The Pulse is the Uproxx Music guide to the best new albums, mixtapes, and other music releases that matter this week.
Snoop Dogg, the host of The Jokers Wild on TBS, also dabbles in music from time to time, and although he’s historically been a hip-hop artist, his latest release sees him making a successful expedition into gospel. Beyond that, this week belonged mostly to indie: There’s the collaborative record between favorites Dungen and Woods, new albums from big-time indie plays Yo La Tengo and The Decemberists, Canadian electronic from Essaie Pas, and plenty of other meat to sink your musical teeth into.
Snoop Dogg — Bible Of Love
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Snoop Dogg has existed in many forms: rapper Snoop Doggy Dogg, rapper Snoop Dogg, reggae artist Snoop Lion, and now, gospel artist Snoop Dogg. Snoop said last year that he wanted to put out a gospel album, and he really meant it, since the 32-track album is out now. There are ton of gospel artists featured on the two-hour-plus album, and it turns out that gospel is one of Snoop’s most successful genre experiments.
Mount Eerie – Now Only
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The good musicians draw from their lives in their music, and Mount Eerie’s Phil Elverum has a lot to draw from: His wife passed away in 2016, and that’s a subject he goes deep into on his new album. “Distortion” explores life after the death of a significant other, and on “Tintin In Tibet,” he speaks directly to his late spouse, reminiscing about the dawn of their relationship. It’s perhaps the most vulnerable record of 2018 thus far, and vulnerable is something Elverum does well.
Yo La Tengo — There’s A Riot Going On
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Keeping a band afloat for 34 years like Yo La Tengo have is virtually impossible, but even harder than that is sticking around while remaining interesting. Somehow, Yo La Tengo is pulling it off masterfully, as they’re still pumping out gorgeous indie rock on their 15th album, such as on the buzzing and meditative “For You Too.”
Read our review of the album here, and check out our interview with the band’s Ira Kaplan here.
The Decemberists — I’ll Be Your Girl
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They haven’t been around for three decades, but 18 years is also nothing to scoff at, and again, The Decemberists are still finding ways to remain interesting. They’re really embracing synths this time around, and they’re a perfect complement to their anthemic songwriting, such as on the bombastic “Once In My Life.”
Dungen & Woods — Myths 003
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This is a collaborative album that certainly wasn’t expected, but it’s certainly interesting. Both groups are experimental indie rock boundary pushers, and now, they’re even challenging the definition of an album. This here is a visual album, which all takes places over the course of one day in Marfa, Texas, but even without the visual aspect, it’s an engaging and jam-y listen.
Stream the album above, or find the virtual world of Marfa Loop here.
Essaie Pas — New Path
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The Montreal-based, DFA Records-signed, husband-and-wife electronic duo accomplishes what few other electronic acts can pull off well, specifically on “Complet Brouillé“: it’s dark and it’s playful. The deep electronic vibes are real, but there’s also an undeniable bounce and airiness to the track, which is good to offset an album with themes of “addiction, loss, and the lingering strength of identity within late capitalism’s mass media paranoia.”
Bishop Nehru — Elevators: Act I & II
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There’s a lot of noise in hip-hop, a lot of people doing a lot of the same things, but that’s not what’s going on with Bishop Nehru’s latest release. For one, it’s only 12 tracks instead of the usual what-feels-like-80. Also, it’s a concept record divided into two parts, “Ascension” and “Free Falling,” both of which are of course thematically different, but in both of which Nehru brings out the core elements of hip-hop in an uncommonly satisfying way.
Hot Snakes — Jericho Siren
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It’s been a long time away for Hot Snakes — it’s been 14 years between albums, to be more specific. The group sounds well rested, though, and more than ready to get back to their intense rocking ways. The record kicks off with the adrenaline shot of “I Need A Doctor,” and it maintains that punk energy for a compact but fulfilling 30 minutes.
