STACK #191 Sep 2020

MUSIC REVIEWS

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Foals Collected Reworks Vol. 2

Disclosure Energy

Not just for Foals trainspotters, Collected Reworks offers wildly diverse and hypnotic takes on the British band. The "collected" part of the title is important: these remixes feel like carefully selected highlights from a wealth of alterations, speaking to how much the band's original songwriting offers in ideas and inspiration. There’s Haxan Cloak’s dark and industrial version of What Went Down , and on the other hand, Bandwidth's version of the same song evoking Justice with crunching guitars. Jagwar Ma’s madchester issue of Mountain at my Gates works squarely in their wheelhouse and delivers massive results, while Alex Metric shapes Bad Habit into a Cut Copy b-side. These remix albums have a tendency to target superfans, but Collected Reworks Vol. 2 stands on its own. (Warner) Jake Cleland

Five years is plenty long to wait for a new Disclosure LP, so Energy wastes no time on grandiose lights-dimming. It slams straight into the Kelis-featuring Watch Your Step , evoking her likewise thumping collab with Calvin Harris with Bounce , and doesn’t let up from there. You can feel the nightclub sweat and haze oozing out of every track, even on the relatively demure but hyper-slinky tracks following the album’s interlude, signposting a shift from the hypo energy of its first half to the moodiness of a night’s ultra-late hours. “Right now, you should feel invincible, powerful,” Eric Thomas says on the title track. Listening to Energy , you will. (Universal) Jake Cleland

Two People Second Body Sydney, 1961. Lord Mayor Harry Jensen opens the Domain Car Park, and with it the Domain Moving Walkway – the world's longest travelator at the time. It felt like the future. Visitors would park underground and finish their 207-metre journey to the CBD on a brisk conveyor belt, safe from traffic above. A network of connecting walkways across the city was planned,

but ultimately abandoned and never built. Still, the Domain Express Footway rolls on; to and fro it glides in space between the subterranean car park and a passenger tunnel near Hyde Park. I attended high school nearby and would take the tunnel on mornings when I was early or wished to be late. Or during lunch, for solitude. I'd stand, walk, read, nod at others on their own solemn travelator journeys, or scan the painted mural as it passed on either side. If it had existed back then, I would have listened to Second Body by Two People on repeat. The Melbourne duo craft immersive songs to marry motion and stillness, spanning languid dance grooves and reflective pop. Half-lit interiors and vivid stereo-fields filled with vocals, mid tempo beats, soothing synths, muted piano progressions and gentle guitar refrains. And then it ends. And there's nothing to do but listen once more, as Two People carry you slowly and surely to elsewhere and back again. (Liberation) SimonWinkler

Arlo McKinley Die Midwestern Cinncinatti, Ohio-based singer- songwriter Arlo McKinley was the last artist signed by John Prine to his Oh Boy Records label, before the latter passed away. And that’s saying something. At 40 years of age McKinley came close to throwing it all in, and here he is releasing his debut solo album. It’s not hard to see what Prine liked. These are beautiful, personal and brutally honest songs of hard times and hope, sung from a big guy with a sweet, soulful voice. Recorded at Sam Phillips Recording Service with an all-star Memphis band, it was produced by Grammy Award-winning Matt Ross-Spang. Remember his name; this is good stuff.

GL You Read My Mind Melbourne duo GL make bold forays into disco-inspired territory on their second record, adding a modern twist to the much-loved genre via their inventive electronic pop. Utilising an array of synths and percussive sounds, compelling sequencing within each song keeps the listener hooked. An impressive key change on All In My Head will delight before you’re transported to a heaving nightclub on the propulsive Rush . Ella Thompson’s captivating vocal is one of the duo’s greatest assets, seemingly becoming an instrument in its own right as she harmonises on Oyster . A much-needed injection of joy in these challenging times, You Read My Mind is a sonic pick-me-up guaranteed to please. (Pool Records) Holly Pereira

Angel Olsen Whole New Mess

The Avett Brothers The Third Gleam Brothers Seth and Scott Avett have been performing as The Avett Brothers for 20 years now. For this release they’ve gone back to their roots as a trio with long time bass player Bob Crawford, staying true to their traditions of sharing what’s on their minds and in their hearts. The Third Gleam 's beautifully stripped-back acoustic instrumentation leaves space for focus on the voices and the songs. Written and recorded prior to the pandemic and uprising for social justice, these songs seem to connect with the world we’re living in now, delving into themes of isolation, injustice, resilience and love, with honesty, humour and hope. These are back porch songs for everyone. (Concord/Caroline) Denise Hylands

Following last year’s opulent All Mirrors , the latest from Angel Olsen features some of the songs from that record in a striking new light. In these solo performances, Olsen – armed with just her voice and a guitar – confronts the experiences behind her lyrics in real time, with this stripped-back format giving further weight to her words. Within this more intimate context, the isolation of heartache and reinvention is made more obvious, with Olsen navigating the complex feelings that arise from her experiences with devastating precision. Olsen paints a striking portrait of emotion on Whole New Mess , revealing more of herself than she has on previous records. (Jagjaguwar/Inertia) Holly Pereira

(CookingVinyl) Denise Hylands

84 SEPTEMBER 2020

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