New Music Friday: 13th Floor New Album Picks: October 18, 2024

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New Music Friday comes around again! And as always we have chosen five new releases that we think deserve your attention including three straight outta New Zealand.

The 13th Floor’s Marty Duda picks these five new releases for your consideration:

  1. Fantastic NegritoFantastic Negrito – Son Of A Broken Man (Storefront) The three-time Grammy winner releases his most personal album yet. And what a story he has to tell with a bio that feels more like a rap sheet. The artist formerly known as Xavier Amin Dphrepaulezz has created a soul-baring 14-song cycle that address issues like family, deception and human desire. Beginning at a young age, Negrito was served untruths by his father. A made-up last name, a fabricated ancestry, and a fake Somali accent. Why lie? Why create this false narrative? Those are the questions Negrito had to ask himself and the questions that lie at the heart of Son of a Broken Man.

2.Mousey Mousey – The Dreams Of Our Mothers’ Mothers! (Winegum) This third album from Christchurch’s Mousey (aka Sarena Close) could almost be considered a companion piece to Fantastic Negrito’s as it deals with very personal issues such as family dynamics, identity, and the quest to break generational cycles. Mousey shares, “I’m also changing all the time which keeps me on my toes, trying to express the person I feel I am every 2 years. It’s a privilege that I get to discover and express myself in such a way and also that some people would be interested in watching it all go down.” Click here to watch the 13th Floor MusicTalk interview with Mousey. And click here to read the 13th Floor album review. 

3.Beth Torrance Beth Torrance – Tiny Flowers (Particle) The  enigmatic and emotive Tāmaki  Makaurau– based artist, releases her second  EP. Tiny  Flowers is a reflective exploration of Torrance’s teenage years in Thames, a coastal  town that serves as the emotional heart of the EP. Says Beth, “The first song I wrote was Danby Field in 2021.  Its  emotional  range  encapsulates  the  EP’s  essence,  from  bright  catharsis  to  potent  quietude, reflecting  the  fluctuating  nature  of  heartache.” Watch for a 13th Floor Singles Session with Beth coming soon.

4. Phoebe RingsPhoebe Rings – Phoebe Rings (Carpark) Dreampop from Auckland! On a lighter note we have a reissue of the debut EP from Phoebe Rings, this time released on their new label, Carpark. Lead singer Crystal Choi’s songwriting was brought to life on the EP with Alex Freer on drums, Simeon Kavanagh-Vincent on guitar and synths, and Benjamin Locke on bass. Choi says she knew the tracks had to be recorded after the band played the songs better than she could ever imagine. And so, remotely through the COVID-19 lockdowns, the band started recording the songs that eventually turned into the PHOEBE RINGS EP. Watch for a 13th Floor MusicTalk interview with Crystal coming very soon.

5. MC5MC5 – Heavy Lifting (earMUSIC) Its time to kick out the jams one last time! 12 new songs written by the late, great Wayne Kramer, some featuring original drummer Dennis Thompson and all produced by Bob Ezrin. Kramer said: “Live long and stay creative. This is my attitude. And this album continues from where High Time left off. In that, I think it’s an artist’s responsibility to reflect the times they’re going through. And I think that we made an album that is in sync with where we’re at today and the challenges that we’re facing, and that carries a positive message.” And Ezrin says,  “And now, with Wayne’s passing, I know we all feel a responsibility to make sure that his work is heard and he is celebrated.”

Marty Duda
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