Two founding members of Soft Machine (1968) release sublime albums in 2007

[mousepod]

This has been a good month for new music. There's "Widow City" from the ever-challenging Fiery Furnaces, "In Rainbows" from alt-rock faves Radiohead, and "Variety" from Tokyo Jihen (oh god... Shiina Ringo). With these alone, my iPod would be very very happy.

But two of my favorite current releases came with a lot less fanfare, and are proving to be so wonderful that I felt I had to share:

"Comicopera," from Robert Wyatt is simply amazing. He's 62 years old, and with an average output of 2 albums per decade, I always fear that each release will be his last. I hadn't been paying attention, so this one just snuck up on me. Yes, there are guest appearances from Eno, Phil Manzanera and Paul Weller, but this is gorgeous, vintage Wyatt. Wow. There are moments that approach the grandeur and mystery of "Sea Song" (from his 1974 masterpiece "Rock Bottom").

and if that's not enough...

Kevin Ayers, the original leader of Soft Machine, has just released his first solo album in fifteen years(!), "Unfairground." Like Robert Wyatt, his solo material in the early 1970s was close to perfection - and this comeback record (sadly, not released yet in the US) is reminiscent of those great LPs. He's still got it, kids. "Unfairground" also features a handful of guest appearances, including the ubiquitous Phil Manzanera, Soft Machine's Hugh Hopper, ... and Robert Wyatt.