Billie Eilish is already a veteran pop artist at the age of 17, with a clear vision for her sound and image, even if that sound is sinister and the image a bit demented. (Have you seen her videos?) Her brilliant debut full-length, When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go? is finally out and way more cryptic and complicated than the lead-up singles might have suggested. On this week's New Music Friday host Robin Hilton is joined by Rodney Carmichael, Ann Powers and Stephen Thompson as they dig into the Eilish record and more on their short list for the best new albums out March 29, including Deserted from the legendary punk group Mekons, the off-kilter, lyrical rap of Quelle Chris and a "lost" album from the late Marvin Gaye.

Featured Albums:

  1. The Mekons: Deserted
    Featured Songs: "Lawrence of California" and "How Many Stars"
  2. Billie Eilish: When We All Fall Asleep Where Do We Go?
    Featured Songs: "Bad Guy" and "Goodbye"
  3. Quelle Chris: Guns
    Featured Songs: "Guns" and "Spray And Pray"
  4. Shafiq Husayn: The Loop
    Featured Song: "It's Better For You"
  5. Marvin Gaye: You're The Man
    Featured Song: "The World Is Rated X"
  6. Fennesz: Agora
    Featured Song: "Rainfall"
  7. Son Volt: Union
    Featured Song: "While Rome Burns"

Other notable albums out on March 29: Beth Gibbons & The Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra: Henryk Gorecki: Symphony No. 3; Billy Woods & Kenny Segal: Hiding Places; Choosey & Exile: Black Beans; DJ Muggs & Mach-Hommy: Tuez-Les Tous; Joni Void: Mise En Abyme; Karyyn: The Quanta Series; Laura Stevenson: The Big Freeze; MED & Guilty Simpson: Child of the Jungle; Mdou Moctar: Ilana; Saweetie: Icy; Small Feet: With Psychic Powers; Steve Earle & The Dukes: GUY.

Copyright 2019 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

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