Angelika Niescier

September 2023 Recap: A Monthly Exercise in Critical Transparency

Screenshot of Opéra de Lille’s production of Verdi’s Falstaff by There Stands the Glass.

Top Ten Albums of September (through 9/22)

1. Angelika Niescier- Beyond Dragons

Monstrous fire.

2. Yeule- softscars

Are friends electric?

3. Escher Quartet- Terra Incognita

Unexplored territory.

4. Tomas Fujiwara- Pith

With Patricia Brennan and Tomeka Reid.

5. Willie Nelson- Bluegrass

Pleasing redundancy.

6. James Brandon Lewis- For Mahalia, With Love

Wade in the water.

7. Mireya Ramos & the Poor Choices- Sin Fronteras

Possibly the year’s best non-jazz album out of Kansas City.

8. Irreversible Entanglements- Protect Your Light

My least favorite album by my favorite band.

9. Laufey- Bewitched

My review.

10. The Count Basie Orchestra- Swings the Blues

My review.


Top Ten Songs of September

1. Yahritza y su Esencia- "Rositas"

Cool kids.

2. Cultura Profética- "Para Mi"

My kind of Margaritaville.

3. Camilo and Diljit Dosanjh- "Palpita"

Culture clash.

4. James Blake- "Fall Back"

Tripping.

5. Tirzah- "Stars"

Outer space.

6. Tinashe- "Uh Huh"

Validated.

7. Earl Sweatshirt and the Alchemist featuring Vince Staples- "The Caliphate"

Haram.

8. DOE- "Holy Hands"

Sanctified.

9. Bad Bunny- "Un Preview"

Unstoppable.

10. Carrie Underwood- "Drunk and Hungover"

Formulaic fun.

Top Ten Performances of September

1. RP Boo at the Encore Room

My review.

2. Thee Sinseers, The Altons and Alanna Royale at Lemonade Park

My review.

3. Mahani Teave at the Folly Theater

My review.

4. Queens of the Stone Age, Viagra Boys and Jehnny Beth at Starlight Theatre

My review.

5. Alan Voss Quartet at Swope Park Pavilion

My review.

6. Dan Clucas at World Culture

My review.

7. OJT at the Prairie Village Jazz Festival

My Instagram clip.

8. Electric Blue Yonder at Tin Roof

My Instagram clip.

9. The Jazz Disciples at the Blue Room

My Instagram clip.

10. Hudspeth & Taylor at Ward Parkway Shopping Center

My Instagram clip.



The previous monthly survey is here.

August 2021 Recap: A Monthly Exercise in Critical Transparency

(Screenshot of Bye Bye Braverman by There Stands the Glass.)

(Screenshot of Bye Bye Braverman by There Stands the Glass.)

Top Ten Albums (released in August, not including August 27 titles)

1. Jana Rush- Painful Enlightenment

The art of noise.

2. Abstract Mindstate- Dreams Still Inspire 

My review.

3. Pink Siifu- Gumbo'!

Hey ya!

4. Shannon and the Clams- Year of the Spider

My review.

5. Tinashe- 333

Lucky numbers.

6. Max Richter- Exiles

Luminous.

7. Isaiah Rashad- The House Is Burning

Fire!

8. Bleachers- Take the Sadness Out of Saturday Night

My review.

9. Boldy James and The Alchemist- Bo Jackson

Another hit.

10. Angelika Niescier and Alexander Hawkins- Soul in Plain Sight

European birds of a feather.

Top Ten Songs (Released in August)

1. Injury Reserve- "Knees"

“A tough pill to swallow.”

2. Jungle- "No Rules"

Anarchy on the dance floor.

3. Robert Plant and Alison Krauss- "Can't Let Go"

Ooby dooby.

4. Connie Smith- "I'm Not Over You"

Going under. 

5. Rachika Nayar- "Memory as Miniatures"

What if Pat Metheny signed to Windham Hill instead of ECM?

6. Benny the Butcher- "The Iron Curtain"

Imposing.

7. Irreversible Entanglements- "Open the Gates"

“It’s energy time.”

8. Blackstarkids- “Juno”

Summertime blues.

9. Christina Bell featuring Fred Hammond- "Still Faithful"

Conviction.

10. $uicideboy$- “If Self-Destruction Was an Olympic Event, I’d Be Tanya Harding”

Going for gold.


Top Ten Films (viewed for the first time in August)

1. あん/Sweet Bean (2015)

Deliciously transcendent.

2. Moonlight (2016)

Hello stranger.

3. Blue Jasmine (2013)

Family feud.

4. The Wild Bunch (1969)

Desperados waiting for a train.

5. Les Vacances de Monsieur Hulot/Monsieur Hulot's Holiday (1953)

French slapstick.

6. Bye Bye Braverman (1968)

Funeral for a friend.

7. La Collectionneuse/The Collector (1967)

Attractive people do ugly things in beautiful places.

8. CODA (2021)

High school musical.

9. The Falcon in San Francisco (1945)

Conventional potboiler.

10. The Tomorrow War (2021)

Goofy sci-fi romp.


Live Music

I swore off electing to place myself amid crowds in Kansas City after a disheartening experience at the airport as August began.  The abhorrent behavior of halfwits and lunatics temporarily eradicated any possibility of enjoying myself at musical performances.

July’s recap and links to previous monthly surveys are here.