Love

Hannah Frances – Keeper of the Shepherd

While the progressive songwriter’s music retains a rootsy essence of folk and Americana, with passionate multi-tracked vocals and thorny knots of electric and acoustic guitars, the’ polyphonic chamber arrangements and shifting time signatures often push things further into prog territory, without ever losing their rustic warmth. The resulting songs are transcendent, haunting and earthy, rising triumphantly from the remaining layers of volcanic ash after a fiery existential catharsis.

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Arthur Russell – Iowa Dream

Style: Singer/Songwriter, Folk Pop, Americana

Vibe: Warm, Tender, Romantic, Reflective, Playful, Love, Compassionate, Rustic, Bittersweet, Intimate, Mellow

Musical Qualities: Catchy, Lyrical, Lush, Home Recording, Acoustic, Melodic

Instrumentation: Vocals, Cello, Acoustic Guitar, Piano, Drums, Keyboards, Organ, Vibraphone, Tabla, Violin, Bongos, Horns, Flute, Bass

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Joanna Newsom – Divers

“But stand brave, life-liver, bleeding out your days in the river of time.
Stand brave: time moves both ways, in the nullifying, defeating, negating, repeating joy of life.
The moment of your greatest joy sustains: not axe nor hammer, tumor, tremor, can take it away, and it remains.
And it pains me to say, I was wrong. Love is not a symptom of time. Time is just a symptom of love”

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Jeff Buckley – Grace

Style: Singer/Songwriter, Art-Rock

Moods: Longing, Bittersweet, Passionate, Heartbreak, Angsty, Sentimental, Romantic, Introspective, Sensual, Existential, Poetic, Sad, Sombre

Musical Qualities: Dynamic, Lush, Melodic, Polished Production, Orchestral Arrangements, Gospel Background Vocals

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Albert Ayler – Revelations

Style: Spiritual Jazz, Free Jazz

Moods: Ecstatic, Uplifting, Anthemic, Passionate, Energetic, Bittersweet, Cathartic, Chaotic, Cosmic, Flowing, Free, Heartfelt, Joyful, Kinetic, Love, Spiritual, Tender

Musical Qualities: Thematic, Collective Improvisation, Acoustic, Extended Technique, Live Performance

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Willie Nelson – Spirit

Style: Outlaw Country, Singer/Songwriter, Flamenco-Influenced

Vibe: Tender, Breakup, Reflective, Patient, Personal, Lonely, Longing, Peaceful, Romantic, Bittersweet, Heartfelt, Intimate, Melancholy, Mellow, Sentimental, Spiritual

Musical Qualities: Acoustic, Lush, Lyric-Driven, Chamber Arrangements

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Alabaster DePlume – GOLD

Style: Art Pop, Spiritual Jazz, Dub Poetry, Collage Pop

Moods: Triumphant, Conversational, Uplifting, Conscious, Communal, Heartfelt, Passionate, Hypnotic, Intertwined, Intimate, Intricate, Playful, Rebellious, Love, Poetic, Reflective, Soothing, Spiritual, Warm,

Musical Qualities: Suite, Improvisation, Analogue Recording, Tape Edits, Dub Production, Sound Collage, Thematic, Polished, Catchy

Instrumentation: Saxophone, Spoken Word, Upright Bass, Drums, Group Vocals, Tabla, Synthesizers, Percussion, Guitar, Cello

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Beth Orton – Weather Alive

Style: Singer/Songwriter, Chamber-Jazz, Ambient Pop

Moods: Reflective, Existential, Autumnal, Languid, Pensive, Soothing, Peaceful, Nature, Tender, Mellow, Contemplative

Musical Qualities: Lush, Slow, Polished, Atmospheric

Featuring Shahzad Ismaily, Tom Skinner, Alabaster dePlume, and more

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Joan Shelley – Over and Even

Style: Folk, Singer/Songwriter

Vibe: Morning, Reflective, Soothing, Gentle, Bittersweet, Warm, Mellow, Contemplative

Musical Qualities: Acoustic, Lush, Soft, Vocal Harmonies, Melodic, Sparse, Polished Production

Instrumentation: Fingerstyle Acoustic Guitar, Banjo, Piano, Harmonium, Glockenspiel, Keyboards

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P.G. Six – Slightly Sorry

Style: Loner Folk, Weird Americana, Folk Rock, Singer Songwriter

Vibe: Peaceful, Melancholy, Reflective, Romantic, Gentle, Rustic, Warm, Autumnal, Bittersweet, Breezy, Contemplative, Lethargic, Mellow, Intertwined

Musical Qualities: Soft, Lush, Lyrical, Vocal Harmonies, Acoustic, Atmospheric

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Bert Jansch – Birthday Blues

Style: Chamber Folk, British Folk, Acoustic Blues, Jazz-Folk

Vibe: Breezy, Mellow, Contemplative, Autumnal, Uplifting, Melancholy, Warm, Joyful, Love, Intertwined, Reflective, Poetic

Musical Qualities: Acoustic, Melodic, Lush, Rootsy, Bluesy, Chamber Arrangements

Instrumentation: Acoustic Guitar, Upright Bass, Flute, Saxophone, Harmonica

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Neko Case – Furnace Room Lullaby

