Author: BPM

Album Review: Liars’ ‘The Apple Drop’

Posted on by BPM
liars

There’s a dark cloud that hangs over 2014’s Mess, the seventh album by Liars. The vibrant hair strands that adorn the album art are now reminders of the band that used to be. Since its release, two-thirds of Liars have departed: Julian Gross calling time on his participation in 2014, and Aaron Hemphill’s nagging back issues putting him on the bench in 2017.

What followed was unexpected; Angus Andrew carried on Liars as a solo project for two efforts – 2017’s underappreciated TFCF and its immediate follow-up 2018’s less-than-stellar Titles with the Word Fountain. Working every angle for two albums is a lot for anyone, but with his stone-cold stare piercing a hole through us, Andrew pressed on. Now we have The Apple Drop – easily the best Liars record in a decade, thanks in part to the additions of multi-instrumentalist Cameron Deyell and drummer Laurence Pike.

No shade intended towards 2012’s solid WIXIW, but the experimental nature of Liars had evolved to a point of no return. The faux-pop of 2007’s Liars was the only true access point for newcomers, and it’s nestled in between narrative giants, the magnum opus Drum’s Not Dead and the beloved Sisterworld. Liars aren’t a pop band by any means, but The Apple Drop is the first time they’ve sounded like a rock trio since their 2001 debut, They Threw Us All in a Trench and Stuck a Monument on Top.

The tone of The Apple Drop is livelier, something not felt since Sisterworld when the band went balls-to-the-wall. Hearing “The Start” kick off the album with such a vibrant riff warms the heart. When Andrew coalesces with Pike and Deyell on “Big Appetite”’s chorus of “They carry on for you” it feels like new ground is being broken for the band.

Everything here sounds tighter than before, with an emphasis on riffs and melody, allowing the experimental tendencies of Liars to take a step back for a moment. As a result, The Apple Drop will likely be labeled their ‘pop’ album, and that’ll be a justified assessment. The synthy “Sekwar” pushes a few boundaries but it nevertheless keeps itself grounded with climaxing choruses amongst traditional deadpan lines from Andrew; “I’ll fight first, I’ll fight first,” he affirms.

Of course, ‘pop’ is relative, and Liars are still fairly experimental when held side-by-side with traditional rock bands. The intense “Star Search” wouldn’t be welcomed with open arms on local radio stations, its eerie drums and spiraling organs would likely send DJs running for the hills. Its immediate follow-up, “My Pulse to Ponder” squelches as Andrew sings “I’ll cut your throat” repeatedly, a display that would see equal amounts of radio personalities fleeing their positions. Liars haven’t forgotten who they are, but Angus Andrew unironically wants to make things more interesting by going largely in a new direction.

The Apple Drop’s visual component unveils a lot of the themes behind the music. The three music videos for the consecutive tracks “Sekwar”, “Big Appetite” and “From What the Never Was” form a trilogy that pays homage to classic science-fiction thrillers like Alien, The Thing, and Twelve Monkeys. These images make a perfect accompaniment to the sounds and play on loop in your mind while listening to the album. While there’s more metaphor and meaning to be drawn from these videos, one thing is clear – Andrew is having fun with Liars again. He’s ripping open cadavers and screaming maniacally into the darkness, and soundtracking these mini-movies with cinematic meditations.

There’s nothing resembling the vocal gem that is “The Other Side of Mt. Heart Attack” here, but the closest we get is “Acid Crop”, where Andrew hoarsely yelps into oblivion in between soft melodic singing. It’s another fine example of how Liars can be moving forward while looking backward, not losing sight of what they’ve accomplished. Andrew seems to start over with every Liars record, but always incorporates the lessons learned with the new risks, and for much of the band’s discography this approach has been successful. He continues that trend with The Apple Drop, mining the past’s raw live performances with the electronics from their mid-career spikes, and finally arriving at their latest pop evolution.

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Album Review: Foxing’s ‘Draw Down The Moon’

Posted on by BPM

There have been some emo revival acts who have risen to fame by shattering genre expectations, often drawing the ire of the genre’s elitists along the way. Many of those bands end up crawling back into their shells, returning to the sounds expected from within. But Foxing have never shied away from the hate. Throughout their polarizing trajectory, they have braved the critical gatekeepers with the sole purpose of making music that matters to them, even if the results are a mixed bag.

