Music for 9/30/26!!! Fire-Toolz

@@@ Fire Toolz: Lavendar Networks (Warp, 2026). There’s a little trend going right now where folks take mainstream pop sounds and make a giant super stacked sundae of sounds so you can get your pop on and your anti-pop satirical feels at the same time. There’s a moment here when the female singer who’s doing a pretty pop section segues into some sort of crazy ass ill orc voice, yowsa big jarring shift. The record is 10 tracks over 37 minutes, so not huge tunes but weird ass titles like Kiss the Bladed Cat Find Ways to Stretch Time, they’re all like this I’m not shitting on it I’m just informing you. This second track, fascinatingly, is a mashup of heavy metal sounds and ideas with pop and dancefloor ideas, it’s jarring and I can’t decide if it’s good or bad. I don’t have to decide right now, I’m not one of these dumbass pop enthusiasts that says if you don’t feel the track within 3 seconds or it’s toast. The formula does grab you, the question is whether this record is the best way to execute this formula only time will tell on that. I don’t know if it’s my ears adjusting or if this fourth track is the best deployment of the heavy metal pop mash em up cars, but I like the tune more than the other ones. I think the tunese where the metal influence is less do not work as well as the tunes that are more balanced. So the opening track hints at a big stacked sandwich of pop sounds but that’s not really true it’s just that she restricted the metal feels to the orc voice. The record would work better if she had maintained a more consistent blend of guitars, metal voices and thundering drums throughout, just my dumbass opinion. It is misleading to put a mostly pop tune at the top of the record and then proceed to undercut that with the next three tunes, a lot of people would say that doesn’t matter but I do. That first hit is important.

Music for 9/29/26!!!! Serakolo 7

@@@ Serakolo 7: Maramfa Musick Pro (Nyege Nyege Tapes, 2026). #100 from The Quietus’ top 100 records of the year, a list that came out in July. This outfit is from Uganda, and it’s a stew of layered rhythms, mostly brisk, whistles, retro cheesy synths, vocal bits and vocal performances at certain points. It’s loose and chaotic but funky. Regular readers of this blog know that I’m very partial to African electronic music and this is no exception, the energy here is hip and abundant, I dig it. It is pretty hard in places to distinguish what is drum machine action and what is hand drumming done by humans, I certainly hope it’s a blend because the contrast between the two works for me. This not your typical West African guitar based African business, it’s synth driven and I’m not sure I’ve heard a bass yet. I’m on the fourth tune and when you can insert yourself and just listen closely to what’s popping and pushing through the mix it’s really really quite funky and weird and joyous. Maybe some folks who like 3 minute indie tunes will be like this is too it’s not like a song I know and I be like yeah let’s do it, it’s loose and wild. Most assuredly going to make my best of year list. How these musicians can carry on their traditions while they renovate and keep shit fresh is inspiring. Don’t sleep on this record, it’s bangers bangers bangers.

Music for 9/28/26!!! Metropolis Ensemble

@@@ Metropolis Ensemble/Erik Hall/Sandbox Percussion: Canto Ostinato (Western Vinyl, 2026). Sneaking into #92 on a list of the best albums thus far of 2026, hey they made it to the list and I will peep it! I’m guessing that this is gonna be some classical crossover, or collective jazz-ish type record and there’s no shame in that, just a prediction. This is a big record, and it’s a classical crossover record out on Western Vinyl which usually doesn’t release music like this, big respect for switching it up. 9 tracks over 65 minutes with an opener that spans 11 minutes. The opener is piano, vibes (?) and strings in some places. It’s a pretty restrained vibe here, this is not some stormy Wagner or Beethoven symphony, it’s circular and measured. What do I think of this record? It’s for people with good paying jobs who don’t want to sweat or pay attention, it’s background classical music which I don’t think is great for listeners or for classical music. My son studies cello at a conservatory and I’ve gotten an appreciation for abstract and/or passionate works of classical music, this is not one of those. Feel free to like this if you want, it’s most definitely your choice but I find it mad snoozy. Listen to some Bach Organ fugues if you want some devastating symmetrical classical music.

