30 Second Reviews from 11/17

Mayer Hawthorne
A Strange Arrangement
SOUNDS LIKE: White soul goes for the gusto and nails it with ".. Work Out" but hits bedroom disco for most of the rest
FREE ASSOCIATION: Sometimes it feels like gems from the '50s, then it feels like '70s garbage
FOR FANS OF: Robin Thicke, Tom Jones, Mark Ronson

Pink Martini
Splendor in the Grass
SOUNDS LIKE: The lil' orchestra that could from Portland tones it down for a languid collection of international ballads
FREE ASSOCIATION: These songs could be plucked from the '20s and played at weddings
FOR FANS OF: Franz Schubert, the Jazz Age, Chicago

Asobi Seksu
Rewolf
SOUNDS LIKE: NY dream-pop practitioners deliver an acoustic rendering of songs that shouldn't be acoustically rendered
FREE ASSOCIATION: No matter it's recorded at Olympic Studios, too much of that voice
FOR FANS OF: Deerhoof, brutal Blonde Redhead

Taylor Hollingsworth
Life With a Slow Ear
SOUNDS LIKE: A hired hand for Conor's Mystic Valley Band, the guitarist's solo is a romping Alabama foot-stomper
FREE ASSOCIATION: You can play them strings, but singin' ain't your thing, someone help
FOR FANS OF: Dodos, Dylan, countrified blues

Norah Jones
The Fall
SOUNDS LIKE: She's finally left behind her schmaltzy piano girl act with a decent modern record that isn't a snoozefest
FREE ASSOCIATION: This is a long way from Come Away With Me and that's a good thing
FOR FANS OF: Aimee Mann, Melody Gardot, Diana Krall

Dark Meat
Truce Opium
SOUNDS LIKE: Athens, GA supergroup throws all kinds of horns, tambourines, sounds and psychedelia together
FREE ASSOCIATION: Exploding hearts and minds simultaneously with walls of sound
FOR FANS OF: Deerhunter, Phenomenal Handclap Band, indulgence

Robbie Williams
Reality Killed the Video Star
SOUNDS LIKE: The ego has landed again, and this time there's one catchy single ("Bodies") and a bunch of bollocks
FREE ASSOCIATION: Stick with pop jams, these ballads make you sound like Hedwig
FOR FANS OF: James Blunt, Boyzone, Take That

Black Rebel Motorcycle Club
Live
SOUNDS LIKE: San Fran-bred friends' fifth release is a greatest hits harvested from some stellar European live sets
FREE ASSOCIATION: A nice introduction to BRMC and a good sign for the future
FOR FANS OF: Yeahs x 3, Brian Jonestown, Velvet Underground


BIG CHARTICLE!