#i think she will unionize your vocal synths. i think she will unionize them.

[bmpmp3]

based off this video. i think teto is a union man

[thekyraalexandriablog]

Kyra’s Top Albums of 2020 🎧

Despite a tragically hectic year, some of my favorite artists managed to release some phenomenal projects in 2020. Here are my top picks (in no particular order):

Girl Eats Sun—Hope Tala • R&B

Tala’s third EP is a picnic on a Spring evening—breezy and warm. I absolutely adored her first two projects, so it’s been a joy hearing how she’s continued to develop her unique style. On Girl Eats Sun, she masterfully serenades you through the different phases of love from dizzying happiness to aching longing. The little things are what elevate this project, from the strings on the wistful Easy to Love Me to Sky’s high-pitched, flowy vocals on the chorus of Mulholland, and I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention my special appreciation for when Tala’s pitch dips and she’s in that pleasant moment between rapping and singing—hello verse two of All My Girls Like to Fight. Despite the title, Tala’s latest project brings the sunshine out for me every time I listen.

Ungodly Hour—Chloe x Halle • R&B

If you somehow managed to miss Chloe x Halle being the darlings of R&B this year, then please allow me to be your introduction to one of 2020’s few must-listen albums of the year. There’s no other way to describe Ungodly Hour than as a treat for R&B fans: from the variety of tempos (there’s the breathtakingly beautiful ballad Wonder What She Thinks of Me as well as the certified party bop Do It), to the timely range of topics from relationships to self-love (the lyric “I had to learn to love me lately” felt especially pertinent in a year without the usual social distractions); the album takes you on a ride. And of course, the whole time you’re wrapped in the surreal pleasure of their talent for unique harmonizations. If you’ve yet to queue this project on your streaming account, do it.

Holy Cow—All Cows Eat Grass • Electronic

Now here’s a group I’ve missed! ACEG projects always excel at layering dreamy synths with smooth beats, and Holy Cow fits right into the herd. One of their slower projects, tracks like Fly and Pillow Talk would easily fit into a summertime playlist with their simple, fun melodies. There’s also great storytelling in the lyrics of this project from the palpable excitement of the VIP section of a nightclub on About Us to the visceral shock of hearing “thank you” in response to “I love you” in a complicated relationship on Pretty Ladies—ouch. There are so many melodic gems on this 35-minute project; welcome to the pasture.

Ice Cream Clones—ROMderful • R&B

I must admit I was late to the party that is ROMderful’s music. I first encountered ROM last year via Twitter where he would post short clips of miniature duplicates of himself playing the various instruments of the track; the full videos can often be viewed on his YouTube channel. Since then, I’ve been enjoying the pleasant rabbit hole that is his Soundcloud (he’s had releases on Soulection) and production credits (he’s worked with artists like DUCKWRTH and Rayana Jay). A talented multi-instrumentalist, ROM’s music is full of fun sounds and soulful melodies, and his social media presence is just as joyful (his current Twitter name is ROMderTHICC). This project is full of very short tracks with infectious hooks. It’s a quick listen, but one I’ve returned to often.

Rumble Pack—Button • R&B

Button is the collaborative union of Allen Love and Bobby Earth—one of my absolute favorite independent R&B artists, and the reason I gave this project a listen. I’m very glad I did. Rumble Pack is brilliantly bizarre: funky synths, blazing features, all interspersed with random gaming commentary. Fans of The Jet Age of Tomorrow (Pyramid Vritra and the Internet’s Matt Martians) and ROMderful (who has a Rumble Pack feature) will surely appreciate the groovy eccentricity of this one. Thanks to this fun, soulful project, I’ve decided I may be a video game fan after all.

Cosmic Lips—Momocurly • Smooth Jazz

If the phrase ‘easy, breezy, beautiful’ were an album, this would be it! Momocurly is Japanese pianist and vocalist Momo Otani and French guitarist Christophe Pannekoucke. Together the two crafted an exquisitely mellow medley of melodies. Cosmic Lips is everything I enjoy in jazz: relaxing, mid-tempo and smooth. Otani’s voice is unique, high and light, and she glides over the tracks like Pannekoucke’s guitar. This project transports, it’s otherworldly.

with HER - EP—Crush • K*R&B

Because I believe Crush is one of the most talented R&B crooners making music right now, I was completely unsurprised to find that his latest project is smooth and soulful. Only five tracks, it’s a short one, and the concept is incredibly cute—each track is a duet with a different woman vocalist comprising a project of unique love ballads. The different vocalists mean each track has a unique sound and lyrically the project is full of heart-warming quotables and seductive one-liners. with HER is a project to fall in love to.

DPR ARCHIVES—DPR Live, DPR Ian, & DPR Cream • K*Rap/K*R&B

Ahh DPR, the eye candy that makes ear candy. DPR, initialism for Dream Perfect Regime, a South Korea-based art collective, blessed fans with this collection of both new and previously released tracks from DPR Live, DPR Ian, and DPR Cream. Though they collaborate extensively, each artist has a distinct sound that diversifies the collection overall—where I would call DPR Ian a pop artist, I’d call DPR Live a Rap/R&B artist, and then there’s DPR Cream whose contributions are purely instrumentals ranging from smooth and R&B-tinged to piano solos. For fans or those dipping their toes in for the first time, the ARCHIVES offer much to enjoy. (Also watch some DPR videos if you haven’t yet, both the men and the art are exceedingly visually pleasing.)

Peace Is Not a Dream—Senpu & ROMderful • R&B

And ROM makes another appearance! This time on a collaborative project—he has quite a few and I’ve enjoyed them all so far. Senpu, who I am less familiar with, contributes production and vocals to this project. Unlike Ice Cream Clones, these tracks feel more fully fledged out, with a verse or two in addition to the chorus. Between the memorable melodies and vocal harmonizations this project is certainly dreamy.

Rare Changes—Mayer Hawthorne • Soul

If you know anything about me, you know Hawthorne is one of my favorite blue-eyed soul artists, and Rare Changes is a lovely retro addition to his catalog. This album is from the seventies, I’m convinced: from the mid-tempo disco grooves to the doo-wop style background vocals. Rare Changes demonstrates Hawthorne’s adeptness at balancing nostalgia with the best parts of modern music, queue this one for a mellow night of slow dancing and slow sipping.

Honorable Mentions (there’s some bops here, but overall the project didn’t move me):

It Is What It Is—Thundercat • Funk

Whimsical & free-flowing as is his style; lyrically musing & haunting, the last track is an absolute clincher to the project.

The Slow Rush—Tame Impala • Alternative

If age-ripened weariness had a soundtrack you could bop to at a festival; Breathe Deeper instantly brings a smile to my face.

Shabrang—Sevdaliza • Alternative

Sevdaliza is one of the few artists who consistently leaves me breathless—her art is daring, thought-provoking, and absurdly beautiful. Shabrang is no different in its presentation and lyricism, though it is musically more traditional than I might expect.

Sin Miedo—Kali Uchis • Reggaeton

I already think Spanish is a beautiful language but Kali just makes it even more so. I’m not the biggest fan of reggaeton (I’m sorry to say it starts to sound repetitive to me after awhile) but the slower songs on this project are lovely: R&B melodies with her breathy, unique vocals. I definitely enjoyed the listen!

SLINGBAUM ONE—Slingbaum • Experimental Jazz

Voyage-19—Bilal x HighBreedMusic • Experimental Jazz

For fans of experimental jazz, get into SLINGBAUM ONE and Voyage-19, both projects are odd in the best sense: more about vibes and transitions than the traditionally cohesive album—I bought both and I’m still enjoying exploring them.

SAWAYAMA—Rina Sawayama • Pop

Future Nostalgia—Dua Lipa • Pop

Pure pop is not my usual fare, but SAWAYAMA, a fun, dance project is truly special—it is genre melting and Rina’s strong voice transforms to expertly complement each new vibe. Also, PLEASE watch the video for XS, it was one of the few things that energized me this year. And then there’s Future Nostalgia, a fun disco-inspired project. Only a couple of the bass lines & melodies caught my ear, but the visual/aesthetic roll out was spectacular.

The Album—Teyana Taylor • R&B

This was my first time sitting down to try a full Taylor project, and while I overall found the tracks repetitive, The Album has some bass lines I enjoyed and Taylor’s voice is beautiful.

[shemakesmusic-uk]

Getting to Know...

Faultress.

The seductive crawl of 'Marilyn' sets a fantastic pace for Faultress's 5 Myths EP. Its dark and minimal tone and stacked vocals underpin an emotionally dynamic vocal performance. But the nature of its seduction is quickly revealed to be a snare. Faultress offers us a different kind of femme fatale, one whose vulnerabilities are centre stage, deconstructing the masculine idea of femininity by showing it as an air-brushed performance for the male gaze.

'Beating Heart' explores the role of the human bonding hormone oxytocin in making us feel closer to each other than we really are. It resists easy-reach hooks, favouring sharp and stylised grooves in its vocal loops and synth bass. An ode to post-coital bliss, 'Beating Heart' is instrumentally as carnal and as naked as its subject matter.

We had a chat with Faultress all bout ‘Marilyn’ and ‘Beating Heart’, 5 Myths and more. Read the Q&A below.

What led you to make music? Who/what are your biggest influences?

“I’ve written songs since I was 7 - a teacher snatched a doodle out of my hand and when she realised I was writing a song handed it back.

“My biggest influences aren’t necessarily musical - the dance works of Pina Bausch, the theatre director Katie Mitchell, Sylvia Plath… and then of course Kate Bush, Bjork and darker, slower club music like Forest Swords, Burial and early James Blake. Bit of a weird mix I can appreciate!”

You've just released two tracks 'Marilyn' and 'Beating Heart'. What was the inspiration behind the tracks and also the visuals for 'Marilyn'?  

