INDISPENSABLE NEW MUSIC PICKS
May 2022
Kristine England
May 31, 2022
Anna Calvi
Tommy
Anna Calvi composed the score for the last two seasons of "Peaky Blinders," and her latest EP finds her still deeply involved with lead character Tommy. "Ain't No Grave" is a recurring motif, tracking Tommy's moods through the episodes. The EP has both originals and covers of Bob Dylan and Nick Cave.
FEATURED TRACK: “Ain’t No Grave”
Nico Georis
Desert Mirror
On this EP, Californian pianist and composer Nico Georis offers a preview of a full-length recording to follow later this year with his unique brand of “celestial piano” compositions. Much of the recording took place in small town near Death Valley, using Terry Riley’s "mirror delay" technique.
FEATURED TRACK: “Tears of Gold”
Moderat
More D4ta
German electronic “supergroup” Moderat (comprised of Sascha Ring (Apparat) and Modeselektor members Gernot Bronsert and Sebastian Szary) is back with its first record in six years. According to fans and critics, it was worth the wait. Line of Best Fit reasures, "It is confident, challenging and bold, and critically, the six-year absence has done nothing to dull Moderat’s immediacy."
FEATURED TRACK: "Fast Land"
Monophonics
Sage Motel
Retro soul from San Francisco led by Kelly Finnigan (a solo artist in his own right), Sage Motel encompasses songs with themes exploring “the highs and lows of human existence” and chronically in the evolution and devolution of the very real lodging of that name.
FEATURED TRACK: "Warpaint"
The Smile
A Light for Attracting Attention
The debut for the Radiohead-adjacent project between Thom Yorke and Jonny Greenwood (with Sons of Kemet drummer Tom Skinner), A Light for Attracting Attention has been lauded by Pitchfork as “the best album yet by a Radiohead side project” and Rolling Stone affirming it as, “a lower-stakes, jammy album with some of their most straightforward songs in years.”
FEATURED TRACK: "Waving a White Flag"
Jeremy & The Harlequins
ABRA CaDaBRA
Recorded at Steve Van Zandt’s Renegade Studios, the fourth album from Jeremy, et al is a nod to the classic rock sound of the early 60s. Americana Highways' takeaway: "a genuine tight grip on what made light pop-rock songs of the early 60s so expressive, simple & likable."
FEATURED TRACK: "It Won’t Be Love"
The Volebeats
Lonesome Galaxy
Signed to Ben Harper’s Mad Bunny Records, the Volebeats have long been known as an Americana group. With its first recording in 10 years, the group offers an “aural postcard from the shadows of Detroit City,” with a decidedly poppier sound.
FEATURED TRACK: “Diamond Ring”
Rip Room
Alight And Resound
This San Francisco art-punk band releases its debut record after two EPs. The band has been compared to Sleater-Kinney and Fugazi. New Noise marvels, "this is an album that rips on an intellectual and emotional level. Noise rock, post-punk, hardcore, and punk rock are all blended together to create something greater than the sum of those solid parts."
FEATURED TRACK: “Complication”