new music

112 stories · Page 5 of 6

MusicTop Tunes Thursday: Edge of Daybreak — Eyes of LoveIn 1979, a group of musicians bound by circumstance gathered in earnest to craft their first album.Clark Lamson · Oct 22, 2015MusicTop Tunes Thursday: The Garden — hahaThis week, I stumbled across Orange, California duo, The Garden. Founded by twin brothers Fletcher and Wyatt Shears, The first couple of vexing seconds told me I had found a winner. I wouldn’t describe the clattered natterings of The Garden weird (though you wouldn’t be wrong to do so), so much as unexpected. It doesn’t matter what you’re doing or listening to at the time, The Garden is a non sequitur.Clark Lamson · Oct 15, 2015MusicTop Tunes Thursday: Denzel Curry — 32 Zel / Planet ShroomsTwo weeks ago, while I was researching the newest Little Simz record (review here) I came across a list of “rappers to watch for.” Little Simz was featured for her E.D.G.E EP and…Clark Lamson · Oct 8, 2015MusicTop Tunes Thursday: Little Simz — A Curious Tale of Trials + PersonsImagine you know someone who wants to be a world renowned rapper.Clark Lamson · Sep 24, 2015MusicTop Tunes Thursday: Teen Daze — Morning WorldThe morning can be rough for some people. Your bones are creaky, your vision foggy. You might be hungry, and you almost definitely have to pee. The whole thing just feels like a hassle. For most of my life, I was one of these people. I don’t know, maybe it comes with age or something, but now some of my earliest moments of the day end up being some of my favorite moments. The sun’s barely awake, and already, people all across the newly glowing portion of the country are getting up to start their day, just like you. That thought and a cup of coffee often gets my days started fairly well. This quiet meditation, and the feelings that surround it, are the thesis of the new Teen Daze record, Morning World. This is Teen Daze’s (who goes by the monomous “Jamison” in professional life) first full length release since 2012’s Glacier.Clark Lamson · Aug 20, 2015MusicTop Tunes Thursday: Quantic Presents The Western Transient — A New ConstellationThis week, Will “Quantic” Holland released the debut record for a new side project. Holland is a man of many projects, including The Quantic Soul Orchestra, The Limp Twins, Quantic and his Combo Barbaro, as well as numerous one on one collaborations. His latest is called Quantic Presents The Western Transient, and the record, A New Constellation. At seconds under the 3/4 hour mark, the record delivers ten locations for his dream jazz vacation, and is recorded with artists and performers handpicked by the maestro. From balmy Caribbean, to melodic 70’s, A New Constellation is a warm and snuggly love letter to jazz and soul music, with just enough “Quantic” thrown in.Clark Lamson · Aug 6, 2015MusicTop Tunes Thursday: Kurt Vile — Pretty PimpinOf all the musical instruments iconic to American music, the paramount would be the guitar. Although blues music originally came in the form of African spirituals and hymnals, it was changed forever when it met it’s six stringed soul mate. Rock n’ roll, arguably the most American genre there is, was built around the glistening tones of the 1957 Gibson ES-350 T. For Kurt Vile, Pennsylvania born indie rocker, the guitar is both the means and the end.Clark Lamson · Jul 30, 2015MusicTop Tunes Thursday: Ben Folds — Phone In a Pool / Capable of AnythingIt’s been a long time since I was first introduced to the sonorous sounds of Ben Folds, but he’s still making music. This week, Folds released some of the first new material since his 2008 record, Way To Normal, which was followed with a college a-capella record, and a compilation album. The two singles, titled “Phone in a Pool” and “Capable of Anything” instantly remind me of what I found so appealing as a rolly-polly youngster, and what I still find appealing as a, well, rolly-polly not-so-youngster.Clark Lamson · Jul 23, 2015MusicTop Tunes Thursday: Ezra Furman — Perpetual Motion PeopleFrenetic and shaky, Furman delivers a parcel of tunes so jam packed of intention it’s hard not to break down in some punk rock convulsion, hunched over your air piano, banging out imaginary chords. While not as feverishly paced as his usual fare, “Lousy Connection,” a lead single, lays the toothy lyrical musings over a groovy doo-wop, shining light on Furman’s sensitive side.Clark Lamson · Jul 16, 2015The End of New Music Tuesday, and What Comes NextAll across these United States, Tuesday represent beginnings and possibilities for the ravenous music geek. Whether snuggled close to a cup of joe, or on the commute to work, Tuesday mornings means scrolling over your favorite music blog or the new releases section on your music service of choice. If this sounds like your Tuesday