Rdio Blog

Where The Mynabirds’ debut quietly cooed, their follow-up, GENERALS, stomps, claps, and buzzes to the whims of frontwoman Laura Burhenn. Powered by a decade’s worth of frustrations, both personal and political, Burhenn was ready to make a statement. GENERALS, which fuses influences as varied as Nina Simone, PJ Harvey, David Bowie, hip-hop, and African rhythm, is that statement.

The album isn’t available to everyone just yet, but you can hear it now, exclusively on Rdio. Listen below and get your righteous freak on.

Polish composer Krzysztof Penderecki pulled off that rare feat of maintaining popularity and artistic integrity, one made even harder by the fact that he works in the elite realm of classical music. The composer is a bit of a renaissance man: his name appears regularly on NPR, he’s won Grammy awards, worked with Radiohead’s Jonny Greenwood, and his music has appeared in films like The Shining, Children of Men, and Shutter Island.

Penderecki’s latest work is Fonogrammi - Horn Concerto. Conducted by the much-lauded Antoni Wit and played by the Warsaw Philharmonic Orchestra, the concerto will appeal to fans of both Penderecki’s earlier work and his later, neo-Romantic phrasing. The recorded concerto will be officially released for the first time next week, but it’s on Rdio now, for your exclusive enjoyment. Listen to Fonogrammi - Horn Concerto.

Preteen Zenith is the new project by Tim DeLaughter, current member of The Polyphonic Spree, and former Tripping Daisy member. What began as merely recording song ideas for posterity became something bigger when DeLaughter visited Philip E. Karnats in Chicago. Karnats’ ideas for the songs, both on an instrumental and recording level, led to a partnership that eventually yielded a full album, titled Rubble Guts and BB Eye.

That album will see release next week, but you can hear the whole thing now, only on Rdio. Fans of cinematic, colorful indie pop, listen up:

A Lanky Swede is the new project of Ola Klüft, former frontman of Swedish indie rockers The Perishers. His new sound is mellower and prettier than his previous work, throwing his gentle croon into a new, softer light. A Lanky Swede’s debut album is Soon, Soon, Soon, and it’s out next week.

But you can listen to the album soon, soon, sooner than you thought — Soon, Soon, Soon is on Rdio now, a week before its official release. Listen to it below and add the album to your Rdio collection.

The Nashville singer-songwriter Cary Brothers found fame with the track “Blue Eyes” in 2004, but he’s no one-hit wonder. Since then, he’s released two solo albums and toured extensively in the United States, all on the strength of his songwriting skills, passionate voice, and social media savvy.

Next week, Brothers will release Covers Volume One, an EP featuring his take on INXS, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, David Bowie, Matt & Kim, and Duran Duran tunes — you can hear it on Rdio now, a week early. Listen to Covers Volume One.

Portland duo Greylag are Andrew Stonestreet and Daniel Dixon — two friends who loved jamming together. In mid-2009, the two seriously began their creative endeavour, and they began crafting sparse, acoustic folk songs as Greylag. Their debut EP is titled The Only Way to Kill You, and will be released next week by Ninth Street Opus Records.

The Only Way to Kill You is on Rdio now for your listening pleasure, a week before its release.