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Album Of The Day: Songs From The Riverhouse by Robert Vaughn & The Shadows
An independent rock release from the early 1990s, this was re-released last year for a limited run of vinyl for the backers of a crowdfunding campaign. With two LPs and a long runtime, this release doesn't have the cohesive feel and the quality rock vibe that their previous album had, in my opinion. The previous album, Love & War, which was released by Island Records, was more solid overall and at 10 tracks, didn't have lots of filler songs. But still, these are not bad songs and there are more varieties of styles represented, from a bit country-tinged pop to more straight '80s blues rock. If you are looking for some rock from about 35 years ago that no one's ever heard of, try this album. It's pretty good. This release is not on streaming, but can be listened to and bought at their Bandcamp store.
Release Year: 1991
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Album Of The Day: Currents by Eisley
Released 12 years ago today, this is the fourth full-length album by Texas-based indie pop band Eisley, and the last album with many of the DuPree sisters playing together before moving on to other projects. Sisters Stacy, Sherri and Chauntelle formed this band with their friends and family and as well as providing tight harmonies, they also play much of the instruments. Lyrically, this album contains much of the whimsy and magic that was a part of their first few EPs and albums and disappeared as the sisters grew up and experienced more of life, though it's great to see it return a bit here from these women. It's the beautiful vocals and the ethereal quality of the pop/rock music that I like from this band and what caught my attention in their early days. I have admittedly not listened to their later albums like Currents too much, but it's fun to give it a listen today and find it's better than I remember on the last listen years ago. I'll need to listen to Eisley more often, I think.
Release Year: 2013
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Album Of The Day: Life by Andy Hunter
Released 20 years ago today, this is an album from British DJ Andy Hunter. This might have been called an EP because it’s only 6 tracks, but with a 43-minute runtime, I think this could be called an album. This was Andy Hunter’s second release of original music as a DJ/Producer, and it’s an energetic set of dance/club tracks celebrating life and love. It’s fun music with an epic, cinematic feel like it could be from a movie soundtrack. Play it loud and have a dance party or just groove to the music in your chair!
Release Year: 2005
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Album Of The Day: True Believer by Phil Keaggy
Released on this day 30 years ago, this is Phil Keaggy's 18th studio album. Keaggy is one of the most talented guitarists in the world. In addition to beautiful instrumental acoustic and electric guitar albums, he also has recorded many rock/pop albums like this one, which is one of my favorites. The whole album is great, but my favorite part is the last 3 tracks: electric guitars and bagpipes on “Be Thou My Vision”, the all-out blues rock jam of “Have Mercy Lord”, and a celebration of life in “The Survivor”, including an epic coda jam. (Phil Keaggy remastered the anlbum and edited out the end jam from his version a few years ago, but that’s only on Bandcamp and the original is still widely available.) I’ve been loving this album for decades and continue to enjoy what Phil Keaggy puts out today.
Release Year: 1995
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Album Of The Day: OneDay Live by Passion
25 years ago today, 40,000 college-aged people gathered on a farm in Tennessee to pray together and learn about God, and at this "OneDay 2000" event, this album was recorded. This recording captures what I expect were some of the best musical moments of the day, plus also gives a glimpse of the speakers and prayers of the day, mostly on the song "You Are My King" and the prayer by Louie Giglio at the end of that track. Passion worship leaders like Chris Tomlin, Charlie Hall and Christy Nockels perform some original songs as well as popular worship songs at the time like "Shout To The North" and "Breathe". Tomlin also teaches the audience to sing his song "We Fall Down" in some African language, which is a fun moment reflecting the worldwide nature of the church and the Passion movement that Giglio and team were building. And Charlie Hall's version of Matt Redman's "Better Is One Day" here is one of the best versions recorded, with the extended "better is one day with you" bridge and Darwin Hobbs singing backup being beautiful additions. This is a defining album of my life, despite the fact that I was not at OneDay 2000, because this music has become a recurring prayer for me that I have listened to many times in the last 25 years.
