review: Last News

Hadestown, abruptly quitting New York for Vermont ahead of the birth of her second child in early 2020 not only gave her the space to reconnect with herself, it gifted the spark that would allow her to deliver the self-titled Anaïs Mitchell (★★★☆☆), her first album of original material in almost a decade.If you’re familiar with the colorful stories and characters of Hadestown, Mitchell’s prowess as a songwriter and storyteller needs no introduction. For all that Mitchell makes of her desire to tell her story, what really stands out in Anaïs Mitchell is not so much the stories themselves, but the way she pulls out moments in time and pins down the ephemeral feelings that accompany them.

news release from the Defense Department.Even though the majority of service members were honorably discharged, nearly 2,000 received less than fully honorable discharges.After “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” was repealed by Congress, those less than honorably discharged under it were eligible to appeal for an upgrade with the Military Department Review Boards. About 85% received some form of relief, but others affected by the change were unaware they could request to have their discharge status upgraded.Last year, Deputy Defense Secretary Kathleen Hicks initiated a proactive review of LGBTQ veterans who were dismissed under the policy but had not yet applied for an upgrade.As a result, veterans who were separated from the Armed Services under “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” will have their discharge papers — known as a DD-214 — changed to “honorable” without having to go through a formal process of applying for a discharge upgrade.Those members who receive upgrades will be eligible for benefits that they had previously been denied due to their discharge status, including health care benefits, college tuition assistance, VA loan programs, and even some employment opportunities.The Department of Defense is sending information to those having their status upgraded on how to obtain copies of their new certification.

In Greek mythology, it holds that for a time, gods and mortals mingled freely, creating demigods whose sole aim was to prove their worth so they might join their celestial kin. For the Greeks, the gods who ruled on mount Olympus formed the idealized version of humans—often possessing super strength to match their perfect physiques.

Night Call (★★★★☆) is the third album to be released under the name Years & Years, now Alexander’s solo project following the departure of Emre Türkmen and Mikey Goldsworthy from the group. As much as Alexander’s personality shone on Years & Years’ first two albums, going solo has allowed him to showcase the beautifully twisted contents of his mind like never before.The album starts on a strong foot with “Consequences,” a funky, synthy opener that is unmistakably a Years & Years track.

Red (Taylor’s Version) (★★★☆☆) comes in two distinct pieces. The bulk of it is a revisiting and reworking of tracks from 2012’s Red.

Future Past (★★★★☆) seems crafted to remind us why they get to call themselves pop icons.If the album’s title and track names — styled in all-caps — didn’t underline it enough, Duran Duran are as enthusiastic and boisterous on Future Past as ever.The opening track “Invisible” doesn’t start things off with quite the same level of bombast that the band has introduced other albums with, but the depth lent to it by its crunchy, grungy guitars and sultry backing vocals are enough to hold your attention.They carry that energy right into the next few tracks.

Saturday Night, Sunday Morning (★★★☆☆) is Bugg’s first album since embarking on a sort of career relaunch after the tepid reception of his last album, and it is readily apparent from the first few tracks that with his pivot, he has found the sharpness he was looking for, and recaptured some of the rawness of his early work.Aside from his singularly strange name-checking of ABBA as an influence on the album’s sound, there is definitely more of a radio-ready pop sensibility to it, bolstered by the input of powerhouse songwriters including Andrew Watt and Ali Tamposi whose recent credits include the likes of Miley Cyrus and Dua Lipa.Leveraging that star power pays off right out of the gate, when he comes out swinging and stomping with the

Solar Power (★★★☆☆) is as close to an album made up of pure vibes as she gets.Her preoccupation with the environment and back-to-nature ethos, right down to the earth-friendly “music box” she is releasing in lieu of a CD, is borne out in the album’s warm, analog sound and repeated references to natural forces and the rhythms of the earth and the sun.This version of Lorde, preoccupied with the sun, the ocean, and cleansing crystals, is hardly the same artist we met on 2017’s Melodrama.

“I go hard, I go fast, and I never look back,” Charli XCX emphasized at the very beginning of her last album, Charli, which dropped just eight months ago. This unerring, machine-like drive — one that’s established her as one of the most prolific pop artists of our generation — resurfaces almost immediately at the top of how i’m feeling now, her new album, released this morning. “I just wanna go real hard,” she deadpans in front of a webcam on “pink diamond,” wrapped in a thicket of wonky synths sculpted by Dijon and A. G. Cook. She keeps repeating the line, drained but persistent, almost as if she has to insist on it.

Laura Marling — Photo: Justin Tyler Close

Butt Boy

By Owen Gleiberman, Variety.com

By Caroline Framke, Variety.com

By Lisa Kennedy, Variety.com

Indigo Girls — Photo: Jeremy Cowart