PETER GABRIEL – LIVE AT WOMAD 1982
In 1982, the first WOMAD (World of Music, Arts and Dance) festival took place to highlight music and art not typically celebrated in the mainstream. As part of the brain trust creating the festival Peter Gabriel performed a collection of songs that would become his 1982 self-titled album. Live at WOMAD 1982 is finally being released in tangible forms (CD and Vinyl – it was released digitally for the first time last year) and if you wanted to capture Gabriel (already a very esoteric and inventive musician) channeling his love of world music, this is a wonderful addition to the collection.
Stream • Real World • Connect: @petergabriel
LINDA PERRY – LET IT DIE HERE
Linda Perry has always been fearless as a songwriter, and Let It Die Here leans fully into emotional honesty. The album feels raw and unguarded, following the highs and lows of life, as Perry says it’s “about release, letting go of guilt, embracing imperfection, and finding beauty in survival.” Perry’s voice is as real as it gets with the trials of life wearing pathways and gutters while still letting her hit all the notes.
Stream • Kill Rock Stars/670 Records • Connect: @lindaperrymusic
SOCIAL DISTORTION – BORN TO KILL
“Rock ‘n’roll animal gonna come your way!” Social Distortion kicks off their first new album in 15 years with a hungry biting title track on, Born to Kill. The band takes time to validate where the are now and look back with a gritty, street‑worn punk rock beating heart. Mike Ness is your punk poet sounding familiar in the best way, with driving rhythms, ringing guitars, and choruses built to be shouted back.
Stream • Epitaph • Connect: @socialdistortion
MICHAEL STIPE – “REST OF EVER”
Michael Stipe has teased his first debut record with a bluesy love song. It grooves and strolls with finger snaps that take you back to a ’90s coffee house. There’s horns, backing vocals for a song that quietly builds to a classic Stipe reversal of fortune with the closing refrain of “never mind.” The only recording is from a live performance on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert where Stipe performed with the show’s house band, Louis Cato and The Great Big Joy Machine, so we’ll have to wait until the album comes out to see if the shape evolves.
Connect: @michaelstipe
