---

View Entire Post ›

Since the NBA shut down earlier this month amid the global COVID-19 pandemic, it’s put the whole 2019-2020 season in jeopardy. And depending on how long the hiatus lasts, the implications could extend well into the future as the league examines its options for eventually moving forward.

Initially, it was Rudy Gobert’s positive diagnosis that prompted Adam Silver to put the season on pause indefinitely. Since then, several other players, including Gobert’s teammate Donovan Mitchell, have contracted the virus as well, though both Jazz players have been cleared within the past week.

On the other side of the country, Kevin Durant was among four total Nets players who tested positive, which subsequently resulted in the Lakers, who played Brooklyn just before the league pressed pause on the campaign, all getting tested. Two of their players came back positive as well, though the team did not specify who. On Tuesday, they finally got some good news, announcing that all players had been free of symptoms following a 14-day quarantine.

Via Dave McMenamin of ESPN:

Two weeks after two unnamed Los Angeles Lakers players tested positive for COVID-19, the team announced Tuesday that all of its players are currently symptom free.

***

The Lakers had to wait two days for test results and then all of their players were placed in a 14-day home isolation prescribed by the team. Fourteen players out of the Lakers’ 17-man roster (including two-way contracts) were tested at the time, league sources told ESPN.

Commissioner Adam Silver has said previously that he will revisit things on April 10, but with the virus still spreading rapidly, it seems unlikely we’ll have a return to sports anytime soon. In the meantime, we’ll just have to try to contain our excitement as we wait another three weeks for the 10-part Michael Jordan documentary, the premier of which has been moved up from June to April.

(Via ESPN)

This weekend is WrestleMania 36, whatever that’s going to look like. One match we can count on is The Man Becky Lynch defending her Raw Women’s Championship against Shayna Baszler. Even without a crowd, its bound to be a memorable match full of ruthless aggression and painful-looking submission holds. I don’t think I’m alone in saying it’s one of the matches I’m most looking forward to.

Of course last year, Becky Lynch main-evented WrestleMania 35 alongside Charlotte Flair and Ronda Rousey. This year, her match with Shayna Baszler is not expected to be in the main event. But as Becky explains in a new interview with Sports Illustrated, she’s fine with that:

Am I disappointed? No, I’m not disappointed. Sometimes you’re going to be the main event, sometimes you’re not. I’m somebody that went from the pre-show of WrestleMania to the main event. It’s all about how you react, respond, and keep moving forward. This is also not the last WrestleMania. I’m not retiring tomorrow, there are so many years ahead of me. I’m always thinking about how I can get to the main event. It has to be the right place for it, but that’s always the goal in my mind.

Becky also seems to have a lot of respect for her opponent. Without entirely letting go of kayfabe, she has a lot of nice things to say about Shayna:

There is no denying what Shayna has done. She’s put in the work, she was a pioneer in women’s MMA, long before Ronda came along. She’s someone who went to the independents. She loves wrestling, I know she does. She’s not somebody who said, “Oh, that’s an easy way for me to be on TV. Let me try that because my other sport didn’t work out.” She actually went and trained, did her time on the independent circuit, went to NXT, trained her ass off there, and she was the longest combined NXT Women’s Champion. She has put in the work, and there is no doubt about that. I’m not underestimating her for a second—I think she’s underestimating me. I won’t underestimate the danger of Shayna. She has proven herself in many disciplines, and in NXT. She’s a worthy competitor for the Raw Women’s Championship. I’m going out there to prove I’m better.

She also addresses something fans have been known to focus on: the fact that Shayna doesn’t present herself in the extremely feminine manner of most female WWE Superstars.

When you look back at the past, did Dusty Rhodes look like he could be a WWE superstar? You know what I mean? It’s not about looks. Yes, you need to have a unique look, and, of course, Shayna has that. And you have to have something about you—and Shayna has that, too. There is not a mold to fit into. Maybe that happened for a period of time in wrestling, but hiring people on how they looked was an unsuccessful period of time in wrestling. It’s about the energy you can bring and the heart you have for this energy, male or female. Otherwise, dare I say, you have people who are empty vessels. You need a very specific love and a very specific passion. As to whatever package that comes in, it’s almost irrelevant.

What’s Becky really excited for? Understandably, it’s having crowds back, once the Covid-19 pandemic has receded.

