Yves Tumor – Heaven To A Tortured Mind
American artist Sean Bowie’s fourth album, under the name Yves Tumor, following 2018’s Safe In The Hands of Love, is in short, a strutting, bold, funk-soul, brass-rich genre-spanning, androgynous work of masterful invention. Outstanding basslines underpin songs such as Romanticist / Dream Palette, or Gospel For A New Century, while Kerosene! burns out guitar riffs worthy of Prince, with backing vocals recalling Cocteau Twins’ Elizabeth Fraser or Claire Torry on Pink Floyd’s The Great Gig in the Sky. On Medicine Burn the guitar writhes into an unnerving level of creative electronic distortion. Are there any echoes of his namesake? There's something of Robert Fripp, but not much more than that. Bu the influence of Throbbing Gristle is always there. This Bowie is certainly innovative in spades, from the gooey ghostliness of Strawberry Privilege, to the unstoppable stomp, echo and crashing of Asteroid Blues. A true star. Out on Warp.
Yves Tumor – Gospel For A New Century
Thundercat – It Is What It Is
A sophisticated, rich jazz-funk return for the brilliant, eccentric 35-year-old Los Angeles star bassist Stephen “Thundercat” Bruner, who has variously worked with Kendrick Lamar and written songs for his cat, Thon. This album includes quality musical contributions from friends Flying Lotus, Ty Dolla $ign, Childish Gambino, Lil B, Kamasi Washington, Steve Lacy, Steve Arrington, BadBadNotGood, Louis Cole and Zack Fox. While there are echoes also of Steely Dan, clearly the Afro-space-funk of George Clinton remains a big influence, given appreciation as a man who “may be covered in cat hair”, as he sings on Dragonball Durag, but “still smells good”. The focus of the album though is the mourning of of Mac Miller, Aria Grande’s ex and Bruner’s close friend. But as for the music, the bass is wildly funky, and the voice is pretty good too. Other outstanding tracks include the more anxious Black Qualls, and the rather beautiful Fair Chance. Out on Brainfeeder.
Thundercat – Dragonball Durag
Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs – Viscerals
Bring the noise! The likeable quintet from Newcastle upon Tyne return with a follow-up to King of Cowards and their third in all. There are obvious aural parallels with early Black Sabbath, but this is also metal with a glorious panache, style and grandeur that has a line of humour running through as if through a stick of rock. Reducer has an immense, explosive sound, like the hammers of a shipyard colliding with a concrete factory, with frontman Matty Baty proclaiming, like a thunderous small warrior, "ego kills everything". But it's not all ear-blasting. Rubbernecker is positively melodious, and there is quite a variety of noises in hewn enormity, from the sound-collage of Blood And Butter, while Crazy In Blood has elements of that My Bloody Valentine guitar. Educated, endlessly entertaining work, like an electrified Wagner but always wear those earplugs. Out on Rocket Recordings.
Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs – Reducer
Everything is Recorded – Friday Forever
The second album from multi-artist project Everything Is Recorded, headed up by producer and artist Richard Russell following the Mercury Music Prize-nominated debut of 2018. Its concept is a multi-lensed perspective, mixing soul singing, hip-hop, trip-hop, electronica and more, of a classic night out, followed closely by the sobering reflections of the next morning. Tracks include various guests and titles such as 12:12AM/PATIENTS (FUCKING UP A FRIDAY) (feat. Aitch & Infinite Coles), 03:15AM/CAVIAR (feat. Ghostface Killah & Infinite Coles), 09:35AM/PRETENDING NOTHINGS WRONG (feat. Kean Kavanagh) and 10:02AM/BURNT TOAST (feat. Berwyn & A. K. Paul). It's hard to go to bed without listening through it all. Out on XL.
