Now Hear This

Lil Wayne
Tha Carter VI
Republic Records

Lil Wayne returns with Tha Carter VI, reigniting the legendary series that redefined mixtape culture and launched a rap dynasty. With trademark flair, dizzying wordplay, and veteran swagger, the five-time Grammy winner reclaims his throne. This isn’t nostalgia, it’s a reminder: Wayne didn’t just shape the game. He still runs it.

Lorde
Virgin
Republic Records

Lorde rewires the pulse of Pure Heroine and the ache of Melodrama into something darker, sharper, and defiantly present-tense. Co-produced with Jim-E Stack and featuring Dev Hynes (Blood Orange) and Dan Nigro, it’s a beat-forward confessional of luminous minimalism. “What Was That” leads a set that’s both glossy and bruised—a crystalline return from pop’s poet laureate.

Benson Boone
American Heart
Warner Records

Boone follows his breakout with American Heart, a lush, retro-tinged pop statement that channels ’70s rock warmth and diaristic sincerity. From the anthemic “Sorry I’m Here For Someone Else” to the touching “Momma Song,” Boone proves he’s more than a streaming juggernaut—he’s a full-fledged songwriter. Nostalgic, heartfelt, and poised for global takeover.

Dylan Gossett
Westward
Mercury Records / Republic

Platinum-certified singer-songwriter Dylan Gossett unveils his debut album Westward, a 17-track self-produced journey blending country and folk. Featuring the multiplatinum hit “Coal,” the Texas native’s heartfelt songs explore family, faith, and chasing dreams.

Vandoliers
Life Behind Bars
Thirty Tigers / Break Maiden Records

Vandoliers’ fifth album, is a raw, personal triumph. Frontwoman Jenni Rose’s journey through addiction and gender identity fuels these ten intimate, country-punk anthems. Produced by Ted Hutt (The Gaslight Anthem, Flogging Molly, Lucero), it melds sharp political commentary with upbeat energy, breaking boundaries in Texas country and punk—bold, heartfelt, and fiercely inclusive for anyone seeking hope and honesty.

Lord Huron
The Cosmic Selector Vol 1
Mercury Records / Republic

On their fifth album, Lord Huron spins a surreal Americana dreamscape equal parts cosmic Western and existential jukebox musical. With cinematic production, eerie storytelling, and guests like actress Kristen Stewart and Blonde Redhead’s Kazu Makino, The Cosmic Selector Vol. 1 is an atmospheric, reverb-drenched trip into alternate realities.

Robin Trower
For Earth Below (50th Anniversary]
Chrysalis

Robin Trower’s For Earth Below gets the deluxe treatment for its 50th anniversary. This expanded 4-disc set includes a stunning remaster, newly unearthed extended mix, rare outtakes, BBC sessions, and a full 1975 Los Angeles concert. With powerhouse drummer Bill Lordan joining the fold, this was Trower’s definitive moment—now sounding fresher, deeper, and heavier than ever.

Mojave Phone Booth
Blood Doctor Volume One
Label 51

Mojave Phone Booth drill deep into their DIY industrial-electronic lab, conjuring abrasive textures and melodic unease while evoking a haunted Factory Records release filtered through sci-fi scrapyard noise. Think Throbbing Gristle meets Garbage in a junkyard séance. Jarring, cinematic, and relentlessly inventive—this is outsider art that pulses with precision.

Willi Carlisle
Winged Victory
Signature Sounds

Willi Carlisle returns with an aching, earthy triumph of folk that turns small moments into grand truths. Balancing barnstorming storytelling with tender-hearted reflection, these eleven songs shimmer with humanity and hard-won hope. Carlisle doesn’t preach—he observes, celebrates, and consoles. A poetic reminder that love, not noise, endures longest in the American songbook.

S.G. Goodman
Planting By The Sings
Thirty Tigers / Slough Water Records

S.G. Goodman digs deep on Planting by the Signs, a rich, lunar-tuned meditation on love, loss, and old ways of knowing. Melding raw folk intimacy with jangling, widescreen rock, the Western Kentucky songwriter delivers her most resonant work yet. With ethereal textures and rooted wisdom, it’s a cosmic garden planted in soil and soul.

