Album of the Week – 07/05/21

This week has lots of new music to check out and some familiar names. There is another one of those albums from Sufjan Stevens (Convocations). He likes to experiment and we shouldn’t blame him for it, but really he’s best with his banjo! There’s also a collection of odds and sods from Angel Olsen called Song of the Lark and Other Far Memories.

MAN ON MAN are a new name to me, but it’s a duo with Faith No More’s Roddy Bottum and his boyfriend Joey Holman. It’s an unusual look at the world with songs like It’s So Fun (To Be Gay). Definitely worth a listen below. There are also new albums from  Iceage (Seek Shelter) and Squid (Bright Green Field).

Another serious contender was Sophia Kennedy with her album Monsters which has some great moments and is well worth checking out. But in the end, it was almost impossible to ignore the dulcet tones of Mr. Will Stratton.

Album of the Week – Will Stratton – The Changing Wilderness

“The Changing Wilderness is an irresistible album, created from stunning guitar playing, sweet warm vocals and darker, brooding lyrics. On these merits, it is a quiet triumph, a slice of lilting impassioned country folk that sustains an organic atmosphere throughout.” – Cathy Brown – from her review which you can find here.

Strattonhas shared a first track titled “Tokens”. Of the trackStratton says “Tokensis a song addressed to the fraternal twins, the most frequent subjects of songs since songs were created: time and love. The afternoon that I was writing it, the weird weather we were having that summer was on my mind. I was thinking about how my perception of time is so tied to my perception of the changing seasons, and consequently, how my perception of time hasn’t been quite as sharp as it once was. I was also thinking about the ending of one of my favourite movies, the 2014 Paul Thomas Anderson film Inherent Vice. The way time shimmers and shifts in that movie is fascinating to me, verging on hypnotic, and I was trying to evoke a little of that feeling in this song.”

Will Stratton’s rich catalogue is proof that the Hudson Valley folk musician thrives on exploration and reflection. Chart his trajectory over his previous six albums and you’ll find a songwriter not content to stay comfortable or do the same thing twice. From his 2007 debut What the Night Said, which he released aged 20, to 2014’sGray Lodge Wisdom, a resilient and gorgeous LP which documented his bout with cancer, as well as 2017’s Rosewood Almanac, a de facto love-letter to song-writing, his guitar, and his favourite records, the subtle but sizable tweaks to his process, arranging, and writing have been revelations.“I’ve always tried to make the process of making music as much of a source of pleasure and exploration as possible,” says Stratton. So it’s no surprise that The Changing Wilderness, his resonant and clear-eyed seventh album, pushes him to expansive new heights again.

Albums of Note: 

Sophia Kennedy – Monsters

Archive Series Volume No. 5: Tallahassee Recordings by Iron & Wine

Bright Green Field by Squid

Convocations by Sufjan Stevens

Song of the Lark and Other Far Memories by Angel Olsen

Seek Shelter by Iceage

Monsters by Sophia Kennedy

The Changing Wilderness by Will Stratton

MAN ON MAN by MAN ON MAN

Albums Released – May 7th:

— A Certain Ratio – ACR:EPA EP

— Acid’s Test. –Strings Of Souls

— Aduanten – Sullen Cadence EP

— Alex Chilton and Hi Rhythm Section – Boogie Shoes: Live On Beale Street

— Alex Epton – The Episodic Buffer Vol 2 EP

— Alfie Templeman – Forever Isn’t Long Enough

— Ali Farka Touré – Red (Vinyl Reissue)

— ALLBLACK – TY4FWM (Thank You 4 Fuckin’ With Me)

— Alphaville – Afternoons in Utopia (Deluxe Edition)

— Alphaville – The Breathtaking Blue (Deluxe Edition)

— Aly & AJ – a touch of the beat gets you up on your feet gets you out and then into the sun

— Amongst the Pigeons – Silence Will Be Assumed As Acceptance

— Angel Olsen – Song of the Lark and Other Far Memories

— Animile – Reunion EP

— Annie Hart – Everything Pale Blue

— Anto Addabbo (of Reality Grey) – Beneath This Crown

— Ape Vermin – Arctic Noise EP

— Arielle – Analog Girl In A Digital World

— Ashe – Ashlyn

— Astrachan – Astrachan

— Awenden and Feminazgul – Awenden/Feminazgul

— Bailey Bryan – Fresh Start

— Bandits on the Run – Now Is The Time EP

— The Beat Farmers – Live at the Spring Valley Inn, 1983

— Bebe Rexha – Better Mistakes

— Beekeeper – Slaves to the Nothing

— Benjamin Jayne – Theater

— Best Move – Mirror Image Twins EP

— Black Moon Mother – Illusions Under The Sun

— Blue Cactus – Stranger Again

— Bobby Krlic (The Haxan Cloak) – Returnal (Original Soundtrack)

