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Streamnotes: January 27, 2025Most of these are short notes/reviews based on streaming records from Napster (formerly Rhapsody; other sources are noted in brackets). They are snap judgments, usually based on one or two plays, accumulated since my last post along these lines, back on December 31. Past reviews and more information are available here (24416+ records). Recent Releases
2nd Grade: Scheduled Explosions (2024, Double Double Whammy): Power pop band from Philadelphia, fourth album since 2018. B+(*) [sp] 070 Shake: Petrichor (2024, GOOD Music/Def Jam): Rapper-singer Danielle Balbuena, third album since 2020. B+(**) [sp] Amy Allen: Amy Allen (2024, AWAL): First album as singer, has a considerable reputation as a songwriter working with pop stars like Sabrina Carpenter, Olivia Rodrigo, Halsey, Justin Timberlake. A curious lack of reviews or interest in this, as it actually sounds pretty good. B+(***) [sp] Luther Allison: I Owe It All to You (2023 [2024], Posi-Tone): I did a double take when I saw this name show up on a debut ballot, flashing immediately to the bluesman (1937-97) with the same name. This one's a young pianist, first album as leader after several side credits on/around his label. Trio with Boris Kozlov (bass) and Zach Adleman (drums). B+(**) [sp] Arild Andersen/Daniel Sommer/Rob Luft: As Time Passes (2023 [2024], April): Norwegian bass legend gets top billing for the first chapter in the Danish drummer's "Nordic Trilogy, this trio also featuring Luft's guitar. B+(***) [sp] Armbruster: Can I Sit Here (2024, Dear Life): Took a while to map the mononym to one of the dozen-plus Armbrusters in Discogs, but first name seems to be Connor, a composer and violinist from Troy, NY, with one previous album, Masses (2022). Mostly drone, solemn at first, then mellows out, for some stretches may even be pretty. B+(***) [sp] Avalanche Kaito: Talitakum (2024, Glitterbeat): Kaito Winse, from Burkina Faso, working with Belgian duo Le Jour du Seigneur (Benjamin Chaval and Nicolas Gitto), second album. The African component heats up the frenzied electronic beats and noise. B+(***) [sp] Ab Baars/Joost Buis/Berlinde Deman: Cecil's Dance (2023 [2024], Wig): Dutch free jazz trio, with clarinet/shakuhachi, trombone, and tuba/serpent. B+(*) [sp] Steve Baczkowski: Cheap Fabric (2022 [2024], Relative Pitch): Saxophonist, from Buffalo, has a couple dozen albums since 2005, plays solo here, baritone and tenor, plus "homemade winds" on two tracks. This is engaging, but naturally within the limits of the format. B+(**) [sp] Kelsea Ballerini: Patterns (2024, Black River): Country pop singer-songwriter, from Knoxville, fifth album since 2015, credits Taylor Swift's debut with introducing her to country music. B+(*) [sp] Bashy: Being Poor Is Expensive (2024, Bish Bash Bosh): British rapper Ashley Thomas, mixtapes go back to 2004 but this is his first since 2011 (or 2009), has enjoyed some success acting since then. I haven't heard the early mixtapes, but as a comeback he has much to say. Some very pointed songs here, notably "How Black Men Lose Their Smile." In Linton Kwesi Johnson's neighborhood. A- [sp] BkTherula: LVL5 P2 (2024, Warner): Atlanta rapper Brooklyn Rodriguez, studio album following her LVL5 P1 mixtape. B+(**) [sp] Blood Incantation: Absolute Elsewhere (2024, Century Media): "Progressive death metal band" from Denver, formed 2011, fourth album since 2016, only listening to it because it's the top-rated so-far unheard album (at least in my EOY Aggregate, although two more metal bands, Knocked Loose and Chat Pile, are close behind). The subterranean vocals and speed drumming are defining points of metal, the Pink Floyd nods less so, none of which bothers (or inspires) me. B+(*) [sp] Naima Bock: Below a Massive Dark Land (2024, Sub Pop): British singer-songwriter, father Brazilian, formerly bassist in the band Goat Girl, second album, leans to folk. B [sp] John Butcher + 13: Fluid Fixations (2021 [2024], Weight of Wax): British avant-saxophonist, started recording around 1985, very prolific -- Discogs credits him with 149 albums, among 253 performance credits. I've only lightly sampled him -- this is my 19th album under his name, and the only one I've listened to more than twice -- but my impression is that most are small improv groups where he gets a chance to wail. This is something else, a composed piece "with a lot of subtext," written for "14 highly individual players into a framework built from instructions that direct ever-shifting groupings, materials and relationships," which is to say that, like Godot, we spend a lot of time waiting for things to happen that turn out not to be the point. His sax contribution is minor, but ultimately decisive. A- [dl] Camila Cabello: C,XOXO (2024, Geffen/Interscope): Cuban-born pop singer, moved at 6 via Mexico to Miami, member of the teen vocal group Fifth Harmony, fourth album on her own. B+(*) [sp] Caribou: Honey (2024, Merge/City Slang): Canadian electropop producer Dan Snaith, sixth studio album under this alias (also has earlier albums as Manitoba, and others as Daphni). Light and sprightly. B+(**) [sp] Hayes Carll/Band of Heathens: Hayes & the Heathens (2024, BOH): Senior partner here is probably the Austin-based band -- their label, Discogs lists 19 albums since 2006, but at least half of those were live shots, including their first two -- but while they are probably much more famous, I've passed until now. Carll, on the other hand, won me over with 2005's Little Rock, even before 2008's Trouble in Mind breakthrough. He gives them a first-rate songwriter and a distinctive voice -- needs you notice when they give him a chance, which isn't often enough. B+(***) [sp] Cavalier & Child Actor: Cine (2024, Backwoodz Studioz): Rapper, albums since 2014, Different Type Time got some notice earlier in 2024, this with producer Child Actor, who has several other credits (back to 2012). B+(**) [sp] Caxtrinho: Queda Livre (2024, QTV): Brazilian singer Paulo Vitor Castro, "offers deconstructed Bossa Nova tunes," seems to be his first album. First pass suggests it's too convoluted for me, but so was Tom Zé. B+(***) [bc] Brian Charette: You Don't Know Jack! (2024, Cellar Music): Organ player, started recording c. 2008, seemed like he had some unconventional ideas at the time, but the more he produces, the more he slips back into the tradition. Or maybe it's just producer Corey Weeds who indulges his fancy for Jack McDuff -- their previous album together was called Jackpot. Weeds plays tenor sax here, with Dave Sikula (guitar) and John Lee (drums). B+(**) [sp] Chat Pile: Cool World (2024, The Flenser): "Sludge metal" band from Oklahoma, number 3 on my EOY Metal charts, second album, a rare metal band where I've heard a previous album. I can't evaluate this as metal, but at low volume this has a certain abstract-clunky appeal. B+(**) [sp] Mahmoud Chouki: Caravan: From Marrakech to New Orleans (2024, Gallatin Street): From Morocco, plays oud, moved to New Orleans, where his French made some connections, and he's had no problem lining up horns and rhythm, and a couple nice vocal turns (one probably Chouki, others I'm not so sure of). B+(**) [sp] Cigarettes After Sex: X's (2024, Partisan): American dream pop band, from Texas, singer-songwriter is Greg Gonzalez, also plays guitar, third album, I particularly liked their first album. This is very laid back, the songs mere whispers, just enough to draw you in. B+(***) [sp] Ed Clute: Shadows on the Moon (2024, Rivermont): Stride pianist, b. 1943, blind, has one previous album as far as I can tell (from 2017), solo, runs quickly through 27 songs dating from 1927-41 (64:40). B+(**) [sp] Anat Cohen: Quartetinho: Bloom (2024, Anzic): The New York-based clarinetist's Brazil-oriented "little quartet" -- Vitor Gonçalves (piano/accordion), Tal Mashiach (bass, guitar), and James Shipp (vibes/marimba/percussion) -- return for a second album, a light and but not quite frothy delight. B+(***) [sp] Avishai Cohen: Bright Light (2024, Naďve): Israeli bassist, not Anat Cohen's brother, couple dozen albums since 1998, when he was living in New York and playing with Chick Corea. He moved back to Israel in 2008, and is presumably still there -- something I don't want to think about. I can comment on the music, which opens with eight nicely paced and toned originals, and closes with three covers: a Liszt piece I didn't really notice, and takes of "Summertime" and "Polka Dots and Moonbeams" that I really loved (the former with his own vocal, the latter with a lovely sax solo). [Note: Discogs and other sources read the title as one word, but cover shows it split over two lines witout hyphen, so I'm reading it as two words.] B+(**) [sp] Emmet Cohen: Vibe Provider (2024, Mack Avenue): Pianist, born in Miami, grew up in New Jersey, albums since 2011 include five Legacy Masters Series volumes -- I especially like the one with Houston Person, but then I would. Five originals, four covers, mostly trio but three tracks pick up some horns, no vibraphone in case you're wondering. B+(**) [sp] Denzel Curry: King of the Mischievous South Vol. 2 (2024, PH/Loma Vista/Concord): Rapper, from Florida, Wikipedia divides his output as: studio albums (5 since 2013), collaborative albums (2, with Kenny Beats), EPs (4), and mixtapes (7 since 2011, including this one and its predecessor, a "Underground Tape 1996" released in 2012). Trap beats, seems small but tight. [PS: Later reissued + 5 tracks as King of the Mischievous South.] B+(**) [sp] Karl D'Silva: Love Is a Flame in the Dark (2024, Night School): British singer-songwriter, has "two decades playing saxophone with the esoteric and experimental likes of Thurston Moore and Ex-Easter Island Head," produces a complex, polished first pop opera as his album. B+(*) [sp] Tomasz Dąbrowski & the Individual Beings: Better (2023 [2024], April): Polish trumpet player, based in Denmark, albums since 2012, second group album, a septet with two saxophones, piano/synthesizer, bass, and two drummers. B+(**) [sp] Daisy Moon: System Creak (2024, Peach Discs, EP): Electronica producer/DJ from Bristol, has a couple EPs since 2019, this one 4 tracks, 25:08, nice, tight rhythm tracks. B+(***) [sp] Dar Disku: Dar Disku (2024, Soundway): UK-based duo, Mazen AlMaskati and Vish Mhatre, originally from Bahrain, first album, draw on a range of Arabic pop and disco sounds. B+(*) [sp] Caroline Davis and Wendy Eisenberg: Accept When (2023 [2024], Astral Spirits): Alto sax and guitar duo, both with voice credits (although more likely Eisenberg), Davis also for synths, plus Greg Saunier also played some drums. B+(*) [sp] Kim Deal: Nobody Loves You More (2024, 4AD): Played bass and sometimes sang in Pixies (1987-91), led the Breeders from 1990 until whenever, with the Amps as a 1995 side-project. Released some solo singles 2012-14, but no full album until this one, which by FDJCP rules makes this her debut. It's not a very imposing one, but that seems part of the point, but there is something of a signature sound. B+(**) [sp] Doris: Ultimate Love Songs Collection (2024, Janine): New Jersey rapper Frank Dorrey, nothing on Discogs or Wikipedia, but RYM credits him with a mixtape, 7 EPs, 15 singles, and this 50-track compilation (48:51) of lo-fi fragments, which got a rave review on Pitchfork and very little else. B+(*) [sp] Dubbeltrion: Bringing Scandi-Baltic Powerhousejazz to the People (2024, Sonic Transmissions): First album from a sextet -- one could say "double trio," as there are two each at saxophone, bass, and drums -- that hails from Denmark, Sweden, and Estonia. I'm not sure they count as "powerhouse" in a region that's produced Atomic and The Thing, but their populist instincts are sound. B+(**) [sp] Kurt Elling/Sullivan Fortner: Wildflowers Vol. 1 (2024, Edition): Jazz singer, from Chicago, recorded for Blue Note 1995-2003, showing off remarkable technical skills which for most established him as the top male jazz vocalist of his generation. Even when he dazzled me, I never liked his stuff, and he's showing signs of slowing down and cracking up. He has a good pianist here, and Cécile McLorin Salvant joins in on "A Wish (Valentine)," which is scant improvement. 6 tracks, 32:02. B- [sp] Kurt Elling: Wildflowers Vol. 2 (2024, Edition): Recorded less than a month after Vol. 1, with new pianist Joey Calderazzo, and Ingrid Jensen (trumpet) the guest for one song. Adds up to 5 tracks, 28:14. C [bc] Fake Fruit: Mucho Mistrust (2024, Carpark): Oakland group, second album, Hannah D'Amato the singer (but not the only one), the songs jointly credited. Post-punk, but so were the B-52s, which they remind me of. A- [sp] Father John Misty: Mashashmashana (2024, Sub Pop/Bella Union): Singer-songwriter Josh Tillman, recorded as J. Tillman 2003-10, before adopting this name in 2012, had his commercial/critical breakthrough with his 2014 album, returning here for his 6th FJM album. Seems like this one may have more interest than most, but not reliably so. B+(*) [sp] Fievel Is Glauque: Rong Weicknes (2024, Fat Possum): Jazzy pop duo of multi-instrumentalist Zach Phillips (New York) and singer Ma Clément (Brussels), third album, recorded "in triplicate" then "subtractively edited," giving it a slippery sound that rarely sticks. B+(*) [sp] The Flowers of Indulgence: Dylan's Lost Songs, Vol. 1 (2024, Bothy Studio): Twelve songs that sound like they could have been Dylan throwaways, recorded in Scotland by a group reported to consist of: Don Khan (lead vocals/guitar), Tiny Montgomery (lead vocals/bass/guitars), Silly Nellie (guitars), Skinny Moo (piano/organ), T-Bone Frank (drums/persussion) and the Rose Maries (backing vocals). Not obviously a spoof, or important enough to take seriously, but entertaining as trivia. B+(**) [sp] Michael Foster/Ben Bennett/Jacob Wick: Carne Vale (2024, Relative Pitch): Sax/percussion/trumpet trio, offering abstracts of intermittent interest. B+(*) [sp] Joel Frahm Trio: Lumination (2023 [2024], Anzic): Mainstream tenor saxophonist from Wisconsin, twenty or so albums since 1999, plus a lot of notable side work. Down to basics here in a trio with Dan Loomis (bass) and Ernesto Cervini (drums), which he handles with characteristic aplomb. B+(***) [sp] Joel Futterman: Forever (2022 [2024], Mahakala Music): Avant-pianist, from Chicago, many albums since 1979. This one is solo, a bit too deep in its own shell for me to unpack. B+(*) [bc] Sally Gates/Steve Hirsh/Daniel Carter: Phosphene (2024, Mahakala Music): Trio of guitar, drums, and whatever Carter feels like playing ("saxophones, flute, trumpet"). Gates was one of the guitarists on Elliott Sharp's Ere Guitar, and has several projects with Trevor Dunn. B+(***) [bc] Girl Scout: Headache (2024, Human Garbage, EP): Alt-pop band from Sweden, Evelina Arvidsson Eklind the singer (and bassist), debut album 2023, back with a 5-track, 17:47 EP. B+(*) [sp] Godspeed You! Black Emperor: No Title as of 13 February 2024 28,340 Dead (2024, Constellation): Canadian post-rock band, debut 1997, broke up 2003 but regrouped 2010, presents as a collective but Efrim Menuck (guitars, tape loops) has been a constant, along with Mauro Pezzente (bass guitar). Eighth album, the obvious meaning of the title only just dawned on me, although I now see a 2002 note accusing Ariel Sharon of "provoking another Intifada." Politics are integral to this group, but you rarely hear it coming. B+(***) [sp] Dennis Gonzalez Legacy Band: Live at the Texas Theatre (2024, Astral Spirits): Tribute to the late avant-trumpeter, with two of his sons (Aaron on bass and Stefan on drums), playing four of his pieces, with Rob Mazurek and Jawwaad Taylor playing trumpet, Danny Kaims and Joshua Miller sax, Gaika James trombone, and Drew Phillips bass, with Lily Taylor stepping up for "Song for a Singer." A- [sp] Charles Goold: Triptych Lespri (2023 [2024], La Reserve): Drummer, from New York, son of saxophonist Ned Goold, mother from Haiti (which figures significantly here), second album, built around a trio with Davis Whitfield (piano) and Mark Lewandowski (bass), supplemented by vibes (Juan Diego Villalobos) and "my fellow colleagues of the Haitian diaspora," including trumpet and "traditional Haitian percussion." B+(**) [sp] Gouge Away: Deep Sage (2024, Deathwish): Hardcore (post-hardcore?) punk (post-punk?) band from Florida, named for a Pixies song, third album since 2016, Christina Michelle the singer, not a band I would normally pick up on but this was Dan Weiss's number 2 album (after Sabrina Carpenter). B+(**) [sp] Devin Gray: Melt All of the Guns II (2024, Rataplan): Drummer, has a fair amount of work since 2005 (notably with Ellery Eskelin), did an EP in 2021 called Melt All the Guns, a trio with trumpet and piano, with Ralph Alessi returning here, along with new pianist Myslaure Augustin. I don't doubt the "politically leaning songs," but they're no more obvious than any other free jazz venture. B+(**) [bc] Geordie Greep: The New Sound (2024, Rough Trade): Guitarist-singer for the English group