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First Listen Enjoy select, upcoming albums, in their entirety.
First Listen

First Listen

Hear upcoming albums in their entirety

Wednesday

First Listen: Jimi Hendrix, 'People, Hell And Angels'

Jimi Hendrix's new album, People, Hell and Angels, comes out March 5. Brian T. Colvil/Courtesy of the artist hide caption

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Brian T. Colvil/Courtesy of the artist

First Listen: Jimi Hendrix, 'People, Hell And Angels'

These 12 previously unreleased recordings all shine a spotlight on Hendrix's considerable charisma, preserving the guitarist's work in amber while still polishing it up as good as new.

Jimi Hendrix, 'People, Hell And Angels'

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Monday

First Listen: Chelsea Light Moving, 'Chelsea Light Moving'

Chelsea Light Moving's self-titled debut comes out March 5. Carlos van Hijfte/Courtesy of the artist hide caption

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Carlos van Hijfte/Courtesy of the artist

First Listen: Chelsea Light Moving, 'Chelsea Light Moving'

With Sonic Youth on hiatus, Thurston Moore's new band sets out to pulverize and polarize on an album of sharp left turns. Loose but jagged, playful but menacing, the music of Chelsea Light Moving still finds room for glimmers of beauty.

Chelsea Light Moving, 'Chelsea Light Moving'

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Sunday

First Listen: Josh Ritter, 'The Beast In Its Tracks'

Josh Ritter's new album, The Beast in Its Tracks, comes out March 5. Laura Wilson/Courtesy of the artist hide caption

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Laura Wilson/Courtesy of the artist

First Listen: Josh Ritter, 'The Beast In Its Tracks'

The singer-songwriter's new album was written entirely in response to his recent divorce. Even in its darkest moments, though, The Beast in Its Tracks finds Ritter sounding more bruised than wounded, and yearning to compartmentalize and preserve the happy memories that remain.

Josh Ritter, 'The Beast In Its Tracks'

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First Listen: Waxahatchee, 'Cerulean Salt'

Waxahatchee's new album, Cerulean Salt, comes out March 5. Jesse Riggins/Courtesy of the artist hide caption

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Jesse Riggins/Courtesy of the artist

First Listen: Waxahatchee, 'Cerulean Salt'

Led by singer-songwriter Katie Crutchfield, Waxahatchee addresses teenage flux with seasoned songcraft. On the band's new album, Crutchfield has a way of making dysfunctional relationships sound like something to strive for.

Waxahatchee, 'Cerulean Salt'

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First Listen: Cloud Cult, 'Love'

Cloud Cult's album, Love, comes out March 5. Cody York/Courtesy of the artist hide caption

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Cody York/Courtesy of the artist

First Listen: Cloud Cult, 'Love'

The Twin Cities band's ninth album bursts with warmth, whether in spare examinations of faith or in big-hearted explosions of ecstatic celebration. At times, Cloud Cult's music recalls the larger-than-life reverie of The Polyphonic Spree, but the music on Love feels more personal and fragile.

Cloud Cult, 'Love'

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First Listen: Bajofondo, 'Presente'

Bajofondo's new album, Presente, comes out March 5. Picky Talarico/Courtesy of the artist hide caption

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Picky Talarico/Courtesy of the artist

First Listen: Bajofondo, 'Presente'

Argentina's Gustavo Santaolalla and Uruguayan Juan Campodonico mix electronica with tango and folk. Their eight-piece band's new album, Presente, shimmers in a way their previous records didn't, with deceptively simple electronic textures.

Bajofondo, 'Presente'

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First Listen: Youth Lagoon, 'Wondrous Bughouse'

Youth Lagoon's new album, Wondrous Bughouse, comes out March 5. Courtesy of the artist hide caption

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Courtesy of the artist

First Listen: Youth Lagoon, 'Wondrous Bughouse'

The one-man band has made one of the most arresting headphone records you'll hear this year. The subjects of Youth Lagoon's second album are weighty, but the music is uplifting, if a bit dysphoric, like an awkward hug for all that is light and beautiful.

