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Pick Six: Praise for Parquet Courts, Ruen Brothers, Caroline Rose, Erykah Badu, Thomasina Petrus, Greta Van Fleet

Pick Six is a half-dozen cool things in music, from two points of view.

June 3, 2018 at 3:55AM

Erykah Badu performed during Soundset at the Minnesota State Fair grounds. (Tom Wallace — Star Tribune/The Minnesota Star Tribune)

Bill DeVille of 89.3 the Current:

1 Ruen Brothers, "All My Shades of Blue." Their songs soar on this Rick Rubin-produced album. If you enjoy brother acts such as the Avetts and Everlys, you'll love these Brits.

2 Parquet Courts, "Wide Awake!" Seven albums in, this Brooklyn-by-way-of-Texas band has delivered maybe its best and most diverse yet, evoking the Fall, Talking Heads and more.

3 Caroline Rose, "Soul #5." This ought be the song of the summer. It's part hip-hop, part '60s pop and 100 percent fun.

Contribute: popmusic@startribune.com.

Jon Bream of the Star Tribune:

1 "Lady Day at Emerson's Bar and Grill," Jungle Theater. As a singer and actress, Thomasina Petrus is stunning as Billie Holiday — even better than Audra McDonald was on Broadway.

2 Erykah Badu, Soundset. Wearing a big hat, big hair and big jewelry, she brought a jazzy soulfulness to this wonderful hip-hop festival, which drew a younger, more diverse crowd.

3 Greta Van Fleet, "Safari Song." This modern-day Led Zep-like blast sounds refreshing on 89.3 the Current. Crank it up.