Dream-pop group Sooner has just released their debut LP, Days and Nights. The Brooklyn based group kicked off album promotions by premiering their first single ‘Boscobel’ with FLOOD magazine.
Days and Nights cover
Formed in 2016, Sooner blends elements of alternative rock, dream pop and shoegaze to create their melodic sound. Members Federica Tassano (vocals), John Farris (guitar), Andrew Possehl (bass), and Tom Wolfson (drums) have come together after a series of fits and starts to finally release the amalgamation of their hard work.
‘Persona’ coaxes you in with Tassano’s youthful, airy voice as your feet subconsciously start to tap along to Wolfson’s drums. Lyrics questioning a man’s sobriety and the efforts one goes through for individuals that don’t care add to the depth Sooner displays within their work.
‘Kingdom’ draws unique inspiration from Mary Oliver’s poem “Small Kingdoms”. The strong instrumental start does its job in grabbing your focus and keeping it locked in. Bass and guitar are front and center in this track.
‘Dusk’ closes the LP with a calming, submerged presence. Tassano’s ethereal chants float around you and as the final song concludes, it feels like you’ve just left a close friend’s recording session. Your muscles are relaxed and your mind is clear.
Days and Nights is now available on all streaming platforms, as well as the group’s Bandcamp.
As Benny the Butcher and his Griselda cohorts further entrench themselves in the music industry and the lines between mixtapes and studio albums continue to blur, the Buffalo-bred rapper returns with another edition of his cult-like mixtape series. The array of Tana Talk mixtapes helped lead Benny’s ascension including his breakout third edition, which featured standout tracks like “Langfield,” and “Rubber Bands & Weight.”
Tana Talk 4 is officially Benny’s third studio album and the intro track serves as a reminder of Benny’s current standing within the industry. The lead single — “Johnny P’s Caddy”– features a strong J. Cole verse, while the rest of the appearances remain close to home in the likes of Stove God Cooks, Westside Gunn, Conway The Machine, 38 Spesh and fellow Griselda signee, Boldy James. While Benny commands that street presence throughout his projects, the Tana talk series has always maintained a more personal feel and has seen the Def Jam signee at his most introspective.
This ain’t my story about rags to riches, more about how I mastered physics.
The records opening line sets the tone for the entire body of work as Benny weaves through street tales and the specific details of the drug game, while giving attention to his growth in the music industry and the supposed dissension between Conway and the rest of Griselda records after his departure from the label. Songs like “Johnny P’s Caddy” sees Benny flex his muscles in the rap game, as he went from making street dollars to legitimate rap money.
In the game, I used to train like Rocky catchin’ chickens. I was nice, but they was right when they told me that rap a business.
While once again flexing his loyalty to the ones he entered the game with.
Besides Con’ and West, tell me, who else I gotta respect?
Benny effortlessly exchanges his street and rap personas. His production is composed of Griselda in-house producer Daringer’s grimy, raw, slowed down beats, combining that with famed hip hop producer Alchemist’s soul-samples. On the 38 Spesh assisted, “Uncle Bun,” Benny is raw and unforgiving about his street dealings.
I sold dope to a fiend while she pregnant, emotionless. I’m not a case worker, that’s not the reason I sold the shit.
While the more soulful “Weekends In The Perry’s” featuring Boldy James, sees the Def Jam signee portray himself as simply an author to his own motion picture, which is the sort of bob-and-weave that is displayed throughout the 12-track, 40-minute long project.
Tana Talk 4 isn’t all drug and industry talk, as Benny also addresses the relationship between him, Westside Gunn and Conway The Machine. On “Tyson vs. Ali” featuring Conway The Machine, he addresses the media and fans attempts to pin the former label-mates against each other, while unbeknownst to them, the trio remain tethered.
So confused when ya’ll compare two n**gas from the same movement. Only for ya’ll amusement is funny to me. Ya’ll do it, truth is, while I’m killing shit Conway is somewhere rootin’.
