New and Coming Soon from David Bowie, Bob Marley, and More

Five Years 1969-1973, by David Bowie
David Bowie’s long, storied career as a pop musician is notable for his innovation in the recording studio, the intellectual ambition of his music, and the evolution of his public image from androgynous space alien to effortlessly cool rock ‘n roll statesman. To celebrate his many achievements, he is releasing a series of boxed sets collecting his recorded output thus far, and the first one is set to drop this September. Five Years is a whopping 10-album set, with six original studio albums and two live performances, as well as a two-disc compilation of non-album singles and B-sides. The set also includes an unreleased single edit of “All The Madmen” and the original version of “Holy Holy,” both of which are nearly impossible to find outside of this set.

Uprising, by Bob Marley and the Wailers
Originally released in 1980, Uprising is an important album in Bob Marley’s catalog. For one thing, it has “Redemption Song” on it. For another thing, it was his last studio album before his untimely death in 1981. It was also his most religious album, with virtually every song espousing his Rastafarian beliefs. The tone, as Rolling Stone once pointed out, shifts between jubilant (“Coming In From the Cold”) and troubled (“We And Dem”), unable to untangle the promise of faith from the grim realities of political and social tension. His contemplative lyrics are matched by the Wailers’ formidable talents; they’re in especially fine form on this album, camouflaging Marley’s pessimism with sunny instrumentation.

Cass County, by Don Henley
Bonafide rock legend and Eagles drummer/vocalist Don Henley has been influenced by country music for decades, but Cass County—his first solo album in 15 years—is his first legitimate country album. Named after the part of Texas he grew up in, this album features more diverse instrumentation than any other Henley project, while retaining Henley’s trademark warm-toned guitars and gently rueful lyrics. It also features an impressive roster of guest musicians and vocalists, including Mick Jagger (who sings and plays harmonica on “Bramble Rose”), Merle Haggard, Lucinda Williams, Dolly Parton, and Miranda Lambert, among many others. Cass County proves that the classic country sound has plenty of life left in it, and the Barnes & Noble exclusive version is pressed on Coke-bottle colored vinyl.

Come Fly With Me, by Herb Alpert
Best known for zippy big band light music like “Spanish Flea” and “The Lonely Bull,” Herb Alpert (who literally put the “A” in A&M Records) has had an unprecedented career as a musician, bandleader, record industry bigwig, and visual artist. Most people with his clout have nothing left to prove, but Alpert is putting out a new album of 20th century classics, with seven original compositions as well. Much like his work with the Tijuana Brass, this album is packed with lush instrumentation and slick bossa nova rhythms, and there are a few fun surprises along the way (the steel drum in his version of Frank Sinatra’s “Come Fly With Me” being just one of them). But laid-back, brassy grooves aren’t the only thing this album has to offer; “Night Ride” has an urgency that’s perfect for long moonlight drives.

Music Complete, by New Order
New Order has been described—with either praise or scorn—as “a rock band making electronic music,” which turns out to be exactly what they’re doing on Music Complete. This album has a heavier electronic focus than their previous work, and is their first studio effort without bassist Peter Hook, who left the band in 2007. Hook’s replacement, Tom Chapman, fits right into the band’s sound, and I daresay New Order sounds more at home in 2015’s pop landscape than they did in their 1980s heyday. Where a lot of their contemporaries sound trapped in the era when they were most popular, tracks like “Restless” and “Plastic” are as fresh and modern as anything else on the radio.

Better Nature, by Silversun Pickups 
Silversun Pickups’ newest album, Better Nature, is their fourth, and also the first one they’re releasing on their own label (New Machine Records). It’s probably their best album yet, as well. Their mix of overdubbed, distorted guitars and understated electronica creates a gloomy, dreamy sound that echoes 1990s alternative rock (especially My Bloody Valentine) without sounding derivative. The album’s lead single, “Nightlight,” has spoken word bookends from bassist/vocalist Nikki Monninger that recall the narration from My So-Called Life, and “Circadian Rhythm (Last Dance)” recalls Garbage at their peak, especially during the chorus.

Servant of Love, by Patty Griffin 
Patty Griffin’s songs—most of which fall into the folk, Americana, or alt-country genres—have been performed by an impressive roster of musicians, but Griffin’s forthcoming album, Servant of Love, proves that she’s as good as any of her celebrity admirers, and better than a lot of them. Lyrically, Griffin takes as much inspiration from the transcendental poetry of Whitman and Emerson as she does from real life, and her success as a songwriter proves this to be a winning formula. Her compositions are just as interesting as her lyrics, too. Songs on Servant of Love range from light, airy folk (“Rider of Days”) to harder-sounding acoustic blues (“There Isn’t One Way”), and there’s even some jazz in the piano that opens the album’s title track.

Every Open Eye, by Chvrches
For their second studio album, Every Open Eye, Scottish synthpop band Chvrches (pronounced like “churches”) leans heavier on their pop influences. That’s not a bad thing, either. Chvrches already had a knack for writing earworm choruses, and now that they’ve scrubbed their sound even cleaner, their melodies and beats have more room to breathe. The difference is immediate; “Never Ending Circles” and “Leave A Trace” are almost impossibly catchy, and they’re just the first two songs! By the time “Clearest Blue” starts, your foot will be worn out from tapping. “Clearest Blue,” it should be noted, is the album’s best song, with an unconventional structure that builds and explodes in the best way possible.