5 minute read
MUSIC
New music to listen to now
by Alan Sculley, Last Word Features
With many of us now sheltering at home during the coronavirus crisis, we can take some comfort in knowing the music industry continues to crank out a steady stream of new albums. Here are some new releases that are making my days a bit more enjoyable.
Early James: Singing For My Supper
Singing For My Supper, James’ full-length debut, is a good example of how inspired production, coupled with well-written songs, can lift an album to a truly magical place. Things start with James, whose idiosyncratic voice gives him an immediately distinctive presence, and his solid songs. But the creative sonic treatments provided by producer Dan Auerbach (of the Black Keys) really enhance James’ strengths on Singing For My Supper. For instance, “Way of the Dinosaur” could have been merely an agreeable acoustic folk tune, but Auerbach and James put heft into the song with washes of ambient sound, backing vocals and judicious use of electric guitar. On “Clockwork Town,” the soulful character of the song gets highlighted as James’ vocals fl oat over touches of organ and pedal steel, while a light but insistent rhythm with some Latin accents push the song forward. It’s an intoxicating mixture. “High Horse” is another example of the production and arrangement elevating a song to considerable heights. Things start on a delicate note in the verses only to swell into a lovely string-laden instrumental segment that reaches a lush apex before the song settles back to a gentle and thoroughly satisfying fi nish. James’ stripped back 2018 debut EP suggested he could write interesting and thoughtful folkcentric songs. But with Auerbach sprinkling his production fairy dust — instead of applying simpler acoustic instrumentation and straightforward production — Singing For My Supper emerges as a truly special album.
The Weeknd: After Hours
As is becoming his habit, The Weeknd is blowing up the Internet and topping the charts with After Hours. If I can offer one minor complaint, it’s that the songs on After Hours are somewhat similar — they blend vintage synth-pop and sleek R&B and typically stay in ballad or moderately peppy mid-tempo territory. But there’s no arguing about the quality of the songs, which at times piercingly chronicle the hurt and sometimes contradictory emotions of romantic breakups. The songs (which include the standout chart-topping singles “Heartless” and “Blinding Lights”) work for another basic reason: The Weeknd and his collaborators know how to write appealing vocal melodies. And the sprightly beats and perky synth tones that support the vocal melodies only add to the warm and often upbeat feel of the songs on After Hours. It all makes for another solid effort from one of today’s top hit-makers.
Chelsea Lovitt: You Had Your Cake, So Lie In It
Lovitt seems to have a thing for classic musical styles, ranging from ‘60s country to vintage rock and guitar pop, but her sensibilities are also modern enough that You Had Your Cake, So Lie In It feels contemporary in the same way Margo Price or Miranda Lambert are giving their traditional country roots a fresh twist. The best news is that, however one describes Lovitt’s music, it’s good — in fact, frequently better than good — on songs like “Bind,” which delivers a blast of ringing guitars and potent hooks, “Anybody Else,” which has a rockabilly kick, and “If I Had a Dollar,” which combines hard twang and ’60s-ish rock. Add in some humor and the occasional lyrical bite (“If Stupid People Could Fly” and the title track are prime examples) and You Had Your Cake, So Lie in It shapes up as quite the coming out party for Lovitt.
On her fi fth solo album, Struthers enters a new phase in her life, having recorded the disc while she was eight months pregnant with her fi rst child. In many songs, Struthers ruminates about the pluses and minuses of the transient life of a touring musician. Her thoughts are presented clearly as Struthers incisively shares what’s on her mind, making what could have become a song cycle too specifi c to her own life relatable on a much broader level. Musically, Bright Lights, Long Drives, First Words is a signifi cant step away from the rootsy and more rustic sound of Struthers’ previous album, Champion. This time, Struthers mixes old-time country twang with a healthy kick of electric rock and roll on such
Chelsea Lovitt: You Had Your Cake, So Lie In It
songs as “The Turnpike,” “We Made It” and “The Hunger,” while also including a few stripped-back acoustic tunes (“A Good Thing” and “Take All Your Time”). It all makes for a compelling and invigorating album that deftly walks the line between full-on rock and classic country.
Beach Bunny: Honeymoon
If you’ve been missing Paramore or any other female-fronted punkpop acts from a decade or so ago, Beach Bunny is here to save the day with Honeymoon. There’s plenty of youthful angst and energy here, much of it courtesy of singer Lili Trifi lio. Her lyrics cover a range of common relationship issues, but Trifi lio sounds earnest enough and there are a few nice turns of phrase along the way. And Trifi lio and her Beach Bunny bandmates know how to craft pop hooks for maximum impact, which makes Honeymoon a consistently fun and often irresistible effort.
Early James: Singing For My Supper
