If you rely on just Pitchfork and All Songs Considered to hear about new albums, you’re gonna miss a lot, because they often drop the ball big time. For example, in their weekly new release roundups, neither of them mentioned Elder, RVG, X, actually none of the top 16 albums that I cover here, other than late addition Alice Bag got some props on ASC.
Elder – Omens: Album of the Year so far. Massively brilliant. | Full Review
RVG – Feral: Interestingly on a pretty strong release day, my album of the week runnerup also disappoints a bit at first. I was wild about RVG’s debut A Quality Of Mercy (2017), brimming over with passion, wit, hooks and potential for immortal greatness. Three years later, initial listens to Feral somehow felt a bit like a rush job, and while the band may be tighter and more seasoned, the songs aren’t quite as consistently great as the debut, with the immediate exceptions of the fierce and triumphant first single “Alexandria” and the lovely “Perfect Day.” However, while I found Romy Vager’s delivery on “Christian Neurosurgen” and “I Used To Love You” awkward and unconvincing, her guitar work beautifully draws strength from Johnny Marr, The Monochrome Set and The Only Ones. Repeated listens all the way through change the piecemeal, unsatisfying experiences into a more engaging whole, as “Little Sharkie & the White Pointer Sisters” blossoms into a joyous mini-anthem and the plodding “Photograph” becomes a gloriously dramatic album closer. Even “Christian Neurosurgen” even gets less annoying in a beguiling Modern Lovers manner. It’s often hard to follow up the magic of a brilliant debut, and while this may be a notch below that Lucky 13 album, it still beats out nearly all the rest of this crowded week of releases.
X – Alphabetland: A surprise release on Wednesday, the narrative is this is their first album in 35 years. Not true. Yes, the original lineup’s last album was Ain’t Love Grand (1985), itself a very spotty album, but X was still X when they released See How We Are (1987) and Hey Zeus! (1993). It appears they’d rather forget, but See How We Are arguably had better songs than Ain’t Love Grand, despite the dated production. At any rate, fans can now rewrite the band’s history in their minds and forget the mid-80s ever happened, and X remained punk as fuck, more or less, as this feisty, raw album could have easily come out just after More Fun In The New World (1983), and is just about as good, particularly “Delta 88 Nightmare” and their remake of “Cyrano De Berger’s Back.”
Harkin – Harkin: Katie Harkin from Leeds is quite the indie journeywoman, serving in Sky Larkin, and as a touring member of Sleater-Kinney, Wild Beasts, Kurt Vile and Courtney Barnett. What might have seemed like just another electropop album awash in a sea of them stands out with some good hooks and vocal melodies ruffled up with just a bit of noise pop and post-punk edge.
Dark Forest – Oak, Ash & Thorn: The fifth album from this West Midlands heavy metal unit really scratches an itch right now. From the forest sounds in the beginning to the sweepingly epic twin lead guitar celtic harmonies, it’s the best thing along those lines I’ve heard since Wytch Hazel, and that includes Slough Feg’s latest.
Witchskull – A Driftwood Cross: This Canberra, Australia band laid a solid proto-metal and occult doom foundation with their first albums The Vast Electric Dark (2015) and Coven’s Will (2018). On their second album for Rise Above, they’ve taken a big step forward in coming up with more interesting dynamic arrangements. Marcus De Pasquale’s vocal performance is also his best yet, his range expanded from fine-tuned Roger Chapman vibrato to full-throated roars. The result are some larger than life songs that are festival/stadium worthy. Let’s hope they get a chance to flex those live chops. | Buy
Alice Bag – Sister Dynamite: It’s a good week for L.A. punk fans. Two days after X’s surprise release, founding member of The Bags, Alice Bag, released her third solo album. While her press release calls it a “thrilling return to full-throttle punk,” the truth is that it’s not hugely different from Alice Bag (2016) and The Blueprint (2018). The tempo may be quicker on average than the more diverse previous albums, but she’s always been punk, and always had a direct lyrical approach to her personal and political songs about queer sexuality, inequalities in power and privilege, and “fragile masculinity.” The album does click into a groove and achieves a cohesive consistency that could be her most satisfying album yet. Also, check out her Fit For The Apocalypse series for dance workouts to punk songs.
