New Music Friday: The Top 6 Albums Out On June 11

Singer and rapper Jesse Markin. His new album, Noir, is on our shortlist for the best releases out on June 11.

Tero Ahonen/Courtesy of the artist

The Welsh singer known as Marina has been releasing bold, visionary pop for more than a decade, and has amassed an army of devoted fans along the way. Her latest album, Ancient Dreams in a Modern Land, is both thundering and intimate, with fearless anthems of self-empowerment and heartbreaking reflections on loss. We open this week's show with the album's title cut and talk about the many ways Marina's music rejects the status quo.

Also on the program: Sleater-Kinney's survival guide for troubled times, Brooklyn rapper Skyzoo, the blood-slowing sounds of composer Dustin O'Halloran and more. Nate Chinen of WBGO and Jazz Night in America joins NPR Music's Marissa Lorusso, WXPN's John Morrison, NPR's Stephen Thompson, contributor Cyrena Touros and host Robin Hilton as they share their picks for the best albums out on June 11.

Featured Albums:

1. Marina — Ancient Dreams In A Modern Land
   Featured Song: "Ancient Dreams In A Modern Land"

2. Skyzoo — All The Brilliant Things
   Featured Song: "St. James Liquors"

3. Sleater-Kinney — Path of Wellness
   Featured Song: "Path of Wellness"

4. Jesse Markin — Noir
   Featured Song: "This Is A Testament"

5. Dustin O'Halloran — Silfur
   Featured Song: "Opus 17"

6. Ches Smith & We All Break — Path of Seven Colors
   Featured Song: "Here's The Light"