On The Spotlight Kid, Captain Beefheart took over full production duties. Rather than returning to the artistic aggro of Trout Mask/Decals days, Spotlight takes things lower and looser, with a lot of typical Beefheart fun crawling around in weird, strange ways. Consider the ominous opening cut "I'm Gonna Booglarize You Baby" – it isn't just the title and Beefheart's breathy growl, but Rockette Morton's purring bass, Zoot Horn Rollo's snarling guitar, Ed Marimba's brisk fade on the cymbals again and again, and more. The overall atmosphere is definitely relaxed and fun, maybe one step up from a jam. Marimba's vibes and other percussion work – including, of course, the marimba itself – stand out quite a bit here as a result, perhaps, brought out from behind the drums and the more straightforward work on Clear Spot.

On The Spotlight Kid, Captain Beefheart took over full production duties. Rather than returning to the artistic aggro of Trout Mask/Decals days, Spotlight takes things lower and looser, with a lot of typical Beefheart fun crawling around in weird, strange ways. Consider the ominous opening cut "I'm Gonna Booglarize You Baby" – it isn't just the title and Beefheart's breathy growl, but Rockette Morton's purring bass, Zoot Horn Rollo's snarling guitar, Ed Marimba's brisk fade on the cymbals again and again, and more.

Producer Ted Templeman was a bit of a surprising choice given his firmly mainstream production credits, with the Doobie Brothers already under his belt and Van Halen lurking in the near future. As it turned out, such a combination led to a better-working fusion than might be expected, making one wonder why in the world Clear Spot wasn't more of a commercial success than it was. The sound is great throughout, and the feeling is of the coolest bar-band in town, not to mention one that could eat all the patrons for breakfast if it felt like it. Consequently, fans of the fully all-out side of Beefheart might find the end result not up to snuff, but those less concerned with pushing back all borders all the time will enjoy his unexpected blend of everything tempered with a new accessibility. "Nowadays a Woman's Got to Hit a Man," besides having a brilliant title, shows the balance perfectly – Van Vliet serves up his rough asides with all his expected wit and sass, while the Magic Band trade off notes here and there just so.

On Down in the Alley, his first album for Alligator Records, Steady Rollin' Bob Margolin doesn't quite follow though on the success of its predecessor Chicago Blues, yet that's only a relative scale. Margolin is one of a handful of musicians to keep classic Chicago blues alive in the '90s, both through covers and original material. His association with Muddy Waters is, if anything, overhyped by journalists and Alligator alike, but it has to be said that he does Muddy proud with down-and-dirty recordings like this. Margolin's guitar has true muscle, and there's genuine grit to the recording, unlike many contemporary Chicago blues albums. For some tastes, the album may be a little predictable since he never breaks from the tradition, but anyone looking for a straight-ahead slice of electric blues like Chess used to make them should be pleased with Down in the Alley.

The Sweet The nucleus of The Sweet came together in 1966, when drummer Michael Thomas Tucker (b. 17 July 1947, Harlesden, London, England) and vocalist Brian Francis Connolly (b. 5 October 1945, Hamilton, Scotland) played together in Wainwright's Gentlemen, a band whose repertoire comprised a mixture of Motown, R&B and psychedelia. The pair broke away to form Sweetshop, later shortened to just Sweet, with Steve Norman Priest (b. 23 February 1950, Hayes, Middlesex) on bass and Frank Torpey (2) on guitar. After releasing four unsuccessful singles on Fontana and EMI, Torpey was replaced by first Mick Stewart, and then Mick by Andrew David Scott (b. 30 June 1949, Wrexham, Wales) and the new line-up signed to RCA. The band were introduced to the writing partnership of Chinn and Chapman, who were to provide the band with a string of hit singles.However, the band were writing their own hard-rock numbers on the b-sides of these hits. The group's determinedly effete, glam-rock image was reinforced by a succession of Top 10 hits.The Sweet in 1974 recorded the album Sweet Fanny Adams without the assistance of Chinn and Chapman. The album charted at number 27, but disappeared again after just two weeks. As The Sweet became more of an albums band, the hit singles began to dry up. Following a move to Polydor, they cut four albums with each release making less impact than its predecessor.

John Stanley was born in London on 17 January 1712. A precocious musician, by the age of nine he was playing the organ (probably as an occasional deputy) at All Hallows, Bread Street.
When the titular organist there – the composer and harpsichordist William Babell, a former pupil of Handel – died on 23 September 1723, an eleven year-old Stanley was appointed in his place. At the age of 14 he was chosen as organist at St. Andrew’s, Holborn and at the age of 17 became the youngest person ever to obtain the BMus degree from Oxford University. In 1734 he was appointed organist to the Society of the Inner Temple, a position he held until his death.

