Samm Henshaw, Untidy Soul

"I'm a bit of a scatterbrain most of the time. Creating for me is never a clean and simple sort of process, and it was me learning to accept that and be OK with that....I think for me, genuinely, it's about growth." 

Samm Henshaw

Raised in London in a Nigerian household, Henshaw's first focus was working to earn a degree and go on to teach. Music, making music, and finding a way into the music industry was not a thing. But while in university, with the encouragement of a friend, Henshaw started creating and posting his music on YouTube. This creative outlet did then become his focus and eventually formed the basis of his dissertation. That dissertation then became his first official EP release. And then, upon graduating, Henshaw found himself signing a contract with a record label that was waiting for him. And the rest as they say is history? Well, at least the start of what should be a long history as a recording artist starting with his debut album, Untidy Soul. It's a real gem of an album and one that I have been thoroughly enjoying.

 

Aurora, The Gods We Can Touch

I have been a bit captivated by Norwegian singer and songwriter Aurora since I first heard her debut album, All My Demons Greet Me as a Friend, back in 2016. There was something captivating about the intersection between her angelic and ethereal voice and her fusion of pop, electro and synth pop, and folktronica music. But, as with any young and developing artist, there was still work to be done to fuse it all together in a truly cohesive way. On her third album, The Gods We Can Touch, Aurora has done just that and so much more.

An album inspired by Greek mythology and the intersection between the divine and the human, The Gods We Can Touch weaves stories of myths and mythos in contemporary times and settings. They serve as reminders, says Aurora, of things that we have forgotten. "We used to worship the earth, and music was a way of connecting us to something divine," she recently said in an interview. "I love Greek mythology because [they didn't] put shame on being a woman, or being gay, or being trans or sexual and curious. I'm fascinated by how much we've lost over time, and how much shame we put into beautiful things."

It is here, in the context of the intersection between the divine and the human that Aurora's voice and music realize new levels of connection, power, and impact. Aurora doesn't just draw you in as a listener, you become a participant, sharing in her moods, feelings, and emotions. It's no small feat on her part and will leave you with the same wonder that Aurora has for ancient times.

 

Texas Hill, Heaven Down Here

Adam Wakefield, Casey James, and Craig Wayne Boyd have all enjoyed individual success as musicians. Yet, they all are part a unique club of musicians. All three initially found notoriety and fame after competing on music competition shows; Wakefield and Boyd on The Voice and James on American Idol. 

In 2019 the three met and became fast appreciators of each others abilities as song-writers and musicians and from there Texas Hill was born. Now, three years later, they have released their debut album Heaven Down Here. And it is a great one.

As a trio, Wakefield, James, and Boyd not only bring out the best in each other, they also just sound so darn terrific together. Talk about inspired vocal harmonies. As Wakefield said about their vocals in a recent interview, "We have our own sound as a collective, and nothing shows that more than when we flip parts around and still sound the same. These three timbres together, regardless of what register they're in, they create their own sound." That sound shines throughout this collection of twelve great songs. As Sounds Like Nashville best wrote, "With its real-life-inspired lyricism and multi-genre stylistic influences - which melds soul, R&B, country, southern rock, and even some Memphis blues - Heaven Down Here encapsulates the true spirit of down-home music." And who can't use more of that?

 

Yard Act, The Overload

In just 18 months, Yard Act have gone from an unknown post-punk band from Leeds, UK to being a major label recorded band with debut album that is expected to enter the UK charts at number one this week. Not too bad. 

Since the band released their first single, Fixer Upper, there has been a great buzz around them. Yard Act has seemed to have struck a nerve as lead singer James Smith and the band confront everyday life in a post-Brexit Britain with their acid tongue lyrics and post-punk funk sound. 

Now, a little less then two years since the forming, Yard Act give the people much more of what they want; a full length album of blunt, bruising, compassionate, and witty songs that touch on class identity, gentrification, consumerism, cancel culture, and general discontentment. Combined with their 'skittery-but-muscular post-punk funk' sound: 'punchy disco drums, stabbing, guitar, and melodies driven by the bass that tend to resolve into memorable choruses' (The Guardian), the band land a one-two punch. The Overload is a super debut album that I have been thoroughly enjoying and it is one that should set Yard Act on a trajectory to great success. 

 

Happy Birthday David Bowie

Today is David Bowie's birthday. He would have been 75 years old. Monday will be the 5th anniversary of his passing. 

I am and have always been a HUGE Bowie fan. And each and every year on his birthday, in celebration of his life, art, and incredible body of work, I break out my favorite albums...of which there are many...and listen to them throughout the day. 

I also reach for my favorite Bowie quote which is always appropriate to the start of the New Year. And frankly always appropriate.

Happy B-Day Mr. Bowie. And Happy New Year!

Top 10 Albums of 2021

Those familiar with Sonic Subway will know that the albums that I tend to gravitate towards are not necessarily those that are critics' darlings or wildly popular, though some are. They may not be trying to make any grand social statements or commentaries about the world we live in. In some cases, they may not even be considered to be very good by others. I don't really care. They are albums that grab me and take me someplace else for whatever reason and I find myself wanting to go back there...again and again. So here they are, my top 10 albums of 2021. 

