Low – Hey What: This is a good balance of noisy chaos and accessible (maybe even pretty) indie songwriting. It’s not an easy album, but it’s not super difficult either, and it’s worth the effort. There are a lot of layers, both in sound and words, and it’s the kind of record that reveals itself slowly.
Pharoah Sanders – Karma: I listened to this for the first time last week and I can’t believe how much of it I missed. I listened this week in the car, loud, and it was incredible. Like Hey What, it is both chaotic and accessible, albeit in a very different way. If Coltrane’s Om offers a deep and brooding meditation on the soul, Karma is a joyfully exuberant meditation on peace.
Can – Tago Mago: I guess accessible chaos was my theme this week. I didn’t love Tago Mago nearly as much as I did when I first heard it 15 years ago, but it’s still pretty amazing, especially when you consider its release date. I will also say that listening to this record while assembling Ikea furniture lowered my grumpiness from a 10 to about a six. Given how much I hate Ikea furniture, that’s pretty remarkable.