In No Particular Order: Change Is Happening (Apr 9, 2021)

Change can be good.

That’s why this week’s In No Particular Order is a little different: since last week was a holiday/my birthday weekend, I’ve combined a few of my favourites from that New Music Friday with some picks from this week, including an EP. I feel like EPs sometimes get left behind on here, and I think it might not hurt to include a few more into these album round-ups.

Just like From The Inbox, I’ve created a In No Particular Order Spotify playlist to match my weekly album picks! Featuring the three ‘notable tracks’ from each release, check by every Friday to find something new in your music library.

As always, 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. 

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Milla Thyme – Everything Has Its Thyme

URBNET

R&B/Soul

6/10

(April 2)

Montreal-based, Toronto-bred rapper/bassist Milla Thyme has dropped his debut album Everything Has Its Thyme. It’s a colourful collage of sounds and styles, ranging from gospel to hip-hop to funk courtesy of Milla’s roots in jazz and soul, as he raps about his change of scenery making the switch to Montreal and about his life as a young adult going through the motions with relationships, family, and friends, while breaching more difficult topics like systematic racism and the perspective of mental health in men.

The vast array of genres and styles on the record plays both to the record’s strengths and weaknesses, as Milla showcases his versatility as a performer, but struggles to create a cohesive flow for the 11 track effort. It has its share of strong releases, but the album’s structural makeup makes it appear to be a collection of individual tracks rather than a collection from one artist.

Nevertheless, feels like a good problem to have on a debut album with a number of directions and creative options ahead of him.

Notable tracks: “Heaven Looks Like” // “Saint Andre’s Song” // “Señor Hielo”

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Godspeed You! Black Emperor – G_D’s Pee AT STATE’S END

Constellation Records

Post-rock

8/10

(April 2)

For Montreal collective Godspeed You! Black Emperor, good ol’ borderline pessimism is the fuel for their orchestra-sized post-rock sound. Preaching the doom of the world through guitar-lead suites and symphonic punk has helped solidify them as masters of stark post-rock music since their beginnings over two decades ago. Words like dystopian, anti-capitalist, and anarchist get thrown around often when describing GY!BE’s music and rightfully so, as they create this eerie and harsh darkness with the crescendoing builds of guitars, strings, and radio static on this latest release.

Their ninth overall and fourth since returning from a long-term hiatus, G_D’s Pee AT STATE’S END is cut into four movements, opening with a dissonant military radio broadcast before slipping into a sombre and droning first movement. The album begins to come to life on “Fire at Static Valley”, the album’s second movement, as the blanket of hope has been pulled from under the table settings. The album’s transition into brighter, more ferocious tones happens somewhere between the third and fourth movement, bringing the album to a grandiose closer on the six and a half minute “OUR SIDE HAS TO WIN (for D.H.)”.

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BROCKHAMPTON – ROADRUNNER: NEW LIGHT, NEW MACHINE

Question Everything/Sony Music

Hip-hop

8/10

Internet-formed hip-hop group BROCKHAMPTON have stepped up their game with their new sixth album Roadrunner: New Light, New Machine. They’ve mentioned that it will be one of two releases this year, hinting that 2021 will be the final year of their reign. The LA-based outfit manage to keep spirits high with that knowledge, branching together ’00s hip-hop with the future, pushing boundaries alongside some big names in the genre.

Opening track and lead single “BUZZCUT” sets the tone with a heavy Danny Brown feature, before leaning into their West Coast origins on “Chain On” featuring JPEGMAFIA and “Count One Me”. The other noteworthy feature comes out on “Bankroll” featuring A$AP Rocky & A$AP Ferg, stepping into a bass-punching hip-hop energy.

Roadrunner‘s strong start rolls out the carpet for the band’s more pensive and emotionally driven candidness, most notably “The Light” and its sequel “The Light Pt. II” which opens up about band member Joba’s father who passed away by suicide. The well-rounded and expressive nature of the album keeps things interesting and engaging from both sides of the spectrum.

They fall back into their “boy band” origins on the latter half of the album, slipping into a passive, R&B style for “What’s The Occasion”, “When I Ball”, and the gospel track “Dear Lord”, but reignite for a passionate finish with “The Light Pt. II”.

Notable tracks: “Buzzcut” // “Chain On Me” // “Windows”

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Justin Nozuka – then, now & again EP

Blackbox/Post 1988

Singer-songwriter/Indie folk pop

7.5/10

Since releasing his first album at 17, Toronto-based singer-songwriter Justin Nozuka has been flying under the radar over the last decade – considering he’s had some JUNO nods and late night show appearances. Making another splash in the Canadian music scene, his new EP then, now, & again is his first release since the 2018 album Run To Water.

Featuring five buttery smooth pop-R&B ballads, Nozuka effortlessly charms his way with minimalistic instrumentation, allowing his voice and sensual lyrics to move the album forward.

Notable tracks: “Break Me” // “summer night o8” // “No One But You”