Closing out March with a really decent set. Come in, we’ll tell you all about it.
Hello, Friends.
Our Record of the Week - for the last time in March - is an absolute stunner. Promises is a new collaborative album from Sam Shepherd’s Floating Points, free-jazz guiding light Pharoah Sanders and The London Symphony Orchestra.
Released on David Byrne's innovative Luaka Bop label, it really is an extraordinary album, this. A single 45-odd minute piece where each of its components slowly morph around one another to hallucinatory effect. Graceful synth tones from Floating Points, spine-tingling strings and rumbles from the LSO and Pharoah's beautiful and searching saxophone lines.
This really is a stunning album, amazing synergy and everything down to the air in the room is electric.
We have a Dinked quadruplet this week, with four of our editions heading out in the post as we speak.
No. 92 is Hannah Peel's wonderful Fir Wave. Emmy nominated composer and producer, BBC Radio 3 host and Sea Change alum, Hannah is one of the most forward-thinking musicians of our time. This new set on her own label imprint, My Own Pleasure, are beautifully constructed electronic experiments.
No. 97 is For Those I Love, the debut LP from Irish producer and poet David Balfe. He really has done a brilliant job of speaking intimately and clearly, whilst conveying universally understood feelings of love and loss. Pretty sure he's gonna be massive.
No.93 is How Many Times, the beautiful third album from the New Orleans-based singer-songwriter Esther Rose. It's all about transience and change, but her voice is a brilliant centre point and protagonist to keep it all flowing along. Another really delicious young voice as part of the Full Time Hobby family.
No. 75 is the full-throttle, badass and chart-climbing new record from Black Honey. Written & Directed follows their excellent, self-titled debut and finds them bigger, brasher and is really great fun throughout.
A shimmering bridge between avant urban and chamber soul, DEACON is a most welcome return from Serpentwithfeet. It's not just that the production is immaculate - which it most certainly is - it's the way that Josiah Wise (Mr. WithFeet) positively weaves magic across every second. Drawing influence from music, art, culture and religion, it's a vivid and shimmering record where every second feels considered. Very highly recommended.
+ Limited Indie shop version is pressed on brown coloured vinyl.
The absolutely glorious Tune-Yards are back with Sketchy and we couldn't be happier. Every second of everything Merill does is drenched with idiosyncratic, artistic sunshine. Inventive bubblers with enough finger-marks to still feel hand-made.
+ Limited indie LP is pressed on blue coloured vinyl. (Running late)
Collections From The Whiteout is a big return from our fellow South Westerner, Ben Howard. Produced alongside Aaron Dessner, it's a very different beast to his earlier work. His voice and songs are part of something broader instead of being the main event. Dense, pretty and sonically interesting.
+ Indie exclusive is pressed on transparent vinyl housed in gatefold + plain unprinted bag + SOV download code + standard gloss dispersion.
Even more newness for your consideration this week;
Young Turks release a new set of remixes for Lifetime by incredible female and non-binary producers hand-selected by Romy (of The xx).
Noga Erez returns with KIDS on City Slang, full of swagger and sweet pop moments. Our LP is pressed on Recycled Coloured vinyl, each one being a unique colour.
Who By Fire is Swedish sister duo First Aid Kit's tribute to Leonard Cohen. Recorded live, they were joined by an array of fellow Swedish guest artists, an eight-person band & strings, two actors, as well as a 20+ person choir on two of the songs. We have a double indie shop exclusive LP pressing on Blue vinyl.
Fresh off last year's Adult Themes LP, El Michels Affair is back with a new full-length release called Yeti Season. Ingenious Turkish-inspired funk and hypnotic Hindi soul vocals. Proper good, this.
Green To Gold is the first album of new songs in seven years and a very welcome return for NYC's The Antlers. Lush, calm production and Peter Silberman practically whispers the vocals.
Life In A Glass World is the new LP from Ohio-based four-piece Citizen. Really tight production, this is proper playlist guitar bangers. Very limited Blue & Green Galaxy Swirl Vinyl.
Following last year's Shadow of Fear, Cabaret Voltaire return with more dense atmospherics on Dekadrone.
Manslaughter 777 is the new collaboration of drummer/percussionist Lee Buford (The Body) and drummer Zac Jones (Braveyoung/MSC). World Vision Perfect Harmony is complex and groovy rhythms full of thuds and surprises. Really cool.
Hyped that The Peacers return on Drag City with Blexxed Rec. Lush details and laid back psych-pop vibes. We really like this band.
Following the recent turn toward acoustic instruments in his soundtrack work, Clark returns with a new climate-change-inspired solo LP - Playground in a Lake - that utilised neoclassical textures to great effect.
A Lantern and a Bell is the return of singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Emil Svanängen as Loney dear. This really is excellent, his voice sounds like magic and these are all beautifully-crafted songs.
Discover Effortless Living is the much-hyped debut LP from young ones-to-watch Bull. Heavily influenced by Pavement and YLT without flying too close to them.
Songs for Pierre Chuvin is one of the most original takes on the lockdown album, further cementing the Mountain Goats status as modern legends. Limited Indie shop version LP is pressed on pink and white swirl coloured vinyl.
Is 4 Lovers marks the return of Death From Above 1979. We've only heard one song, but we really liked that and we really like the band too. CD is here, GOLD vinyl lands next month.
LA-based producer, composer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist James McAlister releases Scissortail on 37d03d. Soft and warm ambient music with plenty of interesting sounds to hone in on.
The Obvious I is the second LP from cult artist Ed Dowie on the Needle Mythology label. Fragile and wildly inventive, this has such a deliciously weird vibe.
And all this, is just the NEW stuff, our mates! We'll be dropping into your inbox tomorrow with a #newmusicfriday mailer to include compilations and reissues from Joe Strummer, Neil Young and Kourosh Yaghmaei... Who we can't wont stop listening to!
- Drift
