DEC0N$TRUCT!0N carries the torch of C0N$TRUCT!0N and C0N$TRUCT!0N 002, Maassai’s space-reclaiming tapes celebrating the physical and creative work of black people, black culture, and black art. The EPs work as a conceptual triptych in opposition to the oppressive and exploitative systems in her city.
Despite marking the debut of one of the most influential rock bands of their generation, Queens of the Stone Age’s self-titled first album didn’t blaze a bold, new trail. Instead, the 1998 release built an off-ramp connecting a remote stretch of desert highway to a skeevy dance club, where Josh Homme could take residence.
Perennial are back with a new offering of danceable tunes, a stronger connection to the studio as instrument, and a newfound finesse. The operating principle is something like “simplicity is a virtue,” and they’ve honed in on a raison d’etre over the course of their LPs: art for the sake of it, for your enrichment and your connection to the world around you.
Shannon and the Clams pull from the past to create music that's different, the vintage twinge reminiscent of many 60s girl groups, and an almost rockabilly sound while still allowing it to feel fresh and new. It feels like stepping into the past, yet it still incredibly innovative, a time capsule and love letter to their classic rock influences.
The Spatulas are the project of Miranda Soileau-Pratt, an artist equal parts poet and bandleader. Their debut LP. Beehive Mind, is an exercise in space and subtlety, at once unassuming and arresting. Upon first encounter, the music feels twee and almost cutesy, but it does everything it can to resist these monikers.
The Funeral Pudding reads like a diary, a byproduct to San Francisco’s sprawling art scene in the late 80s and mid 90s. A composite tapestry of clunking drum beats, shuddering mandolins, and tinkering banjos, the band exudes buzzing, droned-out showers of spontaneity, demonstrating their affinity for improvisation and experimentation.
Unknowing has never sounded as free as it does on Accept When, the new record from Caroline Davis and Wendy Eisenberg. The duo confidently dis- and reassemble the paths of their music without worrying about the destination. They rely on each other and all they bring to the table, rather than individual experience.
Gabriel Birnbaum's second "true" solo album, Patron Saint of Tireless Losers, finds him looking inside himself. He mines melodies of early California psych and singer-songwriter observations, combining spiky rock with gentle examinations on purpose and connection. His songwriting is a unique strength, trawling the depth of human nature.
Goat Girl’s third album Below the Waste is their first as a trio, but they’ve developed a sound that might take upwards of ten musicians to recreate, where folk textures and gorgeous harmonies are polluted by a sludge of dreary post-punk. It runs a hefty sixteen songs and with this there’s variety and experimentation in spades.
