Supervision Easy

It has been 40 years since the release of Boz Scaggs "Silk Degrees", which is said to be the original AOR! It is a 3-disc set that can be said to be the decisive board of the AOR compilation, and the song selection and supervision is by Mr. Toshikazu Kanazawa, a leading expert in AOR criticism. It covers everything from AOR classics such as Boz Scaggs, TOTO, and AirPlay to maniac songs unique to this compilation.

Boomkat
Within the space of his short, yet incredibly illustrious career, Nico Muhly has contributed his talents as an arranger to recordings by Bjork, Bonnie 'Prince' Billy, Rufus Wainwright and The National, while also enjoying a successful sideline as a composer in his own right, presenting works in conjunction with a variety of high profile orchestras - he even finds time to work as a performer and conductor for Philip Glass on his various film soundtracks. Mothertongue is the sophomore solo effort from Nico Muhly, following up on the wide acclaim of his 2006 debut, Speaks Volumes, and marking a further step towards genre cross-pollination and a more avant-garde approach to the conventions of composed music. By this point, any notions of comfortable, conservative Americana are out the window and you're confronted by a highly experimental clash of vastly different musical schools. Quite unlike anything you're likely to encounter, this second album from Nico Muhly shows even greater ambition than its predecessor, establishing a language that's far removed from the kind of easy-going post-Blue Notebooks modern composition that's become so widespread. Very highly recommended.