Adrian Orange & Her Band

While Adrian Orange has spent most of his career under the radar, he’s always deserved to be above it. Since starting as Thanksgiving, this Portland, OR songwriter has barely stopped moving, turning out nearly a dozen releases in six years. Yet despite these ambitious efforts, he’s attracted little more than a cult following, something that might finally change with his release as Adrian Orange & Her Band. Equipped with a new label, sound and 18-piece band, Orange purges himself of his folk-riddled past and embarks on a distinctly African sound, one very much in the vein of Fela Kuti. Recorded with Phil Elverum and Calvin Johnson, the album erects a wall of horns, tribal rhythms and chanting voices, with guitars and organs chugging back and forth in a hypnotic, rock-steady fashion. Above this is Orange’s broken voice, howling and leaping over extended phrases and squealing brass sections, making for an upbeat and joyful album that stirs the body as well as the soul. At the point in Orange’s career where he had to either make it or break it, he’s totally made it.