Month: May 2025

Rewind Review: Esquivel – More of Other Worlds, Other Sounds (1962)

Somewhere between the late 1950s and the mid-1960s was an aesthetic of design that was known as the “space age bachelor pad.” It was partially inspired by James Bond films, speculation on a glorious, automated future that was to come after World War Two ended, and thrilling adventures in space exploration.

Of course, if you were going to live in a space age bachelor pad, you needed space age music to play on your hi-fi stereo, and that’s where Esquivel entered the scene. More of Other Worlds, Other Sounds is the sequel to 1958’s Other Worlds, Other Sounds, which blew people’s minds back then. More does the same with blends of Latin jazz, big band swing, beautiful piano work, and plenty of odd sounds that come out of nowhere.

“The Breeze and I (Andalucia)” is almost a John Barry Bond movie theme (Dig those horns!), but Barry is happily drunk and goofing around in the studio. The weird hand percussion and surf guitar on “Chant to the Night” are trippy compliments to the great trumpet playing on it. “Canadian Sunset” builds to a thrilling point and then drifts into comfortable warmth (or is it cool dark?).

“Street Scene” has plenty of low-end piano bass to get you prowling, while the middle keys provide sultry glances from across the road. Esquivel (and His Orchestra) does a fun, luxurious spin on the classic “I Get a Kick Out of You” with great piano flourishes. “Primavera” is a song you’ll think you’ve heard in hundreds of elevators, airports, and train stations…and you probably have.

“Street of Dreams” has sublime and subtle percussion behind Esquivel’s plucky piano work, and another trumpet solo that you can practically frame and hang on a wall. “La Mantilla” is layered with Latin acoustic guitar, piano riffs, and hand percussion, instantly transporting you to a place that only exists in dreams. Esquivel’s version of “One for My Baby (and One for the Road)” takes a song popularized by Frank Sinatra and makes it even woozier.

The percussion on “Dancing in the Dark” almost sounds out of whack, almost like Esquivel is playing piano in one room while a samba band plays in another and the recording equipment is set up in the hallway between the two rooms (and a jazz trumpeter is on the veranda outside). You’ll want “Snowfall” on your Christmas playlists this year and every year afterwards. It’s bright and perfect for a cozy night of snuggling in your satellite bachelor pad. The album ends with “Travelin’.” It’s a good finisher, as it’s perfect for putting on as you start on a new journey to some exotic place, even if it’s only a couple miles down the road.

This is a lounge classic, like all of Esquivel’s work, and shouldn’t be missed. Your date will thank you.

Keep your mind open.

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WSND DJ set list – Manic Monday Music Mix – May 19, 2025

Thanks to everyone who listened to and helped program the first Manic Monday Music Mix show of the 2025 WSND summer break. The entire set list is your requests and randomly chosen tracks from my massive music collection. Here’s the set list:

  1. The Killers – All These Things That I’ve Done
  2. Arc Angels – Living in a Dream (request)
  3. Neko Case – Pitch or Honey
  4. The Phantom Creeps – Blood on the Tracks
  5. Bob Seger System Air Force ad
  6. Bob Seger – Ramblin’ Gamblin’ Man
  7. Soulwax – Essential Seven
  8. Ozark Mountain Daredevils – Chicken Train (request)
  9. Chic – Good Times
  10. Kraftwerk – The Model (request)
  11. Bully – Trying
  12. Hawkwind – Master of the Universe (request)
  13. Bad Religion – Where the Fun Is
  14. Teenager – Pleassure
  15. Eurythmics – Would I Lie to You? (request)
  16. Contaminazione – l’Ultima Setimana Di Vita
  17. Crosby, Stills, & Nash – Wasted on the Way (request)
  18. Track Assassin – Gimme ‘da Drumz
  19. Dorian Gray radio ad
  20. The Donnas – Take It Off (request)
  21. Grizzly radio ad
  22. Beck – The Horrible Fanfare / Landslide / Exoskeleton
  23. WALL – Last Date
  24. Brood – The Roach
  25. Doug Richards – I Move with Intention
  26. Failure – Long Division
  27. The Cramps – Aloha from Hell (live)
  28. Dunsmuir – Church of the Tooth

I’m back on air May 25th at 7pm Eastern with my first Deep Dive of summer break!

Keep your mind open.

