Myrkur is the musical project of Danish singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, model, and actress Amalie Bruun. The word translates from Icelandic to English as "darkness." The Myrkur project has become musically fluid and embraces everything from black metal to traditional Scandinavian folk. In 2015 Myrkur's debut full-length, M, was produced by Ulver's Garm, the set also included other personnel from that band as well as horns and strings. The r; traditional folk instrumentation had been added. She toured the globe on the festival circuit before returning to Denmark. She married death metal drummer Keith Abrami in 2018 and gave birth to her first child the following year…

Stan Getz was such a consistent performer and had such a beautiful tone that nearly all of his recordings are well worth getting. The two radio appearances heard on this 1997 CD are even on a higher level than normal. Joined by pianist Kenny Barron, either Ray Drummond or Yashuito Mori on bass, and drummer Ben Riley, Getz is heard at the peak of his powers on a pair of obscurities (Kenny Barron's "Feijada" and Gigi Gryce's "Stan's Blues") and six numbers (including "Voyage," "Blood Count" and "Warm Valley") that he recorded numerous times. To hear Getz adding even more beauty to Mal Waldron's already gorgeous "Soul Eyes" is a memorable experience.

Five centuries, seven languages, and six singers with 35 years of remarkable experience inform this rare collection of choral music. In the world-renowned King's Singers resplendent voices, ancient and modern choral music comes to life with all the blazing immediacy and timeliness of the gospel of the nativity. With 25 pieces of music–ranging from familiar works such as "Coventry Carol" to the obscure Tchaikovsky piece "The Crown of Roses"–the King's Singers move through this hallowed and festive set with the vocal mastery that only three-and-a-half decades of accomplished work together is capable of creating. A number of contemporary carols written in the last century by composers such as John McCabe, Philip Lawson, John Rutter, and others are balanced by pieces by Bach and a host of traditional works. Lawson's "You Are the New Day," performed with a string quartet, stands out as one of the more notable performances. Like most of their music throughout Christmas, it reminds listeners that the art of music often interprets divine aspects gladly realized here on Earth.

My Name Is Buddy: Another Record by Ry Cooder is the thirteenth studio album by Ry Cooder. It is the second social-political concept album by Ry Cooder. Cooder has described it as the second in a trilogy that began with Chávez Ravine and concluded with I, Flathead. The album is packaged in a small booklet that includes a brief story and drawing to accompany each song. Both the songs and the stories relate tales from the viewpoint of the characters, Buddy Red Cat, Lefty Mouse, and Reverend Tom Toad. The liner notes ask listeners/readers to join them as they "Journey through time and space in days of labor, big bosses, farm failures, strikes, company cops, sundown towns, hobos, and trains… the America of yesteryear".

The title La Gazza Ladra is translated as ‘The Thieving Magpie’, which as expected is a story based around the theft of some silverwear which a magpie has absconded for its nest, a crime which a servant girl is wrongly accused of. La Gazza Ladra is an "opera semiseria", a genre from Rossini’s time which was used to define a drama with a happy ending in which the innocent victim, unjustly condemned, should be saved from the scaffold at the eleventh hour and the rascal persecutor punished.

This is the second release on ONYX from the amazing Moscow Soloists and their charismatic director, the great Yuri Bashmet. Their first ONYX release was of Chamber Symphonies by Shostakovich, Sviridov and Vainberg (ONYX4007) which gained excellent reviews, including a Grammy 2007 nomination. This disc combines two great Stravinsky works for strings: the marvellous neo-classical ballet Apollon musagète (in the revised 1947 version entitled simply Apollo) and the post-war Concerto in D for strings, with a genuine novelty: in 1962 Rudolf Barshai arranged for his own Moscow Chamber Orchestra 15 of the 20 Visions fugitives that Prokofiev wrote for solo piano between 1915-17. Now Roman Balashov, manager and violist in the Moscow Soloists has completed the set for this world première recording. These are exciting miniatures which truly benefit from the added colours a string orchestra can bring.

The Temperance Movement are one of Britain's finest Rock bands of the last 10 years. Formed in London but with a Glaswegian singer, The Temperance Movement are simultaneously anthemic, defiant and cathartic.
It bears echoes of the great rock 'n' roll icons of the '60s and '70s The Faces and Led Zeppelin, Free and The Rolling Stones. Having released 3 studio albums since 2012 each one registering on the UK album charts Top 20 with a higher and higher position each time. Culminating in #6 Official UK Chart position for their 2018 album 'A Deeper Cut'.

