If you’ve been following fruitful queer singer/songwriter Rachael Sage throughout her nearly 30-year career, you may remember that, backed by a band, she mainly accompanied herself on piano and or organ. On later albums, such as 2014’s “Blue Roses,” Sage began to show off her guitar skills, then took it a step further by releasing acoustic rerecordings, including 2019’s “Pseudomyopia” (another take on 2018’s “Myopia”). All of this is to say that it’s not all that surprising that Sage’s new album, the marvelous “Another Side” (MPress), consisting of “acoustic reimaginings” of her 2023 record “The Other Side,” is a pleasure. The addition of harmony vocals by queer singer/songwriter Crys Matthews on “Albatross” is truly a bonus.
Ever since “The Omnichord Real Book,” Meshell Ndegeocello’s Grammy-winning 2023 career comeback, the queer singer/ songwriter and bassist extraordinaire has been on a thrilling trajectory. Her new album, “No More Water: The Gospel of James Baldwin” (Blue Note), continues that stellar course. A tribute to Baldwin for his centennial, as well as fellow lesbian literary legend Audre Lorde, and other queer thinkers, including biracial poet Staceyann Chin who can be heard reciting Baldwin’s words (“Baldwin Manifesto I,” “Baldwin Manifesto II”) as well as her own poetry (“Thus Sayeth The Lorde,” “Tsunami Rising,” and “Raise The Roof”), the album is an incredible combination of music, song, and spoken word that once again proves Ndegeocello’s genius as a collaborative artist.
Melissa Carper has her queer country bona fides in her blood, as she sings in the title track to her magnificent new album “Borned In Ya” (Mae Music/Thirty Tigers). If’n you didn’t know any better, you might think you were listening to a vintage 78 RPM on the old Victrola. The arrangements are pure country swing and Carper’s vocals are somewhere between Billie Holiday and Patsy Cline. The 10 Carper originals (some of which are co-written), including the flawless title cut, “Your Furniture’s Too Nice,” “Somewhere Between Texas and Tennessee,” “Let’s Get Outta Here,” “Lucky Five,” and “Let’s Stay Single Together,” effortlessly conjure a sensation of nostalgia crossed with déjà vu. Carper’s reading of Cole Porter’s “Every Time We Say Goodbye,” breathes new life into the chestnut.
After releasing albums on the Arista and Velvel labels, as well as Indigo Girl Amy Ray’s Daemon Records, lesbian singer/songwriter Michelle Malone found a home on her own indie SBS Records. Her aptly titled new album, “Southern Comfort” (SBS) is where Southern rock and country music intersect, with the title track about homesickness being a perfect example. “I Choke On My Words” is a stunner and deserves to be a hit for Malone (or anyone wise enough to cover it). Also noteworthy are “I Want To Be In That Picture,” “Like Mother Like Daughter,” “One Track Mind,” and “Wine and Regret.” Malone performs on Feb. 15 at The heART Jam, a benefit concert for Backstreet Arts in Newnan; March 8 at Royal Theater in Hogansville; April 25 at Red Clay Theater in Duluth; and June 13 at Braselton Civic Center in Braselton.
Led by queer frontwoman Jen Dot and featuring trans musician Jesse Fevvers, Chicago quintet Beastii makes rip-roaring dance punk on its new album “Follower” (beastie.bandcamp.com). At just over two minutes, the second track “The Limit” exemplifies the spirit (and blistering brevity) of early classic punk. “Spilt Milk” and “Butch Beach” conjure images of surfers riding the waves of Lake Michigan, while “Evil Eye” and “Trusted Mystik” represent darkwave at its eeriest.