I cannot wait to have people back in the stands. t’s really different without them. You have to really focus on your message, what you want the people at home to understand, and you have to forget about that clarification you get from the audience being there. Having them respond to you is really gratifying, and you know they appreciate what you’re saying. But all of that is gone. I was worried that, without that adrenaline from them being there, I wouldn’t be able to have that same type of intensity. It’s a different thing now, and it forces your brain to think differently.

It’s cool to see what a talent like Becky can do when her brain is forced to think differently, but I think we’re all just as excited for the return of live crowds.

Elliot Stabler won’t be leaving your television anytime soon. That was already the case because Law and Order: Special Victims Unit can basically be found on cable if you sneeze while holding a remote, but now the beloved Law and Order character appears he’ll get a new NBC drama of his own.

Deadline reported Tuesday that Christopher Meloni will reprise his Stabler character and star in a new drama based in New York:

The new series, which could be branded as part of the Law & Order franchise, is executive produced by Wolf, Arthur W. Forney and Peter Jankowski for Wolf Entertainment and Universal TV, a division of NBCUniversal Content Studios. I hear former Chicago P.D showrunner Matt Olmstead is being eyed as writer-showrunner.

Like Law & Order: SVU, headlined by Mariska Hargitay as Olivia Benson, the new drama is set in New York, allowing for potential seamless crossovers with SVU, set at another NYPD unit, and for Benson-Stabler reunions.

Meloni had placed Stabler on SVU for 12 seasons, but he “retired” from the police force when he was written off the show in 2012. Hargitay’s Benson continued on to anchor the show in the years since, and it’s unclear if the two will reunite in some way in the new series.

[via Deadline]

This was a difficult month, but at least there was good music — including two projects that few people actually believed were coming any time soon. Lil Uzi Vert and Jay Electronica released long-awaited albums, and both had surprises in store. Jay Electronica’s A Written Testimony featured Jay-Z, while the deluxe version of Lil Uzi Vert’s Eternal Atake was Luv Vs The World 2, an entirely new album. Elsewhere there were standout projects from young, up and coming acts like Megan Thee Stallion, Chika, and Jack Harlow, as well as strong offerings from vets like Jadakiss, Larry June, and Ransom.

Lil Uzi Vert — Eternal Atake

On the same timeline as the long-anticipated Jay Electronica debut album, Lil Uzi Vert dropped a similarly desired Eternal Atake. Uzi rocks out over a soundscape of synth-driven 808 bangers on the 18-track album, needling through earworm melodies like “Baby Pluto” and “Silly Watch” with a nimble flow encapsulating gems like “Anthony Davis, don’t deal with the Pelicans” and “Pop’s” catchy “Givenchy” refrain.

Uzi’s style is relatively light on substance, as precocious boasts and misogyny overshadow the vulnerability of “I’m Sorry” and “Urgency“ (with Syd The Kid). But he’s heavy on technique, which he displays as the sole rapper on the entire project. He gets a bad rap as a posterchild for mumble rap. But the reality is that the Philly native is just as sound a technician as many of the rappers that purists tout. Eternal Atake shows that Uzi is just too preoccupied with melody and left-of-center production to court convention — and fans love him for it.

Lil Uzi Vert — LUV Vs. The World 2

So many of Lil Uzi Vert’s biggest fans know nothing else but a rapidly churning media cycle. It’s likely that after listening to Eternal Atake, some of them were already clamoring for new music. That’s a pretty unfair predicament for any artist, but Uzi isn’t just any artist. True to his otherworldly nature, he hit his fans with another batch of work in the form of the 18-track LUV Vs. The World 2, the deluxe version of his Eternal Atake album.

He took fans back to his breakout project with the title, yet continued Eternal Atake’s impressive fusion of lyricism and melody — this time bringing along guests. He and Nav float over “Leaders.” Young Thug appears twice, on “Got The Guap” and the jolting “Strawberry Peels” with Gunna. LUV Vs. The World 2 was perhaps the quickest follow-up to a long-anticipated album ever, and it was well worth the pleasingly short wait.

Jay Electronica — A Written Testimony

March has been a jolt to everyone’s system. On the lighter end of the shock spectrum was a Jay Electronica solo album. Yes, you read that right. The long-mythologized MC finally delivered his debut project — and he brought along Jay-Z to boot. “My debut album featurin’ Hov, man, this is highway robbery,” he rhymed on “Ezekiel’s Wheel,” a bare-yet-mesmerizing track that typifies the album’s predominant theme of spiritual ascension.

