Welcome to Buzzworthy's "The Week In Pop," where we round up new album releases, talk show musical guests, and TV performances by your favorite pop stars and more (so you don't have to).
This week, Daft Punk release their highly anticipated fourth studio album, Random Access Memories, and Thirty Seconds To Mars drop their fourth effort as well, LOVE LUST FAITH + DREAMS (they hit "Conan" on Wednesday). Meanwhile, The National return with their sixth studio album, Trouble Will Find Me (catch them tonight on "Late Show With David Letterman" and on Wednesday's "The Colbert Report"). Additionally, French Montana, The Front Bottoms, New Politics, and Air Dubai release new material, too. On TV, two morning show summer concert series launch on Friday with Mariah Carey performing on "Good Morning America" and fun. taking the stage for "Today."
NEW ALBUM RELEASES
+ Daft Punk, Random Access Memories: Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo and Thomas Bangalter, the vocoder-rocking electro duo behind Daft Punk, eschew the EDM mainstream with an awesome exploration of '70s and '80s touchstones on their first proper album in eight years. RAM hits the nexus between technology and organic, where synths flirt with warm grooving guitars; robotic voices commingle with emotional lyrics and singing. Guests include disco pioneer Giorgio Moroder ("Giorgio By Moroder") and Pharrell Williams vocals and Nile Rodgers' killer funk guitar work is featured on the indelible singles "Get Lucky" and "Lose Yourself To Dance." Also check out "Instant Crush" with The Strokes singer Julian Casablancas, "Doin' It Right" featuring Animal Collective's Panda Bear, and the space-out euphoria of "Touch" featuring Paul Williams.
+ Thirty Seconds To Mars, LOVE LUST FAITH + DREAMS: Thirty Seconds To Mars go to great lengths for their fans with their fourth studio album, from playing free shows at churches for their "Church Of Mars" dates to as far as outer space, where they launched the first copy of their single, "Up In The Air." Their "Conquistador" lyric video looks to the heavens as well, with clouds, thunderstorms, and Aurora Borealis providing the visual backdrop. Jared Leto, his brother Shannon, and Tomo Milicevic do eventually head back to earth, though, for "The Race" lyric video, which plays like an allegory for our animalistic pursuits, with actual wild animal footage.
+ The National, Trouble Will Find Me: On their sixth LP, the Brooklyn-via-Cincinnati group The National enlist guests instrumentalists Sufjan Stevens and Arcade Fire's Richard Reed Parry, and vocals from St. Vincent's Annie Clark and Sharon Van Etten. Check out "Demons," where singer Matt Berninger's laconic baritone wistfully confesses: "I am secretly in love with/ Everyone I grew up with." While the band continues to create moody, paranoid compositions with wry lyrics, there is also some sweetness, such as on the yearning "I Need My Girl." Also check out upbeat driving rockers "Sea of Love" (which houses the lines from which the album's title is derived), and the skittering "Don't Swallow The Cap."
Check out more new album releases, upcoming TV appearances, and performances after the jump.
