Published on
October 13, 2023
Category
Features
Essential weekend listening.
This week’s rundown is by VF’s Kelly Doherty and Becky Rogers, alongside contributors Annabelle Van Dort, Emily Hill and James Hammond.
L’Rain
I Killed Your Dog
(Mexican Summer)
An “anti break-up album” from Brooklyn multi-instrumentalist and composer L’Rain, I Killed Your Dog is a wide-reaching, artful and occasionally odd collection. Dragging indie singer-songwriter methods through a blender of trippy grooves, harmonic experimentations and helter-skelter genre alternation, L’Rain has crafted something wholly unique. To bring such a range of disparate sounds together so seamlessly whilst maintaining heartfelt lyrical content exploring love in all forms is no mean feat. A rare gem that doesn’t sacrifice authentic feelings for virtuosity. –KD
Suzanne Langille, Andrew Burnes, David Daniell, and Loren Connors
Let the Darkness Fall
(Recital)
An under-heard gem from 1998, Let the Darkness Fall finds long-time collaborators Loren Connors and Suzanne Langille alongside the guitars of Andrew Burns and David Daniell. Set to tape in the lounge of Langille and Connor’s Brooklyn apartment, as with other works from Connors and Langille in this period and setting, there’s a hushed and spacious quality to the tracks that readily takes you into the essential beauty and melancholy of their work. Intricately balancing Connors’ approach to the blues with that of Burns and Daniell’s, a sense of space and intuitive listening and response shines through, with Langille’s distinct vocals and phrasings softly moving to the forefront.–JH
CMAT
Crazymad, For Me
(CMATBABY)
CMAT knows how to write a hit, but her true skill is writing a hit around witty storytelling. While previous releases voiced her hate for Virgos and documented breakdowns in KFC, Crazymad, For Me takes the persona of a woman 20 years her senior attempting to save her love life by building a time machine via a YouTube tutorial. Its 12 tracks whisk you into the CMAT world held up by her stunning indie-Americana-meets-country. Whether it’s a stunning duet with John Grant (“Where Are Your Kids Tonight?”) or outright theatrics (“I… Hate Who I am When I’m Horny”), she always delivers without fault. Crazymad, For Me is another top-tier release from everyone’s favourite shitposting cowgirl.–BR
Nadia Struiwigh
Birds Of Paradise
(Dekmantel)
Nadia Struiwigh has had an accomplished career since exploding onto the scene back in 2012, clocking up explosive releases on cult labels such as CPU, Clone and Rosedale Records. The latest offering is a special double 12″ with Dekmantel. Birds Of Paradise cuts between the sonic realms of jungle, ’90s techno, and ambient. It’s an emotional voyage that draws from Struiwigh’s own journey through music with contrasting energies that make for an immersive listening experience.–EH
Model 500
Starlight
(Metroplex)
Juan Atkins, and his various monikers, is a name that holds significant weight in the international music scene. Starlight, created under the name Model 500, was originally produced and released back in 1995 and is now remastered by Metroplex. The original mix radiates with dubby influences so a fitting remix from Moritz von Oswald of Basic Channel re-enforces the collective alliance between Detroit and Berlin techno.–EH
Various Artists
Tokyo Riddim 1976 – 1985
(Time Capsule)
Tokyo Riddim, the latest compilation from London-based reissue label Time Capsule, charts the emergence of Japanese reggae from city pop with this superb collection of tracks. Curated by label head-honcho Kay Suzuki alongside Pol Valls, Tokyo Riddim showcases the unique J-reggae take on the popular reggae formula pioneered by artists like Jimmy Cliff and UB40—think slack reggae basslines and backbeats with a breezy city-pop sheen. Featuring a conscious reggae-influenced anti-apartheid cut (Junko Yagami- Johannesburg) and even a production credit from the late Ryuichi Sakamoto on the album (Lily-Tenki Ni Naare), Tokyo Riddim is a testament to the fascinating musical cross-pollination that occurred during this fruitful period.–AVD
Allah-Las
Zuma 85
(Innovative Leisure)
Allah-Las enter a new era with their fifth and latest album, Zuma 85. Once scoring summers gone by with their jangly surf-psych, the LA rockers are now looking towards late Lou Reed, ‘70s mutant pop and loner-folk obscurities for their inspiration. Zuma 85 may be a fresh start, but it retains a familiar warmth as it lets go of any genre definition. “Hadal Zone” heads off into a musing drone instrumental, “Smog Cutter” leans into scuzzy ‘70s doom-metal and “Pattern” offers up a soft Americana swing. Allah-Las have fully embraced the freedom they found during the pandemic, and Zuma 85 shows that even five albums in, following your gut and playing what feels right is never a bad idea.–BR
Voice Actor
Fake Sleep
(STROOM)
Unclassifiable and diaristic, Voice Actor’s 110 track Sent From My Telephone was a highlight of last year’s digital releases and, with Fake Sleep, the duo of Noa Kurzweil and Levi Lanzer have delivered a much-longed-for vinyl edition. A distillation of the original work that brings things down to a more manageable 16 tracks, Fake Sleep keeps the enveloping sound world of the original in-tact, letting the muted distance of its collaged electronica play out alongside the shifting presence of Noa Kurzweil’s vocals.–JH
Various Artists
Just A Touch: Underground UK Soul
(Athens Of The North)
DJ and curator Sam Don follows his impeccable lovers’ rock series For the Love of You with another stellar compilation on Athens of the North, turning his diligent curatorial hand to UK Underground Soul. Full of strutting electro basslines and angelic vocals, with a dash of lo-fi cruisers and soul jams, Just a Touch features a selection of deep cuts and street soul obscurities from UK pioneers like Kofi and Bô’vell, as well as lesser-known faces such as Dennis Planter and Pure Silk. Kofi’s “Step by Step” and Pure Silk’s “What You Do for Me” emerge as album highlights, laden with break-heavy grooves surely set to ignite dancefloors in upcoming months.–AVD
boygenius
The Rest
(Polydor)
Following the release of their successful debut The Record, boygenius return for an efficiently titled follow-up EP. The Rest is a self-reflective collection that once again provides each of the boys with their moment in the spotlight. Where The Record felt broad in its specificities, The Rest tones down the anthemic approach for smaller tales that more closely align with the trio’s solo day jobs. EP highlight, the Lucy Dacus-led “Afraid Of Heights” addresses a personification of the living fast versus living well conundrum (“I wanna live a vibrant life/But I wanna die a boring death”) where “Voyager” refers to The Record cut “Cool About It” (“And sometimes, you let me read your mind”) in band lore-building moment. A charming EP that closes out Act I of boygenius.–KD
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