Lightning Bug "A Color of the Sky" (2021)

A Color of the Sky

release date: Jun. 25, 2021

format: digital

[album rate: 4 / 5] [3,75]

producer: Lightning Bug

label: Fat Possum Records - nationality: USA

Track highlights: 1. "The Return" (live) - 2. "The Right Thing Is Hard to Do" (live) - 3. "September Song, Pt. II" - 4. "Wings of Desire" - 6. "Song of the Bell" - 7. "I Lie Awake" - 10. "The Flash"

3rd studio album by American indie pop band Lightning Bug is the band's first on an actual record label, as their first two albums were pure self-releases. Yet the band is still in full control with keyboardist Logan Miley as mixer and the band themselves in the role as producer. On the their first two outings, the band was a trio but it's now expanded to a quintet with the addition of bassist Vincent Puleo and drummer Dane Hagen, and thus it has been possible to record the album live in the studio, where vocalist and songwriter Audrey Kang previously both played bass and drum tracks.

The style has become more laid back, more spacious and ethereal bonding stronger to dream pop, although it also sounds like a natural extension of the band's second album October Sky (2019). Still, Cocteau Twins and other 80s and 90s dream pop bands pop to mind, but on the album here you may also notice a more apparent inspiration from the two final albums by post-rock band Talk Talk as well as Mazzy Star. It's a fine mix of ambient noise and primarily melodic harmonies, and the album appears to me, as the band's finest to date.

[ allmusic.com, SputnikMusic 4,5 / 5, Slant 4 / 5, Pitchfork 3,5 / 5 stars ]

Bill Frisell "Guitar in the Space Age!" (2014)

Guitar in the Space Age!

release date: Oct. 6, 2014

format: digital (14 x File, FLAC)

[album rate: 3,5 / 5] [3,52]

producer: Lee Townsend

label: Okeh Records - nationality: USA

Studio album by Bill Frisell - his 29th, 30th, 31st, or 32nd, give or take - is in the category of cover albums. It follows the strings-album (violin, viola, cello) Big Sur (Jun. 2013) and it contains fourteen instrumentals, two original Frisell compositions (tracks #6 & #13) and twelve interpretations of popular compositions stemming from the late 1950s to the mid-60s. Several of these were originally surf rock, rock & roll, folk rock, or pop / rock tunes but in Frisell's rearranged versions they have all become jazz-influenced modern standards.

The album is almost naturally critically acclaimed - that's just the way a new Frisell album is met - and it's hard not to understand why Frisell is one of the most valued instrumentalists over the most recent four decades or so. He plays his instrument with an original voice, so to speak. That said, I immediately thought of The Raybeats, who released the album Guitar Beat back in '81, an almost peculiar release at the time with its modernised surf rock instrumentals, completely out of sync with contemporary stylistic waves but at the same time: extremely timeless. And with a selection of popular tunes, Frisell almost replicates that effort. The tunes are very much intact - perhaps a bit too much to my liking, but they still uphold a freshness and universality that cannot be denied. I only wish Frisell would've improvised more on the originals - something that works nicely on his rendition of Ray Davies' "Tired of Waiting for You" - where he gives us that extra layer he often adds to other people's songs 'cause here they mostly shine in their own rights. On the one hand, it makes it perfectly uncomplicated and then it reminds us of what great tunes the originals are. I'm not always in the mood to fully appreciate this collection, but I still find that Frisell just show us, not only what an exquisite instrumentalist he is but also what a fabulous interpretor he also is. I know most of the originals and mostly just think Frisell wants to remind us about these wonders - it's his tribute to that forgotten era of his own youth.

[ allmusic.com, The Guardian 4 / 5, 👍PopMatters 3 / 5 stars ]

Mellemblond "Solregn" (2020)

Solregn

release date: Sep. 11, 2020

format: vinyl (MØS 017) / digital (11 x File, FLAC)

[album rate: 4 / 5] [3,88]

producer: Brian Mørk Hansen

label: Møs Møs - nationality: Denmark

Track highlights: 1. "Hvor er magien" - 2. "Vildrede" - 3. "Et øje" - 4. "I mit stille sind" - 5. "Levende stemmer" - 6. "Mørkt stof" - 7. "Solregn" - 8. "Vinterskæbner" - 10. "Vågnede en morgen"

5th studio album from Mellemblond aka Kristoffer Munck Mortensen as follow-up to Guldlokzonen (May 2018), is like that issued on the small independent label Møs Møs located in Copenhagen.

