February Program Titles Released This Week:
Bombay Bicycle Club – Everything Else Has Gone Wrong CD/LP (Caroline)
Everything Else Has Gone Wrong is the eagerly anticipated follow-up to the British band’s acclaimed No. 1 charting, Mercury Music Prize nominated fourth album, So Long, See You Tomorrow, released back in 2014. Speaking of the record’s title, vocalist/guitarist Jack Steadman explains: “This is an album for anyone who’s ever turned to music in a time of need. It’s about the solace one can get from listening to music or playing music. For me personally it’s about the frustration of not being able to express myself to others, of leaving conversations feeling dissatisfied and misunderstood. Music’s the way I’m able to truly express myself.”
Robert Glasper – Fuck Yo Feelings CD/2xLP (Loma Vista)
Legendary genre-bending, multiple Grammy and Emmy-winning artist and producer Robert Glasper delivers his newest project, Fuck Yo Feelings. The 19-track collection is the result of a two-day session in which Glasper invited musician friends to stop by the studio and organically create together, the final result being this mixtape which sonically documents the lost art of improv and on the spot collaborations that can only come from authentic relationships and true artistry. Glasper’s sound can hardly be defined but is built on his unique blend of jazz, hip-hop and neo-soul. Fuck Yo Feelings is an inspired update in that lineage, blending the personalities of himself and his collaborators that include a top-tier range of standout artists across different scenes that only Glasper could put in the same room – Yasiin Bey, Herbie Hancock, Andra Day, YBN Cordae, Terrace Martin, Baby Rose, Bilal, Buddy, Denzel Curry, Mick Jenicks, SiR, Rapsody and more.
- Love & Special Sauce – The Juice CD/LP (Philadelphonic)
“I’ve been in the game a long time, but I’ve always considered myself a student,” says G. Love. “Finishing this album with Keb Mo’ felt like graduation.” Recorded in Nashville with a slew of special guests including Robert Randolph, Marcus King, and Roosevelt Collier, The Juice is indeed diploma worthy. Co-produced and co-written with Grammy-winning icon Keb Mo’, it’s an electrifying collection, one that tips its cap to more than a century of blues greats even as it offers its own distinctly modern pop spin on the genre, mixing programmed beats and hip-hop grooves with blistering guitar and sacred steel. G. Love’s lyrics are both personal and political here, artfully balancing his appreciation for the simple joys in life with his obligation to speak out for justice and equality, and his performances are suitably riotous and rousing to match, with infectious call-and-response hooks and funky sing-along choruses at every turn. [Limited indie-exclusive colored vinyl pressing also available.]
Halsey – Maniac CD/LP (Capitol)
“Early on Halsey’s excellent new album, Manic, she samples a bit of movie dialogue: ‘I’m just a fucked-up girl looking for my own piece of mind. Don’t assign me yours.’ It’s from the film Eternal Sunshine Of The Spotless Mind, spoken by the manic, pixie dream-girl heroine Clementine. But she definitely speaks for Halsey. And as you’ve probably guessed, the singer doesn’t even come close to finding peace of mind in these songs. Still, she knows how to make it a thrilling quest. Manic is Halsey’s raw autobiographical portrait of the artist as a young mess, craving her share of love and tenderness in a hostile world. Yet Halsey’s Ashley Frangipane is a mess who’s a hungrily ambitious artist seeing herself as a mirror for her entire generation.” – Rolling Stone
