July Listening Station Program Titles Released This Week:
Liam Gallagher – MTV Unplugged (Live At Hull City Hall) CD/LP (WB)
Recorded in Hull, UK in August of last year, MTV Unplugged showcases Liam Gallagher’s solo career highlights alongside Oasis classics in new arrangements featuring backing choir, a string section and more. The MTV special aired globally in September in celebration of the release of his second solo album Why Me? Why Not and includes the solo hits “Wall Of Glass” and “One Of Us” as well as Oasis’ global smash single “Champagne Supernova”.
Norah Jones – Pick Me Up Off The Floor CD/LP (Blue Note)
Nine-time Grammy-winner Norah Jones’ seventh solo studio album, Pick Me Up Off The Floor grew out of her acclaimed singles series, as the unreleased songs unexpectedly congealed into an album of tremendous depth and beauty. Jones didn’t mean to make another album. After she finished touring 2016’s Day Breaks – her beloved return to piano-based jazz – she walked away from the well-worn album cycle grind and into an unfamiliar territory without boundaries: a series of short sessions with an ever-changing array of collaborators resulting in a diverse stream of singles (with Mavis Staples, Jeff Tweedy, Brian Blade, Rodrigo Amarante, Thomas Bartlett, Tarriona Tank Ball, and more). But then slowly but surely, the session songs Jones hadn’t released congealed into that very thing she’d meant to avoid – an album. But Pick Me Up Off The Floor is not some disjointed collage. It holds together beautifully, connected by the sly groove of her piano trios, lyrics that confront loss and portend hope, and a heavy mood that leans into darkness before ultimately finding the light.
NCT 127 – The 2nd Album ‘NCT #127 Neo Zone : The Final Round’ (1st Player Version)
NCT 127 – The 2nd Album ‘NCT #127 Neo Zone : The Final Round’ (2nd Player Version)
NCT 127’s 2nd full-length album has been repackaged for Neo Zone: The Final Round. Features 17 songs, with the 13 tracks from the original album plus four brand-new tracks. “Neo Zone is NCT 127 at its best. It checks off all the boxes when it comes to playing to their strengths, which include vocal versatility, a diversified selection of hip-hop and R&B jams, and giving fans a fun, good time. One of NCT 127’s biggest strengths is their vocal colors and tones, efficiently pulling off heavily R&B-influenced tracks and harmonizing flawlessly. Though more than half of the tracks on Neo Zone are R&B, they exist within a spectrum. The album opener, ‘Elevator’, is a feel-good, mid-tempo dance pop with late ‘90s R&B stylings and the funnest track on the album. For ‘Not Alone’, the members took a much more minimalistic approach and relied on their vocal chops. Produced by The Stereotypes and co-written by Taeyong, Mark, and Johnny, ‘Love Song’ is full of attitude and soul and features a chorus sung by the entire team — something atypical in K-pop but a skill that NCT 127 have mastered. ‘Dreams Come True’, released back in January, is a nostalgically comical throwback to the visual and sonic aesthetics of ‘90s R&B boy band ballads.” – Consequence Of Sound
