Episode 53
Featuring tracks by Dave Okumu & The 7 Generations, Foo Fighters, dEUS, Portugal. The Man, Astrud Gilberto, Alogte Oho & His Sounds of Joy, LA Priest, Kelady, Colloboh, Golden Mean, Cisco Swank, WheelUP, Watchglass, and more...
Episode 53 Highlights
Dave Okumu & The 7 Generations
I Came From Love is a tapestry of the Black experience that explores ancestry, the legacy of slavery, what it means to exist in an unjust society, and Okumu’s own family history.
On Okumu’s brand new project I Came From Love, he calls on a star-studded array of guests, including Eska, Kwabs, Wesley Joseph, Robert Stillman, Anthony Joseph, Byron Wallen, Raven Bush, and Grace Jones. Rather than release solely under his name, Okumu has chosen the moniker Dave Okumu & the 7 Generations, which Okumu sees as “my actual ancestors, the ancestors of others, my musical ancestors, and my descendants”.
Portugal. The Man
Portugal. The Man are back after a brief hiatus with a record titled Chris Black Changed My Life, the follow-up to their global hit record Woodstock.
PTM have set a personal standard to "change things up" each time they go into the studio to record a new record. This time they went with famed producer Jeff Bhasker (Harry Styles, Kanye West, Beyoncé, Mark Ronson, etc.) to challenge their process. The result of the collaboration brought a new depth to the music and a record that is in John Gourley's (lead singer/songwriter) words "our most complete record that follows a storyline from beginning to end."
The record delivers on PTM's eclecticness, pulling influence from music across the globe. Chris Black Changed My Life is a personal story about the loss of a friend and the struggle that comes with it and ultimately ends with power and the endless influence those people will have on your life.
Foo Fighters
Dave Grohl opens the 11th Foo Fighters album with a realization: “It came in a flash/It came out of nowhere/It happened so fast/And then it was over.” The line likely refers to the shocking death of beloved, longtime drummer Taylor Hawkins in 2022, or possibly the quiet passing, several months later, of Grohl’s mother, Virginia, at the age of 84. For some, death is not for singing about or making into art, those selfish little pursuits that turn pain inward, where it cannot be transformed into the substance of a mass healing ritual.
Acknowledge this, and the pivot from eulogy to the pure rock’n’roll revivalism of “Rescued” feels inevitable and life-affirming. Whether or not people thought of Hawkins when they heard the song on the radio, “Rescued” must also acknowledge its purpose as the starting gun for Foo Fighters’ marathon live show for the next three years. “I’m just waiting to be rescued, we’re all waiting to be rescued tonight!” Grohl shouts in his indefatigable growl. Bono might endlessly roam the desert and Bruce might drive until there’s no road left in search of spiritual deliverance, but Foo Fighters are more practical and efficient—most of us have work in the morning.
But Here We Are does not change the Foo Fighters’ aesthetic in any meaningful way; it is not their grave, lonely album about loss. Rather, the most impressive thing about the album is how death is gracefully absorbed into this long-running franchise to reinvigorate the band. The album matches its tragic, highly public circumstances with the band’s most propulsive and purposeful music of the last two decades—a burned-out Christmas display that illuminates the entire neighborhood after someone finally finds the missing bulb.
dEUS
How to Replace It begins with thunderous tom drums as if dEUS were making an entrance akin to a gladiator strutting into an arena in an old-school sword-and-sandals epic. Such ostentatiousness, in this context, isn’t mere flourish. Though dEUS remain one of the most important Belgian rock outfits, over a decade has passed since their last outing, 2012’s Following Sea. The gap between that record and How to Replace It is the longest in the dEUS discography; the prior pace had the group putting out a new record every three to four years on average. The opening and title track of How to Replace It announces dEUS’ return with gusto, perhaps indicating that this album, the eighth for the band, marks a new and bold chapter.
If How to Replace It proves anything, it’s that dEUS remain as restless on matters of genre as they ever have. The keyboard lick that opens “Man of the House” makes it sound like a Bond theme in waiting, only for the song to then abruptly shift to a fuzzy bass synth, over which Barman sings with syncopated energy in the chorus. The gentle piano ballad “Love Breaks Down” (no connection to Prefab Sprout) seems to usher the album to a more reflective closing, only for the French language mini-epic “Le Blues Polaire” to answer it with controlled intensity.
But for every instance where How to Replace It’s eclecticism proves a showcase for dEUS’ experimental verve, there’s a corresponding out-of-place moment that prevents the record from cohering as a whole. It is unclear why the bluesy rock ‘n’ roll of “Cadillac” invites a sitar in one of its choruses, for example.
