Made up of vocalist and pianist Jenny Marie Sabel and multi-instrumentalist Eirik Vildgren, Norwegian duo Kondradsen make soft music that soothes with the freshness of a minty balm. Minimalist piano and synths create a vast landscape as gentle horns, strings, beats, samples, and field recordings fill it in with pastel colors. Sabel’s lullaby croons wrap around it all like a warm hug. It’s a sound and feeling that infuses every minute of their 2019 debut, Saints and Sebastian Stories, and extends into their 2020 EP, Rodeo No. 5, a five-song collection that they say tries “to capture the raw fragments that drift by in everyday life.” To go along with this theme, the pair put together a playlist for us that also attempts to encapsulate a moment in time.
Says Sabel of the playlist: “Here’s a playlist of songs much listened to the last few days—some new releases and old gems. Since we’re not supposed to travel much in these special times, the band doesn’t get to meet and make music. We live in different parts of the country at the moment. But what a perfect time to listen and get inspired by other musicians and work on some demos until we can meet again. This playlist is the latest inspiration blown through our ears.”
With the new third season of David Lynch’s mystery series set to begin on Showtime on May 21, the road back to Twin Peaks gets shorter every day. Now the actor we know best as Agent Cooper—with apologies to Portlandia’s mayor—has a hearty batch of mostly classic-rock tunes for your trip.While the title of Kyle MacLachlan’s “Coffeetime” may refer to the show’s G-man hero and his predilection for “a damn fine cup of coffee”—served with the Double R Diner’s cherry pie, of course—the selection is better suited to cans of Bud with the boys in a big way, thanks to the predominance of FM rock staples by the Stones, Led Zeppelin, and Cream.That may disappoint Lynch devotees who prefer gentler sounds more akin to the placid synths of Angelo Badalamenti’s scores for the director. Nor is there anything along the lines of the filmmaker’s own go-to musical cues: dreamy ‘50s pop like Roy Orbison’s “In Dreams” in Blue Velvet, or industrial nightmares like the Rammstein tracks in Lost Highway. Instead, MacLachlan sticks with his flavor profile of “‘60s/’70s heavy,” which means the playlist could be the soundtrack-for-kicking-back of any easy-going 58-year-old dude aside from a few more personal quirks.The preponderance of Doors songs is only natural for the actor who played Ray Manzarek in Oliver Stone’s 1991 gonzo biopic. Meanwhile, the spate of grunge faves befits a proud native of Washington State. Then there’s the more mysterious plethora of Jethro Tull deep cuts. Apparently, MacLachlan loves Ian Anderson’s raggedy prog-folk travelers so much, he once lobbied his wife to name their son Jethro. Luckily for his marriage, good sense prevailed, but you have to hope MacLachlan found a way to get some Tull into the new chapter of Agent Cooper’s saga. After all, being trapped in the Black Lodge for 25 years gives a guy plenty of time for flute practice.
La Force may share a vocalist with Broken Social Scene in Ariel Engle, but the band is mastering the indie world on its own. Born out of the culmination of AroarA – her musical project with husband and BSS bandmate/ drummer Andrew Whiteman – Engles La Force is "a deep reflection on the magic and dismantlement of motherhood; the never-ending tightrope walk of life, and death; and the re-discovery of self." If that hasnt piqued your interest enough, the story she drew from and the themes she explores on her self-titled debut is how she was about to become a mother while her father was dying, which led to the exploration of family, identity and self. And having grown up all over the world from a home base in Montreal, Canada, Engles roots are not only something with a lot of ground to explore, but also why she didnt flinch in adding songs in other languages to the playlist she put together for us here at The Dowsers. Says Engle, "This playlist is an ode to rhythm and sound. The lyrics are second, half of the songs are in languages I don’t speak. These all make my ears perk up and my heart beat faster."Listen above or go right here.