Both Jay’s take turns digging deep and eschewing the for spiritual supremacy. Jay Electronica also answers what took him so long on several tracks, including most incisively on “Ezekiel’s Wheel” where he rhymes, “Some ask me ‘Jay, man, why come for so many years you been exempt?’ / ‘Cause familiarity don’t breed gratitude, just contempt.” That nugget is just one of many strewn throughout the 10-track project that doesn’t care to meet expectations as much as explain why such constructs are so limiting.

Megan Thee Stallion — Suga

Megan Thee Stallion has been at the top of the news cycle for over a month as she fought Carl Crawford and his 1501 label for alleged unfair compensation. Lost in the debate about whether she’s in the right or wrong is the reality of why she’s in such a hot-button position: her immense talent. Megan is one of the rap game’s most captivating personas. The confident, sexually liberated bangers that dominated her Fever album were the fulcrum of 2019’s #HotGirlSummer.

She decided to embrace her a mellow alter-ego on Suga, a project where she tempered the high-octane bangers to show off the versatility of her skillset. There’s the breezy “B.I.T.C.H.,” where she rhymes “Why you wanna play with me? You know I’m undefeated / A real hot girl know how to keep a n**** heated,” and “Hit My Phone” with Kehlani, which both showcase her songwriting ability and a more measured delivery. She’s clarified project isn’t her debut album, but it’s another strong progression that stokes even more anticipation for her official introduction to stardom.

Jadakiss — Ignatius

With album titles like Kiss The Game Goodbye, Kiss Of Death, The Last Kiss, and Top 5 Dead Or Alive, Jada played on his name and mythos. But Ignatius is an entirely different kind of commemoration. The entire project is a tribute to his late friend and Ruff Ryders A&R Ignatius “Icepick Jay” Jackson, who died in 2017. Jadakiss’ focus on celebrating his friend helped ground the album. From reflective songs like “Closure” and “Pearly Gates,” to features with artists Icepick Jay liked such as Pusha T (the sinister “Huntin Season”) and 2 Chainz (“Angels Gettin Pedicured”), the album flows with a cohesion that is seldom seen on Jadakiss albums. Ignatius one of his stronger bodies of work, and another example of a veteran MC coming through with a late-career renaissance.

Chika — Industry Games

There have been countless gifted lyricists who became renowned for online freestyles but were unable to hone their focus on a song, much less an album. But Chika isn’t one of those rappers. Her pinpoint lyricism and well-rounded artistry permeate Industry Games, her debut EP. “I’m about to change the world, that’s my only mission,” she rhymes on the intro track, then spends the next six songs inching toward that goal a captivating couplet at a time. Chika is a sharp MC, but she can also jump into R&B mode, as project standout “Songs About You” exhibits. The bars are there. The vocals are there. It’s all there. These days, there’s not much to do but play Industry Games on repeat and wonder how a 23-year-old can be such a complete artist.

Larry June — Adjust To The Game

Larry June offered up another helping of smooth cruising music on Adjust To The Game, a 10-track project. The Bay Area MC worked with a bevy of producers such as Cardo and Sledgren on the project, but the songs converged into one lush soundscape that feels like enjoying a sunny day — during a time when we’d all love to do that. June is the laidback narrator he always is, confident enough to tell you, “if you see me out take a picture b*tch, it’s a rare occasion” on “Organic Secrets” but vulnerable enough to admit “dark days I was by myself, them was cold times / Still lowkey traumatized but I keep a smile” on “Organic Dip.” The second you’re able to step outside in good conscience hit the streets and play Adjust To The Game.

Jack Harlow — Sweet Action

Jack Harlow decided to split the difference of a Friday the 13th birthday by releasing Sweet Action, a seven-song EP. The project is a solid introduction to the 22-year-old Kentucky MC who many more rap fans will be getting acquainted within the near future. Sweet Action is buoyed by “What’s Poppin,” the catchy single which reached the No. 48 on the Billboard Hot 100. With blunt song titles like “I Wanna See Some Ass,” it should be no surprise that the bulk of the project is about Harlow’s conquests, but he manages to delve into his lothario nature without being outright crass.

