Valerie June: The Moon and Stars: Prescriptions for Dreamers

Memphis-based singer and songwriter Valerie June includes a track on this album in which R&B legend Carla Thomas quotes an African proverb: “Only the fool tests the depth of the water with both feet.” That warning doesn’t stop June, known for her 2013 solo-acoustic country-folk breakthrough Pushin’ Against a Stone, from diving head first into her latest excursion into experimental dream pop. This 14-track follow-up to 2017’s The Order of Time, which the New Yorker lauded for its “almost psychedelic wandering,” is built around a three-song 2020 digital EP and showcases one of the most riveting young artists in American pop. The Moon and Stars finds her quirky vocals reigned in (mostly), surrounded by a blend of acoustic and electronic music and sound effects, and at times backed by a horn section on such alluring songs as “Stardust Scattering,” on which June contemplates the nature of consciousness—think Joanna Newsom’s freak folk-meets-the Afro-futurism of Janelle Monae. June’s songs often display an otherworldly quality, but one exception is the Stax-inspired soul duet with Thomas, “Call Me a Fool,” which is downright swampy. So many surprises.