Sting, Shaggy collaboration bit odd, but fun
STING AND SHAGGY “44/867” (UNIVERSAL)
For whom was this record made? For Shaggy fans? For Sting fans? For the two artists themselves, just for a lark? Or is this whole project a way for Sting to recover some of the money he lost in his Broadway show a few years back?
When these two appeared all over the Grammy Awards in February, one had to wonder who got paid off to promote this oddball collab. It’s not at all odd, of course, for Sting to make a reggae record; after all, the Police drew a not insignificant amount of inspiration from Jamaica on their earliest records. It is odd, however, for him to co-write a limp pop song called “44/876,” a song about the international calling codes for Britain and Jamaica. It’s even more odd for him to, on a record that is ripe for parody and ridicule, write a song with the chorus, “My name for you is sad trombone.”
On the one hand, it’s refreshing to hear the normally ultraserious Sting having fun; there is absolutely no weight of the world bearing down on him here. Shaggy is still capable of reminding us why his ’90s singles were so much fun — but also why he hasn’t had a hit in 15 years. (Nor, for that matter, has Sting.) “44/867” is nowhere near as bad as one might expect, but that doesn’t stop it from being a head-scratcher best left to the dustbins of history.
Stream: “Waiting for the Break of Day,” “Just One Lifetime,” “Night Shift”
NELS CLINE 4 “CURRENTS, CONSTELLATIONS” (BLUE NOTE)
Guitarist Nels Cline has an enormous discography, the best known components being his work with Wilco, and most of it being considerably more abrasive and experimental. In 2016, he debuted with venerable jazz label Blue Note for the “Lovers” album, a sprawling set of beautiful covers of artists ranging from Henry Mancini to Sonic Youth, and everything in between. His second album for the label stems from a guitar duo he formed with Julian Lage in 2014; here, they add a killer rhythm section — bassist Scott Colley (Herbie Hancock, Pat Metheny), drummer Tom Rainey — that allows them even more room to roam. There are more pointy edges here than on “Lovers,” but just as many lovely passages as well, like the cinematic “As Close as That.”
Stream: “Furtive,” “Imperfect 10,” “As Close as That”
ESMERINE “MECHANICS OF DOMINION” (CONSTELLATION)
This Montreal instrumental group, comprised primarily of members of Godspeed You Black Emperor (Bruce Cawdron) and A Silver Mt. Zion (Rebecca Foon), is usually enthralling, but on their sixth album they prove that they keep getting better as well. Their take on modern chamber music involves fascinating, tiny textures underneath pianos, pizzicato strings and marimbas, with a strong melodic undercurrent to even the most abstract pieces. This is rainy-morning music par excellence, especially when Foon’s cello steps to the forefront, but drummer Jamie Thompson also helps propel some pieces to the epic sweeps of labelmates Do Make Say Think. More than 20 years after Constellation Records began — the history of which was documented in an excellent article in a recent issue of Maisonneuve — Esmerine display how that label’s signature sound has evolved and refined, with one of its strongest releases in years.
Stream: “The Space in Between,” “La Penombre,” “La Plume des Armes”
VICTIME “MON VR DE REVE” (MICHEL RECORDS)
The three members of Quebec City no-wave band Victime are not going to be quiet about whatever it is that made them choose their name. Bassist and vocalist Laurence Gauthier-Brown leads her francophone trio through a short, sharp explosion of noise formulated into danceable rock songs on this thrilling EP. Not dissimilar to the band Weaves, but stripped of that group’s pop hooks, Victime are a tiny tornado of creativity who show great promise. Should they ever travel down the 401, hopefully we’ll see them around these parts at next year’s Kazoo festival, ideally sooner.
Stream: “Fatigue,” “Robot ou humaine,” “Brocher un doigt”
FELIX DYOTTE “POLITESSES” (COYOTE)
It’s springtime in Montreal, where the second solo album from this songwriter sounds like rays of sunshine melting the still-remaining snow. (Qualifier: this actually came out in the fall, but its profile in English Canada has been minimal.) Dyotte takes a languid, dreamy approach to French chanson, with thick grooves underneath that wouldn’t be out of a place on a record by Destroyer or Beck. Like a poppier Philippe B or a more esoteric Coeur de Pirate (who shows up to duet on “Croix”), Dyotte is yet another Québécois artist making some of the loveliest and lush pop music today. Leap over the language barrier and check it out.
Stream: “Que ce soit toi, que ce soit moi,” “Croix,” “Jeanne”