STACK NZ Dec #58

MUSIC

FEATURE

Graham Reid looks back on a stack of music and picks some very different albums you might have missed this year. 10 TO DISCOVER

O n any given week this year, dozens of CDs were released. Add to that the scores which just appear at bandcamp or wherever and you’d be forgiven for not being able to keep up. No one can. Bearded hipsters will direct you to some indie band hidden in a far self-released corner of the internet, and cooler-than- you critics will always hail some obscure artist (who might be obscure for a reason) because – it makes them look good. Well, we’re not going to direct you to New Zealand’s Ha the Unclear even though we like them, or point you to bandcamp for Britain’s psych-proggers Midwich Youth Club. (Although I guess we just have.) We thought we’d just offer 10 albums which are readily available, but that you might have missed. Not saying these are thebest albums of the year, or ‘essential’. Just saying these are durable albums you’ll play in the coming years, but they might have gone past you.

Lake Street Dive Bad Self Portraits This university-educated quartet from

DelaneyDavidson SwimDownLow This gifted singer-songwriter pops up on albums withTami Neilson, MarlonWilliams and others in local indie/alt.country area . . . but he’s often more in theTomWaits-Nick Cave territory, although here leavens that with smart pop, European cabaret and much else. Strong songs delivered with utter commitment. You can’t look away. manages to flit between indie.rock and radio- friendly pop, little touches of early Bowie andThe Beach Boys, electro-dance and just shameless fun. Their bubbly but slightly weary Champions of Red Wine should be the song of summer. Jakob Sines Eight years on from their last album, and despite medical and musical setbacks, this all-instrumental trio from Napier deliver a stunning album of guitar loops, strings (by Rhian Sheehan), experimental sounds fashioned into song structures, and moods which shift from melancholy to heroic.This is a collection which can be as soft as a chamber quartet or as massive as a metal band. Quite an achievement. TheNewPornographers Brill Bruisers Fizzy power-pop which somehow

Boston were all studying jazz but took a turn into soulful Motown and pop-inspired songs which are not only catchy but actually say something.They are playingWOMAD and the Auckland Arts Festival next year and you can bet people will be talking about them afterwards. Easy to listen to, but not ‘easy-listening’. Engineers Always Returning The new Pink Floyd album The Endless River makes a decent case for ambient prog-rock but their sound is so distinctive it doesn’t come off as new. Engineers are a UK outfit who work in the general territory but– by not being well known – sound fresh on these hypnotic pieces. It’s a double: one disc of songs, the other the instrumental tracks.You’ll play both, depending on your mood. Given Plant’s standing, it would be surprising if you weren’t at least aware of this album. But many passed it by because it didn’t sound like either Led Zeppelin or his popular Raising Sand album (with Alison Krauss).This works between exotic world music, moody blues, trance and even jangle pop. He dials down the melodramatic vocals too, on an album that slowly hypnotises, and every listen brings out new dimensions. MirelWagner Whenthe Cellar Children See the Light of Day If acoustic Nirvana, death ballads and PJ Harvey/ Nick Cave are your thing, this 23-year old Ethiopian-born adoptee from Finland has an album for you. Dark, compelling and frequently very uneasy listening, but a profound statement nonetheless. Emphatically not for summer barbecues though. RobertPlantandthe SensationalSpaceShifters Lullaby and the Ceaseless Roar

Beck Morning Phase There are so many Beck

albums in the world you tend to take him for granted. However this dreamy but slightly dark, gloriously arranged and yet intimate collection finds him at the top of his game, making this sound effortless. There are also lyrics to ponder although it will be the lovely surface which will hook you in.

Goat Commune It’s been a good year for neo-

ScottWalker+SunO))) Soused We’re not going to pretend

psychedelic music and this group from Sweden – who remain anonymous and perform with ritualistic dancers in costume – nail a summery vibe with rolling and tripped-out rhythms, trance- rock, references to African music, Floyd-like soundtracks and dance grooves.This is your barbecue soundtrack!

this is easy. because the once great balladeer Walker now declaims his bizarre lyrics, like some demented opera singer. And the Sun O))) band here are slo- mo grindcore guys. But the pairing is alarmingly good and this is an intense listening experience . . . emphasis on ‘intense’ and experience’.

For more reviews, overviews and interviews by Graham Reid see: www.elsewhere.co.nz

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