I Dropped Everything For These Three Fantastic New Albums (ZAN! #9)
they are so good I am not even joking right now
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24 hours ago, I had a plan for today’s newsletter. And it was a GREAT plan at that. But little did I know that everything would change.
Here’s the short version. Two albums that I had been eagerly anticipating finally dropped, and OH BOY. They were so good that I just couldn’t hold off talking about them.
So in a frenzy of excitement (see above photo) I decided to push all my non-music recommendations to next week.
(Also, I realize that this means I’m on week two of all-music recommendations. I promise I’ll shake things up in next week’s edition!)
Because these three albums are really quite different, here’s my official suggestion. Listen to the first track of each one — they are all very representative of the remainder of the album — and then proceed accordingly with your favorites.
(Or just listen to them all, because that’s what I did. Multiple times. With great joy.)
🎵 Ta-Ku - Songs to Come Home To
Make no mistake: Ta-Ku’s debut full-length album is nothing short of a triumph.
With strong roots in instrumental hip-hop and R&B, Australian-born Filipino/Māori producer Ta-Ku (Regan Mathews) has been a Soundcloud mainstay for over a decade. In Songs, his signature production style takes on a welcome new form, bridging classic hip-hop and lo-fi sounds with a modern richness and energy.
Songs also boasts a world-class roster in genre-bending collaborations, featuring both industry veterans and relative newcomers. The track HARD2SAY, which includes 1300 (a Korean-Australian rap collective) and Sango (an American DJ and producer), struck me upon first listen as being “unreasonably cool.”
While the final bonus cover feels odd — something that would’ve been more appropriate as a single — Songs is still a long-awaited homecoming that I’ll be looping over and over.
🎵 Cory Wong - The Lucky One
The Lucky One is a jubilant new album by Cory Wong, a renowned producer/guitarist with a shockingly impressive discography. With a style that bridges funk with jazz, pop, rock, and big brass band energy, Wong’s album is truly an exuberant celebration of sound.
While I’ll confess that on other albums, I sometimes gloss over the instrumental-only songs, Wong’s ear for production and guitar-playing prowess makes songs like “Separado” absolutely un-skippable.
As Wong is mixed Chinese-American, I can’t help but wonder if “Acceptance” includes a nod to his heritage. At around 2:25, Wong manipulates his electric guitar to make it sound (to my ear) like an erhu, a two-stringed Chinese instrument. Give it a listen and let me know what you think!
🎵 Public Library Commute - Close to the Sun
While Ta-Ku and Cory Wong have been in the music game for quite a while, Public Library Commute (aka Conrad Hsiang) is a newer and decidedly welcome addition to the scene.
A New Jersey native, Close to the Sun evokes the summer-y, indie pop vibes of Los Angeles, where Hsiang is now based. His warm and atmospheric sound — which occasionally veers into R&B and even folk — is a strong addition to the Gen Z-led “bedroom pop” genre.
The album consists of some songs that have already been released as singles (such as Coyotes, which I featured in last week’s roundup), along with some newer additions (“Rush” is one of my favorites). Give PLC some love by listening below!
🙇🏻♀️ Now, it’s your turn!
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Until next time,
Rebecca
immediately had to check out cory wong’s acceptance track! so cool to hear him solo more as so much of his signature guitar style is his funk rhythm chops. i think your erhu comparison is correct because i remember a guitar interview he did with sweetwater where he said he grew up listening to alot of chinese music since his dad/grandmother had it playing, so he can’t help but phrase guitar licks in that vein sometimes. thank you for all these great recs, now i have so much new music i have to checkout this weekend haha! as a jersey baby, i’m already digging public library commute
the first track of "The Lucky One" is an absolute bop. so incredibly funky.