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I go through a lot of phases. No, not the typical teenage, angsty phases, but more so with my music. I’m definitely one of those all-over-the-place people. But there’s one band I come back to again and again, and I always wonder why I left them alone in the first place. There’s also a song — which happens to be the song that started it all for me.
I’ll quit being vague. The band is Pearl Jam, and the song is “Alive” — the song that brought us Pearl Jam.
Let me back up a bit. Imagine Seattle in 1990 — the golden era of the scene’s emergence. Mike McCready, Dave Krusen, Jeff Ament and Stone Gossard were making magic happen. They had everything they needed for their sound, but they had yet to unlock a key component — a legendary frontman.
Around Oct. 1990, the band members received Eddie Vedder’s legendary audition tape. A mutual friend, former Red Hot Chili Peppers drummer Jack Irons, connected them and got the guys talking. Vedder, a guitarist and singer, sent a tape filled with his vocals over their various instrumental tracks. They were especially impressed with one song Vedder had penned — “Alive.”
So, they flew him out. Guitarist Mike McCready noted in an interview with Mojo, “When Ed came from San Diego, the first time we all got in a room, I was so excited.”
Spirits were high, but the pieces hadn’t all fallen together. Early outside perspectives were not supportive of Vedder. He was seen as an outsider by friends of the band, but with the help of Soundgarden’s Chris Cornell, Vedder began to fit.
Time went on, and Pearl Jam’s first album, Ten, started coming together. “Alive,”as I mentioned before, was the song that started it all. The track appeared on Ten and was written as a fictional tale that, in part, was influenced by Vedder’s personal life experience. The song is meant to be the first in a trilogy of songs that Vedder would later call a “mini-opera,” or the “Mamasan” trilogy, including “Alive,” “Once” and “Footsteps.”
“Alive” is actually a deeply emotional and dark piece. Vedder compiled years of built-up grief, using this track as his final outlet. In Vedder’s own words from VH1 Storytellers, “The original story being told in the song is of a young man being made aware of some shocking truths.” The full idea is that a young man is confronted with the harsh reality that his father is actually his stepfather, and his real father was, well, gone. “The guy was me, but I barely knew me then. To be honest I was barely there to be known. So he took this to be a curse, like fine you told me this secret, but I’ve gotta figure a way to deal with this. Fine, the dad’s dead, but I’m still alive, and I’ve gotta deal with this.”
The lyrics give us a sense of Vedder’s internal thoughts, paired with his unique vocals that every fan of Pearl Jam is familiar with. The sheer emotion that Vedder is capable of and can portray through his work is substantial. This is what makes him such a standout figure in the “league of legends” in musical history.
“Is something wrong?” she said, well of course there is /
“You’re still alive,” she said, oh, and do I deserve to be? /
Is that the question? /
And if so, if so who answers? Who answers? /
I, oh, I’m still alive /
Hey, I, hey, I’m still alive /
Hey, I, hey, I’m still alive /
Yeah, I, ooh, I’m still alive! /
Yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah!”
It’s difficult to convey emotion through written lyrics, but you get the idea. I love this song so much that I can hear Vedder’s voice cutting through the back parts of my brain as I pore over the lyrics. That says something.
All in all, this really is the song that started it all. It brought Pearl Jam Eddie Vedder, who’s embraced the world with his unique styles and ideas for years. So, remember, listen to this song, and keep on keeping on. You’re still alive! Yeah, yeah, yeah yeah!
Tyler, the Creator’s eighth studio album just dropped, and it’s been gaining major traction, holding the No. 1 spot on the Billboard Top 200 for the second consecutive week. Chromakopia is packed with hit after hit, making it hard to pick a single standout. The track that has been on constant repeat for me is “Balloon,” featuring a captivating verse by Doechii.
“Balloon” opens with a whimsical, campy beat that perfectly channels Tyler’s playful and eccentric style. The track explores themes of nostalgia and personal growth as he reflects on his success, ambition and work ethic.
“(Okay, look) Why I work so hard? My soul profit /
Why I can’t settle down? I like options /
Why I hate small talk? I like topics /
House shoppin’, I’m a pig, I love coppin’, ugh”
Tyler kept the album’s features a secret for those who listened on release day, making each new voice a surprise. So when Doechii’s energetic verse took over, it instantly elevated the song to a whole new level.
She perfectly matches Tyler’s style, with an escalated energy that contrasts with Tyler’s easygoing verse. Together, they form a dynamic duo that feels like a brother-sister act, and I’m positive this won’t be the last time we see them collaborate.
Doechii delivers a verse with a touch of humor and playfulness that only enriches the song, creating something both whimsical and profound. It proves why she has been breaking new ground in the music scene — recently earning three Grammy nominations for her album Alligator Bites Never Heal, where her versatility as a rapper shines through.
To bring it all together, Daniel Caesar makes a subtle appearance, adding layers of smooth vocals in the background that beautifully complete the track.
“Balloon” is a unique blend of lightheartedness and introspection — a fun, creative, and layered song that’s already become an instant favorite.
China Anne McClain’s Disney hit “Calling All the Monsters” became an iconic Halloween anthem for our generation. Many listeners — like me — would consider it our generation’s “Monster Mash.” As we close out Monstober, It’s a good time to reflect on how much of a revolutionary Halloween song Disney gifted us.
Released in 2011, “Calling All the Monsters” promoted an A.N.T. Farm Halloween episode “MutA.N.T. Farm,” in which McClain starred. The song’s popularity was undeniable, especially in my third-grade classroom, where it went triple platinum
From the electrifying buildup of the pre-chorus:
“Gonna get your body shakin’ /
Wishin’ you could just awaken (here we go)”
To the catchy, spirited chorus that makes you forget this is a Disney song and not a club classic.
“Tonight, all the monsters gonna dance /
We’re comin’ to get ya /
Tonight, all the monsters gonna dance /
We’re comin’ to get ya /
If you’re only dreamin’ /
Why I hear you screamin’ /
Tonight, all the monsters gonna dance /
We’re comin’ to get ya, we’re coming to get ya”
This song is the perfect blend of spooky and danceable, making it a Halloween staple that will be enjoyed for generations and forever hold a spot on any Halloween playlist.
To celebrate its 10th anniversary in 2021, McClain’s band Triii, alongside her sisters Lauryn and Sierra, released an updated version of the song serving a more modern and mature approach while keeping the classic lyrics. McClain’s younger brother Gabriel, also known as “Messenger,” was featured with a very spooky and ghoulish rap verse that was the perfect missing piece to the song.
We better see you monsters on the dance floor tonight and happy Halloween!
Have you ever found yourself repeating the same part of a song over and over, with nothing helping except listening to it on repeat? This phenomenon, known as an Earworm, is more common than you might think, and scientists have long been curious about why certain songs get stuck in our heads for years.
In 2016, the American Psychological Association released a study titled Dissecting an Earworm: Medoldic Features and Song Popularity Predict Involuntary Musical Imagery where they used 3,000 survey participants to research, explore and understand what causes earworms and how they persist.
The term Earworm originates from the coined German term öhrwurm, which is when a portion of a song — usually around 20 seconds — is on constant repeat in your head for hours, days or even weeks. The study revealed that nine out of ten people experience this at some point in their lives.
The study suggests that musical characteristics such as tempo, melodic structure and rhythmic elements are all contributing factors as to why a song may be stuck in your head. Popular songs that receive heavy radio play or go viral on platforms like TikTok are more likely to become Earworms due to repeated exposure.
Researchers suggest that songs that are simple and easy to remember with common melodic structure, and faster tempos are more likely to be stuck in your head.
Context also matters. Certain situations where you hear a song — such as an emotional or memorable event — can trigger the song to replay in your mind. Interestingly, the study also linked Earworm formation to enhanced creativity and problem-solving abilities.
So, the next time there is an Earworm stuck in your head, try shifting your focus and distract yourself with another task. Play the song in the background without paying close attention, or even listen to a different, simple tune to distract your mind with another song.
– JaTasia Powers
On Oct. 30, 2000, a new website was launched, using Britney Spears to teach students basic physics concepts. The website, called Britney Spears’ Guide to Semiconductor Physics, was accessible through the URL britneyspears.ac. The site illustrated a variety of physics concepts, ranging from how semiconductors are used to the basis of modern electronics.
While rumors have assumed that the website was created by Britney Spears herself, the founder was actually a physics post-grad from the University of Essex named Carl Hepburn. The website incorporated Britney Spears in a number of different ways, including a “lip glossary” of semiconductor physics and pictures of her alongside complex physics equations.
Hepburn decided to put the phrase “Britney Spears” in the website address, believing that it would make the website viral from fans who wanted to learn more about her. He also added picture galleries for those who looked up Britney Spears noting that, “I knew most people who were looking for information on Britney would not appreciate a site solely dedicated to semiconductor physics. So I added picture galleries.”
A year after the launch of the Britney Spears physics website, it gained attraction and became a viral sensation. Today, the site is still up, containing several vintage shots of Britney Spears. As the years continue to go by, one thing that will remain timeless is the Britney Spears Guide to Semiconductor Physics.
– Chae Eun Park
On Oct. 31, 1969, art and glam rock legend David Bowie took the stage of the General Gordon, a pub in Gravesend, England. However, the performance only lasted all of 15 minutes after Bowie made a surprising stylistic choice, diverging completely from a typical on-stage performance.
Bowie had just appeared on the Top of the Pops, a British music chart television program, with his classic hit, “Space Oddity.” Everyone wanted to see Bowie perform. So, he gave them what they wanted on that Halloween night. He played “Space Oddity,” but took a sharp turn, dragging a stool on stage with a huge book in hand.
Instead of continuing with more music, Bowie perched himself on the stool and began reading poems from the book. The unconventional and unprecedented move didn’t resonate, and he was eventually booed off stage — which, personally, I would’ve never done — leaving a crowd of very dissatisfied fans behind.
An attendee, Dave Stableford, had paid eight shillings and six pence for admission. He recalled, “Unfortunately, the poetry didn’t go down well and he was booed off stage.”
Of course, this performance didn’t dim his flame or halt his momentum whatsoever. He went on to become one of the greatest musicians of the ‘70s and ‘80s, with iconic albums such as The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars, Aladdin Sane and Hunky Dory, only adding more quirk and personality to each performance.
– Noelle Simonelli
Anyone who’s ever listened to the Cocteau Twins knows that their work is more than your run-of-the-mill music; it’s an immersive auditory journey, engulfing you in the haunting beauty of Elizabeth Fraser’s unintelligible lyricism. “Beatrix” is no exception.
Featured on their 1984 full-length album Treasure under 4AD, the Scottish dream-pop group defined themselves amongst the alternative and gothic-rock scenes by incorporating an ethereal and gossamer-like sound into their artistry. While the band speaks of the album as rushed and “dated” in its production, it became one of their most notable albums and has gained a resurgence of love from Gen Z listeners.
The song begins with an eerie yet enchanting loop, echoing throughout the song as if it were cascading against the walls of a dark fortress. Fraser’s vocals operate as an instrument — siren-like in their wailing — often described as glossolalia, or speaking in tongues. Sometimes, you don’t need to know what someone is saying to invoke a feeling; the dynamics of one’s voice can speak for itself. The instrumentation bellows as it reaches the later half of the track, as rhythmic bass creates a dark texture amongst the soundscape, perfectly encapsulating a spooky resonance.
Words cannot truly describe the musical tapestry coveted within this track, as each and every person experiences their own kind of intimacy with it. As redundant as the phrase might be, it really is a matter of “if you know, you know” when it comes to their discography. If you haven’t already done so, I highly recommend investing in some high-quality audio and making the time to let this song — and the rest of the album for that matter — take over the body, embracing the sensory experience that is the Cocteau Twins.
Released on Nov. 30, 1982, it’s a song everyone remembers wherever they were the first time they heard it. Who better to make such a smooth but creepy song besides Michael Jackson himself? In my opinion, nothing sums Halloween up better than “Thriller.”
So many different layers come together to create this chilling piece. The song kicks off with a load of samples, from creaky floors to howling wolves and ominous footsteps. From there, we’re snapped back into Michael’s reality — throwing us into it with a catchy horn that kicks off the funky groove you can’t escape.
But why would you want to? This groovy, creepy song encapsulates 1982 perfectly. Horror meets funk for the first time, and in the best possible way. There’s an ominous feel throughout the song, a mounting horror that builds and builds until horror actor Vincent Price swoops in with a chilling monologue.
“The foulest stench is in the air /
The funk of forty thousand years (Thriller night, thriller) /
And grisly ghouls from every tomb /
Are closing in to seal your doom /
And though you fight to stay alive /
Your body starts to shiver (I’m gonna thrill you tonight) /
For no mere mortal can resist /
The evil of the thriller /
(Maniacal laughter)”
Incorporating a Vincent Price monologue was an outside-of-the-box, fresh idea that truly brought the graveyards alive in 1982. It wasn’t something often done, but in the ’80s, anything went. It’s hard to imagine the song without it. The song was written by Rod Temperton who also wrote various songs for Michael, and had envisioned a section devoted to horror-like dialogue. Quincy Jones produced the song as well as the entire Thriller album.
Michael does his fair share of spookiness through the song. In the music video, he’s Michael until he becomes totally zombified. Somehow, this zombification ignites a sense of dance, and he leads his fellow zombies in a full dance routine through the alleys. Like I said before, this couldn’t be more ’80s and I live for it. His lyrics show us why we should be scared:
“It’s close to midnight /
And something evil’s lurking in the dark /
Under the moonlight /
You see a sight that almost stops your heart /
You try to scream /
But terror takes the sound before you make it /
You start to freeze /
As horror looks you right between the eyes /
You’re paralyzed”
In all, there’s no ignoring this Halloween classic. It’s the perfect blend of the spooky season we’re going through right now, and the grooviness of the ’80s. All I ask this Halloween is that you don’t forget about this masterpiece — and try your best not to turn into a zombie when you play it. No guarantees, though…
Happy Halloween!
Twenty-one years ago on Oct. 21, we lost Elliott Smith, one of the most acclaimed singer-songwriters in recent memory. According to his girlfriend, Jennifer Chiba, the two were arguing when she went to take a shower. Shortly after, she heard Smith screaming. She opened the door and found him standing with a knife in his chest. He was rushed to the hospital but ultimately died from the two stab wounds he endured. While his death was initially ruled a suicide, autopsy results would be inconclusive as to whether the wounds were self-inflicted. Regardless of the manner of Smith’s death, it was a tragic loss — he was only 34 years old. At the time of his death, he was working on his sixth studio album, From a Basement on a Hill, which would be finished by those close to him.
Even with his career cut short, Smith made an undeniable impact on the independent music scene and the world at large. He would first gain some popularity with the band Heatmiser, which he would perform with in the Portland, Oregon, area. While in Heatmiser, he would send a collection of demos he recorded on a four-track tape to a local record label. The songs on the tape impressed the label so much that they were all released as Smith’s first solo album, 1994’s Roman Candle. While the understated, acoustic nature of the album differed greatly from the heavier grunge that was popular at the time, it was immediately well-received for its poetic, nuanced lyricism and raw, emotive vocals.
Smith would follow up Roman Candle the following year with a self-titled album that followed in its predecessor’s low-fidelity footsteps while showing the beginnings of his experimentation with songwriting and instrumentation. The opening track, “Needle in the Hay,” is a haunting portrait of his struggles with drug addiction and one of the most enduring songs in his discography. Following the breakup of Heatmiser in 1996, Smith got his big break in 1997, when several songs from his third album Either/Or were included in the soundtrack for the movie Good Will Hunting alongside the non-album track “Miss Misery.” The film became a commercial and critical success, and “Miss Misery” earned Smith an Academy Award nomination. Either/Or would arguably go on to become the defining work of his career.
While Smith was reluctant to fully step into the spotlight, he signed with DreamWorks Records to release his next album, 1998’s XO. This album saw him adopt fuller arrangements, with songs featuring string arrangements, keyboards and other layers of instrumentation. XO would also notably feature the fan-favorite song “Waltz #2 (XO),” which deals with Smith’s fraught upbringing. 2000’s Figure 8 was the last album released by Smith during his lifetime, and it would continue in the more melodic, almost Beatlesque direction of its predecessor. The years following saw him further struggle with drug addiction and mental illness. He played his final concert on Sept. 19, 2003. His posthumous album, 2004’s From a Basement On A Hill, would enter even darker and more surreal sonic territories. Songs like “King’s Crossing” remain some of the most harrowing in his entire discography, and overall it’s clear that those who handled the completion of the album did so with extreme care and respect
Even now, more than two decades after his death, Smith’s music continues to resonate with those who feel they have no one to speak to. Countless musicians have taken influence from him, but nobody writes songs quite like he did. While his early grave was a tragedy, that shouldn’t allow us to forget all of the beautiful music he made while he was alive.
– Sky Curtright
On Oct. 23, 2006, Amy Winehouse released “Rehab,” the iconic lead single from her second studio album Back to Black. “Rehab” took the world by storm after its release. The song peaked at No. 7 on the United Kingdom Singles chart and at No. 9 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100, making it Amy Winehouse’s only top 10 hit in the U.S.
Written by Winehouse and produced by Grammy Award winner Mark Ronson, the song discusses Amy’s struggles with addiction and her aversion to going to rehab.
“They try to make me go to rehab, but I said no, no, no /
Yes I’ve been black, but when I come back you’ll know, know, know.”
With “Rehab” topping the charts, Amy was at the absolute top of her career and she released her sophomore album, Back to Black, shortly after on Oct. 27, 2006. Back to Black became one of the biggest albums of all time, going multi-platinum and selling over 16 million copies worldwide. Amy Winehouse went on to sweep at the 50th annual Grammy Awards, winning five awards, including Record and Song of the Year for “Rehab.”
Amy’s Grammy win for Record Of The Year remains one of the most iconic moments in pop culture, as she stands frozen in utter shock after her idol, Tony Bennett, presented her with the award.
Winehouse sadly passed away in 2011 due to alcohol poisoning at the age of 27, just five short years after her critically acclaimed album was released. Although her career and life were tragically cut short, Amy Winehouse remains one of the greatest musicians of all time and continues to inspire new generations of artists. Her legacy and talent will live on forever.
– Helena Najar
On Oct. 24, 2006, singer-songwriter Taylor Swift released her debut studio album in the U.S. and Canada. She later released the album elsewhere on March 18, 2008. When Swift was only 14, she moved with her family to Nashville to pursue a career in country music. At the same age, she signed with ATV/Sony to write songs for the album. At 16, she released Taylor Swift, which features not only country elements such as banjos, fiddles and acoustic guitar but also leans into pop and rock elements with a vibrant teenage touch.
As a young girl, Swift was influenced by classic country music stars such as Patsy Cline and Dolly Parton. Being a teenage girl, Swift dove into themes about the high school experience, from crushing on the boy next to you in English class to the soul-crushing heartbreak that falls in that adolescent frame. Because of Taylor Swift this young generation of people in the early 2000s finally had a pop singer that they could relate to and see themselves in. Out of the eleven tracks on the album, Swift wrote three of the songs by herself, and the rest she wrote with the help of co-writers Robert Ellis Orrall, Brian Maher, Angelo Petraglia, and Liz Rose.
The debut album was nominated for Album of the Year at the 2008 Academy of Country Music Awards. This was quite a high accomplishment, because not only was this Swift’s first album, but she was also only 19 years old which is a unique experience in itself as an artist trying to make it in the industry. As a young girl, she was a trailblazer, in a sense, when it came to her songwriting of what some might call difficult emotions. Because of Swift’s influence, we now have musicians who were influenced by her storytelling and songwriting such as Sabrina Carpenter, Olivia Rodrigo and many more. Her legacy lives on, and this debut album acted as a blueprint for her following albums, allowing her to grow and flourish from the success of the first album. With the song “Tim McGraw” reaching the Top 40, Taylor Swift has been noted as one of the best country albums of the decade. All in all, Swift’s debut album is one of twangy country romantic charm and is an easy and enjoyable listen.
– Sophie Sparkman
On Oct. 26, 1993, Madonna made her first appearance in San Juan, Puerto Rico, for a stop on “The Girlie Show” tour, causing outrage in a predominantly Catholic territory. If there’s a feud notoriously known throughout the 1990s, it’s undoubtedly between Madonna and the Catholic Church.
Raised a Catholic and named after the Virgin Mary herself, Madonna has both embraced the religion and challenged notions regarding it, receiving quite the backlash since the start of her career. Religious audiences have condemned her for various disrespectful acts regarding religion, from desecrating the cross in her “Like a Prayer” music video to simulating sexual acts with backup dancers on stage to her hit song “Like a Virgin.” Her artistry also embraced being a free and sexually liberated woman — a taboo in both societal norms and religious spheres of the world — which was especially impactful given her namesake, a religious figure known for purity.
As a predominantly Catholic nation, catholic churches in San Juan were appalled by her behavior. In response to the visit, they opened their doors the night of the show and encouraged residents to tie black ribbons on trees in protest. Despite the resistance, the show went on and pulled in even more negative reception when Madonna passed the island’s flag beneath her lower region. If her reputation on the island wasn’t already tarnished enough, you could say the above act was the nail in the coffin.
– Mae Melaku
After over a year in the making — I am not joking — this playlist finally made the cut. You’ll find a little bit of this, a little bit of that, but all of it quite elegant, of course. Fill your glass and throw this on for the classiest of classiness. Just remember, it’s gotta come from a box. Don’t ask me why — I don’t make the rules — it’s just the way it’s gotta be.
Kick back, loosen your tie, take off your loafers, make sure your collar isn’t folded and prepare to relax to the most sophisticated degree. Here at Entertainment team, we take refined relaxation very seriously. And come to think of it, what playlist could be better than one about wine from a box?
At the tail end of last semester, I wrote about “Missing Out” by Maya Hawke, connecting her energy to the changing of the seasons as the snow melted and the flowers began to bloom. Now, I’ve somehow found myself back in the position to write about a song of hers, once again linking it to the changing seasons and those uncertain feelings.
With leaves hitting the grass and chilly winds blowing across campus, Maya Hawke has gifted us with a brief EP, Clipped Wings, to soundtrack the atmospheric change. Although I found something to love within each of the four songs on this EP, there was one that specifically stuck out to me — “Jack London.”
“Say you’re heartsick, say you’re sleepless /
Top ranking pound for pound /
Say you’re rugged, say you’re reckless /
Drag syllable from sound”
Jack London was a famous American novelist and journalist in the late 1800s, known best for The Call of The Wild. A fun connection to London would be Maya’s dad, Ethan Hawke, who starred in a movie adaptation of London’s White Fang.
From my perspective, I see her taking a lot of inspiration from his work for the lyrics and format of the song. The lyrics are chock-full of imagery and allusion to some of London’s pieces. There’s also metaphorical symbolism in the verses and literary terminology that ties the song together and strengthens the realistic fiction concept and allegory it presents.
“Though your purpose is no longer clear /
There’s little left for you to do /
Don’t know why the hell I’m here /
If I’m not here for you”
While my midterm-muddled mind had a harder time dissecting the lyrics of this song, there is still a general warmth and connection it brings. Released on Oct. 4, this song has already accompanied me across the chilly sidewalks of campus many times. Her chorus about purpose felt especially personal, particularly as a college kid still trying to figure out what to do with their future.
Although this may not be the real meaning behind the chorus, I like to believe it’s a conversation with yourself. Linking it to the current college experience, I feel it can be an anthem for everyone. You may not know what you’re doing, your purpose or why you’re here, but you’re here for yourself and the betterment of your future, getting closer and closer to your goals.
Until Sept. 26, The Cure had not released new music in 16 years. Yet somehow, their new single “Alone,” which will headline their new album releasing in November, is spectacularly similar to the music they released in their prime during the ‘80s and ‘90s.
When I heard that they would be releasing a new song, I was instantly dreading that it would become another attempted, and consequently failed, comeback from a band in their older ages. I was mainly worried that it would sound like The Cure — an imitation of their old music. However, within just seconds of my first listen, I realized that all of these fears were, thankfully, completely invalidated. The song begins with a three-minute instrumental introduction that is reminiscent of some of their most popular ‘epic’ songs, such as “A Forest” and “Pictures of You.” The long intro instantly had me immersed in the song as it could have been a brilliant track on its own. It evolves, builds up and down and is unmistakably The Cure.
While the intro was beautifully grand, I was eagerly waiting to hear what Robert Smith’s voice sounded like at this point in his life. I had seen some recent concert videos in which his voice sounded just like it did during the band’s height, but I was still skeptical because, after all, it has been about forty years. As the intro came to a close, Smith came in and absolutely shocked me. His vocals are practically indistinguishable from The Cure’s early albums. If someone had me listen to “Alone” and told me that it was one of the band’s songs from the ‘80s, I wouldn’t think twice about it. His voice is still as full of passion and youth as it was many decades ago, and as amazing as the instrumental elements are on this song, Smith’s voice is what makes this song so monumental.
Over the past week since the track was released, I have had it on repeat, and each time I hear it, I am just as shocked as before at how well this song fits into the rest of The Cure’s discography. The band doesn’t sound like they are trying to replicate their classic sound and style in the slightest. I was hoping to be pleasantly surprised by the track, but I am left feeling grateful that I get to be alive and aware of one of my favorite bands releasing truly spectacular music. Now, all I can do is impatiently wait for November to come around.
Fleetwood Mac is known by pretty much everyone — from your sister to your grandma — and for good reason. As my life has gone on, I find myself throwing the band on more and more. I think this might be because they seem to have just the song for every mood I could possibly have. Something I love about Fleetwood Mac is the pure, raw emotion felt not only through the lyrics, but even in the instrumental nature of their works. They simply play their hearts out. However, if we’re talking about emotion, there is only one song in their vast catalog that takes the cake. “Silver Springs” is the one — Stevie Nicks’ ultimate masterpiece.
Released in 1976, this song is purely Stevie’s. In fact, she was so sure of it that she actually gave the song rights to her mom in anticipation of its success. Bandmate Mick Fleetwood did not exactly agree; first making the song the b-side to “Go Your Own Way,” and having it later appear on the deluxe version of Rumours. In a 1991 interview on BBC radio, Nicks said she “started to scream bloody murder and probably said every horribly mean thing that you could possibly say to another human being and walked back in the studio completely flipped out.” Hey, I agree with you, Stevie! The song features strong, emotional lyrics, with an almost haunting nature that are paired with incredible harmonies, instrumentation and dynamics. With all that said, there was a reason for this, and it wasn’t musical success.
“Silver Springs” was written by Nicks as a tribute to a very personal slice of her own life. It is actually a breakup song about her falling out with guitarist Lindsay Buckingham. The two had a difficult and turmoil-filled relationship spanning back to the formation of the band. Stevie had the song’s name come to her as she was passing through Silver Spring, Maryland, and felt that it was the perfect fit for the song. Nicks wrote the song with a dagger in her hand, though. She knew exactly what she was feeling and what she was going to make clear to Buckingham. It’s kind of epic, actually. Some of my favorite lyrics are:
“Time cast a spell on you, but you won’t forget me /
I know I could have loved you, but you would not let me /
I’ll follow you down til’ the sound of my voice can haunt you”
Man, I’d hate to be Buckingham. Having Stevie Nicks, the singer and face of your own band, write a song about how you broke her heart and left it unresolved must… really suck. Especially because everyone knows exactly what’s up.
This song contributed, in part, to the band’s breakup. It was only a small puzzle piece, as the band had experienced internal conflict from the start. In the famous 1997 reunion concert, The Dance, the song was performed, and Nicks’ powerful performance actually brought the song back into the spotlight. She could be seen staring straight into the eyes of Buckingham during the performance; again highlighting the impact of the song. In a world of heartbreak and melancholy, the ability to capture it perfectly in such a beautiful piece of art like “Silver Springs” is something that should be recognized. I think this song should be heard and recognized on the same caliber as “Go Your Own Way” or “Dreams,” just purely for the emotional impact it can truly have. Give it a listen, and don’t be an idiot like Lindsay Buckingham.
The underground rap scene is full of many unusual and exciting new developments, but none over the past few years have captured my ears in the same way that the Haunted Mound collective has. Spearheaded by rapper-producer Sematary, their songs take much influence from 2000s and 2010s trap artists such as Chief Keef and Gucci Mane as they do the droning synthesizers of witch house and the discordant riffs of black metal. It’s an unusual combination, but when it’s topped off with horror-movie-esque lyricism and blown-out mixes, you get some of the most interesting music to come out of SoundCloud in the past half-decade.
Sematary certainly deserves credit as the driving force behind Haunted Mound, but he’s never worked alone. Back when it all started, back before the cult-like fanbase and tours, he had one partner in crime: Ghost Mountain. With his more emo-rap-derived vocal style and penchant for evocative imagery, he offered a strong counterpoint to Sematary’s abrasive production and subject matter. He would become a fan favorite through his features and contributions to collaborative projects despite his solo output being almost non-existent; consisting of a single song released in 2020. This led to him garnering an almost myth-like status among the fanbase, a reputation that would only be further strengthened after it was announced in early 2021 that he would be quitting music to focus on other personal pursuits.
While Haunted Mound would continue to grow — in both members and popularity — it was undeniable that something changed after Ghost Mountain left. Sematary and the new members were still releasing quality music, but it lacked the more emotive and genuine edge that made their older output so special. Fans, myself included, kept a small hope that Ghost Mountain would somehow return, but given his complete lack of an internet presence post-retirement, that seemed almost entirely out of the question. At least, that’s what it seemed like until this past week.
On Sept. 22, 2024, Ghost Mountain’s Instagram account would un-private and make a cryptic, captionless post. When other Haunted Mound members began sharing the post, fans began to wildly speculate that he may be returning to music. These rumors would be confirmed later that week with the single “Apollon,” Ghost Mountain’s first release in over three years.
The instrumental provided by oscar18 (one of the producers who joined the collective following Ghost Mountain’s departure), bears more resemblance to the gothic synthpop of an act like Depeche Mode than the standard Haunted Mound affair. However, it’s a more than welcome change of pace for the group. “Apollon” wastes almost no time getting to the point, with a brief drum intro leading into massive synth lines and densely layered vocals.
Ghost Mountain is just as strong of a performer as he was when he left, as his melancholic singing makes him sound like a specter haunting the track. He was always the strongest writer in the group, but his lyrics here show that his pen has only improved in his absence, being more poetic and mystical than ever. As “Apollon” builds to its chorus, he seems to reminisce about his departure from and subsequent return to Haunted Mound while simultaneously comparing himself to the Greek god of Apollo.
“With seven strong now I’m dead and gone /
Cut off my wings by the break of dawn /
I sang a song, now it’s said and done /
Keep a lyre and a bow like I’m Apollon.”
The song is less like a triumphant return and more like a bittersweet reunion between old friends. There’s still a sense of catharsis here, but it’s more like the sigh you let out at the end of a long day than anything else. As the song continues into its second verse, Ghost Mountain’s lyrics get even more abstract. He intertwines further references to Greek mythology with lines directly aimed at some unknown figure — potentially a representation of the other members of the group or the fans who were awaiting him.
“I feel alone when I speak to you /
Moirai cut the line from the old news /
Does it feel right how we live to you? /
I’ve been reaching out, but you never knew.”
I hadn’t considered another Ghost Mountain song releasing as something that was even possible until a week ago, but now that it’s here, “Apollon” is just about everything I would’ve wanted out of a new release from him. It picks up right where he left off, while still feeling like a progression of the more diverse musical influences that Haunted Mound has begun to incorporate since his departure. If the story of the group so far were to be made into a movie, this song would play during the end credits, with Ghost Mountain’s final cry of “let me go” echoing out as the screen fades to black. In reality, I hope it’s the opposite. I hope that “Apollon” is the beginning of a brand new chapter for one of the most exciting collectives to come out of the depths of the internet.
As the leaves begin to turn and fall and the air begins to chill, calendars flip to reveal the spooky joy of October. Class is in full swing, homework is piling up and exams loom over the heads of many. Autumn has officially arrived.
While adjusting to the shift, members of the Impact took a moment to reminisce on their summers, carefully selecting the song that defined their summer. Let these selections serve as one last fleeting glance at the freedom and warmth of summer, and remind you of what awaits us next June.
To listen to our 2024 Songs of the Summer playlist, check out the link at the bottom of this article. But first, feel free to reminisce and reflect with us, if you so choose:
Ashe Burr – “The Kids are Alright” by Ayra Starr
Every summer seems to have its own theme. Mine, for all three of these articles at least, has been wild. My first summer was spent stressing about my friendships scattering across the nation. Last year, I was fighting a losing battle with a manager who didn’t seem to care about the state of my mental or physical well-being. Little did me a year ago realize that my summer’s themes were the first two stages of grief. Denial and anger were so prevalent that I anticipated bargaining would be the one for this year. Or at least depression. But nope, it was acceptance.
In my mixtape, Crying on the Subway Halfway Across the World From Everything You Know, I mentioned how sitting on the subway from Chubu Centrair International Airport to Nagoya Station, I finally came to terms with the fact that I was quite literally on the other side of the planet from all of my friends and family. But what I didn’t mention is that I was listening to The Year I Turned 21 by Ayra Starr at the same time. As soon as “The Kids are Alright” came on, I finally came to terms with my situation.
The opening monologue that Ayra’s mother said reflected a conversation between my dad and I a couple of days before I left for Japan. I swear, hearing it in Nagoya gave me a stronger sense of déjà vu than anything I could imagine. And then the closing conversations. The messages between Ayra’s siblings to her deceased father, telling him about how they are doing and what their lives have been like really just hit in ways I couldn’t even expect.
Comfort can come from so many different places, even when it isn’t intended. Ayra wrote this song to help come to terms with her father’s passing. I had just landed after my third flight to my final destination, at least for the week. I don’t really show emotion, yet this made me cry like a waterfall. On the subway. Halfway across the world from everything I knew.
Ryan Wilbert – “Timeline” by hey, nothing
Oh, where to begin? Coming off the heels of my first year at college, I confidently set foot into what would be the longest summer I have ever experienced — literally. Sweatshirts and jeans plague the memory of my early summer weeks in April, something that seems completely foreign to my exhaustion of shorts and t-shirts in the scalding weeks that rounded out August. Therefore, it feels like the life I experienced at the start of the summer is an entirely different chapter than the one I am ending now — somehow.
So, what song really captures the entirety of my summer? Initially, I figured it would be any track by my recent obsession, Jake Minch, and his ability to be somberly reflective yet utterly immediate in his songwriting — but I wasn’t that blue (I hope). Maybe it’s my personal song of the year, “Next Semester” by Twenty One Pilots, a track that captures both pop-punk energy and the classic ukulele lamenting that only Tyler Joseph can pull off. But it would be wrong not to consider something like “Easier to Love You” by Porter Robinson, a little-too-close-to-home song with synth lines both 12-year-old and 18-year-old me go feral over.
Ah! Damn me for feeling too much this summer! If only there were one song that had just the right amount of longing and melancholy, yet general optimism for the future! Yeah, if you didn’t figure it out by now, here’s where “Timeline” by hey, nothing comes knocking on the proverbial door of my summer.
Indie-folk influences with simple chord progressions used so masterfully it won’t leave your head? Check. Beautiful vocal harmonies with a little rasp? Check. Lyrics that convey a deep desire to be more for yourself and in the eyes of another? Check. This song is like my child; I feel responsible for protecting it. If I don’t listen to this song at least once a week, I think I’ll go insane. That slight twinge of bittersweetness we taste in the fleeting moments we have with the people we meet, the very people we yearn to get closer to, combined with the inherent dissociation of the present that arises when traveling — this song nails these themes down into the ground with such clairvoyance, it’s upsettingly impressive.
I think my issue is that I like to fly among the clouds more than I like resting on the ground. Sometimes I just can’t let go of the little things. Chapters bleed into one another when they all consist of the same dreams I become bedazzled by. The only way I can distinguish the months these days is the length of my hair. So, as I pray for the summer heat to leave my sight, it’s clear this song will continue to pepper my fall semester with a general yearning I am incapable of escaping — and, hey, if it’s this catchy, I’m boarding the plane to my headspace, no questions asked.
Sky Curtright – “OTHERSIDE” by Bladee & Sickboyrari
One would think that an album with the word “cold” in its title wouldn’t be the best for summer listening, but Swedish rapper Bladee’s most recent release COLD VISIONS, ended up being my soundtrack for the hottest days of the year. I’ve been a fan of Bladee’s uniquely icy and atmospheric take on hip-hop since my freshman year of high school, so his dropping an album reflecting on his decade-long career as I prepared to enter my freshman year of college felt like something of a full-circle moment.
Due to its lengthy 30-song tracklist, picking just one song from COLD VISIONS for this article was something of a challenge. I felt a lot of strange, conflicting emotions during this gap between high school and college, but what song would best define those? Would it be a song like “KING NOTHINGG” or “TERRIBLE EXCELLENCE,” with their apocalyptic bass and desperate flows? Those songs certainly connected with me, but would the ethereal synths of “LUCKY LUKE” or the emotional lyricism of “FLATLINE” better represent the bittersweet ocean of feelings I found myself in? Ultimately, I landed on “OTHERSIDE,” a song that I believe brings together all of these elements into one of the most compelling tracks of Bladee’s entire career.
With a beat produced by F1LTHY and Lukrative — two figures who have pushed the sound of modern hip hop to new futuristic heights — “OTHERSIDE” immediately grabbed my attention when I first heard it. While many stylistically similar songs have failed to take advantage of this initial intrigue, Bladee effortlessly carries the momentum provided to him by the instrumental. His verse is characteristically introspective, delving into his troubled mental state with a sense of urgency that was seldom seen on previous releases of his.
“Nothing works, but sleep don’t hurt /
Dirty life, baptized in dirt /
In my soul, a growing hole /
Void that spreads out of control /
Panic, that became the norm /
Out of fear, a child is born /
Only calm once in the storm /
Faith in stars I can’t afford /
Time pass by and brought me more /
Yet, I’m weaker than before.”
This combination of a pounding beat with semi-poetic lyricism makes up the bulk of the track (and of COLD VISIONS as a whole), but Bladee’s frequent changes in delivery and eccentric ad-libs make sure the song never feels static. Further shaking things up, fellow cloud rap pioneer Sickboyrari (A.K.A. Black Kray) contributes a verse that, while being much briefer and more superficial than Bladee’s section, still acts as a welcome addition and a strong close to the song.
If I’m being totally honest, I didn’t really do that much over the summer. I spent the first few weeks decompressing from my senior year of high school, and the second half was largely dominated by a job that I mostly got because I didn’t have anything better to do. Through this time period that was simultaneously boring and filled with anxiety, “OTHERSIDE” seemed to speak to me no matter what mood I was in. Whether it played while I was driving to work, while I was lying aimlessly in my bed, or during the occasions when I was able to combat my social inertia and actually do anything, it grounded me, acting as a mental refresh of sorts. No matter what mental state I was in when I was listening to it, one thing always remained true: it went hard.
Abby Cheng – “Mango Tree” by Zac Brown Band feat. Sara Bareilles
A hot summer day’s best friend is a good country playlist. While that may be an unpopular opinion amongst many, I firmly believe that driving with your windows down when it’s 80 degrees out and not playing country music is a criminal act.
My summer consisted of leaving work and driving home with my windows down on the highway, blasting a country artist’s discography. It was this randomized shuffle of an artist that led me to hear “Mango Tree” by Zac Brown Band featuring Sara Bareilles. At first, I thought my Spotify had glitched, as this song immediately begins with a jazzy instrumental featuring blaring trumpets. Instantly, I was hooked on this song, and the lead singer, Zac Brown, had the country rasp paired with an upbeat melody. Then Sara Bareilles joins in, bringing a higher pitch to the song which would get anyone obsessed with this song if they weren’t already.
As someone who had never listened to jazz music before, this song was something different, unique and the perfect summer song. I restarted the song before it even finished to take it in again. Since starting college, summer feels more like an extension of school rather than a break. It gets filled with internships and resume-building events rather than hanging out with your friends at all times of the day. This song would help me unwind after a long day of work while also exciting me for plans that brought back the fun part of summer. Regardless of your love or hate for country music, this song will change your mind on country artists, so give it a listen on your next drive with the windows down.
Brooke Racine – “Back to Oz” by Sufjan Stevens and Angelo De Augustine
My summer was great, don’t get me wrong, but it had a hectic start. An unsuccessful search for a summer job — because apparently I need a Ph.D. to make a cup of coffee — my best friend moving to New York City for the summer, and a reconfiguration of hometown friendships left me in a mindset I had never experienced before. I was the type of kid who couldn’t wait to grow up; I would cry in a restaurant if given a kid’s cup. I was suddenly hit with the realization that this was my last summer of no obligations, the last summer of genuine freedom before a future of internships and grown-up jobs. This loss of childhood consumed my every thought.
“Back to Oz” was written by Sufjan Stevens and Angelo De Augustine after watching Return to Oz (1985). As the title implies, Dorothy returns to Oz but finds it in shambles. Stevens and Augustine use the movie as inspiration for a song about lost innocence and the fear of forgetting a former self — a self that’s protected from the mundane, humdrum and harsh reality of the world. The song reflects a desire to return to a time of childlike wonder and to experience that same joy that once seemed normal.
I find myself relating to Dorothy and her shock returning to a decaying world that once was tremendous. It seems as though childhood and its associated memories are slipping away, and it’s almost impossible to recapture that former essence. Though I reminisce on the past and wish that things stayed the way they were, time moves on, and I must as well.
Though the song deals with somber concepts, it also, in contrast, features a whimsical guitar and a relaxed and groovy instrumental that distracts from the heavy lyrical content. I threw this song onto so many collaborative and personal playlists, which I associate with a wide collection of amazing and beautiful memories I made this summer. Strengthened friendships, late-night drives alone and stupid, but ultimately worth it, decisions defined my summer. I can look back and yearn for the past, but I have a lifetime of memories to look forward to. I’m not fully over this infatuation with the past and the fear of growing up, but this summer has taught me to embrace what’s to come.
The future is unwritten, and that’s a good thing.
Ashmi Ranjan – “Murder of One” by Counting Crows
I graduated from high school this summer. The days just kept on coming until there were no more left. I worked with a dear friend at the art center in my hometown. We were counselors looking after spoiled children, some of whom became dear to me. The center is housed in what used to be a water purification plant surrounded by lush greenery. The sunlight poured through the huge classroom windows. I felt lucky to be there.
My friend and I supervised the kids during their recess. We laid on the impossibly green grass, talking about our dreams and fears. The kids would sit around us when they got tired of running around. They’d ask to braid my hair and sit in my lap. For some reason, I felt as though I had no future, but I felt a vast emotion for the children and what life held for them. When I remembered I would soon be leaving all this behind — these streets I memorized, the park where I fell in love for the first time — it became clear that my life is only beginning. I couldn’t help feeling like I wanted to reject the rest of my life and stay on the grass with my friend and these kids.
You may know Counting Crows best from being included on the Shrek 2 soundtrack, which is kind of perfect because Counting Crows is reminiscent of that cozy early 2000s nostalgia, like old Barnes & Noble and Zoup! Lead singer Adam Duritz’s voice is like your uncle telling you everything is going to be okay after your mom yells at you. But “Murder of One” specifically is so soulful and desperate for a long-gone past. When I drove home from work listening to this song, I always cried. Sometimes, I feel horrified at how I’ll never be 16 again. Duritz sings:
“All your life was a shame, shame, shame. /
All your love is just a dream, dream, dream”
Reading it on your computer the words might feel cold and mean, but when Adam sings it to me, I feel seen and held. I say, yes! Yes, my life feels like a shame and my love feels like a dream! But Adam assures me, “you don’t wanna waste your life” Oh, but it is a daunting task to turn all this nothingness into something.
At the end of art camp, we had a show. I got up on a ladder and hung up what we spent the whole summer creating. It was hard to see it all up like that, knowing they’d all leave and I’d never see them again. It was kind of magical, too. And when it was all over, I hung up my name tag and signed out for the last time. I walked past the grass we laid on all summer long, listening to “Murder of One.” I thought, how can anyone let go of anything? Surely, I can’t walk through my life with everything I hold precious on my back, knowing I’ll never have it again. At the end of “Murder of One,” Adam Duritz just sings the word “change” over and over again. In a way, he’s lamenting and grieving this painful thing we all must face, but he’s also telling us, begging us, to change. It’s the only way we get through this life.
TJ Peterson – “Houston” by Still Woozy
Still Woozy, over the years, has been with me through thick and thin. Without fail, his tracks always manage to be the highlight of one of my dramatic internal transformative periods. To put into further context how awkwardly obsessed I am, I can confidently say my favorite song in general — currently — is “Pool” (2022) by Still Woozy and Remi Wolf. I have listened to it countless times and in a complicated way, it means the world to me. So, I’m sure you can imagine my excitement when I heard Still Woozy was not only releasing a new album this summer, but going on tour! You couldn’t find someone more excited. I nearly singlehandedly crashed the ticket website.
Because this is meant to be personal, I will share that at the time, I was in a long-term relationship. I was also in the midst of my internship, researching weather and forecasting, which occupied a lot of my summer. Once the album was finally released, I would play Loveseat from the start almost religiously on my way home from research. I looked forward most to the upbeat tracks, such as “Again,” “Baby,” or “All Your Life.” But, my unlikely song of the summer, “Houston,” stood out from the album for its shift in tone.
I find it funny that not until recently did I really care much for the song, but weirdly, it stuck with me throughout the summer. I vividly remember one afternoon pondering over the song’s last verse:
“I’m always coming back /
To places that we sat / When we spoke of our future /
May not have ended up / How we dreamt it up /
But maybe that’s ok.”
In an eerie way, the verse felt like a precursor to something ahead, which to this day I find so odd since at that time everything was fine. Unfortunately, as I’m sure you can guess, summer started to wrap up, and things changed. Perhaps the future outlook granted to me by the verse was something I felt deeply, coming inevitably. Yet, when it happened, it was still a surprise. It’s unfortunate that just days before the breakup was the concert, which we attended together. Thankfully, at the time, I enjoyed it, but now it is a little hard to think back on. But like I said before, Still Woozy is with me through thick and thin.
I don’t need a lie tonight /
Might not be your fault /
But it’s not mine /
Maybe I’ll stop tryin’.
Today, I don’t find myself going back to this song; maybe it’s too soon. I do find it interesting how much the song parallels the emotion at the end of the relationship. So even if it wasn’t a song I had on repeat back then, when I do think of this last summer, I’m always drawn back to this oddly fate-filled melody.
Ryan Beylerian – “Do Nothing – Single Version” by The Specials
My summer vacation was soundtracked by two distinct sounds: The Beach Boys and ska. I had been introduced to ska music in the past through the outburst of popular ska tunes in the UK during the post-punk era, but I hadn’t immersed myself within the scene entirely; I had barely cut my teeth on the giant imprint that Jamaica had left on the musical world. The Beach Boys’ easy-going tunes would’ve been perfect to write about, but The Specials, a ska band originating from the UK in the late ‘70s, and their song, “Do Nothing,” takes the pedestal as my track of the summer.
“Do Nothing” has a particular sense of lethargy about it. A laid-back tempo floats along the bars with guitars springing out on upbeats in classic ska fashion. The drum groove is mostly kept to a light shuffle, aside from some energetic flourishes here and there. The groove of the track makes me want to simultaneously jump around in a half-time skank — an ‘80s ska dance staple — and laze about on the couch. I like the mix used for the single over the album release because it adds a soaring synth that fills in the emptier spots of the instrumentation, as well as a layer of melancholy to the overall upbeat tune. The synth pairs well with Jerry Dammers’ piano part, which weaves in between synth phrases. The piano poses questions to the other groups of instruments in the ensemble, which they respond to with an air of fluidity that suggests the player has performed these sorts of bluesy lines numerous times. It reminds me of some ragtime player riling up a crowd in a bar on a weekly basis. Halfway through the song, Rico Rodriguez is provided a verse-worth of bars for a soulful trombone solo, which rides behind the rest of the instrumentation, adding color here and there in a Harrison-esque manner.
Coinciding with the apathetic mood of the music, Lynval Golding’s lyrics express a discomfort in the passivity he finds himself and his community in. He communicates a tension in trying to find a purpose in our lives amid the stasis of indifference. The lyrics ring true for me, especially during a time like the dog days of summer, where thoughts of school or my future career are set on the back burner. I find myself in that same frame of mood, that nothing ever changes when I’m walking around aimlessly in my neighborhood during the middle of the day, or driving home from my job after the same weekly schedules. The song is cathartic in that sense and perfectly encapsulates the moods or thinking one might experience in the middle of an uneventful summer.
Noelle Simonelli – “Tokai” by Taeko Onuki
Thinking back on my summer, it felt nearly impossible to encapsulate it all in one song. I spent time with friends, went to concerts, worked and did online classes, but the most significant thing I did this summer was spend a month completely immersing myself in Japanese culture through study abroad. From the sweeping mountains and vast rice fields of the countryside to the bustling and electric cityscapes of Tokyo, Japan enthralled me and welcomed me to a whole new world of exploration and learning I couldn’t be more grateful to have experienced. So, I thought this song would be a lovely pick to highlight the bright and upbeat joy my summer was painted in.
Taeko Onuki was wildly successful in the Japanese ‘70s and ‘80s city pop scene. Blending the electric energy of Japanese city pop and the mellow jazz melodies, this song travels across Japan, finding a way to connect with each location we explored.
While in Japan, I focused my studies on music and the customs and traditions surrounding it in Japanese culture. I dove into the music that defines each region, whether it be the traditional drums and bowls played at Buddhist temples in southern Japan, or the fast-paced city pop enveloping busy cities such as Tokyo and Osaka.
Although there was an abundance of songs I considered for my selection, I landed on this one for the fond memories it will forever carry. My summer of 2024 will bring back memories of lush, mountainous landscapes, camping by the sea, cooking with Japanese students and running around Japanese cities and towns attempting to discover every special nook and cranny. I’ll always have fond and unforgettable memories from this summer — even if I never got my mixtape out to show it — and I’m excited to see what memories next summer brings to the table to challenge this one.
As the warm weather begins to deplete, the leaves begin to fall and the cold blanket of autumn begins to cover the earth, feelings of warmth and the freedom of summer start to feel like only a past memory. The overwhelmingly haunting angst and uneasy atmosphere of Fontaines D.C.’s single off their newest album perfectly embodies the feelings of nostalgia, melancholy and perhaps anxiety that come with the new season.
“It may feel bad /
It may feel bad”
The Irish post-punk band’s newest album, Romance, released in late August 2024, blends experimental instrumentals and rhythms, complemented by mesmerizing and drawing vocals, seeming to embody the lead singer, Grian Chatten’s, anxieties. However, the most intriguing track off the indie rock album is “Starburster.”
The song begins with heavy reverb and an atmospheric keyboard sound, almost foreshadowing the musical turmoil that is soon to come. As the booming bass and drums — the heartbeat of the song — join the other instruments, we are slingshotted into a mesmerizing blend of angst and anxiety, almost similar to feelings evoked by the ‘80s new wave sound of similar autumn artists such as The Cure or Joy Division. The verse begins with the singer’s stream of consciousness, as he attempts to describe the intensity he feels in the moments leading up to a panic attack. However, it isn’t until the chorus that we are thrown into the headbanging chaos.
“I’m gon’ hit your business if its momentary blissness /
I’m gon’ hit your business if its momentary blissness”
The existential meltdown we are shoved into is manifested in the aggression of the chorus as Chatten forces his anger toward the world in a loud, almost rap. As the heavy instrumentals and lyrics swarm, each chorus line is stopped abruptly by a gasp, as if Chatten is gasping for air and struggling to breathe. The raw energy of the chorus almost takes everything out of the singer, as if he is experiencing panic along with us.
“Starburster” is an experience rather than just a song. It embodies lively dread and angst, exemplified by the lyrics and instrumentals of a perfect autumn song. If melancholy, sadness, hope or dread are any emotions you experience during the changing of the seasons, “Starburster” is the perfect song to embrace the fall spirit.
In 2016, a lawsuit was filed against Ed Sheeran and his No. 1 single, “Thinking Out Loud.” The heirs of Ed Townsend, who was the co-writer for Marvin Gaye’s 1973 soul classic “Let’s Get It On,” sued Sheeran for allegedly intentionally copying the song. The lawsuit claimed that Sheeran’s song had a similar melody, harmony and rhythm.
The estate of Townsend includes his daughter, Kathryn Townsend Griffin; sister Helen McDonald; and his former wife, Cherrigale Townsend. The party wanted $100 million in damages and an injunction preventing Sheeran from further profiting from the song.
Sheeren denied the claims, arguing that the similarities within the songs were coincidental and were a common chord progression that was used in pop music. Sheeran claimed that he wrote the two-time Grammy-winning song with his guitarist, Amy Wadge.
The trial was put on hold in 2019, and then again delayed in 2020 due to Covid-19. It wasn’t until 2023 that the case went on a two-week trial.
During the trial, Sheeran defended his case, describing his personal experience writing the song with his guitarist after his grandfather had passed. He even performed the song in front of the court as he explained his songwriting process. During the second week of the trial, he told the court that he would be “done” with music if he was found guilty.
“I find it really insulting to work my whole life as a singer-songwriter and diminish it,” Sheeran said.
The jury eventually ruled in favor of Sheeran, concluding that there was not enough evidence to prove Sheeran had intentionally copied Gaye’s song. Following the verdict, Sheeran expressed his relief but also shared his disappointment and frustration with the emotional and financial toll lawsuits like this place on musicians.
This case is substantial for artists in the songwriting industry due to this being a common lawsuit and verdict happening time and time again. It continues the discussion about copyright laws and how they apply to popular music, especially with the use of common chord progressions and musical motifs.
– JaTasia Powers
On Oct. 4, 1982, The Smiths made their live debut at The Ritz in Manchester, England. The alternative band, led by frontman Morrissey, included Johnny Marr, Andy Rourke, Mike Joyce, Craig Gannon, Dale Hibbert and Ivor Perry. Their performance was unique and unlike anything the British alternative rock scene had seen before. At the time of the performance, the band didn’t have much music out since they were still up and coming, but its significance in the alt scene was memorable. At the time, The Smiths’ discography was short but the lasting impression made on that day sent their career soaring.
With a relatively brief performance, The Smiths performed four songs. The set consisted of “The Hand That Rocks The Cradle”, the only live performance of “Suffer Little Children,” a cover of U.S. girl group, The Cookies’ “I Want A Boy For My Birthday” and a vivacious new song called “Hand In Glove.” The Smiths’ big debut came about as a result of a band called Blue Rondo A La Turk. When this band was also performing at the Ritz, the promoters were contacted and convinced to let The Smiths play the infamous venue in support.
When the melancholic band took center stage, they were introduced by James Maker, one of Morrissey’s friends at the time. A funky energy quickly ensued after Maker introduced the band. He stayed on stage to dance and play the tambourine and maracas. At the time, the event was described by The Face magazine as “the kind of live music fashion show that the British don’t attempt enough.” The Smiths’ sound had a vibrancy and wistfulness that had never hit the Ritz stage before, so this debut performance was new and fresh for the audience.
Although many would say that The Smiths’ live debut was not their best performance, with a touch of chaotic energy and few songs, it was one to be remembered and the start of a band that would make a name for themselves forever in the alternative rock music scene.
