Still More of the Best Music You May Have Missed

by Vance Hiner | December 27, 2017

his year has certainly been one for the record books. Just staying informed has become a full-time job. In case you’ve been distracted by the news and other deadly serious matters, this installment of my ongoing blog is a handy way to catch up on some great music you may have missed along the way. It wasn’t just stars like Robert Plant, Lorde, Lana Del Rey, Kendrick Lamar, The War on Drugs, and The National who released stellar albums this year. Scores of other talented artists managed to rise above the crowd and deliver works that are both sonically and musically notable. Here are a few of them -- mostly CDs, but one is a download and most are available on vinyl too.

Jeb Loy Nichols • Country Hustle
Country City Country/Inkind CCC 007CD

If you’re bored with run-of-the-mill pop and paint-by-the-numbers alt rock, allow me to suggest a stroll into the strange, wonderful world of Jeb Loy Nichols. He is an American-born and -bred singer/songwriter who now makes his living as a farmer in Wales. Defying all expectations that such a bio might conjure up, Nichols’ music sounds like it was created in Al Green’s Memphis studio by Curtis Mayfield, a group of Jamaican dub masters and fronted by swamp-rock legend Tony Joe White. This musical gumbo is the result of a years-long collaboration with British composer Andrew Hale and a host of artists like DJ Distance and the Irish duo St. Francis Hotel. The production comes across like it was recorded on a '70s-era reel-to-reel, all golden and glowing with pillowy low bass and a delicious midrange. Cue up "Don’t Drop Me" and you’ll be transported from a scene out of Superfly straight to a club somewhere between Nairobi and Atlanta. While Jeb Loy Nichols is clearly one of those eccentric musicians who isn’t really looking for a big audience, he certainly deserves one.

Torres • Three Futures
4AD 4AD0022CD

Singer/songwriter Mackenzie Scott, who has been performing under the name Torres since 2012, uses her striking contralto to embody a series of diverse personalities that make up the brooding world of Three Futures, her third studio album. Whether she’s channeling the voice of a male teenager on a date in his car, cruising some dance club as a rowdy woman on the make, or struggling to communicate with God, Scott’s edgy guitar work, melodic synth lines and pulsating drum tracks paint a canvas that is full of foreboding and mystery. Three Futures could easily stand as a darker and more industrial companion piece to this year’s more popish St. Vincent album, Masseduction. Both records are striking statements by powerful, self-assured women who have clear-cut artistic visions. Scott’s guitar prowess certainly puts her in St. Vincent’s league even if her fretboard runs are not quite as flashy. It’s fitting that PJ Harvey percussionist Rob Ellis produced Three Futures and he does an excellent job of creating a sonic atmosphere that hits you in the chest on some cuts but then hovers and swirls like wisps of mist on others. The sheer range of emotions and subject matter Scott captures here reminds me of a great collection of short stories. You’ll keep thinking about these characters and melodies long after the album is over.

Nora Jane Struthers • Champion
Available via streaming or download from Tidal/Amazon/Spotify/Apple Music

The Americana music scene is a bit crowded these days. For every Margo Price, there are a hundred sound-a-like banjo and guitar strummers to put you to sleep. Nora Jane Struthers’ new album Champion is just the rock 'n' roll refresh the genre has been needing lately. In spite of the critical success of her previous albums, Struthers’ independent streak led her to produce and distribute this recording herself. Her voice is a powerful mixture of Linda Ronstadt chops, Natalie Maines sass and Casey Chambers twang. It’s perfectly matched with her backup band, The Party Line. This immensely talented foursome can sound like Exile On Main Street-era Stones on the album’s opener "Each Season" and then channel David Lindley’s El Rayo X while accompanying Struthers on tracks like "The Words." Mastered by Nashville legend Jim DeMain and engineered by Neilson Hubbard, the sound on some cuts is warm without sounding slick, while on others it's just the right amount of raw. Some guitars have sharp teeth while a pedal steel is as smooth as aged bourbon. That’s something only seasoned professionals can pull off. Champion is Struthers’ fourth studio album and it is full of confidence. Her recent marriage to bandmate and guitarist Joe Overton may explain why these sessions sound like a labor of love.

Justin Townes Earle • Kids in the Street
New West 607396638925

Children of famous people deserve a bit of sympathy. They’re born with a millstone of expectation around their necks and few soar to the heights of their parents. I submit that Justin Townes Earle is a grand exception to that age-old story. The son of Americana icon Steve Earle, he has overcome serious demons like heroin addiction and a rocky relationship with his dad to produce some of the past decade’s very best roots music. In addition to writing songs that stand up to a number of his father’s best, he can sing circles around his old man. Part Johnny Cash with a dash of Jerry Lee Lewis, he embodies an authority that belies his 35 years and scrawny frame. Like Springsteen, Earle writes about normal people’s trials and tribulations. This album kicks off with "Champaign Corolla," a rollicking celebration of a stable relationship. "Maybe a Moment" is the story of a Memphis Romeo trying to charm a local girl into taking a chance with him and bottle of Thunderbird. The mood is cinematic and evokes the kind of romance you hear on hipster classics like Tom Wait’s "Downtown Train." Produced in Omaha, Nebraska, by Mike Mogis of Bright Eyes fame, this album continues Earle’s string of sonic home runs. The sound is huge, with booming drums, slap-echo bass and Gene Vincent swagger. Instruments are surrounded by natural air, the soundstage is sprawling and the dynamic range is off the charts.

