12 New Albums To Get You Through January

By JC Villamere. 4 Jan 2022 12:25 PM

New year! New music! New playlist! Never before has music played a more vital role in our lives. Grab on to it and let it float you through January.

Warner/Dennis Leupold

David M. Benett/Dave Benett/WireImage/Getty

Dualtone

Eating Glass Records

Warner

Inside Out

Richmond Lam

Pheromone Recordings, Photo: Clayton Cooper

Vulfpeck

Alex Yep

Photo: VH1

Piccadilly Records/EMI

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Saweetie
Warner/Dennis Leupold
No, it’s not her highly anticipated debut album, but the “Best Friend” rapper has a seven-song EP out to tide us over until its release. The two-time 2022 Grammy nominee, who recently made headlines with her new buzz cut, will release 'Icy Season' on January 7.
FKA Twigs
David M. Benett/Dave Benett/WireImage/Getty
Her collab with the Weeknd, “Tears In The Club”, is the lead single off the mixtape ‘Capri Sun’, out on January 14. On Instagram, the British electro-R&B star assured fans that this new project will give “what u’ve been wanting from me for bare time.”
The Lumineers
Dualtone
It’s the dark days of another pandemic year, and if you’re wondering if there’s a bright side, we have a definitive answer for you. The ho-hey-ing American folk-rockers the Lumineers will release their fourth record ‘Brightside’ on January 14. The lead single is also called “Brightside” and here’s what singer-guitarist and co-founder Wesley Schultz had to say about it in a statement: “The song “Brightside” was recorded in a single day. It’s like a 15-year-old’s fever dream, an American love story in all its glory and heartbreak. The last couple left, on the run from something and all alone...” Well, that sounds scary, actually. But we bet — dare we say it — that there’s a bright side to the song.
Alice Glass
Eating Glass Records
The Crystal Castles survivor continues her electronic experiments with ‘Prey//IV’, an album title that made our autocorrect throw up. It follows her eponymous 2017 debut EP. The Toronto native’s debut solo album is out on January 28. She released the lead single last year at this time, “Suffer and Swallow”. It was followed by “Baby Teeth” in November.
Billy Talent
Warner
The seven-time Juno-winning rockers will release 'Crisis of Faith' on January 21. The record features the hits "Reckless Paradise", "I Beg to Differ (This Will Get Better)", and "End of Me," featuring Rivers Cuomo of Weezer. "This is a full-circle moment for us. We've admired and have been fans of Weezer since the 'Blue Album' until now," the band said in a statement. "Before we had a title, this song was originally called 'Hendrix+Weezer' so it only felt right to ask Rivers to sing on it. The song encompasses the essence of '90s alt-rock, which was a hugely impactful and influential time for our band. We're proud of the song and very happy to have Rivers be a part of it."
Jethro Tull
Inside Out
The British prog-rock legends are back with their first album of new material in 18 years. 'The Zealot Gene' is out on January 28 and features the lead single “Shoshana Sleeping”. The band have over 30 albums to their credit and sales totalling more than 50 million. But, more than that, they make the flute totally rock.
Broken Social Scene
Richmond Lam
The Toronto indie rock collective will unleash 'Old Dead Young: B-Sides & Rarities' on January 14. It's a career-spanning collection of B-sides, rarities, and outtakes from 20 years of their 7-inches, compilations, soundtracks, and hard-to-find releases. What does that mean? We can't simmer it down; we have to provide you with this entire meaty track listing:

1 "Far Out" (2009, From the Forgiveness Rock Record pre-order EP Lo-Fi For The Dividing Nights)
2 "Do the 95" (2001, B-Side to "Stars And Sons" 7")
3 "Curse Your Fail" (2009, From tour 7" split with Sea and Cake)
4 "Not At My Best" (2010, From the end credits for film 'It's Kind Of A Funny Story')
5 "National Anthem Of Nowhere" (2004, Early Broken Social Scene version of an Apostle Of Hustle song)
6 "Golden Facelift" (2009, Forgiveness Rock Record outtake. Released on Globe & Mail's Broadsheet Music project)
7 "This House Is On Fire" (2009, Forgiveness Rock Record outtake)
8 "Canada vs America" (2004, From the Self-Titled bonus CD EP To Be You And Me)
9 "Day Of The Kid" (2005, Released on Arts & Crafts 20th anniversary comp)
10 "Stars and Spit" (2006, B-Side to "7/4 Shoreline" 7-inch)
11 "Until It's Dead" (2006, From Lake Ontario Waterkeeper compilation At The Barricades: Vol 1)
12 "All My Friends" (2004, From the Self-Titled bonus CD EP To Be You And Me)
13 "Death Cock” (2001, Very first recording with producer Dave Newfeld. Released on A&C 20th anniversary comp)
14 "Old Dead Young" (2016, Hug Of Thunder vinyl-only track)
Kiefer Sutherland
Pheromone Recordings, Photo: Clayton Cooper
‘Bloor Street’ is the Canadian icon’s third record, and it’s out January 21. The lead single is also called “Bloor Street”, and here’s what Sutherland had to say in a statement about the Toronto-themed country-rock track: “They say you can never go home. This song, for me, says in your heart you never leave.” But, don’t worry, he’s not leaving your screen any time soon. He’ll be back in “Violence of Action” with Chris Pine and Ben Foster, and he’ll play Franklin D. Roosevelt in the limited series “The First Lady”.
Vulfpeck
Vulfpeck
The funky four-piece rhythm section from Ann Arbor, Michigan, will release 'Vulf Vault 005: Wong's Cafe' on January 7. Produced by guitarist Cory Wong, it's the fifth instalment in the band's Vault series. The lead single is "Smokeshow". Vulfpeck recorded half of this album before the pandemic (was there ever such a time?) and the other half during these weary pandemic times.
Geoffroy
Alex Yep
One of Quebec’s most promising artists will release his third record, ‘Live Slow Die Wise’, on January 19. The latest single is “Strangers On A Train”. "I wrote the lyrics to ‘Strangers On A Train’ in winter, in my apartment during lockdown,” Geoffroy (pronounced Jeff-wah) said in a statement. “It’s definitely one of the most introspective songs on the album. I guess it’s a very mature version of myself who wrote this, hah. It’s about accepting and coming to terms with the fact that a relationship has come to its end. It’s about moving on, letting go, and feeling okay about it."
RuPaul
Photo: VH1
Mama Ru has a new record out January 7, and it's called 'Mamaru' (get it?) Her 14th record is the followup to 2020's 'You're a Winner, Baby'. The latest single is a collab with Fredrick Minano called "Blame It on the Edit". The queen of all media also recently announced the first international all-star edition of "RuPaul's Drag Race".
Elvis Costello & The Imposters
Piccadilly Records/EMI
Technically, the new album is called 'The Boy Named If', but in a statement, Costello says, "The full title of this record is 'The Boy Named If (And Other Children's Stories)'. 'If' is a nickname for your imaginary friend; your secret self, the one who knows everything you deny, the one you blame for the shattered crockery and the hearts you break, even your own."

Out on January 14, the album's 13 songs "take us from the last days of a bewildered boyhood to that mortifying moment when you are told to stop acting like a child, which for most men (and perhaps a few gals too) can be any time in the next fifty years," Costello explains. We're entranced.

12 New Albums To Get You Through January

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