This is the sixth edition of the The Barn’s These Are My Jams series. To see what this is all about, check out Volume One and for more jams, check out Volume Two, Volume Three, Volume Four, and Volume Five.
1. I've parsed it every which way, and this song title, "Megachills" sounds alternately cool or douchey, but there's no doubt that the song itself is both tuneful and profound under a layer of sonic haze that takes you to another place. Nice work, Futurebirds.
2. Sometimes you gotta listen to something heavy and full figured rock is just the way to go. I am captivated by the huge riffs and soulful vocals of The London Souls' "The Sound". Check out the women featured in this video --these guys are trying like hell, and from what I hear see they are well positioned, to the bring big, bold beautiful rock sound (and lifestyle) back into fashion. I'll be keeping an eye out for them as they open shows from Tedeschi Trucks Band and Black Crowes this summer.
3. I wish more shit like this would go down in Chicago. When Soulive sets up for their annual Bowlive residency at Brooklyn Bowl each March, they have a great opportunity to bring all sorts of guests to add diversity to the proceedings. Here's an a jam that goes way out there, thanks to David Hidalgo who leads the band couple of Los Lobos staples, the Dead's "West L.A. Fadeaway" and the mexi-punk "Revolution", with Marco Benevento contributing some incredible keys work.
4. Unsure if whether our ears are more open to it, or if their is a true psychedelic music movement these days. Either way, I'm happy to be turned on to Holydrug Couple. Their tune "Follow Your Way" is typical of their spacey / melodic hybrid.
5. Swampy, urban horn-driven funk rock -- you can get your feet stuck plowing through music as thick as Monophonics' "Goliath". Warning: although the youtube track clocks in at over 12 minutes, the five minute tune is followed by silence. As one commenter points out, that's seven minutes to contemplate what you've just listened to.
6. You probably won't hear much that sounds like Toubab Krewe. In a daring mixture of southern and NOLA musical forms with African sensibility and instrumentation, "Sirens" is a fascinating listen and extremely unique.
