by Hiatus Kaiyote
Hiatus Kaiyote Choose Your Weapon (PBS Feature Record)
Hiatus Kaiyote’s highly awaited debut LP ‘Choose Your Weapon’ finally arrives two years after their ground-breaking debut EP.
Following up a work such as ’Tawk Tomahawk’ is a daunting task to say the least. The 10 track EP at just over 30 minutes long recorded in their home studio only six months after the formation of the group has since earned them a Grammy Award nomination, a major label deal, and taken them around the world several times. You really can’t plan for something like that happening.
The first thing that is clearly evident from listening to this album is that this is a band completely in-sync with each other, something you can only achieve from countless hours of practice, performance & refining these songs to perfection. Those familiar with Hiatus Kaiyote’s live set will recognise many of the tracks featured on ‘Choose Your Weapon’, but the studio versions of these tracks really show the maturity, consistency & depth of this band and how they’ve evolved over this short journey. Taking in elements of soul, jazz, hip hop & punk, you could go on about the musical influences that make up their sound, but I think it’s probably better to come to the conclusion that they are doing something completely original of their own, which is undoubtably going to be a source of influence for many others to follow.
Rather than crumbling under the follow-up pressure, Hiatus Kaiyote have risen to the challenge and delivered over & above expectation, cementing themselves as a force to be reckoned with as one of the most exciting bands on the planet.
If I had to choose one favourite track from this album, I would go with ‘Fingerprints’, but my advice would be to give this album your undivided attention and choose your weapon.
By Mike Gurrieri – Mystic Brew
Mavis Staples Your Good Fortune (Featured on The Breakfast Spread)
Even though she's had such a long career, Mavis Staples is still releasing interesting, challenging and wonderful releases. Her latest EP, Your Good Fortune, sounds so fresh. In a period where so many soul artists and bands are trying to sound like the past, this EP sounds new. The production from Son Little probably has a lot to do with it but it's not the whole story. Mavis' voice still sounds great and she sounds like she's really enjoying herself too. The first two songs on the album are originals written by Little and they sound fantastic. The title track is great but the second song, ‘Fight’ (a duet between the two of them) is a great fast fun tune. The third and fourth songs are songs that Mavis has sung for a very long time – ‘See That My Grave Is Kept Clean’, originally written by Blind Lemon Jefferson but recorded by The Staple Singers, and ‘Wish I Had Answered’, written by her father Pops. All in all, a great combination of old and new and hopefully a taste of more to come in form of a Mavis Staples/Son Little collaboration.
By Crispi – The Breakfast Spread
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