Weekend Music Roundup!

It's the weekend, and this is a special weekend because it's my Anniversary weekend (I Love you, Missus)! But enough of the mushy stuff, we're here to talk music. Or rather, I'm here to talk music and share my thoughts on some albums I've been grooving to of late. This is a random mix that includes three new releases, some recent discoveries, and one that had sat in my "To Listen To" folder for years. Hopefully there's something on here that you will want to check out. Enjoy.

Strand of Oaks - Eraserland: The sixth album from the Philly based singer songwriter is his follow up to 2017's wonderful Hard Love record. As with his previous efforts, he channels the spirit of working class rock and roll with the groove of bands like My Morning Jacket. This is the perfect follow-up record in that it doesn't stray far from the winning formula of the last album, but also shows growth. Some of my favorite songs on here include "Keys," "Weird Ways," and "Moon Landing." 

Roberta Flack - Quiet Fire: The soul singer's third record was released in 1971 and I recently found a beautiful copy in excellent condition for $3 and had to give this one a chance. I knew she had a great voice from her hits that came later, but had no idea just how amazingly beautiful her voice truly is. This is wonderful soul pop record. No real "hits" but some great tracks, like "Sunday and Sister Jones," "Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow," and "To Love Somebody." 

Sun Kil Moon - I Also Want to Die in New Orleans: The latest album from Mark Kozelek's band continues with the evolving sound they first introduced in the beginning of this decade. The band's sound blends their old indie americana folk sound with more spoken word segments with Mark reflecting on real life in ways that feel almost Ginsburg-esque in that it seems mundane, but holds something profound in his observations. There's some brilliant moments on this record, especially "I'm Not Laughing at You," and "Cows." Probably not an album you'll want to listen to all the time, it's more like a novel, one that should be listened to and thought about.

JPEGMAFIA - Veteran: The second album from the L.A. based NYC hip group explores the experimental aspects of current hip-hop. The lyrics are strictly hardcore, clearly inspired by Ol' Dirty (as is one of the various cassette album covers, two of which are pictured above), but the beats range from glitch hop to nearly industrial at times. These guys ain't playing around and hit hard and angry at anything and everything. "Thug Tears," "Baby I'm Bleeding," "DD Form 214," "Williamsburg," and "Curb Stomp" are my personal favorites.

Oasis - Be Here Now (Demos & B-Sides): When I recently purchased the vinyl re-issue of this album, I downloaded the bonus tracks that came with, well only one of the three discs as I had the others already. The demos and B-Sides actually features a few Oasis songs that were unfamiliar to me, which I didn't think was possible (long time followers of the Roundup will remember my year of Oasis bootleg Tuesdays). The scaled back demos are probably what Noel now wishes were released, due to his constant hate for this record. I love the acoustic versions (though I do love the official album too). "If We Shadows" was a song I don't recall ever hearing before and it's beautiful. Definitely worth the download. 

Go Ogres - 23 Earths: Released in 2012, this EP is the only release from the all female trio out of New Paltz, NY (a neighboring town from me). It features Kate Larson on guitar and vocals. She has been involved in a number of projects, including Jordaan Mason and The Horse Museum project from a several years ago, a favorite of mine. This is a solid indie pop record with 90's indie rock influences. You can listen to it on the Bandcamp page.