“For ‘Marilyn’, I was inspired by the fact that Marilyn Monroe could switch off her ‘Marilyn persona’ to such an extent that she could walk around LA on her own unnoticed…. It made me feel about all the times people have wanted me to perform or be a veneered version of myself, rather than my regular, basic bitch self sat in my pyjamas watching cartoons.  

“’Beating Heart’ is about wanting to be free and not wanting to be close to anyone you’re sleeping with - but good old Oxytocin always seems to get in the way…”  

'Marilyn' and 'Beating Heart' are taken from your new EP 5 Myths which is out in November. It's a project which explores mental health, power and desire through a female lens. Can you tell us more about what inspired you to make such a record? And what do you hope listeners will take away from it?

“I think I’ve been through a few different musical versions of my self over the years, I wrote folk tunes, pop tunes with a few big artists and then tried to right straight up electro… none of them felt real. I sat myself down one day and said ‘what is it you really want to say and how do you want to say it? No BS…’ and this is what came out. I’m really grateful for my producer Josh for helping me realise exactly what has been in my head. I can’t really predict how listeners will receive it, all I know is that I’ve tried to give the most honest version of myself to it and if that inspires anyone to be entirely themselves, then great.”

What was your songwriting process for 5 Myths?

“Hmmmm - I use my loop station to create lines that I sort of wail over until something comes out… hahaha.”

Finally, what else is next for Faultress?

“I’m really excited to say that I’ll be performing at Union Chapel on October 26 backed by the female singers of London Contemporary Voices - I’ll be supporting Eska and an incredible violinist called Anna Phoebe. I cannot bloody wait.  

“Also going to be doing my first headline show in the new year (date TBC) with my full banshee group of 6 women singing with me along with drums and synth!”

Photo credit: Ana Lemos

[dustedmagazine]

Rachel Smith’s 2018 top ten

I didn’t write any reviews for Dusted this year, but I have spent a lot of time on Twitter. So — because apparently my brain only works in thought-nuggets of 240 characters or so — here are, in alphabetical order, very brief reviews of some of my 2018 favorites. This isn’t so much a “best of” as it is a few snapshots of the records that served a purpose in my life this year: a release valve for the free-floating rage and despair that still permeate our political climate, a welcome distraction, a glimpse of a better future, a moment of quiet contemplation or the reassuring return of a familiar face. I hope they do something for you, too.

Author & Punisher — Beastland (Relapse)

Beastland by Author & Punisher

2018 was the right year to drop this unwieldy slab of jet-black industrial doom metal. From inside a virtual mech suit of gnashing machinery, one-man band Tristan Shone delivers a fatalistic vision that would seem almost camp if it wasn’t so well-suited to the mood today.

Daphne & Celeste — Daphne & Celeste Save the World (self-released)

In difficult times, self-care matters, and so whenever necessary I encourage you to escape into the sugar-coated world of Daphne & Celeste. Produced by Max Tundra, the king of meticulously maximalist electro-pop, Save the World is a riot of color and cozy clutter.

Dustin Wong — Fluid World Building 101 With Shaman Bambu (Hausu Mountain)

Fluid World Building 101 With Shaman Bambu by Dustin Wong

Maybe dystopian sci-fi isn’t your bag. If so, try summoning a brighter, weirder future with Tokyo-based multi-instrumentalist Dustin Wong. Busy, cheerful, and gently askew, Wong’s virtual worlds sparkle with the chirps and burbles of mutant life.

Ezra Furman — Transangelic Exodus (Bella Union)

If Bruce Springsteen’s cover of Suicide’s “Dream Baby Dream” somehow gave birth to an album, I imagine it would sound a lot like Transangelic Exodus. Part trad-rock bombast, part weirdo folk-punk, Furman's meditations on faith, medicine and change leave a lasting mark.

Hot Snakes — Jericho Sirens (Sub Pop)

Jericho Sirens by Hot Snakes

Hot Snakes made some of the best rock records of the Bush, Jr. administration and although the political timing is surely a coincidence, it’s good to have them back. John Reis’ swagger and Rick Froberg’s righteous indignation are still balm to the soul.

Joan of Arc — 1984 (Joyful Noise)

1984 by Joan of Arc

For the first time, Joan of Arc frontman Tim Kinsella cedes lead vocal and lyrical duties to bandmate Melina Ausikaitis, and the experiment, I’m pleased to say, is a complete success. Ausikaitis brings refreshing new energy to the group’s playful, introspective post-rock, making 1984 is one of their best.

Julia Holter — Aviary (Domino)

Aviary by Julia Holter

Fueled by “the cacophony of the mind in a melting world,” Aviary is Holter’s attempt to carve out meditative space in a chaotic present. With complex, synth-driven arrangements, she transforms the smoggy haze of LA sprawl into an eerie, expansive dreamscape.

Nap Eyes — I’m Bad Now (Paradise of Bachelors)

Nap Eyes wed the lilting sounds of 1960s U.K. folk-rock a la the Incredible String Band and Fairport Convention with the grounded slacker-punk Zen of 1990s indie and, in so doing, have created my perfect comfort food record. Thanks, Nap Eyes!

Nicholas Krgovich — “OUCH” (Tin Angel)

"OUCH" (North American Customers) by NICHOLAS KRGOVICH

When Krgovich sings “Everything’s fine, I guess, but I wish I were dead” and a plaintive slide guitar kicks in like a punch line, I don’t know whether to laugh or cry, but I think the correct answer is “both.” “OUCH” is a great break-up album, but it’s also a great album about being a person in the world.

Spirit of the Beehive — Hypnic Jerks (Tiny Engines)

Hypnic Jerks by the spirit of the beehive

Hypnic Jerks reminds me of a harder-rocking version of the Olivia Tremor Control’s Dusk at Cubist Castle—a hypnogogic patchwork of odd, elliptical little psych-pop songs that never quite work the way you expect them to but always end up somewhere good.

18 Great Records from 2018:

1.       Author & Punisher — Beastland (Relapse)

2.       The Breeders — All Nerve (4AD)

3.       Courtney Barnett — Tell Me How You Really Feel (Milk! Records)

4.       Daphne & Celeste — Daphne & Celeste Save the World (self-released)

5.       Dustin Wong — Fluid World Building 101 With Shaman Bambu (Hausu Mountain)

6.       Ezra Furman — Transangelic Exodus (Bella Union)

7.       Flasher — Constant Image (Domino)

8.       Hot Snakes — Jericho Sirens (Sub Pop)

9.       Joan of Arc — 1984 (Joyful Noise)

10.   Julia Holter — Aviary (Domino)

11.   Matthew Dear — Bunny (Ghostly International)

12.   Media Jeweler — 1-800 SUCCEED (Fire Talk)

13.   Nap Eyes — I’m Bad Now (Paradise of Bachelors)

14.   Neneh Cherry — Broken Politics (Smalltown Supersound)

15.   Nicholas Krgovich — “OUCH” (Tin Angel)

16.   Noname — Room 25 (self-released)

17.   Parquet Courts — Wide Awake! (Rough Trade)

18.   Spirit of the Beehive — Hypnic Jerks (Tiny Engines)

[deadcactuswalking]

REVIEWING THE CHARTS: 20/03/2021 (Central Cee, KSI/YUNGBLUD/Polo G)

On the tenth week that a song appears on the UK Singles Chart, it becomes likely that it has a cut to its streaming numbers by the Official Charts Company, particularly if it’s still in the top 10 and especially if it’s #1. So, the streaming and sales do not change, but the Official Charts Company just weighs them differently. This means that it’s often that songs reliant on streaming – read: most of the chart given that the UK doesn’t factor in radio – drop intensely on that particular week. Therefore, we switched out our Pokémon and “drivers license” by Olivia Rodrigo has been replaced at #1 after nine weeks by “Wellerman”, an 1800s sea shanty from New Zealand covered by Nathan Evans and remixed as a pop-house song by 220 KID and Billen Ted. Of course. I don’t know all of the complexities behind this rule but I do know it shakes up the chart at the cost of it being ridiculously inaccurate – I do think “drivers license” is probably still the biggest song in the country. “drivers license” is at #18 now, by the way. Yikes. Welcome back to REVIEWING THE CHARTS.

Rundown

We have a pretty interesting week, to say the least, but before all that, we can get through this brief rundown as always as we cover the UK Top 75 and all of what’s happening over there, since that’s what I cover. First of all, we do have some big drop-outs, like #1 hits “Roses” by SAINt JHN and remixed by Imanbek that seemingly had its second wind pummelled this week, and “positions” by Ariana Grande leaving somewhat prematurely. We also have “Mr. Brightside” by the Killers retreating to the other 25 slots I don’t cover because, well, of course, as well as “Midnight Sky” by Miley Cyrus and sadly, “Be the One” by Rudimental featuring MORGAN, TIKE and Digga D, but that’s all for the notable drops out of the chart. Still falling within the chart other than the aforementioned “drivers license” are... basically all of the Drake songs from last week falling behind the top 10 and even the top 20, and two of them being behind “Leave the Door Open” now – thankfully. “What’s Next” is at #20, “Lemon Pepper Freestyle” featuring Rick Ross is at #25 and “Wants and Needs” featuring Lil Baby is at #28. We also have a handful of other notable fallers like “WITHOUT YOU” by the Kid LAROI at #27, “Hold On” by Justin Bieber off of the debut at #31 (could rebound next week when the album makes its impact), “Paradise” by MEDUZA and Dermot Kennedy at #35, “Anxious” by AJ Tracey off of the debut to #45, “Anyone” by Justin Bieber at #49, “Medicine” by James Arthur at #54, “Bluuwuu” by Digga D at #57, “34+35” by Ariana Grande at #58, “Dance Monkey” by Tones and I at #60, “Toxic” by Digga D at #61, “Good Days” by SZA at #64, “Whoopty” by CJ at #65, “Prisoner” by Miley Cyrus featuring Dua Lipa at #66, “Afterglow” by Ed Sheeran at #68, “Regardless” by RAYE and Rudimental at #69, “you broke me first” by Tate McRae at #71 and finally, “Lemonade” by Internet Money and Gunna featuring Don Toliver and NAV at #75. I hope that next week is the last time I need to say “Lemonade” by Internet Money and Gunna featuring Don Toliver and NAV, not because the song is bad but that is a convoluted credit if I’ve ever seen one. In terms of gains and returning entries, it does get interesting. The only return is for “Watermelon Sugar” by Harry Styles at #67, but our gains include “Didn’t Know” by Tom Zanetti at #56, “Heartbreak Anniversary” by Given at #42 thanks to the video, “Ferrari Horses” by D-Block Europe featuring RAYE at #36 off of the debut, “We’re Good” by Dua Lipa at #32, “All You Ever Wanted” by Rag’n’Bone Man at #29, “Astronaut in the Ocean” by Masked Wolf at #24, “Let’s Go Home Together” by Ella Henderson and Tom Grennan at #21, “Little Bit of Love” also by Grennan at #13, “Streets” by Doja Cat at #12 thanks to the video and three songs making their first entry into the top 10 after picking up the pace on the charts recently: “Commitment Issues” by Central Cee at #9 thanks to his album, “BED” by Joel Corry, RAYE and David Guetta at #8 and finally, to my dismay, “Latest Trends” by A1 x J1 at #2 thanks to a remix featuring Aitch. Sigh, okay, well, we have a... curious selection of new arrivals so let’s start with that.

