Popular Music CDs for Adults
Hundreds of CDs are added to the Library's collection each month. Here are the most popular Music CDs for adults.
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Cracker Island
Cracker Island marks something of a retreat for Gorillaz, moving the virtual group away from the excess of The Song Machine, a multi-part series of collaborations that sometimes threatened to collapse upon its own weight. Guests are still featured on Cracker Island -- collaboration is one of the chief reasons Damon Albarn launched the group at the dawn of the millennium -- but he sticks with Greg Kurstin and Remi Kabaka, Jr. as his main collaborators, giving the record an appealingly streamlined feel. Another element lending the album a sleek, unified vibe is how the guests are effectively used as extra texture. Bad Bunny may dominate the vibrant "Tormenta," but he's the exception to the rule: Stevie Nicks gives "Oil" a hint of harmony, and Tame Impala sets "New Gold" adrift in a neo-psychedelic haze, while Beck fades into the background of "Possession Island." All this means is that Damon Albarn is at the center of Cracker Island, a shift that underscores how the record is less an exploration of new sonic territory as it is a reaffirmation of his strengths. Balancing bright, colorful electro-pop with a slight air of melancholy is hardly a new trick for Albarn, yet there's a clean, efficient energy propelling Cracker Island that gives the album a fresh pulse. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine (syndetics)
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Fragments: Time Out of Mind Sessions (1996-1997)
The latest chapter in the highly acclaimed Bob Dylan Bootleg Series takes a fresh look at Time Out of Mind, Dylan's mid-career masterpiece, celebrating the album and its enduring impact 25 years after its original release. (syndetics)
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Linger Awhile
With her sophomore album, 2022's Linger Awhile, Samara Joy achieved an uncommon feat winning the Grammy Awards for Best Jazz Vocal Album and Best New Artist. While Joy is no stranger to accolades having emerged to acclaim as the winner of the 2019 Sarah Vaughan International Vocal Jazz Competition, her double success at the Grammys was a surprise for a jazz singer; especially one whose impressive style harks back to icons like the aforementioned Vaughan, Betty Carter and Dinah Washington. Produced by Matt Pierson, Linger Awhile nicely showcases Joy's verdant tone and adept vocalese skills. Part of the album's charm is how straight-forward it is with Joy framed by her acoustic ensemble featuring longtime guitarist Pasquale Grasso, pianist Ben Paterson, bassist David Wong, and drummer Kenny Washington. There are also tasteful contributions by saxophonist Kendric McCallister, trombonist Donovan Austin, and trumpeter Terrell Stafford. Joy brings a dusky warmth to standards like "Guess Who I Saw Today," "Misty," and an achingly slow rendition of "I'm Confessin (That I Love You)." Particularly notable is her vocalese take on trumpeter Fats Navarro's "Nostalgia," for which she wrote her own romantic lyrics, including for the legendary bebop trumpeter's original 1947 solo. While Joy isn't the first jazz singer to sing a transcribed solo with lyrics, her artful attention to detail speaks to her maturity and deep feeling for the music, aspects redolent throughout Linger Awhile. ~ Matt Collar (syndetics)
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This Is Why
Heralded by the antagonistically funky title track, Paramore's sixth studio album, 2023's This Is Why, feels like the band is bending time, merging the emo-punk of their youth with the hard-won pop craftsmanship they've embraced as adults. Produced by Carlos de la Garza, the album arrives on the heels of a five-year hiatus for the group, following the exhaustive touring and recording schedule that took them from 2013's Paramore through 2017's After Laughter. Notably, it marks the end of the group's initial contract that singer Hayley Williams signed when she was still just a teenager. Darkly serendipitous, the group's hiatus also coincided with the COVID-19 pandemic, a period of bleak reflection but one which also gave the band's core trio of Williams, guitarist Taylor York, and drummer Zac Farro time to refocus. In Williams' case, it also gave her the space to record two solo albums. Those albums found her pushing the creative envelope of her sound, embracing an arty, experimental style that still made room for poetic, confessional lyrics. It's a balancing act she and Paramore also continue to perfect here, albeit with a much tougher, rock-oriented approach. If After Laughter, with its '80s Tom Tom Club-esque new wave synths, was a buoyant evocation of pop renewal, This Is Why is its dark, post-punk corollary. Williams has always been good at transforming her anger into pop catharsis, burning off high emotions like karma in the process. Back in the early aughts, it was a way of dealing with the tense creative and personal dynamics within the band. Here, she wrestles with her anxieties over our increasingly fractious political climate, as on the aforementioned title track, or takes aim at the sensationalist media cycle on "The News." These kinetic