I cant believe the semester's already over! Oh how time flies. We hope you've been enjoying weekly new music reviews, but don't worry - we're not going anywhere!

Bill Frisell- Orchestras

Label: Blue Note
Genre: Modern Creative / Post Bop / Orchestral Jazz
Reviewed by: Len Comaratta
Marrying intimate parlor jazz lyricism with wide-screen orchestrations, the selections here are pulled from a handful of concerts Frisell gave from 2021 to 2022, resulting in one of his most accessible and virtuosic albums.

Andy Milne & Unison- Time Will Tell

Label: Sunnyside
Genre: Trad Jazz / Post Bop
Reviewed by: Len Comaratta
Time Will Tell is Milne’s artistic response to life-changing circumstances, chronicling his lifelong efforts to uncover his birth family history. Adding the diverse talents of Ingrid Laubrock on tenor sax and Yoko Reikanu Kimura on koto to his trio enriches the sonic landscape Milne has carefully crafted.

Leigh Pilzer's Seven Pointed Star- Beatin' the Odds

Label: Strange Woman Records
Genre: Post Bop
Reviewed by: Len Comaratta
A heartfelt tribute to resilience and life’s challenges, this album was inspired by her cancer diagnosis and treatment. Beatin’ the Odds showcases her talent with a collection of all but one original pieces, ranging from traditional swinging tunes to more contemporary and introspective works.

Grandaddy- Blu Wav

Label: Dangerbird
Genre: Alt Indie / Pop Rock
Reviewed by: Len Comaratta
Over its career, Grandaddy’s ballads have grown lusher with arrangements filled with warmth and ennui. On the latest release, the scales are tipped fully toward that balladry adding classic country music and bluegrass to the mix in organic fashion. Any traces of indie rock energy are dialed down in favor of echoing walls of pedal steel, piano, acoustic guitars, and massive vocal harmonies.

The Lostines- Meet the Lostines

Label: Gar Hole
Genre: Americana
Reviewed by: Len Comaratta
Swampland meets the sock hop; golden age rock & roll x old-school country. A modern album that exists out of time, filled with songs about heartbreak, old relationships, new beginnings, and vulnerability.

Owen- The Falls of Sioux

Label: Polyvinyl
Genre: Alt / Indie
Reviewed by: Len Comaratta
Member of American Football, Owls, Lies -- A subtly more adventurous album that experiments with incorporating mottled electronics inspired by working on the avant-pop project LIES. His wordplay is sharp as ever, even as his typically dry humor creeps in less acerbically as his perspectives continue to shift slightly as he enters middle age.

Bodega- Our Brand Could Be Yr Life

Label: Chrysalis
Genre: New Wave Revival / Post Punk Revival / Indie / Political Rock
Reviewed by: Len Comaratta
Combining the angular new wave of their debut with the nuanced lyrics of their follow-up, Bodega combine the best of both worlds for album three, delivering a sleek, snappy, and sharply witty modern indie rock record that puts the guitars front and center.

Julia Holter- Something In the Room She Moves

Label: Domino
Genre: Indie Pop / Alt Folk
Reviewed by: Len Comaratta
Holter bolsters her ambitious sonics with equally impressive literary references, but here, those allusions make way for the elemental forces of life -- birth, death, and creativity. While as complex as Aviary it is not nearly as weighty and at times blurs the line between ritual and avant garde.

Blitzen Trapper- 100s of 1000s, Millions of Billions

Label: Yep Roc
Genre: Indie Pop Rock / Alt Country Pop Rock
Reviewed by: Len Comaratta
Inspired by bandleader Eric Earley’s fascination with Buddhist texts and meditation (the title comes from a phrase that appears over and over in the Mahayana sutras), They lean into their psychedelic influences, adding a dimension to the alt-country vibes that hover over the songwriting. Backing vocals by Eric D. Johnson (Fruit Bats/Bonny Light Horseman) and Anna Tivel on song ‘Planetarium’ (Tivel also plays violin and sings throughout). While this may live in the Rock Stacks, this is a perfect album for Americana sets too.

The Last Dinner Party- Prelude to Ecstasy

Label: Island
Genre: Alt Pop Rock
Reviewed by: Len Comaratta
Maximalist pop grandeur layered atop gothic baroque pop hooks. Bands cited in so many descriptions of this band and album are Florence + the Machine, Kate Bush, Sparks, Suede, Siouxsie & the Banshees, Roxy Music, Bowie, Wet Leg, Anna Calvi (if fronting ABBA), and Miranda Sex Garden. While that is extremely accurate, it is in no way to suggest TLDP are derivative of those artists. This is a solid, confident band writing intelligent, darkly romantic lyrics and overflowing with earworm melodies.

Iron & Wine- Light Verse

Label: Sub Pop
Genre: Indie Folk Rock / Lo Fi
Reviewed by: Len Comaratta
The lightest, most playful in Sam Beam’s I&W discography, he recorded the basic tracks with a small band in a Laurel Canyon studio, then added string overdubs, resulting in giving the record both an intimate and wide-open feeling that melds perfectly with the lyrical approach that could be described as expansive introspection.

Amen Dunes- Death Jokes

Label: Sub Pop
Genre: Gothic Indie Electro Folk Pop
Reviewed by: Len Comaratta
Damon McMahon’s eerie, modern blend of folk and blues are still very present, however, this time around, he's added some electronic elements to showcase a more ambitious approach. Guests include jazz bassist Sam Wilkes, Christoffer Berg (Fever Ray) and Kwake Bass (Tirzah, Dean Blunt)

St. Vincent- All Born Screaming

Label: Total Pleasure
Genre: Indie Rock
Reviewed by: Griffin Paddock
I LOVE ST VINCENT. She is an artist that is impossible to pin down, and really one of the best to do it. This album just adds to her impressive list and is incredibly fun and exciting. Every song has so much character and texture and oomph. This definitely reminds me more of older records like Marry Me in terms of not having one concrete theme, but it still has a lot of the more electronic feel present in her MASSEDUCTION and her self titled work. Tracks 1,2,7 and 10 are soft and intimate, being the most minimalist on the album overall. 3,4 and 8 are more upbeat, and have a little more of that electronic feel. 6 and 9 are a bit of a mix, with 6 having this big jazz reminiscent bass line. This shit ROCKS. Play it :D

Drahla- Angeltape

Label: Captured Tracks
Genre: Indie Pop Rock
Reviewed by: Everett Swenson
Drahla’s Angeltape is loose, gripping, and fearless. Featuring devastating eruptions of noise, a bass heavier than lead, and a sax that probably skinny dips in the River Styx, this album is perfect for any lover of postpunk/alt metal. My only complaint is that the lyrics/vocals sound detached and ambiguous, however others may find this less problematic.

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