“That’s kind of what the whole vibe of the whole record is – being a producer, and being a beat maker, and being a songwriter but taking it to another level where I’m doing very intensive research. But also seeing if I can get it to sound like me.”
DJ Harrison on Shades of Yesterday
Here are the albums that inspired me this past month.
The Yussef Dayes Experience (Live From Malibu)
I had Black Classical music on my list for September 2023 and now this one. The music that this drummer/producer Yussef and his band make is masterful.
DJ Harrison – Shades of Yesterday
DJ Harrison is a member of Butcher Brown, which is one of my favorite groups (see January 2024 and January 2024, they are in both), and this album of covers (Stevie Wonder, The Beatles, etc) has such a cool vibe. Playing this non-stop.
Heems & Lapgan – LAFANDAR
Heems used to be in Das Racist, so maybe that’s why he was familiar. The lyrics are an excellent counterpoint to all the seriousness that can pervade a lot of hip-hop. Energetic and playful. Dig it.
Matthew Halsall – An Ever Changing View
This trumpeter/composer has been around for a while but wasn’t on my radar until I saw this on a best-of 2023 list. This album blends jazz, afro-pop, and electronica beautifully.
Joel Ross – nublues
One of my favorite musicians and my favorite morning album of the month:
The set is anchored by breezy covers of Thelonious Monk’s Evidence and John Coltrane’s Equinox and Central Park West, with seven original pieces.
Other albums that found their way to me (and stayed) this month:
- Orgone – Chimera
- CZARFACE – CZARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE
- Vijay Iyer – Compassion
- Cal Tjadar – Amazonas
- Huw Marc Bennett – Days Like Now
- Helado Negro – PHASOR
- Fabiano do Nascimento – The Room
- Little Simz – Drop 7
- Blu – Royal Blu
I love discovering new music and hope sharing my finds inspires you to check out something different (and support the artists you love). Happy listening. ✌️
🗒 The featured image on this post is my re-creation of Yussef Dayes’ album cover using Affinity Designer and my Wacom tablet. 🕺🏼
Comments welcome!