First Listen, Part One: New Releases for April 27

We're a third of the way through the year already. How did this happen? With 17 new releases, we're splitting this in two

Album of the Week:

Artist: Kathinka
Album: Kathinka
Quick Description: Dreamy indie pop.
Why You Should Listen: This is a gorgeous musical mix.
Overall Thoughts: My biggest problem with this album is that it’s only eight songs long. I’ve had them looped in my playlists for some time, but this album so perfectly straddles the line between alt-rock and dreamy pop rock that it’s difficult to find any real problems with it.
Recommendation: It’s simply a must-listen this week.

Artist: Kasey Chambers and The Fireside Disciples
Album: Campfire
Quick Description: Deep roots music from a perpetually-underrated roots artist.
Why You Should Listen: Kasey Chambers has been consistently great for decades.
Overall Thoughts: With the other Kacey sucking up a lot of the country air, it’s easy to forget that another country Kasey is still making great music. This is a very rootsy, very acoustic collaborative effort that worked really well for me, and if you’re looking to sit on the softer side of things, this might just do the trick.
Recommendation: Absolutely worth your time.

Artist: Sigur Ros
Album: Route One
Quick Description: New music from the enigmatic Icelandic act.
Why You Should Listen: Sigur Ros is always an interesting listen.
Overall Thoughts: This is listed as a single on Spotify, and with eight tracks at forty minutes consisting of songs with geolocations as titles, I’m not sure we can call it a single or an EP or an album (although ( ) was similar in many regards). In a way, this is the closest to ( ) that we’ve gotten in some time, although this is absolutely more of an ambient record than your standard Sigur Ros.
Recommendation: Absolutely a solid listen, but might not be what you expect.

Artist: Willie Nelson
Album: Last Man Standing
Quick Description: Willie Nelson's 857th album.
Why You Should Listen: It's Willie Nelson, come on.
Overall Thoughts: No one is going to say anything bad about Willie at this point, but I highlight this only to stress that he’s still putting out new music on an extremely regular basis at his age, and it still feels vibrant and fun. There’s something to be said about that. You may not feel it has much staying power but it’s worth one shot at least.
Recommendation: A mandatory listen.

Artist: Cicada Rhythm
Album: Everywhere I Go
Quick Description: Upbeat rootsy stuff.
Why You Should Listen: You miss this sort of fun music.
Overall Thoughts: It’s been a minute since we’ve heard a batch of new music from Spirit Family Reunion. Listening to this, I got a sort of polished SFR vibe from this act. The parallel isn’t perfect, but it’s something worth thinking about as you get down a bit to this album. It’s a super fun listen and absolutely a favorite this week.
Recommendation: A top listen this week.

Artist: Kat Edmonson
Album: Old Fashioned Gal
Quick Description: Latest from an underrated jazz singer.
Why You Should Listen: She's done some awesome under-the-radar stuff.
Overall Thoughts: Pop jazz is a tough sell for me, but Kat Edmonson has such a delightfully classic sounding voice that still has a modern feel to it that it’s shocking she isn’t more famous. This might be my favorite effort of hers yet.
Recommendation: Give this a listen.

Artist: We Are Scientists
Album: Megaplex
Quick Description: Latest from the early-oughts rock act.
Why You Should Listen: You were a big fan when they hit their stride.
Overall Thoughts: I was never a huge fan of this act, and I’ve always coupled them in with the sort of new rock revival of the early aughts, but I didn’t expect them to be this unadventurous and safe on this latest album. Kind of a disappointment, if I’m being blunt.
Recommendation: Skip this.

Artist: Jackson Emmer
Album: Jukebox
Quick Description: The latest in a line of classic-country sounding albums.
Why You Should Listen: It's good music, even if it's a little redundant.
Overall Thoughts: Okay, everyone. This is getting to be a little much. There appears to be a bit of a template recently where the same countryish dudes make the same countryish record that has a classicish sound and it’s all well and good but you could probably put the albums on shuffle together and they’d blend together. Time to do more, and sorry to Jackson Emmer that this was the straw that broke the camel’s back for me.
Recommendation: If you've liked the last dozen albums like it, you'll like this too.

