I’m looking forward to two new releases in May: Josh Ritter’s next album, So Runs the World Away, will debut on May 4. And then The National, of Boxer fame, will release their new album High Violet on May 11.

But in a kind of already/not yet anticipation, right now you can listen to both albums in their entirety:

• NPR is streaming Ritter’s So Runs the World Away until April 27. (You can also download a free single at the Ritter website.)
• And in connection with an excellent article on The National in Sunday’s NYT Magazine by Nicholas Dawidoff (I’ll be watching for more from him), the Times is streaming High Violet for a limited time.

Needless to say, both are the soundtrack for my Monday labors today.