Release Year: 2000
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Album Of The Day: Reubonic by John Reuben
Released on this day 8 years ago, this is the 7th album and first independent release from rapper John Reuben. His earlier releases mixed lighter, more humorous topics into the lyrics, but that does not happen much on this album. This time, Reuben stays on topics such as the evils of religion, how we cling to identity and nostalgia, and personal insecurity. The beats and beds definitely feel different from previous albums, but considering this is an indie release and he didn’t release any new music for the 9 years before this, it’s expected that it sounds a bit different. I’ve always liked John Reuben’s music because he calls it like it is and does it in his own style, and I’ll keep listening to his music as long as he makes it.
Release Year: 2017
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A 14-minute music video containing a number of songs from this album:
Album Of The Day: Brothers by The Black Keys
Released 15 years ago today, this is the sixth studio album by rock duo The Black Keys. Dan Auerbach sings and plays instruments, and Patrick Carney does drums and percussion. They are known for a very guitar-heavy blues rock style, and pretty often Auerbach's vocals are a high falsetto. Their songs like "Everlasting Light" and "Tighten Up" are fun jams and I love the sound of their drums, bass, guitars and keyboards for some reason. Maybe there's something very stripped-down to this two-person band, or maybe I just love bluesy rock, and this is one of the few modern artists in that genre that got mainstream enough that I heard their music. There's also something about albums like this one that were recorded in the small southern town of Muscle Shoals, Alabama, USA as well. I just love the vibe of this band and this album, though this type of midwestern garage rock may not be for everyone. Their last few albums haven't excited me as much, but this one of my favorite albums from The Black Keys.
Release Year: 2010
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Album Of The Day: Blurryface by Twenty One Pilots
"Honest, there's a few songs on this record that feel common." Released 10 years ago today, this is the third album from Twenty One Pilots, a duo that blends rap, rock, reggae, alternative and indie pop to make a very unique sound. Though singer/lyricist Tyler Joseph might not be too comfortable with his success, Blurryface keeps the listener guessing what is coming next and on a musical journey through very dramatic life events and sometimes dark places, though there are hints of hope. It's a wild ride with lots of energy, and I love it, though it might not be for everyone. This is still their best album to date, in my opinion, and worth a listen if you want to hear something unique.
Release Year: 2015
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Twenty One Pilots and Mutemath Sessions:
Album Of The Day: "Hello, Good Friend" by The Rocket Summer
Released 20 years ago tomorrow, this is the 2nd album from The Rocket Summer, the artist name of Bryce Avary, who wrote, produced, sang and played every instrument on this album. This album caught my fancy back when this came out, and I still listen to it from time to time. The Rocket Summer's music is performed with such passion and a bit of a reckless momentum. Bryce's vocals are sometimes so energetic he's screaming a bit, and then other times it's a whisper. His sound might be considered a bit "emo", but it's a mix of piano-based and guitar-based rock. It's a fun hour of poppy rock ruminating on life, love and relationships from this man who was young at the time. A few months ago, I got to see him play this entire album and it was fun to see him play live for the first time. He definitely talked about how feels that even 20 years later, these songs still resonate with him, and they do with me too. It's a fun album.
Release Year: 2005
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Album Of The Day: Mat Kearney by Mat Kearney
Released on this day one year ago, this is the 8th studio and latest album from pop singer/songwriter Mat Kearney. For over 20 years now, Mat has been making pop with tinges of hip-hop, reggae and more. Like his previous album January Flower, Kearney isn't doing music as heavily programmed as his 2010s albums or with as much hip-hop, spoken-word verses as his older music, but it's still beautiful, heartfelt pop to play on a nice day, a quiet evening, or whenever. Songs like "Drowning In Nostalgia", "Good Thing Going On" and "Headlights Home" are instant classics. And there's 9 more tracks with love songs to his wife or just reflections on life. It's maybe not yet my favorite Mat Kearney album, but these songs were fun to see performed live last fall, and with time it might become a favorite album from Mr. Kearney.
Release Year: 2024
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