So, we're coming up on the close of the first quarter of 2024. And so, if you haven't been following this column closely, it's a good time to go back and listen to the playlists and hear what you've missed. Just a suggestion.
Local Picks
Jake Baldwin, Zacc Harris, Pete Hennig, âYou Got the Best of Meâ
Not sure if you know this about me, but Iâm a sucker for trumpet over ambient jazz. A real In a Silent Way guy. So this trioâs upcoming album Boundaries is right in my zone. Here Baldwinâs horn repeats and modifies a simple motif as Harrisâs electronically treated guitar adds an unsettling thrum while drummer Hennig percusses around the edges. And apparently Baldwin won a Grammy for his work on the soundtrack to Assassinâs Creed: Ragnarokâwho knew?
The title track of this suave young singer-songwriterâs new EP for a reason. Music and lyrics both are smooth but never slick, and he cuddles up to you with just enough eagerness not to scare you off. Â
The Controversial New Skinny Pill, âDeeper Than Feelâ
Playful psych doused in almost dubwise echo, with a beat you can dance or trance out to and cute little electronic touches or rhythmic fillips scattered generously along the way. Groovy.
Superheater, âCosmic SuggestionâÂ
A simple guitar figure I cannot get out of my head powers the lead single from these garageniksâ new Beyond What? Beyond Fresh! Fuzzy, nasty, grungy, good. And you can catch them at Cloudland on Thursday night.Â
How does this laid-back lover boy know youâre into him? âI can tell by your vibrations,â he coos over an Insinuating Afrobeatsy burble. And the object of his attention? She eventually lets him hit because âYou make it sound so mystical.â
Non-Local PicksÂ
Blondshell feat. Bully, âDocketâ
Cheating on tourâgirls do it too! Or at least they think about it. And they feel guilty for thinking about it. And then they write about it. âI look around at the options/I put men on the docket,â Sabrina Teitelbaum and Bully's Alicia Bognanno commiserate here, while feeling sorry for the fellas they left back at home. Â
Megan Moroney, â28th of Juneâ
I prefer Moroney wise-cracking to lovelorn, but hey, this is country music, and if your voice had that little catch in it youâd whip up some excuses to sing about your broken heart too. Here sheâs celebrating what would have been an anniversary on whatâs now âjust another Tuesday.â
Olivia Rodrigo, âSo Americanâ
Most of the demo-ish bonus tracks tacked onto the deluxe Guts (Spilled) are neither essential nor trashâtheyâre the kind of solid efforts a songwriter at the top of her game sets aside for later while going for the gold. I love this one for the way Rodrigo rhymes the title with âfair of himâ and âIâm gonna marry him,â and all I want to know is if this is the guy who flew her to France when heâd say something wrong?
Shakira & Cardi B, âPunterĂaâ
Shakiraâs collabs over the past year have been career-reviving without feeling purely clout-chasing: This rootless trans-Latin hybrid cross-pollinated so fruitfully with Fuerza Regida on âEl Jefeâ and Bizarrap on âBzrp Music Sessions, Vol. 53â âcause she thrives in any climate. For the big finish she teams up with Cardi, whoâs having a killer 2024 so far herself, and is more than game to remind the non-Anglo public that sheâs Dominicana, all while Offset munches on her empanada.
Two Shell feat. FKA Twigs, âTalk to Meâ
The gimmicky anonymous London production duo Two Shell, who annoy me on principle, slice and dice Twigsâs attenuated soprano into a delightful sound effect in the service of their hyperbeats. Just goes to show you, once again, how little principle matters in pop.
Worst Song of the Week
Justin Timberlake, âConditionsâ
Maybe if Timberlake's new single, âSelfish,â is ever as inescapable as âMirrorsâ was Iâll grow to fully hate it. For now itâs just an unwelcome reminder that the guy (who anyone paying attention always knew was a skeevy little conniver) is still pretty decent at what he does, even with mid material. The real selfish moment on Everything I Thought I Was, an album that ever-so-vaguely acknowledges JTâs rap sheet and seeks forgiveness without repentance, is this smug little closing track, which dishes out some real take-me-as-I-am nonsense (âIâm just a man, I'm gonna mess up againâ and âdo some shit I know won't be forgiven,â etc.) then demands âSay you'll love me under all of my conditions.â Hey, whatever arrangement you and Jessica have, thatâs your business. Me, Iâm gonna give the new Usher album another listen instead.
Wanna get a local song considered for the playlist? To make things easy on both of us, email keith@racketmn.com with MONDAY PLAYLIST in the subject header. (Donât, as in do NOT, DM or text: If Iâm in a good mood, Iâll just ask you to send an email; if Iâm in a bad mood Iâll just ignore it.)