9/6: Ben Folds' So There: Ben Folds and chamber music/baroque pop? Oh, yes.
Highlights: "F10-D-A" and "Phone in a Pool"
Why? Featured on NPR’s First Listen.
Additional Thoughts: Ben Folds is one of
those artists so good that I wish I listened to them more often, but
paradoxically can only apparently handle their genius in small doses. I just…
ugh, the man is brilliant, truly. So much so that what can really be said about
his work? But, of course, I’m here to at least try to say something. So. As the
cover says, So There contains “8
chamber rock songs with yMusic” and the three movement “Concerto for Piano and
Orchestra” performed by the Nashville Symphony. The melodies on “Phone in a
Pool” and “Yes Man” are simply gorgeous. “Yes Man” also serves as a great
example of Folds’ ability to balance humor and sincerity, both overall and
sometimes even in the same song. It’s a tricky line to walk and a lesser artist
would fall flat on their face, their credibility flung out of their hands along
the way. This skill isn’t new to Folds, as evidenced by Way to Normal’s “Hirsoshima,” but I find it remarkable,
nonetheless.
9/7: Janet Jackson's Janet Jackson: Very of 1982, for good and ill. Decent dance songs
can't compensate for its weaknesses.
Why? I know was going through Green Day’s
discography, but I suddenly remembered that while getting caught up on Janet
earlier this year, I neglected her first two albums.
Additional Thoughts: I suppose I should
expand on the “very of 1982” bit. Well, I say that because of the combination
of disco touches in tracks like “You’ll Never Find (A Love Like Mine)” and the
vaguely Gap Band-esque (but not nearly as funky) aspects of others, like “Young
Love.” I don’t know, the album does a pretty good job of summing up my image of
dance music in the early eighties. The album does have some duds, of course, most
notably the saccharine ballad “Love And My Best Friend.” The problem with the
record, even on the good tracks, is the fact that, at 16, Janet is noticeably
shy and didn’t yet have her powerful stage presence and many tracks could’ve
benefited from some extra confidence.
9/8:
Grace
Potter's Midnight: Striking in its
variety and Miss Potter's powerful voice, particularly on
"Delirious."
Why? 2015 release.
Additional Thoughts: Midnight is the solo debut from Grace Potter frontwoman of the
“rootsy” band Grace Potter and the Nocturnals. As said in the tweet, this album
covers and mixes a wide variety of genres, such as pop, rock, gospel, country,
soul, R&B, and even disco, like on the aforementioned “Delirious.” Another
stand out is “Instigators,” which sounds like the rowdy child of “Layla” and
the White Stripes. Add in her powerful, raspy voice and on paper it seems like
it shouldn’t work, but it does; due in large part to Grace’s commanding voice
and presence. Seriously, she can wail. It’s a strong, great record, but
unfortunately it was met with blowback from male Nocturnals fans that called it
a sell-out move and accused Grace of, how do I put this, turning herself into a
“pop tart” via sexy photoshoots. Now, I have yet to listen to any of her previous
band’s work and will concede this record is quite polished, but ehh… the
comments I saw just felt like gatekeeping and typical latent misogyny that
pervades dude-helmed music fandom. Maybe I’m wrong on that, but I can’t help
but be suspicious when such criticism is thrown at smaller acts, particularly
when they’re women.
9/10: Janet Jackson's Dream Street: If Control
shows Janet in full bloom, Dream Street
planted the seeds.
Why? Rounding out what’s left of her discography
before Unbreakable.
Additional Thoughts: What a difference a
couple years makes! While Janet is still a ways away from pulling off the likes
of “Nasty” or “If,” she is most definitely on the road there. Dream Street is, by probably every
metric, better than her debut. The album’s finally three songs (“Hold Back the
Tears,” “All My Love To You,” and “If It Takes All Night”) are fantastic dance/R&B
tracks and it’s a shame that this period gets ignored in Janet’s set lists.
9/11: The Libertines' Anthems for Doomed Youth: Ironic that its very existence is
remarkable, yet it feels a bit safe.
Why? New release.
Additional Thoughts: The Libertines are a
weird case for me. I enjoy their stuff well enough, but came to them after
things had gone to hell for them and therefore don’t have the deep love and nostalgic
affection many folks have. It’s that same love and affection that made this
record something people hoped would exist one day and, after everything, it’s
damn near miraculous that it does. And while I wouldn’t call this album bad
(good bits, like “Heart of the Matter.” are about on par with good early
Libertines tracks), I worry the pedestal the band’s been placed on might cause
folks to be too harsh or too kind to it – myself included. I mean, on the one
hand. I want growth, but on the other hand, I can see why they’d want to tread
lightly and given how this project could’ve very well gone horribly wrong to
the point of not coming to be at all, I almost feel bad saying anything
negative about it. I don’t know. I guess we’ll have to see what, if anything,
follows this and hopefully that will give better perspective on this record.
9/15: Beirut's No
No No: Feels sparse at times, perhaps, but it has some shining moments,
like "Gibraltar."
