Live at Sin-é – Jeff Buckley

Without him we may not have Coldplay, Radiohead, John Mayer, Adele, and countless other bands/artists. He was on a trajectory to be one of the biggest acts to come out of the 90s, then he drowned in the Mississippi river. The son of a popular folk artist from the 60’s, Jeff Buckley worked as a session guitarist for a decade in LA before moving to NYC and focusing on his solo career. He played small coffee shops and clubs in the East Village eventually getting discovered by Columbia and releasing his debut album Grace in 1994. Robert Plant (lead singer for Led Zeppelin) said it was one of his favorite albums of the 90s and Bob Dylan said he was one of the greatest songwriters to come out of that decade. The momentum was fierce as he moved to Memphis and began recording his second album, eventually released posthumously, Sketches for My Sweetheart The Drunk. After working one day he swam off into the Mississippi river singing Whole Lotta Love by Led Zeppelin and never came back. The first time I heard Buckley was in Melissa Ferrick’s songwriting class at Berklee College of Music. She would introduce us to new music at the beginning of each class and one day played Everybody Here Wants You from the Sketches album. I was hooked and eventually got into the Live at Sin-é album which was his first release with Columbia. Sin-é was a coffee shop he had a residency at in NYC and this album was a live recording meant to capture that time in his career. The brilliance of his guitar playing and vocal range really hits you in the face. It’s unreal what he was able to do with just an electric guitar and his voice, each note leaves you wanting more. The songs are raw and they’re played to an intimate crowd of people who he knows by name (you hear him asking the sound guy to adjust levels). His cover of Bob Dylan’s I Shall Be Released, his own song Lover You Should’ve Come Over, and cover of Lenard Cohen’s Hallelujah are highlights for me. The one that’s been stuck in my head all week is his cover of Van Morrison’s Sweet Thing. The live performance of Hallelujah on YouTube is worth watching too. It’s been said that when you look up to someone, study who influenced them—that’s Jeff Buckley.

Shapeless Burst – This Will Destroy You

You’ve probably heard this band before even if you don’t recognize their name. They’re an instrumental group who gained popularity when their song The Mighty Rio Grande was used in the movie Moneyball in 2011 (an amazing movie written by Aaron Sorkin adapted from the Michael Lewis book). They write instrumental music that feels like a sigh of relief. The song from the movie is on their album S/T that was released in 2006 and its got hints of ambient music mixed with live and electronic instruments. There are “techy” parts that set it apart from other instrumental bands like Explosions in the Sky and Sigur Rós. I usually put music like this on when I’m overstimulated (similar to when I listen to jazz) or am trying to focus on something. They released a new song this week called Shapeless Burst and it filled that need desperately. Instrumental music that soothes your soul.

You’re A Star – Fred Again… ft. Amyl and the Sniffers

Speaking of ambient music this artist was mentored by the “father of ambient music” Brian Eno. He went (very) viral in 2022 with his Boiler Room performance on YouTube. Boiler Room is a promotion company based in London that publishes DJ sets on YouTube and Fred Again… is the 3rd most viewed on the channel (48M views). I discovered his music around the time that it was posted and listened to his Actual Life 1 & 2 albums for months. There’s this euphoric feeling that permeates his songs and leans on the foundations that Brian Eno built (his music is also very great). And those albums are cool because he’s literally using moments from his “actual life” as samples and loops in the production. The reason this song is interesting is because he’s collaborating with a punk rock band called Amyl & The Sniffers. I discovered them a few years ago after hearing Billy Corgan (lead singer for Smashing Pumpkins) call the lead singer “the next Iggy Pop.” Their music is indignant and awesome and punk rock. It’s a cool move from Fred Again… and it’s been on repeat. 

Only For The Lonely – Mavis Staples

After he met R&B/Gospel singer Mavis Staples for the first time, Bob Dylan immediately asked her to marry him. She famously shut him down but he has since been quoted saying that she has been his favorite singer since high school. The past few months I’ve been listening to more R&B/Gospel music and I “discovered” Staples last week. Her name was familiar and I immediately dug into her catalog and landed on her album Only For The Lonely. It has this classic feel to it and many of the songs feel like songs you’ve heard a hundred times before. I really like the artwork for the album (a close up of her eye with a tear running down her cheek) and the first song on the album has stayed with me. It’s very rich and authentic music with soul roots and gospel overtones.