mornings, than you probably noticed that the new releases section was uncharacteristically quiet last week. Here’s why:Clark Lamson · Jul 13, 2015MusicNew Music Monday: Bilal — In Another LifeWith In Another Life, Bilal releases a collection of tunes ripe for the season. The record kicks off with “Sirens II,” which paints the picture of the slow and unwitting seduction of our main character. With a bossy beat, and a bass line some of you might recognize from Jay-z’s “Picasso Baby,” it’s the perfect setting for the sensual jaunt that is to come.Clark Lamson · Jul 6, 2015MusicNew Music Monday: Thundercat — The Beyond / Where Giants RoamThis week, Thundercat has released a new “mini-album” entitled The Beyond / Where the Giants Roam. Co-produced by long time collaborator Flying Lotus, TB/WtGR clocks in at a bite sized six tracks. If you’re thinking the diminutive packaging is telling of the content, think again. In an interview with Billboard, Bruner discussed how the high volume of collaborations he’s been involved with generated a creative catalyst within him: “it was kind of like a by-product of everything that would be happening.Clark Lamson · Jun 29, 2015MusicNew Music Monday: Teen Men — Teen MenSet against the 90 degree days and the blood orange sunsets of Colorado summer, Teen Men are a tall glass of cool, dry water. The debut record is out now on most major music services, and look out for the vinyl on shelves July 14.Clark Lamson · Jun 22, 2015MusicNew Music Monday: Sharon Van Etten — I Don’t Want to Let You DownFor me, the best artists (musical or not) are the ones who are growing from project to project.Clark Lamson · Jun 15, 2015MusicNew Music Monday: Donnie Trumpet & The Social Experiment — SurfIf you were confused this week about reports of a new Chance The Rapper album, don’t worry, you weren’t the only one.Clark Lamson · Jun 8, 2015MusicNew Music Monday: My Brightest Diamond — I Had Grown WildWhen the whisper quiet fire that is My Brightest Diamond first hits your headphones, you wouldn’t expect that its matriarch Shara Worden hails from Arkansas.Clark Lamson · May 25, 2015MusicNew Music Monday: Mac Demarco — “The Way You’d Love Her”“The Way You’d Love Her” is the lead single from Another One, the mini-LP scheduled for an August 7th release. The track doesn’t do much to push outside Demarco’s wobbly-kneed stoner yodels, but I’m not sure anyone wanted him to. I know I didn’t. “The Way You’d Love Her” features the same smiley strumming and light keyboard work we have come to expect, though the vocal ventures closer to earlier works from Rock and Rock Night Club. Demarco creates a lazy river with his melodies, which the listeners glide abidingly down. The author has an unusual knack for writing melodies that feel upbeat, while creating a sneaking feeling that the content doesn’t echo the sentiment.Clark Lamson · May 18, 2015MusicNew Music Monday: Mumford & Sons — Wilder MindMumford may have gained their fame riding (some say starting) the wave of popularity for pop-folk music, but Wilder Mind finds the band ditching almost all of their familiarly twangy tunes for a fairly straight laced alternative rock sound. In place of fever pitched banjos come shining, sometimes dry guitars. The resulting sound places them closer to War on Drugs, Ryan Adams, or Ben Howard than any of their pop-folk contemporaries.Clark Lamson · May 11, 2015MusicNew Music Monday: Peach Kelli Pop — Peach Kelli Pop IIIThe tunes on Peach Kelli Pop’s aptly named third record Peach Kelli Pop III are crunchy, low-fi, and (maybe obviously) poppy. Think Ariel Pink meets Blink-182 with a Sailor Moon costume. Tracks like “Princess Castle 1987,” the album’s intro track, features the same fuzzy nerd-pop fans have come to expect from Peach Kelli herself, Allie Hanlon. With releases stretch back to summer of 2011 with her first EP Panchito Blues, Hanlon dances the line between The Runaways and MC Chris, blending nerdcore sentiments with headbanging riffs.Clark Lamson · May 4, 2015MusicNew Music Monday: Alabama Shakes — Sound & ColorIf fans were worried about the band resting on laurels on their second time around, they need not be. Sound & Color is a noticeably more challenging collection of tunes. What made B&G so great was its immediacy. The second you put in the headphones, it was as if the songs coming through had been on your “most listened to” for years. Sound & Color finds the band leaving one foot in their Southern rock roots, and planting the other in soul and blues. While the lead singles, “Gimme All Your Love,” “Don’t Wanna Fight,” and “Future People,” highlighted the electric Brittany Howard’s ability to send hooks screaming into your long term memory, the majority of the tracks require a little more patience.Clark Lamson · Apr 27, 2015