ULY | ARLO PARKS | NICKI WELLS | BROTHER’S TESTAMENT | NEIL COWLEY + BEN LUKAS BOYSEN

Hello again friends, freaks and fans of future-jazz.

In the week that Ricky Gervais went “all English” on the Golden Globes, 45 RPM awards its highest accolade… the dubious honour of being a track I quite enjoyed listening to this week… to five artists who’ve been making great new music.

But, please, musicians – if you’re reading this –don’t fawn over my review on Twitter and in your Press Releases (definitely do), just accept your award, thank your record label and your God and fuck off, yeah?

Kicking us off with a great, big, sweet Golden Raspberry is Uly’s Pak It In. the ‘funky and flamboyant’ track is perfect for your Charm Offensive.

Accepting the ‘Turnip Prize’ for something so misshapen and ugly, it’s kinda beautiful is Arlo Parks’ Sophie. The emo 2.0 musician who’s “helping Gen Zs to find happiness in their misery once again” provides your Military Coup.

Honourable mention goes to Nicki Wells whose spiritually uplifting song Mooladhara is designed to “promote a meditative temperament and have a profoundly healing effect on the listener” and that’s why it’s your Peaceful Protest choice.

Winning the ‘best effort’ award is jazz fusion collective Brother’s Testament whose “Floating Points on steroids” release KINGDOM is your Guerrilla Warfare selection.

Finally, the IgNobel Prize (awarded for something that makes you laugh and then think) goes to Neil Cowley and Ben Lukas Boysen. Rollick at their introductory video in which the jazz/ambient pair extol the virtues of a ‘nap on the sofa’ then reflect on the beauty of Solitary Refinement as your Quiet Riot this week.

So, if any of those sound like they deserve their moment in the spotlight on your smartphone or generic, fruit-based mp3 device, by all means, hear more here…

ULY: PAK IT IN
ARLO PARKS: SOPHIE
NICKI WELLS: MOOLADHARA
BROTHER’S TESTAMENT: KINGDOM
NEIL COWLEY + BEN LUKAS BOYSEN: SOLITARY REFINEMENT

P.S. You can find all of the tracks reviewed above in the 45 Revolutions per Minute playlist below or click to access the 45 RPM Playlist on Spotify itself.

If you like what you hear (or even if you don’t), please engage in dialogue with me @45rpm_Reviews on Twitter. And, if you’d like to receive updates weekly, please subscribe to the email list to get these recommendations sent to your inbox weekly.

– SV –