Music for 10/29/26!!! Shovel Dance Collective

@@@ Shovel Dance Collective: Everything in Readiness (tak:til, 2026). I got to this folk outfit’s latest effort via the weekly email from The Quietus, I’ve found a ton of great music off their best of 2026 list thus far. I’ve heard these folks before and there sure seems to be a whole bunch of ambient feels to their music which makes it feel pretty modern and interesting, to me at least. It’s a slow pace to be sure in some places but there are a lot of layers and a fair amount of interesting playing going on here. Oh shit, the break out into a free jazz folk throwdown chaotic sound-gasm which is very surprising but I give it respect, points for creativity. I’m on track 5 and these guys most definitely push on the boundaries of what a folk record can be with huge wheezing crescendos, train sounds and vocalizing that is more like a gospel revival than what you think a folk record singer would be like. My favorite tune is track 8, Who killed Cock Robin? and it sounds a more like an indie rock tune than a folk nugget so these guys are clearly accomplished musicians and traffic in all sorts of sounds and vibes. I respect it without totally feeling it, if it was mostly like this track 8 I would be on it like stink on a monkey. There some awfully beautiful horns on track 9 so there sure are some moments to be savored here, I leave it to folks to check it out on their own terms. Man I’m really enjoying the back end of this record whilst I didn’t fall right into it, why does this happen? I clearly am in the listening minority and the things I like aren’t put at the front of the record. Possibly.

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Music for 10/27/26!!! Fake Names, Josh Johnson

@@@ Fake Names: Punk Ruins (Epitaph, 2026) Off last week’s All Music notable release email. The way that a lot of metal bands will put in elements of hardcore punk cuz they like it etc, the same goes in the other direction punk bands will cop the metal bass drum sound cuz they like it. I don’t think that’s happening here, this is more in the pop punk I gotta pay the bills part of town. These guys are pretty melodic and they rock, I mean I wish it was a little rougher in the rocking area, it would balance out the melodic work of the singer more and I like contrast. These guys are a supergroup let’s peep which bands. I like some of the bands that contributed members of this supergroup but tbh I don’t love the singer he sounds much more like a wannabe rock star than a punk singer, or the ones I’m accustomed to. I’ll stick with my Bad Brains records, gimme some fire bitches.

@@@ Josh Johnson: Animative (International Anthem, 2026). Also off the All Music notable release email. I like this Chicago jazz label, not everything they’ve released but they’ve got some good shit going on. There are three tunes from this record up on Apple Music where the record consists of 10 tracks totalling 39 minutes. If you read this musician’s bio he’s been a masher of genres since the git go and I’m no jazz purist. The question for me is whether the improvisation you hear is creative, how creative is it, and do you like the tunes? I didn’t love the first available tune, Reece, but I’m digging this tune Jazz Chord Procession it’s more interesting harmonically and has more energy to it. I really like the bassline in the third available tune, It Can Be Everywhere, the horn playing not as much and there’s sort of a too chill New Age flow to the tune. So very much a mixed bag for me, listen for yourself. I dig his work in SML so peep them especially the debut record.

Music for 10/25/26!!! Alchemical Sisters

@@@ Alchemical Sisters: Alchemical Sisters (Interdimensional Transmissions, 2026). Some electronic music out of that hotbed of American dance music, New Hampshire, a state I fucking loathe because I went to high school there and I will drop it right there and not bore readers with why I hate the state of New Hampshire, it would take a while to get through it. It’s a bit of a ballsy move to name your opener This is How It Should be Done especially if you’re coming out of New Hampshire, a very backwards place where many of the citizenry engage in bestiality on a somewhat frequent basis. No not true, just joking the tune is all right but if I’m entertaining myself then they’re not entertaining me. There is a sort of floating guitar figure that really captures my ear so let there be hope. The second tune kicks out with a sample about straight white people and I think that’s cool but I think the beats could use some freakshow sauce cuz as they stand now it’s kinda frat house style. I like the chopping going on here and the harmonica loop but it needs more depth. The energy is very high but the originality could be higher and I would be more excited. Hmmm, I’m on track 3 and the formula of dropping an unexpected sample into a familiar rhythmic scenario has happened thrice so I will peep one more and let me reiterate that it’s fine to pay homage to the past but you gotta put a little cilantro or sauce of your own on there, please I’m begging you. This is white wedding material. I have to peep this track they have called ‘A Song for New Hampshire’ cuz well I hate New Hampshire. I’ve never thought about how I would sonically honor that state or its state of mind but it doesn’t ring of what I remember of it, it’s kinda Eastern/Asian and mystical and I think of it as more inbred. Let me wrap up and say I live NYC and there are so many douchebags there right now, mostly white collar shitbird white people so I’m down to raw dog almost all populations so don’t feel bad Manchester, Concord and Portsmouth!!!!

