The Best Songs And Albums We Heard In January

Plus the Beatles' final gig and Blood Orange's Tiny Desk

Courtesy of the artists We get it: You’re busy. You’ve got an inbox of emails that need your attention, laundry piling up and mouths to feed. It’s tough to keep up with new music, with one-off tracks released daily and new records you need to hear out each week. This year, we’re trying something new: We’re sharing roundups of the best albums and songs we heard each month. This month’s lists include Pedro the Lion's first official album in 15 years, the work of pioneering African American composer Florence Price, a devastatingly spare track from Lana Del Rey, an absolute banger from Lizzo and much more. Let’s see if February can match that. Stay warm, Marissa Lorusso and Lyndsey McKenna New Music To spread the word about an upcoming reissue campaign, New Order released a video of a little-seen performance of “Ceremony,” its first single, recorded live in 1981. The recent output of The Mountain Goats reads like a laundry list of songwriter John Darnielle’s personal interests (for example, the recent albums about wrestling and goth culture). Now, we can add another hobby to that list: This week, the band announced In League with Dragons, a 12-song album about Dungeons & Dragons due in April. On this week’s All Songs Considered New Music Friday rundown: A revelrous debut record from Norway’s Spielbergs, a welcome return from L.A. duo Girlpool, the dynamic rock of Le Butcherettes and wistful explorations from Zach Condon’s Beirut. To Read Fifty years ago this week, the Beatles played what would be their final concert on a rooftop in London. Hear a conversation with Ken Mansfield, one of the few people who was actually with the band to witness it, on All Songs Considered. James Ingram, who died this week at 66, wasn't a born superstar. But he became something of a sleeper hit on the strength of his singing, songwriting and history-making collaborations. TLC's 1999 smash "No Scrubs" was a song that women loved about the men (“a guy that thinks he’s fly”) they wouldn't put up with. Twenty years later, women still take it to heart. Tiny Desk Heather Kim/NPR When Devonté Hynes — a.k.a. Blood Orange — came to perform behind Bob Boilen’s desk, he brought a set of collaborators who performed seamlessly as a group. But he also made sure each of them got to shine individually. It made Blood Orange's Tiny Desk concert more than a short set; it's a showcase for the craft and care that's made Hynes such a groundbreaking producer and songwriter.   One More Thing As a photographer at NPR, Eslah Attar wanted to find a way to capture Tiny Desk concert performers in a more natural state. So she started taking portraits with an instant camera. “It's familiar, nostalgic, almost a toy, so it doesn't intimidate in the same way a professional camera does,” she says, “which helps break down some of the barriers that usually exist between photographers and their subjects.” She collected some of her favorites for us. ✏️ What do you think of today's email? We'd love to hear your thoughts, questions and feedback: nprmusic@npr.org 📬 Enjoying this newsletter? Forward to a friend! They can sign up here. 📧 Looking for more great content? Check out all of our newsletter offerings — including News, Politics, Health and more! 🎵 Need a new playlist? Follow NPR Music on Spotify! You received this message because you're subscribed to our NPR Music emails. |  Unsubscribe  |  Privacy Policy | NPR 1111 N. CAPITOL ST. NE WASHINGTON DC 20002