Kevin Hearn
Cloud Maintenance
(Celery Music)

We have all heard Kevin Hearn’s work before, as the keyboardist for the Barenaked Ladies. He first dipped his toes in a solo project 14 years ago with Mothball Mint, and now he is back with Cloud Maintenance. It is obvious early on that this album is about Hearn seizing the opportunity to spotlight his work with the ebony and ivory, with only three songs starting with a guitar. “Northland Train” starts the album in the clouds. Hearn has light and delicate-sounding vocals, which remind me of a young Neil Young, that are accompanied beautifully with his piano playing. While most of the songs are working in the clouds, a few songs like “See You Again” have too much energy to be limited or defined by the album title.

Blunts & Roses
Blunts & Roses
(Independent)

You have to love those creative album titles. Blunts & Roses is Absent Minded’s and iLLvibe’s attempt to bring the forces of rap and classic rock together. I was excited to hear this because I imagined hip-hop artists backed by a rock band. However, I was disappointed to find that the album only features remixed versions of classic songs with rapping. The Beatles classic “Come Together” is up first featuring Byro, and it fails to capture one’s ear until about two minutes in. “You Can’t Always Get What You Want” by the Rolling Stones is butchered in “Get What Ya Want.” Some tracks that manage to – sort of – mesh rock and rap are “Momma Told Me,” “Moonlight,” and “Old Fashioned Love Song.” Ultimately, the album is filled with mid-level musicians shrouding themselves in some of the greatest hits the world has known.

Alex Ebert
Alexander
(Community Music)

Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros’ front man Alex Ebert released his first solo piece with Alexander. The album is fairly consistent with the sound Ebert has been pursuing with the Zeros. “Let’s Win” starts the album off with an assortment of percussion, an acoustic guitar, and Ebert’s unmistakable vocals. Vocals that you may have caught on AMC’s Breaking Bad when “Truth” was showcased at the beginning of season four. Prof. Mark Wrathall took a particular interest in the lyrics of “Truth” because he felt the writing had vast depths he could explore. Much of the instrumental work may seem simple, but it is a perfect match to the folk sound Ebert has come to master. The album starts, maintains, and ends perfectly.