As the nights draw in and autumnal colours begin to proliferate, you might be wanting to shake up what gets time on your turntable. September had plenty to offer, so read on for some old heads doing new things and a collection of reissues that range from Eighties pop, through Noughties alt-rock to Sixities jazz-harp. And there’s plenty more besides.
Freshly Pressed: After several understandably heavy albums, Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds return with ‘Wild God’, and their first in half a decade is notably more upbeat in its instrumentation. It’s a hugely engaging listen and is clearly Cave at his most uplifting in some time, perhaps since ‘Abattoir Blues / The Lyre Of Orpheus’ back in 2004. Opener ‘Song Of The Lake’ has a fulsome presence that clearly declares that the time for oomph has returned.
Originally considered as a possible album title, ‘Joy’ is a key track for the record, highlighting the intersection between the weight of grief and finding beauty in what remains. Double R Collective’s backing vocals are frequently stunning across the album, although they don’t quite have the space to extend out from and above the speakers. The actual title track is especially sweeping and energising, even if it reinforces some concerns about the mix that were are evident pretty much immediately thanks to the slightly shrill impact of the opener.
It’s clearly intentional, as it’s arguably even more noticeable on digital versions. The lacquer was cut by Joe Nin.