Everything Is Recorded - 10:51PM / THE NIGHT feat. Berwyn and Maria Somerville
Yaeji – What We Drew 우리가 그려왔던
This could well be the true dance music for the self-isolating generation. Korean-American DJ and producer Yaeji – aka Kathy Yaeji Lee - is a household name (as in making at home) for slower, electronica house music, and this is her debut LP, after a breakthrough track in 2017 mixing beats with deadpan vocals. Her breathy vocals and girlish delivery, especially on the title track, hide a greater pop sophistication as shown on Waking Up Down, or THE TH1NG. Clever, lo-fi techno that is absurdly catchy. Out on XL Recordings.
Yaeji – Waking Up Down
Minor Science – Second Language
Crisp, clever, witty and highly inventive retro electronica instrumental work that certainly owes much the Kraftwerk, and the Berlin-based producer and DJ also known as Angus Finlayson also has a passing resemblance to Thomas Dolby, which might echo the latter's big 80s hit. On this debut LP are all manner of fascinating landscapes of plops, squiggles, hums and pings, such as on the quieter, sparser Spoken and Unspoken, the more frenetic, bass-heavy Balconies, or almost hyper space drum'n'bass For Want of Gelt. Infinitely beat-iful. Out on Whities.
Minor Science – Blue Deal
Anna Burch – If You're Dreaming
The singer-songwriter from Detroit returns with a slower, more deliberate album than her more upbeat, pop-indie jangly 2018 debut Quit The Curse. With her soft, quiet voice and song structures, there is a deceptive simplicity to her work that, on extra listens reveals greater complexities. Created with help from producer Sam Evian in his home studio in the Catskill mountains of upstate New York, it has an undercurrent of grungy fuzz with a bittersweet sound and droll, downbeat lyrics, some brief classical swirls, and dark shades in between sunny hooks. Not So Bad, Party's Over and Tell Me What's True are among the standout tracks. Out on Heavenly Recordings.
Anna Burch – Not So Bad.
Ren Harvieu – Revel in the Drama
The English singer and songwriter from Broughton, Salford was a upcoming star in the mould of Amy Winehouse and Duffy a decade ago, when she was spotted by those singers' collaborator producer Jimmy Hogarth. But in 2011 she broke her back in a freak accident. Her album, Through the Night, was released in 2012, but her career stalled. Now having overcome all that she returns with a bold, classic pop-soul album, a compelling diary of her struggle with self-belief and survival. Noteworthy tracks include gothic swoon of Cruel Disguise, the smokey seductiveness of Yes Please and torchsong finale My Body She Is Alive. A strong, brave voice now under a spotlight with the microphone, who deserves the big break. Out on Bella Union.
Ren Harvieu - Strange Thing
Tops – I Feel Alive
The Montreal band's fourth album is easy going soft rock with smooth vocal harmonies and an 80s choppy, but resonant guitar sound by David Carriere that also runs some parallels with the British trio The Orielles, but this seems to have an even cleaner glean, with singer Jane Penny giving off a certain Stevie Nicks delivery with added, pin-neat backing vocals. Direct Sunlight is disco with a dash of Steely Dan, while Pirouette tells the story of romance gone wrong. Music that shines like a clean window on a sunny day. Out on Musique Tops.
Tops: – I Feel Alive
M Ward – Migration Stories
Further Americana in the form of a 10th album by the singer-songwriter from Portland, Oregon. If nothing else he is certainly consistent, mapping the song geography of America with originals and covers for two decades, including here 1940s standard Along the Santa Fe Trail, but on Unreal City there's a little more urban adventure, with a style that still echoes the past, but in a different way, with a dash of Tom Petty and The Traveling Wilburys. Hard not to enjoy, if you're just looking for pleasant, breeze in your hair songwriting. Out on Anti-Records.
M Ward - Unreal City
This week's selection is by The Landlord.
New to comment? It is quick and easy. You just need to login to Disqus once. All is explained in About/FAQs ...
This is only a selection of recommended listens not a catalogue of releases nor full reviews. Feel free to recommend more and comment below. You can also use the contact page, or find more on social media: Song Bar Twitter, Song Bar Facebook. Song Bar YouTube, and Song Bar Instagram. Please subscribe, follow and share.