Why? 2015 release.
Additional Thoughts: Positives first: the
album is loaded with very, very pretty melodies, such as “As Needed.” They have
an almost McCartney feel to them. Unfortunately, Beirut tends to hammer on them
too much, for too long, so they don’t go anywhere and the repetition quickly
weakens them. Add to that, sparing instrumentation, half mumbled vocals, and
repetitive lyrics and one can’t help but feel like one is caught in a loop. An
often pretty loop, yes, but still one that gets old after a while. It can be
very lovely; I just wish it was more… dynamic.
9/18: Darwin Deez's Double Down: Bright and catchy with tinges of nostalgia and
familiarity, like on "The Mess She Made."
Why? New release and I must confess the cover
made me curious.
Additional Thoughts: The aforementioned
familiarity tends to manifest in melodies and such that feel like the Strokes,
Weezer, and even grunge. A more specific example is “Lover” with guitars and
vaguely Eastern touches that make it feel like it could’ve been on the Beatles’
Revolver. (Plus it has the ridiculous
line, “No I don’t care to meet your parakeet,” which I can’t help but love.) I
can see how this might work for and against the record. On the positive side,
it does reveal a variety of influences, but on the negative, it’s not exactly
reinventing the indie rock/pop wheel. The album does have a lot of charm, so
which side you come down on, I guess, really depends on what you want out of
it.
9/27: Ought's Sun
Coming Down: "Beautiful Blue Sky" uses semantic satiation well
and, in doing so, proves its own point.
Why? 2015 release and the review on the NeedleDrop made me curious.
Additional Thoughts: Semantic satiation
comes into play in the chorus of “Beautiful Blue Sky,” which is multiple small
talk questions repeated incessantly and insistently. It can be grating. It does
prove the point that such small talk is done automatically and thoughtlessly to
the point of losing all meaning, but it’s still grating. In a way, that’s
indicative of the album as a whole for me, in that I mostly get what the
album’s going for, but care for it. For instance, the vocals are often done in
a spoken word way that sometimes sounds like Mick Jagger doing a silly voice.
And the music, at times, I think, tries to be manic and chaotic, but it comes
off incoherent and jumbled. Or I don’t know, maybe I’m wrong on all that. I
just know that, aside from maybe
“Passionate Turn,” it doesn’t work for me.
9/28: Green Day's Nimrod: A lot to digest at once; luckily most of it is quite good.
Highlight: "Redundant"
Why? I’m currently working through their
discography.
Additional Thoughts: This album is like
when you eat a steak but realize too late that you cut off too big of a piece
and you keep trying to chew because it’s really flavorful and yet you still
can’t ignore the fat that comes with it. Also, I must be honest and say that I
chose “Redundant” as a highlight largely due to it being my favorite Green Day
song. Honestly this album has many highlights (“Last Ride In,” “Worry Rock,”
“Hitchin’ A Ride,” just to name a few), but at eighteen tracks, it’s a lot. Granted,
Billie Joe is so skilled in melody that even though it can feel like too much,
it at least it always sounds good. Plus, the old “too much of a good thing”
comes up again with Green Day only with much more mixed results in their 2012
triple album, so I can forgive Nimrod.
Besides, “King for a Day” instantly makes up for any shortcomings.
10/1: The Rolling Stones' Between the Buttons: Though all originals, the most interesting
songs seem to riff on others.
Why? I’m currently taking a course on the Stones
and slowly working their catalog as a result.
Additional Thoughts: Okay, first off, the
US version was included in the RS500, so I can’t get too deep into this one
just yet. But I just wanted to say that I don’t necessarily mean that tweet in
a negative way. Much of the critique around Between
the Buttons I’ve read thus far describes this period as an identity crisis
for the Stones. I don’t know that I agree with that. I feel like that’s perhaps
the case if one thinks the band was only ever in one little, very blue box to
begin with and that certainly wasn’t reality, even on their debut. Two of the
stand out tracks here are “All Sold Out” and “Please Go Home,” which quite
obviously owe much to the Beatles and Bo Diddley, respectively. Is that a bad
thing? Not inherently. Do they stand out because
of Diddley and Beatle overtones? Maybe? But I wouldn’t dismiss them as mere
rank imitation either.
10/2: Janet Jackson's Unbreakable: As the title track fades Janet says, "I'm glad
you're still here." Same here, J.
Why? New release and c’mon, it’s Janet! I’m not
going to let myself fall behind on her again.
Additional Thoughts: Like Nimrod (and most of Janet’s albums), Unbreakable is a long affair. With seven
years between it and Discipline, the
length makes sense, as Janet says in the title track, “Lots to talk about” -
and it’s true. Love, loss, looking forward, looking back (and more) are all
topics and themes touched on and make this Janet’s most introspective album
since probably The Velvet Rope. Like
TVR, it also can be moody and dark, but it has plenty of light (and dancing),
too.
All albums available to stream on Spotify.
