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Saturday, August 20, 2022

New sounds from Julian Lennon, Derek Christie, Tedeschi Trucks Band, Empire of Light, The Beths


Julian Lennon: Lucky Ones


Photo by Robert Ascroft
His upcoming album is his seventh overall, but first in more than a decade. "Many of these songs have been in the works for several years, so it almost feels like a coming-of-age album," says Lennon, who will turn 60 next year (can it be??). And the album title nods to the musical gift he received as a child from Paul McCartney. "With great respect for the overwhelming significance of the song written for me, the title Jude conveys the very real journey of my life that these tracks represent.” This song combines deep concern about the state of the world with optimism that those of us on earth today can save it.

Tedeschi Trucks Band: Yes We Will


This song expresses a similar sentiment to Lennon's: "Our planet is changing fast / And the way things have gone, it just won't last ... Gonna get it right this time, I hope we will / Oh, hope we figure it out this time around, I hope we will." The band is deep in its blues-rock groove, and this six-and-a-half-minute number flies by. It's from the third installment of the I Am the Moon magnum opus. The fourth part, Farewell, is due this week.

Derek Christie: Chains


This veteran of the Toronto music scene explores various musical styles on his recent album, DC. "I wanted to reflect a diverse taste in my love for music," Christie says. "Each song is unique, but there is a common thread throughout." The album leads off with this track, which "uses the metaphor of sobriety to celebrate redemption and change." It blends Christie's Fender Telecaster and gravel-tinged voice with Memphis-style horns and backing vocals by Laurelle Augustyn and Michelle White. “Gonna lose these blues / Shake this sin / The monkey on your back / This is where we begin.”

Empire of Light: I Don't Care Anymore


This Brooklyn-based band's bio says it draws "inspiration from the first wave of Alt Country (early Wilco, Alejandro Escovedo, Ryan Adams & Whiskeytown, Old 97's) along with traditional Rock (Neil Young, The Band & The Stones)." It's led by singer/guitarist Peter Hutchison and guitarist Brian Wilkens, both formerly of Upstate N.Y. roots-rockers Subduing Mara. This single is the title track from the group's forthcoming second album, and is billed as "an anthem for everyone who’s been around the block enough times to know better."

The Beths: Knees Deep


Photo by Frances Carter
We previously featured "Silence Is Golden" from the upcoming album Expert in a Dying Field, and now another single pops into our New Music bin. Stereogum calls it "a peppy, fired-up jam about trying to summon personal courage." Band leader Liz Stokes says "I’m the kind of person who wants to go swimming, but takes like 10 minutes to get all the way into the cold water, slowly and painfully. I ... am kind of envious of people who can just jump straight in the deep end."

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