Going Steady: New Singles 2-24-23 – 3-2-23 Reviewed
Bite – 24kGoldn – it sure ain’t “Mood” but it is a catchy piece of electronic pop – B
Bookstore – April Rose Gabrielli – she might be getting tired of releasing gorgeous, fully formed songs with little traction, and on “Bookstore” April emerges with a queer anthem for the ages, a singalong at the arena and at the campfire – SINGLE OF THE WEEK – A-
Feeling Like Wop (feat. Gucci Mane) – BigWalkDog – The badass Mississippian finds where boom bap meets trap on a hook filled single – B+
DETHKLOK!! – boyband – aka Darien Bankhead has the best flow I’ve heard all week on a brilliant lyrical excavation of how you come back from hell – B+
Over – CHVRCHES – The electronic synth pop band usually drives me to the distraction, Lauren doesn’t misfire till the chorus – C
Players – Coi Leray – real variation on “Another One Bites The Dust” – B+
Peace Like A River – Dionne Warwick, Dolly Parton – when I first noticed Dionne Warwick and Dolly Parton on a song called “Peace Like A River” I imagined they had covered Paul Simon’s masterpiece but no such luck, it is a Dolly dog – C-
Guess I’m Doing Fine – Dom Flemons, Sam Bush – this is a Bob Dylan song I first heard on the Bootleg Tapes Volume 1 – 3 and it dates from the very early sixties. Dom and Sam’s banjo and fiddle take is absolutely beautiful, a perfect early Dylan with a memorable take – A
Elvis Costello & Chet Baker: Almost Blue (Arr. for flute by Claudio Ferrarini) – Elvis Costello – a gorgeous performance of Costello’s outlier off Imperial Bedroom; absolutely stunning – A-
Die 4 Me – Halsey – you probably remember her verse from the Post Malone track four years ago, here Halsey continues on a bad guy (? G-Eazy) and she rips his eyes out and extends the track here – B+
Death Wish – Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit – maybe five years past their prime, Jason can’t write “If We Were Vampires” anymore, instead we get a bluesy piece of meh – C
The Navigators – Jethro Tull – Ian is still doing, prog rock plus flute, he should release a song with Lizzo – B-
Kant Nobody (feat. DMX) – Lil Wayne – “all I need is a beat with a DMX sample” – B+
Joe – Luke Combs – a working class hero is something to be but sadly in the race for country male vocalist he is now behind Morgan – B
Everything Hurts – Superchunk – the Merge owners with a typical rocker and Mac’s whiny vocals – B
My Lil Shit (feat. Kodak Black) – Syko Bob – Syko is in prison but Yak continues the good work of brutal gangsterism – B
The Unconscious – The Boo Radleys – the former Brit poppers add ska horns to mainstream alt rocker – B-
New Order T-Shirt – The National – excellent with Matt’s baritone absolutely gorgeous and the band glomming on their earliest brood Americana vibe – A-
Die For You – Remix – The Weeknd, Ariana Grande – seven years after it dropped on Starboy, Abel rides Tik Tok to the front of the line and our reward is a fine remix with Ariana Grande taking over – B+
Goodbye Now – TOMORROW X TOGETHER – alright though minor dance ballad from the K-Pop biggies – B
This Loving Light Of Mine – Van Morrison – the fourth album this decade, Moving On Skiffle, has the fourth single off it, a terrific Gospel singalong… hey, maybe vaccines are bad for you… – B+
Here Comes the Sun – Acoustic – Yusuf / Cat Stevens – a tribute on what would have been George’s 80th birthday, Cat with a lovely if irrelevant cover – B