Style: Alt-Country, Americana, Singer/Songwriter

Vibe: Bittersweet, Warm, Angsty, Rustic, Heartfelt, Confident, Passionate, Twangy, Love, Breakup, Reflective, Sentimental, Lush, Rootsy

Instrumentation: Electric & Acoustic Guitar, Lap Steel & Pedal Steel Slide Guitars, Fiddle, Electric & Upright Basses, Drums, Vocal Harmonies, Banjo, Mandolin, Organ, Accordion

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Sumac – Love in Shadow

Style: Free Sludge, Post-Metal

Vibe: Heavy, Cathartic, Murky, Aggressive, Surreal, Complex, Epic, Primal, Abstract, Powerful

Musical Qualities: Dissonant, Noisy, Collective Improvisation, Growling Vocals, Progressive Structures, Odd Time Signatures, Fuzzy Riffs, Dynamic, Reductionism

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Roy Harper – Valentine

Released in 1974 Chrysalis Pressing (US, 1978) Format: LP Style: Psychedelic Chamber Folk, Singer/Songwriter, Progressive Folk Vibe: Romantic, Floating, Heartfelt, Introspective, Psychedelic, Intimate, Contemplative, Dreamy, Elegant, Mellow, Morning, Peaceful, Airy Musical Qualities: Vocal Harmonies, Acoustic, Sparse, Lush, Progressive, Lyrical, Melodic

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Wendy Eisenberg – Auto

Style: Progressive-Pop, Avant-Songwriter, Jazz-Rock, Math-Pop

Vibe: Whispery, Angular, Intimate, Heartfelt, Cerebral, Reflective, Love / Breakup, Restrained, Introspective, Contemplative, Anxious, Loner

Musical Qualities: Odd Time Signatures, Jazz-Influenced, Technical, Dynamic, Lyrical

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Albert Ayler – New Grass

One can only imagine how Ayler bringing more commercial styles like R&B, Rock, and Gospel into his avant-garde music messed with critics and fans alike when it came out—the way it looked like commercial pandering to the Free Jazz listeners but was probably still too weird for new listeners. It helps to remember that Ayler came from R&B and went straight to the Free Spiritual Jazz of the early 60s, making Jazz critics highly skeptical skeptical by not climbing the bebop ranks like Coltrane before plunging into freedom. On New Grass, Ayler really started to synthesize the spiritual elements of many forms of Great Black Music, making more accessible music not as a way of selling out, but a way of sharing his beautiful spiritual message and sound with a wider audience. Plus this thing has Bernard Purdie on drums so of course it slaps.
If you dig this LP, I think he succeeded in this sound direction even more on his following albums Love Cry and Music is the Healing Force of the Universe. Albert Ayler was a pure soul that left this world too soon, grateful for the gifts of music and wisdom he left behind.

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Jamila Woods – Heavn

Style: Soul, Art Pop

Vibe: Confident, Heartfelt, Introspective, Colorful, Triumphant, Uplifting, Urban, Loner

Lyrical Themes: Conscious, Poetic, Political, Personal, Black Pride, Love, Feminist

Musical Attributes: Groovy, Lush, Headphone Album, Polished, Catchy, Technical

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Alex G – Beach Music

Listening to Alex G, one might imagine a young alien sitting alone in his martian bedroom baring his angsty, teenage confessions to his 4-track tape recorder. Yet, at the core of his music, underneath layers of psychedelic guitars, weird pitch-shifted vocals, and occasional lo-fi hiss, lies some genius pop songs that feel simultaneously adolescent and mature.

Recommended for fans of lo-fi experimentation and bedroom pop. Alex seems to pull influences from all over and channel them through his own unique personality and penchant for odd, psychedelic production. Recalls Elliot Smith’s loner acoustic songwriting and drum machines pulled from 80?s pop songs; there’s even a fucked up jazz piano ballad thrown into the mix.

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The Sea Ensemble – We Move Together

An obscure release from the great creative label ESP-Disk, containing exploratory, mysterious and playful improvisations from The Sea Ensemble—the husband/wife duo of Zusaan Fasteau and Donald Rafael Garrett. While they are both trained musicians and multi-instrumentalists, an uninhibited childish spirit permeates this release, as can be seen in Donald’s crude but visionary cover drawing; Yet the recording also feels imbued with ancient wisdom, as heard in their primal and instinctive vocalizations throughout the album

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Arca – Arca

Released in 2017 on XL Recordings Format: LP Overview By introducing heartfelt vocals into her (often) harsh environments of contorted glitch-pop, Venezuelan producer Arca reaches near-claustrophobic levels of intimacy.

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The Incredible String Band – Wee Tam

Released on Elektra in 1968 Format: LP Track Notes A1 – Jobs Tears (Uplifting, Morning, Spiritual) “Stranger than that we’re alive” A2 – Puppies  (Peaceful, Sitar, Bowed Gimbri, Morning) “Music is so much less than what you are” A3 – Beyond the See (Instrumental featuring organ, harpsichord, whistle, and bowed gimbri A4 – The Yellow Snake

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