anthems are built around York and Farro's beautifully dissonant, percussively swinging guitar and drum interplay, a sound that brings to mind the angular late-'70s disco punk of Gang of Four (Bloc Party was purportedly another inspiration). There's a candid honesty to the album as Williams turns her gaze inwards, admitting to her own stubborn failings, as on the haunting "Thick Skull." This balance between aggressive punk dynamism and bold self-reflection can be thrilling, as on the driving "You First," a War-era-U2-sounding song in which Williams admits she might be her own worst enemy, singing "It turns out I'm living in a horror film, where I'm both the killer and the final girl." Yet more nuanced moments pop up elsewhere as on the languid "Big Man Little Dignity" and the euphoric "Crave," songs that marry '80s Fleetwood Mac romanticism with dusky shoegaze atmospherics. It often feels like every Paramore album marks a new beginning for the band. Just when you think they've hit an artistic plateau, they take another creative leap into the unknown, only to return with what feels like a deeper, more heartfelt statement of who they are. With This Is Why, Paramore underline that notion, pulling the artistic and emotional threads of their career into a cohesive, ardent whole. ~ Matt Collar (syndetics)
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This Stupid World
It's encouraging that nearly four decades into one of the most impressive careers in indie rock, Yo La Tengo are still finding new ways of doing things. On 2018's There's A Riot Going On, the band upended their usual process of writing material and then re-creating it in the studio by setting up recording gear in their rehearsal space and capturing their music in a freer and more spontaneous manner. For that album, YLT handed the tracks over to John McEntire (of Tortoise and the Sea and Cake) for mixing, but 2023's This Stupid World sees them cutting out the last middleman in their process -- this time, the band mixed the tracks themselves, and for the first time they've made an album with essentially no outside input. Yo La Tengo have been doing what they do long enough that they know and trust their process, and This Stupid World doesn't seem radically different from their work of the last 10 or 15 years. That said, this music feels warmer and more emotionally satisfying than anything YLT have given us since 2009's Popular Songs. Many of these tracks grew out of jams, and the notion of "first thought, best thought" clearly works for this group (which may give us cause to reassess the conventional wisdom about the phrase "jam band"). The cool, languid beauty of "Miles Away," the easy but implacable groove of "Sinatra Drive Breakdown," the bittersweet yearning of "Aselestine," the easygoing self-depreciation of "Apology Letter," and the clouds of noise in the title cut each beautifully represent one of the many sides of YLT's sonic personality, and the work sounds at once confident and engaged with the possibilities of chance. This Stupid World never sounds sloppy even as this music is happening in the moment, and the interplay between Ira Kaplan's skronky guitar, James McNew's rock-solid bass, and Georgia Hubley's imaginative drumming (as well as their use of occasional electronic washes) remains a marvel, a familiar formula that produces fresh, intriguing results. There's s Riot Going On was created in a time of strife and uncertainty for a great many people, and sometimes it sounded like it. This Stupid World doesn't pretend all is roses again, but it finds a lot more room for joy and engaging with your muse. If the world is still stupid outside of Yo La Tengo's headquarters, inside they're making worthy art to share with us, and we can all be grateful for that. ~ Mark Deming (syndetics)
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Trustfall
Bouncing back after the relative stumbles of her late-2010s efforts, P!nk recaptures her spirit and voice on the cathartic Trustfall. Her ninth studio effort overall, the set is a motivational therapy session that hinges on themes of change, self-acceptance, loss, and love, reminding listeners (and herself) that everything will be OK if there's faith in the face of fear and the unknown. Buoyed by this spiritually liberated energy, P!nk pushes her vocals to higher highs with shiver-inducing results, backed by some of the most thoughtful messages in her catalog. As with past releases, she blends sentimental moments of introspection with grand pop highs, tugging the heartstrings one minute and inspiring physical release the next. Dancing and singing through tough times, P!nk delivers the album's gospel message on the pulsing title track, a synth-washed, Robyn-esque pop sparkler where she implores, "Picture a place where it all doesn't hurt/Where everything's safe and it doesn't get worse." The equally uplifting Max Martin/Shellback entry "Never Gonna Not Dance Again" is one of those euphoric singalong crowd-pleasers that is custom-built for an eternity at school dances and weddings, while the fast-paced, '80s synth blast "Runaway" pushes the urgency to the fore and the rollicking "Hate Me" jolts the album to life with a punk-rocking gang chorus, sinister riffs, and abrasive percussion. These more immediate earworms