Jack White - Entering Heaven Alive

Not some of Jack’s better ballads.

Lady Gaga - "Million Reasons"

Lady Gaga unexpectedly pulls off a folksy ballad with this new single from her forthcoming album Joanne, out October 21 via Interscope.

Sia - "Big Girls Cry"

Golden-haired pop songstress Sia drops yet another song from her forthcoming record, 1000 Forms of Fear. It's dropping July 8th.

Mariam The Believer - "To Conquer Pain With Love"

The beloved Mariam The Believer drops a simple, somber organ ballad with the track "To Conquer Pain With Love," which is set for release on a forthcoming EP titled The Wind. Not only was this track build of first takes, but it seems all the tracks on this EP will be organ ballads. The release date is June 18th, and I'm told we can expect more experimental EPs from Mariam in the future. Enjoy!

Queens of the Stone Age - "The Vampyre of Time and Memory"

Queens of the Stone Age drop one of the more unsettling music videos of this year, featuring loads of stuffed animals, a toothed piano, and a vampire woman that's gonna be haunting your nightmares for the next several weeks. Props to directors Kii Arens and Jason Trucco.

Catch a review for the band's new album ...Like Clockwork below:

Young Fathers - "LOW"

Scottish alt-hip hop trio Young Fathers have left me pretty impressed with their creative lo-fi fusions of rap, African music, reggae, and more on the two "tapes" they've dropped thus far, but I've always thought there was more potential in what the group was offering--especially if the sounds they were working with were more hi-fi. The song "LOW" seems to toy with the idea of that, featuring the best recording I've heard on a Young Fathers song yet. The singing, rapping, and primal beat ring through clearly, and give this tender ballad dynamics it needs to move emotions and groove crowds. Watch, listen, and enjoy! Oh, and the trio is already set to drop a new album in February titled DEAD, so look out for that!

Check a review for Young Fathers' Tape Two below:

FKA Twigs - "Water Me"

The experimental stylings of New York producer Arca comes through on this new art pop single from UK singer FKA Twigs. Enjoy!

No Age - "An Impression"

California lo-fi and noise rock duo No Age have a new album on the way via Sub Pop Records that's due in August. The title is An Object, and the tracks to drop thus far from the album--including the one embedded above--haven't really gotten me very excited for the LP.

So far, songs like "An Impression" are forecasting a step backward into the more lo-fi aesthetic of the band's early EPs and demos. I suppose that won't be a bad thing if they continue to toss in surprises like the beautifully layered strings that manage to pop in toward the end of this track!

Catch a review for the band's previous album below: