JudyJams picks November 2010: Aloe Blacc, Glasser, The Ghost of a Saber Tooth Tiger & La Sera

Happy pre-holiday season! I apologize for the slightly belated nature of this post: most of the music came out a few weeks ago. November, in its flurry of activity, caught me off guard. The exciting part about the beginning of Winter, aside from Thanksgiving food, is that there are a lot of great year-end releases. TnJ will also be doing our top 2010 release choices in the next few weeks, but for now, here are the picks:

Aloe Blacc just released his sophomore album Good Things on Stones Throw this Fall, and the single “I Need a Dollar” has been in non-stop rotation on my iPod, and in my head, ever since.

Aloe Blacc album cover via StonesThrow.com

The whole album has a very classic bluesy Motown sound while also feeling modern. His voice is amazing, and Good Things is one of those rare “listen-all-the-way-through” albums. Multiple times over. I wouldn’t expect anything less from Stones Throw, one of my favorite labels. You can check out some previews of the music from Good Things and from his debut, Shine Through, at his website. Below is the video for “I Need a Dollar,” which will be instantly stuck in your head:

Second pick, very different from the first, is the new album by Glasser. Her given name is Cameron Mesirow, and her debut album Ring came out in September.  I only discovered in the post-CMJ coverage shuffle, which explains the delay in posting.

Photo of Glasser via Glassermusic.com

The music is heavy on the bass, but her voice is the stand out: it sounds all the more haunting and gothic layered over dreamy, ethereal beats. My favorite song is by far “Mirrorage,” but they’re all good. It is available through True Panther Sounds, but for a little preview, check out the videos for “Mirrorage” and for “Apply” below:

Third pick is a new collaboration between Sean Lennon and his girlfriend Charlotte Kemp Muhl, called The Ghost of a Saber Tooth Tiger, released on his own label, Chimera Music.

Photo of GOASTT via Press Here publicity

If you’re familiar with Sean Lennon’s earlier work, especially his debut Into the Sun (a favorite of mine), this is reminiscent but with a more playful, throwback vibe. You can stream the song “Jardin Du Luxembourg” here (and get Stereogum’s opinion on it, too). You can clearly tell that these two have the serious hots for each other: for those in the mood for some  flirty tunes, this is just right.

Last pick is a fun video that debuted around Halloween time. This is from La Sera, who is Katy Goodman of Brooklyn-based Vivian Girls / All Saints Day.

The video is kind of gory, in a silly way, but if blood is not your thing, you can listen to the song here. The song is really sweet (I swear!) and her voice is beautiful. The full album will be self-titled and out on Hardly Art in February 2011. Stay tuned!