1) The music of Damien Jurado / Jurado remains one of the most reliable songwriters we know: capable of freshness and surprise while always maintaining a certain craftsman’s quality. A recent string of singles only brings Jurado’s excellence into clearer relief, both foregrounding his voice and showing off his collaborators, digging into the character of places as well as the characters that uphold them.
2) The music of Stephen Wilson Jr. / This week, I felt less alone—not an insignificant purpose of art, and perhaps its most pressing—while listening to Wilson’s cover of the Ben E. King classic “Stand By Me.” It’s a feat of voice and soul and desperation. The clip sent me back into Wilson’s 2023 record “Son of Dad,” which delivers more of the same feeling. There is a profound sadness beneath Wilson’s music and yet a pull toward consolation and belonging.
3) Cindy, “Swan Lake EP” / The San Francisco band presents something like a beautifully drawn-out dream on this six-song set; living at the slower, softer end of shoegaze and dream pop, “Swan Lake” is meant for luxuriating inside.
4) Felicia Atkinson, “Space is an Instrument” / In a week craving healing and calm, the latest from this French composer provided tranquility while never sacrificing a degree of artistic integrity. This record keeps its promises, bringing the listener into harmony with their surroundings, which is no small thing.
5) Daniele Mencarelli, “Everything Calls for Salvation” / Mencarelli, an Italian novelist, tucks readers inside a psychiatric ward for a week marked both by growing unease and affections in the heart of its protagonist. Mercies and injustices loom so very large against this setting, and Mencarelli’s beautiful, sad-eyed prose keeps us looking closer, closer to see things as they are.