Tag: 2010s
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Ambrose Akinmusire, When the Heart Emerges Glistening, 2011 on Blue Note
Akinmusire is an avant-garde jazz trumpeter from Oakland by way of the Manhattan School of Music, USC, and the Thelonious Monk Institute of Jazz in LA. This was his second album (first on Blue Note) with Walter Smith III on sax, Gerald Clayton on piano, Harish Raghavan on bass, and Justin Brown on drums. “My…
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Sia, 1000 Forms of Fear, 2014 on Monkey Puzzle / RCA
I first heard (at least consciously) Sia on the beautiful “I Go To Sleep” from her appearance on KCRW’s Morning Becomes Eclectic in 2006, which then appeared on Sounds Eclectic – The Covers Project in 2007. (I also now know she was a massive fan of the reality TV show Survivor, appearing on some of…
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Various Artists, All My Friends: Celebrating the Songs & Voice of Gregg Allman, 2014 on Rounder
A tribute concert to Gregg Allman with a star-studded set of guests, recorded January 10th, 2014 at the Fox Theater in Atlanta, and put out on Blu-Ray, DVD, and CD by Rounder. Allman faced significant health issues in the 2010s, including hepatitis c, liver cancer, and a lung transplant – it’s great they were able…
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Ella Fitzgerald & Louis Armstrong, Ella & Louis: Complete Studio Small Group Recordings, 2015 on Waxtime
Waxtime is sometimes a controversial label. Based on some differences between US and EU copyright law, they’re releasing classic jazz recordings without explicit access o the source material. This means they might be working from a CD, or even a needle-drop on a good vinyl copy- but the source material is more or less unofficial.…
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Peter Buck, Warzone Earth, 2015 on Mississippi Records
This is the third solo album from the former R.E.M. guitarist, all on Portland OR’s Mississippi Records. Frequent Buck collaborators present here include Scott McCaughey, Kurt Bloch, and William Rieflin. Buck’s wife Chloe Johnson adds harmony vocals on “Saturday Sunday Monday” and Jeff Tweedy guests on “World Spins Around You.” It’s a mixed bag –…
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The Waterboys, Out of All This Blue, 2017 on BMG
Mike Scott, the creative force behind The Waterboys, has continued to make interesting music and evolve their sound – here incorporating more contemporary pop sounds. It’s a double album, with a third record of “blue variations.” Some of the tracks have lots of instrumentation (strings, brass, overdubs) and some seem to be recorded on the…
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David Bowie, The Next Day, 2013 on ISO Records / Columbia
Bowie’s penultimate release, coming three years before Blackstar and a decade after Reality. Produced by Bowie and Tony Visconti, and recorded at The Magic Shop in New York City in 2011-2012. Musicians include Earl Slick, Gerry Leonard, Sterling Campbell, Zack Alford, and Gail Ann Dorsey. I love the cover, which starts with the cover of…
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John Grant, Pale Green Ghosts, 2013 on Bella Union / Partisan Records
In the US on Partisan Records, elsewhere on Bella Union, this was John Grant’s second solo album, recorded in Reykjavik, with backing vocals from Sinéad O’Connor (credited as Mrs. John Grant). Grant is one of my favorite artists of last 15 years. He was in a band called the Czars in the 90s and first…
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David Byrne & St. Vincent, Love This Giant, 2012 on 4AD
Two of the most creative and eclectic artists and musicians collaborate here on a brass-band heavy record. (St. Vincent also contributed to Here Lies Love, Byrne’s collaboration with Fatboy Slim – a concept album / rock musical about Imelda Marcos). The Dap-Kings and the Antibalas Afrobeat Orchestra join on “The One Who Broke Your Heart”…
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David Bowie, Blackstar, 2016 on ISO Records / Columbia
Wow, what a final album. So much to say about Blackstar, recorded more or less in secret in New York with Tony Visconti and some local jazz musicians, and released two days before his death. My copy, like many I’ve seen in the used market, has a tear in the die cut cover which is…
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Leonard Cohen, Songs From The Road, 2010 on Columbia
Leonard Cohen’s output is nothing short of spectacular, across studio albums and live recordings. These songs were recorded on tour in 2008 and 2009 when he was in his mid-seventies. The liner notes catalogue in detail why each performance was selected from across a lengthy tour. He sounds great, as does the band. In Europe…
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Neil Young, Bottom Line 1974, The Radio Broadcast, 2018 on Parachute
Although this claims to be a radio broadcast (likely to make it appear legit under EU copyright laws which treat broadcasted material differently) it’s likely actually an audience recording, with a few additional tracks of unknown recording date attached. This 1974 Bottom Line show has been bootlegged many times, but is also now an official…
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The Decemberists, I’ll Be Your Girl, 2018 on Capitol
The Decemberists is one of my top twenty bands of all time – I could leave their discography on repeat all week and never tire of them. That said, I mostly discovered the Decemberists in the era of digital: CDs, downloads, and streaming – I’ve had very little on vinyl. So I was excited to…
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Japanese Breakfast, Soft Sounds From Another Planet, 2017 on Dead Oceans
First release on Dead Oceanes from Michelle Zauner, aka Japanese Breakfast, and her/their second full length LP. It’s an eclectic record but I really enjoy it. (The AV Club at the Onion called Zauner a “21st-century Björk” – though that makes me wonder why Björk isn’t a 21st-century Björk). My copy is the 2023 reissue…
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boygenius, boygenius, 2018 on Matador
Phoebe Bridgers, Lucy Dacus, and Julien Baker are boygenius – this was their debut self-titled EP, which came out in 2018. They recorded and produced the EP in just four days at Sound City in LA. Love the nod to Crosby, Stills & Nash’s debut album in the cover photo. They’re joined here by Anna…
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Peter Buck, I Am Back to Blow Your Mind Once Again, 2014 on Mississippi/Change Records
The follow up to Buck’s self-titled debut release, also on Mississippi Records out of Portland OR. Buck works again here with Scott McCaughey, William Rieflin, Corin Tucker, and Jenny Conlee, but also Patterson Hood who co-wrote and sings “Southerner.” Also includes a cover of The Mummies’ “(You Must Fight To Live) On the Planet of…
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Fiona Apple, The Idler Wheel . . . , 2012 on Clean Slate / Epic
The full title is The Idler Wheel Is Wiser Than The Driver Of The Screw And Whipping Cords Will Serve You More Than Ropes Will Ever Do but most people refer to it just as The Idler Wheel. The title comes from a poem Apple wrote. Fiona Apple’s fourth studio album and her most commercially…
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Kacey Musgraves, Golden Hour, 2018 on MCA Nashville
Musgrave’s fourth album on MCA Nashville, produced by Musgraves with Daniel Tashian and Ian Fitchuk, with songs co-written by Musgraves with folks like Shane McAnally, Natalie Hemby, Luke Laird, and the producers. Though still on the MCA Nashville label, it’s very much an album that starts to wander deliberately outside of contemporary country conventions, moving…