With the exception of 2013’s debut album The Albatross, which has already been enshrined within the Emo Hall of Fame, each subsequent Foxing release has rubbed at least someone the wrong way. However, it wasn’t until 2018’s Nearer My God that the band felt comfortable enough to break across genre lines and expectations that they’d be the ones to reclaim the traditional sound of emo from the mainstream; it was an allusive statement that they’re no longer trying to be an emo band.

Now, with their newest record, Draw Down The Moon, the trio (down from a quintet) embrace this status with authority, as it finds them completely at home in a house undefined. They’ve occupied a space that allows them to be musical nomads without caring about what your pretentious Twitter timeline thinks ‘real’ emo has to be.

Nevertheless, the band’s sonic excursions aren’t necessarily apparent from the get-go. Draw Down The Moon begins with the deceptive “737”, a cosmically woozy folk number with blips of synthesizers and sparkling guitars, fittingly paired with triumphant horns playing from afar. However, one can sense something big and explosive brewing in the song as a thunderous drumroll begins to flood the dreamy atmosphere. With 40 seconds left, the suspected explosion materializes as singer and guitarist Conor Murphy turns the track on its head with visceral nu-metal roars for the song’s finale. The combustible “737” is a fitting bridge between the cinematic approach of Nearer My God and this new record.

From there, the band’s path diverges as they bleed into a seamless, synth-driven world on the next track, “Go Down Together”. Though grating to the ears initially, “Go Down Together” is a contagious electro-pop banger with a sheen so bright that one can’t help be reminded of the radiant and infectious simplicity of more mainstream indie acts of the early 2010s, particularly Passion Pit. The same can be said about “Where The Lightning Strikes Twice”, though to a far more unflattering degree. With obvious homage to classic new wave acts, “Lightning” will also remind some of Muse’s mid-career output that would eventually plague evening television on ABC Network in the early 2010s. The song isn’t downright awful; it carries with it a level of replayability that deserves some admiration. But, then again, when a band diverges so far from what they’re used to, there will be misses. Even the album’s daunting title track will prove to be a polarizing cut for many. Though groovy, thrilling, and slightly endearing, “Draw Down The Moon”‘s campy character might be a little too much to get behind.

Between those who will appreciate this record and those who will find it as a desperate grasp for mainstream success, everyone will agree that Draw Down The Moon is an obvious bid for early for 2010s indie-pop revivalism. The band has been hinting at this direction since their last album, and it’s refreshing to witness this bold direction the Missouri band desires to take itself. But, even with most of Draw Down The Moon operating within this indie-pop space that might be foreign to a large portion of their fanbase, Foxing still maintain some of their emo edge in places; guttural vocals, explosive breakdowns, and heart-on-sleeve lyrics ensure they have at least one foot in the fictitious yet all-too-real ‘fifth wave’ of emo.

Ultimately, Draw Down The Moon proves that this genre was never about a particular sound; it’s always been about striking a chord through forlorn themes, sentiments, and lyrics. This is most clear on the acoustic “At Least We Found The Floor”, as Murphy startles listeners by way of unashamed cynicism; ‘comforting’ a loved one but unable to withhold a taste of brutal honesty: “It’s going to get much worse than this.” It’s not the only display that, even with a record as unexpectedly shapeshifting as this, Foxing’s angsty roots are maintained. On the danceable and deceptively trite firecracker “Bialystok”, Murphy yearns with homesickness weighing in his heart. While the song’s crackling synthetic sounds and simple pop song structure are not traditionally ’emo’, his words still carry that pointed desperation.

The same can be said about single and album closer “Speak With the Dead,” featuring guest vocals from WHY?, but to a far more realized extent. At seven minutes long, it’s a vivid and ambitious post-rock behemoth that simultaneously paints Murphy remorseful and at an incredibly vulnerable state, dreaming of being in the presence of a departed friend, gone too soon. Not only does Murphy stun listeners with a voice in ruin – one moment conjuring hushed intimacy, the next a wailing scream – but his words are striking as he reminisces of simple moments with this lost friend, while making a sacred promise: “In my dreams I’m on a porch with you / I promise you I’ve been doing well in your name/ And I won’t try to speak with you again / Until I watch my last breath dissipate.” It’s extremely difficult to make a song so towering while imbuing it with such a profound sense of unguarded secrecy, but Foxing has accomplished it impeccably while offering tantalizing insight into what the band could sound like in the future.