– Sophie Sparkman
On Oct. 5, 1973, Sir Elton John’s seventh studio album, Goodbye Yellow Brick Road was released. It went on to become his most successful, topping the Billboard Top 200, being inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame and selling over 30 million copies. This album has emotionally embedded itself into the lives of many, becoming a timeless force in music history.
When I think of Goodbye Yellow Brick Road, a flood of memories rushes in. Scattered across my life, this album carries a deep sense of nostalgia, throwing me into pictures of the past. I’m transported to the backseat of our bright blue minivan, with Mom and Dad singing along up front. It brings me back to karaoke sessions in the car with friends and glimpses towards the future at a high school senior night. Most notably, though, I’m taken back to what I personally believe to be a pretty perfect Father’s Day gift: sitting in Comerica Park, watching the sunset over the stage, a cool summer breeze and the unforgettable opening notes of “Bennie and the Jets” as the show begins.
In celebrating the anniversary of this remarkable album, I highly encourage you to think back on your memories with it. Where do the songs take you? Can you feel the air, picture the scene? And if you haven’t sat down to listen to this album in full, I can’t recommend it enough. It truly does possess that magic and nostalgia promised in the title.
– Noelle Simonelli
If you’re looking for a song to make you feel like you’re serving and are looking good, then I might have something right up your alley.
“Untouched, XO /Young lust, let’s- (ah)”
Imagine a warm summer night, cruising around with friends, laughter filling the air with no worries on your mind. You find yourselves at a lively spot, dancing under the stars when you lock eyes with someone across the room. You go over there like something was calling you, and you start dancing, getting lost in your own rhythm. That’s the vibe of Addison Rae’s new song, “Diet Pepsi.” The song is effortlessly fun, capturing the magic of those spontaneous moments that make summer nights unforgettable.
Rae released her song on Aug. 9, and it quickly became a fan favorite, trending on TikTok, and everyone’s shook that she released a good song. The singer has released other songs before, but this is the first song released since she switched to her “good girl gone bad era,” which she is doing phenomenally well. This song entered the Billboard Hot 100 at 86, and was her first breakthrough into the charts.
“Diet Pepsi” sounds like Addison took her time on it. It truly captures her rebrand in a way that feels fresh and authentic. With “Diet Pepsi,” Addison Rae embraces a more confident, carefree vibe, reflecting the joy of living in the moment. The song’s infectious energy and playful lyrics resonate with listeners, making it the perfect anthem for those unforgettable summer nights filled with laughter, dancing, and new connections. It’s not just a track; it’s a celebration of the freedom that comes with being young and having fun. It makes you feel sexy and confident, and people love that from Rae. “Diet Pepsi” being released in the summer was such a good move, because it is such a song for a summer night.
“Summer love (ah, ah), sexy /Sitting on his lap, sippin’ Diet Pepsi”
It’s not only a song; it is something that shows Rae can stand on her own as a pop girl. Personally, this is one of my favorite songs right now, and I can’t wait to see more from Rae and see what else she comes up with. Now my question to you is: Are you drinking your diet Pepsi?
Imagine this: You’re cozied up by the fire, pumpkin spice latte in hand, snuggled under your weighted blanket. The air around you smells of pumpkin, mulled cider and freshly fallen leaves. Gently, a cool breeze floats through the window. Maybe you’re scrolling through movies attempting to pick the best seasonal classic to revisit — Fantastic Mr Fox? When Harry Met Sally? Good Will Hunting? Or perhaps you’re listening to this beautifully crafted playlist, packed to the brim with only the best of cozy autumnal tunes.
But then there’s a knock on the door. You cautiously approach, peering through the peephole only to notice she’s here. Adorned in her skinniest of jeans, her brightest flannel and her chunkiest scarf — Tumblr girl Autumn has arrived.
Trust me, I’m aware of the baggage I’m bringing to the table. If you’re fortunate enough not to know what I mean, opinions on Maroon 5 are as divided as American politics. To complicate matters, lead singer Adam Levine has attracted significant media attention in recent years. Ask any middle-aged woman about him, and you’ll likely hear an overwhelming amount of over-sexualized praise. But, if you ask Sumner Stroh, you might be shocked at the “game” a man over 40 can have. However, since it’s Throwback Thursday, let’s set aside Levine’s questionable taste in tattoos and take a trip back to a simpler time — the 2000s.
Maroon 5 is well-known for their numerous hits, particularly in the early 2010s. Tracks like “One More Night” (2012) and “Sugar” (2014) define an unforgettable era of Obama’s presidency and playing games on the Wii. These classics are embedded in pop culture, representing a sound that Maroon 5 would carry on for the rest of their career. While some criticized the repetitiveness and predictability of their later branding, as a Maroon 5 lover, I can attest that it wasn’t always this way.
After the lackluster release of their first album, the band, originally called Kara’s Flowers, disbanded in 2001 to focus on their studies. However, that same year, the addition of guitarist James Valentine revitalized the group, leading to the creation of their redemption project — “Songs About Jane,” under their new name, Maroon 5. Released in 2002, this debut album embraced a heavier, neo-soul funk-rock style that just sounds like the early 2000s. While some lighter songs from the album found their way onto the radio, many of the leftover tracks showcase a version of the band that has since faded away. One song that encapsulates this lost artistry is this Thursday’s highlighted track — “Through with You.”
“Heartache, heartache, I just have so much /A simple love with a complex touch /And there is nothing you can say or do /I called to let you know I’m through with you, oh.”
From the start, the layered guitar rhythms highlight the band’s unique musicality, setting a gritty tone for Levine to explore the theme of an emotionally absent ex-lover. One admirable aspect of their earlier work is its simplicity. Even if the song’s premise doesn’t resonate with you personally, many verses contain universally relatable themes, making it both musically and lyrically captivating. Although the song repeats its chorus with little variation, Levine’s vocal progression, paired with an increasingly dynamic guitar rhythm, keeps the energy passionate rather than monotonous. This builds into a stunning guitar-drum solo that will inspire you to take fashion tips from Diary of a Wimpy Kid’s, Rodrick Heffley.
“You ain’t ever coming back to me /And that’s not how things were supposed to be /You take my hand just to give it back /No other lover has ever done that.”
Whether or not I’ve changed your mind about the band, this week is more about commemorating what Maroon 5 once was. I’m not suggesting that they became incapable of making good music after leaving the funk-rock scene — they’ve certainly produced some catchy pop hits. However, their over-saturation in a competitive genre, along with a reluctance to return to their roots, has led to several forgettable projects and even a song with Cardi B. This would make anyone wonder: What could have been if they had revisited neo-soul?
And I know, considering Levine’s interesting past and rocky marriage, that there is PLENTY to sing about.
“Wonder how you feel /
Words cannot describe, baby /
This feeling deep inside.”
Have you ever felt an emotion so powerful, beautiful and extensive that there was truly no way to explain it? A feeling that encapsulates all your desires and is simply so fantastical you want to stay in that space forever? English musician FKA twigs has, and she has somehow found a way to explain it — “Eusexua”.
On Sept. 13, 2024, FKA twigs released “Eusexua” the title track and lead single for her upcoming album. The single marks twigs first solo release since her 2022 album CAPRISONGS. As a career-long fan of twigs, I could barely contain my excitement over her new project and I am delighted to say she did not disappoint.
“Eusexua” is a stunning piece of electronic music with heartfelt lyrics that so beautifully explain the feeling FKA twigs wants to illustrate. Produced by twigs with the help of Koreless and Eartheater, “Eusexua” encapsulates rave culture with fast-paced beats and arcane synths that make you want to dance, sweat, or even cry.
“Do you feel alone? /
You’re not alone /
And if they ask you, say you feel it /
But don’t call it love, Eusexua.”
But what exactly is Eusexa? It is a phrase FKA twigs created herself as a way to describe her state of being and what is at her core as an artist.
“Eusexua is a practice. Eusexua is a state of being. Eusexua is the pinnacle of human experience,” twigs said in an Instagram post announcing the single.
“Eusexua” is by far one of my favorite songs released this year. It is the expression of complete euphoria and what it means to be human. It is honest, exciting, mysterious and daring — which, in my opinion, is the definition of what music should be. Since her first project, 2014’s LP1, FKA twigs has been a pillar of the electronic/alternative music community, and “Eusexua” feels and sounds like the music she has been preparing to make.
Eusexua, the album, is set to release on Jan. 24, 2025.
Recently, my mind has been consumed by a comic by J. Marshall Smith about Laika the cosmonaut dog, Good Girl Laika. Specifically its panel set featuring Laika, a scientist, a goldfish and a star, all asking the cosmos, “Am I going to be okay?”
The past few years have not been kind to me. With mental health crises, regular health crises and more than a few near-death experiences, I have been more than struggling to cope. But it now seems I have finally been given a break. I am feeling more creative than ever. I have been given more opportunities to share my art than ever. I’ve felt confident, social, healthy, happy for once. I feel as though I have more love and support than ever before, inpouring and outpouring. So now I am just waiting for the other shoe to drop. I can’t help waiting for it all to fall to pieces again. I just can’t shake the question, am I going to be okay? More than anything, I can’t shake the fear I won’t be.
The next panel of the comic shows Laika witnessing the absolute sublime power of the universe. The birth and death of stars, the journey of asteroids, the collision of planets and the caption, “It is really beautiful up there.” I only wish I could see what Laika sees.
Oftentimes, the best things that happen to us come serendipitously. Whether it be stepping into a little hole-in-the-wall and discovering a community that you didn’t know existed, or following a friend to a club meeting that you didn’t plan on going to and finding everything you were looking for and a seemingly infinite amount of other events like this. These spontaneous moments can bring people who may have never met into each other’s lives.
This style of spontaneity was on full display at birddog.’s performance at the Basement. Liv was first introduced to the zoology student at an open mic event hosted by the UAB at the MSU Union. Their artistry clearly struck a chord, as we welcomed birddog. to the Basement a mere 3 days later. I was unfortunately not able to make it to the open mic event, but the moment I saw his setup — a simple acoustic guitar and harmonica — I knew we were in for a treat.
As soon as he plucked the opening chords to the opening song of his set, “Boys Smoking Cigarettes,” a wave of tranquility rushed over me, reminiscent of the emotions that come to me when I’m hiking in places where there’s no cell service and the only music is that of the birds chirping harmonizing with the howling wind and the percussion of dried leaves and twigs.
At the station, The Basement usually is a massive event. Numerous people come to the station to socialize and converse with each other, with the live music bringing an incredibly unique atmosphere that is nearly impossible to recreate. However, this time, everyone in the Broadcast Studio just sat transfixed, hypnotized by the music pouring out from birddog.’s guitar and harmonica, only interrupted by comments along the lines of “this is incredible.”
birddog.’s music is an amalgamation of his lived experiences. While he is a student here in East Lansing, he came to MSU from Montana after moving there from Texas. He mentioned Texas, where he spent most of his fundamental years, left the biggest influence on his music. His folk and Americana style truly showcases this. Some of his biggest influences, such as artists like Tim McGraw, Luke Combs, Zach Bryan and more, would be incredibly proud of what he’s been making.
Moving across the nation multiple times can make it hard to find a sense of community. Throw in growing up queer in the South, and it adds to the difficulty. However, he managed to find it in a coffee shop in Oklahoma, where his parents currently live. Though he only went there a handful of times, the sense of community that he found there was something he brought with him to Michigan.
The vast beauty of Montana also left a major impact on his music. From working in Yellowstone with the Montana Conservation Corps clearing weeds and restoring a geyser, to a canyon in Bozeman lending its name to my favorite song from his session, “Hyalite.” His love of nature also followed him to Michigan. Though not explicitly about Michigan, “Lake” was also featured in his setlist. When asked about his favorite nature spot near Lansing, he said Sleepy Hollow State Park, which is centered on Lake Ovid in Clinton Township. A great choice given the fact his show in the Basement happened in mid-September. He mentioned that the slightly spooky air lends itself to the immaculate vibes that he loves.
If birddog.’s love for nature wasn’t obvious enough, he also performed a song entitled “Mary Oliver,” a poet who found inspiration in nature and let the natural world speak for itself in her poems. Poetry is also an important part of birddog.’s writing style, as all of his original works initially begin as poems. Once the poems are finalized, he then goes back in with his guitar and harmonica and fleshes out his ideas.
Though music has been a part of his life for most of his life, he released his first song on streaming platforms, “Secondhand,” a mere four days after performing in the Basement. “Secondhand” was initially written as a part of his creative writing final in high school, and he chose to unveil that song first as it’s one of his oldest tracks, as well as one that he feels the most comfortable performing.
Though he may just be getting started as a performer, the sky’s the limit for birddog. If you want to stay tuned to what’s next for him, you can follow him on Instagram at birddog.music, as well as supporting him on Spotify and YouTube.
On Sept. 24, 1991, Nirvana released their second album, Nevermind, changing the course of music history. Although Nirvana had already been in the music scene for years, they were still relatively unknown. That was until Nevermind’s lead single, “Smells Like Teen Spirit” was released to radio in August of that same year. Unlike their debut album, Bleach, Nevermind was slightly more polished and radio-friendly allowing the music to connect with a wider audience, skyrocketing the trio into the limelight. Despite the more radio-friendly aspects of the album, Nevermind still brought a whole new wave of grunge and alternative music to the mainstream. With grunge’s newfound home in mainstream media, other musicians with similar sounds began to pop up throughout the rest of the ‘90s. Nirvana’s distinctive sound can be seen as a clear influence to groups like Pearl Jam, Stone Temple Pilots and the Cranberries.
While Nirvana went on to release their third and final album, In Utero in 1993, Nevermind remains their most successful. Today, Nevermind has sold over 30 million copies worldwide making it not only one of the most successful grunge albums but one of the all-time best-selling albums. The impact Nevermind had on the music industry will never be forgotten, and that is why, on this day in music history, we remember this timeless album.
– Helena Najar
In a year filled with extravagant avocado toast, Tide-Pod-eating children, Beyonce headlining Coachella and a phenomenal Billboard’s Year-End Hot 100 list, there was one thing we didn’t expect — a tax fraud case accusing Colombian singer Shakira of failing to pay the Spanish government €14.5 million — coming to about $15.8 million — in taxes. Towards the end of Sept. 2018, the Spanish government claimed that Shakira failed to pay her taxes from 2012 to 2014 when she was considered a resident of Spain. On the other hand, Shakira denies these claims and states that she was residing in the Bahamas at the time. The Spanish government also accused Shakira of funneling money to an offshore account to avoid income and wealth taxes, totaling $7.1 million.
In 2018, Shakira was traveling constantly for her El Dorado World Tour which began on June 3 in Germany and ended on Nov. 3 in Columbia. For Spain, however, she was still considered a resident based on the location of her spouse and children and Barcelona being a “center of economic interest.” At the time, Shakira was married to Gerard Piqué, a famous FC Barcelona soccer player, and had two children who also resided in Barcelona. As a result, Spain felt that it had sufficient evidence to charge Shakira with six counts of tax fraud.
On November 20, 2023, Shakira was found guilty of six counts of tax fraud but faced no jail time. Instead, she was made to pay what she owed and was fined half that the €14.5 million, coming to €7.3 million (about $8.1 million). Shakira also paid €432,000 to suspend a three-year prison sentence. In the end, it looks like Shakira’s hips do lie.
– Andrea Jurado-Gutierrez
On Sept. 29, we celebrate the 29th birthday of one of the indie and alternative rock world’s most devastating lyricists, Julien Baker. Best known for her work with the indie supergroup, boygenius, Baker has spent the better part of 14 years providing teenagers who have never gotten over anything with the most crushing of songs.
Julien got her start in Sept. 2010, releasing her first single, a cover of “Nothing Better” by The Postal Service. After that, some patience was required as we awaited the release of her debut album, Sprained Ankle, in 2015. Following Sprained Ankle, Julien continued to build on her phenomenal solo career with albums Turn Out the Lights and Little Oblivions. Although her start was small, she built up a devoted following throughout the years, leading to the eventual explosion of popularity that resulted from boygenius’ debut album, The Record, released in 2023. After blowing up in 2023 with boygenius, Baker became a six-time Grammy nominee, taking home three wins just last year, further cementing her musical success.
Over the past couple of years, I have gotten deeply acquainted with Juliens’ discography. There is such deeply rooted emotion and melancholy in her music—whether solo or with boygenius—that it’s hard not to fall back on her in the more gloomy times. I, along with many others, have found solace in her work, knowing that we aren’t alone in our thoughts. I can’t imagine a Spotify Moody Mix or a lonely walk to class through the snow without her. Although, she’s likely in hibernation after the chaos of last year’s boygenius summer, happy birthday Julien. I can’t wait to see what devastating work of genius you gift to us next.
– Noelle Simonelli
You either know or you don’t — CATA bus mosh-pits are only for some of the hardest ravers and ragers. Usually kicking off at the prime time of 8:30 a.m., these thrilling adventures are the only way to start your day here at MSU. Sometimes these events are so LIT, they don’t even allow you on the bus!
Did the bus jerk a little too hard while you were standing, and you accidentally fell into the person in the seat ahead of you? Don’t worry — that’s part of the experience. Is it your stop, but you can’t get to the door because not even Bella Hadid could shimmy her way through? That’s ok! You’re just not supposed to leave the pit yet.
At IMPACT, we have embraced this life-altering experience and crafted a playlist that will truly let you get the most out of your CATA Commute.
Whether you’re getting ready for a fun night out with friends, needing a little pick-me-up, dancing in your room way too late at night, or just want to feel like a “girly girl,” I’ve got the perfect song for you.
“All the Girls are girling, girling /
All the Girls are girling, girling /
All the girly girls (what?)”
LE SSERAFIM just had their fourth comeback as a group with their 4th mini album, titled CRAZY. This is the group’s second mini album in 2024 after their smash hit — EASY — released back in late February. The title track of this album is the boundary pushing, energetic, electric song also named “CRAZY.” Whether you’re a long-time fan of the group, or a newcomer trying to dip your toes into the world of K-pop for the first time, I am sure you will love this song.
For those who are unfamiliar with the group, let me fill you in. LE SSERAFIM is a five-member girl group based in South Korea under Source Music, a sub-label of HYBE Entertainment (home to groups like BTS, Seventeen, NewJeans and many more). The group’s members are: Kim Chaewon and Hong Eunchae from South Korea, Miyawaki Sakura and Nakamura Kazhua from Japan, and last but not least, Huh Yunjin from the United States.
For this comeback, the girls deviated from their usual ‘fallen angel’ aesthetic and decided to go with something a little more… ‘crazy.’
“Crazy, crazy, crazy, crazy /
Crazy, crazy, crazy, crazy /
Act like an angel and dress like crazy (what?)”
“CRAZY” is a song like no other within KPOP. It is fast-paced, campy, strangely empowering and takes inspiration from Ballroom culture but with a retro-house sound. The beat is heavy and easy to follow, and will be stuck in your head for hours after listening to it. In addition, the members deliver catchy choreography that will have you shaking your shoulders, voguing, and just letting go. To ensure they represented ballroom culture correctly, the group collaborated with the Legendary House of Juicy Couture (a prominent Ballroom group), who trained the girls on proper voguing; including some staples of the style like duck walking and dips. Juicy Couture’s dancers were even featured in the music video; dancing and celebrating with the girls.
This song has blown up in South Korea, with the girls’ choreography trending on TikTok and the unusual beat resonating with the South Korean public. The girls have also seen huge success internationally, with the group achieving their first No. 1 on Billboard’s Top Album Sales Chart.
If you’re interested in campy, fun, dancing with your girls, feeling like a ‘girly girl’ (even if you’re a 20-year-old man like me), and living your life a little crazily, I highly recommend you check out this song. While you’re at it, I suggest listening to the rest of the mini album as well!
In a time when the lines between different genres are blurrier than ever, perhaps no one has shown the creative potential of these new frontiers than Jane Remover. First gaining prominence in the early 2020s in the burgeoning hyperpop scene, she’s already gone through more stylistic shifts than most artists will go through in their entire careers. Whether it be the chaotic sampling and rapid-fire club rhythms of her Dariacore series, the glitch-pop coming-of-age story that is her debut album Frailty, or the harrowing shoegaze of her sophomore effort Census Designated, any style she tries her hand at proves to be a fruitful new endeavor for her. To me, she’s something of a musical alchemist; effortlessly blending different genre conventions into intoxicating mixtures that are always uniquely hers.
Of course, the question still remains: when you’ve already covered so many diverse styles in such a short timespan, is it even possible to have more tricks up your sleeve? If “Magic I Want U” is any indication, then there’s no doubt that Jane is more than capable of still surprising in the best way possible.
“Magic I Want U” is the second single released by Jane Remover while she’s been on tour opening for the similarly eclectic underground rap icon, JPEGMAFIA. Her previous single, “Flash In The Pan,” smashed ethereal dream pop — à la Slowdive — into the bouncy hi-hats and stomps of recent developments in New York drill. This combination should’ve been completely incoherent, but Jane’s sonic wizardry somehow makes it work. While the sounds that “Magic I Want U” are pulling from aren’t quite as distant, the effect is just as strong, if not stronger.
After the repeating, ringing triangle opens the track, you’re met with the driving alt-rock riff and hypnotic breakbeats that make up the body of “Magic I Want U.” This mixture harkens back to Odelay-era Beck and other similar alternative electronica hip-hop crossovers of the ‘90s, albeit with a contemporary sheen. In the background, the sound of fireworks going off intertwines with record scratches and vocal snippets, creating an overall effect that is — as the title would suggest — magical, easily drawing the listener into a trance-like state.
The spell-binding nature of the song is only heightened once Jane joins the track vocally; sounding straight out of a classic 2000s pop/R&B hit. She radiates equal parts confidence and desperation, creating an uneasy conflict that matches the surreal sonic world that she’s created. The lyrics deal with common themes of romantic longing, but they are tinted with enough of the abstraction and urgency that’s characteristic of Jane’s songwriting to fully pull the listener into the world of the song.
“I think I’m getting down with something /
‘Cause when I’m playing I just want you around /
It’s been so long since you said you love it /
I’m the missing piece that you want to write about.”
Never content to let a musical idea overstay its welcome, Jane Remover evolves the initially basic structure of the song into something with a cinematic level of drama. The rhythm section is almost constantly changing, often going from frantic breaks to stripped-back, half-time grooves within the same verse. Additional guitars and keys are added to further propel the song along, providing even more ear candy than was already present. Later on, a deep voice joins the track, repeating the phrase, “Can you feel that?” throughout various breakdowns. For me, the answer to that question is almost always a resounding yes.
Just when you think the song has shown you everything it has to offer, “Magic I Want U” pulls the rug out from under you one final time. The sampled drum loops are replaced with equally danceable drum machines, and Jane delivers a coda that acts a final cry of infatuation to the subject of the song.
“I like the way he use his hands and his words /
I could be his new favorite think piece favorite girl /
Anything to tell me that I’m your number one /
‘Cause I’ll be your groupie baby.”
Jane Remover’s constant artistic metamorphosis has made her one of the artists I’ve paid the most attention to throughout the decade, and “Magic I Want U” feels like the culmination of everything she’s done so far and more. It’s a near-perfect piece of pop bliss that seems to reveal itself more and more to me with each listen. Whether she continues down the path laid by this song or not, the sky’s almost certainly the limit for what she can accomplish.
It’s often not like the movies. No big firework show. No declaration of inner turmoil. No late night riverwalk with the full moon above that changes your (or their) mind. Heartbreak is quiet and mellow – like a drive down the highway, with the distant city lights flickering and the radio muffled by the rolled-down windows to let your emotions simmer.
You know that yucky span of middle-America interstate where every exit is followed by a beat-up little town, hosting the old Taco Bell logo, sketchy gas stations, and potholes galore? Well, it’s probably most of America, but you can envision it, right? I feel like this scene and its idiosyncrasies are the exact ingredients MJ Lenderman uses to cook up his music. Common people, albeit weird and sometimes downright delusional, makeup most of the narratives that are sung on Lenderman’s work. It’s a combination of cynical humor and down-to-Earth observations of the world that creates a beautifully niche satire that resonates just right.
This Midwestern, yet universal experience is put to the max on Lenderman’s latest release, Manning Fireworks. The pandemic helped catapult Wednesday, the band Lenderman plays lead guitar for, and Lenderman’s own solo career into the spotlight following the sly wit of his 2022 release, Boat Songs. While a lot of his work seemed predominantly infatuated with humor in abstract scenarios (such as Michael Jordan having a hangover, a “stupid hat” straining a relationship and having a terrible time on the log ride at Six Flags), Manning Fireworks doubles down on this charm, with scattered melancholic zingers pumped up higher than Lenderman has ever woven so neatly before. This isn’t to say Lenderman has never tugged at the heart strings; it’s to say he’s perfected his writing on this new release.
Low-fidelity buzz and cracking vocals paint the soundscape, dripping with Southern influence, created with steel guitar lines and acoustic ballads. This homegrown style works so wonderfully with Lenderman’s words – something most apparent on the track “You Don’t Know The Shape I’m In.” Distortion takes the backseat on this tune, letting the acoustic melody playout with grace while the electric guitars aid in the percussion of the song. Sparse woodwinds float around our ears, creating an atmospheric breeze in line with the isolation in Lenderman’s lyrics.
“Everybody’s walking in twos leaving Noah’s ark /
It’s a Sunday at the water park.”
Bluntly profound, yet grasping for meaning, Lenderman describes a breakup where the two have found themselves at opposite ends from one another. Not mad, not bitter, just on two different paths. It’s as if the whole world around him is full of excitement and fantasy when compared to his somber situation, but the reality is a little less spectacular than that. Everyone around him is moving, but with a tunnel-visioned monotony that isn’t any grander than his own life.
“We sat under a half-mast McDonald’s flag /
Broken birds tumble fast past my window /
You don’t know the shape I’m in.”
The final moments these two share together are not picture-perfect frames to be filmed. It’s a sad sight to behold under a meaningless McDonalds establishment. Birds don’t sing like they do in a Disney movie. They tumble down the side of Lenderman’s home in the most poetic fashion. Does he see himself in these birds? Is he hopelessly lost in his self loathing? Or, perhaps as supported by his “duckwalks” later mentioned in the song, he’s content with moving on from knowing this other person, drifting apart in their own distinct ways.
Lenderman seems to know the limits of his emotional intelligence at his age. Things come and go all the time, and even if for just a moment you feel like you’re floating, eventually you have to come back down. A friend may not know how to comfort you, so Lenderman lets us interpret his words with a solemn optimism: life might not be a blockbuster film, but if you know the shape you’re in, at least you can make a keepsake video diary.
Check out “You Don’t Know The Shape I’m In” with a plethora of charming tracks on Lenderman’s latest release, Manning Fireworks.
I tend to argue an artist is only as good at their production. What is a song without production? A poem? Quality production doesn’t mean constant layering and throwing every subtle sound bite that comes to mind into the mix. It’s a matter of finding a balance between necessity and complexity that compliments the story being told. Leaning into either way can lead to a song’s inability to maximize its potential.
Do I personally make music and understand the difficulty and experience that comes with producing? Nuh-uh. I obnoxiously harp on the topic because it’s not common for you to find tracks, or artists in general, that find that sweet spot. But when they do, oh boy, when they do, it’s the most magical, ascending, audio-gold, luke-warm water at 4 am feeling you can experience. And the band, Magdalena Bay, has it in the bag.
Coming off their near 3-year album hiatus, Magdelena Bay released their sophomore project titled Imaginal Disk, an alternative, synth-pop cumulation of 15 tracks that builds on the band’s distinct sound. But this time, dialing it in and mastering it. Perhaps while doom-scrolling you’ve already heard bits of the more notable tracks such as the hottest of the bunch “Image,” or even “Death and Romance,” released early as a part of the album’s rollout promotion. Both these tracks deserve their praise and are worth listening to. Both are cut from a similar cloth; fast-paced, catchy chorus with beautifully directed build-up. But after the now countless repeated listens I’ve done of this album, I find myself constantly returning to one specific track that captivates Magdalena Bay at its peak, “Cry for Me.”
“Plenty of time here to nurture consequence /
If you don’t hear back, then God had other plans /
I leave all my dregs to all my progeny /
Cry for me /
Cry for me”
“Cry for Me” Is best described as a futuristic yet simultaneously retro drive on Mario Kart’s Rainbow Road. Pairing with a story that isn’t inherently obvious to the listener, but is still mysterious and intriguing. A contributor on Genius best put lead singer Mica Tenenbaum’s characterization in the song as nearly-villainous. The production backs this up with deep, rich synths that are given the reigns between verses. When Mica does get on the mic, it’s layered tastefully, with a composition of piano and reverb that twists a rather traditional sound into something that still flows with the experimental theme.
I hesitantly admit the song’s story goes over my head a good amount as I get sucked into the track’s sound. As mentioned in a previous article on the band, the band leaves much of it up to self-interpretation, yet the verses still make for some great singing in the shower karaoke. Overall, a great track to get on to set a badass tone for this upcoming fall. If you’re looking for a sound that teleports you to a disco floor in Blade Runner 2049, Magdalena Bay’s newest album Imaginable Disk will do that and more. Unfortunately, no promises you’ll run into Ryan Gosling while you’re there.
When Mannequin Pussy announced a US tour for their album I Got Heaven in January, I knew I had to go. That became even clearer when I saw they were going to be playing in my hometown of Madison, Wisconsin–not just giving me an excuse to go home, but also to rope my indie-loving twin into it, too.
After using this show as fuel to keep trucking through my hellish spring semester, May 8 finally came. One awkward dinner at an eerily empty vegan restaurant later, we meandered from one end of downtown Madison to another to get in line an hour and a half before doors. This was to ensure that I had plenty of time to deal with credentials-related stress, but it turned out to be essential to gaining a prime location in general admission.
Once I got through the doors, I found Majestic Theatre to be beautiful but small. Those in general admission could stand right against the stage, no barricade. After tucking myself in a prime spot right in front of the stage, I looked up and saw a large seated balcony. As more attendees filed in, the venue bumped party music, including “Crazy Frog” by Axel F (reminding me of our March interview with Between Friends).
Soul Glo put on an opening-act masterclass. Frontman Pierce Jordan captivated the audience. Even if he wasn’t making eye contact with me, it felt as if he was speaking right to me. Jordan also jumped into the audience in the middle of the set, providing enough chaos to get the crowd on board.
I will say, Soul Glo appealed more to the tried-and-true punks in attendance. I could tell some audience members either weren’t acquainted with their work, or don’t like Mannequin Pussy for their hardcore influences. This was further demonstrated by the mostly white audience, which Jordan didn’t shy away from acknowledging. He went out of his way to shout out “the three n—” in attendance.
Either way, Soul Glo left an impact. Many, including my sibling, left their set saying “I need to listen to them.”
Gallery • 10 PhotosSoul Glo performs at the Majestic Theatre in Madison, WI on May 8th, 2024. Photo / Ana WagenMannequin Pussy had an I Got Heaven-heavy setlist, which made sense, but left me feeling like I should have studied before I came to the show. They set the tone with “I Don’t Know You,” then going straight into “Sometimes” and “Nothing Like” — 3 out of 4 singles right off the bat.
The opening riff of “Patience” sent a buzz through the crowd, and that energy was carried into “Drunk II” and “Control.” The audience screamed along to every word, all venting together.
Gallery • 8 PhotosMannequin Pussy performs at the Majestic Theatre in Madison, WI on May 8th, 2024. Photo / Ana WagenAs we got into the middle of the set, a couple observations came to mind. One, while my spot in the audience was great for taking photos, the audio mix I experienced left something to be desired. It was hard for me to make out any of the vocals unless Missy (AKA Marisa Dabice) was belting, making it difficult to follow along to the less-familiar songs.
Secondly, between songs, some audience members felt the need to shout “Missy, you’re so hot!” These interjections made me uncomfortable, as they miss the point of everything this band stands for. Cat-calling the woman who named her band Mannequin Pussy to confront how femininity has been sexualized to the point where it’s censored on just about every platform–including Impact’s catalog–is certainly a choice. It reminded me of when bedroom pop artist Clario heard similar remarks from the crowd while performing her song “Blouse,” which is, ironically, about being objectified.
Gallery • 11 PhotosMannequin Pussy performs at the Majestic Theatre in Madison, WI on May 8th, 2024. Photo / Ana WagenMissy’s speech before “I Got Heaven” foreshadowed a longer moment she took during the latter half of the set. She addressed the elephant in the room: these songs evoke discomfort in those who have become comfortable with oppression. Missy then asked the audience to join in a group scream, with the intention to help to remove the pit we all have in our stomachs from the current state of the world; the anger we’ve been forced to suppress. The point of coming to a Mannequin Pussy show, she expressed, is to experience a release. Having felt the energy of the crowd during their set–and seeing how this tour is now completely sold out–I wholeheartedly agree.
Bassist Bear then took the mic, switching places with Missy for the song “Pigs Is Pigs.” “Romantic” served as a great closer. Everyone knows it, so everyone sang along, but it’s not one of those tracks that’s so popular it’s lifeless. It injected early-in-the-set energy into the crowd and gave me a feeling I haven’t experienced from a concert before. Typically, shows have left me feeling drained, like I can’t listen to the genre for a few days after. Instead, Mannequin Pussy left me wanting more.
Gallery • 10 PhotosMannequin Pussy performs at the Majestic Theatre in Madison, WI on May 8th, 2024. Photo / Ana WagenIf given the chance, I would love to go to another concert for both Soul Glo and Mannequin Pussy. While my experience watching them at Majestic was extraordinary, I would love to get a second chance in a different part of the venue, so I can get an even fuller connection to the music.
For those unfamiliar, the Lyrical Lemonade Summer Smash is an annual music festival co-created by Lyrical Lemonade and SPKRBX. What began as a small gathering of creatives and music enthusiasts has evolved into the world’s largest independent hip-hop festival, attracting over 120,000 attendees this year. Year after year, the festival pushes the boundaries, and this year was no exception.
Gallery • 5 PhotosAngelo SavinoBlack Kray performs at Lyrical Lemonade Summer Smash 2024.This year’s festival will undoubtedly go down in history, not only for the festival itself but for the hip-hop industry as a whole. The return of Chief Keef to Chicago after over twelve years solidified its historical significance, but that was just one piece of the puzzle. The festival also featured the first collective performance of record label Cactus Jack, led by Travis Scott, and the beginning of a new era for Playboi Carti, among other notable moments.
The lineup boasted both familiar names to the festival like Playboi Carti, Ski Mask the Slump God, and Lucki, along with new additions such as Kodak Black, Big Sean, and That Mexican OT. The DJ lineup was also stacked with some of the best in the game, including F1lthy, DJ Scheme, Zack Bia, and Kerwin Frost, who all delivered equally iconic sets.
Gallery • 3 PhotosAngelo SavinoBig Sean performs at Lyrical Lemonade Summer Smash 2024.This year’s festival also incorporated several unique elements. The NFL, in collaboration with the festival, hosted an on-site flag football tournament with prizes like Bears season tickets and exclusive branded merchandise. In addition to the festival merchandise, streetwear vendors and brands, including local favorites Half Evil, were on-site selling their own pieces along with artist and/or festival collaborations. Another unique opportunity the festival presented was the 730 Printing Tour, which featured live screen printing where attendees could print a unique Chicago-exclusive design on garments, creating one-of-a-kind festival souvenirs.
This year’s Summer Smash Restaurant also included a completely revamped food lineup featuring dishes celebrating several artists at the festival, like “The Lazer Dim Burger,” “Kodak Black Buffalo Wings,” and “That Mexican OT Elote Corn Dog,” led by Chef Brian Fisher, a James Beard-nominated Michelin Star recipient. These plates could be accompanied by actual Lyrical Lemonade, with some cans being in collaboration with the performing artists.
Gallery • 4 PhotosAngelo SavinoRobb Bank performs at Lyrical Lemonade Summer Smash 2024.Although the festival didn’t start with F1lthy’s set, it truly kicked off the vibe of the weekend. YouTube personalities BadlandsChugs and Airsoftfatty made an appearance during the set for a hilarious lightsaber battle and a water chugging competition. The energy they brought, paired with the beat of F1lthy-produced classics like “Stop Breathing,” let attendees know they were at the Summer Smash.
Friday ended with Cactus Jack making their debut performance as a collective, exceeding the incredibly high expectations set for the label. SoFaygo started the set with a bang, and the energy built up after each song until the very end. Sheck Wes followed with an unreleased track that struck a chord with the crowd. Don Toliver delivered an angelic performance, harmonizing over tracks from “Hardstone Psycho” while covering his discography. Travis Scott then joined Don Toliver for “CAN’T SAY,” bringing unparalleled rage. Travis continued with hits like “Antidote,” “Goosebumps,” and “SICKO MODE.” In line with the Utopia Tour, he performed “FIEN” back-to-back five times, with Sheck Wes returning on the final playthrough to rap his unreleased verse, a true gift to hear live. Travis wrapped up the night by stating that he’s nothing without the rest of Cactus Jack and brought them out to perform “Gang Gang,” a perfect way to end the night before Don closed with “TORE UP.”
Travis Scott performs at Lyrical Lemonade Summer Smash 2024. (Angelo Savino)Saturday night was spotlighted by Playboi Carti’s remarkable performance, featuring the entirety of 00pium on stage with him in addition to DJ Swamp Izzo, who acted as his hype man while also hitting the queue on his adlibs. Carti kicked off his set with “H00DBYAIR,” as 00pium members started to fill the front of the stage and get the crowd amped up. Fans were eager to hear these new tracks live, as this was his first performance since their release, and it didn’t disappoint. His love for Chicago was unmatched, and it was shown throughout the entire performance as he brought his all to the show and made sure to make it known that he is the music.
Gallery • 2 PhotosAngelo SavinoPlayboi Carti performs at Lyrical Lemonade Summer Smash 2024.Then the moment everyone was waiting for came around on Sunday. Although there were some other great moments throughout the day, Chief Keef’s return was the real highlight. The city had been in a drought, not seeing him perform there for what felt like ages due to restrictions. Some doubted the return when they saw it, but no doubt it was here. The moment it really hit me was when Lil Yachty concluded his set by asking the fans to make sure they show Chief Keef the respect and love he deserves, and that they did. As soon as he touched the stage, the crowd went crazier than I had seen it the entire weekend, despite it being the final hours. The city welcomed him home and it was a miracle to see Chief Keef Sosa performing live in Chicago. His set was immaculate, performing several hits with friends and family on stage, notably his daughter, G Herbo, and Tadoe among others. If there was one moment from this festival to remember, it was most definitely this one, and attendees will be boasting about being in attendance for years to come.
Gallery • 2 PhotosAngelo SavinoChief Keef performs at Lyrical Lemonade Summer Smash 2024.There were far too many highlights to cover them all, but these moments stood out as some of the most memorable of the weekend. Overall, the production and curation of the festival were impeccable, from the stellar artist lineup to the perfectly paired DJs and amenities throughout the festival. It welcomed all attendees to experience history and create lifelong memories, leaving everyone eagerly anticipating next year.
These 24 songs were the heartbeat that propelled me from class to class, building to building, street to street, dorm to dorm and bus to bus. While it was difficult to narrow down to the 24 songs that truly captured my college experience, these songs — in sequential order — represent my journey from my first year to my fifth year at Michigan State.
My journey started in Akers Hall in a quad suite that felt empty. I spent my days and evenings after class biking/bussing/walking to Wilson Hall where my two friends from home lived. The first five songs on this playlist soundtracked these treks across campus. I remember listening to “bmbmbm” by black midi for the first time on a “top tracks of 2019 so far” playlist on one of these cross campus walks and being shocked and impressed by the noises I was hearing. I remember hanging in my friend’s dorm in Wilson Hall, watching them play Rocket League on their way-too-big-for-a-room TV while listening to “Les Fleurs” by Minnie Ripperton on their speakers. This year of school is when I realized that I wanted to listen to more and more music all the time and dive into artists’ full discographies with no hesitation.
When getting back from my freshman spring break trip to Gatlinburg, Tennessee, our campus soon sent us all home and we finished out the semester online. These lonely and isolated times led me to dive further into music and truly find a passion for listening to full discographies and finding as much new music as possible. This is where I found songs like “Real Life” by banzai florist and “Cherry Jerry Citrus” by Hey Cowboy!. I also started doing playlist exchanges with a bunch of my friends and brother, sharing all the cool stuff I was listening to and vice versa.
My second year at MSU took place in the University Village campus housing with three roommates and absolutely no one on campus. With all classes being online for Fall 2020 and Spring 2021, I was in group isolation with lots of free time being spent playing video games with my roommates or traveling to my friends’ apartments off campus. With my life being limited to three locations at most times, I loved driving around in my Jeep Wrangler and blasting music in my car around campus with no one to annoy. This is when I blasted tracks like “People” by Yellow Days and “Big Fig Wasp” by King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard. I especially enjoyed the spring, when it was sunny enough to take the roof off my jeep and enjoy the unusual quiet of East Lansing.
At this point in my college career, I was on my second major and would soon realize that I might need to move to a third. By the end of my Junior year, I was a Food Science major and would finally feel like I found my place. I had also found my place in the fall when I joined Impact 89FM. I had always listened, but never actually thought I’d join a club or campus org like Impact.
My friends had always known me as “the music guy,” so at Sparticipation they pressured me to talk to the people at the Impact tent. As I walked up wearing my MGMT – Little Dark Age shirt, it turned out they were playing that exact song. They convinced me that I had to sign my name down, as it was too coincidental, and I happily obliged. After going to meetings and the open house I was absolutely hooked. The songs that soundtracked this year were “Twin Plagues” by Wednesday and “The Place Where He Inserted The Blade” by Black Country, New Road. These songs represent songs I probably wouldn’t have ever found if I didn’t join the Impact.
My last two years at Michigan State were spent in a house on Saginaw, in an apartment really far from campus and being at the radio station too much. Me and all my friends from Impact would spend time working together, as well as partying together, which led to us make sure that “Dance Yrself Clean” by LCD Soundsystem was played in its entirety at most functions. These two years blur together, as I spent them with the people I will truly miss seeing every day.
I will miss leading Street Team every Monday and seeing all the hilarious, unique, cool and —sometimes — nice people file in and take part in my last-minute-scraped-together meetings and brackets. I will miss the intricacies and hilarities of my roommates and friends across East Lansing that kept me endlessly entertained. I will miss staying up way too late on a weeknight when I have an 8 a.m. class the next day. I will, with all of my heart, miss this place and the people that come with it.
Will I miss Impact more than MSU? The answer is absolutely, and it makes me truly sad that I can’t spend every day rotting in the basement of Holden Hall, getting way less work done than I am supposed to and hanging out with the coolest people I know and may ever know. My life would be different than ever today if I had never committed to the Impact, and I would hate to see that life.
The drums of “The Adults Are Talking” started as I made my way down Spartan Avenue. I passed people out on their lawns, heard singing in the distance, smelled a bonfire in the air. I had been walking this same path all year. It was the same path I walked to go to class, the same path I walked to study at the library, the same path I walked to go downtown with friends on a Friday night. I had done this walk so many times before, but it felt different this time. This time, I knew it was one of the last times.
I had been thinking about that a lot recently. In the months leading up to my graduation, I was constantly bombarded with the knowledge that whatever moment I was experiencing might be the last: my last class, my last Impact 89FM meeting, my last time walking down Spartan Avenue. I held onto these moments with all my might and tried so hard to take everything in, tried so hard to notice every blue sky and feel every feeling of excitement and hear every note of every song. I tried so hard to remember every moment so I would never forget.
“Don’t Delete the Kisses” came on as I headed towards campus, and I was taken back to sophomore year apartment parties and driving with the windows down and staying up talking until 2 a.m. I was reminded of laughing with new friends and feeling terrified about big decisions and feeling free with independence. I gripped onto the memories tight. I wanted to stuff them in my pockets and wrap my fingers around them and never let them go.
I stopped at my favorite spot by the river: the hill between the library and Wells Hall. Whenever the weather was nice, I would come here to draw or read or think. Today, I sat by the river and tried to remember.
As I made my way back to Spartan Avenue, “Wait Till Something Better” started, and when I closed my eyes, I was back in the fall of my senior year, biking the streets of East Lansing and dancing in my bedroom. At least the songs helped me remember.
When I think back to before MSU, I think back to a different person entirely. I think back to my 17-year-old self, who was deciding where to go to college. I think about the anxiety that consumed me while making that decision. I was terrified of making the wrong choice, terrified that the wrong choice would alter the course of my life. But something about MSU had always felt right. I felt it when I visited MSU for the first time, and I felt it whenever I tried to imagine the next four years ahead of me. MSU had always felt familiar. MSU had always felt like home.
Now, at the very end, I am so glad that I listened to my gut. I truly believe that I became the person I was meant to be here. I found my people here. I found my place here. I found myself here. MSU still feels like home, and I think MSU will always feel a little bit like home.
As I turned the corner back on to Spartan Avenue and saw my house in the distance, the guitar of “Keep The Rain” echoed with every step I took. This song was the soundtrack in the background of my life for the past month. Something about it captured everything I had been feeling recently. It felt like change being right around the corner, like memories slipping through your fingers, like the weight of nostalgia settling in before anything was even gone.
As I approached my house, the feelings of nostalgia and happiness and sadness and excitement overtook me all at once. The epitome of every feeling I felt here and every person I was here and every moment I had here met me on the porch of the place I had called home for the past year. The playlist ended like an exhale, and I felt the buzz of a new song in my bones. The drums of the next chapter of my life.
Goodbye, MSU. I’ll never forget you.
Award-winning composer Tyler Durham, who performs as LIMINA, has arrived with an endlessly-intriguing new album, Coming Home. Durham, who has worked with legendary filmmaker Terrence Malick on films such as News of the World and A Hidden Life, describes Coming Home as “a story of someone estranged from their family but wanting to make amends.”
The album holds both neoclassical and atmospheric electronic elements, building a complex soundscape which drives reflection, peace and longing. The universal experience of staring out a window while in the passenger’s seat of a car or while sitting on a bus or train comes to mind.
In our interview with Durham, we discussed his favorite moments on Coming Home, the difference between scoring a film and crafting an independent album, the paradoxical freedom of guidelines and more.
To listen to Coming Home, an intrigue for fans of ambient and downtempo electronic especially, you can click on the link below:
Many have tried to capture the bittersweet emotions associated with graduating college in words, but few have managed to succeed. I’m not claiming that I will be able to capture it any more than those before me. I will say that college was one of the most complicated times of my life, both emotionally and academically. This experience has afforded me an emotional spectrum so broad, yet beautiful, that I don’t think I would be the person I am now without it. And I wouldn’t want it any other way.
It would be easy for me to make a mixtape of my most listened to songs throughout the last four years, but I don’t think that would be accurate to my character. To me, the most powerful and to-be-treasured emotions are grief, longing and acceptance. We all wish we could go back. We all wish we could have one more moment with that person, or at that place or in that time. But time moves forward, with or without us, and to accept that is one of life’s greatest challenges.
There is a triumph to be held high within that acceptance. Moving on is a form of divinity almost as powerful as the grief of separation. There is a cause for celebration layered within that tearful goodbye, as something worth shedding tears is something that we loved, and will love, for eternity. The love I have for every soul I’ve met during this journey permeates this playlist, and I hope that it moves you as much as it moved me.
To everybody, I will miss you dearly.
“When it’s hot in Detroit, you know, it’s like super-hot.”
Carl Craig is nothing short of a Detroit legend. He is a techno pioneer, global DJ, electronic music producer, co-creator of the Movement festival and record label founder. Individually, he has released and remixed music under a multitude of aliases – his remix of “Like a Child” by Junior Boys even landed him a Grammy nomination in 2008 for “Best Remixed Recording.” Today, he is an educator doing his part to preserve Detroit’s music history for younger generations.
In our interview with Craig, we discussed his musical beginnings, Detroit’s techno roots and the implications of the genre for the greater Detroit community and world. Provided is both the audio of the interview and an intelligent verbatim transcription.
Carl Craig interviewing with Impact 89FM over Zoom. Photo by Jovana Nagj/WDBMListen to some Detroit techno in the playlist below:
Jovana: Before we get into it, do you want to introduce yourself briefly?
Carl: I’m just Carl Craig, product of the Detroit Public School system, proud dad, global DJ, electronic music producer. That’s probably good enough.
Jovana: In what ways have your life experiences influenced the music that you make and the music that you have made in the past?
Carl: I think one of the benefits that I have — me being me is that I still have memories of those days when I was a kid, those days when I wanted to do what I’m doing, those days that I couldn’t figure out if I wanted to be a radio DJ or a race car driver, you know, these are all of the aspirations that I think are necessary in order to keep yourself from becoming too grounded, especially too jaded because you know, money is a major thing for everybody and to get rich die trying or get rich by crying I don’t know. You know that seems to be the goal, but it’s kind of hammered into us, you know, by family, by naysayers, by anybody who wants you just to get a regular job working on a coffee shop or something. They think that’s better than being a DJ, or that’s better than being a guitar player, better than being something else. Even now, we’re at a point where there’s so much success that can come from riding skateboards. You know, from doing things that was always considered childish. So I like to hold on to my childish memories. I like to hold on to those times when I struggled, those times when I got dogged and those times when, you know, when I had great success before I found success. — Those failures are something that — should be humbling but you know you look at when they were coming up with COVID vaccine, there’s a lot of failure that comes within trying to have a breakthrough. So whether you believe that it works or not, that’s on you. But you know, in science, there’s always the failures that you have to mark down OK, that didn’t work. Let’s not try that and let’s try something a little bit different. Instead of going to ABC, let’s skip C and go ABD and see if that works and you know these are the things that I feel have helped me to be continuous and what I do to go two extra steps in order to try new things that I don’t try to lock myself into just being a synthesizer programmer. I don’t try to lock myself into just being a dad. I don’t try to lock myself into just being you know, a global DJ. You know, it’s like all of these things make up me, and the things that make up me also is to find out what the boundary is and then try to find a way to get past that boundary and then go to the next step.
Jovana: Was there anything specific that you can link that led you to take that jump and to take the leap?
Carl: Right, there’s a ton of things that opened me up to doing what I do. I mean, of course, putting my hands on the synthesizer for the first time when I was about I don’t know 15 or something — that had a big impact — it wasn’t necessarily that I could play it well it’s just that I knew that was the sound of my future. You know, it was the sound of then, it was the sound of, you know, that time. But it was definitely that sound I’ve been hearing in a lot of records that I wanted to be a part of. You know, I always bring up the first time that I DJd which was at a family reunion and you know I was real shy and a cousin’s husband had went up to the DJs and said, “Hey, you know” ‘cause I used to carry records everywhere I went, and her husband said, “Hey you know this, this young buck over here, he’s got some records can he play something?” They’re like, “yeah, OK, put it on” and the first record that I put on, “Egypt, Egypt” by Egyptian lover, it blew the room apart. Everybody went nuts in the room but we were in Georgia, and what those DJs didn’t understand was that that was the hottest record in Detroit and everybody was from Detroit. So, I asked to play another song and they say “Yeah cool, go ahead” and I tried to mix and I went from hero to 0 in two songs. But I remember that. And I gotta keep that because that keeps me grounded that kept me grounded more than you know anybody from when I used to play basketball in grade school saying you know, “You suck”, or, you know anybody who was a friend of a competing musician that said “This guy’s a better musician than you are. He makes better stuff than you”. You know those things they’re there and I remember them but really those times when you have a success and then when you right after have a failure is really what life is all about. I mean that’s really freaking what life is about. You know so I guess it’s like if you like driving fast on the freeway, you drive real fast on the freeway, you go around the corner, and its like “I made that corner without killing myself” but then you run into the back of somebody else’s car so you know you got that exhilaration and then you have a crash. It’s important to keep those in the forefront of your mind as not only inspiration, but you know, swift kicking ass. Kind of — keep pushing like yeah, you’re going to do something great, you’re going to fuck up but it doesn’t matter whether you fuck up because you’re gonna do something great again and you’re going to recover.
Jovana: One of the first times you DJd was at a reunion in Georgia, correct?
Carl: Mhm
Jovana: I mean now you’re kind of traveling all over the globe, being an ambassador for Detroit at your shows around the world. In what ways do you see techno as a way to diversify the narrative of Detroit to non-Detroiters? You just told me, you know, you were bringing this Detroit record and something that was popular for the Detroiters into Georgia and the DJs there couldn’t really understand it at the time so how do you kind of see what you do now at all your global shows kind of diversifying the narrative of what Detroit is to people who have never gone or who didn’t grow up in Detroit?
Carl: Well, it’s not only to people it’s to generations because you know the first time that I left United States was in 1989 so you know we’re talking 34, 35 years or something. So, you know there are people who I’ve played for back at that time that don’t go to clubs anymore. There’s generations of people that don’t go to clubs anymore. It’s you know like when I played in UBOAT in Bordeaux on Saturday and Porto on Friday you know, the crowd is 18 to 30 years old you know and the 18 year olds definitely weren’t alive and the 30 year olds maybe were alive —
Jovana: — You just did a talk at MSU that was about like a month or two ago and I know that you also went to NYU and my generation right now is in university we are kind of in that threshold the what you were saying about the 18 year olds, the 19 year olds, even the 30 year olds weren’t very alive at these shows. So, what do you think is the importance of educating college students and educating this generation not only on just like techno and Detroit’s centrality in that narrative but also for topics like Afrofuturism and why is that important to you?
Carl: It’s easy for people to default into what they see in front of them, what they like, what they see in front of them. When I was a kid, and this was — the important thing about how the people with jazz dealt with — influencing the kids and stuff you know. Because, like I wouldn’t have known who Ahmad Jamal was if it wasn’t for my dad’s records you know. And your dad might not have even been into anything like that. Your dad might have been into Black Sabbath or something. You know so, whatever is — in front of people’s faces right there, they think that’s best but they have to have some sort of opening some sort of gateway in order to get them to see that there’s something else that’s good too and you know when I go and I talk, and some people know me some people don’t. The ones that don’t know me obviously are going to be more open-minded to you know try to find out what I have to say, try to find out what I’m about and then they’re potentially going to do research. That’s what you would hope they do so with, I can’t remember what the name of the movie is with Keith Richardson and Chuck Berry where you know, Keith Richards was trying to do a comeback show for Chuck Berry and he’s trying to tell Chuck Berry how to play “Johnny Be Good”. And Chuck Berry’s looking at him like look “fool, this is my song”. You know, he doesn’t say anything but the whole time you know, he’s telling them like “No that’s not the way you play it, this is the way you play it” and Chuck Berry’s looking at him like “man this is” and no matter what the situation is, that there is a new group of people that found out who Chuck Berry was. That they wouldn’t probably wouldn’t have known anything about Chuck Berry unless they saw this movie with Keith Richards. So you know, it always has to be there, there always has to be a source of influencing people who don’t have the the family members or don’t have the infrastructure of people around them to be able to influence them and in many cases, like with techno with Detroit techno, how often do you see that on documentaries or TV shows or you know NPR radio shows or anything like that. So, you know, if they’re not going to do it then I guess I gotta do it.
Jovana: You were just saying, you don’t see that many movies about, that techno isn’t a very exposed genre and field of study. Do you think anytime in the near future that you see kind of this explosion of learning about techno happening? I know you’re doing it yourself, but do you see this turning into a bigger movement in the future?
