Yes, we’re still measuring 2020 in months, even though the concept has stretched and contracted beyond prior comprehension. There are albums scheduled to be released over the course of the next 31-ish days and these are them. Remember to stay safe and enjoy music.
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You’ll want to scream inside your heart for these melodic and melancholy Canadian indie-rockers. Their new one, ‘Pick It Up’, drops (sorry) August 7. “Due to the pandemic we can’t tour this record,” frontman Matthew Angus says in a statement. “We hope this collection of songs finds its way to your town by virtue of being passed along across the internet, as we all patiently wait in our houses for this uncertain force that we can’t control to burn out. While we wait, we’ll be building up the strength to ‘Pick It Up’ when the time is right.” See what he did there? Because the album is named ‘Pick It Up’.
Ohio Indie rockers Guided By Voices release ‘Mirrored Aztec’ on August 21. Also out on the 21 is ‘Imploding the Mirage’ by Vegas rockers the Killers and ‘Play With Fire’ from garage rock trio L.A. Witch.
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The multi-platinum-selling singer, songwriter, and producer drops his highly anticipated album ‘Everything Means Nothing’ on August 21. The 12-track record features Lauv and Trevor Daniels, a track produced by Marshmello, and Blackbear’s double-platinum-certified single “Hot Girl Bummer”.
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The Calgary country singer, songwriter, and guitarist releases her deeply personal sophomore record ’Heart Theory’ on August 14. Former Hey Monday rocker Cassadee Pope brings out ‘Rise and Shine’ on August 7.
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The pop-rock pride of Hamilton, Ontario, present ‘Campfire Chords’ on August 20. It’s a collection of stripped-down versions of some of their most popular songs, like “Years In The Making” and “Knocking At The Door”.
Ottawa’s folk-rock queen Kathleen Edwards makes her long-awaited return to music after setting up a heck of a cafe in Stittsville. She’ll release ‘Total Freedom’ on August 14.
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The Calgarian house-pop sensation behind the smash hit “Hideaway” from 2014’s ‘Sound of a Woman’ is back with ‘Crave’ on August 14. To celebrate, she’ll be hosting a virtual in-store livestream and Q&A session via Banquet Records on August 20.
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The ACM and CMA Entertainer of the Year releases ’Born Here Live Here Die Here’ on August 7. Bryan’s seventh record includes the singles "Knockin' Boots", "What She Wants Tonight", and the smash hit "One Margarita".
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The Australian YouTuber delivers some ‘80s flavour on "Easy,” the lead single from his new EP, 'In A Dream', due out August 21. Sivan recorded five of the EP’s six songs with Swedish record producer Oscar Gorres (who’s worked with the Weeknd, Taylor Swift, Britney Spears, and Pink) between Stockholm and L.A., just before the lockdown took hold. “A story that’s still unfolding, this small collection of songs explores an emotional roller-coaster period in my life when the feelings and thoughts were most shockingly fresh,” the 25-year-old mused in a statement. “Revisiting these songs and moments is tough, but I’m proud of this music and excited to have it out in the world.”
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“I feel like my music has never been a part of any trend that defined any era of music during my 34 years of doing this. I may be wrong, but that’s how it feels to me.” We’ll have to see if ’Non-Secure Connection,’ due out August 14, maintains his trend of bucking the trends. The album’s lead single is “My Resolve”, a duet with James Mercer of the Shins. Hornsby calls the song “a Sisyphean tale of the creative life, sung with a fellow climber.”
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"The thing I miss most about playing live shows is the connection I feel with everyone in the room,” the country music legend posted on Instagram. But he’s vowed to host the next best thing in the leadup to the August 23 launch of ‘Here on Earth’, his first record in five years: “On August 21, we're gonna do a special live broadcast to take you behind the songs, chat with the songwriters, and play some of the new stuff plus old favourites!" Tickets are on sale now for $15 at live.timmcgraw.com.
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These are the dog days of summer and so we trust this gloomy Haligonian indie rock outfit to bring the soundtrack with their new record, ‘Present’. They’ve captured the mood with their debut single, “Hell on Earth”, which could be the song of the summer. “Slowly falling down / We can't help slowly falling down / (Falling down) / We can’t stop tomorrow morning”. Oh yes. Yes. Marinate in that melancholy. ‘Present’ is out August 14.
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Dude, it’s been three years since ‘Witness’, when Perry cut her hair and cut singles like “Chained to the Rhythm” and "Swish Swish”. Three years! What even is 2020? No one knows. And yet, here is Katy Perry telling us to smile. Or maybe it’s not an instruction, maybe it’s just the name of the record. ‘Smile’ is out August 14. This one has "Never Really Over" on it and "Never Worn White”, plus the new single, “Daisies”.
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It’s a double feature of this emerging Vancouver folk star: alongside her new covers EP, ‘Wind Songs’, her debut album, ‘Yesterday is Gone’ will get an overdue proper release. (It originally dropped on March 27.) “'Yesterday is Gone', my debut album, came into the world at a strange time,” Dana explained in a statement. “I never expected to be unable to tour it until at least a year after its release but I’ve silently accepted it. I’m happy to hear of the ways it is reaching people.” ‘Wind Songs’ features Gavanski covering some of her favourites, using her Travis picking technique. “I kind of forgot about King Crimson for some time,” Dana says of her EP’s cover of their song ‘I Talk To The Wind’, “and only got back into them early last year. Ian McDonald’s beautiful flute solos throughout the song, the mellow vocals and symphonic arrangements all come together to make it beautifully moody.” ‘Wind Songs’ is out August 14.