Every Friday is like Christmas. I wake up early, excited to see what new albums have been released that day. And much like Christmas, sometimes I’m pleasantly surprised and sometimes I’m just plain disappointed. Right now, it’s the former and I’m excited to share some of the new tunes I’m “spinning” through the earbuds. Here are some of my favorites and you can hear all of these on this week’s TMA Music Spotify playlist.
The Avalanches – Wildflower. One of my favorite albums of the 21st century is The Avalanches’ Since I Left You. Released 16 years ago, I’ve been waiting for this eclectic Australian ban
d’s follow up and it doesn’t disappoint. The bad news is that it is not yet on Spotify. I hope that will change soon, but in the meantime I’ve put the few songs that Spotify does have on the playlist. The first single, “Frankie Sinatra” is a really good song, but it may sound a little weird out of context. That said, when you get a minute, check out
the video which answers the question, what would an episode of Duck Dynasty look like if Salvador Dali directed it? This album, like the last one, really needs to be listened to from start to finish. After you’ve sampled some of the new songs on Spotify, give Since I Left You a spin, it will get you primed and jonesing for Wildflower.
BADBADNOTGOOD – IV. Who knew jazz could be so much fun? I’ve been telling
everyone that this is the album they have to listen to right now. But I add a caveat. It’s a chill album. The kind you can put on while you are working and trying to churn out that next big idea to share with a client. To call this album jazz may not be doing it justice. It has serious jazz elements like a feeling of improvisation and layers of groovy saxophone, but it also splices in hip hop and some great guest vocals. I keep playing “Time Moves Slow” mainly because I love Sam Herring’s voice who along with his band Future Islands delivered one of the
greatest television performances ever a few years back. Like the Avalanches, this album is meant to be listened to in its entirety and unlike The Avalanches, the entire album is up on Spotify (and on my playlist).
The Avett Brothers – True Sadness. I love this band and have since my friend Jordan turned me on to them about 4 years ago. I’d heard all the hype surround
ing them, but ignored them until Jordan dragged me to a show. Yes, they are that good. Since then I’ve seen them half a dozen times and I’ve played their music so much that my eight year old son can sing along to nearly all of their songs. This is a breakup album. It’s sad, it’s slow, it’s beautiful. It’s a multi-listen album, the kind you need to give a little time to breathe. And after the third or fourth listen, you’ll be hooked. Because it takes time, I only put a few songs on the playlist. “Ain’t No Man” is a fun and stripped down anthem (
video) and “Smithsonian” is one of the standouts as well. I also threw in “Divorce Separation Blues” just to remind you that while the theme is a bit dour the Avetts still make even the darkest of topics fun.
Blink 182 – California. I didn’t want to like this album. I’m too old for this stuff, right? I
used to work with Blink, I knew them from their early days rising up in San Diego where I went to college and I identified with their politically incorrect merry pranksterism. But
Dammit if this album isn’t really good. They replaced co-frontman Tom Delonge with Alkaline Trio’s Matt Skiba and did what I didn’t think possible, made something really catchy and infectious. I’m not going to tell you that this is a classic album or even a something that you have to add to your permanent collection. I’m just going to tell you that if you want a fun summer album that will remind you of your favorite pop-punk/emo albums from a decade (or longer) ago, this works. I didn’t put the whole album on the playlist, just some of the “hits” to spike some energy into your ears after the somewhat subdued Avalanches, Badbadnotgood, Avetts tunes.
ScHoolboy Q – Blank Face LP. So if you’ve read all of the above, you might wonder where
this is coming from. As if the punk rock injection from Blink 182 wasn’t enough of a left turn, this may leave you really confused about my taste in music. All I can tell you is that my daily mood shifts cause me to require different styles of music as the day progresses. And nothing fuels me these days like good hip hop. My favorite album last year was Kendrick Lamar’s To Pimp A Butterfly and ScHoolboy Q’s Blank Face LP is trending as one of my favorites of ’16. I didn’t put the whole album on the playlist, but I chose some nuggets that will give you a taste. Kanye’s appearance on “THat Part” is excellent and I had to share the title track because if you haven’t experienced Anderson .Paak yet, this is a good intro.
Others – Some of the other tracks on the playlist aren’t necessarily brand new, they are just songs that I keep coming back to. Silversun Pickups are the band that I listen to right before a big presentation. It’s my hype music that get’s me revved up to knock ’em dead. “Nightlight” should have been the biggest hit of 2016 but somehow no one agreed with me. Please give it a listen and let me know if I’m crazy. And I’m lovin’ Catfish and the Bottlemen’s recent album The Ride. These guys won the coveted Breakthru Artist award this year at the BRITs (the UK’s much hipper equivalent of our Grammy’s) and the tracks I’ve chosen should make you want to hear more. Finally, you’ll hear one track from the band PUP. I stumbled on the video for the song, “If This Tour Doesn’t Kill You, I Will” and next thing you know I’m immersed back in the world of emo music. Yes, yet another type of music I love, have I confused you enough? I only put the one song on the playlist, so maybe I spared you. But be warned, someone leaked the new Taking Back Sunday album to me, so you can bet that will be on a playlist coming soon.
Enjoy the tunes, I hope you like!
-Larry
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