It's a team effort on Fresh Picks this week!
Alongside picks from the Music Team (Kari Hedlund, Malachy Koons and Dan Gannon), Reporter Megan Buffington shares her knowledge of rising Americana artists, Morning Show producer/host Andrew Dziengel shows his indie-rock expertise and fellow Morning Show producer/host Jennifer Barr talks about the beginning of a legendary band in this week's "Pick of '76."
We've got albums from southern rock royalty in Duane Betts, rising Cree neo-soul singer LOV, Canadian living in New Orleans Bella White, and Philadelphia indie-rocker Greg Mendez.
For singles, we're listening to Minnesota country singer Molly Brandt, a new Merve Erdem (Kit Sebastian) group called Sosyete '25 and Eric Bachmann's Crooked Fingers.
Check out this week's suggestions.
Albums
Album of the Week: Duane Betts - Isle of Hope
“Heartache, there’s nothing you can do.”
The opening song on the new album from Duane Betts is steeped in grief. The intense and immense hole left in your being after losing a parent, spouse, friend or child is unimaginable. Betts has captured that in the lead track, “Heartache.”
The album is made up of songs he wrote after losing his dad, Dickey Betts, founder of the Allman Brothers Band. While the lead song has a deep sadness, “Reckless” and “Pills & Liquor” touch on Betts' struggle with addiction; there's retrospection and quiet in “Silver Afternoon”; and slices of straight Southern rock are present in “Down to Houston,” “Manatee River” and “Keep My Hands Clean.”
Vulnerability is at the core of Isle of Hope with Betts revealing more of himself to listeners with each song. -KH
LOV - Iskwêw
From the plains of western Canada comes ... an incredible neo-soul album? You read that right.
LOV is a rising First Nations singer from the Poundmaker Cree Nation in Saskatchewan, and her new debut album Iskwêw ("woman" in Cree) is a vibes-heavy collection of breathtaking vocals and dreamy instrumentals. With songs focused on womanhood, love and healing, LOV will appeal to both fans of the early neo-soul of Erykah Badu and the contemporary R&B of SAULT. -MK
Bella White - A Sign In The Weather
Bella White's sound evolves on her third album. Her haunting vocals, of course, continue to deliver, as does her ability to authentically capture nuanced emotions in her music and lyrics: A hallmark of all great Americana artists, but not a given.
As she told People Magazine, the songs come from a quieter place emotionally, but no less complex. "I felt like I was having a lot of big transitions in my life, but taking them pretty softly," she said. " ... All of my big feelings are made up of a million little feelings."
A Sign In The Weather trends more folk than White's first two albums, which leaned further into her bluegrass roots. The sound suits the tone of the album perfectly. It's hard to recommend specific tracks because they're all fantastic; it's truly a no-skipper. -MB
Greg Mendez - Beauty Land
Philadelphia indie singer/songwriter Greg Mendez returns with his new album Beauty Land. At a brisk 26 minutes, Mendez packs more emotions than most artists do with hourlong albums. He's received a lot of comparisons to Elliot Smith and for good reason. Much like Smith, he writes some of the most devastating lyrics but the tunes are so catchy, that you can miss them if you're not paying attention.
A standout track is the opener "I Wanna Feel Pretty" which almost serves as an indie singer/songwriter's version of "Tangled Up in Blue" (granted almost four minutes shorter) where we go through a lifetime of experiences in one song. It's not an album you would throw on during a party with friends, but it is an album to keep you company when you're feeling down, which is just as important. -AD
Singles
Molly Brandt - "One Helluva Country"
Brandt pays homage to country music storytellers like Tom T. Hall on this state-of-the-nation commentary tune. Mixing twang and slide guitar with an alternative rock attitude puts the sound firmly in the roots and Americana realm. Molly Brandt is not afraid to vary her sound or to speak her mind. This is a four-minute history lesson for "we the people!" -DG
Sosyete '25 - "Bilmece"
A new trio featuring Merve Erdem of Kit Sebastian on vocals, Sosyete '25 kick off their debut album Yaygara with this tone-setting slice of Anatolian funk. Built around a staccato lotar, a type of Mediterranean lute, "Bilmece" has a locked-tight bass and drum groove under Erdem's floating vocals. To help you set the scene, the title translates to "riddle" or "puzzle," and the lyrics contemplate existence and compare life to an unsolvable riddle. -MK
Crooked Fingers - "Insomnia"
Everybody raise your eyelids in the air if you've ever had insomnia! A nicely plucked, snaky guitar riff starts out this creeper of a tune. Paranoia and gothic imagery unfolds as Crooked Fingers lays out exactly what is keeping them awake at night. Minimal drums, kick and rimshots, keep the song stepping forward, one hushed step at a time while the singer plaintively cries out "I can't sleep." Nice tune here. I feel you, brother. -DG
1976 Album
Blondie - Blondie
Blondie started as a club band, performing regularly at CBGB’s and Max’s Kansas City, both iconic clubs in New York City. The members took this energy to their debut album, with pounding drums, flashing keyboard and guitars.
Ken Tucker of Rolling Stone magazine described lead singer Debbie Harry as the “possessor of a bombshell zombie’s voice.”
While the album didn’t make a splash on the new wave scene at first, songs like “X Offender,” “In the Sun” and “Man Overboard” set the stage for what was to come for Blondie. -JB
