Weekend Music Roundup

Another summer weekend has arrived and I find myself thrown right into the HEAT of summer, a place I really do not like. Thankfully, the fall is only a few short months away and I can leave this dreadful season behind me. This week I'm listening to a bunch of new releases and still going through a ton of recent vinyl additions to the collection. I'll never understand people who only listen to albums from the past (or those who refuse to listen to albums from the past), because it's the mix of new and old and the co-mingling of sounds that reveals the true spectrum of that miracle we call music. Enjoy.

Kadhja Bonet - Childqueen: Released last year, this is the second album from the psychedelic soul artist out of L.A. I picked this up at the shop I used to go to as a teenager, which happened to be closing that location, so everything was 40% off, so I picked this up for a cool $6. Psychedelic soul in the U.S. sounds a lot like the quieter dreamy trip-hop of the late '90s, think Black Box Recorder and Scala and Portishead. Her beautiful, soulful voice blends perfectly over the smooth beats to create one of those fantastic dream soundtracks. "Delphine," "Joy," "Wings," and the title track are personal favorites on this gem of a record. 

The Kinks - Sleepwalker: Released in '77, this definitely falls in the final era of Kinks. By this era they had long moved away from their garage rock days, past the mod opera stage, and moved into their more introspective pop rock sound, which I'd avoided in the past, but have really been enjoying these days as I explore it more. It has the upbeat groove that was popular in the late '70s, people just wanted to feel good (except for the punks, who hated everything). There's some great rock tunes on here, including "Mr. Big Man," "Sleepless Night," "Stormy Sky," and the title track.

David House - Kick: The fourth album from the Philly indie artist was released back in the spring. I always like to take a chance on Philly artists this is a decent enough effort. It's very socially conscious, as David espouses on a long list of grievances with society, the music industry, and politics. It feels like John Cougar Mellencamp in that way, but he lacks the Cougar's ability to write a great hook that reels you in. Worth a listen, but fell short for me.   

Band of Skulls - Love Is All You Love: It's been ten years since the London indie rock bands debut, and they've just released their fifth album. It doesn't stray from the sound they've built over five albums, and while that isn't something I ever hold against a band, I will admit that this record feels a little uninspired. I really enjoyed their last album, and their first, but found this to be more on par with the second and third records which failed to impress me. "Gold" is my personal favorite. 

Supertramp - Crime of the Century: The third album from the London prog band was released in 1974 and was their big breakthrough album, and considered by many to be their best. This is really the early days of what I consider "real prog" which features structure complexity and multiple influences from blues, space rock, jazz and hard rock to form a style of art rock. It opens with the great tune "School" that really sets the pace for the album. From there it goes into one of their most well-known songs, "Bloody Well Right." Other great songs on here include "Asylum," "Rudy," and the title track. Definitely a missing classic of the genre from my collection. 

U.K. Subs - Subversions: The new covers album from the punk band that never died is a shocking display of fury and energy from a group of old punks (though only singer Charlie Harper is an original member, the rest of the band came on two years ago). This contains some expected covers, like "Roadrunner," "1969," and "Kick Out the Jams," but the inclusion of some more blues based numbers like the Yardbird's "Train Kept a Rollin'", and Bowie's "Suffragette City" are nice inclusions. All in all, this is a covers record that is the expected level of commitment. A fun listen.