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Electricity (Africa)
Electricity is the fourth and most progressive album from Ibibio Sound Machine, and like all good Afrofuturist stories, it begins with an existential crisis. "It's darker than anything we've done previously," says Eno Williams, the group's singer. "That's because it grew out of the turbulence of the past year. It inhabits an edgier world." Electricity was produced by the Grammy Award- and Mercury Prize-nominated British synthpop group Hot Chip, a collaboration born out of mutual admiration watching each other on festival stages, as well as a shared love of Francis Bebey and Giorgio Moroder. The fruits of their labor reveal a gleaming, supercharged, Afrofuturist blinder. Electricity is the first album Ibibio Sound Machine have made with external producers since the group's formation in London in 2013 by Williams and saxophonist Max Grunhard. True, 2017's Uyai featured mixdown guests including Dan Leavers, aka Danalogue, the keyboard jedi in future-jazz trio The Comet Is Coming, but Hot Chip and Ibibio Sound Machine worked together more deeply throughout the process, collaborating fully. Along the way, the team conjured a kaleidoscope of delights that include resonances of Jonzun Crew, Grace Jones, William Onyeabor, Tom Tom Club, Kae Tempest, Keith LeBlanc, The J.B.'s, Jon Hassell's "Fourth World," and Bootsy Collins.
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Good to be. . . (Blues)
Written partially in Nashville and partially in the Compton house Keb’ grew up in, Good To Be… weaves together past and present into a heartwarming tapestry spanning more than forty years of sonic evolution. Joined by a variety of collaborators, including country legend Vince Gill, famed producer Tom Hambridge (B.B. King, Buddy Guy), Darius Rucker, Kristin Chenoweth, and Old Crow Medicine Show, Good To Be…is a deeply cohesive and optimistic collection of music about appreciating what you’ve got, where you come from, and who you get to share it with.
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You Are Magic (Childrens)
Through the fifteen lighthearted yet layered songs on their debut album, the duo of July Mees(age nine) and her dad Jared Mees, collectively known as Triple Rainbow, explore both the silly and sensitive sides of childhood. Jared also makes music with Jared Mees and The Grown Children and is the co-founder of the beloved Pacific NoerthWest record label.
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Stella: Renaissance Gems And Their Reflections: Vol. 3 (Choral)
Spanish composers of the sixteenth century followed a long tradition of writing music in honor of the Virgin Mary. The composer Tomás Luis de Victoria, a priest and a scholar too, wrote multiple settings of devotion to Mary of which this collection showcases some real gems. The album sees Ora Singers continue their series of great renaissance masterworks being reflected by some of the finest choral composers of our present day, all of whom respond in their own unique way to these extraordinary Marian texts.
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J.S. Bach: The Well-Tempered Clavier II (Classical)
As founder and former leader of The English Concert, Trevor Pinnock enjoys a longstanding relationship with Archiv Produktion and Deutsche Grammophon. Following the enthusiastic reception of Book 1, Trevor Pinnock continues to explore the summit of Bach's intellectual and contrapuntal mastery.
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Paint this town (Country)
Old Crow Medicine Show offers a riveting glimpse into American mythology and the wildly colorful characters who populate it. The album pays homage to everyone from Elvis Presley to Eudora Welty while shedding a bright light on the darker aspects of the country's legacy. Fueled by Old Crow's freewheeling collision of Americana, old-time music, folk, and rock & roll, it turns razor-sharp commentary into rapturous sing-alongs.
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Follow Your Heart (Folk)
Michael Franti has long been revered for his inspiring music, worldwide philanthropic efforts and the power of optimism. Deemed by NPR as “equal parts musician and activist,” Franti continues to offer opportunities for gratitude, solidarity and celebrating how we get through the greatest ups and downs of our lives with our body, mind and soul still in one piece with his upcoming 12th studio album Follow Your Heart, set for release June 3 via Thirty Tigers. You can pre-order the album today from your local record store. The CD will be available on June 3, and Vinyl will be available August 12.
