Jaedelle, The Baytrix. Welcome to the Bay/It’s an independent game that we like to play, Jaedelle rushes out over a sterile beat in the leadoff track. This quasi-experimentalism doesn’t gel with “Ride Yo Scraper,” in which Jaedelle graciously describes in her native Australian accent the types of cars Bay Areans like to drive, yaddimean? Hyphy lives and dies again in 63 minutes. (Soul Fusion Records)
Edgardo & Candela, Celebrando 20 Años. A few years after settling in San Francisco in 1987, Uruguayan vocalist, bandleader, and conga drummer Edgardo Cambón cut his first record with Candela. Today the nine-piece, jazz-inflected salsa band is one of the Bay Area’s finest. This anniversary record proves Candela can still deliver the goods to dance floors and home stereos alike. (Pan Caliente Records)
Pidgeon, Might as Well Go Eat Worms. Pidgeon is heavy, like when Nick shrieks over Nirvanaesque levels of distortion and punk levels of aggression; and soft, like when Micah coos over soft arpeggios. Yet more often, Pidgeon bounces back and forth. This is the album’s greatest strength, for piece by piece it merely gets by, but as a whole it exhibits brilliant flexibility. (Absolutely Kosher Records)
Feels Like Fire, Feels Like Fire EP. More banjo. More harmonica. Sure it sounds good, but folk revival has grown cliché in the Bay Area indie scene. Oakland’s Feels Like Fire lands on the authentic side of the fence with a fiery, upbeat treatment from two musicians who can really play: Max Macfarlane on guitar and accordion; and Mike Oz, whose banjo more than earns its keep. (self-released)