Conway The Machine responds with his own salute to his cousin,
Ayo, Benny, I remember what we used to do to the fiends. That’s why it feel so good to see you doin’ your thing.
As the entire Griselda empire has grown within the past few years, they’ve maintained their model, even as they’ve ventured with bigger labels and entertainment entities. The making of Tana Talk 4 — a renowned mixtape series — into a studio album exemplifies just that. Benny The Butcher continues to elevate and flexes his industry connections with the J.Cole feature, while remaining true to his core fanbase.
Overall, fans of Benny can be left satisfied with this project, as it has plenty of rugged street talk, but more importantly growth, as fans can see the fruits of Benny’s ascension as he rubs elbows with the hip hop industry’s elite.
Michael Gregory Jackson, the innovative guitarist namechecked as a vital influence by modern masters like Vernon Reid, Brandon Ross, Bill Frisell and Nels Cline, is releasing his first-ever solo electric guitar album, Electric Git Box (Golden Records). Available exclusively at the artist’s Bandcamp site, the digital offering boasts 11 unaccompanied solo guitar pieces showcasing the breathtaking stylistic scope and technique of this critically-acclaimed and influential guitarist’s singular work.
Electric Git Box includes both reinterpretations of Jackson originals dating back to his 1976 solo debut, Clarity, Circle, Triangle, Square, as well as a host of powerful new work. The release also includes extensive liner notes comprised of reflections on Electric Git Box from Oliver Lake, Vernon Reid, Bakida Carroll, Ed Motta, Brian Jackson and Brandon Ross, as well as a poem written for the project by author/playwright/poet Jessica Hagedorn, with additional writings from Jackson.
Jackson says of Electric Git Box, “The nature of beauty is at the core of my being and my music, alongside aggression, passion, fire, and powerful feelings of personal independence and creative freedom. This project was borne of an angst-full period for me, I was feeling inundated with tragedies, the isolation of Covid lockdowns, re-occurring police and vigilante killings of Black people, and living with the omnipresent reality of systemic racism. I was feeling angry, disconnected and erased; thus, I recorded this music with some edges, some distortion, to communicate the multifaceted well of emotions that birthed this performance.”
He goes on to explain, “My guitars, which I’ve called ‘git boxes’ since my teens, have always been my companions and a sanctuary to me, vehicles to help me through the angst of my younger life, and now. Through my guitars, I discovered discipline, self-awareness and inspiration, my git boxes opened a conduit, a dive in deep access and connection to the blues-ness in me.”
Electric Git Box opens with a recent original, “Karen (Sweet Angel)”, an evocative ballad dedicated to his lady love, one which contrasts wide open chording and deep harmony with quicksilver melodies and fills. On “Sweet Rain Blues,” Jackson revs up a gut bucket blues, one that Vernon Reed characterizes as “simultaneously rural, urban, then veers off into considerations of what’s really happening when the sun is shining although it’s raining in your heart”, while on “Wish” Jackson’s blues has a distinct sarod-like tonality. On another recent original, “Hymn for My People,” Jackson recites a funerial slow, ultra-mournful tone poem – largely in single note lines, while “Perseverance” is a driving anthem, as unrelenting as its title. Both, according to the artist “are inspired by the struggle and defiant spirit of my ancestors, and artistic predecessors in all idioms, and all freedom fighters in the fight for the liberation of all oppressed peoples.”
With “Preleuoionti,” Jackson reprises the acoustic guitar showpiece from his 1976 debut disc recorded as a 23-year-old, Clarity, Circle, Triangle, Square. This version has a new depth, one that only time and his mastery of the tonality of the electric SG can add. Another reinvented classic, “Theme X (For Geri Allen),” is a tribute to the late composer and keyboard master, an associate from his early days in New Haven and New York in the 1970s, a composition first heard on Jackson’s 2019 disc, WHENUFINDITUWILLKNOW, with his Clarity Quartet. Ornette Coleman is the dedicatee on “JcakJcak (for Ornette)”, a rapid fire, sometimes dissonant rollercoaster of melody first heard on his “Spirit Single Strata” trio album with drummer Kenward Dennard and bassist Keith Witty, and his Clarity Quartet collection, “After Before.” The same two albums included “Meditation in E (For Karen),” another airy ballad that showcases Jackson’s unique harmonic sense and bluesy sheets of sound soloing.
“Michael’s powerful and melodic & rhythmic sensibilities imbues all these pieces with tactile energy,” says guitar great Vernon Reid. “Michael Gregory Jackson has always cut a singular musical path on his journey through many genres that have been his wheelhouse, through many schools of jazz, alternative rock and even Avant folk. This collection of solo electric guitar may be Michael’s most personal musical exploration yet.”
Pre-order here and visit Michael Gregory Jackson on Bandcamp.
Electroacoustic duo Vessels to Motherland have recently released their debut album, Machine Lieder. The project transports listeners into the world of machines and engulfs them in a brand new environment.
Machine Lieder has an impressive, well thought out back story that allows listeners to truly sink into the project and visualize what they hear. Created by machines, this collection of songs combines human emotions with cold metal shells and expresses the complexity of the modern world.
Vessels to Motherland consists of composer, producer and pianist, Danica Borisavljevic and composer, producer and violinist Nikita Morozov. The experience gained from being classically trained has created the base from which their ideas blossom and evolve.
The NYC duo have recently collaborated with the NY Institute for the Humanities and Social Studies to found “NYC Keyboard Fest”, a one day festival focused on showcasing keyboard performances.
‘Rusty’ serves as the album’s transition between its more minimal beginning and the intensity of its later tracks. An almost sullen mundanity settles in the listeners mind as they are exposed to the inner toil of the machines. It passes as quickly as it comes.
‘Terminal Circuit’ brings you deeper into this new universe as the otherworldly sound continues to craft the story around you. It almost feels as though tension is building inside you as you get further into the song. Pressure builds and then suddenly vanishes as the song ends with one final synthetic wail.
‘Tghtr’ is the last song on the album and serves as the perfect ending to the strange journey Vessels to Motherland has taken you on. Lowkey synths intertwine with the hypnotizing beat until heavy distortion pushes you out near the very end of the track.
Machine Lieder is available now on all streaming platforms, as well as Bandcamp.
Annie in the Water has released their third studio album, Sun at Dawn. After Michael Lashomb and Bradley Hester met at Hobart College in Geneva, the band has gone through a plethora of changes. Since its nascency in 2007, founders Michael Lashomb and Bradley Hester have led the band, and their newest album, Sun At Dawn, shows the band in a new light.
Beautiful & Figurative Storytelling
Sun At Dawn is a story that takes place in a tropical setting, yet it provokes much deeper thought than the sound that it embellishes. It tells a story of love and loss, and lust and gluttony, all over surf jam-rock instrumentation. An oxymoronic approach to a concept album is nothing particularly new or innovative to music at all, but it takes a certain level of mastery to execute it in a mature manner. Additionally, over what is essentially a beach playlist, this approach may be hard to execute. One can go the easy route and make an entire album over summer beach jams. However, with only a few minor criticisms to the album, Annie in the Water does an excellent job creating an invigorating piece of art.
The album starts with “Bloom,” leading with an intoxicating synthesizer and warm guitar progression that immediately hypnotize the listener. In a way, the song feels kaleidoscopic. The instruments work off of each other beautifully and transport you to a tropical setting. This is a skill that Annie in the Water demonstrates throughout the whole album, including “In The Sand,” a song about being lost in the desert.
Lyrics read “I’ve arrived it seems, but nothing here is green, no rain just shine, no roads in sight, to lead me to the land, I’ve yet to find.” They continue: “I’m lost in my plan, burning up in the desert sunset, pull the map out of the sand, although there’s nothing written there.” While these lyrics articulate and describe the situation our protagonist is in, the feeling extracted from the song would be nothing without the instrumentation’s ability to complete the story. The key the instruments work in completes the deserted feeling the protagonist feels. The guitar feels sandy and the sporadicalness of the keys adds a layer of confusion. On the other hand, the percussion and bass add the perfect amount of bounce to maintain an oxymoronic element of stoke in such a depressing song. “In The Sand” is a song about feeling lost after losing a partner you care deeply for, and it is a beautiful way to articulate this emotion.
