The first week in September brings huge new releases from Saint Etienne, My Morning Jacket, Kacey Musgraves, Japanese Breakfast and Kanye. Also, discover Minnesota artist Mike Kota.

Saint Etienne, "Penlop"

Nineties fans of Saint Etienne can rejoice: the 2021 version of the band is just as dreamy. The trio's 10th album, I've Been Trying To Tell You, is out September 10, and it sounds like the band fell back into their groove without missing a step. (Note: Audio-only video appears below; the official video for this song is age-restricted, and at the request of the band, is only available on YouTube.)

My Morning Jacket, "Regularly Scheduled Programing"

Are you ready for the ninth album from My Morning Jacket? The Kentucky-formed band is putting out a self-titled album October 22. Their last album was sort of a cheat since it was all the shelved songs from their 2015 album. The new single, "Regularly Scheduled Programming," is definitively a 2021 song; as Jim James said, "This song really hits home for me after what we've gone through with the pandemic. But even before then, it felt like so many of us were trading real life for social media, trading our own stories for the storylines on TV, trading our consciousness for drugs. We need to help each other wake up to real love before it's too late."

Kacey Musgraves, "justified"

D-I-V-O-R-C-E, Tammy Wynette sang it first and now Kacey Musgraves is living it. Everyone is calling this her divorce album. Influenced by the mushroom trip she took as she wrote the album, it is full of empowerment and reflection on the end of a relationship, likely modeled after her own split from country singer Ruston Kelly. Musgraves' fifth album will get a tour that's kicking off in the Twin Cities at Xcel Energy Center on January 19, 2022.

Japanese Breakfast, "Glider"

This is a BIG year for Japanese Breakfast: a highly praised new album (Jubilee), a best-selling book (Crying in H Mart — which was optioned for movie rights), and coming September 24, she's providing the soundtrack to a video game, Sable.

Kanye, "Believe What I Say"

The spectacle of Kanye seems to be more important than the music he's releasing these days, but if you missed the music in all the madness, we're here to catch you up with the best of the bunch. A killer Lauryn Hill sample elevates the song, "Believe What I Say," giving some classic Kanye 808 vibes as well.

Mike Kota, "On My Side"

Mike Kota's voice could swallow you up. Her music floats in the same space as The Japanese House's — dreamy reverb and washes of low, layered vocals — but her voice is even lower somehow, and richer than velour. It belongs to Minnesota artist Michaela Stein, whose band Good Luck Finding Iris is on hiatus. As a solo performer, Stein goes by Mike Kota, and she has released a handful of singles. She also experiments in other media, having studied film and audio and directed music videos for 26 BATS! and herself. – Cecilia Johnson

Playlist