We know you normally expect some kind of triumphant party song around hump day, but instead of that this week we're going to give you Chad VanGaalen's discomforting folk. You are welcome! Chad's new album, Soft Airplane is a strange listen because it's both soothing and entirely creepy at the same time. Take "Willow Tree" for example. It starts out "Sleep all day just waiting for the sun to set/ I hang my clothes up on the line", accompanied by the soft plucks of a banjo. Sounds nice, right? And then, "When I die, I'll hang my head beside the willow tree/ When I'm dead is when I'll be free," followed by suggestions for a viking funeral. Right! So there you have the beautiful morbidity of Mr VanGaalen. Fittingly, his animation follows suit in the video for "Molten Light", in which cute little mustachioed dudes dump bodies over cliffs. Soft Airplane brightens your day on September 9th via Sub Pop.
Download: Chad VanGaalen, "Willow Tree"