Courtney Barnett, 'Rae Street'

Australian singer-songwriter Courtney Barnett became a star on the strength of rambling, speak-sung story-songs and thorny anthems about the pressures that come with high expectations. On Things Take Time, Take Time (out Nov. 12), Barnett will tackle bliss and comfort at album length. In its first single, "Rae Street," she crafts a characteristically laconic and easygoing mix of domestic minutiae ("I might change my sheets today") and broader insights about the world ("Time is money, and money is no man's friend"). The song nods to pandemic life ("Let's get back to normal") while speaking to the larger idea that our homes and communities offer us shelter from the punishing din of modern life. Oh, and don't miss the video, which fills a cul de sac with Courtney Barnetts and watches them go about their day.

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