''Moonlight Concessions'' is the eleventh studio album by the American

alternative rock Alternative rock (also known as alternative music, alt-rock or simply alternative) is a category of rock music that evolved from the independent music underground of the 1970s. Alternative rock acts achieved mainstream success in the 1990s w ...

band

Throwing Muses Throwing Muses are an American alternative rock band formed in 1981 in Newport, Rhode Island, United States, that toured and recorded extensively until 1997, when its members began concentrating more on other projects. The group was original ...

. Released on March 14, 2025, by

Fire Fire is the rapid oxidation of a fuel in the exothermic chemical process of combustion, releasing heat, light, and various reaction Product (chemistry), products. Flames, the most visible portion of the fire, are produced in the combustion re ...

, it follows the band's 2020 album ''

Sun Racket ''Sun Racket'' is the tenth studio album by American alternative rock band Throwing Muses. The album was released on Fire Records (UK), Fire Records on September 4, 2020, and has received positive reviews from critics. Recording and release Altho ...

'' and the frontwoman

Kristin Hersh Martha Kristin Hersh (born August 7, 1966) is an American singer, guitarist, and songwriter known for her solo work and with her rock bands Throwing Muses and 50 Foot Wave, 50FootWave. She has released eleven solo albums. Her guitar work and comp ...

's 2023 album '' Clear Pond Road''.

Background and release

In 2020, the

band

released their tenth studio album ''

''. The band's frontwoman

released her eleventh solo studio album '' Clear Pond Road'' in 2023. Hersh wrote the band's eleventh studio album, ''Moonlight Concessions'', in the

Southern United States The Southern United States (sometimes Dixie, also referred to as the Southern States, the American South, the Southland, Dixieland, or simply the South) is List of regions of the United States, census regions defined by the United States Cens ...

along the

Gulf of Mexico The Gulf of Mexico () is an oceanic basin and a marginal sea of the Atlantic Ocean, mostly surrounded by the North American continent. It is bounded on the northeast, north, and northwest by the Gulf Coast of the United States; on the southw ...

New Orleans New Orleans (commonly known as NOLA or The Big Easy among other nicknames) is a Consolidated city-county, consolidated city-parish located along the Mississippi River in the U.S. state of Louisiana. With a population of 383,997 at the 2020 ...

, and

Southern California Southern California (commonly shortened to SoCal) is a geographic and Cultural area, cultural List of regions of California, region that generally comprises the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. Its densely populated coastal reg ...

. It was recorded at Stable Sound and produced by Hersh in

Portsmouth, Rhode Island Portsmouth is a town in Newport County, Rhode Island, United States. The population was 17,871 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 U.S. census. Portsmouth is the second-oldest municipality in Rhode Island, after Providence Plantations, Provide ...

, where the band is headquartered. In an interview with ''

Paste Paste is a term for any very thick viscous fluid. It may refer to: Science and technology * Adhesive or paste ** Wallpaper paste ** Wheatpaste, a liquid adhesive made from vegetable starch and water * Paste (rheology), a substance that behaves as ...

'', Hersh said that the album represents a return to the band's sound before the release of their debut album ''

'' (1986). The album has three singles: "Drugstore Drastic" (2024), "Summer of Love" (2025), and "Libretto" (2025). It was released on March 14, 2025, by

Companion album

Throwing Muses released a companion album, ''Moonlight Confessions'', simultaneously with ''Moonlight Concessions''. The companion album contains alternative versions of the songs and was released as a limited edition of 1,000 vinyl LPs through

Rough Trade Rough Trade may refer to: *Rough Trade (shops), London record stores *Rough Trade Records, a record label from the stores *Rough Trade Books, a publishing house from the label *Rough Trade (band), a Canadian new wave rock band * "Rough Trade" (''Am ...

Critical reception

Editors at

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...

rated this album 3.5 out of 5 stars, with critic Heather Phraes writing that although she could "not always ... tell the difference" between the album and

's 2023 solo studio album '' Clear Pond Road'', the album "deliver d for Hersh's fans and "reaffirm djust how high the bar is when it comes to Hersh's music". John Murphy in ''

musicOMH ''MusicOMH'' (stylized as ''musicOMH'') is a London-based online music magazine which publishes independent reviews, features and interviews from across all genres including classical, metal, rock and R&B. History ''MusicOMH'' was founded an ...

'' also rated the album 3.5 out of 5 stars, calling it a "reliably compelling missive from a rare talent". In ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...

'', Stevie Chick gave the album 4 out of 5 stars, praising Hersh's "silvery snarl". She compared the album to

Nirvana Nirvana, in the Indian religions (Jainism, Hinduism, Buddhism, and Sikhism), is the concept of an individual's passions being extinguished as the ultimate state of salvation, release, or liberation from suffering ('' duḥkha'') and from the ...

's 1994 ''

MTV Unplugged in New York ''MTV Unplugged in New York'' is the first live album by the American rock band Nirvana, released by DGC Records on November 1, 1994, nearly seven months after the suicide of Kurt Cobain. It was part of the cable television series ''MTV Unplug ...

'', writing that they both "conjure a dark, parched ambience" and have an "austerity and tension". Mark Beaumont rated the album 7 out of 10 for ''

Classic Rock Classic rock is a radio format that developed from the album-oriented rock (AOR) format in the early 1980s. In the United States, it comprises rock music ranging generally from the mid-1960s through the early-1990s, primarily focusing on comm ...

'', stating that the album has "a mood as immersive as

Raymond Carver Raymond Clevie Carver Jr. (May 25, 1938 – August 2, 1988) was an American short story writer and poet. He published his first collection of stories, '' Will You Please Be Quiet, Please?'', in 1976. His breakout collection, '' What We Talk About ...

". Andrew Mueller in '' Uncut'' wrote that the album showed the band "growing no less peculiar and wondrous for their familiarity". Chris Roberts in ''

Record Collector ''Record Collector'' is a British monthly music magazine focussing on rare and collectable records, and the bands who recorded them. It was founded in September 1979 and distributes worldwide. It is promoted as "the world’s leading authority o ...

'' rated the album 4 out of 5 stars and called it "ingenious".

Track listing

Personnel

Throwing Muses

– lead vocals, guitar,

production Production may refer to: Economics and business * Production (economics) * Production, the act of manufacturing goods * Production, in the outline of industrial organization, the act of making products (goods and services) * Production as a stat ...

David Narcizo David John Narcizo (born May 6, 1966, in Newport, Rhode Island) is an American musician and graphic designer, primarily known for his work as the longtime drummer for Throwing Muses. Career Narcizo played drums on Tanya Donelly's '' Loveson ...

– drums *

Bernard Georges Bernard Georges (born March 29, 1965) is best known for his bass guitar work in Throwing Muses and 50 Foot Wave. Beginning in 1992, he played bass for Throwing Muses on their album releases and in their concert appearances, having previously wor ...

– bass

Additional contributors

* Steve Rizzo – production, mixing * Pete Harvey –

cello The violoncello ( , ), commonly abbreviated as cello ( ), is a middle pitched bowed (sometimes pizzicato, plucked and occasionally col legno, hit) string instrument of the violin family. Its four strings are usually intonation (music), tuned i ...

Charts

References

{{Throwing Muses 2025 albums Fire Records (UK) albums Throwing Muses albums