Knxwledge, WT15​.​8_,

March was a busy month for Knxwledge. The prolific producer released his 1988 beat tape as well as HX​.​PRT14_ and WT15​.​8_. HX​.​PRT14_ is a display of his soulful production tied to R&B tracks, while the latter is another intriguing mashup of his creative chops with bars. He pulls even more emotion out of G-Herbo’s heartfelt “Funk Master Flex freestyle” on “realgun_,” then gives Jay-Z’s “Song Cry” a cavernous 80’s remix with “songkry.” He even gives new pathos to Quavo’s “Big Bro” lyrics on “bigbrotro_,” making the Migos rhymer’s cool boasts sound like urgent pleas. Knxwledge once again displays his production acumen, drawing different energy from a range of beloved songs.

Ransom — Director’s Cut EP

Nowadays, the recipe for gritty rappers like Ransom is as simple as ever: get with a dope producer and spit your ass off. The internet has evened the playing field, and there’s no need for spitters to waste bars on radio-appeasing singles or even rap choruses. One can just show off over a batch of glorious beats like Ransom did on Director’s Cut, a 4-track EP with -based producer Nicholas Craven. Ransom sticks to the script with Tarantino-like imagery such as, “fire biscuit, blood on the wall lookin’ like hieroglyphics” on “Pulp Fiction.” Craven provides Ransom with a soulful soundscape that reawakens old R&B records for murderous scribes.

Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

Myles Turner is balancing on one socked foot, bent at the knee, his eyes, behind wire framed glasses, pinned unblinking at the phone recording him. He starts dribbling a basketball against the wood floor of his front hallway. The ball bounces from the floor to where his hand is waiting poised at his knee to hammer it down again. It’s loud. After about thirty seconds he stands and says this is when you’d switch the leg you were balancing on, and the arm doing the dribbling, he then tells everyone to stay safe and urges, “Please, don’t break anything in your parents house.”

It’s one of over 231 short videos NBA and WNBA players and coaches have contributed to Jr. NBA at Home, a free and interactive content series launched under NBA Together that streams across the Jr. NBA, NBA, and NBA cares accounts on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and TikTok. More than 25 members of the NBA community have so far provided basketball skill drills tailor-made by the pros to be done individually and within limited space.

Other drills include Larry Nance Jr. showing the correct form for lunges in his foyer, Duncan Robinson practicing shooting form while lying on his couch, Matisse Thybulle doing a side-to-side and between the legs move, his fine art of ball handling and two large format paintings on full display, Jewell Loyd with a home workout that would put most professional trainers to shame and Muggsy Bogues doing a ball bouncing drill in his basement rec room.

The videos are all focused on skill-building exercises, some deceptively simple until you start doing them, that can be repeated, perfected, and built around other drills. It’s a tangible tool kit for kids (or even adults) who are missing their friends and teams, as the absence of the social aspect of the game is felt as much as its physical outlet. Aside from all sharing an endearing DIY quality, the videos also offer a glimpse into the lives of the NBA community who are very visibly going through the same thing. Players who seem initially shy at filming themselves quickly settle into confidence in the first steps of a drill they are demonstrating, while others appear relieved for the outlet.

David Krichavsky, Head of Youth Development for the NBA, admitted the Jr. NBA at Home program is a “very organic” fit for the NBA and WNBA community, especially players, for a number of reasons.

“One, they are stuck inside and looking to stay fit, like so many of us. So they’re facing the same challenges that the kids we’re trying to reach are facing,” he said over the phone from his home in New York City. “It’s like, ‘Gosh, this is a lot of time indoors, I’m not able to do the things that I love. How do I continue to work on my basketball skills? How do I continue to stay fit?’ And so it’s a very natural thing for them.”

When the program was initially rolled out, it was with the intent to offer 30 days of original content to young people under the Jr. NBA umbrella. With the current shifting landscape of the COVID-19 pandemic globally, Krichavsky says another thing his team has been focused on is adapting as they go. Developing content in real time as much as developing content that can be used in the future, with an eye to the metrics of coronavirus spread as a guide.

“As the pandemic evolves, we’re going to continue with the program, continue to generate content. It’s very much a global view. The Jr. NBA program reaches 6 million boys and girls currently in 72 different countries around the world, and one of the things that the experts are seeing is that the pandemic may crest in certain areas as it’s falling in other areas,” Krichavsky says.

On a domestic level, that spread is occurring throughout the U.S., with certain regions hit harder and future peaks predicted while the rate of infection drops off in other areas. This will be the case globally, and Krichavsky is adamant about producing content in as many languages as possible to reach kids all over the world, “We’re developing as much content as we can in multiple languages, and so we’ll continue with this as long as we need to.”

