It won’t surprise you that on her latest record, multi-instrumentalist and producer Megan Coleman — who’s best known as a first-call drummer — came up with inventive beats that are going to move you if you have a pulse. But the insightful songs, sophisticated arrangements and deep, elegant vocals put me in mind of legends like Grace Jones in ways I didn’t expect and am knocked out by. The overall theme is that keeping mainstream culture at arm’s length can be a good way to avoid its more toxic tendencies. That’s front and center on “Juxtaposed,” which features awesome Prince-esque guitar licks from Ping Rose and asks, “Is it our only goal to become one of the ‘haves’ and leave the ‘have-nots’ in the dust?”