NEW ARRIVALS

#73 – “You’ve Done Enough” – Gorgon City and DRAMA

Produced by Gorgon City and DRAMA

Gorgon City are a British EDM duo who were particularly big back in 2014 or so when they had their top 10 hits, particularly “Ready for Your Love”, which peaked at #4, but they haven’t really had much success since in the UK or Europe in general. This time, however, they’ve clinched a spot in the top 75 by collaborating with DRAMA, another electronic duo except they’re from Chicago instead of north London and the vocalist here, Via Rosa, is actually from DRAMA and not some uncredited session vocalist or a sample, which surprised me because the vocals here are genuinely great and remind me a lot of these booming diva voices used so commonly in 90s house. In fact, I think this whole song is genuinely great, relying on a house groove that is pretty damn funky and some subtle keys making the foundation for a bouncy four-on-the-floor beat, with the shaky percussion just adding the spice on top of it. It helps that this chorus is pretty ethereal, with Rosa’s vocals booming over this angelic synth blend before a pretty ugly-sounding drop but that is absolutely on purpose, as the content here is about that struggle between trying to find someone and trying to better yourself so you feel like you’d be worthwhile to anyone you end up meeting, which is kind of a depressing cycle in many ways... not that I’ve experienced that, but it sounds like it warrants the DRAMA here. There are tons of intricacies in the productions here too that make the song a lot more complete, particularly in the vocal production and all the intrusive bass wobbles by the second chorus and drop, so, yeah, for once, the generic house tune debuting low on the chart is a pretty great one. I wish it went somewhere further so it sounded like an actual song but as is, without a real bridge, this is still a good, almost anthemic dance track.

#70 – “Rasputin” – Majestic and Boney M.

Produced by Majestic and Frank Farian

Boney M. are a pretty legendary disco group collected by producer Frank Farian of several Caribbean singers to make some of the most fun pop music of the 70s. One of the most interesting things about this band were the fact that they were immensely popular in the Soviet Union back when that existed, and some Soviet films even show their songs playing during high-ranking Soviet government meetings, which sounds like pure comedy. Funnily enough, “Rasputin” was the only song Boney M. were forbidden to play in the USSR, even though it was still a big hit there. The 1978 song, a #2 hit for the band in the UK, basically retells the story that led to infamous and fascinating Tsarist Russian mystic Grigori Rasputin being assassinated, with most claims in the song itself being true or at least as far as we know, although the song does mostly focus on how much of a womaniser he was. The original hit is equally fascinating as the guy himself, with a great typical disco sound, those iconic strings and the use of Russian instrument balalaikas in its mix just furthering that intrigue. Now, in 2021, the song became a hit on TikTok because... of course, and now this remix by a DJ and producer called Majestic, is charting on the UK Singles Chart. Why this remix and not the original song? Well, this is basically a French house remix of the song, using those house patterns not too dissimilar to Daft Punk or Stardust-type stuff, which makes perfect sense to remix a classic disco tune. I do prefer the original track about “Russia’s greatest love machine”, because it’s a lot more natural and the remix is kind of poorly done in some places if I’m being honest, but if this is how kids decide to experience this type of classic disco, I’m not going to complain. It’s a good song; I’m interested to see how this second chart run goes.

#53 – “DAYWALKER!” – Machine Gun Kelly featuring CORPSE

Produced by BaseXX, Machine Gun Kelly and SlimXX

Nope. No, no, no. I refuse. I’m completely fine with bringing pop-punk and post-hardcore stuff back, but if the ringleader is Machine Gun Kelly and he’s bringing out Corpse Husband to help him on this trap-metal garbage, I’m not even going to acknowledge it further than the fact that it exists and it’s probably not in MGK’s best interests to compare himself to Capitol Hill rioters. Otherwise, absolutely not. Nope. Not even going to give this the time of day.

#46 – “Addicted” – Jorja Smith

Produced by Compass

In stark contrast, here we have Jorja Smith’s new single to add to that confusing sophomore album roll-out that I feel has been delaying itself for two years now. This new song is about giving your all to a relationship and not having it reciprocated, but she paints this in a very odd way, painting herself as “too selfless” to leave and that her partner should be “addicted” to her, which seems like the wrong way to go about writing this entirely, especially if this instrumental is going to be the dullest blend of checked-out live percussion and a boring electric guitar loop, and Jorja Smith’s not going to sell this in a different way to how she sells her other songs, going for a subtle croon that just doesn’t make sense for a song where we’re clearly not supposed to think Jorja’s in the right for being this obsessive and somewhat hyperbolic about this relationship not going the way she planned. I could see this being done really well but the song is too weak and flimsy as is to grasp how to handle the content and I’m sorry but it just does not work for me.

#44 – “Day in the Life” – Central Cee

Produced by Frosty Beats

Central Cee released his debut mixtape, Wild West and, listen, there was a point to me not saying much about “DAYWALKER!” so I think Central Cee existing and giving me so little to work with will weaken that point even further. To be fair, I like the choir sample in this beat, even if the drop is going to be really awkwardly staggered by a loose 808 for no reason, and this drill beat never really feels like it keeps up with itself, especially because Central Cee might be the least interesting rapper in a crop of already desperate British rappers. He also says that rappers that use Auto-Tune don’t “really rap” or “really trap”, which is awkward considering some of this guy’s back catalogue, and also incredibly untrue. He also disses D-Block Europe pretty directly which, regardless of who it’s from or how famous DBE continue to get, always feels like punting down, so, yeah, this is worthless.

#43 – “On the Ground” – ROSÉ

Produced by 24, Jon Bellion, Ojivolta and Jordgen Odegard

This is the debut solo single from ROSÉ, one of the singers from K-pop group BLACKPINK, which explains my initial confusion to why this was so high. The label has enlisted Jon Bellion of all people to produce as they intend to push ROSÉ as a global hit-maker in her own right, given that this is part of a two-track EP so that if one track doesn’t do as well, fans could gravitate to another and that becomes the hit. See “Havana” or, really, how Drake releases his singles nowadays. Looking at some of her television appearances and the language surrounding that, it seems like they’ve been trying to push her as a soloist for a while, and given that she broke PSY’s record for most-viewed solo South Korean video in 24 hours with this song, I think it’s a success. Is the song itself any good? Well, to my surprise, it’s all in English. It now sits at 100 million views and really, there’s no way to distinguish that this is from Korea... which isn’t a bad thing, necessarily, because the song is great, relying on this slick electric guitar pluck and ROSÉ’s vocals which, despite being drenched in reverb, sound really great, before the whole song is abruptly plunged into this distorted, bassy electro-pop void which is just a fascinating and kind of avant-garde choice for a pop song like this. The song doesn’t really develop further than that, pretty much repeating its own structure, but that drop with all the spliced-in backing vocals, is such an interesting catharsis itself that I think it makes up for that. The final drop does a lot different as well, going for a lead synth melody on the top of the mix that again sounds really great when paired with that mix and then the rising strings. I was tempted to write this song’s quirks off as shoddy K-pop songwriting but given the credits, especially Jon Bellion, I’m confident all of this nonsense is absolutely on purpose, and I love it. Check it out, I hope this becomes a hit outside of this debut week, although I really don’t think that’ll happen given it’s (ostensibly) a K-pop song and their western success is largely dominant on sales from fans. Regardless, I’m glad it debuted here in the first place as I wouldn’t have heard it otherwise.

#16 – “6 for 6” – Central Cee

Produced by Okami202, Sevon and Young Chencs

This is Cee’s sixth song to hit the chart, and hence he’s going “six for six”, even though only two of those singles were actually poised to stick around in any shape or form. He does seem to be going somewhere with this, particularly the direction I thought “Loading” would be going, as it uses a choir sample as the background to this janky UK drill beat... but it’s soon drowned-out and Cee himself is such a non-presence that it’s not worth paying attention to the guy’s content, let alone his lyrics which seem to try and be somewhat introspective about his drug-dealing and gang violence, but end up being incredibly shallow and not really saying anything, about as shallow as this instrumental. The outro would be a pretty nice piano interlude if it didn’t stop so abruptly and I’ve only got to hope that leads into a track on the album and isn’t just a mistake, because I’m not listening to that mixtape if my life depended on it. Another snooze from Central Cee, what a surprise.

