Destroyer "LABRYNTHITIS"
Destroyer’s 2022 album brims with mystic and intoxicating terrain, the threads of Dan Bejar’s notes woven through by a trove of allusions at once eerily familiar and intimately perplexing.
More than an arcane puzzle for the listener, LABYRINTHITIS warps and winds through unfamiliar territory for Bejar as well. Written largely in 2020 and recorded the following spring, the album most often finds Bejar and frequent collaborator John Collins seeking the mythic artifacts buried somewhere under the dance floor, from the glitzy spiral of “It Takes a Thief” to the Books-ian collage bliss of the title track. Initial song ideas ventured forth from disco, Art of Noise, and New Order, Bejar and Collins championing the over-the-top madcappery. “Our version may have been punk clubs, but our touchstones for the album were more true to disco,” says Bejar.
Minibeast "On Ice"
Minibeast is the current project from Peter Prescott, formerly of Mission of Burma. The Providence based band has a new album coming out on April 1, “On Ice: and one of the songs they’ve made available to listen to is “Exclusive.” If you’re familiar with Prescott’s work with Mission of Burma or Volcano Suns, chances are you’re going to dig this song. “Exclusive” has a lot of the noise and clunky guitars of his previous bands, but there is also an jazz-like groove throughout the song. The song surprisingly stops just shy of being mainstream, but definitely stops short. While it may be rooted in classic Burma, Minibeast are a completely different project, but still ones fans will love.
April March "In Cinerama"
April March has quite the resume: an animator on Pee Wee’s Playhouse and for Madonna’s “Who’s That Girl” video, and collaborating with Brian Wilson, Jack White, LL Cool J, Jonathan Richman, Ronnie Spector and Bertrand Burgalat. But she also has an acclaimed recording career, heavily influenced by French pop music, making a name for herself in France with her self-produced albums as well as albums with Bertand Burgalat and Aquaserge.
Following a quarter century of recording, March unveiled In Cinerama as a vinyl-only release for Record Store Day in 2021. It was an unprecedented success, selling out of its small run before most could hear the magic. In Cinerama has a wide sonic span from Nigeria to California, with Fela Kuti’s drummer Tony Allen at the helm and The Beach Boys’ Marilyn Wilson-Rutherford by his side, as well as talented friends ranging from the French underground to Nashville; The 11 tracks, co-written and co-produced by Mehdi Zannad, recall the 5th Dimension, Belle And Sebastian and even your favorite Gainsbourg or Curt Boettcher productions but stand on their own just as fresh and contemporary as the waves of Malibu or a Parisian Uber.
Colpitts "Music from the Accident"
The music of composer and percussionist John Colpitts is as fearless as it is far-reaching. As one of New York’s most in-demand improvisers and drummers, Colpitts’ prolific list of collaborations speaks to his omnivorous and innovative approach to music. He operates at the vanguard of new music, whether working with pioneering composers like William Basinski and Laurie Anderson, outrock explorers Boredoms, Oneida and Spiritualized, or fellow contemporary sonic adventurers Greg Fox and Jan St. Werner. On new album Music from the Accident, Colpitts eschews his Man Forever and Kid Millions monikers to present his most vulnerable and resonant work to date, charting an important period of transformation for the composer.