Music for 10/23/26!!! Surprise Chef

@@@ Surprise Chef: Frogs in a Pond (Concord Jazz, 2026). Throwback funk off this week’s All Music notable release email. The first tune has some banging bass playing going on but overall it could use more flash. Let’s peep more. The first tune was only 1:14 this is the second tune I’ve been rocking. Oh my I’m wondering if the bass player is the leader of the band cuz his/her/their shit is right up front and I’m feeling it. This record has some really interesting instrumentation, vibes, flutes, nylon string guitars among other things, but really the record could use some Red Bull and some swing, I collect a lot of the vintage Italian records and the playing on those records is not as rigid as on this record. These guys sound like they’re trying to get everything right when they should just sit on the toilet and let it fly. Missed opportunity. Great sounds, great instruments though.

Music for 10/22/26!!! Dam-Funk, Los Retros

@@@ Dam-Funk: Hood Pass Intact (Stones Throw, 2009). A coupla quick listens off last week’s KCRW 45 songs of the week celebrating Stones Throw 30th anniversary as a label. This is an old school banger does it hold up? Let’s peep. It’s got some nice fat retro synths but to be honest why would I listen to this when I can listen to the whole of 1999 which has lyrics and banging guitar playing. It feels pretty conservative for a funk tune, I also think the beat could use some variation or an upgrade.

@@@ Los Retros: Someone to Spend Time With (Stones Throw, 2019). This is a variation on an old school Beck tune, some clean indie guitar bits, retro bass and chill indie dude singing. It’s an okay tune with a female vocalist who spices things up just a bit but it’s certainly not jump up and down material. I set it to repeat after listening to it once and it doesn’t grab me the second time around, I wish I could jump up and down I love jumping up and down. Boy not the 30th anniversary of Stones Throw that I was expecting.

Music for 10/21/26!!! Cryptic Shift

@@@ Cryptic Shift: Overspace and Supertime (Metal Blade, 2026). I’m still chewing through the back end of the Quietus’ best of 2026 list for the first half of the year and they have praise for this metal record. Let’s peep. Right out of the gate this albums stands out for consisting of 5 tracks and running 78 minutes with plenty of proggy bits to go with a 29 minute piece and another that’s 20 minutes. So these guys are pushing the envelope which I can get with. What I call the sectioning of the tunes goes from proggy bits to rocking metal parts and even a few shades of punk and whatnot. These guys are a bit like a jam band that got blenderized with a buncha metalheads, this 9 minute opener is bursting with farm fresh heaviness, I dig it. It is the next day and I’m going to peep a decent sized chunk of the second tune, Stratocumulus Gaol, a monster 20 minute banger and conclude this review. I would say the guitar playing is the star here by a little bit cuz the rest of the band flames, and you have to give these guys some credit for rolling like this, they bring a fury and a creative energy to these tunes that makes them stick out. Usually with an almost half an hour piece there would be a slow buildup but these guys come out of the gate and hit it and keep the accelerator pressed to the floor. I’m not sure where I stand on the record itself but I applaud the shit out of the energy and formula or the desire add to standard ideas. I often think of metal as being a very rigid genre with strict definitions and sub genres, but this record works against that.

