Just Released - 2013 [Ep.24]

“In a room, by myself,

 Looks like I’m here with a guy that I judge worse than anyone else,

 So I pace, and I pray,

 And I repeat the mantras that might keep me clean for the day…,

                       “The Songs That She Sang In The Shower” – Jason Isbell (2013)

This week, the JR Radar picked up on the fracas surrounding Tom Odell, a young Englishman just beginning his career. His debut album has been greeted with both praise and outright denigration in the UK, polarizing the critics in doling out their zero to five star reviews. They can’t all be right. Can they? Over to you, the ever-discerning listener.  

Some people keep their private thoughts in a journal. Some people work them out in therapy. Others write songs. In this edition, we take pleasure in introducing you to some singer/songwriters you might not yet have heard.

One is Jason Isbell. To fans of Americana he’s considered a giant. Formerly of the band Drive By Truckers, Isbell is now 4 albums deep into his solo career. His songs are masterfully crafted confessionals of deep loss and comforting redemption. Another is Willie Nile. If being a Cult artist means recording infrequently but having the loyal support of folk like Bruce Springsteen, Bono and Bonnie Raitt, then, Willie Nile is a Cult artist. His just released, ‘American Ride’ is Willie’s love letter to the music, the landscape and even the psyche of his nation. 

A third singer/songwriter we wanted to share with you is Alela Diane. Her music squares comfortably between the sweetness of Nashville and the Pop/Folk of a ‘70s-era Laurel Canyon. As its title suggests, her 4^th album, ‘About Farewell’, is concerned with relationships ending (and the promise of beginning anew). Using personal experience as her source material, the songs are honest and revealing insights told with sympathetic nuance.

Rootsy, but a world away from the confessional wordsmiths, is Melbourne-based Blue King Brown. Their new single, “Rize Up” is the battle cry for the band’s ‘Rize Up Summer Tour’, currently working its way through Europe and North America.      

Running the JR Radar through its diagnostics this week, we switched from 'strange' to 'very strange' and were alerted to the new collaboration between John Mellencamp, Horror writer, Stephen King and legendary producer, T-Bone Burnett. It's not a movie but a stage musical, with the reassuringly spooky title of, ‘Ghost Brothers Of Darkland County’. Contributing to an all-star ‘soundtrack’ album of the songs (and partial dialogue) are Rosanne Cash, Taj Mahal, Sheryl Crow and Neko Case but creepiest of all is Elvis Costello’s devil-on-the-shoulder sermon, “That’s Me”.

And as if that weren't strange enough, we also have the first song from the new album by American film-maker, David Lynch, featuring the ethereal voice of Swedish singer, Lykke Li.

  

Blue King Brown: “Rize Up” (new single)

Alela Diane: “About Farewell”/”I Thought I Knew” (from the album ‘About Farewell’)

Willie Nile: “American Ride”/”Holy War” (from the album, ‘American Ride’)

Tom Odell: ”Grow Old With Me”/”Another Love” (from the album, ‘Long Way Down’)

Jason Isbell: “Songs That She Sang In The Shower”/”Stockholm” (from the album, ‘Southeastern’)

Elvis Costello: “That’s Me”/ Sheryl Crow: “Jukin’” (from the soundtrack album, ‘Ghost Brothers Of Darkland County’)

David Lynch featuring Lykke Li: “I’m Waiting Here” (preview from the album, ‘The Big Dream’)

Just Released is heard Saturdays at 12pm and Sundays at 4pm (AEDT or AEST) on ABC Digital Radio in Brisbane, Sydney, Canberra, Melbourne, Adelaide and Perth, and via the streams of our metropolitan stations on the Gold Coast, in Newcastle, Hobart and Darwin.  

You can also listen to JR during the week on ABC Dig Music Mondays @ 2pm, Wednesdays @ 8pm & Thursdays @ 11am (AEDT or AEST) and on Radio Australia throughout Asia & the Pacific.

To stream Just Released on demand, simply connect to our web pages via the hot links above. …(or even the shiny beast below): 

                                      Find 'Just Released' here.

              ♫

    ♫   {](-_-)[}   ♫         Thanks for listening.

Just Released - 2013 [Ep.23]

“But when she gets home,

 She puts her headphones on,

 She plays her favorite song,

 And fades away..,

                        “Her Favorite Song” – Mayer Hawthorne (2013)

If Pharrell Williams suddenly appeared in the final episode of ‘Breaking Bad’, it would hardly be a surprise. The guy is popping up everywhere lately. Between Daft Punk’s “Get Lucky” and Robin Thicke’s “Blurred Lines”, Pharrell is already singing on two of the most successful records of the year. He composed and sings on a few songs on the soundtrack of 'Despicable Me 2' and is also a guest on ‘Where Does This Door Go’, the album due in the next couple of weeks by American Soul revivalist, Mayer Hawthorne.

Although the successful, self-titled debut by American Folk/Rock band, The Lumineers is now more than a year old, there’s plenty of life in those “Ho Hey” guys yet. Another song from the album, “Flowers In Your Hair” has been just released as a single.