Perfume Genius • No Shape
Matador OLE 11132

For those unfamiliar with the ornate synth pop of Perfume Genius, aka Mike Hadreas, No Shape is a great place to start listening. This is Hadreas’s fourth album and he has managed to produce a stunning collection of love songs that are both operatic and quietly contemplative. From the pulsating rhythms and soaring melody of "Wreath," which conjure up the passion of Freddie Mercury’s best anthems, to the Vivaldi-like string arrangements and angelic vocals of "Choir," Hadreas has created a wide canvas of sounds that is at once challenging and seductive. The sheer complexity of the sonic layers and lyrical depth of this album demand repeated listening. While the production is extremely dense, it’s handled by the talented studio hand of Blake Mills. Those who want to test the resolution of their sound systems will be rewarded with hidden detail if they turn up the volume a bit. Fans of David Bowie, Brian Eno and Bjork should find plenty to appreciate in Hadreas’s off-kilter electronic explorations. His multi-octave vocal range is the perfect vehicle for musings about pain and redemption. Like Prince, whose ghost is occasionally evoked on this album, Hadreas is a maverick who isn’t afraid to shift personalities and tone from song to song.

Son Little • New Magic
Anti- 87529

Philadelphia native Aaron Livingston has been around for a number of years working under the moniker Son Little. His eponymous 2015 breakout record was a collection of rock 'n' soul music that was charming but a bit disjointed. By contrast, his latest release, New Magic, reveals a songwriter who has matured and learned how to create a truly cohesive album. Adventurous R&B fans who give New Magic a chance will discover a talented songwriter who knows how to make classic grooves sound brand new again. Livingston’s voice is a unique combination of Sam Cooke smoothness, Lou Rawls charm and Otis Redding grit. That range enables Livingston to slide easily from the slow-dance seduction groove of "Mad About You" to the R&B grind and moan of "Bread and Butter." A few tracks later he’s sweating it out deep in the Delta on "ASAP," a number that sounds like Jimi Hendrix covering Creedence Clearwater Revival. I find all of these influences fascinating, but I can imagine that Livingston’s eclecticism might prevent his music from finding its way onto some playlists. That would be a shame, because his music is infectious. The production here is reminiscent of Al Green’s or Pop Staples’s warm and funky early-'70s styles. Livingston’s backup band is exceptionally tight without sounding overly rehearsed.

Bobby Osborne • Original
Compass Records COM 46872

Bobby Osborne, co-founder of seminal bluegrass group The Osborne Brothers in 1953, is one of the music world’s great wonders. How does a man who just turned 86 sing like a 28-year-old and still lead a band that plays dozens of shows a year? The combination of Osborne’s DNA, his gift for phrasing and a group of iconic musicians he has influenced along the way has resulted in a bluegrass album that’s simply better than anything else I’ve heard in the genre this year. From his sweet rendition of Lerner and Loewe’s "They Call the Wind Mariah" to Webb Pierce’s "Pathway of Teardrops," the bite of Osborne’s high-and-lonesome tenor has been replaced by a burnished smoothness that is a little easier on the ears and reveals additional nuances in each line he sings. Instrumental pyrotechnics are provided by a team of heavy hitters led by the album’s producer, banjo legend Alison Brown. She is joined by Sam Bush, Vince Gill, Del McCoury and several members of Osborne’s talented family. Brown’s deft arrangement of this collection of thoughtful covers was mastered by Randy LeRoy whose magic can be heard on dozens of the very best country and Americana recordings of the past twenty years.

Andreas Schaerer • The Big Wig
Naxos/Naxos America 5048457

And now for something completely different. European jazz fans probably have heard of Swiss singer/composer Andreas Schaerer, but American audiences are in for a bit of a surprise if they are adventurous enough to listen to Schaerer’s latest effort. Teaming up with the jazz group he leads, called Hildegard Lernt Fliegen, and the Orchestra of the Lucerne Festival Academy, Schaerer has composed something that is equal parts Peter and the Wolf, Spike Jones, Kurt Weill, Frank Zappa and Carl Stallings, with Bobby McFerrin-style vocal improvisation. In fact, Schaerer began learning about large-scale productions when he collaborated with McFerrin in 2009 on McFerrin’s opera Bobble. I don’t profess to understand the plot-line of The Big Wig, but it’s impossible not to be impressed by the sonic and musical scale of this endeavor. The sound quality of this live recording is equal to what one normally hears only on the best movie soundtracks: a deep and immersive soundstage, subterranean bass (subwoofer owners will love this recording) and well-defined orchestral layers. Like McFerrin, Schaerer demonstrates that vocal improvisation is more than just a gimmick; the human voice is an instrument like any other, but only a few artists can push its physical boundaries as far as Schaerer does. For example, when his voice begins a contrapuntal chase with a trombone on "Zeuesler," it’s amazing how seamlessly his vocalizations begin to merge with the rest of the piece’s brass performers. I’ll grant that Schaerer’s music won’t be everyone’s cup of ambrosia, but I encourage classical, opera and jazz lovers to listen to this album in its entirety. Schaerer’s prodigious talent, innovation and risk-taking are just what those musical genres need.