Blood Harmony 16: Winter Mix
Listen, are you breathing just a little, and calling it a life?
While the soul, after all, is only a window,
and the opening of the window no more difficult than the wakening from a little sleep
-Mary Oliver, West Wind: Poems and Prose Poems
Welcome to 2022 everyone! It was 80 degrees here in NC yesterday. That was weird. The CDC gut-punched everyone who believes in evidence-based medicine last week and #medtwitter responded accordingly. Here’s my favorite:
Besides making me laugh, #medtwitter has also taught me that it’s a good idea to swab your throat as well as your nose when you do a rapid test (I would argue throat first and then nose). Also, for some truly excellent public health updates, I recommend this newsletter:
Let us turn to music for some respite, shall we?
Hazy Shade of Winter by The Bangles, Less Than Zero Sountrack, Def Jam Recordings, 1987.
For being not a great movie (as I recall, only Robert Downey Jr. is good), why did Less Than Zero have such a banging soundtrack? I guess because Rick Rubin produced it. It also includes “Going Back to Cali” and “Bring the Noise”! That’s insane. Anyway, this is simply The Bangles kicking ass on a Simon & Garfunkel cover. I recently learned that The Bangles bassist, Michael Steele, was a founding member of The Runaways. That blew my mind but also totally made sense.
Fill My Mouth by Goat, Headsoup, Rocket Recordings, 2021.
From their Bandcamp bio: When a mysterious masked collective called Goat first emerged in 2012, armed with an incendiary debut single ‘Goatman’ and a backstory for the ages – the band’s anonymous members claimed to hail from the remote and cursed village of Korpilombo in northern Sweden, where inhabitants had for centuries been devoted to a form of voodoo introduced by a travelling witch doctor – there was no one else on earth quite like them. Headsoup is a collection of unreleased material and new tracks. Love that flute!
Made of Gold by Ibeyi ft. Pau Salieu, Single, XL Recordings, 2021.
This is the first track from Ibeyi’s forthcoming album and it is a doozy. The French Cuban twins are joined by British hip hop artist Pau Salieu.
B-Side by Khruangbin and Leon Bridges, Single, Dead Oceans Inc, 2021.
This is the first track from their upcoming collaboration called Texas Moon. I love the combination of Khruangbin’s spacey funk with Bridges smooth but grounded tones.
Witchoo by Durand Jones & The Indications, Private Space, Dead Oceans, 2021.
Originally formed in Indiana and now out of NYC, it’s Durand Jones & The Indications! As Ann Powers said in her NPR review, “I dare you to play this song just once. It's impossible. The popcorn bass and effervescent synthesizers build on each other to form a double-helix of groove. Aaron Frazer's falsetto insinuates itself, the sexiest of earworms. Durand Jones adds heft with his deeper singing and party-starting shout of a chorus. The lights at the roller disco swirl — to stop now would be to risk falling on your butt. The only thing to do is press repeat and spin around the rink again.”
Higher by Sun-El Musician ft. Simmy, Single, EL World Music, 2021.
Sun-El Musician is a South African producer (this is on his label) and Simmy is a South African singer and songwriter. I love how hopeful and delicate this track is.
jordan by Joy Oladokun, in defense of my own happiness, Amigo Records, 2021.
This song is stunning. From her bio: the Delaware-born, Arizona-raised, and Nashville-based Nigerian-American singer, songwriter, and producer projects unfiltered spirit over stark piano and delicate guitar. After attracting acclaim from Vogue, NPR, and American Songwriter, her words arrive at a time right when we need them the most.
If Words Were Flowers by Curtis Harding, If Words Were Flowers, ANTI-, 2021.
From Marquis Munson writing for WNXP: Atlanta artist soul singer and multi-instrumentalist Curtis Harding was raised around music. His mother was a gospel singer and he learned how to sing and play the drums in the church. His mother taught him to sing with feeling, but another lesson she taught him outside of music was about showing love and appreciation for people before it was too late. She told him, “Give me my flowers while I’m still here,” and that statement stuck with Harding. That lesson would become the theme of his third album, If Words Were Flowers.
Love and Death by Ebo Taylor, Love & Death, Strut Records, 2010.
Ghanaian artist Ebo Taylor has been recording and producing wonderful music since the 1960s. This album is the first internationally released album of his Highlife and Afrobeat hits. Highlife is a fascinating genre!
Atenshan by Blinky Bill, Everyone’s Just Winging It and Other Fly Tales, Sellanga Ochieng, 2018.
I learned about Kenyan musician, producer and DJ Blinky Bill on one of my favorite music podcasts, Switched On Pop. They had a great episode critiquing the The Lion King soundtrack that is well worth a listen. The horn line on this really does it for me.
Other Thoughts:
+ I recently watched the new movie C’mon C’mon with Joaquin Phoenix and Gaby Hoffman (written and directed by Mike Mills). It was funny and sweet and sad and lovely. It had wonderful things to say about family and parenting. You can stream it now. Recommend!
+ I’ve been writing for Postcards to Voters since 2016 but I’ve recently added in card writing for Activate America as well. If you have a love of stationary and stamps and political anxiety, I recommend joining either/both group.