Staff Picks for December 2016
December 31, 2016
Bands that are described as melodic death metal are not often genuinely melodic.Thus, it is important to stress that melody is never an afterthought on Ensiferum's Victory Songs; it is a crucial part of what the Finnish band does on a death metal/folk-metal album that, for all its intensity and in-your-face aggression, is highly musical and thrives on intricacy and craftsmanship.
December 30, 2016
Produced by American Bob Johnston, Fog On the Tyne proved to be the breakthrough LP for British folk-rock act Lindisfarne, yielding their 1971 hit "Meet Me On the Corner," among other strong offerings.
December 29, 2016
As winter delivers another arctic blast, it's a comfort to have music as warm as a campfire. The Cardigans fifth LP marked a shift from their shiny pop, debuting a country twang infused with heartbreak and yearning. There's no "Lovefool" or "My Favourite Game," but for those in need of nourishment and soul, it's fantastic. "Please Sister," "Live And Learn," "For What It's Worth," and "Communication" are some of the best songs they've ever written.
December 28, 2016
Conference of the Birds is one of the all-time avant-garde jazz classics, incorporating a wide spectrum of '60s innovations. Part of the reason it works so well is the one-time-only team-up of two avant-garde legends: the fiery, passionate Sam Rivers and the cerebral Anthony Braxton; they complement and contrast one another in energizing fashion throughout. But much credit is due to Holland; make no mistake, even though he throws the spotlight to Rivers and Braxton, this is his date.
December 27, 2016
The artist's solo projects tread a high wire between challenging improvised music and R&B-pop. This perfectly titled effort is a mix of funk and humor, gospel and jazz, with no small points of reference to Dizzy Gillespie, early doo wop, Mahalia Jackson, James Brown, and Sun Ra.
December 26, 2016
Jean Michel Jarre recently revisited his signature work, 1976's Oxygène, but some of his other albums from that era deserve more attention. 1978's Equinoxe was the follow-up, and it's a little bit more playful, while still maintaining the awe-inspiring wonder of its predecessor.
December 25, 2016
Mad Professor returned Massive Attack to their experimental, cut-and-paste dub reggae and hip-hop roots by gutting the songs -- twisting and reassembling the vocal tracks, giving the songs deeper, fuller grooves and an eerily seductive atmosphere. In other words, he made Protection into a more daring and fulfilling album with his remixes.
December 24, 2016
Perhaps the band's grandest statement, this album's inventive and maximal sonic production matches the drama and poignancy of its narrative concept. It's based on a news report about a young girl found wandering the Severn Bridge with no idea of her identity or how she arrived there. The band employed ambient and field recorded sound along with their own lavish instrumentation and offered two distinctly different endings.
December 23, 2016
Although their very fine debut, 1997's Sóknardalr, had already shown a remarkable creative vision and no lack of songwriting maturity, Windir's second album, 1998's Arntor, took advantage of lessons learned and much improved production standards to take the group's folk-laden black metal to a whole new level.
December 22, 2016
Produced by Ruth Cameron Haden and Bley, along with Jean-Philippe Allard and Farida Bachir, Time/Life (Song for the Whales and Other Beings) is an atmospheric, elegiac album inspired by Haden's longstanding love and concern for the environment. Two of the songs, Bley's evocative arrangement of Miles Davis' "Blue in Green" and Haden's "Song for the Whales," are culled from the live concert and bookend the album. Opening with a haunting, bowed rubato intro in which Haden mimics whale sounds, "Song for the Whales" shifts gears into a searing, confrontational statement centered on saxophonist Tony Malaby's furious improvisation.
December 21, 2016
Perhaps in response to the failed big production of 1986's Big Canoe and the success of brother Neil's back-to-basics outfit, Crowded House, Finn simplified his approach for his self-titled album, joining forces with Crowded House producer Mitchell Froom. A touching and intensely personal album, Finn bares all, revealing self-doubts, regrets, and a failed relationship with intricate detail.
