Archive for October, 2015

Toto, "A Secret Love" from 'Hydra' (1979): Toto Tuesdays

Toto, “A Secret Love” from ‘Hydra’ (1979): Toto Tuesdays

Toto’s sophomore release ‘Hydra’ ends with “A Secret Love,” a gorgeous, yet complex ballad with Steve Porcaro’s fingerprints all over it.

Vinyl

Elton John and Leon Russell’s The Union was marked by this bittersweet sense of loss

Released this week in 2010, Elton John and Leon Russell’s fiesty collaboration ‘The Union’ is an often-loud record with its share of quiet truths.

Vinyl

Hurricane No. 1 – Find What You Love and Let It Kill You (2015)

Packed with powerful, melodic vocals and a string of energetic performances, Hurricane No. 1’s new album is a perfect melding of pop and hard rock.

Matthew Shipp Trio - The Conduct of Jazz (2015)

Matthew Shipp Trio – The Conduct of Jazz (2015)

For the Matthew Shipp Trio’s first album with drummer Newman Taylor Baker, ‘The Conduct of Jazz’ honors the real jazz tradition of breaking outside of previously placed constraints.

Vinyl

Ola Onabule, jazz and soul singer-songwriter: Something Else! Interview

Ola Onabule has released eight albums in a career stretching more than two decades, yet there remains about him a sense of fierce independence.

Vinyl

Tim Kuhl, “Wave (of Dreams), remixed by Wilco’s Mikael Jorgensen” (2015): Something Else! exclusive stream

Wilco keyboard player Mikael Jorgensen transformed Kuhl’s Euro-pop song “Wave (of Dreams)” into something move-inducing and a little intriguing as well.

Paul McCartney - 'Pipes of Peace' (1983; 2015 reissue)

Paul McCartney – ‘Pipes of Peace’ (1983; 2015 reissue)

Reissuing ‘Tug of War’ and ‘Pipes of Peace’ simultaneously poses an intriguing question: Is Paul McCartney inviting us to compare and contrast?

Vinyl

The City Views – The City Views (2015)

Geared to keep the listener interested, the City Views’ engaging self-titled new EP ripples, romps and rustles.

Bruce Springsteen - The River (1980): Gimme Five

Bruce Springsteen – The River (1980): Gimme Five

When Bruce Springsteen issued ‘The River’ in October of 1980, I didn’t like it very much. Time has changed that – and here’s why.

Vinyl

Sopko Laswell Pridgen – Sopko Laswell Pridgen (2015)

Pridgen plays tricky odd-metered rhythms, Laswell’s formidable bass sets the parameters for the melody and Sopko goes balls-out free to push over the ledge a performance already on the edge.