Music for 10/20/26!!! Marina Herlop

@@@ Marina Herlop: Dja Dja (Self released, 2026). I got to this ‘orchestral’ electronic record via this week’s 10 most reviewed albums of the week at Pitchfork. I’ve heard her music before and I think it’s been close to a hit for me, but not quite. I feel the same here at the outset. It sounds mostly like a modernized classical piece of music with flutes driving the bus with piano coming in and then I’m like I’m good with this but where’s the electronic business at? Is that bitchy? I don’t think so. Let’s go to the next tune. The third tune brings in the electronic bits and I don’t love it yet. It is a stuffed arrangement and it’s very well put together but I’m not feeling much. It is a very technically advanced record, there’s a lot going on here, and at a certain level I appreciate that, but if a listener doesn’t feel it then they don’t feel it. I don’t love the vocal arrangements here, they’re too busy and while I like some of the bass sounds, these proceedings could use some funk, something with some swing to get the music out of your head and into the rest of your body. This is a fairly good sized record consisting of 15 tracks that runs 52 minutes, I’ve rocked about a third of it and I wish my feelings weren’t as they are, technically impressive but one dimensional in its formula, needs more contrast and some swing.

Music for 10/19/26!!! Fontaines DC, 6LACK

@@@ Fontaines DC: Dopamine Chamber (XL, 2026). I’m back from travelling and I only mention that because I was in the UK and you couldn’t take a shit without seeing the push for the new Fontaines DC record. Let’s peep. I’m expecting anthemic rock, not quite U2 but big hooks and big rock, but hey maybe not. The opener is a bit of a snoozer, the singer is not putting out much energy at all and there’s not a lot to go with his work. Well color me confused, this is not anthemic (yet) and it’s pretty much warmed over retro 80’s synth centric rock. There’s not a lot of passion here, it’s a very corporate affair, it’s gonna be huge I’m guessing. This third tune, Mimesis, enters straight up into boring territory, I’m not looking for this energy and you shouldn’t be as well. The singer is mad boring.

@@@ 6lack: Bear (Interscope, 2026) I’m a pretty big 6lack fan, I really liked his debut. I’m only checking out his new single but if I dig it, I will come back for more. This is a blend of spaced out r&b and hip hop, the mix is righteous on my banging headphones, thick and present. I’ve listened to three tracks here and I like it but I don’t love it which is a bummer cuz I wanna love it. The sounds are insanely high quality but the tunes are a bit claggy and soft to my ears, I’d like to hear more fire. I really like his voice but he’s dialed way back on this, that’s what I hear.

Music for 10/14/26!!! Slow Pulp, Lusine

@@@ Slow Pulp: Melodie (Anti-, 2026). There was a time when I peeped everything Anti- put out, it hasn’t been that way for a bit, a long bit, but these guys are on this week’s All Music notable release email. I really like the sounds here, super right up in yer grill but it sure sounds like somebody is trying to bring back retro indie rock from the late ’90s early 00s. Nice melodies, a female singer, a lot of strummed acoustic guitar. This might be my last track, these guys need a stompbox quick, oh no something even worse has happened it’s an ;80s chorused and a bit buzzy guitar sound, yikes. I get that people like this formula, at least I hope somebody is listening to this style of music but it’s not me.

@@@ Lusine: Melting Days (Ghostly, 2026) Off this week’s AllMuisc notable release email, I haven’t heard an ambient record from Ghostly International for a bit. The opener is lighter rather than darker and it flirts with New Age sounds but it doesn’t fall into the big tub of cotton candy. The second tune opens with a thumb piano-ish, again it’s lighter rather than darker but it has a bit of weight to it. It’s very cinematic music, or at least it feels that way to me, but I could use a bit more darkness to it, one more track and Imma tip.

Music for 10/13!!! Miley Cyrus

@@@ Miley Cyrus: Bass Persuades (Atlantic, 2026). I’m not a huge fan of Miley Cyrus I’m gonna be up front about that going in. I don’t think she’s as ill as Lady Gaga, but I find her schtick really annoying, the weary smoke infested gravelly voice, yeah right cry me a river, your pain is no more important than anybody else’s. Oh my the title track, Bass Persuades kick off the festivities, and it’s an absolute shit biscuit, this is horrible dancefloor music. Her lyrics are shit, both the substance, or lack thereof and the delivery — she has no flow, zip nada zilch bupkus. The funk factor on this is low low low, it’s horrible. Next track. Is the second tune better? No not really! The third tune is a pop ballad called Let’s Get Married and to be perfectly blunt it’s predictable as shit and it sucks balls. This record is a waste of time and money and bandwidth, I’m ashamed I even listened to the snippets. It’s as bad as the Olivia Rodrigo record and that was huge so I urge my fellow Americans to turn their backs on this shit for your own sake. Tragic.