HOT HALF DOZEN 6/1/21

47 submissions last week

Never a Good Judge, single by Sweet Nobody. Joy Deyo’s vocals just grab you from the first bar and keep you focused on the lyrics while the music courses through your veins.  First release from their second album We Are Trying Our Best, out 9/17/21.  Stream on Bandcamp, Soundcloud, and all major platforms.

Enough Bad Luck, single by Matt Jaffe.  Jaffe keeps pumping them out, better and better. Melodic, mysterious, profound, an earworm that highlights not only his ethereal voice but his songwriting and production chops.  Stream it on Spotify.

Telepatia,/acoustic by Kali Uchis. She is a wonder. Mesmerizing jazz and vocal seduction. Her voice is so clear, so soft, so personal you almost want to reach through the speaker to feel the air moving from her mouth.  Remarkable.  Stream/download on all major platforms.

 De La Pie Para Adentro by ASTRA featuring Bunbury.  Hard rock that brings back the 70’s a bit but is here and now.  ASTRA’s first song in  Spanish is  urgent, powerful, and will keep you moving. From the recent EP, Fire, first of a series of 4 EPs that will add up to a full album. Stream on  Spotify.  Presave/order all the upcoming albums on Spotify, Apple Music, and all major platforms.

Lilith, single  by Narcotix. Dreamy, floating, with a touch of the band’s West-African origin.  But it doesn’t stay dreamy – it moves you and calls to you in complex rhythms, sophisticated production details, and sharp turns.  Second single from its forthcoming EP, Mommy Issues.  Stream on Spotify, Bandcamp, Apple Music.

Ya, single/video by Yendry.  The trilingual, Dominican-Italian singer launches her latest musical offering  and it is hypnotic with attitude. She raps, croons, swings in Spanish, but the language doesn’t matter. She takes control and  the result is pure, diamond-hard joy.  Check out the English lyric video on YouTube. Stream/download on all major platforms.

BONUS.  Bitten by the Blues: The Alligator Records story.  If you are a blues fan, this will fascinate you with historic stories of the iconic blues label.