my Eyes Only

Alongside his close friend and frequent collaborator Willie Nelson, Waylon Jennings was at the forefront of the 1970s outlaw country movement that sought to upset the apple cart of Nashville norms. Seeds of rebellion had begun to take root during the latter part of the previous decade, however, while the Texan troubadour was, to the outside world, still a clean-cut figure playing Music City’s traditional game.

The title track opens and immediately you realise that Eric Snelders hasn't departed from the winning formula he used in his first release. This album has intricate sequence patterns, delicate piano interludes, washes of ambiance, enjoyable melodies, and throbbing bass sequences. Especially notable is the superb sound quality. Fans of melodic synth music with plenty of sequences will certainly find much to their taste on this album.

The Bad Plus - Made Possible (2012) {Universal}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 351 Mb
Full Artwork @ 300 dpi (png) -> 30 Mb | 5% repair rar
© 2012 Universal / BP / EmArcy | 0602537119462
Jazz / Post Bop / Modern Creative

Two years ago, the Bad Plus released Never Stop, their first album of all-original material. The leaderless ensemble comprised of bassist Reid Anderson, pianist Ethan Iverson, and drummer David King looked deeper inside the guts of the "jazz piano trio" than they ever had before. Made Possible extends that approach exponentially and unpredictably. They employ a looser advance here, with more adventurous compositions, arrangements, and the introduction of electronics into their music. Skeletal layers of synths and minimal use of electronic drums augment their acoustic presentation, adding an edgy, textural dimension to the proceedings.

Michael Bolton has been called many things over the years, but never savvy – and that may actually apply, judging by his last few albums. He stopped having giant hits somewhere around the mid-'90s, but it took him only one album to realize that he need to change direction, bringing Tony Rich and Babyface aboard 1997's All That Matters to help him adjust to shifting tides. It was a move that worked, even if it didn't sell all that much, and now, two albums (a forgotten covers album and a bizarre foray into opera) and one record label later, he does a similar thing with Only a Woman Like You, teaming with such adult contemporary stalwarts as Richard Marx, Shania Twain, and Twain's husband, Mutt Lange, for a variety of cuts but, more importantly, paying attention to the trends that get music on the radio.