Black Midi, first solo album with group "on indefinite hiatus." Shifts focus from sound to songs, with mixed results, as he has some craft, but is also given to overkill. B [sp] David Hazeltine: Ballads and Blues Volume 1 (2023 [2024], Cellar Music, EP): Mainstream pianist, has a long and distinguished career, led his trio of Neal Miner (bass) and Peter Van Nostrand (drums) into a NYC studio and recorded an album's worth of material, but the label opted to split it into two digital EPs, this one 4 track, 23:32. B+(*) [bc] David Hazeltine: Ballads and Blues Volume 2 (2023 [2024], Cellar Music, EP): Four more tracks, 23:23. B+(*) [bc] Heavee: Unleash (2024, Hyperdub): Chicago juke/footwork DJ/producer Darryl Bunch, singles from 2013, has another album from 2018, this his second. B [sp] High Vis: Guided Tour (2024, Dais): English hardcore post-punk group, third album, Graham Sayle singer, seems pretty conventionally solid. B+(*) [sp] Hubbub: abb abb abb (2019 [2024], Relative Pitch): French group, sixth album since 2001, name I recognize is Bertrand Denzler (tenor sax), but I may have run across some others: Jean-Luc Guionnet (alto sax), Frédéric Blondy (piano), Jean-Sébastian Mariage (electric guitar), and Edward Perraud (percussion). Mostly slow, rather dark atmospherics. B+(**) [sp] Christine Jensen Jazz Orchestra: Harbour (2022 [2024], Justin Time): Canadian soprano saxophonist, 11th album since 2000, 3rd with this big band, younger sister of trumpeter Ingrid Jensen, who gets a "featuring" credit here, front and center in a back cover picture of 19 musicians. B+(*) [sp] Judas Priest: Invincible Shield (2024, Columbia): British heavy metal band, one I've never had the slightest interest in, their debut (Rocka Rolla) due for a 50th anniversary retread, Wikipedia counts this as their 19th studio album, first to be graced with a grade in my database. Better than I expected, reminds me that I wasn't always a metalphobe, although what few lyrics I caught did nothing to diminish my sense that they were always full of shit. B+(*) [sp] Ryan Keberle: Bright Moments (2023 [2024], Posi-Tone): [Review lost?] B+(**) [sp] Kira Kira: Kira Kira Live (2024, Alister Spence Music): Quartet of Natsuki Tamura (trumpet), Satoko Fujii (piano), Alister Spence (keyboards), and drums, recorded the excellent Bright Force in 2017, has a new drummer (Tatsuya Yoshida) for this live return. B+(**) [bc] Knocked Loose: You Won't Go Before You're Supposed To (2024, Pure Noise): Another top unheard album from my EOY Aggregate list, metalcore and/or hardcore punk, singer Bryan Garris in intense screamo mode, the guitars and rhythm extra crunchy -- traits that seem to impress metal friends but are still tolerable, if not all that comprehensible, to those of us who used to dig punk and early hardcore. Best of all, the 10 songs are done in 27:28. B [sp] Lambrini Girls: Who Let the Dogs Out (2025, City Slang): British punk duo of Phoebe Lunny (guitar/vocals) and Lilly Macieira-Bosgelmez (bass guitar), plus drums, first album after several singles and an EP, 11 songs (29:25). B+(*) [sp] Latto: Sugar Honey Iced Tea (2024, Streamcut/RCA): Atlanta rapper Alyssa Stephens, third studio album, after three mixtapes). Runs long, but pretty consistent. B+(***) [sp] Mike LeDonne Groover Quartet + Gospel Choir: Wonderful! (2023 [2024], Cellar Music Group): Pianist elsewhere, but he plays organ in this group, with Peter Bernstein (guitar) and Joe Farnsworth (drums) securing the group name, and Eric Alexander (tenor sax) up front. I almost balked at the gospel choir, but think of them as harmony for the sax leads. Still, it works best when the choir steps back, and even then it only goes so far. I concede that they can groove and grind "Bridge Over Troubled Water," but that doesn't mean I want to hear it again. B- [sp] Jihye Lee Orchestra: Infinite Connections (2023 [2024], Motéma Music): Korean composer/conductor, based in New York, third album, co-produced by Darcy James Argue, conventional 17-piece big band, plus guest Ambrose Akinmusire (trumpet) on two tracks. B+(*) [sp] Peggy Lee/Julien Wilson/Theo Carbo/Dylan van der Schyff: Open Threat (2024, Earshift Music): Advertised as a Melbourne-based group, although I recognize the cellist (Lee) and drummer (van der Schyff) as major figures from the Vancouver scene. The others are presumably Australians, playing tenor sax and guitar. B+(***) [bc] The Lemon Twigs: A Dream Is All We Know (2024, Captured Tracks): Rock band from Hicksville, Long Island, built around brothers Brian and Michael D'Addario, sixth album since 2015, reached the top unheard spot in my EOY aggregate: not my usual anti-metal bias this time, but because I remembered their 2023 album as one of the year's most atrocious. I was surprised to find the opening cut ("My Golden Years") agreeably jaunty, and I don't mind the Beach Boys rip ("In the Eyes of the Girl"), but the harmony on the ambitious title track turned cloying, while elsewhere they turned saccharine. B- [sp] Jeffrey Lewis: Ghosterbusters (2024, self-released, EP): Antifolk singer-songwriter, started as a comic book writer, output has been very erratic of late, his Bandcamp lately focusing on cassette tape collections -- limited songs available there, and none on streaming -- while this five-track, 26:36 EP can be streamed but has no documentation I can find. Title song is a perturbation of the movie jingle, followed by a history of NY punk rock (1950-75) which roots it in antifolk ethos & medley. Other three songs are less developed. One can hardly take much comfort from an "It Could Be Worse" now that it is. B+(**) [sp] Loidis: One Day (2024, Incienso): New alias for Brian Leeds, a deep house producer from Kansas, who's used a bunch of them, most notably Huerco S. A nice, steady simmer of beats. B+(***) [sp] Lollise: I Hit the Water (2024, Switch Hit): A "musician, visual artist and fashion designer from Botswana, currently living in NYC," last name Mbi, first album. B+(**) [sp] Lionel Loueke & Dave Holland: United (2023 [2024], Edition): Guitarist-singer from Benin, debut 1997, perhaps best known for his 2008-15 series on Blue Note, moved to this label in 2020, as had the English bassist in 2019. Just the two of them, playing Loueke's songs, the minimal support rendering them lighter than ever. B+(**) [sp] Low Cut Connie: Connie Live (2024, Contender): Indie band from Philadelphia, Adam Weiner the singer-songwriter, also plays a mean piano. I liked their first couple albums lots, but lost interest with Dirty Pictures and never got into their much touted pandemic covers (Tough Cookies). By all accounts, still an exciting live band, although making a live album is a somewhat different proposition. B+(*) [sp] Lyrics Born: That 1 Tyme in the Studio: Acoustic Selections (2019 [2024], Mobile Home): Rapper Tom Shimura, started in Latyrx, solo albums from 2003, announced that Goodbye Sticky Rice would be his last, but slipped this one out a few months earlier. A couple songs I recognize as remakes from elsewhere, and it's possible they all are. B+(**) [sp] Kira Martini: Open Wide (2024, Storyville): Danish jazz singer-songwriter, several albums since 2012. B+(*) [sp] The Mavericks: Moon & Stars (2024, Mono Mundo): Country-rock band from Florida, singer is Raul Malo and lead guitarist is Eddie Perez, had a run from 1990-2003, then regrouped in 2012, often have a Tex-Mex tinge that can remind one of Marty Robbins (for better or worse). That seems especially pronounced here (for better and worse -- sometimes it's hard to tell, as even the obviously bad seems to be growing on me). B+(***) [sp] Michael Mayo: Fly (2024, Mack Avenue): Singer. I filed his first album under rock -- I guess I was thinking neo-soul, but this is being taken as jazz, which he seems to have a degree in. Looks like he wrote 5 (of 11) songs here, and arranged the others, including jazz standards like "Four" and "Speak No Evil." Backed by Shai Maestro (keyboards), Linda May Han Oh (bass), and Nate Smith (drums), with Scott Mayo on sax for a couple cuts. B+(*) [sp] Microplastique: Blare Blow Bloom! (2024, Irritable Mystic): [Review lost?] B+(**) [bc] Grey McMurray: Crying at Breakfast (2024, Out of Your Head, EP): [Review lost?] B- [sp] Ben Monder: Planetarium (2020-23 [2024], Sunnyside): Guitarist, debut album 1995, lots of side-credits, this is "a prodigious piece of art," sprawling over 3-CD (172 minutes), backed by bass and drums, vocalist Theo Bleckman and/or three other vocalists. The vocals aren't much more than color, but