Weekly Music Roundup: Joy Oladokun, White Lung, Snotty Nose Rez Kids

This week, Joy Oladokun’s anthem for Rev. Al Sharpton; First Nations hip hop from Snotty Nose Rez Kids; and David Byrne’s oddball song about Santa. 

Joy Oladokun Shares New Song From by Al Sharpton Documentary

Friday sees the theatrical release of Loudmouth, a documentary about the life and struggles and controversies of Rev. Al Sharpton. But the song that concludes the film is available now; it’s called “Power,” by the rapidly rising singer and songwriter Joy Oladokun. The song starts slow, but steadily builds to an anthemic call for people to claim their power – and to use it wisely. With its gospel-tinged message of perseverance and triumph, “Power” may well remind you of “Glory,” the song Common and John Legend recorded for the 2014 film Selma. (Legend is also one of the executive producers of Loudmouth.)  

Snotty Nose Rez Kids Are Good, How ‘Bout You?

With a name like Snotty Nose Rez Kids, you won’t be surprised to learn that the Vancouver-based Indigenous hip hop duo has a sense of humor to go along with their often potty-mouthed lyrics. They’ve just released an album called I’m Good, HBU?, full of songs that cleverly recast the standard hip hop boast, “I came from the streets and now I’ve made it big,” into something that reflects their own experience as, you know, reservation kids. The production behind them is often simple, as on the catchy track “Damn Right,” which is both defiant and light-hearted. The duo manages to reference Jay Z, actor Jason Momoa, and the famously hirsute NFL star Troy Polamalu all in the space of two minutes. One line, “we native Beatles bro,” goes by pretty fast but it spawns a fun video that inserts the Kids into Beatles album covers, film imagery, and the Peter Jackson documentary.  

David Byrne Releases A Different Kind of Holiday Song

David Byrne has just released a song called “Fat Man’s Comin’,” a song for Christmas that acknowledges just how weird our Santa Claus story is: “a fat man in rather odd attire who breaks into people’s homes and leaves mysterious packages,” as Byrne puts it. Byrne sings over an orchestra, arranged and recorded by Jherek Bischoff, who is brilliant at this sort of thing, and if it threatens to tip into Danny Elfman/Nightmare Before Christmas territory, well, that seems to be part of the fun. Byrne writes that he wanted the sound to be “old-school creepy; the old song ‘Teddy Bears Picnic’ may have been a reference.”

The song is a benefit for Reasons To Be Cheerful, the online news magazine that Byrne founded a few years back.  

Hammock Share New Music From 2023 LP

Today, the Nashville post-rock duo known as Hammock are releasing a matched pair of tracks from their upcoming album Love In The Void. As usual, the band begins with the sounds of electric guitars, but guitars that are played and produced in a way that builds a virtually orchestral sound – these days aided by keys, drums, and occasional choral sounds. One of the two “A-sides” of their new single is the album’s title track. “Love In The Void” feels longer than its five-minute length – not because it drags, but because it has a grandeur and a sweep that makes it seem like a procession through a sonic cathedral. (The other track, which leads into it, is called “Procession.”) There is a hint of metal in the final third, which suits the album’s dual themes of light and life on the one hand and darkness on the other.  

White Lung Releases Their Final Album

The post-punk trio known as White Lung are calling time on their decade-and-a-half career, and they’re signing off with a new record called Premonition. Singer Mish Barber-Way is now a mom, which may have factored into the decision but has in no way softened the band’s high energy sound. Guitarist Kenneth McCorkell still plays bruising riffs with abandon, and drummer Anne-Marie Vassiliou is at her pummeling best even on a song called “Bird” where Barber-Way sings to her as-yet-unborn child. A highlight of the album is “Date Night,” which is nowhere near as mature a theme as the title might indicate. Barber-Way sings about being on a date with God, where the Almighty is drunkenly driving her through LA while belting out Hank Williams songs. It’s both hilarious and unsettling, full of imagery of the city burning down. But it’s also a white-knuckle musical ride.