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Shervin Lainez/Courtesy of the artistFrontman Ben Gibbard talks about the band's latest album, I Built You a Tower. -
Shervin LainezVince Staples. Zoh Amba. Death Cab for Cutie. Host Stephen Thompson chats with Laura Grant from WEXT in New York about their favorite albums out Friday, June 5. Plus, a handful of NPR Music writers and critics offer their personal picks in the lightning round. The Starting 5 (00:00) Album No.1 Death Cab for Cutie, 'I Built You a Tower' (ANTI-Records) (08:18) Album No. 2 Vince Staples, 'Cry Baby' (Loma Vista Recordings) (15:43) Album No. 3 Jalen Ngonda, 'Doctrine of Love' (Daptone Records) (20:41) Album No. 4 Zoh Amba, 'Eyes Full' (Matador Records) (27:19) Album No. 5 Laura Misch, 'Lithic' (One Little Independent Records) (32:39) Lightning Round Recommendations • Fightmaster, 'Tolerance' (Many Hats) • Red Clay Strays, 'Grateful' (RCA) • Slippers, 'Slippers 08' (Perennial) • Suzanne Ciani, Metropole Orkest, Simon Dobson, 'CIANI/ORKEST' (AKP Recordings) • Tara Clerkin Trio, 'Somewhere Good' (World of Echo) Sample the albums via our New Music Friday playlist and see our Long List of notable releases on NPR.org. Credits: Host: Stephen Thompson Guest: Laura Grant, WEXT Audio Producer: Noah Caldwell Digital Producer: Dora Levite Editors: Otis Hart, Elle Mannion Executive Producer: Suraya Mohamed Special thanks to Robin Hilton, Hazel Cills and Lars Gotrich
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Jack Antonoff explores marriage, grief and the current moment in Bleachers' latest album, everyone for ten minutes. -
Featuring new songs and beloved classics, the stadium-sized rock band shrinks down its outsized sound without losing any urgency or oomph. -
This week on the charts, Noah Kahan's coronation as an A-list superstar is complete, while another artist makes serious waves as well: the late Michael Jackson. -
The rising country star Ella Langley rules both the album and song charts this week, but Justin Bieber also sees a rise in popularity following his nostalgic performance at Coachella. -
The stadium-filling singer-songwriter's fourth album is full of finely detailed songs that expand his sound without sacrificing subtlety. -
Noah Kahan's songs radiate empathy for loved ones and places from his past. After a gradual rise, the Vermont singer-songwriter finally makes his Tiny Desk debut. -
The Welsh guitarist's fingerstyle playing drones with a haunted quality, but her flurry of bends, slides and chord clusters rip open the firmament. -
Joined by a string quartet, Mannequin Pussy's ferocious and tender songs swell with urgency. The band also gives us all space to scream.
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From SZA and Kendrick Lamar, to MJ Lenderman and Waxahatchee, there's been an uptick in recent years of prominent artists joining forces for a co-headlining tour. -
Much of our image of Dylan derives from his early protest music, but Robert Polito's book makes the argument that the most recent 30 years of Dylan's career have been just as creative as the first 30.
