New Music Friday: The best albums out Jan. 16

NPR

16 January 2026

Ya Tseen. The Sha La Das. A mesmerizing collaboration between Julianna Barwick and Mary Lattimore. Stephen Thompson from NPR Music is joined by Alex Newman from KMHD in Portland to chat about the best albums out Friday, January 16. The Starting 5 (00:00) Intro & A$AP Rocky, 'Don't Be Dumb'(02:36) Julianna Barwick & Mary Lattimore, 'Tragic Magic'(07:43) The Sha La Das, 'Your Picture'(15:33) Ya Tseen, 'Stand On My Shoulders'(21:53) Shaking Hand, 'Shaking Hand'(27:43) Tyler Ramsey & Carl Broemel, 'Celestun' The Lightning Round • Craig Taborn, Tomeka Reid & Ches Smith, 'Dream Archives'• Courtney Marie Andrews, 'Valentine'• Diogo Strausz, 'Dance Para Se'• Oxis, 'Oxis 8'• Nate Smith, 'LIVE-ACTION (Deluxe)' Sample the albums via our New Music Friday playlist on NPR.org. Credits: Host: Stephen ThompsonGuest: Alex Newman, KMHDAudio Producer: Noah CaldwellDigital Elle MannionEditor: Otis HartExecutive Producer: Suraya Mohamed To manage podcast ad preferences, review the links below: See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences. NPR Privacy Policy