New hot incoming

Nectar Woode, Ryan Davis & the Roadhouse Band, Poliça, The Chef. The Boss & more

Nectar Woode - photo by Jelani Pomell

Hello and welcome back. Last week I caught a couple of hottt Phish shows here in Philly. First night they played a mind blowing 40 minute version of “Sand,” (for your listening enjoyment below). Night two had it’s highlights starting with the first set opener, “The Dogs,” “Fluffhead,” and “Simple.” I’m heading up to Forest Hills for more Phish jams this week, before heading out with the crew to Newport Folk Fest.

Here’s a quick round up of some (mostly) new things that've grabbed my attention and hopefully will yours, too.

Nectar Woode - “When The Rain Stops” - The South London based soul singer-songwriter Nectar Abena Nyantekyewaa Woode recently released a delicious EP, it’s like I never left. It’ll satisfy some of the same acousta-soul itches scratched by Des’ree in the mid-90s and Lianne La Havas in the twenty-tens. Straddling classic songwriterisms of the 70s with touches of Erykah and D’angelo R&B grooves, the six song collection is a refreshing dip in the pool of new soul.

Poliça - “Dreams Go” - The Minneapolis, Minnesota indietronica’s 6th lp is due in October, and the first taste of the album - the title track - is a groovy synthy head nodder and lead vocalist Channy Leaneagh sounds as great as ever. I was a freak for the band’s 2012 debut, with songs like “Dark Star,” and ‘Wandering Star,” and it’s wonderful to have them back.

Ryan Davis & The Roadhouse Band - First of all, I really wished RD & TRB were playing Newport Folk Festival this week. That said, Davis, who used to be in the Louvulle band State Champion has a new album, New Threats From The Soul (out this Friday 7/25). It’s big and beautiful, ragged, perfectly meandering, well crafted and executed. Whaddya call this? Americana? Indiefolk? WHF knows. It lives in a world where Morby, Waxahatchee, MJ, Wednesday, Townes Van Zandt co-exist in beautiful acousticana harmony. Thanks, Amanda, for turning me on to Ryan and his crew. I gotta see this live in a club real soon.

Alex G - “Far And Wide” - This is the masterpiece from his new album Headlights. It’s kind of his “Fountain of Sorrow.” Emphasis on “kind of.”

Raekwon - The Emperor’s New Clothes - We recently got a new Clipse…and now, a new record by The Chef. There’s plenty of golden age HH head nodding available on Raekwon’s first new lp since 2017. It’s tight. Features from Ghostface, Conway The Machine, Meth, Nas, Benny The Butcher and more, and production from Swizz Beatz, J.U.S.T.I.C.E League, Nottz, and others. While we wait for Cuban Linx 3, Emperor reminds us of his continued excellence in and influence on the game. Here’s one with Inspectah Deck and Carlton Fisk.

Bruce Springsteen - Twilight Hours - Based on play counts alone, The Boss’s Twilight Hours is by far my most played of the seven lps he recently released. Yeah, it’s his crooner lp. Beautifully written and played, it’s a perfect companion to Western Stars. On it, The Boss pulls from the Burt Bachrach/Hal David, Jimmy Webb, Glen Campbell playbook. These are also songs you could’ve heard Tom Waits sing in his earliest days - songs like “Sunday Love,” and “I’ll Stand By You.” The arrangements are exquisite, the strings gorgeously arranged. The major to minor key changes all come at the right times. The noir songwriting detail puts you right inside the streets he’s walking through late at night, especially “Lonely Town.”

Hannah Frances - “Falling From And Further” - Frances’s 2024 album, Keeper Of The Shepherd was one of my favorite lps of last year. This new song continues to showcase her singer-songwriter talents, and expands her mastery of the “tradition.”

Billy Joel: And So It Goes (Part 1) - There’s a scene in part one of the new (must see) Billy Joel documentary on HBO about the time in April, 1972 when Billy Joel did a live radio concert on the commercial rock station, WMMR, here in Philly. At the time, Joel was in legal limbo, and months before signing with Columbia Records. I was 14 y.o., in 9th grade, and ‘MMR was my rock station of choice. I remember hearing the show the night it was on, and he played a new song called “Captain Jack.” ‘MMR began to pound the live recording of it on the radio, which got the attention he needed, leading to his signing to Columbia. For years, it was bootlegged, until the entire show was released as a Legacy edition of Piano Man in 2011. It’s a legendary recording and was a pivotal moment of his career.

Wanna know what’s in my “new rotation?” Follow Damn, New Music 2025 here.

Thanks for reading.