OUT THIS WEEK
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Shawn Colvin & Steve Earle, “Colvin & Earle” (Fantasy). Only half of this is local, as Colvin has called Austin home since the mid-’90s, but Earle was born and raised near San Antonio before departing for Nashville and then New York. Working with renowned producer Buddy Miller, they find common ground in old sounds on tracks both old and new. The six original co-writes sound like neither artist’s typical solo work, but rather about what you might expect if you combined their respective aesthetics, with elements of both rough rambling and lyrical introspection. Elsewhere, they get bluesy on John D. Loudermilk’s “Tobacco Road” and turn the Rolling Stones’ “Ruby Tuesday” into twisted-roots chamber folk, while Ian & Sylvia’s 1960s folk-pop standard “You Were on My Mind” proves a perfect fit for their vocal blend. The duo is touring the nation all summer; no Texas shows are currently on the books, though more dates are due to be announced. Here’s the track “You’re Right (I’m Wrong)”:
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Charlie Faye & the Fayettes, self-titled. Faye’s previous records leaned toward sophisticated folk-pop, but this time she teamed with fellow Austin singers Betty Soo and Akina Adderley to revisit the girl-group heyday of the 1960s. Recorded in Los Angeles with noted producer/engineer Dave Way, the disc features an ace backing band that includes longtime Elvis Costello drummer Pete Thomas, Jellyfish keyboardist Roger Manning and X/Lone Justice guitarist Tony Gilkyson, along with her husband Eric Holden on a variety of instruments. All 11 tracks, which Faye either wrote or co-wrote, go down smooth, from the upbeat opener “Green Light” to the slightly jazzy “Carelessly” to the horn-section-spiked strutter “Eastside.” Lyrically, most of this is pretty light fare, but it’s intended that way; the focus is on the sweet soul of the sound, and the words fit comfortably into these bright grooves. Release show 5 p.m. Friday, June 10, at Continental Gallery with Michael Fracasso, whose new “Here Come the Savages” we covered upon its initial release in April. Here’s the video for Charlie Faye & the Fayettes’ “Sweet Little Messages”:
Kaleo, “A/B” (Atlantic). The Iceland band that relocated to Austin last year hasn’t really made its presence known here, and has no local shows on the horizon, but “A/B” marks their full-length debut for major-label Atlantic. Largely a wider release of material they issued on self-released record before they moved to the States, the record includes the song that first earned them international attention, the acoustic ballad “All the Pretty Girls,” appears here, as well as “Vor I Vaglaskogi,” an older Icelandic tune sung in their native language. They also get much heavier on the opening track “No Good,” while the dramatic “Way Down We Go” got them some TV-show placements last fall. Here’s the official video for that song:
COMING SOON
JUNE 18: Ricky Stein, “Long Summer,” release show June 18 at Blackheart.
JUNE 24: Jack Ingram, “Midnight Motel” (Rounder), playing July 22 at Nutty Brown Amphitheater.
JUNE 24: My Jerusalem, “A Little Death” (Washington Square), release show June 25 at 3Ten.
JUNE 24: Hard Proof, “Public Hi-Fi Sessions 03” EP, playin June 24 at Central Market North.
JUNE: Carl Sagan’s Skate Shoes, self-titled (Super Secret), playing June 28 at Beerland.
JULY 2: Watters, “The Great Unknown,” release show July 2 at the Parish.
JULY 8: Quin Galavis, “My Life in Steel and Concrete” (Super Secret).
JULY 8: Jane Ellen Bryant, “Twenties” EP, release show July 8 at Lamberts.
JULY 15: Nightowls, “Royal Sessions” EP, release show July 15 at Scoot Inn.
AUG. 26: Wildfires, “Aguas Frescas (Part II)” EP.
SEPTEMBER: Band of Heathens, title TBA.
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