When I Wake Up. Maverick Sabre

There's something strange going on here. It is as if I have seen the picture on the cover before, although I strongly doubt it to be true. There's more strange things going on here. When I Wake Up is not an album that ends up on my good side in general, yet I am writing. And now I'm at it, the third strange thing is that I like the album distinctly better when listening on the stereo than with earphones in.

Maverick Sabre or Michael Stafford as his family knows him, grew up in Wexford in Ireland before re-migrating back to the U.K. where he was born. When I Wake Up is his third album.

The basis of this album is soulful beats. There is a hint at hip hop and rap that is overlain with soul, a basic form of gospel and jazz. It makes When I Wake Up pleasant to listen to, where usually I will have turned an album like this off fast. In part this is prevented by the voice of Sabre. It has a very nice edge to it. The other part is the way the soft beats are incorporated into the songs and melodies. Listen to a song like 'Don't Talk About It'. An electric guitar plays a small, simple but oh so effective riff over and over. The female choir singing the title adds a soft, floating touch in the way it is recorded and mixed into the song.

The first reference coming to mind is G. Love and Special Sauce's first record. I haven't heard it for circa 24 years, so it may be total rubbish to write so, but it does. It is the mood brought on by the drums I would say. There are a few more modern ones. Because of the female voice in 'Slow Down' Amy Winehouse joins the references. I never listened to her beyond a single song on the radio though. Finally I hear some Seal like in his first hit songs.

When I Wake Up presents a mix that goes down fairly well with me and yes, it is a surprise. The album mixes a few atmospheres really well. It is not a happy sounding album, yet it brings me ease and faint smiles on my face regularly. A rare combination, like I wrote: with When I Wake Up something strange is going on.

Wo.

Listen to our Spotify Playlist to find out what we are writing about:

https://open.spotify.com/user/glazu53/playlist/6R9FgPd2btrMuMaIrYeCh6?si=KI6LzLaAS5K-wsez5oSO2g

Somehow Anyhow. Paulusma

Windworn and weather beaten is the look of the wood on the cover of the album. That may well go for Jelle Paulusma as well, but how does his music fare in the last year of the 10s. To give off a warning, I have never been a fan of his music so far. Somehow Daryll Ann never resonated within me, despite the fact that the band's music ticked all my boxes. Sometimes that happens, somehow, anyhow.

I have given the album several listening sessions. During the first one the same reflex exposed itself; I turned the album off half way through the album. it was during later listening sessions that I started hearing these little things. The way Paulusma is playing with familiar themes and weaves them into his own songs. How free flowing some of the songs were. And that I had started listening more intently than before. Is the devil in the details?

Slowly but surely Paulusma convinces me that I am listening to a pop album of the highest standards. Think Ron Sexsmith, Ray Davies that sort of level. Little pieces of ear candy that creep into my ears, strike down those barriers and leave me unprotected for what follows.

Somehow Anyhow was rather long in the making. Here an analogy (what's in a word) with Diederik Nomden shows itself. Paulusma got caught up in an extremely CSN&Y tribute band, like Nomden and had to shelve his solo album for some time as Her Majesty kept selling out venues. Now both have finally released a new solo album.

Perhaps luckily so for Jelle Paulusma, well as far as this blog is concerned, as his album lands extremely well.

Press photo

One of the fun things of this album, is to lay out the musical puzzle. There are so many little and bigger references to find on it. From a Tim Knol kind of phrase, to a David Bowie quote, a Wilco lead guitar or a soft, sweet pop turn in the way Ron Sexsmith excels in, to the organ of Sir Douglas Quintet's Augie Myers. Just to mention a few of many. Paulusma weaves them into his own songs like it all takes no effort at all.

Another signifying part of Somehow Anyhow is that Jelle Paulusma sounds like he has nothing left to prove. Songs can be (very) direct or soft but without apparent pretensions. All have this superior ease in sound and flow. 'Crying Shame' is one of the best songs Suede has never written. It has this level of quality and a lot more is mixed in as well. Some horns enter to heighten the fun. The contrast with the slightly country tinged 'No Harm Done' is well done, as is the French sounding intro to 'Say Goodbye'. Just to mention three examples of how diverse Somehow Anyhow can be in sound, as when the Wilco lead guitar mixes with the French keyboard sound. All the while Jelle Paulusma sings with this soothing voice. This is an artist who is ageing very graciously.

Somehow Anyhow caught me by surprise and in a most pleasant way. Easily one of the more fun albums of 2019 and who knows it may grow into one of the better ones, as I am caught in its snares without me complaining for a single second.

Wo.

You can buy Somehow Anyhow here:

https://shop.excelsior-recordings.com/products/paulusma-somehow-anyhow


or listen to our Spotify Playlist to find out what we are writing about:

https://open.spotify.com/user/glazu53/playlist/6R9FgPd2btrMuMaIrYeCh6?si=KI6LzLaAS5K-wsez5oSO2g

The Slideshows. The Slideshows

Would I ever have listened to The Slideshows had not the band's singer been Marcel Hulst? That answer is most likely no. Chances are the music would never have reached me. Hulst is the singer in Maggie Brown and Mountaineer, both veterans on this blog. So it's only logical attention is given.