Rival Consoles
Landscape from Memory
Erased Tapes

Since the late ’00s, Rival Consoles—aka Ryan Lee West—has crafted evocative electronic soundscapes blending ambient, synthwave, and emotive dance. Landscape from Memory channels vulnerability and restlessness, melding field recordings and intimate guitar with pulsing beats. A restless, immersive journey of memory and emotion, it’s West’s most invigorating and human record yet.

Mary Halvorson
About Ghosts
Nonesuch

Mary Halvorson conjures haunted beauty on her third Nonesuch release. With sextet Amaryllis and guests Immanuel Wilkins and Brian Settles, she crafts spectral, richly layered jazz that floats between composition and improvisation. Dissonant yet lyrical, Halvorson continues to expand the guitar’s voice. Another bold chapter from one of jazz’s most inventive modern spirits.

Lynyrd Skynyrd
Celebrating 50 Years – Live At The Ryman
Frontiers New Recordings

Live At The Ryman captures Lynyrd Skynyrd’s legendary 2022 anniversary show, immortalizing founding guitarist Gary Rossington’s final performance. Featuring powerhouse guests and timeless Southern rock swagger, this live album/DVD is both a heartfelt tribute and a vibrant celebration of a band whose blues-infused anthems, from “Sweet Home Alabama” to “Free Bird,” endure across generations.

Various Artists
F1 The Album
Atlantic

Strap in for F1 The Album, a turbo-charged, star-studded soundtrack companion to the Brad Pitt-led motorsport blockbuster. Following the label’s glittering run with Barbie and Twisters, this collection leans into high-octane pop, rock and hip-hop with cinematic swagger. A slick pit stop of new tracks built for speed, spectacle, and summer playlists.

Durry
This Movie Sucks
Thirty Tigers / Big Pip Records

Minnesota siblings Durry slam back with a bold follow-up to their viral debut Suburban Legend. Blending punk energy and folk warmth, the album tackles toxic internet culture, economics, grief, and more with wit and grit. Recorded in a big studio for the first time, it’s their most daring, diverse sound yet.

Haggus
Destination Extinction
Tankcrimes

The Bay Area miscreants return with a filth-splattered masterclass in mayhem. Fusing crust punk urgency with pitch-shifted grotesquery, they weaponize melody against the senses. It’s nauseating, exhilarating, and weirdly catchy—like Circle Jerks jamming with Carcass in a sewer. Total chaos. Total conviction. Total annihilation.

Ken Boothe & Jah Wobble
Old Fashioned Ways
Cleopatra Records

Reggae legend Ken Boothe teams up with dub and post-punk pioneer Jah Wobble for a soulful, groove-heavy collaboration. Their lush dub-infused reimaginings of classics like “Everything I Own,” “Ain’t No Sunshine,” and “Just My Imagination” marry Boothe’s golden vocals with Wobble’s deep bass, creating a rich, atmospheric journey across genres.

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The Story So Far - Fall Tour 2025

In support of their celebrated 5th album, I Want To Disappear, American pop-punk titans The Story So Far are bringing their Fall tour to a city near you. With special guests Neck Deep, Origami Angel, and Pain Of Truth, the tour kicks off in St. Paul on September 9th before embarking on a 21-show run across the US and an appearance at Louder Than Life Festival. Tickets are available for purchase now, with all additional information at thestorysofarca.com/#TOUR.

The Coalition of Independent Music Stores (CIMS) is a national level organization comprised of the best independent record stores in America. CIMS was founded in 1995 with the goal of uniting like minded independent store owners, giving them a more powerful voice in the music industry. The stores that make up CIMS are all very different, but we share the same desires – to be the heart of our communities, to super-serve our customers, to support and develop artists, and to share our love of music.

For more information about CIMS and the stores in our organization, please visit cimsmusic.com or find us through social media with the #cimsmusic hashtag. And please remember to always shop local by supporting your neighborhood record store.