With each song on Draw Down The Moon, Foxing posture themselves as a different band, teasing new possibilities at every turn – though there are a few inevitably clumsy attempts. In an interview with SPIN last month, Murphy admitted that with “every record [they]’ve put out so far, it seems like a decent amount of people hate it.” This is the kind of awareness that goes a long way when trying to appreciate a record so fascinatingly imperfect and blatantly jagged around the edges as this one. Foxing are aware they’re alienating some fans, but that makes it the kind of evolution one should admire and value. And with Murphy’s melancholic poetry persisting as the band’s heavy heart and soul, the genre’s most polarizing band, whether you like it or not, has reached yet another new level of boldness and grandeur.

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Album Review: The Zolas ‘Come Back To Life’

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Like so many others, The Zolas had their plans to release an album in 2020 scuppered by COVID-19. Instead of just retreating and pushing back the release date, the Vancouver band launched a campaign they called ‘Z Days’ which promised a new single on the second day of each month. Fans of the band could rest happy on getting their Zolas fix (especially since it was back in 2016 they released their last album, the bright and infectious Swooner) as well as plentiful cuts that would appear on their delayed album.

The extra time also brought about a little extra focus for The Zolas into how to shape and sound the album. Inspired by 90s Britpop and described by frontman Zachary Gray as a “21st century heir” to Trainspotting and Baz Luhrmann’s Romeo + Juliet, Come Back To Life borrows generously from the the era of Definitely Maybe and Screamadelica. There are smears of Oasis and nostalgic hat tips (and psychedelic waves) to the Happy Mondays across the album, but Gray and his band never get too lost trying to recreate the past.

If anything, props have to be given to Gray (and new bandmates, bassist Dwight Abel and drummer Cody Hiles, filling the gap left by departed keyboardist Tom Dobrzanski): they are a pretty convincing replica of the inspiring era. “Miles Away” jangles pleasingly as Gray ushers you to “lean back / don’t worry ’bout the feedback”, while “Let It Scare You” has a blissful summery air about it, channelling nostalgia from its echoey vocals through to its little hits of glockenspiel. If they were released 25 years ago, then tracks like these could have easily found an audience.

Elsewhere, they sound amazingly convincing as another band who made their name trying to replicate this era, namely Kasabian. Opening track “Violence On This Planet” cynically swaggers while “I Feel The Transition”‘s throbbing bass charges along as Gray takes on the topic of wealth disparity. Give either of these tracks that radio-ready shine on the trip hop beats and up the fuzz on the bass a little and you could have a track taken from somewhere between Kasabian and West Ryder Pauper Lunatic Asylum, if not just something ready to soundtrack a sequence of lads boasting their way down a street in a Guy Ritchie movie.

Gray’s old habits don’t die easily though, and if there’s a past he seems fond of recreating then it’s the flashy strut of Swooner. He has a certain way of inflecting his voice in the final bars of each of his lines, like he’s directing your attention to a particular clever word. It’s most evident on “Yung Dicaprio”, which manages to fuse together a bleary 90s “la la la” rush with that LA-like wearied glimmer; it sounds like two songs stuck together, but the trio do make it work. “Energy Czar”, on the other hand, has plenty of likeable features with its backing vocal touches in the chorus and stylish preppy guitar sound, but it also sounds like a rehash of familiar territory.

Where the album does excite is when Gray steps that bit more out of his comfort zone. Sometimes it’s a little feature, like on “PrEP” where there’s a noticeably emotional snarl in his voice as he shouts “I wanna scream until I burst,” addressing the HIV epidemic of the 1980s over thick, chugging bass. “Reality Winner” is a welcome instrumental turn that sounds equal parts indebted to trip-hop rave streaks from the Prodigy as it does to a modern dubstep pioneer like Burial. “Another Dimension” gets locked and lost in a gritty groove, but an elongated verse from Cadence Weapon is a highlight and surprise – it’s only a shame it doesn’t go on longer, especially when he starts to hit his lines against the snare with a pointed viciousness.

Final track “Wreck Beach/Totem Park” is also worth a shoutout, not just for broaching the difficult topic of Canada’s deplorable treatment of its First Nations, but also in how it manages to do it through a personal lens. “Songs I love to sing reveal themselves as requiems,” Gray carefully offers at one point as hazy synth chords blear in and out of view, like a fuzzy childhood memory coming to the front of your mind. The rise of the chorus is sweet and wistful (even though it’s tinged with darkness), but Gray sounds he’s retreating away from bleeding an intense emotional peak out of the song, like he’s aware this isn’t his area to broach. He’s reminiscing with a more informed mind, remembering fondly but with fuller context of life around him.

