For this week's Fresh Picks, Tinariwen remains leader of the desert blues 10 albums in, songwriter Morgan Nagler steps out with an album of her own and Cat Clyde balances the gritty and the sweet.
Plus, the way love works from Jalen Ngonda, rippers from Julianna Riolino and Joanne Shaw Taylor and the punk-jazz fusion of The Messthetics with James Brandon Lewis.
Check out this week's suggestions from Music Director Kari Hedlund, Asst. Music Director Malachy Koons and Volunteer Coordinator Dan Gannon.
Albums
Tinariwen - Hoggar
For over 45 years, the Tuareg rockers have fought for their culture and way of life in the Azawad region of northern Mali and southern Algeria.
Against the backdrop of an ongoing conflict that forced most of the band to flee their homes in Mali — and a 2026 U.S. tour being canceled due to the Trump administration’s travel ban — Hoggar is a bold statement of defiance and a commitment to the revolutionary principles that have guided Tinariwen since forming in refugee camps in the ‘80s.
It’s easy to get lost in the sonics of a band that so deeply matches the landscape it calls home in tone and form, but just as important is the lyrical side of Tinariwen, as on-the-ground documenters of a post-colonial struggle for freedom. -MK
Morgan Nagler - I've Got Nothing To Lose, And I'm Losing It
Nagler has been successfully working behind the scenes in music for quite some time, cowriting for artists like Phoebe Bridgers (“Kyoto”), Gillian Welch and David Rawlings, Jenny Lewis and Haim. Her debut album, I’ve Got Nothing to Lose, and I’m Losing It, features heavy-hitting contributors like Courtney Barnett, King Tuff, Madi Diaz and more. Nagler is part indie-rock, part intimate singer-songwriter, topped with a good dose of quirks and vocal uniqueness that sets her music apart from the rest. -KH
Cat Clyde - Mud Blood Bone
Country, blues, punk, folk, classic pop and more appear across Canadian Cat Clyde’s new fourth album, Mud Blood Bone. Just as sweet as it is gritty, Clyde’s twangy voice and bluesy guitars are the near constants that tie its 11 tracks together into a cohesive whole. Highlights are the sub-two-minute blast of punk energy in “Wanna Ride,” surviving in the patriarchy of “Man’s World,” and the nature-filled, quiet-loud-quiet country ballad, “My Love.” -MK
Singles
Jalen Ngonda - "Doctrine of Love"
On "Doctrine of Love," we find Ngonda sounding a bit more like David Ruffin than Harold Melvin. More scratchy heartache, raw vocals and the occasional well-placed gong got this tune humming along nicely in that Daptone kind of way. Tasteful horns and soaring harmonies balance the pain in his words, "You got to pay a price/ Need to sacrifice." This is the doctrine of love, according to Jalen Ngonda. -DG
Julianna Riolino - "It's a Shakedown"
From the punch of the guitar right out of the gate, this song off a deluxe version of Riolino’s Echo in the Dust release, rips! It starts with a lilting sway, then breaks down about halfway through into a driving pulsating beat that brings The Clash and Joan Jett to mind. Her ability to blend a couple of sonic movements that you wouldn’t typically pair together actually exemplifies the full album that is multi-dimensional and hops genres and decades. -KH
Joanne Shaw Taylor - "Hell or High Water"
The English blues guitarist blesses us with another rippin' tune that is about as rocking as the blues can get. "Hell or High Water" starts with an echoey banjo that soon morphs into acoustic guitar, hand claps and stomps that bring the song into full liftoff about a minute in, and then holy guacamole, hold on to your hat as Taylor just lets her rip! -DG
The Messthetics and James Brandon Lewis - "Rules of the Game"
Trying to imagine a pairing or fusion between two different worlds of music is a beloved pastime for any music nerd, so maybe some of you have spent some time thinking about what an Impulse and Dischord Records fusion might sound like? Here’s your answer. Pair a boundary-pushing saxophonist with an experimental trio anchored by the rhythm section of post-hardcore legends, Fugazi, and you are in for a treat. -MK
