There’s a few things I absolutely do not like when I’m listening to an album—long sections of dialogue, tracks “hidden” after a long stretch of silence (an annoying fad in the CD days) and other things that aren’t necessarily music.
These albums have none of that sort of thing.
The first two are new to me, the third is a longtime favourite , and the final is something I went back to for the first time since it’s initial release last year.
Stella Sapiente by The Lillingtons
Spotify | Apple Music | YouTube Music | YouTube
I stumbled across this while putting the finishing touches on the Punk Rock Sampler no.2.
It was an Apple Music recommendation that appeared below the bottom of the playlist and the absolutely fantastic album art, postage stamp-sized, caught my eye. I hit play and instantly added the track to the playlist.
Later I went and gave the album a listen then recommended it to a friend of mine who I still owed after putting me onto Amyl and the Sniffers.
I read somewhere that the band was like Iron Maiden + Misfits, which I’m not sure is accurate, but they can definitely write songs with good guitar and vocal melodies sung with spooky lyrics.
This is strong front to back, and the sort of thing you could put on at the gym instead of a playlist.
Journey Inwards by LTJ Bukem
Apple Music | Spotify | YouTube Music | YouTube
My exposure to LTJ Bukem was a very recent thing thanks to a clip of him on TikTok from the late 90s dicussing some facet of production. It was tagged drum n bass so I made a screenshot to put it on my (ever expanding) music hitlist. Later in the day I just happened to remember the name and put this album on while we were doing some meal prep and it was not what I expected.
Usually I listen to an album once, make my notes, add it to the listening spreadsheet and carry on, but this one has so much variety built on top of drum n bass and jungle themes that it needed a more careful listen in the truck the next day.
And I just kept it playing as I drove around later in the evening as I worked through the night and next day.
Really dig this sort of thing.
Metaphorical Music by Nujabes
Apple Music | Spotify | YouTube Music | YouTube
I’m uncertain how, or exactly when I discovered Nujabes, but my best guess is either 2008 or 2009 when I was missing Asia seriously bad. The earliest date I have on the files coincides with a hard drive failure, before I took my backups seriously, so it’s lost to time.
Anyways, the jazzy, soulful is vibe in the production was different than anything else I had heard at the time, and was also my first exposure to conscious hip-hop as best as I can remember.
It’s hard to separate this musically from what it means emotionally to me. This is one of those albums that’s straight up comfort food, and always hits exactly how I want it to with every listen.
Opus by Ryuichi Sakamoto
Apple Music | Spotify | YouTube Music | YouTube
Opus is the album from the concert film assembled from his final performance in 2022, a few months before his death.
Some quiet piano is a great soundtrack to a chilly autumn morning spent behind a windshield, driving between accounts.
I stumbled onto Sakamoto’s work after seeing the pictured busker in Ueno Park playing Kotaro Oshio’s guitar arrangement of Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence.
It’s one of those songs that takes me back to a particular moment, and a particular mood, regardless of whether I’m listening to the song or (struggling through) playing myself on a guitar or uke