First Thought Fridays is a (mostly) weekly column offering quick-hit takes on some of the albums released this week, serving up first impressions, favorite or least favorite songs, and whether or not they’re worth a second listen. Check back for more each Friday night or Saturday morning.
I ended up with absolutely nothing in my review queue for the Independence Day weekend, so I decided to take the opportunity to dive back into some of this column’s highlights to put together a “best albums of the year so far” list, so stay tuned for that shortly! For now, though, I’m getting back into the swing of things this week with four reviews. This week’s lineup was stacked and I didn’t even get close to getting to everything I wanted to listen to. In a perfect world, I would have also checked out she’s green’s Swallowtail, the new mixtape 1331 from Speedy Ortiz’s Sadie Dupuis under the name Sad13, and the Shonen Knife re-recording Let’s Knife Re-Cut, as well as written about the new ones from foamboy (Stupid Hot, which I listened to and loved…hopefully I can write it up for next week) and Suki Waterhouse (Loveland, which I heard the first five tracks of and it was off to a good start). Only so many hours in a day! Here’s what I did manage to check out and write up this week, in the order in which I listened to ‘em:
Jack White, Frozen Charlotte (Third Man): After a string of decent but not particularly remarkable solo albums, Jack White got back to basics on 2024’s No Name and the results were the liveliest, fiercest, flat-out best that White had sounded since the White Stripes split. Frozen Charlotte finds White once again teaming with many of the same musicians—primarily bassist Dominic Davis and drummer Patrick Keeler, the latter of Cincinnati garage rockers the Greenhornes and White’s side project the Raconteurs—and once again achieves the same results: an album full of fiery garage rock and blues that finds White dialed in, engaged, and wielding blazing guitar licks at every turn. The biggest change this time is the addition of Hammond organ courtesy of Bobby Emmett, which only amplifies the careening garage rock vibes. This one’s another winner. Best songs: “G.O.D. and the Broken Ribs,” “There’s Nobody There,” “Nobody Knows,” “Dollar Bill.” The only clunker: “She’s in a Frenzy.” Will I Listen Again?: Definitely.
The Rolling Stones, Foreign Tongues (Polydor): Speaking of artists who re-established themselves after a fallow period, the Rolling Stones returned after an 18-year break with 2023’s Hackney Diamonds, the best album they had recorded in forty-plus years. Foreign Tongues continues in the same vein of mostly strutting rockers with the crisp, clean production of Andrew Watt that most artists of a certain age seem to favor these days.
Maybe it was listening to this immediately after the raw reckless abandon of Frozen Charlotte but I honestly found the first few songs on Foreign Tongues a little off-putting, a little overly slick and polished, especially when Mick Jagger reached into his falsetto for “Jealous Lover.” But Mick, Keith, and Ronnie sound like they were having an absolute blast recording this thing, and the energy behind those strutting, classically Stones-y riffs (not to mention the swing added by longtime bassist Darryl Jones, new drummer Steve Jordan, and ringer Steve Winwood on keys) started winning me over by the album’s back half. “Ringing Hollow” is a nice, rollickin’ ballad, and I also dug the pumping pop-blues “Never Wanna Lose You,” Keef’s soaring gospel-ish “Some of Us,” the epic, penultimate album setpiece “Back In Your Life,” and the album closing acoustic blues cover of Chuck Berry’s “Beautiful Delilah.” The album has a weird list of guest spots (Paul McCartney, sure; Benmont Tench, makes sense; but Robert Smith? Bruno Mars?) that don’t change the Stones’ fundamental sound, but why would you want it to?
So yeah, maybe the front half was an “it’s not them, it’s me” thing, but the back half is definitely up there with the Hackney Diamonds material. Another late-career highlight from a band who seemed to be entirely done with new music? I’ll take it. Will I Listen Again?: Yes.
Allison Russell, In the Hour of Chaos (Fantasy): Speaking of guest spots, Allison Russell has had a prolific, varied career, from folk-jazz group Po’ Girl (with Trish Klein of The Be Good Tanyas) to “secular gospel” duo Birds of Chicago (with husband JT Nero) to the Americana supergroup Our Native Daughters (alongside Amythyst Kiah, Leyla McCalla, and Rhiannon Giddens). And that collaborative spirit carries over onto this, her third “solo” album, which includes featured guests on 10 of its 11 tracks, including the likes of Norah Jones, Joy Oladokun, Devon Gilfillian, Brittney Spencer, and Nickel Creek’s Sara Watkins. Having that many cooks in the kitchen may lead you to think In the Hour of Chaos would be a disjointed listen, but impressively the album holds together based on Russell’s vibrant vocals and the warm throb of bass that underpins every song, mostly supplied by Megan McCormick or Wendy Melvoin (of Prince & the Revolution/Wendy & Lisa fame).
The songs are an easygoing blend of jazz, folk, and ’90s granola soul that’s easy to like. My favorite tracks are the effervescent “Cold April,” the slinky, aching R&B of “Chaos Theory” (gorgeously sung in three-part harmony with Kyshona and the aforementioned Sara Watkins), and the lilting “Good Omens” that floats the album to a close on the heavenly harp of Ahya Simone. Only one didn’t connect for me: the slow jam “Searchlight,” a duet with Kashus Culpepper that feels a little overcooked. On balance, this is a beautiful, warm hug of an album perfect for spinning on a Saturday afternoon. I look forward to seeing how these songs translate live on July 23rd, when Russell will appear at Saint Louis Music Park opening for Sarah McLachlan. Will I Listen Again?: Yes.
Kira Roessler, Enigma (Org Music): Speaking of bass, Kira Roessler is one of the most beloved to ever pick up the thunderstaff, first as bassist of Black Flag then as part of the dual-bass duo Dos with her then-husband, Minutemen/fIREHOSE bassist Mike Watt. Roessler has spent much of the interim working not in music but in the movies, as a dialogue and sound editor on movies as varied as Under the Tuscan Sun and Mad Max: Fury Road (seriously, check out this resume!). This is, near as I can tell, her second solo album and first under her full name (her 2021 solo album was released under just her first name, but the last name undoubtedly helps separate her from the 46 others that show up when I search for “Kira” in Apple Music).
The arrangements are simple, mostly just Roessler’s voice and bass plus drums and piano (and the occasional backing vocal from Petra Haden of That Dog). The instrumental melodies, though, are anything but simple, with a sort of brash weirdness to them that makes me feel like they’d be well suited to soundtrack a modern movie deconstructing the film noir genre. Interestingly, the melodic push of these songs most often comes from the piano; Roessler’s bass playing isn’t showy but it’s also never static, always burbling around the fretboard in a hypnotizing way. Favorite tunes: “Jim,” “Kill Him,” “Wild Card.” Will I Listen Again?: Maybe? It was definitely an interesting, intellectually challenging listen and I’m glad I gave it a spin, but it’s not a style of music I would generally gravitate toward. | Jason Green
