MD's Pick of The Week

In Rotation: Richard Russell- Everything is Recorded

By Jordan Abrams

This album is overwhelmingly special coming from the head of XL Records, Richard Russell. His career can be highlighted by signing artists such as Adele, Frank Ocean, and Thom Yorke. After putting his own music aside to work on XL, he recently started recording a series of projects called Everything is Recorded featuring names such as Sampha, Syd, Kamasi Washington, and Ibeyi and then bigger names such as Peter Gabriel and Scritti Politti’s Green Gartside. “Close But Not Quite” is a powerful track because Russell pairs Sampha’s soft voice and Curtis Mayfield representing contrast of classic and modern music. The album also features several saxophone solos by Kamasi Washington and “Mountains of Gold” is specifically rejuvenating for Russell. Russell also alludes to solitude and brings in a preacher to highlight his message. This album was not advertised either, which makes it much more exceptional. It is essential to the modern mix of music in 2018.

Classic Album of the Week: Grace Jones- Nightclubbing

By Peter Melero
Grace Jones was doing Lady Gaga before Lady Gaga was even born, and she was doing it better. Coming from a strictly religious Jamaican family she broke free of those puritan shackles let her freak flag fly. In the late-70s she was known to strut the dancefloor of disco Mecca Studio 54 in the nude, firmly cementing her place as a disco goddess. Her 1981 album Nightclubbing (named after the Iggy Pop song) moved beyond disco and is an important transitional album captures the evolution of disco into house and other styles of contemporary club music. With the help of renown reggae rhythm section, Sly & Robbie Nightclubbing injected electronic and reggae elements into Jones’ newly streamlined and extremely potent disco. This album is absolutely oozing with sex appeal that Jones’ androgynous omnisexual persona emanates. On “Walking in the Rain” she proclaims that she’s “feeling like a woman / looking like a man,” setting the tone for the rest of the album. Any fan of progressive pop music should make it a point to go nightclubbing with Grace Jones.

Other Adds This Week

"Meet Me In Mexico" - The Drums
Twin Fantasy - Car Seat Headrest
EP2 - yaeji
Everything That's Dark - Feralie
Angie - Elephant Gym
Malignant Force - Midnight Danger
The Operators - Wei Zhongle
Language - Starchild and The New Romantic
Room Inside The World - Ought