Music for 9/26/26!!! Olaf Dreijer

@@@ Olaf Dreijer: Loud Bloom (dh2, 2026). Another electronic release off the Guardian’s best of year thus far and I’m feeling the opener, it’s got a crispness and focus that works for me. And a unique funkiness, very clean but hard hitting at the same time. Ostensibly it’s got a techno beat though with a shaker added but then the melody starts and it twists and convolutes and gets blurped and undercut with some thick halfway between bass and mid range instruments, no that’s a bass slicing away and I’m there for it. Let’s hope this continues! Please Jesus let it roll on. Extreme attention paid to details pays off here, let’s kick it to track 2. This tune Plastic Camelias is cuter, but it’s just the intro it could blow out into something different, oh there it is in comes the thickness beneath the stick percussion and we are most definitely getting pushed around by the wambly bass. I clicked through to the third track, I didn’t not like the second track, but it didn’t move me like the opener. The third track is working again — a trippy melodic synth run on top of multiple layers of percussion and a super tastefully banging bass. The sounds are clear as day it’s just sitting there gyrating and radiating a somewhat unique funkiness, it has some pop in places, the stack of voices is growing here and it’s evolving at a brisk and impressive pace. This is the formula for the record thus far so I’m gonna circle back on this record but I’m guessing it will makes its way to my end of year list. Extreme attention paid to details, that’s the jam here. Hyper arranged and there’s a lot to groove on here, don’t sleep on this record.

Music for 9/25/26!!! Crystalpunk

@@@ Crystalpunk: Chalk (ALTAR, 2026). Off the Guardian’s best of 2026 thus far. It is labelled as punk on Apple Music and how you feel about that label depends on how you define punk which has never really been done well. To me it’s more a spirit, and that spirit says to bite the hand that feeds in the name of what’s right. And on top of that it does appear that a lot of folks pretend to be biting the hand that feeds though they’re really jerking off the hand that feeds. This is a hundo percent bombastic, but bombastic is a big arena rock thing and a big mainstream pop music thing, hugeness, I always thought punk was local. What do I like here? I’m on the third tune and the answer is not a ton. Now on the fourth tune and I would relabel this as rock dancefloor, or slightly confrontational electronic music. This fourth track is mostly Oasis with a synth in the background, same set of beats coming from the drummer. Some PR person got this record on this list and good for them and not great for listeners. I don’t feel this is my punk, I’d rather listen to a metal record with some hardcore feels than this pretty boy art school preening. Shame on whoever labelled it thusly.

Music for 9/24/26!!! Beth Orton

@@@ Beth Orton: The Ground Above (Partisan Records, 2026). Also off the Clash Magazine best of 2026 thus far, though we’re closing in on the end of this shithead year defined by cruelty, racism, and domination. That’s certainly not Beth Orton’s fault that America is going through a fascism phase (another) but it does effect the listening environment. I like her voice a whole bunch and by the time the drums come in this could be a Emmylou Harris record, or another getting on in years spacious record of world weary rock. I like her voice more than I like the band, but that’s just me. Oh wow and 8.5 minute opening track is brave for sure, I didn’t make it through, I need a quicker hit to pull me in. The first track is very important to the rest of the record in my dumbass opinion. The second track is 6.5 minute shot across the bow and the whole record is 8 tracks clocking in at 47 minutes. My feeling is that these tunes are too long and there could be more adventuring, I’m grateful to hear and interesting bassline in the third tune, to me this could use more interesting sonics than relying mostly on her personality/voice to get it across the finish line. This is most definitely a rock record and rock is a hard sell for me, but she coulda used a bit more fire to go with the sadness and the emotion, they’re not fully apart from each other, I’m both sad and angry most of the time, how about you out there? How you doing with this ride we’re on?

Music for 9/23/26!!! Genesis Owusu

@@@ Genesis Owusu: Redstar Wu & The Worldwide Scourge (Ourness Party Ltd, 2026) I got to this record via the best of the year 2026 from Clash Magazine. I’ve found a couple of bangers on that list, most of all GENA a electro funk record I recommend. This is a topical, political record, I’m down with that, and it unfolds within an electronic music/rock sound palette (mostly) which isn’t super common. I’m super into this third tune, HELLSTAR, it’s got a slinky feel and a formula that I can get with bigly, this is looking mostly like a mixed bag leaning towards I like it and the spirit going here. The tunes where he goes with the New Wave flavors are less appealing to me, and other superficial references to punk music don’t work for me, but when he goes funky his shit is funky and I feel those tunes. Would I take a 100% funk record with super political lyrics, oh yeah I would. Is that what’s on offer? No it is not. There are moments where he really hits hard and then other parts where he brings in pop and mainstream musical ideas and I’m just confused and less satisfied. Other folks don’t think like me, once in a blue moon somebody will make a record that jumps around and I’m like I get that, I get that. This is not one of those records, unfortunately cuz full funk and I would shit my pants.

