Staff Picks for July 2019
July 31, 2019
This 1969 show is the Delta bluesman's finest live album; he sings powerfully and drops dazzling licks from his amplified hollow-body. Highlights include killer reads of Bukka White's "Shake 'Em On Down," Willie Dixon's "My Babe," Mance Lipscomb's "Evil Hearted Woman," and McDowell's own "Kokomo Blues."
July 30, 2019
The 1972 sophomore album by the Canadian-American songwriter was an offbeat and frequently whimsical folk-pop gem with a pleasantly homespun feel to it.
July 29, 2019
Recorded with a veritable who's-who of greats (including Ronnie Scott and Kenny Wheeler) this set endures as one of the finest in the Brit-jazz canon. Tubbs plays saxes, flute, and vibes across six standards recast in startling arrangements, offering a collaborative intensity that never wavers.
July 28, 2019
The only album from the Massachusetts post-hardcore band turned 15 this year, and still retains the jagged melodicism that made it stand out from the pack in 2004. The opening blast of "4/16" sets an uptempo pace, "American Classic" and "Our Lady of the Worthless Miracle" find frontman Zach Jordan blending his powerful howls with tight vocal harmonies, and "Broken Hearts Club" takes the band into full-on (and successful) piano ballad territory.
July 27, 2019
Kanye's sixth studio album was a sharp about face. Turning from the lush, majestic production of 2010 showstopper My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy to an intentionally ugly and belligerent energy, Yeezus was 40 minutes of abrasive, punkish angst. Elements of noise, industrial and experimental electronics all worked their way into the beats and West's presence was demonic and confrontational throughout. While not the pop his fans were used to, Yeezus was a statement that was impossible to ignore.
July 26, 2019
The band's third album (and first for Sub Pop) is a fun and occasionally moving throwback, filled with nicely catchy songs, familiar sounds, and the overwhelming sense that the band's love of '90s indie rock is being transmitted directly to the listener minus any irony and/or distance. Not many other bands mining this same stretch in 2016 can claim LVL UP's high levels of purity and devotion, and for that they get tons of credit
July 25, 2019
The Steubenville Knights debut release, The Royal Party, crosses the friendly boundary between rockabilly and '50s country. Featuring the lead vocals and double bass of ex-Atomics guitarist Thommy Burns, the rhythm guitar of Jason "Hoss" Hicks, and the lead guitar of King Kerosene frontman Scott Murphy, the Knights' vintage sound mixes the raucous energy of the Johnny Burnette Trio with the casual elegance of Faron Young.
July 24, 2019
No less strong than the legendary Damned Damned Damned, Machine Gun Etiquette brings in a wide variety of touches and influences to create a record that most of the Damned's contemporaries could never have approached.
July 23, 2019
Jeffrey Lee Pierce was in poor health and his band the Gun Club was in shambles when they holed up in the Netherlands to record 1994's Lucky Jim. It turned out to be their final album, and an unexpected triumph. Left to play lead guitar after the sudden departure of Kid Congo Powers, Pierce's six string skills were strong here, and the sorrow and regret that informs this music is gripping and eloquent.
July 22, 2019
The album everyone loves to hate, this 2011 collaboration between Lou Reed and Metallica seemed destined to rub fans of both acts the wrong way. But despite its many flaws and it's reputation as an epic scale disaster, Lulu is worth a listen -- Metallica gave Reed the wall of guitar he'd always dreamed of, Reed's lyrics were rarely this bravely abrasive, and the closer, "Junior Dad," is an overlooked classic.
July 21, 2019
Many of the artists who were part of Britain's soul scene of the late '80s/early '90s, including Soul II Soul, Lisa Stansfield, and Caron Wheeler, took a high-tech, neo-soul approach, combining '70s-influenced R&B and disco with elements of hip-hop. The equally impressive Brand New Heavies, however, used technology sparingly, stressed the use of real instruments, and were unapologetically retro and '70s-sounding through and through. Drawing on such influences as the Average White Band and Tower of Power, the Heavies triumph by sticking with the classic R&B approach they clearly love the most.
July 20, 2019
The Ghostly International debut from Will Wiesenfeld, AKA Geotic and Baths, Abysma is a full-length venture into ambient techno; an intriguing development in Wiesenfeld's sound, and easily the most cohesive Geotic release to date.
July 19, 2019
Producer Bobby Krlic's vision of what comes after death takes his gift for channeling dread in subtle, complex directions -- even though its huge drums and lower-than-low bass are heavy enough to pound listeners six feet under.
July 18, 2019
Amply influenced by Autechre, Boards of Canada and the rest of the IDM ringmasters, Chris Leary's full-length debut under the Ochre moniker paints in detailed strokes lacing chiming melodies through an intricate system of squelching percussion that spins like the precision pieces of a Swiss watch.
July 17, 2019
Alcohol was a way of life for the Replacements, but this cracking live recording of a February 1986 show in Hoboken, New Jersey finds them hitting the sweet spot where they were loaded enough to be inspired but not too sodden to play at their peak. A practically perfect show near the end of the Bob Stinson era, this captures the snottiness and the heart that made the 'Mats a band for the ages.
July 16, 2019
The list of those who could make out jazz funky is a short one. Drummer Reid must now be added to that list. This music is as beautiful and dangerous as a shower of broken glass -- just when you think you've got a song figured out, this clever group of largely unsung musicians heightens the tension and takes things careening off in an unexpected direction.