Lemaitre is the electronic duo of Ulrik Denizou Lund and Ketil Jansen of Oslo, Norway. Together, they ply a unique brand of maximalist, candy-coated electronic pop, as likely to resolve to a sing-along vocal hook as to a dance-floor shaking bass drop. But its not all fun and games, either. Lemaitres songs also explore moodier and more thoughtful territories, as this playlist, curated by Lemaitres Denizou Lund nicely illuminates.Denizou Lund says, "[The playlist is] a few songs that are all time favorites with a few recent discoveries as well. It’s a mix of fun playful music like Superorganism and the more melancholic like the track by Radiohead and Mew. But mostly melancholic. I guess it’s that time of year. We also like making fun music beside more melancholic tunes. Our latest track ‘Big’ is bit of both. I must admit I had never given Radiohead a proper listen before I recently went through their discography, so I have been listening a lot to them lately. And Weird Fishes/Arpeggi has got to be one of my favorites.”
Since forming in the early ’90s, the musical collective Lettuce have been pushing the boundaries of sound itself with their skillful and often futuristic blend of funk, jazz, hip-hop, soul, psychedelic rock, and myriad microgenres in between. In 2020, they received a much-deserved GRAMMYⓇ nomination for Best Contemporary Instrumental Album for their sixth studio album, Elevate. To celebrate that honor, we turned over our playlist-making machine to Lettuce’s keyboardist and vocalist Nigel Hall, a GRAMMYⓇ winner and unofficial professor of all things Quincy Jones. Here, he gives us an in-depth lesson on the music legend’s deep catalog, including his 21 favorite Quincy Jones songs and some important notes to go with each.
Without further ado, let’s hand this over to Professor Hall:
The following is a list of my favorite Quincy Jones music. Unless you’ve been under a rock for the past 70 years or so, you know that Quincy Jones is one of the most recognizable names in music and one of the most successful producers in music history. If they had smartphones back in the day, his contacts would be only the most famous and dopest musicians, singers, activists, and artists in the history of—well, history! None of these are in any particular order.
Smackwater Jack: Released in October 1971 on the A&M label, this is Quincy’s 21st solo record. (Go ahead and read that again.) It’s really amazing to reflect on the body of work of such an OG. Anyway, here we go. It must be nice to have all the greatest musicians of the day on your Rolodex, itching to play with you. You realize that by this point, Quincy had been on the scene making music for the very fabric of this country’s culture for 20 years. His film score résumé was “ice cold,” and he had spent the better part of 10 years touring with Sinatra. So this record represents a very well established producer, conductor, and arranger. Basically, he had already established himself as the master, and everyone else knew it, too. My favorite songs are: “Smackwater Jack,” “What’s Going On,” and “Theme from ‘The Anderson Tapes.’”
You’ve Got It Bad Girl: This record was only a couple of years after Smackwater Jack, and he’d also issued a compilation on Mercury Records the year prior. A lot of the same people from the last record. You see that this is George Duke’s first run with him, so that always makes for a happy Nigel. It sounds to me like Quincy is very much in his film vibe, although on his version of Stevie’s “You’ve Got It Bad Girl” he shares a modest vocal, while still creating a very conducive vibe that fits any situation. In English, you’ll hear on this record that Quincy is in fact the Golden Child and can do no wrong. Here are my favorite tunes from this record: “You’ve Got It Bad Girl,” “Sanford & Son Theme,” “Chump Change,” and “Summer In The City.”
Sounds… And Stuff Like That!: If I had to choose one record of Quincy’s to take on a desert island, this would be the one. A headphone record for sure. This record I affectionately call the “Oz” record. I feel like he recorded this record in the land of Oz because it sounds so much like The Wiz. It makes sense because he recorded The Wiz the same year. Take a look at the personnel, though. Again, the baddest people in musical history. My favorite moment of this record: On “Tell Me A Bedtime Story,” Herbie’s solo is transcribed and performed by an entire fucking orchestra. You can only do something like that to Herbie’s solo if you’re Quincy Jones. Herbie wouldn’t let you. My favorite songs are: “Superwoman (Where Were You When I Needed You),” “Tell Me A Bedtime Story,” and “I’m Gonna Miss You In The Morning.”