December 20, 2016
Here, the bassist/composer hooks up with pianist Shai Maestro, a fellow Israeli, and drummer Mark Guiliana on a set that is never less than exciting, always seductive, and often quite challenging. Cohen's bass work throughout is consistently inventive; he thoroughly enjoys toying with dense, interlocking rhythmic surprises, but he never showboats.
December 19, 2016
Joining the trumpeter and guitarist are Vu's bandmates bassist Stomu Takeishi and drummer Ted Poor. Together, the quartet plays a set of original songs that straddle the line between ambient tone poems, exploratory modal jazz, and punk-inflected noise jams. The opening "Acid Kiss" brings to mind a '70s sci-fi film, with Vu's mournful trumpet setting the tone as the trio straggles in behind him, each note illuminating the dark alien landscape.
![Luke Bell [2016]](https://fastly-s3.allmusic.com/release/mr0004560365/front/400/AC8kFfLHDBjL1CWktQO0jByhM-OFI8zG4l-qVpXXB1I=.jpg)
December 18, 2016
A country throwback from Wyoming, Luke Bell is part Bakersfield drifter, Roger Miller merry-maker, and honky-tonk troubadour. In spite of his retro-leanings this wonderfully written set proves he's more than just a revivalist.
December 17, 2016
Before Gordon Lightfoot broke through to the American market with his fifth studio album, 1970's Sit Down Young Stranger (aka If You Could Read My Mind), he cut four LPs for United Artists that documented his earlier, more plainly folk oriented work. The United Artists Collection brings together those four albums is full -- Lightfoot!, The Way I Feel, Did She Mention My Name?, and Back Here on Earth -- and features some of his best songs while he was honing his skills as a performer.
December 16, 2016
Death Cult Armageddon finds Dimmu Borgir gloriously fulfilling the potential exuded on Puritanical Euphoric Misanthropia and breakthrough release Enthrone Darkness Triumphant, and officially staking claim to the heap of bones and armor known as the Scandinavian black metal scene. It may be the closest-to-perfect amalgamation of the hallowed genres of black, death, thrash, gothic/industrial, and symphonic metal.
December 15, 2016
A dizzying blend of what some call "dream thrash" and "blackgaze," the young Massachusetts band's debut is exhilaratingly cathartic noise-therapy. The all-in assault creates an overwhelming listen, yet Air remains uplifting and gorgeous (fans of Deftones, Deafheaven, and Mew take note). It's the manifestation of the intensity, anxiety, and pure elation that comes during rocket ship blast-off, as the body is propelled into the unknown.
December 14, 2016
On their second album, Teleman hone their amiable ambling into quirky, nervy guitar pop full of hooks that sneak up on listeners' ears and stay there. The sharpened songwriting allows the haunting moods beneath the cheery melodies to cut more deeply, transforming the band's music from catchy to compelling.
December 13, 2016
Fennesz reaches brilliant heights with on his 2014 album as the glitchy processing, loving layers of static, submerged guitar progressions and effortless meshes of naturalistic themes all play into a language of sound that's distinct and clearly articulated.
December 12, 2016
Released by All Saints in 2013, Celestial Music 1978-2011 is a generous, much-needed overview of the musical career of Edward Larry Gordon, one of new age's most distinctive artists. The first CD focuses on his early, self-released recordings, and the second consists of material from his studio albums and collaborations. The entire collection is astounding, and is a necessary purchase for anyone interested in beautiful, visionary, spiritually conscious music.
December 11, 2016
The MC5 had a lot more flash and the Stooges were more imaginative, but the Frost played some of the most potent sounds that emerged from the Detroit high energy rock scene of the '60s (even though they were actually from Saginaw). 1969's Frost Music captured them at their primal best, with guitarists Dick Wagner and Don Hartman calling up the thunder on artfully heavy numbers like "Mystery Man" and "Stand In The Shadows."
