Issue 25: Let's Do the Time Warp Again!
Reviewing new albums from Jessie Ware, Q, Superviolet, and more!
Welcome back to Band Practice! I don’t think I’ve been more excited to share a batch of albums with you—hooboy these are good ones! In the last issue we traveled back in time as I shared some of my most formative albums from childhood and adolescence (if you missed it you can find it here).1 In this issue, we’re going to catch back up with the present…well, sort of…
This week’s albums are new but emblazoned with retro flair straight from the 1960s through the 90s.2 We’ll take a look at Jessie Ware’s dive into disco with That! Feels Good!; Q’s synthy sensation, Soul,PRESENT, that is sure to stir up some feelings for anyone alive in the 1980s; and Superviolet’s Infinite Spring that has traces of both 1960s and 90s indie rock. We also have a special feature that I’m bringing back: reader recommendations! This one features Bastard Jargon from Nakhane—which defies time and genre.
Reader, you may be questioning whether you want retro and worrying that it’s going to be hokey. Let me tell you: you do, and it’s not. All four of these albums feel fresh and innovative and broke my brain in so many good ways.
So let this be your trigger warning for nostalgia as we travel backward and forward and back again in time. It’s a time warp, baby—buckle up!
This week’s must listens
If you want to release your inhibitions and feel comfortable in your own skin…
That! Feels Good! — Jessie Ware
Pop [Released 4/28/23]
There are so many artists who have dipped into disco haphazardly, but English singer/songwriter Jessie Ware does it like it’s second nature. Between this and her previous disco-themed album, What’s Your Pleasure?, she seems to have found her niche. That! Feels Good! is pure disco opulence. Like a siren, Ware calls out from a hall of a thousand mirrorballs, proclaiming her message of love, pleasure, and empowerment.
The album’s ten decadent tracks pull influences from funk, R&B, and pop. It is full of powerhouse anthems of self-confidence like the titillating title track “That! Feels Good!” where she declares that “pleasure is a right.” A full horn section and a funky, bass-driven beat gives it plenty of drama. In “Free Yourself,” the full power of Ware’s voice is unleashed, matching its thumping energy and liberating spirit. It’s let your hair down, twirl in the middle of the dance floor kind of music.
You get a few breathers from the otherwise continuous dance party with “Hello Love” and “Lightning”—two romantic R&B slow jams that will keep you on the dance floor to dance with your significant other. And, like any good disco album, there’s an appropriate dose of camp (“Pearls,” “Shake The Bottle”) and innuendo (“These Lips”) sprinkled in. But “Begin Again” is the star of the show. It makes me feel like I’m in a disco musical with a fiery piano cast as the—almost upstaging—supporting actor. With every note I emerge from my cocoon of shyness and self-doubt and transform into a bedazzled butterfly who is sensual, confident, and free.
Ware sings in “Shake the Bottle,” “what is life if not for fun?” And That! Feels Good! is a passionate exclamation of pure, carefree, hold-nothing-back fun. It is perfect escapist pop and, though it was more than satiating, I couldn’t get enough of it. I hope she makes one hundred more albums like these so I can dance on forever…or at least until I get too tired and want to take a nap.
Tracks on repeat: That! Feels Good!, Free Yourself, Begin Again
Available on Spotify, Apple Music, bandcamp
If you need a soul reset…
Soul,PRESENT — Q
Alt-R&B/Pop/Funk/Soul [Released on 5/5/23]
Contrary to what some U.S. politicians would have you believe, TikTok is wonderful. I’m unashamedly addicted and spend too much time on it, but it’s worth it for moments like these. It’s where I discovered the Floridian singer/songwriter/producer who goes by the singular (and unarguably most mysterious) letter “Q.” I heard his single “LUV (I KNOW I WANT THIS FOR REAL)” and immediately ran—err, tapped very fast—to Apple Music to pre-save the album. I had high hopes for it and was not disappointed. When I heard the first few chords of the opening track I lost my goddamn mind.
“WELCOME TO SOUL,PRESENT,” welcomes the listener into the album’s wonderland of synths and drum machines straight from the 1980s. It’s like stepping into a Prince and a Michael Jackson music video at the same time. Funk-infused beats and smooth pop melodies beg to be moonwalked to. And the creative use of a deep-pitched narrator throughout the album makes it feel like more of an immersive experience than a set of songs. But while most of the album consists of sizzling up-tempo numbers, Q’s softer, R&B-leaning songs are where his dreamy falsetto really shines. When he hits those high notes in “INCAPABLE HEART,” I melt like a forgotten tube of chapstick left in the car on a hot summer’s day.
One of the biggest draws of the album is its positivity (as a bonus, it’s clean enough to play in front of your kids). The lyrics are vulnerable and uplifting as Q promotes his message of love and self-acceptance. In “NOT ALONE” he sings about not having to be alone in your shame (did Brené Brown ghostwrite this?). And the theme of the album, as laid out in its opening track, is about learning to let go and letting “God handle your tomorrow.” In other words—as the title of the album suggests—staying in the present.
Drawing comparisons to Prince and Michael Jackson is not something I do lightly. Despite his humility, Q has apparent star power. And perhaps it is precisely his humility and positive messaging that makes him the pop star that we need today.
Tracks on repeat: NOT ALONE, INCAPABLE HEART, LUV (I KNOW I WANT THIS FOR REAL)
Available on Spotify, Apple Music
If you’re not ready for spring to be over…
Infinite Spring — Superviolet
Indie Rock [Released 4/21/23]
If you are in denial, like I am, of the ever-encroaching summer (here in Portland, OR we've already been through a few unseasonable heat waves) might I introduce you to the perpetually temperate ease of Superviolet’s Infinite Spring. Its breezy, acoustic vibe makes it the perfect soundtrack to enjoy the last of light jacket weather. In an interview with Brooklyn Vegan, frontman Steve Ciolek shared that, “the idea behind Infinite Spring as an album was to try to capture that feeling of openness or possibility or growth,” and he captures it well.3 The album possesses a lightness that bids you to take it easy and let life bloom around you.
The band’s sound brings up references that span decades. There are hints of 1990s Weezer in “Angels on the Ground,” whiffs of 2000s Jimmy Eat World in “Overrater,” and harmonies reminiscent of The Beach Boys in “Blue Bower.” Then there’s Ciolek’s voice which is situated somewhere between Ben Folds and Ben Gibbard—a Ben of some sort, regardless. The arrangements are flourished but not flashy—little more than a curling acoustic guitar riff is needed to make “Big Songbirds Don’t Cry” a true treasure on the album. A few songs like “Angels on the Ground” and “Infinite Spring” are raucous enough to flail to, and title track “Infinite Spring” gives just a smidge of rock musical-esque drama, but most of the songs are delightfully chill. Ciolek’s lyrics and melodies are ingeniously simple yet catchy (“Good Ghost’s” chorus is constantly stuck in my head) and stick with me the most out of any of the albums featured in this issue.
Infinite Spring is so crisp that it just feels effortless. It is a refreshing, no nonsense—except for crediting their cat on the album—indie rock album that has been part of my spring soundtrack and is one that I will return to in any season.
Tracks on repeat: Big Songbirds Don’t Cry, Good Ghost, Wave Back
Available on Spotify, Apple Music, bandcamp
Special feature: reader recommendation
Bastard Jargon — Nakhane
Pop [Released 3/31/23]
I’m excited to bring back a special feature from last year: reader recommendations. Our first of the year comes from Katie of Portland, OR. She recommended this album to me and, even if I had discovered it on my own, I would still think it’s worth writing about.
Nakhane is a non-binary singer/songwriter (and actor! and novelist!) from South Africa. Their latest album Bastard Jargon is a bold mix of r&b, dancehall, pop, and club beats, and features a collaboration with one of my favorite artists, Perfume Genius, on “Do You Well.” According to a statement to Apple Music, the album signifies a new beginning for the artist, and one that is quite moving to witness. Let’s hear what Katie has to say about it.
How did you hear about this album, Katie?
Katie: Ari Shapiro mentioned it during one of his book tour interviews (Las Culturistas podcast—also highly recommend). I heard “South African,” “queer,” and his “most anticipated album of the summer,” and knew I wanted to check it out.
What do you love about it?
Katie: It's starry-eyed, yet serious. The subtle African influences are thrilling, and, to me, it has a lot more variety instrumentally, lyrically, and thematically than a standard pop or club album.
What is your favorite song on the album and why?
Katie: “Do You Well!” I love the repetition of the chorus, and everything Nahkane does with it vocally, which is soaring. I picture singing this song while grabbing a loved one by the shoulders and blasting "stay in the light" radiance into their face.
Thank you so much for sharing, Katie! If you would like to recommend an album to be featured in a future issue, let me know in the comments or reply to this email. If I love it, I’ll reach out to you.
Available on Spotify, Apple Music
Poll time!
Thanks for reading! For the next issue I’ll be listening to new albums from Arlo Parks, Foo Fighters and more. I’ll share my favorites with you. I’m also working on my ~caliente~ summer playlist, so keep an eye out for both issues soon. Make sure you’re subscribed so you don’t miss them!
The playlist!
Want even more good music?? I’m keeping a running playlist of my favorite song from every new album I listen to this year. It’s ordered chronologically by date listened and I’ll update it with every issue. It’s getting long, so you’ll need to scroll to the end get to the most recent albums. The latest batch starts with the song “Love & Rage” from Dreamer Isioma. Besides the ones I already mentioned in this issue, make sure to listen to “Never Felt So Alone” from Labrinth (featuring Billie Eilish), “Smog” from Indigo De Souza, and “Goldie Hawn” from William Prince—they’re so so good.
Albums of 2023 - Apple Music playlist
Albums of 2023 - Spotify playlist
Got feelings about these albums? Questions for me? Or something that you’d like to see in a future issue? Let me know in the comments or reply to this email. I’d love to know. :)
A note about my formative albums/artists: my mom informed me that my first significant experience with popular music was in utero when my parents went to see a laser show of Pink Floyd’s Dark Side Of The Moon. Apparently I was dancing and kicking along to it. Take that, Simon & Garfunkel. (This will only make sense if you read the issue.)
I know…it pains me to say that the 1990s are retro. It does. Here, have a cringy TikTok about cassette tapes for your troubles [cries in millennial].
I’ve been listening a lot to mmeadows’ new album Light Moves Around You. Fronted by a member of the Dirty Projectors, love their sound