Well, just how good can grief be? That’s a question raised by Sara Bareilles‘ “Good Grief,” which, true to its promissory title, deals primarily with loss and death and the kind of tough stuff that folks in a marketing meeting might suggest slightly downplaying when one is releasing one’s first studio album in seven years.
“Stoner R&B” isn’t an insult — it’s quite the opposite, a vague term to describe a sprawling musical genre that includes everything from Dijon and Frank Ocean to Brent Faiyaz and Jhene Aiko. It’s R&B that has smoked a strong joint, with languid rhythms, heavy bass, psychedelic production and a leisurely vocal approach. Unlike the
The first question most Jack White fans are looking for an answer to when it comes to his new album, “Frozen Charlotte”: Is it effectively a “No Name 2.0”? Almost everyone expects a “yes” to that question. In his solo career, White spent a few years jumping back and forth, oscillating between acoustically oriented efforts
Only a few artists released their debut album and had already established themselves as favorites for the Grammy for best new artist. Sienna Spiro is in that category, and let’s just say that “The Visitor,” her first full-length release, does nothing to diminish her chances in the category. As the title suggests, it’s an album
Superstars don’t stay relevant by doing what people expect, or even what their fans necessarily want. Crowd-pleasing is a fast track to becoming a nostalgia act, where an artist is trapped in a loop of playing to type (i.e. the hits and only the hits) year after year. It’s not a bad life — Paul