Carl: Yeah well techno, techno’s great. Detroit techno is great. The situation with techno is that it’s not as defined as rap for instance. You know, rap and hip hop, no doubt, the Bronx. You know, Cool Herk, no doubt about it, right? Techno, you know, the Germans say they made it, we say we made it, you know, the Italians say they, they did something. You know, then there’s the first use of use of the word techno, who used it first in a song? Who did this, who did that? So, we’re busy — scrapping trying to make sure — there’s that understanding that this is you know Detroit techno is really where you know really where anybody who has any idea what techno is that we know these days comes from Detroit techno. Yes, we were influenced by Kraftwerk yes, we were influenced by Liaisons Dangereuses, we were influenced by English Electro Pop, we were influenced by, you know, all these things but when you have a museum in Frankfurt, that’s saying — German techno blah blah blah and then you have UNESCO saying Berlin techno blah blah blah and the problem that we have with Detroit techno is that we don’t have a cheerleader in government. You know we don’t in the U.S. government, we don’t have even though there’s a little display of Juan, Derrick, and Kevin at Smithsonian and D.C., you know there’s no — force that is said Detroit techno boom, you know. Like rap and hip hop, hip hop 50 boom. And on the American side of things, I think it comes from that, you know, again, there’s that confusion, but also, you know, we’re not making multi billions of dollars within the genre per year like rap, you know it’s not a commercial form of music, you know any Detroit techno that’s charted, charted a long time ago. So, I’m fighting the good fight, but it could be, you know, after I’m long gone, you know, after Derek and Kevin and Juan and Kenny and Stacy and, you know all of us are long gone, that there’ll be more clarification. It might be my grandkids, might be my great grandkids, who knows that they’re the forefront of clarifying what this what, what Detroit techno truly means in the grand scheme of things.
Jovana: And then I know you’re just talking about how Detroit techno is something that even just techno as like a genre, you can’t really box it in, it’s not very well defined, especially where in this whole fight about where it actually came from. But what are some things that you think sets Detroit techno apart from other versions of techno, for example, like the German techno or the Italian techno or anything like that.
Carl: Nobody’s experimented in the way that we have, you know, I mean with my experimentations — I’ve had influence that’s been into filter house. With “Throw” and 69, I’ve had influence in the drum and bass, with “Bug in the Bass Bin”, I’ve had influence in I can’t even think of what else it is right now. You know, I’ve done jazz I’ve done all these things so, you know, with those experimentations and with me, you know, accepting failures and pushing it to the next level that, you know, Detroit techno isn’t just locked into this thing that people can try to define it and say “OK. It’s that” because if you listen to Roni Size and Goldie and all that, you know, there’s some fingerprints of mine that’s like I got my dirty, greasy little fingers in there, along with Kevin Saunderson, because what we know is the Reese baseline that’s comes from Kevin Saunderson “Just Another Chance”. So, you know, we’ve been able to maybe make things a bit more confusing, but also our sound has been a part of an evolution of electronic music that’s gone outside of Detroit techno and gone outside of any. So, I don’t, I can’t say that there’s been a lot of other techno where they’ve experimented so much that it’s that its crossed genres.
Jovana: Staying on that topic of originality and experimentation, you actually founded your own record label Planet E. And I know one of the things that you strive for is to maintain creative independence from this mainstream industry. What are some ways that you kind of preserve and encourage originality within your label?
Carl: I started Planet E, as you said, for my own independence, but you know part of me being able to do that has been by me taking jobs outside of my label, so doing remixing which that’s what I got nominated for a Grammy for. And I looked at it like guerilla warfare, so I took money that I earned from remixing other people’s music and just put it into my own career. So, you know, by me taking those chances, I think that’s made it where anybody that decides they want to send music to Planet E they know it’s gotta be risky, you know, it can’t just be afforded a floor, same old, same old kind of thing. You know, it’s got to be something that’s going to push the boundaries.
Jovana: Having a lyric less genre, how do you maintain originality and continue to experiment with a genre that doesn’t really have words?
Carl: Yeah, I’m not a lyric writer. That’s one of the reasons why I stayed out of making lyrics. Most songs that are electronic based have very simplistic words like ass and titties or something. So I think that with making music with less lyrics makes it possible for the music to crossover race, genres. To crossover taste, crossover gender, cross over anything and music without lyrics is, you know, you’re dancing to the music, you’re not dancing to the lyrics. So, in some cases, I think lyric less music actually lasts longer and has a longer lifespan than musical lyrics too.
Jovana: What are some other ways in which you see techno bringing together communities because of the way the genre is able to transcend human identities?
Carl: You know, with Detroit because Detroiters we pick and choose so we don’t across the board just say like, “oh yeah, you know I like this kind of music” it’s like you like the piece that’s the hottest piece, and then the rest of it, you know you can kind of throw away. So, with Detroit we have this very specific way of liking the music and you know, when it’s hot in Detroit, — you know it’s like super-hot. You know, that’s what I love about Detroit because Detroit it doesn’t screw around. Detroit is real real about everything about the music about the identity of the music. You know we don’t have a situation where maybe like if you’re in Manhattan the record might be hot but in Brooklyn it’s not, you know or in Long Island or, you know, somewhere else in the area and it becomes not only regionalized, it becomes like almost neighborhood. We don’t — have that in Detroit. And that’s what I really love about it. I really love the fact that you know, Detroiters know what they like and they like what you did, then it’s going to be it’s going to be a big deal. —
Jovana: Finally, I just wanna give you a chance to be able to tell our audiences what they can expect from you. You got anything coming up I know you’re one of the headliners at Movement this year, correct?
Carl: Yeah I’m playing, unless they tell me I’m not! So, well, I got a lot that’s going on. Playing all around the world like usual. There’s a lot of great things that are happening some that I’ll just let you guys discover for yourselves
Jovana: Thank you!
Carl: But it’ll be a lot of fun.
Dear 18-year-old Gabby,
The flowers are in bloom right now. The bursts of whites and pinks are scattered around campus. Occasionally while walking to class, the sweet floral scent washes over me, and I slow down, close my eyes and breathe it in.
Slow down. Close your eyes. Breathe it in.
You made it to MSU. I’m so proud of you. You have no idea what’s in store or who you’ll be in four years, but remember to smell the flowers. Remember to play cards for too long the night before your 8:30 a.m. Remember to linger outside the doors to Wells Hall with your hood down before walking in to escape the rain. To take irrelevant english classes. To invite her to dinner. To ask for his number. To apply for the job.
Remember to thank all the people who made this possible. Remember to take your time.
Take your time because the flowers are already starting to wilt. Close your eyes because I know you’re scared. Breathe it in because you made it.
We made it.
Love you to the moon and stars and back again,
Gabby
April 27 in South Africa is known as Freedom Day and is celebrated as the official end of apartheid. This date was chosen because the first ever fully-integrated elections happened from April 26-29, 1994. Though this year marks the 30th anniversary of the holiday’s establishment, we shouldn’t continue to go forward without acknowledging the past that created this holiday.
As a way to consolidate their power, the apartheid South African government would ban songs that didn’t align with their ideas of racial superiority for a wide variety of reasons. The reasons would range from Pink Floyd’s “Another Brick in the Wall,” having lyrics that were used as a rallying cry for a protest, to Bob Marley’s music being played by members of the Zimbabwe African National Liberation Army, or ZANLA, during their guerrilla fight for independence from the United Kingdom and Marley’s appearance during the independence festivities in Harare, to Miriam Makeba’s entire discography — as well as herself — being barred from the nation due to her unapologetic opposition to apartheid. Apartheid saw some of the most coordinated attacks on the freedom of artistry, which saw the cultural hub of Sophiatown razed and many of its most talented artists, such as Makeba and Dolly Rathebe, forced to flee South Africa.
Today, we live with the privilege of being able to listen to artists from across the world and hear stories from people from across the world. It is difficult to even fathom that not long ago, artists would be barred from the air for daring to fight against oppression. As we move forward, let us not forget about the artists whose music was banned from air in South Africa. May we use their songs as reminders to not let the past repeat itself.
The summer of 2022 was different than most summers. Yes, the usual characteristics of summertime were present: Almost every day the sun would idly sit at the zenith of the sky and shoot its heated rays down into concrete Michigan roads. It was enough to soften the darker patches of asphalt which filled up the cracks and holes that made cars rumble and thump as they rushed by.
Most of my time was spent in Oakland Community College’s ceramics studio. Amid clay dust and the air-conditioned ventilation that marked the summer heat outside, I’d work away on project after project, struggling to find a creative vein to steer my pottery in. This is the circumstance in which I was exposed to the work of Kate Bush.
Her 1985 single, “Running Up That Hill (A Deal With God)” circulated every facet of reality. I’d hear it on clips or videos posted on social media outlets, and it’d be hummed by friends and acquaintances or playing on waiting room stereos. It was inescapable. The song’s inclusion in the fourth season of Netflix’s Stranger Things television series introduced a whole new generation to her body of work.
The single’s resurgence of popularity led it to hit No. 1 on the UK’s top singles chart, 44 years after her last No. 1 single, with “Wuthering Heights” in 1979. She was crowned as the oldest female artist to reach No. 1 at 63 years and 342 days old. That summer, I decided to give her music a listen after hearing the acclaim around her at the time, particularly in her sonic and lyrical creativity — something that I’ve come to adore about her songwriting.
Due to its presence in her household, music had made a large footprint on Bush’s early life. Her older brothers, John and Paddy, introduced her to an eclectic range of musical stylings, especially with traditional English and Irish music, which they played themselves. From 11 years old, she started writing songs on an old family piano, taking inspiration not only from the music being played in her house, but also from people and their stories. She would store scenes, characters or interesting thoughts that particularly struck her to be remembered and used later during songwriting.
When she was 16 years old, her family asked a friend named Ricky Hopper, who had a foot in the music business, to take her amateur recordings to record labels. Bush wouldn’t see much attention from labels until David Gilmour of Pink Floyd heard about her through Hopper and became interested in her work after listening to the demos. He sought to assist her by helping record and present her songs to labels himself.
I’ve found a lot of these early recordings through bootleg albums like Alone at My Piano and Cathy’s Home Demos. I think there’s something special about these old recordings; they’re charming in their stripped-down vulnerability, not to mention impressive in how young Bush was when she wrote and performed them.
“Frightened Eyes” is a demo I find myself returning to every once in a while. The naked atmosphere of Bush’s voice synthesizes well with the somber piano and lyrics detailing a bus ride which the narrator spends pondering over the other passengers, who all refuse her gaze by looking out their windows.
This year, I’ve relied on CATA buses to get me around East Lansing. Once in a while, as I swipe my bus pass and settle into a seat, I think about the other passengers sitting around me: Where might they be going? Where from? What are they thinking about? What’s their name? It’s fascinating that a passing thought I occasionally have at 21 years old is so eloquently and powerfully expressed in a song written by a teenager.
With Gilmour’s help, Bush was able to sign a contract with EMI Records but decided it would be best to hold off on making a record right away. After signing, she finished up her time at school and began preparing to record her first album. It was here where she became interested in dance after seeing a Lindsay Kemp show. She took mimicry and dance classes with him, of which she would add supplementary to her music in the form of videos and live performances.
By the time she was ready to begin recording, she had written over 200 songs to choose from for her debut album. In the end, A Kick Inside was released Feb. 17, 1978. The album consists of a varied selection of progressive rock songs, soft piano ballads and the nuances in between that force a question mark to be put at the end of the “pop music” label initially attached to Bush’s music.
Musically, unorthodox instrumentation pops up here and there throughout the tracklist. A plethora of keyboards including synthesizers, the clavinet and organ coat the sonic palette to fit each song, while a varied selection of percussion adds interesting textures. “Room for the Life ” is a great example of this, using blown-into beer bottles, triangle, güiro and the boobam, giving the song a distinct “Latin” chorus that strangely works well.
Her brother Paddy’s influence is present here too, with a mandolin feature in “Oh to Be in Love.” As with most of Bush’s work, lyrics vary drastically in subject matter because she writes from the perspective of different characters within different circumstances.
“Kite” lightheartedly details a narrator who feels in a rut and decides they want to become a kite to fly high and away from the world, only to realize that they can’t get back down and miss being on the ground. On the other hand, “The Kick Inside” is darkly written from the perspective of a woman who’s had an incestuous relationship and is about to take her own life.
I’d be remiss not to mention “Wuthering Heights,” Bush’s first No. 1 hit. The song was inspired by the Emily Brontë novel of the same name. Bush had caught the last couple minutes of a TV adaptation of the novel, in which the ghost of Cathy Earnshaw wails for her past lover Heathcliff to open the window and let her enter. Bush takes on Cathy by exemplifying her white hot jealousy and selfish nature in these lyrics:
“How could you leave me /
When I needed to possess you? /
I hated you, I loved you, too.”
The ghostly aspect of Cathy is portrayed in Bush’s high register vocals, as well as the twinkling instrumentation, which includes a hammond organ and celeste. The original dance displayed in the song’s music video enhances the package. Bush spins and sways as an apparition, dressed in a pure white dress that changes color based on the lighting, almost like light refracting through air. Her widened eyes, scared and desperate facial expressions and the trippy camera effects speeding up her figure eerily cement the song as a timeless classic whose abnormal nature sets it apart from anything else.
After the success of “Wuthering Heights” and The Kick Inside, Bush released Lionheart only nine months later in November 1978. Like her previous record, the tracklist consisted of songs penned in her childhood, except for three that were newly written. Generally, Lionheart is remembered less fondly than her debut — Bush herself has suggested that the album wasn’t as solid as she hoped it would be because of how quickly it was put together. But the more I listen to it, the more it clicks with me.
While Lionheart’s tracklist can be inconsistent, the overall moodier tone and more theatrical performances offer something quiet, weighty and mysterious that The Kick Inside couldn’t. Its mysterious intrigue culminates in “Kashka from Baghdad,” a track near the back-end of the record. A subdued tone is instantly set in the first bar of the track, with Bush’s fluid piano playing amid quiet piano string pluckings and a strange descending sound. She lingers on a slightly dissonant chord, muddying up the sound to hint at something intangible.
The track also features some interesting instrumentation, like a mandocello, a pan flute and echoing chimes. Del Palmer, who would go on to play bass on most of Bush’s future albums, is also featured on this track, his precise bass melodies isolated because of the lack of any guitar. The music itself, along with the lyrics that curiously discuss a private house, suggests a dark, moonless night in which only shapes can be discerned in a vague grayness.
With two studio albums’ worth of music, and before working on her next project, Bush went on her one and only tour, “The Tour of Life,” in the spring of 1979. She is attributed as the first artist to use a wireless headset during a concert. Since she’d be moving around and dancing along with the music, she and her team improvised a wireless headset that she could wear on her head.
The conclusion of “The Tour of Life” marked the beginning of production on Bush’s third record, Never for Ever. Aside from the fact that this record is my favorite in her discography, I want to take a bit more time to discuss it because it was the first album to showcase Bush’s full creativity.
Never for Ever, released on Sep. 8, 1980, was the first album that allowed her vision to extend to the production side of music. She started learning the technical aspects of recording music by co-producing this album with Jon Kelly, an experienced audio engineer who had worked on her previous songs. It was also her first album to feature the CMI Fairlight, the first commercial sampling synthesizer, which Bush became increasingly interested in while working with Peter Gabriel. From the explosive choruses of “Babooshka” to the imaginative perspective of “Breathing,” Never for Ever is brilliant in its jaggedness and its liberal use of musical ideas — the CMI Fairlight being a chief contributor of this — to convey a spectrum of people and their circumstances.
“Babooshka,” which I mentioned above, follows an old wife as her paranoia and insecurity lead her to have suspicions over her husband’s fidelity. She takes on the character of a young woman with the pseudonym “Babooshka” and tries to seduce her husband. She ultimately succeeds and this ruins the relationship as a whole. The narrator’s double-life is reflected in the contrast between the song’s mellow, jazzy verses and its loud, bombastic choruses. Also, the instrumental begins to break down near the end of the song — as the relationship between the narrator and her husband breaks down — with a sound effect of shattering glass being pitched and looped.
After Never for Ever, Bush would go on to lead a very successful decade in the ‘80s. Her songwriting would continue to grow as time marched on. From the abrasive claustrophobia of 1982’s The Dreaming to the mature and mellow palettes provided by 2005’s Aerial and 2011’s 50 Words for Snow, Bush’s consistent yet ever-changing imagination shines throughout. And with her recent induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2023, it seems a lot of people agree with me in praising her body of work.
Now, whenever I feel as though my work is not enough in its intelligence or creativity, I pop some Kate Bush on, probably Never for Ever, and am reminded to do the best I can with what I have, because that’s what Bush has continued to do throughout her life. That’s what makes her work so seductive — a driving passion. It’s a passion that hasn’t fizzled out and gone unnoticed. On the contrary, it has made fireworks for all to watch and listen to in awe.
I have rewritten this countless times — no matter how many times I rearrange a sentence or add something new, I do not think I will be able to express how deeply I love the friends I have made here at Michigan State, Impact 89FM and in East Lansing.
In my junior year of high school, I put a keychain on my backpack that I had been given at a random conference. It seemed insignificant at the time, but it remained on my backpack through the rest of high school, the summer before college and through moving to East Lansing in August of 2020. While trying to explore opportunities online and leaving my comfort zone, I recognized the logo that was on this keychain. I did not realize that the organization was a Michigan State one. In a wave of unknowns and moving out of my hometown, seeing this logo brought me an odd sense of familiarity despite knowing nothing about it. That logo was for Impact 89FM.
It’s strange now that I cannot imagine my life without this radio station. These last four years have shaped me in more ways than I will ever be able to describe because of the people I have had the fortune to be surrounded by. My coworkers, who grew to become my closest friends, have made my life and myself as a person so much better. We all stumbled across this radio station in some way or another with a common love for music — it was a thread that stitched us all together.
Because of that common love for music, it feels nearly impossible to capture these last four years in a playlist. If I did, the playlist would most likely be 20 hours long. All I know for sure is that my fondest memories always involve music and Impact 89FM: singing karaoke, going to concerts, seeing friends perform their own music live, crowding around a singular speaker to hear the best part of a song. These people and this radio station have become my home. My younger self would not recognize the person I am today but for all the best reasons. I owe so very much to the people of Impact and the soundtracks that are attached to every memory. I have never felt so much love and warmth in my entire life.
And it’s bittersweet to be graduating. I will be graduating alongside people who have become my family, and I will be returning for one more year for my master’s degree. Music, this radio station and these people have become engraved into my life, and it feels incredibly heavy to know I won’t have the privilege of seeing them every single day. I hope all of us are able to stumble across a place in the future that brings us the same sense of belonging that the rare Impact 89FM has.
It’s embarrassing the amount of times I wrote and completed this playlist only to abandon the effort each time and scrap it entirely. I had a version that was soft and reflective and told the story of my college experience over the course of 24 songs. It was a good playlist, but it wasn’t real. Then I had a version – in true Hourz O’ Power fashion – that was 24 songs of nothing but heavy. That was a good playlist too, but it felt too unified to represent how college really was for me. I’ve gone through so many other iterations of what this could’ve been that it took me until today – just two days before these playlists are due – to see clearly what it should be: A little bit of everything.
I spent my first year of college behind a computer screen at home in California amping myself up for how exciting “real” college was going to be. Then I landed here in fall of 2021 ready to face the world. The world faced me right back and I quickly realized I was the most alone I had ever been. I didn’t know anyone — I barely even knew myself. Then I found Impact 89FM — I found my people — and spent the next three years doing the typical college thing: making friends, making mistakes and listening to people I didn’t like tell me who I was supposed to be.
I don’t have a witty or poetic anecdote to sum up my college experience because if I can’t talk about all of it, I don’t want to talk about any of it. Every experience over the last three years feels like part of a whole, and that whole is joyous, furious, pleasant, agonizing and a whole host of other contradictory adjectives. I’ve found myself getting trapped in contractions lately. I can’t wait to enter the real world, but I don’t want college to end. I can’t wait to meet the people in my future who will change my life, but I don’t want to leave my friends here who have already done that. The list goes on.
If I was forced to say that college was only one thing, I would say it was real. I can see every single day of the last three years on my skin, in my eyes and in the way I talk. I am a changed man. What changed about me? A little bit of everything.
I never listened to music critically until I was 17 or 18, when I first bought a car and realized that it was up to me — not the bus driver, my parents, or the radio — to determin what I listened to when I was alone in the car. I had never tapped too much into the music listening experience, but between my high school graduation and when COVID became manageable enough to warrant sending people back to the classroom — my sophomore year at MSU — my exposure to music went from a trickle of the mainstream to an open-minded embrace of whatever sounded like a good listen. This meant that by the time I stepped foot onto campus as a student for the first time in the fall of 2021, I was finally ready to embrace music.
Since starting to really enjoy music as an art form, I’ve always associated songs with the locations that I best remember listening to them in. The three-hour drive between my hometown, Traverse City, and Lansing is littered with memories of my first listens to what now are my favorite songs, albums and artists. There’s a stretch of M-115 that driving through brings me right back to my first listen of Lil Yachty’s “Let’s Start Here.” There’s a misty back road just east of Traverse City that snaps me back to my first listen of Daft Punk’s “Discovery.” There’s an overpass on 127 South that conjures Biggie Smalls, a corn field that suggests both Tyler’s “IGOR” and Bjork’s “Debut” and a hill in Traverse City that makes me feel like a sophomore listening to the ending monologue of Kendrick Lamar’s “To Pimp A Butterfly” for the first time.
In Lansing, there are locations that elicit the same effect for me. There are also smells, temperatures, ambiances and sounds that do the same. Music is such a sensory experience for me, that having lived in Lansing for the last three years has forever altered my perception of this town. I can’t go anywhere without the memory of a song or album from my past worming its way into my head.
This playlist is a testament to that. For each of these songs, I have a specific MSU-related place in my heart. “Complexion” by Kendrick is always going to make me think of northeast campus on Hagadorn. Skee-Lo’s “I Wish” and Eric Johnson’s “Cliffs of Dover” will forevermore remind me of tearing around the map of Forza Horizon 4 in my favorite Corvette at my sophomore year apartment. Spelling’s “Little Deer” will always conjure the chilly fall 2021 I spent driving to visit my girlfriend at Olivet College south of Lansing. A hundred songs will always represent different seasons and colors and feelings bicycling up and down Abbot road to class five days a week for two years straight. I’ll always remember how funny I found it that Primus’s “Lee Van Cleef” was the tune playing when I was nailed by a car biking home from class during my junior year.
I’ll also always remember songs by the people I enjoyed them with: Mac Demarco with my girlfriend on Grand River ave, Vulfpeck with my family on Kalamazoo street, Tyler, the Creator on my way to Detroit with a friend and Gorillaz all over town with all manner of friends, roommates and associates.
I hope this playlist does justice to my experience at MSU. It’ll always mean everything to me, just like my time at college will.
Goodbye and thank you, MSU,
Jeremiah Dungjen
Isaac Dunbar is a Massachussets-native singer and songwriter who began producing music at a young age, drawing inspiration from a variety of artists such as Lady Gaga and David Bowie. His rise in the music industry has been largely driven by his online presence and strong fan base, as well as critical acclaim from those who appreciate his unique stylistic approach. Since his first release in 2018, Dunbar has traversed from classic pop to a more authentic and introspective style of alternative pop, showcasing a unique blend of personal storytelling and innovative soundscapes.
Dunbar’s new single, “Backseat Girl,” is a vibrant, theatrical lament of what it feels like to be the second best. The lyrics explore the emotions of feeling overlooked, expressing frustration with not being valued and feeling like efforts to connect are often in vain. The song highlights a desire for independence and self-validation with the repeated phrase, “You can’t be right all the time,” emphasizing the need for autonomy and acceptance.
“I’m just your backseat girl /
If only I could rule your world /
Every kiss, every ride, why do I even try?”
Throughout the song, there’s a theme of questioning and self-reflection, wondering why he continues to return to a relationship that brings him so much dissatisfaction. The chorus alludes to cycles of disappointment and change, echoing a struggle to break free from unhealthy patterns and seek fulfillment. Overall, the song captures the universal desire for recognition and understanding. These compelling themes in tandem with the lush guitars and intricate harmonies evoke a sense of nostalgia, making the song all the more intriguing. Backseat Girl is the second single on Dunbar’s upcoming EP “Beep Beep Repeat,” which is set to release on April 26, 2024.
MSU wasn’t the plan. Coming out of high school, the plan was an associate’s degree in sound recording technology at a community college and transfer to Michigan Tech for a bachelor’s in sound design. A year into community college there was a change of plans. I decided to forego the associate’s and instead focus on general credits. Instead of sound design at Michigan Tech, I chose digital storytelling at Michigan State University.
At the time two of my favorite songs were “Self Esteem” by The Offspring and “The Best Day” by Atmosphere. These songs bookend this playlist. Both songs have been with me throughout my life, coming in and out like an old friend who’s always welcome to stay awhile.
I transferred in at a strange time in my life. I had just spent a year and a half in lockdown while working part-time at a grocery store and being a student — almost entirely online. A set of circumstances that are not exactly conducive to a healthy social life for an already awkward person. After transferring, it took me some time to readjust to being around peers my age.
But with adjustments came growing pains. Some relationships I had formed before transferring essentially fell apart, leading to some very rough nights, nights that the second song in the playlist, “Black Soul” by Shinedown, helped me through. While nowhere near my favorite Shinedown song, “Black Soul” sticks out as one that played at the perfect time during an especially rough night while walking home, so it holds a special place in my heart.
It was around that same time that I began two important things. First, make an effort to meet new people, and second, listen to new music. The first part would come with time. The second started immediately: when I started my weekly ritual of listening through Spotify’s discover weekly playlist. The ritual marks the beginning of what I am dramatically calling my rebirth.
This tradition is one that I have been doing every week since the winter of my spring 2022 sophomore year at MSU. While mostly mediocre, having new music to experiment with every week was a blessing that helped me develop my music tastes from a casual listener of whatever to someone who knows his music taste.
The rest of my playlist is made from songs that I first listened to as an MSU student, mainly through discover weekly and similarly generated mixes. All of these songs were chosen from the multitude of mostly great songs — they can’t all be bangers — I enjoyed during my time here as an MSU student and are arranged chronologically from start to finish to follow my journey as a person, and as a Spartan.
Thank you to Michigan State University, the friends that stuck with me, the friends I’ve made along the way and a special thank you to Impact 89FM for helping me find my voice.
Jack David and Matt Coury are back for the final edition of Impact Sports Daily of the year to talk the Red Wings, the Play-In Tournament, Tigers, the new leaked Lions jerseys, and more
On March 19, I was afforded the opportunity to see Detroit’s own Danny Brown with openers Bruiser Wolf and Hook at Grewal Hall in downtown Lansing. This evening was a real experience, so I’ll try and recount it chronologically.
When I showed up at Grewal, a small, intimate venue with a general admission floor not much bigger than a basketball court, Bruiser Wolf’s set was nigh upon the lucky group who had shown up that evening.
Bruiser Wolf, a recent inductee to the Danny Brown-led Detroit rap collective Bruiser Brigade, spent the next 45 odd minutes spitting some uniquely Detroit flows and hyping the crowd up with calls of “Bruiser!” to which the crowd responded with a resounding “Wolf!”
Bruiser Wolf’s set consisted mainly of tracks from his latest album, My Stories Got Stories, released in January. His style was evocative of classic hip-hop and had the crowd moving more than I’ve seen with most openers, especially for the size of the venue.
Los Angeles-based rapper Hook took over once Bruiser Wolf’s set had finished, and she brought some of her new release’s best tracks to Lansing. Her style was equally engaging, bringing some unorthodox trap beats with what sounded almost like an emo rap style with a bombastic female twist.
Afterward, the stage was reset and the excitement for Brown’s set was all over the room. After some time, the stage went dark and the frenetic production of “Tantor” from Brown’s new release Quaranta blared across the venue. After making his way through “Tantor,” Brown led the crowd of devoted fans through all of his best tracks from every one of his cult classic albums. In a venue of that size, I’ve never felt so sure I was going to be crushed in a mosh.
Brown’s biggest strength has always been his underground appeal, and the energy from some of his most devoted fans during his performance at Grewal Hall dwarfed that of far bigger concerts I’ve been to. Listening to Brown is one thing, but seeing him live, for real fans, is the comprehensive experience.
For me, seeing him almost a year prior at MSU’s 2023 spring concert before giving his work a real listen made this a full circle experience. My bottom line? Catching Danny Brown live is not something one should miss.
The electro-pop band, Colouring, released their newest single “Lune” in late August. With lead singer, Jack Kenworthy’s, voice of tranquility, the unique atmospheric undertone unveiled by lead guitarist, Sean Reilly, and bass player, Dom Potts, and the steady foundation provided by the band’s drummer, Alex Johnson, the London band produced a hit that impressed audiences...
Some days are just built for looking back at the past. You pass by a thrift shop and see a stuffed animal that reminds you of someone you had a connection with. Maybe you hear an old friend’s favorite song and hesitate about whether you should text them. Not every connection breaks with anger and...
If you find yourself saying, “Wow, that’s literally me,” every time you watch a Ryan Gosling movie, every time you watch American Psycho, Donnie Darko or the Joker, we hope this playlist fuels your fantasy. Keep aspiring to be that cool guy. It’s okay to dream a little.
It’s so rare that a film perfectly captures the true likeness of “the teenage girl” in a character. However, the film Lady Bird seems to show her in a way I have never seen before. Lady Bird centers on Lady Bird McPherson, a 17-year-old caught in the strange in-between of girlhood and womanhood. She teeters...
Within these past couple of weeks, I’ve had time to reflect upon my life as a whole. The absurd quantity of changes made to my daily routine has significantly impacted my outlook toward my future and what I wish to see for myself. Throughout all of these developments, whether educational or social, the consistency which...
Since the mid 2010s, Bladee has been a staple of his genre, consistently creating music that’s unlike anything else out there and, for many, single-handedly defining the hyperpop-adjacent niche of electronic pop that he occupies. It seems with every new release — whether it be an album, single or ep — the rapper and Drain...
This summer has been a much-needed break for many folks at Impact 89FM, and though I was not actively behind the mic, several emerging, staple and previously in-hiatus artists decorated this summer’s alt-country soundscape with captivating and groundbreaking twang. Here are the Progressive Torch and Twang’s selections from the summer of 2023: “Something To Look...
Last week, I started my Thursday morning in tranquil fashion, enjoying a serene walk and a scrumptious egg scramble before sitting down to do some textbook reading. After a calming and educational textbook session, I opened up Spotify. Little did I know the course of my day was about to change. My eyes lit up...
Charlotte’s Playlist: This playlist derives feelings of summer and excitement for the future of The Flashback as I begin to plan my involvement. Although the songs listed are songs that I have mostly adored for some time now, I revisit these tracks most summers. For me, the soundtracks of my summers are dominated by ’70s...
What I would consider to be the catchiest song ever written about crystal meth addiction came out 26 years ago as the first single of Third Eye Blind’s debut self-titled album. “Semi-Charmed Life” is absurdly catchy, opening with doo-doo-doo-doo’s in an almost One Direction-ish fashion. The upbeat pop-rock melody is juxtaposed with unexpectedly dark lyrics, telling the story of a relationship tainted by addiction.
“Semi-Charmed Life” was released in February 1997 and hit the Billboard Hot 100 in July of that year, debuting at 17. It peaked at number 4, spending a total of 43 weeks on the chart. The song had similar success on other charts, and it won a Billboard Music Award for Best Modern Rock Track. Notably, Dave Grohl of Nirvana and Foo-Fighters was once asked by Spin Magazine what ‘97 lyric he wished he had written, and he answered with the refrain of “Semi-Charmed Life.”
Despite the dark undertones, I firmly believe now is the time to listen to the alt-rock/power pop hits of the ‘90s and 2000s before summer is officially over. I’ll leave you with one of the few sweet lines in a song that is mostly a discussion of meth:
“I believe in the sand beneath my toes /
The beach gives a feeling, an earthy feeling /
I believe in the faith that grows.”
In the almost four agonizing months I have spent away from East Lansing, I have been conducting extensive mosh research to find the hardest and heaviest tracks to supply to you, the fine listeners of Thee Hourz O’ Power. From old school deathcore to youth crew, crossover to Oi! punk and every identifiable sound in between, there is plenty to enjoy for any fan of aggressive music.
Some of these tracks will find their home in the music library for Thee Hourz O’ Power at some point in the future, but until then, here are 18 songs that dropped this summer that are sure to kick the dog days up a notch or two:
- “The Beast Is Back” – New World Man
- “Vie” – Fury
- “Squeeze” – Scarab
- “Compulsory Bloodshed” – Tracheotomy
- “Cry Your Eyes Out” – The Chisel
- “Summer’s Beginning” – Adrienne
- “Under My Skin” – Pain of Truth
- “Profits of War” – Implosive Disgorgence
- “Earn Your Respect” – Human Garbage
- “Encased In Crystalline” – A Mourning Star
- “Newjack Eradication” – PSYCHO-FRAME
- “Fire of the Heart” – Never Ending Game
- “C.T.E.” – Incendiary
- “Smoke” – Snuffed on Sight
- “Y.S.A.B.” – Sunami
- “WHITE NOISE” – Blood Runs Cold
- “Tightrope Walker” – Hazing Over
- “Devil’s Itch” – DRAIN
It’s been a long summer away from the microphone, but just because I was off-air, that doesn’t mean I was neglecting The Afterglow’s soundscapes. This summer, a wealth of exciting tracks were released in the fields of ambient, downtempo electronic, vaporwave and the like, and you’re sure to hear some of them on future Afterglow shows.
For your listening pleasure, here’s a playlist of The Afterglow’s 2023 summer selections:
- “Your First Armadillo” – Claire Rousay
- “Blackbox Life Recorder 21f” – Aphex Twin
- “When We Sleep” – Fit Of Body, Elizabeth Wight
- “Fauna” – Carbon Based Lifeforms
- “City Song” – Gia Margaret
- “Microfungal Expansion” – Arthur King
- “You Hold the Key and I Found It” – George Clanton
- “Children Of The New Dusk” – How to Disappear Completely
- “Usra” – Omar Ahmad
- “Secret” – Fred again.. and Brian Eno
- “D i m e n s i o n (0-infinity)” – Brown Calvin
- “My Grandmother’s Garden” – Ki Oni
- “Casper” – John Atkinson
- “April in Paris” – Lucy Liyou
While I have not made my formal introduction on the mic yet, I am Sam Kurtzman, the new host of The Vibe, Impact’s resident hip-hop and R&B specialty show. In addition to celebrating the 50th anniversary of hip-hop, we have had quite the summer in terms of releases. Here are a few that are worth your time.
- “EYE” – Amine, Kaytranada, Snoop Dogg
- “America Has A Problem (REMIX)” – Beyonce, Kendrick Lamar
- “The Hillbillies” – Baby Keem, Kendrick Lamar
- “GREENCELOPHANE” – Estee Nack
- “Oh U Went?” – Young Thug, Drake
- “Too Fast” – Jay Rock, Latto, Anderson .Paak
- “Flooded The Face” – Lil Uzi Vert
- “RIOT (Rowdy Pipe’N)” – A$AP Rocky, Pharell Williams
- “MODERN JAM” – Travis Scott, Teezo Touchdown
- “Blood on My Nikez” – Denzel Curry, Juicy J
- “Abracadabra” – Nas
- “Super Ski” – LUCKI
- “Marble Columns” – Curren$y, Harry Fraud, Larry June
- “Different League” – Statik Selektah, Benny The Butcher, Termanology
- “COUNTDOWN CITY” – Mike Dimes
- “A Little Trauma Can Be Illuminating, And I’m Shining Like The Sun” – $uicideboy$
- “Cream” – J Hus, CB
EAST LANSING – The MSU Union was filled with a flurry of emotions last Thursday, as Womens Student Services–in collaboration with the University Activities Board, MSU Womens Council and Impact 89FM–invited students to FEMfest 2023 in the Union Ballroom.
FEMfest is an annual celebration of women’s voices, featuring many musical and spoken-word performers from the East Lansing community. It provides a platform for people who have been historically silenced and encourages MSU students to empower themselves.
WSS and its partners have created a supportive environment for limitless self-expression, as well as a noticeable kinship between performers and audience members.
Throughout the night, students laughed, cried and cheered as they experienced the many different sides and struggles of womanhood. The variety of performances emphasized the strength of femininity in all forms, whether it is portrayed as a joyful experience or a melancholic journey.
Attendees enjoyed 13 unique performances including readings of poetry, song covers, original music, dancing and a drag queen lip sync. Each performance presented a vastly different perspective and fostered a space for women to be heard.
Among the night’s performances was an a cappella rendition of Swedish Europop group Abba’s “Angel Eyes,” sung by MSU’s very own Barden Bellas: Ladies First.
The group compares themselves to the popular movie “Pitch Perfect” because they are the only all-treble a cappella group on campus. During the group’s 38 years of performance, they have toured the country to perform and won multiple awards in the International Championship of Collegiate A Cappella.
Ladies First hopes to show other musicians that there is always a space for them to thrive.
“We have a slogan, which is ‘Honest. Grounded. Powerful,’” said Atea Nelson of Ladies First. “It’s the legacy that we’re continuing. It’s why it’s so important and special for us to be at FEMfest, we want to embody that. I feel like FEMfest is a very empowering event for a lot of people, so we’re really honored to be here.”
The group offers an optimistic future for MSU students: one where all groups are free to do what they put their minds to, and one where they have inspirational role models.
The journey to find a welcoming community is often invigorating and rewarding, but it can also be isolating. Natalie Barnett, also known as iimber, understands and represents this idea in her original song “Trust Issues.”
“I’ve always hung around guys my whole life, so I was never really feeling like I was super feminine,” Barnett said. “But I came here and it was really accepting and nice.”
During a video interview with Barnett, she explained that a core theme of “Trust Issues” is the fear that she will never be able to find people who can handle her at her worst, placing pressure on her to perform as something else and making it difficult for her to maintain relationships.
This idea of women’s acceptance hinging on how they present themselves and conforming to perpetual happiness is common, yet Barnett doesn’t shy away from the rougher edges of her experiences.
“There is a lot of feeling,” she said, describing the tone of her albums. “A lot of trauma in the initial writings.”
Barnett said another theme of her music is “freedom and the fear that comes with it,” which can be interpreted in many different ways pertaining to the feminine experience. She relates this specifically to being judged for being confident about her identity.
While their subject matters are a bit different, both Ladies First and iimber have something in common: their ability to inspire women through sharing their art.
Over the years that FEMfest has existed on MSU’s campus, it’s grown by a wide margin–in funding, attendance and experience. Overall, this year continues FEMfest’s legacy as an opportunity for women to express themselves in a safe and supportive environment. It is also a chance to experience art from diverse creators.
Students are encouraged to join WSS and MSU Women*s Council for upcoming events, as well as attend FEMfest 2024 next fall for moving music and impactful messages.
For more FEMfest 2023 interviews check out Impact’s FEMfest 2023 playlist on YouTube.
We all know what time it is. Back to school and back to eating at the lovely MSU dining halls. Some of us may have missed the scrumptious black bean burgers from Akers or the crispy chicken tenders and french fries from Owen, but I think none of us missed the palpable stomach curdling growls that escape from our bodies trying to digest the secret laxatives that are cooked into the food. So, next time you’re running to your bathroom after eating at the dining hall, we hope this playlist brings you comfort and a sweet sense of release.
On Aug. 26, one stage hosted an international-award-winning opera singer, the No. 1 ranked beatboxer in Michigan and countless members of greater Detroit’s rock and metal scene. This collection of talent sought to destroy the boundaries of genre, to make a new statement on the beauty of local music, to testify to the joys and benefits of artistic collaboration. This was The Amalgamation Project.
Now, it makes sense to associate artistic collaboration with local music — from a view of proximity, if nothing else. But not all music scenes host collaboration between members, and even fewer tend to host positive collaborations. Disputes run rampant in the music industry — from the local level all the way to the top — and Bryan Knickerbocker, organizer of The Amalgamation Project, sought to show what happens when we do something deceivingly simple: Work together.
“Local scenes are so riddled with unnecessary competition,” said Knickerbocker. “I hope this would alleviate some of that.”
Knickerbocker initially formed the idea for The Amalgamation Project when two of the project’s performers, Stephanos Andreotti and Tong Fx, approached Bryan with the idea of a song combining opera and beatboxing.
“I thought, ‘Man, that would be cool, but with a lot of people.’ So I started to form it and it took a little over a year,” said Knickerbocker. “The hope is that everybody gets at least a couple new fans out of this. It’s a community thing.”
The sense of community in this project was visible immediately, starting with the venue. Within New Baltimore, Michigan’s Diesel Concert Lounge is a music haven coexisting with a pinball arcade and bowling alley. Everyone seemed to be good friends — even if they had just met. With the Detroit Tigers game playing just above the bar, sunshine peeking in from the parking lot and inside jokes soaring from stage to floor, even the set-up and soundcheck existed as a lively example of what it means to be a community.
With guitars, keytars and drums roaring in the background during soundcheck, I asked several of the night’s performers the same two questions: “When you look at something like The Amalgamation Project, what do you think it does to promote community, both for artists and fans?” and “Do you think collaborations like these are the first step in uniting music scenes?”
Crafted Conviction opening for The Amalgamation Project. (Mike)In every answer, the same theme emerged: A show like this proves that musicians can rise to the top together, all while learning from and being inspired by each other.
“It’s gonna show that we can all push each other farther,” said Katelyn Mueller of Crafted Conviction. “What’s the point of holding each other back when we could all be rising at the same level and helping each other?”
Phil Steuer of Elsie Binx felt similarly, elaborating on how collaborations like The Amalgamation Project can lead to lasting relationships. “It could be a first step to many things,” he said. “It could be a first to a new side project, a first to a new partnership of any sort — hell, it could even be the start of new friendships.”
For a concrete memory of the night, and for existing and future friendships, everyone involved in the project signed drum heads from Knickerbocker’s massive drum set. As signatures populated the set, sunlight disappeared from the room and stage lights adopted hazy greens, reds and blues. Doors opened, drinks were poured and the Tigers gave up five runs in two innings.
And all the while, I continued speaking with The Amalgamation Project’s performers, who all expressed a deep care for their work and their community, both verbally and non-verbally. Sometimes you can simply tell how much something means to a person by the way they move their arms in speech, by the way their eyes try to fall on the most complete answer.
Even before the first opener hit the stage, I knew this: Here was a group that truly loves music.
Kicking off the night in front of a warm crowd were Never Decaf and Crafted Conviction. Never Decaf’s set was coated in nostalgia, with their last track being a collage cover of some of the most popular songs of the last 40 years, including Lady Gaga’s “Paparazzi,” Alphaville’s “Forever Young” and The Cure’s “Pictures of You.” Crafted Conviction followed with roaring guitars and passionate vocals, prepping the stage for the slew of rock and metal crossovers to come.
Serving as master of ceremonies for the night was Rikki Roxx, who expressed hopes that this show would broaden the audience’s horizons. “Talent is talent,” as he put it.
Wil Pruitt performing at The Amalgamation Project. (Mike Merucci)Talent is talent, indeed. Combining so many different styles would require it, but selflessness would also be required. When I spoke with Wil Pruitt of Ritual Suns, which served as the house band for the night along with Matthew Shannon, he expressed that “It’s very valuable, from a musician’s standpoint, to have a sense of comradery between us. In all settings. The music industry, in general, is plagued with this idea of competition and dogging on people. So this has been a really good way of bringing people together and snuffing out that mindset to a point where people can see past the competition aspect and respect music for music’s sake.”
This could perfectly summate The Amalgamation Project: “Music for music’s sake.” For the love of art itself, rather than the love of potential fame and fortune.
Pruitt played on nearly every song of The Amalgamation Project’s 10-song set, nine of which featured duos playing with the house band. These duos each conceptualized a song together, wrote and practiced it, then finally performed it on this night.
From the very first performance, it was easy to understand why this was called The Amalgamation Project. There were six people on stage, and Knickerbocker’s drum set looked like a mythological hydra in the background, dwarfing the Charmander plushie which dangled from it.
Some of the performers’ children sat next to the on-stage monitors throughout the whole show and other audience members clustered in the front row to help the show earn its name. Onto the stage came all kinds of instruments, all kinds of amps, all kinds of vocal styles. Where one duo would foster explosive riffs, another would opt for gentle picks and low-key croons. At the show’s midpoint, Tong Fx and Knickerbocker engaged in a beatbox versus drum set competition before Tong Fx beatboxed in a duo with an acoustic guitar.
Following this unexpected battle was “Specter of You,” a song whose guitars almost seemed to be singing to each other, reaching out longingly to a quickly fading mist. And in stark contrast to this longing was an eruptive track from Steuer and Jaimi Magyari, which had half the crowd holding their own air guitars.
These led into the final duo performance — an exceedingly interesting mixture of metal and opera, with the vocalist being Andreotti, who I was fortunate to have spoken with before the show. As I saw him on stage, his words on art came ringing back into my head:
“The fact that this has come together is a cause for hope, and is setting an example of what the music community has the potential to be,” he said. “We can make new genres, new concepts, new stories to be told.”
“If you think you know art, think again. There’s so many more things to be made and so much more that can happen by people coming together and exposing their hearts to each other. There’s so much to happen in improvisation.”
Stephanos Andreotti performing on-stage for The Amalgamation Project. (Mike )Andreotti left his heart on the stage that night, singing around themes of occultism with hands held high as guitars slowly intensified behind him before shattering the night with riffs that held the weight of the world in their strings.
After this ninth duo, Roxx walked up on stage and wasn’t quite sure what to say. But he understood that “talent is talent;” he understood the beautiful absurdity of having an accomplished Italian opera singer collaborating with Detroit metalheads next to a bowling alley and pinball arcade in New Baltimore.
I look back on this night and find a certain regional pride in it, maybe even a touch of some weird patriotism. As I interviewed people beside a dumpster with cigarettes being sparked up all about, as I sat at the bar and passively glanced at the Detroit Tigers hosting Marvel superheroes for the National Anthem, as I walked past 7-10 splits and bursts of flashing pinball lights, I couldn’t help but find a certain romance in it all.
This is where I’m from, I suppose. This is what we do. We drink pitchers of beer while front row at concerts featuring beatbox and opera; we share pizzas while “Master of Puppets” blasts during soundcheck; we throw fart jokes at each other while watching the sun sink below the horizon of a pothole-burdened parking lot.
As I observed the show’s finale — a collaboration between six of the night’s performers — a simple thought landed in my mind: “Yeah, I’m in America right now.” A place so nuanced and complicated that no one art piece could ever tackle it in full. But that’s why we need so much collaboration, so much diversity in art. Maybe we can figure this whole thing out together, maybe not. Probably not.
We live in a place that we’ll never understand, both for its beauties and its horrors. We live in America. We live where everything will always sit a little misunderstood. Politics, cultures, relationships, emotions, selves: We’re never going to “get it.” It’s never going to make sense.
But that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t seek to understand, because trying to understand this place means trying to understand the people in it. Trying to understand this place means trying to understand yourself.
In collaboration, things make sense. In the emotion of live music, things make sense. In The Amalgamation Project, things make sense.
It’s been a long time coming, but Detroit was ready for it when Taylor Swift brought her massive Eras Tour to the city for a two-night run in June. Few people could command a stadium so forcefully that 70,000 fans adoringly cheer when they ask for a tissue, but Swift has been experiencing a level...
I had been waiting for this moment for more than four years. Enter my favorite band of all time, Death Grips. Enter a raw patchwork of excited screams from the crowd. Enter crimson stage lights drowning every head in the venue. Welcome to red-alert intensity. Welcome to “System Blower,” with its unmistakable, urgent opening. Goodbye...
The Lyrical Lemonade Summer Smash is an annual festival hosted by Lyrical Lemonade founder and Chicago legend Cole Bennett. Bennett has worked with SPKRBX over the past five years to put on the biggest independent hip-hop festival, and this year’s edition was nothing short of spectacular. The efforts put into the festival were truly curated...
It has been three years since the release of Dominic Fike’s last album, What Could Possibly Go Wrong. On July 7, Fike released his newest album, Sunburn. This 15-song album is full of passion and so many different styles from singing to rapping, but Fike’s classic alternative sound from What Could Possibly Go Wrong and...
Summer is a period of stasis for students. At least it is for those who can’t secure internships and choose not to enroll in summer classes. Friends are in far away cities, and there’s nothing to do but embrace the inactivity. You try to be content in a space that’s far from ideal, which is...
I grew up listening to popular Taylor Swift songs on the radio, so I was always familiar with her work. I never dug deeper until I listened to Folklore last spring, which is when I really became a true fan and dove into her discography. This made me realize I needed to see her live...
Editor’s note: The beginning of this interview contains brief moments of audio distortion that render certain words inaudible. Beyond the one-minute-30-second mark, that distortion is not present. Ahead of the release of his solo debut, Inheritance, composer and sound artist Omar Ahmad sat down with the Impact to discuss what the word “inheritance” means to him,...
Los Angeles-based multi-instrumentalist and producer Adrian Younge is set to release the 18th edition of he and Ali Shaheed Muhammad’s Jazz Is Dead, this time featuring legendary drummer Tony Allen. The late Allen, who Brian Eno described as “perhaps the greatest drummer who ever lived,” died in 2020, but even in death, his music continues...
Just months after Russia began its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, gypsy punk band Gogol Bordello traveled to the country to perform a secret concert for Ukrainian soldiers. Now, with the help of various esteemed punk rock and hardcore musicians, they’ve returned with a new single holding the same purpose of helping these soldiers. All proceeds...
“Movement” is an homage to the very essence of life: motion. Each track in this mixtape is imbued with a zestful rhythm and lively melody that gently nudges listeners to move. It is an irresistible invitation to dance and to sway with the rhythm. It is a celebration of the rhythm inherent in our existence, a pulse that mirrors the beat of our hearts, the breath in our lungs, the thoughts racing through our minds.
This mixtape encapsulates the primal urge to participate — to leap into action, to stir our bodies into motion. It ignites the thrill of dancing, fostering joy and instilling positivity. This mixtape moves beyond mere kinetic energy, delving into the nuanced shifts in our emotional, cognitive and existential states as we engage with life’s perpetual dynamism.
Tracklist:
- Alice Clark – “Don’t You Care”
- Little Beaver – “Let the Good Times Roll”
- Cleon – “Boogaloo Pow”
- La Logia Sarabanda – “Guayaba”
- Kit Sebastian – “Yanimda Kal”
- Boulevards – “Together”
- Magic Sam – “Funky G Street”
- Erasmo Carlos – “Mundo Cão”
- Bin Juice – “Watermellon”
- Uschi Bruning – “Hochzeitsnacht”
- Universal Togetherness Band – “Ain’t Gonna Cry”
- CAN – “Don’t Say No”
- Soft Machine – “As Long As He Lies Perfectly Still”
- Arthur Russell – “Get Around to It”
- Acidslop – “Lament for the Sky”
- ESG – “Six Pack”
- Coati Mundi – “Que Pasa / Me No Pop I”
- Florence Adooni – “Mam Pe’ela Su’ure”
- Şenay – “Doy Doy Doyamadım”
- Marcos Valle – “Ele E Ela”
- Swamp Children – “You’ve Got Me Beat”
- Isabelle Antena – “Sweet Boy”
- Hamid Al Shaeri – “Git Ya Sheta”
- Elia y Elizabeth – “Buscándonos”
- Alberto Baldan Bembo – “Oblo’”
What do migrants bring with them? On a one-way trip to an unknown new life in a foreign land, perhaps they pack money, documents, clothes or some small keepsakes. Invisibly, intangibly and arguably most importantly, they also carry their culture.
Culture is made up of specific beliefs, attitudes and customs, as well as values, behaviors, clothing, cuisine, art and music. Far from erasing the existing culture of their new home, immigrants change culture for the better. By continuing to practice their own culture, immigrants not only stay in touch with their homeland but also add diversity to the new nation.
Throughout history, music has traversed borders, introducing new listeners to music from other parts of the world and even contributing to the creation of entirely new forms of music. Formed in Detroit, Michigan, in 1992, Immigrant Suns were pioneers of what became a new wave of American interest in the music of The Balkans, The Middle East, the Romani of Eastern Europe and ethnic folkloric music in general.
The term “world music” is generally considered to be a misnomer, as no group can truly represent the music of the world. Or so one would think until they heard Detroit’s Immigrant Suns. Their base sound is Eastern European with a Mediterranean inclination — their first album is titled Montenegro, after cofounder Djeto Juncaj’s homeland. However, Immigrant Suns’ music is much more than just the sounds of the Mediterranean. Drawing influences from every conceivable corner of the globe, Antarctica included, this combination of sounds is unlike anything you have ever heard and most likely will ever hear again.
The group enjoyed critical acclaim and gained a cult fan base around the USA, which it toured incessantly in the 1990s. Some of their most notable performances included the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta and Detroit’s 300th anniversary celebration. A true DIY project, Immigrant Suns never used a manager or publicist, but were featured on independent and college radio, on television and in critics’ picks from papers like The Chicago Reader, The Chicago Sun-Times, Metro Times and many more.
Collaborations from Immigrant Suns include work with dance groups, multi-media events and filmmakers. Musically, they collaborated with many artists, including Eugene Chadbourne, The Shaking Ray Levis, Frank Pahl, The Gold Sparkle Band, Gaida Hinnawi, Only a Mother, The Eyesores and many others. Acknowledgement from their peers came in many forms, as the Bay Area-based group Charming Hostess recorded an a cappella version of their song “Kafe Turke,” and The Gold Sparkle Band dedicated their piece “Motor City Fugue” to the group. Immigrant Suns also contributed the track “Surfing Albania” to the chart-topping world music compilation “Music Without Borders.” The track was featured prominently in reviews of the compilation by international press.
Over the course of eight years, the group released five albums that evolved from early impressionistic melding of archaic folk music and art rock into music that featured the sophisticated handling of many traditions, some experimental hybrids and even a big band version of the group.
In my opinion, the best and most accessible Immigrant Suns album would have to be their fifth and final work, Supernova. Released in 2002, Supernova brought a refined and restless approach to their old-globe style articulations in the context of new arrangement and improvisation. This album is a true picture of the group at full strength: Its tracks host anywhere from three to 10 players.
With Supernova, Immigrant Suns wondrously took on notions of popular song as interpreted through Russian folk tunes with “The Huffer,” through gypsy blues in an Appalachian setting with “Farewell,” through scorched-Earth Eastern dirge music bathed in country swamp rock with “The Veil” and through a pop song featuring a worldly and orchestral approach with “All Over The Street.”
My favorite song off the album is “Let’s Take Today.” Characterized by steady percussion and an enchanting violin, it is a true wonder to me that this song is not a massive hit. But the glory of this album lies in its closer, “Antipodes,” a near 11-minute long improvisation that nonetheless keeps the various modalities and scalar considerations of expanded and extrapolated harmony in full view. Supernova is a journey from the highest peak to the lowest valley. It is not only an album: It is a gratifying experience, a sonic delight and a work that truly exemplifies the greatness of Immigrant Suns.