Some rock & roll acts slid easily into the psychedelic era, and did well with it – the Beatles, the Pretty Things, the Who, the Rolling Stones (overlooking Satanic Majesties'), even the Rascals (sort of). Unfortunately, the McCoys weren't one of them – the band that turned "Hang on Sloopy" into a teen anthem just wasn't that good mixing psychedelic rock, blues, country, and jazz, with brass and saxes in their instrumental mix. This CD combines all but two songs off of the 1968 vintage Infinite McCoys and Human Ball albums. There is some good playing by Rick Zehringer (aka Derringer) and keyboard man Robert Peterson, and some interesting jazzy moments too ("Resurrection"), where it is just them, but you've got to be patient to get to them and listen to some really pretentious crap in the meantime, not to mention ignore the trumpets, trombones, and saxes (arranged by Fred Lipsius) that get you there. There is a near-absence of decent tunes ("Open Your Eyes" is an exception), or memorable hooks, and the best piece of blues here ("Stormy Monday Blues") isn't worth the wait to get to. For completists only.

“A tribute to Nino Rota” is a collection of famous pieces by the composer Nino Rota, interpreted on the flute by Andrea Griminelli.

Joseph Moog, after recording both Brahms piano concertos for Onyx Classics, turns his attention to one of the most demanding and forbidding of piano concertos. Max Reger's concerto dates from 1910. This rugged giant of a concerto displays all Reger's formidable skill at using large orchestral forces with great clarity, making the piano part of the orchestral fabric. The concerto has much music that is both brilliant and poetic as well as passages of great turmoil. The album includes the 6 Intermezzi, which display a different facet of this complex composer. These are delightful pieces, tender, romantic with much poetry.

Schlagerfans dürfen sich in diesem Jahr über ein besonderes Album zum Fest freuen, denn Roland Kaiser präsentiert 2021 sein neues Werk mit dem bezeichnenden Titel »Weihnachtszeit«.

Pebbles was at the height of her career in the late '80s, when she was following in the footsteps of Paula Abdul as a lightweight dance-pop diva. For most of the early '90s, her career had suffered as R&B fashions changed, embracing a harder, hip-hop influenced sound. With Straight from the Heart, Pebbles attempts to fit into the sound of the mid-'90s and the results are surprisingly successful. Although Pebbles' voice has improved over the years, developing into a seductive, silky instrument, Straight from the Heart is more of a showcase for her producers (including Puffy Combs and Organized Noize) than the singer herself. Featuring elements of jazz, funk, and hip-hop, the record is a diverse and soulful catalog of contemporary R&B; even when the songwriting is weak, the record sounds first-rate. Straight from the Heart may not have any single as strong as "Mercedes Boy," but it ranks among Pebbles' most consistent efforts.

It has been 8 long years since the last record, and HYPOCRISY fans can feel the itch. WORSHIP is 11 tracks of precise, ferocious musicianship. Commonly inspired by the fusion of the modern and the ancient, HYPOCRISY has once more found a way to combine innovative ideas with classic sound in order to deliver something metalheads can enjoyably consume with awe and brutal vigor. As usual, all recording and mixing took place at Tägtgren’s Abyss Studio AB in Sweden while mastering was completed by Svante Forsbäck at Chartmakers Audio Mastering. Designed by artist Blake Armstrong (KATAKLYSM, IN FLAMES, CARNIFEX, etc.), WORSHIP’s artwork speaks to the history of the relationship between humanity and extraterrestrials.

Whether or not this album's title refers to bluesman Robert Johnson's classic song of the same name, Katatonia is still singing the blues in their own way here, even if their style has nothing else to do with the blues as a genre. Continuing in the vein of their previous release, Tonight's Decision, this is depressing, heavy alternative rock with a notable Cure influence - Katatonia is not really playing metal anymore here. The production has been sharpened on this album compared to its predecessor, accentuating the quiet verse/loud chorus dynamics the band so often uses, making the loud parts hit harder and the softer parts come through with more detail. Meanwhile, frontman Jonas Renske has continued to grow as a vocalist, showing greater range while also maintaining that worried, defeated delivery…

For her Christmas album, Lee Aaron and her band have put together a collection of tracks that showcase Aaron's unique vocal range of rockers, blues and jazz-oriented material.Thus, the album features established favorites like Darlene Love's "Baby Please Come Home," Slade's "'Merry Christmas Everybody'" and a raucous cover of Chuck Berry's "Run Run Rudolph." But also obscure tracks like The Eels' "Everything Is Gonna Be Cool This Christmas" and The Sonics' punky "Don't Believe In Christmas," Over The Rhine's blues-tinged "All I Ever Get For Christmas Is Blue," an accapella version of Joni Mitchell's "The Fiddle and the Drum" and a jazzy arrangement of Louis Armstrong's "Zat You Santa Claus." To top it off, a rockin' cover of "It Doesn't Often Snow At Christmas" by the Pet Shop Boys."