New music: Leaf Rapids, Neil Young, Pet Shop Boys and Sun Ra

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 26/04/2024 (558 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

FOLK

Leaf Rapids
Velvet Paintings (Mile 33)

This album is best listened to in one of two ways. The first is on repeat while traversing a long ribbon of highway through Canada’s Prairies. The other is at home at the end of a day, when it’s finally time to unwind. Turn the lights low, pour a soothing glass, settle in and let the smooth-and-easy country folk of Leaf Rapids waft through the stillness.

Allow Keri Latimer’s keenly observational and ever-so-slightly sardonic lyrics conjure vivid images of dollar store shopping and velvet paintings as she sings of finding life and love in the gap between wistful dreams and harsh realities.

Note the finely constructed arrangements of these quiet but extraordinarily rich songs — the understatedly beautiful guitar work of Chris Dunn, the lonesome wail of Bill Western’s pedal steel, the steady, walking bass of Devin Latimer and the nimble stick and brushwork of drummer Joanna Miller, who also adds effortless backing vocals.

John Paul Peters and Natanielle Felicitas chime in with atmospheric violin and strings, and Geoff Hilhorst’s Rhodes piano and Hammond organ bring melody-thickening embellishment and romping fills to several tunes.

The tunes themselves are transcendent meditations, spinning tales of silver fillings catching radio waves (Silver Fillings), memories stirred by BFI bins (Insomniac Show), secrets shared by whispering leaves (In the Woods) and of the magical wonder of emotional connection (Starling to a Starling, Trepidatious Celebrations).

Miller takes the lead vocal on her own Night Shift, about the tranquility of the pre-dawn world, and Paramjit Singh, who was paired with Latimer in a program matching songwriters with seniors, wrote the wonderful ode to love that is Paramjit’s Sonnet. ★★★★½ out of five

Stream: Velvet Painting; Night Shift; Trepidatious Celebrations

— John Kendle

 

ROCK

Neil Young
Fu##in’ Up (Reprise)

The venerable Neil Young offers a ragged and raw live take of his beloved 1990 album Ragged Glory with a new album, titled Fu##in’ Up.

Of course, the 2024 version doesn’t have the same semi-youthful energy that Young, then 44, put into the original. Maybe his voice is a little shakier, the guitar solos not quite as refined, but the songs still crackle with a power that’s frankly stunning coming from the not-so-young Young.

It’s clear the 78-year-old and his band Crazy Horse fed off the small crowd at the Toronto club where this was recorded in November 2023. Young is obviously having a blast on stage, so much so that he decided to release the songs just months after the performance. This is from a guy who has held on to some of his most beloved live shows for half a century.

Young and Crazy Horse perform nine of the 10 Ragged Glory songs in nearly identical arrangements to how they were recorded in 1990.

Only one song from the original release, Mother Earth (Natural Anthem), is absent on Fu##in’ Up. The songs have all been retitled with lyrics from the original, except for the cover of Farmer John.

For example, Over and Over becomes Broken Circle and Love to Burn becomes Valley of Hearts.

The somewhat profane album title is more or less the same as a song from Ragged Glory, just with a couple of different characters in between the “F” and the “in.” (It went from F*!#in’ Up in 1990 to Fu##in’ Up in 2024.)

For all of its virtues, some fans of the original may quibble with Young tackling the material 34 years later, especially since he doesn’t differ much from the originals.

“Not everyone will want to hear it because it’s not for everyone,” Young writes in the liner notes. “In the spirit it’s offered, we made this for the Horse lovers. I can’t stop it. The Horse is runnin’ — what a ride we have. I don’t want to mess with the vibe, and I am so happy to have this to share.”

It may be for a niche Neil audience, but that niche is sure to love it. And Young doesn’t care what the rest think. ★★★★ out of five.

Stream: Broken Circle; Valley of Hearts; Country Home

— Scott Bauer, The Associated Press

 

POP

Pet Shop Boys
Nonetheless (Parlophone)

On the Pet Shop Boys’ first single, West End Girls, vocalist Neil Tennant sang the lines, “We’ve got no future / We’ve got no past / Here today, built to last.”

Fifteen studio records later, there possibly isn’t a better verse that captures the timelessness of the stone-faced British pop duo that appears to, indeed, be built to last.

Known for their synthesizer-backed dance tracks with emotionally resonant lyrics, Tennant and keyboardist Chris Lowe created their own style of electric pop — influenced by glam rock and disco — that has stood the test of time with consistent releases over the years. Their latest album, Nonetheless, falls right in line with the pattern.

Tennant’s simple-sounding vocals tell stories of loneliness, longing and love, elevated by bumping electronic beats and orchestral harmonies in this bittersweet masterpiece. Lowe’s synthesizer skills bring each track to life, as always, and the dichotomy between heart-wrenching lyrics and dance-inducing instrumentals is a poignant reflection of human emotion.

Catchy track Why Am I Dancing? is a perfect example. Head-bopping beats and triumphant trumpets and strings accompany the lyrics, “Why am I dancing when I’m so alone? / Maybe I can celebrate on my own.”

Nostalgia for another time and place seeps throughout Nonetheless. Tennant reflects on starting out on his own in New London Boy, and he yearns for a feeling just out of reach in A New Bohemia.

Packed with gems, Nonetheless is sure to delight both old and new fans and shows that the duo isn’t slowing down any time soon. ★★★★ out of five

Stream: Why Am I Dancing?; A New Bohemia

— Kiana Doyle, The Associated Press

 

JAZZ

Sun Ra
Sun Ra at the Showcase: Live in Chicago 1976-77 (Jazz Detective)

Yet another new release of formerly “forgotten” sessions, this time a live recording of the Sun Ra Arkestra from the 1970s.

If you are familiar with pianist/composer/leader Sun Ra, this is a terrific example of his “wild sound” or “controlled cacophony” as it has been described. If you aren’t familiar with Sun Ra, you need to know he is arguably the wildest jazz musician of all time, which is saying a lot. His 19 piece Arkestra (not a misprint) had some great musicians over the years who always played with terrific fun and energy, led by a outrageously costumed Sun Ra.

Space has a large part in Sun Ra’s story. He was born Herman Poole Blount, but after claiming to have been abducted by aliens and taken to Saturn, the name and the space concept became his trademarks. (When he died in 1993, a critic suggested he had simply gone home to the mother planet.)

The Arkestra is still performing and was at the Winnipeg Jazz Festival last year. The Arkestra is led these days by non-touring 99-year-old reed player Marshall Allen, who is featured on this release.

For many, Sun Ra is a curiosity who never made it to the top names in jazz. Having said that, just letting the music flow over you is pure entertainment. The musicianship is stellar — check out the trumpet solo on Velvet. While there are reasonably quiet moments, subtlety is not a Sun Ra attribute. Typically the tracks cut loose with waves of sound and voiceover additions, such as Calling Planet Earth — The Shadow World. Titles such as View From Another Dimension, or Moonship Journey are dissonant and as loud as 19 people can make them. And they truly are a lot of fun.

If you want something completely different, enjoy. ★★★★ out of five

Stream: Space Is The Place; New Beginnings

— Keith Black