“One thing I learned these last couple of years is that people need people,” shares Franti. “I wrote many songs about connection, resilience and finding the light, even in the midst of all the crazy. Somewhere in there we find resilience, and I hope Follow Your Heart gives fans the courage to continue looking for and holding onto that perseverance.”
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Vulture Prince (Indic/Bollywood)
On the deluxe edition of her breakthrough album, Arooj Aftab's remarkable voice, backed by a team of renowned musicians, transports listeners to worlds once known. Intimate compositions unveil mystical passage into Aftab's emotionally gripping symphonic world - vast with colorful sounds and transcendent of genre.
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Bells On Sand (Jazz)
Pianist and composer Gerald Clayton explores the impact and abstraction of time on his ravishing second Blue Note album, Bells on Sand. Featuring contributions from mentor Charles Lloyd on sax, his father John Clayton on bass, longtime friend and peer Justin Brown on drums, and new collaborator MARO on vocals. Includes new original pieces by Catalan composer Federico Mompou, his uncle Jeff Clayton, and 2 stunning solo piano versions of the standard "My Ideal."
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Un Verano Sin Ti (Latin)
Un Verano Sin Ti is the fourth solo studio album, and fifth overall, by Puerto Rican rapper and singer Bad Bunny. Comprised of 23 tracks, the album is primarily a reggaeton, cumbia and indie pop record, and contains guest appearances from Chencho Corleone, Jhay Cortez, Tony Dize, Rauw Alejandro, Bomba Estéreo, the Marías and Buscabulla.
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Turning Year (New Age)
Following the success of Mixing Colours - the 2020 duo release with his brother Brian Eno - Roger Eno returns for his solo debut on the Yellow Label. This time focusing solely on his own compositions, Eno presents a lush collection of lyrical pieces both old and new. "I thought about how our years comprise of moments, days, and the changing months. Of how we live our lives in facets, how we catch fleeting glimpses, how we walk through our lives, how we notice the turning year." - Roger Eno.
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Mozart X 3 (Opera)
Elsa Dreisig credits Mozart with being the composer who first inspired her to become a professional singer. Now the French-Danish soprano pays him tribute with an album devoted entirely to arias from his operas. It's title, Mozart x3, reflects a programme constructed around the three masterpieces composed to libretti written by Lorenzo Da Ponte: Le nozze di Figaro, Don Giovanni, and Così fan tutte. Elsa Dreisig sings arias allocated to three different characters in each of these operas. The total of nine 'Da Ponte arias' is complemented by three arias from examples of the dignified genre opera seria: La clemenza di Tito, Idomeneo and Lucio Silla. Accompanying Elsa Dreisig is the Kammerorchester Basel, conducted by Louis Langrée, now director of Paris's celebrated Opéra-Comique.
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Beethoven: Diabelli Variations (Piano)
Revered pianist Mitsuko Uchida presents a brand new recording of this Everest of the piano repertoire. This long-awaited, much-anticipated cornerstone of her discography was recorded at Snape Maltings, one of the world's great concert halls with which Mitsuko feels a close affinity.
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Fever Dreams (Pop/Rock)
In the wake of his time leading The Healers, Marr’s solo career has given rise to three UK Top Ten albums - The Messenger (2013), Playland (2014) and 2018’s Call The Comet. He now returns with his most expansive work to date, Fever Dreams Pts 1-4. It was created during the long, uncertain period that followed the arrival of the UK’s first lockdown, when his focus was pushed into both his interior life, and evoking the emotional states of others. “It’s an inspired record, and I couldn’t wait to get in and record every day,” he says. “But I had to go inwards.”
The new album reflects his multi-faceted past, but takes his music somewhere startlingly new. “There’s a set of influences and a very broad sound that I’ve been developing - really since getting out of The Smiths,” he says. “And I hear it in this record. There are so many strands of music in it. I think it’s the most ambitious solo record I’ve done.”
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Gold Experience (R&B)
The Gold Experience was the first full-length Prince album to be credited to his unpronounceable symbol and was released at the most public, heated stage of his battle with the major label industrial complex. With the word “SLAVE” written on one cheek, Prince shined on the opulent ballads “The Most Beautiful Girl in the World” and “Gold” and the defiant single “Eye Hate U,” and the album earned widespread critical acclaim.
