As COVID-19 begins to finally trickle down, more and more artists now have the chance to finally put their works out after years of being locked down. From country’s living legends Willie Nelson and Miranda Lambert, to rock’s main acts Father John Misty and Jack White, to new game-changers like Toro y Moi and Orville Peck, this month’s new albums schedule is bound to be one of this year’s most stacked. Here are 10 new albums to look forward to this April.
1. Father John Misty – Chloë and the Next 20th Century
Josh Tillman’s first album since 2018’s “God’s Favorite Customer”, “Chloë and the Next 20th Century” is an Old Hollywood-inspired soft rock album that borrows the era’s brassy aesthetics to construct a somber, throwback-y narrative. Written and recorded from August to December of 2020, this album is the newest in Tillman and producer/multi-instrumentalist Jonathan Wilson’s tale of enduring artistic collaboration.
“Chloë and the Next 20th Century” features the singles “Funny Girl,” “Q4,” “Goodbye Mr. Blue,” and “Kiss Me (I Loved You),” and will be released on April 8 through Sub Pop and Bella Union Records.
2. Toro y Moi – MAHAL
Named after the Filipino word for ‘love’ and ‘expensive’, Toro y Moi’s first album under the indie powerhouse label Dead Oceans (think Phoebe Bridgers, Mitski, and Japanese Breakfast) promises a fresh take on the chillwave genre, with some of its 13 tracks celebrating Chaz Bear’s Filipino roots.
“MAHAL” includes the singles “Magazine”, “Déjà Vu”, “The Loop”, and “Postman”, the song with a colorful, flying passenger jeepney in its music video. The album drops on April 29.
3. Miranda Lambert – Palomino
The ninth solo album from three-time Grammy winner Miranda Lambert has a lengthy, unapologetically country 50-minute run. Fresh off her ACM Entertainer of the Year win, the Texas belle will be releasing three re-recorded songs from her stripped-back 2021 “Marfa Tapes” collaboration on her newest LP, namely “Geraldene”, “In His Arms”, and “Waxahachie”.
Planned for release on April 29, Palomino includes the singles “If I Was A Cowboy” and “Strange”.
4. Orville Peck – Bronco
The masked singer’s second full-length album is anchored in country, but inspired by a bevy of genres that include rock, psychedelic, and bluegrass, touting its themes of freedom, wildness, and being untamed after a challenging period of time front and center.
Bronco continues Peck’s horse-themed storytelling off of his debut, “Pony”, and the follow-up EP, “Show Pony”. Featuring the likes of Margaret Cho, Norman Reedus, and Kornbread “The Snack” Jeté, the music videos released for the singles “C’Mon Baby Cry” and “The Curse of the Blackened Eye” are a perfect appetizer for what is to arrive come April 8.
5. Kurt Vile – (watch my moves)
The often-elusive Philly rock singer-songwriter opted to return to his home-recording roots and self-produced his first album since 2018’s Bottle It In. The breezy single, “Mount Airy Hill (Way Gone)” and the epic, 7-minute droll-rock anthem, “Like Exploding Stones”, feel like deep cuts from his critically-acclaimed “Smoke Ring for My Halo”, but with a crispier, tighter sound.
“(watch my moves)” comes out on April 15.
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6. Rammstein – Zeit
NDH fans rejoice! After a geocaching campaign that saw their fans scrambling for “Zeit Capsules” containing the album’s track titles, Rammstein announced that their eighth studio album will be released on April 29. Written after being forced to stay sheltered in Germany due to a COVID-19 lockdown, the LP is a product of spontaneous sessions that gave the band “more time to think of new things and less distraction,” according to keyboardist Christian “Flake” Lorenz.
“Zeit” includes the title track and the single “Zick Zack”.
7. Willie Nelson – A Beautiful Time
There’s no stopping this legend.
Nelson’s 72nd (!!!) album is planned for release on his 89th birthday and features fourteen tracks, including covers of Leonard Cohen’s “Tower of Song” and The Beatles’ “With a Little Help from My Friends”. Writers include Chris Stapleton, Rodney Crowell, and Buddy Cannon, three of the biggest names in today’s country movement.
The outlaw country’s newest album is set to be released on April 29.
8. The Head and the Heart – Every Shade of Blue
Returning to the scene after their 2019 Billboard Top 20 album, “Living Mirage”, The Head and the Heart’s fifth album promises to have the familiar indie-pop sound they’ve cultivated since “Signs of Light”.
“Typically, we sort of vote songs off the island if we feel there’s a stronger song out there,” vocalist Jonathan Russell once shared the band’s joint effort on structuring the album. “This time, when we were talking about the track list, it was like, ‘Why don’t we just put every single song we like on the record?’”
Kicking off their new era with the title track as the lead single, the Seattle sextet will also support the 16-track album’s release on April 29 with a live tour set to begin on May 20 in Florida.
9. Jack White – Fear of the Dawn
The first of his two albums planned for release this year, Jack White’s “Fear of the Dawn” will serve as the vessel of half of The White Stripes’ traditional rock sound, available April 8, while “Entering Heaven Alive”, a folk record, will be released on November 11.
Early reviews of the album describe it as “loud”, “unhinged”, and “eccentric”, which, for fans of his iconic 2012 release, “Blunderbuss”, is enough assurance that his new release will be just as good as his classic.
10. Let’s Eat Grandma – Two Ribbons
UK experimental duo Let’s Eat Grandma looks forward to introducing a more subtle, demure sound on “Two Ribbons”, their third album since exploding on the scene with 2016’s “I, Gemini”.
“Two Ribbons”’ lead single, the album closer, is about the effects of loss and life’s changes on close relationships, and how grief and death can make someone feel powerless.
The album will be out on April 29 via Transgressive records.
What song or album are you looking forward to the most this month? Let us know in the comments below!
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