In typical times, March would be the beginning of the music business’ “year.” Normally, there is a lull of news and new releases between December and February, and March usually starts with the Grammys, allowing everything to “wake up.” We would have a slew of festival line-ups coming through, and everyone looking to make a big year would be starting that cycle with SXSW.
With US festival news staying on hold while watching how vaccinations affect COVID spread and SXSW going virtual this year, I wasn’t expecting to get one of those big news weekends, but this weekend was pretty massive. We found ourselves with St Vincent releasing her first single since her 2017 breakthrough Masseduction. We also were gifted the first release from the supergroup Silk Sonic, featuring rapper/drummer/singer Anderson. Paak and the only artist that literally everyone likes, Bruno Mars. (Nobody is capable of speaking ill of Mars. NOBODY. Also, “Uptown Funk” is a literal standard now.) Both of these releases I have feelings about.
Gonna start with “Pay Your Way In Pain,” the first release from St Vincent’s Daddy’s Home, due out on May 14th. Her vision for the record seems to be “a night out in New York.” Something that pretty much all of us would LOVE to enjoy, and hopefully will get to enjoy, or at least enjoy something equivalent to it before the year is out. Does the single make me feel that way? It depends on the night you are having. It’s a noisy, slightly chaotic funk number that feels a little bit like that moment in the night where you’ve crossed the line over to too much to drink. It’s like she’s aiming for Prince’s Sign “??” the Times, and almost gets there, but is closer to Nine Inch Nails’ With Teeth. It’s still a great track, but it’s not quite warm enough to be funk, not quite dark enough to be industrial. Instead, it’s somewhere in between.
Daddy’s Home is coming out in almost every format imaginable, including 8-Track tape (where in the world did they find a place to manufacture 8-tracks?!?!) on May 14th. Preorders are available here!
Where “Pay Your Way In Pain” is heavier and darker than expected, “Leave the Door Open” is much lighter than expected. Definitely rooted in funk, the track is a light and breezy ballad that centers around Anderson .Paak’s smooth croon instead of focusing on Bruno Mars. I wasn’t expecting them to come out of the gate with a ballad. I’m hoping the record has a few more uptempo numbers, especially since .Paak is a better rapper than singer. It’s still a great, addictive little groove that’s much happier than the times it’s coming out in. Bernie Sanders recently told congress that we need to pass a COVID stimulus bill so “young people can date again.” This is the kinda track we need once COVID is crushed to help get those romances moving.
There is still more to come from Silk Sonic, and we are expecting a full length later this year that may or may not be called An Evening With Silk Sonic. And, seriously, if we keep on top of this COVID thing and not let the virus break out more than it has, we may even get a Silk Sonic tour. And I’m definitely prepared to spend “argument with my partner” money on tickets to that thing.
