Lankum, False Lankum

With one half of them rooted in traditional Irish folk music and the other in experimentation, introducing elements from different musical genres and creating dissonance and some consonance within their songs, Lankum have been an interesting band to explore. Though I will say that I have not always enjoyed their music. It can be dark and feel menacing with tension being created for which there is no relief or release. It can become too much for me to handle. This is not the case with False Lankum, the band's latest album. Not at all. 

'If modern folk music needs its own OK Computer, its own The Dark Side Of The Moon, or indeed its own F#A#∞, this may well be it.' Mojo

With False Lankum, the band's ambitions have never been greater. And yet, they have finally found the perfect balance between tradition and the something else that they have been playing with for so many years. Listening to the album, I truly felt like I was hearing something new, something different, something for the first time. In this regarding, Mojo's putting this album in the company of such singular albums such as OK Computer, while lofty, is just about right. What Lankum have achieved with their album False Lankum is truly breathtaking. 

RPWL, Crime Scene

I first heard RPWL when I stumbled upon their 2019 album Tales From Outer Space. I was quickly drawn to the German progressive rock band and their extensive twenty year catalog of albums and Tales quickly rose to be one of my favorites of that year.  

As I wrote back in 2019, the band started as a Pink Floyd cover band, and while it is probably not fair to still be talking about their origins 20+ years later, you can still hear Floyd influences, especially the band's later work (think The Division Bell). With this said, RPWL are truly an original band, especially on their concept oriented albums, such as their latest Crime Scene. On it, the band writes that it 'directs its attention to the morbid, the perverse, the evil in good, the abysses of the human behavior spectrum in all its unpredictable diversity, which sometimes comes across as bizarrely disturbing and conclusive, if one tries to fathom it.' Certainly not topics for the faint of heart, but in the hands of RPWL, they are explored in a way that will keep you coming back for another listen. So glad that RPWL are back.

Gorillaz, Cracker Island

When Blur's Damon Albarn and comic book creator Jamie Hewlett came together back in 1998 to form the virtual band Gorillaz, I don't know that they thought that they would still be at it twenty-five years later. I know that I did not think that this would be the case. While I liked their debut album, Gorillaz, and LOVED their follow up, Demon Days, I figured that as the novelty of a virtual band faded away and their music became less fresh and exciting, the band would quietly exit stage left. Yet here they are in 2023 with their eight album Cracker Island. And what an album. 

Not since Damon Days has Albarn and the band's music sounded this fresh and exciting. Collaborations with Stevie Nicks, Thundercat, Tame Impala, Bad Bunny, Beck, and others only add to the strength of their songs and music. Perhaps this is where they do exit stage left. Perhaps not. But if it is the case, it would be a fitting way to go out.

 

Caroline Polachek, Desire, I Want to Turn Into You

I remember the first time I heard Caroline Polachek's voice. It was on Chairlift's 2012 sophomore album Something. As one half of the pop rock duo, Polachek, her voice, and vocal choices took Chairlift's songs in interesting directions and to great heights. Fast forward thirteen years and Polachek's voice, vocal choices, and pop art sensibilities take her sophomore album, Desire, I want to Turn Into You, and its songs to new heights once more. Desire is pop art gold and by far her best album as an artist to date.

 

Bilk, Bilk

Here's what I know about Bilk...They're a British band from Essex, who formed in 2018. Since then they've gained a sizable and ever-growing following and their live shows are said to be fantastic. Here's what I can tell you about singer, songwriter and guitarist Sol Abrahams, bassist Luke Hare, and drummer Harry Gray's rock, rap, punk music...It's rough and ready, unpolished, unapologetically unoriginal, simple goodness that is catchy, cleaver, and fun. 

 

Robert Forster, The Candle and The Flame

"In early July last year, Karin Bäumler, my wife and musical companion for thirty-two years, was diagnosed with a confronting case of ovarian cancer. It was a time of shock and grief, and that same month, she embarked on a regime of chemotherapy treatment.

Ever since we met, Karin and I have sung and played music together in our home, and in these dark days we turned to music once again. I had a batch of new songs I’d written over the last years, and we started playing them together. Our son Louis often dropped in for a meal and a chat and soon he began joining us on guitar. One night, when sitting cross-legged on the couch, after we had played a song, Karin looked up from her xylophone and said, ‘When we play music, is the only time I forget I have cancer.’ That was a big moment." Robert Forster. 

Australia's The Go-Betweens was one of the best bands that I had never heard of back in the '80's. I only discovered them and Robert Forster (one half of the founding members) years later. I wish that this had happened way sooner. Forster is an earnest and heartfelt songwriter who's made a lot of memorable music over many years. This is once again the case with his eighth and most personal solo album, The Candle and The Flame, written after his wife Karin's cancer diagnosis. Home-recorded with his family, reflecting on his life's journey with Karin and family, Forster's album IS a life affirming family affair that is moving and touching and had me reflecting on my own life's journey with my wife and family.