10. Japanese Breakfast, Jubilee

Michelle Zauner and her band Little Big League had finished their second album when she learned that her mother had stage four cancer. Zauner immediately moved back home to Eugene, Oregon to care for her. During that time, she made a few lo-fi recordings under the name Japanese Breakfast. Zauner also started writing a memoir about her life as a half white, half Korean American and whether she could lay claim to that identity anymore.

Following her mother's passing in 2014, Zauner took on the Japanese Breakfast moniker in earnest and released two albums over the next few years. Both centered around  grief, loss, and identity. Both received wide spread attention and praise. For me, I appreciated them both, but never returned to them after a listen or two. 

Earlier this year, Zauner's memoir, Crying In H Mart, was published. It became a New York Times best seller. A few months later, Zauner followed it up with the release of her third album, Jubilee. And as the title implies, things are feeling quite different for Zauner these days. And you can sense it from the opener Paprika as the synthesizer kicks things off and then, as the song builds and the chorus rises, the horn section comes in. It's an '80's inspired synth-pop delight that Kate Bush would love. And then there's her lyrics. Drawing inspiration from sci-fi film maker Satoshi Kon's movie of the same name and its opening psychotic parade dream sequence, Zauner's lyrics paint a surreal world where real life and dreams blend together. It truly feels like a different artist at work here.

Jubilee is by far Zauner's best work to date and an album that should be celebrated.

9. Charlie Marie, Ramble On

The first time I heard Charlie Marie's debut album Rambling On, it just blew my socks off. This does not happen that often with me. But right from the beginning I knew that I was discovering and experiencing something special. 

"I wanted the record to sound like if Patsy Cline and Dwight Yoakam had a child...It doesn't just symbolize everything I'm working toward: it symbolizes where I come from, too."

Marie, who grew up in Rhode Island, fell in love with country music at a young age. By her mid-teens she was fronting a band and playing fairs and festivals in New England...a far cry from the heart of country music land. That all changes when she made her way to Nashville for college. There, Marie honed her songwriting skills. Writing songs about her own experiences, Marie portrayed herself not as some 'guitar-strumming southern belle, but as a proud outsider who had fallen in love with country while living far from the genre's Bible Belt headquarters.' 

You can hear Nashville by way of Rhode Island in Marie's songwriting. While she no doubt pays homage to her musical idols and influences, she is not afraid to step outside their very traditional country lanes. It is how she so perfectly balances the two that sets her songwriting and songs apart from so many others. 

I will say that Marie's debut album is simply a stunner. It's a classic country affair for the times that we are living in today.

8. Wheel, Resident Human

There are albums that test my time and patience in ways that frustrate me. And then there are those albums that pay big rewards for diving in deep. Wheel's Resident Human is the latter. It's a 50 minute epic album of mood and tone that can be intense, heavy, and at times dark and ominous as this Finish band with English frontman James Lascelle try making sense of the turmoil and emotional toll that the last few years have taken on us all. 

If this all sounds too much to handle, it is not. Wheel masterly moves from heavy and ominous to welcomingly melodic and quiet at all the right moments giving needed space for Lascelle, who sings with such intensity, the album, and the listener time to breath. It all makes listening to Resident Human absolutely captivating. Not since Tool's Fear Inoculum have a found myself so drawn to a prog metal album and I suspect that this will be the case for many others as well. This is one of the fiercest albums and most rewarding listens that I have experienced all year and it definitely deserves your time.

7. Sad Night Dynamite, Sad Night Dynamite

I have always been a bit enamored with artists who can mash-up samples and music genres successfully to create something new and moving. They're a bit like music magicians with me asking 'how did they do that?' Enter Sad Night Dynamite. 

Childhood friends Archie Blagden and Josh Greacen love film scores and film makers like Quentin Tarantino who play with contrasts between beauty and violence. They also 'adore' bands like The Clash, Stone Roses, Portishead, I Monster and MIA. So why not throw all of this together and see what happens? So they did. The result is Sad Night Dynamite, the duo's debut mixedtape.

Described as a nightmarish trip through hip-hop, dub, Britpop, punk, electronica, and beyond, Bladgden and Greacen have created a fully realized other-world. It's one that 'tries to pull you out of real life and take you somewhere else.' Ever evolving and changing, but always 'dark and sexy' the duo's music is a thrill to listen to. And while it doesn't take itself too seriously they say, it has heart which is ultimately what they hoped to achieve.   

6. Adam Melchor, Melchor Lullaby Hotline, Vol. 1

So you're a musician stuck at home for a year. What do you do? In the case of Adam Melchor, he committed to keeping up with a 'hotline' that he had set up in February of 2020 that encouraged people to text or email him each Sunday to receive a new song. If they did, they would receive one at 5pm. By the end of the year, Melchor had sent out 44 songs. 

Along the way, his lister group grew to ten thousand and he racked up over 40 million streams. This all brought new attention to Melchor including Warner Records who came knocking and signed him to a record contract earlier this year. So why all the fuss over Melchor? Because he is a damn fine songwriter and musician. In fact, he is one of the more impressive artists that I have heard in quite some time. 

