2010s 335 Items

Dark Entries celebrates its 15th anniversary with legendary synth-punk deviants Crash Course in Science. Dale Feliciello, Mallory Yago, and Michael Zodorozny formed Ccis in 1979 after meeting at art school in Philadelphia. As a gesture born of equal parts punk irreverence and brute necessity, the band incorporated toy instruments and kitchen appliances into their aggressive, angular sound. Their anthems “Cardboard Lamb” and “Flying Turns” from 1981’s Signals From Pier Thirteen EP have been staples in adventurous DJ sets for over 40 years - yet some of their finest work is to be found on Near Marineland, a full-length LP recorded in 1981 but remained unreleased in its time. Near Marineland shows the band moving into more diverse and polished territory (although it’s still as abrasive as sandpaper). Tracks like “No More Hollow Doors” and “Jump Over Barrels” highlight Ccis’s singular knack for embedding infectiously monotone hooks in their stiff-yet-funky grooves. Elsewhere we see Ccis going fully unhinged, like on the searing “Someone Reads” or the demented “Pompeii Spared”, where a spray of honks is barely glued together by a frantic synthetic pulse. While this masterwork of malfunctioning analog electronics has surfaced on a few occasions - this first time stand alone remaster includes four never-before-released bonus tracks and includes a lyric sheet. Near Marineland is crucial listening for all devotees of synth-punk and minimal electronics.

“Talk That Talk” is the sixth studio album by Barbadian singer Rihanna, released on November 2011, by Def Jam Recordings and SRP Records. It was recorded while traveling for the “Loud” Tour between February and November 2011, and was originally planned to be a reissue of her previous studio album “Loud” (2010). As executive producer, Rihanna enlisted a wide range of producers including Alex da Kid, Mr. Bangladesh, Calvin Harris, Chase & Status, Cirkut, Da Internz, Dr. Luke, Ester Dean, Gareth McGrillen, Hit-Boy, No I.D., Priscilla Renea, Rob Swire, StarGate, The-Dream. Following in the same vein as “Loud”, “Talk That Talk” is a dance-oriented pop/R&B crossover album that incorporates elements of hip hop, dubstep, electronic and house music. The album also continues to have subtle dancehall genres, whilst its lyrical content and themes revolve around a nihilist, romantic and lascivious lover.

“Talk That Talk” received generally positive reviews from music critics, and debuted at number three on the US Billboard 200. As of June 2015, the album has sold 1.15 million copies in the United States.

2019 release from renowned mezzo-soprano Joyce DiDonato. Songplay is sure to delight not only listeners of opera, but listeners of jazz and tango as well. The album brings together musicians from numerous genres, hand-picked by DiDonato in a band led by pianist and arranger Craig Terry. Among them are bassist Chuck Isreals, drummer Jimmy Madison, Lautaro Greco on the bandoneon, and trumpeter Charlie Porter. Joyce DiDonato greets you with a song in her heart and twinkle in her eye. The American mezzo-soprano's album Songplay unites world-class musicians from the varied worlds of opera, jazz and tango in the pure pleasure of improvisation, experimentation and exchange. Together they create their own musical language, surprising listeners with timeless melodies transformed and universal stories retold over centuries; songs in English, in Italian and - naturally - in the universal language of music. On Songplay, along with her hand-picked band led by pianist and arranger Craig Terry, Joyce draws inspiration from Cavalli and Chet Baker in equal measure. The languishing heart in Giordani's Caro mio ben is as emotionally charged as Jerry Bock's hopeful Will he like me?. Perhaps the most compelling reminder of how the music of Songplay breaks down divides is from DiDonato's experience leading vocal and composition workshops in the New York prison Sing Sing, where one of the men who is incarcerated was particularly moved upon hearing her rendition of Caro mio ben: 'I feel like I've known this song my whole life.'