An atrocious new recording by a Kansas City vocalist temporarily poisoned the well for locally based R&B in my compound. Auditioning LeVelle’s album was delayed to allow my ears and mind sufficient time to recover. I needn’t have waited. Where the unnamed project is amateurish, uninspired and dull, LeVelle’s My Journey Contines is professional, invigorating and exciting. The silky Kansas City vocalist is joined by the neo-soul giant Anthony Hamilton on the grown-and-sexy single "Fell In Love". The remainder of the album is almost as good. Not only is My Journey Continues the strongest (non-jazz and non-classical) album by a Kansas City artist released in the first four months of 2022, it has the capacity to cleanse the memory of many unpleasant experiences.
April 2022 Recap: A Monthly Exercise in Critical Transparency
Screenshot from the trailer of the Metropolitan Opera’s staging of Terence Blanchard’s “Fire Shut Up in My Bones” by There Stands the Glass. PBS broadcast the opera on April 1.
Top Ten Albums (Released in April, excluding 4/29 titles)
1. Pusha T- It’s Almost Dry
The trio of Kanye, Pharrell and King Push is an unbeatable dream team.
2. Gerald Clayton- Bells on Sand
3. Billy Woods- Aethiopes
Highbrow hip-hop.
4. Tord Gustavsen Trio- Opening
5. Myra Melford- For the Love of Fire and Water
The pianist leads a free jazz supergroup.
6. Joel Ross- The Parable of the Poet
Palpably spiritual jazz.
7. Mitsuko Uchida- Beethoven: Diabelli Variations
8. Sault- Air
9. Cole Swindell- Stereotype
10. Vince Staples- Ramona Park Broke My Heart
Understated excellence.
Top Ten Songs (Released in April)
1. Miranda Lambert- "Actin' Up"
Call the cops.
2. Kaitlin Butts- "She's Using"
Codeine dreams.
3. Christian Nodal- "Aguardiente"
Poison.
4. Bonnie Raitt- "Love So Strong"
Kombucha for the soul.
5. Horace Andy- "Watch Over Them"
Reggae lion in winter.
6. Anitta featuring Chencho Corleone- "Gata"
The cat’s pajamas.
7. Young M.A.- “Tip the Surgeon”
Bloody.
8. Doechii- "Crazy"
Time to get right with God.
9. Lele Pons and Kim Loaiza- "Piketona"
Clubbed.
10. Making Movies- "Sala de los Pecadores"
Den of sin.
Top Ten Performances of April
1. Joyce DiDonato at the Folly Theater
2. Daniil Trifonov at the Folly Theater
3. Drew Williams, Ben Tervort and Brian Steever at Westport Coffee House
4. Babehoven at Farewell
5. Kwan Leung Ling, Evan Verploegh and Ben Baker at Charlotte Street Foundation
6. Ducks Ltd. at the Green House
7. Maul at Vivo
8. Tyrone Clark, Charles Gatschet and Taylor Babb- Green Lady Lounge
The venue’s all-originals policy is paying off.
9. Jeff Harshbarger Quartet at the Blue Room
Standards deviations.
10. A Pile of Dead Horses at 7th Heaven
Fargo noise.
Last month’s survey is here.
Concert Review: Daniil Trifonov at the Folly Theater
Original image by There Stands the Glass.
Possession of a deeply discounted ticket for Daniil Trifonov’s April 24 concert at the Folly Theater helped sustain me in the bleakest moments of the pandemic. I’d been looking forward to the pianist’s twice-rescheduled recital for a long time. I can’t speak for others in the audience of about 700, but the misguided calls for a boycott- Trifonov was born in Russia- meant nothing to me.
The first half of the concert exceeded my lofty expectations. The 45-minute free-for-all was the most exciting performance I’ve heard in 2022. Hunched over the piano and panting heavily, Trifonov lurched as if he was enduring electrical shocks during a rendering of Karol Szymanowski’s discordant Sonata No. 3, Op. 36.
