If you’re looking for some great new music to discover this weekend, look no further than our weekly New Release Cheat Sheet. This week, we bring you Paul Loren and New Memphis Colorways song premiere, as well as James Francis’ ode to his Houston hometown and more.
New Songs and Videos
Paul Loren, “Nighttime (Is the Loneliest Time)” [Song premiere]
Singer/songwriter Paul Loren evokes smoky jazz club atmospheres and early-Sun Studios Elvis records with his new, tender ballad “Nighttime (Is the Loneliest Time),” featuring Oscar Albis on guitar. Loren explains that he wrote the song one-night last spring as he was “strumming ‘In the Wee Small Hours’ and was in that emotional headspace.” “Nighttime (Is the Loneliest Time)” is included on his upcoming album, Betwixt is due out this fall and a companion album, Between, will be released in 2022.
New Memphis Colorways, “Stanlee’s Sonata” [Song premiere]
Memphis multi-instrumental wizard Paul Taylor will release It Is What It Isn’t on May 21. This will be his third album as New Memphis Colorways. The new record finds him blending genres and styles old and new – from jazz to old school funk to fusion to electronic music and beyond. Taylor describes “Stanlee’s Sonata” as the ballad of this forthcoming LP and a “whimsical ode to a wonderful little doggy I adopted on the day that Stan Lee passed away,” that with its instrumental juxtapositions generated “an unexpected symbiotic relationship, perhaps reflective of man and beast.”
James Francies, “713”
James Francies has released 713,” a vivid tribute to his Houston hometown, as the first single from Purest Form, due out May 21 via Blue Note. This is one of 14 tracks of this forthcoming record, collectively described as “an immersive, multidimensional experience.” Joining the pianist/composer/producer on his journey are longtime collaborators Burniss Travis on bass and Jeremy Dutton on drums, plus several acclaimed additional musicians, including Immanuel Wilkins, Joel Ross and more. Pre-order Purest Form here.
New Albums
Dan Wilson, Vessels of Wood and Earth (Brother Mister/Mack Avenue)
Dan Wilson calls attention to the beauty of often ignored structural foundations of music and life on his third album as a leader via eleven tracks, including originals and covers, as well as a nod to spiritual leader John Coltrane. Vessels of Wood and Earth, his Mack Avenue debut, features the guitarist/composer alongside Christian Sands, Marco Panascia and Jeff “Tain” Watts, plus guest vocalist Joy Brown. Order it here.
Alfa Mist, Bring Backs (ANTI-)
Alfa Mist has been establishing himself as one of the most dynamic and consistent talents to emerge from London’s widely celebrated jazz reformation. His new album, Bring Backs, marks his ANTI- label debut and features nine groove-based tracks that, as well as presenting the most detailed exploration of his upbringing in musical form, are tied together by a Hilary Thomas poem expressing the sensuous realities of building a community in a new country. Order Bring Backs here.
Hasaan Ibn Ali, Metaphysics: The Lost Atlantic Album (Omnivore)
Omnivore has rediscovered a never-before-issued 1965 quartet recording by elusive jazz pianist Hasaan Ibn Ali. The recording was shelved by Atlantic after his incarceration on a narcotics possession and later thought destroyed. Finally seeing the light of day with audio restored from long-lost acetate copies of the sessions, Metaphysics also includes liner notes by Alan Sukoenig and Lewis Porter. Pre-order it here.
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