Published on
February 23, 2024
Category
Features
Essential weekend listening.
This week’s rundown is by VF’s Kelly Doherty, and contributors Annabelle Van Dort, Emily Hill and James Hammond.
Erika de Casier
Still
(4AD)
The subtle tones of Erika de Casier’s vocals hold an overwhelming warmth laced with a deep sense of nostalgia, which isn’t shocking considering the references to contemporary ’90s/’00s R&B reverberate throughout her music. De Casier has been creating some of the most introspective music since 2018, sitting between home listening and club effectiveness. Her latest album, Still, released via 4AD, explores a new sultry extroverted persona, taking her skilled songwriting and production to another level.–EH
Emahoy Tsege Mariam Gebru
Souvenirs
(Mississippi US)
Where last year’s Jerusalem gave a tantalising glimpse of Ethiopian pianist Emahoy Tsege Mariam Gebru’s rarely heard vocals, Souvenirs comes as a full collection of home recordings that place Gebru’s voice alongside her beautiful cascades of piano notes. Recorded between 1977 and 1985, largely whilst in exile from her homeland, this collection makes for a spellbinding set that’s marked by love, loss, and the intimacy of poetic works sung directly into a boom box. Essential listening from a legend of Ethiopian music.–JH
Can
Live In Paris 1973
(Spoon)
Following the recent passing of vocalist Damo Suzuki, Spoon releases Can’s Live In Paris 1973. The first of the ongoing Can live series to feature Suzuki’s vocals, Live In Paris 1973 has been re-engineered from bootleg recordings at the L’Olympia. Experimental and jammy, it’s an enthralling listen and a fitting showcase of Suzuki’s talent.–KD
Laetitia Sadier
Rooting for Love
(Drag City)
Stereolab’s Laetitia Sadier crafts a beguiling collection of conscious avant-pop songs on her first solo studio album in seven years. Full of jangly, exotica-tinged flourishes that unfurl into soaring choruses, oscillating drum machines and a deep lyrical commitment to ideals of radical empathy and self-care, Rooting For Love transmits Sadier’s New Age in a suitably dream-like package. Accompanied by a vocal assembly of men and women credited as the Choir, the presence of these collective voices, in harmony with Sadier’s signature monotone, elevates Rooting For Love to luminous heights.–AVD
Jurango
An Amorphous Mass
(Livity Sound)
Bristol-based producer Jurango has a bundle of tricks up his sleeve, from DJing across Europe with techno powerhouse Surgeon to releasing weighty jungle-esque bangers via Rhythm Section’s SHOUTS series. Retreat Ites, Jurango’s 2021 debut on the Livity Sound, played with stripped-back percussion and weighty beats. The latest outing, An Amorphous Mass, draws on broken UK techno and dancehall-inspired rhythms. Things are low tempo but still club-ready, designed for the steppers with high impact in the dance.–EH
Real Estate
Daniel
(Domino)
New Jersey indie rockers Real Estate return for their sixth album, their first since 2020’s The Main Thing. Any Real Estate enthusiasts will know the drill going into Daniel, the nostalgia-drenched surf rock and jangly guitars that have persisted through the band’s catalogue are ever-present. Whilst there’s no great shake-up on Daniel, it’s an exceedingly pleasant record, one built to soundtrack breezy evenings and summer haze.–KD
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