As the 4th of July week wore on, the music scene really started to recover this week, with a plethora of announcements and over 100 new songs, although it was actually still a relatively quiet week for new albums.I highlight the following five, which Bill solved Snõõper, Weird heat wave, Lindstrømand Marc Ribert’s Ceramic Dogs In a separate basement.
In addition, this week’s honorable mentions include Disclosure, Blake Mills, Shapednoise (ft. Armand Hammer, Moor Mother, ZeloperZ, etc.), Haviah Mighty, Kool & the Gang, End Reign (All Out War, Integrity, Pig Destroyer , etc.), Claud, Natural Wonder Beauty Concept (Ana Roxane and DJ Python), Jaye Jayle, Far Caspian, Temple of Angels, Alaska Reid, King Von, Dave East, Rx Papi, Lo Village, glaive, Mahalia, Lil Tjay, DDG, Lavalove, Calligram, Night Beats, Current Events, Ascendency, Rusty Santos (ft. Panda Bear), Barebones, Steve Salett, Nuclear Remains, Being Dead, Anish Kumar, Peace Flag Ensemble, Lukas Nelson + POTR, Duane Betts, Rita Ora , PVRIS, Greta Van Fleet, Devon Kay & the Solutions EP, 454 & Surf Gang EP, Mariposa EP, Young Shiners by EST Gee, Tune-Yards for Boots Riley i am a virgoHarmony Garden super unknown Tribute to LPs (ft. Marissa Nadler, Spotlights, Somnuri, Ufomammut, etc.).
Read on for my picks. What’s your favorite release this week?
J Huss – beautiful cruel yard
black butter
J Hus has become one of the UK’s biggest and best rappers, and he really seems like the kind of artist who puts his head down and gets to work.Since the release of his excellent second album big conspiracy In January 2020, he took a break from touring (even after the lockdown ended) and made just one cameo in the public eye: on Burna Boy’s 2022 album love damini.Then, in May, he announced his return with explosive new single “It’s Crazy,” followed by a collaboration with Drake on “Who Told You” in June, before revealing that both songs would appear on his third album beautiful cruel yard, announced two weeks before launch. Just one listen to the album and you can tell that J Hus has devoted his time away from the spotlight to the detail and care that goes into this entire LP. It has 19 songs, is just over an hour long, and covers a lot. J Hus is credited with helping to pioneer Afroswing (a fusion of rap, Afro rhythm, dancehall and R&B), and that wide-ranging musical style has come to an end beautiful cruel yard. The track with Drake is one of the summer’s most addictive Afro-beat singles, and Hus creates more of that magic with African artists Burna Boy and Naira Marley on “Masculine” and “Militerian,” respectively. The lighthearted vibe of these songs is offset by some of Hus’ hardest rap hits, such as the aforementioned “It’s Crazy” and his attempt at Drill, “Cream,” which contains the self-styled Drill King’s CB. Soulful superstar Jorja Smith helps Hus on the relaxed “Nice Body,” while dancehall icon Popcaan helps him on the more aggressive “Killy.” Even on songs without a guest, J Hus is a chameleon, sometimes sounding like three different artists rolled into one. The album title is named after the dialect-influenced slang term for “home” (and is intentionally short for “BABY”), but it also references two extremes in J Hus’ music, which come through loud and clear. On this album; Huss is a master who oscillates between beauty and brutality.
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Multiple Artists – folk singer, redefined
secret voice
The current underground DIY scream wave has been booming for a while, and Touché Amoré singer Jeremy Bolm just released folk singer, redefined It already feels like it will go down in history as the defining document of the era. Here are 31 of the best scream bands and scream band bands including Soul Glo, Record Setter, For Your Health, Infant Island, Closer, Massa Nera, Thirdface, Gillian Carter, Lord Snow, Zeta, Frail Hands, Boneflower , Joliette, Crowning, Slow Fire Pistol, and more, as well as veterans who are not content to rest on the laurels of past works and continue to make urgent music, such as the regrouped Jeromes Dream, Majority Rule offshoot NØ MAN, Hundreds of AU (formerly You and Me, Assistant, etc.), Coma Regalia (formerly kaki.o.badi, ache/emelie, etc.), and Terminal Bliss (formerly page 99 , “City of Caterpillars”).Each participating band came to the competition with a truly great song not found anywhere else, making folk singer, redefined Not only brilliantly curated, but also a record in its own right.In the age of streaming, it feels increasingly difficult to put out something that makes a real impact, and folk singer, redefined overcame this hurdle. It’s a near-perfect entry point into today’s scream scene, and equally valuable for anyone who’s already fully immersed in the world.
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Pale Hound – follow the bat
polyethylene
El Kempner begins writing songs follow the bat Wondering if anyone else will hear them. It was March 2020, and the outbreak of the new crown epidemic in the United States caused Palehound’s tour to be cancelled. “I’m very depressed and really not sure if I’m going to be able to do music again like a lot of people are,” El told Larry Fitzmaurice in an interview for his Last Donut of the Night newsletter. and continued, “It’s been horrible, but it’s also been weirdly liberating as a songwriter, because it’s the first time in a while that I’ve been writing just for myself.” The resulting material is their so far Some of the strongest material, starting with the darkly comical “Good Sex,” a graphic tale of planned seduction going awry. “Independence Day” and “The Clutch” are one-two punches of propelling indie rock that grab your throat, while “U Want It U Got It” expands their guitar-centric sound with synths. Later, “Route 22” and “My Evil” hinted at Elliott Smith’s vulnerable folks while staying firmly within the Palehound’s sonic universe. [Amanda Hatfield]
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Colt Wall – little song
Honda Records / RCA Records
“You have to fill the big void with little songs,” Colter Wall sings on the title track from his new album, little song. That might be the mission statement of the entire series: mostly unpretentious originals with a worn feel to country classics, and a few well-chosen covers he’s played live before. Though reminiscent of violin and steel pedals, Colter’s voice, a little rough and rough around the edges, is the star here, as he tells stories of bars, dance halls, prairies and plains that evoke memories of his native Canadian countryside. Nostalgic sadness and the occasional yordle. [Amanda Hatfield]
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room – kill for love
pure noise
Gabe Manuel, guitarist of Nashville metalcore band Chamber, jokes in a new profile for their second LP: “After putting out the last album, we realized that no one needed us to be a pretty band.” kill for love. “We’d Rather Be That Damn Band.” Not Their 2020 Debut LP sacrifice cost It’s an album that the average person would call “beautiful,” but it does have some prettier moments, and those are in the past kill for love. This is angry, aggressive, chaotic metalcore at its most offensive. The composition (produced by past collaborator Randy LeBoeuf) is crystal clear, but the riffs and screams are pretty ugly, and the clarity of the sound only hits “Chamber” harder.
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Read Indie Basement for more new album reviews, including Snõõper, Weird heat wave, Lindstrømand Marc Ribert’s Ceramic Dogs.
Looking for more latest releases? Browse the important release archive or scroll down to see information from previous weeks.
Looking for a podcast to listen to? Check out the latest episodes of The Vegan Show in Brooklyn.