First Listen : NPR

First Listen: Parquet Courts, 'Sunbathing Animal'

Parquet Courts' new album, Sunbathing Animal, comes out June 3. Ben Rayner/Courtesy of the artist hide caption

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Ben Rayner/Courtesy of the artist

First Listen: Parquet Courts, 'Sunbathing Animal'

May 25, 2014 • The Brooklyn rock band still wind-sprints with deadly efficiency. But the slower moments on Sunbathing Animal locate the essence of heartache in unexpected ways.

Sunbathing Animal

Audio for First Listens is no longer available after the album is released.

Review: Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, 'Only Run'

Clap Your Hands Say Yeah's new album, Only Run, comes out June 3. Courtesy of the artist hide caption

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Courtesy of the artist

Review: Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, 'Only Run'

May 25, 2014 • Only Run expands on the band's simultaneously soaring, jittery and joyful sound in surprising ways. The result reflects a relentless pursuit of invention and reinvention.

First Listen: Gabriel Kahane, 'The Ambassador'

Gabriel Kahane's new album, The Ambassador, comes out June 3. Josh Goleman/Courtesy of the artist hide caption

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Josh Goleman/Courtesy of the artist

First Listen: Gabriel Kahane, 'The Ambassador'

May 25, 2014 • The composer and singer-songwriter's new album is a set of 10 vignettes about buildings in L.A. Throughout The Ambassador, Kahane speaks many musical languages fluently and beautifully.

The Ambassador

Audio for First Listens is no longer available after the album is released.

First Listen: Meshell Ndegeocello, 'Comet, Come To Me'

Meshell Ndegeocello's new album, Comet, Come to Me, comes out June 3. Jason Rodgers/Courtesy of the artist hide caption

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Jason Rodgers/Courtesy of the artist

First Listen: Meshell Ndegeocello, 'Comet, Come To Me'

May 25, 2014 • The iconoclastic singer's 11th album is the sort of rich work that keeps changing inside the listener's head — an often-quiet set of songs with intense staying power.

Comet, Come To Me

Audio for First Listens is no longer available after the album is released.

First Listen: Taylor McFerrin, 'Early Riser'

Taylor McFerrin's new album, Early Riser, comes out June 3. Courtesy of the artist hide caption

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First Listen: Taylor McFerrin, 'Early Riser'

May 25, 2014 • Teeming with stream-of-consciousness scatting, ethereal exploration and frenetic features, the beauty of the producer-composer's debut lies in its carefully orchestrated ebb and flow.

Early Riser

Audio for First Listens is no longer available after the album is released.

First Listen: Joe Henry, 'Invisible Hour'

Joe Henry's new album, Invisible Hour, comes out June 3. Daniel Wheeler/Courtesy of the artist hide caption

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Daniel Wheeler/Courtesy of the artist

First Listen: Joe Henry, 'Invisible Hour'

May 25, 2014 • Henry's new album examines the complexities of commitment, coupling gloom with streaming daylight and gilding his saddest observations with joy and awe.

Invisible Hour

Audio for First Listens is no longer available after the album is released.

First Listen: Hamilton Leithauser, 'Black Hours'

Hamilton Leithauser's new album, Black Hours, comes out June 3. Lauren Dukoff/Courtesy of the artist hide caption

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Lauren Dukoff/Courtesy of the artist

First Listen: Hamilton Leithauser, 'Black Hours'

May 23, 2014 • The Walkmen's lead singer has gotten a head start on middle age, lyrically speaking. Black Hours finds him letting it catch up without losing his vitality in the process.

Black Hours

Audio for First Listens is no longer available after the album is released.

First Listen: Royksopp & Robyn, 'Do It Again'

Royksopp & Robyn's new mini-album, Do It Again, comes out May 26. Kacper Kasprzyk/Courtesy of the artist hide caption

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Kacper Kasprzyk/Courtesy of the artist

First Listen: Royksopp & Robyn, 'Do It Again'

May 22, 2014 • The Scandinavian dream team unveils a mini-album that bookends dance-pop goodness with moody grace. All the way through, there's a palpable sense of freedom to the music.

Do It Again

Audio for First Listens is no longer available after the album is released.

First Listen: Bok Bok, 'Your Charizmatic Self'

Bok Bok's new EP, Your Charizmatic Self, comes out May 25. Courtesy of the artist hide caption

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First Listen: Bok Bok, 'Your Charizmatic Self'

May 21, 2014 • The dance-music producer experiments with what he calls R&G (Rhythm & Grime) on this seven-track EP, which features the cutting-edge singer Kelela.

Your Charizmatic Self

Audio for First Listens is no longer available after the album's release.

