Sometimes an Honourable Mention Isn’t Enough.
In the various musical escapades that my friend Asher and I undertake there is one great enemy, which is as always, time. There are simply too many things out there to listen to, talk about, and share with you all. These little writings of mine are an attempt to waylay against the inevitable. Truth be told I do think I am a better writer than speaker so this space may allow me to get across those little things that we don’t manage to get to on the show, because as the title says sometimes an honourable mention isn’t enough. So without much further ado here are some things i’ve been wanting to share with you!
Chet Faker - Low
Chet Faker aka Nick Murphy.
The work of Australian singer/songwriter Chet Faker has always been something that intrigued me since his collaborations with electronic artist Flume; but is also something I have never given the appropriate amount of study. This has since been rectified as his latest single “Low” has been getting its due amount of radio play here in Vancouver. After going through his first album “Built on Glass” a number of times I have been pleasantly awarded an interesting nuevo-soul electronic record. Which, at times reminds me of the better moments from English synthpop duo “Honne” but perhaps not as wistfully amorous.
If you’re looking for something a bit different on the more R&B track give Chet Faker a go. Even if it’s 7 years late to the party his first album is a great place to start.
Some notable tracks are: “Talk is Cheap”, “Gold”, and “To Me”
Mac Miller.
Last year for the first time I decided to give the music of Mac Miller a listen, in particular his posthumous record “Circles”. And while the record was good it didn’t necessarily blow me away. It wasn’t until I watched his performance on NPR’s “Tiny Desk Concert” series that I started to really appreciate Mac’s talents. With the help of his monstrously talented backing band and the mischievous Thundercat this NPR video has probably been played at least 3 times a week in my house for about a year. As they play through 3 tracks from his album “Swimming” you can really gather an appreciation for the musicality that has gone into these songs. Perhaps it is the uneducated cynic in me but sometimes I’ve found it hard to see that same talent amongst the layers of production, vocal effects, and compressed trap drums. Either way Mac Miller’s NPR gig is something truly special and I’m sad it has taken me so long to give him the acknowledgment he deserves.
The Natvral - “Tethers”
The Natvral - “Tethers”.
High on the list of “new bands I’ve found with names I’m afraid to pronounce” is the Natvral and his latest album “Tethers”. I am admittedly completely ignorant of lead man Kip Berman’s previous work with the band “The Pains of Being Pure at Heart”, but this record was a pleasant discovery. Whilst doing one of my semi-annual Bandcamp expeditions I came across this album which immediately brought to me memories of first hearing the works of Josh Ritter and other folk paradigms while also confidently being its own thing. This album soars from the get go, with its carefully placed soulful organ, Americana guitar combo its hard to believe that this record was made in 2021. Rather joyfully this album has placated my desire for some new clever singer songwriter goodness since my mainstays have been a little quiet recently. Give “Tethers” a listen because it certainly deserves your attention.
Some stand out tracks are: “Why Don’t You Come Out Anymore?”, “Sylvia, the Cup of Youth”, and “New Moon”.
If you’ve given any of these a shot please let us know on our socials and thanks for reading!
- Josh -
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