Sourcing continued content won’t be difficult because as Krichavsky put it, “content’s pouring in” from players and the broader NBA community. “Word of mouth is spreading from player to player, from team to team, and so the response there has been tremendous.”

Partially that is because initiatives like Jr. NBA are so intrinsic to the league that players have always been involved in its efforts, if only under less anxious circumstances. But at a more intimate level, the league was one of the first to be publicly hit and thereby tied to COVID-19, with Rudy Gobert being the first player to test positive and games grinding to a halt as a result — with more than 10 positive tests around the league since. The awareness that caused and the way it made many, including those in politics, sit up and pay attention to the encroaching pandemic, was a needed public shift in perception of what was to come.

Because of that, the NBA community and its players were some of the first advocates in safety measures that have now become colloquial. Social distancing, practicing careful hygiene, self isolation, under the NBA Together banner these practices were pressed upon basketball fans by their favourite players, or in some cases more largely. When Steph Curry did an Instagram Live with Director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, Dr. Anthony Fauci, Curry asked pertinent questions when it came to spread of COVID-19 and spoke incredibly candidly on the concerns that people had. It was a clear moment of leadership and another example of how, inadvertently or not, the NBA has stepped up in a time when others, including some of the the highest elected officials, are prone to outburst and weird, pedantic waffling.

“There’s definitely an ethos that’s part of the DNA of the NBA community to make sure that we’re part of the response during challenging times, and it is very much natural.” Krichavsky says of the leadership and response the league has shown so far in the pandemic, “A lot of these initiatives come from our players, they recognize the power of the platforms they have, whether it’s NBA players or WNBA players or our coaching community.”

Asked by Dime why initiatives like NBA Together are so important in this moment, Krichavsky acknowledge the nuance of this time and how connected we all still are and must remember to be.

“Certainly providing relief to those who are on the front lines as we’re trying to do through some of the charitable contributions is of critical importance right now,” Krichavsky said. “Trying to inspire acts of caring is of critical importance… But I think the name of the campaign, NBA Together, probably brings it all together in that it’s really creating a sense of connectedness at a time when we’re all struggling with the isolation that’s inherent to this situation.”

Writ so large it can be difficult to zero in on maintaining a healthy day-to-day, in mind and body, but that’s where we return to Myles Turner, balancing on one foot in his hallway and bouncing a basketball. As much as they are focused on kids, the exercises are challenging, and can provide a needed distraction and outlet for anyone, including me, who almost wiped out in my hall.

“Some of them are very hard,” Krichavsky laughs, maybe too kindly on my behalf. “I not only have tried them but have participated along with my daughters, who serve as guinea pigs for a lot of the drills. Some of the dribbling drills in particular I’ve struggled through myself.”

Aside from difficulty, Krichavsky recognizes another tiny drawback — the same thing that Turner bashfully blurted like a postscript in his Jr. NBA at Home video — “We’re hoping that there’s not a social media backlash from parents who have broken appliances at home, but we haven’t heard anything yet.”

If nothing below suits your sensibilities, check out our guide to What You Should Watch On Streaming Right Now.

Late-night shows largely went on hiatus a few weeks ago to protect their crews and audiences, but they’re finding a way to get the job done, regardless.

Conan — Team Coco is shooting through an iPhone with guest Sophie Turner, who’s promoting her new Quibi show, Survive.

The Tonight Show With Jimmy Fallon — Demi Lovato, Jonathan Van Ness

Jimmy Kimmel Live! – Samuel L. Jackson, Sean Paul featuring Tove Lo

The Late Show With Stephen Colbert — Guests TBA

Full Frontal With Samantha Bee — Back on Wednesday!

Late Night With Seth Meyers — Senator Elizabeth Warren

A Little Late With Lilly Singh — Natalya Neidhart, Alexa Bliss

The Daily Show With Trevor Noah — Noah’s reporting live from his couch, and naturally, the subject of the night will be the ongoing pandemic and social distancing.

Here’s the rest of the evening’s notable programming:

NCIS (CBS, 8:00 p.m.) — A hostage situation following a jewelry robbery challenges the team when the situation moves to a nearby diner.

Empire (FOX, 9:00 p.m.) — Cookie makes a shocking discovery while digging into finances, and that leads to conflict with Giselle. Meanwhile, wedding day fears are on tap for Teri over Andre’s temper. Girl, don’t do it.

