Promises is a masterwork of collaboration, a suite that both teaches and bestows patience, tranquility, and openness. Promises — a ravishing collaboration between Floating Points, Pharoah Sanders, and the London Symphony Orchestra — opens with a wisp: A bright smattering of notes played on…
Carnage is both a progression and double-back for Cave and Ellis, re-embracing some of their punk and sleaze of their past while still offering delicate, impressionistic texture. Nick Cave has never been one to coddle. His music demands that listeners sit for a while with…
While Willie Nelson boasts a pretty high floor and That’s Life is indeed a pleasant enough listen, it’s the also the songwriter’s least essential album in the past decade. With That’s Life, Willie Nelson finds himself two albums deep into a cycle of Frank Sinatra…
By Request is a thrilling jukebox collection, more rarified that typical covers album, and a profound response tragedy. Though barely perceptible in the music itself, A.J. Croce’s By Request arrives with an undercurrent of tragedy. Following the sudden death of his wife in 2018, Croce…
Yasmin Williams’ sophomore release builds upon the impressive instrumentation and technical expertise shown in her first album, and exhibits her ability to produce cheerful, magical compositions. Yasmin Williams composes music almost exclusively for solo guitar — a fact that’s worth emphasizing because, listening to…
Greenfields is a little muddled from numerous star-studded features, but still puts the Bee Gee’s classic songbook on display in a new light. On his third-ever solo album, last living Bee Gee Barry Gibb rarely sounds like the star of the show; at best,…
Steve Earle’s newest, a tribute to his late son Justin Townes Earle, delivers a mournful-yet-celebratory look at a father’s love for his departed son. Steve Earle has already devoted a sizable chunk of his discography to tribute albums, honoring his personal pantheon of formative…
Margo’s latest strikes the perfect balance of intimacy and spectacle. Perfectly Imperfect at the Ryman captures Margo Price at an inflection point. The album was recorded in 2018, during a three-night residency at country music’s mother church, with Price still riding high on the…
The superb, three-volume Boots No. 2 proves there’s no need to worry about Welch running out of material any time soon. Sometimes you have to almost lose something in order to realize just how much it’s worth. Such is the case with Boots No.…
The Truckers are no less biting than usual, but The New OK reflects the group’s discernible joy in making a ruckus amidst society’s grimness. The Drive-By Truckers are no strangers to grandiose sociopolitical statements; in their catalog you’ll find a rock opera that navigates their identity…