For those cheering already, there is a slight caution. In The Slideshows Marcel Hulst is the singer and not much more. That fact wins the band several points in my book, but lets keep it there and judge the band on its own merit and music.

The Slideshows is a trio from Amsterdam. After releasing its first EP in 2016, 'Sunrise Surprise', the band built its own studio and started to work on its full length debut. This is released this weekend with a release party in De Nieuwe Anita in Amsterdam (23-3). Auke van der Wielen plays bass, keyboards and creates beats, Floor Stevens drums and percussion.

On its first full length album The Slideshows delivers what it promises: psychedelic, electronic, indie, popmusic. Songs where the electronics and beats are harmoniously mixed with more organic instruments like guitars, organ and drums. In some songs the electronics win out more and in others the organic. It makes for a diverse album filled with a few pop gems.

Being not to big on synthpop bands, my points of reference are perhaps limited and most likely 80s based, like Soft Cell and Pet Shop Boys, later on in the album Depeche Mode. Although all bands (duos) have released a few great singles, they never became bands to follow to me and there are no albums of either in the home. The Slideshows by weaving in guitars come closer to what I prefer to hear on a daily bases. Another point scored.

Especially the first few songs on the album score well here. 'Thunderbird' has this upbeat sound, sprightly synths and a mysterious atmosphere in the middle section. Or 'Inside Out'. A guitar riff plays a role in the intro, to evolve in an early Duran Duran song like 'Girls On Film' was, bar the brazen outgoing nature of the new glam boys. While 'Sparks Unite' has that strong melancholy mood I know so well from Marcel Hulst's other work. The electronics around make it a different guise not a different song. 'Club 11' has this beautiful chorus.

It also needs to be mentioned that the further I move into the album, it is hard for me keep my enthusiasm. Not all songs are able to take on the barriers my ears put up. Basically the same happens what happened in the 80s with albums from the bands I mentioned and I could add Spandau Ballet or Howard Jones just to mention two other synthpop acts of the day. My attention no longer is caught and moves on elsewhere.

To sum up, The Slideshows present some excellent songs at the start of this album, where the mix of pop and synths really shines through, a level the band does not keep up. It has to do with more staccato delivery and less melody in the songs. Where the beats and electronics win out over the melody. It has everything to do with my preferences in music. In general the 80s simply were not my decade musically. If however this is your favourite decade The Slideshows may just offer what you like best.

Wo.

Listen to our Spotify Playlist to find out what we are writing about:

https://open.spotify.com/user/glazu53/playlist/6R9FgPd2btrMuMaIrYeCh6?si=KI6LzLaAS5K-wsez5oSO2g

Step By Step / Gravity 7". The Jasmine Minks

Just two songs. The classic division of a 7" single. An A side and B or "flipside". Sometimes a single had a double A side, because discjockeys preferred to play both songs or that the band and/or label did not want to make a choice.

Where the new single of The Jasmine Minks is concerned, had the single been released in 1967 Step By Step and Gravity would undoubtedly have been released as a double A side. Both songs have a deliciously melancholy mood that reflects the best songs of The Byrds and U.S. bands from the late 70s. This gives the two songs a more mellow atmosphere than the powerpop bands of the era gave the world. Add a little R.E.M. in the choruses and a addictive mix presents itself to the unsuspecting listener.

It is here that Gravity beats Step By Step. The song in the verses is simply good. It is in the chorus that the master truly shows himself. The harmonies are impeccable. The 12 string guitar sound is unbeatable, the warm Hammond a beautiful addition. Like The Maureens recently displayed on its new album, 'Something In The Air', a song can just have this little extra with a Rickenbacker guitar added to the sound.

Promo photo

Opening the bio, to find out a little about this band, I learn that they are around since 1983, formed in Aberdeen. Off and on the band released an album or single through the years up to 2019, after releasing several of the first singles on the Creation label. Step By Step being the first one since 2015. And, believe it or not this is a double A side single. Something is right with my ears alright.

Because Step By Step also is a song that stands it ground. It has a poppy element. Just listen to how it starts with the jangly guitar and the dit-dit-dit harmonies. The chorus brings in the best of The Charlatans, the instrumental part just as mysterious as the one in Gravity. Where is this leading to?, I ask myself after having heard the solid beginning of the guitar solo. The dark voice of Jim Shephard sort of is the icing on the cake. Dark without darkness, with the harmonies the contrast like the Stipe - Mills tandem in R.E.M is totally underscored. It works so well in these two songs.

Wo.

