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New Music Friday – May 31, 2024

On the last New Music Friday of May, we’re looking at the latest release from Maya Hawke, the anticipated new Arooj Aftab LP and more. Scroll down to see what’s worth the listening time this week.

The Best of New Music Friday:

Maya Hawke – Chaos Angel

Maya Hawke’s third studio album Chaos Angel is out now via Mom + Pop. Hawke has called this LP more uplifting and positive than its predecessors, including 2022’s Moss. She worked with her usual collaborators Christian Lee Hutson, Benjamin Lazar Davis and Will Graefe to produce Chaos Angel.

The 25-year-old singer, songwriter, actress, NYC-born Julliard School grad credits James Blake and Adrianne Lenker as her inspirations on Chaos Angel. That makes sense. The record has more open vocals that allow Hawke to breathe throughout. There are quite a few songs with major production theatrics, too.

Hawke also addresses the elephant in the room on Chaos Angel, which, she didn’t really owe anyone.

“I was born with my foot in the door,” sings Hawke on the single “Missing Out.” It’s hard to write about Hawke’s work without mentioning her mom is Uma Thurman and her dad is Ethan Hawke. In a way, it’s refreshing for her to spell it out on a lead track. Hawke’s lyrics are about how she used to party with her brother’s friends at Brown University. She lacked her own college experience and needed to be around other college kids to get her kicks in. That’s a bit sad, and listeners can feel the “life isn’t always as glorious as it seems” vibes in her music.

Hawke’s music feels like it bridges a gap between the worlds of Adrianne Lenker’s sharp acoustic intimacy and the brighter, sweet storytelling worlds of Taylor Swift, Laufey or Samia.

Give Chaos Angel some listening time. Even with a foot in the door, Hawke deserves to be in the room.

New Music Friday Top Picks:

Arooj Aftab – Night Reign

Bad Omens – CONCRETE JUNGLE [THE OST]

Girl Scout – “I Just Needed You To Know”

Tim Atlas – Enchanté

Which of these tracks from New Music Friday will you add to your favorite playlists today? Any we missed? Let us know in the comments or on Instagram!

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Ben Pagani

Music Projects Manager at Beyond The Stage Magazine

Ben is a music journalist living and working in Chicago. They joined Beyond The Stage as an intern and have stayed on the staff for several years. Now serving on the editorial board, Ben is proud to be BTS' Music Projects Manager, coordinating coverage between international record labels and our staff. Ben has interviewed, photographed and written about bands from across the world. Ben has lived all over the United States working in television and media. They are an Emmy Award-winning writer. Ben can be found spinning records as 'DJ Wearing Sunglasses' in clubs and basements across the US.