This week, WTSR assistant music director Nelson Kelly highlights some of the best new albums that the College’s own radio station, 91.3 FM WTSR, puts into its weekly rotation.
Band Name: Marco Benevento
Album Name: “The Story of Fred Short”
Hailing From: Woodstock, N.Y.
Genre: Indie pop
Label: Royal Potato Family
Backed by session players like Dave Dreiwitz from Ween on bass and Andy Borger from Tom Waits & Norah Jones on drums, it is no wonder that Benevento has put together such an excellent, dancey, interesting album. His songs are extremely heartfelt while still maintaining the catchiness and danceability that makes for great indie pop. Punctuated with keyboard samples and Casio drum machine rhythms (stacked on top of Borger’s steady drumming), the songs on “The Story of Fred Short” provide for an entertaining and captivating listening experience. Interestingly enough, this is the first time Benevento plays guitar on one of his albums and only the second time he’s sang on his own album, which makes these tunes even more impressive since he does a great job at both.
Must Hear: “In the Afternoon Tomorrow,” “Dropkick,” “All Other Dreams” and “Heavy Metal Floating Upstream”
Band Name: The Bones of J.R. Jones
Album Name: “Spirit’s Furnace”
Hailing From: Brooklyn, N.Y.
Genre: Indie folk
Label: Self-released
Jonathon Linaberry, better known as The Bones of J.R. Jones, is back after 2014’s debut album, “Dark was the Yearling.” “Spirit’s Furnace” combines all the mellow chill of indie folk with the thumpin’ heaviness of blues rock. This eclectic collection of folk jams is quite indicative of the recording process, as Linaberry traveled across the country to California where he crashed at friends’ houses and recorded in several studios throughout the state. These raw, salt-of-the-earth tunes are sure to have you blowin’ into a jug or playing xylophone on the ribs of a malnourished cat in no time.
Must Hear: “The Heat,” “Hammers and Nails,” “Bless Your Soul” and “Dry Dirt”
