Gabriel Royal’s sophomore album coheres more around its lyrics than did his debut which centered on the artist’s fine-grained cello and smooth soul vocals. Both remain here on Miss Once; yet the overall eclecticism of arrangement and rhythm makes this the more adventurous affair of the two. Lines such as “Ain’t gotta worry ’bout the facts” (from “Been a Minute”) and “I always seem to get caught up in troubled times” (from “About You”) echo current media slogans—albeit personalized via Royal’s inimitable touch. “Battle Hymn of the Lower East Side,” a doo-wop-meets-Gregorian-chant, closes the LP with an anthem of self-empowerment and escapism (e.g. “When I’m focused I can fly”). Memory looms largest on Miss Once, however, as in songs like “Tough Love,” which begins: “She said remember right now/Wanna always feel this way.” “Degoba,” a title taken from the fictional “Star Wars” home of Jedi/sage Yoda, laments the bygone days “when you were mine.” “Been a Minute,” by turn, looks back more fondly (“Running on the streets through my old town”; “Trippin’ on some old times”). Musically-speaking, the strongest numbers here are the ones that feel referential of older genres, such as opener “C Major Prelude,” which recalls early Rufus Wainwright and sixties Van Dyke Parks, or the hip-hop/jazz inflected “Indoors” (featuring beatmaster Matt Young at the mixing board). “Notice” is the best example of Royal’s ability to take source material and churn it into something entirely his own. It offers a sprightly rhythm of plucked cello triplets and hand-claps, which the artist then sings over, moving from simple chanted lyrics to full-throated crooning. The eighties-esque chorus “All of the things you say I know they are for real” is both transcendent and thoughtful, and exemplifies an album chock-full of melody, quirkiness, and heart. – Brian Chidester

Gabriel Royal will be performing live at Joe’s Pub on October 26th.

Dread, anxiety, and social discomfort permeate the discography of Dead Tenants, a Queens-based noise rock trio whose forthcoming full-length, LP II, drops 10.05. Their last effort, a 2016 split release with Brooklyn’s Drome entitled Ten Dead Ants / Peter Milk, is a scorched earth release in which lofi, acid soaked guitars hum and squeal, all the while barreling forward in an uneven percussive shuffle; occasional brief remises of calm are offered only in the form of spoken word verses, delivered in deadpan haze by frontman (and band namesake) Doug Tenant.

Dead Tenants bring a larger-than-life sound by way of their minimalist instrumental setup (a cut-and-dry guitar, bass, and drums), with LP II promising to deliver the same grandiose noise later this year – you can catch them at their album release show at Secret Project Robot on 10.13, joined by Kal Marks, Weeping Icon, Outside World, and other secret guests. – Connor Beckett McInerney (@b_ck_tt), Photo by Walter Wlodarczyk