Adam’s Music Choices

Red Hot Chili Peppers – Unlimited Love Brand new, came out today (1 April 2022). First RHCP album since their most well-known and well-loved guitarist, John Frusciante, returned after a two-album hiatus. I’m still listening to it the first time, but enjoying so far.

Eddie Vedder – Earthling Solo album from Pearl Jam’s lead singer. I absolutely love this (full disclosure: I’m a huge fan.) It also features guest appearances by Elton John, Stevie Wonder, and others.

Alt-J – The Dream If you like Alt-J, you’ll like this. Nothing out of the ordinary for them, but a solid release.

Brandon Boyd – Echoes & Cocoons Solo effort from Incubus’s frontman. Something a little different from him, but I very much enjoyed the songs on here.

Yard Act – The Overload Here’s where we get a little more out there. This is a very new band from the UK. It’s good, but it’s definitely not for everyone. If you like artists like ‘The Streets, you might like this.

IDLES – Crawler In a similar vein to Yard Act, but far more aggressive, and much closer to punk. This is one of the most exciting rock bands to emerge in recent years, but again, not for everyone. It’s one of the only artists my wife makes me skip every time one of their songs comes up. If you only listen to one song, ‘Car Crash’ has one of the best recorded drum sounds I’ve heard in years.

Viagra Boys – Welfare Jazz Probably the worst band name ever, but a really excellent album. Genre-wise it’s all over the place, and is an interesting listen even if they’re not for you.

Danny Elfman – Big Mess You might know Danny Elfman from his soundtrack work on many of Tim Burton’s films. Or from writing The Simpsons theme. This is, if I’m not mistaken, his first solo rock album. It’s weird, it’s punk, it’s very raw and personal, and it’s musically brilliant. Again though, maybe not for everybody.

Dream Widow – Dream Widow This is a straight up metal album, but with a twist that, even if you don’t like the genre, makes it worth a listen as a curiosity. It’s made by Dave Grohl, of Foo Fighters fame. He’s always been a fan of metal, and occasionally he’ll drop a little project like this, where he gets to just do his thing. The metal community, generally not big fans of stadium rock stars, and notoriously difficult to please, has mostly been loving this, which tells you something. The album is a companion piece of sorts to the horror/comedy film ‘Studio 666’.