Elephant Tree – Habits: Omens isn’t the only heavy psych album out today. The third album from this London stoner/psych/doom crew features some creamy, low, low tones that dip into gauzy post-metal and shoegaze at times. Their lugubrious, dreamy melodies can cause braindrift, which is not such a bad thing these days.
Cirith Ungol – Forever Black: It boggles the mind to contemplate the fact that this band formed in Ventura, California way back in 1972. I don’t know much about those early years as they did not record anything until 1978. Were they more hard rock boogie back then? Proto-metal Sabbath acolytes? All I know is from 1979-91, they released a series of underappreciated heavy metal albums, and their devoted cult following willed them back to life via headline spots on the 2016 Frost And Fire festival in Ventura, Hell’s Heroes in Houston, and a series of other fests in Europe. In return they gift us with an album that measures up to their best, King Of The Dead (1984) and One Foot From Hell (1986). Tim Baker’s vocals aren’t exactly tuneful, which may be a factor in their underdog status, but his shriek is plenty powerful, matching the energy of the endless riffs and choice bass lines that the band is admired for. Impressive comeback.
King Witch – Body Of Light: Edinburgh, Scotland’s super doom married couple Laura Donnelly and Jamie Gilchrist have been working together since 2004 as Firebrand Super Rock. As King Witch they added some Orange Goblin crunch to their traditional doom metal template on Under The Mountain (2018), and now they’re chugging at peak powers, with Donnelly one of the best vocalists, male or female, in metal.
Lord Fowl – Glorious Babylon: I can’t believe it’s been 8 years since Moon Queen (2012). In fact, I had to go back to that album to realize they already had a funky, southern rock swagger than I did not fully appreciate the first time around. I’m appreciating it now, and it’s tons of fun, way better than the cringe-inducing moments of the Wight album below.
Jaga Jazzist – Pyramid: Eighteen years ago an old work colleague snaked me a CDR with the first couple albums from this eclectic Norwegian jazz fusion group. While I politely said it was nice, I thought to myself, WTF is this electro-acid-jazz bullshit? I had some bad experiences with enduring mandatory attendances of bad third rate acid jazz performances in the 90s (girlfriend). Jaga Jazzist has subsequently proven to be so much more, catching my attention with their In the Fishtank collaboration with Motorpsycho in 2003. Since then they’ve absorbed prog, post-rock and even psych into their wheelhouse. While it’s all coated with an electronic gloss, if I can learn to love Steely Dan, I can admire these guys (currently ten of ’em according to their last promo photo).
Fra Fra – Funeral Songs: This Ghanaian folk trio’s album comes at a poignant time when many of us have lost friends and family. These raw field recordings tap into difficult emotions while also dealing with death quite matter of factly (“You Can’t Escape Death,” “Naked (You Enter & Leave This World With Nothing)” and “We Must Grieve Together.”) For the lost loved ones.
Dead Ghosts – Automatic Changer: I thought I was aware of this garage psych band from Vancouver, but their fourth album has truly grabbed my attention, because it’s got that garage noir vibe that’s like crack to me. The recording may overdo it on the crappy lo-fi recording, as the majority of the 60s Nuggets singles sound better than this, but once your brain stops resisting the murk, easing into it like a gross mudbath, it’s all good.
Traveler – Termination Shock: There’s a heck of a lot of heavy metal in Canada. I’ve only been to Montreal, and don’t recall many metal concert T’s, but spread throughout the Great White North is a lot of metal love. This Calgary band seems to up the speed metal element on their second album, which in contrast to, say, Elephant Tree, sounds a bit thin. And like Dead Ghosts, a random mix is probably not the best way to get into their sonic signature. Warm up with their first self-titled album from last year, do some neck stretches and prepare for headbangin’.
