Lana Del Ray impresses with her new 14 track album “Honeymoon,” showcasing her impressive vocal talent. Lana delivers a new depth in this record, bringing an ominous vibe to her music. With eclectic mixes of strings, bass, and keyboard, Lana is able to channel a variety of emotion that connects with the listener. The title track “Honeymoon” kicks off the album with a somber component. This song, with Lana’s vocals and background music sounds like something that you would here in a 1940s piano bar. You can feel the tension in her music throughout the album, something that makes it stand out. Tracks like “Swan Song,” “Freak,” and “Religion” showcase this element perfectly.
Keith Richards – Crosseyed Heart Sept 18
For the first time in 23 years, Keith Richards has released a solo album. After a summer of touring with The Rolling Stones on the ZIP Code tour, which hit 15 cities across the United States, Richards has followed up with “Crosseyed Heart.” Richards brings his incredible guitar skills and classic voice to deliver a well-rounded album for listeners across the board. The title track, “Crosseyed Heart” has an acoustic-blues feel that would fit right in on Beale Street in Memphis. He changes directions completely with modern sounds in “Heartstopper” and “Trouble.” For those who love classic Keith Richards, he gives you “Amnesia,” “Blues In the Morning,” and “Something For Nothing.” There is a lot going on in the album, but Richards’ ability to span multiple genres flawlessly shows why he will go down as one of music’s best.
Mac Miller: GO:OD AM Sep 18
Mac Miller is back with “GO:OD AM.” Falling in with most of mainstream rap, Miller does a decent job of bringing his own style to the genre. The highlight of the album is Miller’s renewed focus as he reflects on past mistakes of addiction. Miller is good at mixing up-beat tracks with some of the more thought-provoking tracks. Tracks like “Weekend” featuring Miguel highlight the struggle he faced with addiction and the temptation of falling back into old habits. Miller enlists several of his other friends to make appearances on this album—Ab-Soul lends his talents in “Two Matches,” Chief Keefe collaborates in “Cut the Check,” and Little Dragon caps off the guest-list in “The Festival.” Mac Miller keeps pace with this album but struggles to differentiate himself from the pack.
Alabama – Southern Drawl
Classic Country group Alabama is back in the saddle with “Southern Drawl.” This album is the first original-material collection from the group in 14 years. The title track “Southern Drawl” is a rocking, excellent representation of a true southern ballad. Alabama’s ability to harmonize and infuse modern country sounds into their classic vocals is top-notch. The first single “Wasn’t Through Lovin’ You Yet,” brings Alabama front and center with current radio-toppers. Their ability to mixing up-tempo tracks like “Back To The Country” and “Hillbilly Wins the Lotto Money” with more subtle tracks like “As Long As There’s Love” and “I Wanna Be There” is exactly why we’re happy to say that Alabama is back in grand fashion. This is a must-have album for any country fan.
