Welcome to the Unskippables, where we’re all jazz poets, but we’re actually afraid to ask the big questions.
I’m not here to drop a “COVID is over” take because people still are getting sick, and it’s definitely not over for the immunocompromised and people with young children - but something about Doja Cat using her Coachella slot to announce the return of the Mexican Pizza with Taco Bell felt like some SERIOUS pre-pandemic weird brand synergy shit…and maybe we’re finally healing as a nation? Is Snoop Dogg coming back with the Doritos JACKED STAGE??? Is the Scion coming back???
Either way - there were many good links this week, but these I do believe are the Goodest Links:
Is This An Oral History Of An Oral History? Todd L. Burns got Rob Tannenbaum (I Want My MTV) to annotate his excellent 2016 GQ oral history of “We Built This City”
BYO Evan Williams - Matthew Perpetua of Fluxblog regularly makes “Place” themed playlists, and his December “Instant Dive Bar” has been hitting the spot for the right mix of classic butt rock and 00’s grime
The Way He Gets By - Tim Grierson’s interview with Britt Daniel is a good one, checking in with the journeyman rocker at 50.
And now, on to the tracks. You can follow along on our playlist on Spotify and Apple Music, which update every Tuesday along with the newsletter.
THE UNSKIPPABLES #32
Chloë - Treat Me
Chloë Bailey’s second solo single might be the most complete meal of a pop song I’ve heard this year: every section feels stuffed with ideas and ambitious writing. I had such low expectations that I did an actual double-take when the chorus drop led to an actual CHORUS and not just a sample and “vibes.” It’s nakedly ambitious in hunt of an earworm in a way that I find really charming - more pop should be trying harder! Do I wish the song had a bridge? Yes. But was I absolutely tickled by the chorus mashing up a “Ms. New Booty” sample with a “Wuthering Heights” vocal reference? ALSO YES. It’s the most fun new pop of the week, and overdelivers over its scant two and a half minutes.
Needy Beast feat. Monica Salazar - Myself Again
The latest project from LA-via-Brooklyn producer (and friend!) Adam Moerder, Needy Beast is less of an extension of Moerder’s recent work co-producing PawPawRod and more a return to his previous solo work making uneasy, strutting dance music. “Myself Again” features a spoken word verse from Monica Salazar, but it’s the track’s Linn slap and dinky, queasy synth melodies that are the real earworm. The whole EP dropped last Friday, and you can check it here.
Wilco - Reservations (Live from St. Louis, 2002)
Sunday I saw Wilco play Yankee Hotel Foxtrot in its entirety - if you get the chance to see a band play a record you know by heart in full, I highly recommend it!
In addition to the anniversary shows, they just announced a massive YHF reissue, including this unearthed live version of “Reservations” from 2002. This song was a real revelation at the show Sunday - I underestimated how devastating the verse turns could be live, stripped from the album’s gentle warmth.
Krithi - Resonate
Krithi’s latest EP finds the Brooklyn-based producer bringing a harder, bassier edge to her work integrating South Indian sounds and percussion into instrumental electronic music. Her use of samples is expertly juxtaposed with aggressive kicks and an anxious sense of space on this latest record, thanks to her use of sharp tones, tight roomy reverbs, and skittering delays. “Resonate” in particular feels like peak Night Slugs or early 00’s Timbaland, where organic percussion ducks in and out around an unrelenting bass groove, always choosing an unexpected pocket over an obvious backbeat.
Local Tourist - Colors
The first track off of US-via-New Zealand trio Local Tourist’s new LP is a haunting, tremolo-laced ballad reminiscent of Chris Isaak, early Cat Power, or even the quietest moments of Black Heart Procession. The chorus blooms around Erin Umstead’s voice, only to sink back into the paranoid fingerpicking of the verse.
THROWBACK CORNER
Verckys Et L’Orchesrtre Vévé - Talali Talala
This record was a discovery via A Record Of Records, where Bandcamp Editorial Director J. Edward Keyes reviews LPs in his collection, with thoughtful and intimate write-ups. In addition to doing catalog-wide artist deep dives, he also showcases gems like this Analog Africa reissue of Verckys Et L’Orchestre Vévé’s Afro-funk. Keyes put it best as to why you should listen:
Verckys was considered the best sax player in Kinshasa, so good that he floored James Brown—who was in town for the 1974 Ali/Foreman fight and decided to catch some live music during his stay. He was reportedly so blown away by Verckys he took to calling him “Mister Dynamite” and turned up to every one of his gigs for the week he was in town.
Who are we to argue with James Brown? “Talali Talala” is particularly funky, but the whole reissue is worth a spin, the band’s compositions spanning loungy jazz, Highlife, and funk.
That’s all for this week - thanks as always for reading, and if you haven’t please subscribe. I swear my writing is *even better* when it’s in your inbox.