— Book of Wyrms – Occult New Age

— Bridear – Bloody Bride

— Buffet Lunch – The Power of Rocks

— Century Egg – Little Piece Of Hair EP

— Charlie Marie – Ramble On

— Chloe Moriondo – Blood Bunny

— Cold Moon – What’s the Rush

— Crystal – Reflection Overdrive

— CVLT OV THE SVN – We Are The Dragon

— The Damn Truth – Now or Nowhere

— Daniel Bachman – Axacan

— David Shaw (of The Revivalists) – David Shaw

— Dean Owens – Sand and Blood – The Desert Trilogy EPs, Vol 2

— Diamante – American Dream

— Dodie – Build A Problem

— Dolly Ave – Sleep

— Dorothea Paas – Anything Can’t Happen

— Doss – 4 New Hit Songs EP

— Drifters’ Collective – Cranes In The Rearview

— Emma Moore – The Table EP

— Endre Olsen – Baklengs Tebake

— Ereb Altor – Eldens Boning

— Everlust – Diary of Existence

— False Memories – The Last Night of Fall

— Feed Them Death – Negative

— Fickle Friends – Weird Years: Season 2

— Firekind – Live in Lockdown EP

— Fiver – Fiver With The Atlantic School of Spontaneous Compostion

— Fougére – Still Life

— Francisco Martin – Beautiful Ramblings of a Restless Mind EP

— Fragment Soul – Axiom of Choice

— Frank Zappa – Zappa Original Motion Picture Soundtrack (Vinyl Box Set)

— Fried Monk x Beautiful-Fortune – Here As One EP

— Garden of Eyes – Boomhammer

— Ghost Iris – Comatose

— GLEN – PULL!

— GoGo Penguin – GGP/RMX

— Graham Costello – Second Lives

— Gretchen Lieberum – This May Only Be A Dream

— Grey Aura – Zwart Vierkant

— Grey Mouse – A Moment of Weakness

— Herzschlager – All The Nights Are Done

— Hot Knives – Making Love To Make Music To Make Love To

— Iceage – Seek Shelter

— ilan Bluestone – Impulse

— Immortal Sÿnn – Force of Habit

— In Asymmetry – Ashes Of Dead Worlds

— India Jordan – “Watch Out!”

— Inferno – PARADEIGMA (Phosphenes Of Aphotic Eternity)

— Ihsan Al-Munzer – Sonatina for Maria (Reissue)

— Jake Manzi – Whatever My Heart Allows

— james ginzburg – crystallise, a frozen eye

— Jay Chakravorty – A Map With No Memory

— Jesse Maxwell – Hellion

— John Harvey – Second Chances EP

— Judy Collins – White Bird – Anthology Of Favorites

— Kali – Circles EP

— Kardashev – The Baring of Shadows

— Kasai Allstars – Black Ants Always Fly Together, One Bangle Makes No Sound

— Kataan – Kataan

— Kayak – Out Of This World

— Kelsey Karter – Live From Nowhere

— Kosine – Truth Serum EP

— Kosmodemonic – Liminal Light

— Kryptik Mutation – Pulled From the Pit

— L’Orange & Namir Blade – Imaginary Everything

— Leftover Salmon – Brand New Good Old Days

— Leotrix – Honesty Trax EP

— Linn Koch-Emmery – Being the girl

— Lipstick Jodi – More Like Me

— Lisa Gerrard & Jules Maxwell (of Dead Can Dance) – Burn

— Little Snake – A Fragmented Love Story, Written By The Infinite Helix Architect

— Lucinda Chua – Antidotes 2 EP

— Lucy – The Music Industry Is Poisonous

— Lùisa – New Woman

— Lunar Octet – Convergance

— Maia Sharp – Mercy Rising

— Mandy Barnett – Every Star Above

— Manolo Redondo – The Lost & Found EP

— Man On Man (feat. Faith No More’s Roddy Bottum) – Man On Man

— Mara TK – Bad Meditation

— McCormick – Till the Sun Comes Up

— McKinley Dixon – For My Mama and Anyone Who Look Like Her

— messier – On Malaise

— Methadone Skies – Retrofuture Caveman

— Mephitic Grave – Into The Atrium Of Inhuman Morbidity

— MF Doom and Czarface – Super What?

