YTD recordings listened to: 205
Good music, not recommended for purchase: 139
Not good music: 59
Honorable Mentions: 0
Buys: 0
Possibles: Boyd Rivers, Chris McGregor, Alvin Youngblood Hart, Dave Arner Trio, Trap Them, Bill Horist, MAKU Soundsystem, Zomby, Retox, Owiny Sigoma Band, About Group, Jello Biafra, Fat Freddy’s Drop, Jessie Mae Hemphill, All Pigs Must Die, Kendl Winter, Shigeto, Bone Dance, Cage the Elephant, Defeater, Sidi Toure, Lindi Ortega, Jonwayne, Christian Kjellvander, Okkyung Lee, Tiger Hatchery, Xiu Xiu, The Ballantynes, Debruit and Aljawal, Slidhr, Temples, The Whammies, The Chewers
After a two week hiatus due to a voluntary bandwidth reduction, the listening resumes!
@@@ Phox: Live at the iTunes festival (Self-released, 2014). I saw these guys name checked on Salon and on an NPR Google search so it’s clear these guys have a highly effective publicist. On Salon, they were described as a combination of indie and soul, but thus far I’m hearing more indie and soft rock in this live recording. There are horns, but you don’t have that strong, pushing/swinging rhythm one would associate with great soul music. There’s a band that these guys definitely sound like, and it’s not Dusty Springfield or Aretha Franklin.
@@@ Paul St. Hilaire: Nah In It (Jahtari, 2014) I saw a collaboration between this musician and another named Deadbeat on the Aquarius Records record of the week email. Electronic beats, some very thick low end and a gravelly dancehall voice on the first track of this EP Nah In It. I don’t usually go for the electronic dub but this is pretty hot. I’m almost finished with this four song EP and to my ears the first tune is the best and the second and third tracks didn’t really move me.
@@@ The Skints: Out My Mind (Bomber Records, 2014). Some breezy mid tempo roots reggae from the WRIR weekly email. Dancehall toasting vocals with some intricate background vocals — I’m thinking these guys are from the UK — there’s a certain pop sensibility mixed in with the rhythms. Just one tune on me Beats store so I only get a peep show and not the full monty.
@@@ Liars: Mess (Mute, 2014). Off the AllMusic weekly email. It’s trendy indie electronic music — synth heavy songs with verses and choruses. The singer has a slight Iggy Pop low slur to it and I don’t find the beats to have much funk to them.
@@@ Howler: World of Joy (Rough Trade, 2014). Some slightly rough indie rock/punk fuzz off the All Music weekly email. A classic pairing of shiny arpeggiated guitar parts with the distorted power chords. Some very familiar riffs in the first tune, Al’s Corral. Shades of the mostly mediocre Strokes, a bit of Billy Idol, and the poppier work of the Lemonheads. I coulda used a bit more innovation and a bit less of the recycling I hear here.
Deep In the Music 