#3 – “Patience” – KSI featuring YUNGBLUD and Polo G

Produced by Matt Schwartz

Remember when I said we had three songs making their first entry into the top 10? Yeah, turns out that I’m a compulsive liar since we actually have a fourth at #3, and I’m tempted to nope my way out of this one as well. What’s with this week and whiny, wannabe pop-punk singers collaborating with obnoxious YouTubers? I feel like I’m too old to cover this stuff every other week, and that’s saying something considering KSI himself is pushing 30 at this point, but regardless, I have to check out the song and to my surprise, it’s actually kind of decent. It goes for an 80s synth-rock vibe, with massive guitar tones and obviously not live drums that kind of undercut the pretty great bass groove here, but man, Polo G sounds surprisingly good on this production. His verse is pretty infectious, even if it ends up crushed at the end by YUNGBLUD’s hook, which sounds the least insufferable this guy has ever been, probably because of how the vocal production keeps him slightly in check. KSI himself might be the weakest link as he cannot sing at all, and the Auto-Tune in his verse is not helping, but I do like his David Bowie-interpolating ad-libs on the choruses (Yes, seriously). The bridge is a pathetic excuse of a bridge and the song’s mostly chorus – I’m kind of worried about KSI as a hit-maker going forward if he’s going to consistently contribute so little to his own singles, most of which have two other people on. I mean, it works as a short, inoffensive pop-rock song and not much else. I really wish this was Polo G’s song, actually, I think he deserves a second verse here.

Conclusion

Well, that week happened, that’s for sure. I’m going to give Best of the Week to the obvious outlier here, “On the Ground” by ROSÉ, but not without an Honourable Mention to Gorgon City and DRAMA for “You’ve Done Enough”. Worst of the Week is also going to the obvious outlier, “DAYWALKER!” by Machine Gun Kelly featuring Corpse Husband. Can I give a song I literally refused to review Worst of the Week? Yes, yes, I can. For Dishonourable Mention, just pick your Central Cee-flavoured poison. Here’s this week’s top 10:

I’ll see you next week for... Justin Bieber and Lana Del Rey. Damn, maybe I won’t see you next week.

[diamonddeposits]

BEST TRACKS OF 2017-ARTISTS LIST #100

PETER CAT

After a brief hiatus Glasgow’s Peter Cat composed of singer songwriter Graham Neil Gillespie returns with some brand new tunes and we could not be more excited! Here are the 12 tracks that made his year! 

1. LCD Soundsystem – ‘black screen’ (from album american dream, on Columbia Records) Yeah, it sucked when David Bowie died. We all remember where we were, what we were doing at the time. Most of us, however, didn’t have extensive email chains from the man himself sitting in our Gmail inboxes, like LCD Soundsystem’s James Murphy did. ‘black screen’, from LCD’s comeback record american dream, is essentially Murphy grappling with the guilt of not having done more, not having tried harder after befriending the Spaceman in his twilight years. Murphy was even supposed to have produced Blackstar; something he alludes to in the lyrics to ‘black screen’ with ‘I had fear in the room/so I stopped turning up/my hands kept pushing down/in my pockets’. The same lyrical tropes that Murphy has revisited so often throughout his career – perceived inadequacy, a relative lack of influence – here take on a much more serious, resonant aspect. And while musically, this track is comparatively simple – a slow bass pulse punctuated by shimmering, Low-style synths – it frames Murphy’s heartfelt lyrics faultlessly. By the time a heartbreaking reverberated piano is ushered in for the outro, the listener is launched into orbit, ‘watching images/from the station’. An incredibly powerful song, I felt, which articulates our universal inability to ever really let Ziggy go.

2. Father John Misty – ‘The Memo’ (from album Pure Comedy, on Bella Union) Full disclosure: I didn’t massively dig this album on first listen. I thought Josh Tillman had disappeared a little bit too far up his own arse for his own good. It took me a couple of spins to completely get on board with Pure Comedy, but once I did: well boy, was I firmly in the saddle! While Tillman serves up less straight bitterness and sarcasm on Pure Comedy compared to his previous releases, ‘The Memo’ is the most caustic cut on the record; right down to Father John’s hilarious dialogue with an imagined Twittersphere in the song’s middle eight (‘this guy just gets me’; ‘this is totally the song of my summer’, a robotic voice emotes, as Tillman’s fictional folkie wrestles with his waning cultural influence). Lyrically, this is the kind of thing I just wish I could do: the line “As the world is getting smaller, small things take up all your time” especially resonated with me, as it should do with anyone who suddenly realises they’ve lost a week of their life to their smartphone/email inbox/inexplicable Twitter spats/being ‘crazy busy’.

3. Oxbow – ‘The Finished Line’ (from album Thin Black Duke, on Diorite Music/BMI/CFY Music) Hearing Thin Black Duke reminded me of hearing Slint’s Spiderland, or Codeine’s The White Birch, again, for the first time. While Oxbow have pushed the envelope of experimental music, noise rock and even avant-garde jazz throughout the course of their thirty-year career, never have they sounded so magisterial, so elemental, so utterly accomplished as they do on this LP. It’s measured, it’s cacophonous; it’s pretty much perfect. It feels disingenuous to single out any one track for acclaim, but if I had to choose, album closer ‘The Finished Line’ would be it: a spookily melodic doom-waltz which begins from a conventional enough place, but by the end descends into a barely controlled atonal nightmare, with vocalist Eugene Robinson alternating between breaths, groans, moans, shouts and guttural screams. I’m struggling to find words for how good this is. If I think about this too much longer, I’m going to make it number one, so I best move on quickly…

4. Perfume Genius – ‘Alan’ (from album No Shape, on Matador Records) Perfume Genius has truly gone from strength to strength over the past few years, following up 2014’s slickly sensual Too Bright with the almost overwhelmingly intimate No Shape. And no single song stopped me as firmly in my tracks with its opening bars in 2017 as closer ‘Alan’ did. After a few seconds of strings emanating from the speakers as if from the bottom of the Grand Canyon, Perfume Genius – aka Mike Hadreas – intones ‘Did you notice/we sleep through the night/did you notice, babe/everything is alright’. Not only does his paper-thin warble sound magnificent, but given Hadreas’ personal experience of homophobia, chronic illness and abuse throughout his life, the benign, almost mundane happiness he expresses in his relationship with his partner of eight years is so cathartic as to be deeply affecting indeed. There may have been a tear or two shed on my part.

5. Jane Weaver – ‘H>A>K’ (from album Modern Kosmology, on Fire Records) Another mesmerising record for which it was quite an onerous task to select a standout track. In the end, I’ve settled with ‘H>A>K’, the opening cut on Liverpudlian singer Jane Weaver’s 2017 LP. On an album which consistently channels the measured motorik of Can and Neu!, ‘H>A>K’ does so with the most vivid aplomb. The way in which Weaver’s icy vocal gets caught in a robotic stutter just before the drum beat kicks in is so, so very satisfying, and it’s all uphill from there: an arpeggiated bass line swims a steady breaststroke through a pool of washy keyboard chords, reaching out into the cosmos before reducing down into a single drip, drip, drip of synthesiser. The best part of this krautrock homage is that, unlike so many other artists who nod to the genre, it doesn’t outstay its welcome: ‘H>A>K’ is over in three-and-a-half minutes, although it feels at least twice as long (in a good way).

6. Jlin – ‘Hatshepsut’ (from album Black Origami, on Planet Mu) This track – and every track from the album it appears on, really – was some mindfuck when I first heard it. It’s almost entirely rhythmic, there being little in the way of melody or notation here; but Jlin’s vision of rhythm is as this constantly evolving, mutating entity, which never sinks into a groove for long enough for the listener to get complacent. It’s rhythm as warfare, as evinced by the sonics – military snare rolls, sharp trill whistles; everything conformed to the MIDI grid – which evokes the battle elements of the Chicago footwork scene from which Jlin’s work stems. And in a musical culture which increasingly fetishises prohibitively expensive analog synthesizers, drum machines, etc., it’s oddly refreshing to hear an artist just running with unapologetically digital, über-quantised drum hits, and calling them good. ‘Hatshepsut’ moves the feet, the brain, and everything in-between: essential stuff.

7. bell lungs – ‘Mosul Dam’ (from Pefkin/bell lungs 7” split, on Sonido Polifonico) When I first came across this song, I must’ve listened to it on a loop ten times, if not more. Its hazy layering of plucked strings and cut-glass vocal harmonies is disarmingly gorgeous; but that gorgeousness is tempered, given an ominous shading via samples of radio dispatches which hint at the creeping sociopolitical unrest with which we are all, sadly, becoming more familiar by the day. The Mosul Dam of the title is a real dam in Iraq, built on a water-soluble foundation, which bell lungs astutely employs as a metaphor for the instability of UK political life in the post-Brexit era. Full disclosure: bell lungs (aka Ceylan Hay) is now also a member of Peter Cat! But that has nothing to do with her inclusion on this list, as ‘Mosul Dam’ is quite simply one of the best songs I’ve heard all year. Avast ye to her Bandcamp page post haste.

8. Dominic Waxing Lyrical – ‘Laika’ (from album Rural Tonic, on Tenement Records) I was fortunate enough to both hear and meet the Edinburgh-based Dominic of said Waxing Lyrical this year, and in addition to him being a very pleasant gentleman, his record Rural Tonic is quite brilliant: a madcap meander through a surreal and pastoral England, equal parts chamber pop, folk and punk. The closest comparison I can grasp for is XTC’s seminal Skylarking; one of my favourite albums, which warmed me to Dominic’s work instantly. ‘Laika’ is the lushest track on this LP; a gorgeous harpsichord progression grasped tight to the bosom of a honey-sweet chamber orchestra while Dominic intones the tragic fate of Laika, the first dog in space. And it has a theremin outro – of course.

9. Sarah Davachi – ‘For Voice’ (from album All My Circles Run, on Students of Decay) We’re inundated with so much ambient music these days that it’s reached something of a saturation point: although they’ve officially denied it, there’s compelling evidence to suggest that Spotify actually populate their numerous ambient playlists with the ‘work’ of fake artists. With this in mind, it takes a truly arresting piece of music to cut through all that aural mist, and Sarah Davachi does precisely that on ‘For Voice’. Previously reliant upon an array of synthesisers to produce her music, Davachi strips each track on her latest LP down to just one instrument. On this track, she manually loops her own vocal into a dizzying, otherworldly choir which will, if you let it, transport you to a place you’ve never visited before over the course of its nine-minute runtime. Sublime.