Immigrant Suns’ eclectic sound is characterized by a combination of various instruments. Each band member plays at least four instruments over the duration of a show: among them are the qifteli (Albanian two-string gourd), bouzouki (Greek eight-string lute), mbira (West African thumb piano), oud (Persian 10-string lute) and tárogató (Hungarian folk clarinet). Armed with more than a dozen folk instruments — as well as such staples as bass, drums, violin, guitar, bassoon, cello and mandolin — Immigrant Suns host something truly unique. Although they have largely been inactive since 2002, barring a few festival and benefit appearances, their performances are fabled for their high energy and collective enjoyment. One thing’s for sure: If you’re going to see them, you’d best bring your dancing shoes.
Over 30 years since its inception, Immigrant Suns’ music still holds up today. A musical collective devoted to exploring sounds from all corners of the globe, the group reminds us that the world is much bigger than Detroit, but also that the entire world is contained within Detroit. Their sound, with its exotic spices and cross-cultural combinations, can be heard as a musical expression of the fabled Motor City melting pot.
Their combination of various ethnic sounds allows them to perform at not only the customary rock venues, but anywhere from Arabic functions in Dearborn to folk dances in Hamtramck and church parties in Southwest Detroit. Immigrant Suns inhabit a borderless musical world that stretches from Africa to the avant-garde, from Eastern Europe to East Dearborn. Bring dancing shoes from the culture of your choice, because their shows sport more dance floor activity than a tarantella outbreak at a whirling dervish convention. Immigrant Suns are not only staying in touch with their homeland through their music, but are diversifying their new home by introducing an American audience to the sounds of varying cultures and ethnicities. Combining art-rock sensibilities with sounds from every conceivable corner of the globe, here is a band that truly proves that Michigan music is world class.
George Clanton has been one of the internet’s true innovators for as long as the “terminally online” music scene has existed. Initially turning heads with the vaporwave moniker ESPRIT 空想 for his nostalgic use of self-production on 2014’s virtua.zip, Clanton has been slowly proving himself as a genuine auteur for a new era of musicians. Clanton has often been relegated to the vaporwave genre, but such a label hardly describes the depth of his musicianship. The synthpop/chillwave aesthetic of his duo Mirror Kisses allowed him to innovate on the genres with exciting new sounds that only he was privy to. Despite not releasing an album since 2013’s Heartbeats, Clanton ultimately continued the project’s sonic direction under his own name with 100% Electronica in 2015.
In 2018, Clanton released Slide to critical acclaim, largely considered by the musical underground to be a magnum opus of the chillwave and hypnagogic pop genres. From cuts like “Dumb,” “Livin’ Loose” and “You Lost Me There,” Clanton further cemented his own musical identity with an eclectic selection of whistles, deadstock synths and a sharp repertoire of 1990s music. These inclusions completely separated him from his peers, injecting once tired genres with a youthful, yet contrasting nostalgic vigor.
The inclusion of genres like trip hop, baggy and shoegaze into Slide made for a joyous listen through some of my personal favorite genres, and considering the stratospheric highs that he reached with his latest record, “I Been Young” shows that there’s quite a bit more height to be reached in finding the boundaries of his distinct sound.
“Chalk it up to them misunderstanding what I said /
Making up the rules to win a game inside my head /
Think I’m growin’ up but no (If I’m growin’) /
I’m just growing old.”
“Hanging on to every grudge I think I need to hold /
Can’t remember who I’m even fighting anymore /
You’d think I’d know my way by now /
(But I’m lost and) Now I can’t be found.”
Beneath his whispered, confident delivery is Clanton’s signature synth programming, beautifully contrasted by the dramatic hammer of a piano. The verse slithers around you like a snake, weaving in and out of each ear in a melodic hypnotism that takes control of your body. The baggy rhythm holds the atmosphere in place, marching alongside the slow burning atmosphere like a funky metronome.
With the jaunt of the piano chords, the track explodes, triggering a bellowing plume of sound. Wistful strings cut through the atmosphere alongside the sway of wah-wah guitar, introducing new limits to the melodic high and low end.
Clanton sings with emotive poise:
“And I been wrong /
And I been young /
Wrong enough to say I’m sorry /
Owning up to things I can’t undo /
And I been young /
Growing up is never easy /
Can’t you see how life is blinding you?”The wall of sound reverts, saving the highlights for the instrumental climax. Bongos supplant themselves for added rhythm beneath the drum pattern while piano roll is effortlessly keyed before the bridge:
“Young enough to start a life and old enough to pack /
Waste a couple of years while I make my mind.” A fuse ignites; fireworks explode above: An incandescent rain of electric glitter falls from the sky.
“And I been wrong /
And I been young.”
The violins, rhythm, guitar and synth coalesce into a captivating symphony of noise. Clanton pleads with the subject, his words fading into the ether: “Growing up is never easy, can’t you see how life is blinding you?” Whether he was heard or not, we’ll never know.
Clanton is correct — growing up is never easy. Continuing to grow with your art is even harder. But as shown with “I Been Young,” growth can be a beautiful, sublime thing.
Thanks for the memories, Impact. Here’s to the future.
Haru Nemuri stands as one of Japan’s most exciting emerging artists. Exploding onto the scene with 2017’s 春と修羅 (Haru to Shura), Haru and her unique blend of J-rock, noise pop, punk and hip-hop turned heads across the sea and domestically.
Her 2022 follow-up, 春火燎原 (Shunka Ryougen), was an album that was equally as satisfying, integrating a more esoteric approach with art-pop production and shifting structures while still retaining the lightning-strike energy that makes 春と修羅 (Haru to Shura) such a visceral listen.
Haru To Shura by HARU NEMURIAt SXSW 2023, The Impact had the chance to see Haru perform at Clive Bar, where she put on an explosive and passionate show.
Opening with “Deconstruction,” Haru unleashed the track’s iconic vocalizations, blasting an infectious earworm, perfectly singing “Where is my mind?” She energetically jumped around the stage, completely empowering herself with her own song’s energy.
After greeting the crowd by proudly exclaiming “What the fuck is up, Austin?” she beamed and expressed gratitude for her opportunity to perform in the USA. Immediately following this, she jumped head first into another of 春火燎原 (Shunka Ryougen)’s most catchy tracks, “Shunrai.”
With the pummeling drums, she screamed at the crowd with its infectious chorus, “Ai ai ai ai ai,” while the entire crowd screamed back at her. She wore a white Victorian dress reminiscent of the Japanese trend of Lolita fashion. The elegance of the lace created a stark juxtaposition with the brute-force dynamism of her music, almost crowning herself as the queen of the Japanese underground.
“Souzou Suru” followed, with its disjointed violin sample providing for unbelievable energy in the pit. People were dancing all around, with the squelching bass laying an easy rhythm to latch on to. The sparse and minimalist vocals during the song’s first half allowed the instrumental to breathe and become the center of attention.
Shunka Ryougen by HARU NEMURI
Haru decided to bring out some friends at the midpoint of her set, inviting Jaguar Jones, SiNNER Moon and Peatle. “ANGRY ANGRY,” a song she co-wrote with Jones, was written to be a feminist anthem in response to the predation and attempted murder of a Japanese woman by a 36-year-old man. The furious inflection provided by both Haru and Jones created one of the most visceral and emotive performances of her entire showcase, reinforcing an important and essential demand for what should be seen as basic human decency.
SiNNER Moon and Peatle hopped onto “Who The Fuck Is Burning The Forest?,” adding to the track with their auto-tuned vocals and echoing the song’s important message. The clashing textures were complimented excellently by bit-crushed snares, improving an already ascendent highlight from 火燎原 (Shunka Ryougen). Her vocal delivery approached screaming as the refrain progressed, then devolved into pure anger.
“Who the fuck is burning the forest? /
“Who the fuck is burning the forest?”
As the showcase began to hit its time limit, Haru had one last track for her audience: the titular “Shunka Ryougen.” This track wove together the past textures of her songs into an explosive finale. The instrumental included vocalizations, noisy guitars, screamed vocals and distant strings — all important pieces that appear across her works. The tender opening utilized her soft vocals before they progressed into cathartic screams against the same instrumental. By showcasing her very own versatility, she found a perfect way to wrap up the performance.
This brilliant showcase of pop experimentation exposed many new listeners to the sounds coming out of Japan, and if anyone can continue to challenge the Japanese pop landscape in such an exciting and inventive way, it is Haru Nemuri.
On the final day of Stoopfest 2023, I had the pleasure of speaking with the members of Detroit ska band J Navarro & The Traitors. I last saw the band on April 4, 2022, when they opened for The English Beat at the Majestic Theatre and was thrilled when I heard they were coming to Lansing to perform at Stoopfest.
The band is made up of varying established Detroit musicians, including Eric Abbey of 1592 and Dirty Notions; Scott Vesey of Trace The Veins; Jason Millbauer of Bad Assets; Steve Kachnowski of Telegraph; CEO of Reverend Guitars Ken Haas and Jay Navarro of Break Anchor, Hellmouth and The Suicide Machines. Filling the two-tone vacancy in the Detroit music scene, J Navarro & The Traitors are truly one of the best ska bands bringing it today.
The group is gearing up to release their second full length album, All of Us or None, out May 19 through Bad Time Records. They’re also preparing to embark on a West Coast tour in June, but local fans don’t fret, as you still have an opportunity to see them perform on May 20 for their record release show at the Magic Bag in Ferndale, Michigan. I know that I will definitely be in attendance to witness first hand the ska madness that is bound to ensue.
In an exclusive interview with Impact 89FM, they talk about a Smashing Pumpkins guitar theft, Detroit sports, skateboarding, the band’s upcoming album, their upcoming West Coast tour and much more. Listen in to hear all about J Navarro & The Traitors.
In the environment of terminally online music, textures and acts have become increasingly forward thinking, interconnected and influenced by a wide genre of music and art. Act upon act has seemingly sprouted overnight from the far corners of the Earth, bravely championing new sounds and a keen understanding of several genres. With the digital age bringing an easily accessible library of music to anyone at the snap of their fingers, it’s truly no wonder that we have such radical and challenging modes of artistic expression exploding from every country and continent.
otay:onii is another wonderful addition to this ever-growing list.
While covering this year’s SXSW festival, The Impact was lucky enough to catch her live set. Her surrealist animation and soundscapes absolutely dwarfed the stage presence of any other musical act. Playing the interior of the Hotel Vegas, the room was dimly lit in hues of red, allowing otay:onii complete control and command of the stage.
She played a plethora of material from her albums 冥冥 (Míng Míng) and 夢之駭客 Dream Hacker, but the mesmerizing performance interestingly enough wasn’t as a result of her phenomenal musicianship, but rather her sublime artistry weaving an unforgettable experience before our very eyes.
MíngMíng 冥冥 by otay:oniiAdorned in a glittering, woven red sweater, her head and face were obscured by a white covering. This headpiece contained a snaking trunk, presumably with a microphone affixed to the front of the mouth. This trunk coiled around her body from the head, appearing like a 7-foot tapeworm being swallowed.
otay:onii’s musical textures began to morph from their post-industrial palette to the metallic frenzy of electronica and even to neoclassical darkwave. Despite the crushing and bleak atmosphere, one’s eyes were consuming the content rather than the ears.
otay:onii’s costume and use of swirling textures created an apocalyptic, dystopic and avant set of performance art that was nothing short of breathtaking. Like a zombie, she would slowly approach the crowd and articulate her body in grotesque poses — equally an extension and addition of her art. Her demoness appearance served to completely immerse the audience in a showcase of her sound and vision. Her hand would reach out toward the crowd as she became a demonic siren serenading with a post-capitalist song.
As she receded toward the stage, she utilized a keytar to synthesize heavy and metallic sounds. The custom presets allowed her to toy with the atmosphere at will. She was locked in place, but still contorting her body in a grotesque fashion — perhaps being one of the only human beings to approach the uncanny valley.
Her hands violently hammered the keys, creating a serrated and dissonant atmosphere perfectly in line with the textures present on 冥冥 (Míng Míng) and 夢之駭客 Dream Hacker. This was helped by effects plugins and samples she had at her feet, which allowed her to reinvigorate the atmosphere with injections and manipulations of fresh sounds.
夢之駭客 Dream Hacker by otay:oniiToward the end of her set, she set aside her synths and began to utilize the ground itself as a stage for her performance. For her piece de la resistance, otay:onii fell to the floor, writhing in pure agony — or even ecstasy? — as the audience was consumed by her crashing walls of sound. Moving throughout the crowd, the energy bubbling in her set popped, and she exemplified the ensuing mania brilliantly with her energetic and cutting movements.
Encircling her was the audience, watching in awe as she screamed in a machine-like maelstrom of noise. She appeared on the cement floor like a fallen angel, both a victim of some imaginary god and the martyr of an extinguished cause in a truly terrifying, yet thrilling performance.
With many other performances during SXSW showcasing a traditional approach to the idea of the concert, it was wonderful to see a complete subversion of those expectations, integrating aspects of performance art, avant-garde music and even fashion to further the idea of what a musician can use the stage for.
For those who performed at SXSW, these 100-foot rectangles were merely their stage. For otay:onii, these rectangles were boundless, shapeless and broken for the sake of her art.
If it wasn’t made apparent by my articles that I have written over the course of the past year, one of my hobbies is finding fun and interesting music from across the globe. During my exploration, I came across a style of psychedelic rock from the world’s most famous transcontinental city, Istanbul. The largest city in Türkiye gave birth to the musical style known as Anatolian rock.
The genre itself has a long history, which may come as a bit of a surprise. It began as the brainchild of modern Türkiye’s founder, Atatürk, who wanted to create a national identity through music. This national identity mostly took form through Anatolian folk, which differentiated itself from the music of the Ottoman Empire. Anatolian folk takes traditional melodies from across the vast nation and combines them with Western notation.
The aforementioned project, called the Tanzimat reforms, began in 1923. With these reforms, Anatolian folk music was collected, archived and spread across the young nation. An example of the Anatolian folk that became widespread throughout Türkiye is “Bolu Dağları” by Barış Manço. I’ll come back to Manço in a bit.
Much like the rest of the world during the 1950s, rock ‘n’ roll took over Türkiye’s airwaves. Bands such as the Tornados and the Ventures, as well as soloists like Elvis and Bill Haley, spurred this popularity. The popularity of these songs led many Turkish artists, including Erol Büyükburç, to make English covers of popular American songs. Büyükburç eventually became a legendary singer because of his own creations, but the covers gave him a platform to springboard off of. Büyükburç was credited with creating one of the first Turkish pop songs with his track “Little Lucy.” One of his first covers was of The Gladiolas’ song “Little Darlin’.”
As more and more Turkish artists began to write their own songs, more and more Western influences began to find their way into the music that was coming out of Türkiye. Manço’s 1975 track, “2023,” is a great example of this. The nearly 7-and-a-half minute song features Manço monologuing, leading into a synth-led instrumental that lasts for the majority of the song. Saxophone and flute also find their way into “2023.”
But who exactly was Manço? He was considered the catalyst behind the popularity of Anatolian rock in 1960s Türkiye. His band Harmoniler was one of the first groups to mix Anatolian folk music with growing rock sounds, as well as being one of the first to add a psychedelic twist to the sounds they created.
During that same period, Manço was a member of the legendary band Moğollar. Moğollar was a band that would redefine what Anatolian rock was, as they were one of the most popular bands during their existence, even if they disbanded in 1976.
Sadly, this golden age of Anatolian rock would not last. On Sept. 12, 1980, a military coup overthrew the government of Türkiye. Many of the musicians who were synonymous with Anatolian rock likewise became synonymous with leftist thinking. These artists faced censure, with artists like Cem Karaca, also a member of Moğollar at one point, having to flee abroad while others were imprisoned. With a massive vacuum at the top of the Turkish music scene, genres such as Arabesque filled the void. These new genres were a more accurate representation of the time as a whole.
Following a return to democracy in 1989, a new wave of Turkish rock began. This wave strayed away from the roots of Anatolian rock and began to sound more and more like bands from the West. One of these bands that came from this new wave is maNga. maNga is most remembered for their participation in the 2010 edition of Eurovision, where their song “We Could Be the Same” took second place.
In the late 2010s, however, Anatolian rock saw a revival. One of the artists leading this revival is Gaye Su Akyol. Before her career in music, she had a successful career as a painter. Painting is something that runs in her family, as her father, Muzaffer Akyol, is a famous painter in his own right. Akyol has not only been a pioneer in this revival of Anatolian rock, but she has also become an important figure for Türkiye’s LGBTQIA+ community, even featuring in İris, a documentary about a bisexual trans woman in Türkiye.
The revival of Anatolian rock isn’t just limited to Türkiye itself. Altın Gün is a predominantly Dutch band that was formed thanks to an ad on Facebook, where the bassist was looking for Turkish musicians to join. The band has become one of the most prominent Anatolian rock groups, with their 2019 album Gece being nominated for a Grammy for Best World Music Album. The band released their fifth album, Aşk, on March 31, 2023, and the following song is one of the tracks off of it:
Even with the revival still in its infancy, the future is bright for Anatolian rock.
Finals season also means “SIRS season.” MSU students know that the SIRS form is where honest thoughts can be given about professors and courses, and sometimes we have a lot to say. So, when a semester’s worth of rage boils to the top, the SIRS form feels the heat. This week’s playlist is for those furious fingers that can’t wait to type out essays loaded with grievances.
Having a hard time with finals? Need a mood boost from the brain drain? “Dancing In The Courthouse” is the answer.
Dominic Fike has returned with a new single, finally. It is the first song released off his highly anticipated second album, which is expected to be released later this year. From the promotions that Fike posted on his Instagram, the backdrop for this album is his upbringing in Naples, Florida. “Dancing In The Courthouse” reflects a return to childlike energy. It’s about going forward, knowing where you’ve been and embracing it. In a video on Fike’s Instagram, he tells his mom, “I wouldn’t change my childhood for anyone else’s because that’s why I’m here.”
The vocals are free from the autotuned, distorted sound that made up much of Fike’s previous album. If this means anything for the album to come, perhaps Fike is stepping out of his experimental phase and leaning into a more natural approach.
But, that doesn’t mean he’s abandoning his sound. In typical Fike fashion, it’s short, clocking in at 2 minutes, 37 seconds. The instrumentals feature his signature electric guitar overlaid with a heavy bass, and the drum joins at the chorus. If you listen closely at 1 minute, 37 seconds, a high-octave piano melody makes an appearance. There are a few freestyle-like verses, reminiscent of Fike’s early music-making days, and, as usual, his lyrics hit home.
“We make the love that keeps our world spinnin’ /
We make the gods our friends by cursin’ em /
We make the wind our wings by raisin’ your arms /
At the top of the world, yeah.”
This is a song for dancing and celebrating life. It’s a song for handing in your last final and getting ready for summer break. For almost three minutes, you feel like you’re on top of the world. Fike, if you’re listening, please release the next album soon.
We open in Italy. Bella’s running through the crowd; a clock strikes. We don’t know what’s happening. It’s a total Fight Club move. She runs through a bush and finds herself in a meadow, staring at an older version of herself. Edward appears — wearing a sport coat? — to wish her a happy birthday. This is such a Twilight opening: It’s like one big, convoluted plot hole, and somehow Robert Pattinson is paler than ever.
Okay, don’t worry; that was all just a dream. Charlie wakes Bella on her birthday, and we learn it’s her senior year of high school! She drives to school in her trusty truck to the backing of Hurricane Bells’ “Monster,” a nice indie-rock tune with a chorus of:
“Wait, okay, you’ve got to look before you go /
Wait, okay, you’ve got to look before you go.”
This chorus gives really apt advice for Bella — if you remember her incident in this school parking lot last year. She says hi to her friends, but who cares about them? The Cullens pull up, and Edward walks as slowly as a vampire possibly could to the lyrics “deep into the darkness.” In my review of the first movie’s soundtrack, it became clear that you could piece together a synopsis purely based on the lyrics in the soundtrack, and I think we’re on a similar path here for round two.
Jacob then shows up to the school parking lot, because apparently it’s the place to be. Edward is jealous — and weird. Not much is new with him. They walk into the school and are greeted by perhaps the only Cullen with a zest for life, Alice. She invites Bella over to her house for a birthday dinner while Jasper stares from down the hall. I think this is technically foreshadowing, but it’s also just Jasper being Jasper.
The party ensues just as soon as Edward has a chance to explain to Bella that the Volturi have one law, and they’ve kind of already broken it by letting her into the family. Nonetheless, Bella opens her gifts to “The Violet Hour” by Sea Wolf. The song is upbeat and, honestly, cute. And Sea Wolf truly never would have anticipated the resonance of this line for a man who’s been pretending to breathe this whole time:
“You breathe your sweet breath /
And have me wait.”
But things take a turn: Bella cuts her finger opening a gift from Carlisle and Esme. Jasper lunges, Edward leaps — literally leaps — and Carlisle demands Emmet take Jasper out of the room. It’s almost reminiscent of the baseball scene from the first movie, but it’s less fun.
Bella and Edward get back to her house and she continues to beg him to change her. They share perhaps the most awkward-looking kiss of all time, and Bella goes inside to print out pictures of Edward to “Roslyn” by Bon Iver and St. Vincent. I get it; I decorated my room the same way. “Roslyn” has a sweet, melancholy melody. And the lyrics are appropriately dramatic and pretentious. It’s also one of those songs that just sounds like Twilight. When I started writing this, my roommate asked me if this was the movie “Roslyn” was in. The song continues as Bella doesn’t see Edward at school — he’s in her room, of course. When she gets home, they take a walk into the woods.
Edward breaks the news to Bella that he’s skipping town, and she’s not invited. She promises not to do anything reckless, and he promises she’ll never see him again. Both of these promises will be broken before the movie’s over; don’t worry too much. A devastated Bella collapses on the forest floor, honestly an underreaction to Pattinson breaking up with you.
This brings us to one of the most iconic scenes of cinematic history. Bella sits, looking out her window, and the camera pans around her as the seasons change and “Possibility” by Lykke L plays. Over the music, Bella narrates letters she has written to Alice to no response. This scene is not only shockingly well done for a Twilight movie — which I say with love — but it is also a wonderful way to depict Bella’s turmoil and her nightmares in the months without Edward. The lyrics to “Possibility” are, once again, quite literally a description of the action of the last scene.
“By blood and by me /
And I fall when you leave.”
Charlie tells Bella he’s worried about her and, to appease him, she calls Anna Kendrick to hang out. Bella looks down into an alley at a strange, middle-aged motorcycle gang, and she sees an apparition of Edward telling her not to do anything dangerous. This apparition is accompanied by Band Of Skulls’ “Friend,” a catchy little indie-rock song about searching for something unknown and the lengths you would go to find it. Poignant for dear Bella — if only the fourth wall weren’t soundproof. But she’s her, and, dear reader, level with yourself here: Would you not go to similar lengths to see ghost Pattinson?
After her brief joyride with a man who looks like a middle school history teacher, Bella drives over to see Jacob, whose hair has grown a shocking amount this school year. He delivers the infamous “Bella, where the hell have you been, loca?” line, to which she actually never responds.
She asks him to help her fix up some junkyard motorcycles. They work in Jacob’s garage with a montage set to OK Go’s “Shooting the Moon.” I feel like, even for Twilight, setting the one main scene with the werewolf before he’s in his werewolf era to a song about the moon is a little too dead on. It’s also possible, actually likely, that they gave OK Go no real instruction other than “werewolf,” and said “Go nuts.” In that case, this is a cute song for a cute scene.
They head out to test the bikes and, immediately upon acceleration, ghost Pattinson is back. Bella swerves off the road and into a rock, trying to see him. Jacob remedies her head wound by taking off his shirt to dab the blood. The next day at school, Mike asks Bella to the movies. Don’t feel bad, reader, if you’ve forgotten Mike, or even googled “who’s the guys asking Bella out in New Moon.” I found myself in the same predicament. She agrees, for some reason, and somehow ends up at the movies with just him and Jacob. Jacob tries to fight Mike — an understandable urge — and they leave.
After Jacob doesn’t answer her calls, Bella shows up at the Black house. She finds Jacob with short hair and few clothes. He is angry and standing in the pouring rain. He tells her they can’t be friends anymore and prances back into the woods.
Bella, missing Edward, goes to a meadow and runs into Laurent, a rival vampire. When he starts asking questions about the Cullens, ghost Edward appears, simply saying “lie” and “lie better.” When Laurent sees through Bella’s lies, despite Edward’s instruction, and tries to kill her, she whispers an “I love you” to Edward. Luckily, a wolf comes out of the forest at just the right moment! This is the first actual werewolf vs. vampire fight of the series, and it’s just as stupid as one might imagine. Also, all the wolves look like stuffed animals.
Bella reports to Charlie that there are killer wolves in the woods. He inquires as to what she was doing in the woods, which may be the first reasonable piece of dialogue in this movie, and he arranges a wolf hunt.
While Bella waits at home, she hears rocks at her window. Jacob, who seems to have developed an allergy to his usual cotton blend shirts, parkours into her window and says absolutely nothing of worth. He once again gallops into the woods.
The next day, Bella storms the Black house and finds Jacob’s new friends, all shirtless, in the yard. There’s some wolf vs. wolf action, and some of the boys take Bella to safety at a wolf house. When Jacob comes back to justify the whole thing, he assures her that the Cullens are safe, but the wolves are after the other vampires.
In a stroke of genius, New Moon inserts an original by Thom Yorke, of Radiohead fame, to show things are getting serious. To the sounds of “Hearing Damage,” we see wolves chasing vampires through the woods, and Bella, coincidentally also in the woods, prepares to cliff jump while fighting with her ghost vampire boyfriend, who urges her not to jump. Yorke solemnly sings about a girl who could do no wrong. This girl is objectively not Bella.
She does jump, and we see her underwater. Her and ghost Edward stare at each other for a moment while “Slow Life” by Grizzly Bear plays. The lyric “You’re the only one I see” could be a sentiment from either of them. It’s calm for a brief moment until we see Bella back on the shore with Jacob. He’s doing chest compressions, but really slowly. I’ll chalk this up to an acting error, not a murder attempt.
Jacob drives Bella home and she sees Carlisle’s car in the driveway. She finds a distraught Alice inside. Alice had seen a vision of the cliff diving and had come to see what was wrong with Bella, which is fair. Jacob comes into the house, despite it being vampire territory, almost kisses Bella and then answers the phone and implies to Edward that Bella is dead. This guy sucks.
Alice tells Bella that Edward will go to the Volturi to kill himself. Jacob begs Bella not to go after him, but nobody cares. Bella and Alice set off to Italy.
The Volturi would rather have Edward join them than die. This is the only way they can make friends, I suppose. Edward plans to step into the sunlight at noon and dazzle — literally dazzle and sparkle in the city center — so the Volturi will execute him.
Bella runs through the crowd — hey, this is the opening scene — and tackles a shiny Edward back inside. He’s thrilled to see her; The Volturi are far less pleased. They consider killing Edward; they consider killing Bella, but Alice announces that she’s seen the future and that Bella will become a vampire. The Cullens and Bella leave with the promise that Bella will be turned soon.
Back in Forks, Washington, Bella wakes up from a nightmare to find Edward lurking on her bed, just like old times. Edward tells Bella they can keep the Volturi in the dark and not change her, but Bella disagrees, and, in the spirit of democracy, arranges a Cullen family vote on the matter. Vampire Bella wins.
After a brief driving interruption from a werewolf in the road, Edward tells Bella he’ll change her himself on one condition: He marries her. She gasps, and we cut to black.
The credits feature Death Cab for Cutie’s “Meet Me on the Equinox,” which contains lyrics that nod to Edward’s plan to reveal himself at noon in the sunlight:
“Meet me on the Equinox /
Meet me halfway /
When the sun is perched at its highest peak /
In the middle of the day.”
This song is good, but it’s great if you have trouble remembering what noon is.
The soundtrack for this movie is, once again, so on the nose, so poignant, so indie vampire. I truly don’t think I would have it any other way.
Whenever the sun manages to chase away the clouds and emerge from the gloom, I get the impulsive urge to beam. The rays lift my arms and legs like the strings of a puppet, and I skip and smile like nothing has ever hurt me. I’m a kid again, every color looks saturated, my music is turned up to full blast and I joyfully swing my arms, a little bound with every step. Michigan is dreary and dull for what seems like 80% of the year, and I live every gloomy day in anticipation for the next sunny one. I find that my music reflects this, most of my playlists longing and stupidly disheartening. But every once in a while I indulge myself in a gem like “Across the Universe” by Fiona Apple, like sweet strawberry sorbet dribbling down my chin to pair with my magnificently sunny days.
The song, originally written by John Lennon and performed by the Beatles for their final album, Let It Be, was covered by Fiona Apple in 1998 for the Plainville movie soundtrack. As a highly biased and unapologetic Fiona Apple devotee, I wholeheartedly believe that her version is better than the original. John Lennon himself said the song was not done justice; he was out of tune, and it was recorded hurriedly amidst the tensions within the band. It’s such a beautiful thing to take something that was unfinished and give it new light, and that’s exactly what Fiona Apple did nearly 30 years later.
The song starts with a jaunty guitar, which brings to memory warm days at summer camp, circled around a campfire while some counselor strums their guitar amidst the chatter of children. The tune and beat of the drum have this way about them, like if I played the song loud enough with the speakers tilted towards the heavens, that the clouds would part just so the sun could hear it. This song simultaneously depicts everything I am and the opposite of me. The lyrics describe these intense waves of feeling which I know all too well:
“Pools of sorrow, waves of joy are drifting through my opened mind /
Possessing and caressing me.”
I get this feeling a lot of the time that my emotions are too big for my mind to hold. They linger in my brain like abandoned pools, and when the pools overflow, they tumble out like the all-consuming waves of a tsunami. But Fiona is like a friend, clasping my hands within hers, letting me rest my head on her shoulder and reminding me that:
“Nothing’s gonna change my world /
Jai guru deva.”
I remember listening to this song for the first time, and hearing that line, “Jai guru deva om.” I called my mom, and she reflected on her childhood, reminiscing on the times when the saying was repeated by her teachers and parents. It was used as a greeting, farewell, mantra and blessing. The literal translation from Sanskrit is “Glory to the shining remover of darkness.” There is lore surrounding the original lyric in the Beatles song, but within the context of the song I think it takes on a much purer meaning. The mantra repeats in reassurance that the world is big, and nothing really matters. But at the same time, every little thing has meaning and we should be hopeful and eternally grateful to everything that has made us who we are.
The song “Across the Universe” at its very core, is a song about the human experience. Each one of our little bodies are tasked with the eternal dilemmas that are our emotions, mortality and the concept of the ever-expanding universe we call home. It’s a terrifying concept at first, that nothing matters in the grand scheme of things, but our individual lives aren’t “grand schemes.” The years that each of us frolic on this earth, we are the center of our own universe. Our circles of friends and family orbit around us with love, and everything we do holds its own personal meaning. The universe is large but we still matter within it. The sun still shows her love 93.493 million miles away from me, by turning my shoulders pink in the summertime.
Surging through every park, backyard, garage and bar during Stoopfest, Lansing’s annual not-for-profit DIY festival, is one thing: intimacy. During Stoopfest, there is an unspoken togetherness residing in the little interactions between members of the surrounding community, whether that be through petting dogs and conversing with their owners, through exchanging stories and goods with local vendors, through lying back with others on the same cool grass or through whatever else may emerge when music is present, friends are near and potholes are ubiquitous.
As the sun was setting on day one of Stoopfest and 9 p.m. rolled around, that aforementioned intimacy was about to take its most concrete form yet. Detroit rapper Quelle Chris took the stage, conversed with crowd members, exited the stage, lit a cigarette, re-entered the stage and kicked off his performance with “Alive Ain’t Always Living.”
Quelle Chris performing on Friday, April 21, 2023 at Stoopfest in Lansing, Michigan (Jake Rhodes)After this opening track, Quelle Chris set expectations for the rest of his performance, saying, “We’re gonna do some of this rap shit… We’re gonna fly outta here through a couple of trees.”
What followed was indeed some of this rap shit. And, in the end, I’d say the crowd flew out of Hunter Park through a couple of trees, on the back of a performance based around self-love, healing and letting an entire crowd’s emotions scream upward into the night sky’s loving, undisturbed arms.
During Quelle Chris’ performance of “Buddies,” he had the crowd sing along with him as he said, “I fuck with myself” and “I just might jump back and kiss myself” before turning his back to the crowd, pretending to passionately kiss himself and smacking himself on the butt.
After “Buddies” concluded, he broke out into a five-second cover of Justin Timberlake’s “SexyBack,” shouting “I’m bringing sexy back” into the mic. Then, because quoting Quelle Chris’s performance is just too much fun, he re-set expectations for the crowd, saying “We’re gonna travel back through time and do 420 twice” before discussing how he and the crowd were building a Voltron through this experience.
Quelle Chris performing on Friday, April 21, 2023 at Stoopfest in Lansing, Michigan (Jake Rhodes)For those unaware, Voltron is a massive robot piloted by space explorers from the animated shows Voltron: Defender of the Universe, Voltron Force and more. In Voltron: Defender of the Universe, Voltron is formed when these five space explorers — who each command a robot lion — combine the lions into one super robot.
Not too long after his Voltron epiphany, Quelle Chris had the crowd close their eyes and picture their spirit animals. Then, he asked everyone to think about the sound those spirit animals would make before leading an organized cacophony in which everyone bellowed together. Throughout his next song, the spirit animal bellows exploded and faded at his beckoning.
Following the uncaging of Lansing’s spirit animals, Quelle Chris proposed a toast using a half-full water bottle which he jokingly lamented as unfit for the toasting job. When he asked a fan what everyone should toast to, the fan yelled, “We’re toasting to the Ghost of Christmas Past.” Laughing, Quelle Chris raised his bottle, and “to the Ghost of Christmas Past” it was.
“Popeye” blessed the crowd a couple tracks later, and, according to Quelle Chris, it was step six of the Voltron form.
“Straight Shot” followed, and Quelle Chris took the opportunity to put the bond between him and the crowd into words. He stated that so many look at live shows like it’s someone standing up on a stage and being isolated/unbound to the people singing and dancing below, but he wanted to grind that notion to dust and blow it away. As he put it, “We’re all sharing in this moment together.”
Quelle Chris performing on Friday, April 21, 2023 at Stoopfest in Lansing, Michigan (Jake Rhodes)For Quelle Chris and Stoopfest as a whole, intimacy is the creature that runs through everything beautiful about live music. The live setting brings a deep connection to self, to community, to life entirely. For an existence fractured, withering, blooming, healing: “We’re all sharing in this moment together.”
The next song was an apt one: “Sudden Death,” in which “You’ll find it’s worth it, ‘cause life ain’t perfect” serves as the closing line.
And, to end a night of spirit animals, Voltron, the Ghost of Christmas Past, marijuana and intimacy, Quelle Chris had the crowd moving with its greatest ferocity yet to “Obamacare.”
The performance was a beautiful transition into Stoopfest’s second day, and it was also a much-needed reminder of what we forget all too often: that in this life, in this place, with these people, “We’re all sharing in this moment together.”
This year marks the 40th anniversary of Karen Carpenter’s death at the age of 32, a result of complications from anorexia nervosa. From the outside, Karen Carpenter looked like a rockstar. Playing the drums as one half of The Carpenters and possessing what Paul McCartney called “the best female voice in the world,” Karen Carpenter’s smooth, melodic voice and heartfelt lyrics made The Carpenters one of the most successful groups of the early 1970s. However, stardom came at a steep price as she struggled with body image issues and eating disorders which caused her premature death on Feb. 4, 1983.
Born on March 2, 1950, in New Haven, Connecticut, Karen Carpenter moved with her family to Downey, California in 1963. With her on drums, her older brother Richard Carpenter on the piano and their friend Wes Jacobs on the bass and tuba, the trio won a battle of the bands at The Hollywood Bowl in 1966. Additionally, Karen and Richard Carpenter formed another band, Spectrum, with four fellow students at California State University at Long Beach that played several gigs before disbanding. Finally, in 1969, they began making music as a duo and shopped around several demo music tapes to different record companies. In 1970, they were signed to A&M Records as The Carpenters. This marked their rise to fame, but also the beginning of Karen Carpenter’s anorexia. Their first hit was a reworking of The Beatles song “Ticket to Ride” and was followed by a re-recorded version of Kurt Bacharach’s “Close To You,” which went on to sell over 1 million copies.
As the hits racked up, Karen Carpenter was pressured by both her brother and A&M Records to forgo her role as a drummer in order to become a more decorative frontwoman. Feeling exposed and self-conscious, she began a stringent diet and exercise regime. With her on lead vocals and her brother on piano and backup vocals, The Carpenters soon became one of the most successful groups of the early 1970s. They won three Grammy awards, embarked on a world tour and landed their own TV variety series in 1971 titled Make Your Own Kind of Music.
Before long, Karen Carpenter’s anorexia began to impact her music. The Carpenters had to cancel their 1975 European tour because she was too weak to perform. By summer of 1975, her weight had plummeted to 91 pounds, and she checked into Cedars-Sinai Medical Centre, which would be her first of many stays in the hospital.
For the next eight years, her weight would fluctuate, but she remained focused on her music. In 1979, when her brother was recovering from a quaalude addiction and entered rehab, she took the opportunity to record a solo album with Phil Ramone in New York. At 29 years old, Karen Carpenter was finally exploring her individuality as a musician. Encouraged by the positive reaction her album received in New York, she was excited to bring it to her record label. However, A&M Records rejected the album, and it wasn’t released until 1996, which was 13 years after Karen Carpenter’s death.
Karen Carpenter spent most of 1982 seeking therapy for chronic anorexia from psychotherapist Dr. Steven Levenkron. In September 1982, she was admitted to intensive care at Lenox Hill Hospital, weighing just 77 pounds. After gaining some weight, she discharged herself and, in February 1983, went to her parents’ house to sort through some old clothes when she collapsed in a walk-in closet from cardiac arrest. Doctors revealed that her long battle with anorexia nervosa had stretched her heart to the breaking point. The music world was left reeling, and her untimely death came as a shock to many of her fans.
Karen Carpenter’s tragic death at only 32 years old marked the beginning of greater awareness about eating disorders and mental health. The Karen Carpenter Foundation, established in 1985 by her brother, Richard Carpenter, has been a driving force in promoting awareness of anorexia nervosa and other eating disorders. Karen Carpenter kept her battle secret, but many younger female singers — such as Taylor Swift, Kesha, Halsey and Lady Gaga — now critique that cultural idealization of thinness and the beauty standards imposed upon celebrities.
Karen Carpenter’s life and music continues to be celebrated over 40 years after her passing. Her songs, including “Close to You,” “Rainy Days and Mondays” and “We’ve Only Just Begun” remain classics of the era, and her legacy as a singer and songwriter lives on. She enchanted millions with her voice and performing ability while at the same time battling anorexia nervosa. With numerous timeless hits and a distinctive three-octave contralto range, as well as having furthered awareness surrounding eating disorders and mental health issues, Karen Carpenter is not a musician who will soon be forgotten. Her legacy has continued to grow in the decades since her death, as her music and message continue to inspire and impact generations of listeners everywhere.
As a big fan of women with soft voices strumming acoustic guitars, I nearly cried when I heard that Clairo would hop on Beabadoobee’s “Glue Song.” It’s been over two months since Beatrice Laus released what she describes as a “plain and simple, in your face, love song.” The soft guitar strumming, sweeping orchestra and drowsy horn section create a gorgeous instrumental background for Laus’ sweetest song yet.
This time around, Laus brought indie darling Clairo on to voice a new verse and to add additional harmonies. The two met when Clairo brought Laus on tour back in 2019. Bedroom pop fans everywhere are rejoicing; nearly four years later they finally get a track together.
Clairo’s airy tone and Laus’ clear, sugary voice pair beautifully together. The instrumental backing remains the same, but I somehow convinced myself that the horns near the end of the track were a Clairo addition, as they are reminiscent of her most recent LP, Swing. Yet, they were present in the first rendition of the song, highlighting how perfectly the two fit together.
With each listen, I find a new appreciation for Laus’ work and seem to pick up on a new element, whether that be a violin riff or drum alteration. “Glue Song” is like a gift that keeps on giving. The song fulfills a sweet tooth — or ear, I suppose — that I never knew I had.
April 25, 1974 saw music help to overthrow a fascist dictatorship. The Carnation Revolution, named as such because there were almost no shots fired and carnations were offered by a restaurant worker to soldiers participating in the revolution, led to the overthrow of the Estadio Novo regime in Portugal. The revolution itself led to the eventual decolonisation of the Lusophone world, and led Portugal to become one of the most stable democracies in Europe.
Two songs were broadcasted on the Portuguese radio to signal the beginning of the operations: “E depois do adeus” by Paulo de Carvalho and “Grândola, Vila Morena” by Zeca Afonso. “E depois do adeus” was already a popular song in the nation, having won the prestigious Festival da Canção in a landslide, and subsequently representing the nation at the Eurovision Song Contest held in Brighton, England. The song didn’t fare nearly as well in Brighton, where it tied for last in the contest as ABBA won for Sweden and Olivia Newton-John represented the UK at home. Zeca Afonso was quite a controversial figure to the Estadio Novo censors, as he was considered to be a communist. While several of his songs were banned by the censors, “Grândola, Vila Morena” was not one of them.
The chief strategist of the coup needed a signal that could be transmitted by radio across the nation to announce the beginning of the operation. Initially, the chief strategist wanted a different song by Afonso, “Venham Mais Cinco,” to be the signal. However, on the advice of a radio host, playing “Venham Mais Cinco,” which was one of many Afonso songs to be censored, wouldn’t be the best idea as it would raise suspicion.
At 10:55 p.m. on April 24, the Emissores Associados de Lisboa — which translates to Lisbon Associated Issuers, a popular radio station located in the Avenidas Novas district of Lisbon — played “E depois do adeus.” This was the signal to synchronize movements across the nation. At 12:20 a.m. the next day, Rádio Renascença — which translates to Radio Renaissance, one of the most popular radio stations in the nation, located in the Campolide district of Lisbon — played the words of “Grândola, Vila Morena.” The song itself was banned from air, but the words themselves were not by some measure. This song was the main signal to launch the operation. The radio stations were not aware of what these songs meant. The coup was a resounding success, and Portugal has remained one of the most stable democracies since, as well as a powerhouse in the musical world.
~Ashe Burr
On April 28, 1982, the California General Assembly gathered for a hearing on “backmasking” in the popular music of the time. “Satanic panic” was sweeping the nation, despite seemingly little actual satanic operation. Allegations and rumors of devil worship were rampant, no one was safe, including Led Zeppelin. “Stairway to Heaven” had the honor of being played forward and backward, and William Yarrol deciphered aloud the “satanic messages.”
Rumors of hidden messages had been gaining traction after an evangelical television special played the song backwards on air. The rumored satanic messages are under the fourth verse, the “If there’s a bustle in your hedgerow” verse. Played backwards the “hidden lyrics” are:
“Here’s to my sweet Satan /
The One whose little path would make me sad, whose power is Satan /
He’ll give those with him 666 /
There was a little tool shed where he made us suffer, sad Satan.”
The proposed backmasking warning law was never passed, and singer Robert Plant would publicly dismiss these claims, as would the band’s audio engineer Eddie Kramer. Luckily “Stairway to Heaven’s” reputation as a rock ‘n’ roll classic precedes its reputation as a satanic anthem, but at least it was probably one of the more fun days at the California General Assembly.
~Claudia Braesch
Welcome to the Boiling Isles, a world filled with magic, witches, demons and dictators. The Owl House follows Luz the Human as she skips her summer camp to become a witch under the guidance of Eda the Owl Lady. Fun, right? However, our protagonist and her pals become increasingly traumatized as they discover the true plans of their beloved emperor, unlock several ancient evils and plot to stop the annihilation of all witch and demon-kind at the hands of a far out-of-touch boomer.
Created by Dana Terrace, the animated show is arguably one of Disney’s most popular as of late. This is largely thanks to the series’ captivating serialized plot and its abundance of LGBTQ+ representation, including Disney’s first bisexual lead, Luz Noceda, and the company’s first non-binary character, Raine Whispers. These factors, as well as several others, played a large part in the growth of the show’s massive fanbase.
However, these factors were both a blessing and a curse, as the LGBTQ+ representation has sparked boycotts from groups such as “One Million Moms” and has caused the show to be censored or banned in multiple countries. While fans hypothesize that this is the reason for the show’s eventual cancellation — its third and final season was cut to three specials, rather than the usual twenty-ish episodes — Terrace has insisted that is not the case, citing the serialized plot as not fitting into the company or channel’s brand in a Reddit AMA. Whatever the case, the fan base is still going strong in their support for the show and hopes for further continuations of the story.
While the show is by no means a musical, fans have written countless nerdcore songs inspired by the show, such as “Make Believe” by Jakeneutron, and have co-opted songs unrelated to the show, such as “Little Miss Perfect” by Write Out Loud, a song most often associated with Luz’s bully-turned-romantic-interest, Amity Blight. The show itself has introduced enchanting pieces such as “Eda’s Requiem” and “The Collector’s Theme (Whatcha Playin’?)” via its score, which was composed by TJ Hill in the first season and Brad Breeck in the second and third, with collaboration from Andrew Morgan Smith in the third.
The score is magnificent. Especially in the first season, there tends to be a preference for musical enhancement over sound effects, a style much more common in dialogue-free short films such as Disney’s Inner Workings than in movies and TV. Every bounce and fall, every spell circle and demonic attack is enhanced by musical notation that makes sense within the episode’s suite, rather than just Foley sound laid over the music. That’s not to say that there aren’t sound effects throughout the series, but the method used is fairly unique for this medium. This technique makes for a much more interesting viewing and listening experience.
Side note, this is where the real spoilers start:
One of the most captivating suites of the show is that of season two episode seven, “Eda’s Requiem.” The episode follows Eda as she reunites with a former lover, Raine, in the fight against the emperor and his coven system. However, Eda’s sudden involvement with the BATs — Bards Against the Throne — does not come out of nowhere. At this time, she is coping in advance with her empty nest syndrome, as she knows that her apprentice, Luz, will soon be returning to the Human Realm. She is also worried that her ward, King of Demons, is growing into his own and will soon wish to leave as well.
A large part of Eda’s character growth throughout the series is her growing maturity, especially through her maternal relationship to King and Luz. She is also coping with the increasing severity of her curse, something that is heavily allegorical for a chronic illness or disability. Her reintroduction to Raine, as well as her reuniting with her parents three episodes prior, serves as a reminder of all that the curse has taken from her: the people she has pushed away, the pain it has caused her and the life she will eventually lose because of it.
The title “Eda’s Requiem” reveals all. A requiem is a song of remembrance, most often played for those who have moved on to the afterlife. The motif of “Dies Irae,” “Danse Macabre” and Mozart’s “Requiem” are all excellent examples of this. Eda names the song herself, quipping, “‘Raine’s Rhapsody,’ more like ‘Eda’s Requiem.’”
Eda manages to keep her worries a secret from everyone until the culmination of everything in the episode’s final battle. Eda and Raine stand back to back, playing their song. The curse is overtaking them both, poisoning the bard magic to destroy everything within an audible radius. Raine knows they have nothing left to lose — they have unwittingly become a pawn in a corrupt government — but they have no idea what Eda is prepared to give up. That is, until the photo of Luz and King falls from Eda’s pocket and Raine says, “Eda, you have kids?” Despite their begging, Eda plays on, clutching the instrument until it is taken from her. Eda denies that Luz and King are her real kids and refuses to acknowledge what she would lose because, in her mind, she has played her own requiem a thousand times over. To herself, she is already lost. It is a truly heartbreaking scene heightened by the haunting melody, a requiem performed by the one it was intended to mourn.
Anyway, now that the sad stuff is out of the way, another of the show’s most iconic works is “The Collector’s Theme (Whatcha Playin’?).” This song sits on the opposite end of the spectrum from “Eda’s Requiem.” Rather than a soul-crushing legato melody, this song is bouncy and staccato. It replaces the gentle violin and lute with prickly synth and percussion. The range between these two songs showcases the composers’ ability in such a magnificent way. It’s a lighthearted, jovial tune that many find delightful, but its use in the show is utterly horrifying.
The first time we truly hear this theme in its full magnificence is in the season two finale, “King’s Tide.” It comes during the dreaded Day of Unity, an event built up to since the first episode. Everyone with a coven sigil is dying, so it’s left to the kids to save the day. King separates from the group, finding the imprisoned Collector, whom Emperor Belos cast aside. Just wanting to save his family, King releases the young imp.
The theme plays as the Collector, a mere child, turns the show’s main villain into goop with a simple flick of his wrist and moves the literal moon like it is a speck on an iPad. The song is truly such a silly theme, but nearly every time it plays, the Collector displays the power to tear apart realities, turn people into puppets and make the world his plaything. The intense juxtaposition of this absolute clown music with everything the Collector does is honestly marvelous and beautifully displays the composers’ skills, especially in regard to its divergence from the rest of the score.
The Owl House is a truly astounding television series, from its inspiring representation to its inability to talk down to its audience. It is a crime that Disney made the choice to pull the plug on the series. However, the show’s composers and its legion of creatively brilliant fans have left us with more than enough music to tide us over until Terrace’s next big hit.
New Jersey hardcore outfit GEL has returned with their highly anticipated debut full-length album, Only Constant. Kicked off by the song “Honed Blade,” Only Constant is a 16-minute ferocious blast of hardcore that showcases why GEL is one of the premier bands of the genre today.
At less than two minutes long, “Honed Blade” is a seething, guttural rager. Characterized by fat, stompy, heavy riffs and lyrics that promote positivity and self-improvement, it is one track that truly exemplifies the greatness of GEL. “Honed Blade” delivers a pummeling beatdown in the band’s serrated-edge style and offers a perfect example of how they make unrelenting, aggressive hardcore that’s somehow instantly accessible to any listener.
“Sharpen up your voice — it’s a matter of choice.”
Continue to work toward self-improvement until your mind, body and soul are as sharp as a “Honed Blade.” GEL fosters this mentality through their music; they create high-intensity songs, but they’re full of the kind of vulnerability that it takes to unabashedly be yourself. The song pushes the band’s aggression factor even further, but vocalist Sami Kaiser’s lyrics are deeply self-reflective, walking a fine line between rage and optimism. The riffs might compel you to jump offstage, but the lyrics reassure you that someone is going to catch you.
Even among so many talented hardcore groups, GEL stands tall as one of the finest in their field. Their name has been generating buzz in recent years, particularly since 2021’s Violent Closure EP and 2022’s Shock Therapy split EP with Cold Brats. Their newest release, Only Constant, continues their streak of quality releases and does not disappoint.
In only a quarter of an hour, this album makes GEL one of the most electrifying new-ish bands on the planet. Theirs is a hardcore that is often caustic, abrasive and scaldingly visceral, but also a thing of frequent joy. It brings a more positive release: a refreshing distinction from the common nihilistic tendencies of hardcore and punk rock in general. They combine harsh, unforgiving guitar riffs and Kaiser’s scorched-earth howls with lyrics about confidence, self-acceptance and their desire to transcend self-destructive tendencies with a kind of suppliant empathy, urging the listener to make the connections that will draw them even closer to the music. This unique combination teaches listeners that even amid the most violent there is a certain beauty that can always be found.
Should you ever find yourself in a post-lobotomy state, which we sincerely hope you never do, this will be the playlist to return to. If your lobotomy is metaphorical, this playlist shall serve you equally.
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As the article’s title suggests, “al llegar” comes through the collaboration between a Eurovision winner and an otorhinolaryngologist. But who exactly are these people?
The Eurovision winner is none other than Salvador Sobral, who won the 2017 edition of the contest with the highest amount of points ever, at a measly 758. Since his victory, Sobral has been consistently releasing music, with his 2021 album, bpm, being nominated for the Latin Grammy for Best Engineered Album. While he didn’t win that award, he still remains one of the biggest names in the Portuguese music scene.
The otorhinolaryngologist, which is a doctor that focuses on head and neck surgery, is Jorge Drexler. Outside of medicine, Drexler has had an extensive and storied musical career, which began in 1992. Some of the Uruguayan’s many awards include an Oscar for his song “Al otro lado del río” and 13 Latin Grammys.
These two juggernauts of their respective musical scenes came together for the release of the heartbreaking ballad “al llegar.” The song itself follows the story of two lovers who realized that they weren’t a good fit for each other.
“Si la respiración se hace más corta /
Recuerda eso siempre nos dio igual /
Todos los propósitos cambian de forma al llegar.”
One of the things that is incredibly important for us as a society is open communication. At times, it feels like that is an impossible thing to have. This song basically says that changing things is okay. Sometimes you may have the pieces to a puzzle, but your friend/significant other may have Jenga blocks. And that’s okay, but you may only find that out when you decide to air your feelings.
On our final day of SXSW, March 18, WDBM got to sit down and talk with Nicole Rodriguez of Pearla to discuss her new album Oh Glistening Onion, The Nighttime is Coming and some of the small but special moments that come with the production of an album over the course of several years. We also talked about songwriting advice that helped her hone in on some of the tracks of this record as well as her desire to explore the voice as an instrument. Listen on in!
Every summer I end up returning to playlists compiled years ago that make me feel like I’m a part of a coming-of-age movie with terrible acting but a killer soundtrack that can never escape from my mind.
“Romance is Boring,” off of the Los Campesinos! album sharing the same name, was released in 2010 and describes a couple utterly unhappy with the relationship they have created for themselves.
The couple is in a standstill relationship because they did not know what they were getting into.
One character is upset because they were expecting more; they want romance, and they want to be excited.
The other character is the narrator who does not think romance is worth the effort, so they refuse to put in any work to make their partner happy.
This is even further described in the music video for this track. While time appears to be looping, the first character grows more distressed and begins to cry, while their partner is uninterested in and growing irritated at their cries.
“You’re pouting in your sleep, I’m waking, still yawning /
We’re proving to each other that romance is boring /
Sure, there are things I could do if I was half-prepared to /
Prove to each other that romance is boring.”
The dynamic of the characters in this song, although incredibly unhealthy, allows the singers of Los Campesinos! to throw lyrics back and forth at eachother like an argument to further the immersion into the storyline they have created.
The bridge goes on to reference “The Theologian’s Tale,” by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow to describe how their meeting was just by chance and how the two of them should never have started a relationship with very different goals in mind.
“We are two ships that pass in the night /
You and I, we are nothing alike /
I am a pleasure cruise, you are gone out to trawl /
Return nets empty, nothing at all.”
This throwback is the perfect song to blare in the car and shamelessly play both characters and figure out your stance on romance and if it truly is all that boring.
WDBM got to catch up with dream pop/shoegaze band Knifeplay on the heels of their latest album, Animal Drowning, at SXSW. I first saw them perform the day before the interview, on March 16, after a storm warning delayed their set. However tiring it was to huddle into the small inside of this bar for two hours, the weather ended up setting a perfect environment for their brand of stormy music that took hold in the crowd when they did go on stage. We got to talking about fellow Philadelphia bands they enjoy, non-music art forms that inspire them and other instruments and sounds they’d like to explore in future projects. Listen to Animal Drowning and tap on into the interview!
