By Steven Miller
YUNGBLUD is the kind of artist who lives like a flame, too unruly to cage, too luminous to ignore. On Idols, YUNGBLUD lights the match and dares us to watch him burn. Part rock opera, part Britpop homage, and part raw nerve confession, this album flirts with chaos and invites listeners to scrawl its lyrics across the walls of their minds and scream into the night until the neighbors feel seen.
From its grandiose opener to its quieter farewells, Idols is a rallying cry for the misfits, a record drenched in yearning and reclamation. It’s loud, it’s theatrical, it’s flawed, and in a few moments, it’s [...]
By Steven Miller
In The River, pianist and composer Silvano Monasterios offers a suite of textured Latin jazz. His ensemble writing and musical storytelling are framed by the metaphor of a river. The seven-part work unfolds as a dialogue between the written and improvised contemporary Latin jazz language. It is a flowing, textural narrative brought to life by a Venezuelan Nonet of exceptional caliber. Rather than spotlighting one or two star voices, the album thrives on a collective approach where every instrumentalist adds to the music’s feeling and precision as it becomes musical poetry.
From its tranquil beginnings to its [...]
by Steven Miller
Adding to his ever-expanding canon of contemporary jazz compositions, Gregg Hill’s work continues to captivate discerning musicians and listeners alike. Pianist Rick Roe’s latest offering, Tribute: The Music of Gregg Hill, released by Cold Plunge Records, underscores Hill’s distinctive compositional brilliance, interpreted through a compelling trio setting. Alongside bassist Robert Hurst and drummer Nate Winn, Roe approaches Hill’s repertoire with profound sensitivity, celebrating its inherent versatility and emotional understanding of styles.
Roe’s thoughtful arrangements [...]
By Steven Miller
After the raucous triumph of Death Wish Blues (2023), which earned her a Grammy nod and solidified her place among today’s blues-rock elite, Fish returns with an album filled with her gift for songwriting. Produced by Detroit garage-rock icon Bobby Harlow and released via Rounder Records, Paper Doll has layers of sonic framework to reveal Fish’s truest weapon: her voice. Yes, her guitar still snarls and struts. But it’s her vocal performance that is attention-grabbing in its elastic, expressive, and electric character that drives this record straight into the hearts of modern blues, Americana, and roots rock fans.
The [...]