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WSND set list: Manic Monday! (1980s set) May 19, 2025

Thanks to all who listened to my first show of the 2025 summer break on WSND. “Manic Monday!” was a lot of fun to spin. The first three hours were all 1980s music. Here’s the set list:

  1. Zapp – More Bounce to the Ounce (1980)
  2. Frankie Goes to Hollywood – Two Tribes (12″ mix) (1984)
  3. The Smithereens – Time and Time Again (demo) (1980)
  4. Echo and The Bunnymen – Rescue (1980)
  5. Adam and The Ants – Friends (version 2) (1981)
  6. Genesis – Turn It On Again (1980)
  7. Mike & The Mechanics – Silent Running (1985)
  8. Phil Collins – I Missed Again (1981)
  9. Peter Gabriel – Shock the Monkey (1982)
  10. Agent Orange – Bloodstains (1981)
  11. Xmal Deutschland – Allein (live) (1981)
  12. The Alan Parsons Project – Eye in the Sky (1982)
  13. The J. Geils Band – Centerfold (1981)
  14. Holly and The Italians – Miles Away (1981)
  15. The Clash – Should I Stay or Should I Go? (live) (1982)
  16. Bronski Beat – Smalltown Boy (12″ mix)
  17. Concrete Blonde – Everybody Knows (request) (1989)
  18. Cyndi Lauper – Girls Just Want to Have Fun (1983)
  19. Peter McIan – Solitaire (1980)
  20. Linda Ronstadt – How Do I Make You (1980)
  21. Melissa Manchester – Fire in the Morning (1979)
  22. Kenny Loggins – Keep the Fire (1979)
  23. Red Rider – White Hot (1979)
  24. The Cretones – Real Love (1980)
  25. Spyro Gyra – Catching the Sun (1980)
  26. Queen – Crazy Little Thing Called Love (1979)
  27. Ironhorse – What’s Your Hurry Darlin’ (1980)
  28. The Whispers – And the Beat Goes On (1979)
  29. Prince – Batdance (12″ Bat mix) (1989)
  30. Big Audio Dynamite – The Dragon Lady (1989)
  31. Eurhythmics – Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This) (1983)
  32. Joy Division- Love Will Tear Us Apart (1980)
  33. New Order – Blue Monday (live) (1983)
  34. The Style Council – Speak Like A Child (1983)
  35. The Police – Every Breath You Take (1983)
  36. Sting – Fortress Around Your Heart (1985)
  37. Paul McCartney – Check My Machine (1980)
  38. Devo – Shout (1984)

Manic Monday – 80s Edition returns May 26th!

Keep your mind open.

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Durand Jones and The Indications announce U.S. fall tour dates and a new single – “Flower Moon.”

(Photo Credit: Kalie Johnston)

Durand Jones & The Indications — the trio of Durand Jones, Aaron Frazer, and Blake Rhein— announce a fall North American tour and release “Flower Moon,” the second single/video from their forthcoming album, Flowers out June 27th on Dead Oceans. On the heels of a successful European headline run which included shows supporting Lenny Kravitz, the band’s expansive tour includes some of their largest shows yet, with stops in New York, Chicago, LosAngeles, Toronto, and more. Tickets go on sale Friday, April 25th at 10am local time. A full list of dates is below, with tickets and further information available here.

Following lead single “Been So Long,” praised by Rated R&B as a “petal-soft tune [that] rides with the smoothness of an early ’70s soul jam,” “Flower Moon” guides listeners to an end-of-night dancefloor with Frazer’s trademark falsetto on full display. Reflecting on the track, Jones says: “It felt right to release ‘Flower Moon’ with this record. Spring is here and the flowers are blooming everywhere. We really wanted to catch that essence of the song and bring it to life for the listener. Also the Flower Moon is happening in a few weeks, so everything just seemed aligned to bring this song to our fans. It’s a feel-good tune to enjoy with friends or a loved one.” The song’s accompanying video was directed by Alec Basse.


Watch the Video for “Flower Moon”
 

On Flowers, The Indications’ fourth album and first since 2021’s “disco and funk infused” (Billboard) Private Space, the group leaned into a particular desire to return to their roots in a Bloomington basement, a space where they first found camaraderie in gritty funk and Southern soul that would inspire their self-titled debut. Just as they did on that 2016 release, The Indications prioritized close-knit collaboration while creating Flowers. Much of the self-produced album was written together at Rhein’s Chicago home studio, and many tracks are based on one-take demos — proof that vibes were particularly high, each member pulling from their refined tool kits with ease. 