10. Princess Nokia – ‘Green Line’ (from album 1992 Deluxe, on Rough Trade) Princess Nokia is superbly skilled at widening the scope and scale of her lyrics on any one track, detailing her personal experiences in opening bars before connecting them with astute political observations in later ones. It’s something that impressed me on a lot of the tracks on this record, but particularly on ‘Green Line’, which begins with Nokia hopping a ride on the 6 and ends with her championing the ethnic diversity and multiculturalism of the NYC of which she is a proud native. It feels honest, brash, humid, celebratory; real. Plus, the beat couldn’t sound more Big Apple if it was smothered in gherkins and mustard – check that Taxi-esque Fender Rhodes line!

11. Catholic Action – ‘Doing Well’ (from album In Memory Of, on Modern Sky Records) As a Glaswegian, I can authoritatively confirm that Catholic Action are the best guitar band in Glasgow right now. Their debut album is packed with surgically precise glam-rock stompers: such uniform quality makes it difficult to choose a stand-out cut, but the vocal hook and guitar lead on ‘Doing Well’ complement one another so effortlessly that I’ve plumped with that. Chris from the band is currently mixing the next round of Peter Cat singles to perfection, too – those are due out early 2018 onwards, so keep an eye out!

12. Protomartyr – ‘Male Plague’ (from album Relatives in Descent, on Domino Records) Of the plethora of bands who try and fail to recapture the spirit of The Fall in their acerbic heyday, most fail. Protomartyr, on the other hand, do not. They’ve managed to distil the finest elements of late 1970s Transatlantic post-punk into something with an enviable drive and snarl. For me, ‘Male Plague’ is the catchiest song on their latest LP, with some great lyrics from Joe Casey, in which he welcomes the cultural disrobing of white men (characterised as ‘sad-sacks pickled in jars’) while humorously acknowledging his own irrevocable place within that very demographic.

[bloobomber]

Enter Shikari’s: the Spark (2017, September 22) does it Really Light a Spark or does it leave us in the Dark? By: Christopher Quintero

Enter Shikari’s: the Spark (2017, September 22) does it Really Light a Spark or does it leave us in the Dark? By: Christopher Quintero

At the beginning of their now well established career, there was a little group from St. Albans Hertsfordshire that consisted of: Rou Reynolds (guitarist) Chris Batten (bassist) and Rob Rolfe (drums ;) They played a couple of shows under the alias of Hybryd until Rory Clewlow joined in 2003, and soon after they formed the name Enter Shikari (Enter Hunter.) Clewlow would then take over as their guitarist and Reynolds would don the bands staple instrument the Korg synthesizer. In 2006 under the label Ambush Reality, the debut album Take to the Skies was released and with critical acclaim, which included tracks from previous EPs, such as: “Sorry You’re Not a Winner” and “Okay Time for Plan B.” The album also included the singles “Johnny Sniper” and “Mother Ship.” To this day I still listen to “Johnny Sniper” and the interlude track that comes before it. It opens with a man introducing Johnny Sniper as if through some megaphone and the instruments conducting an assembly line. It continues along a steady path until the drums break away into “Johnny Sniper” along with its dance rhythm from the synths, then the guttural sound from Reynold’s vocals as he kicks it up a notch. This track definitely left a huge impression on me and remains one of my favorite songs from the band today. As time went along, the band released other albums like: Common Dreads, a Flash Flood of Color and the Mindsweep along with many other LPs and singles that included tracks, such as: “We Can Breath in Space” and “Redshift,” under the Ambush Reality label and Hopeless Records for us here in the States. Now towards the end of 2017, comes “the Spark.” This is an album that can have addicting choruses, brooding rhythms and heartfelt messages as well as insightful ones. Enter Shikari has never been one to stick with a certain genre and it is difficult to peg one down with them (go ahead and try), but I did feel some familiarity on this new album, but not enough to diagnose a certain genre.

The introduction to the album begins with the Spark; a dim intro with fleeting chords played on a keyboard that sounds like something that came out of a science-fiction piece. It reminds me of the instrumentals out of the Stranger Things, soundtrack for which I really find interesting. I think they were going for an outer space sound, and I think they nailed it with this intro. I feel as though I am floating in the far reaches of space staring at the endless amounts of stars far out of my reach.

Right after the Spark, comes “the Sights,” is a song about one person’s firsthand experiences as he or she is readying to take off into space in search of something greater. I believe this song like many other tracks on the album tackle the concept of discovery of other planets and areas, but also the sense of self-discovery. The speaker begins to talk as if addressing someone and as he/she is talking, the person sounds fed-up with their situation on Earth and how tired he/she is on the planet. The pilot compares a magpie’s flight over gleaming diamonds as something, “dull” and not as impressive as the one of a star. I love the line where he/she says that they grab their “pen like a bread knife, as I write.” I get this image of a person sitting at a desk the night before writing in some sort of journal in tense anticipation as they glance at the clock for affirmation of the hour. The song has a repeating stuttering pulse of the keys of a keyboard playing throughout as the drums jog in place with it. It is mostly Reynold’s singing throughout, but the rest of the members kick in for its crescendo moment for the chorus and the instruments pick up the pace as well. As the song continues, the pilot, as someone who is about to head off into the exosphere, feels the need to disprove Jacques Rousseau, a great mind who wrote the Disclosure on the Sciences and Arts, which opposes sciences and arts because he believed sciences corrupted the virtue of people. At the same time, he/she claims to be going boldly, off on this journey- boldly as Marcus Cicero, who was bold in his own sense and accomplishments. Even if so this is in the back of that person’s mind, he/she is going to take off for a search of something better. It is a great song and has one of the most catchy choruses in the album and I am glad that you hear the rest of the members on this song joining in on the singing because they seem to be absent in that sense for most of the album. In” Ghandi Mate, Ghandi,” off the “Flash Flood of Colour”, album, there is a moment in the beginning where Reynolds loses his mind and goes overboard with his speech and the rest of the members come running in to calm him down and to stay in character; I love this part because it throws in a bit of their humor along with their purpose as musicians in the music they write- for they enlighten people with important situations and information without being too demanding and dull. In the Spark, you faintly hear them on the album and I always loved when Batten, Rolfe and Clewlow chimed in with some great notes or some snarky remark.

The next song became one of the singles off the Spark and I completely agree with it being one of the more popular tunes off the album. This next one is “Live Outside;” just like most Shikari songs, I usually am taken by surprise by the difference of sound. At first, I did not know what to think about, “Live Outside,” with its choir sound. I thought it was a pretty solid track, but as I kept going back for more, I realized I was under the Shikari spell. The chorus with the group chanting is addicting and the song sounds like this electronic, gloomy, sing-along. I enjoyed how the song kicks off with just the bare ingredients of the vocals and the synth, but then you hear a far off Reynold’s  yell “yeah,” then it rushes into infectious guitar notes with that hazy mist sound the synth brings in (it was the best description I could give) that pair up nicely with the vocal parts. It is a great song, but standing alone I did not feel its pull until you insert it with the rest of the album, I guess when I had it all together it benefitted with the album’s space/future theme well and I always liked their songs as standalones, but I felt this song needed the full scope of the rest of the album to be enjoyed at its full potential.

When I said that Enter Shikari’s music seeks to enlighten- “Take my Country Back,” is the piece of the album that does just that. This is the track that feels most familiar with me because it tackles an important situation that is going on in our world and that is division. I believe this song mostly highlights what is going on in the United Kingdom with Brexit. Brexit is the United Kingdom separating from the European Union. The European Union is the unification with the United Kingdom alongside many other countries. Brexit was a poll in which citizens could participate in the voting process, the majority voted to cede from the Union. Just like this, in North America, we have the United States trying to cutting off immigrants, specifically from South America and Central America with the election of Donald Trump. There are similarities in both situations. With the lines “don’t want to take my country back, I want to take my country forward,” is the band wanting to keep the unification instead of having a country act as if the land was a possession to keep for oneself than to share with others. Just like the artists in the band, people of that nation share the same sentiment. The song definitely has an apocalyptic tone to it, especially when the band chants in low voices the same repeating lines “don’t want to take my country back, I want to take my country forward,” and then in despair Reynold’s goes on to say lines comparing life to an eroding Cliffside. The song is an eye opener to important scenarios occurring today.

“Airfield,” is a song that cannot exist if one did not experience struggle and rises that have coincided with downfalls. The band rarely speak about their personal struggles, but this song breaks away from their most talked about subjects and puts into light one important topic in life and that is to keep holding on when things seem the most dire and when we are at our darkest moments. Reynolds’s voice guides us through the journey with misfortune along the way, but throws in lines like: “Even if there is no purpose to the things that you have gone through an ordeal can reveal an airfield.” This signifies that even though there is misfortune along the way, they have reason and give way to a different path for us to grow and take flight. He does a great job at capturing the hurt of such misfortunes with his voice that is low and sounds like it is breaking. It is one of the many quiet songs on the album, but it is definitely appreciated. I love the climb towards the songs climax. You have a heartbroken vocalist, but hopeful, chanting along with the rest of the mates “you’re down on your luck, you’re down, but that don’t mean you’re out now” with screeching instruments as if they were losing signal. It’s terrific, but even then after the storm, he throws in this verse,” when the wind's against you remember this insight, that's the optimal condition for birds to take flight. Now the wind’s against you don't give up the fight.

