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Our album Picks this week include the future of jazz in Ezra Collective's Here Because of Hope, Sylvan Esso's pairing of unease with their typical warmth on Ow ∞, and the troubadour-est of the troubadours Pokey LaFarge's Rent Money.
For Fresh tracks, we have Downtown Boys doing The Replacements "Can't Hardly Wait," Valerie June taking on "Trouble In Mind" with help from Sam Amidon, the ever-hilarious Willi Carlisle's "Marlboro Vinyasa" and Elena Tonra of Daughter, under her solo moniker Ex:Re, with "Radio Station."
Then, sparks fly when Andrew Dziengel talks Sparks in this week's Pick From '76.
Check out this week's suggestions from Asst. Music Director Malachy Koons, Volunteer Coordinator Dan Gannon and Morning Show Host Andrew Dziengel.
Albums
Album of the Week: Ezra Collective - Here Because of Hope
Just last year, Ezra Collective became the first jazz band to win "Group of the Year" at the BRIT Awards, behind their critically acclaimed third album Dance, No One's Watching from 2024.
Not too long ago, the thought of jazz returning to the forefront of popular music would have been laughed at, but hearing the London quintet's remarkable follow-up Here Because of Hope, it is clear why the band now shares an award with such names as The Beatles and Radiohead.
Divided into three sections that mirror the historical movement of many Black Brits from Africa to the Caribbean to the UK, Ezra Collective's fusion of jazz with elements from each area paints a musical and historical through line that often needs no words to share its message.
In the first movement, we hear nods to Fela Kuti's Afrobeat and highlife music on "Sweet Echo" and "Don't Worry," and, with help from English-Gambian rapper Pa Salieu, they touch the current sounds of Afrobeats on "Only Love."
Each movement is introduced with a spoken word piece from actor Letitia Wright, and the gentle sound of waves against a shore plus these words make it clear Part Two is a trip to the Caribbean:
"There's this energy that follows us, as a people / This familiar feeling / Seeking purpose, to belong / No matter how much they try to bury it, it just flows / It's in our souls, moves through our bodies / The rhythms and melodies it feels like home / Rooted in truth / And that truth we chose to amplify ... through a sound system."
Just like her words the message flows directly into a marching jazz-dub groove on "Birdie Sings" that leads into the celebratory "The Last Stand." The Afro-Caribbean section isn't all dubbed-out jazz, though. Ezra Collective again taps into the leading voices of a region with Jamaican vocalist Lile Iké on the steelpan sampling dancehall of "Well Organized."
Different Caribbean islands are the source for one the album's most electric moments as they show their salsa chops, especially bandleader Femi Koleoso's percussion, on "El Corazón."
The final movement, back home in England, is kicked off with stellar soulful vocals from superstar Leona Lewis and keyboardist Joe Armon-Jones' twinkling piano. "Jubilee Feeling" draws from the energy of UK house music, while bassist TJ Koleoso stars on the jazz fusion of "Black Flag."
Ezra Collective is at the peak of its powers on Here Because of Hope, playing music that is simultaneously educating and the perfect soundtrack to a house party, paving a way for jazz to shake off its stuffy and academic reputation. -MK
Sylvan Esso - Ow ∞
The latest Amelia Meath and Nick Sanborn album is something to fall into. Each listen leads to the discovery of something new, carefully placed in a dense web of samples, drums fills and Meath's exceptionally warm voice. If you like music that explores contrasting moods, this is an album for you. Manipulated vocal samples, skittering beats, and Meath's lyrics give Ow ∞ a restless and vaguely uneasy feeling that stands out in the band's typically inviting warmth. -MK
Pokey LaFarge - Rent Money
Our favorite troubadour is back with another set of timeless rock 'n' roll tunes, leaving behind the tropicália and mambo that appeared on Rhumba Country (2024). For all of us giving away most of our money every month just so someone else can profit off our basic needs, the title track will hit hard. Beyond calling out landlords, it's a metaphor for the many ways people take more than their fair share, and alongside "Work" and "Big Boss Man," brings a steady dose of pro-working class commentary throughout Rent Money. -MK
Singles
Downtown Boys - "Can't Hardly Wait"
Even though "Can't Hardly Wait" is The Replacements at the band's poppiest, it makes sense that a punk band like Downtown Boys can tap into the looseness that made The Mats so special. It helps that Downtown Boys is the rare punk band with saxophone. But, despite its inclusion, this version has more in spirit with some of the hornless alternate versions that appeared on the Tim (Let It Bleed) boxset. This banger is part of a new Sub Pop benefit album, with the label's artists covering Minnesota musicians to raise funds for The International Institute of Minnesota, a nonprofit that supports refugees and immigrants. -MK
Valerie June - "Trouble In Mind"
I'm normally a "we could do with a lot less new versions of standards, traditionals, and often covered songs of any type" kind of music fan. But obviously, that does not apply to Valerie June. Honestly, I'd challenge you to find any song from that world that I wouldn't love hearing June do. The addition of Sam Amidon on this version of "Trouble In Mind" is just the cherry on top. -MK
Willi Carlisle - "Marlboro Vinyasa"
"I've been getting up each morning with the hair of the downward dog" sings the verbose vagabond Willi Carlisle on this tune, comically highlighting the changes some small towns might undergo when outsiders move in. Carlisle is one of the best storytellers around and his clever lyrics are relentlessly wonderful ... I mean, the man has a Master of Fine Arts degree in poetry! His new double album, The Universal Bubba, was produced by none other than Tyler Childers. -DG
Ex:Re - "Radio Station"
Ex:Re is the solo project of Elena Tonra, best known as the singer, songwriter and guitarist of indie-folk band Daughter. In this first single from her first album in eight years, Tonra compares herself, and her troublemaking decisions, to constantly changing the radio station. I'm a sucker for songs about radio, and for moody folk-rockers that will make you do the exact opposite of turning the dial. -MK
Pick From '76
Sparks - Big Beat
I guess you can go home again, but not without taking a few shots at it first.
Before Sparks’ sixth album Big Beat, they gained a reputation for making arty pop songs like “This Town Ain’t Big Enough for the Both of Us” and “Amateur Hour.” They were loosely connected to the '70s glam rock movement, but no one was quite doing what Sparks was.
The main members of the band are the brothers Ron and Russell Mael. Russell writes most of the songs and performs in a deadpan, stoneface style, while Ron is an over-the-top frontman with a voice that NME once described as a cross between Marc Bolan and Tiny Tim.
On Big Beat, they came back to the USA after recording the past few albums in England. Known for changing their sound with whatever creative whim attracts them, Sparks attempts to follow a more "American" sound on Big Beat. However, in true Sparks’ fashion, they can’t help but mock the trends of the time.
It’s definitely the band's most “rock” album and possibly their most critical. They take shots at masculinity on “Big Boy,” social climbers on “I Bought the Mississippi River” and conformity on “I Want to Be Like Everybody Else.”
The album wasn’t a hit, and the band has said it feels the album lacks its true personality. However, the album has its defenders in the Sparks’ fan community (including the person writing this). It’s a detour for the band, but it’s hard to ignore the catchy numbers on this album and not have a laugh at some clever lyrics. -AD
