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New Music Friday: The best albums out Jan. 30

By Stephen Thompson,
Andrea Castillo
Published January 31, 2026 at 10:23 AM EST
Venezuelan percussionist Orestes Gomez's new album is called No me fui porque quise.
Courtesy of the artist
Venezuelan percussionist Orestes Gomez's new album is called No me fui porque quise.

Welcome to New Music Friday, NPR Music's podcast dedicated to sharing the best albums out each week. We listen to dozens of new releases in advance, identify the ones we think you need to hear, and highlight our favorite five in a brisk mix of clips, context and commentary.

The podcast is hosted by NPR Music's Stephen Thompson, and each episode features a member of the NPR Music Network of public radio stations. This week, our guest is Colorado's Andrea Castillo of KVNF, where she serves as music director and hosts Off the Wall.

Scroll down to see which albums we discussed this week and links to our New Music Friday playlists, where you can hear singles from each album. Then scroll down to a new list, Dora's Corner, where NPR Music production assistant Dora Levite shares her favorite albums that didn't make the podcast.

The Starting 5

Jordan Ward
Rae Blackman /
Jordan Ward

🎵 Emily Scott Robinson, Appalachia (Oh Boy)

  • Recommended If You Like: Molly Tuttle, Brandy Clark

🎵 Ye Vagabonds, All Tied Together (River Lea)

  • RIYL: Laura Marling, Phoebe Bridgers

🎵 Jordan Ward, Backward (Interscope)

  • RIYL: Smino, DESTIN CONRAD

🎵Lord Jah-Monte Ogbon, As Of Now (Lex)

  • RIYL: BbyMutha, Pink Siifu

🎵Orestes Gomez, No me fui porque quise (DIY)

  • RIYL: Daymé Arocena, Rawayana

New Music Friday is a feature of NPR's All Songs Considered podcast. Hear the discussion on the NPR App, Apple, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.

The Lightning Round

By Storm
Armando Gabaldon /
By Storm

Five more albums we wish we could have discussed on the podcast:

⚡ Don Toliver, OCTANE (Atlantic)

⚡ Yumi Zouma, No Love Lost to Kindness (Nettwerk)

⚡ By Storm, My Ghosts Go Ghost (DeadAir)

⚡ Lande Hekt, Lucky Now (Tapete)

⚡ David Moore, Graze the Bell (RVNG Intl.)

Listen to each album's best songs on our New Music Friday playlists on Spotify and Apple, or wherever you stream music.

Dora's Corner

Marta Del Grandi
Claudia Ferri /
Marta Del Grandi

Dora Levite is New Music Friday's production assistant, an occasional All Songs Considered guest, and 17 years old according to her Spotify wrapped. Below are her picks for the best albums not featured on the show.

💿 fakemink, The Boy Who Cried Terrified (EtnaVeraVela)

💿 Geologist, Can I Get a Pack of Camel Lights? (Drag City)

💿 Marta Del Grandi, Dream Life (Fire)

Credits

Host: Stephen Thompson • Guest: Andrea Castillo, KVNF (Colorado) • Audio: Noah Caldwell • Producer: Elle Mannion • Production Assistant: Dora Levite • Editor: Otis Hart • Executive Producer: Suraya Mohamed • Executive Director: Sonali Mehta

Copyright 2026 NPR
Tags
Music New Music Friday
Stephen Thompson
Stephen Thompson is a host, writer and reviewer for NPR Music, where he speaks into any microphone that will have him and appears as a frequent panelist and guest host on All Songs Considered. Thompson also co-hosts the daily NPR roundtable podcast Pop Culture Happy Hour, which he created with NPR's Linda Holmes in 2010. In 2008, he and Bob Boilen created the NPR Music video series Tiny Desk concerts, in which musicians perform at Boilen's desk. (To be more specific, Thompson had the idea, which took seconds, while Boilen created the series, which took years. Thompson will insist upon equal billing until the day he dies.)
Andrea Castillo
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