Another song that transports the listener and contemplates an oxymoron is “Water.” Like the previous song, this song is also about losing a partner. The lead singer feels that their ex-partner is omnipresent and they feel an incredible, insatiable lust for them. They know, however, that they can never go back to them, and while this fact is never explicitly stated in the lyrics, the instrumentation communicates an entirely different story.
This song, a step away from the tropic jams on this album, also makes beautiful use of the mark tree. In every verse, the lyrics start off incredibly abstract, drawing metaphors to the rain and the moon when speaking about this person. As the verse progresses though, the lyrics get more and more real, at which point the singer eventually breaks and confesses that their former lover moved to California, a far detour from the Upstate New York-based band. At the end of each verse, however, the mark tree melodically transports both the listener and the protagonist back to a dream-like state, where they can feel free to live in the fantasy with this partner. Sounds of pouring water also play at the end of the song, suggesting this person will always be a part of this person.
Jam Bands Jam
As stated earlier, a major feat of the band is the ability to bounce their instruments off of each other. “Lights Up,” for instance, begins with a feeling of slight dissonance between the instruments. This is totally intentional; the instruments follow the same time signature, there is just a slight air in between them. Without even realizing it though, the instruments were jamming together in perfect unison. Notably, the instrumentalists seem like they are enjoying themselves and that joy is contagious for the listener.
Similarly, “In The Sand” ends in a beautiful cacophony of jam rock. The guitar solo reeks of swagger, sludge, and beautiful vibes. Accompanying it is a beautiful percussive beat and the two instrumentalists work off of each other in an infinitely excellent and masterful way. It is impossible to finish this song without bobbing your head.
Sun at Dawn definitely has a unique sound to it, however, this does not stop the listener from hearing some obvious influences, including the whammy guitar from “Seeds.” It sounds exactly like something Hendrix would have played, but Hendrix would have played better. The guitar of “Bloom,” on the other hand, doesn’t feel like a carbon copy. Instead, it more so pays a nod to Jimmy Page. In the same essence, “Water” draws a striking similarity to Guns N’ Roses’ “November Rain.”
Now, every artist wears their influence on their sleeves from time to time. My only concern for Annie in the Water is that, even though this album displays incredible personality, whether or not that personality is distinct to the album only and not the band. Additionally, throughout the album, the presence of synthesizers, for the most part, at the very least add something of value, although on a song like “Water,” an incredibly introspective song about long-lost love, can be heavy at times.
Overall, Sun At Dawn is an excellent album with some minor flaws. The band’s contagious and figurative instrumentation alongside introspective lyricism makes for an enjoyable seven-track run. Sun At Dawn is available on Spotify and Apple Music now. For more information, check out their Facebook or Instagram.
Christian Linsey has returned with his second LP, New English, released on February 22. Linsey is also the drummer for indie rock group, FRANK.
New English is a lo-fi, slacker pop dream, full of mellow vocals and sentimental lyrics. In contrast to Linsey’s 2016 LP After All, which focused on his personal loss, his newest project situates itself as a spiritual rebound. With themes of love, depression and mortality it’s easy to see that Linsey has learned how to accept the good with the bad. The record seems to be a reflection of the changes that have occurred in his life.
‘Hello’ MV preview
‘Lunchroom’ gives the LP a soothing start with strong guitars welcoming you in before Linsey’s gentle vocals croon about high school memories. While the song is only two minutes and forty seconds, it doesn’t waste any time setting up the vibe for the rest of the project.
‘In the Park’ dives deeper with its’ melancholic tone and low key instrumental. The drums maintain a steady base for the rest of the song to flourish on. The calming track is perfect for a rainy, late night listen.