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Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers (Rap/Hip-Hop)
Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers is the fifth studio album by American rapper Kendrick Lamar, released on May 13, 2022, by PGLang, Top Dawg Entertainment (TDE), Aftermath Entertainment, and Interscope Records. The double album is Lamar's first studio album release since Damn (2017), his first album release under his creative collective PGLang, and his final project with TDE; of which he released four albums under the label and was one of their flagship artists.
The album features narration by Whitney Alford and Eckhart Tolle, and guest appearances from Blxst, Amanda Reifer, Sampha, Taylour Paige, Summer Walker, Ghostface Killah, Baby Keem, Kodak Black, Sam Dew, Tanna Leone, and Beth Gibbons of Portishead. Lamar, who executive produced the album under the pseudonym Oklama, reunited with frequent collaborators Sounwave, J. Lbs, DJ Dahi, and Bekon for the majority of the album's production.
Upon release, Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers was met with widespread acclaim from critics, who praised Lamar's lyricism and the album's scope, although a few found it inconsistent. The album has so far spawned three singles: "N95", "Silent Hill", and "Die Hard". It debuted at number one on the US Billboard 200, becoming Lamar's fourth US number-one album.
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DuBMASTER: The Essential Anthology (Reggae)
Since making his recording debut in the early Seventies with legendary British reggae band, Matumbi, Dennis ‘Blackbeard’ Bovell has repeatedly demonstrated his supreme talent and versatility in a variety of music fields. And yet enormity of his impact upon the UK’s music scene over the past five decades has remained largely overlooked. ‘The DuBMASTER – The Essential Anthology’ sets to finally address this injustice by presenting the first serious retrospective of Dennis’s output as both a performer and producer. Charting his career from the Seventies up to the present day, this handsomely packaged double CD album presents 38 of his most celebrated reggae works - including Janet Kay’s seminal lovers rock classic, ‘Silly Games’ – as well as rarities and previously unissued treasures from the vaults. Compiled by the artist himself, the collection is further enhanced by Dennis’s fascinating account of his life in the music business over the past half century, with his words enriched by rare photos.
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What Are We Waiting For? (Religious)
For King & Country is one of the music industry's most respected and decorated duos. Brothers Joel and Luke Smallbone have won four GRAMMY Awards, seven GMA Dove Awards, a Billboard Music Award, 13 K-LOVE Fan Awards, and their nine No. 1 songs have produced an astonishing accumulation of over one billion on-demand streams. The RIAA Platinum-selling act's live show has been hailed as a must-see concert event that continues to wow sold-out crowds whether in the U.S.A, Australia, Germany, Netherlands, or New Zealand. For King & Country'S most recent album, the RIAA Gold certified Burn The Ships debuted in the Top 10 of the Billboard Top 200 Album Chart and has since propelled the duo to five consecutive No. 1 songs including "joy.," "TOGETHER (feat. Kirk Franklin & Tori Kelly)," and the 11-week platinum smash "God Only Knows." The global hitmakers have collaborated with a diverse list of artists including the legendary Dolly Parton, NEEDTOBREATHE, and Timbaland, amongst others. Joel and Luke Smallbone are committed to numerous philanthropic efforts focused on human trafficking, children in need, as well as numerous programs in support of the arts.
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MJ the Musical (Soundtrack)
He is one of the greatest entertainers of all time. Now, Michael Jackson’s unique and unparalleled artistry has finally come to Broadway in a brand-new musical. Centered around the making of his 1992 Dangerous World Tour and created by Tony Award®-winning Director/Choreographer Christopher Wheeldon and two-time Pulitzer Prize winner Lynn Nottage, MJ goes beyond the singular moves and signature sound of the star, offering a rare look at the creative mind and collaborative spirit that catapulted Jackson into legendary status. The Original Broadway Cast Recording features all of your favorite songs from the Broadway production, including “Beat It,” “Billie Jean,” “Bad” and “Smooth Criminal.”
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Mercer County Library System
2751 Brunswick Pike Lawrenceville, New Jersey 08648 609-882-9246
https://mcl.org
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