Trifonov then teased out unexpectedly jarring aspects of Claude Debussy’s Pour le piano L. 95. Even better was a riotous interpretation of Sergei Prokofiev’s avant-garde Sarcasms, Op 17. The pianist’s revelatory approach implied the three composers anticipated the subsequent innovations of Pierre Boulez, John Cage and Cecil Taylor.
I correctly anticipated the second half of the concert- Johannes Brahms’ Piano Sonata No. 3- would be a letdown. My indifference to Brahms remains intact even though Trifonov invested everything he had into the work. As he sweat profusely while abusing a piano bench, I contemplated my good fortune to be seated 20 feet from one of the world’s foremost musicians.
Album Review: Cole Swindell- Stereotype
Kenny G’s warbling on seasonal melodies wafted from a neighbor’s open windows on an unseasonably warm Christmas five months ago. I was glad to learn of the household’s apparent admiration of the saxophonist’s interpretations of material like “Santa Claus is Comin’ to Town” and “Silver Bells.”
It’s going to be 80 degrees at 5 p.m. this Friday evening. As in summers past, I’m likely to hear plenty of classic rock (Journey, Led Zeppelin, REO Speedwagon) and blooze (Joe Bonamassa, Marcus King, Stevie Ray Vaughan) blasting from speakers balanced on coolers in nearby backyards and driveways.
Yet the dominant sound on my suburban block is contemporary country (Jason Aldean, Eric Church, Carrie Underwood). I’ve favored crossover reggaeton on my patio during the pandemic (J Balvin, Bad Bunny, Karol G), so neighbors will likely be surprised when I place Cole Swindell’s new album on repeat tonight.
In no small part because my heart skips a beat every time my life partner sings along with Swindell on radio hits like "Single Saturday Night", I’m unironically enamored with the aptly named Stereotype. Songs including "Heads Carolina" are what I call “White Claw country.“ The formula is delicious. Fitting in rarely felt so good.
Album Review: Tim Kasher- Middling Age
An adult child’s request for a missing government document encumbered me to dig through boxes of yellowing report cards, fading photos and tear-stained funeral programs. Surveying the ephemera accumulated over a lifetime is an increasingly grim task. My inability to identify many of the deceased ancestors posing in photos is a stark reminder of my own insignificance.
Tim Kasher sorts through a similar set of “maudlin mementos” on "I Don't Think About You", a song on his volatile new chamber rock album Middling Age. The compositions reflecting the melancholic wisdom attained through aging resonate with me more than his work in the indie-rock band Cursive ever did.
“You Don’t Gotta Beat Yourself Up About It” opens with Kasher admitting “I don’t want to be forgotten/I don’t know why this is so important to me.” Kasher concludes by suggesting “This is my life's work: questioning my worth/So what have I surmised? Life's work and then you die.” The end gets closer every day.
Album Review: Sault- Air
The infuriating baptism sequence in “Fire Shut Up in My Bones” is among my favorite scenes in Terence Blanchard’s heart-rending 2019 opera. I’m haunted by the Metropolitan Opera’s staging broadcast by PBS on April 1.
Neither have I stopped thinking about the Latin vespers presented by the Kansas City choral group Te Deum in a drafty Episcopal church last July. And just last week I discovered Claude Debussy’s proses lyriques and attended a Joyce DiDonato and Il Pomo d’Oro concert.
All of which is to say I was unwittingly primed for Sault’s new album Air. Far removed from the previous output of the anonymous collective, Air is a symphonic choral suite that synthesizes much of my recent listening.
In addition to the music cited above, Air’s expanse nods to Carl Orff’s “Carmina Burana,” the holy minimalism of Arvo Pärt, Brian Wilson’s pop orchestrations and Kanye West’s Sunday Service celebrations. Sing it, my nameless brothers and sisters!