And yet the high points of this album more than evince the persistent quality of dEUS’ craft after 11 years. The second single, “1989”, finds Barman in crooner mode, brooding nostalgic poetry at the very low end of his vocal register: “All the azaleas in their prime / An imaginary shrine / They are frozen in their bloom.” He then follows up that charismatic performance with the strongest dEUS chorus in some time on “Faux Bamboo”, a song whose focused instrumentation and consistent textures exhibit a kind of focus that, had it been used throughout the rest of the album, could very well have made this a sharper affair. Then again, dEUS’ wandering sonic tastes are part of the experience they offer listeners.
Kelady
Slowly blooming across four years, Los Angeles based artist Kelady describes the transformative process of her debut album BABAE like the moon phases building up, breaking down, and flowing out again. BABAE (buh-BAH-EH) which means "woman" in Tagalog embodies both vulnerability and confidence through a cheeky ritual of groovy dance, playful chants, and soul-digging melodies. Contextualized within explorative forms of contemporary Hip-hop/R&B singing and rap, Kelady combines recordings of kulintang gongs, percussive bamboo, cowrie shells, and car engines with electric bass, keys, and nylon guitars.
Inspired by experiences of diasporic identity, the album gestures different relationships with time through layering themes of grandmother, mother, and child – a stand in for the past, present, and future. Echoing these narratives of love and loss, BABAE calls for renewal, professing an uncompromising yet blissful lift in voice, surrendering to love, and having courage in the void.
Astrud Gilberto 1940-2023
Astrud Gilberto, a decisive voice in the process that took bossa nova beyond the borders of Brazil and a figure recognized early on by jazz enthusiasts, has left us at the age of 83. Though not from Rio de Janeiro, she gave voice to the most celebrated woman ever sung about in Brazilian music. Born Astrud Evangelina Weinert in Salvador (Bahia) in March 1940, she moved to Rio de Janeiro at the age of seven. It was Nara Leão, her friend since adolescence, who encouraged her to explore her voice and introduced her to João Gilberto, whom she married in 1959. She joined him on stage for the first time the following year at an event marking the release of his second album, "O Amor, o Sorriso, a Flor," which included the track "Corcovado." However, it was her rendition of the English version of "Garota de Ipanema" (composed in 1962 by João Gilberto and Vinicius de Moraes, with English lyrics by Norman Gimbel) that opened her path to international recognition in 1964. This track was featured on an album that brought together João Gilberto and Stan Getz, solidifying her voice's transcendence of borders and reaching audiences worldwide. This marked the beginning of her solo career, following the end of her marriage that same year. In 1964, she also recorded the album "Getz Au Go Go" alongside Stan Getz, featuring her vocals on five songs, including "Corcovado" and an English version of "Samba de Uma Nota Só" ("One Note Samba").
The Grammy Award she received in 1965 for the recording of "The Girl From Ipanema" amplified her status and helped pave the way for a new phase. In addition to bossa nova and jazz, the singer, who remained in the United States after her separation from João Gilberto, embraced other musical styles, showcasing her skills as a songwriter and composer. Released in 1972 and featuring arrangements by Eumir Deodato, the album "Now" stands as a beautiful example of a noteworthy episode in her body of work. Despite its initial foundations laid through collaborations with the greats of bossa nova, her career gained momentum and truly showcased the defining traits of her artistic personality. The regularity of her releases became increasingly irregular and spaced out after the second half of the 1970s. However, this did not diminish the attention she received from musicians of diverse backgrounds. Since then, Astrud Gilberto has collaborated with artists such as Japanese trombonist Shigeharu Mukai, American singer-songwriter Michael Franks, French musician Etienne Daho (with whom she performed "Les Bords de Seine" from the album "Eden"), and George Michael, with whom she recreated "Desafinado" on the album "Red Hot + Rio." Polish singer Barbara Stanisława Trzetrzelewska, formerly of Matt Bianco, dedicated the song "Astrud" to her.
Tracklist
Fred Again.., Brian Eno - Secret
A.S.O. - Rain Down
Portugal. The Man - Dummy
Dave Okumu & The 7 Generations - Get Out
Honey Moon - The Sultan’s Saloon
Golden Mean - Oumuamua
Foo Fighters - Show Me How
LA Priest - It’s You
Cisco Swank - All The Same
Laroye & Jerry Clavier - Grateful
Tommaso Cappellato, Pavimento Fertile, Lalin St. Juste - Under The Moon
WITCH, Theresa Ng’ambi, Hanna Tembo - Malango
WheelUP & Abacus - Infinity
Astrud Gilberto & Stanley Turrentine - Brazilian Tapestry
Watchglass - Every Conversation
dEUS - Faux Bamboo
Alogte Oho & His Sounds of Joy - Yinne Te Yelle Be
Bright & Findlay - When I Look into the World
Kelady - Bato sa Buhangin / Lovers Rock
Portugal. The Man feat. Unknown Mortal Orchestra - Summer of Luv
Astrud Gilberto & Shigeharu Mukai - Nos Dois
Colloboh & Qur’an Shaheed & Mekala Session - Mystic You