Like the album’s opening track, the closing “Wreck Beach/Totem Park” takes some six and a half minutes to spread out and explore the terrain, and it’s musical ventures like this that make Come Back To Life that few steps above the band’s previous efforts. The tone feels less pandering and hollow, and they’re actually sounds like there’s real weight and meaning behind some of Gray’s lyrics for once (which, thanks to the less airbrushed production, aren’t riding front and centre). While the album’s not without some clunky moments (mostly around the middle) and at points just feels like a continuation of what came before, Come Back To Life does an admirable job of balancing 90s sentimentality and the band’s own signature approach to writing. It’s a hard task to look backwards and forwards at the same time, but The Zolas do a pretty good job of it here.

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Album Review: Wavves’ ‘Hideaway’

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From the first verse heard on Hideaway — the latest album by the Nathan Williams-headed project Wavves — it becomes clear that the singer is on the defensive. “Oh I don’t love the people? / You never even met me before” he sings on “Thru Hell”, the album’s opening surf-punk track. “Thru Hell” is the kind of track that’s become expected from Wavves: aggressive, self-deprecating, playful in a laughing-through-the-pain kind of way. He’s still aware of his contentious demeanor, likely not only in the context of the song but in the context of his career overall, one that’s been particularly plagued with PR missteps. In other words, little about Wavves has changed.

For the past decade, the band has built a readily identifiable (if increasingly derivative) discography; indeed, “Thru Hell” bears resemblance to the title track of 2010’s King of the Beach, which also served as its opener. To be fair, Hideaway does offer up some punk songs infused with genre experimentations that help prevent such a knee-jerk dismissal. It’s an achievement possible thanks to TV On The Radio’s Dave Sitek, who produced the album and was enlisted to give life to these songs that were previously workshopped by the band in abandoned studio sessions. Sitek would play Williams obscure honky tonk songs and Johnny Cash deep cuts; their influence on Hideaway is undeniable. The guitar riff that enters halfway through the straightforward surf-rock ballad “Honeycomb” gives the song a distinct country-western flavor. Williams further embraces the genre on “The Blame”, a rambling track that sees Williams hone in on his lower vocal range to evoke Cash’s crooning.

These ideas offer glimpses into a future for Wavves that isn’t so reliant on the sound that’s been their bedrock since King of the Beach. At the very least, they’re newer ways to deliver Wavves’ blend of depressing albeit catchy rock. “You say the grass is greener on the other side / But I know the truth is that everything dies,” Williams sings on the album’s title track. The teasing guitar notes plucked on the verses of “Planting A Garden” bears a passing resemblance to Pavement, but the choruses just as quickly return to the loud, angsty guitar playing heard on any generic punk-rock track. Hideaway also has Wavves venturing into the indie-pop territory of yesteryear; the playful “Sinking Feeling” wouldn’t feel out of place on an aughts-era Tegan and Sara record. Here, the approach is fleshed through its entire runtime, which only makes the more obvious ‘Wavves’-type tracks get lost in the shuffle (the album’s most aggressive song, “Marine Life”, can’t compete with, say, “Super Soaker”).

Hideaway marks the project’s return to Fat Possum, which released the early LPs Wavves and King of the Beach. Yet, returning to the label only seems to highlight Williams’ current predicament; despite the label hopping, the independent releases, the decade of time spent away, Wavves still hasn’t changed much. Take the single “Help is on the Way”, easily the album’s most hook-laden and accessible track. However, the title belies the song’s cynical message: “Nothings gonna stay okay / I’m getting used to it.” Williams isn’t hopeful, he’s struggling to come to terms with the place he’s found himself in 2021. No wonder he’s on the defensive.

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Indie Summer Hits: SCALPING’s hard-hitting, genre-defying E.P., ‘Flood’

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scalping-flood

Within the opening moments of Flood, the debut EP from Bristol foursome (fivesome if you include their visuals guy) SCALPING, there seem to be a melange of different styles happening at once, and it’s not clear which one they might follow – be it the techno synth pulse, the acidic drums or the harshly wining guitar. Truthfully, they never really opt for one or the other across the EP – in fact, they throw more spices into the mix as they thumb their nose to the genre and powerfully display the foolishness of anyone who tries to compartmentalize music (or the world in general) in such rigid boxes.