The key to Buxtehude’s trio sonatas, both for performers and for listeners, is an awareness of the stylus fantasticus which German composers of the late 17th and early 18th centuries developed in response to the new freely inventive style of Italian composers such as Claudio Merulo and Girolamo Frescobaldi. ‘It is the most free and unrestrained method of composing,’ wrote one contemporary theorist. ‘It is bound to nothing, neither to any words nor to a melodic subject, instituted to display genius and to teach the hidden design of harmony and the ingenious composition of harmonic phrases and fugues.’

Italian/Polish black metal band Amalekim continues their collaboration with Avantgarde Music to release their third album, Shir Hashirim, two years after their previous work Avodah Zarah.
Founded in 2020 by Mróz (vocals and guitar), Amalekim released their first album, HVHI, the same year. In 2022, the band, with a completely renewed line-up, released their sophomore album, Avodah Zarah to critical acclaim. The traced path now continues with Shir Hashirim, their third work, walking a more innovative path and encasing more dissonant sounds. The new work embraces once again the occult, the profane, the hermetic, not only in the music, but also in the concept and lyrics…

It had been 43 years since this song had been played on stage in the UK by King Crimson. Given its near-legendary status amongst Crimheads it was perhaps understandable that audience reactions to hearing its anthem chorus for the first time in decades often bordered on the ecstatic.

This release focuses on a unique selection from Beethoven's late period: works for piano with an optional flute part - ad libitum - that reveal a rarely explored, yet all the more fascinating side of the composer. Framing Beethoven's monumental Hammerklavier Sonata, the two sets of folk song variations form the greatest conceivable contrast to this pianistic summit work. While the sonata, with its formal and technical radicalism, is considered the epitome of Beethoven's late style, the surrounding pieces are characterised by cantabile lines, accessible virtuosity and a sense of chamber-like lightness.

The soundtrack for Apple TV+’s "Chief of War" is an epic musical work crafted by legendary composer Hans Zimmer in collaboration with James Everingham of Bleeding Fingers Music. The album captures the intensity and drama of the historical series about the Hawaiian warrior Ka‘iana, who seeks to unify the islands amidst war and encroaching Western colonization. The music blends grand orchestral arrangements with authentic Hawaiian instruments and vocal elements, creating a rich and emotive soundscape. It underscores the cultural depth of Hawai‘i, enhancing the narrative of resistance and unity.

Crematory is a German metal band formed in 1991. The band became recognizable in the mid-1990s, performing on tour as an opening act for such bands as My Dying Bride, Tiamat and Atrocity. The band started with a traditional death metal style, then adopted industrial and gothic metal styles in the recordings of later albums.

After the hostile reaction to the politically charged Sometime in New York City, John Lennon moved away from explicit protest songs and returned to introspective songwriting with Mind Games. Lennon didn't leave politics behind - he just tempered his opinions with humor on songs like "Bring on the Lucie (Freda Peeple)," which happened to undercut the intention of the song. It also indicated the confusion that lies at the heart of the album. Lennon doesn't know which way to go, so he tries everything. There are lovely ballads like "Out of the Blue" and "One Day (At a Time)," forced, ham-fisted rockers like "Meat City" and "Tight A$," sweeping Spectoresque pop on "Mind Games," and many mid-tempo, indistinguishable pop/rockers…

Bite Me is the upcoming second studio album by the American singer Reneé Rapp. It is set to be released on August 1, 2025, by Interscope Records. It follows her debut album, Snow Angel (2023), and it is supported by the release of singles "Leave Me Alone", "Mad", and "Why Is She Still Here?".

Over a dozen albums and several compilations, American-born British resident Stacey Kent has sung standards with polish and class, but perhaps her fans might not have expected the result on this CD. A program of tunes interpreted entirely in French, Kent here fancies herself as a modern-day Edith Piaf, with a very low-key, late-night, romantic approach. Her thin, wispy voice rides very much under the radar of these selections, with a small instrumental complement including pianist Graham Harvey, guitarist John Parricelli, and in select spots her husband, saxophonist Jim Tomlinson. Most of the tracks are French pop songs, but occasionally Kent sneaks in a ringer like Antonio Carlos Jobim's always delightful "Les Eaux de Mars" (Waters of March), and adds a Brazilian flavor to the title selection or calypso on the most upbeat number, "Mi Amor"…