Ali Farka Touré & Toumani Diabaté "Ali & Toumani" (2010)

Ali & Toumani
release date: Feb. 23, 2010
format: digital
[album rate: 4 / 5] [3,96]
producer: Nick Gold
label: World Circuit - nationality: Mali

2nd and final album for the collaboration work of Ali Farka Touré and Toumani Diabaté. The album was actually recorded in June 2005 shortly after the release of the acclaimed In the Heart of the Moon (2005) but somehow the album wasn't released until 2010 - four years after the death of Touré.
The album follows closely in the footsteps laid out on the debut by partly containing traditional Mandé folk songs arranged by either of the two or together, and also songs composed by Diabaté and Touré. Altogether, Ali & Toumani is yet another beautiful collection of songs by these two wonderful artists.
[ Uncut Magazine review ]

Band of Horses "Things Are Great" (2022)

Things Are Great

release date: Mar. 4, 2022

format: digital (10 x File, FLAC)

[album rate: 4 / 5] [3,92]

producer: Wolfgang Zimmerman & Benjamin Bridwell

label: BMG - nationality: USA

Track highlights: 1. "Warning Signs" (4 / 5) - 2. "Crutch" (4 / 5) - 3. "Tragedy of the Commons" - 5. "In Need of Repair" - 6. "Aftermath" (4 / 5) - 7. "Lights" - 8. "Ice Night We're Having" - 9. "You Are Nice to Me" - 10. "Coalinga"

6th studio album by Band of Horses is a most welcomed new release following nearly six full years since the band's last effort, Why Are You OK (Jun. 2016). Some probably had their doubts about the band's survival, but here they are, Band of Horses is synonymous with Ben Bridwell, and he's back with a new line-up. Since 2017 the band has been without guitarist Tyler Ramsey and bassist Bill Reynolds, who had both been stable members for a decade, and a new line-up has taken its time. Two new guitarists have been through and out - the most recent, Ian MacDougal played in the band from 2017, and he is still credited as guitarist on this but left the band prior to the album release - he was subsequently replaced by Brett Nash. Bassist Matt Gentling, who played in the band for a short period back in early 2007 after which he was replaced by Bill Reynolds, is now back as substitute for Reynolds.

Although, the album hasn't made impressive entries on the album charts, it has been met by quite positive reviews, and I fully understand the positive hype. Bridwell has simply done it again! Things Are Great follows so nicely in the path laid out by the band's first two - and so far only great albums, but now Band of Horses have made three! Forget Infinte Arms, Mirage Rock and even Why Are You OK. - they contain good and fine songs but are all rather uneven albums. This one on the other hand is up there among their best, and if it's a bit of a mystery why it hasn't been praised more, you may ask how Bridwell & Co. are able to come up with an album that is both so fresh and melodic yet so much in the "tradition" of the band's best songs made some 15 years ago. My guess is, the mystery lies in the fact that this band is more or less a one-man project, and if Bridwell has some great tunes, well, then you get to experience things like this!

Highly recommended!

[ 👍allmusic.com, Mojo, Classic Rock, Uncut 4 / 5, Pitchfork 7,3 / 10, 👎Rolling Stone 3,5 / 5 stars ]

2022 Favourite releases: 1. Hurray for the Riff Raff Life on Earth - 2. Big Thief Dragon New Warm Mountain I Believe in You - 3. Band of Horses Things Are Great

Red Hot Chili Peppers "Return of the Dream Canteen" (2022)

Return of the Dream Canteen

release date: Oct. 14, 2022

format: digital (17 x File, FLAC)

[album rate: 3,5 / 5] [3,46]

producer: Rick Rubin

label: Warner Records - nationality: USA

13th studio album by Red Hot Chili Peppers is the band's second full-length studio of the year following only 6 months after Unlimited Love, the band's first with returning guitarist John Frusciante. Both albums are with old associate Rick Rubin in the producer seat and together they have made two distinct RHCP albums with a more laid-back style founded on a great deal of improvisations and on a mutual understanding of "the real" RHCP sound. The first album included 17 tracks running for almost 75 minutes, and this new collection doubles that with its 75 minutes running time and 17 new compositions.

Wow! The scale of these two alone is an impressive achievement. In terms of style and sound they are closely related but it what strikes me is that this latter release seems more elaborated and less founded on free improvs, and since all 34 recordings stem from the same sessions it's likely that they have chosen a smart procedure of releasing the more incoherent collection first - it did come as the first RHCP album in six years and would be a most natural success alone from being the first new recordings for a very long time. This second collection contains several tracks that are more melody-based traditional compositions with A-, B-, and chorus parts, and it comes out as the more accessible collection.

I'm not a big fan of RHCP's improvisations, and in my mind, this new album just is a better album. That said, it's still difficult for a band like this to establish a strong bond to its musical traditions, its very distinct style and sound and still come up with something new. The album - or it basically applies both of the band's two albums of 2022 - is RHCP classic. This is not a band like U2, who all of a sudden comes up with a new sound but a band who has become stars via a certain combo of modern psychedlic rock, which bases its sound on a fusion of funk and alternative rock, and there's no intentions in changing that, which also means that what you get what you expect. No more, no less. And that's probably the weakness of the album - it's simply founded on previous releases, and every once in a while, you end up thinking "ah, this is based on that particular songt from that album", and I guess, there's no intentions in hiding that - it's simply a bunch of new songs building on old material.

[ allmusic.com 3 / 5, Pitchfork 6,3 / 10 stars ]

Blaue Blume "Country" (2022) (single)

Country, single

release date: Sep. 9. 2022

format: digital (1 x File, FLAC)

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

producer: Blaue Blume

label: HFN Music - nationality: Danmark

Tracklist: 1. "Country" (4 / 5)

Single release by Blaue Blume and the band's first actual release Bell of Wool (Nov. 2019) except from the remix of "Loveable" - the first by Trentemøller (released Feb. 2020) and one by Emil Rottmayer (released Mar. 2021). Since that album and in the span of the most recent months the band has been reduced to a trio following the leave of guitarist Robert Buhl Jensen, who then leaves behind a band consisting of vocalist Jonas Smith, guitarist & bassist Buster Lassen, and with Søren Buhl-Jensen on keyboards & drums.

"Country" has so far only been issued in digital format, and the song is a laidback and quiet track with traces to Talk Talk with a certain jazzy quality and with elements from country and progressive pop, and with the pompous production of Blaue Blume in behold. It's beautiful and heartfelt, and it still shows the band's great potential. The single may be found on the band's bandcamp-profile.