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Happy Monday music maniacs! Like new stuff? Great! You’ve come to the right place. Each week all sorts of audiolicious goodies are unleashed onto the masses and this is where they come to be judged. I’ll tell ya what’s good, what’s bad, and what’s a waste of your time. Thanks for stopping by!
The Big News!
So yeah, there’s a bunch of great records being released this week (and we’ll get to them in a minute) but the big news this week is the passing of one of the most important figures in modern music: blues legend BB King. Without BB King, and his famed guitar Lucille, modern popular music would have atrophied and died after the death of Buddy Holly. His influence permeated throughout every interesting thought that passed through every rock and roller’s head, or tingled in every guitarists fingers, in the last 50 years. Bye bye, BB.
Also, here’s me imploring you, once again, to listen to the new installment of Bludgeon Your Horizons, the “difficult” albums podcast hosted by several music writers on Overmental. This weeks episode? Xiu Xiu’s Angel Guts: Red Classroom, which I named one of the ten best albums of 2014 in my year end list last year.
The Other Big News
After a forever long hiatus alt-rock masters Faith No More return with their seventh record, the highly anticipated Sol Invictus. The Los Angeles Times says that the record “has a certain calm to it, a confident precision that could be the result of its long gestation”. Blabbermouth goes gaga like this: “It’s a brand new beginning with a brand new vibe that’s still Faith No More in soul.. .In some ways, it’s the most mind-blowing performance under the moniker.” .
Solo Suckers
Jamie Foxx offers up Hollywood, his second record. Yawn.
The Daily Mail loves the second solo effort from Killers front-man Brandon Flowers, The Desired Effect. Calling it “one of his strongest song collections yet”, the publication awarded the record five stars.
Legendary Legends
British hair metal supernova Whitesnake returns with it’s 12th record, The Purple Album, a collection of Deep Purple covers. Quoth Sonic Abuse: “[This is] a thoroughly energized Whitesnake take on classic songs that both pays tribute to the originals and reworks them according to the strengths of the band. It’s a rip-roaring, hard-rock ride that will have hard rock fans in raptures and which will undoubtedly have fans reaching for their battered LPs having been reminded of the quality and power of the originals.”
British Bangers
Why Make Sense, the sixth release from English electro veterans Hot Chip is satisfying without being adventurous, says Consequence of Sound. “Hot Chip don’t outdo themselves here, but they know how to get the work done exactly the way you like it.”
NPR, and the rest of the music listening world, is hella excited for Peanut Butter, the sophomore effort from England’s punk upstarts Joanna Gruesome. “Peanut Butter’s 10 songs clock in at only 22 minutes — about seven minutes shorter than its predecessor — but the band crams just as much energy and depth into a more compact and vital package” Gonna see this one on a few “Best Of 2015” lists come November, kiddos.
Indie Slaw
A whole steamin’ slew of great stuff from up and coming bands that deserve your attention. The Oh Sees fight back with Mutilator Defeated At Last, which contains “a gratifyingly spooky sonic blast… [and] blustery jams”, according to The Quietus.
The reviewer for The National Student slobbers all over the new twenty one pilots record Blurryface, but ends up like this: “Overall, the album is completely and utterly ridiculous. It is everything and nothing that you want. I don’t know whether to love it or leave it.” Huh. This Ohio based duo is one of those up-and-coming bands everyone is talking about, mainly because their live show is supposed to be fantastic.
Milk Carton Kids return with their latest Monterrey. “[B]eneath the exquisite guitar work, lovely harmonies and gentle sway of the music, things are simmering,” says the San Francisco Gate.
“Super sweet terrorism from our very own latter day Spector” – that’s how label Drag City lauds the new Jim O’Rourke album Simple Songs.
People are all hot for this new record from Bay Area hardcore juggernauts Ceremony, but I’d rather listen to Joy Division instead.
RIP
Again, BB King died this week. So let’s hear another.
Also, and this is only vaguely related to music in the sense that he was as individual and iconoclastic as any rock star, performance artist Chris Burden passed away this week.
My Recommendation
Rolling Stone calls Skeleton Crew, the debut from Kansas City based mother and son folk duo Madisen Ward and The Mama Bear, “a set of songs that tackle life-and-death themes with character sketches and snapshots of the living that happens in between”. Highly recommended.
Next Week
Tune in next week, same new music time, same new music channel for new new stuff from The Vaccines!!
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