In this segment, we showcase the most notable albums out each week. Here are the albums out on December 13, 2024:
Saint Etienne, The Night
Saint Etienne have returned with their twelfth studio album, The Night, via Heavenly Recordings. The British trio produced the follow-up to 2021’s I’ve Been Trying To Tell You in collaboration with composer and producer Augustin Bousfield. “It was great to all be in the same studio together again up at Gus’ in Bradford,” Pete Wiggs said in a statement. “We realized that it had been several years since we’d actually done that, sprawling out on the carpet, mugs of coffee in hand, sheets of lyrics and half ideas for titles lying around us. We wanted to continue the mellow and spacey mood of the last album, perhaps even double down on it, but it’s a very different album, not based on samples; Songs, moods and spoken pieces drift in and out whilst rain pours down outside. It’s the kind of record I like to listen to in the dark or with my eyes closed.”
Röyksopp, Nebulous Nights
Röyksopp have surprise-released a new album, Nebulous Nights (An Ambient Excursion Into Profound Mysteries). Recorded live, it serves as an ambient reinterpretation of their 30-track LP Profound Mysteries. “Outside the pure listening pleasure, Nebulous Nights seeks to underline the importance of critical thinking and curious pondering,” the Norwegian duo said in a statement. “To foster a mindset that allows for exploration and personal growth, by not limiting one’s imagination and inquiry to a particular worldview or framework. Encapsulated succinctly in this quote by Albert Einstein: ‘The most beautiful thing we can experience is the mysterious. It is the source of all art and science. To whom this emotion is a stranger, who can no longer pause to wonder and stand rapt in awe, is as good as dead; his eyes are closed.’”
Roc Marciano & Alchemist, The Skeleton Key
Roc Marciano and the Alchemist have joined forces for a new collaborative album, The Skeleton Key. The follow-up to 2022’s The Elephant Man’s Bones was preceded by the single ‘Chopstick’, which was accompanied by a music video. The 10-song effort features no guest features or production.“Me & Alchemist, we the gatekeepers, Key Makers,” Marciano remarked in press materials, “your shit don’t shake unless we sanction it.”
Amen Dunes, Death Jokes II
Damon McMahon is putting an end to his Amen Dunes project with Death Jokes II, a remix album featuring stripped-back versions of songs from his last album, Death Jokes. “This is the last chapter of the final volume,” McMahon explained in a press release. “Goodbye, I’ve barely said a word to you, but it’s always like that at parties — we never really see each other, we never say the things we should like to; in fact it’s the same everywhere in this life. Let’s hope that when we are dead things will be better arranged.”
Bossman Dlow, Dlow Curry
Having scored a viral hit early this year with ‘Get In With Me’, Florida rapper Bossman Dlow has dropped his debut studio album, Dlow Curry. The 23-song project boasts guest spots from Ice Spice, Lil Baby, French Montana, Glorilla, Babyface Ray, and NoCap. It follows his 2024 mixtape Mr Beat The Road as well as collaborations with the likes of Lil Baby and Ciara.
Fabiano do Nascimento & Shin Sasakubo, Harmônicos
Fabiano do Nascimento is a Brazilian guitarist who has gained popularity in Japan; Shin Sasakubo is a guitarist from Chichibu, Japan. Today, they’ve issued a new album titled Harmônicos, which they recorded during a three-day period four days after playing their first concert together in the country. “Sharing the same space and time, the two guitarists, with their different styles and origins, explored sounds, let them resonate and repel, and engaged in a dialogue and exchange of ideas that shaped this music,” the LP’s Bandcamp description reads.
Other albums out today:
Snoop Dogg, Missionary; YhapoJJ, No Ceilings; Mario, Glad You Came; Daniel Blumberg, The Brutalist (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack).