THE ROCK FATHER Magazine’s Post

Reviewed the upcoming The Staves album, All Now, for No Depression: -- All Now seems designed to take The Staves to bigger audiences, greater acclaim, and larger venues, and the album's best songs prove they can go the distance. -- #freelancewriting #musicjournalism https://lnkd.in/efuVMiYe

A quick review of one of my current favourite albums, “Dopamine” by Normani. Did you listen to the album? Let me know if you enjoyed it as much as I did. #BlogPost #AlbumReview #Normani #Dopamine

Eminem's 'The Death of Slim Shady' Album: Tracks Ranked Eminem’s ‘The Death of Slim Shady’ Album: Songs Ranked from Worst to Best In a monumental moment for fans of hip-hop, Eminem has released his highly anticipated album titled "The Death of Slim Shady." This latest project has garnered significant attention, quickly becoming the most trending topic on Google searches today. The album, which marks a pivotal moment in Eminem’s illustrious career, has been meticulously reviewed and ranked by various music critics, including Billboard. For more detailed rankings, refer to this Billboard article. Album Overview Eminem, whose real name is Marshall Bruce Mathers III, has been a dominant force in […] https://lnkd.in/dDK9QVcv https://lnkd.in/dvq5qntd

Album Pick: Danger Mouse & Jemini - Born Again I think my favorite thing of coming back from my Florida vacation is that I came back to some truly terrific vinyl I had been waiting on. So let’s dive right into one of those albums. Born Again by Jemini and the Danger Mouse is a direct follow up to their 2003 Ghetto Pop Life album, in fact it was made at the same time and for some reason (I haven’t gotten the full story here) was released 20 years later. So what does Born again bring to the table. Well you still have the Danger Mouse early 2000s production, that is heavy on pianos, drums, bass loops, etc. and less choral. It is interesting, and certainly a good addition to the underground 90s/00s rap collection. “All I” (A1) is a good way to kick off an album but it really starts bopping on “Looked Up” (A2), with just a solid delivery and the production kicks into high gear with the keyboards on “Me” (A3), and does not let up after that. Some truly terrific samples, but you can see a bit of the decline from the first one. This is a good shadow, but it does not replace the original. Early Danger mouse is all about providing a decent canvas with which to paint lyrically poetic numbers over. There is not a lot to say here, if you liked Ghetto Pop Life, then this is a good album to sync your teeth in (though I would argue Ghetto Pop life is better) if you didn’t then this won’t change your mind, but it is certainly a fun album to have and my kids love the album art. Song pick: Locked up - https://lnkd.in/ezRWbjrs #DailyAlbum #MusicalMusings

One of my favorite albums of all time is "Tubular Bells" by Mike Oldfield. Its opening section is best remembered by many people as the theme music to the movie "The Exorcist," but it is hardly a soundtrack. If anything, the layered styles of music, featuring instrumentation almost completely played by Oldfield himself, is as close of a masterpiece of modern classical music that we may ever hear. Yet we almost didn't get a chance to do that. In 1972, Oldfield was trying to get record labels in the UK to listen to his demos (then known as "Opus One") and sign him to a recording deal. But time and time again, labels shot him down. Without any vocals, they claimed, such a work would be a commercial flop. Just when hope seemed extinguished, Oldfield received an invitation to meet Richard Branson. He liked what he heard, and gave Oldfield the chance to properly record his work. Following industry attempts to force Branson to add vocals to the album, Oldfield became the first artist signed to a new record label formed by Branson and Simon Draper. As the old saying goes, the rest is history. "Tubular Bells," over time, topped the UK album charts, and hit number three on the Billboard 200 - though its appearance in "The Exorcist" certainly boosted its sales. How often do we have an idea or a dream, and it feels like every time we try to act on it, the only answer we get is "no"? How easy would it be to simply give up on something we believe in, just because we don't want to invest the time, effort and emotion into something that might just get rejected again? What if we gave up right before we heard the answer "yes"? What would people potentially be missing out on? "No" is not necessarily the complete end of the road. It simply means we try a different route, as often as possible. If the final answer, despite our best efforts, is still "no," it would not be from lack of trying. If you feel frustrated because you aren't making headway with something - a proposal, a job search, whatever - think of Mike Oldfield. In fact, obtain a copy of "Tubular Bells" and listen to it... allow that to inspire you. Before you know it, you may be on the path that will lead you to that well-deserved "yes".

Album Pick: The Comet is Coming - Trust in the Lifeforce of the Deep Mystery Am I really going to run it back with two “Jazzy” albums on #MentalReboot week? Yes, yes I am. To be fair I skipped yesterday because on top of my usual workload, and parenting I also had my Crosley Record Cabinet lose a leg, and puncture a hole in my wall. Thank god for mental reboot week, otherwise I would have lost my mind, but everything seems to have worked out and some patching, and fixes aside, in a few more days we are back to normal. Which brings us all to The Comet is Coming, and this particular album. Not only am I running it back with a jazz-ish album but I am doing two from King Shabaka. He fronts both The Comet is Coming, and Sons of Kemet (or rather I should say fronted, as both projects have disbannded) and both are integral to good mental health. While Sons of Kemet is more jazz/marching band style, The Comet is Coming is more electro-jazz and electronica. Interestingly my wife find the latter a little much, but loves The Comet is Coming, further proving that it’s all subjective. The Comet is Coming also has Betamax and Danalogue the Conquerer that cover the role of synths and percussion. Trust the Lifeforce of the Deep Mystery is more like a sci-fi soundtrack (in case the album art didn’t give it away) and is much more heavy synth based electronica than Sons. The first song “Because the End is really The Beginning” (A1) is really more of an appetizer for the album, a guided mediation to get you ready, and when the drums and bass and sax kick in on “Birth of Creation” (A2) your mind is blown. Even my 4-year-old paused her play when we were first listening to this to make the follow statements: 1.) What movies is this from? 2.) Why is it not in a movie? 3.) This should be in movies, I love it. Now her tastes vary, and she is equally likely to tell me that the greatest song ever is the “Wheels on the Bus” (again it is all subjective) but I tend to agree with her on The Comet is Coming, this should really be a soundtrack or a very long music video. Add to this album another favorite performer of mine Kae Tempest, and you even get some LYRICS (poetry really) strewn in the mix “Blood of the Past” (A4): Rooted in a trivial concern, in interconnectedness In the need to make face and keep up And drown out the many voices within Imagine a culture that has, at its root A more soulful connection to land and to loved ones But I can hear the lie before you speak There is nothing but progress to eat And we are so fat and so hungry So yeah it’s a good way to close out mental health week on an upbeat high note. This album will carry me into the weekend for sure! Have a great weekend, and remember to check in on your mental health. Song Pick: Summon the FIre - https://lnkd.in/eRddV4X3 #DailyAlbums #MusicalMusings

My Short n’ Sweet album review is finally available on the web for your consumption! The album is charmingly suggestive, but is there more to it than meets the ear? Read the article for my take:

Album Pick: Bill Callahan - Resuscitate! For those of you that remember my earlier reviews of some of Callahan's stuff you will remember that it is hit or miss in terms of aesthetic enjoyment. I love "Knock Knock" by Smog (His alter-ego) but find "Julius Caesar" tough to listen to. In his later years Bill has gotten a little to into music that is good to fall asleep to, which is not what I prefer from him, I have Aaron Parks for that. So I was not a fan. Yet here out of the blue almost came a 2024 live album with a full band, glorious horns section, lo-fi guitar, the works. It is everything i loved from "Knock Knock" without delving to far down the rabbit hole of nonsense music I couldn't possibly enjoy. The lyrics are punchy, but nothing special, and can be heard on previous albums, mostly dealing with reality, and dreams. What sets this apart is the production. Unlike other albums where I was sold from my first listen, this took a minute. First I had to get into the Bill Callahan mindset then I had to really dig in and digest some of the choices. The album is closer to jazz, and blues, than it is to straight Bill Callahan, but it is slowly growing as one of my favorite albums. It is a great background album, not too distracting, but just distracting enough to get you moving when you need to. There is a lot here, and while it is a cohesive album, with many songs clocking in at 6+ minutes. There is a range here that is impressive. I must admit the song that stays with me is "coyotes" (A2) at almost 13 minutes it is a tour deforce through Callahan's mind. It has some of the best horns and guitar work i have seen from him since the early days, and is surprisingly accessible. This may not be the album you want to use to introduce yourself to Bill Callahan's work, but if you liked his early stuff, get this album, it is a return to form, and yet somehow completely different. Song Pick: Coyotes - https://lnkd.in/gHWtrAdD #MusicalMusings #WeeklyAlbum

Album Pick: Amy Winehouse - Back to black So this is probably a good album to close out re:invent with, but I was in a soulful mood and this brings some well needed soul to the morning. Fun fact about this album, aside from being spectacular. I did not actually purchase this one. About 15 years ago someone at the company where I worked accidently bought this on vinyl and not cd, and gave it away to someone with a record player (me) so that is how I came to own it. At the time I knew the two hits from Amy Winehouse that everyone knew "Rehab" (A1) and "Back to Black" (A5) but I had never really delved into the deeper cuts. That changed quickly. The big band aesthetic, and bellowing voice, really elevated some of the deeper cuts on the album like "Me & Mr. Jones" (A3) or "Just Friends" (A4) there really isn't a miss on the album. It will get you moving, and feel new every time you listen to it, while still giving you that nostalgic vibe of the 60s girl groups it is modeled after. There is not a lot to say about the album, but I highly recommend you check it out, for more than just the hits. Song pick: You know I'm no good - https://lnkd.in/ezF2mwTB #MusicalMusings #reInventVinyl