‘Kids’ tackles the moment in time where you ruminate on an old childhood memory and finally move on from it. The surprise appearance of female backing vocals adds an extra layer of texture that brings everything together.
In addition to Linsey’s own unique sound, he also had guest artists appear on the project, including his trusted collaborators Joe Rogers, Pat Malone and Billy Ziff. Fresh faces like J57, Elenor Norton and Tory Giardina also make appearances within the instrumentals and vocals.
Linsey’s music is available on all streaming platforms, including Spotify and Apple Music.
The Bozeman, Montana-based band Kitchen Dwellers have a lot in store for 2022. In addition to dropping their latest single “Wise River” this month, their tour has begun and will make stops at New York CIty’s Mercury Lounge and Buffalo Iron Works. The neo-bluegrass band have also announced their third full-length album, also titled Wise River, which will drop on April 29.
Kitchen Dwellers create their own spin of bluegrass, folk, and rock through a perspective of the American West. The quartet, including mandolin player Shawn Swain, Torrin Daniels on the banjo, Joe Funk on the upright bass, and acoustic guitarist Max Davies, combine forces to turn homegrown stories, rich mythology, and psychedelic hues into music. With producer Cory Wong, the Kitchen Dwellers are ready to release their new album.
Considering all band members are from Montana, their album correlates to how life has been through their eyes lately. Wise River is known to be one of Montana’s natural wonders, considering its 30-mile stream that flows down the southwestern region of the state, from the mountains into the Big Hole River.
The town of Wise River is basically a forgotten spot on the map. It used to be a thriving place with many prosperous mines, but now it’s practically dried up. There’s a hell of a lot of melancholy. In our mind, it symbolizes the overall feeling of being in slowed-down Montana life.
Shawn Swain
Kitchen Dwellers are known for selling out shows, receiving credibility from well-known publications like the Huffington Post, and surpassing five million plus streams. Therefore, there is no doubt that their current tour will be a success and boost their status within the music industry.
Earlier this month, the quartet released the official music video of their newest single Wise River, along with their behind-the-scenes trailer, which can be viewed here.
In addition to going on tour in New York, Kitchen Dwellers will travel across the country, making stops along the Pacific Northwest to the Southeast. Furthermore, there will be numerous festival appearances including the Telluride Bluegrass Festival, WinterWonderGrass, Sweetwater 420 Fest, Tuck Fest, Bear Shadow, Domefest, Summer Camp Music Festival, Peach Fest, Electric Forest, Northwest String Summit, FloydFest, RiverWonderGrass, and many more to be announced.
The Pine Boys are an electric combination of alternative rock, funk and hip-hop from Albany releasing their new album Vacationland today, February 18th.
These artists provide such a unique musical interpretation with a blend of character-driven storytelling and memorable guitar riffs. The group was founded by multi-instrumentalists, Brett Maney and Andrew Cerone, in 2016. When they started playing live in 2019, they added their longtime friend Sam Lasky on the instrument, the keytar, since they have been together, they have released 6 albums and played all over Upstate NY, anywhere from basements to bars.
The Pine Boys Live
Many of their songs are part of an interconnected universe set in the fictional town of “Vacationland,” this is the groups hometown and place of origin. This is also the mindset that you need to have when you see them live. Seeing a live Pine show should serve as a time to take a vacation from your normal reality and temporarily venture into their world.
The Pine Boys “Vacationland”
Their top song on Spotify, “Electric Minnow,” provide a mixture of funky guitar riffs along with a catchy rhythm throughout the song. By blending a hip hop style of lyrics with indie sounds, the band creates a unique blend of music.
Other songs like “Fat Al” are melancholy but have a funny twist. Throughout listening to the song, the guitar has a shadowy feeling yet satisfying because of how beautiful it is played. “If Walls Could Talk,” “Enter the Sauce,” and “Duneman” have made their top 5 despite being all on different albums. Each provides different genre mash which they include throughout their peruana of “Vacationland.”