December 10, 2016
While Sam's Town celebrates its 10th birthday, another desert-dusted entry in the Killers catalog bears mention because it often gets overlooked. This 2012 effort is one of their most cohesive, finally synthesizing both sides of their well-worn formula without their usual awkwardness. The synths-and-Springsteen combo is perfected on "Runaways," but the crushing "Here With Me," the "Brightside"-sequel "Miss Atomic Bomb," and the uplifting "Be Still" elevate Battle Born above much of their bigger hits.
December 9, 2016
Adding rock and electronic touches to their already masterful blend of folk, pop, and cabaret, the trio's third album is a dazzling travelogue of sounds and moods. With songs ranging from fairytale delicacy to alien sensuality, Poles is a trip adventurous listeners should take.
December 8, 2016
Hard-to-classify producer Vanese Smith released a 2010 EP and this 2011 full-length on U.K. dubstep label Tectonic, and both deserve wider attention. This adventurous album displayed her knack for constructing unconventional rhythms and effortlessly switching between styles ranging from abstract hip-hop to broken-beat house to neo-soul. Her sharp lyrics urge society to move forward, and her production is relentlessly experimental and forward-thinking.
December 7, 2016
Lyle Lovett's self-titled debut album was the sound of a talented maverick trying to work within the major label system, but 1987's Pontiac was where he started making the sort of records he really wanted to make. Fusing Texas singer/songwriter stylings with jazz and R&B accents and a sense of humor that was smart, pointed, and sometimes just a bit troubling, Pontiac was the work of a singer/songwriter very much determined to not become another country boy with a hat.
December 6, 2016
The last album Reatard made before his death shows the full extent of what the music world lost with his passing; jumped up rock & roll songs delivered straight from the garage with passionate fury and underneath all the bluster and noise, a surprisingly sensitive heart.
December 5, 2016
This doesn't capture Scott-Heron at the peak of his game, though it does contain one of the poet, singer, and activist's best-known songs. "B-Movie," an extended attack on Ronald "Ray-gun," unleashes 12 minutes of vitriol about the then recently elected president. Beginning with the declaration "Mandate, my ass," it's a laundry list of fears about Reagan, fantasizing that his election meant "we're all actors" in some surreal film.
December 4, 2016
At once languid and intense, the Dirty Three called up a world of organic yet otherworldly sounds on their fourth album, 1998's Ocean Songs. The Australian trio used their unique lineup of violin (Warren Ellis), guitar (Mick Turner), and drums (Jim White) to construct evocative soundscapes out of the most simple musical ingredients, and the results are gloriously hypnotic, rough but sensuous and endlessly compelling. Ocean Songs captures a unique group at their very best.
December 3, 2016
For his second outing, the former Temptations leader expanded his horizons. The nearly eight-minute "Girl You Need a Change of Mind" is an epic precursor to four-on-the-floor numbers later christened as disco. The title song is stunning on a completely different level as the artist reconnects with his musical heritage with a languid and methodical bed over which he raps, practically begging for sanity within the troubled African-American community.
December 2, 2016
On its final studio album, the band eschews the somber romanticism of Gentlemen Take Polaroids in favor of East Asian-influenced future funk. David Sylvian's singing is more exuberant than it would ever be again in excellent songs. The rest of the band are a knotty, in the pocket rhythm section adding tension and angular grooves.
![Gilberto Gil [1968]](https://fastly-s3.allmusic.com/release/mr0000984076/front/400/rPYgV0tiLhWc--uJW88iLR_TZlp6n_cq-Emr2zx15tU=.jpg)
December 1, 2016
Gilberto Gil's second album is packed with some of the best songs of his career -- jubilant pop extravaganzas like "Domingo No Parque," "Pega a Voga, Cabeludo," and "Frevo Rasgado" that were equally inspired by the irresistible, brassy bombast of Carnaval and intelligent rock & roll from America and Britain.