Two weeks, two different themes! The first new music Friday of August saw an R&B/hip hop focus, while the second Friday was all about indie rock. I liked two releases from each week and each release offers something different for listeners.
Let’s dig into each set of releases…
August 2nd
Sincere by Khalid (Listen)
I’ve been a fan of Khalid since his American Teen debut, which he wrote in high school and was released in 2017. He followed that up in 2019 with Free Spirit, which featured the hit song “Talk”. Fast forward five years and we have Sincere, his third full length.
Khalid blends pop music with R&B and some indie rock influences, which you can hear on songs like “Heatstroke” on the new album. He cites influence like Frank Ocean, Father John Misty, Lorde, Grizzly Bear, James Blake, Kendrick Lamar, and Chance the Rapper. A diverse group, but all great songwriters.
I don’t think Sincere breaks any new ground, but it’s a quality listen from top to bottom. It absolutely excels as a chill/wind down/relax type record which I think everyone needs to have in their collection.
Beyond that it’s amazing how much music Khalid has put out in 10 years and the fact that he’s still only 26 years old.
Memoirs in Armour by Navy Blue (Listen)
Been following Navy Blue (aka Sage Elsesser) for a minute as well. He’s a producer, skateboarder, visual artist, and model… and he also releases his own music.
My intro to Navy Blue was through his production work, as he’s worked with some of my favorite hip hop artists, including Earl Sweatshirt, Wiki, MIKE, and Armand Hammer. In terms of my favorite releases, Half God with Wiki made my Best of 2021 list. His solo record Ways of Knowing made my Best of 2023 list.
Memoirs is another classic Navy Blue album… with his poetic, almost stream of conscious lyrics telling a story of reckoning with himself and his life, over the top of dreamy, jazzy loops and samples.
Like on the song “Basis”:
I am what I am, it ain’t no fighting facts
My life intact, this where I stand
I rose from out the ash a better man
I can’t create no diamond, they say pressure can
Heavy hands, no Midas touch, I broke down in a trance
I couldn’t wait to take a chance
By any means I gotta live, it’s necessary to recant
Sometimes leaders walk alone, can’t deal with sycophants
And on “Low Threshold”:
The storm is passin’
How will I survive amidst all that has happened? Held me captive
Victim of my pride at times I’m all reaction
The slow burn is waiting for the magic
Caught lacking principles before the personalities like don’t you see yourself and who you after?
If you are looking for bangers, this probably isn’t an album for you…however, if you appreciate the art of hip hop and lyrics, I think you will really dig Navy Blue – especially Memoirs in Armour.
August 9th
Oyster Cuts by Quivers (Listen)
Quivers is a band from Australia that plays a mix of jangle pop and indie rock. Their website says they make “cathartic guitar pop that jangles and shimmers somewhere between 1980s Australia and 1990s America.” And that’s pretty darn accurate.
Oyster Cuts is their third full length and first album for Merge. Their 2021 album, Golden Doubt, made the cut as one of my top 50 releases from that year, but this new one is tops. Songs alternate between male and female leads, which really makes this record feel shorter than it is… and those melodies and harmonies – chef’s kiss.
Favorite tracks include: “Never Be Loney”, “Pink Smoke”, “More Lost”, “Oyster Cuts”, “If Only”, and “Reckless”.
If you are a fan of bands like Galaxie 500, Japanese Breakfast, and those Australian jangle pop bands (The Chills, The Clean, The Verlaines)… you’ll dig this.
life till bones by oso oso (Listen)
oso oso are one of my favorite bands going right now, combining the best elements of power pop and emo. Their 2022 release, sore thumb, was my #2 album of the year. It was super catchy, a little messy at times, and most likely intended to be reworked/refined.
Shortly after recording sore thumb, bandmate Tavish Maloney passed away at 24 years old. Tavish was not only a bandmate and co-writer, but Jade Lilitri’s (oso oso’s singer and main songwriter) cousin and close friend. (Tavish was also from my current town and attended my kid’s high school.) That loss influenced the release of sore thumb “as is”, as well as impacted the lyrical themes of life till bones.
The new album is definitely more refined musically (less raw, less loud), while retaining the catchiness and lyrical quality they are known for… like the lyrics on “stoke”:
I remember it all
I mean it wasn’t all that long ago
And I still shake when they call and all
I tremble at the toneFar too many words, I say nothing
When I bite my tongue just to feel something
Then I fight every feeling, that’s not fair
I try to hit you up, then remember you’re not thereAnd I remember the year
A funeral in my head every day
There should be nothing to fear
But now I fear more of the same
In my humble opinion, it’s the most well written, consistent album oso oso has released. It’s not the extreme highs of “computer exploder” and “nothing to do” from sore thumb or “the view” and “basking in the glow” from basking in the glow but the overall quality is very high the entire album. So listen to the whole damn thing. It’s 29 minutes…you have 29 minutes to spare. 😄
