For me, the worst part about year end lists is how I always manage to leave things off or discover things that I would have put on there once the list is actually in. This year, rootsy-soulstress Valerie June was one of the highlights and now, in the third week of January, I've come across another fantastic roots music release from 2013, Hurray for the Riff Raff's My Dearest Darkest Neighbor. Alynda Lee Segarra, the band's leader, hardly fits the "mold" of the conservative rap that most rootsy records get. A self-described Puerto Rican queer from the Bronx, Segarra settled in New Orleans relying on busking to make her musical education. It's the kind of hard won knowledge that served generations of musicians before her and Segarra's unrepentant progressive political stance is equal parts Woody Guthrie and Bikini Kill. Watch a gorgeous video for "Look Out Mama" from Hurray for the Riff Raff release of the same name (from 2012) below via Waverly Sessions and don't forget to check out last year's My Dearest Darkest Neighbor including a cover of John Lennon's "Jealous Guy," the best I've heard since Jimmy Scott's version.
Hurray for the Riff Raff's new record, Small Town Heroes, comes out out Feb. 11 on ATO (preorder). And read a nice interview with Segarra on NPR.
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