Happy New Year! I hope and pray that this year becomes less about sides and more about a united states, and a peaceful, more prosperous place to live. Also, long live rock and roll.

Speaking of rock and roll, Mister Green is an alt-rock band from Charlotte, North Carolina, that has just released a new single with Tom Morello called “Annabelle.” It’s a funky pop song that ends in an incredible jam. You should expect nothing less from the Rage axeman at this point.

Well, 2022 explodes with a bang thanks to new music from Superchunk. “Endless Summer” picks up where they left off in 2018 when they released What A Time To Be Alive. Though this time there are fewer fireworks and a bit more polish than we might be used to. Hopefully, we will see another dimension to this band in the new year.

Empire Ants are officially on my #RADAR after this really chill single, “Okey Dokey.” It’s chock-full of great harmonies and cool effects. I went back to listen to the rest of their catalog and they definitely have their own, swinging style.

OutKast‘s Big Boi has been releasing single after single in preparation for his new record with Organized Noize’s Sleepy Brown entitled The Big Sleepover (combining both their namesakes), which finally dropped just in time for Santa to bring it down your chimney. If you haven’t been paying attention it’s time you did. There are some really good songs on this record including “All You See,” which might be my favorite?

Last week Mr. Wong was my Jazz Cut Of The Week. It was a bit of a stretch because his music is all over the board, but it’s so enjoyable and contains pieces of different genres, all pasted together. “Smokeshow” is the Purple Cow in the room.

“Every City Has A Rhythm,” ain’t that the truth? Well, Chicago has been feeling a bit off these days; just too much damn violence. But I like this Lucas/Heaven song, both its meaning and its vibe.

Women are taking over, no doubt, in music and business. While we debate if Elizabeth Holmes will go away for scamming Silicon Valley investors, we continue to delve into all the incredible music being put out by female singers and songwriters. “Faultline” is the latest from a duo called, Girlpool.” So far, I like what I’ve heard.

A friend just hipped me to a song that was NOT on my #RADAR until now. Just Mustard‘s “I Am You” is a creepy jaunt that instantly reminds me of My Bloody Valentine, Lush, and several other trip-hop bands that have come and gone.

A five-piece rock band from Dundalk in County Louth, Ireland, wherever the fuck that is, fronted by the haunting Katie Ball who seels this horror like cigarettes. Just Mustard is a band to watch in 2022! Check out the spooky vid below, and you’ll get the jist.

Yes, it’s the moment you’ve been waiting for, your Jazz Cut Of The Week. Released a few days before reindeer took flight, this song comes from the late Harold Mabern, who passed away in the fall of 2019. “Dahomey Dance” is off an album called Mabern Plays Coltrane that also contains an incredible version of “Impressions,” nodding to both the magic that John Coltrane and Bill Evans created, along with the rest of the blue crew.