We also check out the latest from Sheffield's Arctic Monkeys, Sydney’s (soon to be touring) Josh Pyke and we trace the curious link from Darius Rucker’s new recording of “Wagon Wheel”, all the way back to a throwaway from a 40 year-old Bob Dylan studio session.

We calibrated the JR Radar to ‘Groove’ this week and were immediately alerted to ‘Blackbird’, the latest from New Zealand’s innovative Dub masters, Fat Freddy’s Drop. The constantly touring band will divert from their extensive European Tour for a few dates in Australia (and in their homeland) between July and September.

Stirring up dust on the Comeback Trail this week, were a couple of heavyweights (that's metaphoric and literal) in Stephen Stills and Elton John. Stills, who recently released a career-spanning anthology is starting a whole new chapter with a Blues trio called, The Rides. Elton, meanwhile, is set to release his 30^th studio album, with a back-to-basics approach. We have previews from both albums for you in this edition. 

  

  

Mayer Hawthorne: “Her Favorite Song” (preview from the album ‘Where Does This Door Go’)

The Lumineers: “Flowers In Your Hair” (from the album ‘The Lumineers’)

The Rides: “Don’t Want Lies” (preview from the album, ‘Can’t Get Enough’)

Arctic Monkeys: ”Do I Wanna Know” (preview from the album, ‘AM’)

Josh Pyke: “Bug Eyed Beauty”/”The Beginning And The End Of Everything”/”Feet Of Clay” (from the album, ‘The Beginning And The End Of Everything’)

Fat Freddy’s Drop: “Bones” (from the album, ‘Blackbird’)

Darius Rucker: “Wagon Wheel” (from the album, ‘True Believers’)

Elton John: “Home Again” (preview from the album, ‘The Diving Board’)

Eric Bibb: “Mandela Is Free” (JR Tribute)

Just Released is heard Saturdays at 12pm and Sundays at 4pm (AEDT or AEST) on ABC Digital Radio in Brisbane, Sydney, Canberra, Melbourne, Adelaide and Perth, and via the streams of our metropolitan stations on the Gold Coast, in Newcastle, Hobart and Darwin.  

You can also listen to JR during the week on ABC Dig Music Mondays @ 2pm, Wednesdays @ 8pm & Thursdays @ 11am (AEDT or AEST) and on Radio Australia throughout Asia & the Pacific.

To stream Just Released on demand, simply connect to our web pages via the hot links above. …(or even the shiny beast below): 

                                      Find 'Just Released' here.

              ♫

    ♫   {](-_-)[}   ♫         Thanks for listening.

Just Released - 2013 [Ep.22]

“Tell me, tell me, tell me the answer,

You may be a lover, but you ain’t no dancer..,

                        “Helter Skelter” – The Beatles (1968)

They called John “The Smart One”. Ringo was “The Funny One”, George, “The Quiet One” and Paul, “The Cute One”. They said John was the only real Rocker in the group and that Paul (as if it were somehow less creditable), wrote ballads. But when “The Cute One” wrote “Helter Skelter” for the sprawling double-album, ‘The Beatles’, the critics fell silent. Having recently turned 71, Macca may now be one of Rock’s senior citizens but there’s no indication he’ll be renting that summer cottage in the Isle of Wight (if it’s not too dear). And there’s plenty of evidence that he still enjoys getting his scream on, performing “Helter Skelter” as part of his almost 3-hour long concerts. He’s made some noise with Killing Joke bassist, Martin Glover (aka Youth) under the banner of The Fireman, and recently performed with the surviving members of Nirvana. In this edition of JR, we find him at it again, this time, with the Italian Dance/Punk outfit, The Bloody Beetroots. (Happy Birthday, Paul.)       

Another veteran of note making a return in this edition is Booker T. Jones. Establishing his fame more than half a century ago leading Booker T. & The MGs, Mr. Jones continues to make some compelling music in the here-and-now, playing with a new generation of stars including, Mayer Hawthorne and Gary Clark Jr.

Scotland’s KT Tunstall also returns this week with ‘Invisible Empire//Crescent Moon’. After dabbling in Electronica on her previous long-player, KT Tunstall headed for Tucson, Arizona to record an Americana tinged collection of songs with Giant Sand frontman, Howe Gelb.

Also representing Scotland in this edition is Ambient/Electronica duo, Boards Of Canada. Eschewing the beat-driven sounds of the dancefloor in favour of arcane instruments and an obvious fondness for film music, their 4^th album, ‘Tomorrow’s Harvest’ is a highly rewarding sonic adventure. Another Electronica duo featured this week is Sydney’s Jagwar Ma. Reminiscent of the UK’s Manchester scene of the mid-‘80s (and with an obvious debt to The Beatles’ psychedelic period), their debut album, ‘Howlin’ still manages to sound refreshingly new. The duo will make a brief tour in July/August, including an appearance at this year’s ‘Splendour In The Grass’ Festival. Did I mention we have another Electronic music duo this week?

Good, because making it a JR hat-trick for this edition is the return of Empire Of The Sun.       

