Author: ernopepper

718. L.A. Witch

~ ernopepper ~ Leave a comment

(April 2026) Episode 718 is L.A. WITCH, the answer to the question: what if Mazzy Star were a garage rock band? This is a contemporary all-female trio out of – you guessed it – Los Angeles. Singer/guitarist Sage Sanchez employs an echo-laden, languid vocal style that evokes Hope Sandoval, with a twangy guitar that gives the Cramps. Their third and most recent album (2025) asks the question: what if Mazzy Star were a new wave band?

Favorite album: Play with Fire

Favorite song: Fire Starter

Compared to expectations: same

Recommendation: None of this is original, but it is still satisfying.

717. The Seekers

~ ernopepper ~ Leave a comment

(April 2026) Episode 717 is THE SEEKERS, a folk quartet from Australia that had a moment in the sun in the mid-1960s with hits in the UK and U.S. It’s mostly a straight-backed chair folk style, but some purists thought it was too pop. They also hung out with Paul Simon in his London days. Their style didn’t survive the 1960s, and they reformed in the 1970s with a groovier sound. It’s OK but I get bored with this kind of folk easily.

Favourite album: Come the Day

Favourite song: Red Rubber Ball

Compared to expectations: ↓

Recommendation: Half a greatest hits collection is more than enough.

716. Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan

~ ernopepper ~ Leave a comment

(March 2026) Episode 716 is NUSRAT FATEH ALI KHAN, considered the most famous performer of qawwali – a form of Sufi devotional music from South Asia. He reached audiences way beyond the region and is thus considered a top promoter of the “world music” genre (a categorization I dislike). Khan possessed a powerful voice and incredible stamina; he would perform for hours in a seated position. I find qawwali compelling — a mix of the sacred and traditional South Indian instrumentation. The number of recordings of Khan’s performances are impossible to count. Many releases included added instrumentation and beats to try to appeal to Western audiences: abominations. He branched out beyond qawwali, composing for Hollywood and Bollywood soundtracks.

Favorite album: Pukaar: The Echo

Favorite song: Ya Hayyo Ya Qayyum

Compared to expectations: same

Recommendation: Find a video of one of his live performances to see get the physical and group dynamics of the music.

715. Rotary Connection

~ ernopepper ~ Leave a comment

(March 2026) Episode 715 is ROTARY CONNECTION. They occupy a special niche place in late 1960s music: a blues label (Chess) decides to get into the psychedelic scene by concocting a multiracial group of Chicago soul musicians. The result is experimental and a bit odd, like putting a sitar track on a Fifth Dimension song. They never had hits or made music that could have become hits, but there is something compelling in it. Somewhat of a parallel to the Peanut Butter Conspiracy. A lot of the material is fairly radical covers of contemporary songs. It’s where Minnie Riperton got her start.

Favorite album: Rotary Connection

Favorite song: I Am The Black Gold Of The Sun

Compared to expectations: same

Recommendation: The first two albums are the only ones of interest.

714. Banda AL 9

~ ernopepper ~ Leave a comment

(March 2026) Episode 714 is BANDA AL 9. A contemporary Brazilian brother duo specializing 60s-style pop-rock songs. They look like a twink version of those guys from Extreme. Their reverent mimicry of the Beatles is obvious; many songs contain riffs or melodic lines lifted from Beatles songs, not unlike the Rutles’ approach (but without the tongue-in-cheek humor). The songs are light-hearted and, by definition, catchy. But after a while, the lack of originality, much less edge, starts diverting my attention elsewhere.

Favorite album: Love is the Law

Favorite song: She Can Do It All

Compared to expectations: same

Recommendation: It’s like cotton-candy. Sweet, but not enough substance to linger.

713. Belzebong

~ ernopepper ~ Leave a comment

(March 2026) Episode 713 is BELZEBONG. This Polish outfit is pure stoner metal goodness. The low slow grind largely untainted by lyrics, effects or melody. They are ongoing; their most recent album was released a month ago.

Favorite album: Sonic Scapes & Weedy Grooves

Favorite song: Witch Rider

Compared to expectations: ↑

Recommendation: If you like this stuff, you’ll love Belzebong’s stuff.

712. Bar-Kays

~ ernopepper ~ Leave a comment

(March 2026) Episode 712 is the BAR-KAYS. I knew them as the secondary house band of Stax Records (behind Booker T. & the MGs), for “Soul Finger,” and because four of their members died in the plane crash with Otis Redding. But what I didn’t know is that they reformed as a quality funk band in the mid-1970s — a pleasant discovery. While you could accuse them of being derivative of the Ohio Players and Earth Wind & Fire, that sound makes it all the more enjoyable to me. They recorded through the 80s and sparsely thereafter, even into the present decade.

Favorite album: Coldblooded

Favorite song: Humpin’

Compared to expectations: ↑

Recommendation: I liked best the mid-70s albums: Coldblooded, Too Hot To Stop,  Flying High on Your Love

711. Pentangle

~ ernopepper ~ Leave a comment

(March 2026) Episode 711 is PENTANGLE. It’s hard to categorize this British group that emerged amidst the swirl of everything else in 1967. Folk-rock is the closest label I suppose, grounded in the excellent folk guitar of Bert Lansch and John Redbourn. But there is a jazz influence too. Fairport Convention is the closest comparison, although by contrast Pentangle had stable membership in its core period (late 60s-early 70s). Singer Jacqui McShee continued on with uninteresting incarnations from the 1980s until the present.

Favourite album: Cruel Sister

Favourite song: Jack Orion

Compared to expectations: same

Recommendation: The first four albums (Pentangle, Sweet Child, Basket of Light, Cruel Sister) are all that you need to know.

710. Gladys Knight & the Pips

~ ernopepper ~ Leave a comment

(February 2026) Episode 710 is GLADYS KNIGHT & THE PIPS. Formed as a group of family members in Atlanta out of the gospel tradition, they became a reliable artist for Motown in the late 1960s and early 70s with a number of hits. Perhaps they’re best known for “Midnight Train to Georgia” which came after their move to the Buddah label. Gladys’ strong voice is always the centerpiece, both with the Pips and when she went solo. While not unusual for the times, a lot of their album material is covering songs from other Motown groups and from other genres, with little of it sticking the landing.

Favorite album: Nitty Gritty

Favorite song: Ain’t No Sun Since You’ve Been Gone

Compared to expectations: same

Recommendation: Nitty Gritty, Imagination and All I Need is Time are the best albums.

709. Ali Farka Touré

~ ernopepper ~ Leave a comment

(February 2026) Episode 709 is ALI FARKA TOURÉ. A guitarist from Mali who in the 1990s became one of the most internationally successful artists from West Africa. Described as “the African John Lee Hooker” as for the resemblance in low, minimal, extended blues songs. Touré’s music blends Malian styles with African-American blues which of course can trace roots back to West Africa. He sings in a variety of languages. Most of all I admire his guitar skills with which, especially later in his career, he crafted mesmerizing textures.

Favorite album: Ali Farka Touré (1988)

Favorite song: Bonde

Compared to expectations: ↑

Recommendation: Ali Farka Touré and the double-packaged Red/Green album are good representations of his more traditional early style. In the Heart of the Moon and Ali and Toumani showcase the later mesmerizing style. Talking Timbuktu (with Ry Cooder) is a good in-between.