Tuesday, December 8, 2020

First Listen: New Releases for 4 December

Artist: Foxanne
Album: It's real (I knew it)
Quick Description: Debut album from an east coast singer-songwriter.
Why You Should Listen: Independent of anything else, she absolutely wrote the best ode to the Mars Rover this year with "Opportunity."
Overall Thoughts: Foxanne might be an acquired taste for some. Her vocal style is very up-front and brutally honest, and it gives the entire package some additional heft. When you stick with it, though, you end up with one of the best, most intriguing listens of the year. The songs are so great, it's so unique and has such a singular voice that I don't know how else to describe it. I've been thinking about this album all weekend. Maybe you'll have the same reaction.
Recommendation: One of the best of the year.

Artist: Tancred
Album: Nightstand (Acoustic)
Quick Description: A mastered demo album of Tancred's 2019 album.
Why You Should Listen: It's pandemic content, but it really shines a light on these songs.
Overall Thoughts: I liked Nightstand quite a bit, and Jess Abbott seems to have had a year. Seeing this on the release schedule, I was wondering what it might be like, but it turns out that it's more a labor of love and a true effort to breathe a different experience into these songs. Many of my favorites from the album benefit from the acoustic touch, and others that I wasn't as fond of get a new perspective that I appreciated. If you're a fan, or just getting on the bandwagon, you owe it to yourself to check this one out.
Recommendation: Give this a listen.

Artist: Rico Nasty
Album: Nightmare Vacation
Quick Description: Hyperpop x bratrap
Why You Should Listen: You're probably too old for this, which is as good a reason as any.
Overall Thoughts: Rico Nasty... I don't know how to describe this fully. It's intentionally abrasive, it's angry and angsty, and it's truly brilliant. This album finally strikes the balance between the worlds she sits in, and before long, you're texting your friends and saying they need to hear "Smack a Bitch." I recommend this fully knowing that it's not going to work for everyone, but, man, if this works for you...
Recommendation: ...you're in for a treat.

Artist: The Moore Family Band
Album: Missy
Quick Description: Debut album from this sibling act.
Why You Should Listen: It's the sort of poppy indie punk you crave.
Overall Thoughts: Shout-out to this trio who were quarantined together and made an album out of it. Jeff Rosenstock is involved and you can somewhat get the influence in some ways, but the band excels at not trying to reinvent the sound at all. It's just 30 minutes of all killer no filler.
Recommendation: Check this one out.

Of note:

* Pomplamoose - Invisible People (New album from the internet sensations. It's funky!)
* The Postal Service - Everything Will Change (Live album, probably the last new thing we're gonna get from them.)
* Joan of Arc - Tim Melina Theo Bobby (Farewell album from this act.)
* Inspector 34 - Love My Life
* Slotface - the slumber tapes
* These New Puritans - Hidden [MMXX]
* Langhorne Slim - Strawberry Mansion: Side A
* Sarah Louise - Floating Rhododendron
* Timmy Trumpet - Mad World
* Com Truise - In Decay, Too
* Your Old Droog - Dump YOD: Krutoy Edition
* Lavender Diamond - Now Is the Time
* Sigur Ros - Odin's Raven Magic
* Rabit - DIS Ease

Christmas music:

* Father/Daughter Records and Wax Nine Records - Simply Having a Wonderful Christmastime
* Calexico - Seasonal Shift
* The Infamous Stringdusters - Dust the Halls: An Acoustic Christmas Holiday
* The Sea The Sea - Stumbling Home (For the Holidays)
* Balam Acab - Christmas Euphoria
* Tori Amos - Christmastide

EPs:

* Little Simz - Drop 6 (I missed this one earlier this year. I regret it, because it's great.)
* Sarah Davachi - Laurus (There's something about this that is enticingly unsettling when you listen to it.) * Jeff Linden and the Black Spot Society - Sad Bastard: Tokyo Drift (You want to listen to this. Trust me.)
* Jordana - To You
* Kelly Moran and Prurient - Chain Reaction at Dark
* Laura Groves = A Private Road
* Laura Marling - The Lockdown Sessions
* Initiate - Lavender
* Sylvan Esso - WITH LOVE
* Isola - EP1
* BlabberMouf - BlastMastaBlab
* Phoebe Green - I Can't Cry for You
* LAUREL - Petrol Bloom
* Blue Hawaii - Under 1 House
* Kaya Stewart - Miss Kaya
* Sarah Davachi - Laurus
* Hannah's Little Sister - EP.mp3

Also out:

* Hundredth - Somewhere Nowhere
* Kishi Bashi - Stillwater: Volume 1
* Genevieve Carver and the Unsung - A Beautiful Way to be Crazy
* Laura Carbone - Live at Rockpalast

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