Artist: Spritzer
Album: Love. Lies. Decay.
Quick Description: Solid indie rock.
Why You Should Listen: This band has a strong, firm sound that will hook you right in.
Overall Thoughts: The band sort of sounds as you might expect given the name and the album cover, and this is a tight, fun indie rock record that I’ll definitely be looking to get back to soon. It’s definitely the traditional indie rock effort of the week.
Recommendation:

EPs:

* Buzzy Lee - Facepaint
* Peach Kelli Pop - Which Witch
* Wussy - Getting Better
* Bad Breeding - Abandonment EP

First Listen: New Releases for September 30

A good week for new releases overall. Let's get right to it.

Prince/Prince & 3rd Eye Girl - ART OFFICIAL AGE/PLECTRUMELECTRUM: Prince is back this week with two albums - one on his own, and one with his new side group 3rd Eye Girl. Prince is always interesting enough to give a listen to, but, truth be told, only the 3rd Eye Girl album, PLECTRUMELECTRUM, is something I see myself going back to for more. The releases are not nearly as unmemorable as, say, the new U2 from a few weeks back, but the solo piece certainly doesn't have the same flair to it. Give both a listen, but temper your expectations.

Kat Edmonson - The Big Picture: Kat Edmonson's new album continues along the fun, jazzy, classic singer path that she's been on for a while now, but this album is definitely a step ahead for her musically. A lot of really good, memorable tracks, and her clear, distinct voice doesn't feel overproduced at all in ways many of these albums tend to go. I genuinely like this album quite a bit, and it fills a nice hole in my listening that needed it. Truly, in terms of like things? It's a lot better than the Bennett/Gaga from last week, so if you're already feeling tired of that one, you've got a nice replacement here.

Tove Lo - Queen of the Clouds: The best way I can describe Tove Lo is as the European Charli XCX - a songwriter who had a few noteworthy hits to her name branching out into a solo album. In what is quickly becoming a crowded space of these sorts of darker pop singers, Tove Lo's debut isn't as good as Banks's, but is more adventurous. It's not as adventurous as Lana Del Ray's, but it's much more accessible. For the comparison with Charli XCX, there's no "Boom Clap" on this album, but there doesn't have to be, either. It's an interesting release, and one I'm curious as to see whether it has legs, as she seems to be getting more mainstream attention than many of her contemporaries.

Yelle - Complètement fou: My favorite French pop singer offers up a new album this week that is really a solid listen from her from start to finish. The leadoff title track is great and it just keeps going from there. Even though I have no idea what she's saying, I continue to love everything she puts out. Definitely recommended.

Wild Leaves - Hello Sunlight: While there's a reasonable fear that the market is being saturated by these sort of roots-rock bands putting out their own modern touches on the genre, I fully feel I'm not tired of it just yet. Wild Leaves, in their second EP, makes a superlative effort that is only lacking because of its four song length. It felt like it was over before it really started, which is typically a good sign for something I'll enjoy. If you like a lot of what's featured here at the blog, this EP is worth a quarter of your hour.

The Rural Alberta Advantage - Mended With Gold: Best release of the week is from a band I really wouldn't have ever explored if it weren't for First Listen. Mended With Gold is the third release from The Rural Alberta Advantage, and they straddle a line between more roots-based rock and indie rock incredibly well, and, in part by virtue of being on Saddle Creek, definitely have some of that sound coming from it as well. I couldn't even pick a favorite song, as the album really doesn't slow itself down from start to finish. It's really a great, cohesive unit with nothing to complain about on first listen. I expect this to stay in rotation for a while.




Also out this week:

* Lucinda Williams - Down Where the Spirit Meets the Bone
* Thom Yorke - Tomorrow's Modern Boxes