The JR Radar was buzzing, as usual, and this week it picked up on the debut album by the young Adelaide band, Atlas Genius. At its core are three brothers, who formed the band at the urging of their parents who were both big fans of The Beatles which brings us back, full circle, to that long shadow of influence cast by Paul McCartney. Copacetic? Yeah, we thought so, too.

  

Atlas Genius: “If So” (from the album ‘When It Was Now’)

Empire Of The Sun: “DNA”/”I’ll Be Around” (from the album ‘Ice On The Dune’)

Booker T Jones: “Sound The Alarm"/”66 Impala” (from the album, ‘Sound The Alarm’)

KT Tunstall: ”Invisible Empire”/”Crescent Moon” (from the album, ‘Invisible Empire//Crescent Moon’)

Boards Of Canada: “Sick Times” (from the album, ‘Tomorrow’s Harvest’)

Jagwar Ma: “Man I Need” (from the album, ‘Howlin’)

The Bloody Beetroots (featuring Paul McCartney & Youth): “Out Of Sight” (new single)

Just Released is heard Saturdays at 12pm and Sundays at 4pm (AEDT or AEST) on ABC Digital Radio in Brisbane, Sydney, Canberra, Melbourne, Adelaide and Perth, and via the streams of our metropolitan stations on the Gold Coast, in Newcastle, Hobart and Darwin.  

You can also listen to JR during the week on ABC Dig Music Mondays @ 2pm, Wednesdays @ 8pm & Thursdays @ 11am (AEDT or AEST) and on Radio Australia throughout Asia & the Pacific.

To stream Just Released on demand, simply connect to our web pages via the hot links above. …(or even the shiny beast below): 

                                      Find 'Just Released' here.

              ♫

    ♫   {](-_-)[}   ♫         Thanks for listening.

Just Released - 2013 [Ep.21]

“I'm gonna climb up every mountain of the moon,

 And find the dish that ran away with the spoon..,

                                     “Supernaut” – Black Sabbath (1972)

Obviously, when it comes to Black Sabbath songs, it’s always gonna be about the riffs.

Ozzy may be the frontman (and sideshow) but the Black Sabbath ‘sound’ falls mostly to guitarist, Tony Iommi. His Sturm und Drang riffs can invest lyrics, even as benign as those above, with a sense of impending threat. Such a flagrant violation of the first rule of lyric rhyming is even excusable, when paired with a compelling riff. The original lineup (with the exception of drummer, Bill Ward) has famously reconvened for ‘13’, an album intended to echo the creative thrust of their first recordings. Using a few sonic signposts linking straight back to those early albums, Black Sabbath achieved their goal, remarkably without falling into self-parody. In this edition of JR, we find there’s still light, somewhere in the darkness.

At least the Comeback Trail wasn’t totally under Black Sabbath’s dark, foreboding cloud this week. Soul and Gospel veteran, Mavis Staples appeared with ‘One True Vine’, a second album made in collaboration with Wilco’s Jeff Tweedy, while Bernard Fanning’s long awaited ‘Departures’ also made its …arrival.

The JR Radar was quick to alert us to the just released album by Canadian band, Barenaked Ladies. Now in their 25^th year, the songs on ‘Grinning Streak’ are as sharp as ever and odds are that, “Odds Are” may be the most summery song you’ll hear all winter.

Longtime JR favourite, The Tedeschi-Trucks Band have released the first song from their forthcoming album, ‘Made Up Mind’ featuring a nice tip of the hat to Booker T. & The MG’s and Blues Brothers guitarist, Steve Cropper, resurrecting the famous riff he played on Sam & Dave’s 1967 hit, “Soul Man”.

Also signaling a new album on the way is Jack Johnson while Sigur Ros make a strong return with ‘Kveikur’, maintaining Iceland’s bona fides as a music hotspot. 

  

Barenaked Ladies: “Odds Are” (from the album ‘Grinning Streak’)

Bernard Fanning: “Departures (Blue Toowong Skies)”/”Inside Track” (from the album ‘Departures’)

Mavis Staples: “Far Celestial Shore"/”Can You Get To That” (from the album, ‘One True Vine’)

Tedeschi-Trucks Band: ”Part Of Me” (from the forthcoming album, ‘Made Up Mind’)

Black Sabbath: “Zeitgeist” (from the album, ‘13’)

Jack Johnson: “I Got You” (preview from the forthcoming album, ‘From Here, To Now, To You’)

Sigur Ros: “Hrafntinna” (from the album, ‘Kveikur’)

Just Released is heard Saturdays at 12pm and Sundays at 4pm (AEDT or AEST) on ABC Digital Radio in Brisbane, Sydney, Canberra, Melbourne, Adelaide and Perth, and via the streams of our metropolitan stations on the Gold Coast, in Newcastle, Hobart and Darwin.  

You can also listen to JR during the week on ABC Dig Music Mondays @ 2pm, Wednesdays @ 8pm & Thursdays @ 11am (AEDT or AEST) and on Radio Australia throughout Asia & the Pacific.

To stream Just Released on demand, simply connect to our web pages via the hot links above. …(or even the shiny beast below): 

                                      Find 'Just Released' here.

              ♫

    ♫   {](-_-)[}   ♫         Thanks for listening.