Lying somewhere between the demarcations of electro-pop, high life, and the Caribbean diaspora sits the solo excursions of synthesized session heavyweight Wally Badarou. A guru behind the computerized keys and best known as The Talking Heads’ secret weapon on Speaking in Tongues, it was Badarou’s penchant for unfathomably catchy fills and phrasings that elevated “This Must be the Place” and “Burning Down the House” to the legendary earworm status they maintain today. This may be the most immediate reference point on Badarou’s extensive resume, but the sounds explored on his solo records are illuminated more clearly within the context of his eighties studio credits. One simply does not work with Black Uhuru, Grace Jones, or Fela Kuti without being fully immersed in groove.
Fran :: Television
Fran—the musical nom de plume of Chicago’s Maria Jacobson—returns with her first new piece of music since her hushed masterstroke, Leaving, one of our favorite albums from last year. On her new song “Television,” Jacobson drives a lilting, piano-led country ballad that conveys a distant, tilted domestic tranquility with a splash of barroom blues.