New music round-up (for w/e 3 March 2023)
Our selection of the best new music across a range of genres from the week ending 3 March 2023.
Metropolis Metropolis is an abbreviated version of the most recent electronic music soundtrack for Fritz Lang’s Metropolis (1927) by the techno music producer and cultural icon Jeff Mills. Unlike his first soundtrack where tracks addressed specific segments of the film in a track listing form, which was created and released in 2001, this version is more a symbiotic mix of compositions that proposes a nuanced representation of the plot and storyline. As an electronic symphonic music creation, Mills proposes a few interesting points in the schematics of this album. 1- the positioning and role of the listener as the soundtrack is based on the environment of the scenes, rather than pure transcription, 2 – as a storyline that takes place in the year 2000, the choice of sound elements refer to some future commonality and foresight between the genres of Classical and Electronic music – between man and machine. And 3, in many parts of the soundtrack where sounds are played in unison. This is symbolic of the hopefulness the storyline works towards.
Over the last half decade, the music collective Constant Smiles has produced a prolific output of acclaimed music, culminating in their new record Kenneth Anger, masterfully brought to life by engineer Jonathan Schenke (Parquet Courts, Liars, Dougie Pool). The group is known most recently for their much-praised debut album for SacredBones records, Paragons, an emotionally resonant offering of indie folk masterpieces that all confront the internal ways we process our struggles with intimacies, addiction and humanity—produced by Ben Greenberg. Constant Smiles’ primary singer/songwriter Ben Jones uses the creative process as a tool for working through deeply transformative periods in his life. The band’s indie folk music lays bare this internal process, but on Kenneth Anger, the music shifts to synth pop and looks externally, examining creativity, community, ritual, and their place in the healing process.
Drummer and composer Kendrick Scott returns with the release of Corridors, his third album for Blue Note Records, a striking new album that finds the Houston-born drummer and composer paring down to a trio featuring saxophonist Walter Smith III and bassist Reuben Rogers. The anticipated follow-up to A Wall Becomes a Bridge, Scott’s much-lauded 2019 release with his band Oracle, Corridors features eight original compositions and one new arrangement of a beloved tune from the Bobby Hutcherson canon. (“Isn’t This My Sound Around Me?”)
Tine Thing Helseth is back with a new release – Seraph – this time together with Ensemble Allegria. Helseth and Allegria have had a close association for many years and have appeared together at the Bergen International Festival, the Northern Lights Festival in Tromsø, the Oslo Chamber Music Festival, and on the main stage at the Norwegian National Opera. This release features some familiar as well as lesser known works for trumpet and string orchestra by composers from Norway and abroad, with the first four written for this instrumentation, while the last three were arranged by Jarle Storløkken.
American singer-songwriter, poet, and photographer Thomas Meluch, known musically as Benoît Pioulard, returns with his most structured and vocal release to date. Titled »Eidetic,« a word denoting the ability to recall mental images with extraordinarily rich precision, the album presents unprecedented clarity and vitality for Benoît Pioulard. To access its thematic ground, Meluch looked inward with an affinity towards the people he loves during a period marked by his move from Seattle to Brooklyn in 2019. The resulting work engages with the universe’s unflinching mortality and, as he says, »the ways it has modified and improved my relationships, especially with family.« Embodied by the creek, leaves, and ferns of the cover photography — taken in Michigan’s Burchfield Park, where he and his dad used to hike and »muse on existence« — the music glistens and unfurls with the flow of life he’s come to know. »Eidetic« is the culmination of Meluch’s craft both as a producer and writer. An evocative sonic vocabulary meets deft lyrical introspection, articulated with the nuance, vulnerability, and confidence of a longtime artist hitting a stride.
When the pandemic hit, Hannah van Loon adopted a dog named Gizmo, who became a much-needed companion while the Bay Area musician wrote her second album as Tanukichan. Aptly named after her new four-legged friend, GIZMO is an exercise in release, whether from situational hindrances — a forced lockdown, for one — or from self-imposed hedonistic coping mechanisms.
Artisan Guardian is Haley Midgette’s second release. With lyrics that are a testament to the unpredictable musings of a guarded yet curious heart, Haley’s journey is tender and heartfelt, tragic at times due to its relatability, as she takes a deep and honest dive inwards to make sense of how things manifest outwardly in the world around her. The listening experience is built around melodies equal parts elegant and catchy, enriched by simple, poetic lyrics that combine vulnerability, compassion, and authentic awareness. With a wide spectrum of influences that range from Leonard Cohen to Katy Kirby, the finished product is poised, honest, and deeply moving.
Other reviews you might enjoy:
- New music round-up (for w/e 10 February 2023)
- New music round-up (for w/e 11 November 2022)
- New music round-up (for w/e 14 May 2021)
David Edwards is the editor of The Blurb and a contributor on film and television