This new album is exclusively acoustic tracks - of which five of eleven are Kristoffer Munck Mortensen's own reinterpretations of older songs, while the other six are new compositions. I imagine the 'old' songs have been given another present life through live versions and via the restrictive (long) quarantine period that was still a reality in relation with the release. The track "Vildrede" is a duet, also released as a single, credited Mellemblond and Kira Skov. In addition to Munck Mortensen (and Kira Skov on track #2), only other musician participating here is the experienced jazz bassist Nils Davidsen, who is also credited on cello.

Solregn has garnered positive feedback and the song "Vinterskæbner" from Guldlokzonen and "Et øje" from Lysvågen (Mar. 2013) have received some airplay on (national radio) Danmarks Radio P3 and P4, and the album is also a quite unique release. Mellemblond has been a musical project right from the start, where it is clear that the poetic side has played a major part. Munck Mortensen has his own distinctive vocal, but it's especially the lyrical dimension of his songs that elevates the compositions to something other than ordinary pop music. In this way, he has managed to bring something other into the music than what we usually find in Danish-language music, and there is a consonance with late Eik Skaløe (from Steppeulvene), Povl Dissing (who sings Benny Andersen), and Trille, who are all musicians with a distinct lyrical quality and who have bridged to a textual universe much closer to that of author Tove Ditlevsen than the majority of other Danish songwriters have succesfully made attempts to build a kindred relationship with.

The gentle post-production, and the completely simple soundscape make the lyrics stand out even more clearly. You may think what you want concerning doing reinterpretations of one's own melodies - but this way, at least they get an intentional new and different life, which in a way reminds me of how British band Tindersticks in 2013 succesfully made the album Across Six Leap Years.

Solregn is downright excellent in places. Heartfelt and sensual. This is music with great depth.

Great recommendation from here.

[ 👍Gaffa.dk 5 / 6 stars ]

// - - -

3 versions of "Et øje" by Mellemblond

• 2012 single version
• 2013 album version
• 2020 acoustic version

Band of Horses "Why Are You OK" (2016)

Why Are You OK

release date: Jun. 10, 2016

format: digital (12 x File, FLAC)

[album rate: 3,5 / 5] [3,58]

producer: Jason Lytle

label: Interscope - nationality: USA

Track highlights: 1. "Dull Times / The Moon" - 2. "Solemn Oath" - 3. "Hag" - 4. "Casual Party" - 5. "In a Drawer" - 11. "Barrel House"

5th studio album by Band of Horses succeeds Mirage Rock by nearly four full years and like that it introduces a new producer - this time with band leader of indie rock band Grandaddy, Jason Lytle. Once again, the band remains intact, but this is also the last featuring guitarist Tyler Ramsey and bassist Bill Reynolds, who both departed in early 2017.

The album didn't produce better charts than the predecessor but critics generally saw it as bettering the 2012 album, and I fully agree with that. In fact, I easily find it the band's third best but also as a clear improvement from the more incoherent Mirage Rock. It's not that Why Are You OK is another great album, but it's a return to actually attempting to produce something worthwhile instead of reproducing an old recipe. Bridwell sings again with sincerity and there's a balance of soft and hard - almost with bonds to Modest Mouse or Sonic Youth - completely without further comparison other than the play with energies 'cause this is still an indie folk release. With this, Band of Horses appear to be back on track. I like it, it's a certified grower.

[ The Guardian 4 / 5, 👉Rolling Stone, 👍Uncut 3,5 / 5, Pitchfork 6,0 / 10, Mojo 3 / 5 stars ]

Fritz "Pastel" (2021)

Pastel

release date: Feb. 12, 2021

format: digital (9 x File, FLAC)

[album rate: 3,5 / 5] [3,52]

producer: Fraser Marshall

label: Inertia Music - nationality: Australia

Track highlights: 1. "Sweetie" - 2. "Arrow" - 3. "Pastel" - 4. "She's Gonna Hate Me!" - 7. "Die Happily" - 9. "Jan 1"

2nd studio album by Australian music project Fritz (stylised FRITZ) consisting of Matilda Murphy (aka Tilly Murphy) on vocals, rhythm guitar and bass, Cody Brougham on (lead) guitar, and with Darren James on drums. Or at least that's what you could think, and then in the band's music videos you may also see a (second) bass player and a keyboard player, although the band members apparently only count Murphy, Brougham, and James. Matilda is also credited as songwriter and composer. The band is based in Newcastle, New South Wales, Australia, and before Pastel they released the self-promoted album FRITZ in 2017 - which makes Pastel the band's debut on an actual label.

