Five Must-listen Albums of The Week (08.07)

Following the trail of hip-hop and jazz over to synth-pop, electronica and ambient. Creating a wonderful weekly soundtrack for you.

Shura “Nothing’s Real”

Most definitely retro-wave is many years on. Whether we talk about Metronomy’s new album, or Demy Lovato’s last summer hit, or basically any pop act in the late years who exploit 80’s sound from time to time. And that’s not a lack of ideas. Rather a music cycles that form a spiral for the whole industry. We look at Tame Impala and see 60s, we look at The Last Shadow Puppets and we 70s. Citings and sometimes shameless style plagiarism.

Alexandra Lilah Denton aka Shura is from the great musical city of Manchester. If you’re not familiar with it’s music history and the number of world’s prominent bands to emerge from Manchester — we urge you to check.
Coming back to the 80s issue. Shura borrows a lot from that era. Synths, atmosphere in her videos. Possibly the whole breeziness of the new wave and 80s aesthetics. She’s sometimes compared to young Madonna in music approach. Which might be on the surface of her debut album “Nothing’s Real” on tracks “Indecision” or the title one . However, Shura doesn’t fall into conscious citing. She blends synth with chillwave and electropop, almost echoing with Chvrches on “What Happened To Us?” if they were performing at 5 a.m. at home. A lot of love-themed verses go though the tracks, in form of growing up or relationship crisis and infatuation. However even at its most infantile his topic is masterfully turned into a story rather than posh confession. A real diamond from the LP — “The Space Tapes”, a 9-minutes experiment of cross-genres an topics.

The Julie Ruin “Hit Reset”

Bikini Kill were one of the forefront girl-bands in rock/punk. Icons whose influence stretched for decades. In 1998 Bikini Kill’s front woman Kathleen Hanna formed her lo-fi solo project — Julie Ruin, released one self-titled album and went on a 15 years of hiatus only to come back in 2013 with “Run Fast”. And she nailed it. Just think it over, 15 years. That was more that a decade. A decade where genres bloomed so vividly you couldn't catch the rhythm, then again — Internet. In all this craze, it’s sometimes hard to keep the pace for new musicians, but Kathleen with her 90’s mentality could rework herself re-imagine her approach.

Last Friday she released her third album as Julie Ruin — “Hit Reset”. And it sounds with the same vigor Kathleen sounded decades ago. Wat she managed is to adopt the punk approach not in musical structures or chord progressions (say hi to Blink 182) but in making music. Just listen to chaotic but catchy “I’m Done” or “Hello Trust No One”. There’s the same amount of riot-girrrl as in Bikini Kill, yet it “Hit Reset” sounds up-to-date and sonically diverse not to be boring, . Hanna manages to grasp the essential path of making interesting music in 2016 — she’s not scared to experiment.

The Avalanches “Wildflower”

To continue the topic of comebacks after 15+years, let’s turn the new The Avalanches’ record on. Prodigal sons of electronica are back with their new album “Wildflower”. Band’s debut effort “Since I Left You” in 2000 was a soundtrack for a whole youth generation of that time. A dance electronica multiplied on funk, hip-hop and pure groove. “Since I Left You” was injection of music drug so intense, The Avalanches were idolized. And then — silence. For long 16 years.

Last Friday Australian The Avalanches were triumphantly back. 
“Wildflower” has the same “sample” formula in its core, funk vibes and rhythm experiments to cure the 16 years of thirst. Just take a listen to “Frankie Sinatra” or “Subways” to return those 2000s into your life. And generally it works. Everything about the record works. And why wouldn’t it with guest appearances from Ariel Pink, Danny Brown, Father John Misty, MF Doom and Toro y Moi, etc.

“Wildflower” is a 21-track piece of a solid work by the band trying too hard to come back life after it was lost in music thunders of 2000s. And yes, it’s worth every year of their absence. It’s just that The Avalanches seem to fit into music reality rather than create their own. And that’s the main failure of the record.

BadBadNotGood “IV”

BadBadNotGood’s main merit is in turning jazz from its pop smoothness and avant-garde experimentalism of 21st century into a clever blend of hip-hop and slight touch of electronic.

On their first records BadBadNotGood strictly followed this formula and the result was incredible. Often covering bands and artists from Tyler the Creator to My Bloody Valentine, BadBadNotGood eventually “stole” the songs as those were almost new pieces of art.

On their fourth record Canadian jazz-trio added more electronica, Leland Whitty on sax (to become a quartet), more collabs with artists, more genuine material and as a result shaped their work into a solid form. Yes, “IV” is definitively a highlight of BadBadNotGood’s career. A revolutionary career, to notice.
From funky “Speaking Gently” to electro-synth collab with Kaytranada “Lavender”. From deep vocals of Sam Herring on “Time Moves Slow” to smooth jazz of “Cashmere”. On “IV”we find BadBadNotGood at their best.

Ian William Craig “Centres”

Ian William Craig uses cassette players, tapes and synths to break your silence with something so gentle, sonically complete, that you it fills you from the inside out.

On his ninth release, this Canadian artist made field recordings all over Vancouver. Not just ambient, with vocals added to the instrumental pattern, “Centres” is more and IDM-record, with a beat you can feel even when it’s not there. In the pulse of the track like on the opening “Contain (Astoria version)”.

When analog hum meets digitalism Ian William Craig captures it into his container and spreads all over the tracks (listen to the cars passing on “A Circle Without Having to Curve”). A beautiful work to listen to during the sunset.