Winter Culture Previews
Lorde, Clipse, Sudan Archives
There’s a little something for everyone sprinkled across this winter’s slate of shows in contemporary music. Those looking for ambience should catch the sound-design pioneer Suzanne Ciani at St. Ann & the Holy Trinity, where the accomplished composer will improvise on her modular synthesizer inside the grand cathedral (Dec. 6). The following week, the indie-pop instrumentalist Jay Som unwraps her first LP in six years, “Belong,” at Warsaw (Dec. 11). The producer and performer Cate Le Bon leans into the latter of her musical skill sets at Irving Plaza, her amorphous indie rock dreamier than ever (Dec. 16). Anyone seeking tunes with more bite should try the post-punk band Dry Cleaning, who play Brooklyn Steel on Jan. 29. For something airier and more wistful, there’s the haunted folk of Marissa Nadler, which is as eerie and spectral as it is pretty (Le Poisson Rouge; Feb. 18).
’Tis also the season for dense, wordy rappers. On Dec. 1, the prodigy turned seasoned grand master Earl Sweatshirt brings the newfound wisdom of fatherhood to Terminal 5. At Elsewhere, three of indie rap’s most underrated figures, the roistering oddball $ilkmoney, the deadpan lyricist Quelle Chris, and the eccentric Virginian Fly Anakin join forces (Dec. 7). The duo Clipse, two brothers from only a bit further down the Virginia interstate, fresh off the runaway success of their comeback album, “Let God Sort Em Out,” unload a metric ton of coke bars at Brooklyn Paramount, on Dec. 30.
In the new year, several R. & B. artists blossom into their pronounced, updated styles. The violinist Brittney Parks, performing as her experimental project Sudan Archives, unveils a new cybernated, dance-focussed album, “The BPM,” at Webster Hall (Jan. 29). The singer Mariah the Scientist pulls apart smooth, beaming eighties touchstones for “Hearts Sold Separately” (Radio City Music Hall; Feb. 27). At Brooklyn Steel, Amber Mark occupies an even sunnier space with her soft-strummed release, “Pretty Idea” (March 4-5).
In February, progressionists of Americana take Manhattan, all with new albums in tow. On Feb. 13, the decorated alt-country singer-songwriter Brandi Carlile sets off on the Human Tour, supporting “Returning to Myself” at Madison Square Garden. On the 19th, the roots fusionist Margo Price revisits the sound of her early recordings for “Hard Headed Woman,” at Webster Hall. On the 20th, Jason Isbell retreats into the acoustic world of “Foxes in the Snow,” at Radio City Music Hall.
Meanwhile, the pop-music scene welcomes stars settling into their niches. At Hammerstein Ballroom, Halsey commemorates the tenth anniversary of their début album, “Badlands” (Dec. 13-15). On Dec. 16-17, Lorde stops by the city again for her Ultrasound World Tour, this time closing its American leg, at Barclays Center. And, at Brooklyn Paramount, JADE, a former member of the U.K. girl group Little Mix, is reborn as a solo star interrogating the very notion of showbiz (Feb. 19).—Sheldon Pearce
Classical Music