It's music somewhere in between The Vaccines, Jezabels, and Dum Dum Girls with clear inspiration from My Bloody Valentine, Sonic Youth, Breeders and Swedish The Radio Dept. with a balance between light noise pop, classic dream pop and what perhaps should be referred to as pop-grunge. The album consists of nine songs with a modest running time of just under half an hour.

It may be the kind of music that sounds as if made in the 90s, but it has a naive freshness and unimpressiveness that could stem from the fact that the band members have only just stepped out of their teenage years. Musically, it could be described as somewhat narrow - both in terms of production sound and in the variation of the individual compositions - but it's nevertheless delightfully refreshing at a time when music is something that ideally requires a new producer (or preferably several) for each track, and where the compositions should ideally be piled up in countless soundtracks and advanced arrangements to perhaps cover up the fact that the good songs are basically missing. After a quick spin, you might feel like uttering 'was that it? I mean, the whole album?' And yes, it is kinda short, sweet and most of all, it sounds promising for the future, so we have another real alternative to Eilish (and bro), Del Rey, multi-billionaire West and all the other overrated and overproduced hitmakers.

Recommended.

[ 👍Awfultrackrecord.com 3,5 / 5 stars ]

Siouxsie and the Banshees "Voices on the Air (The Peel Sessions)" (2006)

Voices on the Air (The Peel Sessions) (compilation)

release date: Oct. 23, 2006

format: cd

[album rate: 4 / 5] [3,88]

producer: diverse

label: Polydor / Universal / BBC - nationality: England, UK

Track highlights: (1. session, 29/11/79): 1. "Love in a Void" (anden liveoptræden '79) - 2. "Mirage" - 3. "Metal Postcard (Mittageisen)" - (2. session, 6/2/78): 5. "Hong Kong Garden" - 6. "Overground" - 7. "Carcass" - 8. "Helter / Skelter" - (3. session, 9/4/79): 10. "Playground Twist" - 11. "Regal Zone" - (4. session, 10/2/81): 13. "Halloween" - 14. "Voodoo Dolly" - 16. "Into the Light" - (5. session, 21/1/86): 17. "Candyman" - 19. "Lands End"

Compilation album by Siouxsie and the Banshees from Polydor / Universal who just keep finding material to issue with a band they didn't see as commercial enough while active on the label. Here, however, it's not another best of, which looks like many others but a collective work of all the band's appearances on John Peel's BBC Radio 1 show over the years from 1977 to 1986. The John Peel Sessions is a legendary radio show existing from 1967 until Peel's death in 2004, and it includes more than 4,000 recordings by more than 2,000 artists. The album here comprises a total of 19 tracks spread over five appearances, where the only two regulars from all five recordings are vocalist Siouxsie Sioux and bassist Steven Severin. The first three sessions, Nov. 29, 1977 (tracks #1-4), Feb. 6, 1978 (tracks #5-8), and Apr. 9, 1979 (tracks #9-12) respectively, sees John McKay on guitar and Kenny Morris on drums. The fourth session recorded 10/2-1981 (tracks #13-16) is with John McGeogh on guitar and Budgie on drums, and the fifth and final session Jan. 21, 1986 (tracks #17-19) is with John Valentine Carruthers on guitar.

It's mainly the band's earlier period you'll find documented here - with only three tracks are taken from the band's seventh album, Tinderbox (1986), the remaining 16 tracks (apart from one track by The Creatures) may be found in studio versions on the band's first four albums.

Voices on the Air (The Peel Sessions) is obviously a collector's item, as the recordings have not previously been broadcast together. The band's first Peel Session was independently released as an ep in '87 (on cd in '89), the second session released in '89 - both are collected on a compilation from '91.

The album is fine musical historic release, virtually showcasing the band before any label had a contract ready, and with the BBC's limited sound studio with a single sound track available, it's really the documentation of pure rawness, white noise, and electric energy flowing from one of the most notable British bands who instantly managed the progression from punk rock and into the wider scene of post-punk.

The album is dedicated BBC radio presenter John Peel (1939-2004) and producer John Walters (1938-2001, who was producer on many Peel Sessions, but not on the tracks on the album mentioned here).

From the band's BBC performances, there also exists a later rather extensive 3 CD + 1 DVD box set (with around 85 tracks), Siouxsie and the Banshees at the BBC released in 2009, which in addition to the five Peel Sessions also includes other radio-broadcast concerts and television appearances.

Recommended connoisseurs.

[ 👍allmusic.com 4 / 5 stars ]