A very warm welcome once again to another edition of My Four, scouring the musical beach for four more shells of excellence. Also, a big thanks to Paul Davies for getting me out of a technical jam last week too. So let us go forward onto this week’s picks, starting with…….
BUILT TO SPILL
Coming straight out of Boise, Idaho, Built To Spill are the first pick this week with the release of their eighth studio album, Untethered Moon. It’s the band’s first album in six years, and it’s also the first with new bass player, Jason Albertini, and new drummer, Steve Gere. The six-year gap between 2009’s There Is No Enemy and this new release is the longest the band has ever been musically dormant, but according to singer Doug Martsch the enforced break due to the rhythm section quitting was the freshener they needed. Musicians huh?? Available on the Warner Bros. label, this is the single, “Living Zoo”. www.builttospill.com
SAN FERMIN
Our second choice this week comes in the form of American baroque pop outfit, San Fermin, and the release of their new album, Jackrabbit. San Fermin is the brainchild of Brooklyn-based songwriter and composer Ellis Ludwig-Leone, and has been active since 2011. Though it wasn’t until Ludwig-Leone had finished studying at Yale University that the music began to show promise and from combining pieces written purely for female singers and pop tunes, San Fermin was born. Original singer Rae Cassidy since left the band to be replaced by Charlene Kaye, but the band remains as an eight piece. Yes, eight. Many minds make great music though. Available on the Downtown Records label, this is a cut from the album called, “Emily”. www.sanferminband.com
ALABAMA SHAKES
Third choice this week comes in the shape of Alabama Shakes, and the release of their new album, Sound & Color. The band hail from Athens, Alabama (hence the name), and is the follow up to 2012’s Boys & Girls. The band started out when lead singer-guitarist, Brittany Howard, and bassist Zac Cockerill started writing songs after school, and found a calling in the genre of roots rock. Though they did cover songs by the likes of James Brown, Otis Redding, Led Zeppelin and AC/DC under the band name of The Shakes, a show at the CMJ Music Marathon in New York soon changed all that, and in 2011 they were signed to Rough Trade Records and getting richly deserved praise from all. Including us. Available on the Rough Trade/ATO/MapleMusic record labels, this is the first single from the album called, “Don’t Wanna Fight”. www.alabamashakes.com
TURBO FRUITS
And finally this week, it’s Nashville’s own Turbo Fruits and the release of their new studio album, No Control. The band first came to attention in 2007, and has quite a connection with the band, Be Your Own Pet. The connections being that Turbo Fruits was formed by singer-guitarist, Jonas Stein, whilst he was still in Be Your Own Pet; the earliest version of the band contained drummer John Eatherly from Be Your Own Pet; and original bassist Max Peebles and Eatherly then left the band to join Jemina Pearl’s solo project after she left……….Be Your Own Pet! 2010 saw the band become a settled four piece outfit, and this fourth studio album release has also been produced by Patrick Cairney of The Black Keys. Long live the Turbo Fruits. Available on the Thirty Tigers/Melvin Records labels, this is the video for the single, “The Way I Want You”. www.turbofruits.com
And that is your lot for another week, so tune in next time for another batch of the four artists you need to know about (barring any technological failures). Keep on keeping on!
Mark Sharpley
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