are scattered throughout to appease anyone looking for a radio-ready hit, but they cede the bulk of the album to more reflective fare that provides a different kind of spiritual nourishment. On the wistful "When I Get There," she mourns her late father with tender vulnerability atop contemplative piano and string backing, while the pensive "Lost Cause" boosts the same piano/strings approach with dramatic choral harmonies. The Lumineers, First Aid Kit, and Chris Stapleton make appearances across a trio of folk- and country-tinged tracks, but the spotlight shines brightest whenever P!nk is at the fore. Additional midtempo standouts include the stunning "Last Call," which laughs the pain away atop bittersweet twang and a swelling chorus, and the stirring piano ballad "Our Song," which packs a powerful gut-punch with a show-stopping vocal performance destined to bring the house down. In the end, Trustfall leans firmly on these powerful moments of personal growth, sidestepping P!nk's sometimes headstrong brattiness in favor of a confident defiance that speaks to triumph and maturity in a way that she hasn't done before. ~ Neil Z. Yeung (syndetics)
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Your mother should know: Brad Mehldau plays the Beatles
Although known for his intimate and finely rendered jazz, Brad Mehldau has long showcased his interest in digging deep into songs by pop and rock bands. It's a concept he puts on full display with 2023's Your Mother Should Know: Brad Mehldau Plays the Beatles. Recorded in a live solo session at Philharmonie de Paris, the album finds Mehldau investigating a handful of his favorite tunes by the iconic British rock group. While jazz became his life's calling, the pianist was initially drawn to play music listening to rock artists like Billy Joel, Supertramp, Led Zeppelin, and Steely Dan. He has built upon these early inspirations throughout his career, offering distinctive takes on songs by Radiohead, Nick Drake, and yes, the Beatles, as on his 2005 trio album Day Is Done. He has also pushed the envelope of his own jazz compositions towards more maverick rock and classical sounds, as on his ambitious 2022 album Jacob's Ladder. Your Mother Should Know is closer in vibe to the former, with Mehldau treating each Beatles tune as he might a jazz standard, reconsidering the harmony of the song and using the melody as jumping-off point for his own bold, endlessly lyrical improvisations. What's particularly enjoyable about Mehldau's approach is how he keeps each song recognizable while making it his own, as on "I Am the Walrus," where he implies John Lennon's throaty psychedelia with tiny moments of dissonance. Similarly, the already lullaby-like "For No One" is given a delicate, dancerly quality in the swinging Paul McCartney style. Perhaps most compelling is his bittersweet reading of "Here, There and Everywhere," transforming the song into a softly moving ballad that evokes the classic '60s style of Bill Evans. ~ Matt Collar (syndetics)
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Ben
After a long six-year absence, Seattle pop-rap star Macklemore reintroduced himself with Ben. Taking the title from his birth name, this third solo effort is his most vulnerable confessional to date, one that allows him to purge some inner demons and share a bit of himself with fans who might be more accustomed to his rousing hit singles with Ryan Lewis. While 2017's Gemini peppered pop-leaning anthems amongst a glut of timely, trap-laden hip-hop, Ben is almost an even split, with the first half of the set dedicated to radio-friendly fare like the '80s synth pop gem "1984," the inspirational "Chant" with Tones and I, and the bouncy, cheerful bop "No Bad Days" with Collett. He rejoins Windser and Lewis -- who both participated in 2021's big "Macklemore & Ryan Lewis" reunion, "Next Year," which oddly doesn't appear on this album -- for the midtempo, acoustic guitar highlight "Maniac." The production and songwriting on this first half are upbeat and endearing, which feels great until you really listen to the lyrics, which reveal the true heart of Ben. Hardened ruminations on life and death, his relapse and overdose during the COVID-19 lockdowns, struggles with faith, and the ebb and flow of his mainstream popularity fill songs such as "Faithful," "God's Will," and "Day You Die." On "Tears," he takes his creative storytelling to another level, framing his alcohol addiction as a lifelong, love-hate relationship. It's a no-frills, honest approach that is much appreciated after all these years since his earlier, more thoughtful days. Fans of that period will delight when Ben pivots to old-school boom-bap -- DJ Premier even has a credit on "Heroes" -- with standouts such as the head-nod, horn-sampling bar-fest "Grime" and the contemplative sprawl of the dreamy "Lost/Sun Comes Up," which could have been a late-era Mac Miller track. Imagining how the world would react to his death (and facing addiction and the deaths of his friends), it's melancholy and moving all at once. Balancing the personal with biting social commentary, he later adopts a Kendrick Lamar flow for the popping "I Need." Altogether, Ben feels like the first time Macklemore has truly let listeners into his inner world, showcasing his underrated lyrical skills and enough varied production to keep the album moving forward toward a hopeful finish. ~ Neil Z. Yeung (syndetics)