Walking in Space: This record reflects his amazing abilities as a conductor and arranger. Certainly, my favorite arranged record. This record was actually produced by Creed Taylor (from the famous CTI label). Lots of classics on this record too. I listened to this record only the last time I was in Japan. It helped to provide such a vibe! My favorite songs are: “Love And Peace,” “Killer Joe,” and “Walking In Space.”
Mellow Madness: This is Quincy’s 25th record. This is also the record that he had after his double aneurysm. Let me just say, to make a record after surviving something like that is more than a blessing. But this also showcases a different side of Quincy thus far: Quincy’s funky side. If you look at the players on this record, you can see immediately how it differs from the other records. You wanna make a funky record, you gotta go where the grease is. BTW, this is also the debut of The Brothers Johnson. My favorite songs are: “Cry Baby” (featuring Wah Wah Watson), “Is It Love That We’re Missin’,” My Cherie Amour,” “Bluesette,” and “Tryin’ To Find Out About You.”
Body Heat: This record came before Mellow Madness and Q had not had his aneurysm yet, so as you see in the credits, he’s still playing trumpet. But if you listen closely, you can hear the funky side of his nature starting to show—a budding example of his producer skills starting to come alive while adding to the arranger and conductor that he was naturally. My favorite songs are: “Everything Must Change,” “If I Ever Lose This Heaven,” and “Body Heat.”
Lettuces new album Resonate is out May 8th.
Photo Credit: Jay Sansone, Human Being Media
In September 2017, Colombian-Canadian experimental pop artist Lido Pimienta shot straight out of the Toronto avant-indie underground to the international spotlight when her most recent album, La Papessa, became the first self-released album (not to mention the first sung entirely in Spanish) to win Canada’s prestigious Polaris Music Prize. Here, she shares the soundtrack to this transformative year in her life. “This year has been an exciting one for womxn in music and queer artists, like it always is, but the notoriety that womxn are getting as not just singers but producers is really inspiring and motivating. I am drawn to these songs because they carry interesting point of views and production. I enjoy making experimental music, so this list too reflects my personal taste and inspiration.”—Lido PimientaNote: Lido also wanted to include Xenia Rubinos’ “L.O.V.E.” on her playlist, but the song is not available on Spotify. You can listen to it here.
On January 4, famed technologist Anil Dash and playwright Lin-Manuel Miranda collaborated on a Spotify tribute to New Jack Swing, that much-beloved yet transitional period between classic funky soul and contemporary R&B.“Okay! For the young people who might not be familiar with New Jack Swing (or old people who were distracted by grunge at the time), Lin-Manuel & I made you a New Jack Swing 101 playlist to learn from,” wrote Dash on Twitter. He added, “Shout out to Bruno Mars for the inspiration,” nodding to Bruno Mars and Cardi B’s New Jack era-referencing video for “Finesse (Remix).”Music nerds will point out that New Jack Swing actually peaked in popularity around 1990——nearly two years before Nirvana’s Nevermind and Pearl Jam’s Ten blew up on the charts and made grunge mainstream. But this playlist is ultimately less of an authoritative history lesson than a very good fan mix. It collects major hits like Bobby Brown’s “Don’t Be Cruel,” and underrated gems like Chuckii Booker’s “Games.” Feel free to quibble about whether Alexander O’Neal’s Minneapolis funk track “Fake” truly qualifies, or whether Xscape’s 1994 debut “Just Kickin’ It” and Blackstreet’s “Before I Let You Go” stretch the timeline a bit too far. And it’s unclear why Dash and Miranda tacked on a re-recorded version of Father MC’s “I’ll Do For You” at the end of their mix. Copycat and fake recordings of popular songs are the bane of streaming music.Still, if you’re looking for some old-school grooves to do the Funky Charleston to, New Jack Swing 101 ain’t half bad. As Ice Cube once said, “You can New Jack Swing on my nuts!”