I can't say as I care for them. The guitar is fine, but hardly justifies the length. B [sp] Mount Eerie: Night Palace (2024, PW Elverum & Sun): Singer-songwriter Phil Elverum, started recording as the Microphones, titled an album Mount Eerie and decided to go with that. Eleventh album since 2005, long at 80:47. I know some serious listeners who have been impressed by his records, but I find them impossible to follow, so I look for sonic hints. I hear some, which makes me suspect there's more to this. B+(*) [sp] Alison Moyet: Key (2024, Cooking Vinyl): English pop singer-songwriter, started in early-1980s group Yazoo (1982, shortened to Yaz in US), 1984 debut Alf was a bit UK hit (45 in US), with this career recap -- new takes of old songs -- her 10th. I recognize the name, but missed the albums, so the songs are all new to me. B+(*) [sp] Mustafa: Dunya (2024, Jagjaguwar): From Toronto, parents from Sudan, Mustafa Ahmed, earlier went as Mustafa the Poet, was a member of Halal Gang. First studio album. Slow, soft, soulful. B+(*) [sp] Wolfgang Muthspiel: Etudes/Quietudes (2024, Clap Your Hands): [Review lost?] B+(**) [sp] Camila Nebbia & Angelica Sanchez: In Another Land, Another Dream (2023 [2024], Relative Pitch): Tenor sax and piano duo, the former from Argentina, the latter from Phoenix, recorded live in New York. This strikes a very nice balance, one in constant motion and fascination. A- [sp] Camila Nebbia/Leo Genovese/Alfred Vogel: Eyes to the Sun (2023 [2024], Boomslang): Tenor saxophonist from Argentina, American pianist, Austrian drummer, recorded in Buenos Aires. [bc] Emily Nenni: Drive & Cry (2024, New West): California-born, Nashville-based country singer-songwriter, third album. B+(**) [sp] New Orleans Klezmer All Stars: Tipish (2024, self-released): Discogs lists six albums for them 1995-2008, plus this revival. Credits are skimpy, but Ben Ellman (tenor sax), Jonathan Freilich (guitar), and Glenn Hartman (accordion) go back at least to 1998. B+(***) [sp] Molly Nilsson: Un-American Activities (2024, Night School/Dark Skies Association): Swedish musician/producer, based in Berlin, unexamined early work (nine albums 2008-22) all have black/white abstract covers, this one breaks out a color with a blindfolded portrait pic, with a batch of songs, most (all?) with political themes, which were "written and recorded entirely on location in California in the former home of writer, poet, and early opponent of the National Socialist regime in 1930s Germany, Lion Feuchtwanger and his wife Marta." B+(**) [sp] Nines: Quit While You're Ahead (2024, Zino): British rapper Courtney Freckleton, 34, sixth and reportedly his last album (whence the title), all top-five in UK but nowhere else (only other chart Wikipedia provides is IRE). B+(*) [sp] Orchestre Tout Puissant Marcel Duchamp: Ventre Unique (2024, Bongo Joe/Red Wig): Swiss group, billed as "a dream amalgam of folk, krautrock, post-punk and African rhythms," sixth album since 2007. B+(**) [sp] Bill Orcutt: How to Rescue Things (2024, Palilalia): Guitarist, filed him under rock in the 1990s but lately he's been showing up on jazz lists, like his Music for Four Guitars and, especially, Four Guitars Live. Tries something else here, the hype talking about saccharine strings (and Charlie Parker), but more conspicuous, at least at first, is voice(s). While the guitar is the antidote, it isn't always up to the task. Short (29:58). B [sp] Ivo Perelman/Iva Bittová/Michael Bisio: Vox Popoli Vox Dei (2017 [2024], Mahakala Music): Tenor sax, violin, and bass trio play free jazz with folk roots, with a major vocal contribution by Bittová, which I found annoying at first but the closer I listened, the more intriguing it got. B+(**) [bc] Danilo Pérez & Bohlusän Big Band: Lumen (2021 [2024], Prophone): Pianist from Panama, was a Dizzy Gillespie protégé, emerging as a significant performer in the 1990s. Teems up here with a Swedish big band -- not the ideal combination, but they're game. B+(*) [sp] Peverelist: Pulse EP (2023, Livity Sound, EP): British electronics producer Tom Ford, from Bristol, couple albums, many singles/EPs since 2006, many released as Pev. This kicks off a series of four EPs with 4 tracks, 28:50, of neatly manicured beats. B+(***) [sp] Peverlist: Pulse Modulation (2023, Livity Sound, EP): Four more tracks, "Pulse V" through "Pulse VIII," 25:02, seems unlikely that I will be able to make discerning judgments among this small but delightful bag of tricks (although I did particularly enjoy "VI"). B+(***) [sp] Peverelist: Pulse Phase (2024, Livity Sound, EP): Third installment, "Pulse" titles "IX" through "XII" (4 tracks, 25:03). B+(**) [sp] Peverelist: Pulse Echo (2024, Livity Sound, EP): Fourth installment, "Pulse" titles "XIII" through "XVI" (4 tracks, 25:01). B+(**) [sp] Phelimuncasi & Metal Preyers: Izigqinamba (2024, Nyege Nyege Tapes): South African (Durbin-based) gqom trio we've noticed before, teamed up with "a loose group consisting of core members Jesse Hackett and Chicago's Mariano Chavez" (Hacket, I gather, is based in London) for 31:07 of metal-flecked beats and chants, with samples of older South African forms, and no idea of what's going and coming. I'm catching what feels like very little of it, yet find myself returning for more. A- [sp] Pixies: The Night the Zombies Came (2024, Pixies/BMG): American rock band, kind of a big deal from 1988 to their 1991 breakup, after which Black Francis went solo, and Kim Deal formed the Breeders. Regrouped in 2013, but Deal left before their 2014 album, and I can't say as I've noticed anything since (this is their fifth). B [sp] Previous Industries: Service Merchandise (2024, Merge): Los Angeles-based hip-hop trio, Open Mike Eagle is the one you've heard of, joined by Still Rift and Video Dave -- the latter has two previous albums, but both are better known in Eagle's company. "The album's central concept is related to defunct American retail chain stores." A- [sp] Tim Reaper & Kloke: In Full Effect (2024, Hyperdub): British jungle/drum & bass producer Edem Alloh, with Australian producer Andy Donnelly. B+(**) [sp] Tomeka Reid/Isadora Edwards/Elisabeth Coudoux: Reid/Edwards/Coudoux (2021 [2024], Relative Pitch): Three cellists, Reid by far the most famous, then Coudoux, who has a 2016 album and some co-credits. This is the sort of small-scale craft the label specializes in. B+(**) [sp] Rema: Heis (2024, Mavin/Jonzing World/Interscope): Nigerian singer-songwriter, sometime rapper, second album, choppy beats, runs through 11 songs in a snappy 27:38. B+(**) [sp] Diego Rivera: Ofendra (2024, Posi-Tone): [Review lost?] B+(***) [sp] Porter Robinson: Smile! :D (2024, Mom+Pop/Sample Sized): American electronic producer, third studio album, vocals strike me as more of an electropop focus. B [sp] Renee Rosnes: Crossing Paths (2024, Smoke Sessions): Pianist, albums start around 1989, including a long run on Blue Note, moved to Smoke Sessions from 2016, although her "supergroup" Artemis has two albums on Blue Note. This one focuses on Brazilian music, with featuring spots for Edu Lobo, Joyce Moreno, and Maucha Adnet, plus support from Chico Pinheiro, John Pattitucci, Adam Cruz, Rogerio Boccato, Chris Potter, Steve Davis, and Shelley Brown. B+(*) [sp] Toms Rudzinskis: Abyss (2019-21 [2023], self-released): Saxophonist from Latvia, based in Berlin, several albums since 2014, nice postbop here with a guest vocal. B+(**) [sp] SahBabii: Saaheem (2024, self-released): Chicago rapper Saaheem Valdery, fourth album since 2017, no relation to electronica producer Babii. B+(***) [sp] Saint Etienne: The Night (2024, Heavenly): British indie pop group, considered "alternative dance" in the 1990s, return here with their 12th album, low key almost to the point of vanishing. B+(*) [sp] Akira Sakata/Jim O'Rourke/Mette Rasmussen/Chris Corsano: Live at SuperDeluxe Volume 1 (2017 [2024], Trost): Japanese alto saxophonist, born in Hiroshima a few months before the bomb, in an extended bash with the Sonic Youth guitarist, another saxophonist (tenor), and a drummer who likes it rough. B+(*) [bc] Michael Sarian: Live at Cliff Bell's (2023 [2024], Shifting Paradigm): Trumpet player, half-dozen previous albums since 2020, quartet here with piano (Santiago Liebson), bass (Marty Kenney), and drums (Nathan Ellman-Bell), live set playing eight Sarian originals and a piece by Armenian poet Sayat-Nova (1712-95). Impressive work here. B+(***) [sp] De Schuurman: Bubbling Forever (2024, Nyege Nyege Tapes): Dutch electronic producer, "De" subs for