The rumbustious song you are going to get ahold of here is, “Rabble Rouser.” It opens up with one of their most foreboding and grim guitar riffs- yet it has a pretty slick groove to it. It connects to Reynolds throwing in lines like some intense slam poet. At times, the tones hiding behind the rest of the sounds come off like some creepy carnival funhouse, and I am definitely not complaining. Along with all of this, there is one of the most difficult lines to deliver! “I’m on stage with a face like a stacka-stacka screwdrivers.” I cannot for the love of god get that part without messing up. Funny story- I was riding my bicycle while listening to this song, and I kept repeating that line to myself. I looked up at a police officer that had a look of concern. I am sure he now thinks I am some maniac. That is how hard I have been practicing to master that line. I think it one of the most fun parts on this song. This is one of the singles on the album and I agree that it deserves a spot as one of the more liked tracks to be heard from this album of 11 tracks. It is one the louder and faster paced compared to the others.

When you thought the album would pick up the pace after the last track, then you get hit with “Shinrin-yoku.” Shinrin-yoku is a Japanese term that means taking in the forest atmosphere. Shinrin-yoku is for healing your mind and spirit in the quiet and gentleness of the forest. For the most part, I got a relaxing vibe from the song especially with the intro with the instrumentation, and you can hear faint sounds of what seems like water and the growing of the forest plants and trees. You really never know what you are going to get when you dive into one of Shikari’s albums and when I heard this track for the first time, I felt diversity compared to some of their older stuff- not because of the inclusion of the trumpet because looking back, the last song from them that included brass instrumentation was “Rat Race,” and that was on a different tempo than this song. They have a catalog of tunes that are fast paced with upset messages about climate change like “Arguing with Thermometers,” or even quiet ones that deal with segregation like “Gap in the Fence,” and I felt that it was a nice change to take a moment and appreciate what beauty the band was defending with those upset messages. In this song, you catch the moment of being in a quiet forest lost in thought and appreciating what calmness nature has to offer and for a moment just breathing is enough to be happy. It also has the idea of how microscopic we are in the scope of the universe and it is apparent with the line, “we are the dust on the stained glass windows trying to comprehend the cathedral,” and maybe our problems are not as bad as we perceive them. Easily one of my favorite numbers they play off the album, but it falls short to the next one.

“Shinrin-yoku,” quietly steps into the following on the album, “Undercover Agents.” I believe that off the entire album, this is the most relatable and probably the easiest to get into for its ridiculously engaging chorus and lyrics that will trigger you like some sleeper agent to sing along to every word spoken. I guess they should have called it sleeper agents instead because when Reynold’s exclaims, “tonight I’m howling with the wolves,” it triggers me with this excitement that had been welling up and just explodes as I follow along to singing every line that follows. The part when the groups in unison howl together is always just so fun to hear and to join in as well and it is one of those moments that I speak of that I cannot help but to do as well. It has that bursting moment of the chorus that some of the other songs on the album included. It has the steady tread through the opening, then boom, I’m out here howling with the wolves too. With the message of the song it is familiar to us as the audience because we too face struggles in our daily lives and build stress throughout our days of work and daily activities and it is awesome when you have that moment to finally relieve yourself of all that pressure and weight; This song is a great remedy to all of that and as a person who suffers from anxiety of different numerous calibers- this song really hits home and I can guarantee that you will be howling with the pack too by the time you finish this one.

“The Revolt of the Atoms,” gives off a grim intro that sounds like a corrupted taped recording and be understood as a warning; It transitions into this melodic tune filled with anxiety and uneasiness. I believe it perhaps gives another shot at Brexit for its division of the people living in the nation and how we as people have been acting towards each other. Just like, “take my country back,” this has an apocalyptic atmosphere to it. It comments on the elimination of human life and our civilizations being erased completely because of the revolt of the atom. Everything is composed of matter and matter is created because of atoms. When he refers to the atom revolting, I believe he us commenting on us people. Now, I may be looking way into all this, but some of the lines seem to bring up news from today. The verse” I found some Intel the atoms had conveyed, convened and connived to the sound of my alarm clock now that was a shock.” I think this is just a remark on the terrorist attacks from recent years and many have been from timed bombs. The line “atoms had conveyed, convened and connived,” maybe refers to the terrorists speaking in private and planning to take out their fellow people with the use of a timed bomb. Reynolds goes on to express himself being shocked by his alarm clock I think relates to this topic. Later on he comments on the element helium and gives it a human characteristic like his alarm clock. He goes on to talk about his conversation with helium; “Helium spoke first It cooled tempers and lifted spirits, but then it made a threat and that made me sweat!” Helium can be used for many different things, like: cooling magnets used for MRI machines, it can be used for leak detection tests for container, which would be exposed to areas of high pressure. It has many other uses, but once we extract helium, it is so light and because it is so light, it can pass through our stratosphere and leave our planet completely. We have no way of regaining helium and yet we use it for balloons that rid us of that precious element. So helium making the “threat,” that made him “sweat,” could be commenting on this. The reason I think that this is also rooted with Brexit is because of the lines “it’s the revolt of the atoms from London town to ancient Athens. Eliminate all traces of human life; they plan to wipe us out,” of course London and Athens are part of the European Union and with Brexit they will we divided and this, aforementioned earlier, was decided by the people who voted for this to happen, not all of course, but the majority. At the closing of the song, Reynolds keeps repeating in a delirious state that, “everything’s crumbling.” I think him doing this continues to further push that we are destroying ourselves.

The finale to, “the Spark” is “an Ode to Jigsaw Pieces.” This is a deeply personal song from front man Rou Reynolds and his experiences in dealing with the separation from of a loved one and the heartache that comes from one. Just like “Airfield,” he strews together lines that are poetic and heartfelt. In “Airfield,” it is an optimistic melody about not giving in and looking at positives that emerge even when in such times desolate of happiness; Although they are similar in that sense, Reynolds really opens up on what really is eating at his insides. He gives us a first-person view into his daily life that maybe some of us have experienced just the same. I love how personal it is and we never really get that view-point from the Enter Shikari songs; they tend to usually ignore these topics and they rather focus their energy on maybe the bigger picture with world news and grander topics- even though love is definitely a huge topic and that is an understatement. This is a beautiful ending to this quiet and tranquil album. Aside from the review, if Rou Reynolds happens to read this, I would like to say thank you for sharing your stories and giving us such great music. You told us even when the winds against us, no to give up. I hope you will always remember those winds will always be there when you look, just grab and take flight with us.

The Spark is nothing what I expected it to be and I am quite glad it turned out that way. I am always surprised by the new direction and sound of the Enter Shikari albums. It was and album filled in with a greater list of slower tracks and seemed a little too quiet at times and some member’s voices were not as present as previous albums. It is a personal EP that wears its heart on its sleeves and is insightful to topics occurring in the world today. 8.5/10

Favorite Aspects:

-Personal topics along

-Informative topics going on today like Brexit

-New sound; they always sound completely different

Least Favorite Aspects:

-Lack of inclusion from the other members in the vocal department

-Album feels a bit short

-Although I loved the tranquility in the album, it feels a bit slow paced

Side note: I do not own any of these tracks posted they belong to Enter Shikari, Ambush Reality and Hopeless Records. Thank you.

Next review: Final Fantasy X

[fakemusiccritic-blog]

Album Review

The Who, Who (deluxe) 2019

Fooled again! The only reason you know this is The Who is the sample and synth sounds that are exactly the same from the hits!

Track by track

- “It’s not new, not diverse, it won’t light up your parade, it’s just simple verse” ‘The music will fade’, sounds exactly the same as ‘We won’t get fooled again’ even the same rhyming patterns and sounds! It is terribly obvious that it’s an old man trying to fit in with today’s music, not succeeding.

- ‘Ball and chain’, I appreciate the nod to ‘Baba O’Riley’ intro, however there is a disappoint anti-climax as soon as the verse comes in.  

- ‘I don’t wanna get wise’, “those snotty young kids were a standing success”, this album is not standing up there! same sample as the one on Quadrophenia doesn’t work it’s trying to be too ballad-y then turns the tempo feel up with an awful synth sound. The contrasting drum sections just don’t work for me!

- ‘Detour’, lacks the authenticity of the original members, maybe if it were possible for them to have contributed it could’ve worked however the transitions between two different sections are not smooth and do not complement each other, sound like two separate songs. This really doesn’t sound like the classic Who sound that they’ve tried to emulate in the previous songs, is it too far from the sound that its wrong?

-‘Beads on one string’, the string samples and sounds over power the verses, makes it sound too overcrowded, too much going on at once ultimately making it difficult to understand  the message of the song. NME compares it to the “amorphous soft rock balladry Sting used to make in the 90’s”[1]. “This can’t go on forever, this war in a ring, gotta bring us together, like beads on one string”. Cheeky appearance from a sound that could be from Baba O’Riley, just to clarify to the audience that this is still The Who.

- ‘Hero ground zero’, intro sounded promising almost like Mod Father Paul Weller’s ‘Changing Man’, almost like it could reminiscent of the mod era, sadly turns into quite the generic pop song.

- ‘Street song’, almost a rip off of U2, pretty basic very nearly eighties electronica sound.

-‘I’ll be back’, a “plain awful vocodered rant”[2], Pete Townshend on lead vocals, slow and cliché, the style doesn’t seem to fit anywhere in the album with the other tracks, should be featured on the terrible solo albums they bring out when on hiatus from the band!

- ‘Break the news’ too much experimentation of genre, no real reminiscent of authentic sound other than the slight crunch guitar behind the chorus. Not all that bad!

- ‘Rockin in rage’, does not sound like a live band recording, more like a karaoke backing track you’ll get up and belt out after 10 pints to a room of 6 people (including the bar staff!). That being said the drumming style is probably the most relatable to Keith Moon out of all of the tracks!

- ‘She Rocked my world’, says it’s not a cliché “they seem that thy mean it, like some dumb cliché” but it is! And rhyming “do” with “true” come on guys! Perhaps a creepy tale of an awfully sleazy old guy reminiscing about bar staff being kind to him and him thinking more of it than just her job to be kind!

Deluxe tracks include

‘This gun will misfire’; ‘Got nothing to prove’, nod to the 60s roots has a reminiscent sound of ‘The Kids are Alright’, the classic 60s harmonious psychedelic folk quality, probably the best track as it has the feel of the original era, previously unreleased so probably is!: And ‘Danny and my ponies’, autotune is awfully awfully obvious! Or some other poor production method using some synth trying to be edgy.