You can buy Step By Step / Gravity here:

https://thejasmineminks.bandcamp.com/album/step-by-step-b-w-gravity

Listen to our Spotify Playlist to find out what we are writing about:

https://open.spotify.com/user/glazu53/playlist/6R9FgPd2btrMuMaIrYeCh6?si=KI6LzLaAS5K-wsez5oSO2g

Good Company. Kalyn Fay

Kalyn Fay transformeert van een veelbelovende debutant in een van de smaakmakers binnen de rootsmuziek van het moment

Bible Belt, het debuut van Kalyn Fay, kreeg ik in 2016 bij toeval in handen, maar groeide al snel uit tot mijn favoriete rootsplaten van dat jaar. Good Company, de tweede plaat van de singer-songwriter uit Tulsa, Oklahoma, is nog veel beter en zet op alle terrein indrukwekkende stappen. De songs zijn beter, de volle en stemmige instrumentatie is nog wat mooier en trefzekerder, terwijl de krachtige stem van Kalyn Fay nu de hele plaat goed is voor kippenvel. Het levert een rootsplaat op die alles precies zo doet als ik het mooi vind en ik weet zeker dat Good Company veel meer liefhebbers van Amerikaanse rootsmuziek gaat aanspreken. En deze plaat wordt echt alleen maar beter.

Kalyn Fay maakte met Bible Belt één van mijn favoriete rootsplaten van 2016. Het is een plaat die in 2016 echt veel te weinig aandacht kreeg, wat mede het gevolg was van het besluit om de plaat niet beschikbaar te maken via de streaming media diensten.

Ik heb daar vanuit het perspectief van de muzikant absoluut begrip voor, maar het getuigt helaas ook van weinig realiteitszin. Bible Belt kwam uiteindelijk ook bij de streaming media diensten terecht en daar is gelukkig ook de nieuwe plaat van de singer-songwriter uit Tulsa, Oklahoma, onmiddellijk na de release te horen.

Als ik mijn favoriete rootsplaat in algemene termen mag beschrijven kom ik op de proppen met termen als mooie verhalen, een stemmig en ruimtelijk geluid, een hoofdrol voor snareninstrumenten en vooral een vrouwelijke stem die iets met me doet. Het zijn allemaal ingrediënten die in ruime mate aanwezig waren op het debuut van Kalyn Fay (Barnoski) en ook het geluid op haar nieuwe plaat domineren.

Good Company opent met fraai ingetogen gitaarwerk, waarna de opvallende stem van Kalyn Fay de ruimte vult. Het is een stem die is gemaakt voor Amerikaanse rootsmuziek en die emotie en een fraaie snik toevoegt aan de persoonlijke songs van Kalyn Fay. De Amerikaanse singer-songwriter focuste op haar debuut op het opgroeien in de Amerikaanse Bible Belt en het leven van alle dag staat ook centraal op Good Company.

Good Company ligt duidelijk in het verlengde van het terecht geprezen debuut van Kalyn Fay en combineert ingetogen en intieme songs met een verrassend vol geluid. Ook de tweede plaat van de singer-songwriter uit Tulsa, Oklahoma, is bijzonder fraai ingekleurd, waarbij de bijdragen van diverse snareninstrumenten ook dit keer het meest in het oor springen, maar ook het orgel dat af en toe opduikt is vrijwel onweerstaanbaar, terwijl de toegevoegde harmonieën de vocalen voorzien van extra diepte.

Het is een geluid vol fraaie details, maar het is ook een geluid dat heel veel ruimte open laat. Het is ruimte die prachtig wordt opgevuld door de bijzondere stem van Kalyn Fay. Het is een stem die warm en emotievol klinkt, maar het is ook een stem met een voorzichtig rauw randje en bovendien een stem met een duidelijk eigen geluid. Het is ook nog eens een stem die over het vermogen beschikt om de luisteraar onmiddellijk bij de strot te grijpen, waardoor Good Company, net als zijn voorganger, een plaat is die je niet makkelijk terzijde schuift.

Kalyn Fay maakt ook op haar tweede plaat weer betrekkelijk traditioneel aandoende Amerikaanse rootsmuziek, maar Good Company klinkt op een of andere manier ook fris en eigentijds. Vergeleken met het debuut biedt Good Company wat meer ruimte aan songs die net wat voller en steviger klinken en ook in deze songs maakt Kalyn Fay indruk met haar krachtige stem.

Bible Belt was het nog wat schuchtere debuut van een aanstormend talent binnen de Amerikaanse rootsmuziek, maar met Good Company zaagt Kalyn Fay wat mij betreft aan de stoelpoten van de groten en de smaakmakers in het genre. Good Company overtuigt 11 songs en 47 minuten lang met prima songs, een buitengewoon smaakvol geluid en een stem om te koesteren. Bible Belt was voor mij een jaarlijstjes plaat, maar met haar tweede plaat schaart de singer-songwriter uit het roemruchte Tulsa zich definitief onder mijn favoriete rootszangeressen van het moment.

Erwin Zijleman

Je kunt Good Company hier kopen:

https://hortonrecords.bandcamp.com/album/kalyn-fay-good-company


or listen to our Spotify Playlist to find out what we are writing about:

https://open.spotify.com/user/glazu53/playlist/6R9FgPd2btrMuMaIrYeCh6?si=KI6LzLaAS5K-wsez5oSO2g