The days are getting longer and the spring touring season looms, but don’t forget about records — Nashvillians just don’t stop making ones you’ll want to know better. The Scene’s music writers have eight new recommendations for you, including a few intriguing singles. Add ’em to your streaming queue or pick them up from your favorite record store. Several of our picks are also available to buy directly from the artists on Bandcamp. After this issue went to press, an installment of the Bandcamp Friday promotion — in which the platform waives its cut of sales for a 24-hour period — was announced for March 1.
R.A.P. Ferreira and Fumitake Tamura, The First Fist to Make Contact When We Dap (Ruby Yacht/Alpha Pup)
R.A.P. Ferreira travels often, but he went more than 6,000 miles to Tokyo to meet producer Fumitake Tamura. That journey lit the spark for a collaborative album in which the pair get introspective about the artistic process and its political implications. “I like when the beat sound like God laughing,” Ferreira intones in “Hereing Color, Green” — one of the project’s many shoutouts to the magic of a kindred rapper-producer rapport. The First Fist also meditates on both the struggles and rich heritage inherent in creating music as a Black person. Spiritual and witty, though sometimes meandering, Ferreira shines brightest when his idiosyncratic imagery is anchored in the tangible. Take the standout song “47 Rockets Taped to My Chair,” dedicated to Palestinian poet and author Refaat Alareer, who was killed in December by Israeli airstrikes in Gaza. “My vocabulary’s my most powerful weaponry,” Ferreira raps, a bittersweet proclamation he and Alareer would likely agree on. KATHERINE OUNG
The Warner E. Hodges Band, Soul Shaker (Jerkin’ Crocus)
On “That Rock and Roll,” the ripping opening track of The Warner E. Hodges Band’s new album, Nashville rock guitar legend Hodges sings the band’s raison d’être: “All I’m really trying to do is that rock and roll.” Hodges and his mates do “that rock and roll” at an inspired level on what is their best album to date. A few of the record’s 10 tracks lean cow-punk, but it’s mostly bluesy rock with combustible guitars dueling over pounding bass and drums. Hodges was backed on the sessions by his U.K.-based bandmates, guitarist Ben Marsden and bassist Jason Knight, and Nashville drummer Brad Pemberton, who filled in for the band’s recently departed drummer. Hodges wrote most of the riff- and hook-rich material with Joe Blanton, who also recorded, mixed and mastered the album. Soul Shaker was made to be played loud. Turn it up. DARYL SANDERS
Find Soul Shaker via the Jerkin' Crocus website, and watch Hodges' website for updates.
Sorority Sisters, “Ready to Go Steady?” b/w “Young Tongue” (self-released)
Fans of the sort of fast-and-loose, lo-fi rock issued over the past two-plus decades by the likes of Goner, Castle Face and In the Red can rest easy knowing that garage punk will never die. On Valentine’s Day, frontwoman Ariel Dornbush (Thelma and the Sleaze, Beat Creeps, more) debuted a new project, Sorority Sisters, with the single “Ready to Go Steady” backed with “Young Tongue.” Powered by the credo “I’m done with punk, I’ve joined a sorority,” the trio is doing devil-may-care garage rock in the vein of The Slits with tongues planted firmly in cheek. It’s fast, it’s silly, it’s imperfect, and it’s fun. D. PATRICK RODGERS
Brittany Howard, What Now (Island)
How lucky are we to live at the same time as once-in-a-generation-type talent Brittany Howard? The hours it would take to listen to everything the Alabama Shakes leader has ever made are well worth it, including her second solo album What Now. The record explores a wide sonic landscape with Howard’s signature soulful mastery, with support from her Shakes collaborators Shawn Everett and Zac Cockrell. Highlights include the searing, driving title track and the club-ready “Prove It to You.” Howard’s propensity for incorporating any genre she chooses into her sound with grace and creativity keeps shining through. HANNAH CRON
Find What Now at your favorite record store, on your favorite streaming service or via Howard's website, and follow her on Instagram for updates.Â
'Tequila Diaries' single art
Case Arnold, “Solo,” “Rat Race” and “Tequila Diaries” (Izzetta)
It’s been nearly five years since we’ve had a full-length from Clarksville-born MC and singer Case Arnold, who has nonetheless been a consistent source of thoughtful, distinctive hip-hop with a strong R&B flavor. The singles he’s been dropping over the past few months are a prelude to a new album — for which he’s joined forces with ace producer Ron Gilmore Jr., who returned to Nashville after a decade working with superstars like Jay-Z, Lauryn Hill and J. Cole — and they’re some of his finest work yet. “Tequila Diaries” came first; featuring great singer Bryant Taylorr and a fine vocal turn from Gilmore, it’s a mellow jam about not letting anything shake your belief in yourself. “Rat Race” came next, a supremely groovy piece about putting the daily grind in perspective. And then came “Solo,” a song about someone pulling away that features singer April Rucker and inventive rapper and producer Namir Blade. At press time, it was streaming only on Arnold’s YouTube channel — worth a visit since all of these tracks have great music videos. STEPHEN TRAGESER
Find these singles on your favorite streaming service and follow Arnold on Instagram for updates.
The Uneven, Flight Out of the Hollow (self-released)
The usual influences of riff-driven blues-rock bands — from Black Sabbath and Deep Purple to Soundgarden and Queens of the Stone Age — inform Flight Out of the Hollow, the debut album by The Uneven. Jarring riffs abound via lead vocalist and guitarist Andrew Hooker on such homages to the heavy-metal mythos as “Punching Bag,” “My Time” and “No More Violations.” Hooker, bassist Michael Meadows and drummer Simona Bressi shine even more brightly on the more psychedelic-leaning selections “The Mask” and “Red Door.” Overall, The Uneven deliver 10 searing tracks of unadulterated rock ’n’ roll on their first full-length. ADDIE MOORE
Knoll, As Spoken (self-released)
As Spoken is the third album in just over four years from Murfreesboro-by-way-of-Memphis audio terrorists Knoll. And just like 2021’s Interstice and 2022’s Metempiric, Knoll’s latest LP is murky and menacing. With ultra-raw recordings, tormented howls and drums that sound like an automatic weapon, the 12-inch slab of putrid noise gets the band a lot of comparisons to black-metal ghouls and destructive deathgrinders. But reducing Knoll to a genre is a disservice. The band uses their unbelievable velocity and heaviness as tools to make really creative music, rather than relying on them as a formulaic crutch. Much of the dissonant chaos of As Spoken has a spiritual connection to the high art of Sun Ra or Sonic Youth, with existential gloom woven into the riffing and noise. P.J. KINZER
HR Lexy, Every Scar Is an Open Door (Unfinished Animal)
The electronically enhanced project headed by Arlene Sparacia has been doing a lot of behind-the-scenes work over the past couple of years, which came to fruition in January with this LP. It’s a meditative song cycle about navigating different kinds of personal struggle and growth; the titular song ends the record with a kind of blessing for reckoning with yourself and moving forward. It’s a fascinating listen, weaving together elements of dreamy pop and folk music in spiritually attuned ways that remind me of Sally Oldfield or forever favorite Kate Bush. An HR Lexy show is always memorable, frequently involving elaborate costumes and movement — Sparacia’s description of the project as “emotive electronic performance art” is apt — so watch Instagram (@hr_lexy) for updates. STEPHEN TRAGESER
