EINAR SOLBERG, 16 (InsideOutMusic). As vocalist and keyboardist for Leprous, Einar Solberg expresses the musical message within the band dynamic. His debut solo release, 16, is intensely personal. Solberg says the album is about himself between the ages of 16 and 19, when his world was shaped by the bad things that were happening to him. Given the sound of the music, that is not hard to believe. Solberg — already one of the better vocalists in progressive metal — brings an added layer of anguish to his voice that serves just as much as pure catharsis as it does means to convey lyrics. While there are aggressive musical moments, his sound doesn’t rely on overdriven instruments as it does ethereal keyboards and contemplative soundscapes. The use of musicians from outside his “day band” help bring his more personal vision to life. Some of the best art is known to come from an artist’s pain, and this fantastic record is no exception.
EMILY KING, Special Occasion (ATO Records). An interesting bit of electronic pop occasionally augmented with nylon-string guitars. Singer/songwriter Emily King’s sound may sound destined for the Top 40, but there is something deeper going on here. The grooves don’t seem to be about dancing as much as they serve to convey genuinely sincere lyrics and messages. King’s vocals appeal in siren-like fashion against soulful, mellow grooves. It’s a nice change of pace for those used to more complicated material, though it’s far from simplistic.
FRANK ZAPPA, Zappa ‘80: Mudd Club/Munich (Zappa Records). Concerts held in different -sized venues often reveal two sides of a band. Of course, there are exceptions to the “rule,” and Frank Zappa is present to provide that exception. Fresh off the 1979 release Joe’s Garage, Zappa took another crack band on the road for shows in The U.S. and Europe. Two of those performances are captured beautifully in this collection. The 240 spectators at New York’s Mudd Club get a band playing with just as much skill and intensity as they do playing before 12,000 people in Munich, Germany. To Zappa fans, this is no surprise. Quality is not just achieved — it is demanded. And this band does not disappoint. With this band, Zappa gradually introduces more comedy into his work along with top-tier chops that would come to define his music in the 80’s. Still, it’s impossible to ignore the skills of FZ, guitarists/vocalists Ray White and Ike Willis, Tommy Mars on keyboards, Arthur Barrow on bass, and David Logeman on drums. They’re on top of the music from the first riffs and never leave. A lot of material had been making its way out of the Zappa vault for fan consumption. So far, everything has been worth hearing, including this.
DJUNAH, Femina Furens (Self-released). Duos don’t come much more earnest than this. Guitarist/vocalist Donna Diane gives the music of Djunah a punch packing all the subtlety of a sledgehammer over the head. Her melodic growl permeates through everything in its wake, yet she also had the ability to step back and sing like a melodic angel on Sunday morning. Meanwhile, Jared Karns does his best to lay waste to his drum kit, turning it into bits of sonic shrapnel. Bass? No problem! Diane provides that via the bass pedals at her feet. Two sound like twenty, making this band all but impossible to ignore. And we shouldn’t.
SONAR, Three Movements (7D Media). Prog/Math-rockers Sonar used the Covid-19 shutdown to their advantage, making the two years apart they were forced to endure more motivating than ever before. With inspiration provided by David Torn’s unique guitar loops, guitarist Stephan Thelen went about constructing a musical suite divided into three parts. He also asked guitarist J. Peter Schwalm to contribute to the cause, giving Sonar as thick and original an album as they have ever made before. Where earlier band mixes might sound a little dry, the mix in this album practically drips with moisture, offering lush reverb along the intensity edgy enough to peel the paint off the walls. Even as the band’s style feels familiar, the music is as innovative as it gets. Best of all, Three Movements continues to pay off well after the first listen. Don’t sleep on this one!