FBI: Most Wanted (CBS, 10:00 p.m.) — A former counter-intelligence officer that leaked classified information is on the loose after he attacked his former partners.

For Life (ABC, 10:00 p.m.) — An inmate’s fighting for the right to marry his dying love while Anya’s marriage with Safiya might be in trouble.

The country with the world’s largest economy, which until a few weeks ago had been on an upward trajectory for the past 11 years straight, is struggling to figure out what to do with its population of people experiencing homelessness during a global pandemic.

In Las Vegas, home to one of the world’s top 10 hotel-rooms-per-capita cities, the “answer” this week was socially distanced lines in a concrete parking lot. Seriously.

---

After a homeless shelter closed due to a man testing positive for coronavirus, people from the shelter were moved to the parking lot where officials laid out a grid of painted lines to keep people from sleeping too close to one another on the ground.

According to the AP, city spokesman Jace Radke that the parking lot “open-air shelter” on the city-owned property was an “emergency situation.”

“The marked squares are to help meet social distancing requirements,” Radke said. “We’ll continue to provide this temporary respite, while practicing necessary social distancing, for anyone who is suffering from homelessness.”

The city said they tried to offer carpeting, but it couldn’t be sanitized and they didn’t have enough mats for everyone.

Around 208 people slept in the parking lot Monday night, while thousands of hotel rooms across the city sat empty.

The treatment of people experiencing homelessness when we are not experiencing a global pandemic is already in need of serious adjustment. But to make people sleep in a parking lot when there are rooms and beds available that would keep them safely away from one another is just gross.

The city tweeted that there is a new shelter being constructed, which is expected to be finished on April 6.

Couldn’t the city or state incentivize hotels to allow people without homes to stay in empty rooms temporarily? Where are the billionaires offering to pay for hotel rooms if hotels aren’t willing to offer them up themselves? How can one of the wealthiest countries on the planet, one that loves to tout its own greatness, not rally its vast resources in every state to help protect some of its most vulnerable during a health crisis?

We know it’s possible. California’s governor has pledged thousands of hotel rooms to help keep people experiencing homelessness safe and healthy during the pandemic. It’s not like Las Vegas is packed with tourists like it usually is. Although hotels in resorts are allowed to stay open for emergency purposes, casinos have been shut down. There are undoubtedly far more empty hotel rooms than there are people needing shelter and social distance in Las Vegas right now.

Get it together, folks. We all know that the issue of homelessness is complicated and permanent solutions are complex, but right now, the immediate needs and the immediate solutions are pretty straightforward. We’re all making huge shifts in our ideas of “normal,” so let’s shift our thinking about people experiencing homelessness. What if we see them as people first? What if we see their need for shelter as a vital public health issue? What if we see the humanitarian solution that’s sitting right in front of us as the right one?

Let’s prove that we’re really all in this together.

---

View Entire Post ›

Melbourne-based indie rock outfit Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever became disillusioned after returning home from a lengthy global tour that promoted their debut record, Hope Downs. Rather than letting it get them down, the band turned to introspection and morphed the uneasy feeling into music. The result is their upcoming effort Sideways To New Italy. The band announced their sophomore record with the noisy single “She’s There” alongside a driving visual.

Directed by Nick McKinlay in the band’s hometown of Melbourne, the visual shakily follows guitarist Joe White on a run through a town. In a statement, the band described the feeling they were aiming to represent in the visual: “We tried to convey that feeling in a dream where you need to be somewhere, and you don’t really know why, but you are determined to overcome every obstacle to get there,” they said.

Guitarist Fran Keaney added in a statement that they want their new music to sound distinctly hopeful: “I wanted to write songs that I could use as some sort of bedrock of hopefulness to stand on, something to be proud of,” says Keaney. “A lot of the songs on the new record are reaching forward and trying to imagine an idyll of home and love.” Bassist Joe Russo continued, “We tried to make these little nods to our friends and loved ones, to stay loyal to our old selves.”

Listen to “She’s There” above. Below, find Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever’s Sideways To New Italy album art and tracklist.

1. “The Second Of The First”
2. “Falling Thunder”
3. “She’s There”
4. “Beautiful Steven”
5. “The Only One”
6. “Cars In Space”
7. “Cameo”
8. “Not Tonight”
9. “Sunglasses At The Wedding”
10. “The Cool Change”

Sideways To New Italy is out 5/6 via Sub Pop. Pre-order it here.