Well beyond the Music Team, KAXE is filled with music lovers in nearly every position. You never know who might pop in with a Fresh Pick. This week, KAXE Morning Show Host and Producer Jennifer Barr joins the party with a retro groove!
Read on for our favorite new albums and singles like Silvana Estrada's incredible sophomore album, the debut from Minnesota indie-pop artist clovers daughter, German duo HAERTS, a folk ballad ode to Mother Jones and much more.
Check out this week's suggestions from Music Director Kari Hedlund, Asst. Music Director Malachy Koons, Volunteer Coordinator Dan Gannon and KAXE Morning Show Producer Jennifer Barr.
Albums
Silvana Estrada - Vendrán Suaves Lluvias
From the midnight creeping bolero of “Good Luck, Good Night,” to the sweeping strings and fingerstyle guitar of “Un Rayo de Luz,” Estrada’s remarkable sophomore album is full of tender and moving passages that are perfectly matched with the singer’s emotions. You don’t need to speak Spanish to understand her navigating loss and heartbreak, or to realize that, ultimately, it’s hope that gets her through. Vendrán Suaves Lluvias is KAXE's album of the week. -MK
clovers daughter - Am I Worth It?
Palestinian-American Noor Shami, aka clovers daughter, is a Twin Cities artist whose new record Am I Worth It? strikes me at times as an up-tempo Billie Eilish. Bouncy rhythms with moody sentiments, it's human music featuring machines as well as acoustic guitars behind Shami's beautiful vocals. I love the songs "Irrelevant" and "Plot for Revenge." -DG
HAERTS - Laguna Road
Released at the end of October, Laguna Road is the fourth album from the German duo and it's their most intimate work to date. Musical and life partners, Nini Fabi and Ben Gebert, recorded the songs at home, and the comfort and cozy of the music matches wholeheartedly. Part lullabies and part love songs, it sometimes feels like you’re listening to what Fleetwood Mac would sound like if they were starting out today. Stand out tracks for me are “Enemy,” “Woman on the Line” with their friend Jenn Wasner (Flock of Dimes, Wye Oak), “The Lie” and the sweet closer, “Wait for Us.” -KH
The Replacements - Let It Be (Deluxe)
The Replacement's breakout album, and one of the high points of ‘80s punk and indie rock, Let It Be gets the deluxe treatment from Rhino Records with remastering, unreleased studio material, a live album and more. From an alternate take of the beloved and ever important “Androgynous,” (that a song like this appeared on a punk album in 1984 will never cease to amaze me) to one of the band’s first “Can’t Hardly Wait” performances, the collection is an important addition to the 'Mats' incredible legacy. -MK
Singles
The Lowest Pair - "The Uncertain Seas"
One of our favorite Minnesota folk duos is back, and we couldn’t be more stoked. The Lowest Pair is celebrating 10 years of music together after their fateful meeting at the Boats and Bluegrass festival. With a full band on this new song, Palmer T. Lee and Kendl Winter seem to be stretching their wings into new territory on the upcoming record, Always As Young As We’ll Ever Be, produced by Tucker Martine (My Morning Jacket, Neko Case, The Decemberists, Charlie Parr). -KH
Lisa O'Neill - "Mother Jones"
“Pray for the dead and fight like hell for the living,” is a quote most associated with labor organizer Mother Jones (born Mary Harris). Those words anchor Irish folk singer Lisa O’Neill’s dramatic ode to the 20th century activist and Irish immigrant to the United States. Despite being the namesake of a national magazine, Harris’ story is not well-known. At one point, especially in the mines of the Iron Range, Mother Jones would have been a household name. O’Neill puts her story back in the spotlight in this classic piece of folk music. -MK
Ásgeir - "Sugar Clouds"
Icelandic musician Ásgeir announced that he’s releasing his fifth album, Julia, early in 2026. Best known for his indie folk falsetto, this song "Sugar Clouds" starts in that familiar territory before opening up to a fully harmonious place. Recorded in an unusual 7/8 rhythm, the song taps into the restlessness of what the search for peace can feel like. -KH
Lera Lynn - "Comic Book Cowboy"
Lynn starts this slow-burning, kick drum-driven tune with simple spoken words telling a story of anti-social self-loathing, and it is not at all what I expected. Slide guitar, dope bass lines, poetry with melody, and it leaves me wondering, who exactly is the "Comic Book Cowboy?" -DG
The Olympians - "California"
I heard this song on the Wednesday KAXE Morning Show last week and felt like I was transported into a hip '70s scene. The slow build, the horns, the funky electric guitar - I love it! This song needs to be the theme song to a throwback cop show, or maybe I'll just play it for myself while I'm walking down the streets of Grand Rapids if I need to feel like the coolest person ever. -JB
Eric Bibb - "This One Don't"
“Some songs got fascinating rhythms/ Some songs swing [and] some won’t/ Some songs got complicated melodies/ This one don’t,” sings the blues legend Eric Bibb on the first single from One Mississippi, due out Jan. 30, 2026. The album will focus on finding connections in a divided world, and “This One Don’t” is all about the power of a simple groove to get a crowd of very different people moving in unison. -MK
