Best New Releases, January 31: Bonnie “Prince” Billy, Pink Siifu, and more


We’ve reached the end of a month that’s felt like a year. (Exasperated sigh.) But that’s OK, because at least we’ve got some great new music to listen to. This week, our picks include the return of a veteran singer/songwriter, a pair of hip-hop shapeshifters, a legend of African music and more. Queue up the best new releases of the week.
Note: When you buy something through our affiliate links, Treble receives a commission. All albums included are chosen by our editors and contributors.

Bonnie “Prince” Billy – The Purple Bird
Will Oldham has a sizable catalog of alt-country and Americana, some of it haunted and pitch black, and some of it lively and upbeat. With his latest as Bonnie “Prince” Billy, Oldham delivers a set of lushly arranged and soulful songs that are steeped in classic country tradition (“Turned to Dust (Rolling On)”) as well as showcasing some of his darker songwriting (“London May”), as well as more bluegrass-inspired material, like closer “Our Home,” featuring Tim O’Brien. The Purple Bird showcases many facets of Oldham’s sound in one album, a rich set of songs that’s both eclectic and cohesive.
Listen/Buy: Bandcamp | Rough Trade (vinyl)

Pink Siifu – BLACK’!ANTIQUE
Birmingham, Alabama-born rapper Pink Siifu’s spent the past few years delivering a series of excellent collaborative records with the likes of Yungmorpheus and Real Bad Man. His first solo record in four years, however, is a sprawling and ambitious set of shape-shifting hip-hop that covers a lot of ground, consistently unpredictable throughout its 78 minutes. There are moments of intense noise and dreamy cloud rap alike, atmospheric trap and moments of soulful jazz production. It’s a lot to digest, but well worth it, and we’ll have more on this one soon.
Listen/Buy: Bandcamp

Ebo Taylor – Jazz Is Dead 22
Ebo Taylor turned 89 years old earlier this month, just in time to celebrate the release of his contribution to the continuum of Jazz Is Dead albums, the 22nd in the series. A collaboration with Jazz Is Dead architects Adrian Younge and Ali Shaheed Muhammad, JID22 is as funky and fiery as anything the Ghanaian Afrobeat legend has released during his long and productive career. Standouts like “Obra Akyedzi” are rife with ample doses of reverb, while “Nsa a w´oanye edwuma ondzidzi” eases back on the throttle just slightly yet keeps the groove firmly intact. An outstanding new installment from a legend, and we’ll have more to say about this one soon.
Listen/Buy: Bandcamp | Rough Trade (vinyl)

MIKE – Showbiz!
New York rapper MIKE’s pace of about one new record a year isn’t necessarily all that hectic when compared to someone like Chris Crack, whose output is somewhere closer to 3-4 times that. Nonetheless, MIKE’s been on an impressive streak for the better part of a decade, and his 11th album is a dreamy and hypnotic blend of his signature seamless and low-key lyricism with lush, gorgeous production. It’s a turn away from the trap beats from last year’s Pinball with Tony Seltzer, back toward jazzy lo-fi grooves and analog crackle. It’s warm and welcoming, a great summer-nights record to put on when those winter evenings get a little too chilly.
Listen/Buy: Bandcamp

Damon Locks – List of Demands
Damon Locks has released a handful of genre-swirling records on the International Anthem label, including 2021’s powerful NOW, as well as having designed much of the label’s album artwork. And his latest continues his exploration of unconventional blends of sounds, a mixture of spoken-word poetry and sample-laden sound collage. A statement about the album cites both poet Nikki Giovanni and hip-hop antihero MF DOOM as influences on its sonic makeup, and it’s a musically playful blend that likewise provides plenty of lyrical fodder for thought. We’ll have more to say on this one soon.
Listen/Buy: Bandcamp | Amazon (vinyl)

Jaye Jayle – After Alter
Jaye Jayle’s Evan Patterson recently announced a new album with his previous band, Young Widows, who have been on hiatus for more than a decade. But both bands occupy different musical spaces. Where that band offers more of a cathartic, aggressive immediacy, Jaye Jayle is more eerily atmospheric, drawing on gothic aesthetics and subtler, more sinister arrangements. After Alter continues to showcase more versatility in the group’s sound, as evident in moments like the psychedelic blues of “Bloody Me.” We’ll have more about this one soon.
Listen/Buy: Bandcamp | Amazon (vinyl)

Jeff Terich is the founder and editor of Treble. He's been writing about music for 20 years and has been published at American Songwriter, Bandcamp Daily, Reverb, Spin, Stereogum, uDiscoverMusic, VinylMePlease and some others that he's forgetting right now. He's still not tired of it.