If you’ve heard any of SCALPING’s early singles or seen them live, then Flood will come as no great surprise; it doesn’t offer any reinventions of their sound, but this early in their career they don’t need to – their breathless combination has not yet worn out its welcome by any means. The title Flood is appropriate, as it feels like they’re throwing open the gates and letting all their molten synth tones, curdling guitars and boiling beats come rushing out heedlessly in one epic deluge. There are no pauses for breath here.

Really, there are no words to describe the sounds, other than trying to pluck the amorphous images that they provoke in your imagination – which are wild and gone in an instant, swept along with SCALPING’s ceaselessly moving songs. The lack of a lead vocalist helps ignite the imagination, and also means that SCALPING can alternate between which instrument takes the ‘lead’ at any given moment. The opening “Monolithium” does exactly what the title suggests; takes something monolithic and then adds to it, until it sounds like a stampede of elephants getting swept away in a wave of lava. “The Perimeter” focuses on the guitar, which drifts across the sky like cobwebs of lightning, the drums, bass and synth plodding below like a mechanical army trudging through the muddy terrain – then, they pivot, putting the synth bass to the fore and shifting into a techno-forward track. 

“Cloudburst” picks up this baton and surges dead ahead on billowing black synths as tactile sounds rattle around the outskirts. From their time spent workshopping these songs live, they are already masters of tension-and-release, able to toy with their listeners in the same way as a master DJ ruling a dancefloor – but with a much deadlier clang when they do drop the hammer. Flood finishes with “Empty Cascade”, a relatively stately track as they drop the BPMs a smidge, but still keep the song burning like acid rain as they continue to drop excoriating guitar on top of tinkling adornment on top of rapid-fire drums in a never-ending torrent, adding momentum until they conclude the EP as a scorched husk of spent energy.

These songs were born out of improvisation, which seems obvious as they push right up against the boundaries set down by the rigid beats, throwing in as much as each song can carry until they are practically overflowing with ideas – and it’s thrilling to witness. That they manage to keep it all contained and on track is mightily impressive – but could be one area where SCALPING look to evolve; what would happen if they let the beat go haywire just devolved into utter chaos? They’re certainly going to have to figure out more ways to ensure their sound remains gripping without overwhelming by the time they attempt a full-length, but for Flood’s four tracks and 20 minutes, full-steam-ahead carnage works perfectly.

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More Top Indie 2021 Tracks

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1. Hard Drive – Cassandra Jenkins

Spoken-word woven into dreamy saxophone and piano, “Hard Drive” is a gorgeous and expansive single from Jenkins’ upcoming album, “An Overview On Phenomenal Nature” (due Feb 19). The New-York-City-based artist’s voice memos become “intimate vignettes, the musings of strangers as poetry and meditation.” The song ends with a rhythmic “1…2…3…,” — a calming exhalation that tows you back down to earth. Through “Hard Drive”, Jenkins invites the listener to take a breath, masterfully sowing a much-needed sense of grounding.

 

2. Song For Nick Drake – Skullcrusher

I typically don’t judge a song by its name, unless it’s called “Song For Nick Drake.” As a huge Nick Drake fan, I’m sort of required to like this track. And I wasn’t disappointed; it’s a gorgeous, delicate slow-burner. Skullcrusher (aka Helen Ballentine) released her debut self-titled EP last July under Secretly Canadian to excellent reviews. Her voice is whispery and emotive, her lyrics confessional; much like woman-of-the-hour Phoebe Bridgers. That being said, Skullcrusher assuredly maintains her own sound. I’m excited to see what she puts out in the future.

 

3. 4th of July – Hand Habits

“4th of July” is a soaring, vivid track, Hand Habits ’second single since 2019 record “placeholder.” Hand Habits, the moniker for Los Angeles based artist Meg Duffy, played guitar with Kevin Morby before they went solo. Duffy’s smooth, almost monotone voice and downcast lyrics counter the built-energy of the instruments. Indeed, “4th of July” makes articulations about factories and demolition sound like a pleasant incantation. Hand Habits is definitely one to watch.

 

4. Angeles – Cory Hanson

Wand’s Cory Hanson is a truly undefinable artist; his many efforts and collaborations over the past decade can be categorized as psych-rock, metal, lo-fi, acid-folk, and pop. His uncompromising assiduity allows him to expand into country and indie-folk with “Angeles,” — a wistful and swirling tune. It’s soft, but affecting, an offering for meditative moments. Be on the lookout for Hanson’s second LP “Pale Horse Rider,” coming soon.

