PBNSOTW

Calexico makes a second appearance on PBNMOTW with Harness the Wind, a gorgeous little gem that takes the dance beat I associate with Pitbull and makes it listenable as the framework for a song.

Here’s To Moving On is falls squarely in the how-do-we-survive-after-the-breakup genre but says new some new things about what that first morning you start feeling again is like. The new Dashboard Confessional album is all acoustic guitars and voices and works that way.

Cavalcade is somewhat long (8:20) and not surprisingly has several sections, but is completely arresting from the jump. A startling solo trumpet statement is joined by a standard piano trio, but then real strings (scored as a stacked quartet) appear and get all Klaus Ogerman. This piece is on the verge of saying something profound. It’s a brilliant unwritten lyric. Don’t know anything about the Enhco Brothers other than they’re probably French. Or Canadian.

I admit I have a weakness for Anaïs Mitchell’s voice. It manages to poke out of tracks with a thick midrange tangle of acoustics and pedal steels and female BGVs effortlessly, and shines the spotlight precisely on the lyric.

I’m expecting Jake Cornell’s songs to become standard fare for other singers to cover. He’s only been at this since 2018 and his construction is still feeling its way, but Back To You is pretty good.

This week’s problem child is British breakout PM Warson. (Don’t) Hold Me Down is supposed to evoke Booker T, the Supremes, Otis Redding, etc., circa 1965. It’s a good song, it’s performed and recorded well, but they couldn’t leave well enough alone and put enough tape saturation on the lead vocal to completely distract the listener. He’s going to hear this ten years from now and wonder how he got talked into it. Fun room boom on the kick.