PINE CONE JUICE

 

CURRENT ROTATION QUICK TAKES
MARCH 2024

INTRO:

Who has the time? It has been said a thousand times before, but the convenience of infinite accessibility that music subscription services provide is often countered with an overwhelming sense of ‘where to begin?’ syndrome. Beyond a few trusted online sources, I am lucky to have some close buddies with great ears who keep me posted on new music - especially that which might not be on my regular radar.

In a humble effort to pay-it-forward (and keep it simple), I will monthly post CURRENT ROTATION QUICK TAKES - a handful of albums that I have recently checked out - complete with brief thoughts and an ultimate Thumbs Up or Thumbs Down. Explore further as you care to. Cheers!

Faye Webster / Underdressed At The Symphony - I knew it would happen! You spend all the formative years doing your best to expose your child to excellent music in hopes that they will someday gravitate beyond Disney pop stars. Enter Faye Webster - the first artist that June exposed me to that I can absolutely endorse. Extremely solid songs, spot-on arrangements & an extremely winning overall vibe. Of course, the sophisticated pop trappings and jazzy leanings deeply remind me of post-folk Suzanne Vega, Aimee Mann & 10,000 Maniacs - all artists June had plenty of ear-time with on roadtrips, so I’ll take a tiny bit of credit - HAHA! Thumbs Up.

Vijay Iyer / Compassion - I am a jazz fan who is also a jazz idiot. I listen to tons of jazz and absolutely adore what moves me, but if my life depended on it I couldn’t quantify in any academic or intelligent musical-theory way. That said, I have found piano-based trios to be one of the jazz ensembles that has the most trouble holding my attention beyond a few numbers. While this collection featured several tracks that absolutely felt on target, there were also a few whose wanderings seemed too unfocused. As an album collection, those wanderings just slightly beat out the more sublime moments. Thumbs Down.

Nadine Shah / Filthy Underneath - Boy oh boy did this record get its hooks into me. As my entry-gate to this Pakistani/Norwegian from England, I came in blind, but was immediately excited & intrigued by what I was hearing. The immediate vibe of this outstanding collection is certainly not at all interested in placating a typical pop audience. There are plenty of twists and turns that challenge, but I found the mix to be a really interesting hybrid of familiar and other-worldly. I especially found the songs to shine following repeat listening and the opportunity to become more intimate with this unique artist. Thumbs Up.

Slow Hollows / Bullhead - Boilerplate indie pop. Not offensive and (primarily) employing ingredients that are familiar and agreeable enough (dreamy-time guitars, string/synth washes, underplayed vocals). But, in the end, I could pick dozens of bands/artists that hit this same territory in WAY more interesting and memorable ways, and just don't see myself having any reason to ever return to this collection again. Thumbs Down.

Hurray For The Riff Raff / The Past Is Still Alive - Considering that so many of my favorite female singer/songwriters have (at least) one foot firmly in the roots of country music traditions (Maria McKee, Neko Case, Gillian Welch, Tift Merritt, etc.), it goes to figure that the 9th album by this New Orleans band, led by Alynda Segerra, caught my ear in positive ways. There isn’t any monumental reinventing of the wheel going on, but sometimes relying on a strong foundation is more than enough to get the job done. One great song after another (“Hawkmoon” being an exceptional example) adds up to an album that I will return to often. Thumbs Up.

Ministry / HOPIUMFORTHEMASSES - There is no denying Al Jourgensen’s unshakeable place as a true forefather of the industrial rock movement (Ministry's “Stigmata” remains a ground-zero track on that front). However, with time, it does get a bit tricky to determine when the groundbreaking origins of an artist get overtaken by sounds that seem to mostly emulate artists that were influenced by said artist in the first place. For the most part, I felt this album camped out in that latter territory - more Rob Zombie than Ministry. Now, this isn’t a terrible thing in general terms (especially if that is a sound you’re drawn to), but it does beg the question - why bother? Thumbs Down.

Elbow / Audio Vertigo - My long-standing appreciation of Elbow’s sound and previous output placed hopes quite high for this Manchester band’s 10th album. Even with that favorable bias firmly in place, I quickly realized that the news was even better than expected. Not only is the sound of this new album one-hundred percent all the best parts of Elbow’s distinct sound, there was also a really fantastic extra layer of playful life that completely upped the ante. The rhythm section gets gold stars for bringing a truly positive pulse to the proceedings. Thumbs Up.

Liam Gallagher & John Squire / Liam Gallagher & John Squire - Following the extremely strong showing by big brother Noel’s album last year, expectations were high for an album of new music by Liam (the voice of Oasis) & John Squire (guitarist/songwriter of The Stone Roses). As expected, there are plenty of 60s-infused rave-ups to be found (“Mars To Liverpool” standing as the most successful example), but too often it comes across barely re-heated and out of step. The collection wears out its welcome fairly quickly, and sometimes veers into out-right disappointing territory (like the 2nd-rate blues attempt of “I’m A Wheel” or the done-to-death recycled psychedelia of “Just Another Rainbow”). I also have to admit, maybe I didn’t miss Liam’s voice quite as much as I thought I did as his drawn-out singing felt more whine than anything else. Thumbs Down.