Reflecting a strong sense of the band’s maturation and conviction, the 11 songs that make up Flowers are grown and sexy, fit for cruising, and delight in the softer side of soul and disco. “All of these songs touch on such mature topics, things that we never got to sing about before,” says Jones. “We are all in our 30s, have all been through ups and downs in our personal lives and professional lives, and flowers are a sign of maturity, growth, spring, productivity.” Frazer adds: “We took the spirit of play that started the project, and added in the wisdom and lessons we’ve acquired through the years.”


Pre-order / Pre-save Flowers

Watch the Video for “Been So Long” 

Durand Jones & The Indications Tour Dates 
(New Dates in Bold)
Fri. July 4 – East Sussex, UK @ Love Supreme Jazz Festival 
Sun. July 6 – Ewijk, NL @ Down The Rabbit Hole
Sun. July 6 – Werchter, BE @ Werchter Festival Park
Thu. Sept. 11 – Phoenix, AZ @ The Van Buren *
Fri. Sept. 12 – Flagstaff, AZ @ Orpheum Theater *
Sat. Sept. 13 – Abiquiú, NM @ Blossoms & Bones
Mon. Sept. 15 – San Antonio, TX @ Aztec Theatre *
Tue. Sept. 16 – Austin, TX @ Stubb’s Waller Creek Amphitheater *
Thu. Sept. 18 – Atlanta, GA @ Variety Playhouse *
Fri. Sept. 19 – Nashville, TN @ Brooklyn Bowl *
Sun. Sept. 21 – Washington, DC @ 9:30 Club *
Tue. Sept. 23 – Philadelphia, PA @ Union Transfer *
Fri. Sept. 26 – Boston, MA @ Citizens House of Blues *
Sat. Sept. 27 – New York, NY @ Webster Hall *
Tue. Sept. 30 – Indianapolis, IN @ HI-FI Annex *
Wed. Oct. 1 – Chicago, IL @ The Salt Shed *
Fri. Oct. 3 – Englewood, CO @ Gothic Theatre *
Sat. Oct 4 – Fort Collins, CO @ Washington’s *
Sun. Oct. 5 – Salt Lake City, UT @ The Depot *
Tue. Oct. 7 – Oakland, CA @ Fox Theater *
Fri. Oct 10 – Los Angeles, CA @ The Greek Theatre *
Sat. Oct. 11 – Las Vegas, NV @ Brooklyn Bowl *
Thu. Oct. 23 – Del Mar, CA @ The Sound *
Fri. Oct. 24 – Sacramento, CA @ Channel 24 *
Mon. Oct. 27 – Portland, OR @ Crystal Ballroom *
Tue. Oct. 28 – Vancouver, BC @ Commodore Ballroom *
Wed. Oct. 29 – Seattle, WA @ Showbox SoDo *
Fri. Oct. 31 – Boise, ID @ Knitting Factory *
Sat. Nov. 1 – Bozeman, MT @ The ELM *
Mon. Nov 3 – Minneapolis, MN @ First Avenue *
Tue. Nov 4 – Milwaukee, WI @ Turner Hall Ballroom *
Wed. Nov 5 – Detroit, MI @ Saint Andrew’s Hall *
Fri. Nov. 7 – Toronto, ON @ The Concert Hall *
Sat. Nov 8 – Montreal, QC @ Beanfield Theatre *
Sun. Nov. 9 – South Burlington, VT @ Higher Ground Ballroom *
Tue. Nov 11 – Columbus, OH @ Newport Music Hall *
Wed. Nov. 12 – Asheville, NC @ The Orange Peel *
Fri. Nov. 14 – New Orleans, LA @ Tipitina’s *
Sat. Nov. 15 – Houston, TX @ The Heights Theater *
Sun. Nov. 16 – Dallas, TX @ House of Blues *

* = w/ The Psycodelics

Keep your mind open.

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[Thanks to Sam from Pitch Perfect PR.]

Rewind Review: Various artists – Disco Italia: Essential Italo Disco Classics 1977-1985 (2008)

The importance and sound of Italo disco from the mid-1970s through the mid-1980s cannot be underestimated. The disco scene in Italy at this time was something unlike anyone had seen on either side of the Atlantic and it influenced DJs, club owners, club goers, and bands across the world.

