Daylight Surprise Chef

Austin-to-L.A. transplants the Textones were one of the few post-new wave "roots rock" bands of the mid-'80s to deserve the appellation. (Unfortunately, they're mostly remembered, if at all, only as the band Kathy Valentine left to join the Go-Go's.) Unlike the terribly overrated Lone Justice or the beer salesmen in the Long Ryders or the Del Fuegos, Carla Olson and company came off like a punkier version of the Gram Parsons-era Byrds, with a poppy edge on unexpected covers like the Searchers' "Silver" and Neil Sedaka's "Keep a Walkin'."

In past incarnations of Bill Bruford's Earthworks, music often centered around the drummer's electronic sound sculptures using digital triggers and chordal drums. The approach yielded fine results, but Bruford up and changed everything when in 1995 he christened a new Earthworks. Ditching the technology in favor of a traditional jazz kit, his music began reaching back to cool, hard bop, and old-school fusion. In addition to now playing his kit in an unorthodox arrangement, Bruford moved the emphasis from nifty electronics to the kinetic energy generated by his impressive polyrhythmic work. On "Triplicity" his orchestration boasts a dizzying array of time changes, the tempo kept constant only by the hi-hat. It's an aural exercise (albeit a very enjoyable one) just keeping pace.

Daylight Savings Time is Forbert’s 21st album in a remarkably consistent musical career, and the third on which he has worked with well-regarded producer and engineer Steve Greenwell (Joss Stone, Gavin DeGraw). The new album promises to be one of the key releases in 2024, with Steve Forbert demonstrating, once again, that he possesses that magical ability to create new music that sounds both fresh and familiar at once. ‘Sound Existence’ sounds like it’s already one of your favourite songs. Enjoy.

Founded in the vibrant musical haven of Brussels in 2015, Azmari have been crafting a truly unique tapestry of musical exploration. Melding intricate jazz textures with intoxicating oriental influences, mesmerizing ethio grooves, enigmatic dark funk, and the pulsating beats of dub music, Azmari defies conventional labels to weave a narrative of sonic innovation and artistic liberation. Influences range from an eclectic array of artists, including Okay Temiz, Heliocentrics, Whitefield Brothers, Surprise chef, Antibalas and Sons of Kemet.