Composers and instrumentalists Vicente Hansen Atria and Mat Muntz are set to release their new album “The Vex Collection”, releasing on Carrier Records February 18. With a grand combination of jazz, world, contemporary classical, and experimental rock, these two trendsetters have experimented with traditional instruments to devise unforgettable musical experiences.
Atria and Muntz grew straight out of NYC’s The Shed Open Call commissioning program. This establishment is a cultural institution that welcomes and molds 21st century art and ideas. The Shed cultivates creativity in fields ranging from pop to classical music, painting to digital media, theater to literature, and sculpture to dance. Their mutual interest in double reeds, which are by far one of the most ancient musical technologies that produce intense ranging sounds, were intertwined with newly invented technology, known as live electronics that were developed through 3-D-printing.
In addition to the two composers, others joined the musical journey to mesh traditional and new sounds to produce “The Vex Collection”. Gamin, played the Korean double reed instruments the piri and taepyeongso, while Matthew Welch, specialized in the great highland bagpipe. Additionally, musician Neo, plays the carnyx, bombard, and dozaleh.
These instruments were deeply rooted in Korea and Scotland, some being one of the first to have a substantial impact in their respective cultures. Atria and Muntz made sure not to alter the natural sounds of the traditional music, but rather allowed it to clash with the live electronics on one song and flow smoothly on the next. The newer instruments that intertwined with the old, ranged from distorted guitars to aggressive synthesizers and detailed microtonality. Ultimately, the group proved that older music is still apart of today’s culture, just with an advanced technological twist.
“The Vex Collection” has pushed passed the social norms within the music industry, as we know it today. This album is full of improvisations of music between two distinct time periods, that go above and beyond what listeners could have imagined.
To check out their latest single “Fugue”, visit Foxy Digitalis. For more information about Atria and Muntz, as well as “The Vex Collection”, visit these sites: Mat Muntz, Vincent Hansen.
The Mommyheads’ Swiss Army Knife has never had a proper release. Trapped in obscurity, the long-awaited album will be out February 11th, 2022, for fans to enjoy.
The Mommyheads (Adam Elk, Michael Holt, Dan Fisherman, Jason McNair) are an indie pop band from Brooklyn, who played from around 1987 through 1998. They disbanded for a decade, and then reformed in 2008. After the death of original drummer, Jan Kotik, The Mommyheads re-united for a tribute show in New York City. Shortly after, they decided to reform and record a new album, “You’re Not A Dream.” In 2021, Big Takeover Magazine dubbed Adam Elk and Michael Holt, “two of the best songwriters currently active.”
“Four decades later and the Mommyheads are still undisputed godfathers of Baroque Prog Pop.”
Relix
Swiss Army Knife displays vocals from the wild creativity of Mommyheads songwriter, Adam Elk, who independently recorded these tunes on four-track during his teen years in Brooklyn. The album is striking in it’s eccentricity: schizophrenic wordplay, mind-bending chord structures, acoustic mayhem, and DIY experimentalism all meld together within these colorful song fragments.
Swiss Army Knife, The Mommyheads
When listening to the album, the manic creative energy is infectious throughout. There is an unrelenting playfulness to this set that makes it so enjoyable to listen to. Tracks such as “They Call it Accident,” have a playful, plucking bassline paired with sublime vocals that overall make the track a fun one to listen to.
“If you wanna do music, you have to have a really thick skin. You have to really wanna take the abuse of not making money for years and years.”
says Adam Elk
That most unique aspects of this album are its use of unusual use of instruments and vocals that make the album feel so raw featured in songs like “Freak Out Jam,” “I Won’t Eat Anymore,” and “They’ve Finally Landed.” Other tracks like “Lemon Merengue People” have fun melodies of guitar and vocals that pair with each other.
Another song, “We Are Intertwined,” can be described as having a waltz, up-beat and psychedelic sound. “Canoe Driver” is also another gorgeous piece of baroque pop with glorious melody. The Mommyheads Swiss Army Knife is a masterpiece of 90s-sounding baroque progressive pop.
Swiss Army Knife is available to listen to on Soundcloud.