Disco Italia: Essential Disco Classics 1977-1985 from Strut Records is an excellent compilation of such music. It begins with Five Letters‘ “Tha Kee Tha Tha” from 1980, in which you can still hear disco and also hear just a touch of the New Wave of music to come. The bass plucks and pops alone are worth a listen. Kasso‘s “Brazilian Dancer” from 1982 is a great disco house track with fun, goofy lyrics about a man so handsome he might be an alien because no one on Earth could be such a stud.

Number One Ensemble‘s “Flor de Coca” is such a slick disco track from 1980 that you might fall on the dance floor when you hear it. “Now Baby Now” by Kano somehow adds early Devo and krautrock sounds to 1983 disco…and it works. Jumping back to 1979, we get the fabulously named Freddy the Flying Dutchman & The Sistina Band with their bass-popping, post-punk saxophone honking “Wotjyla Disco Dance (Part 1).” Firefly barely attempts to hide their stealing of Chic‘s “Good Times” on 1983’s “Live (Is Gonna Be on Your Side),” and it’s thus a lot of fun.

The cowbell-forward “Burning Love” by D.D. Sound is over nine minutes of funk from 1977. It’s amazing – full of hot bass licks, low-end male vocals, breathy female backing vocals, some sort of falsetto vocals, and more grooves you’ll find on an interstate roadway. When Revanche tells you it’s “1979 It’s Dancing Time,” you believe them. The percussion-heavy “Let Me Be Your Radio (Part 1)” by Red Dragon Band from 1980 would make Bow Wow Wow‘s jaws drop.

Rainbow Team‘s 1983 groover, “Dreaming,” follows a path laid down by Diana Ross with its lovely female vocals and tight drumming. 1978’s “Do It Again” by Easy Going is “What if Steely Dan made disco records?” It’s great. The bass on the “Maxessa Edit” of Tullio De Piscopo‘s “‘E Fatto ‘e Sorde! E? (Money Money)” from 1985 is so thick it feels like the song it going to tip over at any moment. Valentine asks “Tina Are you ready?” at the beginning of this weird 1983 track that is more new wave than disco, which is fine by me.

Don’t skip out on this collection if you love disco or odd European stuff from the 70s and 80s.

Keep your mind open.

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Rewind Review: Various artists – French Electro (2008)

I found this two-disc collection of great French techno, house, and jungle tracks in a record store’s used CD bin for less than five bucks. It practically felt like I was shoplifting it. The Wagram Music collection from 2008 has thirty-one tracks on it from heavyweights of the genre and covers a wide ground of EDM.

Dim Chris starts us off with jungle (“Sucker”) and then big-time DJ David Guetta drops “Baby When the Light” on us to get the floor jumping. Charles Schillings‘ “Be Gone” is pure house, while the “Mike 303 & Baxter Baxter radio edit” of Superfunk‘s “Electric Dance” has so much thick electro-bass that it might clog your speakers. “Samplemousse” by Brian Arc is a fun house jam that builds just like you want a house jam to build. You’ll definitely want to get down to Antoine Clamaran‘s “Get Down,” and David Vendetta‘s “Bleeding Heart” (the “Arno Cost remix”) is quirky, funky, and junk-in-the-trunky.

Kiko‘s “Requiem for a Dream” brings in a touch of synthwave to the mix. Arias‘ “Flynn” practically reinvents “The Percolator” for 2008. Jaochim Garraud‘s “Street’s Sound” is a house track that’s both lush and a bit creepy. Are you looking for a naughty song to put on the next bedroom mix you’re planning for your lover? Look no further than DJ Gregory‘s “Breeze.” “Naughty” barely describes it. It borders on “filthy, almost to the point of absurdity.”

Alex Gopher goes big beat on us with “Aurora,” bouncing loud, bright synth sounds off the walls. “Punk” by Etienne de Crecy is a salute to Daft Punk, who appear with the “Para One remix” of “Prime Time of Your Life” after Surkin‘s “White Knight Two.” There’s even a bonus remix of ZZT‘s “Lower State of Consciousness” by Justice to round out disc one.