In a different, tragic week in music history, rock legend Freddie Mercury passed away in 1991. This week, however, had the music industry coming together in their grief. On April 20, 1992, some of the biggest names in entertainment joined together at the Freddie Mercury Concert for Life. The concert was organized by Brian May, Roger Taylor and John Deacon to both remember their bandmate’s legacy but to also bring awareness to the epidemic that had taken Mercury’s life: AIDS. According to the website of the Mercury Phoenix Foundation, the charity set up in his honor, they have raised millions of dollars to fight AIDS, which they estimate affects nearly 40 million people around the world.
The line up for this event 31 years ago was absolutely stacked. Aside from Queen themselves, there was Elton John, George Michael, Liza Minelli and David Bowie, to name a few. Shown in a documentary on Queen’s official YouTube channel, Wembley Stadium was packed with 80,000 cheering and grieving fans, with countless more on television. The artists sang a mix of Queen’s greatest songs and some of their own. Elton John and Axl Rose sang a triumphant rendition of “Bohemian Rhapsody.” Elton John, who also has his own prominent AIDS foundation, played the piano and handled the melodic beginning while Axl Rose sang the loud rock ending, all to raucous applause. My own favorite performance is George Michael’s version of “Somebody to Love,” though I don’t know if it’s because it makes me think about Michael’s own premature death, or that he sang this powerful ballad about searching for love as a closeted gay man in the height of the AIDS epidemic. Things that make me cry aside, this concert brought together countless people — from the rock star to the average fan — to celebrate and to mourn, and to leave an impact felt throughout music history, not just this week.
~Madison Reinhold
They may have been, in the words of John Lennon, “more popular than Jesus,” but that is something the Vatican didn’t particularly vibe with. It took the Vatican 34 years to forgive the Beatle for those words. Sadly, Lennon wasn’t alive when this happened. In his stead, Ringo Starr rejected the forgiveness from the Vatican in 2010.
In an article in the Vatican’s L’Osservatore Romano newspaper, the editors wrote that the Beatles said they were bigger than Jesus and put out messages that bordered on Satanic, but what would pop music be without them? Ringo rejected their forgiveness, pointing out their Satanic callouts, and that they have more to talk about than the Beatles.
~Ashe Burr
On April 22, 1989, Madonna’s “Like a Prayer” hit No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100. A controversial music video and a dropped $5 million Pepsi sponsorship not only propelled the song to the top of the charts, but helped it achieve a legendary status many could only dream of.
Her seventh of 12 No. 1 singles, “Like a Prayer” was a very important moment in Madonna’s career. Her ability to mix religious symbolism and iconography with topics of racial discrimination and sexuality was highly praised and perfectly showcased her outspoken nature when it came to taboo subjects. She is a true artist, unafraid to use her art to stand for what she believes in — even if it gets her into trouble. Without her and the risks she took with “Like a Prayer,” the pop culture landscape would be a completely different place.
~Ryan McMillan
It’s hard to put a breakup into words. There’s pain, relief, reminiscing and finally contentment. Hozier describes it all to me in a comforting way. “All Things End” surpasses the feeling of heartbreak to the stage of acceptance. I recently went through a breakup and the one thing I realized is that in the end, everything ends. You think the feeling of being in love will last forever, but it doesn’t. It feels as though your lover, who you knew so well, has died. In life when something ends, like a relationship, it brings new beginnings and discoveries. It is a rebirth.
“I have never known a silence like the one fallen here /
Never watched my future darken in a single tear /
I know we want this to go easy by being somebody’s fault /
But we’ve gone long enough to know this isn’t what we want /
And that isn’t always bad.”
This verse really called to me because when my relationship ended, I felt that silence. I felt the loneliness that was so new to me. It really was the small things that I missed — holding hands in the car, laughing at my jokes even when they weren’t funny and smiling at him because I knew that our love was unconditional. At the end of it all, I felt a harsh cold come over me. He was a part of me and after, I didn’t know who I was or how to act. It would’ve been easier if he was a bad person or if I hated him but that’s the thing — I don’t. Sometimes it just doesn’t work out, and that’s okay.
When Hozier brings us to the bridge, he announces an orchestra. The strings quietly spiral through the verse so peacefully then there is a sharp halt to the instrumentals. Cutting to the sound of a gospel choir singing with joyous clapping. When I close my eyes, I can see pews filled in a church with a bright light peeking through the windows, and there stands Hozier singing with a triumphant choir behind him and smiling, finally at peace.
During a breakup, it feels as though your other half is being stripped from you and you are left standing alone. But Hozier’s wise words bring comfort to a feeling so isolating. I finally found that in the end, there is hope for the future that we could “begin again.”
WDBM got to go down to Austin, Texas for SXSW this year and see a bunch of great shows and talk to some of the musicians playing. This first interview was with Ian Shelton of the punk/post-hardcore band Militarie Gun on March 16. We talked about his collaboration with other artists like Woolworm and MSPAINT, the grueling nature of touring and the process that led up to the amalgamation of two EP’s into the album All Roads Lead To The Gun, released this past October. As a personal aside, “Big Disappointment” has been stuck in my head for so long so it was absolutely sick to see him perform it live during the trip!
I am a girl who feasts on the slow, easy feeling of familiarity, and I eat Lana Del Rey’s love songs for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Her voice sounds like a mother in her youth, her acoustics play to the rhythm of a steady beating heart, her lyrics beautiful interpretations of thoughts I could never put into words. But it’s been a while since I’ve heard a song of hers that I truly devoured. My hunger is finally satiated with her new song “Let The Light In,” off the recently released album, Did You Know That There’s a Tunnel Under Ocean Blvd.
The song lures me in with a synth rhythm that brings windchime-filled gardens to memory; hummingbirds flitting through the harmonic metal forest, making music as they go. This introduction paints the world where the story begins to unravel. It is a place familiar and monotonous, yet beautiful; a place distinctly home. It is as if Lana emerges in your own garden, singing to the butterflies and broken hearts, calling them with every note.
The chorus of this song is a morning walk, consistent and neverchanging. Lana circles back to it constantly, singing it like a pleading prayer. It is heard in the background, repeating in the synth and strings.
“Ooh, let the light in /
At your back door yelling ’cause I wanna come in /
Ooh, turn your light on /
Look at us, you and I, back at it again.”
It is this chorus that speaks to me, this prayer that I know all too well. I sing for the sun, in its physical form out the window, and its metaphorical form within me. “Let The Light In,” “Forgive me,” “ See me as who I am.”
Father John Misty, the featured artist, makes his appearance in this chorus, harmonizing in a way that makes my skin prickle into goosebumps. His and Lana’s voices mix together like honey, gradual and sickly sweet. The strings in the background are incorporated so seamlessly with their voices, reaching its peak as they hit the octave. Every sound builds up to that moment. I am a physical listener, my body sways to the rhythm, and it is this peak that sent chills through me in waves.
Lana Del Rey and Father John Misty’s voices are rays of sunshine, finally breaching the stained glass window of conflict holding them back. Though at first listen the song sounds like a story of love, with its longing strings and its gorgeous voices, it was not until I read the lyrics written down that I became uncertain. Lana tells the story of a monotonous relationship, plagued by routine misunderstanding. She sings a list of things the couple does together in a noticeably somber way:
“Pick you up at home, quarter to three /
Ask you if you want somethin’ to eat /
Drive around, get drunk, do it over again.”
It isn’t until she sings the lines:
“‘Cause every time you say you’re gonna go /
I just smile ‘cause, babe, I already know.”
That I hear an almost-victorious smile in her voice.
Lana Del Rey is an artist that can perfectly capture the art of multidimensional and often misunderstood experiences. Everything coated in her sugary sweet voice and brilliant lyrical mind glimmers, and this song is no exception. “Let The Light In” is a vanilla cake, beautifully decorated, and like nothing I’ve ever tasted before. So take out your fork and have a bite, let the tasty goodness sink to the bottom of your belly, and let the tune become you.
Costco’s chief financial officer, Richard Galanti, stated that Costco’s legendary $1.50 hot dog combo will likely stay at that price forever. It is a combo full of nostalgia; it is a combo that brings about radio-bound memories. This week’s playlist contains songs that feed into those memories, whether they played on the radio back in 1985 — when the deal was introduced — or currently play.
This playlist is free, though: There’s no better deal than that.
In a crowded basement, with flashing lights and posters plastered across the walls, Pretoria performed with infectious energy last May for the opening night of a local house venue. The Treehouse, which highlights music and art in Grand Rapids, Michigan, has since grown in popularity and regularly hosts shows featuring local bands, but it remains a casual, intimate place. Seeing Pretoria up close, I realized how much of a difference listening to music live could make.
Five member indie-rock band Pretoria, from my hometown of Grand Rapids, has been one of my favorites ever since I first saw them perform at the MSU Spring Concert in 2022. Since then, they’ve released three new singles. The most recent of which, titled “Fat Chance,” is a preppy indie-rock song with catchy lyrics, rhythmic guitar solos and a nostalgic vibe that I can’t quite put my finger on. The guitar-driven chorus is the most impactful aspect of the song, but it has more experimental elements, especially with the melancholic ending, characterized by long harmonica notes and crunchy, reverberating guitar.
The song itself is upbeat, but expresses a spiteful sentiment toward a failed romance. It begins with a sweet yet somber intro, explaining how everything came to an end:
“You said you wanna turn your own way /
You said you wanna choose your own fate /
Gonna make it happen, gonna make it happen.”
However, a groovy guitar line cuts through the melancholy, and the mood shifts entirely, seemingly telling the story of how time can change emotions. The song becomes more carefree and cynical, yet triumphant. The lyrics proclaim a sense of freedom and relief, tinged with a feeling of self-satisfaction:
“Come down and let me see you /
I know what we could be /
You’re alone now, you’re alone now.”
On Saturday, April 15, the 2023 Capital City Film Festival comes to an end. But from the ashes comes dancing: The Capital City Film Festival Afterparty will land at the Frandor Sears building at 9 p.m. that night. Headlining the event will be Detroit-based post-punk/techno band Decliner.
In an exclusive interview with Impact89FM, Decliner’s lead vocalist, Rob Luzynski, talked about the band’s relationship with legendary producer Omar S, The Denny’s Grand Slam, how Decliner came to be and more.
More information on the Capital City Film Festival can be found by clicking on this link.
Weighing options is always difficult. Whether it is in regard to what to eat for your next meal or what song to put on next, it always seems to be an incredibly difficult choice to make. But what if the choice puts your emotions on the line? That’s the exact dilemma Cornelia Jakobs pondered in the creation of “Bloody Mind.”
Jakobs is a Swedish singer who has music flowing through her entire family. Her father was the vocalist for the rock band The Poodles, and her grandmother founded the Folkoperan. Her career began in 2010 as a member of the pop group Stockholm Syndrome, which was formerly Love Generation. The group was produced by RedOne, the man behind many hits of the early 2010s, such as “Judas” by Lady Gaga and “Starships” by Nicki Minaj. The group would find middling success and would disband after six years.
In the years following Stockholm Syndrome’s disbandment, Jakobs released several singles. During this time, her releases didn’t fare too well and kept her well within the confines of Swedish indie pop. Her big break came in 2022, when she participated in the Swedish singing competition Melodifestivalen with “Hold Me Closer.” It was her first time in the competition as a soloist, and she won handily. With that victory, she would represent Sweden at Eurovision 2022, where she placed fourth and won her semifinal by a whopping 153 points.
Post-Eurovision, Jakobs has released a handful of singles. “Bloody Mind” was her first one of the new year. The piano-driven track is emblematic of her solo songs, with it leaning more toward the somber tone she’s made her staple. If you are like me, who can’t make up my bloody mind when deciding what songs to play next, this is one that I’ll recommend time and time again.
There is a beauty in the inexplicable nature of life. Those strange phenomena that can only be described as miracles. The miracle of life, the miracle of death — our entire existence is just as the title suggests, Miracle-Level.
Released on March 31, Bay Area-based noise-pop group Deerhoof have returned with their 19th LP titled Miracle-Level. Intact since 2008, the current quartet includes bassist/singer Satomi Matsuzaki, drummer Greg Saunier, guitarist Ed Rodriguez and guitarist John Dietrich. Miracle-Level is the first release from the group to be entirely recorded in a proper studio and their first to be sung in Satomi Matsuzaki’s native Japanese. Swapping languages opens up an entirely new realm of expression for the group and although many of their listeners may not speak Japanese, tracks such as “My Lovely Cat!” leap over any linguistic barriers that might appear.
You can’t go wrong with any song on this album, but “My Lovely Cat!” stood out to me. Deerhoof leader Matsuzaki wrote and sang the lyrics to the new song in Japanese, and she also designed the cover art. The song is as restless and off-kilter as you might expect from the band, but it also features a gentle, bittersweet hook and a sort of upbeat and unpredictable energy reminiscent of those precious feline companions.
Miracle-Level was produced and engineered by Mike Bridavsky who was the human caretaker of internet sensation Lil Bub. In 2019, the world mourned the death of the internet famous cat at the age of 8. Lil Bub became popular for her unusual appearance in 2012, becoming a beloved presence for her small stature, big eyes and protruding tongue. Matsuzaki wrote “My Lovely Cat!” due to her love of animals with lines including: “My lovely, lovely cat!/ I can’t even leave home/ Let’s monitor on pet-cam.”
The song also works as an ode to the life of Lil Bub and the love that not only her owner had, but also the love that millions of fans around the globe felt for the furry internet sensation.
“Lil’ Bub” by Indiana Public Media is licensed under CC BY-NC 2.0 .
Mike Bridavsky shared in a press release, “Satomi [Matsuzaki], Ed [Rodriguez], John [Dietrich] and Greg [Saunier] tried something different on this record and the result is Deerhoof at their most sparse and vulnerable.” Miracle-Level is experimental not only in its sound, but also in its language. Miracle-Level celebrates all of those tiny miracles in life and on “My Lovely Cat!” Deerhoof pays tribute to the life of Lil Bub, an adorable feline celebrity who captured the hearts of millions. If you have a pet then you understand that the bond and love that you share can only be described as Miracle-Level.
All hail our Commander of the Order of the British Empire, who also like running up hills, or something like that. On April 10, 2013, Kate Bush was given that title. While today she’s best known for “Running Up That Hill” because of Stranger Things, she became a star when her debut song, “Wuthering Heights,” topped the UK singles chart for four weeks, where she became the first woman to achieve a UK chart topper with a self-written song. Not only that, but nine of her 10 albums managed to chart in the Top 5. The resurgence of “Running Up That Hill” managed to break several records, including surpassing the song’s initial peak in 1985, the longest time between chart-topping songs at 44 years, the oldest woman to top the charts and the longest time for a song to reach No. 1.
As a way to honor the legacy of Bush, she was given the title of Commander of the Order of the British Empire, or CBE, by Queen Elizabeth II. The title of CBE is the second-highest civilian award that can be given by the crown. Some notable people who have also been awarded a CBE include; Stephen Hawking, Benedict Cumberbatch, Kate Winslet, Catherine Zeta-Jones and Helena Bonham Carter.
~Ashe Burr
On April 11, 1952 MGM’s Singin’ in the Rain was released to the public. The film was an instant success, being nominated for two Academy Awards; Best Supporting Actress for Jean Hagen and Best Music, Scoring of a Musical Picture. The film is set in 1920s Hollywood, following the transition from silent film to talkies. While the intention was to avoid classic musical clichés, the film managed to completely revolutionize the movie musical, setting in place many tropes that became genre standards. The titular song has been referenced in numerous musicals in the years since the release, such as La La Land and Spamalot.
~Karson Sims
The loss of Kurt Cobain, Nirvana’s iconic front man, was a tragedy that toppled the all-encompassing reach of grunge and set alternative music on a path into new territory. With the 29th anniversary of that loss, on Apr. 5, I have been reminded of the wide-reaching influence and cultural shift that Nirvana created with the release of Nevermind. As many know, Nirvana forever changed what could be considered popular music, flipping it on its head in 1991 and opening the gates for the alternative revolution. While maybe not as iconic, Nirvana’s third and final album, In Utero, showed us a more raw and experimental side to the band. Wanting to move away from the polished and pristine production of Butch Vig on Nevermind, In Utero producer Steve Albini went for a stripped back, minimal production style. This allowed the band to express the energy and explosive noise of their live shows.
The feedback-drenched noise of this album can be heard with the very first chord on “Serve the Servants.” Cobain’s lyrics have been self-described as garble derived from poetry, novels and personal experiences. The lyrics of “Serve the Servants” are no different, but they hold several lines cutting deeper than the rest, exposing themes of growing up in a broken home. With lines such as “That legendary divorce is such a bore” and “I tried hard to have a father, but instead I had a dad, I just want you to know that I don’t hate you anymore,” the complicated childhood of Cobain is put on display. While the song still has a certain radio friendly appeal with catchy verses and a singable chorus, it shows us right away that it won’t be polished.
“Scentless Apprentice,” the title inspired by a novel Cobain was reading at the time of recording, adds upon the insanity shown to us in the prior track. The guitars are thin and wiry as if they were screeching. Cobain’s vocals match and exceed the intensity of the guitars. Broken, twangy, and ear shattering at times, Cobain’s vocals seemed to be an expression of his inner turmoil, as if the demons inside him were expelled and captured on tape. This trend of vocal intensity and microphone destruction can be heard peppered throughout the rest of the album.
Arguably In Utero’s most iconic track, “Heart-Shaped Box” brings down the intensity for its opening. A droning yet soothing riff paints a melancholy picture for the song to come. Vivid descriptions and metaphoric writing allow Cobain to take us to another place through his lyrics. The lyrics are sung less intensely, not without the iconic rasp of Cobain, allowing it to peak at number one on the Modern Rock Tracks chart.
While this song may seem more subdued than the previous two, it still packs a hard-hitting punch in both the chorus and the noisy, almost experimental, guitar solo. The accompanying music video deserves its own breakdown, but Cobain said that it was the closest depiction to his own imagination that any one of his music videos had reached. Filled with depictions of Jesus Christ’s crucifixion, a woman with her skin removed and a little girl dressed in a Ku Klux Klan outfit playing in a field, it is truly a psychedelic horror show.
Controversial in its time, “Rape Me” was one of the band’s most misunderstood songs, with the lyrical content having a blunt take on rape and sexual violence. Shouting “Rape me, rape me, my friend, I’m not the only one,” Cobain said that this was his attempt at creating an anti-rape anthem for all survivors of sexual violence. Nirvana fought for this cause and even spearheaded a show to support Bosnian rape victims, raising over $60,000.
The sonic elements are very similar to the straightforward message of the song. With a slightly dirty and simple guitar riff leading us to a distorted mess of a chorus, the song once again displays the use of the quiet and loud dynamics. The song eventually crescendos into the final act, which has Cobain reiterating the song title over and over again, screaming in defiance.
Those quiet and loud dynamics drive the next track, “Frances Farmer Will Have Her Revenge On Seattle,” which switches back and forth from bass and drums to full-strummed crunchy guitar chords. The title and lyrics were inspired by an actress from Seattle, Frances Farmer. She struggled with mental health issues and involuntary institutionalization, eventually becoming the “patron martyr” for both Cobain and his wife, Courtney Love.
Cobain presents us with a dichotomy in the track “Dumb.” The soothing instrumental lulls us into a state of confrontation as if it were a lullaby slowly drifting us into sleep. On the other hand, the lyrics tell us a much different story. As he repeats phrases like “I think I’m dumb, maybe just happy,” one can gather a sense of his internal conflicts. Drawn between happiness and the eventual let down when that happiness subsides, “Dumb” allows us to see the paradoxical nature of both Cobain and the band. They can create destructive and loud songs full of metaphorical lyrics while also making soothing, melancholic pop songs with relatable and timeless themes.
“Very Ape” has the band returning to their punk roots. With the track coming in at just under two minutes, it is full of energy and cuts straight to the point. It is perfect for anyone looking to headbang or mosh to their heart’s content.
“Milk It” sees the band stretching their hands further into their experimental side, more than anywhere else so far on this album. An atonal progression that seems to be a mashup of random notes leads us into a thrashing guitar riff to begin the song. Pieces of the atonal riff are then layered over a consistent rhythm section. Cobain’s vocals start relatively subdued in this section, almost to the point of mumbling. Then, once again, that thrashing guitar riff explodes along with Cobain’s wailing vocals.
This song uses those quiet and loud dynamics to perfection in both the chorus and verses. The guitar solo matches the energy of the intro with a cacophony of notes that melodically don’t match one another, yet Cobain manages to make them work. The disjunction in the instrumentation is matched by the lyrical content. Themes of suicide, parasites, viruses and rot paint a bleak picture for the song.
“Pennyroyal Tea” brings us away from the experimentation and back to their more classic style. Cobain dealt with digestion issues for much of his adult life, and it can be interpreted that the lyrics of this song were about his suffering at the hands of this affliction. Although, Cobain said, “Pennyroyal tea is an herbal abortive… I threw that in because I have so many friends who have tried to use that, and it never worked.” “Pennyroyal Tea” is a must-listen for fans of both Cobain’s artistic expression and Nirvana as a whole.
“Radio Friendly Unit Shifter” and “Tourette’s” are arguably the two most experimental tracks on In Utero, the former having two verses that are entirely spoken word with ear-piercing feedback and a classic Nirvana chorus. The song is capped off by Nirvana’s most experimental guitar solo and cannot be described in words, so you have to listen to it for yourself. The latter is the closest the band has come to hardcore punk. With a run time of 1 minute 35 seconds and incoherent wailing that somehow has lyrics buried underneath, this could be the band’s most intense listen. I truly don’t understand how Cobain could ever sing again after performing the vocal takes for this track: It sounds like he pulled out his own vocal chords. While these two songs might not be for everyone, they are worth a listen for those who are interested in more experimental music.
“All Apologies” caps off the album with a truly unforgettable song. With an iconic riff and melody that works great on both the acoustic and electric guitar, this song is one of many high points in Nirvana’s discography. This song is full of all the best aspects of Nirvana: dynamics, cryptic lyrics, Cobain’s clean and distorted vocals and the amazing rhythm section of Dave Grohl and Krist Novoselic, shining as they always do. This track is a great bookend to Nirvana’s brashest and most experimental album, ending just as it started with feedback-drenched noise.
It has been nearly 30 years since the loss of Cobain, yet his influence can still be felt in the cultural zeitgeist of today. I have several Nirvana shirts that I wear on a regular basis, and I’m sure some of you do, too. I listen to Nirvana at least once a week and, once again, I’m sure many of you do, too.
Their music has inspired millions of people all across the world, helping them through a rough time in life, helping them pick up an instrument of their very own or helping them through a countless number of other avenues. Cobain may be gone from this world, but his impact will never be forgotten. In Utero will forever be remembered as the last album by Nirvana, but it should be remembered as one of their most creative and ambitious works as well.
To listen to Tim Hecker’s latest album, No Highs, and to listen to track three, “Total Garbage,” is to feel as though you are rapidly ascending through layers of wisping clouds, but also to feel as though you are falling from the sky in slow motion, seeing the true expanse of the world below for far too long.
The world you see as you fall is tinted gray. Smog creeps around skyscraper needles in whirlpools; birds with smoke-laden wings sit stagnant on powerlines; highways forming gnarled shapes around high-rise after high-rise decay as you near the Earth’s surface.
After hours or years of falling, falling, falling, you finally arrive at the ground. But you do not hit the ground and explode into trillions of pieces. You do not become a sacrifice to the gray.
Instead, you find yourself floating inches from the pavement, inches from the water, inches from the grass. You see beauty in the ground’s minute details, and you reach out to touch it. You twirl a blade of grass between your fingers; you whittle your skin against asphalt; you run a hand across your sweating forehead; you ascend back into the sky.
The sonics of your rise are strange: There is a repeated clicking noise sourcing from below, guiding you up. A series of distant, streaking synths and strings and saxophone wails twist along your body as you grow more and more distant from the ground. There are tinges of alarm, tinges of uncertainty. Where the music will ultimately lead you, you do not know.
There is only one thing you truly understand in this odyssey: The clouds look different when you are rising into them.
I have kept a diary since I first learned how to write coherent sentences. My Tinker Bell diary harbors pages worth of hearts surrounding Gabby and the names of old crushes, along with stories about playground drama. My high school diary is brown leather. The leather strap tying it shut is almost worn through now, guarding my biggest insecurities, worries and dreams.
They are all kept in a box I try my best to forget about. They are not to be opened because opening an old diary is like inviting an old friend to come over to your house, but this friend eats your peanut butter straight out of the jar, talks about their ex nonstop and won’t let you forget that time you cried during Hotel for Dogs.
“The Cut” by Grace Enger is a page out of a diary.
“You don’t have to say it, I know the words /
So right before you tell me, just tell the floor /
But I watch you as your mouth is opening, feel it coming /
Roll it in slo-mo /
I don’t need you to make the cut /
‘Cause I know we’re breaking up.”
Enger’s lyrics turn feelings into words. Eloquently, she captures what it feels like to be in a relationship destined to fail. Wouldn’t it be nice if you could go back to the moment right before something you cherished was taken away? Before a breakup? Before betraying a friend’s trust? Before losing a loved one?
For something you cherished so much, you would go through the pain of opening up the old diaries. You would try to turn back time to when you couldn’t sense the end, reliving the moments when you felt this relationship would last forever.
“I try to call /
Think two months would make a difference /
You hope that we can be friends, and I’m fine /
As if I’m not mourning every old text message /
Tryna find the precise point you changed your mind.”
But, you’re confronted with the reality that reliving these moments won’t turn back time. It’s gone. You have to press play on the scene where that light is snuffed out, where your world turns gray. You have to move on.
“So go ahead and make the cut /
Cause the sooner that you break my heart /
The sooner I’ll get over us.”
Listening to “The Cut” is like flipping through those pages sealed in brown leather. Crying, screaming and laughing, you open to a blank page and keep writing.
For this recent flooding of the Red Cedar River, there was a dire necessity to build a great ark to stay above it all. Sadly, no ark was built, but perhaps next time the students of MSU will be so wise. Imagine it: We store all the MSU Dairy Store products, Sparty himself and as many MSU students as possible within. And then we stay afloat while the campus ducks flourish and the squirrels hide up in their trees. All we’re saying is that it’s best to stay prepared.
Call Me If You Get Lost: The Estate Sale was just released this past Sunday and it is the perfect expansion of the original album. The deluxe version added eight new incredible songs; “SORRY NOT SORRY,” was one of them.
The album opens with the instrumentals from the beginning of “He Made You Mine” by Brighter Side of Darkness.
I love how raw Tyler, The Creator is on this track. Of course, Tyler is no stranger to showing emotions but, unlike his past projects where his rawness was an expression of anger and angst, this is something more complex.
Tyler breaks out a list of apologies for a plethora of people.
He first apologizes to his mother and sister for their strained relationship, his old friends who all fell out due to egos, the people he hurt while figuring out his sexuality and for his lack of perceived empathy and social awareness. I don’t know if regret is the right word to use, but Tyler definitely takes accountability for his actions and the listener can feel that.
There isn’t anything jaw-dropping about his flow, but I think that having a conversational flow allows the listener to really hear and understand his words. Tyler’s choice of tempo and cadence makes his words feel more genuine.
The music video is flawless. The video features current-day Tyler killing all of the other versions of himself from previous albums. He kills Cherry Bomb Tyler, Flower Boy Tyler, and even Sir Baudelaire. If I were to put my thinking cap on, I would hypothesize that Tyler killing every version of himself in the Tyler, the Creator cinematic universe is him teasing another album; CALL ME IF YOU GET LOST was released in 2021 and he usually keeps to a two-year gap between albums.
This song has been on repeat for me, and I am very excited for the possible album announcement sometime this year.
Last Tuesday, legendary composer and soundsmith Ryuichi Sakamoto passed away at the age of 71. While Sakamoto is known in his own right through his prolific work as a soloist, some of his most enduring works come as a result of his membership in seminal electro-pop group Yellow Magic Orchestra. This is for good reason.
Before the scores he wrote for Brian De Palma, Bernardo Bertolucci and Pedro Almodovar, before countless underrated reinventions of new wave, trip-hop and funk, before the avant-garde segues into minimalism and ambient music, before the original compositions for cellphones and Olympic ceremonies, before a career of electro-pop so spidery and precise that it couldn’t be confused for anyone else’s handiwork, there is “Firecracker”: a singular, perfect pop song. Yet one of the most fascinating histories of this song is one of the most elusive: It’s actually a cover!
Released in 1959, American composer Martin Denny’s “Firecracker” is a song so chintzy and orientalist that hearing it today conjures horrific flashbacks to Mickey Rooney’s yellowface visage in Breakfast At Tiffany’s two years later. Denny was a godfather of “exotica,” a subgenre of lounge and pop music fueled by mid-century America’s fetishization of the South Pacific, East Asia and elsewhere. Music scholar Shuhei Hosokawa classified it as “a fantasy of travel” designed to relax listeners as they drifted off into an imagined paradise.
The plucky percussion and swooning bass strings of the original “Firecracker” feel like the soundtrack to an Elvis Goes to Japan movie that was never released, or perhaps an ill-advised bachelor party hosted by Justin Trudeau. As a random Rate Your Music user writes in a comment box for Denny’s Quiet Village, “if you [didn’t] yet have colour tv i can see this being hot stuff.”
Yellow Magic Orchestra’s flip of Denny’s song into an instant classic is one of electronic music’s great miracles. Sakamoto notably took humor at the song’s absurdly fake, stereotypical image and decided to do it one better by giving it even more gloss. Assisted by bandmates Haruomi Hosono and Yukihiro Takahashi, “Firecracker” crackles to life by mixing live drums, synthetic chirps and funky keys into an unstoppable groove. The chord progression from Denny’s original is unmistakable once you’ve heard it, but the new version adds spooky bridges, luxurious piano solos and a barrage of vintage synth work to make it a creature unto its own.
While “Firecracker” is very much a record of its time, its influence is profound. The song found an audience everywhere from Soul Train to the pop charts, cracking Top 20 in the UK, although merely cracking the Top 100 in the US. Synth-pop acts from Duran Duran to Gary Numan have claimed YMO as an influence, and you can hear the “Firecracker” wiggle in everything from Pet Shop Boys to Madonna.
Both Michael Jackson and Eric Clapton would go on to cover the band’s 1979 classic “Behind The Mask.” This legacy makes Yellow Magic Orchestra’s contributions just as relevant to electronic music’s early development as Kraftwerk and Giorgio Moroder’s contributions around the same time. Much like how Filipino fast-food chain Jollibee recently opened its first location in Spain, Denny’s imperial aspirations bear a delicious irony now that YMO’s “Firecracker” has endured far beyond his creation.
Pop history is frequently defined by moments of artistic appropriation, sometimes even vandalism. A sample of a Rolling Stones rearrangement has the power to turn a Britpop song into a classic three decades later. Countless disco and pop classics have been flipped into even better rap songs. At its worst, this zone of exchange can produce sonic war crimes, such as David Guetta and Bebe Rexha’s recent defilement of an Italian techno classic. At its best, you have triumphs of pop creativity: moments that transcend time, place and genre. “Firecracker” is one such moment. Although this would be far from the last time Sakamoto would master his medium, it showcases a magic touch that bears a dual understanding of both the warm and the robotic, the tacky and the sublime. This instinct is part of what makes Sakamoto one of modern music’s great masters, and it ensures a legacy that will last far beyond his passing.
The nation of Mali has a storied history of being the seat of several empires over the course of its history. In modern times, the nation has begun a sonic conquest, with the works of their musicians taking over the airwaves not just in Africa, but internationally. At the forefront of this new conquest is the duo Amadou et Mariam. Amadou et Mariam is composed of the married couple Amadou Bagayoko and Mariam Doumbia, who met at Mali’s Institute for the Young Blind. Both are totally blind: Bagayoko lost his sight at the age of 16 from a congenital cataract, while Doumbia lost hers at the age of five to untreated measles.
At the Institute, the pair performed in the Institute’s Eclipse Orchestra, where they discovered their love for music. Bagayoko began his music career in 1968 and joined the group Les Ambassadeurs du Motel de Bamako in 1974. Another massive name in Malian music, Salif Keita, was also a member of the group at the same time. By 1980, Bagayoko and Doumbia decided that they worked well together and began their career as a duo performing Malian blues.
Five years later, the pair toured Burkina Faso on their first international tour. During this tour, they realized Mali lacked the resources to help them pursue their artistic ideas and ambitions. As such, they decided to move to Côte d’Ivoire. They also ended up meeting fellow blind musician Stevie Wonder by chance and had a jam session with him during this time. While in Côte d’Ivoire, they recorded several cassettes, which helped them gain a cult following within West Africa.
In 1996, the pair moved once again: this time to Paris. Three years later, their first hit in France was released, with “Je pense à toi” from the album Sou Ni Tilé reaching a modest 43rd on the charts. The album featured the same musical style that the band used to gain their following in Africa, with a minor twist. Instead of their usual lyrics in Bambara, the group performed the album almost exclusively in French. The linguistic switch makes more sense when you factor in that this was their international debut album, so a more marketable language, like French, would help their music spread more. Regardless of the language, the sound is authentically theirs, and it helped them gain a following in France, as well as the rest of Europe.
After several years of building up an audience in France, the pair’s 2004 album would be one for the ages. Dimanche à Bamako would see Manu Chao, a legendary singer in his own right, approach the pair to work on an album. Chao heard the pair on French radio, became a fan, and pitched the idea of a collaborative album to them. He became the album’s primary producer and featured on every track.
The musical style that Chao was known for was quite different from the Malian blues Amadou & Mariam were known for prior. The album’s production was more Western-friendly, and, likely because of it, would also see the pair have their best-selling album of their career. Dimanche à Bamako charted in five nations, including both the Flanders and Wallonia charts in Belgium, as well as going platinum in France. One of the songs off the album, “Sénégal Fast Food,” showcases the evolution of the duo’s sound perfectly.
Riding the highs brought by Dimanche à Bamako, Amadou & Mariam recorded the official song of the 2006 World Cup alongside Herbert Grönemeyer, “Celebrate the Day.” The track marked the second time an African artist would be performing an official song of a World Cup, after Senegalese singer Youssou N’dour’s song for the 1998 Cup, “La Cour des Grandes,” and would be followed the tournament after by South African group Freshlyground on the legendary song “Waka Waka” alongside Shakira.
When South Africa hosted the World Cup in 2010, Amadou et Mariam appeared on the Kick-Off Celebration for the tournament, alongside Alicia Keys, John Legend, Tinariwen and Shakira. Dimanche à Bamako launched the pair into the consciousness of the Francophone world, but “Celebrate the Day” would make sure the world knew who this Malian couple were. This song would, in turn, set the stage for their next legendary collaborations.
2008 saw the release of Welcome to Mali, the sequel to Dimanche à Bamako. The album featured a number of artists from across the world, but most notably K’Naan. The album was a hit across the world, charting in three nations. It also managed to be nominated for several global awards, including a nomination for the Grammy for Best Contemporary World Album in 2010. This was actually their second nomination in the category, after Dimanche à Bamako was nominated in the 2006 awards show.
One of the songs off Welcome to Mali, “Sabali,” had additional production from Damon Albarn. Yes, the same Damon Albarn behind Gorillaz. “Sabali” would wind up as the band’s most streamed song on Spotify, with over 24.5 million streams. The song saw critical acclaim, with it being featured as Pitchfork’s 249th song on their “Top 500 songs of the 2000s.” Albarn’s fingerprints are all over the song, but the track is still quintessentially Amadou et Mariam.
Their next album, Folila, is a similar album to the previous two. The genre-bending, world-crossing music that had become a staple of Amadou & Mariam had been refined to a level that had yet to be. Artists from across the world would once again join the pair on their album. These artists range from Jake Shears of the rock band Scissor Sisters to rapper Theophilus London to the founder of the ishumar genre of desert blues — which is a similar sound to what Amadou & Mariam started their career off with — Abdallah Oumbadougou.
One of the biggest names the duo managed to collaborate with at the time was Santigold. Santigold’s contributions to the world are legendary, and her song with the duo is just as legendary as the rest of her individual discography. Folila was nominated for the Grammy for Best World Music Album in 2013.
After five years, the pair came back with La Confusion. The album was a reflection of Mali itself, as in the years before, Mali had been dealing with an insurrection in the north of the nation. The pair said in an interview that their lyrics focused on what was happening in Mali, but also their words had meaning that reached far beyond the West African nation. The album also saw them begin to shed their rock-influenced sound to take on a more pop-oriented style. The title track’s music video saw them leaning into that idea of confusion, having children act in the video.
In 2021, the pair continued to expand on their already impressive list of artists they’ve worked with. While they may not have released a song on their own during this year, their two big collaborations absolutely made up for it.
That May, the pair collaborated with another duo in SOFI TUKKER on the track “Mon Cheri.” The music video that was released with the song was done as part of a charity fundraiser with Red Hot to fight against HIV/AIDS. The song fits more into SOFI TUKKER’s usual style of dance music, which is a bit of a change from Amadou et Mariam’s usual sound.
Their second collaboration of the year was with Spanish flamenco-fusion duo Fuel Fandango. Fuel Fandango released their self-titled album in 2011 and had a hit off it with “Always Searching.” Five years later, the song “Salvaje” brought them wider attention.
On paper, the collaboration of two Malian grandparents and an electronic-flamenco group sounds completely crazy, but they somehow made it work. The track mixed kora — a stringed instrument from West Africa that Amadou et Mariam had used on songs prior — with guitar and synthesized percussion. The song, “Ruido,” is a fusion of Malian and Spanish influences, and it has one of my favorite live performances ever with their joint performance at the Pirineos Sur festival.
Nine years ago, the pair debuted a show at the 2014 Sydney Festival. Playing hits from across their illustrious career, the show was done in complete darkness. With perfumes wafting across the festival grounds, the band was revealed at the end of the set in front of a full moon. The performance was done to try and showcase to the rest of the world what it’s like performing in front of thousands of fans without being able to see them. On Dec. 9, 2022, the live album was released.
The pair continues to push the bounds of what their sound is. After over four decades of music, their future looks bright.
Former Cincinnati Bengals linebacker Vontaze Burfict is known as one of the dirtiest, hardest-hitting players in NFL history. Some point to his knocking out of former Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver Antonio Brown to be one of the main causes of Brown’s apparent mental and emotional descent.
According to Timothy Gay, author of The Physics of Football, an NFL defensive back can produce 1,600 pounds of force with a tackle, and that’s just for a defensive back of NFL average speed and weight. Take a linebacker like Burfict, who, in his playing days, would have weighed about 50 pounds more than a typical defensive back, and you’d have even more force on top of that 1,600 pounds.
Imagine taking a hit of that magnitude to the head. Well, JPEGMAFIA and Danny Brown’s “Burfict!” off their new album, SCARING THE HOES, does a rather decent job of recreating such a hit. Hell, it may as well wear Burfict’s number 55 as separate cover art: The beat is dirty; it certainly hits like the former linebacker. Someone needs to throw it out of the game for unnecessary roughness.
Hopefully, “Burfict!” will be hitting mosh pits across the United States and the globe soon enough. Here at Michigan State, we were lucky enough to have opened the pit for Brown’s verse on March 28: I only wish for others to be partaking in the same. If you find yourself with “Burfict!” in a live setting any time soon, wear some pads, put in a mouthguard and prepare to be called for a 15-yard penalty.
Ah, summer. A time where responsibilities seem to wash away like a wave on a sandy shore. The calming blues that litter both the sky and sea are beginning to creep their way into everyone’s minds. So, what better way to welcome the summer than with this song that evokes memories of just that?
Joshu is the Antiguan artist behind the song. A guitar virtuoso, the track is the title track of his EP of the same name. Ocean Daze is his first solo project since 2019’s album Lines of Time. Despite this, he has been releasing music since Lines of Time. In 2021, he released a collaborative EP with English folk singer India Blue. And seemingly like clockwork, two years on, a new project has been revealed.
The same soothing guitar that Joshu has made his trademark permeates the sound of “Ocean Daze.” The atmosphere that comes out of the Antiguan’s guitar is reminiscent of the Caribbean itself; calm, laid back and gorgeous. The sole usage of the acoustic guitar helps to establish this. Spare from some claps and whistling, it is just this guitar.
“I find it hard /
But that’s okay /
I’m going back /
Back to my ocean daze.”
If you are reading this article, chances are that you are an indiehead, loving the most obscure music to come out from all pockets of the world. This artist is absolutely one for you then. Despite releasing music for the better part of 5 years, only 3 of them have over 10,000 streams on Spotify, which is criminal in my humble opinion. This song, like the rest of his discography, sounds like sun on the beach. As summer approaches, prepare yourself for the season with this song.
March is Women’s History Month, a time to celebrate the baddies of a feminist past and to keep on breaking the glass ceiling. From Ida B. Wells to Gloria Steinem, it’s always important to remember the past as we make new waves for a brighter future.
This playlist is perfect for femmes looking to embrace misandry while they fight for equal pay. You can plot revenge against your ex while fighting against harassment on the streets. Maybe celebrate the lack of atrocities committed by women while you climb that corporate ladder. Or perhaps just embrace femininity, because you (probably) haven’t been burned at the stake yet, and that might just be enough.
Minnesota-based rock band Hippo Campus and Detroit-born rapper Danny Brown took the Breslin stage by storm this past Tuesday.
The University Activities Board (UAB,) Impact 89FM, Associated Students of Michigan State University (ASMSU) and Residence Halls Association (RHA) hosted and organized Michigan State’s annual spring concert. The artists gave an energetic performance – opener Danny Brown delivered a forty-five minute set and headliner Hippo Campus performed for an hour.
From the moment Brown stepped on stage and the audience felt the bass from the speakers, the crowd was filled with jumping, dancing and mosh pits. Some audience members questioned if JPEGMAFIA would make an appearance for songs that were recently released off the album “SCARING THE HOES.” Even though he did not make an appearance, Brown’s performance and song choices did not disappoint.
Both musical acts brought a sense of community and connection to the audience. They validated the experience of Spartans and the difficulties they have faced these last six weeks following the events from Feb 13.
One audience member held up a sign asking Brown to sing “I Will,” in which he replied he was not going to initially perform and did anyway.
During Hippo Campus’ performance of their 2015 single “South,” band member Nathan Stocker changed the lyrics to “Go Green, Go White.”
Hippo Campus’ multi-colored and light-filled performance was incomparable to Michigan State’s virtual concert in 2020. Both new students and those who attended through a computer screen just a few years ago could finally enjoy their in-person performance. Hippo Campus effortlessly brings an euphoric energy and excitement to their crowds, making this past Tuesday an emotional and intimate experience.
Hear our exclusive interview with Hippo Campus ahead of their performance at the Breslin Center:
Students could be seen eagerly lining up outside the Breslin doors four hours before they opened. The line extended to the road. As soon as the doors opened, students anxiously filled the floor of the venue and seats in the upper mezzanine.
Freshman Sofia Aultman said she is a huge fan of Hippo Campus and an even bigger fan of Danny Brown. She said it was surreal to see the artists up close at Michigan State and hear the fight song play before Hippo Campus took the stage. Aultman waited in line for an hour and a half before the doors opened.
“I’ve never been so close to the band at a concert before,” Aultman said. “Honestly, it was so cool! I loved every second of it. I met some really cool people in the crowd and heard some amazing music live for very cheap which is so awesome.”
Hippo Campus’ Stocker, also known as Brotherkenzie, sat down with Impact 89FM’s Delaney Rogers, Taylor Truszkowski and Matt Cruz with a chance to connect with them in person and discuss what fans can expect from their upcoming EP “Wasteland,” pre-show rituals and the evolution of the band.
The band’s newest EP comes out April 14. Their latest singles, “Kick in the Teeth” and “Yippie Ki Yay,” display a western sound, hinting to what is yet to come from “Wasteland.” The band has experimented with sounds in recent years and the two singles provide a twangy introduction to their music’s newest era.
Hippo Campus fuses the themes of innocence, maturity, fame and coming of age into the lyrics of their music. Stocker said this upcoming EP has a concept of imposter syndrome and feeling out of place in the environment you are in. He described it as a false sense of coincidence.
“The idea of a false cowboyhood just kind of resonated with us, and I think for maybe a lot of people,” Stocker said. “Just with the way that trends work these days… you put a cowboy hat on and it kind of feels like you suddenly have opened up a world that you could explore even if you’re not from anywhere down south.”
Stocker said that “Wasteland” is also about finding yourself in a place that feels foreign or uncomfortable. This is a frequent theme for Hippo Campus which is highlighted throughout their discography in songs such as “Western Kids” and “Baseball,” which bring a sense of transparency to the raw reality of growing up and adjusting to different world views.
“Translating that to music and the way that we were writing the songs wasn’t really at the forefront,” Stocker said. “It came kind of later as the songs materialized in recording. It feels like there’s a lot of wasteland space out there. You can’t find it online, or you can’t find any sort of safe place online anymore, and it’s even harder kind of in the real world cause you have to build that up with others.”
Stocker said that “Yippie Ki Yay” took six years to finish and was one of the most difficult songs to write. The new single was initially written for their first album, “Landmark,” which brought more of a hazy, dreamy sound. “Yippie Ki Yay” did not find a home for an album or EP until “Wasteland” was written.
“Front to back that one took quite a while to develop,” Stocker said. “Other songs are really easy, they kind of just fall out of you.”
Hippo Campus began their career in 2015 with an EP titled “Bashful Creatures.” Since then, the band has released three albums and several EPs. They grew from playing small venues such as the 1,000 capacity sized venue Crofoot in Pontiac, Michigan to headlining at the over 9,500 capacity sized venue Red Rocks this upcoming May.
“I think we try to practice a daily gratitude for where we are and where we could be,” Stocker said. “If we were still playing basements in Minneapolis, I think I would still be enjoying it and invested in it. It’s impossible to really discern, but I think in the spirit of commitment to my friends and the band and the music that we make and the impact that we have and want to have on our fans and surrounding people, I think it’s all worth it at the end of the day with that simple striving alone.”
The members of Hippo Campus have solo careers outside of the band as well. Stocker said that it has always been a work in progress to figure out and the hardest thing to do is align schedules. However, he says that they are extremely supportive of another’s personal and creative endeavors.
Band member Jake Luppen in recent years has been more transparent about his sexuality in Hippo Campus’ music as well as in his solo work. This shows in their songs “Boys” and “Bad Dream Baby.”
“I think it brought a deeper sense of honesty,” Luppen said. “I think when we first started the band, we were reluctant to write about personal experiences mostly because we were 19 and we didn’t have a lot of personal experiences. So I think as tour went on, as time went on…we had this bank of experiences we wanted to present to the world. As an artist, I feel like I could be more honest now and be more myself, which feels great.”
Hippo Campus shared that fans can expect lassos, boots, giddy ups and spurs for “Wasteland.”
Brown sat down with Impact 89FM’s Mason Vore, Mike Merucci and Matt Anikiej prior to the concert.
For Brown, a Detroit-born rapper who was described by MTV as “one of rap’s most unique figures in recent memory,” this was a homecoming of sorts. He was back in Michigan, which initially shaped him and his music, and his ties with the state and the city of Detroit are unbreakable.
“It’s just been practice here for so long,” Brown said. “It’s almost like [Detroit’s] a testing ground for you to make it in the rest of the world. If you can be dope in Detroit and blow up in Detroit, then you can definitely make it anywhere.”
Brown has long been known as a hip-hop innovator. His vocal range, which allows him to rap in his iconic high-pitched yowls on one verse and in low, rumbling waves on the next, has set him wildly apart from many of modern hip-hop’s beloved figures. Not only do his vocals set him apart: His unorthodox beat selection and ability to rap over these seemingly untamable instrumentals have cemented him as a champion of alternative hip-hop.
Hear our exclusive interview with Danny Brown ahead of his performance at the Breslin Center:
Brown’s 2011 mixtape, “XXX,” is where he initially came into global renown. The tape received widespread critical acclaim and found its place on multiple year-end top ten lists. The success of “XXX” then led into the 2013 EDM/trap rollercoaster “Old” and the 2016 album “Atrocity Exhibition,” which managed to further the experimentation displayed on “XXX.” “Atrocity Exhibition” received even wider acclaim, having been cited for its otherworldly production and harrowing storytelling. It also featured guest appearances from major forces in the hip-hop world, like Kendrick Lamar and Earl Sweatshirt.
With his follow-up to “Atrocity Exhibition,” 2019’s “uknowhatimsayin¿,” Brown found himself in brighter territory. From a dark past came a promising future, and a soundscape to reflect that tonal switch-up. The album featured appearances from Run The Jewels, Q-Tip and JPEGMAFIA, among others. As with his previous works, Brown received widespread acclaim for the project.
On the heels of his 2023 collaborative album with JPEGMAFIA, “SCARING THE HOES,” Brown is furthering his mythos in the outer rings of hip-hop. When speaking with the Impact, he said the album is “All over the place.” Sitting with a soil texture triangle before him and laughing, he equated the title track’s texture to clay soil and said that “a song like Fentanyl Tester might be all over the board.”
For Brown, at the heart of “SCARING THE HOES” and its experimentation was the desire to enjoy the music-making experience. “The intention just was to have fun,” he said. “Being in the music business sometimes can become stressful. You can lose sight of why you’re even doing it in the first place.”
In the end, it’s all about Brown loving what he does, and that applies to much more than rapping. He has his own podcast, he’s streamed countless hours on Twitch, he’s performed stand-up comedy, he’s hosted a poetry workshop and he hopes to write and publish books in the coming years. Being one of the most versatile artists in hip-hop today, it only makes sense for him to be as versatile away from the mic.
Some songs are so deeply relevant and incredibly apt that they can kill two birds with one stone and become anthems of March, not only as an ode to the gray skies and endless repetitive days, but also to Women’s History Month!
Le Tigre’s “Much Finer” — a longtime favorite of mine — seems to fit oh so perfectly as a throwback to immerse oneself in women’s rights, and their wrongs. It is also perfect for dwelling in seasonal depression for the final weeks of winter.
“Much Finer” was released on Oct. 16, 2001, as part of Le Tigre’s sophomore album, Feminist Sweepstakes. “Much Finer” is an upbeat, danceable window into frontwoman Kathleen Hanna’s struggles with depression and Lyme disease.
Hanna talk-sings the chorus:
“Do you want to stay in bed all day? (Yeah) /
Do you remember feeling any other way? (No).”
Hanna, throughout her career, has always had an uncanny ability to encapsulate the feelings of girlhood in their purest form, and with “Much Finer,” she’s also perfected my feelings as we enter April:
“I’ll make some coffee, put on some eyeliner /
I think I’ll find that things are fine /
And they’re gonna get much finer.”
Many musical spaces have been historically dominated by men, and punk rock is no exception. Gender bias is pervasive and entrenched in our society and the riot grrrl movement emerged as a way to push back against the exclusion of women within the genre. Centering the needs of a new generation on direct-action strategies, witty mantras and slogans like “girl power” and “support girl love,” riot grrrl was not just a movement of music, but also a political movement as it became one of the most visible branches of third-wave feminism. Propelling themselves into the punk rock genre with a DIY mindset and unapologetically creating their own space, the riot grrrl movement is one of the most important feminist movements in recent music history.
The riot grrrl movement emerged in the early 1990s in Washington D.C. and Olympia, Washington. The term “riot grrrl” stems from the term “girl riot,” created by Allison Wolfe and Molly Neuman, members of the feminist-punk band Bratmobile. The women decided they wanted to start a “girl riot” against a society that they felt offered no validation of women’s experiences. Fanzine editor and feminist activist, Jen Smith then created the term “grrrl” and later “riot grrrl” through the expression “angry grrrl zines” devised by feminist activist and founding member of the band Bikini Kill, Tobi Vail. Early participants of the movement deliberately used “grrrl” instead of “girl” to remove the passive association with the word “girl” as well as to display the anger behind the movement, reminiscent of a growl.
The riot grrrl movement encouraged women to engage in cultural production by creating their own music and fanzines, rather than following existing models. Many of the songs centered on topics that were considered taboo in mainstream society including rape, incest and eating disorders; many of the bands utilized music to express antiracist viewpoints and their hatred toward the patriarchy. Many riot grrrl lyrics demonstrate frustration with one dimensional views of women and encourage women to overcome sexist stereotypes.
By the late 1990s “girl power,” a slogan that originated in the pages of riot grrrl zines, started to become commodified by pop sensations like the Spice Girls. Although many feminist-punk bands still exist today, this transition of riot grrrl beliefs into mainstream media largely marked the end of the movement.
Although the riot grrrl movement may have ended, its message and influence still persist today. As the new millennium began, feminist activism began to expand during the emergence of social media and fourth-wave feminism. Similar to the use of fanzines by members of the riot grrrl movement, well-known movements such as “free the nipple,” “Time’s Up” and “#MeToo” all used the internet to spread their message, gain support and spark change. Fea, Dream Nails, The Regrettes and Bad Cop/Bad Cop are just some of the many acts delivering the ethos of the riot grrrl movement into the 21st century and continuing to fight for gender equality in all spaces, not just the music that they play.
Inspiring and fostering a much more inclusive space for future generations of women in music, it would be greatly misguided to not recognize one of the most important feminist movements in recent music history on Women’s History Month.
There was never any true definition as to what made an act “riot grrrl,” however all of the bands below were active during the 1990s and generally dealt with antiracist and feminist topics. This is a list of essential riot grrrl music — an introduction into the genre and the empowering music that it birthed, not a totality. However if you don’t like the list, make your own. Do it yourself, that’s the whole point. If you can learn anything from the riot grrrl movement, learn that your ideas are valid regardless of race, gender or sexual orientation and that you cannot simply disregard injustices and must instead take it upon yourself to further inclusivity for everyone, everywhere.
Last month, I took it upon myself to become acquainted with the catalog of the legendary Atlanta rapper Future. As an avid hip-hop listener, I was already acquainted with a number of his albums and even more of his feature appearances and singles. In fact, one of the very first songs that started me on the path to becoming a hip-hop fan was “Codeine Crazy” off his landmark mixtape, Monster. But, beyond my brief obsession with the song and my using it as a jumping-off point to a number of different hip-hop subgenres, I left Future and the trap genre largely untouched to delve into other areas.
To make a long and uninteresting story short, after a couple of years and a few chance run-ins with more of Future’s work, I decided to fully commit myself to listening to his whole discography, or at least what was on streaming services. It happened in the waning days of Jan. 2023: I was idling in my office at Impact 89FM, as I usually do, and then it struck me. Future February. I have always been one for alliteration, so this random thought was perhaps triggered by my listening to “Relationship” by Young Thug featuring Future, which caused the idea to become stuck in my mind.
Within minutes, this thought had blossomed into a master plan. This master plan took the form of a spreadsheet containing Future’s albums and space to leave my thoughts and ratings. It was through this spreadsheet that I would plan and launch my voyage through Future’s 22 full-length projects on streaming. I would listen to an album — or mixtape, if you want to split hairs — a day until I had heard everything, leaving six days at the end of the month for reflection.
This fateful February changed my perception of the hip-hop landscape and opened my eyes to Future’s mythological journey of a career. I was joined by my good friend, Taylor Truszkowski, and we have decided to share our experiences with a pair of articles, this being one of them. Without further ado, let’s embark on this rollercoaster of a trap odyssey.
