With so much new music getting released weekly, it can be difficult to keep up and not miss anything important. We here at Tuned Up know the struggle and wanted to offer previews of a few new releases that piqued our interest this week. What sounds interesting to you? What did we miss? Drop your thoughts in the comment section.

Arcade Fire–WE

Arcade Fire has released their latest album WE, their first since 2017’s Everything Now. It comes at a significant point in the life of the band. Will Butler, multi-instrumentalist and younger brother of vocalist Win Butler, left the band unexpectedly earlier this year following the completion of WE. But the band pushes on, just releasing world tour dates which will be supported by Beck and Feist.

WE is a concept album of sorts. From the Arcade Fire Spotify page: “Written, recorded, and released during a critical historical juncture, they are divided into two distinct sides, “I” and “WE.” If the “I” side of the record evokes and embodies our holed-up anxiety and lack of physical connection, the “WE” side captures the excitement of new possibilities and the elevating thrill of committing to one another socially and personally.”

Stream WE here.

Black Star–No Fear of Time

Black Star, made up of Talib Kweli and yasiin bey (fka Mos Def) is hands down the greatest hip-hop supergroup of all time. Back in 1998 they put out Mos Def & Talib Kweli are Black Star, a certified classic. Since then, fans have been salivating for the moment the group would release another album. But it wasn’t to be, as Mos Def went into acting and changed his name and Talib Kweli wrote a book and continued to release solo albums. But here we are, 24 years later with No Fear of Time. This, along with Kendrick Lamar’s release next week, is going to put a big star next to May 2022 in the hip-hop timeline of important events.

“Everything is not for sale. Everyone pays the price.” Black Star utter these stark words in their further exploration of the meaning and experience of Blackness in America on “The Main Thing is to Keep the Main Thing the Main Thing.” Thematically, they continue to go deep into the same territory as they did on MDATKABS. But the topics still feel fresh and relevant, especially in light of the state of the world today. The incomparable Madlib handles beats and production on the album, and though it still lingers in the jazz-hop world, it is decidedly darker and less optimistic sounding than the last album. Which is a fair reflection of the times.

In an effort to stand out amongst the glut of regularly released music, No Fear of Time is currently only available on the Luminary Podcast Network, which costs 4.99 per month or 34.99 annually to subscribe. It’s certainly a more accessible way to listen to the music than say, Kanye’s Donda 2 release on the Stem Player. I assume it will eventually be widely released, and I for one am hopeful that this unique avenue of putting out their music garners interest rather than drives people away. Because I can tell you that I paid for a month’s subscription, and it is well worth the money. The album is incredible. There’s always a chance that a long overdue release could be bad (we’re looking at you Chinese Democracy). But this ain’t that. Access the Luminary Podcast Network here or on Apple Podcasts and check out what is sure to be a top hip-hop album of the year.

Bonelang–Nervous Oracle EP

Chicago duo of Samy Language and Matt Bones are back with their alternative brand of pop-infused hip-hop. Nervous Oracle EP is their first release since 2020’s full length Saint Maker. The EP was preceded by a single, “Gluten Free-Gluttony,” which featured West Coast rapper The Game. Stream Nervous Oracle EP here.

Caterpillars–Frontier for the Fallen

“Emo” is a difficult genre to understand as it gets applied in a variety of different ways to bands that have little to do with one another musically. OG emo bands like Sunny Day Real Estate, Jawbreaker, Mineral, and even Jimmy Eat World don’t sit well next to mall-core emo like Dashboard Confessional, and of course the math-rock of midwest emo like American Football form a category all its own. Texas-California band Caterpillars is more akin to midwest and original artists than what appeared onstage at Warped Tour in the mid-2000’s, with their dreamy approach to emo (dreamo?) mixed with post-hardcore and shoegaze. Their newest album Frontier for the Fallen contains moving layered guitarwork and ethereal vocals that blend well and elevate the whole. “Chapters” stands out as a seeming lost track from Jimmy Eat World’s Clarity, which is high praise in my book.

Read our full review for the album here, and stream Frontier for the Fallen now!

Flatfoot 56/The Rumjacks

OTHER NOTABLE RELEASES:

LP:

AWOLNATION-My Echo, My Shadow, My Covers & Me (Rock, Electronic, Covers)

Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever-Endless Rooms (Indie Rock)

Silverstein-Misery Made Me (Screamo, Punk)

Sharon Van Etten-We’ve Been Going About This All Wrong (Indie, Pop, Folk) Read our full review HERE.

Halestorm-Back from the Dead (Metal)

Jack Harlow-Come Home the Kids Miss You (Pop, Rap)

Subsist-The Rhythm Method (Metalcore, Hardcore) Read our full review HERE.

Noah Deemer-The Sleepwalker (experimental) Read our full review HERE.

Flatfoot 56/The Rumjacks-Split EP (Pirate Punk)

Singles:

Saint Aubin-“Anchors Break,” Read our full review HERE.