Katherine Priddy - The Eternal Rocks Beneath
2021 10 tracks (41:19)
Anyone that thinks folk music doesn’t have a place in modern music should be required to listen to this album. Blessed with a flawless soft voice and nimble guitar playing hands, each tune sounds like it was delivered directly from God’s angels. Occasional stringed accompaniment adorns most tracks, but the beauty is in its simplicity. The song writing is good, but I’m willing to bet it will only get better just because her youth is still a factor.
Neutral Milk Hotel - In the Aeroplane Over the Sea
1998 11 tracks (39:51)
One of the many Elephant 6 recording groups, this release developed a cult following over the years for good reason. The songs, led by Jeff Magnum, are simply recorded using a variety of instruments (including a singing saw in the title track) and are captivatingly earthy and real. The genuine character carries through with the funny and irrelevant lyrics in tandem with the lo-fi nature of the recording. This recording all but disappeared until the Internet and Magnum’s withdrawal from public view made it bigger than life, being touted by many prominent bands as an influence in their own music. It’s great and deserves recognition as one of the best albums in rock history. A+
Interesting Finds
Charlie Cunningham - Frame
2023 12 tracks (40:59)
It may go under the moniker of indie folk, but these songs done with simple arrangements and done delicately are beautiful from start to finish. Cunningham uses his soft voiced vocals and equally soft guitar (and occasional piano) to create songs so delicate they could be broken with a stiff breeze. There are atmospheric treatments in the form of airy keyboards to give just enough support to round out the tunes. Despite the low energy, the songs aren’t boring. Just relaxing. B
Sarah Jarosz - Undercurrent
2016 11 tracks (36:22)
I’ve had the song “Green Lights” on my player for a long time and finally listened to the album it came from. I should have listened a long time ago. Sarah Jarosz is a young phenom in the folk arts, in all the talents - singing, songwriting, and as a musician with guitars and mandolins. Each song is quality and varies from traditional folk to new country and everything in between. It probably was too much to ask that any of the songs match the sheer beauty and tenderness of “Green Lights”, but there are some tasty nuggets and everything is listenable. B+
Fish - A Feast of Consequences
2013 11 tracks (1:06:55)
Another album with a track having a long residence on my player and finally listening to the full album. According to a Fish aficionado (pun intended), this album is one of the better post 2000 albums that abandoned his musical ties with the music he made with Marillion and approached a pop/alternative rock direction. Similar to the shift Peter Gabriel made from his Genesis sounding early albums, the shift sometimes worked and other times didn’t. Fish filled his songs with the sound of his voice and left little room for instrumental expression, which is needed to make alternative and progressive rock work. For that reason, there is a level of plainness despite the quality production. This could have been so much better. C
Royksopp - Profound Mysteries III
2022 10 tracks (1:00:37)
The group Royksopp is a duo from Norway, the austere Tromso area far up north, which probably is one of the reasons the electronic music has a certain starkness. Even so, there are some really good heavy rhythm cuts and very serene female guest vocalists that makes parts captivating. They can get stuck in a rut, repeating sounds and patterns from song to song. It is a mixed bag, but it is attractive throughout. B-
Delerium - Mythologie
2016 12 tracks (1:03:57)
Known for making infectious new-age electronic pop and ambient house music, the Vancouver based duo also has a knack for picking excellent supporting (usually female) vocalists to round out the mid-tempo songs. Without the vocalists, the music would come off a little plain. Often during a song, the melody would often wane until they sneak in a shift in key or accenting instrumental segment. The signature spacial chords, deep bass notes, and high key vocals rule every song. It pays to sprinkle these songs in with a high energy rock song list for a welcome change of pace. B
Frost* - Experiments in Mass Appeal
2008 9 tracks (56:50)
Stuck for well-crafted alternative rock? Frost is the great elixir for the Everything-Sounds-The-Same blues. The blend of musical sounds they make sound timeless, it’s impossible to figure out which decade it comes from. Nothing is totally linear, you can’t expect them to be predictable on any given song, right? Only the last cut, the 15-minute “Wonderland” song needs some sizable editing due to the lengthy spoken word at the very beginning that goes on for many minutes before becoming a real song. Outside of that one cut (well, maybe the 1:07 You/I), it is grand stuff. B+
Elbow - Asleep in the Back
2001 12 tracks (1:01:47)
The first Elbow album has a lot of elements found in Radiohead like the penchant for great melody lines with unconventional rock presentation. Add in some Peter Gabriel style vocals and you have music a little more accessible to a general audience. They are not mainstream at all. The britpop sound is less strident than a metal pop and walls of guitars are substituted with more delicate organ, drums, and acoustic guitars. Not a hit machine, but lots to look over the long haul. B+
Bjorn Riis - Lullabies in a Car Crash
2016 6 tracks (51:28)
This is a little boring. Bjorn Riis is the guitarist for Airbag, the Norwegian prog rock band with steller songs like “Machines and Men”. Sounding similarly, the music relies on a common crutch, the use of standard chord progressions we all know without a meaningful amount of variation between songs. Listening to it doesn’t turn you off, it just doesn’t turn you on. It’s as average as you can get. C
Forgettable
Fontaines D.C. - Skinty Fla go deo (Disappointing brooding dreck)
Beach House - Teen Dream (boring pop rock, couldn’t get into it)
Clark - Sus Dog (Interesting electro-pop but lacks any musical sense)
Liars - The Apple Drop (Avant Garde rock with toneless vocals)
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