After a year of recording Sunday songs, Melchor released a selection of them as a mixed tape. Entitled Melchor Lullaby Hotline, Vol. 1, Mehchor's artistry is on full display, showing a level of craft that is unusually strong...this is especially the case when you understand that some of these songs were literally written and recorded in a few hours at home. 

I suspect that big things are in store for Adam Melchor. We shall see. I will say that I will be rooting for him all the way.

5. Lice, Wasteland: What Ails Our People Is Clear

 

Every once in a while, an album comes along that defies my understanding of what music can and should be. Lice’s Wasteland: What Ails Our People Is Clear is one of these albums.

 

As DIY Magazine wrote, Lice’s debut albums feels like their ‘conscious uncoupling from the contemporary musical landscape. A conceptual commentary on the band’s perceived banality of the ‘satirical guitar music boom’, they lampoon the cliche across 11 barnstorming tracks. But for all the bridge burning, there is still a touch of the familiar. Deeply rooted in modern left field sensibilities, they combine their unique brand of artistic experimentation with the grounding influence of their peers. The result is a collection of biting, esoteric hymns that readily combine the earthly and the cosmic.’

 

This is an album not to be missed, but come ready to be challenged.

4. Birdy, Young Heart

It's a bit wild to think that Birdy is now..and only..24. Since she won the open Mic Uk competition in 2008, at the very young age of 12, Jasmine Lucilla Elizabeth Jennifer van den Bogaerde  has been a tremendously successful singer-songwriter who seems to have no limits to her talents....or success. Yet in 2016, after finishing her Beautiful Lies tour, Birdy hit her own limits in terms of energy, creativity, and feelings of authenticity with her music.

Three years, and a personal breakup later, Birdy escaped to a cabin in Topanga, CA. With it's"kind of Laurel Canyon, seventies-like feel," Birdy found herself listening to Joni Mitchell's album Blue and finding new inspiration. With it came Young Heart, what Birdy describes as a "heartbreak Album" which she used to navigate and work through her own failed relationship. It's a beautiful and mature piece of work and seemingly well beyond Birdy's young age. It once again shows the talent or I should say gift, that Birdy possesses. And I'm thankful that she is sharing it with the rest of us. 

3. The Vintage Caravan, Monuments

Formed when they were just twelve years old, the Icelandic trio The Vintage Caravan's songs and sound had always stayed close to the 'hard hitting riff fueled' music of the bands they loved and idolized; Led Zeppelin, Deep Purple, Mastodon, Rush, and Cream. But, as lead singer and guitarist Óskar Logi Ágústsson said in an interview earlier this year, they never set out to be a band that sounded like it was frozen in 1971 and then put in the microwave all these years later.

In February of 2020, after extensive touring that brought new attention and fans to the band, they entered the studio to record their fifth album Monuments. Twenty-two days later, after more or less living at the studio, the band walked out feeling that they had really found and stamped their own sound for the first time. And what a sound.

Monuments is a hard hitting, hard rocking, superb album with all the right riffs, hooks, and surprises to keep even the most ardent rock fan totally engrossed in it. For me, it's one of the best albums by a rock trio that I have heard in a long time.

2. Deafheaven, Infinite Granite

Deafheaven's Infinite Granite might have been the most surprising album that I heard this past year. Formed as a black metal band, Deafheaven have challenged themselves and their fans over the years, shifting musical directions as they toned down the screaming and heart pounding double-kicks and blast beats for more melodic overtones and a more shoegazing-like sound. 

Now, with their fifth album Infinite Granite, the band completes their musical evolution, fully abandoning their earlier sound and fully embracing a shoegazing one. As George Clarke's soft and melodic vocals float over an ethereal wall of sound, I find it impossible to associate this band with their younger self. It's a stunning transformation and the result is their most exciting album to date.

1. The Pretty Reckless, Death by Rock and Roll

I miss good old fashion rock. Thank goodness for The Pretty Reckless. At one time they were tagged as the next 'big' thing in rock. Then, a few years ago, the band was upended by the deaths of two people close to them. Drugs, booze, and depression then followed for lead singer and co-songwriter Taylor Momsen. Writing and recording new songs helped bring Momsen out from her darkness and earlier this year Momsen and the band returned, and in a BIG way, with their fourth album Death By Rock and Roll. 

'Freedom found me when I first heard the Beatles sing. Music surrounding me. The Church bells start to ring. I stole my Daddy's vinyl. And burned that needle out. Jimi, Janis and Morrison. A garden full of sound.' 

Paying homage to the bands and music that influenced and impacted Momsen, she said in an interview that she really poured herself into this album in the most literal way possible-physically, mentally, blood, sweat, and tears. Listening to The Death by Rock and Roll you can tell that this is the case.  The album, as Classic Rock Mag wrote, 'is proof that what doesn't kill you makes you stronger.' And this is a band that is stronger and better than ever. This one fantastic, super-charged album and my favorite album of 2021.