 

5. Night Rider’s Lament – Bill Callahan/ Bonnie Prince Billy (ft. Cory Hanson)

Last September, veteran folk-rocker Bill Callahan put out a fantastic album, “Gold Record”, featuring stripped-down, narrative compositions such as “Pigeons” and “Another Song”. Since then, he’s released an unanticipated amount of singles and covers with long-time collaborator Bonnie “Prince” Billy, Louisville native and prolific artist in his own right. “Night Rider’s Lament,” a 1975 Jerry Jeff Walker song, also features Drag City compatriot Cory Hanson (see no. 4). It’s a lyrical, earnest folk-country ballad, perfect for shuffling into a walking/chill mix.

 

6. Candle – Buck Meek

Riding on the sustained success of his band, Big Thief, Buck Meek released his sophomore solo effort, “Two Saviors,” in January. “Two Saviors” is more indie/country-influenced, his mellow melodies far more understated than the passionate divinations of Adrianne Lenker with Big Thief. In “Candle”, Meek’s warm, lilting voice builds imagery of highways, bloody noses, and other comforting quotidian scenes. It’s a lovely soundtrack for a gray February morning.

 

7. Good Fortune (Demo) – PJ Harvey

Through quarantine, PJ Harvey has taken time to revisit her substantial body of work, sharing photos, songs, and archival material. For the first time, streaming services have access to raw-edged demos from her four seminal ‘90s albums, “Dry”, “To Bring You My Love”, “Is This Desire?”, and most recently, “Stories From The City, Stories From The Sea.”

“Good Fortune (Demo)”, off the last-mentioned, (Mercury-Prize-winning) album, is unrefined and unrestrained, revealing the bare-bones beneath the original’s elaborate electronic/trip-hop arrangements. Nonetheless, the song remains just as poignant, if not even more so. Harvey’s enigmatic persona is somehow strengthened by tapping into the profound current that runs through the depths of her work.

 

8. Dimension M2 – Stereolab

30 years has nothing on Stereolab. In their recent release “Dimension M2,” the inimitable quintet maintains their groovy, unbothered sound. As always, Stereolab manages to effortlessly blend rock, rhythm-based lo-fi, electronica, ‘70s krautrock, ambient, elevator music, and whatever else to create something entirely distinct. It’s like the most listenable background music—requiring just enough attention to enjoy but not too much to get caught up in. “Dimension M2” is a fun and worthwhile track.

 

9. No One Is Missing – Valley Maker

I recently happened upon Valley Maker, the moniker for Austin Crane, a self-described “PhD Student in Human Geography.” The North Carolina-based indie artist is releasing his third album, “When The Day Leaves” under Frenchkiss Records on February 19. Despite being recorded while quarantined in an old horse barn in rural Washington, the song has a spacious, unenclosed feel. Indeed, as if carried by the dirty interstates Crane describes, “No One Is Missing” has an intuitive velocity. Crane’s oscillating voice speeds up to pause, making space for landscapes to form between lyrics.

 

It’s hard not to despair with the current state of things. As the pandemic reaches its first anniversary, the weight of inconceivable suffering and shutdowns extends around us like a boundless fog. Armie Hammer is a cannibal, Kobe died over a year ago, and your roommate’s friend still hasn’t gotten the hang of social-distancing. It’s bleak out here. 2021 may be off to a questionable start, but plenty of new music is surfacing to mitigate these Winter-y, COVID-y,mid-semester blues. And for your sake, I’ve spent an inordinate time on Spotify, sifting through new releases. Here are 9 of the most compelling indie, folk, and alternative tracks to listen to this February. 1. Hard Drive – Cassandra Jenkins Spoken-word woven into dreamy saxophone and piano, “Hard Drive” is a gorgeous and expansive single from Jenkins’ upcoming album, “An Overview On Phenomenal Nature” (due Feb 19). The New-York-City-based artist’s voice memos become “intimate vignettes, the musings of strangers as poetry and meditation.” The song ends with a rhythmic “1…2…3…,” — a calming exhalation that tows you back down to earth. Through “Hard Drive”, Jenkins invites the listener to take a breath, masterfully sowing a much-needed sense of grounding.   2. Song For …

Maeve Watts-Roy
via Bearcast Media