Quick Spins and an Update

Hello everyone. Sorry for the radio silence. Again, my body continues to do battle with the idea of time, and as is the case in the classic struggle of nature against man, nature alway wins. Since this is going to be a very short update, I have some time to do some housekeeping.

To start, there is going to be an update with the dispatch schedule. While I can get out two dispatches a week, it is probably not the best idea to continue to do so, especially as some of the past weeks have been thin on Spins and I could use the extra time to work on some longer ideas that I’ve had that require an excess of listening. So, this is the last week you’ll get both a Spins and a long post in the same week.

The long post will be up on Saturday as usual, and then the next Saturday you will receive a Spins. Going forward, each month you’ll get two long posts and two Spins. The pattern will be the following: on the first and third Saturdays, it’ll be a long post. On the second and fourth Saturdays, it’ll be a Spins. If there is a fifth Saturday, that’s dealer’s choice. If I follow the pattern, it’s a long post, but maybe it’ll be an active listening week. Who knows? I don’t.

Also, in an effort to expand the audience and to do another newsletter a return solid, let me recommend something else to read that isn’t this. Continuous Wave is a newsletter about broadcast media history. I think it’s great, and I think you might so as well. She’s currently doing a series on the radio soap opera, which is fascinating.

I’m trying to figure out how to get a permanent recommendations button onto the website, but all of those years I spent in high school learning HTML have absolutely disappeared, having been replaced with storylines from The Real Housewives and information about various high-end culture magazines such as Purple and Self-Service. In short, don’t expect to see that anytime soon.

Alright, with that housekeeping done, let’s get down to why you actually started reading this email, or if you skipped when you saw housekeeping, welcome back.

Ryan Davis & The Roadhouse Band - New Threats from the Soul

While I do regularly find myself in disagreement with Pitchfork both in terms of critical approach and taste, there are times when we agree. This is such a moment. New Threats from the Soul is an album that sort of came out of nowhere like Cindy Lee’s Diamond Jubilee last year. However, unlike that album, which sprawls across three vinyls, New Threats from the Soul is only an hour. In this hour, lo-fi keys mix with country guitars, rock solid rhythms, drum machines, and the lovely deep voice of Davis himself. Aside from having an excellent voice, Davis is a phenomenal lyricist. Almost every line on this album is quotable. An random example from “Mutilation Springs”: “I’m pushing this lawnmower down Broadway/ In a windstorm/ Twirling like a sex tape in a microwave/ Like Spanish moss might behave when I call.” I have listened to this album multiple times, and it has only gotten better each time. Every time I find a new detail to enjoy. Put it on your schedule and thank me later.

Night Moves - Double Life

Night Moves is a Minneapolis band that plays an updated form of 70s rock, as one might suspect from their name. Since the beginning, they have infused that rock with country and psych sounds as well as a healthy dose of Midwestern sincerity. But, on their 2016 album, Pennied Days, the band started to integrate electronic elements into their sound. The best example of this is the single “Denise, Don’t Want to See You Cry,” a song that lodged itself in my head years ago and never left. This album is the endpoint of the transition that started on that album. The result shows the band effectively balancing their core elements with disco and synth components. I have been listening to these gents for a while, and this album did not disappoint in the slightest.

Shani Celeste - Romance

An album that exist on the dance-R&B spectrum somewhere between Tirzah and PinkPantheress. Her voice reminds me of Tirzah, but the beats are closer to something PinkPantheress would do, meaning that they are more club-oriented. She’s not doing the jungle/drum-and-bass sound of PinkPantheress; her interest is more squarely aimed at rock-solid house music. She reminds me of a more polished version of ladies like Neggy Gemmy (f/k/a Negative Gemini) and Maria Minerva, both of whom made a basement-party-ready version of house music that got released on labels like 100% Silk.

Alright, with that, I’m out of here. I told you it was quick. I’ll be back on Saturday with the start of a recurring feature on this newsletter. You’ll have to wait until then to find out what it actually is. As always, take care of yourselves and each other. (Did I end by referencing Jerry Springer? You’re damn right I did.)