We've dug the music of Lady Lazarus (recording name of Melissa Ann Sweat) ever since we heard her debut album Mantic. She released a new album a few months ago called All My Love In Half Light and you should check it out.

Not every musician makes their mark immediately. Nor does that mark always involve a deep and far-reaching creative sensibility. But with Yours Truly, Cellophane Nose, Beth Jeans Houghton & The Hooves of Destiny have made their presence felt, conveying their dynamic, whimsical, and compelling sound via an exciting listen.

The thing about Pop music is (and I'm using the word Pop in the broadest and most generalized way possible) that it is all largely the same. The names and faces may change but the instrumentation, time/key signatures, song form, lyrical themes, and content delivery are all pretty much the same. Sometimes this bothers me – a lot. But the fact remains that when a Pop artist works well within this structure, it is a moving experience regardless of the surrounding mediocrity.  

The Music Tapes are Pop musicians, but I believe that they are pushing the boundries of performance and compositional expectation. I had the pleasure of seeing them perform at the 2640 Space in Baltimore MD this week with Jeff Mangum and I was transfixed by their story telling, unusual song forms, instrumentation, interactive stage sculptures/quasi-band mates and general child-like imagination with adult means in achievment. I felt like I had slipped into a Michel Gondry film about singing saws, bowed orchestral banjos, and a seven foot tall metronome. I knew immediately that this was about to get awesome.

The Music Tapes: So The Day Long

The Music Tapes: A Lightning's Cheeks (Everything Gets Born Here)

Austin's Boy + Kite recently released their debut album Go Fly, and it's a strong collection of songs about connections made and lost, driven by guitar and dual-vocals.

What up blogosphere? It's been a little while since I've been able to spend some quality time writing for TWD and I'd like to fix that this morning with a record review of Soul Cannon's recent release, The Mixed Ape.

Soul Cannon is the love child of three conservatory trained musicians and Baltimore's own MC Eze Jackson. I have had the pleasure of living with this album for about a month now and am really excited about the development of the Cannon's sound possibilities and their willingness to tackle social issues, mythological underwater fight scenes, and auto-tuned Phil Collins-esque ballads – but badass.

This album seethes with innovation and progression. Soul Cannon is the maestro of contemporary hip hop and if you didn't know, well now you know.

Soul Cannon: Good Day Dream

Soul Cannon: Smiley 🙂

Soul Cannon: Sweet City (Out Of Town Lessons)

Soul Cannon: The Greatest Underwater Story Every Told

One of my favorite releases of this year so far is Laru Beya by Aurelio Martinez. Aurelio is from Honduras and a member of the Garifuna culture. The journey through 12 songs of a totally different style of music than what I regularly listen to (though still highly accessible) has been one absolutely worth taking, and I encourage all you reading who might be looking for something to expand your horizons to check it out. It is a rich listening experience and a beautiful album.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. Jr. strike me as composers, but not in a grand, conceptual kind of way. It’s just that their music is perfectly made up of so many brilliant little moments that the whole ends up being intricately constructed. Their debut album, It’s A Corporate World, envelopes you in sound while allowing their emotional honesty to float to the surface.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. Jr. – Nothing But Our Love

Dale Earnhardt Jr. Jr. – Skeletons

There’s a weird phenomena that occasionally happens when I sit down to write about a band that I really, truly love. I end up having nothing useful or interesting to say. It’s like all that will spew out of my brain is a string of “dude, shit’s so awesome” or “man, this song’s just, like, great” inane one-liners. This is happening to me with Dawes and their new album Nothing Is Wrong as we speak.

Dawes – So Well

Dawes – Coming Back To A Man

Dave King's Indelicate is a welcome assault on your preconceptions about jazz. It is an album I've lived with since it's release in 2010 but still feel as though it were my first listen every time I put it on. Indelicate is a perpetual breath of fresh air and a must own for all serious fans of music.

Although Dave King is best know for his rhythmic work alongside The Bad Plus and Happy Apple, listeners of this album are now privy to both his piano playing and drumming – each recorded separate of each other and then combined in the studio. Considering the high level of virtuosity and obtuse rhythmic interactions between the piano and drums, this staggering feat is not one to be missed.

Dave King is a juggernaut of contemporary jazz, a conduit of sound, and an unrelenting badass. You dig?

Dave King: Homage: Young People

Dave King: Bees

Dave King: I See You, You See Me

As Kyle wrote yesterday, today is a big day for music releases. One of those is the album Echo Boom by the Farewell Drifters from Nashville, TN. I dig it and think you should definitely consider getting your hands on this one if you're looking for some good music from some talented guys.