Telekinesis "Effluxion (Merge)"
You can say so many nice things about Michael Lerner aka Telekinesis – but after the initial flood of compliments (lover of dogs, camper, met Paul McCartney), you get to the root of the man in the striped shirt as a great pop song writer. Over 4 albums Telekinesis have written some of the best pop jams of the millennium (have you listened to the self-titled debut Telekinesis lately? All killer no filler), which brings us to Effluxion. After last album Ad Infinitum deep dove into synthesizers, Telekinesis are back to mainly the acoustic instruments: Drums, guitars and oh so much piano. Imagine if Michael’s BFF’s second solo album “Paul McCartney 2” was played by Teenage Fanclub you can start to ride the Effluxion of time (I think I used that work right?). Dig into “Cut The Quick.”
Jose Gonzalez & The String Theory "Live In Europe (Mute)"
What is better than a new Jose Gonzalez album? A live one! Even better than that? A live album with strings!! Yup Jose comes alive with “Live In Europe” and shows you the way to making beautiful songs even more beautifuller (?). You haven’t heard “Every Age” or “Crosses” until you’ve heard them live with strings – man oh man you are really going to like this. Check out “Heartbeats.”
Julia Jacklin "Crushing (Polyvinyl)"
Julia Jacklin’s second LP Crushing (Polyvinyl) is the sound of Julia refinding herself. After a few years on tour, she was feeling a little shattered, her mind disconnected with her body. This is the way she rejoined the two, and thank goodness she did. With an easy, vibe-y delivery and laid back instrumentation, this is like the best of the ‘70s mixed with the best of today. Check out the Tom Petty meets Sharon Van Etten sounds of “Body.”
Martin Frawley "Undone At 31 (Merge)"
You may know Martin Frawley as a primary member of the Melbourne rock band Twerps. Well, recently, he stepped out from behind that band to release his solo debut. Undone At 31 (Merge) finds Martin greatly expanding his sonic palette, as well as his songwriting skills. With a hushed, conversational vocal delivery somewhere between Lou Reed and Kurt Vile and an ear for arrangement-each of these songs exists by itself. Whether the song has only Rhodes and pedal steel, or mog, violin, and bass-the thing holding it all together is Martin’s knack for auditory pairings as well as his talent for melody. If you like a record that is comforting from the first listen, then Undone At 31 is for you. Oscillating between rockers and ballads, there is something for everyone here. Yes, even you in the back! I promise! Check out the dynamic bass and acoustic shuffle of “You Want Me.”