2. John Legend — Bigger Love
Featured Song: "Ooh Laa"
3. Phoebe Bridgers — Punisher
Featured Songs: "Punisher" and "I Know The End"
4. Roy Ayers, Adrian Younge, Ali Shaheed Muhammad - JID 002
5. Bob Dylan — Rough and Rowdy Ways
Featured Song: "Goodbye Jimmy Reed"
6. Neil Young — Homegrown
Featured Song: "Separate Ways"
7. Oumou Sangaré — Acoustic
Featured Song: "Diaraby Nene"

Other notable releases for June 19: Braids — Shadow Offering; Don Bryant — You Make Me Feel; Gabby Bryant — GOLDMINE; Owen — The Avalanche; Sault — Untitled; Teyana Taylor — The Album; Wire — 10:20; Yo-Yo Ma, Stuart Duncan, Edgar Meyer & Chris Thile — Not Our First Goat Rodeo">

New Music Friday: The Top 7 Albums Out On June 19 (original) (raw)

Phoebe Bridgers. Her sophomore full-length, Punisher, is on our shortlist of the week's best new albums. Frank Ockenfels **hide caption

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Frank Ockenfels

When you first hear John Legend's new album Bigger Love, it might feel out of step with the times. It's a feel-good celebration of romantic love, love of family and community that comes amid a lot of awful news. But the songs were created before the latest headlines and, as Legend said on Instagram, "During these painful times, some of us may wonder if it's ok to laugh or dance or be romantic... ...It's important for us to continue to show the world the fullness of what it is to be black and human. Through our art, we are able to do that." On this week's New Music Friday, we talk about the power and beauty in Bigger Love and hear a bit of the doo-wop inspired opener, "Ooh Laa."

Also on the show: Phantom Planet is back with more rainy day rock after a 12-year hiatus; Phoebe Bridgers has a breathtaking new album that's as dark and mysterious as it is enchanting; Neil Young's long-lost album, Homegrown sees the light of day after 45 years, and more. Host Robin Hilton is joined by NPR Music's Ann Powers and Stephen Thompson, along with John Morrison, host of XPN's Culture Cypher Radio and the podcast Serious Rap S***, as they share their picks for the week's best new albums.

  1. Phantom Planet — Devastator
    Featured Song: "Time Moves On"
  2. John Legend — Bigger Love
    Featured Song: "Ooh Laa"
  3. Phoebe Bridgers — Punisher
    Featured Songs: "Punisher" and "I Know The End"
  4. Roy Ayers, Adrian Younge, Ali Shaheed Muhammad - JID 002
    Featured Song: "African Sounds"
  5. Bob Dylan — Rough and Rowdy Ways
    Featured Song: "Goodbye Jimmy Reed"
  6. Neil Young — Homegrown
    Featured Song: "Separate Ways"
  7. Oumou Sangaré — Acoustic
    Featured Song: "Diaraby Nene"

Other notable releases for June 19: Braids — Shadow Offering; Don Bryant — You Make Me Feel; Gabby Bryant — GOLDMINE; Owen — The Avalanche; Sault — Untitled; Teyana Taylor — The Album; Wire — 10:20; Yo-Yo Ma, Stuart Duncan, Edgar Meyer & Chris Thile — Not Our First Goat Rodeo