It's the end of the week, time to roundup the music listening of the past several days. This week's list is a kind of a random collection of all different genres from various years. There really is no connecting thread whatsoever, but there are two new releases thrown in just to keep it contemporary. I guess I've been a bit of a random mood lately. Hopefully there is something for everyone here. Enjoy.
Piano Magic - The Troubled Sleep of Piano Magic: This London based indie band has been around since the late '90s and continues to release albums. This 2003 album is considered one of their best and I'd been looking forward to hearing it for some time. I've always loved the way they trade off male and female voices on songs. Most of the music here is very dreamy, soft, and beautiful. Though, as the title suggests, there are moments of shoegazer madness that infects the album. It's quite good and definitely a good place to start with this band for those unfamiliar with their work.
Solomon Burke - Rock 'n Soul: This is the Philly soul singer's fourth album, released in 1964. This album is full of classic soul, especially the brilliant "If You Need Me." Though less well known than Otis Redding, Solomon Burke posses the same rich quality to his voice. A fantastic example of '60 soul that did not come out of Motown.
Curren$y & Wiz Khalifa - How Fly: As frequent readers will know, I've been on a huge Curren$y kick lately. He has one of the best flows I've heard in a while. He has a southern rapper flow, but doesn't drag the way many other southern rappers do. On this 2009 mix-tape, he teams up with another rising star, Wiz Khalifa. The duo works great together and there are certainly some amazing tracks on here. The only place where it suffers is on a few toss-off tracks with undeveloped beats. But for a free mix tape, it's better than most hip hop albums out there.
Right Away, Great Captain - The Church of the Good Thief: This is the new album from Andy Hull (of Manchester Orchestra) and the third under the Right Away, Great Captain name. A few weeks ago I reviewed the first album and quickly found myself wanting more. These are very scaled back songs, basically just a voice and quiet guitar, but Andy always commits to every song with such passion that his simple songs are never boring. This album builds throughout, becoming quite epic by the end.
Old Crow Medicine Show - Carry Me Back: Released this summer, this is the Nashville bluegrass band's seventh album. It has a great old timey feel to it, and reminds me a bit of a modern Nitty Gritty Dirt Band. In addition to banjo heavy bluegrass, there is a nice y'alternative feel to some of the songs. "Mississippi Saturday Night" and "Genevieve" are stand out tracks. Great for those who like a country roots vibe.
Pinback - Information Retrieved: After five years, the California rockers return with a new album that shows a maturity from 2007's wonderful Autumn of the Seraphs. This is a quieter album than their previous effors, but in that way it reminds me of Fugazi's late '90s evolution. It's a more minimal sound, yet more effective in ways. Some of these songs were part of their two part single from earlier in the year, but I doubt many people heard those. Not sure it lives up to five years of waiting, but it's really good record.
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