In No Particular Order: HAIM and More In This Week’s Top Picks (06/26/20)
I was overambitious this week and picked 5 brilliant albums to crack through with time not on my side this New Music Friday. So I present to you a condensed and to the point version of In No Particular Order, featuring new releases from HAIM, Pottery, Ray LaMontagne, and more.
You can find Dusty Organ on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Spotify to stay up to date on new releases. Also, you can find tracks from these albums and more on our Monthly Spotify playlist.
If you enjoy something, don’t forget to share it around!
HAIM – Women In Music Pt III
8.5/10
Indie/Alternative rock
Los Angeles sibling trio HAIM are back with their confident, cool, and captivating sound on Women in Music Pt. III. The bulk of the album deals with a traumatic situation from each of the Haim sisters: Alana’s loss of a best friend at 20, Danielle’s depression, and Este’s difficulties living with Type 1 diabetes. But despite this heavy material, Women In Music is an exceptionally catchy and melodic record that borderlines cynical and satirical, but bold and deliberate, giving it a personalized edge that is uniquely Haim.
Their West Coast sound shines brightly on parts of the record, especially on “Los Angeles”, “Gasoline”, and “Summer Girl”, helping to remove some of the darkness. As well, they graze some of the styling so their musical foremothers, with hints of Joni Mitchell and Alanis Morrisette on the satirical “Man From the Magazine” and “I’ve Been Down”.
Haim find moments to be raw, personal and heart-breaking even on “Up From A Dream” and “Hallelujah”, rounding out the record with sincerity.
Women In Music shows HAIM from different angles both musically and lyrically, allowing them to build a deeper connection with fans and create a greater universe to fall into with every note.
Notable tracks: “The Steps” // “All That Ever Mattered ” // “Summer Girl”
Art Feynman – Half Price at 3:30
6.5/10
Indie rock/Experimental pop
Luke Temple finds a musical escape route through his alter-ego Art Feynman. Compiling worldly genres pixel by pixel in his digitally driven experimental universe, Half Price at 3:30 is a strangely alluring collection of the dark side of Temple’s mind. Glitchy synthesizers, drum machines, and forced autotune drip across the track list, taking on different shapes and molds along the way. At times, it’s hard to pinpoint what exactly he’s trying to say, but often the musicality and quirkiness of the record feels more important anyway.
Half Price shapeshifts from ’80s synth-pop on “Ideal Drama” to Paul Simon-esque Afrobeats on “I’m Gonna Miss Your World” and “Not My Guy”, to the glistening electro-pop of “Night Flower”, taking on various characteristics of electronic music and bedroom production.
The album certainly has a free-spirit; it moves in every direction to find different genre pockets from which to craft melodies and loops. While some may say the inconsistency and lack of orientation adds to its character, it’s hard not to feel like its less of an album and more like a collection of singles from a bedroom catalogue. Nevertheless, Temple/Feynman finds moments to surprise and awe.
Notable tracks: “Taking on Hollywood” // “I’m Gonna Miss Your World” // “Not My Guy”
Ray LaMontagne – MONOVISION
7/10
Folk-rock/Singer-songwriter
Ray LaMontagne has one of the most entrancing voices in his genre. His range of soft serenade to robust ruggedness always seems to burst through on his records, stealing the spotlight from his blended folk-blues instrumentation. On his eighth record MONOVISION, LaMontagne took full control, writing, recording, and producing the entire record and he gives his voice the opportunity to do all the heavy lifting, keeping things clean and simple with just his guitar and pipes.
While many singer-songwriters would struggle to make an album that stands so strongly with such a simple premise, LaMontagne shines. Hints of Van Morrison, Bob Dylan, and John Denver come out across the record, throwing in some ’70s rock to his sound.
His bluesy, smokey voice runs along the curves of each song on MONOVISION, transforming to whatever shape it needs. Cool and rugged on “Strong Enough”, mountainous and natural on “Misty Morning Rain” and “Rocky Mountain Healin'”, or even sugarcoated on the Everly Brothers-esque “Weeping Willow”.
MONOVISION is a charming example of how less is more sometimes, and why LaMontagne is a longstanding name eight albums later.
Notable tracks: “Roll Me Mama, Roll Me” // “Strong Enough” // “Misty Morning Rain”
Pottery – Welcome to Bobby’s Motel
8/10
Indie rock/Post-punk/Alternative
Welcome to Bobby’s Motel is a collection of quirky, fiery alternative rock songs fitted into a retro 4:3 ratio. The Montreal-bred five-piece travel back in time to the ages of an experimental and evolving ’80s alternative rock scene, finding ways to turn cyclic post-punk rhythms and alt-rock hooks into hypnotizing and exciting drug trips in 2020.
Based around their fictional friend “Bobby”, the album revolves around the spirit of de-stressing and enjoying the rugged flaws of life. Full-band chants, jam band session, looping drum beats, and washed out guitars draw listeners into the cult-like world of “Bobby’s Motel”, and make it only possible to escape after the 11-track album comes to a close.
Notable tracks: “Hot Heater” // “Texas Drums Pt I & II” // “Take Your Time”
Zaac Pick – Passages
6.5/10
Folk/Singer-songwriter
On his second solo full-length, Medicine Hat-born/Vancouver-based singer-songwriter Zaac Pick wanted to build off his folk styling from his earlier work and explore more adventurous soundscapes and details. On his new album Passages, Pick incorporates a wider selection of instruments, rounding out his sincere and soothing sound with piano, synthesizers, and strings to accentuate his guitar. The fuller sound is accompanied by his more in-depth lyricism about exploring the complexities of relationships (“Atmosphere”), masculinity (“Strong Enough”), and the evolution of friendship (“Ladder to the Sun”).
Pick explains: “I decided to call this album ‘Passages’ while it was being recorded last summer, because the songs were all in some way to do with learning to navigate transitions — in myself, in relationships, and in the world around me. In the past, I’ve often struggled against the uncertainty and ambiguity of these seasons of change, even as I recognize they are part of a process.”
His desire to be more candid pays off; his poignant lyrics combine with his more melodic, denser sound to give Passages a clear direction.
Notable tracks: “Atmosphere” // “Ladder to the Sun” // “Lighter Side of Blue”
