Bones & Beeker

Bones & Beeker are a Minneapolis-based duo with disparate musical backgrounds. Singer/songwriter Anthony Newes has helmed various rock and folk projects, while producer BK-One grew up playing jazz and became well-known in the hip-hop world. BK-One also co-produced Rádio do Canibal, a 2009 album that reflected his love for classic Brazilian music as well as underground hip-hop. Bones & Beeker's self-titled debut album covers all of this stylistic ground and more, with Newes' smooth, Paul Simon-esque vocals caressing gentle guitar licks and tasteful Latin percussion. BK-One's production skillfully blends spicy horn samples and dusty drum loops with glockenspiel and kalimbas, frequently making it hard to tell which elements are sampled and which are played live. Sunny tracks such as "Samana" reflect the duo's Latin influences, with castanets and crackling percussion, but song titles which reference death and heartbreak show that for all the duo's easy, celebratory inclinations, they aren't solely concerned with reflecting on the good times. The elements don't always blend seamlessly, but in some ways, it's actually more interesting when they jar a bit. Some of the album's most exciting moments are songs like the hard-hitting "Lupine" and the slightly disco-fied "Heartbroken in Love," which mix crate-digging hip-hop production sensibilities with '70s AM pop/soul-inspired vocals. ~ Paul Simpson