As much as any other year I can recall, 2019 made the case that Spring may be the most crowded time of year for anticipated album releases. It feels a bit like how late December is when all the prestige movies get dumped on audiences just in time for Oscar season. Maybe everyone’s just vying for summer jam status? Whatever the case is, this Spring there were a lot of album’s coming out that I wanted to listen to as well as write about. For the albums contained in this post, that didn’t happen (obviously). But now that Summer is officially here, maybe I can put some perspective on this Spring’s many music releases.
(released April 26)
The Mountain Goats is one of those artists that has built up so much goodwill that I will most likely listen to any album they put out. Granted, it’s not like every album of theirs has been perfect, but John Darnielle is such solid songwriter and one so prone to mixing things up on each record, that it’s always worth checking in. Also, I was even more in the mood to listen to a new Mountain Goats album after spending the early part of this year catching up with the podcast I Only Listen To The Mountain Goats, in which Darnielle’s gift of thoughtful gab is on full display.
Which makes it a little disappointing that this a decent Mountain Goats album, but not much more. The advertised concept behind this album was that it’s inspired by Dungeons & Dragons, but that only pertains to about a third of the songs. Otherwise, many of the songs feature the kind of disaffected youths which populate a lot of other Mountain Goats songs, while a variety of youthful obsessions (in addition to D&D) seem to run through the album. I think the biggest problem I have with the album is it just sonically sounds very run-of-the-mill for a Mountain Goats album. The band’s last album, 2017’s Goths, was great because of the way it strayed from guitars and leaned heavier on keyboards and goth-sounding production. Here, it just feels like another Mountain Goats record.
Favorite Track: “Sicilian Crest”
(April 26)
It seemed oddly appropriate that Craig Finn and John Darnielle released new albums on the same day, considering they were perhaps the two most lyrically-minded indie rockers of the ’00s. Finn has spent a decent chunk of the ’10s carving out a solo career that really hit its stride on 2017’s We All Want The Same Things, which felt like the first time Finn had effectively untethered himself from The Hold Steady’s sound. I Need A New War feels very much like a continuation of this previous album, featuring the same stories of middle-American resiliency.
The production is also quite similar to We All Want The Same Things, with there being an overall heartland rock vibe, with some nice pop and soul flourishes. Much like all of Finn’s projects, the lyrics are still the star of the show, while featuring what feel like more grown up, jaded versions of the characters in Hold Steady songs. It’s been nice to see Finn figure out a way to ease into a more mature version of his signature style, but considering a new Hold Steady album was announced last week, I guess we’ll get to see if he can apply that same maturity to rockin’ and a rollin’.
Favorite Tracks: “Something To Hope For”
(May 3)
Being called a “local favorite” is a bit of a back-handed compliment, but it’s hard to think of another local group this decade that has been as beloved in the Seattle area as Tacocat. I’m not sure how big the band is elsewhere (though big enough to score the new Powerpuff Girls theme apparently), but they certainly seem to embody both the dry humor and rockin’ good times of the Emerald City, and in particular their home label Sub Pop. On this latest release, they stay true to those good times without straying too far from the bubble gum punk of their first two albums, but while also proving that they don’t really need to.
The album’s first single, the infectious “Grains of Salt” had me thinking that maybe the band would head in a more pop-embracing direction, but that’s not quite the case. For the most part, this is the same bare-bones guitar-based sound the band explored on their previous two (very likable) albums. But when songs like “Hologram” or “Joke of Life” feature such indelible hooks combined with Emily Noakes’ ever-weary, ever-wryly feminist lyrics, it’s hard to complain.
Favorite Tracks: “Grains of Salt”
(May 3)
As you’ve probably noticed, I have more thoughts about a lot of the albums in part 2 of this 2019 Music Catch-Up, but not as much for this one. Big Thief’s latest album was released on the same day as Vampire Weekend’s much-anticipated album Father of the Bride, but seemed to quietly garner even better reviews than that formidable release. I, of course, had to put in my time listening to FOTB non-stop for a week or two before getting around to U.F.O.F., and once I did, I couldn’t help but shrug it off. I still returned to this release a few times to try and figure out what I’m missing, but I don’t know, man. It just doesn’t do much for me. Sure, its pleasant blend of indie folk preciousness is easy on the ears, but for whatever reason just hasn’t really clicked with me.