Release

Released on CD, Vinyl and cassette. The artwork is tiled depictions of “cultural icons”[3]: the red London bus; baked beans; Chuck Berry; a pinball machine; ‘Face Dances’ cassette album cover; the mod/RAF target; ;detour, the bands name before the Who; Pete Townshend about to smash his guitar with the caption “this guitar has seconds to live”; Muhammad Ali; the union jack flag; ; a Lambretta, reminiscent of their success in the mod era and comic characters Batman and Robin,

Opinion

I appreciate how they have stayed relatively authentic to the Who sound, the synths used on the classics ‘Baba O’Riley’, the 60s harmonious era ‘The Kids are Alright’, however I feel that’s the only reason you’d recognise it as The Who rather than some randomer trying to make a new album and a comeback. It’s got what I like to call the denture sound. I just don’t feel it, it lacks authenticity and sounds likes it’s trying too hard to be modern. Q magazine describes this as a “vigorous, if patchy comeback”[4], I couldn’t agree more! Never mind a new album, where is the book?

[1] https://www.nme.com/reviews/album/the-who-who-review-13-years-since-their-last-album-this-stands-up-alongside-their-classics-2580985

[2] https://www.nme.com/reviews/album/the-who-who-review-13-years-since-their-last-album-this-stands-up-alongside-their-classics-2580985

[3] https://www.itsnicethat.com/news/peter-blake-the-who-graphic-design-130919

[4] https://www.metacritic.com/music/who/the-who/critic-reviews

[standuphippy]

February Favorites

Every December I have a ritual. First, I try to compile a list of records, movies, and shows I’ve enjoyed the year. I wait until the last minute and then struggle to get it posted before the first of the year. I dump something half-assed on New Year’s Eve, then sit back and cluck my tongue at anyone who posts a “Best of the Year” list after Jan. 1.

I always resolve to do something sooner (and better) so this is a first step in that direction. The world has changed since I started this, but fuck it, here’s what I enjoyed in February. Here’s a link to a playlist for the music: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/7ucvCNnCuT4ZZVCyz2ddKM

NEW MUSIC: 


Agnes Obel “Myopia” 
 Her fourth record of fine orchestral pop. 

 Arbor Labor Union “New Petal Instants” Four years ago I went to see them at the Bootleg and I’m pretty sure I was the only person in the audience who wasn’t in one of the opening bands. It was a great show. Southern fried guitars. I like Bo Orr’s yelp.

Califone “Echo Mine” Happy to finally get a new Califone record, though it’s a companion work to a dance piece and some tracks leave me wondering what I’m looking at. There are some great songs that anchor it as a whole. I love the sound of Tim Rutilli’s voice and guitar, and I think he’s a master of weaving abstract lyrics and melody in a way that makes his phrases land emotionally true.

Cold Beat “Mother” Synth pop that has the hooks.

Eyelids ”The Accidental Falls” Three years ago I visited a friend in Minneapolis. Woke up and made coffee and he put the “Or” record on the turntable, and Oh! that riff in “Slow it Goes”… a pretty great intro to this band. They’ve really put in a lot of work with collaborators recently, including an EP with John Cameron Mitchell. “The Accidental Falls” has lyrics furnished by poet Larry Beckett. (Related recommendation: Eyelids “Or”)

Frances Quinlan “Insight” 
 Hop Along started out as Frances Quinlan’s home recording project, then grew into a band so successful that she has to qualify her new record as a solo album. The distinction makes sense when you hear it, though, it’s pretty stripped down. I love her voice. (Related recommendation: Hop Along “Painted Shut”)

Greg Dulli “Random Desire” 
The Afghan Whigs are one of my all-time favorite bands. On his first “official” solo record, Dulli sounds energized and tries some interesting vocal tricks. 
(Related recommendation: The Afghan Whigs “Gentlemen” and “Black Love”)

Grimes “Miss Anthropocene” I like this record.

Heart Bones “Hot Dish” Sabrina Ellis and Har Mar Superstar are two of the best performers out there. They got together a few years go and toured playing songs from the Dirty Dancing Soundtrack; now they’ve got their first full length and it’s just as catchy and funny as I’d hoped.

The Innocence Mission “See You Tomorrow” 
I loved their first self-titled record back in 1989 and I’ll check out anything they release. Their arrangements are pretty spare these days but Karen Peris’ voice has always been the draw. 
(Related recommendation: The Innocence Mission “The Innocence Mission”)

The Men “Mercy”
 Over their career they’ve gone in a lot of musical directions and made several outstanding records. They’re incredible live but they haven’t been to Los Angeles in years.
(Related recommendations: The Men “Open Your Heart” and “Tomorrow Hits”)

POLIÇA “When We Stay Alive” 
This may be their best record yet.


Sarah Harmer “Are You Gone”
 Sarah Harmer played at Spaceland (now Satellite) in support of her excellent record “Oh Little Fire.” I’d had a long week and skipped it;  I’ve had to wait ten fucking years for a follow up record and tour. If Kathleen Edwards is the Zoë Records version of Lucinda Williams, Sarah Harmer is the label’s version of Shawn Colvin.

Soccer Mommy “color theory”
 Haven’t been much of a Soccer Mommy fan in the past but this record is one of my favorite records so far this year. Ride the mid-tempo wave.

Squirrel  Flower “I Was Born Swimming” Could easily sit on the shelf between Mitski and TORRES. It’s a great debut.

TORRES “Silver Tongue” 
I happened upon Pitchfork’s review of her debut back in 2012 and have been a fan ever since. Her debut is a classic to me. She signed to 4AD, put out two ambitious records and then got dropped. Now she’s on Merge and produced “Silver Tongue” herself. I think it’s her best since her debut. She’s fire live.
(Related recommendation:  TORRES “TORRES”)

OLD MUSIC (record store finds and new discoveries):

Dry Cleaning “Sweet Princess EP/ Boundary Food and Drink EP” 
I was listening to Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs in anticipation of their show here and when the record was over, Spotify played a Dry Cleaning track and I loved it. Both of these EPs are great, filled with spiky guitars and dry, spoken lyrics about the numb horror of modern life.

Guided By Voices “Live From Austin TX” 
Found this one at Soundsations. Double vinyl, recorded in 2004 before a hiatus. Sounds good. Lots of “Bee Thousand/ Alien Lanes” classics alongside tracks from “Half-Smiles of the Decomposed,” the record they were touring at the time.

Rosie Thomas “With Love” 
I liked Rosie Thomas’ Sub Pop releases, I didn’t know about this one but I found it at Amoeba. Happy to find out about it, it’s one of her best.

NEW MOVIES (theatrical):


Emma. 
It’s fun and it’s gorgeous. Every frame of the film is carefully considered and it shows. The performances are excellent and when the sparks start to fly it’s a thrill.


Beanpole 
It’s soul-crushing and gorgeous. The characters struggle to put their lives together in postwar Leningrad and find that any act of kindness or mercy can be manipulated or subverted. It’s not a cruel film, but it can be hard to watch. I’ve thought about it quite a bit since I watched it: about what writer/director Kantemi Balegov showed onscreen versus what he didn’t, how the characters’ histories are revealed, and about the performances that brought them to life. The film stayed with me, which is one of the highest compliments I can give. The trailer is a fine piece of work in and of itself.  

OLD MOVIES:



Ad Astra
 I don’t know how this got made and that’s not a slight but a registration of genuine bewilderment. The film is a juxtaposition of emotional emptiness and the void of the universe. An internal character study wrapped in first-rate sci-fi set pieces. I marveled at it on an XD screen last year and recently watched it with my wife. If anything, I wish it had leaned even harder into its art house impulses and cut the voice-over narration in half. 
 Doctor Sleep (Theatrical) 
I tried to see this in the theater but I couldn’t make it happen.  It wasn’t that my wife gave birth a week previous or that the film got middling aggregate reviews, as either of those factors by themselves would not have dissuaded me. I simply couldn’t get past the fact that I’d already wasted two and a half hours in the execrable mire that was IT: Part II two months beforehand and the experience left me gun-shy. Wish I’d checked it out on the big screen, looking forward to diving into the Director’s Cut.

The Gold Rush (1942 Version) I’d never seen this version of the Charlie Chaplin classic: it runs a few minutes shorter than the original and has voice-over narration. Started watching it with my daughter while we were home sick and realized that the sight of Big Jim, especially in a jittery frame rate, is pretty unsettling to a six year old.

Hacksaw Ridge Mel Gibson gets away with a lot of things, as a director it’s graphic violence. Andrew Garfield plays a conscientious objector who joins the army to be a medic and refuses to touch a weapon. The second half of the film is grueling but the WWII combat looks incredible. 

House by the Cemetery 
Your enjoyment of this movie will depend on your love for Italian horror cinema and all of its idiosyncrasies. The value is in the modes of death and the sound design. House by the Cemetery is not a great movie, but I love the scene where Bob is trying to get out of the basement. For a split second I felt genuine panic, as I realized that Fulci might be willing to take the events of the film further than I was willing to follow them.

Old Joy 
I saw Old Joy when it was originally released and I loved it. Two old friends at different turning points in their lives go on a camping trip. Kelly Reichardt’s made a lot of great films since then, but Old Joy has a special place in my heart because when I saw it I had just entered my 30’s and still had friends like Kurt. 


BOOKS:

Ad Nauseam by Michael Gingold It’s a collection of vintage newspaper ads for horror films from the 80’s. Reading it brought back a lot of memories. I admire the effort of saving these for so many years.

The Guardians by Sarah Manguso 

I picked up 300 Arguments a few years ago after the AV Club recommended it and read it on a flight to Chicago. It’s made up of 300 short passages, some only a sentence long. I admired the precision and thoughtfulness of those focused lines.