Youth Lagoon, 'Wondrous Bughouse'

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Monday

First Listen: Atoms For Peace, 'Amok'

Atoms For Peace's debut album, Amok, comes out Feb. 26. Eliot Lee Hazel/Courtesy of the artist hide caption

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Eliot Lee Hazel/Courtesy of the artist

First Listen: Atoms For Peace, 'Amok'

On Atoms for Peace's first official album, Radiohead singer Thom Yorke lays his weary-but-soaring vocals over an assortment of sounds that whir, clatter, click, twitch and sprawl.

Atoms For Peace, 'Amok'

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Sunday

First Listen: Bilal, 'A Love Surreal'

Bilal's new album, A Love Surreal, comes out Feb. 26. Courtesy of the artist hide caption

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Courtesy of the artist

First Listen: Bilal, 'A Love Surreal'

The Philly soul singer explores the contours of intense emotions with patience and psychedelic insight. On A Love Surreal, Bilal keeps his vision grounded in fierce intelligence and a commitment to letting stories unfold.

Bilal, 'A Love Surreal'

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First Listen: Shout Out Louds, 'Optica'

Shout Out Louds' new album, Optica, comes out Feb. 26. Frode & Marcus/Courtesy of the artist hide caption

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Frode & Marcus/Courtesy of the artist

First Listen: Shout Out Louds, 'Optica'

Particularly in its first half, Optica plays like a marvelous '80s mixtape, albeit one with modern production values and a good deal of subtlety. In all their sweet and sunny glory, the Swedish pop band's songs invariably chime and shine.

Shout Out Louds, 'Optica'

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First Listen: Deathfix, 'Deathfix'

Deathfix's self-titled debut album comes out on Feb. 26. Courtesy of the artist hide caption

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Courtesy of the artist

First Listen: Deathfix, 'Deathfix'

D.C. musicians Brendan Canty (of Fugazi) and Rich Morel (of Bob Mould's band) make great pop full of unexpected turns on their debut album. Deathfix's melodies and harmonies feel like Big Star or even Queen, but the album also takes a fresh look forward.

Deathfix, 'Deathfix'

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Sunday

First Listen: 'Son Of Rogues Gallery: Pirate Ballads, Sea Songs & Chanteys'

Keith Richards collaborates with Tom Waits in "Shenandoah" for Son of Rogues Gallery, out Feb. 19. Courtesy of the artist hide caption

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Courtesy of the artist

First Listen: 'Son Of Rogues Gallery: Pirate Ballads, Sea Songs & Chanteys'

Tom Waits, Patti Smith, Nick Cave, Beth Orton, Shane MacGowan, Courtney Love, Dr. John, Iggy Pop, Johnny Depp and more form a bleak-music Murderer's Row on this 140-minute collection of pirate-themed music.

'Son Of Rogues Gallery,' Disc 1

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First Listen: Ivan & Alyosha, 'All The Times We Had'

Ivan & Alyosha's first full-length album, All the Times We Had, comes out Feb. 26. Kyle Dean Reinford/Courtesy of the artist hide caption

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Kyle Dean Reinford/Courtesy of the artist

First Listen: Ivan & Alyosha, 'All The Times We Had'

It's about time Ivan & Alyosha received due praise as a standard-bearer for hyper-accessible, harmony-rich roots music: The band writes gorgeous, swelling, impeccably built songs about love and faith, and performs them with real charm.

Ivan & Alyosha, 'All The Times We Had'

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First Listen: Maxmillion Dunbar, 'House Of Woo'

Maxmillion Dunbar's new album, House of Woo, comes out Feb. 19. Shawn Brackbill/Courtesy of the artist hide caption

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Shawn Brackbill/Courtesy of the artist

First Listen: Maxmillion Dunbar, 'House Of Woo'

House of Woo is rooted in unabashed enthusiasm for sound. Maxmillion Dunbar's base may be techno and house, but the samples are a dollar-bin dive into New Age and smooth '80s and '90s R&B.

Maxmillion Dunbar, 'House Of Woo'

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Friday

First Listen: Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds, 'Push The Sky Away'

Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds' new album, Push the Sky Away, comes out Feb. 19. Cat Stevens/Courtesy of the artist hide caption

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Cat Stevens/Courtesy of the artist

First Listen: Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds, 'Push The Sky Away'

The Australian singer and writer assembles a string of slow-burning ballads that seethe and surprise, punctuated by Warren Ellis' gorgeous strings and bits of Cave's own grabby, pervy innuendo.

Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds, 'Push The Sky Away'

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