Death Cab for Cutie – I Built You a Tower: When Narrow Stairs came out eight years ago, I recognized its intellectual strength but never felt its heart the way I did with Transatlanticism and, to a lesser degree, Plans. On first listen, I Built You a Tower is good, but I hear too much head and not enough heart. I usually need at least three listens to really hear an album, though, so I’m going to give this at least two more chances.
Valerie June – Owls, Omens, and Oracles: This is an album I need right now, and it might be an album that America needs. Yes, it’s simplistically optimistic at times (a complaint I also hurled at What’s Going On), but it’s also hopeful, and it challenges us to be hopeful too. As for the music, it’s exceptional. M. Ward’s contributions on guitar are perfect, and the string and horn arrangements add enormous depth and energy. The songs nod to the great American songbook, yet June keeps the sound current and unique. I’m glad I didn’t listen to this when I bought it last year because hearing it now is so good.
Aldous Harding – Train on the Island: On first listen, I landed somewhere between indifference and grating annoyance. I cannot pinpoint if that’s because I truly dislike Train on the Island, or because I don’t understand it. On the side of dislike, Harding’s voice doesn’t emotionally resonate with me and many of the lyrics sit on the wrong side of that fine line between clever and stupid. But I also acknowledge that she’s created a record I don’t quite understand. Unfortunately, I don’t think I care enough to try harder.
Madonna – Confessions II (preview singles): They’re Madonna singles, which stopped meaning much to me after Ray of Light. By far, my favorite track is “I Feel So Free,” with its portrayal of salvation and connection on the dancefloor. Peggy Gou’s remix left me cold, though, which is surprising because I rarely prefer an original album track over a remix. The other two advance singles, “Bring Your Love” and “Love Sensation,” are good examples of why I don’t listen to Madonna much anymore.
Rachael Yamagata – Starlit Alchemy: Over the past couple of months, I’ve been drawn to how this album (as well as The National’s First Two Pages of Frankenstein) vividly captures the sadness of mid-life loss. “Empty Houses” is like a glimpse into the home that Matt Berninger leaves behind on “Eucalyptus,” and I appreciate Yamagata’s sympathetic portrayal of both the woman and the man who face that emptiness. The album is filled with snapshots of loss that I couldn’t relate to in my 20s, but perhaps Yamagata’s greatest lyrical accomplishment is that she also finds moments of hope and joy to accompany those losses. Yamagata’s voice is aging beautifully, and I’m not sure any song captures that beauty better than the harmonies in “Hurt.”
Beastie Boys – Paul’s Boutique: I worked at a record store that no longer exists in a mall that no longer exists when Paul’s Boutique came out, and I remember putting it out in the bin while shaking my head because, well, more music from snotty privileged brats. I didn’t recover from that hatred until I fell head over heels for Check Your Head a few years later, yet I never made my way back to Paul’s Boutique until I found it in a used bin this week. The record is ridiculously dated yet even more ridiculously fresh, a wall of sampled noise that tests my speakers in a brutally fun way. The lyrics don’t hold up, except when they hold up beautifully. I considered listening to one of the three new Drake albums this week, so finding Paul’s Boutique when I did is a clear case of divine intervention.
Nina Nastasia – Dogs: I’ve never heard of, let alone heard, Nastasia, so when I ran across an intriguing comment about her this week, I decided to check out her debut. I didn’t get far into it, but I heard enough to know I need to hear more.
Grateful Dead – 5/1/81 (Hampton, VA): The first half of set 2 dips into the proggy side of the Dead and didn’t really click with me, but taking that complaint with a grain of salt, this show is rock solid from start to finish. Garcia’s guitar on “Let it Grow” is filled with so much unconstrained energy that I picture a horse launching out of the gate at the start of a race, pent up energy releasing with joy and excitement. Mydland’s organ anchors the show with that same kind of excited energy and confirms why I like this period of their music so much.
Old friends who made it into rotation this week: HAAi: Humanise
Record store finds this week: Paul’s Boutique, as I noted above, along with the Beastie’s Root Down EP.