— Mia Joy – Spirit Tamer

— Michael Small – The Parallax View (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) (Vinyl Reissue)

— The Mighty Mighty Bosstones – When God Was Great

— Mighty Oaks – Mexico

— Mina Tindle – The LFO/Blogothèque Sessions EP

— Miranda Lambert, Jack Ingram, and Jon Randall – The Marfa Tapes

— Misstress – Resurrected

— Model Child – Unscrewed EP

— Moneira – Colour Visions

— Nancy Wilson (of Heart) – You and Me

— Naomi Banks – Meeting Again EP

— nasimiYu – P O T I O N S

— Natalie Bergman (of Wild Belle) – Mercy

— Nature Morte – Messe Basse

— Nelson Beer – Orlando EP

— Nehushtan – Book 1: Medusa’s Revenge

— New Order – Education Entertainment Recreation (Live at Alexandra Palace)

— Night Beats – Outlaw R&B

— Night Huron – Instructions For The Night

— Nightjars – Modjeska

— Niño & Friends – More Energy Fields, Current (Digital Release)

— NoMBe – Chromatopia

— Nous Alpha – A Walk in the Woods

— Oblivion Orchestra – Scene to Scene

— Osiah – Loss

— Owen Denvir – Bones EP

— Paupière – Sade Sati

— Pentral – What Lies Ahead Of Us

— People Club – Take Me Home EP

— Peter Murphy – Deep (Vinyl Reissue)

— Peter Murphy – Holy Smoke (Vinyl Reissue)

— Pile – In the Corners of a Sphere-Filled Room

— Pistols At Dawn – Nocturnal Youth EP

— Pressure – Path of a Shadow

— The Purrs – We Thought There’d Be More People Here

— Quintin Copper & Nas Mellow – April Dreams

— Reality Grey – Beneath This Crown

— Results Of Adults – Interstellar Peach Delight

— Ritual Cloak – Divine Invasions

— Robert Walter – Spirit of ’70 (Reissue)

— Robin McCauley – Standing On The Edge

— Round Eye – Culture Shock Treatment

— SALEM (Will Gould of Creeper) – SALEM II

— Saliva – Every Twenty Years EP

— Sam Valdez – Take Care

— Sanjay – Initiation EP

— Sarah Jarosz – Blue Heron Suite

— Sasha – LUZoSCURA

— Semi Precious – Post-Euphoria

— Senso – Drifter94 EP

— Sergio Ch. (of Los Natas) – 1974 (Reissue)

— Sergio Ch. (of Los Natas) – Aurora (Reissue)

— Sergio Ch. (of Los Natas) – From Skulls Born Beyond (Reissue)

— Servant Leader – Raised By Wolves – Part 2

— SETH – Seth

— Shaun Ross – Shift

— Sinplus – Break the Rules

— The Skinner Brothers – Iconic EP

— Slinky Vagabond – King Boy Vandals

— Slow Leaves – Holiday

— SNKT – No Saints

— Sonic Haven – Vagabond

— Sophia Kennedy – Monsters

— Speak, Memory – Adirondack EP

— SQÜRL and Jozef Van Wissem – Only Lovers Left Alive (Reissue)

— Staind – Live: It’s Been Awhile

— Stella and the Very Messed – Marigold EP

— Steve Almaas – Everywhere You’ve Been (Physical Release)

— STUFF. – T(h)reats

— Sumo Cyco – Initiation

— Supervøid – The Giant Nothing

— Sylas Dean – American Dreeming

— Ted Russell Kamp – Solitaire

— Tee Grizzley – Built For Whatever

— TEKE::TEKE – Shirushi

— Terminalist – The Great Acceleration

— Tim Foljahn – I Dreamed a Dream

— Todd Michael Hall – Sonic Healing

— TÓKE – The Art of Letting Go EP

— Tommy Emmanuel – Accomplice Series Volume 1 with Rob Ickes & Trey Hensley EP

— Tommy’s Rocktrip – Beat Up By Rock ‘N Roll

— Toosii – Thank You For Believing

— Tony Joe White – Smoke from the Chimney

— Traumatomy – Extirpation Paradigms

— Travis Tritt – Set In Stone

— Waker – Fresh Out

— Weezer – Van Weezer

— Wiki & Nah – Telephonebooth

— Will Stratton – The Changing Wildnerness

— White Cliffs – 101 EP

— Van Morrison – Latest Record Project: Volume 1

— Various Artists – Bong Grenades II: Bands Against Homelessness

— Various Artists – Conform 20th Century

— Various Artists – Homanity

— Vitreous Humor – Posthumous (Vinyl Reissue)

— Vokonis – Odyssey

— Voroni – The Last Three Seconds

— Zaeus – Be Still

— Zayde Wolf – Neon Blood Type

— Ziad Rahbani – Bennesbeh, Labokra… Chou (Vinyl Reissue)

— Ziúr – Antifate