With so much good music being released all the time, it can be hard to determine what to listen to first. Every week, Pitchfork offers a run-down of significant new releases available on streaming services. This week’s batch includes new albums from Claire Rousay, Tony Shhnow, Kill Rock Stars, and RXK Nephew. Subscribe to Pitchfork’s New Music Friday newsletter to get our recommendations in your inbox every week. (All releases featured here are independently selected by our editors. When you buy something through our affiliate links, however, Pitchfork earns an affiliate commission.)
Claire Rousay: Sometimes I Feel Like I Have No Friends [self-released]
Texas experimentalist Claire Rousay has already released a handful of low-key records this year, including April’s A Softer Focus and a collaboration with real-life “bff” Mari Maurice, aka More Eaze, in An Afternoon Whine. Her latest, a single-track project called Sometimes I Feel Like I Have No Friends, again features Maurice, this time alongside a third member, Emily Harper Scott of Pale Spring. The 28-minute song mixes field recordings, strings, and drones with a monologue about the nature of friendship, codependency, and other tangential topics. Read more on Rousay in Pitchfork’s rundown of “The Best Jazz and Experimental Music of 2021.”
Tony Shhnow: Kill Streak 2 [self-released]
Tony Shhnow’s latest 2021 release is the sequel to Kill Streak, the Atlanta rapper’s standout mixtape from last year. The 16-minute project follows a string of recent mixtapes including Authentic Goods, which was Pitchfork writer Alphonse Pierre’s pick for “The Best Underrated Albums of 2021.”
Listen on Apple Music
Listen on Spotify
Listen on Tidal
Listen on Amazon Music
V/A: Stars Rock Kill (Rock Stars) [Kill Rock Stars]
The venerable indie label Kill Rock Stars celebrated its 30th anniversary this year by corralling luminaries such as Laura Veirs, Deerhoof, Shamir, Anaïs Mitchell, and Xiu Xiu to cover classics and deep cuts from the label’s catalog. Those are compiled on this 62-track release, which will particularly delight Elliott Smith fans: No less than 10 of his songs are covered, by artists ranging from Ruth Radelet to Team Dresch.
Listen on Apple Music
Listen on Spotify
Listen on Tidal
Listen on Amazon Music
Listen/Buy at Bandcamp
Buy at Rough Trade
RXK Nephew: Welcome 2 the Quiet Storm [self-released]
Another week, another burst of logorrhoea from the unstoppable RXK Nephew. Welcome 2 the Quiet Storm follows last week’s Transporter 4, rounding off another landmark year in which the Rochester rapper put out dozens of records and at least 100 genuinely good songs. Don’t rule out another one dropping before midnight.
