LITTLE FICTIONS
Elbow (Concord Records)
Less, it turns out, is more for the British band Elbow. On their seventh studio album, the art-rockers have lost a founding member, but the music they deliver is some of the best they've made in years.
Little Fictions, Elbow's first CD since 2014’s The Take Off and Landing of Everything, has typical band touches — a swelling orchestra, the unmistakably smoky voice of Guy Garvey and some moderately depressing lyrics — but it's easily one of the band’s most accessible.
That may be because of major change in their engine room. This is Elbow’s first release as a four-piece group, after the departure of drummer Richard Jupp, and that has resulted in some airy, electronic beats at the heart of many songs. It’s the closest you can be to dancing to an Elbow record.
The change means the band members have finally gotten out of their own way, allowing their blend of dreamy, romantic craftsmanship to go wherever it wants to, without judgment. “What does it prove if you die for a tune/Don't you know it's all disco,” Garvey triumphantly sings in one song.
Among the standout songs are the gorgeously layered “Magnificent (She Says),” the hypnotic “Firebrand & Angel,” and the sparse, needy masterpiece “Gentle Storm.” Sure, there are some overindulgent, bombastic tunes. But Elbow seems rejuvenated. Might other bands find creative freedom by jettisoning a bandmate? Why do bassists across the country suddenly look so nervous?
— MARK KENNEDY, Associated Press
TALK ABOUT THAT
John Mayall (Forty Below Records)
Legendary Blues Hall of Fame member John Mayall — a Brit with more than 50 years as a recording artist — is really on with this new disc, which includes guest appearances on two tracks from former Eagles guitarist Joe Walsh.
Mayall sings and plays organ, piano, keyboards, harmonica, and guitar on a strong set of roadhouse blues.
Of special note is the title track, “Talk About That,” a rollickin’, sweaty, up-tempo look at some of life’s misadventures, and “The Devil Must Be Laughing,” a politically infused, in-your-face, powerhouse of a rocker Mayall does with Walsh.
This disc is evidence that Mayall, currently on a European tour, hasn’t slowed down much, even with the departure last fall of guitarist Rocky Athas from his quartet. Mayall’s band has been on tour as a trio, and this album is the group’s last recording as a quartet.
Walsh said he considers Mayall one of his musical heroes and one of the greatest inspirations of his career, and that it has “been a bucket-list items since 1970 to play with John Mayall.”
— TOM HENRY, The Blade
CULTURE
Migos (Quality Control/300 Entertainment)
When Atlanta creator Donald Glover shouted out Migos — the Georgian, experimental hip-hop trio — during his win at the Golden Globes in January, it was the first time many heard the name. Mainstream anonymity didn’t last long, as Migos’ spare “Bad and Boujee,” complete with weird breathy shooshes and mentions from Philly’s Lil Uzi Ver, hit Billboard’s No. 1 spot before month’s end. For rap aficionados, however, Migos has been generating clever, oddball tracks with a genuine knack for the contagious since 2013’s Versace.
For Migos’ mostly somber, full-length sophomore effort, rappers Quavo (the quavering floaty MC), Offset (the edgy one), and Takeoff (the bass voice) have refined the jagged tips and jarring flips of 2015’s Yung Rich Nation without losing its cranky, fringy funk. On the Auto-Tuned “Get Right Witcha” and “T-Shirt,” the trio’s texts flow through one another. Ruminative pianos stay Satie-still (“Brown Paper Bag”) or grow grand on the theatrically orchestrated “Deadz” and “Big on Big.” Yet Migos gets bigger still with what is 2017’s first amazing album, whose memory should linger into 2018 and beyond.
— A.D. AMOROSI, Philadelphia Inquirer
First Published February 16, 2017, 5:00 a.m.
