Last night’s Dakota Johnson-hosted Saturday Night Live episode was pretty flat. Ironically, the Fifty Shades of Grey sketch—in which Kyle Mooney plays a grade-school journalist who interviews Johnson for his school paper, and inadvertently reveals some dark secrets about his dad— might have been the night’s highlight, in terms of sketches.
However, this was one of those nights where the musical guest overshadowed the host. Alabama Shakes performed two songs, “Don’t Wanna Fight” and “Gimme All Your Love,” and singer Brittany Howard’s voice scorched the earth. The latter song is off the band’s upcoming album, Sound & Color, and we can’t wait for it.
will release their much-anticipated second album Sound & Color in April, and to get folks revved up for their follow-up to 2012’s Boys & Girls, the bluesy rockers hit up the Dakota Johnson-hosted episode of Saturday Night Live to share a pair of new tracks, first single “Don’t Wanna Fight” and “Gimme All Your Love.”
In Rolling Stone’s review of “Don’t Wanna Fight,” we compared the track to James Brown’s “Cold Sweat,” but lead singer Brittany Howard hinted at another inspiration by wearing earrings bearing Prince’s image for their SNL musical guest spot. “We took our time to write this record, and I’m really glad we did,” Howard said of Sound & Color in a statement. “We were able to sit down and think about what’s exciting to us. This record is full of genre-bending songs.”
That genre-bending is also evident on “Gimme All Your Love,” a slow burner where Howard showcases her remarkable, Best New Artist Grammy-nominated singing abilities on the commanding chorus. The track starts off like a Janis Joplin ballad before unfolding into a spacey jam out of the My Morning Jacket playbook.
The Fat Angel Sings 