We should start with the release of Future’s 2014 album Honest. At this point in his career, Future had released a slew of successful mixtapes and was finally settling into his sound as a pop-rapper. This was reflected in both the feature list and lyrical content of Honest. Future is joined by a star-studded cast of guests like Pharrell, Kanye West, Drake and Andre 3000 as he speaks on his rise through the ranks of the industry. There are a lot of melodic and pop-friendly earworms across the tracklist, which are certainly not indicative of Future’s current sound, but a pivotal moment in Future’s life swept Honest’s core sound aside after the album’s release.
Future and his former fiancée, Ciara, a successful musician in her own right, had split up amid rumors of Future’s infidelity. Future, not one to take breaks between albums, took the anguish springing from his shattered heart and immediately hopped into the studio, channeling his emotions into one of his most defining projects: The 2014 mixtape Monster.
Monster is the product of a damaged man. Future’s delivery and subject matter invoke a drug-fueled safari that has taken a dark turn downriver. The tape opens with a warbled groan resembling an ancient monastic chant as Future languishes in his radical lifestyle. On the song “Throw Away,” he addresses the Ciara breakup. Following a series of verses in which he claims the women he sleeps with are worth nothing to him, a beat switch kicks in, and, in an ironic twist, Future laments that he himself feels worthless. In his eyes, he was discarded by Ciara after he made the “minor” mistake of being unfaithful.
After a remarkable run of ruthless trap bangers, Future closes out the tracklist with one of his most emotional songs, “Codeine Crazy.” This harrowing track finds Future staring into a mirror amidst what I imagine to be a codeine-fueled bender, admitting that he is a drug addict. This confirms what had been hinted at over the course of the project: that Future has fallen into a hazy trench of drug abuse and debauchery, as if his trajectory toward becoming a pop-rap star had never existed to begin with.
Future’s path seemed uncertain after this. Monster was extraordinarily well received, but the question lingered: What next? Future had an answer. Tripling down on Monster’s sound and subject matter, he released three legendary projects that honed the Future formula we know today. The mixtapes Beast Mode and 56 Nights led into what many consider to be the definitive trap album of the generation: DS2. DS2 is the culmination of the dark, drugged-up sound he had been cultivating since Monster. Every song on the album features an incredible beat, and Future raps over each one like the rent is due. He flows over the stellar production like a man possessed; every word feels like it may conclude his final coherent thought before he lapses into a complete breakdown.
On “Groupies,” Future adopts a guttural growl that never fails to wrench my attention into a savage chokehold, even dozens of re-listens later. Here, in 2015, we find Future at the top of the trap genre, a quick pivot from his status hardly over a year ago as pop-rap’s next golden child.
This switch up is reflected in his follow-up to DS2, What A Time To Be Alive. This collaborative project with Drake is in stark contrast to previous Drake/Future collaborations, like the song “Never Satisfied” off Honest. On “Never Satisfied,” Future had been trying to fit in Drake’s mold, crooning over an instrumental more suited for Drake than himself. On What A Time To Be Alive, Drake finds himself firmly in Future and Metro Boomin’s 808-laden domain. That is not to say Drake sounds uncomfortable, he still delivers, but it is clear that Future is leading the charge with his newfound clout as a next generation trap pioneer.
Further solidifying his trailblazer status with the releases of Purple Reign and EVOL, Future positioned himself to make an unusual career gamble. In 2017, Future released the self-titled FUTURE and followed it up less than a month later with HNDRXX. This is perhaps the most defining duology of Future’s discography. Both projects are 17 songs long and feature few guest artists beyond the bonus tracks. For many others in the trap genre this sort of output in such a short time would lead to oversaturation, but Future was able to vastly differentiate the two projects, as he dove into the two core personas he’s held since the start of his career.
FUTURE finds our titular rapper recounting what feels like an origin story, as he primarily focuses on his early days in Atlanta and his various escapades dealing drugs and collecting the money that comes with it. He paints us a vivid picture of a musty kitchen-turned-drug-lab on songs like “Scrape,” “When I Was Broke” and the fantastic closing track, “Feds Did a Sweep.” “Feds Did a Sweep” sounds like the end of an era, an outro to not only the album, but to this stage of Future’s life as well. Lyrically, the track takes us through Future’s thoughts as federal law enforcement bust his drug operation, taking many of his friends and associates into custody. Sonically, the song’s vibe is more laid back than what came before it, more in vein with the follow-up album, HNDRXX, making it the perfect segue into the stylistic switch up of its successor.
Future is out of the drug game on HNDRXX, and we find ourselves fast forwarded to him in the current day, surrounded by fame and excess. But, as many artists at the top have expressed, he lacks something deeper. HNDRXX is Future at his most vulnerable. We see a resurgence of melody within his music, but it is not reminiscent of the pop-rap approach seen on Honest. Here, Future is pouring his soul out to the listener in whichever form it comes, whether it be singing, rapping or a blend of the two.
He closes the album with “Sorry,” perhaps his most potent and transparent outro since “Codeine Crazy.” “Sorry” is an apology clearly addressed to his former fiancée, Ciara. He admits his faults and expresses that he is “sorry it’s gotta be this way” as he makes an attempt to extend the olive branch. Ciara and Future’s breakup was rocky, to say the least, as it involved defamation lawsuits and custody battles. After all, it is what triggered the drastic shift in Future’s career trajectory in the first place. The impact is even more evident when you consider that Future made a remix of Ciara’s song also titled “Sorry” in the early days of his career. It forms a full circle, and you would think this may have brought some peace to Future’s tormented soul.
Think again, as Future’s next full-length album, Future Hndrxx Presents: The WIZRD, finds Future in perhaps the deepest pit of his career. The WIZRD sounds like an active war zone in which all the combatants are under the influence of promethazine. It’s as if DS2 took FUTURE and HNDRXX then brewed up a devilish mixture embodying a twisted amalgamation of all three. There are minimal features once again: 18 of the 20 tracks are solo performances from Future. He relays his breakneck lifestyle as a whirlwind of drug-addled confusion, engaging in hedonistic activity and violent acts that are sure to make any man of the cloth shudder at their mere mention. He is clearly aware that he is not in the right state of mind, and he seems like he wants to escape from his self-imposed cycle of substance abuse, a cycle which leads to violence and excess. On the track “Tricks on Me,” Future can no longer distinguish between reality and his own hallucinations. He is adrift in a tumultuous codeine sea, at the mercy of its ever-raging monsoons.
Future leaves us in suspense as to where he is going next, ending the album on a cliffhanger. He wants out, and he begins to claw his way out of the pit on perhaps the most unique entry in his catalog: SAVE ME. Its closest analog is perhaps HNDRXX, but even that comparison does not adequately capture the pocket that Future places himself in here. “Xanax Damage” finds Future crooning about the consequences of his actions in a manner that somehow manages to be simultaneously unsettling and soothing. Over the course of this EP it is made clear that Future, by the grace of some higher power or perhaps his own sheer will, has started his climb out of the depths of his mind, handhold by handhold. The EP closes with “Love Thy Enemies,” where Future addresses some of his previous conflicts with exes while also sprinkling in a healthy amount of biblical allusions, implying that he has perhaps found solace in religion.
Regardless of how he found it, Future carries the self improvement momentum through his next album: High Off Life. As the title suggests, this album finds Future less reliant on drugs than he ever has been before, though he is certainly not clean. Rather than engaging in senseless excess, he is now enjoying the experiences that come with a lavish lifestyle surrounded by friends and protégés. He is joined by many of his previous frequent collaborators to celebrate their bonds, chemistry and good fortunes.
Young Thug and Lil Uzi Vert, two artists massively influenced by Future, have memorable guest appearances and remind us why each has their own full-length collaborative project with him. Future reunites with Drake once again for “Life Is Good,” a self-explanatory anthem encapsulating both his current state of mind and the tone of the album. On “Accepting My Flaws,” he admits that he could have better habits, but, rather than trying to cope with his imperfection in unhealthy ways, he instead embraces it. It finally feels as though Future has settled into a happy rhythm for the first time since he released Honest.
As both a fan and someone who had been listening to his discography chronologically for the entirety of February, High Off Life is a fitting resolution to the turmoil that Future has experienced over his massively iconic and influential career. That is not to say his music beyond that is not worthwhile: It certainly is. It is just that these projects are more like the epilogue to the poetic conclusion of an epic journey rather than a continuation. But who knows, Future is showing no signs of stopping when it comes to making music. Perhaps there are more twists and turns to be had.
Engaging in Future February was a musical experience that I will not soon forget, and maybe Truszkowski and I’s sharing of our experiences will inspire some to take the plunge into Future’s expansive discography next February. Perhaps some will take the plunge even sooner: It’s semantics, after all.
To read Truszkowski’s Future February article, click here.
This February, in an attempt to bond with my friend and co-worker Sam Kurtzman, I took on the task of listening to a Future album nearly every single day of the month. So, taking 22 days out of the month to listen to 22 albums, I dedicated my listening time to analyzing and growing my appreciation for Future’s discography.
When Kurtzman first proposed the task I was a little intimidated. I knew I lacked the knowledge and passion he had for Future and hip-hop music in general. For me, Future was good party music, and I was totally unaware of his massive discography. When Kurtzman added me to his comically pristine spreadsheet for tracking our progress, perhaps I should have been more intimidated, but my excitement only grew. I was willing to step into a box where I listen to primarily one artist and hang out with primarily one person. It was a Future-themed musical quarantine, but much more fun.
Throughout the month, I learned to follow Future’s albums like chapters of a story. As a lifelong bookworm, storytelling has always been one of my favorite aspects of music. But music doesn’t only tell stories about the artist. It also helps us discover new layers to those who love that music, opening our eyes to something in a friend we might’ve overlooked. As I got to know Future, I got to know Kurtzman. And, ultimately, the most important lesson I learned from Future February was how music can bring us together to build a friendship.
But, before we get too sappy, let’s dive into what I, a Future novice, thought of his albums.
We started off the month out of chronological order, with Honest. It was a strong start and the album immediately hooked me. The apprehension I had first felt about this project disappeared, and I was looking ahead at the month with a new motivation to know Future, as well as my hip-hop head friend.
Going into my listening journey, I kept in mind that nearly every artist plays a character. Sometimes this character changes or seems to disappear. Sometimes it’s “Mask Off” and the “real” person appears, but it’s all a part of the story. It is difficult to tell where the true Future appears throughout his albums, but Kurtzman and I agree that Honest is where the narrative begins.
Honest is a misleading first chapter into who this Future character is. As with his earlier releases, Astronaut Status and Pluto 3D, it has more of a pop-rap sound. It explores themes that are common in popular rap music — drugs, money and luxury — in a lighthearted delivery that keeps it easy to swallow. But Future did not make himself a legend by staying easy to swallow.
Rage is not easy to swallow, and Future communicates its hot explosion on Monster. This next chapter in the narrative has a pretty self-explanatory title and is the debut of a darker Future. He is deeply hurt, and rage is the only way he knows how to cope, adding a new dependency on the vices he raps about.
The contrasting feelings of hot anger and dull numbness emerge on Monster. This fulfills the prophecy of so many men who are brought up on the notion that feelings must be either buried or channeled into anger. A man’s struggle with how to manage his ugliest emotions is the story that plays out as this character reappears and disappears throughout his discography. As a woman, this is a story I am always watching from an outsider’s perspective, whether it’s happening in the music or right before my eyes.
This persona is solidified on what is widely regarded as Future’s best album, DS2. This is the album that told the world he is a trap superstar. It tells tales of violence and power, showing a Future that has slipped into his dark side and carried it with him to the top. In other words, he’s the man. He’s the man other men envy because his pain is not buried, but bubbling at the surface. It is something to be feared and respected.
This narrative continues throughout his next release, Purple Reign, which expresses a more mournful outlook on this lifestyle with a heavy focus on substance abuse. The harder outlook, with a bit more of that initial numbness we saw in Monster, comes back in EVOL. At this point in the story, Future is exploring the idea that he may be truly “Wicked,” and perhaps he does not care if he is. Throwing away the care for hurt caused and felt is a freeing thing, once again making him the envy of men longing to do the same.
The insertion of the self-titled album Future is a purposeful statement that we are now seeing the “real” Future. This message is solidified by one of his greatest hits, “Mask Off.” But has the mask really come off? Is the true Future a trap king, or is this just another character?
In stark contrast, the next chapter of Future’s story features a bit more remorse for his actions and sorrow for the pain he has endured. HNDRXX has more of an R&B sound that fits this toned-down mood. Tracks like “Damage” and “Use Me” reflect this shift in outlook on his lifestyle.
The collaborative album Future & Juice WRLD Present… WRLD ON DRUGS dives deeper into the darkness of substance dependency. It is only fitting that Future worked with Juice WRLD, who rose to fame by cultivating a dark, emo persona with a thematic focus on drug abuse. It is an excellent pairing of artists who are sharing this chapter in their stories.
This reflective streak continues into his next release, Future Hndrxx Presents: The WIZRD. It begins with “Never Stop,” a track that reflects on Future’s lifestyle in a way that is both triumphant and mournful. It sets the mood for this next chapter in his story, which still focuses heavily on the topics of trap life, drug abuse and violence. In this first track, Future directly references the story that unfolds through his music, saying:
“You gotta tell The WIZRD, it’s a story like a book.”
I found this line to be satisfying because it acknowledges that Future is attempting to author his own story. Whether this is a reference to the entire discography leading up to this point or just this specific album, I don’t know, but it confirmed the perspective I was building.
His next album is definitely the darkest point in his story, which is even reflected in its grungy cover art. SAVE ME, a literal cry for help, explores the emotions and drug addiction that are beginning to consume Future. The first track, “XanaX Damage,” portrays realities of drug dependency that make it hard to believe he is simply playing a character. This continues onto the next track, “St. Lucia,” whose first lyric is the album’s desperate plea: “Save me.” The message that, at this point in his story, Future is losing the battle with himself continues throughout the album.
Just when we think Future’s hit the bottom, he tells us he’s at his highest point. His 2020 album, High Off Life, still features many references to drug use, but makes the point that Future is still the master of his own story. While the drugs are present, it is life itself that is truly intoxicating. This triumphant message is made clear by track titles such as “Touch The Sky” and “Life is Good.”
This life-is-sweet narrative continues throughout his next album with Lil Uzi Vert, Pluto x Baby Pluto. By the time we reach his most recent album, I NEVER LIKED YOU, it seems as if he has fully come into himself again, or at least into that signature Future persona we met on the self-titled album. Perhaps this signifies healing, or as healed as Future can be in his industry. At least for now, he is once again the master of his story.
For me, Future’s story is one that is timeless: a man wrestling with himself. Whether or not his discography consists of characters and glamorization, it is a story that is told well.
Through every step of this journey, Kurtzman was there to help me decipher the codes Future uses to write this story. Every hour I spent with Future was essentially an hour spent with Kurtzman, as we soaked up each other’s perspectives while also having a ton of fun. Learning his tastes and patterns was like peeking into the private journal of a friend who I always thought was quite different from me and discovering endless similarities to connect us.
I have completed Future February and can now give this advice: When it comes to music, don’t be afraid to step out of your comfort zone. Stalk your friends’ playlists on Spotify. Check out their favorite artists. You might just learn something about them, and about yourself.
For more insight into Future’s journey, check out Kurtzman’s article.
Clairo teamed up with Phoenix this month to create a new version of “After Midnight” off Phoenix’s most recent album, Alpha Zulu. Speaking as someone who hasn’t dipped into Phoenix’s music since their big 2009 hits like “1901” and “Lisztomania,” this song was a blast from the past. I tuned in to hear Clairo and ended up being sent back to my childhood. The quintessential 2010s indie tone is still there, with layers of dreamy synths and a smooth, sweeping guitar led by a drum machine.
Clairo fits right in with this sound, her soft voice contrasting well against the emphatic synth. This single is reminiscent of her debut EP, yet again taking me back years ago. And Clairo wasn’t chosen randomly. The band had been fans of Clairo since the early days of her career. Clairo was a fan of Phoenix as well. With the two combined, the sound of “After Midnight” utilizes a synth soundscape to create an incredibly lively and nostalgic feel. This warmth welcomes old listeners, while being catchy enough to bring in the new. With the hypnotic bridge and repetitive melody, the tune is nearly impossible not to sing and dance along to.
Get ready for the 2023 Spring Concert, y’all. Hippo Campus is in town, and they just dropped a new single.
“Yippie Ki Yay” feels like the band’s usual indie-rock style with a country twist. It’s the second single pre-released from their EP Wasteland, which will be out on April 14. The concept for Wasteland is one that I wasn’t on board with at first. The first single, “Kick in the Teeth,” makes me feel like a lovesick cowboy. I couldn’t quite get down with the twang.
But I will gladly be a gunslinging outlaw for “Yippie Ki Yay.”
The drum intro gets me right away, and by the time the guitar comes in, my toes are tapping and my head is bopping. The lyrics pull me into a different world.
“Been chased for the last three weeks /
I move quick, got a bounty on me /
Outlawed in my prime, man /
No friends but the tumbleweeds.”
Suddenly, I’m a cowboy on the run.
The whole song builds up to an outro that I can imagine being sung by a mob of people (possibly in the Breslin Center). A celebration of life and youth.
“Yippie ki, yippie ki, yippie ki yay /
Riding high, riding high, riding highways /
Yippie ki, yippie ki, yippie ki yay /
Get on my, get on my, get on my way.”
I applaud Hippo Campus for trailblazing by staying true to themselves. Give “Yippie Ki Yay” a listen, go see the band perform live at the Breslin Center tonight, and maybe buy some cowboy boots.
This week in music history, a celebrated soul singer became a legend. “Sittin’ on the Dock of the Bay” by Otis Redding became the first posthumous No. 1 hit. The song was recorded shortly before Redding died in a plane crash on Dec. 10, 1967. Redding was traveling to a concert in Madison, Wisconsin, when the private plane went down in a small lake three miles shy of the runway. A month later, co-writer Steve Cropper released the single, which was technically unfinished. It topped the Billboard charts in March and stayed there for four weeks.
“Sittin’ on the Dock of the Bay” is about finding peace in times of despair. Redding’s soulful voice brought me comfort when I felt bogged down with preparations for the future last summer. Surely, it’s comforted millions of people over the last 56 years. “Sittin’ on the Dock of the Bay” has left a legacy greater than Redding could’ve ever imagined.
~Gabby Nelson
Today, all Little Monsters are in the holiday spirit. On March 28, 1986, Lady Gaga was born. Ever since her debut in the mid-2000s, the singer and actress has been a nonstop success. Born in New York, Lady Gaga slowly found success performing throughout New York City and perfecting her performances. According to Biography.com, she got her name from the Queen song “Radio Ga-Ga.”
Her first hit was the party anthem “Just Dance,” which reached No. 1 on Billboard in January 2009. Following was the album The Fame and the even more acclaimed The Fame Monster, which includes some of my personal favorites of hers, “Bad Romance,” “Alejandro” and “Telephone.”
Lady Gaga’s success is not limited to recording phenomenal music. She has won a Golden Globe for her appearance in American Horror Story, performed at the Super Bowl, had a residency in Las Vegas, and was nominated for multiple Academy Awards for the movie A Star is Born, winning one for Best Original Song.
In recent times, she has released numerous new albums, as well as starred in another movie, House of Gucci. A few weeks ago, she attended the Oscars again and performed her song from the new Top Gun movie, “Hold My Hand.” People Magazine noted how she performed in a $7 plain T-shirt, showing off the duality of the glamorous pop superstar.
Lady Gaga turns 37 this week, and I can’t wait to see what other accolades will be added to her spectacular career in the next year.
~Madison Reinhold
This week in music history, singer, songwriter and producer Jack Antonoff turns 39. On March 31, 1984, the Bleachers frontman was born, and his many contributions to the sound of modern pop music are celebrated.
Other than his work as the lead singer in Bleachers, Antonoff is known for his role as guitarist and drummer in pop group Fun., lead singer in indie rock band Steel Train, and his many albums with songwriting and producer credits.
During his time writing, he has received eight Grammy awards, including Producer of the Year in 2022 and 2023, and produced and wrote for artists like Taylor Swift, Lorde, Lana Del Rey, St. Vincent, Florence and the Machine and more.
His mark on the music industry has been made, and pop music has Jack Antonoff to thank, in part, for evolving the sound of today’s top hits.
~Arden Vanover
While “Entry of the Gladiators” blasts in our faces on this day, at least you haven’t the unfortunate trouble of having to pronounce Björk’s name in the proper Icelandic form to her face. Speaking of Björk, did you know that in 2009, she offered her skills to Led Zeppelin?
The legend of the eclectic Icelandic singer began in 1986 when she became the frontwoman of the Sugarcubes. The year after the band disbanded, she began her illustrious solo career. But where does Led Zeppelin come into the picture?
In 2009, Led Zeppelin held a one-off concert at London’s O2 Arena, where 20 million people were vying for 20,000 tickets. The success of the concert prompted the band to be on board with a reunion tour. All except for the lead singer Robert Plant. Plant was overwhelmed by the reunion, and didn’t want to relive the memories, no matter how much money was offered. Plant turned down $800 million to go on the tour. That is when Björk offered her services. Sadly, it was nothing more than a fun little April Fools Day prank. Sadly, we probably will never see Björk leading a band again, but that doesn’t mean that anything won’t happen just yet.
~Ashe Burr
It is that time of year again, the bane of social media managers and people who have coworkers who think they are funnier than they actually are, April Fools’ season.
Seriously, who allowed Corn Cob Crust Pizza to be a thing?
It is a time-honored tradition to participate in goofs, gaffs, shenanigans and possibly even tomfoolery around this time. To survive, even as a bystander, during this most unholy of holidays, you must be in the right headspace. To help you prepare, we created this playlist with as many twists and turns as we expect the day to have.
Over three years since the release of their debut album, Silhouettes, Detroit garage-psych trio Shadow Show returns with their newest track, “Radiant Hue.”
Exploding with color, “Radiant Hue” is characterized by melodic vocals, fuzzy guitars and a steady, unbeatable rhythm section that marks an experimental and courageous step for the group. Sounding closer to shoegaze or dream pop than their normal garage-psych sound, “Radiant Hue” may be a preview of future releases from the group.
Listeners have the distinct fortune and pleasure of listening to this track whilst eagerly awaiting the release of Shadow Show’s upcoming sophomore album. This single’s release is also accompanied by a striking new music video which transports viewers to a hallucinogenic dream realm of kaleidoscopic insanity.
Shadow Show, composed of guitarist/vocalist Ava East, drummer/vocalist Kerrigan Pearce and bassist/vocalist Kate Derringer, came onto the Detroit rock scene in summer of 2018 and has since established itself as one of the city’s most promising acts. The female trio brings a Beatles-like melodic sensibility to energetic garage pop songs and combines otherworldly lyrical themes with mod pop melodies, psychedelic garage rock and layered group harmonies. The cover art for “Radiant Hue” actually reminds me of the cover art for The Beatles’ album Rubber Soul.
“Radiant Hue” is a tune you can listen to while happy or sad; it makes you want to get up and dance or lie dazed in a trance. It’s a colorful adventure, and the band’s future is bright. I can’t wait to see what comes next from the trio: If they continue to release music of this caliber, their rise to stardom is almost certain.
Shadow Show is currently on their spring tour across the United States, which included a stop at SXSW in Austin, TX and ends back in Detroit at UFO Factory on March 24.
Rio de Janeiro’s Carnival may be the largest Carnival festival in terms of notoriety, but there’s another group of Carnivals out there: the Caribbean Carnivals. One facet of the Caribbean Carnival scene is the output of songs that are meant to play during Carnival. Most of these songs are from the subsect of music known as soca. But what exactly is soca?
Soca was first developed in Trinidad and Tobago in the early 1970s by Garfield “Lord Shorty” Blackman in an attempt to revitalize the calypso genre, which was losing popularity among the younger generation. The name soca came about as a misspelling. Lord Shorty initially spelled the style as “sokah,” which stood for the “Soul of Calypso,” with the “kah” being from the Sanskrit alphabet. He specifically used the Sanskrit spelling to honor the East Indian rhythms that were used in his first works, such as his 1973 release “Indrani.”
As soca began to take hold across Trinidad and Tobago, the style began to permeate Carnival competitions across the island. In 1978, Linda McCartha Monica “Calypso Rose” Sandy-Lewis was fresh off her win of the Trinidad and Tobago Road March competition, being the first woman to win the competition. Her entry in that year’s Road March competition marked the first time a soca song won the Road March competition. Not only that, but in 1978, Calypso Rose also became the first woman to win the Calypso King competition.
As soca was beginning to establish firm roots in Trinidad and Tobago in the 1980s, other musical styles began to form in the Caribbean. The two most notable of these are zouk and bouyon. These styles will be brought up again later. Soca in the 1980s still had a very heavy emphasis on calypsonian elements and had yet to establish much of an independent identity. The Trinidadian Road March champion songs of the time, like Edwin “Crazy” Ayoung’s 1985 winner, “Soucouyant,” showcase that aspect of the style.
In 1997, after gaining fame as a vocalist over the previous 11 years, Machel Montano — as frontman of the band Xtalix — won the Trinidadian Road March competition with his song “Big Truck.” His victory came at the ripe age of 22, making him the youngest winner of the Road March competition at the time.
In 1993, a new competition for Carnival was announced: the International Soca Monarch competition. The competition was split into two segments: International Soca Monarch for “power soca,” which includes songs above 135 bpm, and Groovy Soca Monarch for “groovy soca,” which includes songs under 134 bpm. With soca being a Trinidadian creation, it’s no surprise that Trinidadian artists dominated the competitions.
It would take until 2007 for an artist not from Trinidad and Tobago to win. Carlton “Biggie Irie” Cordel would go on to win the Groovy Soca Monarch competition. Around this time, soca began to separate itself from calypso. Biggie Irie’s winning song, “Nah Going Home,” shows this. Calypso still typically uses traditional instruments like steel pan drums and brass instruments as the backbone of the style, while soca typically embraces new instrumentation, such as the synthesized melody in the chorus of “Nah Going Home.”
As soca began to separate itself from calypso, multiple islands began to develop their own take on the style. Dominican artists blended bouyon with soca to make bouyon soca. St. Lucian artists melded kuduro, zouk, soca and Lucian drumming to make Dennery segment. Grenadian artists made their own variation to fit the Jab Jab festivities of their Carnival, which they also christened as Jab Jab. Every island in the Caribbean has their own Carnival festivities, and, while soca isn’t a mandatory participant, you would be hard-pressed to find a modern Caribbean Carnival where soca isn’t present.
The first major hit by a soca artist came in 2007, when London-born Bajan artiste Alison Hinds’ song “Roll It Gal” managed to break into the UK Singles Chart, albeit only at 135th. This came around two years after the song was initially released in Barbados. The song gained more notoriety after a reworked version of the song was released by J-Status in 2007. The J-Status version also featured a pair of Bajan artists in the infancy of their careers: Rihanna and Shontelle. The J-Status rework was released only a month before Rihanna’s smash hit “Umbrella” was released to critical acclaim.
Following her hits like “Super Bass,” “Fly” and “Starships,” Trinidadian native Nicki Minaj released “Pound the Alarm” as the fourth single from her album Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded. The song’s music video was shot during the 2012 Trinidad Carnival, and, in the video, Minaj shares the stage with soca stars Montano and Bunji Garlin. Garlin would have his big break at the end of the next year, with his song “Differentology” being a big hit in both the soca and EDM worlds. The song landed Garlin a contract with RCA Records and the song was remixed by Major Lazer before the group’s big break later that year.
In 2017, Kes released a song for the 2017 Carnival season called “Workout,” which featured a then-unknown singer named Nailah Blackman. Nailah Blackman, who is the granddaughter of Lord Shorty, was launched into the upper levels of the soca stratosphere off the back of the song. In the six years since the song was released, she has become one of the most prominent artists within the genre. She’s collaborated with a wide variety of artists, including Shenseea, Konshens, Oxlade and a member of the Kosoko Royal Family of Nigeria in Adekunle Gold. Nailah Blackman has been pushing soca in ways it hasn’t been pushed yet, and I’m sure she’ll continue elevating soca to levels that have yet to be achieved.
The 2019 Carnival season marked a cultural shift in terms of the artists that were seeing success in the power soca competitions. Shertz “Problem Child” James, a soca artist from St. Vincent and the Grenadines, released two songs, “Good Up Good Up” and “Nasty Up,” and both became hits for Carnival, but neither managed to win any awards. Problem Child’s fellow countryman, Gamal “Skinny Fabulous” Doyle, released “Famalay” with Garlin and Montano for the same Carnival season. Skinny Fabulous won the Trinidad Road March title, becoming the first foreign soca artiste to win the prestigious title.
After Biggie Irie won the Groovy Soca Monarch title in 2007, it would take 12 more years for the International Soca Monarch title to leave Trinidad and Tobago. Hollice “Mr. Killa” Mapp, a Grenadian artist, released the song “Run Wid It” for the 2019 Carnival season. The song, which featured on a Jab-Jab-influenced riddim — which is an instrumental shared by a number of soca and reggae artists, then often released as a compilation; one example being the Osaka Riddim from 2019, which Preedy, 5Star Akil, Kerwin DuBois, Charly Black, LFS Music and Voice used to create tracks for the 2019 soca season — that launched him into the forefront of the season’s playlists. The song became so popular that the Port of Spain Police Department issued a warning against taking the lyrics literally. This warning seemed to be a stamp of approval, as Mr. Killa became the first non-Trinibagonian to win the International Soca Monarch title.
The International Soca Monarch competitions took a hiatus during the COVID-19 pandemic, and, sadly, the competition will not be returning for the 2023 season. However, the Road March competition for the 2023 season was one of the most competitive seasons yet. Several soca legends came together for the Road March competitions, including Patrice Robert, Problem Child and Superblue with “Pieces;” Superblue and Lyrikal with “Jouvert Madness;” Nailah Blackman and Skinny Fabulous with “Come Home;” Voice and Alison Hinds with “The Return” and Voice plus Lil Natty and Thunda of Wuss Ways with “My Stage Now.” In the end, Bunji Garlin took the crown with “Hard Fete,” receiving his second Road March crown.
Although the 2023 Caribbean Carnival season has mostly passed, there are still Carnivals that have yet to occur. To help us prepare for the Carnivals that will be coming in April, I have attached a soca starter kit to this article. Carnival may only come once a year, but soca is a year-round event. Although it may be snowing in March here in Michigan, that doesn’t mean we can’t let soca take us to a place of warmth and sun.
The devastating new song from slowthai, “Tourniquet,” seriously crushed me when I first listened. The song’s title is a metaphor for cutting parts or people from your life to grow, like you would use a tourniquet to cut off limbs to save your life. Slowthai raps over a soft building piano with some wavy mellow guitars. He delivers raw rasping vocals where he’s almost screaming. I enjoyed how the beats and instrumentals were calming while slowthai rapped with such anger and emotion.
“You ever tried swimmin’ with your hands tied? /
I’m congested, lost in myself, with my senses diluted my— /
My inhibitions are lost, I feel confused /
You take everything I had to give /
I gave you more than I had to give /
What’s left? (Nothing), What’s left? (Nothing).”
As the music builds, slowthai is reflecting on everything he gave and everything that had been taken from him and eventually realizes that he doesn’t have anything left. Slowthai could be rapping about someone, his fans or even drugs that take everything from him and eventually realizing that he would give it all away anyway.
“I give you everything I’ve got ’til the last fucking bone I have (Aah) /
Take it all, take it all, take it and leave, take it and leave, take it and leave, please /
(You can have everythin’).”
Slowthai’s latest album, UGLY, is some of his best work yet, and I love his blend of British grime music, post-punk and rapping. Slowthai’s work always feels like such a personal listening experience. The messages he puts in his music feel personal to him.
On March 21, 2004, rocker Ozzy Osbourne was selected as the U.K.’s favorite alien ambassador.
Following the discovery of water on Mars, the news site Yahoo! held a poll to decide who would be the ideal person to welcome hypothetical alien visitors. Competitors included U.S. President George Bush, British Prime Minister Tony Blair, game-show host Simon Cowell and media personality Katie Price. Osbourne beat out the competition with 26% of the vote. At the time of the vote, Osbourne was still in the process of recovering from a nearly fatal quad bike accident that left him with several broken bones.
Osbourne is no stranger to the extraterrestrial. His son, Jack Osbourne, has shown strong belief in the possibility of cosmic neighbors in programs such as Jack Osbourne’s Night of Terror: UFOs and The Osbournes Want to Believe. Ozzy himself revealed on his SiriusXM show Ozzy’s Boneyard that he believes the government is hiding evidence of extraterrestrials. In the same spiel, he also claimed that historical incidents of religious experiences were actually alien encounters described with the wrong terms.
~Karson Sims
This week in music history, the emo world stood still. On March 22, 2013, My Chemical Romance announced their breakup in a statement on their website. Every emo kid remembers where they were on this day. I remember being in middle school and watching the weird kids’ lunch table erupt in wails and sobs (I was at the table wailing so it’s fine that I call it the weird kids’ table). I walked back to art class in tears and painted myself crying with Gerard Way holding a wilted rose in watercolor.
Their goodbye message said in part: “Being in this band for the past 12 years has been a true blessing… We’ve shared the stage with people we admire, people we look up to, and best of all, our friends. And now, like all great things, it has come time for it to end. Thanks for all of your support, and for being part of the adventure.” According to an interview with The Guardian, Way simply said it no longer felt fun to create music anymore. After 12 years and four albums, I would start to feel tired too.
But rejoice! In 2019, the band had a reunion. They released an absolute banger of a track, “The Foundations of Decay,” in May 2022. They also went on tour in late 2022. While their split may have altered the lives of emo kids around the world, their reunion has restored balance in the universe.
~Norene Bassin
With the Oscars having happened last week, we look to previous Oscars to compare the events to one another. This week in music history, Stevie Wonder was awarded the Oscar for Best Original Song for “I Just Called to Say I Love You,” which was written for The Woman in Red. The song would go on to become Wonder’s best selling song, but that was not what stole the show on March 25, 1985.
In his acceptance speech for the award, Wonder dedicated the award to Nelson Mandela, the then-imprisoned anti-apartheid fighter, before thanking Dionne Warwick and Gene Wilder. At the time, Mandela was imprisoned in South Africa, having been incarcerated for the previous 21 years, and would remain incarcerated for another 5 years. The apartheid government, at the time led by P. W. Botha, did not take kindly to Stevie Wonder’s comments. So, they took the only logical step that a government propped up by the systemic oppression of the vast majority of the population could do; they banned his music from the airwaves.
This was not the first time that apartheid South Africa banned artists from the airwaves. Numerous South African artists, including most notably Miriam Makeba, were taken off the air for their outspoken anti-apartheid views. Makeba actually met Mandela when he was a young lawyer, who said she would become someone. Eventually known for her song “Qongqothwane,” Makeba was one of the faces of the fight against apartheid, with her music being banned outright later in her career.
That comment wasn’t the only thing Wonder contributed to his fight against apartheid. He would go out and hired exiled South African musicians to feature on his track “It’s Wrong,” and he denounced the regime at his 35th birthday party where he was honored by a UN committee. Hewas arrested earlier in 1985 for protesting apartheid outside the South African embassy in Washington D.C. The regime would only last for 5 more years, and both Wonder and Makeba’s airway bans were lifted. Mandela would eventually be elected president of South Africa, marking an end to apartheid.
~Ashe Burr
The pints have been downed. The Chicago River is slowly losing its hue. Bottles of liquor from Bailey and James’ son litter the floors, and the bars have found more profit than on any other day. This holiday, which is to honor Saint Patrick, the patron saint of Ireland, has somehow morphed into an unofficially-official holiday of drinking until you drop in the United States.
The Feast of St. Patrick, which is what the modern holiday stems from, honors the not quite Irish saint. Much like the “Irish” pubs that dot the landscape, Patrick wasn’t truly Irish. St. Patrick was born in Roman era Britain, likely in Scotland. Patrick made his name converting the Emerald Isle to Christianity, but is now better known as a folk hero.
One of the most prominent stories featuring St. Patrick is that of him driving all the snakes out of Ireland. Considering that Ulster has yet to be reunited with the rest of the island, that hasn’t worked out. To honor him, a feast is held annually to his name.
Many of the St. Patrick’s Day traditions stem from the wave of immigrants that left the island after the Great Hunger in the 1840s. Pubs in the east coast of the United States were meeting hubs for the growing Irish population. This led to pubs and the Irish-American population being seemingly intertwined. One of the most prevalent Irish stereotypes in this current day is that of alcoholism. It isn’t clear how the holiday ended up being the way it is, but it would likely stem from that intertwining and stereotype.
So, how does any of this relate to this 40-second-long “song” from the unnecessary 2013 sequel of the film that spawned the bane of my existence? Well, that’s a bit of a story. You see, the song is a parody of the chorus of another song of the same name by Da Vinci’s Notebook. I’ll get into that later.
The scene in Despicable Me 2 features the Minions partying after a not-so-hard day’s work for Gru. They are all carrying steins of ice cream — remember, this is supposed to be a children’s film — while singing a drinking song. Drinking songs have a long and storied history in Europe, but especially in the nations of the British Isles. Traditions of drinking songs have carried on to this day, but not in the same vein. “The Star-Spangled Banner” is set to “The Anacreontic Song,” which was a drinking song created by the Anacreontic Society.
One Minion, who is carrying a tray of steins, also has shot glasses on the tray. Either this means that ice cream is intoxicating to the Minions or there’s something else going on here. Hell, there is even a full dry bar in the film. There are some antics that could be associated with drunkenness, such as a Minion wearing a knight’s helmet backwards swinging around a mace, a pair holding another stumbling Minion up and another Minion flirting with what appears to be a trash can with a face drawn on it.
Illumination Studios had set the bar so low: First they leaned into ethnic stereotypes — which I can’t mention without a nod to the main villain of the film, a Mexican villain named El Macho — and then they followed up with a film filled with war crimes. I wish I were making this up.
The lyrics of the original song reference many Irish stereotypes, not just alcoholism. Thankfully, the one good thing the film did in regard to this was make the lyrics indecipherable. But they didn’t have to bloody name it “Another Irish Drinking Song!”
This film has absolutely nothing to do with Ireland. What did we ever do to the French? The bar was on the ground and Illumination Studios brought out a shovel. I sincerely hope that when the Super Mario Bros. movie is released, we see as much of a lean into Italian stereotypes as they did with the Irish in the 40 seconds this clip comes from.
The city of Detroit has historically been a cultural hub exploding with music, art and fashion rivaled by few cities across the world. Not only did it host Motown, but legends like The Stooges, MC5, Death, The Gories, Negative Approach, Laughing Hyenas and The White Stripes have all emerged from the streets of Detroit.
Blasting out of the basement and tearing off the roof of some of your favorite Detroit venues, like the Outer Limits Lounge and the UFO Factory, the Stools and Toeheads are not to be taken lightly. The young punk trios are a newer component to Detroit’s vile stench of hip-shaking, foot-stomping rock ‘n’ roll and are ready to explode.
The Stools and Toeheads released their split LP, Watch It Die, on Oct. 7, 2022, and haven’t looked back since. The Stools have played a slew of live shows, including a performance with Easy Action at the Outer Limits Lounge on New Year’s Eve, and Toeheads released another record, A Cruel Winner’s World, on Dec. 16. Released through Drunken Sailor Records, Watch It Die is a split LP featuring the fuzzy and abrasive garage-punk sound of two of the most prominent up-and-coming bands in the Detroit music scene.
Composed of guitarist-vocalist Will Lorenz, bassist-vocalist Krystian Quint and drummer Charles Stahl, The Stools take a garage rock sound all too familiar to Detroit and make it distinctly their own. With a sound that smashes through your speakers like a freight train on a never-ending track, The Stools bring an energy unlike any other that can only be truly experienced at one of their high octane live shows.
The Stools, along with Joey Hanania of Toeheads, also play in a band called PHARMA. Stahl also runs his own record label, Painters Tapes. The Stools have gigged across the United States and played opening slots for acts such as Jack White, Raconteurs, The Gories, Surfbort and Reigning Sound. They’ve also held festival spots at Levitation in Austin, Texas and Muddy Roots in Tennessee.
This album opens with “Dead Man’s Ford” by The Stools and almost instantaneously you can feel that tingle traveling down your spine and into your feet, making you tap right to that beat. This is some real lo-fi garage rock to get you out of your seat.
“Dead Man’s Ford is like five years old /
It rusts like a tea kettle on the lawn /
Wind tears foreheads off the billboards.”
A town with faceless billboards and an automobile left to rot by its deceased owner creates the perfect setting for the lawlessness soon to follow. The phrase “Dead Man’s Ford” is repeated with a robust vigor throughout the song, properly introducing you to The Stools and setting you up for the rest of the ride that is Watch It Die. Also, you can’t help but to wonder if the Dead Man’s Ford is the car on the album cover — I’d like to think that it is.
Next up on the tracklist is “Fascist Cupid.” In Roman mythology, Cupid is the god of desire and affection tasked with the role of shooting people with arrows infused with the power of love. You have to exhibit at least some degree of fascism in order to control how people fall in love. However, The Stools are not angered at this despotic deity and instead sympathize with him:
“I grieve for you /
You fascist Cupid /
Playing the pan flute.”
You can’t help but to feel bad for the god of desire, as he is subject to an eternity of making others fall in love, but will never truly experience those feelings himself.
My personal favorite track of the album, and one of my most listened to songs as of late, is “Strong Street Stranglehold.”
“The black gloved watchman /
He jumps you like a smokeshow /
In the blue rain dust bowl /
Your frostbite grave awaits /
Strong Street Stranglehold in my brain.”
Borrowing part of the song title from Motor City rocker Ted Nugent’s track “Stranglehold,” this song truly grabs you by the neck and doesn’t let go. I don’t have the slightest clue as to what a Strong Street is or why it is in their brain, but this song is a perfect blues garage rock tune to showcase just what The Stools are made of.
At the beginning of the song “Can’t Feel Good” off The Stools’ live recorded album Live at Outer Limits, an unnamed individual — presumably an employee of the Outer Limits Lounge — states, “As an old dude, I’ve got a lot of people who come up to me and say rock ‘n’ roll’s dead, and I’m like, ‘Do you know The Stools?’”
“Evil” is just one of the many tracks that showcase how The Stools are keeping rock ‘n’ roll alive:
“Dance across my back like it’s broken glass /
Don’t tell me when you’re leaving next /
Way down low where the needles go /
Breaking my neck on a pin prick thumb rest /
You’re evil /
You’re under my skin.”
Rounding out the The Stools side of the LP is “Harsh Green River.” Continuing the formidable speed and tight musicianship of The Stools, “Harsh Green River” reminds listeners of the many polluted aquatic bodies in and surrounding the city of Detroit.
Toeheads are composed of bassist Hanania, guitarist/vocalist Jake Aho and drummer Derek Burbank. Toeheads are an angst-filled trio bringing you filthy garage punk rock ‘n’ roll in the finest Detroit fashion. Characterized by anxiety-inducing beats and lots of screaming and jerky rhythms, with a lo-fi garage rock undertone at the same time, Toeheads will charm you before punching you in the mouth. Toeheads represent the garage-punk genre in the vein of their forefathers, like Jay Reatard and Ty Segall, bestowing upon listeners monstrous anthems like “Told You Twice” and “Skubble.” Toeheads exhibit a sense of lawlessness that can only truly be experienced when attending one of their raucous live performances.
Toeheads begin their side of the LP with “Wanna Be Alone.” When you are constantly surrounded by people and always moving, sometimes you just want to slow down and be alone. This song tells of that longing feeling:
“Well I just want to be alone /
Want to sit here all by myself /
If you ever think of callin’
Spend that dime on somethin’ else.”
The next song on the tracklist is “Haista Vittu.” I apologize to any Finnish readers who may be offended by the title of this song.
“Haista vittu /
Rich villain die /
Buy a block and let it rot /
While people live inside /
I hope they kill you /
You and your kids /
Got no love for you /
They never did.”
With a theme that reminds me of Dead Kennedys’ “Let’s Lynch the Landlord,” “Haista Vittu” exposes some of the evils that landlords — specifically slumlords — are notorious for. Many landlords will purchase properties and then charge exorbitant rates to tenants without ensuring that these properties are adequate living spaces, thus violating the rights of their tenants. Landlords have no care, though: You’d better make sure to pay your rent on time or else you’ll be out on the streets. In the song, the beggars and workers rise up to kill the landlords and bury them in shallow graves. “Haista Vittu” showcases a response to landlords abusing their power in classic punk rock fashion.
Toeheads do their best early Oblivians impersonation on “Painkiller.” With a formula that’s guaranteed to get the people grooving, “Painkiller” is a classic garage rock tune describing the dependance of painkillers for relieving past trauma:
“I went to the doctor /
So he could fix the hole /
The hole, the hole /
In my heart.”
Water is one of the basic necessities to human life, and without water we will all perish. “Water War” recognizes this and describes how one day wars will be fought over water and that people will need to battle just to quench their thirst:
“In the end we’ll be too dry for tears /
So watch it die, let it go /
Our thirst will be all we know.”
The final track from Watch it Die, “I Wanna Be in Your Life (So I’ll Die)” teaches us that Toeheads are not a one-trick pony. This song is a tale of life after death. A highly expressive croon beaming with emotion, this song highlights the mortal struggle of human existence and the grave reality that all people must die, along with the emptiness that ensues following the loss of a loved one. It is an absolutely devastating album-ender which highlights Aho’s vocal range.
“I want to be in your life /
So I’ll die so I’ll die.”
Harsh, fast and unforgiving, but beautiful all at once, this album serves to encapsulate the spirit of Detroit in music form. The Stools and Toeheads are both masters of their craft and I wouldn’t be surprised if either of these bands ends up becoming the next great thing to come out of Detroit.
Today is a day that is often defined by excess, albeit in a form that cannot be fully contained musically. But if there were ever a song that captures that spirit of excess to me, it’s “I’m Shipping Up To Boston” by The Dropkick Murphys. Blasted at every sporting event in or related to Boston and in many movies set in Boston, this song is Boston in a bottle. And what city captures the spirit of St. Patrick’s day more than Boston? St. Louis? Certainly not, just because Saint is in the name doesn’t mean anything.
But the location of the Irish spirit of excess matters not, for it is everywhere on St. Patty’s day. For in every pint of Guinness there is something special that spreads holiday cheer, in a way we are all shipping up to Boston.
St. Patrick’s Day. Friday. East Lansing. Well, that’s a hell of a combination. What will the bar-going masses hear throughout this holiday weekend? It’ll likely be a mix of Irish drinking songs, Irish Republican Army anthems and smash hits from the American pop sphere. Once again, that’s a hell of a combination. We’re here to replicate that combination: If you’re not huddled in a bar bathroom hearing the muffled sounds of “I’m Shipping Up to Boston” and “Like a G6” through the door this St. Patrick’s Day weekend, this playlist can help you mimic that essential experience.
It has been nearly a half-year since the release of Alvvays’ latest album, Blue Rev, and I have absolutely no clue what my favorite track from the record is. First it was “Easy On Your Own,” complete with its towering vocals and anthemic attitude. Then it was “Pomeranian Spinster” and the dizzying glee of its guitars spinning the listener around a teacup ride at a carnival of personal crisis. “Bored in Bristol,” “Tile by Tile” and “Belinda Says:” all of them had me just as captivated.
Oh, how could I almost forget the period where “Tom Verlaine”’ crashed into my consciousness with that dang 10-second span from the 2 minute 32 second mark to the 2 minute 42 second mark? They’re just not playing fair.
Impact’s music director, Mason Vore, had the fantastic opportunity to sit down and talk with Molly Rankin of Alvvays. The band is in the midst of a large North American/European tour and is at the tail end of an equally massive press tour, so these questions focused on unique details about the band and Blue Rev likely not covered in some other interviews done in this press cycle.
For example: their collaboration with Stardew Valley creator ConcernedApe for the “Many Mirrors” music video, their non-music-related influences and even some thoughts around Rankin’s interest in fantasy basketball and the Toronto Raptors.
Give Blue Rev and this interview a listen!
Adapted from the comic book series of the same name, The Crow is a tale of tragedy in both real life and cinema. The Crow centers on a dark angel who rises from the dead to seek vengeance on a gang of thugs who murdered him and his fiancée the night before their wedding. Lead actor Brandon Lee, slain by a prop gun during production, haunts every frame of his final film.
The Crow flutters stylishly through a nighttime world of rain-drenched backstreets, towering rooftops and shadowy club rooms. The camera darts from ledge to ledge like a winged creature. When it’s time for fighting, the songs punch loud, boisterous holes in the soundtrack, and when the story turns mournful — which is often — Graeme Revell’s electronic, dirge-like score drapes the story in a postmodern veil.
The film opens with a crow gliding across the night sky, bringing the viewer in for a slow landing over a bleak urban landscape blighted by fires on Devil’s Night, which is Halloween Eve. The film’s narrator, Sarah, informs us that “people once believed that when someone dies, a crow carries their soul to the land of the dead, but sometimes something so bad happens that a terrible sadness is carried with it and the soul can’t rest, and sometimes, just sometimes, the crow can bring the soul back to put the wrong things right.”
Shelly Webster, played by Sofia Shinas, and Eric Draven, played by Lee, were set to be married on Halloween night. However, Draven and Webster had been protesting unethical practices by their landlord, and, as a result, crime boss Top Dollar, played by Michael Wincott, ordered his thugs to intimidate the soon-to-be-married couple. Draven is then brutally murdered by the bunch of drooling hooligans who then rape and mortally injure his bride-to-be.
Exactly one year following his death, Draven rises from the grave to exact his revenge upon the four homicidal profanities who destroyed his life. He returns to the scene of the murder amidst a montage of painful memories of the dreaded night, and he covers his face in makeup which, as one character fittingly states, makes Draven look like “a mime from hell.”
Draven was an up-and-coming rockstar — part of the fictional band Hangman’s Joke — and his songwriting ability is shown throughout the film as he delivers a handful of dialogues with poetic qualities which force the viewer to reason about the power of love and the tragedy of losing a loved one. Guided by the mythical crow like a harbinger of death, the immortal, undead Draven exacts his vengeance one-by-one on the individuals responsible for he and his fiancée’s murder.
As Draven works his way up to the bass-voiced ringleader, Top Dollar, he establishes sympathetic links with the detective, played by Ernie Hudson, who is assigned to the original massacre, and the film’s narrator, Sarah, played by Rochelle Davis. Draven and Webster used to take care of Sarah while her mother was working.
When Lee is on-screen, rage, guilt, madness and stoic expressiveness transform his character into a truly disturbing figure who can kill only with the black and white makeup on his face. The film creates one of the most imaginatively rendered, impressively sustained artificial worlds seen on film, and the action is riveting.
Although it’s largely overshadowed by Lee’s death, The Crow is one of the best comic book adaptations that I have ever seen.
The film prematurely claimed the life of Lee, son of martial arts master Bruce Lee. He did not have a very distinguished career up until this role, but this role would have made him a performer to reckon with, and would have most likely propelled his career to new heights.
Lee’s co-star, Michael Massee, fired a prop gun at him during filming on March 30, 1993, in Wilmington, North Carolina. Although the revolver was loaded with blanks, the gunpowder in the blank cartridge ignited, leading Massee to unknowingly fire a bullet fragment at Lee, who later died in surgery. While Massee did not face any criminal charges, Lee’s mother did successfully sue the filmmakers for an undisclosed amount.
The events of Lee’s death have recently reemerged in the news because actor Alec Baldwin fired a live round from a Colt .45 pistol on the set of the film Rust, which resulted in the death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins in 2021. The scene in which Lee was accidentally shot is not in the film, but the fact of his death cannot help but provide a melancholy subtext to everything he does on screen, especially Draven’s poetic speeches about death and revenge. The irony of Lee dying and playing a character that rises from the dead does not go unnoticed. Plagued with issues from the beginning, the crew of The Crow watched as sets burned down, stuntmen got injured and a hurricane struck. This was all before the prop gun accident that claimed Lee’s life.
There are also eerie parallels between the lives of Lee and Draven. Draven was an up-and-coming rockstar who was brutally murdered by a gang of street thugs the night before he was set to marry his fiancée. In real life, up-and-coming actor Lee, who hoped this would be his breakthrough role, was set to marry his fiancée, Eliza Hutton, within days of the film’s completion.
First-time director Alex Proyas approached The Crow with a neo-noir aesthetic and technical artistry that gives the film a glossy sheen which matches the wet asphalt in nearly every scene. Proyas portrays a cynical, decadent world submerged in darkness and violence: a world of people who have lost any trace of morality, where the police are synonymous with incompetence and the perpetual rain striking the moistened streets covers the stains of blood shed by the innocent.
Proyas and his technical team have created a world that will remind you of the urban wasteland in Blade Runner and of the gothic extravagances of Batman. His visual style, captured mostly by the camerawork of Dariusz Wolski, is quite absorbing when displayed as a gothic panorama of the city. The camera swoops high above the city or dips low for extreme-angled shots.
Video production designer Alex McDowell devised a staggering look for the bombed-out cityscape. The tale is set in an inner city so hellish it makes Gotham City look like Sesame Street. Characters cast fearsome shadows and buildings are exaggerated in their architectural details. The Crow, with its fast pace and countless camera setups, evokes settings portrayed in comic books with much more accuracy than other comic book adaptations. It also reflects a more realistic nature through its villains and settings; the viewer is so deeply immersed into the story, it’s almost as if they could imagine themselves right alongside Draven. Although the story follows a generally linear narrative line with no subplots, twists or turns, the technical artistry and set design keeps the viewer hooked for the entire ride that is The Crow.
The masterfully crafted soundtrack follows you through every dark alley Draven trudges through. It is interwoven into the film, making it much more than normal filler between dialogue. The Crow is Proyas’ first work on a major film; he had previously directed rock music videos, and, with his use of music in this film, his experience is exceedingly apparent.
This is a film that depends upon the energy, both creative and violent, of the soundtrack. The Cure wrote the song “Burn” for the movie. James O’Barr, creator of the comic book The Crow, was a fan of The Cure. In fact, he dedicated a full page in his book to reprinting the lyrics of their song “The Hanging Garden.” When the film was in production, O’Barr asked The Cure if “The Hanging Garden” could be used in the film. Frontman Robert Smith was a fan of The Crow and wrote the song “Burn” for the film instead.
“The end is all that’s ever true /
There’s nothin’ you can ever say /
Nothin’ you can ever do /
Still every night I burn /
Every night I scream your name.”
The Cure’s “Burn” is a beautiful, melodic, almost hypnotic track because of its guitar and synthesizer work. A pounding bassline, tribal drums, atmospheric synths, cleanly picked guitar lines and, of course, calls of the crow are highlighted on “Burn.” The track is dark, extremely brooding and perfect for the film. At about seven minutes long, “Burn” is a slow-burner that clearly serves to immerse, both for the song itself and for the rest of the soundtrack.
Similar in style to “Burn” is the next track in the soundtrack, “Golgotha Tenement Blues” by Machines of Loving Grace. “Golgotha Tenement Blues” is a heavier, distortion-wracked — but still slow paced — industrial song from Machines of Loving Grace. With its hopeless lyrics, slithering bassline and unsettling synths, one cannot help but imagine Draven hunting down his enemies through the eternally rainy, gang-torn streets of The Crow.