Yes, all that is just on the first disc. The second disc is a collection of fifteen “classics” (from way back in 2000, just eight years earlier than the tracks on disc one). “Intro” by Alan Braxe and Fred Falke starts it off with a great bass-heavy house track, and Cheek‘s “Venus (Sunshine People)” continues the house party feel. Bob Sinclair‘s “Visions of Paradise” ups the disco beats to keep you moving. Martin Solveig‘s “Heartbeat” takes that disco groove to Italy and back.

Julian Jeweil‘s “Air Conditionne” is a cool introduction to Super Discount‘s bossa nova-touched “Prix Choc.” The “Todd Edwards Vocal Radio Edit Mix” of St. Germain‘s “Alabama Blues” is a showcase of mixing techniques that will leave you impressed. The bass groove on “Use Me” by Alex Gopher with Demon Presents Wuz is infectious to say the least. Daft Punk returns with a fun remix of I:Cube‘s “Disco Cubism.” Arno Cost then returns, along with Arias, for their synthwave banger “Magenta.”

Da Fresh drops a “Fuckin Track” on us that’s as heavy as the growling synth bass on it. Didier Sinclair‘s “Lovely Flight” sounds like (and, by now, is) an old school house track. Speaking of old school, Sebastien Leger harkens back to old school raves when he suggests you “Take Your Pills.” If this song doesn’t take you back to dancing in an old high school gym with a leaky roof and the floor covered in straw, then Jack de Marseille‘s track will “Bring Back That Feeling.” The compilation wraps up with Laurent Garnier‘s “Wrap Up,” which will give you enough energy for the afterparty.

This whole thing is solid, and a fun mix of old school, house, jungle, and even synthwave. Start crate digging for it.

Keep your mind open.

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Rewind Review: Black Sabbath – Sabbath Bloody Sabbath (1973)

What do you do if you’re in a legendary doom metal band, but all of your members (especially your guitarist) are doing cocaine and / or chugging booze almost nonstop, are exhausted from a massive tour, and are also running out of ideas for your fifth album?

If you’re Black Sabbath, your go back to Gloucestershire, England and record Sabbath Bloody Sabbath in a haunted castle.

Tommy Iommi‘s opening riff on the title track is the sound of ancient monsters awakening from a long slumber, and the song drifts into psychedelia at the right points to keep the shredding from overwhelming you. “A National Acrobat” is a song about DNA, believe it or not, and what determines who we become. Bill Ward keeps his drums simple, almost jazzy at some points, to good effect.

The lovely “Fluff” is pretty much a lullaby, which you’d never expect from that album cover…but you might from the back cover.

“Sabbra Cadabra” shreds on every level. Geezer Butler‘s bass roars and struts, while Ozzy Osbourne goes for broke with his vocals, having a great time behind the microphone. As if that’s not enough, along come Yes‘ Rick Wakeman to play a Minimoog on the track (and he was paid in beer!).

“Killing Yourself to Live” has soaring guitar work from Iommi. He creates a sound both majestic and heavy. The synths on “Who Are You?” ooze with creepy menace as Osbourne calls out cults of personality and the people who lead them. The groove of “Looking for Today” is top-notch. The album ends with “Spiral Architect,” a song about death (go figure) that includes lush string instruments and bright synths (and applause) to send us out on an uplifting note.

Like the other first six Black Sabbath albums (the only ones you can trust, according to a T-shirt I saw worn by Nick Aguilar of Frankie and The Witch Fingers), Sabbath Bloody Sabbath was sometimes derided upon its release but it now considered a metal classic. It’s impressive that it was completed and turned out so well, considering all the band was dealing with in 1973.

Keep your mind open.

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Lawn release “Sports Gun” after signing with a new label – Exploding in Sound.

Photo credit: Cora Nimtz

For the past decade, the New Orleans band Lawn has thrived on the palpable chemistry between co-lead singers and songwriters Mac Folger and Rui De Magalhaes. Though each boasts distinct sensibilities—Folger’s songs are breezy, jangly, and personal while De Magalhaes’ are biting and propulsive post-punk—they’ve seamlessly blended their idiosyncratic styles over three unassailable indie rock full-lengths, while becoming a fixture in a thriving New Orleans scene, and sharing stages with artists like Momma, Hovvdy and Omni.

