New Albums - Page 102

Scottish indie rock band Franz Ferdinand has returned with their fifth studio album, Always Ascending. The album, anchored by bassist Bob Hardy, is the first to feature their newest member Julian Corrie, who took the place of Nick McCarthy. Always Ascending offers a fresh feel thanks in part to the lineup change as well as the band taking their time...

Ray Brown was a master jazz bassist that could carry entire songs, with or without chordal instruments. One of his most notable recordings of the latter situation has just been reissued on vinyl for its 60th anniversary. Sonny Rollins’s Way Out West features the trio Brown on bass, Rollins on sax, and Shelly Manne on drums. It was taken from...

The Wood Brothers have returned with their sixth album entitled One Drop of Truth. The 10-song album deviates from their previous efforts by presenting each song as its own masterpiece, diving into a variety of styles and influences. “Often, when you’re making an album in the traditional way, there will be a unifying concept, whether that be in the approach...

Old school gamers got super excited in 2016 when it was announced that the classic Sega Genesis game “Toejam and Earl” was going to get a new chapter called “Back in the Groove.” The game is still being finished up, but the super funky soundtrack performed by Cody Wright is now available. Wright recreates some of the original grooves while...

Chris Hillman’s first two solo albums have been reissued on a new CD called The Asylum Years. The country-rock pioneer started his solo career with 1976’s Slippin’ Away, with Clear Sailin’ following the next year. Though Hillman laid down the low end for the iconic bands The Byrds and The Flying Burrito Brothers, he only played bass on two tracks...

Attention Frank Zappa fans: the complete Roxy performances are now available in a seven-CD box set. Recorded in December 1973, Zappa’s concerts at the Roxy Theatre in Hollywood are considered a high-water mark of his career with his band The Mothers in top shape. The lineup for The Mothers at the time included keyboardist George Duke, bassist Tom Fowler, trombonist...

Bassists David Pastorius and Christian Fabian have teamed up to release No Tricks, a 10-track album of electric bass duos. At first glance, the pairing may seem an unlikely fit. Fabian is a member of the Lionel Hampton Big Band while Pastorius, who is the nephew of bass legend Jaco, has performed alongside artists like Tech Nine. However, after a...

Bass wizard Mark Egan has teamed up with tabla player and percussionist Arjun Bruggeman to release an instrumental album called Dreaming Spirits. Featuring guest guitarist Shane Theriot, the project has been in the making for a decade. “This audiophile recording features 14 original instrumental compositions for a total of 70 plus minutes exploring multi-dimensional ambient grooves and masterful improvisations from...

Dywane “MonoNeon” Thomas, Jr. has just dropped a new album called I Don’t Care Today (Angels & Demons in Lo-Fi). The former Prince collaborator utilizes his genre-bending style to create what he calls his most intimate work yet. “‘I Don’t Care Today’ is a push and pull between the flesh and the spirit. MonoNeon creates a soundtrack about his existential...

The Muscle Shoals sound was the key to some America’s most popular music of the ’60s and ’70s. The secret weapon, of course, was the group of musicians, dubbed The Swampers, who made up the legendary rhythm section for so many hits. They crafted hits for Aretha Franklin, Big Joe Turner, the Staple Singes, Paul Simon, Rod Stewart, and more....

Guitar legend Joe Satriani has just released his sixteenth studio album, What Happens Next, and he lined up a killer trio for it. The record is filled out by Red Hot Chili Peppers drummer Chad Smith and former Deep Purple bassist Glenn Hughes. Though he’s known for his progressive style, Satriani took a more straight-forward approach he described as “pure...

Corrosion of Conformity has returned with No Cross No Crown, their first album to feature guitarist/vocalist Pepper Keenan since 2005’s In the Arms of God. Keenan reunited with the band in 2016 to return them from a trio to a quartet. “It’s been great, definitely good to have the whole crew in effect and go out there and take it...