Sometimes yeah, we do need a distraction, but one that’s fulfilling and incredibly hypnotic. Enter: Aesop Rock with a surprise album in I Heard It’s A Mess There Too (Rhymesayers), just months removed from his last release Black Hole Superette. Man, Aes opens the new release with “Crystals and Herbs,” an extrospective look at the world, captured through the view of his own neighborhood. He doesn’t need much time to get into it, taking just a second over a minute and a half to get his point across. Yeah, the system’s rigged, and it’s a mess everywhere. By this point, we’ve all understood the assignment and got it right by answering yes, Aesop Rock is a master wordsmith, and here is no different. With an album full of catchy, subtle and bass-heavy grooves, Aes is able to carefully manage his words around his beats, his careful production where he includes sounds you might miss, like the high hat throughout “Opossum,” with just five keyboard tones/notes that propel the song itself. Well, while I Heard It’s A Mess There Too may come as a surprise, there aren’t any throwaway tracks. Everything throughout it is purposeful, and the album hits hard at every turn.

Initially, I think I was going to write the band off as just another generic outfit but Slug Boys, this quintet of Swedish, English, and Norwegians, just might be doing something interesting enough to prove my ass wrong. Slug Boys just released its Listen To Slug Boys.(Oslo Syndrome Records), its debut offering, and the band’s second track, “Dear Life,” should have probably been its first track, as it explodes on impact! The band’s raunchy guitars collide with the rhythm section and advance forward with entrancing melodies and clever yet unexpected harmonies. Fuck yes! And it continues throughout the rest of this fantastic release. But don’t take my word for it, throw it on and hit that random button. Trust the process. The band, which I know nothing about has a lead singer whose raspy delivery is reminiscent of Ff’s Tom Price, an obscure 90s band I’m mentioning for no reason (albums: Lady Shoe & We’re #1). And hot damn, the band’s “Why” is a quick with an itchy trigger finger and the band let’s us all know it can stop at the drop of a dime. But listening to the closing “The War,” you can feel the tension tightly wound, augmented by its sheer melodic thrust. It’s emotional and somewhat brooding although it doesn’t allow you to wallow in darkness. “For Love” though, this one is different, with its fuzzed-out bass and oddly captivating melody. For its debut, Slug Boys are fucking outstanding.

SPOKEN NERD & JUAN COSBY – FRUITS OF LEISURE

It’s been a couple of years since Spoken Nerd released Magical Powers (2023), and even longer since he and beatmaker Juan Cosby collaborated on Grapes (2021). The time seems to be right, and this dynamic duo has just released Fruits Of Leisure, which seems to pick up where Grapes left off, musically that is. But again, musically, there are slight changes, although it seems the release is recognizably “them.”

Upping your game is important within any job industry, and having the ability to write, record, perform, and release music is work unto itself. It’s a skill that constantly needs to be sharpened, and it seems both Nerd and Cosby are razor sharp. Cosby pulls ideas from the past on the opening “The Singular,” ideas fueled with a musical backdrop culled from aged film culture, or even nostalgic animated flicks. It’s the horn and wind play here, and it suits Spoken Nerd’s stylistic delivery. The Nerd proves to be a wordsmith but also has the ability to hit that melody on the chorus, and Cosby’s constructed sounds across this landscape include a harp? Did I hear that? I think so. They set the tone for the album as the duo slides across each trac,k but “Infamy To Infinite” is a musical crossroads which hints at Paul & John compositions. The maniacal Spoken Nerd is augmented by Dope Knife but it’s the keys and the beat that keeps my attention, although Nerd hits hard with the chorus, “This is infamy, to infinity / My cup is triple energy, like the holy trinity / we on this mountain top, but the slopes are slippery / can’t be falling off, what you do for misery!”

