Glimmers of baroque pop brilliance, decades after “Walk Away Renee.”
In the middle of the global pandemic, Sons of Silver unleashed the aptly titled Doomsday Noises to widespread critical acclaim. Among many highlights, American Songwriter deemed them a “Supergroup,” and Consequence of Sound proclaimed, “The song ‘Deep Division’ highlights Argyropoulos’ soulful vocals as a post-punk guitar riff powers the verse, leading into a melodic alt-rock chorus.” Now they are back with “Who’s Gonna Stop Us”. Rather you than me!
Last year, music fans of a certain taste (and, let’s be honest, age) were thrilled to note the resurrection of Independent Project Records, the label founded by Savage Republic and Scenic leader Bruce Lichter.
So Much Runnin’ will be available in 11th March and is the lead single from Wood Willow’s debut album Southern Intentions (22 Apr)
Trumpeter and composer Avishai Cohen makes some of the most enigmatic, beautiful and downright interesting music in modern jazz.
Born in Madrid but centered in New York City, pianist Marta Sanchez keeps a limb in both locations on her sixth album SAAM.
Texas-based electronic music artist Paris Music Corp., the moniker of experimental and ambient composer John Andrew Paris, has released a brilliantly fluid self-titled album and colorful chilled video for the lead track “Light Speed”. With 14 tracks on offer, this is his first record in half a decade, the previous release being the Rewind LP in 2017.
While Jackson’s penchant for straightforward melodic expression works well within the standards, he really shines on his own compositions.
London-based indietronica artist Rodney Cromwell presents his new “Opus Three” single, out February 3 via Happy Robots Records, a floor-filling synth-driven dance number about disconnected lovers trying to conjure optimism as the world stands on the brink of apocalypse. This is the second taste of Cromwell’s Memory Box LP, which is out on March 18.
On his latest album Ethereal Kings, Swiss-born and Chicago-based jazzer Samuel Mösching is a one-man fusion machine.
Danish composer Anders Koppel taps into the immigrant story with Mulberry Street Symphony, an impressive work performed by his son, alto saxophonist Benjamin Koppel, accompanied by bassist Scott Colley, drummer Brian Blade and the Odense Symphony Orchestra.
With a name and album title like these, you’d probably expect some sort of extreme metal or thrashcore. Led by bassist and composer Moppa Elliott, MOPDTK is instead a New York jazz band of long standing.
Postpunk-darkwave-electro trio Vonamor presents their pulsating and enthralling new single “You the People”. Recalling the best dark pop of the ’80s, this is the second taste of their impending, eponymous debut album, an 8-track collection produced by Lucio Leoni and being released via Time To Kill Records (TTK).
Las Vegas quarter Shanda & the Howlers grab a gallon of early-60s Motown and another of 50s rock & roll for a walking, rocking time capsule on third album It Ain’t Easy.
The Individual Beings embodies the idea of a student taking what he’s learned from a master, applying it to his own notions, and coming out with a distinctive and characteristic statement.
Though best known for his work with the quirky jazz trio The Bad Plus, pianist Ethan Iverson is, at heart, a traditionalist.
Since 2004, musician/mechanical engineer Tristan Shone, AKA Author & Punisher, has worked steadily to reclaim the original definition of industrial music, composing and performing his songs on homemade creations he calls “drone machines” and “dub machines.”
After a couple of records exploring his instrumental diversity, British keyboardist Kit Downes pares down to the classic piano trio format for Vermillion.
Though he has an impressive sideperson CV (Miles Davis, John Coltrane, Freddie Hubbard, McCoy Tyner, not to mention a bucketful of R&B dates), saxophonist Azar Lawrence also has records as a leader going back to 1974’s spiritual jazz classic Bridge Into the New Age.
Though he was free of the cancer he’d been fighting for years by that point, Fish knew he was nearing the end as he finished his twelfth studio album, and made sure he left a hell of a legacy behind.
The album asks the question: how do we find peace when we’re under constant bombardment?
Following a brief reunion around Omnivore’s reissue of the band’s 1985 debut Town + Country and lead vocalist Jimmer Podrasky’s musical reactivation after twenty-odd years, a new album from the Rave-Ups was inevitable.
After gigging and recording as a sideperson for the last five years or so, young pianist Mathis Picard makes his full-length solo debut with Live at the Museum.
Having gotten his introduction out of the way with 2020’s Omega, the usual explosion of talent a hotly tipped young musician is obligated to display on a debut record, alto saxophonist Immanuel Wilkins returns with its follow-up, The 7th Hand.
Like his former boss Sun Ra, who pushed jazz to its outer limits but always made time for the old-school Fletcher Henderson arrangements he loved, Mitchell swings wide here, as comfortable with squealing free jazz as with swinging bebop.
The group’s well-traveled but effective blend of shimmering jangle, wide-eyed psychedelia and dreamy grunge favors sound over subject, which makes it the perfect music from which listeners can extract their own context.
Dissolution Wave is the aural equivalent of a weighted blanket. If you’re pining for the melodic and heavy space-rock from the late 90s, Cloakroom has returned with its third album to provide the sublime but downcast shoegaze sound your spirit craves.
Parisien presents a program of sturdy compositions given vibrant life on his latest album Louise.
Tenor Time transports you to a late night set at your favorite jazz club.
As a follow up to their enchanting debut album Beauty and Loss, *Opal Canyon is back with a new album. A series of singles are planned to introduce the listening audience to their deft and delicate sound before the full album drops in early April.
There’s free improvisation, and then there’s Cecil Taylor.
A country legend rolls with changing times and reaffirms her greatness.
Slap Bang Blue Rendezvous may be almost ninety minutes long, twice as long as some wags think it should be, but the length works in the band’s favor, as they’re not a bummer in the bunch.
Guitarist Oz Noy is best known for bluesy fusion records. For Riverside, however, he’s teamed up with his pals Ugonna Okegwo (bass) and Ray Marchica (drums) for a set of standards.
Different from any of their previous or subsequent musical projects, yet very much bearing the hallmark of their respective styles, Hitsville PA has a mysterious, unique quality redolent of the literate indie-pop both excel at.
Veteran heavy hitters bring all of their talents to bear on Ode to O, their second album together at the OGJB Quartet.
As a supplement to last year’s American debut Ten Easy Pieces, Laj plucked tracks from previous recordings to compile RetroSpectacle.
Douglas Wayne’s latest single “HEY YA’LL,” rumbles along in fine Americana fashion asking the eternal question “whatcha done done?” It’s an imagined conversation with regular folk in a place like his father’s hometown in the Smoky Mountains of western North Carolina.
The world may not have ended, yet, but if the events of the last few years have fueled the inspiration of bands like Vannon, then at least we can be thankful for a work of art this powerful.
It’s difficult to feel left wanting a little more, but what Aura Blaze has given us here is breathtaking in its scope and truly impressive in its beautifully lush production.
In 2020, Rich Jacques had a health scare and decided to move out of Los Angeles. His friends Renee and Paul invited him to come and live with them and their family allowing him time to created a lot of new habits and get back to health. It was a life changing experiencer him and their generosity, support, and friendship was truly humbling. “Montecito” is a love letter to those people and that place.
Capturing a 2018 performance opening for Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds at the titular fest, Live at Montreux Jazz Festival presents Anna von Hausswolff at her most enthralling.
Ellis is a fantastically hypnotic collection of songs, and a giant step forward for 1st Base Runner’s sound.
As with all of Matthews’ other work, Ever Since Ever Since, the trio’s second LP, swims confidently in the 70s end of the power pop pool, happily indulging in the sweet melodies/tough attack modus operandi .