Hans-Peter Lindstrøm recently released his fifth solo album, It’s Alright Between Us As It Is (Smalltown Supersound), another collection of dreamy dance-floor sounds in his signature celestial style. However, for this Dowsers playlist, the king of Norwegian space disco indulges a very different musical obsession:“I’ve recently been obsessed with songs from Italian movies made in the ’60s and early ’70s. There’s so much to discover, and it seems like I’ve only touched the surface. Lots of nice and strange orchestrated pieces, with weird and wonderful instrumentation.”—Lindstrøm
My playlist consist of the various music that makes me Hyro the Hero. It’s the soundtrack that represents the culture of Houston I come from with songs like Still Tippin from Mike Jones, to the punk rock swag I possess with songs from Artist like Rancid. The music I chose is the best representation of the Rock N Roll Gangsta I’ve grown up to become.May 25, 2018 - (Los Angeles, CA) Houston-raised, LA-based rock/rapper HYRO THE HERO has resurrected his uniquely innovative fusion of rap and rock with the highly-awaited follow-up to his 2011 debut album "Birth, School, Work, Death" (produced by Ross Robinson (Slipknot, Korn, Glassjaw)) with his new release, "Flagged Channel".Scheduled for release on June 29, 2018 via RED Music / SONY, "Flagged Channel" puts forth HYRO THE HEROs true lyrical credibility and hip-hop urgency on top of aggressive, uplifting and powerfully driven punkn roll. His lyrical missives target the vacuous materialism of the rap worlds biggest pretenders with precision wordplay and heady flows, cutting through the tired narcissism of many hit makers with a celebration of the brash confidence that makes hip-hop so vibrant. HYRO conjures the blood, sweat, and tears of classic punk together with the ambition of arena rock.Recorded with producer Mitch Marlow (Papa Roach, Butcher Babies, Filter), "Flagged Channel" smashes the windows of the mainstream with a Molotov cocktail of passion and inspiration over its 12 tracks which consict of a combustible concoction of one part The Clash, one part Bad Brains, and several doses of reverence for hip-hop relevance. Featuring guest appearances from Munky (Korn) and Ash Costello (New Years Day), the album is poised to inspire a new generation of heavy music enthusiasts and hip-hop heads in equal measure.HYRO has unveiled the debut single "Bullet" with an empowering music video which premiered yesterday on Billboard. Its your brain that HYRO has his sights set on as he implores you to say mentally sharp, keep that in mind as you check out the music video for "Bullet" now here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ACEKhljj5bk
New York’s Liza Colby Sound recently released their Draw EP, four tracks of raunchy rock ‘n’ soul. For her Dowsers playlist, the band’s namesake frontwoman gives it up for the classic girl groups and pioneering pop singers who blazed the trail for her to strut her stuff.“I just got back from the Dirty Sweet Sound Tour part deux, where I was on the road with eight dudes. Fun fact: this run was backed by Wendigo Productions, a female-owned business with bad-ass babes operating it, too. I love being on the road with the men, but none of it would have been possible without WOMEN! Years ago my drummer’s wife, Robin Carrigan, passed this playlist along to me and its the shit! I come back to it again and again. Its a chilly day in NYC and I dont know about you, but I needed a fun, upbeat, get-you-warm-and-keep-you-cozy, female-fronted playlist. Enjoy this dose of pussy power!”—Liza Colby
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Headings, paragraphs, blockquotes, figures, images, and figure captions can all be styled after a class is added to the rich text element using the "When inside of" nested selector system.
Headings, paragraphs, blockquotes, figures, images, and figure captions can all be styled after a class is added to the rich text element using the "When inside of" nested selector system.