“Snakeskin Elvis,” I can’t help but see Nicholas Cage as protagonist here. I’m sure it has much to do with the opening sample here, with a beat wrapped in gloom. Nerd allows his words to reflect the sound: angry, disillusioned, but still grinding. “Pop Songs For Millionaires” is possibly exactly how you thought it would go; again, filled with disappointment, dark humor, and contradictions where Spoken Nerd says, “I wanted to be a millionaire but I’d rather write the music that won’t get you millionaires / I want to socialize with peers, I want to look into the mirror see someone who perseveres …” An honorable concept but I’d probably want to see more people like Nerd as a millionaire. There are pop songs here as well, like the hummable “Brains Over Fame” and “Shop,” but it’s “John Wick” that catches my attention. Here, he trades verses with Negro Justice & Darko The Super, probably a couple of emcees who are sorely underrated. Each has their own story to tell here and bring that motherfucking heat over Juan Cosby’s soulful jazziness. The horns, the harmonies between all three emcees, are all fitted together seamlessly, tied to one another perfectly. My favorite track off this joint. That’s not to dilute anything else here though, because “Watch The World Burn” – featuring  KidDead, AP Counterfeit, Phantom Farmer, Brandon Brains, and Adder – is catchy AF! Cosby’s bounce throughout the track just might put a smile on your face. He does have a distinctive sound that takes a different turn here. Cosby changes things even further with “I’m Gold,” which features Molly. across the odd rhythm. Everything is crisp, clear, and concise. I’ll make the comparison because I don’t give AF. She does sound like early Jean Grae, and I say that with the highest of compliments. Her inflections are on point, and hot damn, I’ll say it again: crisp, clear, and concise. The album’s airy closing “Leisure Days” is spacey and musically atmospheric, and the Nerd takes full advantage, wrapping his words around and across its rhythm. It almost seems as if there isn’t a chorus as the song finds its own way drifting along but Cosby builds around it as it finally comes to a close.

Sonically, Fruits Of Leisure hits hard every step of the way while Spoken Nerd paints his words across the canopy of sound. Both artists have matured from one release to the next, and it shows with this stunning release.

GUIDED BY VOICES – THICK RICH AND DELICIOUS

Does anyone else tire of those aging & pretentious rockers who no longer have any reason to release material, aside from being new geriatric fathers? Come on, I know you were thinking it. Well, if you are, just turn around and grab any Guided By Voices album because let’s be honest, Robert Pollard and company have always been something different. While others are in their 70s and 80s having kids, at 67, Pollard continues to write and record heavy-hitting tracks that’ll never get old. Almost a decade in, Guided By Voices has continued with the same lineup of guitarists Doug Gillard & Bobby Bare Jr., bassist Mark Shue, and Kevin March, along with Pollard himself.

The band has continued creating catchy rock songs that never fail. Thick Rich And Delicious (GBV Inc. Records) is exactly what you would expect, as its title describes, with each song filled with thick & rich guitar chords and catchy rhythms. It’s something you’re able to sink your teeth into with an abundance of flavor. This is actually the band’s 2nd release this year, coming of the heels of Universe Room, back in February, and the group’s 42nd  release in its career. Nothing is lost. I begin with “(You Can’t Go Back To) Oxford Talawanda,” which is a hard rock pop track that’s perfect in every sense of the word, as guitars clash and crunch with Kevin March’s steady pummeling and of course Pollard’s edgy vocal delivery. When he hits the chorus, you’ll be intrigued, singing along without knowing where the hell Oxford Talawanda is, which I found is a city in Ohio. Of course it is; Pollard is from Ohio in case you were unaware. “Mother John” is over the top, although slow-moving and there’s so much to take in from the song itself. Guitars linger all around, while Pollard seems to lead the track itself with his voice. The harmonies are in fact delicious and succulent. It’s beautifully performed.

A wide array of charming song structures can be found throughout the album, including “A Tribute To Beatle Bob,” which barely leaves enough room to catch your breath, and Mark Shue’s presence is prominent here. But that doesn’t mean guitars don’t clatter around because they do, clinging along the songs edges. It’s on “Captain Kangaroo Won The War” where we see the true genius of the band, a minute in and all we have is Pollard’s voice and overdriven guitars before the rest of the band breaks in. It could have gone either way and STILL remained enticing. Again, genius!

What else can we offer that hasn’t already been said about Guided By Voices? The band is relentless in creating pop gems disguised as hard rockers. It’s no different here on Thick Rich And Delicious which is nothing short of perfection.