Category: 1/2/3/4

What started out as studio jams in a smoky basement in Berlin evolved into a world-wide-touring three headed music-making love monster, called Buttering Trio, based in Tel Aviv. They have just issued their excellent new release, Foursome. Using heavy beats, fat bass lines and sweet yet poignant lyrics, they try to bring some peace in a troubled region.

Notable Nashville guitar slinger Sean Thompson has released his first solo album, after being a part of Promised Land Sound and lending his skills to the likes of Curtis Harding and Erin Rae. Taking equal inspiration from the improvisational grooves of the Grateful Dead as well as the craft of songwriters like JJ Cale & Joni Mitchell, Thompson’s songwriting debut marks the arrival of a unique voice grounded by wide-reaching, generous ears.

Emily Sprague creates beautiful listening experiences that I’ve shared on both 1/2/3/4 and the Quiet Space. She uses the name Florist and over the years it’s fluctuated between a solo effort and collaboration with friends. If there is anything to know about “Florist”, it’s that the band is decidedly back together. “We called it ‘Florist’ because this is not just my songs with a backing band,” Sprague explains. “It’s a practice. It’s a collaboration. It’s our one life. These are my best friends and the music is the way that it is because of that.” It’s a stunning release.

25 years since his debut album Waters Ave S. came out, Damian Jurado is more prolific, driven and creative than ever. He’s an incredible story teller and his 18th release, Reggae Film Star is gorgeously cinematic, featuring rich production and diverse sonic textures. Highly Recommended.

Sour Widows are from the Bay Area in the US, the trio first forming in 2017. They have been fine-tuning a sound that swings from gently glowing harmonizing to energetic bursts of feedback-laced catharsis. After their hypnotic Crossing Over release they return with a new track, Witness, that cycles the listener through shades of grief. Highly Recommended.

Diving into the House of Pimpod archives, I gasbag on about some tunes that I like. A random show….

There’s something inevitable about the sound of Thee Sacred Souls, as if these ageless songs of love and loss have somehow always existed, as if Garcia and his bandmates—bassist Sal Samano and singer Josh Lane—have been playing together for a lifetime already. They are about to release their debut album, produced by Daptone co-founder Gabriel Roth. These sounds will lift you, mixing the easygoing grace of sweet ’60s soul with the grit of early ’70s R&B.

Carefully curated sounds both new and nostalgic, inspired by mesmerising patterns and wonky synths….

Grant Lee-Phillips was about to tour his last album when the pandemic hit. After months of waiting, he realized any potential touring options were still on hold for the foreseeable future, he set about penning tracks for his latest, All That You Can Dream. The resulting album’s lyrics are an attempt to make sense of an uncertain, anxiety-riddled time, while coming to terms with the idea that once-unshakeable things now seem fragile or fallible.

On this edition, meet Atlanta-based Neighbor Lady, This quartet deliver  an elegant style of lush and textural guitar pop with touches of country-noir. Songwriter and vocalist Emily Braden says their new record For The Birds is sprinkled with “reverb and magic.” Lots of other magical tracks as well!