Happy Janky Fresh Friday! Today we have impactful new releases from Kim Gordon, Health, Lamb Of God and James Blake- four incredibly experimental albums that represent a shift in sound and soul for these artists. In a constantly changing world that becomes more and more confusing to understand sometimes, it’s only appropriate that legendary artists such as these are constantly changing as well. The future landscape of music in an algorithm run world may look bleak, so it’s more important than ever that we have artists pushing boundaries and fighting for art to once again belong to humanity.
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Kim Gordon: PLAY ME (released March 13, 2026): Matador Records
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Kim Gordon is easily one of the most influential figures in all of alternative music in the past 50 years, with her previous works in Sonic Youth marking a clear shift in the way that audiences engaged with experimental music. Rather than being a part of the more drug-addled psychedelic avant-garde of the past like The Velvet Underground or Patti Smith, Sonic Youth took a more punk rock approach in the more noise-filled chaotic storms that they would take the listener through. Sonic Youth may have been an incredibly experimental group that had no defined genre, but they still acted and operated as a punk band at their core throughout most of their career.
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In contrast however, Kim Gordon actually goes back to these roots of 1960’s avant-garde lyrically on this newest album. She does maintain the visceral raw punk anger felt in her early career, but with much more socially conscious lyrics that resemble the 1960’s protest folk music that avant-garde music was built out of. While Sonic Youth did have plenty of moments that touched on sociopolitical issues, Gordon dives DEEP into discussing the current landscape of the technological oppression that we’re currently facing in a post-AI era. Even the title PLAY ME is a clear criticism on the desperate state that the streaming era has forced musicians into.
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Sure – Kim Gordon might have the sort of legendary clout to successfully put out an album this experimental and vulnerable, but a newer artist would have to resort to other means almost begging for an audience; social media gimmicks, compromising their sound or themes to appeal to third-party marketing, brand collaborations. None of these methods actually contribute towards the music in any way, but in the current algorithm-obsessed hellscape that the industry has adopted almost demands that artists focus on these tricks more than their artistic craft. Music has become the same industry as digital marketing essentially, with the title PLAY ME really breaking down the simplicity of how desperate the modern artist is for the algorithm to notice them.
That’s enough discussion about the title and comparing the album’s themes to the politics of the 1960’s experimental scene however, as sonically she embodies this more beatnik way of delivering her lyrics as soon as the album starts with the jazzy trip-hop title track “PLAY ME”. The trip-hop elements she’s implemented in her recent music is a really genius move on her part. While Sonic Youth may have never really explored that genre during the 90’s, Kim’s rough moaning vocals act as an instrument on their own and seamlessly fuse into the looping groovy beat behind her. It really is genius how she uses these trip-hop elements to harken back to 1990’s nostalgia for the more basic Sonic Youth fans, while also fully embracing the more unconventionally artsy influences that inspired her in the first place.
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The second track “GIRL WITH A LOOK” really hits the listener like a truck, taking on the more droney and angsty tone that we’ve come to love through her material with Sonic Youth. The cleaner basslines and the focus on looping electronic beats sound unlike anything they ever released however, with Kim finding a way to increase the production quality while never losing the rawness that has been so core to her identity.
“NO HANDS” throws another monkey wrench at you, almost having a trap hip-hop flow that turns into the sort of chaotic noise you’d find in a Death Grips song. It’s clear Kim Gordon is as plugged into experimental music as she ever has been, with “BLACK OUT” embodying even more of a trap direction that could even pass as a Future song if you placed an AI filter of his voice over hers’. While the simple-minded take would be that she’s criticizing the capitalist nature of the modern music scene through parodying modern hip-hop, it’s obvious to any fan of the genre that this isn’t the case with how well she executes the sound. While it is kind of funny on its surface that she’s incorporating these influences and she’s definitely aware of this, it’s more of a tribute than a diss on the genre.