July 15, 2019
Released less than nine months after his idol's death in early 1965, Gaye's affectionate tribute to Cole highlights his skill at more elegant romantic fare. The follow-up to How Sweet It Is to Be Loved by You, it was recorded partly in Detroit with the Funk Brothers and partly with sessions musicians in Los Angeles.
July 14, 2019
More hip than Don Johnson's Heartbeat, not as camp as William Shatner's The Transformed Man, and equally as kitsch as, well, most everything else from the '50s, Robert Mitchum's Calypso -- Is Like So will win you over. Recorded in 1957, the idea for the album must have been hatched in a rum fervor. While filming in Trinidad, Mitchum began soaking up some of the local musical talent, such as Lord Melody and Mighty Sparrow. The result is an album of neither watered down nor truly authentic calypso.
July 13, 2019
Captain Beefheart's first album was less aggressively eccentric then the later work that made him a polarizing cult hero, but there are enough odd angles and melodic detours in tunes like "Electricity" and "Grown So Ugly" to remind anyone who this is. 1967's Safe As Milk is full of great buzzy guitar (some courtesy Ry Cooder) and some of Beefheart's most potent blues shouting, and "I'm Glad" is as close to sincere blue-eyed soul as he would ever get.
July 12, 2019
Recently reissued as part of an absurdly expensive vinyl box set intended more as an art object than something meant to actually be listened to, Richie Hawtin's only proper album as FUSE remains one of his best works. This one has a nice balance of hard, storming techno paranoia ("F.U.," "Substance Abuse") and more abstract experiments ("Theychx," "Into the Space"), and was a crucial step in the development of what ended up being labeled as IDM.
July 11, 2019
Recently reissued as part of Blue Note's Tone Poet vinyl series, Baby Face Willette's Face To Face is an underappreciated gem in the Blue Note vaults. Supported by Grant Green on guitar, Ben Dixon on drums and Fred Jackson on tenor, Baby Face Willette tears through a set comprised largely of originals. For a 1961 session, this is exceptionally funky: it suggests the down-and-dirty fusion of R&B and jazz that would come to define the late '60s.
July 10, 2019
Part of a continuum of sharply catchy bands that spans the Buzzcocks to Omni, Good Shoes delivered a near-classic with their 2007 debut album. Filled with giddy riffs and breathless melodies, these smart, catchy, spring-loaded songs have all the immediacy -- and addictiveness -- of a crush.
July 9, 2019
American Music Club's reunion in the 2000s turned out to be short lived and contentious. But before it fell apart, Mark Eitzel and Vudi cut this minor classic, the warmest and most open hearted album of their career. Eitzel's songs are moody but compassionate, and his vocals are superb, while Vudi's guitar work is subdued and powerful, less explosive than usual but lending plenty of color and texture to the performances.
July 8, 2019
Released in 1988, the Brooklyn duo's second album was as captivating and original as their quirky debut, doubling down on their art-pop hooks and off-beat humor with instant classics like "Ana Ng" and "Where Your Eyes Don't Go."
July 7, 2019
Another installment in Blue Note's stellar Tone Poet vinyl reissue series, Cornbread is one of Lee Morgan's great records. Not as funky as some of his sessions from the mid and late '60s, Cornbread is instead revels in living on the swinging edge. Working with pianist Herbie Hancock and saxophonists Jackie McLean and Hank Mobley, Morgan embraces the modernist hard bop of the mid-'60s and gives it a soulful grit--a subtle disctintion that makes it one of the best jazz Blue Note LPs of the '60s.
July 6, 2019
Most of DeJohnette's Special Edition's recordings are quite rewarding. This set is no exception. Drummer/keyboardist Jack DeJohnette contributed five of the six compositions and they cover a wide range of styles and moods. This was one of the most stimulating jazz groups of the 1980s and this particular lineup was one of DeJohnette's strongest.
July 5, 2019
Marking a creative and commercial revival for the late Beatle, the Jeff Lynne-produced Cloud Nine is easily one of Harrison's most compulsively listenable efforts with a host of great songs and punchy, streamlined arrangements.
July 4, 2019
Sweet melodies, cushiony keys, and romantic notions paint a dreamy landscape on the classically-trained musician's third solo album. Guests of note include David Sylvian, who is featured on "Some Small Hope," a track co-written by Ryuichi Sakamoto, who also produced two-thirds of the songs and played keyboards throughout the album.
July 3, 2019
One of the truly great men of New Orleans music, Dave Bartholomew, who died on June 23, 2019, wrote, produced, and played on a long list of Crescent City R&B classic, and this collection brings together 20 memorable sides from his golden era. Featuring great tracks from Fats Domino, Shirley & Lee, Smiley Lewis, and many more, this also features some of Bartholomew's best tunes as a frontman, including "The Monkey" and "That's How You Got Killed Before."
July 2, 2019
Excepting Inner City's biggest hits, which can easily be found on their albums, this double-CD collects pretty much all of Kevin Saunderson's essential tracks from the '80s and '90s. This moves from early rarities under names like Kreem and Keynotes to Reese tracks which pioneered a certain bass sound that countless jungle producers embraced, as well as Tronikhouse tracks like "Uptempo" which became U.K. rave classics.
July 1, 2019
Like the Deftones, Codeseven mixes its metal history with emotional pop influences for a record that really transcends genre. Evoking the slick psychedelic rock of Pink Floyd circa A Momentary Lapse of Reason, the dark atmosphere of Echo & the Bunnymen and pure space rock, Codeseven manages to totally confound listeners' expectations.