New albums
Tank and the Bangas, “Friend Goals” (Verve Forecast): One of the freshest bandleaders in the business, New Orleans’ Tarriona “Tank” Ball has been releasing boundless music that’s equal parts funky and imaginative ever since her band won NPR’S Tiny Desk Contest in 2017.
The band’s latest, largely recorded during quarantine through a combination of Zoom and socially distant sessions, is an EP that manages to transcend any of the sonic limitations brought on by recording amid a pandemic.
“Fluff,” featuring former Oaklander Duckwrth, teems with uplifting spirit; the flute-laden trap beat of “Self Care,” featuring Alabama rapper Chika, is a nod to Southern hip-hop, and the tongue-in-cheek silky plea on “Mr. Insta” flows with Tank’s infectious personality. Tank and the Bangas’ unique ability to fuse elements of hip-hop, soul and R&B with Tank’s escapist storytelling is exactly what made them one of the best new artist nominees for the 2020 Grammys.
King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard, “Live in San Francisco ’16” (ATO): Formed in 2010, King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard of Melbourne, Australia, have already released a staggering 15 studio albums. Their new live album was recorded at the Independent in San Francisco, and perhaps not since once-san Francisco icons Thee Oh Sees has anybody rocked that stage with such fire and frenzy.
“How do you have two drum
mers? Insane!” an ecstatic member of the crowd shouts at the beginning of the album’s nearly 90-minute performance with no breaks between songs. The live recording feels like one long, raucous track, with most of the material coming from 2016 album “Nonagon Infinity.”
Kali Uchis, “Sin Miedo (del Amor y Otros Demonios)” (Interscope): The sophomore album from Colombia-born, Virginia-raised pop singer Kali Uchis is a Spanish-language exploration of steamy R&B, reggaeton and nouveau tropicalismo.
The album’s title translates as “Without Fear (of Love and Other Demons),” and it has the sing
er building on the momentum of her excellent 2018 debut, “Isolation.” The song “Vaya Con Dios” sees Uchis at her most seductive, over a smoky and cinematic trip-hop beat, while on the Latin trap thump of “Aqui Yo Mando,” she and rapper Rico Nasty make a pointed proclamation of their feminine dominance.
Rexx Life Raj, “California Poppy 2” (Empire): On his journey through hip-hop’s twists and turns, the Berkeley artist has never wavered from the Bay Area ethos that put him on the map. “California Poppy 2” features production from San Francisco’s Kyle Betty and Oakland’s Reecebeats, and they’ve laid down the canvas for some of the rapper’s finest ruminations. “Universe give me what I want ’cause my intention is pure,” he beseeches on “Apple Stock” over a cookoutready beat that DJ Quik would appreciate. Then, on “Freak,” he links up with Cash Money Records icon Juvenile for a throwback G-funk groove that samples Adina Howard’s 1995 R&B song, “Freak Like Me.”
Song of the moment
YG featuring Nipsey Hussle, “FDT” (Def Jam): Droves of American citizens turned to the Compton rapper’s presidential callout track as a victory cry of sorts following Joe Biden’s presidential election victory. “FDT” became the No. 1 song in America by sales, and its streaming numbers surged by more than 600 percent in the first week of November. While the repeatable hook renders the song clearly politically polarizing, the verses are an incredible lyrical maelstrom by the rappers, dissecting everything from soon-to-be former President Donald Trump’s Islamophobia to his pattern of remarks against Black people, Mexicans and others.
Holiday sounds
Chilly Gonzales, “A Very Chilly Christmas” (Gentle Threat / Fontana North): The Canadian pianist who rose deeper into pop consciousness on Daft Punk’s seminal 2013 album, “Random Access Memories,” has put out his first Christmas album, and it’s truly special.
Gonzales brings on Pulp’s
Jarvis Cocker for a cover of “fellow Christmas-loving Jew” David Berman’s “Snow Is Falling in Manhattan” and Feist for the lovely original song “The Banister Bough.” But it’s the solemn moments of Gonzales on the piano alongside a violinist, as on “Silent Night,” that really beg for mulled wine by the fireplace in December.