Jo Carley And The Old Dry Skulls: Boneyard Rituals

English old school vaudeville blues trio Jo Carley And The Old Dry Skulls are branching out soundwise on their new album Boneyard Rituals. Stephane Spitz came on board to play saxophone on about half of the tracks and there is also an on point instrumental, The Dread, that deserves to be used for a late night horror show on TV. Core members Jo Carley and Tim Carley have been at it since 2014, always looking for new ways to play music that sounds as old as the hills.

Lucky for them there is always an audience for upbeat tongue-in-cheek songs about the devil, the full moon, the walking dead and black magic. Shuddering a bit while being fully aware that nothing of it is real feels nice. Who wouldn't want the opportunity to get his or her life in order by summoning an entity that can grant that wish?

Gary Calamar: Odd Numb3rs And Slanted Rhymes

Los Angeles-based singer-songwriter Gary Calamar's album Odd Numb3rs And Slanted Rhymes is the kind of record that could turn up after a house was razed to the ground to make way for something new and ugly. His love for gentle melodies is both timeless and seriously out of step with is fashionable right now, but make no mistake: his lyrics will raise some eyebrows in stuck-up households who will cry wolf when they are being exposed to "Well, you can meditate while I masturbate. We'll see who finishes first". Music geeks will have field day collecting all the references he sneaked into songs.

Calamar's mix of power pop and psychedelica plus his way with words make Odd Numb3rs And Slanted Rhymes an album made by a fan of music for fans of music, provided they have a sense of humour. And as a respected music supervisor for TV he could get hold of Robyn Hitchcock, Maria Taylor and Mark Mothersbaugh who all said yes to his request to supply some backing vocals. The songs are easy on the ears for sure, but only careful listening will unveil all the layers of this tapestry of sounds and lyrical wit. He is a lovable smart ass, the kind of guy that who can derail a polite conversation with an off-the-cuff remark that people can't help laughing about.

Marc Soucy: Rebellion And Seduction

Boston-based composer and producer Marc Soucy kicks off his instrumental Rebellion And Seduction with a big and loud piece of classic rock, albeit without using actual guitars, before bringing in jazz as part of the equation. It gets dark and dystopian in a '70s sci-fi kind of way, with short keyboard jabs acting as shooting stars.

Anton Barbeau: "Come Home To Me" video

Watch the new Anton Barbeau video for Come Home To Me, the title track from his latest album: "He and his musicians leave a trail of musical nuggets, some quite obvious, others hiding in plain sight, and the Easter eggs only showing themselves to those with undivided attention and an above average attention span."

» antonbarbeau.com

HCTF review of Come Home To Me

TK: Light & Dark

South Korean composer and pianist Taehyung Kim, who releases music as TK, offers two sides of the coin on his double A-side single Light & Dark, two subdued neo-classical pieces that use carefully applied samples of strings.

His gentle touch sits well within the Romantic tradition, with more contempary flourishes lift it from the safety (and constraints) of New Age. Recommended if you like Zbigniew Preisner.