Sep 18, 2026 · 42 min
Five albums test the boundaries of pop, folk and Americana
New Music Friday: The best albums out Sept. 18
The episode maps how established and emerging artists turn familiar genres into spaces for grief, desire, adulthood and renewal.
- 1Beck revisits orchestral folk, using aging, divorce, grief and hope as material for a reflective new album.
- 2Beabadoobee and Carly Rae Jepsen pair strong pop instincts with contrasting rock textures, bedroom disco and expansive songcraft.
- 3Rhiannon Giddens anchors a wide-ranging release week in traditional folk, country, soul and blues, while the lightning round widens the field further.
Don't miss
The panel connects Rhiannon Giddens’ versatility and collaborative spirit to a 20-year Americana career.
The brief
Stephen Thompson, Robert Moore and Amelia Mason survey a release week built around artists reshaping familiar forms, from orchestral folk and ’90s rock to expansive pop.
Beck’s Ride Lonesome returns to the reflective sound associated with Sea Change and Morning Phase, confronting aging, divorce and grief without abandoning hope.
Beabadoobee’s Pylon turns bright pop instincts toward chunky ’90s rock, while Carly Rae Jepsen’s 24-track Day and Night makes room for yearning, remixing and interpretation.
The discussion of Tove Lo’s Estrus emphasizes messy adulthood and darkly playful production, then shifts to Rhiannon Giddens’ joyful blend of folk, country, soul and blues.
A lightning round expands the map with folk, experimental music, metal, global pop and electronic composition, showing how wide a New Music Friday can be.