first name Guillermo, has an uncle and several cousins with DJ monikers, first album (2021) was Bubbling Inside. This seems to be a specialty of software known as Fruityloops, although I also detect actual drums puncturing the bubbles. A- [sp] Secret Sisters: Mind, Man, Medicine (2024, New West): Country music duo, sisters Laura Rogers and Lydia Slagle, fifth album since 2010. Some winning harmonies, rising out of solid songs. B+(***) [sp] Sexyy Red: In Sexyy We Trust (2024, Rebel): Rapper Janae Wherry, from St. Louis, third album. B+(**) [sp] Caroline Shaw & Sō Percussion: Rectangles and Circumstance (2024, Nonesuch): Vocalist, also plays violin, seems to be slotted as classical but I hear little that marks her as such. This is an impressive songs album -- although I note words from William Blake and Emily Dickinson, and music from Franz Schubert, among others, mixed in with the originals. The percussion group is often outstanding. B+(***) [sp] Brad Shepik: Human Activity: Dream of the Possible (2022 [2024], Shifting Paradigm): Guitarist, early (1996-97) work in Tiny Bell Trio with Dave Douglas, has long been interested in the music of the Balkans, which ties into his use of Bulgarian tambura and saz here, as well as banjo. Title refers back to his excellent 2009 Human Activity Suite. Quintet here with Layale Chaker's violin the perfect complement to his strings, and a terrific rhythm section of Amino Belyamani (piano), Sam Minaie (bass), and John Hadfield (drums). A- [sp] Harri Sjöström/Erhard Hirt/Philipp Wachsmann/Paul Lytton: Especially for You (2022 [2023], Bead): Finnish saxophonist (soprano/sopranino), has a fair number of albums since 2010, this a quartet with guitar, violin, and drums, recorded live at a festival in Munich, a long piece in two parts (49:27), followed by a short "Encore" and, nearly as short, a "Lullaby." B+(*) [bc] Skee Mask: Resort (2024, Ilian Tape): German electronica producer Bryan Müller, fourth album since 2016 (not counting four self-released items titled A to D, a shorter series numbered up to ISS010, or other titles as SCNTST). Very nice beats, with some ambient swirls, which is all it really needs. A- [bc] The Smile: Cutouts (2024, XL): British group, two principals from Radiohead (Jonny Greenwood and Thom Yorke), plus a pretty talented drummer (Tom Skinner, from Sons of Kemet), third album since 2022, second this year. B+(*) [sp] Smino: Maybe in Nirvana (2024, Zero Fatigue/Motown): Rapper Christopher Smith, originally from St. Louis, grew up in Chicago, fourth album since 2017, short (10 tracks, 28:55). B+(**) [sp] Daniel Sommer/Arve Henriksen/Johannes Lundberg: Sounds & Sequences (2022-23 [2024], April): Danish drummer, had a Duets album in 2017, several more, although the related predecessor to this one (the 2nd installment in his "Nordic Trilogy") listed Arild Andersen first, so is filed there. The others play trumpet and bass, both electronics. B+(**) [sp] Peter Somuah: Highlife (2024, ACT Music): Trumpet player, from Ghana, third album, second on the German jazz label, but recapitulating his roots starting out playing in dance bands in Accra. Some riffing over the beats, and some guest spots for highlife stars. B+(**) [sp] Astrid Sonne: Great Doubt (2024, Escho): Danish singer-songwriter, plays viola, based in London, fifth album since 2018, also plays some bass guitar and drums, but keeps it basic. And short (9 tracks, 26:50). B [sp] Sound the Alarm: Sound the Alarm: A Large Ensemble Instigation for Palestine [Recorded Live in Concert] (2024, Relative Pitch): I filed this under Clayton Thomas, the Australian bassist who instigated this "composed improvisation, a sonic allegory and a simple way to collect human energy in the right place for the right reasons." The occasion is the 264th day of Israel's genocide against Gaza, which is to say a little more than half way to now. Proceeds go to "humanitarian organizations working on the ground in Gaza," which is to say targets of the genocide -- a hopeless proposition until someone stops the killing. As a big band, this group is short on brass, but the three pieces each build up into something substantial, perhaps a tribute to human resilience in face of disaster, or maybe just a wish that such were possible. I wouldn't advise trying to read much into it. A- [sp] Vinnie Sperrazza Apocryphal: Sunday (2022 [2024], Loyal Label): Brooklyn-based drummer, albums since 2006, this title suggests a follow up to 2023's Saturday, but the group name reminds us of his 2015 quartet with Loren Stillman (tenor/soprano sax), Brandon Seabrook (guitar/banjo/mandolin), and Eivind Opsvik (bass). B+(***) [bc] Dayna Stephens: Closer Than We Think (2023 [2024], Cellar Music): Tenor saxophonist, dozen albums since 2007, lots of side credits (70+), wrote 3 songs here, got more from band members Emmanuel Michael (guitar, also 3) and Kanoa Mendenhall (bass, 1). With Jongkuk Kim on drums, and producer Jeremy Pelt for a guest spot. B+(***) [sp] Aki Takase/Daniel Erdmann: Ellington (2023 [2024], Enja/Yellowbird): Japanese pianist, long based in Berlin (with many records since 1979), in a duo with the German saxophonist (tenor/soprano), whose own discography dates from 2004, and includes credits with Takase's Japanic. The artists write a couple pieces to supplement nine Ellington songs, Juan Tizol's two classics, and a short coda of the Mingus tribute, "Duke Ellington's Sound of Love." B+(**) [sp] Takkak Takkak: Takkak Takkak (2024, Nyege Nyege Tapes): Japanese electronica producer, Shigeru Ishihara, based in Berlin, first album under this alias but he's used many more, like Scotch Rolex, and has been a recent member of Seefeel. The Kampala label has become a magnet for artists eager to kick up the rhythm and bang on some metal, which is pretty much what you get here. A- [sp] Tems: Born in the Wild (2024, RCA): Nigerian singer-songwriter Temilade Openiyi, from Lagos, moved to UK as an infant but returned when she was 5, where she remained until studying in South Africa. First album after a couple EPs. Since 2022, she's been touring in Europe and the US with some success, this album charting 30 in UK, 56 in US, and showing up on some scattered EOY lists, plus a small bit Grammy. Reportedly, she stopped listening to other music to find her own unique take. I'm dubious about that as method, but what she's come up with is very hard to slot anywhere. A- [sp] That Mexican OT: Texas Technician (2024, Manifest/Good Talk/Good Money Global/Capitol): Rapper Virgil René Gazca, from Bay City, Texas, second album, after several mixtapes. B+(***) [sp] Pat Thomas: This Is Trick Step (2023 [2024], 577): British avant-pianist, early albums back to 1993 but has been very prolific over last decade. Sole credit here is electronics. B+(**) [dl] Dlala Thukzin: Finally Famous Too (2024, Dlala): South African producer, "famous for his versatility in blending amapiano and afro tech with gqom," only album on Discogs but I've heard three previous volumes of Permanent Music. B+(***) [sp] Anna Tivel: Living Thing (2024, Fluff and Gravy): Folk singer-songwriter from Oregon, half-dozen albums since 2014. Pretty nice. B+(***) [sp] Transmission Towers: Transmission One (2024, É Soul Cultura/Mr Bongo): British EDM duo, Mark Kyriacou and Anorbea Mante, seems like a throwback to cheesy space disco, then midway I hear what sounds like a Pere Ubu vocals (circa The Modern Dance, which wasn't as far removed from disco as we thought at the time). But those are just high points. B+(**) [sp] Tulpas: Atisbo (2021 [2024], Astral Spirits): Avant-jazz quartet from Mexico City, with two saxophonists -- Germán Bringas (tenor/soprano) and Jarret Gilgore (alto) -- backed with bass (Arturo Báez) and drums (Gibrán Andrade). First group album, but Bringas did his debut in 1992, and the others have co- or at least side-credits. B+(**) [sp] Two Shell: Two Shell (2024, Young): British electronics duo, Jack Benson and Patrick Lewis, first album after several impressive EPs. B+(**) [sp] Weird of Mouth [Mette Rasmussen/Craig Taborn/Ches Smith]: Weird of Mouth (2022 [2024], Otherly Love): First group album (I found out about it because I rejected a "debut" vote for it): most artists this famous include their own names on the cover, then switch to the group name later when they need a different title, but these three make you dig deeper, a practice they carry over into the music. Tenor sax, piano, drums. The saxophonist seemed a bit rugged at first, but I was won over when Taborn matched and maybe even passed. A- [sp] Sam