Probably the best-known song off the soundtrack is Stone Temple Pilots’ “Big Empty.” Although it is a standard grunge tune, it doesn’t necessarily match the intensity of much of the rest of the soundtrack. Following it is Nine Inch Nails’ cover of Joy Division’s “Dead Souls.” Trent Reznor’s voice takes hold of your spirit as he desperately chants “calling me” until the track ends, taking you away into the darkness. Next up on the soundtrack, Rage Against The Machine brings “Darkness” to the table, and while it still features unique Tom Morello guitar play and classic scatting and rap from Zach de la Rocha, it intersperses some calmer moments with spoken word, cleanly picked guitar and a chill bassline that makes it fit with the soundtrack’s overall tone.
Next, Violent Femmes bring a bluesy, club-like sound to the table with “Color Me Once,” complete with a slinky guitar riff, shaking vocal delivery and a smooth bass line. This track literally bleeds of anguish and allows you to get inside the mind of Draven. Next up on the track list is Rollins Band’s “Ghostrider.” One of the more popular songs from one of Henry Rollins’ post-Black Flag endeavors, “Ghostrider” is a stoner/sludge rock song with Rollins sounding almost like a deeper, stilted Jim Morrison.
The riff-heavy alt-metal number “Milktoast” by alt-metal pioneers Helmet comes up next, working to contribute to the overall atmosphere. Hardcore fans will enjoy the addition of Pantera’s “The Badge” on the film’s soundtrack. For Love Not Lisa adds the pulsating, thrashing beat of “Slip Slide Melting” complete with a punk, boxy guitar riff and loose vocals. My Life With The Thrill Kill Kult contributes the punk-and-thrash-influenced industrial track “After The Flash,” characterized by voiceovers and strange lyrics which transport you into a dark, industrial club. Medicine’s lead, Annette Zilinskas, offers a much more soothing song in “Time Baby III” after the stormy ride of the other tracks.
In the film, you hear a snippet of a recording from Draven’s band’s song “It Can’t Rain All The Time”’ with what sounds like Lee on vocals. In the film, Draven tells Sarah that “It can’t rain all the time” to comfort her and let her know that things won’t always be bad. Jane Siberry delivers the anthemic “It Can’t Rain All the Time,” which works well as a closing track and as an ode to Lee.
This soundtrack will disappoint neither fans of the movie nor fans of music in general. The soundtrack is vitally important, as it works to establish the mood of The Crow, and listening to the soundtrack works to transport the listener right back to the dark underworld of the film.
The Crow soars high. At first rumored to be impossible to complete due to the tragic accidental death of Lee eight days before lensing was due to wrap, the film that finally emerged is a seamless, pulsating, dazzling visual revenge fantasy that stands as one of the most effectively adapted films ever derived from a comic strip. The soundtrack only makes this immortal and symbolic farewell even more unforgettable, and it stands on its own as one of the best soundtracks ever crafted for a film.
The sun is out again.
During the stretch between early December and late January, I can’t say that I saw the sun for more than a minute at a time. But the clouds often looked crimson and Crown Royal purple when it would sneak below the horizon for an even greater darkness than we had before, and that held me over for a while. I also developed an appreciation for the nighttime’s oft-starless sky as a counter to the daytime: It seems that winter can somehow make light pollution comforting.
But now the sun is out again.
As the winds of springtime begin to cut deeper and deeper into 30 degree days, I’m glad to have some warmth on my skin. With this warmth comes a song that echoes from forgotten summer nights — those nights forgotten because, in essence, not much happened. But they were warm, and that was enough for me.
“Hello Stranger” by Michigan singer-songwriter Barbara Lewis happens to be the song reaching out from those nights, and it is working to restore those fragments lost, those dissipating faces and insignificant moments lost to the great Midwest winter. It is working to reinvigorate the connection between memory and love.
“Hello stranger /
It seems so good to see you back again.”
Whenever the sun returns from its cloud-covered hibernation, it is easy to think about the past. Resisting those thoughts can grow to be a greater weight than thought possible. But this year, I feel differently about the past. And I feel differently about memory itself, about warm skies, about love. “Hello Stranger” is with me in this, perhaps as a guide, perhaps as a backdrop for thoughts of summer. But regardless, Lewis’ gentle, longing croons and the almost-intoxicating comfort of an organ tip-toeing in the background leave me at peace.
When I listen to “Hello Stranger,” I think of a handheld radio that used to sit on a ping-pong table in my grandparents’ basement. I think of how I’d extend and retract its antenna over and over and over, how I’d randomly turn every knob on it to build a wall of noise anyone around me must have found unbearable, how I wish it were with me now and for the summer ahead.
I would like to hear “Hello Stranger” on that radio, hiding somewhere behind me so that I’d only hear it as a whisper, as a faint tingling on my skin along with a summer evening’s breeze.
I would think about love, then. And by association, memory. I’d think about love as a collection of old photos, as a pile of empty beer cans, as an old radio going unheard in a train’s blaring by. When I’ve thought about love recently, and how I hope to think about it when it’s 70 degrees outside, I’ve thought about it through memories — nothing but memories. Memories of 10 years ago, one year ago, one month ago, one week ago, one day ago. And I’ve only recently come to understand the true importance of taking and saving photographs. Mom and Dad, I’m sorry for complaining so much about photos in the past.
Perhaps this year, I’ll take more photographs than ever before. Of what, I’m not sure, but perhaps they’ll end up being nice to have. And perhaps I’ll stumble on a memory of this spring and summer somewhere down the line, memories sure to be laden with threads both somber and vibrant. I know what I’ll never forget from this year, but I’d also like to remember bright skies and verdant hills, a city’s worth of hugs, the sound of a river flowing calmly by and gentle laughter in the wind.
“How long has it been? /
Ooh, it seems like a mighty long time.”
Today is a Tuesday and all the flowers are dead. The sun is shining abnormally bright for late February, seemingly mocking the children of Michigan State University who yearn for the healing warmth of a spring day. Today’s sunshine brings out the hope those children have for the end of academic stressors, for the end of term, for better days.
But we’re young: These are supposed to be the better days. These are supposed to be the days where, despite any alleged good sense we might have, we’re supposed to be wearing shorts to spite the cold sun. Then why aren’t they? Why don’t these feel like those days? Why do those days feel far away and behind us? Because today is a Tuesday and all the flowers are dead.
I’ve found myself endlessly fascinated by Citizen’s decision to title this album Youth. Here is a collection of songs so heartbroken, lonely and frustrated that they should reek of old age and regret. Instead, the pained mutterings of despair on Youth betray the very essence of what it feels like to be young.
To be young is to have the days move by too fast, to only be able to focus on your mistakes and to feel like everything and everyone is so very far away. Youth is to feel everything deeply, including — maybe even especially — the worst of it. For example, maybe it’s a sunny, almost-spring day, but all you can focus on is that it’s cold, a Tuesday and that all the flowers are dead.
The cold rays of a warm sun are reminiscent of the propellant first 10 seconds of “Roam The Room,” which dupe the listener with expectations of upbeat jams, but that momentum is soon shed in favor of a half-time groove that lulls us into the song, and thus, the album. When the up-tempo beat returns for the chorus, we welcome its familiarity but are somewhat perplexed. The jockeying between speeds on the opening track establishes a tension that will last for the rest of the album, like the tension between sun and cold.
On a project overflowing with chilly slow jams, we eagerly anticipate our next sunny acceleration, which doesn’t come until “Drawn Out,” the closing track. Thanks to “Roam The Room,” we end up expecting a certain velocity that we don’t receive until the end, which keeps us wanting just a little bit more, just as moody twenty-somethings wish for just a little more heat on brightly frigid days.
At the exact midpoint of the album, the gentle strums of “The Night I Drove Alone” greet tired ears that are already emotionally exhausted from the first five tracks. Unfortunately, the track offers no respite for the weary, containing within its gently meandering tones one of the most heartbreaking lyrics ever penned:
“And you talk like someone else.”
This encapsulates the entire album; these six words are Youth. This line is the heartbreak of losing a young lover to the sea of 7 billion; it is coming home to greet childhood friends who you no longer recognize; it is looking in the mirror and realizing you’re growing up. This line contains all of the infinite tragedies that come with youth: every gain and loss, along with every growth and regression. This line conjures a sadness in me that nothing else does. There is such high despair in the delivery — such defeat — that you can’t help but let it hold your hand as you relive the alienation of realizing you no longer know someone you love.
One of the many — and most important — intangible qualities of Youth is a feeling of drifting. Forces beyond your control lightly bat you to and fro, leaving you to float down hallways where every door is a memory. Some doors are locked, some slightly ajar and some wide open, beckoning you to come back to when things were simpler. But when rose-colored glasses are dropped, simple is the furthest word from your mind.
It’s so easy to remember your youth as a peaceful and pleasant affair, but that’s not what it felt like in the moment. With every misstep your world was at risk of crumbling down around you. Every day was a high-wire act with no safety harness. And, despite the sun, it was always just a little too cold.
Today is a Tuesday and all the flowers are dead.
An ode to what we lost before we even knew we had it, 10 years later, Citizen’s Youth stands as one of the most heartbreakingly sincere and honest contributions to music this century.
Do you think that’s too high of praise? Grow up.
As someone who is very late to the Yeat hype, I never really understood it. I had always known of Yeat through his meme status online and the well-known Minions song “Rich Minion.” I never took him too seriously. I was inspired to listen to Yeat’s new album, AftërLyfe, after seeing some of the features, like Luh geeky and Krany Kranky, which were just himself. One night, I put it on while doing homework and had my “I get it” moment. The fast rage rapping from Yeat had me in a trance.
Yeat’s lyrics are practically inaudible and the beats are so bizarre and goofy at times, but it just works. The whole album has some of the craziest production I’ve heard, with sounds ranging from those that could be out of a Tron soundtrack to those from a soft psychedelic rock ballad.
The song “Sum 2 do” emphasizes the type of rapping you’ll hear throughout the record and takes it to another level. The song starts off with these aggressive flows that just keep building and going faster. Yeat sprinkles in some of the weirdest ad libs, and they never miss. Every time I listen to the song I hear a new ad lib that instantly trumps the last. One of the ad libs is just “Err, burp” and I love it. I would love to insert some lyrics here and dissect them, but even the people at Apple Music are having trouble with that:
Overall, I appreciate this album for introducing me to Yeat. I started off the year telling my friends that the world needs less meme and unserious music, but Yeat has made me make an exception to the rule.
Ayra Starr, Nigeria’s newest superstarr and self-nicknamed “sabi girl,” just released a song that established her place as one of the hottest artists coming out of West Africa right now.
I’ve written about Ayra on length back in October, and since then, “Rush” has charted in six nations as well as on the Billboard Global 200. Following that level of success is a tall order, but if anyone was going to be able to match it, it would be Starr. Almost as if to prove that she’s one of the next musical greats to come from the continent, she interpolated Awilo Longomba’s 1999 hit, “Coupé Bibamba,” as the basis for the instrumental of her track “Sability.” The track, which featured Jocelyne Béroard, became a staple in clubs across Africa in the early 2000s. The sampling of such a hit to create a feeling of nostalgia with the new song reminds me of songs like Nicki Minaj’s “Super Freaky Girl” and David Guetta and Ava Max’s “I’m Good (Blue).”
The track itself serves as Ayra’s self-empowerment anthem. Melding Yoruba and English in the lyrics, Starr carries her Nigerian heritage to the global platform that she has earned. In the lyrics, Starr compares herself to the legendary soccer player Shinji Kagawa, essentially saying that she is one of the best in her field.
This begs the question, “what does sabi even mean?” Sabi, a word from Nigerian Pidgin, roughly translates to “to know.” Her tagline, “sabi girl,” essentially means “I know you, girl.” “Sability” can then mean knowledgeability. If there is one thing that Starr knows, it is making songs that will become staples like “Coupé Bibamba” for decades to come.
On March 5, 2000, MC Hammer decided to hang up his legendary hammer pants and became a preacher.
The former batboy for the Oakland Athletics turned rap pioneer was launched into superstardom with the help of his 1990 track, “U Can’t Touch This.” Sadly, all that glittered was not gold, as Hammer filed for bankruptcy in 1996. Hammer later took up the pulpit at the Jubilee Christian Centre in San Jose.
There’s a whole subgenre of YouTube videos that are Christian covers of pop songs, including the “Cha Cha Slide.” Now imagine MC Hammer making one of these with his own music. Can’t get that image out of your head? Yeah me neither. Never doubt who can touch the Holy Spirit, cause U Can Touch This.
~Ashe Burr
Moving away from glam rock and experimenting with R&B and soul, Young Americans is an amazing addition to David Bowie’s legacy. Released on March 7, 1975, Young Americans is the ninth studio album by the London-born musician. Young Americans presented a new musical direction for Bowie. Although songs on Diamond Dogs like “Rock ‘n’ Roll with Me” and “1984” exhibited a funk and soul direction, no one expected the full-blown, blue-eyed soul of Young Americans. Paired with Carlos Alomar, who went on to collaborate with Bowie for his next five albums, he dives headfirst into a total stylistic change that Bowie himself refers to as “robotic” or “plastic” soul. After becoming friends with John Lennon, the two collaborated on a session in January 1975 at Electric Lady Studios, with Harry Maslin producing. With Alomar, they recorded “Fame” and a cover of a Beatles song “Across the Universe.”
Surrounding himself with first-rate musicians, Bowie creates a set of songs that approximate the sound of Philadelphia soul and disco, yet remain detached from their inspirations. Bowie ended up befriending many Black artists and surrounding himself with Black collaborators; Bowie is a great example of respecting and being inspired by a culture without stealing or whitewashing it. Upon its release, Young Americans was very successful in the United States, reaching the Top 10 on the Billboard’s LPs and Tape Chart, with the single “Fame” becoming Bowie’s first No. 1 hit single on the Billboard charts. Young Americans highlights the genius of David Bowie as he experiments with a different genre and still maintains top level musicianship.
~Logan Juncaj
“We do not want this war, this violence, and we’re ashamed that the President of the United States is from Texas.”
Twenty years ago this week, these words echoed around the country music world and caused one of the most successful bands on the scene to lose everything in seconds. During a concert in London on March 10, 2003, The Chicks member Natalie Maines boldly criticized President George W. Bush in the lead up to his invasion of Iraq.
Overnight, according to Billboard, fans of the chart-topping trio denounced them. They began burning their albums and concert tickets, and called into country radio stations all over America to get them taken off the air. All of the listener complaints worked, and soon The Chicks disappeared from the airwaves. Their new album, which was extremely popular and featured their famous cover of “Landslide,” dropped from the charts.
The Chicks and the 43rd president are all natives of Texas. Bush was born in Connecticut and went to Yale (but that is not my circus nor my monkeys), but either way he promoted the image of a homegrown Texan cowboy who represented the American people. He clearly appealed to the country music listening populace, fanning the flames of The Chicks’ comments. In such a patriotic genre, it would never be the most popular decision to criticize the President. But after 9/11? On the eve of going to war with Iraq?
I think it is important to note that country music has never been free of politics, from Johnny Cash’s criticisms of the prison system to Loretta Lynn’s inflammatory song about abortion. The Chicks released a song on their 2006 album called “Not Ready to Make Nice,” about how they will not back down and they will not apologize. They declare that they do not regret what they did and believe it would be wrong to take it back and let their critics win.
“And how in the world can the words that I said /
Send somebody so over the edge /
That they’d write me a letter /
Saying that I better /
Shut up and sing or my life will be over?”
The last line refers to a documentary about the group released soon after their 2006 album, Shut Up and Sing. The film was well received and was shown at multiple film festivals and won eight awards, according to IMDb. As the title implies, the documentary focuses on the fallout of the comments and a criticism of how they were expected to be apolitical. Almost two decades after being blacklisted, The Chicks made a strong comeback with their 2020 album Gaslighter. In an NPR interview promoting the album, they note that they are glad the times have changed and that the backlash was trivial. After all, the political climate of today is much different than twenty years ago, when just a few critical words stopped one of the biggest country acts of all time to stop in their tracks.
~Madison Reinhold
We start in near silence with only the faintest of pulsating synths to let us know that yes, in fact, the song has begun playing. But there’s something wrong — maybe it was mixed poorly or released unfinished, either way this is too quiet and we need to turn it all the way up right now. And so we do.
The first slap of a snare hit announces the start of the track proper and you notice that things aren’t quite adding up. Gentle synthetic tones are clashing with acoustic drums that are jamming in the pocket. When vocalist Deedee’s confrontational shouting and the heavily processed electric guitars enter the mix 22 seconds in, the band’s sound becomes realized.
MSPAINT is the logical next step in the evolution of punk, fusing electronic textures with the stripped down, DIY sensibilities of a hardcore band to form a truly one of a kind sonic experience. Guitar strums can be mistaken for synth notes and vice versa. Influenced by digital landscapes that are ruled by binary code, MSPAINT inhabits a beautiful musical gray area.
With their sound being unmistakably from the 21st century, it only makes sense that their lyrics resonate with the present day as well. An attempt to reckon with a fracturing social climate where tragedy after tragedy washes over us, “Titan of Hope” stands firmly against the oh-so-alluring idea of shutting down and shutting out pain in the name of self-preservation. The comfort of isolation is rejected, because it is much better to feel and feel pain instead of feeling nothing at all.
“Opening up to the way that we feel /
The hardest things to speak on are real.”
With this comes caution and even fear, for to open yourself up is to make yourself vulnerable, but with that vulnerability comes strength. It isn’t the kind of strength that means you’re tough and can make it through anything — it’s the opposite. This strength is knowing that you can’t make it through anything, that you are susceptible to injury, but you live your life true to yourself anyways.
“We’re not scared anymore /
We’re not scared anymore /
and this mindset is a Titan of Hope.”
We have to believe it can get better. Not with lame platitudes but with action, and action only comes from hope. We hope we can make a change so we take action to do so. Hope is all the beauty of the world not yet realized, all the infinite possibilities of the word “maybe.” We aren’t scared anymore not because we destroyed our fear and pain, but because we carry it with us every day, and it is because of hope that those feelings become constructive instead of destructive. It is because of hope that change is possible. Hope is not just important, it is critical.
Because if we don’t have hope, then what else do we have left?
You step on your flight to go on the spring break trip that you’ve been planning for the past several months. TSA has spent hours upon hours making you wait in lines to get on this plane, and you can’t wait to get out of the dreary Michigan weather and go literally anywhere else.
As soon as you step into the cabin, you are greeted by a literal nightmare scenario: There are multiple babies on this plane. You invoke Samuel L. Jackson, muttering a quote from his 2006 smash hit film, Snakes on a Plane, swapping out the word “snakes” for “babies.” The plane lifts off, and the cacophony of cries begins. Rummaging through your bag, you realize that you left your noise-canceling headphones in your apartment. Have no fear, though, as you have this playlist to drown out the screams of those barely-formed humans.
Five long years after the release of her debut album Take Me Apart, Kelela has returned with Raven. Taking such a long hiatus after a debut album is quite a risk, but Raven has proven to be more than worth the wait. The nearly five-month long album rollout began in September with opener “Washed Away,” and concluded just days before release with “Enough For Love.”
Though five songs were previously released, some of the strongest tracks came on the album’s Feb. 10 release date. The fifth track, “Missed Call,” in particular, is one of the album’s heaviest hitters.
Kelela glides over the LSDXOXO-produced beat, contemplating whether she wants to follow through with a relationship. Will she make the call? Will she send the text? It’s an extremely fun and addictive song, clearly deserving of the single treatment. If it’s not blasting on every radio station in the country within the coming months, then something is definitely wrong.
“Might be the time to make that call /
Start to text, I hit a road /
Do I wanna fall in love again?”
Though she is entering the tenth year of her career, there has never been a better time to get into her music. “Missed Call” is classic Kelela and a very easy jumping point for those who have never listened to her. Her stellar return to music with Raven has showcased her ability to push the boundaries of both R&B and electronic music in a way not many others can. 2023 is bound to be her biggest year yet, and the well-deserved love and success her return has brought is only the beginning.
There’s something in the water with artists who are associated with Friday as of late. First we got Rebecca Black’s debut album Let Her Burn, and now we have a new track from Miss FRIDAY herself.
DEBBY FRIDAY is a Nigerian-born Canadian rapper who throws all of the musical conventionality from the cultural canon of rap out the window. Her flow is aggressive, her beats are brash and in your face, and her lyrics tell her stories as a self-described “angry queer black woman.” She began her dive into the music scene as a DJ at parties in Canada, but after less than a year, she stopped and began working on making music on her own. Her first releases embodied those emotions of frustration, especially the track that led me to finding out about FRIDAY, “FATAL.” Her feature on clipping.’s track “Back Up 2021” helped to expose her to a wider audience. Conveniently enough, FRIDAY ended up signing to Sup Pop, the same label clipping. is under, to release her debut album, GOOD LUCK.
The first single off of GOOD LUCK, “SO HARD TO TELL,” was her first attempt at a subdued sound. “I GOT IT” threw that sound from “SO HARD TO TELL” out of the window, and went back to her earlier sounds. The brash instrumentation with her firebranded flow called back to tracks like “FATAL,” but unlike the bulk of her catalog, she is accompanied by an additional performer in Chris Vargas of Pelada under the stage name of Uñas. Uñas’ verse is entirely in Spanish, which is a somewhat unique element from an artist from Montreal. The pair combine to create quite a unique experience.
“Down on your knees, do you believe? /
Freaky Friday, Debby Tuesday, Debby heat /
You know where I stay /
Let mama give you what you need.”
Within the world of alternative music, many Black artists are rising to the top of their scenes. DEBBY FRIDAY absolutely has what it takes to rise to the top of the experimental scene. Her album is slated to release on March 24, and if the rest of the album is anything like the singles, GOOD LUCK will become a staple of experimental, boundary-pushing hip-hop-tinted music.
Dermot Kennedy has gone from small town Irish boy busking on the streets of Dublin to globally-known artist with 13 million Spotify monthly listeners, and he plans to play a show at Madison Square Garden on June 14. His latest album, Sonder, is only advancing his stardom.
Sonder stays true to Kennedy’s acoustic folk sound but also leaves room for pop-infused tracks.
Dermot Kennedy started developing his unique sound when he was 17 years old, busking and performing at open mic nights at pubs. In 2019, he earned recognition in the United States with his single “Outnumbered,” which peaked at number 8 on Billboard’s Hot Rock & Alternative weekly chart. The song was included in his first album, Without Fear, which was released Oct. 4, 2019.
Sonder was released Nov. 18, 2022, three years after Kennedy’s U.S. debut. The premise behind the album is based on the noun “sonder,” which is “the realization that each passerby is living a life as vivid and complex as your own.”
On his website, Kennedy invites people to share their stories, which answer questions like “What’s something about a loved one you wished you cherished more?” In the spirit of sonder, these stories are connecting his fans who span across the globe.
Kennedy explained this project best in a video message on his website, saying, “I think with this we’ll be able to see how we’re all more alike rather than different, and that we’re all in different parts of the world just doing the best we can and making our way through life the best we can.”
Authenticity is important for Kennedy. His music comes from his lived experiences, and they all hold deep meanings. Yet, at the same time, he hesitates to share what each song means to him because he wants to give his listeners room to interpret the songs for themselves. In this way, Sonder invites us to be empathetic by embracing our own unique feelings and experiences.
Kennedy also managed to stay true to his roots. With Sonder, he’s made a point to acknowledge where his journey started.
Starting prior to Sonder’s release, Kennedy has been performing “Sonder Street Sessions.” Going back to where his career started, playing the same Taylor Big Baby guitar he received when he was 10 years old, Kennedy has been busking in cities around the world, including Mexico City, Hamburg, Chicago and Toronto.
He explained at one of the sessions that these performances are no less important to him than sold-out shows in high-profile venues. The intimate change of pace grounds his music and lets him connect with his fans. It keeps him and his team humble, acknowledging where they came from and how far they’ve come.
View this post on InstagramA post shared by Dermot Kennedy (@dermotkennedy)
All this to say, Kennedy is still the singer-songwriter we know and love, if not a little more confident in his style and process. He’s still writing lyrics that give me goosebumps, like these lines from my favorite song off Sonder, “Innocence and Sadness.”
“Darling, don’t spend another second wondering what you’re worth /
Don’t you ever get affected by the ways of this world /
Wouldn’t say my soul’s protected, but there’s something at work /
I was waiting on ya, know I was waiting on ya.”
Kennedy’s unique rasp and vibrato punches you in the heart with a collision of love and loss. These songs will make you feel something. We’re all on a journey, trying to find ourselves. Sonder speaks to that and embraces it.
“I don’t know what you’re feeling /
Sorrow is a season /
Everything that hurts will pass /
Something to believe in /
I know this isn’t easy /
I promise you the hurt won’t last.”
The last of the national media have detached themselves from Michigan State University and moved on to the next place: a place which will feel similar emotions, similar embraces, similar silences to those that we feel and have felt. Then that place will be moved on from for the next and the next and the next.
In these past two weeks, we’ve navigated the silence, the rage, the fear through our own constructed soundscapes. We’ve been up until well after midnight listening to songs that hold us close and describe our feelings in a way we might never be able to. In the midst of reporters’ questions and our campus’ barrier-like silence, we needed a soundscape under our control.
These songs belong to us. As does every hug we’ve given and received, every word we’ve spoken and written, every stand we’ve taken to say that we are strong, we are angry, we are together. These were our songs for then, and these are our songs for now. Together, we are Spartan strong.
Not everyone loves Valentine’s Day. Some people may hold out for the discounted chocolate and seasonal Squishmallows, but the constant reminder of one’s own loneliness can be a lot this time of year. What better way to drown out the sounds of people’s happiness around you than with a brand new playlist?
This playlist was made with the vibe of a dance in mind. Specifically, an anti-Valentine’s day dance: a dance for people who would rather rock out with their friends than be subjected to the lovey-dovey couples walking hand-in-hand down Grand River Ave. Want to host your own dance? Invite your single friends over, send this through your speakers and remember that Valentine’s Day was invented by Big Greeting Card and Big Chocolate. Being in love? Kind of cringe, to be honest.
Bad Brains’ self-titled debut album was released on Feb. 5, 1982, and changed punk rock forever. The group, who originally formed as a jazz fusion ensemble named Mind Power, soon changed their name to Bad Brains upon being introduced to punk rock and hearing the Ramones track “Bad Brains.” When Bad Brains broke onto the D.C. nascent punk scene in late 1979, they were truly groundbreaking. Not only were the members of the band all Black, but they were pioneering a completely new sound. Like most punk rock acts, Bad Brains sang about injustices they faced in their daily lives, but as Black men and Rastafarians, their outlook on oppression came from a much different place than the white teenagers making up the majority of the genre. Their rage was more purposeful and their lyrics preached positivity and inclusiveness, which was a stark contrast to the already established nihilism of punk rock. They were brash, loud and unapologetic, and their musicianship was phenomenal. They seamlessly merged the genres of funk, punk, metal and reggae, a feat that no other band had ever attempted. Their lightning-fast performances and breakneck speed rhythms made their raucous performances legendary and are the reason that many credit Bad Brains as being the earliest hardcore punk rock band.
Their early repertoire was laid to tape a few times during the late 1970s and early ‘80s, but they didn’t release a full-length album until 1982, after the band had been banned from several venues in their hometown of Washington D.C. and had relocated to New York. This was immortalized on their track “Banned in D.C.” In 1982, Bad Brains released their self-titled debut album, which was originally a cassette-only release on ROIR records. It became known as the “yellow tape” because of its yellow packaging. This album is stylistically important, as it features some of the earliest examples of punk rock breakdowns in songs such as “Right Brigade” and “Banned In D.C.” This album is widely regarded as one of the greatest punk albums ever made. Bad Brains is a transcendent act that broke the color barrier of punk rock and greatly contributed to the creation of the hardcore genre as we know it today.
~Logan Juncaj
On Feb. 6, 1945, a musical pioneer was born in northern Jamaica. This artist helped to launch Jamaican music and Rastafarianism to the forefront of the global consciousness, and helped us learn to not worry about a thing.
Bob Marley was a legend within the reggae genre, and began his legendary career in 1963, when the track “Simmer Down” from the band he was a part of, The Wailers, topped the charts in Jamaica. That song helped to inspire a shift in the Jamaican music consciousness. When the ska-esque rhythms began to slow down around 1969, The Wailers took these new rhythms and ran with it. The band went on tour in the United States for the first time, where they opened for Sly and the Family Stone, but were fired after only four of their 17 shows because they became more popular than Sly and the Family Stone. Sadly, the band disbanded in 1974, with each member pursuing a solo career.
Marley reformed the Wailers as his backing band, and he had his first hit outside of Jamaica with “No Woman, No Cry” in 1975. In the next year, Marley was to perform at a concert to ease tensions between two political factions in Jamaica, but two days before, he was shot, along with his wife, Rita, and his manager. Despite this, he went on to perform in front of a crowd of over 80,000. After that, he moved to England, where he recorded a pair of albums.
In 1977, Marley was diagnosed with melanoma, and he tragically succumbed to this disease in 1981, at the age of 36. In his short life, he managed to have such a massive impact on the international musical landscape. He would have been 78 years old this week.
~Ashe Burr
This week in music history, the 46th Annual Grammy Awards started out with a bang.
Prince and Beyoncé opened the 2004 ceremony with a medley of their songs, including “Purple Rain,” “Baby I’m a Star,” “Let’s Go Crazy” and “Crazy in Love.” The dynamic duo tore up the stage with Prince jamming on his iconic purple Cloud guitar and Beyoncé harmonizing effortlessly with breathtaking vocals.
Beyoncé was one of the big winners of the night, winning five awards. Outkast won three awards including Album of the Year for Speakerboxxx/The Love Below, making history as the first hip-hop act to win the award.
~Gabby Nelson
This week in music history: disco domination. Or, at least, a reminder of popular genres past. Forty-three years ago this week, Kool and the Gang’s upbeat hit “Celebration” began its two week stint at the top of the charts. Last.fm describes how the song, while long from its chart prominence, is still a staple, and mostly heard nowadays at weddings and in commercials. However, no history exists in a vacuum. Music will always be a reflection of the culture at large and is a valuable source of information for understanding the past. “Celebration” reached its peak at the beginning of 1980.
The previous summer, in a ballpark in Chicago, disco had died. The cultural sound of the ‘70s had taken over radio stations across the country, an upheaval of the rock genre. Disco had gained popularity in nightclubs dominated by the Black and LGBTQ communities. The genre had been influenced by the music played in underground gay dance clubs, where music straight from records was played instead of having a band. Disk jockeys were influenced by progressive soul, Latin dance music, African pop music and deep cuts pulled from the depths of record stores from almost every genre, according to “The Untold History of Disco” from Youtube channel Polyphonic. They would mix these together to try to create a new sound that fit the mood of the dance clubs. Records started being made explicitly for discotheques, featuring staples of the genre like droning ambient voices, strings, orchestral woodwinds, brass and runtimes double the average song.
Disco went mainstream, and with it, controversy. NPR described how a growing movement of disgruntled disk jockeys and rock fans declared that “Disco Sucks.” This movement culminated in the infamous July 12, 1979 riot that practically ended the genre in its tracks. Disco haters stormed Comiskey Park in Chicago after a baseball game and began blowing up and smashing disco records. A pattern emerged: white rioters, Black records. It is no coincidence that the biggest names in disco– Donna Summer, Sylvester, Earth, Wind & Fire, CHIC and Kool and the Gang– were Black.
Did disco die? Six months later, “Celebration” was No. 1 on the charts. Disco tracks finding chart success after the riot was a rarity. While maybe not the disco-iest disco song, it still is disco. Disco had not died. In 1980, Kool and the Gang found tremendous success in a widely-hated and fledgling genre and continued the music history legacy of the disco movement.
~Madison Reinhold
I’ll be honest, I only started listening to Rosalía recently. As someone who loves music in all different languages, especially Spanish, I’ve heard her name floating around for quite some time; however, it wasn’t until I actually sat down and listened to MOTOMAMI all the way through that I realized what all the hype was about. Rosalía doesn’t do anything the conventional way. I can’t even begin to describe the type of music she makes, though it’s somewhat of a mixture of pop urbano, reggaeton and traditional flamenco with a very experimental twist. She combines genres most people wouldn’t dare put together — as she combined reggaeton and jazz in “Saoko” — like some kind of mad genius, and somehow it works. Her newest single “LLYLM,” an acronym for “Lie Like You Love Me,” is her first release of 2023 and one of her only songs with a sizeable amount of English lyrics. It’s refreshing and different from many of her more recent projects, but still screams Rosalía.
The song begins with her signature percussion, traditional flamenco clapping, alongside slower, smoother R&B notes. When I first listened to the song, I had no preconceived notions, as I hadn’t seen her tease it on TikTok in early January; it simply popped up and, excited, I clicked it, and was genuinely shocked to hear her singing in English. With Spanish verses in between, Rosalía belts out an English chorus in an airy, melodic voice, introducing it by saying, “lo diré en inglés y me entenderás” (“I’ll say it in English and you’ll understand me”):
“I don’t need honesty /
Baby, lie like you love me /
Lie like you love me /
Cover me in a dream /
I’ll be yours, our fantasy.”
The song is a sharp contrast to the rebellious vibes of MOTOMAMI, as Rosalía softly implores someone to love her back. The desperate, candid lyrics express her sentiments in a very vulnerable way, while simultaneously being so catchy you just want to sing along. The Spanish verses and dramatic hymn of a bridge connected with the poppy, bright English chorus displays Rosalía’s uncanny ability to seamlessly fuse genres (and languages) together, creating something completely new.
Valentine’s Day is around the corner, and love is in the air. What better to get into the spirit of the holiday than some romantic music? Take a look at Impact’s best pop love songs of our collective teenage years. Take a look at each writer’s defense for why each song is the best of them all:
“Latch” by Disclosure feat. Sam Smith — Madison ReinholdI think the music video for “Latch” really encapsulates why it is such a great love song. It shows couples being so devoted together and being in the moment. What I also love is how it shows multiple definitions of love and couples of different sexualities together. This, for the time and in such a mainstream track, provided a new window for young people tuning in. Other than that, it has a great overall sound and conveys the message of someone truly and devotedly in love.
“She Looks So Perfect” by 5 Seconds of Summer — Paige Drob“She Looks So Perfect” is an anthem of infatuation, teen restlessness and underwear. It is a track that says so little, but so much at the same time. The song is a testament to the intensity of the feelings between narrator and subject. Although some may say the lovers are too young for their relationship to amount to anything, the lovers feel that their relationship is beautiful and something worth working for. To the narrator, there is nothing more perfect than the sight — and maybe a little more than just the sight if you catch my drift — of his love interest. He is so infatuated that he gets her name tattooed on him, and he proposes the idea of running away and getting married. To me, the most iconic line is the one that is the most confusing: “If you don’t swim, you’ll drown, so don’t move honey.” To this day, I am not one hundred percent sure what it means — Lyric Genius doesn’t, either — but I think “drowning” in this case might be comparable to the action of falling in love. “She Looks So Perfect,” at its most complex, is a commentary on the intricacies of young love, and, at its most simple, is a banger of a song to scream and dance to alone in your room.
“Run Away With Me” by Carly Rae Jepsen — Mike MerucciThere is no hyperbole in my writing of this: I think ”Run Away With Me” is the greatest pop song of all time. This is one of the few songs that I know every word to: That’s saying something, as I have an atrocious memory when it comes to song lyrics. Anyone who knows me knows that I can really belt it out when it comes to “Run Away With Me,” though. I can imagine it now: springtime, windows down, warmth running across my skin and the greatest pop song of all time blasting a little too loud. Until then, all I ask is that it wins our little Valentine’s Day bracket here.
“You Snuck Your Way Right Into My Heart” by Love Händel (from Phineas and Ferb) — Dana HoltPlaying a parody on ‘80s love songs, this song has a vibe that is unmatched. The guitar is immaculate and the lyrics are pure perfection. It beautifully captures the way love can unexpectedly enter your life. As the song says: “Like a ninja of love rappelling down from above,” this song snuck its way right into my heart.
“Mine” by Taylor Swift — Gabby NelsonFor all the Swifties, it’s hard to pick the best love song of the 2010s, but “Mine” is surely one of the best. “Mine” is the love anthem of Gen Z. It’s a song that you can’t help but sing out loud. Swift sings about a love that overcomes hardship, a love that is deep and unconditional.
“Braced myself for the goodbye /
‘Cause that’s all I’ve ever known /
Then you took me by surprise /
You said, ‘I’ll never leave you alone.’”
It’s a type of love we’re all searching for.
“Imagine” by Ariana Grande — Norene Bassin“Imagine” tells the story of one of the 2010s’ most beloved celebrity couples: Ariana Grande and the late Mac Miller. I’m not too sure about the public perception of their relationship, but from the music these two wrote about each other, anyone can plainly see they were in love. True love. Grande released this song less than a year after Miller’s tragic passing. The lyrics of this song talk about what could’ve been and what, frankly, should’ve been.
“Imagine a world like that /
We go like up ’til I’m ‘sleep on your chest /
Love how my face fits so good in your neck /
Why can’t you imagine a world like that?”
The imagery in her lyrics is beautiful and tells a story of a true love she still dreams of. While she is happily married now, her and Miller’s love is immortalized in “Imagine.”
“We Found Love” by Rihanna feat. Calvin Harris — Ashe BurrThis song had an absolute chokehold on radio airplay when it dropped, and it still holds up as one of the best songs of the 2010s, despite it being from 2011. The track has become a staple track for Rihanna, and it helped give Calvin Harris something resembling a career in the United States. When this song comes on, it never fails to put me in a good mood with its optimistic yet relatable lyrics. “We Found Love” was Rihanna’s 11th No. 1 hit in the United States, and if it isn’t part of her set at the Superbowl, I will have legitimate beef.
“Baby” by Justin Bieber feat. Ludacris — Gabby Nelson“Baby” was the song that launched Justin Bieber’s career. It has everything: a catchy chorus, angelic vocals and a dope rap verse by none other than Ludacris. “Baby” took off when it was first released (partially due to Bieber’s charm). It’s about the innocence and life-ending feeling of first love. It will forever live in the memory of every Gen Zer.
Have strong feelings about these songs? Be sure to vote for your favorites every day starting Feb. 10 until Feb. 14 in our Valentine’s Day song bracket battle on Twitter @WDBM.
Unfortunately for some of us, Valentine’s Day is around the corner. What better to wallow in sadness than with some songs about heartbreak? Take a look at Impact’s best pop breakup songs of our the 2010s. Take a look at each writer’s defense for why each song is the best of them all:
“Marvin’s Room” by Drake — Logan Juncaj“Marvin’s Room” is the ultimate sad boy anthem. This track from Drake’s sophomore release, Take Care, finds the Canadian rapper drunk dialing an ex-girlfriend he still cares for who has found another man. “I’m just saying you could do better / Tell me, have you heard that lately?” Is just one of the many memorable lines off of “Marvin’s Room.” Smooth in its croon but woozy in its motivation, the chorus hangs in the air both lustily and unashamed. If you never listened to “Marvin’s Room” following a middle school breakup, were you even alive in the 2010s? Its timelessness and continued popularity is a testament to “Marvin’s Room” as one of the greatest heartbreak songs of our generation.
“Miss Missing You” by Fall Out Boy — Norene BassinThe lyrics to “Miss Missing You” are so artful and the instrumentals are beautiful. Pete Wentz has struck gold again with his classic emo writing. The twinkling synth intro sets the stage for a ballad of longing and loss. “Baby, you were my picket fence” and “Sometimes the person you’d take a bullet for is behind the trigger” are some of the most vividly painful lyrics I heard from this era of music. Their monumental comeback to the scene after their 2008 hiatus created some of the best heart-wrenching music of our time.
“Somebody That I Used To Know” by Gotye feat. Kimbra — Madison ReinholdThis song dominated the music scene in 2012 for a reason. Both perspectives of the song are so gut wrenching and it really makes a great breakup song, no matter whose side you’re on. She cut him off? She had her friends collect his records and change her number? BUT— she doesn’t want to live that way, reading into every word he says? Maybe it’s a work in perspective. The man was trapped in a relationship that made him miserable and he is devastated but reluctantly optimistic about this new phase in his life. However, the girl just got out of a relationship where she was constantly being gaslit and blamed for everything. It’s definitely a work in perspective. Additionally, the xylophone goes crazy.
“Nights” by Frank Ocean — Aaron Jonckheere“Nights” by Frank Ocean is the best heartbreak song of the 2010s because it captures the emotions felt after a bittersweet breakup perfectly. The first part of the song highlights the initial hurt of a breakup in Ocean listing the flaws of his ex like how they “Can’t keep up a conversation” and how they can’t commit time to their partner: “Round your city, round the clock / Everybody needs you.”
Ocean also shows the often contradictory feelings during this phase with the line “Shut the fuck up, I don’t want your conversation,” meaning he was the one shutting down the communication and had mixed up the facts to spare his feelings. In the second part of the song, the tone changes to the nostalgic part of a breakup where he reminisces of their life together, before he had money, where they were with him through all of their hardships together. This tactical tone shift along with Ocean’s masterful lyricism truly captures the essence of heartbreak by showing how often moving on is not a linear process.
“Drunk II” by Mannequin Pussy — Kyle DavidsonIn October of 2022, Mannequin Pussy’s Marisa Dabice took to TikTok to proclaim “I’m tired of pretending that I didn’t write one of the best break up songs in history.” Although this statement might sound like pure heresy to some, fans of the Philadelphia-based punk outfit know Dabice’s post is simply acknowledging the facts. “Drunk II” is an embodiment of all the sloppy, ugly moments that follow a nasty breakup. The track’s opening verse perfectly embodies every failed attempt to bury your feelings under alcohol and parties. The sheer amount of catharsis present as Dabice proclaims “I still love you, you stupid fuck,” is already enough to place this song among the greatest break up tracks of all time. From its boisterous intro to its softer, swirling outro this song embodies the difficulties that come from trying to forget an ex, and acknowledges that, sometimes, staying strong is exhausting.
“Wrecking Ball” by Miley Cyrus — Madison ReinholdAside from being great lyrically, I think the biggest thing is the cultural impact of the song. This was her first big project outside of Disney and she needed to make a splash. She did, obviously. But what makes this an amazing break up song isn’t just the stirring of the pot and the frightening of elders. In fact, it actually makes me forget how beautiful the song is. That doesn’t mean I don’t like the spectacle; it takes spectacle to remove one from the image of the Mouse. This wasn’t just a visual maturity for Miley, this showed emotional and lyrical maturity as well. The pain in her voice is noticeable. It should be the best break up song because it is a rare occasion that a song can provide such a spectacle and a heart-wrenching performance.
“The One That Got Away” by Katy Perry — Maggie HeflinThe best way to relive your first heartbreak is with this Katy Perry classic. Perry was the it girl in 2010. Her hit album Teenage Dream is only the second album in history to have five No. 1 singles on the Billboard top charts. “The One That Got Away” was a standout from that album. The simple piano arpeggios leading into a gorgeous orchestral section contrast her pop hits off the rest of the album. Perry’s lyrics paint a beautiful story of teenage love and loss. In the chorus Perry begs for things to be different, highlighting the naiveté and innocence of teen romance, drawing the listeners back into their loves of the past.
“Don’t Hurt Yourself” by Beyoncé feat. Jack White — Ryan McMillanOn “Don’t Hurt Yourself,” Beyoncé shows heartbreak and anger through a genre we rarely hear from her — rock. Arguably the centerpiece of her already-classic 2016 album Lemonade, she alludes to Jay-Z’s cheating rumors, eventually reaching a climax where she is yelling out and questioning who he is to treat her this way. The most memorable moment comes right at the end, as she threatens that he will “lose [his] wife” if he ever wrongs her again. Few artists would dare to cross genres in such a bold and honest way, but Beyoncé is not just any artist. It is heartbreaking, empowering and all around perfect — something to scream along to no matter your relationship status.
Have strong feelings about these songs? Be sure to vote for your favorites every day starting Feb. 10 until Feb. 14 in our Valentine’s Day song bracket battle on Twitter @WDBM.
We are only one month into 2023, but R&B is off to a solid start. Daniel Caesar released “Do You Like Me?” on Jan. 27, and it has already been streamed on Spotify more than 5 million times at the time of writing.
Caesar’s first two independently released EPs — Praise Break and Pilgrim’s Paradise — received worldwide attention, and his 2017 debut album, Freudian, was nominated for two GRAMMYs. His clean vocals and love for the guitar earned him celebrity.
He’s sticking to it this year.
Caesar is reviving R&B by taking traditional chords and stripping them back. One of the most used chord progressions in jazzy R&B — Dm | G | Cmaj — makes up much of “Do You Like Me?”
It’s also heard in Doja Cat’s “Say So,” but the songs are vastly different because Caesar slowed the chords down, added a soulful bass line and harmonized his vocals to create a rich, emotional song.
There are no fancy filters for him to hide behind. In a 2017 interview with Fender, Caesar said, “I feel as though my songwriting is stronger because (the acoustic guitar) is all I have.” It’s just him, and he owns it.
“Do You Like Me?” is peak Daniel Caesar. It’s smooth and a little bit groovy. It’s a song to listen to at 1 a.m. with blue LED strip lights on — maybe pink if you’re feeling saucy. Give it a listen, and let Daniel Caesar titillate your mind.
You walk into a sleepy little Chinese restaurant, not expecting much, just trying to eat. After being on the road for so long, you’ve seen so many of these places and always expect the same: greasy, filling and cheap. It reminds you of home. Your mother would always ask if you wanted Chinese when you got home from school on Fridays. Growing up, you always had the same thing: shrimp fried rice. As an adult your order hardly differs, except when you’re feeling adventurous.
Today you don’t feel that way, so you have the usual: shrimp fried rice.
What happens from here is not the usual.
When you scoop the rice into your mouth you enter a state of immense bliss. It is unlike anything you’ve eaten before. You’re happier now than at any major milestone of your life. It’s not that you’ve led a sad life, in fact it’s a little above average. It’s just that this rice is so good that it totally eclipses everything else.
You’re not one to make a scene or a fuss, much of your success can be owed to this, but this moment is different. You rush to the counter, demanding to meet the chef and shake their hand. The guy behind the counter says, “Yeah” and mutters something, but you don’t quite catch it.
You’re led to the back: a typical, if not a little gross, kitchen. You don’t believe your eyes. There is a much-larger-than-normal shrimp standing behind the wok, flipping and frying, unbothered.
You are filled with questions and doubts, such as but not limited to: Did I slip and fall outside? Are the shrimp in the wok friend or foe of the big shrimp? Is this legal?
But here is the one that sticks with you to this day: The shrimp was wearing headphones. What were they listening to?
Boygenius released three new singles this January. The supergroup of brilliant songwriters is back. Julien Baker, Phoebe Bridgers and Lucy Dacus returned after nearly 5 years apart with three singles. Due to scheduling conflicts, the three songs were written individually by each member of the trio. Therefore, each song is closer in style to each individual’s music rather than the 2018 boygenius sound.
The first single off their drop, “$20,” was written by Baker. Starting off with smashing drums and a soft-punk guitar riff fans are welcomed in with a usual Baker special. She sings of self-ruin and escapism. Her other band mates join in to finish her sentences with scattered harmonies. The song concludes with Bridgers madly yelling “I know you have $20,” similar to her screaming album conclusion in her song “I Know The End” off her sophomore album, Punisher. Although this time, it’s merely the introduction. The two tracks following “$20” are far more melancholic when compared to the immediate turbulence encapsulating “$20.” It’s refreshing to tune into an album you assume will be filled with sad songs, only to find yourself bopping your head along to the beat. It’s surprising because their self-titled EP is filled with somber indie-rock songs. Additionally, it’s a fun listen before the gut-wrenching heart-destroying lyricism of the following two artists kicks in.
The three new tracks leave boygenius fans on the edge of their seats. Hopefully the three new tracks will be enough to last them throughout winter, before the group releases the album this spring. Their full length debut album, titled The Record, is set to release on March 31 with Interscope records.
In today’s musical climate, a remix is often considered to be the original version of a song with minor changes or a useless feature added for improved chart performance. It has become increasingly rare to find one that brings something new to the table. Luckily, Charli XCX and The 1975’s George Daniel have delivered a remix to Caroline Polachek’s “Welcome To My Island” that completely flips the song on its head. It is not just sped up in hopes of becoming a viral TikTok audio, and the feature isn’t useless — it is a completely new song.
Polachek’s second solo album, Desire, I Want to Turn Into You, is just weeks away, slated for a release on Feb. 14. “Welcome to My Island,” the opening track and fourth single, is an explosive pop song released on Dec. 5 which features a catchy hook and her signature vocal inflections. The remix was announced on Jan. 16 via TikTok, with a snippet of XCX’s verse, and quickly gained attention from fans.
Stripping away Polachek’s verses, the remix features XCX rapping over a Daniel-produced EDM beat while the original chorus is heard in snippets throughout. XCX describes the lavish life she likes to live and what she wants out of a relationship all while warning suitors of her “dangerous” nature. While this changes the entire feel of the original song, the new verses are filled with enough charisma and classic XCX-isms to carry the remix into greatness.
“I told him, ‘Catch a flight, see if you can handle it /
And if you can then welcome to my island, bitch.’”
This is the third time XCX and Polachek have teamed up, as this remix comes just over a year after the release of their track “New Shapes” off XCX’s Crash. While vastly different from the original version, “Welcome To My Island” is a much-needed reminder that remixes can still be great. Here’s hoping that more artists will take a note from Polachek’s book in 2023 — less TikTok pandering, more desire to change things up.
This week in music history needs no introduction. Feb. 3, 1959, is a day that lives in infamy in pop culture, known as “The Day The Music Died.” On this day, Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, J.P. Richardson AKA “The Big Bopper” and pilot Roger Peterson were killed in a plane crash near Clear Lake, Iowa.
Frustrated with road conditions at the time, Holly decided to charter a plane to reach the next part of his band’s “Winter Dance Party” tour in Minnesota. The plane allegedly crashed shortly after takeoff, and wreckage was found less than six miles from the airport, according to the FAA report of the crash. The day was later memorialized in 1971 in Don McLean’s classic “American Pie.” Various songs were written to honor the crash, but McLean’s song is credited with the name “The Day The Music Died.” Songs such as Tommy Dee’s “Three Stars,” Mike Berry’s “Tribute to Buddy Holly” and Waylon Jennings’ “A Long Time Ago” commemorate the crash.
This tragedy went on to change accident reporting in the United States. According to TIME, Holly’s wife, Maria Elena Holly, learned about his death on TV with the rest of the world. Unfortunately, she suffered a miscarriage the day after learning of her husband’s death due to the severe psychological trauma. After this event, policies were passed that now prevent the release of victims’ names in accidents before families are notified.
Music history was never the same after this day 64 years ago this week.
~Norene Bassin
I don’t want to be dramatic, but one album that was released 46 years ago this week changed the course of music history. Rumours has literally everything. Break-ups. Divorce. Adultery. Rage. Cocaine. Rage again. Some sick guitar tracks. Stevie Nicks witchcraft. Some more rage. Where to begin?
Some of the band’s most iconic songs come off this album. Classics include “Dreams,” the only song of theirs to reach No. 1 in America according to Rolling Stone, the upbeat “Don’t Stop” and “You Make Loving Fun,” and timeless heartbreak songs “The Chain,” “Go Your Own Way” and the secret stealth operative “Silver Springs.” “Silver Springs,” written by Stevie Nicks, is a grueling song about her breakup with band member Linsday Buckingham. It is absolutely criminal that this song was left off of the original album. The reasoning was that at almost five minutes, it was too long to fit on the vinyl. It’s now included in greatest hits compilations and the deluxe version of the album. It was also the B-side of “Go Your Own Way,” a song written by Buckingham about the end of the relationship according to Genius Lyrics. The band tried to appease Nicks by including her song “I Don’t Want to Know” on the album, which she hated to perform, writes Rolling Stone. Twenty years after the album’s release, the band performed the song and during the last chorus and emotional climax of the song, Nicks turns to Buckingham and screams the lyrics at him, really hitting the point of the song:
“I follow you down /
Til the sound of my voice will haunt you /
You’ll never get away from the sound /
Of the woman that loved you.”
This album was built from multiple other crises: including the divorce of Christine and John McVie, an affair between Stevie Nicks and Mick Fleetwood, creative differences and copious amounts of drugs. Rumours is easily one of the best albums of all time, the genius of so many flawed and angry yet insanely talented people coming together to make something beautiful, glamorous, heartbreaking and forever historic.
~Madison Reinhold
On Feb. 2, 1977, one of the biggest pop stars of the 2000s and early 2010s was born in the city of Barranquilla, Colombia. Shakira began her illustrious career in 1991 after being signed to Sony Music Colombia at the age of 13 to record three albums. Her first two albums were commercial failures, but her third, Pies Descalzos, managed to have the success that eluded her in her two previous album releases. This album launched her to fame across Latin America, which was corroborated with her next album, Dónde Están los Ladrones?
Thanks to some pressuring from singer Gloria Estefan, Shakira began to work on her first English crossover album, Laundry Service. Laundry Service spawned a pair of smash hits in “Whenever, Wherever” and “Underneath Your Clothes.” In the following decade, Shakira would hold the American consciousness captive, as releases like “Hips Don’t Lie,” “She Wolf,” “Waka Waka” and “Can’t Remember to Forget You” were seemingly inescapable.
In the current decade, Shakira was one of the headliners of the Super Bowl LIV Halftime Show alongside Jennifer Lopez, and her recent collaboration with producer Bzrp that takes jabs at her former partner, Spanish footballer Gerard Piqué, has gone viral. She will celebrate her 46th birthday this week.
~Ashe Burr
Sara Tea is a multi-genre, multi-faceted artist who has lived all over the United States, but her heart resides in Michigan. Peering through the cracks of her newest EP, Songs for Discarded Souls, is that inimitable Midwestern spirit: the stuff of long winters, endless highways and glowing rust.
We are nothing if not our experiences. We are nothing if not our memories. We are nothing if not always healing and learning. Sara Tea knows this more than most could ever understand. Mike Merucci, host of The Afterglow at WDBM, was lucky enough to have conversed with her about Songs for Discarded Souls, inclusivity in music, the magic of libraries, the Midwest’s complicated beauty and much more.
“Love Again” by The Kid LAROI is about rebuilding his relationship with a previous partner, but after the news of my grandmother passing away last week, this track took on a whole new meaning for me.
My late grandmother and my family have had our ups and downs, but with her passing I couldn’t figure out how I felt. Regret, disappointment and remorse filled me when I didn’t immediately feel sad. The Kid LAROI embodies these feelings when he sings:
“Can we find love again? /
Is this time the end? /
Tell me, how many more tears will drop /
Till you hit me with “Can we talk?” /
And try love again.”
This relates back to arguably The Kid LAROI’s biggest hit, “Stay” with Justin Bieber. In “Stay,” Laroi sings:
“I do the same thing, I told you that I never would /
I told you I changed, even when I knew I never could /
I know that I can’t find nobody else as good as you.”
“Love Again” tells the ending of the story he started in “Stay.” During his and his partner’s fight, The Kid LAROI tells them that he will change, although he knows he can’t. He says that nobody will ever be as good as them, but they still leave. “Love Again” shows that Laroi wants to keep pushing for this relationship to work, no matter “how many tears will drop.”
