Spring jazz for ordinary people

ft. berlioz, Beyoncé, Chappell Roan, and more

Apr 21, 2024

As I write this issue on Saturday morning, it’s Record Store Day, Taylor Swift Weekend, 4/20, and apparently, Jazz Appreciation Month too!

So naturally: I picked up an exclusive vinyl at Cheapo Records in Cambridge (Death Cab’s Live at The Showbox, because Fleet Foxes’ Live on Boston Harbor was sadly already sold out), and am slowly pacing through all 2 hours and 2 minutes of the 31-track version of The Tortured Poets Department.

I’m not smoking anything, because I am lame. But I am thinking about jazz! It’s certainly not my go-to genre, but I’ve spotted a few playlists, albums, and artists worth highlighting to celebrate the occasion.

Let’s start with berlioz, the buzzy jazz-house fusion artist who is quickly gaining a following through his mysterious internet presence and vibey live sets. Simply put, something is just happening with this guy, mostly through word-of-mouth. (I heard about him through friends raving about recent shows in Boston and NYC.) The alluring, sax-heavy tunes feel like a nice modern spin on lounge music — perfect to throw on for a wine night or dinner party, equally fit for a study session or a dance break. So join me on the berlioz bandwagon, I’m excited to see wherever it’s headed next!
New Yorker writer Kyle Chayka recently launched a fun newsletter called One Thing, and last week’s issue featured two seasonal jazz album recs: Bill Evans’ You Must Believe In Spring and Count Basie’s April In Paris.

Chayka also shared a fun playlist discovery simply titled… Jazz Spring: “I have no idea where I found this playlist originally… but it’s made by a user named downcharlestonblvd who somehow updates a perfect playlist of jazz for each season, changing the name when the season changes. Somehow it only has 269 likes; I almost want to gatekeep this. But everyone should be on it.”
Finally, three more playlists of jazz faves from Andrew Bird, André 3000, and Laufey — three modern artists approaching the genre in their own way. (Bird announced a jazz trio album featuring standards from Duke Ellington, Cole Porter, and more. André 3000 is headlining this year’s Newport Jazz Festival after a surprising instrumental record last year. And Laufey aims to “bring jazz to Gen Z.”)

Cowboy Carter, deconstructed

I’ve been enjoying Beyoncé’s dense Cowboy Carter — especially the theatrical opening track, the McCartney-approved “Blackbird” cover, the two initial singles, “Ya Ya,” and the Miley + Post Malone + Shaboozey collabs. The playlist above, from Philly’s WXPN, features the new album “interspliced with tunes from the artists who contributed to the record + songs she sampled.” Below are a couple deep dives I found interesting:

Doreen St. Félix in The New Yorker: “Beyoncé is no maverick isolationist, of course: she has an arranger’s genius for collaboration, bringing together a cadre of producers and songwriters — No I.D., Raphael Saadiq, Pharrell, and The-Dream, with the last being her musical soul mate — alongside newer, younger specialists, such as Ryan Beatty, Raye, and Mamii. They have bottled a century’s worth of music tradition into seventy-eight minutes. Beyoncé takes on the role of griot for this nation’s marginalized musical styles — roots music, the blues, zydeco, bluegrass, folk, honky-tonk — all of which she presents to us alchemized, and buffed to high sheen.”
A discussion from Wesley Morris, Ben Sisario, Salamishah Tillet and Lindsay Zoladz in the NYT. Morris: “There are 27 tracks here, and maybe 22 songs. And about as many ideas. The sequencing and variety made me wonder about the 30 entries on The White Album and the 21 on Songs in the Key of Life, the way they push the limits of what a record can actually fit.”

Chappell Roan, explained

The self-proclaimed Midwest Princess is having a moment, after a string of shows opening for Olivia Rodrigo, along with a viral Tiny Desk Concert and strong Coachella performance. New single “Good Luck, Babe!” is a fun addition to her catalog alongside addicting pop anthems “Red Wine Supernova,” “Naked In Manhattan,” and “HOT TO GO!”

Miranda Reinert wrote an interesting piece on Roan’s rise, her defined “drag influenced aesthetics,” the impact of TikTok on Gen Z pop, and the unfortunate trend of major labels mishandling some of these rising stars.

Drake’s beef, recapped

I truly can’t keep up with this back-and-forth of diss tracks between Drake, Kendrick Lamar, J. Cole, A$AP Rocky, Rick Ross, and others — but Hunter Harris has an essential overview of the timeline. (Although part of that post is behind a paywall, so here's another full breakdown from Vox.)

Stellar singles from anticipated albums

Jelani Aryeh’s fresh take on synth-rock: “Shudder,” “Sweater Club,” and “I’m In Love” are all perfectly polished indie pop songs, building on the sound Aryeh established with 2021 earworm “From These Heights.” The Sweater Club is out on June 14.
Omar Apollo’s catchy ode to a long-distance relationship: “Spite” is another great track from the rising Mexican American alt-R&B star, who is teasing his “best album yet.”
Remi Wolf’s latest bop: “Cinderella” was paired with a music video featuring Mac DeMarco and an album announcement — Big Ideas is out July 12.
Bonny Light Horseman’s beautiful folk-rock: “I Know You Know” once again pairs the lovely vocals of Fruit Bats’ Eric D. Johnson with Anaïs Mitchell. They announced a double LP, Keep Me On Your Mind/See You Free, out June 7.

As always, follow the Hear Hear playlist to stream all these songs (and others featured in this issue) in one place.

Vampire Weekend, with a choir + Blood Orange

Finally, here’s a stellar performance of “Mary Boone,” the potential song of the year, featuring Dev Hynes on sitar and Ariel Rechtshaid on the decks. VW’s stunning album, Only God Was Above Us, has been on repeat for me and I loved Amanda Petrusich’s review for The New Yorker. They’re five for five!

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