Wilkes/Craig Weinrib/Dylan Day: Sam Wilkes, Craig Weinrib and Dylan Day (2024, Leaving): Bass guitar, drums, electric guitar. PopMatters touted this as the best ambient album of 2024, which runs counter to my assumption that ambient records are mostly electronics, while this configuration usually means jazz. But listening to it, I can see their point, or half of it anyway. Wilkes has some previous history, both in and out of jazz, including a duo album with Sam Gendel. The others thus far only show up with Wilkes. B+(*) [sp] Lucinda Williams: Sings the Beatles From Abbey Road (2024, Highway 20): Title suggests she's recreating my least favorite Beatles album, but the only one from there she picked for this dozen was "Something." Turns out this is volume 7 of her Lu's Jukebox in Studio Concert Series, the first to appear since 2021 when the series seemed to be a scheme to recoup pandemic losses. I missed them all, because her stuff was hard to stream back then. Maybe I should look again? This is credible enough: her voice isn't as rough as it's been of late, but it cuts through the varnish, and the guitar adds some heft, but while the good songs are still good, the bad ones don't improve much. B+(*) [sp] Willow: Empathogen (2024, Three Six Zero/Gamma): Singer-songwriter, last name Smith, daughter of actors Will and Jada Pinkett Smith, also acts -- first film when she was six, first album when she was 14, sixth album at 23. B+(**) [sp] Kathrine Windfeld Sextet: Aldebaran (2024, Stunt): Danish pianist, has three Big Band albums since 2015, a fourth where she joins the Bohlusän Big Band, and now this nominally smaller group, which still adroitly deploys its three horns -- trumpet (Tomasz Dabrowski) and two saxes (Marek Konarski, Hannes Bennich) -- in precise arrangements. This is very nice. B+(***) [sp] Remi Wolf: Big Ideas (2024, Island): American "funky soul pop" singer-songwriter, from Palo Alto, started with three EPs about dogs, released an album in 2021, now this second one, co-produced by high school friend Solomophonic (Jared Solomon). The ideas are promising, but the big production doesn't always help. The nominal closer, "Just the Start," suggests a different album, then sets up the "Slay Bitch" bonus track, which finally does work as dance pop. B+(*) [sp] Warren Wolf: History of the Vibraphone (2023 [2024], Cellar Music): Vibraphonist, started with Christian McBride, debut album 2011, presents ten songs from Gibbs, Hampton, Lewis (Jackson), Hutcherson, Tjader, Corea (Burton), Ayers, Samuels, Locke, and himself, plus an alternate take of "Midnight Sun" to loop back to Hampton. (You weren't seriously expecting Khan Jamal or Gunter Hampel, were you?) With Tim Green (alto/soprano sax), Alex Brown (keybs), bass, and drums. B+(**) [sp] WoochieWobbler: Thrilla (2024, self-released, EP): Second EP, I still know nothing about the artist(s), and listening to a very fractured 10 tracks (19:09) doesn't help much. B [sp] Wussy: Cincinnati Ohio (2024, Shake It): Indie band from, well, that's obvious, founded by Chuck Cleaver, who had a 1990s band of some note (The Ass Ponys), and Lisa Walker, recognizing his need for a better half. Robert Christgau deemed their first album "more Velvets than Burritos," then dispensed with comparisons, giving them one A+, 7 A, 5 A-, 2 B+, and one ***. I like them, but rarely that much. This has moments when it sounds like it might amount to something, but you have to want it to, else the feeling passes and leaves you empty. [I tried looking up a line in "Disaster About You" and couldn't find any lyrics. What's with that? Isn't this supposed to be a band where lyrics matter? I saw a comment expressing surprise that Christgau "felt the loss apparent" here but not "the equally devastating beauty of Nick Cave's mournful Ghosteen." Not such a surprise, as he clearly cares about Wussy and wants to understand them, whereas he has always disliked Cave, and probably not just his music. After writing this review, I read a bunch of EW comments, and gave this another play. As songs like "Disaster About You" and "Winged" finally started to register, I bumped it up a notch. I can see how people who really want to can come to love this album, but it takes a lot more work than I normally allow. I also know that other people do the same thing with other albums. I've seen it in others, and I've done it myself. It also helps explain why anyone liked Cave's latest album.] B+(***) [sp] Wussy: The Great Divide (2017-24 [2024], Shake It, EP): Three songs, 11:08. Released same day as album, includes a murky "single mix" of the album's first song, plus two leftovers from a 2017 session that are a good deal snappier than the lead. B [sp] Wussy Duo: Cellar Door (2024, Shake It, EP): The band reduced to its two key members, Chuck Cleaver and Lisa Walker, of necessity during the pandemic, and recreated here for three songs, 10:45. B+(*) [sp] Xylitol: Anemones (2024, Planet Mu): British electronica producer Catherine Backhouse, several albums since 2013, singles go back to 2006. Tagged as "atmospheric drum and bass." B+(***) [sp] Eri Yamamoto Quadraphonic: Fly With the Wings (2024, Mahakala Music): Japanese pianist, based in New York, mostly recorded trios until she hooked up with Chad Fowler, the avant-saxophonist who runs this Arkansas-based label, at which point things get interesting. She sings two songs here. He switches off to flute for a bit of surface bliss. And she switches over to melodica for the final piece. Quartet with bass and drums, varied, perhaps a bit much. B+(***) [bc] Dwight Yoakam: Brighter Days (2024, VIA/Thirty Tigers): Country singer-songwriter, debut 1986, 17th studio album, only one lacking a Wikipedia page, but hardly anyone seems to have noticed his first album since 2016. B+(**) [sp] Zawose Queens: Maisha (2024, Real World): Two women, Pendo Hukwe Zawose and her daughter Leah Zawose, from central Tanzania, the former the daughter of Hukwe Zawose (1940-2003), who had several albums, including two given international release on this label. B+(***) [sp] Carlos Zingaro/Joăo Madeira/Sofia Borges: Trizmaris (2023 [2024], 4DaRecord): Violin-bass-drums trio, from a live set in Lisbon, free jazz with just enough edge. A- [cd] John Zorn: Ballades (2024, Tzadik): Eleven numbered pieces composed by Zorn, played by a trio of Brian Marsella (piano), Jorge Roeder (bass), and Ches Smith (drums), claiming inspiration from Bach and Chopin through Debussy and Bartók plus Bill Evans. B+(*) [sp] John Zorn: Lamentations (2024, Tzadik): Four extended pieces composed by Zorn, designed as a tribute to Dylan Thomas, played by a trio of guitarists: Bill Frisell, Gyan Riley, and Julian Lage. B+(**) [sp] John Zorn: Ou Phrontis (2024, Tzadik): Zorn songs, piano-bass-drums trio again, Brian Marsella, Jorge Roeder, and Ches Smith. B+(**) [sp] Recent Reissues, Compilations, Vault Discoveries
Peter Brötzmann/Paal Nilssen-Love: Butterfly Mushroom (2015 [2024], Trost): This barely qualifies as a "New Album" under our 10-year rule, but the saxophonist died in 2023, leaving his heirs to search through his old tapes for reminders of vitality. I previously decided to count his 2016 recording of Complete Link, released in 2024, under Historical, so I should do the same for this later-released-but-earlier recorded album -- as I should for another 2024 release which this is a second volume to (which bore a different title: Chicken Shit Bingo). Duo with the Norwegian drummer, not their first and not their last. Brötzmann plays tarogato, contra-alto clarinet, and bass sax, each of which blunts the hard edges of his usual tenor sax -- with him, that's usually a plus, as the hard stuff can rub you raw. B+(**) [sp] George Cartwright: Send Help (2008 [2024], Mahakala Music): Saxophonist, originally in the band Curlew, released this Minnesota quartet -- Adam Linz (guitar/vocals), Andrew Broder (bass), Aiden Ikeda (drums) -- album on Innova. B+(*) [bc] Charli XCX: Brat and It's Completely Different but Also Still Brat (2024, Atlantic): Remix album, repeats Brat's 15 songs in order, plus 1 or 2 (depends) of 3 "deluxe edition" adds. As such, the beats are sharpened, and the songs pick up extraneous guest vocals and sonic effects, the net effect is to push the star back into the background, which may not matter as long as you're dancing, but otherwise leads to indifference (some bits sound good, some don't, but few distinctions matter). And by the way, the hooks you do notice are hers. (A point proven by appending the original -- well, plus bonus cuts -- album in the digital.) B+(**) [sp] Denzel Curry: King of the Mischievous South (2024, PH/Loma Vista): Reissue of Vol. 2 with five extra tracks, one inserted at 5, another at 11, expanding from 34:29 to 51:10. Sounded marginally better, which may just be the extra play I gave it, until one at the end I would have rather done without. B+(**) [sp] Duke Ellington: Copenhagen 1958 [Bonus: After Hours 1950] (1950-58 [2024], Storyville): The Orchestra on the road, playing their standard set, which was fine but didn't really grab me until the Cat Anderson finale. The bonus is four tracks, with Ellington at the piano, with some superb tenor sax (Don Byas) and clarinet (Jimmy Hamilton). B+(**) [sp] Joe Ely: Driven to Drive ([2024], Rack 'Em): Singer-songwriter from Lubbock, started in the Flatlanders with Butch Hancock and Jimmie Dale Gilmore, recorded the perfect Honky Tonk Masquerade in 1978, many more fine albums since then. I don't see dates, but this is reportedly a compilation of (mostly) old demos, themed to the road and spanning several decades. So should we count it as a vault album? Or just as his best in 20 years? A- [sp] Funk.BR - Săo Paulo (2024, NTS): Twenty-two short (54:21 total) radio shots, nearly all by artists named as DJ something-or-other. Not much more than beats, but they are distinctive. B+(**) [sp] Michael Griener & Jan Roder: Be Our Guest (1994-2022 [2024], Trouble in the East): German drummer and bassist, both born in 1968, played together frequently since Squakk in 2009, but this compilation pairs them earlier and more often over nearly three decades, picking 25 tracks from nearly as many sessions and/or groups (including Squakk+ mid-way, and ending with Griener joining Roder in later versions of Monk's Casino and Die Entäuschung. Along the way, they support many luminaries of the German avant-garde -- Rudi Mahall and Axel Dörner return periodically, and while there isn't a lot of piano, you cannot miss Aki Takase and Alexander von Schlippenbach -- and many more lesser-known figures, plus a few passing visitors, like Ken Vandermark and Brandon Seabrook. A- [bc] Margo Guryan: Words and Music (1957-68 [2024], Numero Group, 2CD): Better known as a songwriter (1937-2021, played piano and sung, leaving one album (1968) and some demos, most or all collected here (2-CD or 3-LP). This leaves a variety of impressions, suggesting more than there may be. I especially line later tracks like "Hold Me Dancin'." B+(***) [sp] Like Someone I Know: A Celebration of Margo Guryan (2024, Sub Pop): New covers of 12 songs written by Guryan (1937-2021), the first 11 in order from her 1968 album Take a Picture, most handled by obscure but sympathetic alt/indie singers -- most famous are probably Clairo and Empress Of, plus Margo Price on the bonus cut. B+(*) [sp] Happy Apple: New York CD ([2024], Sunnyside): Trio from Minnesota -- Erik Fratzke (electric bass), Dave King (drums), Michael Lewis (saxophones/keyboards) -- recorded a bunch of albums (Discogs lists 8; the two late ones I've heard are really good) 1997-2007, released this set of digital files in 2020 on Bandcamp, so this is certainly a reissue, although it's not clear of what. The only thing the label tells us is that "The music from New York CD comes from two recording sessions a few years apart," but doesn't tell us which years (or decade or century), although we are informed that one session was in Minnesota, the other in Wisconsin, and that "most of the pieces were done in first takes and without overdubs." Also no clue as to where the title came from. Some suggestion of a reunion in 2018, which might put the second session in 2020. Some nice bits, but nothing that justified my initial hopes, or took my mind away from the missing documentation. B+(*) [sp] Fumio Itabashi: Watarase (1982 [2024], Wewantsounds): Japanese pianist, debut 1979, second album, solo, starts with three covers (through "I Can't Get Started"), then four originals. [sp] Skip James: Today! (1966 [2024], Craft): Delta blues legend (1902-69), recorded nine singles for Paramount in 1931, which are revered by many, but I panned Yazoo's compilation for its poor sound. He got rediscovered in the early 1960s folk blues boomlet, and recorded several albums from then to 1969. High voice, delicate songs, plays some piano as well as guitar. B+(***) [sp] Judas Priest: Rocka Rolla [50th Anniversary Edition] (1974 [2024], MNRK/Exciter/Reach): The venerable British metal band's first album, Discogs styles it as Classic Rock. Indeed, one thing you notice is that many of the clichés of heavy metal had yet to be invented. Another thing is that this band had a built-in need for them. B [sp] Paul McCartney & Wings: One Hand Clapping (1974 [2024], MPL): Live-in-studio recordings, mostly reprising the group's 1973 album Band on the Run, performed for a documentary movie that wasn't released until 2010 in conjunction with a box set, but has been remastered for theatrical release in 2024. Own songs offer no improvement over the album, but a few oldies covers help out. B [sp] Van Morrison: Live at Orangefield (2014 [2024], Townsend Music/Orangefield): Orangefield Secondary School, in Belfast, was closed in 2014, occasion for a memorial concert by its most famous alumnus, who had made his first stage appearance there in 1959. (Wikipedia has a page on the school, including a list of "notable alumni," with Morrison the only name I recognize.) His most familiar songs have seen better days, but the lesser known material remind one of how mesmerizing a performer he can be. B+(***) [sp] Michel Petrucciani Trio: Jazz Club Montmartre - CPH 1988 (1988 [2024], Storyville): French pianist, had a genetic disorder which left him stunted and brittle, but during his short life (1962-99) he displayed extraordinary mastery over the piano. His two 1983-84 albums for Blue Note were especially notable (100 Hearts and Live at the Village Vanguard). And since his death, various live tapes have appeared to remind us of him, including this trio set with Gary Peacock (bass) and Roy Haynes (drums). B+(***) [sp] Kurt Rosenwinkel: The Next Step Band: Live at Smalls 1996 (1996 [2024], Heartcore): Guitarist, from Philadelphia, studied at Berklee, moved to New York, eventually to Berlin. Was in the group Human Feel (1991-96), solo debut 1996, this group is from back then but named (retrospectively?) for his fourth album, The Next Step, which appeared in 2001. Same group -- Mark Turner (tenor sax), Ben Street (bass), and Jeff Ballard (drums) -- but you also notice piano on two tracks here: Brad Mehldau sits in on one superb track, and Rosenwinkel plays a pretty fair solo on the title piece. I'm not a big fan of the 2001 album, or anything else he's done, but I am impressed here. A- [sp] Taylor Swift: The Tortured Poets Department: The Anthology (2024, Republic): When I reviewed her album back in May, I limited myself to the 16-song, 65:08 album proper. I liked it fine, but ignored this extras package (another 15 songs, 57:13; the digital combines them both, and evidently there is a "physical edition" with four more bonus tracks). When I started compiling EOY lists, I opted to count this among the reissues/vault music, which now looks like a technical error: they do seem to be all new (or at least different) songs, unlike the Charli XCX remix, or her own "Taylor's Version" albums). These seem like good songs, but I neither paid close enough attention (nor wanted to) to say for sure. B+(**) [sp] Virtual Dreams, Vol. II: Ambient Explorations in the House & Techno Age, Japan 1993-1999 (1993-99 [2024], Music From Memory): Hard to judge this remarkably pleasant 97 minute selection, especially without having heard its previous volume, or literally any of its source material. B+(***) [sp] Brenton Wood: Brenton Wood's 18 Best (1967-71 [2024], Craft): R&B singer-songwriter Alfred Jesse Smith (1941-2025), originally from Shreveport but moved to Los Angeles as a child, broke out with three minor hit singles in 1967 ("Gimme Little Sign," "Oogum Boogum," "Baby You Got It"), stretched his career all the way out to a 2024 announcement of Catch You on the Rebound: The Last Tour, but this best-of, which originally appeared in 1990, just samples his brief heyday. B [sp] Old Music