Favorite Tracks: “Cattails”
(May 10)
In the time since I named Charly Bliss’s debut album, Guppy, my number 1 album of 2017, I started to doubt that decision. After all, could an album that purely fun and sugary really be the work of true “greatness”? This doubt, however, has receded ever since the band released their sophomore effort Young Enough. Though it may not contain the immediate pleasures of the band’s debut, it still has the same surplus of hooks, they’re just applied in a more measured fashion.
The band has cited Lorde’s Melodrama as a major influence on this latest album, and considering the lurching pop sound applied to a lot of these songs, that makes sense. Keyboards are certainly more at the forefront, while a more pristine pop sound seems to override the crunchy Weezer-isms of the band’s first album. Yet, this transition doesn’t ever feel forced, since Charly Bliss were already a pop band. Now, they’re a pop band that has broadened their pallet to include more than just heavy guitars. It’s a gutsy move, but I think considering how young (no pun intended) the band is, it’ll pay dividends for their future.
Favorite Tracks: “The Truth”
(May 10)
It has become more and more apparent over the last few years that I really like neo-soul. Not sure if you could make the case that the genre has been going through a particularly fruitful period recently, but an album like this coming out just a few months after another captivating Solange record helps build the case. It’s no stretch to say that there have been a lot of socially-minded albums to come out in the past two years, so the fact that Jamila Woods names each song after some radical black artist (from Zora Neal Hurston to Sun Ra) isn’t exactly radical in itself. But it says something that Woods’ songs rise to those artists’ thoughtfulness, with a sound that’s cool, collected, and easy to groove to, but also has a vital rage bubbling underneath.
Favorite Tracks: “GIOVANNI”
(May 17)
I don’t feel inclined to say a bunch about this latest National album, since we did spend a lot of time talking about The National on a recent podcast, not to mention the numerous posts I’ve done about this band in the past. Also, much like every other National album released in late Spring, it’ll probably sound a lot better six months after it was released. But for now, this seems like a decent album by the band, though doesn’t quite stand out too much, other than the length of it. There’s a little less of the electronic flourishes that were seen on 2017’s Sleep Well Beast, with a return to moody, orchestral chamber pop. The production is pretty and the addition of female voices throughout the album is welcome, but overall I’m not sure I Am Easy To Find feels quite as essential as the other releases in The National’s incredibly consistent run of albums.
Favorite Tracks: “Rylan”
(May 17)
2015’s Emotion seemed to be an album where Carly Rae Jepsen effectively stepped out of the long shadow of “Call Me Maybe”, one of the iconic pop singles of the decade. I never actually got around to listening to that album, but considering I find Jepsen’s 80s-drenched brand of pop pleasant enough, I thought I’d give this latest album a spin. And generally, it’s a very enjoyable, dance-able album. I can’t say for sure if it quite has as many bangers as Lizzo’s Cuz I Love You or Ariana Grande’s thank u, next, but I suppose it’s just been a good year for finely tuned pop albums, and Dedicated just adds to that fact.
Favorite Tracks: “Feels Right (feat. Electric Guest)”
(June 14)
The ’10s have been kind of a weird decade for Bruce Springsteen. After reclaiming his status as one of the patron saints of rock and roll in the ’00s, he’s spent a lot of the decade looking back at his career, with his Broadway show, The River reissue and ensuing tour, as well as his memoir that was released in 2016. It’s also been a decade where after the perfectly fine Wrecking Ball and forgettable High Hopes, I started to wonder if Bruce Springsteen would ever release an album I truly cared about. Though that fear has been swiftly vanquished by Western Stars, certainly his best album since 2006’s Magic, and perhaps even his best since 1987’s Tunnel of Love.
The first thing that makes this album so satisfying is it features a sound we’ve never heard from Bruce before, as it’s mostly steeped in an early ’70s pop-country sound, soaked in California sun. But also, it just features some very strong songwriting, filled with the kind of lived-in, beaten down characters that populate The Boss’s best post-70s work. Couple that with Bruce’s voice sounding as strong as ever accompanied by some truly gorgeous production, and you’ve got the kind of late-career triumph you always want to see in an artist that you’ve loved since you were a teenager.
Favorite Tracks: “Tucson Train”
For more of Mildly Pleased’s thoughts on the first half of the year in pop culture, keep a look out for our “Best of the Year So Far” podcast. Hopefully we can get it up before Criterion Month starts!