Tag: Ninja Tune

Black Country, New Road – “Forever Howlong” review

Black Country, New Road is an experimental rock band from Cambridge, England, United Kingdom consisting of bassist/vocalist Tyler Hyde, saxophonist/flautist/vocalist, Lewis Evans a.k.a. Good With Parents, violinist/vocalist Georgia Ellery, keyboardist/vocalist May Kershaw, drummer Charlie Wayne & guitarist Luke Mark. Signing to Ninja Tune, the band’s debut For the 1st Time & the sophomore effort Ants From Up There have both quickly become the most important post-rock & art-rock albums of the current decade receiving universal acclaim. Taking 3 years off, they’re returning for their 3rd studio LP.

“Besties” blends progressive pop, chamber pop, baroque pop, sunshine pop & soft rock dealing with unrequited love for a best friend whereas “The Big Spin” dabbles with country singing about a restrictive domestic life unwillingly enforced on a person. “Socks” gives off progressive pop & art rock vibe explaining our lives hold a light no life has held before while “Salem Sisters” finds Tyler singing about happily being in a tree with a fire biting beneath him.

The country influences once again on “2 Horses” asking if Georgia found a man she can finally lean on leading into “Mary” heading for a minimal direction in terms of general sound taking the lyrics from diary entries followed by “Happy Birthday” crossing over progressive pop, baroque pop, art rock, folk rock, piano rock, chamber pop, indie rock & neo-canterbury teaching us privilege doesn’t bring happiness.

“For the Cold Country” carries over the progressive folk, art rock, chamber folk, progressive rock, choral, post-rock & neo-canterbury elements focusing on a journey of self-reflection while “Nancy Tries to Take the Night” tells a tragic tale ending in suicide. The title track returns to a minimalistic flare with a winding approach to the songwriting & “Goodbye (Don’t Tell Me)” finishes with an acoustic ballad admitting to Georgia falling in love with a feeling.

The modern day experimental rock trailblazers reemerge with a meticulously detailed album that includes everything from folk to prog via baroque pop & touches of alt-rock yet all the while retaining that unmistakably unique sound that only this combination of musicians can come up with. Although hugely varied & expansive, Forever Howlong also feels deeply cohesive & focused as it takes 3 distinct voices & styles & seamlessly intersperses them into a new collective sound.

Score: 4.5/5

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Hiatus Kaiyote – “Love Heart Cheat Code” review

Hiatus Kaiyote is a neo-soul band from Melbourne, Australia consisting of lead singer/guitarist Nai Palm, bassist Paul Bender, keyboardist Simon Mavin & drummer Clever Austin. Their sophomore effort Choose Your Weapon the month I graduated high school in 2015 was my introduction to them & I loved how they fused it with soul jazz, acid jazz, funk music, nu jazz, progressive pop & neo-psychedelia. They finally returned 7 years later making their Brainfeeder Records debut on Mood Valiant maintaining the neo-soul & nu jazz elements from previously except putting a bigger emphasis on psychedelia. 3 summers later, Nai & company are returning for their 4th album.

“Dreamboat” majestically begins singing for the titular object to sail away & take her home whereas “Telescope” fuses psychedelic soul, neo-soul, contemporary R&B, neo-psychedelia, Afropiano & jazz-funk transporting listeners to an intimate crux in the universe to find solace in their shared musicality. “Make Friends” crosses over neo-soul, contemporary R&B, jazz-funk, psychedelic soul & jazz fusion exploring the concept of recognition principally in regards to gender identity leading into “Everything’s Beautiful” following the “BMO is Beautiful” interlude featuring Niki Yang working in elements of neo-soul, jazz-funk, jazz fusion & psychedelic soul finding beauty in literally everything.

Meanwhile on “Dimitri”, we have Nai over more funky production singing about everyone being “amputees of our divination” leading into what could possibly be my least favorite track on the entire album “Longcat” futuristically talking about the longest cat in the world for 105 seconds. “How to Meet Yourself” fortunately picks things back up working in pianos with the title much like “Everything’s Beautiful” speaking for itself conceptually just before the title track brings psychedelic soul, neo-soul, art pop, trip hop & neo-psychedelia encouraging to keep it handsome. “Cinnamon Temple” releases the pressure mixing psychedelic soul, experimental rock, math rock, noise rock, neo-psychedelia & progressive rock prior to the closer “White Rabbit” covering Jefferson Airplane.

In addition to providing the world a snapshot of 4 musicians dancing together on the edge, Nai & company also give us a cohesively wide-eyed yet relaxed body of work that reflects a deeper understanding of themselves & the music they wish to share with the world around them. And on the contrary of the band’s appraisal mostly stemming from their complexity, Love Heart Cheat Code has a simpler approach generally. I’d be further remissed if I didn’t mention Hiatus Kaiyote venturing out of their prominently psychedelic neo-soul sound in favor of contemporary R&B, Afropiano, jazz-funk, jazz fusion, art pop, trip hop, experimental rock, math rock, noise rock, neo-psychedelia & progressive rock.

Score: 4.5/5

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