NPR's favorite music of April, from broken-hearted R&B to paranoid post-punk
NPR's favorite music of April, from broken-hearted R&B to paranoid post-punk
From left to right, clockwise: Pusha T, Myra Melford, Syd, Horace Andy, Straw Man Army. Courtesy of the artists hide caption
From left to right, clockwise: Pusha T, Myra Melford, Syd, Horace Andy, Straw Man Army.
Courtesy of the artistsHorace Andy is a reggae legend and a beloved Massive Attack collaborator. On his new album Midnight Rocker, producer Adrian Sherwood sticks to the basics: a full band adorns Andy's golden voice with rich arrangements, as he offers messages of care in an uncaring world. We open the best music of the month show with "Watch Over Them," and it's easy to get lost in Andy's voice.
NPR Music's Ann Powers, Rodney Carmichael and Sidney Madden join WBGO's Nate Chinen and host Lars Gotrich as they share the best music they heard in the month of April. We discuss a re-energized Pusha T, Myra Melford's improvised suite for a Cy Twombly painting, Syd's broken-hearted R&B ballads and Straw Man Army's paranoid-but-expansive post-punk.
All that, plus a lightning round of picks that the panel couldn't stop listening to. But we'd be remiss not to mention some major drops worth your ears: Ramona Park Broke My Heart by Vince Staples, Ivory by Omar Apollo, Just Like That... by Bonnie Raitt, Growing Up by The Linda Lindas and the self-titled debut by Wet Leg.
Featured Tracks And Artists:
1. Horace Andy: "Watch Over Them" from Midnight Rocker
2. Pusha T: "Dreamin of the Past" from It's Almost Dry
3. Myra Melford's Fire and Water Quintet: "VII" from For the Love of Fire and Water
You can stream this track via WBGO.
4. Syd: "CYBAH" from Broken Hearts Club
5. Straw Man Army: "Human Kind" from SOS
Our panel's additional recommendations for April:
- Fontaines D.C. — Skinty Fia
- Taj Mahal & Ry Cooder — Get On Board
- Joel Ross — The Parable of the Poet
- Miles Okazaki's Trickster Quartet — Thisness
- Albert Ayler — Revelations