1) Sharon Van Etten and the Attachment Theory, s/t / Not altering as much as expanding her sound, Van Etten and her new band create their own weather systems and invite us inside.
2) The music of Bartees Strange / Couldn’t quite wait for the new Bartees Strange record to drop (which it does today!) to praise the strong, swirling first singles from “Horror,” further evidence of an artistic mind/soul we all should spend more time alongside.
3) Drop Nineteens, “1991” / Taking us both back and forward, the veteran Boston band creates another dreamy wonder, adding to the wonderful, surprising second half of its lifespan.
4) Mary Oliver and Molly Malone Cook, “Our World” / This remarkable book of Oliver’s observations and Cook’s photographs guide the reader through the doorway of a “40-year conversation” and exhibit love as a creative act—perhaps the most creative.
5) Samantha Harvey, “Orbital” / The world needs little commentary from me on a Booker Prize winner, so let’s keep it simple: Harvey’s novel tale of astronauts in space is somehow so impressionistic and so deeply moving.