Staff Picks for April 2024

The follow-up to the popular Whatever and Ever Amen, Ben Folds Five's third LP, The Unauthorized Biography of Reinhold Mesner (released 25 years ago today), continues the eclectic and clever songwriting that has become the group's trademark. Like other piano-based rock composers such as Randy Newman and Todd Rundgren, principal songwriter and de facto leader Ben Folds combines an off-beat world view with equally off-kilter musical arrangements to create a thoroughly original sound.
- Steve Kurutz

Although they were often dismissed as a fluffy singles group in their day, Sweet crafted a handful of strong albums in the mid-'70s that sported some surprisingly muscular hard rock. Released 50 years ago today, Sweet Fanny Adams' heavy metal masterpiece is the title track, a seedy portrait of juvenile delinquency whose brutal lyrics anticipate the grim imagery of punk rock. The song's vivid lyrics are effectively brought to life by a blinding succession of speed metal guitar riffs that are fleshed out by the kind of spacy synthesizer work that later graced "Fox on the Run."
- Donald A. Guarisco

Gabriel Reyes-Whittaker's first all-original album as Frankie Reyes is a tranquil delight of cocktail minimalism played solo on an Oberheim synthesizer.
- Timothy Monger

Recorded on the opening night of the Festival International de Jazz de Montreal as part of an eight-concert series paying tribute to Charlie Haden. While the other evenings all featured stellar musicians and wonderful collaborations, this one is special because it features Haden in a trio of players not usually associated with him: drummer Al Foster -- fresh from Miles Davis' band, and the late tenor giant Joe Henderson. In fact, Haden has subtitled the set, "Tribute to Joe Henderson."
- Thom Jurek

One of the vocalist's greatest and least likely successes, this biopic saw her take a dramatic turn after a string of light musical comedies. Though she looked and sounded nothing like the subject, Ruth Etting (whose 1920s and '30s recordings were long out of print by that time), it became the best-selling album of Day's career, spending months at the top of the Billboard album chart with her takes on songs like the title track, "Ten Cents Dance," and "You Made Me Love You (I Didn't Want to Do It)."
- Marcy Donelson

Bunk Johnson had a rather unlikely career. Completely forgotten and out of music by the late '30s, he was given a new set of teeth and a trumpet and hailed as a legend. Johnson made an impressive comeback, but excessive drinking resulted in an erratic and short-lived career. Both overpraised by some and dismissed by others, Johnson was actually a fine player when he was at his best. His final recording, which appears here along with two alternate takes, was arguably his best.
- Scott Yanow

Compared to Cherry's three earlier solo albums, the last of which was released in 1996, this is from another dimension. It's in line with her post-punk roots in the Slits, Rip Rig & Panic, New Age Steppers, and Float Up CP and, to a lesser extent, her 2000s output with family affair cirKus. The album begins with Cherry in a state of grief, and the mood from there hardly lifts through stark pieces full of hurtling drums and protrusive synthesizers topped by Cherry's baleful and agitated words, sometimes delivered with contrasting sweetness. From front to back, it's riveting uneasy listening.
- Andy Kellman

Guitarist Robin Trower's watershed sophomore solo disc, released 50 years ago today, remains his most stunning, representative, and consistent collection of tunes. Mixing obvious Hendrix influences with blues and psychedelia, then adding the immensely soulful vocals of James Dewar, Trower pushed the often limited boundaries of the power trio concept into refreshing new waters.
- Hal Horowitz

As a newcomer to Editions Mego, Klara Lewis' full-length debut album sits comfortably alongside some of her peers on the label like Fennesz and Oneohtrix Point Never, and is a very impressive effort. For a debut, it's a very rich, mature, and engaging listen with joyous moments -- electronic landscapes with a special attention to detail and a warm, conscious human input. It's for people who love low pulsating basses, industrial sounds, reverberated pops, and music that frequently drifts between the tranquil and unnerving.
- James Pearce

Collecting tracks from his early EPs for R&S, Dave Angel's Classics is a superb collection of jazzy, Detroit-influenced techno from a British perspective. All of the tracks are driving yet lush and melodic, perfectly balancing rhythmic exploration and emotional expression.
- Paul Simpson

Mike Savino's first solo outing under the indie psych-folk moniker, the project's third album highlights modifications he made to his banjo while playing out solo, including pickups, looping and pedal effects, and the ability to use his banjo head as a drum. Originally intending to rely completely on his banjo gear, he eventually brought in frequent touring partner Kishi Bashi, Ween drummer Claude Coleman, Jr., and drummer Philip Mayer for finishing touches. The resulting nine songs ultimately deliver heartfelt music that's at least as charming as it is innovative.
- Marcy Donelson

Mule Variations, released 25 years ago today, plays like a revue of highlights from every album he's made since Swordfishtrombones. Of course, that's hardly a criticism; the album uses the ragged cacophony of Bone Machine as a starting point, and proceeds to bring in the songwriterly aspects of Rain Dogs, along with its affection for backstreet and backwoods blues, plus a hint of the beatnik qualities of Swordfish.
- Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Lynyrd Skynyrd wrote the book on Southern rock with their first album, so it only made sense that they followed it for their second album, aptly titled Second Helping which celebrates its 50th anniversary today. Sticking with producer Al Kooper, the group turned out a record that replicated all the strengths of the original, but was a little tighter and a little more professional.
- Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Although they had greater success with subsequent releases, the jangling debut from the paisley underground stars is their most satisfying album.
- Timothy Monger

Wholeheartedly leaping into honky tonk whiskey ballads with elements of straightforward rock, the band stomps and struts their way through 14 tracks of pure hayseed boogie; always with a nod to solid rock songwriting and throaty yowls, keeping the sound slyly contemporary.
- Zac Johnson

One of the more satisfying classical/synthesizer debuts, Snowflakes Are Dancing (released 50 years ago today)  works on its own terms as a piece of music. As well, the album succeeds as an interpretation of several Debussy compositions (including Clair de lune and Arabesque No. 1). Debussy's atmospheric compositions are naturals to receive the Tomita treatment and despite a few moments of interstellar cheesiness worthy of Star Hustler, Tomita's debut is an intriguing proto-synthesizer-pop record.
- John Bush

Buried between their globe-conquering breakthrough and the mainstream crossover extravaganza that followed, this underrated gem might actually be the group's best album, retaining the madcap catchiness that boosted Tragic Kingdom ("Ex-Girlfriend," "New," "Staring Problem") while adding depth and maturity into the mix ("Simple Kind of Life," "Too Late"). Considering everything that followed, Saturn could be considered the final set that sounds like the "old No Doubt." With the 2024 reunion impending, it's time for a revisit.
- Neil Z. Yeung

This isn't an album that flaunts its strengths -- it's expertly constructed, subtle music that grows in stature with each spin, revealing Lynne as a trad rocker of uncommon skill and charm. It may have taken her years to finally find her groove, but I Am Shelby Lynne, released 25 years ago today, is so good, the wait seems worthwhile.
- Stephen Thomas Erlewine

In August 1952, 23-year-old Johnny Ace released his first single for Duke Records. By December 1954 he was a ghost, dead from a self-inflicted gunshot wound. This 20-track anthology collects Ace's Duke releases in full, and his singular delivery, a blend of assurance and an inescapable sorrow that shaded even his most upbeat numbers, remains revelatory. Few singers created such a distinctive and lasting reputation with such a small body of work.
- Mark Deming

On their second album, DIIV finds salvation through ambition. As they transform ugly feelings and situations into beautiful songs, they give their blend of cathartic grunge and impressionistic shoegaze a hard-earned depth.
- Heather Phares

Largely orchestrated by songwriter Dan Messé, the songs retain the timeless quality of Appalachian folk music without ever sounding dated. The music occasionally ranges through blissful '70s AM pop (the Carpenters), with hints of the big British folk ensembles (Pentangle, Fairport Convention), and sighing pedal steel reminiscent of '90s Americana (Cowboy Junkies, Mojave Three) and dreamy pop (Mazzy Star, the Sundays) all of which assemble on the same wooden front porch for a starry evening of acoustic introspection.
- Zac Johnson

Secret Name, released 25 years ago today, is unadulterated lo-fi/sadcore, semi-orchestrated pop/rock par excellence. What Low do particularly well is stay grounded, close to the earth and real. The music is so warm it's a literal caress from the speakers -- and that's no mean feat in their notoriously chilly genre.
- Denise Sullivan

Harry Nilsson was a great songwriter with a glorious voice, and Randy Newman is a brilliant songwriter with a voice that takes some getting used to. 1970's Nilsson Sings Newman was a superb matchup, with Nilsson wrapping sweet but insightful vocals and deceptively simple arrangements around Newman's songs and piano playing. Recorded decades before Newman's film scores finally made him a star, this is a beguiling presentation of the tunesmith's early, enduring work.
- Mark Deming

Second album from jazz-rap trio Digable Planets was more musically rich and expressive than their already impressive 1993 debut just one year earlier. Where the debut spent its time describing mellow sunny days in Brooklyn while coasting over lazy jazz loops, Blowout Comb felt like a mellow sunny day, with deeper production, more organic textures, and hints of dub echo and thick percussion adding to the album's undeniable groove.
- Fred Thomas

Though just another 2000s post-punk-revival flash in the pan, these Scots managed to release one of the best (maybe?) unheard albums of the era. The hallmark angular guitars, dramatic vocals, big synths, and abundant grooves are all present, but something about these songs just clicks. Catchy, melodic, and addictive, gems like "Break," "Keep Forgetting," "Ready Now," and "Maybe Someday" push urgency to the brink, but it's that gorgeous title track that cements the LP's greatness.
- Neil Z. Yeung

Former Mule frontman P.W. Long has made a career of playing the whiskey-soaked loser, leading his ever-changing cast of backing musicians through swampy, bluesy, sad-sack songs involving drinkin', leavin', sinnin', and stays in the county jail. On the 2003 Touch and Go release Remembered, these themes resurface with Long's familiar growl and biting guitar stomp.
- Zac Johnson

Lightning Bolt's first album, released 25 years ago today, shows that the duo's frenetic broken-machine-played-by-live-instruments approach was not merely in place from the start but firing on all fours. It's not easy to describe the tracks -- it's one thing to say it's just bass; drums; and gargled, barely audible but still shouted vocals; quite another to describe the effect of the performances.
- Ned Raggett