Album Review: Saturno 2000: La Rebajada de Los Sonideros 1962-1983
Like a junkie relentlessly searching for the next fix, a certain type of irredeemable music obsessive is constantly on the prowl for a new sound. The best highs are achieved by the discovery of a previously unheard genre. My pal SA is a reliable plug. I sensed I was in for a delirious score when he recommended Saturno 2000: La Rebajada de Los Sonideros 1962-1983. My feet haven’t touched the ground since I injected the novel grooves directly into my cranium. The new Analog Africa release compiles remixes of 14 cumbias that are slowed and stabilized to suit Mexican sensibilities. I experience the doctored music as a cheerful foreshadowing of Houston’s sinister chopped-and-screwed movement of the 1990s. Toying with YouTube’s playback speed settings on tracks including “La Borrachita” heightens the delirium.
Concert Review: Joyce DiDonato and Il Pomo d’Oro at the Folly Theater
Original image by There Stands the Glass.
An overcome admirer told Joyce DiDonato that her Eden presentation provided him with a sacred experience during a post-concert talk at the Folly Theater on Tuesday, April 13. Unlike the emotional patron, I didn’t commune with God during the 90-minute concert. Yet I’m convinced I glimpsed the future. Eden represents a viable path forward for classical music. Four elements make the global tour extraordinary.
A Sight to Behold
Max Richter’s 2019 appearance in Austin may have been the first time I attended a classical presentation at which an even feeble attempt was made at creating a compelling visual experience. Eden possesses the production values of a concert by an upper-tier indie-rock band. Gorgeous lighting effects and a small circular platform with a pair of mobile spheres provided visual interest.
Back to the Garden
DiDonato is out to save the world. She acknowledged she’s mocked by cynics during the post-concert discussion. Yet the environmentally themed repertoire inspired me. I fully intend to plant and nurture the seeds from the packets freely distributed to members of the audience of more than 750.
Dat Voice, Tho
The diva doesn’t mind getting dirty. The barefoot soprano writhed on the floor, played air flute, shot imaginary arrows and feigned flirtations with musicians. DiDonato is among the most convincing operatic actors. And her unamplified voice had no trouble reaching my seat in the upper balcony.
The Golden Apple
The most impressive aspect of Eden may be the herculean accomplishment of shuttling Il Pomo d'Oro from city to city. More than two dozen members of the European ensemble played a enormous range of music with graceful aplomb. The absence of individual credits in the program is my sole grievance about the unforgettable presentation.
Album Review: Mitsuko Uchida- Beethoven: Diabelli Variations
Was Ludwig van Beethoven a prophetic visionary anticipating the clamorous mechanization of the 21st century as he composed the Diabelli Variations? Or is Mitsuko Uchida heretically imposing contemporary sensibilities on the solo piano cycle on her new album Beethoven: Diabelli Variations? Uchida’s attack is jarringly percussive. The clamorous recording is as serene as a front row seat at a Nine Inch Nails concert. Since encountering Uchida’s interpretation I’ve listened to a pair of celebrated older versions of the 200-year-old work. One is anemic while the second possesses much of Uchida’s diabolical fervor. The fundamental difference between the latter interpretation and Uchida’s attack is the immediacy of the sound field enabled by today’s recording technology. Roll over, Chuck Berry, and tell Carl Perkins the news.
Album Review: Tord Gustavsen Trio- Opening
The Books of Jacob is likely to stymie my goal of reading 100 books in 2022. Not only is Olga Tokarczuk’s novel 965 pages (numbered in reverse order, incidentally), I’m compelled to take regular pauses to contemplate the theological constructs it poses. The previously unfamiliar tenets of Jewish mysticism- along with the cross-pollination of Christian and Moslem doctrines- demand quiet reflection.
Opening, the latest ECM Records release by the trio led by Tord Gustavensen, matches the somber speculative musings of Tokarczuk’s characters. Only the pastoral “Shepherd Song” possesses a defined structure and conventional resolution. The remainder of Opening evokes the novel’s depiction of catechistic uncertainty in eighteenth-century Istanbul.
Gustavsen spooked me at a concert in London in 2012. The Norwegian pianist bears a striking resemblance to Nosferatu. Opening is correspondingly otherworldly. A character in The Books of Jacob suggests “those of us who think God addresses us by means of external events are wrong, as naive as children. For He whispers directly into our innermost souls.” Opening is one such divine whisper.