“DIRTY TECH” blew my mind with how its easily the most interesting trap song I’ve heard in years, especially with its distant sounding vaperwave-esque beat that perfectly matches the lyrical content. She sings in a much more sensual manner here than the rest of the album, as the song itself is a double entendre (or a triple entendre, in fact). She’s definitely using “Dirty” as a synonym for “evil” or “dark” proclaiming that this modern use of AI algorithm-based content online doesn’t resemble the same sort of aspirational advancements that “tech” used to. With lines like “Terminating with a steady hand” and “Are you my white-collar worker?” she is evoking old 1980’s stereotypes of the office life and the sort of idealized sexualization that was prominent during that era; well actually, that mindset definitely has seen a resurgence lately in the modern tech era. It’s hard not to imagine “DIRTY TECH” is also commenting on the lonely sexual conversations that many are having with AI chatbots lately. It’s a dark concept to think about, but that’s exactly what Kim Gordon is setting out to do on this record overall.
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For those who checked this album out hoping it would resemble Sonic Youth, I would really encourage you to open your mind and try viewing her as an artist on her own because her solo music is just as compelling. However, she still does extend a hand to the more hard-headed Gen X fans with “NOT TODAY” having the sort of dreamy surreal grunge tone that they’re familiar with and “BUSY BEE” having the epic repetitive bassline and industrial percussions you’d find in a Steve Albini track. Somehow it doesn’t feel jarring when placed back-to-back with the more trap-influenced songs. Kim Gordon is a master of finding the elements in any genre that match her ethos and signature sound, even when they come from the most unpredictable places.
One of the most genius elements of Kim Gordon’s PLAY ME in my opinion is that it clocks in at just under 30 minutes. Not only does this perfectly embody the themes of the album by catering to the low attention-span of the modern listener, but it really represents a shift in how music is experienced nowdays compared to Sonic Youth or the past 90’s trip-hop she takes influence from here. Almost all albums are way shorter than they used to be, especially the more crafted mainstream hip-hop experiences. I personally see this as a positive and I believe Kim does as well, as she efficiently showcases every point that she wants to prove here. This all comes to a boiling point with the very beatnik poetic nature of the final track “BYEBYE25!” where she throws out topics involving immigration, transgender rights, diversity, climate change, and misogyny without really any explanation on WHY she’s throwing out these terms or what her take is. We all know her take and what she’s communicating here, however. Sometimes saying less is a more powerful statement, and Kim Gordon manages to say as much as possible through the least amount of words that she can in this album. It really makes her points about algorithm-based exposure and the infection of digital marketing into music so much more powerful, as she’s being as efficient with her time here as the modern music executives she’s calling out.
Other NEW March 13, 2026 Releases:
HEALTH: R-Type II (released March 12, 2026)- Loma Vista Recordings
If you’ve followed Janky Smooth for any amount of time, you most likely are aware that HEALTH is collectively one of our favorite groups with their consistently forward-thinking approach to both the industrial and shoegaze genres that we’ve seen in the past two decades. This newest EP featuring collaborations with Pixel Grip, Perturbator, and more is no different; as HEALTH delivers their signature blend of beautiful bliss and brutal grinding industrial elements to the fullest extent here.
Lamb Of God: Into Oblivion (Released March 13, 2026)- Epic Records, Sony Music Entertainment
Absolute Gods of Extreme Metal Lamb Of God have returned to bring us a new masterpiece after four years; this time taking on a bit more of a prog-metal direction with the technical guitars they fuse into their moments of pummeling thrash metal. Don’t be fooled however – the more artsy direction is only going to bring more chaos to their mosh pits with how heavy the experience still is. With how weak the modern landscape of metal has been post-COVID, we need bands like Lamb Of God reaching across the aisle and bringing unsuspecting music nerds into the pit more than ever.
James Blake: Trying Times (released March 13, 2026)- James Blake
Electro-pop singer-songwriter James Blake is back with his newest release Trying Times and he sounds more emotionally vulnerable than ever here, perfectly embodying the sort of collective spirit that America is feeling right now (and he’s English, which shows you how bad things really are right now). James Blake has never been tied down to one genre incorporating elements of synth-pop, R&B/Soul, and even techno at times into his music. This album is no different, and it’s obvious upon first listen that he’s here to surprise the listener more than ever. In the modern landscape of how boring algorithm-based music can be, it’s more imperative than ever we support artists as bold as he is.
We wish you the happiest of Janky Fresh Fridays. Enjoy your new music!
Words by Danny Ryan
featured image: Jessica Moncrief