I sought out some of her other work and found her very relatable, in part because we’re the same age, suffered from similar medical conditions, and spent time in Iowa City.  I’ve read Ongoingness: The End of a Diary, and The Two Kinds of Decay.

The Guardians is a memoir about her close friend, written following his suicide by train.

Reading her books creates this expansive image of Manguso as a person, in that some of the events of the three books overlap. I realized that her reflections in The Guardians were those of the person who had also overcome the prolonged health issues described in The Two Kinds of Decay, and was writing about all of it in the diaries described in Ongoingness: The End of a Diary. They are all great reads. I’d start with 300 Arguments.

SHOWS:

Imperial Teen Zebulon 02/28/20 When I see Imperial Teen I think about all the other times that I’ve seen Imperial Teen. I think about all of those times in my life and the different highs and lows that the band has been through. All the different times that they seemed poised for great success that never materialized. Despite those disappointments, they still put out a record every few years and occasionally play a few shows. They have a deep catalog of excellent pop songs. It’s as great a pleasure to see them today as it was twenty years ago. 
 Califone The Hi Hat 02/29/20 I love Red Red Meat but I’ve never seen a great show by them. I like Califone and I’ve seen some good shows, but the last one I caught (2017) turned out to be a Tim Rutilli solo show and that’s not what I wanted. The show at The Hi Hat was the best Califone show I’ve ever seen. They sounded excellent and Rutilli seemed  enthusiastic. He kept thanking the audience for coming out on a Monday night (it was Saturday.) The set stretched close to two hours with no encore.

[sinceileftyoublog]

Live Picks: 6/15-6/17

Self Defense Family

BY JORDAN MAINZER

This weekend sees Taste of Randolph, an unexpectedly good booking at Winnetka Music Festival, and as usual, lots of good club and outdoor theater shows.

6/15: Bitchin Bajas, Hungry Brain

We’re big fans of local experimental heroes Bitchin Bajas here at SILY. They’ve given great, organ, synth, guitar, and woodwind-heavy sets at Pitchfork Music Festival and the MCA, and their most recent album Bajas Fresh was one of our favorites of last year. They’re on quite the streak, their self-titled record and collaboration with Bonnie “Prince” Billy preceding Bajas Fresh, cementing the band as one of the most forward-thinking in the country, let alone Chicago. They continue to do their thing at Hungry Brain tonight.

Local guitarist/synth master Sam Wagster opens.

6/15: Kendrick Lamar, SZA, ScHoolboyQ, & Ab-Soul, Hollywood Casino Ampitheatre

To Pimp a Butterfly. Untitled Unmastered. DAMN. Besides Young Thug, Pulitzer Prize winner Kendrick Lamar (ed. note: It feels so good to type that) is the only person to appear on all of SILY’s year-end lists. That says more about Lamar being prolific than anything else, not to take away from the quality of his art. In addition to being a master storyteller, he’s the best live performer in hip hop today. To see him alone is essential. To see him along with his fellow TDE label-mates is perhaps a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

SZA, one of the best breakouts of last year, occupied our #17 spot with CTRL. Contributor Lauren Lederman described it as “an album that explores the electricity, the beauty, the messiness, and the self-consciousness of present-day relationships” as well as “a close examination of modern sex and romance that doesn’t hold back.” Judging solely from her Grammy performance, she should have the vocal chops to bring a headline-worthy performance, permanent damage aside.

Blank Face LP, the fourth album from ScHoolboyQ, was his best. It didn’t have any obvious standouts like “Hands on the Wheel”, one of the best rap songs of the decade (though the Kanye West-featuring “That Part” comes close). But it was more cohesive than his previous records, and decidedly darker, going through his scars with less humor than before. He announced last year that he would release yet another album, which still doesn’t seem to be quite done. Apparently, he recorded around 50 songs for it. Hopefully, he’s whittling it down to the best, showing more curatorial restraint than the aforementioned previous “That Part” collaborator. 

I’ve always felt somewhat bad for Ab-Soul. The rapper’s breakout, 2012′s Control System, was sort of left in the TDE/Black Hippy dust when Lamar and ScHoolboyQ released bigger records (though I’ll take Control System over Habits & Contradictions any day). He’s followed it up with inferior albums that are still good but therefore finds himself billed 5th here. If you’re going to this, be sure to arrive early to catch this heady MC.

Rappers Jay Rock and Lance Skiiiwalker and singer SiR also open.

6/15: Brandi Carlile, Chicago Theatre

Alt-country folk rocker Brandi Carlile has been releasing great records since 2005, when she released her self-titled debut. 2007′s The Story had a title track anthem that found its way onto films and TV shows, as well as a low-key emotional centerpiece “Turpentine”. In 2009, she released the Americana-tinged Give Up The Ghost Americana-tinged and followed it up with the gospel-infused Bear Creek in 2012. Her last two, 2015′s The Firewatcher’s Daughter and 2018′s By The Way, I Forgive You were steps down as a whole but still had great songs, namely singles “Wherever Is Your Heart” and vocal powerhouse performance “The Joke”. While her set should be heavy on the new record, she’s an incredible talent, seemingly able to conjure the weariness that pervades her best songs on a dime when performing live.  

Americana duo The Secret Sisters open.

6/15: Low Cut Connie, Winnetka Music Festival

Low Cut Connie’s new album Dirty Pictures Pt. 2 is a lot like their other albums: retro and emotive, sometimes for the sake of it. But the live show of Adam Weiner and company continues to be the main draw for seeing them--including their plethora of classic covers. They play at 7:00 P.M. at the BMO Harris stage.

6/16: Asleep at the Wheel, Old Town School of Folk Music

Austin-via-Paw Paw country band Asleep at the Wheel combine traditional western swing with Texas country. Lately, they’re known for their tribute albums to Bob Willis and The Texas Playboys, the most recent record released in 2015. Not to say the band doesn’t have great original music--they’ve been releasing records since the early 70′s, and have about 30 to their name. Take a listen to “The Letter That Johnny Walker Read” and “Miles and Miles of Texas”. 

6/16: Alison Krauss, Ravinia

While her soundtrack performances and Grammy Award-winning collaboration with Robert Plant was what got her noticed beyond the oft-insular world of Americana, Alison Krauss is a great bluegrass singer and musician even when performing solo or with her band Union Station. While last year’s Windy City wasn’t necessarily up to snuff with her classics, it was still a solid entry in her ever-expanding catalog.

Australian guitarist Tommy Emmanuel opens.

6/16: Self Defense Family, Beat Kitchen

Self Defense Family is one of the more varied and ambitious bands to come out of this recent batch of emo bands. Their 2014 album Try Me was notable for half of its duration being due to a 40-minute interview with porn actress Angelique Bernstein, wherein she talks about the abuse she’s received over the years. (It was like the most interesting This American Life episode ever.) Later this month, the band will release Have You Considered Punk Music and have so far released the title track and "The Supremacy of Pure Artistic Feeling", a track that sees vocalist Patrick Kindlon reflect on the isolating nature of creativity and his decade-plus of music making. Both new tracks are typical of the band--wiry, emotional, and slow-burning.

Brooklyn experimental metal band Sannhet and local post-rockers RLYR open.

6/17: Robert Plant & The Sensational Space Shifters, Jay Pritzker Pavilion

We previewed Robert Plant & The Sensational Space Shifters at Riviera back in February. Here’s what we had to say about them then:

“At this point, pretty much anybody who vaguely pays attention to guitar music knows about Robert Plant’s full-fledged transition from classic rocker to old folk fogey–Raising Sand, his collaboration with bluegrass singer Alison Krauss, won them Album of the Year at the 2009 Grammy Awards. But lesser known and just as solid are Plant’s two albums with his new-ish band The Sensational Space Shifters, 2014′s Lullaby and… The Ceaseless Roar and last year’s Carry Fire, which allowed Plant to bend beyond the traditions of rock, bluegrass, or folk, incorporating elements of Arabic and North African influence into his arsenal. Luckily, however, for Zeppelin fans, Plant tends to mix beloved rock radio classics in with his newer material, overall making for a set that exudes old school songwriting, familiarity, and warmth whether you’ve heard the new songs or not.”

Chicago favorite Jon Langford opens.

6/15-6/17: Taste of Randolph

Avoid the bros and the overpriced food. Go for the music. Taste of Randolph has its best lineup in years. Headliners include guitarist/singer-songwriter Trevor Hall and goofy soul revivalist Mayer Hawthorne on Friday, Chicano Batman and soul singer Allen Stone on Saturday night, and The Devil Makes Three and Lukas Nelson & Promise of the Real on Sunday night (which seems odd considering how much overlap there probably is within their respective fan bases).

With last year’s Freedom Is Free, Chicano Batman found their deserved audience, playing at major music festivals and one late night TV. (It was our #41 album of last year.) There are synths, organ, and guitars aplenty, but nothing can surpass the Latin rhythms and enthusiasm of front-man Bardo Martinez. They’ll make Randolph Street the place to be for the first time in a long time on Saturday night.

When we previewed their Concord Music Hall show in January, we lamented the lack of an original material Devil Makes Three album in years. Thankfully, they’ve now announced Chains Are Broken and have debuted the upbeat, funky “Paint My Face”, which they’ll play among I’m A Stranger Here and Redemption & Ruin favorites.

Forget their film soundtracks with Neil Young--it’s Promise of the Real’s self-titled album with Lukas Nelson (Willie’s son) last year that was their best. They should play lots of that album on Sunday night, though Nelson did co-produce Bradley Cooper’s A Star Is Born remake (and play his backing band). Maybe they’ll throw off the foodie crowd with some musical numbers. (I doubt it.)

Everything Everything also play Sunday. While we found last year’s A Fever Dream more smart than enjoyable, it’ll be thrilling to hear live performances of the title track and “Night of the Long Knives”. The band also released an EP earlier this year, including songs like the skittering, catchy, and yes, overcooked “Breadwinner” and the subtle, soft, chugging ballad “The Marina”.