Fake Fruit: Fake Fruit (2021, Rocks in Your Head): First album, although Hannah D'Amato had a couple singles in 2020 as Flex TMG, followed by a later EP. Bandcamp page drops hints of Wire, Pylon, and Mazzy Star. That's a pretty good start. B+(**) [sp] Metal Preyers: Metal Preyers (2020, Nyege Nyege Tapes): Jesse Hackett (from London) and Mariano Chavez (Chicago) hooked up in Kampala (Uganda) with Lord Tusk and various local musicians to produce this "industrial/ambient film soundtrack" to go with visual art they call Teeth Agency. B+(*) [sp] Allen Ravenstine: Nautilus/Rue de Poisson Noire (2021, Waveshaper): Multi-instrumentalist, mostly synthesizers, best known for his work in Pere Ubu, but has reeleased several mostly instrumental albums since 1987. Discogs has this as a single release, but Spotify has it as two separate albums. I'll go with one, because the distinctions are minor, and I haven't been paying enough attention. B+(**) [sp] Virtual Dreams: Ambient Explorations in the House & Techno Age, Japan 1993-1999 (1993-99 [2020], Music From Memory): Predecessor to this year's Vol. II, offers 16 pieces in 78 minutes (3-LP or 2-CD), again artists and music I have no prior or comparative experience with. B+(***) [sp] Lucinda Williams: Runnin' Down a Dream: A Tribute to Tom Petty [Lu's Jukebox in Studio Concert Series Vol. 1] (2021, Highway 20): First volume of her Lu's Jukebox in Studio Concert Series, a canny choice: a peer-level artist, died recently (2017), some good songs but not too familiar, no great stretch in style. Ends with one of her own. Nothing wrong with that, and these days you might as well document everything. B [sp] Lucinda Williams: Southern Soul: From Memphis to Muscle Shoals and More [Lu's Jukebox in Studio Concert Series Vol. 2] (2021, Highway 20): Seems like a natural progression, but risks comparison with the singers who own these songs. Not that that's necessarily the problem. ("Take Me to the River" is one of the best things here.) B [sp] Lucinda Williams: Bob's Back Pages: A Night of Bob Dylan Songs [Lu's Jukebox in Studio Concert Series Vol. 3] (2021, Highway 20): Unlike Tom Petty, this one has been done dozens of times before, and unlike the soul singers, we're used to Dylan songs in someone else's voice. While her performance is credible, this rises and falls with the songs: "Political World" and "Man of Peace" are terrific, "Queen Jane Approximately" and "Idiot Wind" are same as they ever were. B+(**) [sp] Lucinda Williams: Funny How Time Slips Away: A Night of 60's Country Classics [Lu's Jukebox in Studio Concert Series Vol. 4] (2021, Highway 20): Another concept-defined grab bag, again ending with one of hers (a highlight). While her first Willie Nelson song doesn't impress, the title one does, coming after two songs I wouldn't have expected so much from, "Gentle on My Mind" and "The End of the World." B+(***) [sp] Lucinda Williams: Have Yourself a Rockin' Little Christmas [Lu's Jukebox in Studio Concert Series Vol. 5] (2021, Highway 20): The season may have passed, but it's been a long time since it's put me in the mood for the standard repertoire (if indeed it ever did). Although eight of these songs namecheck Christmas -- with one more each for Santa and Rudolph -- only a couple ever got picked up by anyone, and even those don't turn me off. B+(**) [sp] Lucinda Williams: You Are Cordially Invited . . . A Tribute to the Rolling Stones [Lu's Jukebox in Studio Concert Series Vol. 6] (2021, Highway 20): Discogs has an alternate version of this with a different title, supposedly released in 2020, and therefore predating series it was finally slotted into. That may explain why there's 16 songs, instead of the usual 12-13. The most straightforward album in the series, probably because the fit is most natural. B+(***) [sp] Grade (or other) ChangesSometimes further listening leads me to change an initial grade, usually either because I move on to a real copy, or because someone else's review or list makes me want to check it again. Also some old albums extracted from further listening: Zach Bryan: The Great American Bar Scene (2024, Belting Bronco/Warner): His songs grew on you, which led me to upgrade Zach Bryan in 2023, so odds favored this one as well. [was: B+(**)] B+(***) [sp] Sabrina Carpenter: Short 'n' Sweet (2024, Island): Not sure why I resisted this pop chanteuse, aside from that it could be shorter, maybe even sweeter, but half of the songs are brilliantly hooked, and there's little point quibbling about the filler. This year's sensation, but she's been around: started posting YouTube videos when she was 10, became a Disney teen actor, first album at 16, fourth at 25. [was: B+(***)] A- [sp] Charli XCX: Brat (2024, Atlantic): British pop star, Charlotte Aitchison, sixth album since 2013, all hits but none really huge until this one (Crash was also 1 in UK charts, but BPI was silver, vs. platinum here; Crash was 7 in US, this one up to 3, which pushed it to ARIA gold; bigger advance in critical coverage, where this one easily led all EOY aggregates), so the extra hype and/or anticipation paid off. I gave this 5 plays back in June and was on the fence. Five more plays, and I've barely moved, but it was always a close call. [NB: "Deluxe Edition" got a new name: Brat and It's the Same but There's Three More Songs So It's Not, while the remix was called Brat and It's Completely Different but Also Still Brat.] [was: B+(***)] A- [sp] Doechii: Alligator Bites Never Heal (2024, Top Dawg/Capitol): Rapper Jaylah Hickman, third mixtape, has a couple noteworthy EPs, got some major label push here, although I still have trouble noticing what other critics are raving about. [was: B+(**)] B+(***) [sp] Carly Pearce: Hummingbird (2024, Big Machine): Country singer-songwriter from Kentucky, fourth album since 2017, found herself in her age-marking 29: Written in Stone. This sounds real good for four fast ones, flounders a bit in a Chris Stapleton duet, struggles to win back the slow ones, often with a memorable turn of phrase (like "we're living on a fault line/ the fault is always mine"). [was: B+(***)] A- [sp] Vampire Weekend: Only God Was Above Us (2024, Columbia): Major group in a genre I have little patience for, huge critical following for their first three albums (2008-13), lost a key member and seemed lame on their fourth (2019), by 2024 they were a group I had no interest in or patience for, so I'm not just surprised but amazed at this revisit. [was: B+(**)] A- [sp] Waxahatchee: Tigers Blood (2024, Anti-): Singer-songwriter Katie Crutchfield, out of Alabama (Bandcamp puts her in Kansas City), formerly of P.S. Eliot, also of Plains, sixth Waxahatchee album since 2012, sounds easy here but songs are solid and grow on you if you give them a chance. I didn't first time around, but even then noted that a revisit might be in order. [was: B+(***)] A- [sp] Yard Act: Where's My Utopia? (2024, Island): British group, from Leeds, second album, James Smith's vocals are most often spoken, with bits of skits cut up and scattered. Much of this remains below my level of consciousness, but the more I focus, the more interesting bits I find. One thing I can say is that back in my teens I was fascinated with the idea of utopia, and some of that interest is resurfacing with 2024's dystopian turn in politics. [was: B+(**)] A- [sp] Rechecked with no grade change: Beyoncé: Cowboy Carter (2024, Parkwood/Columbia): Enough talent and ideas here to make an impressive album, but I'm more struck by how irritating much of this is. The mix justifies keeping the grade, but if it wasn't such work to move it, chagrin would win out. B+(**) [sp] The Cure: Songs of the Lost World (2024, Fiction): An auteur band I've never felt any affinity to makes a very listenable album of no real import. B+(*) [sp] Fontaines D.C.: Romance (2024, XL): Still sounds good. Just not good enough to bump up. B+(**) [sp] MJ Lenderman: Manning Fireworks (2024, Anti-): I don't dislike this enough to downgrade it, but this pass I didn't hear anything to make me prefer this to the recently replayed but lower-graded Fontaines D.C., which I didn't like enough to upgrade. Those two records are neck-and-neck for 4th in my EOY Aggregate, and I really don't get why. B+(***) [sp] Mach-Hommy: #Richaxxhaitian (2024, Mach-Hommy): Like all of his records, just a bit too inscrutable for my limited attention span. B+(***) [sp] Music WeeksMusic: Current count 36534 [36534] rated (+0), 149 [149] unrated (+0). Excerpts from this month's Music Week posts: NotesSources noted as follows:
Grades are probably self-explanatory, aside from B+, which is subdivided 1-2-3 stars, because most records that come my way are pretty good, but they're not all that good.
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