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.”
Ernest Ernie & The Sincerities "Sincerely Yours: Greatest Hits Vol. 2"
Ernest Ernie & The Sincerities are here, bringing you sincerely great tunes with the sincerely titled Sincerely Yours: Greatest Hits Vol. 2. Now, I know what you’re thinking. “Will I be lost if I didn’t listen to the first volume?” Nope! Doesn’t exist! The title is a bit tongue in cheek. Now I know what you are thinking again. “But you said the record was sincere and the title was too!” My answer to that is-gimme a break. I’m just trying to write a few simple “jokes” and convince you to check out this stellar slice of retro-fueled soul. If you’ve never had the extreme pleasure of hearing EE and this mighty horn-fueled Sincerities, then this is the time to correct that. Check out the high-soaring “Flying” or the anti-gentrification stomp of “Fun City.”
Elena Setién "Another Kind Of Revolution (Thrill Jockey)"
Elena Setién’s Thrill Jockey debut Another Kind Of Revolution is an ethereal beauty of an album. Haunting and emotive in a Kate Bush meets Bonnie Prince Billy kind of way, this is a mesmerizing album. Distant, reverb-soaked instrumentation echoes while Elena’s captivating vocals draw you in. What’s that? Oh no! I just got an excessive adjective fine from the Commissioner of Blurb Writing. Man… I wasn’t being excessive, was I? I was just trying to describe how much I love this album. I’m gonna have to take this up with the league. In the meantime, check out the title track “Another Kind Of Revolution” and try to keep your adjectives below the league cap if you can.
ENDON "Boy Meets Girl (Thrill Jockey)"
If you love Thrill Jockey because they aren’t afraid to release scream filled metal strangeness, then you are here for this ENDON record Boy Meets Girl. Impossibly fuzzed guitars, screeching art-noise, and more screaming than you can… I dunno… shake a screaming stick at? That makes no sense. Sorry. But if you too like “disparate influences such as horrorcore, Dick Dale, Joe Meek and the Dead Kennedys” then get ready to add an ENDON t-shirt to the drawer of t-shirts that spark joy. Check out the Mr. Bungle-esque syncopation and quick changes of “Doubts As A Source.”