There are days when I don’t want to hear anything but new music. There are days when I’m jonesing for a classic already in my collection. And then there are days when I get fixated on a single artist.
And that’s how we got to today’s thoughts.
SURTEJ SINGH, The Emerging (2024). Wow!!! This album hit me like a ton of bricks! If ever an album was appropriately titled, it’s this one. Indian guitarist and composer Surtej Singh seems as though he floated down from the brightest sun on the clearest day to gift his his remarkable instrumental progressive metal. There is no questioning this man’s chops, for he has plenty of them with room for more. The album comes out grooving and stays that way. Each composition flows nicely into the next. This one will be getting heavy play in my “casual listening” rotation.
https://images.app.goo.gl/DWTTLv93gCXjaNC48
O.R.k, Mask Becomes the Face (2024). The Prog supergroup issues a fiery EP loaded with heavy grooves and crunchy guitars. Not as musically complicated as your typical Prog-Metal release. The emphasis here is on songcraft, and it’s the right direction from this band. They’re all veteran players. They know what they’re doing.
KTU, 8 Armed Monkey (2005). How often do you get to say out loud, “Man that accordion player rocks!” With this album, you get to do it twice! King Crimson’s Trey Gunn (Warr Guitar) and Pat Mastelotto (drums and electronic percussion) provide remarkable grooves, while Kimmo Pohjonen rips through the grooves with his accordion and voice, along with Samuli Kosminen, who provides both accordion and vocal samples. The results are highly experimental and ahead of their time. The sound may be futuristic, but a classic word best describes what’s happening: groovy.
https://ktumusic.bandcamp.com/album/8-armed-monkey
AN AFTERNOON WITH LATTER-DAY PRINCE
Im a Prince fan, but I’m not as well-versed about his final albums as I should be. There are quite a few of them after all! I had the urge to spend a little time with Prince’s final studio works. (Even years after his death, that sentence sounds just plain wrong.) These four albums demonstrate Prince being … well, Prince. But he does get a little very talented help.
The HitnRun albums take different approaches. Phase One is largely a two-man effort between Prince and Joshua Welton, who plays everything except the guitars and bass. That’s Prince’s job. The songs are tight and to the point, which may explain the albums relatively short (37 minutes) runtime. In and out. That’s all we need!
Phase Two sees the return of The New Power Generation. Prince is an artist who can do everything himself, but I for one am always happy when he brings a band into the studio with him. This gives us a Prince content to wail on guitar and keyboards alone while he uses his great vocal range. He even picks up a bit of social commentary via tunes like “Baltimore.” It’s not just about seductive slow jams anymore.^
Art Official Age sees Prince handing performance duties over to Welton and Prince’s new all-female backing band 3rdEyeGirl, who are quite the powerhouse in their own right.
The ladies return to back Prince on Plectrumelectrum. It is truly cool to hear Prince perform in what most consider to be a “traditional” rock band of two guitars, bass and drums. And the ladies are more than up to the task (as if anyone figured on anything less). It would be great to hear more from this particular group. Knowing Prince, there’s probably more to be heard in his vault.
#cirdecsongs
If you would like to have your music reviewed, please contact me at cirdecsongs@gmail.com
CirdecSongs 
Love that 8-armed monkey!
LikeLiked by 1 person