School is out. Summer has arrived. Monday is Canada Day. Thursday is the Fourth Of July. We’ve all got holiday plans. Do we really need a whole bunch of new music to wade through? No, we do not. We only need a couple of new titles to tide us over. And here they are. See you on the patio:
Kasabian
Happenings
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Kasabian, one of the U.K.’s best and biggest bands, are back and on fire with an explosive new studio album. Happenings is their eighth studio release and one of their best yet. Lead single Call sets the tone with its huge, popping, weaving synth riff, flavoured with backing chants and chiming grooves. Call was the first song Serge Pizzorno wrote for the album and it sets the vibe for the delights that follow. “This was the launchpad,” the frontman explains. “Quieter on the verses, loud for the chorus — it’s dance music! The first bit is where you get ready, the second bit is where we all go crazy. It’s really fun and just feels like now. When I finished the track, I felt I wanted to go to a gig by whoever was behind it. Everything for this album was informed by that way of working.” The followup to 2022’s No. 1 album The Alchemist’s Euphoria, Happenings is 10 quick, sharp, visceral doses of fresh heavy hitters, drawing inspiration from the anything-goes art performance late-1950s. Veering between the dance floor to the mosh pit, tracks over three minutes were outlawed (well nearly), and with those 10 tracks clocking up to 26 minutes (“A minute shorter than The Ramones’ debut”), Happenings is not only an album that never overstays its welcome, but leaves listeners craving more.”
Kokoko!
Butu
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Pioneers of Kinshasa’s sonic revolution, Kokoko! have captivated global audiences with their striking sonics and energetic performances since 2017. Their critically acclaimed debut album Fongola achieved global praise. Kinshasa’s after-dark buzz was the inspiration behind Butu, which means ‘the night’ in Lingala, and the experimental record dives deep into the heart of the chaotic place, celebrating the joyful and creative spirit of its inhabitants. With vocalist Makara Bianko at the helm and production from Xavier Thomas, AKA Débruit, this followup to Fongola finds the group channelling a more electronic, upbeat sound. Butu is a replication of the frenetic feel of that dynamic nightlife — equipment being pushed to its limit, via saturated and distorted speakers, or the sonic push and pull of sounds after dark. Taking field recordings from the nights and using “ready-made percussion” such as detergent bottles, the band fed the sounds through distortion to get closer to those night sounds. “Compared to Fongola, this album is intentionally way more intense, because it’s quite upbeat and quite full-on,” Thomas says. The record’s influences are also wider and span West Africa and South Africa, kuduro and kwaito and since Bianko’s global travel introduced him to new types of alternative electronic music and punk.”
