Music does the talking, says the things you want to hear. That is a line from a song called Magic Power by the band Triumph. I think it rings true no matter who you are or where you come from. When it comes to music, Paul Simon knows a thing or two. The legendary musician is set to release a new album titled Stranger to Stranger, on June 3rd.
This new album will be Simon’s first since 2011, with songs about trips he’s taken and third person character songs and some interesting instrumentation. The album includes elements of EDM and loops and samples, which is very different than anything he’s done in the past. This kind of makes me nervous as a listener, when you’re used to a certain sound from a certain artist change can be hard to deal with.
You have to be open to new things in music and Paul Simon on this album definitely seems to be. Some fans may be turned off because of this but the diehards will always be there. Obviously we have to wait for the album to be released to make any judgment but I am interested to see how he blends all of these different elements.
From EDM, to acoustic to African field recordings the production on this sounds like it was pretty difficult. A very wide array of music from a very talented artist, it is refreshing to see guys like Paul Simon still making music and trying new things. You don’t see music like this anymore with people trying new and interesting combinations.
The fact that Simon is still writing and recording is good for us, I’ll definitely have to give the album a listen and see how the sounds all come together. Will it be classic Paul Simon? Or a twist on his famous sound? I guess we’ll have to wait until the album is released to find out.