De Magalhaes had moved to Chicago following the release of the 2022 Bigger Sprout, and released an acclaimed solo LP under the name Rui Gabriel via Carpark Records, which earned praise from folks like Pitchfork, Stereogum and Paste, but Lawn, despite recently uniting in New Orleans, have been quiet.

Today, following the announce of a recent run of tour dates with Momma, the band are announcing their return, signing to Exploding In Sound and sharing their first new music since their 2022 LP, a single called “Sports Gun.”

Engineered by Greg Obis (of Stuck) at Chicago’s Palisades Studio and mixed by Dave Vettraino (Dehd, Deeper), “Sports Gun” simmers with intensity thanks to its pummeling bass riff, layers of feedback-laden guitars. It’s galvanizing, loud, and unrelenting.

De Magalhaes says of the track:

“Sports Gun is supposed to be written from the point of view of a coach/parental figure who

pushes the subject to their absolute limit without regard for them otherwise. It came from a shortstory I wrote pre-pandemic. The idea was that any trauma – long or short term notwithstanding -would only be implied, if that, and that we only get to experience the narrative through a very thin, biased lens. It’s a frail attempt at writing something inspired by Julio Cortazar, but I still thought it fit the drive of the song. It is supposed to be more about the lengths some people go to accomplish something, conflating happiness with ambition, and overall being inept at being content.

I knew that we were going to an actual studio this time around, so we built the song around the idea that it would sound “heavier” for us. We had wanted to record with Greg [Obis] and really loved the sound he was getting from his own music, so we were open to the notion of layering as much noise as we could. The original demo had a slightly different beat and I sort of rapped the lyrics. Once we got into the studio and everyone started adding their own take, I just went for the yell instead.”

Tour Dates
9/15 – Indianapolis, IN – Hi-FI
9/16 – Milwaukee, WI – The Rave Bar
9/18 – Urbana, IL – Rose Bowl Outdoor
9/19 – Kansas City, MO – Bottleneck
9/20 – St Louis, MO – Blueberry Hill
w/ Momma

Keep your mind open.

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[Thanks to Tom at Terrorbird Media.]

Sophia Kennedy shares an “Imaginary Friend” with you on her new single.

Photo credit: Marvin Hesse

Baltimore-born and Hamburg/Berlin-based, Sophia Kennedy shares new single ‘Imaginary Friend’ where she explores what it means to let go of a persona you’ve created yourself. Taken from new album Squeeze Me out 23rd May via City Slang, which follows the release of DJ Koze’s album Music Can Hear Us where Sophia is featured on two tracks.  “Imaginary Friend is a song that has come a long way. It’s gone through many different stages to become what it is: a pop song”, Sophia says. “The song is also about a kind of transformation or metamorphosis of the different stages of coping with grief. It is about longing for reality and saying goodbye to an imagined idea of a person. Memories and longing can become obsessions, the imagined friend becomes an enemy. The decision to let go is therefore a liberating blow.”  Director Timo Schierhorn said on making the video, “I’m not only a huge fan of Sophia Kennedy’s future-predicting pop songs, I also deeply admire her unique acting abilities. When we began developing ideas for the video, it quickly became clear that she needed a very specific kind of stage — something massive, hard to control, and a little bit dangerous. So we rented a 5.8-ton lift and moved it within just two millimetres of a three-million-euro glass facade. It gave her a performance space suspended 24 meters above the ground, where we could only communicate by radio.” He adds, “Cinematographer Tom Otte filmed from inside a shopping mall, through layers of glass, as Kennedy performed between six and nine characters in a single take. Every take was brilliant, but we had to choose just one. I still wonder who she was looking at. Far in the background, always present: the Atlantic.”

Watch / Listen to ‘Imaginary Friend’ HERE

Stripped down compared to her previous works, Sophia embraces her talent for catchy melodies with pop appeal and psychedelic flourishes on Squeeze Me. A cinematic quality runs through the entire album’s 10 tracks — it’s no surprise, given Kennedy once studied film. Rigor and beauty, humor and melancholy, fatalism and strength – Squeeze Me inverts everything about Sophia Kennedy, echoing the album cover. Either she or the rest of the world is upside down, depending on each of our perspectives. More focused and more pop than ever, Squeeze Me is Kennedy’s most cohesive album, perhaps even a kind of artistic manifesto. It’s a multilayered, self-assured statement that thrives despite—or perhaps because of—all the inner and outer crises around and across it. Squeeze Me doesn’t ignore the world outside but instead counters it with one of its own—one we somehow recognize but have never glimpsed quite this way before.

Following her self-titled debut (2017, Pampa Records), a radiant dance between the glamour of the Great American Songbook, electronic textures, and clubland influences, earning her international acclaim, Kennedy released her second album, Monsters (2021, City Slang), and delved deeper into surrealism and transcendence. Now on Squeeze Me, Kennedy and her long-time musical collaborator and co-writer Mense Reents sketch a more disillusioned commentary on the status quo of the world at large. The complexity of interpersonal relationships, questions of power dynamics, and the quest for self-determination —longstanding themes for Kennedy—run as a cohesive narrative throughout the album.

More minimalist than her previous works, Squeeze Me brims with Kennedy’s gift for catchy melodies with a certain pop appeal and psychedelic hues: repetitive piano chords, shimmering synth bass lines, strangely flickering choirs, and even a scream set the sonic stage. The songwriting on Squeeze Me thrives in its stark simplicity, finding beauty in paring back. Over the hum of an organ and steady drum-machine beats, Kennedy casts off a stale, supposed dream state with irresistible charm and effortless cool. Sophia will play her second ever London show on 19th November at Shacklewell Arms – her first was almost 8 years ago in 2017. Tickets on-sale now.

Squeeze Me is out 23rd May via City Slang Records Pre-save / Pre-order

Tour Dates
May 30th DE – Neustrelitz – Immergut Festival
October 8th DE- Cologne- Bumann & Sohn
October 9th DE-Offenbach – Hafen 2
October 10th DE-Stuttgart – Merlin
October 11th CH-St. Gallen – Palace
October 13th DE-Munich – Kranhalle
October 14th AT-Vienna – Flucc
October 15th DE-Dresden – Tonne
October 16th DE-Leipzig – Conne Island
October 19th DE-Berlin – Lido
October 25th DE-Hamburg – Knust

November 19th UK-London – Shacklewell Arms

Keep your mind open.

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[Thanks to Amy at After Hours PR.]

Live: The Bob Mould Band and Winged Wheel – May 12, 2025 – Bell’s Eccentric Café – Kalamazoo, MI

It’s odd that I haven’t seen a full concert in almost five months, so opening my 2025 concert season with one of my rock heroes seemed appropriate. The Bob Mould Band was playing an easy drive from my house, so seeing them for the third time, and in a small venue, was an easy decision.

First up were Winged Wheel, who described themselves as being “from multiple cities” and thus rarely getting opportunities to play and tour together. They played an interesting brand of psychedelia that mixed synthwave with trippy guitars, a violin, and even lap steel guitar.

Winged Wheel

They had a great sunset to provide a light show, and I thought, “They could play Levitation.” Their sound is unique and they all look like someone you know.

After about a twenty-minute gear switch, The Bob Mould band came out and got straight to business. It was the last show of their current tour, and they emptied the gas tank on the Bell’s outdoor stage.

They tore through the first group of tracks so fast that you could barely breathe. The crowd, mostly aging hipsters like yours truly, seemed a bit low key. The trio of Mr. Mould, Jason Narducy (bass), and Jon Wurster (drums) were roaring and few people were dancing at first. I think some were just overwhelmed by the tidal wave of sound coming at them. There were a couple songs when it felt like a mosh pit could, and should, have broken out. Three guys tried to start one for a moment, but one of the trio soon stopped it and calmed his pals down before it could form.

The Bob Mould Band was undeterred by this, thank heavens, and ripped through a lot of good stuff from their catalogue, both new (from their Here We Go Crazy album) and even a short set of tracks from 2020. Wurster was dropping some killer fills the whole night, and Narducy’s bass grooves were locked in the whole set.

Mould, go figure, shredded the entire evening with both his guitar and his voice. It’s wild to see and hear him create that much sound.

A highlight for me was them playing the theme from The Mary Tyler Moore Show near the end of the night. If you’re a fan of Hüsker Dü, then you know that cover was a staple of their early shows so it was a blast to hear that gem brought out to shine.

It’s great that these guys are still crushing it and that Mould is still putting out great music and showing youngsters how it’s done.

Keep your mind open.

Thanks to the chap who let me snap a photo of this set list he scored.

[Thanks to Jim and Mia at Big Hassle for the press pass!]