Jams and Tea

We're back with another streamlined episode of Jams & Tea NOW talking about the latest in new music and music news! This week we have a lot of fun dissecting the latest viral TikTok crossover, Planet of the Bass, a hilarious and endearing Eurodance parody that begs the question of whether the kitschiest genre of the 90s is having a comeback? We also talk Lizzo's abrupt and surprising cancellation, the resurgence of two long-absent shoegaze greats, the state of popular music with the charts dominated by country, the dancefloor-filling stunner that is the new Carly Rae Jepsen album THE LOVELIEST TIME, and much more!

This week's discussion topic is the most underrated albums of 2013 - records turning 10 this year that we think deserve more love, should be revisited, or otherwise just get too much disrespect! Let us know what you think of our picks, and hit us up in the comments on YouTube with what you think is the most underrated album celebrating a decade this year!

Today we're tweaking the format slightly for a slimmed down video focusing on the latest new releases, single drops, and music discussion points that have caught our eye! Join us as we discuss the immensely heavy new EP from metalcore supergroup Better Lovers, Big Thief's new single Vampire Empire and the state of indie rock stan culture, new songs from The Gaslight Anthem and Code Orange (featuring Billy Corgan?!), and a clinical deep-dive into the abysmal new album from Owl City. Plus, Jake offers a positive take on the new Barbie movie. Stick around for this week's discussion topic, which will be on underrated albums of 2013, in a day or two from now!

0:00 Ryley's Intro / New Format Change

2:35 2023 Quiz Results & Winner's "Prize"

6:09 The New Better Lovers EP Is Incredible!

16:11 New EPs from Anberlin and Yellowcard

18:42 The New Gaslight Anthem Singles Are...

23:33 Big Thief's Vampire Empire & Indie Rock Stan Culture

37:11 Code Orange Are Delivering Nu-Metal Excellence

41:39 Owl City's New Album Is a Disaster

58:29 Jake Reviews Barbie

For this week's new release reviews, Jake and Ryley are excited to break down the abstract and poetic new album from PJ Harvey, I INSIDE THE OLD YEAR DYING, and the soulful and cathartic return of Anohni with MY BACK WAS A BRIDGE FOR YOU TO CROSS. These are the first albums from both artists since 2016; join us to see how their comebacks hold up, and which of the two is one of the year's most essential releases.

0:00 PJ Harvey - I Inside the Old Year Dying

31:44 Anohni & the Johnsons - My Back Was a Bridge For You to Cross

For this week's Record Club, we're celebrating a classic of sophisti-pop, with Scottish legends The Blue Nile's immortal 1989 masterpiece HATS. Join us as we break down what makes this minimal but deeply emotional pop record so affecting, timeless, and appealing over three decades later.

For this week's new release reviews, AdequateEmily joins us again to talk about the folk-tinged heartland emo of Home Is Where with their emotionally crushing new record THE WHALER, and post-rock stalwarts SWANS with their mortality-obsessed THE BEGGAR, the latest of many multi-hour opuses. But how do these records hold up to their hype? It's fair to say we're more taken with one than the other, but we want to hear what you think too. Continue the conversation in the comments on YouTube - let us know your thoughts!

For this week's NOW episode we're joined by friend of the channel AdequateEmily for an unconventional twist on the format. Today, in addition to recapping new and interesting releases, we're commenting on Rolling Stone's bizarre and somewhat baffling list of the most inspirational LGBTQ songs of all time for pride month. We also talk new albums from Queens of the Stone Age, Killer Mike, Sigur Ros, and exceptional new singles from The Smile, Slowdive, Animal Collective, and more!

Loved and loathed by many, Sacramento-based Deafheaven's 2013 album Sunbather was a landmark in the crossover of extreme metal into the wider musical consciousness, a bold and declarative fusion of black metal and shoegaze that birthed dozens of bands and inspired years of passionate discourse. Now, a full decade on, we're excited to talk through the album in full, breaking down its significance, its sound, its themes, and its impact on a personal and cultural level. What is it about Sunbather that animates and excites so many people, even today?

Today we have two fresh new reviews for you all: first up is a celebration of Janelle Monae's delightful, low-stakes embrace of all things euphoric in THE AGE OF PLEASURE, but the main attraction this week is the extraordinary new record from Jason Isbell & the 400 Unit, the stunning WEATHERVANES. Join us as we unpack how one of the artists that means the most to us has crafted one of his finest works ever, and the current frontrunner for our collective album of the year. Let us know what you think of either of these albums in the comments on YouTube!

33:25 Jason Isbell & the 400 Unit - Weathervanes

After taking a week off, we have a jam-packed NOW episode this weekend that lets us catch up on some great recent releases that should be on your radar, including the newest albums from Kings Gizzard and Krule, Christine and the Queens, and Youth Lagoon, as well as video game hype for Diablo IV, Final Fantasy XVI, and the recently announced Persona 3 remake. We also have reviews of Across the Spider-Verse and The Idol, before our main topic of discussion this week: the most disappointing reunion albums of all time!