Hey another week, another new weekly playlist. I’m really enjoying making this every week, which is nice. Especially because sometimes or even most of the times during the last few years the blog has been closer to a burden than something that I wholeheartedly enjoy. Don’t get me wrong, it’s dear to me and I’m somewhat proud of doing it for 17 years, but it’s also hard to keep it going and it can get emotionally draining. Especially because I always feel like that I want to feature everything that matters to me and I feel super bad because I’m not able to do that. Which is sort of a silly thought, because even the actual music journalists who write for a living don’t have to cover everything. Their publications have other writers too and I’m just one guy who does this as a hobby on his spare time. I hope this takes away a bit of that feeling, because this way I can at least share everything in some way and hopefully a large chunk of them later on a proper post too. Plus it’s just fun to listen to new music and compile this every week. I’m not even too worried about whether I can get listeners to this, because it’s fun to do and I enjoy listening to the mix myself on my way to work and back.
Another really strong release week. Robbie Fulks & Linda Gail Lewis put out their duo album and it is a great rock’n’roll meets country extravaganza. Bird Streets debut is a new exciting pop record from John Brodeur and it was produced by Jason Falkner. Dublin-born, NY-based folk singer-songwriter John Cathal O’Brien released a great new album, Riley Pinkerton finally released her debut full-length after a couple of marvellous EPs (one solo and one with Henry Black). The War and Treaty’s soul, gospel, americana melting pot is really good. Cordovas delivers some of the finest harmony-filled American folk rock these days. The Mountain Lions album that has been featured on the playlist a couple of times is also now out and available. Then there was also new ones from Kathryn Joseph, Jason Eady, Liz Cooper & The Stampede and Dawn Landes, but haven’t really had enough of time to listen to these more than little bit. Oh and on the EP front there was at least Taylor Janzen’s debut that might be your new favorite if you like artists like Phoebe Bridgers.
Then there are new singles from Adrianne Lenker, John Hiatt, Anna St. Louis, Marissa Nadler and some older singles that I missed when they came out. And of course another song from last week’s brilliant albums from Michael Nau, Amanda Shires and Juan Solorzano. The big completely new finds for me this week were Joel Henry Little and Hadley McCall Thackston. Joel Henry Little’s song somehow reminds me of Emitt Rhodes and other 70s pop/folk artists. album out on Life Is A Minestrone 24th of August. Yesterday I was blinded by the greatness of folk songwriter Hadley McCall Thackston’s Slow Burn (thanks to Adam Wilson’s Quiet Revolution for this find). My reaction was completely oppositive to slow burn, because I instantly fell in love with the song. That song is not on Spotify, but I will share it later. No worries though, because there are equally great songs on her self-titled album that came out in June on Wolfe Island. These two songs might be the ones that I was most passionate about during the week, because there’s just nothing like finding an artist/band for the first time. There’s some Finnish americana too, because the Tuomo & Markus album that came out here year or two ago will get an US release on Schoolkids Records in September. Good reason to drop the finest song of that lovely album on this list. Oh did I already mention pretty much every song. Sorry about that. I’ll stop now. Oh but not until I’ve said that there’s obviously a song from Clay Parker and Jodi James for the fourth time in a row. Ok, now it’s time to let Bird Streets kick this one off with a song from their new pop album.
Dear 23 – OCTA Weekly Playlist Episode #4
1. Bird Streets – Betting On The Sun (Bird Streets, Omnivore Recordings, 2018)
2. Amanda Shires – White Feather (To The Sunset, Silver Knife Records, 2018)
3. John Cathal O’Brien – Cures (These Borders, 2018)
4. Michael Nau – Funny In Real Life (Michael Nau & The Mighty Thread, Full Time Hobby, 2018)
5. Hadley McCall Thackston – Devil or Angel (Hadley McCall Thackston, Wolfe Island, 2018)
6. Joel Henry Little – Arms Akimbo (single, Life is a Minestrone, 2018)
7. Riley Pinkerton – Like The Lady Waiting By Her Phone (Nothing Ever Is, 2018)
8. Jason Eady – Always a Woman (I Travel On, Old Guitar Records, 2018)
9. Clay Parker and Jodi James – I Remember It All (The Lonesomest Sound That Can Sound, 2018)
10. Juan Solorzano – Time Machine (Time Machine, Tone Tree Music, 2018)
11. Dawn Landes – Traveling (Meet Me At The River, Yep Roc, 2018)
12. William Elliot Whitmore – Fear of Trains (single, Bloodshot Records, 2018)
13. Tuomo & Markus – Vanity Blinds (single, Schoolkids Records, 2018)
14. Anna St.Louis – Understand (single, Woodsist/Mare, 2018)
15. Adrianne Lenker – cradle (single, Saddle Creek, 2018)
16. Jason Bemis Lawrence – How Fast Can You Pack? (single, 2018)
17. Taylor Janzen – The Waiting Room (Interpersonal EP, 2mm, 2018)
18. Young Readers – Dancing (single, 2018)
19. John Hiatt – Cry To Me (single, New West Records, 2018)
20. Cordovas – Selfish Loner (That Santa Fe Chanel, ATO Records, 2018)
21. Marissa Nadler – Blue Vapor (single, Bella Union, 2018)
22. The War and Treaty – It’s Not Over Yet (Healing Tide, Strong World Entertainment/Thirty Tigers, 2018)
23. Robbie Fulks & Linda Gail Lewis – Hardluck, Louisiana (Wild! Wild! Wild!, Bloodshot Records, 2018)
Oh and do buy the vinyl/cd/download. Spotify and other streaming services are perfect for introductory purposes, but try to buy at least the ones that matter the most to you.