Last week, we focused heavily on Nashville and while we have a few Middle TN releases this week (Briston Maroney, Dreamer Boy, Personal Trainer), we start the show in the swamp. Louisiana music got a big spotlight this year thanks to Jon Batiste’s Grammy moment and the timing couldn’t be better. There are three records out this week that share a common groove with Batiste but get there in different ways.
New Orleans-based artist Trombone Shorty also won a Grammy earlier in April and just released, Lifted, his first album of his own music in five years. It features Gary Clark Jr. and Lauren Daigle and veers from expectations at times, embracing full on rock guitar along with the incredible horn wok he’s famous for.
The Seratones are from what is known as “above the gravy line” in Louisiana aka Shreveport (where we still have gators and crawfish thank you very much). Their new album Love & Algorhythms is out on Nashville-based New West records. Under the Radar mag says Seratones have made a “protest record” that “mines the soundscapes of the past to comment on the present.” You can check out an exclusive live WNXP performance of some of the songs right here.
Multi-Grammy winning New Orleans-born PJ Morton brings along a ton of friends for Watch The Sun, released on Morton’s own label. Besides Wale, it also features special guests Stevie Wonder, Nas, Alex Isley, Jill Scott, Chronixx and even El DeBarge. Essence magazine says it’s the most versatile musical offering than we’ve heard from him yet.
NME PLAYLIST 042922
- Trombone Shorty feat. New Breed Brass Band “Everybody in the World”
- Seratones “Get Free”
- PJ Morton feat. Wale “So Lonely”
- Briston Maroney “Bottom of the Ocean”
- Momma “speeding 72”
- Personal Trainer “Cowboy Boots”
- Dreamer Boy “Jumpshot!”
- Gabriels “One and Only”
- Melody’s Echo Chamber “Where the Water Clears the Illusion”
- Toro Y Moi feat. The Mattson “Millennium”
- Stella “Up and Away”
- Martin Courtney “Corncob”
- Tegan and Sara “F**king Up What Matters”
- Wilco “Falling Apart (Right Now)”
Metric “All Comes Crashing”