Modulator II – Silvered Hearse: French garage psych punkers gleefully revel in thwacking fuzz rockers like they’d just discovered the sound. Their enthusiasm is infectious, and their debut album is a promising start on the road to writing tunes that measure up to their garagefathers in Thee Oh Sees and Ty Segall.
1000mods – Youth Of Dissent: Greek stoner/desert/psych Kyuss acolytes on their fourth album of enthusiastic lumbering riffs. God there’s so much of this stuff, but I always find my head noddin’ in good ways every time they come on, so here ya go!
BC Camplight – Shortly After Takeoff: Initially I imagined Brian Christinzio’s music to be influenced by the baroque pop side of Sufjan Stevens, something that I had not craved in a long while. However his fifth album, the third in his Manchester trilogy (having relocated from Philadelphia to Manchester, England), shows his songwriting reaching a new level of arty, psych pop sophistication.
Brendan Benson – Dear Life: My interest in Benson peaked early with his second solo album Lapalco (2002), a great, jangly power pop album. Since then his better songs are dispersed pretty widely among several more solo albums and his work with The Ranconteurs. His seventh solo joint features a pretty slick robobilly sound, and some pretty catchy tunes along the line of mid-80s Jeff Lynne, making for his most consistently engaging batch in 18 years.
Odessey & Oracle – Crocorama: French psych pop/prog pop. In French, a bit twee, an acquired taste.
Katatonia – City Burials: This Swedish band has come a long way since the early 90s, evolving from death doom to gothic doom to their current incarnation of highly polished alt prog metal. For the most part I’ve admired them but not really enjoyed listening to them all that much. However their latest does have a bit more interesting elements of art rock and trip hop. A whole album is still a bit of a slog, but there’s some solid highlights for sure, and fans should be pleased. | Buy
Marker Sterling – High January: I’m not a big listner of soft rock and easy listening pop, but this came to my attention because he collaborates with Stereolab’s Laetitia Sadier on “Waiting For Grace” and “Starved For Glamour.” As anticipated, the songs are not anything super exciting, but his soft vocals, a mix between Nick Drake and Gruff Rhys (Super Furry Animals) pour down the ear canals like honey, and the entire short album serves as good, mellow background ambience.
Wight – Spank The World: Oh dear. This fairly accomplished German stoner psych trio apparently felt it was time to get fonky. At first listen, it’s a mixed bag of cringe-inducing embarrassments along the lines of early Red Hot Chili Peppers, and some good musicianship with hit-and-miss humor along with, again, Chili Peppers, but also Big Chief’s tributes to Funkadelic, blaxploitation soundtracks and Motor City soul. Enter at yr own risk.
Jack Sharp – Good Times Older: Sharp definitely can write some convincingly ancient sounding European folk tunes, which is notable. However, in the context of the crushingly disappointing news that his fabulous psych prog band Wolf People broke up, it’s like coming to breakfast used to a gloriously diverse buffet, but being served only cold grits (or in this case probably porridge.) Bring back the waffles, please.
King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard – Chunky Shrapnel: This live compilation patched together from various 2019 performances came out exactly when I was supposed to see them live at a new venue called Radius. This release doesn’t really make up for it, as it just reinforces the fact that you just gotta be there to fully get the King Gizz experience.
Danzig – Danzig Sings Elvis: Good grief. Elvis was not a songwriter, but an interpreter. So to “cover” Elvis, you can’t reinterpret his songs, only parody his style. And despite Danzig’s apparently sincerely good intentions, this is a parody, and an abomination. *face inches from palm (trying to get out of habit of touching face)*
Also out: Other Lives, Lucinda Williams, Peter Oren, Whim, Tom Misch & Yussef Dayes, Zsela, Whitney Rose, altopalo, Trivium, AWOLNATION.
