Hypnotic Love Jam and 12 More Songs by Alicia Keys


The steady, determined beat is borrowed from Sade’s “Cherish the Day”. Rafael Saadik; promises of loyalty, honesty and absolute devotion while channeling Sade’s totally selfless love from Alicia Keys. “We can build a fortress of tears,” Keys swears. The piece is hypnotic and open-ended, fading rather than dissolving as if it could go on and on. From a duo album due out December 10, featuring two versions of the songs: “Originals” by Keys and “Unlocked” by Keys and Mike Will Made-It. JON PARELES

first single from Long live Riff Raff‘s upcoming album “Life on Earth” is moving and poetic, comparing the wisdom of the natural world with the chaos of humanity. New Orleans singer-songwriter Alynda Segarra (she uses them by pronouns) is so fascinated by the wonders of plant life that they can draw lyricism from listing some of her famous flora (“night-blooming jasmine, deadly nightshade”). a great Dylanarian growl. But the chorus comes as a warning in the face of ecological destruction: “Don’t turn your back on the mainland.” LINDSAY ZOLADZ

After the 2020 disco-revival record “What’s Your Pleasure?” (and this year’s Platinum Pleasure Edition included enough top-tier bonus material to make an equally great EP) Jessie Goods this fun duet gets the best co-signature from dance queen Kylie Minogue. Their breathtaking vocals echo throughout the lush arrangement as they exchange a whispered implication (“cherry syrup on my tongue/how about some fun?”) and finally come together in glorious harmony. ZOLADZ

Baba Harare from Zimbabwe is a master of the genre called jiti: a fast six-to-four beat that carries stuttering, syncopated guitars, and deep gospel-toned harmony vocals. He is accompanied by Zimbabwean Kae Chaps and Joseph Tivafire on “Vaccine,” and between the combative beat and call and response vocals, the song is pure joy. PARELES

The latest project from environmental drone group Bitchin Bajas is boldly conceptual: an homage to Sun Ra, one of the formative heroes of the Chicago trio. As daunting as it may sound to reinterpret some of the cosmic jazz god’s most innovative compositions, Bitchin Bajas approaches the challenge with playful creativity. Get the cover of “Outer Spaceways Incorporated.” original form It is a loose, interstellar groove. Bitchin Bajas instead breaks it through the lens of one of his other major influences, Wendy Carlos (hence the title “Switched on Ra”) and turns it into a sort of retro-futuristic waltz. Guest vocalist Jayve Montgomery uses an Electronic Wind Instrument for great effect, bringing the song to life with an energy that is both eerie and moving. ZOLADZ

ASAP Rocky has been featured on many other artists’ songs over the past few years, but “Sandman”, released to commemorate his breakthrough 2011 mixtape “Live.Love.ASAP”, is finally coming to streaming services – his first new solo track since . 2018. Produced by Kelvin Krash and ASAP favorite Clams Casino, “Sandman” takes on the more rigorous side of Rocky’s flow, shifting between hazy atmospheres and abrupt gear changes. It also gives her the opportunity to practice her French: “Merci beaucoup, just like Moulin Rouge/I know I can, I can.” Surprise! ZOLADZ

The Collectif Mali Kura project brought together 20 singers and rappers to share the call for hard work, civic responsibility (including paying taxes) and national unity in Mali. Sung in many languages, with fragmentary melodies and multi-tradition instrumental influences, the song begins as an excuse and turns into an affirmation of possibility. PARELES

“Tocarte” (“To Touch You”) is the second deceptively skeletal collaborative work by Jorge Drexler of Uruguay and C. Tangana of Spain; The first, a show business story titled “Nominao,” was nominated for a Latin Grammy for best alternative song. “Tocarte” is a pandemic-era song about the craving for physical contact: it creates a tense, masterful phantom gallop of plucked acoustic guitar notes, hand percussions, and sampled sounds, and neither Drexler nor Tangana raise their voices as they envision. long-awaited hugs. PARELES

Texan songwriter Hayes Carll dreams of God’s visit in “Nice Things,” the shrill, stomping, gravelly voice, violin-topped country rocker opening his new album “You Get It All.” He (yes, he) engages in pollution, extreme policing, and narrow-minded religion. “This is why I blessed you with tenderness/That’s why I said love your neighbor,” he states, “This is why you can’t all have nice things.” PARELES

Before writing the beloved Tony Award-winning musical “Hadestown” Anaïs Mitchell was best known as a talented folk singer-songwriter, though consistently underrated, with a knack for traditional storytelling. The stage success of “Hadestown,” which began life as a 2010 Mitchell album, has forced her to postpone her career as a solo artist, but she will return with her first solo album, a self-titled album, early next year. in ten years. Her debut single, “Bright Star,” is a worthy re-entry to the lighthearted brilliance of Mitchell’s voice and lyricism: “Sailed in all directions, following your reflection to the furthest foreign shore,” she sings over gently strummed acoustic chords. The contented warmth of someone who has finally returned home after a long time. ZOLADZ

Aoife O’Donovan gracefully sings about a reunion that couldn’t be more full; Seven years later, a girl who needs a home and knows very well that “forgiveness will not be easy” returns to her mother with a new baby. O’Donovan reverses the reflexes typical of a singer; As drama and tension builds, Allison Russell joins him in ghostly harmonies as her voice grows clearer. A tiptoe string band supports O’Donovan’s pleas, while Tim O’Brien plays echoes of Irish folk tunes on the mandola, a musical cue to multi-generational ties. PARELES

How about a chillingly beautiful modern murder song to end the spooky season? Folk singer-songwriter Marissa Nadler’s new album “The Path of the Clouds” (on Friday, appropriately, Sacred Bones) was inspired in part by her quarantine overwatch preference: “Unsolved Mysteries.” The opening track is “Bessie, Did You Do It?” Nadler creates a hazy atmosphere of echo-heavy piano and arpeggio guitar as he tells the story of an almost century-old boating accident that can never be fully explained. “Did you do it?” she asks her difficult subject, who seems to have died that day with her husband. Or: “Did you fake it, left someone else’s bones?” ZOLADZ

Artifacts features three of the Chicago scene’s leading creative improvisers: the flutist Nicole Mitchell, cellist Tomeka Reid and drummer Mike Reed. They are all deeply entwined with their hometown ancestry, and in “Song for Joseph Jarman” from Artifacts’ sophomore album “… and Then There’s This,” the trio pay homage to this slow, quiet and deeply moving ancestor. attentive group improvisation. not different Something Jarman himself might have played. Reid and Mitchell hold long tones more than move and sound as if they were waiting for a response from each note. GIOVANNI RUSSONELLO



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