MESHELL NDEGEOCELLO, The Omnichord Real Book (Blue Note). It’s hard to believe vocalist/bassist Meshell Ndegeocello has been thrilling our ears with music for right at 30 years. Yet with all that experience in her rearview mirror, Meshell continues to stick to her roots and sing/play from that foundation. Her voice is as smooth and soulful as ever, even as the sound of her arrangements continues to grow. The grooves offer up the best parts of old-school soul and jazz, and the singer was smart enough (as usual) to surround herself with top-flight musicians. Even when the guitars blaze around her, they do so quietly. As do the electronics and other musical elements contained within. Meshell’s gift is to draw you in and turn you on (musically) without overwhelming with her talents. That alone makes her music worth pursuing, starting with this album.
QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE, In Times New Roman (Matador Records). Josh Home’s skillset is only getting sharper. He guides Queens of the Stone Age through one of their finest albums since Songs for the Dead. The new album is not quite as heavy, but that only gives us a chance to enjoy Homme’s singing voice, which is very good indeed. Homme and company have managed to capture a sound both familiar and new, with an air of sophistication perhaps unexpected from a genre often deemed “stoner rock.” The passage of time has given this band a sound that could be deemed more mature, but is not by any means to be considered old. Queens of the Stone Age are evolving before our very ears, and the transformation is a fascinating one indeed.
JOHN COLTRANE with ERIC DOLPHY, Evenings at the Village Gate (Impulse). A lo-fi recording of high-intensity jazz, this work from legendary tenor and soprano saxophonist John Coltrane was not intended for commercial release. But now that it’s out there, it’s hard to imagine a music world without it. Using a single ribbon microphone suspended over the band, Village Gate soundman Rich Alderson captures Coltrane’s classic quartet (pianist McCoy Tyner, bassist Reggie Workman, and drummer Elvin Jones) along with additional bassist Art Davis and woodwind master Eric Dolphy, who handles alto sax, flute, and bass clarinet. The band is on fire from Note One, taking its time getting where it’s going. But what a ride it is! Some say this collection (recorded during a month-long residency at the New York club in the summer of 1961) represents Coltrane’s earliest steps toward the avant-garde style he would come to embrace in the middle of the decade, though it could be argued that the real first steps were taken at the end of ‘Trane’s tenure with Miles Davis (as documented on the Davis bootleg series recording The Final Tour, released in 2018). Regardless, the music documented on Village Gate is positively brilliant, even if it was derided by some critics at the time. Now that we’re hearing the music out of historical context, it sounds like … well, John Coltrane! Dolphy stays with the bandleader stride-for-stride, playing solos with the same molten intensity. The recording’s lo-fi nature sometimes makes things like the bass tough to hear. The solution is simple: turn up the volume. Once that is done, thrill to the sounds of a band reaching down and going for it! We’re fortunate that this recording has seen the light of day.
SIGUR RÓS, Átta (BMG). It’s 56 minutes of Sigur Rós doing what they do best: laying down lush aural soundscapes with lead vocalist Jonsi floating over the top with his ethereal vocal stylings. The formula works. There’s no need for radical change. The orchestral arrangements only add to the music’s beauty. A point is being made with each tune, but there’s no need to rush to get there. Allowing the sounds to simmer before reaching a boiling point is the best way to ingest music of this quality. Outsiders (read, haters) may find a sense of sameness to what they’re hearing, but fans will get it, absorb it, and love it to pieces.
JOHN PIZZARELLI, Stage and Screen (Palmetto Records). Never judge a book or record by its cover. Unless it’s the latest work from guitarist/vocalist John Pizzarelli, whose new album is as stylish and elegant as Stage and Screen’s cover art depicts. Pizzarelli long ago established his credentials as a virtuoso in both playing and singing capacities. This album adds another layer of concrete to what was already a solid foundation. Tunes like “Tea for Two,” “Oklahoma Suite,” and “As Time Goes By” will no doubt invoke memories for those who have heard them before, and it’s quite a trip to listen to Pizzarelli accompany himself by playing and singing his solos simultaneously. It’s not a new trick, but it takes a certain skill level to do it well. So, credit where it’s due. Like musicals? Pick this one up.
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