Jerry's Pick: "HEADLOCK"

"HEADLOCK"-Luci Gang

I love Luci!

Yes, each week I audition dozens of newly released songs from a variety of formats to decide which tunes are worthy of my personal playlists. Sure, you’ll find quite a bit of pop, rock, country and alternative tunes, but I occasionally stumble upon a few tasty tracks well-off Billboard’s beaten path.

For instance, you might want to check out a few of my recent international adds… like the Japanese all girl group Hiku and their recent cover of “Kamukamo-Shikamo-Nidomokamo,” French-native miki and her playful pop pick of “ça pik un peu quand même,“ or Spain’s Pacifica with their solid Spanish single "Soltame!” All very tasty!

Today we are heading to South Korea -- not for the latest K-Pop release, but instead -- for what I have dubbed K-Rap.

Luci Gang is South Korean hip-hop artist Lee Eun-seon. I’ve discovered her stage name was inspired by Kendrick Lamar’s “To Pimp a Butterfly” album where “Lucifer” is personified as "Lucy.” She added "Gang" to her alter-ego simply because it sounded cool. (It does.)

Regarding her “HEADLOCK,” Luci provides a bouncy, effortless rap-artee. Her sharp flow of lyrics are layered perfectly over a house track which has definite Azealia Banks "212" vibes... (also in my playlist).

Because I have no idea what Luci is rapping about, I had to do a bit of translating. It turns-out her lyrics are aggressively whimsical and very playful with an overall theme of shutting-out the noise that surrounds you by putting a headlock on distracting thoughts before they start.

“Experience life in 4K/Keep your phone out of reach/It’s all just for a laugh, after all/So, why worry about things before they happen?”

My only negative is that "HEADLOCK" clocks-in at only two-minutes in length. So -- in the words of Selena Gomez -- "I keep hitting repeat-peat-peat-peat-peat-peat!"

Jerry's Picks: “Coffee Ritual” and “She Never Stops for Anyone”

“Coffee Ritual” and “She Never Stops for Anyone”-The Broken Radios

Exploding on social media over the past few weeks is a mysterious rock trio out of Britain known as The Broken Radios… a group which did not exist anywhere on-line last February. In fact – as of this posting – they have no Wikipedia page.

What’s especially incredible is that there have been a total of four The Broken Radios albums -- all released since last March -- each with around a dozen new tracks. The collections to look for are “The Sound of Almost,” “Frequency On the Ruin,” “Machine Fail, Dreams Remain” and their latest -- dropped just two-weeks ago -- “The Age Of Broken Wires.”

I’m highlighting the songs “She Never Stops for Anyone” and “Coffee Ritual,” but you should also check-out “High On Pressure,” “Fading Echoes” and “Shadows On the Wall…” all superb alt-rock recordings.

Each are exotic, mesmerizing, highly-captivating, perfectly produced bangers featuring in-the-pocket drums, soaring guitar riffs, perfect-pitch vocals… all with no frills.

When a new artist emerges on the pop music scene, you always try to find some band from the past with which you can draw parallels. The very first comparison to pop into my head was the 1976 release of Boston’s self-titled album. (Remember “More That a Feeling,” “Long Time” and “Smokin’?”) These recordings were carefully constructed over years by MIT grad Tom Scholz in his basement studio which became a multi-million selling surprise hit. I also hear echoes of King Crimson and Montrose.

Okay, here’s the dig. Because of their incredibly massive album release schedule and heavily filtered/digitally-generated artwork, some listeners have speculated about the band's mysterious background and the potential use of AI in their creation process. (Speaking of mystery, this also reminds me of the cryptic Klaatu album release, also from 1976.)

If there is an actual The Broken Radios entourage, the names listed are Jack Miller (guitar, piano, vocals), Tom Harris (drums), and Daniel Moore (bass).

Real or not, there ain’t nothin’ broken about this band!

Jerry's Pick: "The 6th Of January (Yasgur's Farm)"

 

The 6th Of January (Yasgur's Farm)-Amy Grant

Here’s a beautifully-sad yet haunting new song about some of those of the Woodstock generation who morphed into MAGA.

It's an Amy Grant recording titled "The 6th Of January (Yasgur's Farm)" which gently asks of this once idealistic crowd... "What the hell has happened to you?!"

Grant's new single opens with nostalgia for the hopeful spirit of the late 1960s -- referencing Marvin Gaye, the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., John Lennon, Woodstock -- and goes on to suggest the events of "the 6th of January" marked a symbolic break from the peace-and-love spirit of the '60s counterculture.

The song’s title referrers to that iconic music festival held on Max Yasgur's farmland near Woodstock, New York, and the date of January 6, 2021 when Donald Trump supporters staged a violent riot at the United States Capitol in an attempted self-coup.

In her single, Amy sings, "Where's the road to Yasgur′s Farm?"

But the reply is disappointing...

"He stares at me with pity and alarm/Says, 'That crowd left here long ago/Scattered all to Hell and Harpers Ferry/On the 6th of January'..."

"The 6th Of January (Yasgur's Farm)" was written by Sandy Emory Lawrence who is the mother-in-law of Jenny Gill, the daughter of Amy Grant’s husband and country music star Vince Gill. (Did you get all that?)

My favorite lyrical metaphor in Sandy’s song is the reference to hearing Muzak playing in a supermarket where she only hears the melody but not the important words to Lennon’s “Imagine.”

This track also emits lots of Joni Mitchell vibes, especially while Amy plays that odd-looking dulcimer-sounding strumstick.

As the ballad closes, Amy sums-up today’s political climate with the matter-of-fact words, “I look ahead and realize/We’ve lost out way…”