Lee Fields' new album, Emma Jean, comes out June 3. Danny Miller/Leon Michels/Courtesy of the artist hide caption

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Danny Miller/Leon Michels/Courtesy of the artist

First Listen: Lee Fields, 'Emma Jean'

May 18, 2014 • The veteran soul singer weaves his rugged and ragged pleas with the darling accompaniment of his backing band to produce a record that bleeds triumph and lovesickness all at once.

Emma Jean

Audio for First Listens is no longer available after the album is released.

First Listen: Owen Pallett, 'In Conflict'

Owen Pallett's new album, In Conflict, comes out May 27. Peter Juhl/Courtesy of the artist hide caption

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Peter Juhl/Courtesy of the artist

First Listen: Owen Pallett, 'In Conflict'

May 18, 2014 • If there's any conflict at all throughout these 13 tracks, it's purely an internal one for Pallett, a legit composer who also possesses the instincts to craft brilliant pop songs.

In Conflict

Audio for First Listens is no longer available after the album's release.

Review: Lee Bains III + The Glory Fires, 'Dereconstructed'

Lee Bains III & The Glory Fires' new album, Dereconstructed, comes out May 27. Wes Frazer/Courtesy of the artist hide caption

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Wes Frazer/Courtesy of the artist

Review

Review: Lee Bains III + The Glory Fires, 'Dereconstructed'

May 18, 2014 • On its second album, the band is intense enough to refresh the Southern-rock legacy it's joined. Throughout Dereconstructed, its members examine the fight to claim a home that can drive you crazy.

Dereconstructed

Audio for First Listens is no longer available after the album's release.

Review: Hundred Waters, 'The Moon Rang Like A Bell'

Hundred Waters' new album, The Moon Rang Like a Bell, comes out May 27. Courtesy of the artist hide caption

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Courtesy of the artist

Review

Review: Hundred Waters, 'The Moon Rang Like A Bell'

May 18, 2014 • All over its darkly shimmering second album, the band showcases a remarkable ability to pull listeners' strings. Hundred Waters' members make music to burrow deep into, to obsess over.

The Moon Rang Like A Bell

Audio for First Listens is no longer available after the album's release.

First Listen: Seun Kuti & Egypt 80, 'A Long Way To The Beginning'

Seun Kuti & Egypt 80's new album, A Long Way to the Beginning, comes out May 27. Johann Sauty/Courtesy of the artist hide caption

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Johann Sauty/Courtesy of the artist

First Listen: Seun Kuti & Egypt 80, 'A Long Way To The Beginning'

May 18, 2014 • Fela Kuti's youngest son brings the fury, funk and sweat of Afrobeat to bear down on financial corruption and other issues. Along the way, he finds grace, humor and plenty of good beats.

A Long Way To The Beginning

Audio for First Listens is no longer available after the album's release.

Yann Tiersen's new album, Infinity, comes out May 20. Katherine Rose/Courtesy of the artist hide caption

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Katherine Rose/Courtesy of the artist

First Listen: Yann Tiersen, 'Infinity'

May 11, 2014 • Tiersen, known for his work on the film Amélie, understands how to make music sound cinematic. On his eighth studio album, visuals are bound to pop into listeners' heads throughout.

Yann Tiersen, 'Infinity'

Audio for First Listens is no longer available after the album's release.

First Listen

Sunday May 25, 2014

First Listen: Parquet Courts, 'Sunbathing Animal'

Sunbathing Animal

Review: Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, 'Only Run'

First Listen: Gabriel Kahane, 'The Ambassador'

The Ambassador

First Listen: Meshell Ndegeocello, 'Comet, Come To Me'

Comet, Come To Me

First Listen: Taylor McFerrin, 'Early Riser'

Early Riser

First Listen: Joe Henry, 'Invisible Hour'

Invisible Hour

Friday May 23, 2014

First Listen: Hamilton Leithauser, 'Black Hours'

Black Hours

Thursday May 22, 2014

First Listen: Royksopp & Robyn, 'Do It Again'

Do It Again

Wednesday May 21, 2014

First Listen: Bok Bok, 'Your Charizmatic Self'

Your Charizmatic Self

Sunday May 18, 2014

First Listen: Lee Fields, 'Emma Jean'

Emma Jean

First Listen: Owen Pallett, 'In Conflict'

In Conflict

Review

Review: Lee Bains III + The Glory Fires, 'Dereconstructed'

Dereconstructed

Review

Review: Hundred Waters, 'The Moon Rang Like A Bell'

The Moon Rang Like A Bell

First Listen: Seun Kuti & Egypt 80, 'A Long Way To The Beginning'

A Long Way To The Beginning

Sunday May 11, 2014

First Listen: Yann Tiersen, 'Infinity'

Yann Tiersen, 'Infinity'