Another week, another weekly playlist.
A pretty great release week. 2020 songs and albums started rolling into the record stores. The Innocence Mission and David Dondero led the rush, but the week also gave beautiful new albums from Della Mae, A Girl Called Eddy (only 16 years after the wonderful debut), Bill Fay, Aoife Nessa Frances, Marcus King, Futurebirds, Alice Boman, Eleven Hundred Springs, Left Arm Tan, Kiwi Jr (I think this came out in Canada earlier) and Fruition. I somehow managed to miss the fact that the Beach Slang album came out a week ago, so that’s here for the first time. Plus EPs from Alan Barnosky and Caitlin Canty.
An excellent week for Finnish stuff as well. Joni Ekman and Pintandwefell released excellent albums plus there’s wonderful new singles from Joose Keskitalo, Untogethers, Muuan Mies and PK Keränen. If you are wondering why the Finnish stuff is usually somewhere in the middle of the playlist, it’s just because this list has a bunch of non-finnish speakers following and therefore I start with the international should-be hits and important album cuts.
As for international singles, there’s so many of them. And so many really important ones. Single of the week has to be Thoughts and Prayers by Drive-By Truckers. A great song with a powerful message. Other big highlight was the return of Samantha Crain with a really special song. Then there’s new singles from huge personal favorites John Moreland, Andy Shauf and Possessed by Paul James. Another brilliant one from the forthcoming Tre Burt and a really wonderful new one from Swamp Dogg. And well a whole lot more and everything would be worthy of a namedrop. This ended a bit on the longside. I probably should try to keep these in the 30-40 songs range, because even that’s quite a lot. I suppose it’s not a big issue, because everyone can listen to just as much or little they wish.
Anyway, that’s this week’s new release round up. Back next Sunday with another one of these, if you want to hear another playlist compiled by a human being instead of an algorithm. Not that I do any better job at it, but at least I try to create some kind of flow to these. All the best and love love love.
1. The Innocence Mission – Movie (See You Tomorrow, Bella Union, 2020)
2. David Dondero – Heather Heyer (The Filter Bubble Blues, Fluff & Gravy Records, 2020)
3. Drive-By Truckers – Thoughts and Prayers (single, ATO Records, 2020)
4. Della Mae – Change (Headlight, Rounder Records, 2020)
5. Bonnie Prince Billy – This Is Far From Over (single, Drag City / Domino Recording Co, 2020)
6. Samantha Crain – An Echo (single, Real Kind Records, 2020)
7. John Moreland – When My Fever Breaks (single, Old Omens, 2020)
8. Possessed By Paul James – When It Breaks (single, 2020)
9. Andy Shauf – Living Room (single, Anti-, 2020)
10. Anna Burch – Not So Bad (single, Polyvinyl, 2020)
11. A Girl Called Eddy – Not That Sentimental Anymore (Been Around, Elefant Records, 2020)
12. Bill Fay – Time’s Going Somewhere (Countless Branches, Dead Oceans, 2020)
13. Swamp Dogg feat John Prine – Memories (single, Joyful Noise, 2020)
14. Tre Burt – Real You (single, Oh Boy Records, 2020)
15. Joose Keskitalo – Nukkekoti (single, Helmi Levyt, 2020)
16. Muuan Mies – Hokusai (single, Helmi Levyt, 2020)
17. Joni Ekman – Yli & ympäri (Sinulle.. Soit Se Silti, 2020)
18. Untogethers – The Peasant (single, Iso Pinkki, 2020)
19. Pintandwefall – Eyes of Mj (Your Stories Baby, Soliti, 2020)
20. PK Keränen – Bad Dreams (single, Playground, 2020)
21. Aoife Nessa Frances – Blow Up (Land of No Junction, Basin Rock, 2020)
22. Alice Boman – The More I Cry (Dream On, Adrian Recordings, 2020)
23. Juan Solorzano – Turn Blue (single, Tone Tree, 2020)
24. Ron Sexsmith – You Don’t Wanna Hear It (single, Cooking Vinyl, 2020)
25. Sarah Harmer – St. Peter’s Bay (single, Arts & Crafts, 2020)
26. Margo Price – Stone Me (single, Loma Vista, 2020)
27. Eleven Hundred Springs – This Morning It Was Too Late (Here ‘Tis, State Fair Records, 2020)
28. Marcus King – Wildflowers & Wine (El Dorado, Easy Eye, 2020)
29. Alan Barnosky – Ain’t It a Shame (Lonesome Road EP, 2020)
30. Futurebirds – All Damn Night (Teamwork, VL4L, 2020)
31. Witch’s Wall – Lady Love (single, Cornelius Chapel Records, 2020)
32. Mapache – Life on Fire (single, Yep Roc, 2020)
33. Sophie & The Broken Things – Tornado (single, Petaluma Records, 2020)
34. Nadia Reid – Get the Devil Out (single, Spacebomb Records, 2020)
35. Melissa Mary Ahern – Engine (single, 2020)
36. Girlatones – Get to the End (single, Meritorio Records, 2020)
37. Mo Troper – Potential (single, Tender Loving Empire, 2020)
38. Kiwi Jr. – Salary Man (single, 2020)
39. Bacchae – Hammer (single, Get Better Records, 2020)
40. Rosie Tucker – Brand New Beast (single, New Professor, 2020)
41. Cable Ties – Sandcastles (single, Merge Records, 2020)
42. Beach Slang – Kicking Over Bottles (The Deadbeat Bang of Heartbreak City, Bridge Nine Records, 2020)
43. Brian Fallon – 21 Days (single, Lesser Known Records, 2020)
44. Fruition – Where Can I Turn (Broken at the Break of Day, 2020)
45. Left Arm Tan – It Ain’t Love (Left Arm Tan, 2020)
46. Son Little – Neve Give Up (single, Anti, 2020)
47. Lee Fields & The Expressions – Regenerate (single, Big Crown Records, 2020)
48. Miss Tess – Gamblin’ Man (single, 2020)
49. Tami Neilson – You Were Mine (single, Outside Music, 2020)
50. Hello Emerson – Kyle Kerley (single, Anyway Records / K&F Records, 2020)
51. PJ Orr – Tightrope Walker (single, Misra Records, 2020)
52. Tracy McNeil & The Good Life – Rain Fall Down (single, Cooking Vinyl, 2020)
53. Caitlin Canty – Time Rolls By (Live from Layman EP, Tone Tree, 2020)
54. Charlie Whitten – Marksman (Make Time, 2019)
55. Pickering Pick – Passage (Darshan EP, Infinite Love, 2020)
Oh and do buy the vinyl/cd/download. Spotify and other streaming services are perfect for these introductory purposes, but try to buy at least the music that matter the most to you
If you are looking this after a week has gone, the embedded Spotify will show the latest playlist. I’ll just update the same playlist because a) if someone wants to follow it, they can just follow that one list and will get a new set of songs each Sunday b) so that I don’t have a trillion of different playlists on my Spotify account.