Folk. Jazz. Punk. Rock. And some really heavy stuff. 

You're Free to Go - Anjimile [Indie Folk]

Beautiful, catchy indie folk that explores themes of identity and liberation. The vocals are beautiful and smooth, layered on top of some lovely textures from full-band instrumentation.

Tadpoles - Nick Wheeldon & The Living Paintings [Folk Rock/Alt-Country]

I've been following Nick's output for the better part of a decade. I first interviewed him and his Os Noctàmbulos (surfy garage psych) bandmates back in 2018. Most recently, he was a guest on Season 2 of Let's Make A Mixtape around the time he released the double album Make Art and the same year he released Waiting For The Piano to Fall with The Living Paintings, the same band featured on Tadpoles. With a Nick Wheeldon album, you can expect poignant songwriting with a heartfelt delivery, backed by incredibly talented instrumentation and thoughtful arrangements. Tadpoles is another solid entry in a stunning discography. If you like the cosmic folk rock of the 60s & 70s ala Gram Parsons or that 90s alt-country sound from the likes of The Jayhawks, you'll find yourself right at home with this record.

A Portal To Here - Work Money Death [Spiritual Jazz]

Spiritual jazz out of Leeds, UK. Fans of Alice Coltrane, Pharoah Sanders, and Sun Ra will likely enjoy this one immensely. Describing it won't do it justice. Give it a listen.

Hoggar - Tinariwen [Tuareg / Desert Blues]

If you're familiar with the Tuareg music tradition - also referred to as "Desert Blues"- this band is likely on your radar. If you're not, let me introduce you to Tinariwen, the legends of the gene. Dusty guitar, group vocals, hypnotic rhythm; sit back and let this music transport you far away.

Summerchild - Red Sun Atacama [Punky desert psych rock]

Turning up the heat, next is a bit of French rock'n'roll courtesy of Red Sun Atacama. Their high-octane garage punk ventures into heavy psych riffage and burning guitar solos. If you like Thee Oh Sees, Slift, Queens of the Stone Age, this album'll probably get your head bangin'. Horns up, friends.

Forever Beyond - Black Lung [Hard Rock]

Psychedelic stoner doom out of Baltimore. Fans of King Buffalo, Howling Giant, Psychlona, All Them Witches, Dead Meadow, or - broadly - good damn rock'n'roll - will likely find something to love here.

A Odesseia de Carlos Bizarro - Sereias [Punk Jazz]

This is one of those tickle my brain albums. The music coming out of Portugal never ceases to amaze me. This album in particular features a fuzzy, punky framework with smoky, psychedelic jazz and spoken word. There's a really intriguing and almost-unsettling tension the band is able to create with their sonic sculpturing.

An Undying Love for a Burning World - Neurosis [Proggy Post-Metal]

A very unexpecting release, post-metal legends Neurosis are back with ISIS (and the previously mentioned SUMAC) vocalist Aaron Turner joining the band in place of the problematic Scott Kelly. Colossal, sludgy, proggy, and cathartic. Moments of heavy tension released with beautiful, pensive instrumentation. Even if you're not typically a fan of heavy music, I suspect you might have some feelings towards the current state of the world. Summon those feelings, crank this sucker, and then let the heaviness take some of that weight away.

Until Every Flag is Burned - Hempitera [Melodic Crust Punk]

I'm relatively new into the world of emo crust/neo-crust/melodic crust. My first introduction was to Fall of Efrafa. From there, I fell down the rabbit hole: His Hero is Gone, Tragedy, Nux Vomica, Habak, Lagrimas, etc. This new record from Brighton-based Hemiptera is in that same fantastic tradition and even features vocals from Fall of Efrafa singer Alex CF. Heavy, blackened, righteous punk rock songs backed with a cello. I have to imagine this is what people who haven't listened to Murder by Death think Murder by Death sounds like.

Click on the first track to start playing: