Naz

This classic from The Beat was often played live by Pete Townshend, and Eddie Vedder has long admired The Who and Townshend, with "Baba O'Riley" a frequent setlist item during Pearl Jam sets. In addition, "Save It For Later" gets blended into the live version of "Better Man." So seeing this pop up on the second episode of season three of Chicago-centered "The Bear" was a real treat. The saxophone solo truly brings Vedder's rendition to life.

Kieran Hebden (aka Four Tet) is always a consistent artist for me, but the last few albums since There Is Love In You haven't pulled me all the way through. "Lush" from 2017's New Energy showed what Hebden could do with commissioning a hang (or handpan) and centering a song around it. Three is the cohesive album I've been waiting for that pulls from all of Hebden's best work and delivers in spades. The album has an almost retro quality to it, with much warmth. It feels like a hug in the best way. "Loved" opened up the album to me, but "Skater" is what pulled me all the way in.

Recommended tracks
Skater, Loved, Three Drums, Mango Feedback

A special shoutout to two bands that have had longevity and reunited: Hot Water Music has continued on with their brand of post-hardcore, while Walter Schreifels can't stop, and the reunion of Quicksand (hello again, Will Yip) after bassist Sergio Vega was ousted from Deftones is a lovely evolution of a band that's now showing a slightly softer, and perhaps age-appropriate, sound. This EP shows off their respective fires. Each band covers one of the other's songs and contributes new, unheard tracks. Hot Water Music covers the Quicksand classic "Fazer" faithfully while completely in tune with their sound. Quicksand's new contribution, "Supercollider," is a leftover from their post-reunion albums, but like many B-sides that have become classics, it should never… More

Drug Church is proving to have longevity and a high rate of output with seemingly no end to their brand of post-hardcore punk. I continue to think of them as some Henry Rollins-era Black Flag (circa Damaged) funneled through a Weezer lens. Such acerbic vocals paired with some of the catchiest hooks deliver big time. Prude is their fifth album, landing in a trilogy of some of the densest and most cathartic albums during and coming out of the pandemic. Perhaps my favorite album cover this year.

Recommend tracks
Demolition Man, Chow, Myopic, Slide 2 Me, Business Ethics.

I hadn't expected a new The Cure album in 2024, but here we are. And wow, was it worth it. I wouldn't call myself a diehard fan, but there are many songs I love, and both the album and song Disintegration remain among my all-time favorites. The Cure in 2024 takes on a tonal and deeply atmospheric vibe that is unmistakably them, but it's longtime bassist Simon Gallup's basslines that always cut through, and here they're on full display with the treble amped up and distorted. Of course, Robert Smith is the center here. His restraint on vocals that still sound as if he were two decades younger, and his songwriting, are sublime. This is an album to truly give… More

Site Nonsite is Simon Collison. Simon also happens to be a friend and design collaborator, and his musical and tangential design output as Site Nonsite is some of the best I've experienced. Part diary, part travelogue, part intimacy, part design project, all of it is channeled into the music and sounds that Collison weaves together here. While The Japan Series, his collected batch of EPs, tells a full story, it's his Live at Delia's Third Happening that expands and evolves what was originally created. Original in its own way, it's perhaps an even better curated expression of the music he's made prior. Pull on some headphones and go on a journey with Site Nonsite.

Recommended tracks
Angel Stain, Moss Garden,… More

Jen and I are unabashed fans of Fred Again.. Along with everyone else, we discovered him during the pandemic through his trilogy of albums that make up Actual Life 1, 2, and 3. We were such fans that we stood just outside the barriers for his show with Skrillex at Civic Center in San Francisco, just blocks from our home, and basked in the downtown rave that was all around us. Days before, I had snagged tickets to a three-night run at the Stanford Amphitheater for an almost intimate show in comparison. He released ten days just as fall began, and the anticipation was high. I wasn't sure what to expect given how cohesive and amazing the three Actual Life… More

Foxing should be much, much bigger than they are. They originally began within that indie/emocore sound but broke free with one of the best albums I've ever heard, Nearer My God, which will go down as a desert island album. They followed up that ambition with more during the pandemic with Draw Down the Moon, but this eponymous album ratchets up the stakes and brings the noise. After the dramedy of DDTM, the original singles for this album, "Greyhound" and "Hell 99," gave us a real taste of the spectrum of the album, further expanding their sonics and sound. "Greyhound" sits nicely with anything on Nearer My God, but "Hell 99" is a leap forward in bridging their roots… More

Pearl Jam (arguably my favorite band) released Dark Matter in April 2024. Early stories of Eddie Vedder encouraging the band to work with his Earthlings side project mega-producer Andrew Watt riled up the fanbase, leading to lots of speculation based on Watt's recent rock work with Vedder, Post Malone, Ozzy Osbourne, Iggy Pop, and The Rolling Stones. What would he bring to the table? Well, Watt is a PJ superfan and indeed brought them back to form. I haven't been completely sold on a full album from them since Yield, but Dark Matter is the real deal. Rumors that this would be Ten or VS.-era PJ are a bit unfounded, but Watt smartly brought their early and latter-day work… More

I discovered Balance and Composure just two or so years ago. By then, I didn't realize they hadn't released an album since 2016 and had essentially broken up. But the three records they had made left a mark on me, bringing back the fire and emotion to emotional hardcore that was co-opted by mainstream "emo" bands that made up the When We Were Young megafestival in recent years. Lo and behold, they released a two-song EP in 2023, and in late 2024, the full-length With You In Spirit dropped, much to the joy of many fans, including myself. Produced and co-written with Will Yip, who I argue is producing some of the best artists today, it has a great sense… More

Peggy Gou releases her first original collection of works, and proves her ear for the groove is translated well through the sounds of the 90s clubs I grew up on and with. This albums hits a lot of highs for me: her Asian-European accented English singing jives well with her brilliant decision to sing in her native Korean and hits the multicultural appeal that she brings not just to her music but her own persona as a model and influencer. The sequencing works well with each track flowing into the next, again a showcase of her DJ skills in curating a set.

This album just makes wanna go clubbing again and brings me back to my teen 90s in Malaysia.… More