hit due to the success of Kehlani’s single from last year, Folded. At the end of last year, Kehlani came into some drama due to her current girlfriend, the extremely talented British R&B singer kwn, and kwn’s (very rumored) ex(?) girlfriend, the equally talented, also Britsh R&B singer Sasha Keable. I’m hoping the album gets into it!

Kehlani Album Cover