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Mercy
Arguably, no other artist of his generation has had less trouble keeping up with the times than John Cale, perhaps because he stubbornly refused to be typical in the 1960s, '70s, and '80s, and he remains so today. The man whose aggressive viola and keyboards were a forceful counterpoint to Lou Reed and Sterling Morrison's guitars in the Velvet Underground is now most comfortable making music steeped in electronics, though his work is too slow and somber to fill the dance floor and too dour and doomstruck for blissfully chilling out. John Cale has always made beautifully crafted music that was never simple, even when it was accessible, and in a career that's spanned seven decades, his 21st century work sounds fresh because he values sound and expression over any specific generic framework. 2023's Mercy, which was Cale's first album of new material in a decade, most closely resembles 1982's Music for a New Society in its dark, contemplative mood and minimalist structures, though the two LPs don't much resemble each other beyond that. Music for a New Society was brutalist in its clean, spare lines, while Mercy allows its melodies to rise from ghostly clouds of keyboards and electronic textures, as Cale's vocals gracefully meet the melodies while he contemplates a world that's broken on a personal as well as a global scale. He wonders if we can even agree that lives matter on the title cut, wonders if the polar ice caps have rights that protect them in "The Legal Status of Ice," questions the short life of beauty in "Marilyn Monroe's Legs," and tells a friend it's "Not the End of the World" without great confidence that he's accurate. Cale honors the memory of a onetime friend and collaborator in "Moonstruck (Nico's Song)," which is loving but blunt about the choices that defined her life, and even when he sings of love, "Story of Blood" trades in metaphors that will trouble more people than it will comfort. And yet, Mercy is an album that's about hope, a hard-won commodity whose absence is often the most powerful reminder of its importance. Amidst the sounds that swirl like the grain in an old movie shot in 16 mm, "Out Your Window" and "Everlasting Days" are articulate pleas for compassion made all the more powerful for the darkness surrounding them. Cale has brought along some talented guest artists for Mercy, among them Weyes Blood, Animal Collective, Actress, and Sylvan Esso, but they've lent their skills in the service of Cale's vision. The understated urgency of his songs unifies this music and makes the whole more moving and eloquent than the individual tracks. The wonderful paradox of John Cale's music is that his best albums don't often sound like one another, yet they're all driven by music no one else could create, and his heart, soul, and vision are visible and intact through the dense, free-flowing atmospheres of Mercy. ~ Mark Deming (syndetics)
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Gloria
Sam Smith unconvincingly touted Love Goes as experimental, so when the same adjective was used to promote 2023 follow-up Gloria, there was reason for skepticism -- even in the wake of the second pre-album single, the undulating hit Kim Petras collaboration "Unholy." A voyeuristic tale of a family man leaving his unsuspecting wife behind for exploration at a gay club, "Unholy" is without doubt anomalous in Smith's songbook. It's also the singer's most distinctive dance-pop song since "Latch," if only on a personal level, its sinuous Arabic scale incorporated by established producers ILYA and Omar Fedi. The gamble of sorts paid off when Smith and Petras made history as the first publicly non-binary and transgender artists to top the Billboard Hot 100. Gloria otherwise presents a challenge only to those who expect piano ballads -- there are none -- and are averse to dance music with flashes of disco, reggaeton, and mid-'90s deep house. It's largely unobtrusive and serviceable, distinguished mostly by Smith's elastic voice and increased specificity and complexity to the reflective and romantic songs. Additionally, interludes with historic sound bites from trans activist Sylvia Rivera and the Lilli Vincenz documentary Gay and Proud speak directly to liberation. The more individual touches are to be found in the ballads, as the songs for the dancefloor, and a trap-tinged downtempo number with Jessie Reyez, are generalized in their evocations of heartache, flirtation, and sexual impulsiveness. "Love Me More" starts the album boldly with Smith open about their struggle with self-esteem. In "How to Cry," they're sliding out from under the thumb of a cold, controlling lover, isolated from family and friends. The choral "Gloria" is the album's most powerful moment, the sound of Smith shedding their burdens. Not to be missed is "Six Shots," a pure R&B slow jam that sounds both classic and contemporary. Although it sticks out here almost as much as "Unholy" and the title song, it's unfortunately destined to be classified as a deep cut. ~ Andy Kellman (syndetics) (3/24/2023 12:06:19 AM)
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