Leon Vynehall – In Daytona Yellow: In four listens, I’ve gone from meh to hmm. The record doesn’t have the bangers I expected but it does have a vulnerability that surprises me. I can tell I’m going to either forget about In Daytona Yellow or listen to it obsessively, I’m curious to see which way it goes.
Madison Cunningham – Ace: I often know within 8.3 seconds if I’m going to buy a record. With Ace, that answer is “no.” Objectively, Cunningham is a compelling and respected writer and singer, but her voice reminds me of Joni Mitchell without the vibrato. Mitchell’s voice is like nails on a chalkboard to me, and Cunningham has the same effect.
Jay Som – Belong: And it took about 8.3 seconds for me to know that I’ll buy this. I love the mood and the energy. The collaborations equally highlight both Melina Duterte’s sound and the vibe of her collaborators, something that should be easy but is remarkably hard to do.
Olivia Dean – The Art of Loving: The first song immediately states that this is neither a pop/rock record nor an R&B record, but it sits at an intersection between them. Her voice and performances remind me of Valerie June, which is a huge compliment.
Alan Sparhawk with Trampled by Turtles – Alan Sparhawk with Trampled by Turtles: Last time I focused on the heartbroken lyrics of “Screaming Song” but this time Ryan Young’s violin (fiddle? What’s the difference?) grabbed me and shook me so hard I had to listen to the song multiple times.
Geese – Getting Killed: I’m getting past how strange this album sounds and starting to understand the songs and performances, like the way the second half of “Islands of Man” is an instrumental jam that layers minimalistic guitar, keyboard, and horn lines into something far greater than the individual parts. As I said last week, Geese didn’t do something new as much as they put the tried-and-true parts together in a wonderful way that nobody else has.
Laufey – A Night at the Symphony: Hollywood Bowl: The build into “I’m not your fucking goddess” on the song “Goddess” is gorgeous and is possibly my favorite Laufey moment so far.
Laufey – A Matter of Time: Though the vulnerability of “Forget-Me-Not” is a strong contender for favorite Laufey moment.
Jessie Ware – That! Feels Good!: Ware and producers James Ford and Stuart Price superbly arranged the title track. The basic chords remain static while different instruments and lines come in and go out, leading the song to a joyous crescendo when everything comes together at the end. They don’t use cheesy key changes or dramatic bridges to create a climax, but instead use exciting performances and strong arrangements to create a song that definitely feels good!
Erika de Casier – The Sensational Remixes: The Eartheater remix of “Someone to Chill With” hit me hard this week. She builds upon the mixture of longing and confident sensuality in de Casier’s original and highlights a vulnerability that feels completely new.
A Silver Mt. Zion – Born into Trouble as the Sparks Fly Upward | God Bless Our Dead Marines: SMZ worked dog references into both these albums, and the dog barking and birds singing at the end of “Take These Hands and Throw Them in the River” transfixed my own dog when she heard it this week. I went for years listening to SMZ every day, and it’s always a joy to come back to them.
We Are Winter’s Blue and Radiant Children – No More Apocalypse Father: SMZ made me want to dig into something from Efrim Manuel Menuck that I hadn’t heard yet. I don’t know what I was expecting from No More Apocalypse Father, but it wasn’t the beautiful noise that washed out from my speakers. This reminds me of All Hands_Make Light but is completely different.
Judas Priest – British Steel: I loved Priest when I was a teenager but when I revisited them as an adult, I realized their albums have a lot of filler. “Rapid Fire” sets a bar that nothing else on the album—not even the two hits—can touch, but there are a lot of tracks here that sound like Slade throwaways.
The Replacements – Pleased to Meet Me: I worked in a record store in ’90 when the store manager introduced me to the ‘Mats by repeatedly playing All Shook Down on the in-store system. I hated the record, but then he dragged me to a show and everything clicked. For some reason, though, Pleased to Meet Me slipped through the cracks and I never heard it until this week. “Skyway” is maybe even a better example than “Here Comes a Regular” of how amazing the band was at ballads.
Old friends who made it into rotation this week: Gracie Abrams: Good Riddance & Live at Radio City Music Hall
Record store finds this week: I picked up the only copy of the new HAAi record at my local shop, and now I’m waiting for the right moment to play it.
That Madison Cunningham record is on my “maybe” list so far. I didn’t really make the Joni Mitchell connection, but that is not the killer for me that it is for you.
Olivia Dean is also on the “maybe” list. She has a great voice. I just need to let the songs sink in more.
I’m very curious to see if either of those rise off of the “maybe” list for you. Dean’s record is good but I don’t think it’s something I’ll ultimately buy. I listened to the whole thing again last night and while I liked it, it felt a LOT longer than 34 minutes. That’s never a good sign.
My response to Madison Cunningham is so subjective that I almost didn’t even write it, but my point with the Listening Journal is to give my future self something to look back on, so omitting it would prevent future me from maybe deciding to try it again. Who knows, maybe Joni will finally click with me once that Cameron Crowe movie comes out and I’ll read back on this and discover a deep love. Weirder things have happened.
I have to go back and listen to British Steel. It has been a while. I am wondering if it is filler or just that the highs are really high, making the other tracks seem less than they are. I remember that being a really good record, but I also remember thinking the lyrics were good and I know that is not true.
“That! Feels Good!” is a weird song. I think everything you say about the music is true and there is a joyful energy, but Ware’s voice is so dead and that combined with the hedonism of the lyrics (e.g., “Pleasure is a right”) makes the song a lot darker. Nothing about her vocal makes me think it feels good. From an artistic perspective, that is probably kind of interesting. From a personal perspective, it looses me a bit. “Free Yourself” is not as driving musically, but there her voice has life and that is a completely different feel.