Music for 9/21/26!!! Beck

@@@ Beck: Ride Lonesome (Capitol, 2026). I’ve never been slack, I’m opposed to slack, I like fire, I like passion, so take that into consideration because Beck is slack personified. Even when he rocks it’s snoozy. As expected it opens lush and slack as fuck with country feels. The second tune Run Away is worse than the opener, these are huge slow halfway to rockers, I guess they’re designed to comfort folks during the difficult time and I’m the outlier cuz I’m not feeling it. First off, way too much reverb on his voice at certain points. The production is slick and it kinda works against the tunes a bit, they’re just so manicured and inflated I notice it, I shouldn’t have to notice it. The third tune, In the Night, brings in the predicted string sounds and the fourth tune brings in the piano ballad, I’m sorry I can’t get with it because it’s just too mushy and soft and without contrast, it’s a bowl of sweetened oatmeal it is most definitely some high end oatmeal I’ll give him that and even though oatmeal has a reputation for really filling you up I’m super hungry for something more here.

Music for 9/20/26!!! Black Meteoric Star

@@@ Black Meteoric Star: Wet ( , 2026) I got to this electronic queer manifesto via this week’s Pitchfork 10 best reviewed albums of the week. The opener is electronic but also quite grizzled in the bass with distorted vocals and it has a distinctly punk sound. I appreciate the raucous nature of the opener, let’s peep more. The second tune 5am Open Air Sunrise pulses with urgency and I don’t miss the vocals, it’s got a circular repetition to it but I don’t super mind that. The third tune is where the queer manifesto part comes into it’s called Buttplug Thumb Drive, not sure what we’re in for. It’s another instrumental, it’s a dancefloor banger, but not typical, the beats and the basses are impactful and not lo fi but certainly not presented with the clinical cleanliness of a lot of techno which prides itself on being sharp and accurate. Okay well that track wasn’t very gay, it had no words, it was a pleasant toss off. The record is 9 tunes over 55 minutes with two 12-13 minute bangers chewing up a huge chunk of the running time. Is this record making me jump up and down? Not really. But is it a super analog retro punky electronic set of tunes with energy and flavor. I dig it, it doesn’t sound like a ton of electronice music out there. Great synth patch selection here, skilled.

Music for 9/17/26!!! Gelbart

@@@ Gelbart: TK-745 (Kitchen Leg Records, 2026) Garage rock out of Berlin out on a tape label, you go fellas, for real. It’s an interesting formula cuz there are stretches where it’s noisy and garage-y and other spots where it sounds like some sort of robot straight jazz with processed vocals, a little skittering drums and lots of random improvised bleep bloop action. Now we’re entering into a I don’t know what it’s called in classical music but it’s a lot of the same notes played really fast very dramatic, not melodic sort of atmospheric wow these guys don’t give a fuck. Okay track 2 has kicked off and it’s a big garage rock beat with space laser blasts, not dancefloor more just weapon-y sounding. It’s fresh for sure, I’m on track 3 and they’re smashing together nerdy synth sounds and slashing noisy punky guitars, it’s like a soundtrack to a William Gibson movie, bouncy and disturbing though the Gibson novel I read was very slow and stifling in atmosphere. Yowsa, I think they’re reaching their peak with this fourth track, Katsu Funeral Heartbreak, where the guitars and the synths are much more together, it’s a super cool tune and they bring in some spooky vocal-ish type sounds. I respect this outfit for making this record, I really appreciate it, it’s got a lot of contrast between the sounds and I’m feeling that. Punk guitars and video game synthesizers, who woulda thunk it? Well, they did! When you hear something fresh and new it can be a bit disorienting, the opposite of pop music, I’m going to circle back on this record. The more of this I hear the more I like it, it’s going in my library, this is one of the most interesting rock records I’ve heard in a long time.