的Chronicle’s guide to notable new music.

NEW ALBUMS

的Weeknd, “Dawn FM” (Republic)

的Weeknd wasted no time making his mark in 2022. The latest album from the Canadian R&B/pop star has it all.

的re’s a conceptual aesthetic that makes the futuristic album come across like the radio station in a UFO, complete with a narrative outro by actor Jim Carrey playing a psychoanalytic robot on “Phantom Regret by Jim.” “Sacrifice” and “How Do I Make Love to Her?” are disco-funk jams for galaxies far, far away. Quincy Jones offers his voice via spoken word on “A Tale by Quincy,” leading into the retro synth-driven “Out of Time,” which feels like an homage to the renowned record producer in the same way as Daft Punk’s tribute to Italian synth pioneer Giorgio Moroder on the 2013 track “Giorgio by Moroder.” On “Here We Go … Again,” the Weeknd even gives credence to rumors linking him romantically to actress Angelina Jolie, with the lyric, “My new girl, she a movie star.”

i wonder… did you know you’re experiencing a new trilogy?pic.twitter.com/G5TfjvJVyM

— The Weeknd (@theweeknd)January 10, 2022

“黎明FM”是合法的the most intriguing pop releases in years. There’s already an “Alternate World” deluxe version of the album out, featuring a new track and a remix of “Sacrifice” with Swedish House Mafia.

Not enough? The Weeknd has insinuated that this album is merely the first installment of“a new trilogy,”a release concept he already explored when he emerged a decade ago. There’s a seemingly never-ending trove of discoveries and storyline offshoots on “Dawn FM,” and it’s the perfect release to kick-start the year.

FKA Twigs, “Caprisongs” (Young Recordings/Atlantic)

At the tail end of 2020, the British electronic R&B singer revealed that she was suing her ex-boyfriend, actor ShiaLaBeouf, alleging “sexual battery, assault and infliction of emotional distress.” FKA Twigs, née Tallulah Barnett, has endured the aftermath of this in the crosshairs of the unforgiving public eye of British media, and her newest mixtape is a reflection of her perseverance.

“ ‘Caprisongs’ is my journey back to myself through my amazing collaborators and friends,” Barnett said in a statement. “It’s my stubborn Caprisun ass telling me to work thru my pain by delivering at work.”

Among the 17-track mixtape’s collaborators are U.K. R&B vixen Jorja Smith on the sizzling “Darjeeling”; Grammy-nominated Canadian R&B singer Daniel Caesar on the slow-building “Careless”; and the Weeknd on the lead single, “Tears in the Club.”

Keb’ Mo’, “Good to Be” (Rounder)

的five-time Grammy-winning blues singer/guitarist is back with his 19th studio album. “Good to Be” features the single “Good Strong Woman,” a bluesy Americana number performed as a duet with Darius Rucker. Mo’ also covered Bill Withers’ “Lean on Me,” a recording he said was made in honor of his friend Withers, who died in 2020.

Co-produced with country star Vince Gill, Mo’ wrote the 13 songs on “Good to Be” in both Nashville and in his hometown of Compton (Los Angeles County), where he recently purchased his childhood home and rebuilt it.

“In a lot of ways, coming back there felt like it completed me,” he said in a statement.

SONG OF THE MOMENT

Father John Misty, “Funny Girl” (Sub Pop)

After a series of social media clues regarding the release of his much-anticipated next album, the eccentric and debonair Josh Tillman of Father John Misty officially announced the April 8 release date for “Chloë and the Next 20th Century” in early January. The two-time Outside Lands festival alum and magnetic indie rock personality also released the album’s lead single, “Funny Girl,” a whimsical lounge number that flutters along with a decadent grand piano, elaborate string section and slow tempo tango horns.

LOCALLY MINDED

Elujay, “Circmvnt” (AWAL)

At 25 years old, the Oakland artist is flourishing on his third album. When he emerged on the 2016 debut “Jentrify,” Elujay showed himself to be a dynamic rapper with a penchant for penning songs that lingered on my mind for years. But on “Circmvnt,” he reaches beyond hip-hop and deeper into R&B, neo-soul and pop, all with inventive co-production from the vocalist himself.

In years past, he’s earned some play on shows like “Sweet Life” and “Dear White People,” and he’s starting to sound like a seasoned vet. “1080p” is a standout, soulful groove stacked atop a U.K. garage-inspired beat. “Pandemia” features expansive vocals over a dashing flute, and “Luvaroq” is a jazzy, rhythmic love song, with a tropical bassline and silky Rhodes keys that all elevate an exciting rising talent.

Televangel & AJ Suede, “3 Hours Late” featuring Ceschi and Hemlock Ernst (Fake Four Inc.)

On “Metatron’s Cube,” the latest project from Santa Rosa native and experimental hip-hop producerTelevangel(née Ian Taggart), he connects with Seattle lyricist AJ Suede for a transformative, mind-altering affair. The album is a testament to their synthesis as creators, and on “3 Hours Late,” they’re joined by East Coast rappers Ceschi and Hemlock Ernst.

Ernst’s performance is especially intriguing, as the moniker is the rap alter ego of Samuel T. Herring, the fiery, indelible singer of synth-pop band Future Islands. The stable of rappers stays locked in on a meditative canvas laid down by Taggart, and it’s a brain twister to consider how Herring feels right at home alongside Ceschi and Suede.

“He’s great,” Taggart told The Chronicle of Herring as Hemlock Ernst. “Of course, him being an amazing singer and frontman can overshadow that, but he’s a real student of the game, and it shows.”