I wish I could have found the unconditional love for my grandma that I had as a child before life decided to push us apart, but the universe had a different plan. Through all of the adversity of The Kid LAROI’s relationship, he still wants to try to love his partner.
Whether you’re dealing with the heartache of losing a partner, or in my case a relative, The Kid LAROI’s “Love Again” proves you’re not alone in these feelings.
“Swear to shake it up if you swear to listen,” writes Ryan Ross, formerly of Panic! at the Disco. In 2005, a young group of Las Vegas artists hit the music scene with their first album release — A Fever You Can’t Sweat Out. “The Only Difference Between Martyrdom and Suicide Is Press Coverage” was the band’s first single. This underrated track is often overshadowed by the smash hit “I Write Sins Not Tragedies” off the same album.
The outrageously long title is a quote from Chuck Palahniuk’s novel Survivor. The band members were big fans of the Fight Club author, referencing Palahniuk’s work throughout the album. The song begins as the band beckons the audience not only to “snap your fingers for me,” but to “tap your toes to the beat,” underscoring the attention young artists want. The band is speaking directly to their audience throughout the entire song, introducing them not only to the sound of Panic! but to their public personas as well.
The band admits that the song is a rather pretentious introduction to the album because they had not accomplished anything yet. Blatantly revealing their need for recognition, Ross continues, “We’re still so young, desperate for attention.” The band members were only months out of high school by the time they were recording the album. They had been flung into the studio after lead guitarist Ryan Ross sent demos to Fall Out Boy’s Pete Wentz.
The most resonant lyric, “Swear to shake it up if you swear to listen,” is a cry out to the audience. Panic! really did “shake up” the music scene at this point. With A Fever You Can’t Sweat Out’s release, pop-punk became incredibly mainstream. They were pioneers of the early 2000s emo genre, even though they despised the title.
Just like the song alludes to, the press will say what they want to say and twist what they want to twist. Moreover, the band used influences that were rarely seen in the pop-punk scene at the time: The first half of the album has scattered electronic elements with use of synthesizers, while the second half includes baroque influences like organs. It was a creative and unique sound within the genre.
With Panic! at the Disco finally coming to an end this January, fans are left questioning if the band lived up to the promise they made with their first album. Panic! continued to shake up their sound, venturing into a Beatles-like sound for their sophomore album then progressing all the way to the pop-rock-Queen-cover-band sound of their newest album. Good or bad, the band definitely shook it up. Did you swear to listen?
Colombian-American R&B artist Kali Uchis has been making heart-touching, genre-bending music from the onset of her career in 2014; she has always embraced her Latin American roots, and the seamless blend of Spanish and English in her songs is proof of that. Kali’s new single “I Wish You Roses” is one of her first songs since the release of her 2020 album, Sin Miedo (del Amor y Otros Demonios). Last year, she mostly kept a low profile, with the exception of a few singles, “No Hay Ley” and “La Única.” This is the first track off her upcoming album, Red Moon in Venus, and the dreamlike quality of her discography paired with her melodic voice continues to comfort listeners, even in the face of heartbreak.
With Valentine’s Day coming up, Kali’s “I Wish You Roses” teaches us the value of releasing oneself from heartache and the ways to love yourself and others. In the song’s psychedelic accompanying music video directed by Cho Gi-Seok, Kali Uchis is painted in warm colors as she bathes in the petals of flowers, picking roses despite their thorns. The song starts with the slow build up of one note into a steady rhythm, the sounds of morning birds singing in the background. Kali’s captivating voice puts us under her spell as she laments about a past relationship, while simultaneously accepting the loss with grace and composure:
“Never thought I’d be without you /
I wish you love, I wish you well /
I wish you roses while you can still smell them.”
In a statement, Uchis says the song is about “how to release people with love — it could be a friend, a lover, or someone else, but the point is to celebrate releasing people from your life without being resentful or bitter.” While we may relish in revenge, sometimes being able to let someone go, accepting the pain and moving on, is the best way to live freely and authentically. This song has a stable beat and harmonious vocals, enveloping listeners in comfort. Nevertheless, it has a very melancholic feel, communicating a bittersweet sentiment.
“My love’s deep as the ocean /
Don’t you drown on me /
Just know any love I gave you /
Is forever yours to keep.”
Like the beauty of roses, love is fleeting; we should enjoy it while we have it, rather than waiting for it to wither away. This song represents a new era for Kali Uchis; she has teased on Instagram that she has been working on two new albums, one in English and one in Spanish. Despite the changing styles, her hypnotic voice has helped her develop a signature, and she knows exactly who she is. Red Moon in Venus is set to be released on March 3. Until then, I’ll be shuffling Kali Uchis’ discography to tide myself over.
“Maybae Baeby” is a tremendous return to form for Xiu Xiu. With Xiu Xiu having such a large body of work, it’s quite easy to see how their sound has morphed with time. For the better part of the last decade we have seen their experimental sound accumulate more pop influences with each release, most notably on FORGET, their 2017 album.
But the intensely dark and dissonant sound that once defined them has returned in a much more menacing form. What was once understated and partly subdued is now massive and all-consuming. If this single is anything to go off of, there is a lot to look forward to from Xiu Xiu and their newest member, David Kendrick — formerly of Sparks and Devo.
Xiu Xiu’s new album, Ignore Grief, comes out March 3.
This week in music history, prosecutors from New Jersey warned US record dealers that if they sold John Lennon and Yoko Ono’s experimental album, Two Virgins, they would be charged with distribution of pornography.
On January 24, 1969, Unfinished Music No. 1: Two Virgins was put under fire. The cover proudly showed Lennon and Ono standing, holding each other, completely nude. However, distributors were far from proud to sell this album because it was censored very quickly.
LPs of Two Virgins were sold in brown paper bags to cover up the nude photos like it was contraband. It was controversial enough for New Jersey to impound 30,000 copies for the obscene photos.
This cover was not an act of protest or malintent. The artists simply said that these photos explained how they felt and portrayed the title, as its true vision was to display “two innocents, lost in a world gone mad.” The art was much like the genre of music: avant-garde at its core. But, not everyone, especially the state of New Jersey, shared the couple’s appreciation for blunt displays of identity.
~Arden Vanover
Like many other British bands from the era, Joy Division was born from one fateful night. On Jan. 25, 1978, Ian Curtis, Bernard Sumner, Peter Hook and Stephen Morris made their live debut as Joy Division at Pip’s Disco in Manchester, initially being billed as Warsaw. The band’s previous name, Warsaw, was inspired by the track “Warszawa” off David Bowie’s 1977 album Low. However, this name was too similar to another band at the time, Warsaw Pakt, so the group decided to change their name to Joy Division. Their new name was sourced from groups of Jewish women who were used as sex slaves in a Nazi concentration camp featured in the book House of Dolls by Ka-Tsetnik 135633. Joy Division headlined with support from two other local acts, Connection and The Stance.
The performance almost ended in catastrophe before it began, as Ian Curtis was thrown out for kicking glass during The Stance’s set and didn’t regain entry until 15 minutes before Joy Division was slated to perform. However, things only grew more frantic from there, as a fight broke out almost immediately as the band began to play. Frustrated by this, bassist Peter Hook jumped off the stage and joined the melee, which almost resulted in the band being thrown offstage. Nevertheless, they persevered, and enough order was restored for them to get through their fateful first set. This performance would not prove to be disastrous, as it allowed the band to shape their future identity. Joy Division decided to move away from the violence of the punk scene and toward a more progressive literary territory, which would provide the foundations for the post-punk genre. A night that could’ve so easily ended in disaster ended up birthing a timeless band that would influence generations to come and arguably the beginning of the post-punk genre.
~Logan Juncaj
This week in music history, The Phantom of the Opera took its first step into a decades-long journey that encapsulated almost 14,000 performances on Broadway. According to the Internet Broadway Database (or IBDB, IMDb’s theatre kid cousin), the show will close after 34 years on April 16 of this year. The musical adds a beautiful score to the 1911 French novel by Gaston Leroux and previous Hollywood adaptations. The music is an interesting but amazing combination of classical opera and more contemporary sounds and slight rock influences. It’s the story of a disgraced-but-sexy sewer dweller who becomes obsessed with the Paris Opera’s newest soprano and kills people about it. He also drops a chandelier on the audience which is objectively pretty epic. The musical is such a spectacle of music and dance and costumes and setting it is no surprise that it is currently the longest running Broadway show in history. Back in 1988, the show was nominated for 10 Tony Awards, and won seven, according to Playbill’s statistics. The show also pulls in millions of dollars a week with eight shows a week in a nearly full capacity theater. The past 34 years have included numerous special concerts and anniversaries, strong impacts on popular culture as well as a 2004 movie adaption. Sadly, the musical will close this spring. However, it has already contributed plenty to music history.
~Madison Reinhold
It’s winter here in East Lansing. The snow that has eluded us has finally thwarted the gray malaise haunting the student body like a specter. As the branches become adorned in a pearlescent gilding and the Red Cedar freezes to a halt, another thing is in the air for the mischievous folks in G-4 Holden Hall: The annual broomball tournament.
This yearly festivity brings together good friends, and even better athletes, at the historic Munn Ice Arena for a public display of brutality the likes the world has never seen. Reeling from their 9-0 loss in 2021, the boot-quaking street urchins peddling their brand of journalism (The State News) have decided that they are masochists after all, and are back for more. This time, though, they brought some more victims/friends.
Alongside them are the MSU Telecasters, as well as our fashion editorial-extraordinaire, the fine folks at VIM. For the sake of our university woodlots, I hope they’re no-shows — I’m not sure there’s enough lumber for the amount of caskets that need to be crafted on such short notice. At least VIM will look good at their funeral, and the Telecasters will be generous enough to provide HD footage of their demise.
In the meantime, while you’re practicing your eulogies (and to all my Impacters, victory dances), here is a very special playlist to get you in the mood to go nothing less than BUCK WILD.
What does a dream feel like? I don’t mean how does a dream make you feel after you’ve woken up: I mean how do you physically feel within your dream? How does it feel to touch something? Do you feel it at all?
I liken it to my leg falling asleep. I touch my leg with my finger. My finger feels my leg, but my leg doesn’t feel my finger. This is somewhat of a crude example, but it stands.
And now what if this was how you experienced life — this feeling washing over your body, mind and soul. The world touches you, but you don’t touch the world. You are awake and still dreaming.
“I wish I could get over this feeling of slipping under.”
Title Fight is in no way a stranger to depictions of sadness, loneliness and depression, yet there is something so salient about the lyricism of “Numb, But I Still Feel It.” Perhaps it is because the name of the track is so transparent about what the track will communicate: the contradictions inherent to the individual experience of sadness. On days that are hard to get through, I constantly struggle to reckon with what I know versus what I feel.
This internal dispute between knowledge and emotion is what perpetuates the dreamlike nature of existence that Title Fight is expressing here. I know that I exist in the world. I can affect my reality. I can make choices that affect my life. Where contradiction surfaces is in the acknowledgment of that reality while having the unshakeable, oppressive feeling that you exist at the whim of the world. Despite any efforts, you are a passive occupant in the universe incapable of living in it with agency. Things happen to you instead of you happening to them. The world touches you, but you don’t touch the world.
“I talk but no one listens /
Can’t make my own decisions.”
Talking with no one listening; decisions you make that aren’t your own; two directly opposing forces coexisting at once, in the same place, at the same time: Describing these feelings in words feels self-defeating. How can I sensibly convey a feeling which, by its very nature, is not sensible?
“Numb, but I still feel it crawling under my skin.”
If you’re numb, how do you feel? If you feel, how are you numb? Back and forth it goes forever, a cycle that keeps me in a syntactic stasis.
“I threw it all away /
But it still stays the same.”
Does this make sense to you? Does it even have to? After all, it doesn’t matter if a dream makes sense: It only matters how it feels.
“Every day I lie asleep /
Trying to wake up from this dream.”
“I wonder who they are /
Those who really run this land /
And I wonder why they run it /
With such a thoughtless hand.”
On Jan. 20, we lost a pillar in the psychedelic rock and folk community. David Crosby, singer for The Byrds and Founder of Crosby, Stills, Nash &Young has passed away. With the Byrds, he set the standard for the sound of the psychedelic ‘60s. After recording on their first five albums, he was fired in 1967 after making politically charged remarks on stage at Monterey Pop Festival in northern California. He followed that with his new band, Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, where he took that attitude into the ‘70s and defined the sound of popular rock and folk to this day. Along the way, he became famous for a flamboyant and outrageous lifestyle which in turn led to differences among members of the band. These differences created tension between David Crosby and his band members, especially between him and Graham Nash, who had been estranged from Crosby since as recently as 2016. Nash said “…what has always mattered to David and me more than anything was the pure joy of the music we created together, the sound we discovered with one another, and the deep friendship we shared over all these many long years” on his social media following news of Crosby’s passing.
In 1968, David Crosby, Stephen Stills and Graham Nash put on a show together, and upon discovering how well they harmonized with each other, they decided to form the group known as Crosby, Stills & Nash. Neil Young joined later, offering even stronger musical arrangements and broader popular appeal. Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young saw the group turn into pop stars and sent them into a realm where their interpersonal relationships were just as important as the hits they were making. David Crosby was at the center of a movement within the West Coast rock scene collaborating with Joni Mitchel, Greg Rolie, The Grateful Dead and many other prominent names in the scene. During this time, he forged new paths in music and was recognized by fans and peers for his skillful songwriting, vocal harmonies and infectious melodies that have never left the heads of a generation. Through the years, however, the rockstar lifestyle took its toll on the bandmates’ friendships, commercial success and ultimately, on his physical wellbeing. He lived a tumultuous life, filled with sudden changes. On his debut album outside of the band, If Only I Could Remember My Name, he explores instrumental acoustic soundscapes, and jam-inspired blues songs that form a very clear picture of what was going on in Crosby’s life at that time. The second track, “Cowboy Movie,” tells a detailed story about a group of cowboys who find who they think to be “an Indian girl, all alone.” Crosby says he doesn’t trust her, but he is outnumbered and they “take her back to the cabin.” In the chaos that ensues, we get a glimpse at how David Crosby viewed the world around him. The song serves as a window into the volatile relationships that served as both the inspiration and downfall of his recording career. The rock star lifestyle did end up taking its toll though, and Crosby suffered from heart and liver troubles since the ‘90s.
David Crosby will be forever remembered by his large circle of friends, and even larger circle of fans across the world, for leaving his lasting legacy in the fantastic world of music.
Welcome to January, or as it’s known to fans of the Eurovision Song Contest, the beginning of the season. During the months leading up to the competition, numerous nations will hold competitions to select their song for Eurovision. More often than not, these preselections don’t have a lot of musical diversity, opting for a safer, radio-friendly option. This usually means that there aren’t a lot of songs that stand out in a good way. However, this year has seen one of the most exciting songs that is in the running to go to Eurovision.
Rakky Ripper is an artist from Granada who has been leading the charge of Spanish hyperpop ever since she released her debut album, Neptune Diamond. The aforementioned album helped to establish her footing in the industry, but it was her 2021 release of “donde stas??” that launched her to the face of Spanish hyperpop. She also began to reach fans outside of the Spanish-speaking world when she performed on stage with Charli XCX in one of Charli’s concerts in Madrid. Charli is someone who Ripper has cited as an inspiration to her several times, and that inspiration is easy to hear in “TRACCIÓN.” “TRACCIÓN” hits all of the same beats that hyperpop artists tend to in their music, with a pulsing synth leading Ripper’s autotuned vocals to our ears. Elements of breakbeat sneak its way into the verses. Once the chorus hits, the synth gets crunched and begins to pulsate, like a truck starting on a cold day. While the track doesn’t take the elements of her hyperpop sound to the same extremes that we get on tracks like “Faceshopping” by the late great SOPHIE, that’s also to be expected of a song from the style that’s competing for an intranational competition title. Ripper is currently in the running to represent Spain in the 2023 edition of Eurovision, which is to be held in Liverpool.
Since 2010, Spain has been a competing force at Eurovision. During that span, the nation — which automatically gets a free pass to the final — only managed to place in the top ten a total of three times; a pair of tenth places in 2012 and 2014, and a third place in 2022. Something changed within the delegation in 2022, as the method of selecting their entry underwent a massive change. Prior to then, the nation would choose their artist, and then have them write a song that fits what they were looking for, only changing this method twice. In these two alternative selections, the show Operación Triunfo, which can be likened to American Idol, had a special show where the participants made a song that would go to Eurovision if selected.
The selection method was changed to become a competition more in line with selections elsewhere in Europe. This selection was christened Benidorm Fest. Even in the first edition, a number of very unique artists were selected to compete to represent Spain in the Eurovision 2022, which was held by Italy after Måneskin — yes, the band behind “Beggin’” — won the 2020 edition with their song “Zitti e buoni”. Some of these artists include: Luna Ki, an artist who’s on the forefront of the blossoming hyperpop scene in Spain; Azúcar Moreno, a duo who burst onto the scene in the 1980s and have still kept up their popularity in the 40-or-so years since then; Tanxugueiras, a Galician trio that melds traditional Galician music and modern influences; and Chanel Terrero, a musical actress. The second edition has large shoes of musical diversity to fill, but I would dare to say that they have been filled. In the 2023 edition, you have the likes of Alice Wonder, a nonbinary balladeer; Megara, a band that invokes the likes of Set It Off and Falling In Reverse with their sound; Sharonne, a drag queen; Karmento, an artist who performs new interpretations of the traditional flamenco style; and Rakky Ripper, our hyperpop darling.
Eurovision has shown that more unorthodox styles will do better in the as of late, with half of the songs that placed in the top five in the past two editions being from styles that you wouldn’t often hear played on a stereotypical pop radio station, with glam rock, chanson, a folk-techno fusion, folk-rap, and art pop all finding their way to the top of the contest. Hopefully, Rakky Ripper will be the next in a long line of alternative artists who find success at Eurovision.
Rakky Ripper is slated to perform on Feb. 2, 2023 in the second semifinal at Benidorm Fest. The final is set to be held two days later.
The emos are on the rise again. My Chemical Romance toured last year, Paramore and Pierce The Veil announced new albums coming next month, Brendon Urie continues to drag Panic! At The Disco’s good name down with him and my beloved Fall Out Boy is back. Following 2018’s MANIA was some considerable backlash from diehard Fall Out Boy fans. Many dissed the band’s experimentation with a synth-pop sound, saying they missed the old Fall Out Boy.
Don’t get me wrong — MANIA had some bangers like “Church” and “Heaven’s Gate,” but it just didn’t feel the same as their pre-hiatus work. Maybe it’s just because I’m getting older and I miss how I felt when Save Rock and Roll came out — good lord, I was 11. But, regardless, Fall Out Boy listened to their fans — and guitarist Joe Trohman, as revealed in his recent memoir — and returned to their roots with their upcoming project, So Much (For) Stardust.
So Much (For) Stardust’s lead single, “Love From The Other Side,” was released Jan. 18 following weeks of cryptic social media posts from the band. I’ve personally listened to it about 50 times since its release and let me just say: I’ve never been more excited for an album based on a single. “Love From The Other Side” is the gritty, guitar-heavy song fans have been craving from Fall Out Boy.
The song opens with a one-minute orchestral arrangement before it punches you in the face with a guitar riff. The goosebumps I felt in the transition from classical to rock were insane. The lyrics begin with a picture of a dream life crumbling before your eyes, your expectations collapsing inward:
“Model house life meltdown still a modern dream letdown, it kills me /
You know I’m dying out here /
What would you trade the pain for? /
I’m not sure.”
The motif “What would you trade the pain for?” is repeated throughout the song, sometimes answered by an “I’m not sure,” sometimes left with no answer at all. This repetition seems to cement the fact that while the life the singer leads brings them anguish, they don’t know any other way to live.
The chorus is both catchy and complex. As the guitar swells to meet the chorus, singer Patrick Stump’s powerhouse vocals come through a cacophony of percussion:
“Sending my love from the other side of the apocalypse /
And I just about snapped, don’t look back /
Every lover’s got a little dagger in their hand.”
It’s been stuck in my head for a couple weeks, as the chorus is the only snippet Fall Out Boy released on Jan. 11. The high note Stump hits on “back” just scratches this itch in my brain that I can’t truly describe. It’s just — chef’s kiss — beautiful.
This song, from my individual perspective, seems to be about losing someone to a lifestyle you can’t escape but remaining in love with them. You want to reach out to them, from the other side of your personal apocalypse, but you’re afraid of how they might see you now. Lyrics like “But there’s no way off the hamster wheel on this rat race” and “Give up what you love before it does you in” confirm this for me, the latter being a warning echo to the past self.
Fall Out Boy’s So Much (For) Stardust is slated for release on March 24. Until then, you can catch me looping this song until my phone dies. If you want to enjoy it normally, you can stream “Love From The Other Side” wherever you get your music. The emo trinity lives again.
On Jan. 10, beloved pop-punk powerhouse Paramore released the third single for their highly anticipated album, This Is Why. “C’est Comme Ça” is a post-punk inspired earworm. Frontwoman Hayley Williams’ Talking Heads-esque talk-singing is a welcome addition to the track’s energy-filled choruses.
“C’est Comme Ça” translates to “It is what it is.” Williams’ lyrics convey this sense of wanting to get better, but thriving in chaos and disorder. As a fan, it feels like a natural progression from the After Laughter era of songs like “Hard Times” and “Fake Happy” about hiding struggles and feeling hopeless. “C’est Comme Ça’’ is uncertain and dynamic — it reckons with the future and what it means to make progress. Williams sings,
“I know that regression is rarely rewarded /
I still need a certain degree of disorder.”
The single’s sound may stray from the band’s Riot! days, but it undoubtedly sounds like Paramore. It’s danceable, catchy and alluring. Paramore has found success in evolving without losing touch with what makes them special.
This Is Why releases Feb. 10, and will surely be dense with similarly captivating tracks.
2023 is a year where many people have their eyes on Parannoul. The South Korean anonymous wunderkind has been touted as the budding voice of a new generation of Korean artists, inspiring many contemporary and future acts on account of his breakout sophomore effort, To See the Next Part of the Dream.
2021 and 2022 had Parannoul earning critical and listener acclaim with the split album Downfall of the Neon Youth, the collaborative EP Paraglow with Asian Glow and contributions to albums by Fax Gang and noun.
Paraglow, especially, has shown Parannoul to be moving away from the lo-fi, noise-drenched sound that he is known for. “Wheel,” the 14-minute epic that closed out Paraglow, was the largest indicator of this stylistic shift that Parannoul has been embarking on for the past year. Gone were intense walls of sound and heavy guitars suspended in a suffocating mix.
Given instead were instrumental flourishes of rich percussion: bells, chimes, xylophones and the like formed a much more careful arrangement of instruments as a unified whole. Rather than making a conscious effort to obscure a lack of skill, it seems his entire perspective had inverted into a careful demonstration of instrumental prowess.
For better or worse, the artistic footnotes that were stitched together to make To See the Next Part of the Dream a love letter to the shoegazing genre were gone. But in its stead is a much more eclectic, impressive, mature and personal composition, all of which carried over to “We Shine at Night,” the latest single teasing Parannoul’s third album, After the Magic. “We Shine at Night” is driven far more by a self-confidence teased through his most recent works, and all for the better. The track explodes with Parannoul’s voice in a youthful exuberance — it is clear and present in the mix: unwavering and defiant.
Carrying the multi-structural facets that Parannoul has been experimenting with, the track is composed with plucked guitars, a barreling rhythm and passionate vocals staggered between moments of instrumental brilliance.
“낯선 손을 잡고 서로를 이어 /
세상을 앞질렀던 여름밤 /
이젠 오지 않는 시간들 이후 /
우린 서로를 기억할까요.”
Between the clamoring gongs, pummeling snares and crashing cymbals, Parannoul makes his voice heard. The hook is clear and passionate: a resolute vision one might not have assumed of him had they only heard his juvenile work.
While Parannoul has cemented his mastery of “proper vocals,” he still wants to show the listener that the artist they fell in love with still retains his core sensibilities.
The instrumental strips itself in a second suite. Only linked together by a lethargic guitar lead, the plucked strings instigate the axis of this truly gyroscopic track.
A confessional whisper enters the soundscape and is then followed by staggered claps and decaying frequencies which drag themselves behind the whisper, which is slowly supplanted by a deep and convictive howl. The refrain transforms into an outro of pure conviction and beauty.
“끝나지 않았어 /
집으로 돌아가자.”
“La la la la,” he sings alongside fellow Korean musician Della Zyr. The track fades with their voices, but they become so lost in its rapturous bliss that time may as well be infinite.
When one thinks of music from the ‘90s, one of the first genres that come to mind is grunge. Nirvana had completely changed the cultural landscape with Nevermind, and made grunge a household name with “Smells Like Teen Spirit.” The catchy, fast-paced nature of Nirvana’s hit album glossed over a subject that had proven, unfortunately, foundational for many of the bands at the time. That being substance abuse and addiction, specifically heroin. While Kurt Cobain was relatively open about his relationship with drugs, it was rarely the forefront of Nirvana’s music, instead appearing as just a personal vice of the band’s frontman. However, there must always be yin to yang. While Nirvana was trying to distance themselves from the topic of drug abuse in the public eye, Alice In Chains was fully embracing it and making it a core part of the band’s identity.
Alice In Chains was doing something very different by embracing the unspoken devil of the grunge movement. Instead of dancing around the subject, they were incorporating it into their lyrics and using it as a creative tool for writing their music. This led to the creation of some of the grittiest and visceral music of the era. Their album Facelift would catapult them into the mainstream, marking the scene’s hunger for a darker subject matter that sadly hit close to home for many of the listeners.
The band’s creative prowess and popularity wouldn’t peak until the release of Dirt, possibly one of the most influential rock albums of all time. Songs like “Rooster” and “Them Bones” crawled their way onto radio stations across the worlds, giving the public listeners a taste for blood that was only sated by the lyrical prowess and haunting voice of singer Layne Staley. One track on this album stood far and away as the magnum opus of the band, exemplifying both the talent and genius of all members of Alice In Chains, and solidifying them as one of the greatest grunge bands of all time. Originally written as a tribute to Mother Love Bones lead singer Andrew Wood, who had tragically died of a heroin overdose years prior, “Would?” brings every part of what made Alice In Chains so influential and puts it into one neat package.
Opening with quite possibly one of the most notable bass lines in rock history, the listener is immediately transported into a hellish landscape where all hope is gone. Guitarist Jerry Cantrell’s voice quickly enters the mix, with Staley’s ghastly vocals echoing over Cantrell’s opening lyrics that would foretell Staley’s own fall from grace.
“Know me broken /
by my master /
Teach thee on child /
Love hereafter.”
A panicked drum beat meets a rising guitar as Staley’s gnarled voice claws its way onto the scene, breaking the listener out of the hypnotic trance caused by the instrumentals. The band comes together into a cacophony of noise that can’t seem to overpower Staley’s anguished cries. Cantrell’s otherworldly guitar riff fades in and out while tribal beats slam over an inverted version of the opening bassline, creating a haunting vessel for the chorus to ride upon. The chorus itself tells a story of addiction, judgment and hopelessness, common themes in many of the band’s songs.
“Into the flood again /
Same old trip it was back then /
So I made a big mistake /
Try to see it once my way.”
After the chorus, we’re returned to the familiar soundscape of the pre-chorus. Cantrell’s soothing voice returns, creating a moment to recuperate before the inevitable return of Staley’s anguished cries. The lyrics this time around create an image of an addict who’s not quite ready to quit, instead thinking that their only function is to further feed their addiction.
“Drifting body /
Sole desertion /
Flying not yet /
Quite the notion.”
The instrumentals and chorus once again burst back into the fray, creating the feeling of a cycle that is impossible to break. A short guitar solo breaks out, a welcome break from the pounding repetition of the chorus and the overwhelming lyrics of Staley. The chorus comes back around one last time, more powerful than ever. Finally, we’re brought to the song’s peak, with Cantrell’s powerful guitar chugging and Sean Kinney’s mesmerizing drumbeats ride alongside Staley’s desperate shouts.
“Am I wrong? /
Have I run too far to get home? /
Have I gone? /
And left you here alone?”
The vocals once again become the forefront as all instrumentals stop their rhythm in order to strike alongside Staley’s final line, branding the searing pain of uncertainty into the listeners mind in the form of an open-ended question.
“If I would, could you?”
The spring semester is in full swing. It’s the second week of classes, and professors aren’t joking around — they’re getting right to it. Does anyone else have papers due this week? On top of that, we’re surrounded by people again. Friend reunions are fun and dandy, but nothing gets the anxiety going like running into an ex or walking into a class and seeing that friend who ghosted you sitting in the front row. If you’re anything like me, you’ve been holding your breath this first week back on campus.
“Este Sentimiento” by Dariell Cano is a reminder to exhale. This indie sierreño ballad slows down time with its calming melody. It feels like a reprieve from life’s fast pace.
Cano is a 17-year-old, second-generation Mexican American living in a small town outside of Grand Rapids, Michigan, and his identity is infused into his music. Cano’s music is influenced from traditional norteño music, like Ariel Camacho y Los Plebes Del Rancho, by incorporating acoustic guitar and chord progressions inspired by regional Mexican music, like the most famous Am – G – F – E chord progression. His music is also influenced by his teenage experience. “Este Sentimiento” is a love song to someone who’s close to Cano but doesn’t know how he feels about them.
“Mis pensamientos /
Son mis secretos.”
Cano understands what it’s like to hold your breath in this type of situation, but this song is an invitation to exhale. You may feel like you’re trying to hold back a flood of emotions, but let them out. Slow down. Take a deep breath. Listen to “Este Sentimiento” by Dariell Cano and escape from the stress of the new semester.
“Auld Lang Syne” has been sung a few too many times. The oversized objects have fallen slowly to the ground. The confetti has been swept off of the asphalt of a major city. And New Year’s resolutions have been created, whether they will last or not. Apparently, the French made a resolution to wage a media war against the United States for the crime of Emily in Paris having three seasons at the time of this article’s writing, which is arguably five too many. What could the French even release to remotely contend with that travesty? That answer would have to be Illumination Studios’ perennial curse on the world with yet another installment of the adventures of the banana Tic Tacs. Minions: The Rise of Gru firmly cemented the Minions as the second worst thing to ever come out of France, after a legacy of colonialism that has created a butterfly effect which continues to affect their former colonies to this day. Did they need to release this? Absolutely not. Sing 2, the film that the studio released last year, earned nearly $409 million worldwide. So, why did they unveil this abomination over this past summer? In the words of Mr. Krabs in the 2004 Spongebob Squarepants movie, “money.”
Steve Carrell reprises his role as an 11-year-old Gru in this prequel film, which follows the little manlet as he tries to fill a spot on his favorite villainous team, the Vicious 6, after their leader “died.” Of course, being an 11-year-old in the year 1976, Gru has access to incredible technology like a rocket-powered tricycle to go to school in. This also includes being mailed a hologram-projecting cassette tape that he plays in his mother’s car — because that’s a smart economical decision for a group of villains — only to explode like a Tom and Jerry-esque skit.
Eventually we are introduced to the six members of the Vicious 6 in a montage scene with Brittney Howard of Alabama Shakes performing a cover of Earth, Wind & Fire’s song “Shining Star” alongside Verdine White, Earth, Wind & Fire’s bassist. All of the members of the Vicious 6 have names that should be tried at the Hague for crimes against human decency. You might be asking yourself, “Why should we use these names as the main reason to try these people for war crimes?” The answer should be quite obvious — they’re all goddamn puns. They aren’t even half-decent puns at that. Because it’s the mid-70s, one of the members of the Vicious 6 is named Belle Bottoms. And yes, she wears bell-bottoms. What else can you expect? Also on the team you have: Svengance, a Swedish hockey fanatic named Sven; Stronghold, a massive man reminiscent of Andre the Giant; Jean-Clawed, a French villain with a massive robotic lobster claw that has a mime’s clothing scheme and is voiced by Jean-Claude Van Damme; and perhaps most egregious of all, Nun-chuck, who is — get this — a nun with nunchucks. How incredibly original. There’s also the head of the team, Wild Knuckles, but he’s just a guy or something like that. I guess he’s like the Batman of this film, just with way less money. Also, their headquarters is in the basement of a record store. That doesn’t excuse the sins of their names, but it is something, I guess. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to play some Phoebe Bridgers to get myself to feel any kind of emotion besides immense pain at this.
Wait, why the hell is she in this film too? Diana Ross, Tame Impala, St. Vincent, Brockhampton, Kali Uchis, Caroline Polachek, Thundercat, Weyes Blood, Gary Clark Jr., H.E.R., Tierra Whack, Jackson Wang and G.E.M. too? Why are there all these A-list artists and/or sad girl hours playlist mainstays on this soundtrack? Is this a fever dream? And how did they get them all to make covers of hits from the ‘50s, ‘60s and ‘70s for this movie? Hearing Annie St. Vincent covering the Lipps Inc. smash hit “Funkytown” gave me a feeling of whiplash I haven’t experienced ever and hope to never experience again. This is the second film I’ve ever experienced that Funkytown shows up in to confuse the daylights out of me. But, I digress. Back to the film’s “plot” or whatever term you can come up with to describe this absolute travesty.
The six fly to an unnamed place in Asia to steal a stone that holds the powers of the zodiac. Knuckles — not the red echidna, I swear — steals the stone, but is dropped from the hovercraft by the other members of the organization that he started. Then, the title card rolls out. Now, I can finally talk about the fact that Mandopop superstar G.E.M. covered Cher for this film. Cher. Covered by G.E.M. What kind of wild crossover had to be brewed for this sentence to become reality? Caroline Polachek does a different cover of the same song for the ending credits but meh, who cares about that?
Gru steals the stone and gets kidnapped by Knuckles, who is somehow still alive despite literally falling thousands of feet into a lake in East Asia. Where does Knuckles take Gru to? The best city in California but only a C-tier city to the rest of the United States, San Francisco.
Before some of y’all come at me for this, let me explain: Los Angeles is a farce, San Diego is irrelevant without Carmen, San Jose is so irrelevant that I can’t even say anything about the city, Fresno doesn’t deserve to exist and the only good thing that Sacramento has done for the world in the past century was give us Death Grips. Huh, maybe Sacramento doesn’t deserve this slander. Meh. California as a whole needs to be humbled.
Back to Minions: The Rise of Gru. Before he gets kidnapped, Otto the minion trades the stone for a pet rock, prompting Gru to fire every single one of the minions. The minions were throwing a rave at the time this happened. In response, the minion who was DJing the rave changed the song to Phoebe Bridgers’ cover of the Carpenter’s 1972 hit, “Goodbye to Love” as the weather outside became a torrential downpour. As much as I’ll slander the film for being nothing more than a cash grab, the overt nihilism that this single scene contains makes this scene the best thing to happen to the series since the first film.
Speaking of nihilism in 1976, wanna know what ended the year prior that filled the globe with that same emotion? The Vietnam War. While the film doesn’t reference the atrocities that were being waged the year before, the sound design choices are nothing more than a ham-fisted attempt at showcasing the same emotions that were rampant throughout the years prior. I know you are probably thinking to yourself, “How did you get this out of a funny movie about minions, and why were you thinking of a war with more war crimes than Nick Cannon has children?” And I get it. I hear these questions loud and clear, like a prophet receiving visions from an angry god. The answer is simple — the overtones are just so prevalent. Not just from the crimes against humanity that are the names of the Vicious 6, but from the sonic crimes that the film put us through.
For starters, you have “Rich Minion,” the Gulf of Tonkin incident of the film. While only utilized in a single advertisement for the film, the fact that it was used in the Gentleminion TikTok trend, which I am going to largely blame for the complete and utter ruining of decorum at concerts and theaters, which has also been one of the reasons for the American leg of Steve Lacy’s “Give You the World” tour being as chaotic as it has been, and yes, it’s not just him smashing a phone in New Orleans. The Mỹ Lai of the film is the simple fact that there is this massive batch of A-list artists on the soundtrack, and yet the only original track on the soundtrack was given to Diana Ross, who has only released one album since 2006 — which honestly flopped for an artist with her name power — in collaboration with Tame Impala, who has been milking the success of The Slow Rush for the past three years or so. Why the hell couldn’t the sole original song of the soundtrack go to literally anyone else? If there is a god in this universe, they wouldn’t do this to me even to just get a laugh out of my suffering. For Christ’s sake, the Vicious 6 couldn’t find Wild Knuckles’ house, which is nothing more than a massive K on top of a hill in downtown San Fran-fucking-cisco. How oblivious do you have to be to let this slide? I should also note that Gru literally gets tied to a clock tower’s face, and is drawn and quartered on the clock face. But he doesn’t die. Instead, his limbs just extend like an Inspector Gadget reject. So this either proves that Gru is a god or that he could kill one, and I do not care if there is a difference. How else do you explain an 11-year-old having an entourage of puntable beings doing his bidding? This film has done nothing but broken my psyche, and I deserve financial compensation for my suffering. My computer refused to connect to any WiFi networks while I was starting this piece back in October of 2022. I spent over $200 to give you this knowledge. This isn’t even a joke: I suffered more than anyone else should for the sake of those piss nuggets. Thank Christ this is over.
Well, at least I can look forward to Illumination’s next film with war crimes, The Super Mario Bros. Movie, starring a crisp rat as the plumber-turned-war-criminal. And much like a weapon banned by the United Nations that was popularized by Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 2, we can leave the Minions in the past, where they belong.
Wait, what do you mean Despicable Me 4 is currently slated for a release in 2024? Why can’t I go three years without having to see these little gremlins that I want to push down a flight of stairs like a slinky? Apparently Gru has cursed me for my hubris, and my work here is never done. I guess I’ll see you all in 2024 to see what new crimes against humanity are created for the next installment in the film series.
Evil skeleton sorcerers in your realm? More likely than you think!
But how would one dispose of such foul creatures? Simple physical weapons and tools are powerless against these enchanted monstrosities after all. This is rhetorical, of course: The only way to vanquish these villains is to make use of magic and the arcane arts. Being shadow wizards ourselves, we have a great deal of access to ancient tomes and scrolls and thus we have compiled a list of songs that the elder texts have indicated grant the listener increased ability in casting spells and possibly performing incantations. We hope these spells aid you in your quest, adventurer!
This week in music history, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame held its 10th annual induction ceremony. The class of ‘95 inductees include Al Green, Neil Young, Martha and the Vandellas, Frank Zappa, The Allman Brothers Band, Janis Joplin and Led Zeppelin. Some of the performance highlights of the night were Melissa Etheridge’s rendition of Janis Joplin’s “Piece of My Heart,” Neil Young and Pearl Jam rocking out to “Fuckin’ Up” and Led Zeppelin and Aerosmith jamming together with “Train Kept a Rollin’.”
All the inductees of 1995 remain rock ‘n’ roll icons. Al Green’s soulful vocals are some of the best of all time. Rolling Stones ranked him No. 10 on its list of the 200 Greatest Singers of All Time. Neil Young, the “Godfather of Grunge,” has had a long, successful career and is still playing and performing today.Martha and the Vandellas formed in Detroit and rose to fame with Motown Records in the 1960s. Frank Zappa was a trailblazer in the music industry, experimenting with every genre from rock to classical. Producing 60 albums, Zappa brought new life into rock ‘n’ roll.
Forging their own way in the music industry, The Allman Brothers Band fused rock, country and blues into magic. “One of the most exciting live bands to ever hit the stage,” according to Willie Nelson. Janis Joplin’s passion, powerful vocals and refusal to conform made her an icon. She died at age 27 but remains one of the top-selling musicians in the United States. Led Zeppelin doesn’t need much introduction. They’re one of the best-selling music artists of all time with iconic songs like “Stairway to Heaven” and “Whole Lotta Love.”
The 1995 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony recognized some of the biggest names in the music industry. All of the artists are legends, and their music has surely endured the test of time.
~Gabby Nelson
On Jan. 11, 1992, Nirvana’s Nevermind would reach No. 1 on the Billboard 200. Nevermind debuted at a not-so-strong No. 144 on its release, mostly due to the lack of supply from a very limited initial release of 50,000 albums. The album would slowly crawl its way to the top over the course of three months as supply grew to meet demand and the iconic music video was put into MTV’s rotation. It would eventually step over Michael Jackson’s Dangerous and many of the hair metal bands that had made their home in the upper echelons of the charts. Nevermind would spend a total of 252 weeks on the charts in a constant ebb and flow for the highest spots.
While Nirvana wasn’t the only band marking a change in the public’s musical consciousness at this point, they were laying the groundwork for the sound of the ‘90s. “Smells Like Teen Spirit” became the anthem of the generation through its use of esoteric lyrics and a high energy, catchy formula, peaking at No. 6 on the Billboard Hot 100. Meanwhile songs like “Something In The Way” and “Come As You Are” proved the band was more than a one-hit-wonder.
Overall, the band sold around 17 million copies of the album, proving itself as a cultural cornerstone and cementing the band in the annals of rock history. While Cobain may be gone, his contribution to rock, and music in general, is likely to never be forgotten.
~Shay Gale
31 years ago, grunge royalty Nirvana made their first of two appearances on Saturday Night Live. Their sophomore album Nevermind had come out just a few months earlier in September of ‘91, and with its significant commercial success SNL almost seemed like a rite of passage. The episode was hosted by Rob Morrow who introduced them before they played “Smells Like Teen Spirit” and “Territorial Pissings.” Nevermind was at the top of the Billboard 200, and “Smells Like Teen Spirit” was in its peak No. 6 position on the Hot 100. Nirvana played with their usual energy and vibrance, balanced with the grit of Kurt Cobain’s rasp and his dark, surreal lyrics.
The performance is widely thought of as one of their best performances of “Smells Like Teen Spirit,” and viewers could assume the band felt the same way — during goodbyes, the trio kissed, a lot. I like the idea of Lorne Michaels sighing to himself backstage during this part, but he couldn’t have been too mad because they were invited back next year after the release of In Utero.
~Claudia Braesch
What do you do if you want to sing at the Grand Ole Opry and you happen to be country music icon Patsy Cline? You simply ask. This week in music history, Patsy Cline became the first (and only) person in the history of the iconic show to perform without an invitation, just by simply asking to join. The Opry is known as the premier place for all famous country acts, their website declaring them “The show that made country music famous.”
Since its inception in 1925, the radio show has been synonymous with the most popular names in country music, broadcasting them to the far reaches of America with the growing popularity of radio. In 1960, Patsy Cline’s career was rather tumultuous. She had performed and gained some acclaim locally. In 1957, she recorded the iconic “Walkin’ After Midnight.” Cline was fortunately on the upswing when she approached the Opry, and the next years would bring much more success and many more hits for her.
While only having one hit at the time of her membership, she was accepted and is now remembered as one of the most prominent voices in country music. The Country Music Hall of Fame notes that she is the most popular female country singer ever, and is also the first woman inducted there. Her promising career in music and at the Opry would be tragically cut short in 1963, when she died at the age of 30 in a plane crash. Among her many accomplishments, her boldness and her irreplaceable talent is remembered in music history by the simple question she asked the Grand Ole Opry 63 years ago this week.
~Madison Reinhold
Harriette Pilbeam, known to many as Hatchie, has been one of the foremost voices in contemporary dream pop since the release of 2019’s Keepsake. In April of 2022, Pilbeam released Giving the World Away, a dream pop album which updated and reinterpreted tired ‘90s productions styles with a vigorous energy not seen since their initial heyday.
During Alex G’s tour for God Save The Animals, The Impact got a very special opportunity to interview Hatchie, alongside her husband and band-member Joe Agius. Between a trailer and a truck in a windy Detroit alleyway, Hatchie regaled about the music of her past, the effect of COVID-19 on her latest record and her musical process before the spectacular show.
Matt Cruz: What music did you listen to growing up? How has that shaped the Hatchie we know now?
Hatchie: I listened to lots of different music — I grew up in the ‘90s with older siblings who really influenced my music taste, whether it was as a kid listening to Britney Spears and Kiley Minogue, or when I was older, my brother introduced me to bands like Radiohead, the Raveonettes and more “indie” music that he probably found on places like Pitchfork, but I was too young to know what that was. It kind of depends. My parents listened to a lot of “old” music from the ‘70s and ‘80s like Billy Joel, Todd Rundgren, Carole King. Stuff like that taught me a lot about songwriting and harmonies.
Cruz: Besides your influence from ‘90s alt-dance group Saint Etienne, has there been any conscious influence from the UK baggy/Madchester scene? Stone Roses, Chapterhouse, Happy Mondays, Inspiral Carpets, 808 State?
Hatchie: Yeah, totally! Especially him [Joe]: Happy Mondays, Stone Roses, Primal Scream.
Agius: We love Chapterhouse.
Hatchie: Chapterhouse is especially a big influence, especially on the earlier stuff. I can’t think who else fits into that category that we were drawing inspiration from, but definitely.
Cruz: What about the shoegazing scene that was concurrent at the same time? What are your strongest influences?
Hatchie: Yeah! Especially on my earlier stuff, Cocteau Twins were a big influence and reference point, Slowdive and My Bloody Valentine and Lush. Most of those bands — I got into those bands a lot later than when most people do. A lot of people get into them when they’re teenagers but I didn’t really get into them until a bit later. I’m so into all of that.
Cruz: Are there any modern artists, either in the modern dream pop scene or elsewhere, that influence your music?
Hatchie: Probably. I can’t think of any immediately. This music came out in April, and we worked on it 18 months before that. I’d need to really think about who directly influenced anything. Joe, can you think of any modern artists?
Agius: Maybe Pains?
Hatchie: Yeah, I’m a big fan of The Pains of Being Pure at Heart, but I don’t think they influenced this record.
Cruz: Giving the World Away stands as one of the most refreshing dream pop albums I’ve heard in the past few years: How was the genesis of Giving the World Away impacted by COVID?
Hatchie: Oh, completely! Joe and I started, we went over to LA together for a writing trip in February of 2020. On that trip we wrote “Twin,” “This Enchanted,” “Lights On” and “Sunday Song”. Then we went home to Australia thinking that we were going to come back and finish the record soon, but we got stuck in Australia, so we finished the record — just the two of us — and sent the files over to our producer, Jorge Elbrecht, who was living in Denver. He did all the drums, the production and other instrumentation in Denver along with the drummer from Beach House (James Barone). Joe and I did the rest of the writing and recording on our end in Brisbane, and it allowed us to spend way more time on it. In Australia, everyone got a subsidy during COVID, so we got to focus on it completely and treat it as a job, like a nine-to-five for five days a week. It meant we could really go deep. We weren’t doing it at a studio; we were doing it at home. For that reason it was really good, but it was really difficult to do it over email because of the time difference. Not being in person to show someone what you wanted something to be like could sometimes hold us back a bit, but there were pros and cons.
Cruz: Do you think the time difference and the communication gap brought on by COVID allowed Giving the World Away to blossom into a very different record than originally planned?
Hatchie: Yes! Definitely. I think we spent every hour that we wanted to on it. The only thing I wonder that could’ve been different is that if we had written the rest of the album with Jorge. We did “This Enchanted” and “Lights On” with him, and I wonder if the record would have sounded more like that, but we’ll never know.
Cruz: Why did you decide to explore and reinterpret these textures of shoegaze, dream pop and alternative dance?
Hatchie: I don’t know — it was just the music we were listening to at home. Being stuck at home during lockdown, we were listening to a lot of party music to make the days pass. That’s where the dance influence came. I thought it was going to be more of a lighthearted, fun album. Being locked inside made the album more introspective and more like a personal diary than I was expecting. I originally thought it was going to be more like “This Enchanted” — more “90’s-UK-baggy-dance,.” but then it kind of turned into a more personal and autobiographical work because we were at home.
Cruz: How do you think of sound when writing songs? What comes first and what do you think is most important? Do you find yourself playing melodies in your head? Or tapping to rhythms you think of? The atmosphere? How does a Hatchie song usually begin?
Hatchie: It’s different every time. With this album, I don’t think any songs started with lyrics; they started with melodies and rhythms. It depends on certain songs: Joe started writing them and I helped finish it. Others, it was vice versa. I think “Lights On” started with a drum rhythm, and “The Rhythm” started with a synth and a drum. It depends: If I’m the one who starts writing it, it’s usually a vocal melody and a chord progression, but it changes. I don’t have an answer for what’s “most important” — I think it changes and for everyone it’s completely subjective.
Cruz: In the wake of the record’s release, how has your approach to recording music or exploring dream pop textures changed?
Hatchie: Now I think I’m going to focus a lot more on starting with lyrics and going with a more simple approach. With this album, because we had so much time to work on it, we obsessed over the finer details and production. I’m glad that we did that because that was what we set out to produce — create a highly produced, energetic album that made sense to perform live on a big stage. We were craving to get back into playing live shows after lockdown. Now I think I just want to ease back into more simple songs that really rely on the songwriting rather than the production, but it’s very early days for the next stuff, so we’ll see!
When she died at the age of 81 on Christmas Day 2008, there was practically nothing that Eartha Kitt hadn’t done. While this series is called Matriarchs of Music, music only scratches the surface of her life.
While she was an accomplished recording artist, including the holiday classic “Santa Baby,” she was on Broadway and also appeared in movies and on television. From her early days in Harlem to her resurgence among young fans as conniving animated villain Yzma, Kitt spent decades in the cultural zeitgeist.
Born in South Carolina in 1927, Kitt did not know her exact birthday until later in life and never knew her father. According to The Guardian, when she found her birth certificate in her seventies, her father’s name was crossed out. Being mixed race in South Carolina gave her a troublesome childhood. Her white father was gone, and she and her Black and Cherokee mother faced many hardships. Her mother died when she was young, so she was sent to New York to be with relatives.
Having lived in Harlem for a few years, Kitt joined a dance troupe at the age of 16. She toured the world with Katherine Dunham, whose dance career focused on African American and Afro-Caribbean dance, according to her school’s website. Kitt toured for several years and then stayed in Paris to be a singer.
She moved to Broadway in the ‘50s. Around the same time, she started recording music and created one of the most popular Christmas songs ever made, “Santa Baby.”
“Santa Baby” was very unique for its time, to say the least. Christmas songs were for the Bing Crosbys and the Frank Sinatras, and they were for gathering around the radio and re-enacting a Norman Rockwell painting with your family. Many songs were religious, the secular ones were silly little tunes with jingle bell backing. “Santa Baby” is indeed very silly, it joined a growing collection of novelty Christmas songs that were popular at the time. What made it different was that… Santa was sexy?
The songwriter, Phil Springer, told the Los Angeles Times in 2017 that he does not know why people would want a song about a sexy, sugar daddy Santa. The song was written quickly and he thought it would not be a good addition to the rest of his songwriting catalog. Additionally, he wasn’t sure if Kitt — best known then as a sultry Broadway performer — would be the best vehicle to sell a song for a family-oriented holiday. Depending on the region, it wasn’t. It did give RCA one of its most successful years, but it was also banned in some parts of the United States, particularly the South.
Regardless, it has continued to be a timeless classic, both the original and covers remaining popular 69 years later. Outside of seasonal favorites, Kitt became a popular recording artist. Albums Down to Eartha and That Bad Eartha brought her success in the ‘50s.
In 1967, she entered a new medium. Despite only playing the character for five episodes, her portrayal of Batman villain Catwoman has become legendary. In a time with very few Black actors appearing on the nation’s television sets, TV Guide writes, Kitt’s character was a source of empowerment during the height of the Civil Rights era. She brought new life to the show; she gave the villain a complexity and a spunky, sharp-tongued sensual portrayal that audiences loved.
However, just a year later, it would all come crashing down. In January 1968, she was invited to the White House to discuss the issue of juvenile delinquency with President Johnson, the First Lady and some others. Kitt was suspicious and didn’t want to go, recounts the Washington Post. Of course she went, and realized that this meeting wasn’t going to cause any real change. She confronted LBJ and his wife Lady Bird directly, asking them why they weren’t doing anything to poverty and the juvenile delinquency this luncheon was supposed to be about. More consequently, she criticized the Vietnam War, vocalizing the concerns of many Americans; the war was immoral and had needlessly killed swaths of young men. She condemned the Commander in Chief for his actions, and in turn, her career in America screeched to a halt. All of her bookings and tours were immediately canceled and she could only find work in Europe. She also had a CIA file opened on her.
In a 1978 interview, a few years after having seen this dossier the government had opened on her, she says that the president personally called media outlets across the country and said he didn’t want to see her face. When interviewer, television host Dick Cavett, recalled how the dossier called her a “sadistic nymphomaniac” and “shallow,” she literally purred in response. She did the interview to promote her first appearances in America in a decade, Broadway musicals Timbuktu! and an all-Black production of Kismet.
Eartha Kitt had regained the public’s favor and was back and better than ever. She released a couple of live albums and began starring in an array of film and television projects, according to TCM. In 1984 she released the album I Love Men, which was a disco album. The album reached moderate success on the charts.
She was a philanthropist and an advocate. In a 2006 interview with the Windy City Times, she said that the gay community helped keep her name alive in the U.S. after she was blacklisted. She further explains that she empathizes with them and their struggles because she also knows what it is like to be cast out by society. After traveling the world, Miss Kitt established the Kittsville Youth Foundation Dance & Cultural Arts Program in 1965 out of frustration due to the lack of resources for children growing up like she did.
The ’90s continued on in the same fashion, with movie and television appearances, albums and tours. In 2000, she gained popularity with a younger audience in Disney’s The Emperor’s New Groove, providing the voice for the villain Yzma. She brought both humor and wickedness to the role that is irreplaceable and unforgettable. Unfortunately, she did have a song in the movie that ended up being cut. She won two Daytime Emmys for reprising the role in the series spinoff television series.
It was one of the last things she did after decades in showbusiness, and she died on Christmas Day 2008. Whether it was entertaining thousands on a Broadway stage, seducing Santa or playing the scheming villain, there’s nothing that she couldn’t do without absolutely, completely perfecting it.
In a clip from her 1982 documentary, All by Myself: The Eartha Kitt Story, she is asked if she would ever compromise herself, for a man or otherwise. “What is ‘compromising?’” she asks the interviewer, before laughing and calling it stupid. She never did compromise. She was always authentically herself, not caring what anyone thought.
With the new year looming, our staff is hyped to share Impact 89FM’s Top 89 Songs of 2022! From long awaited returns of artists like Big Thief and SZA to exciting newer artists like Chat Pile and Pool Kids, there’s sure to be a track for everyone to enjoy. Find the full list below, along with the complete playlist available on Spotify. Happy New Year!
1 Good Will Hunting – Black Country, New Road
2 Simulation Swarm – Big Thief
3 Driponomics – Soul Glo
4 Runner – Alex G
5 Pomeranian Spinster – Alvvays
6 Yuck- Charli XCX
7 Blind – SZA
8 Dance Now – J.I.D
9 Love, Try Not To Let Go – Julia Jacklin
10 Love Story – Black Midi
11 Pompeii by Cate Le Bon
12 Bull Believer – Wednesday
13 Lullaby – Grace Ives
14 No Hard Feelings – Billy Woods
15 Patrisse Cullors Stole My Lunch Money – Ghais Guevara
16 Chainsaw The Door – The Garden
17 Skin A Rat – SASAMI
18 Belize – Danger Mouse & BlackThought feat. MF DOOM
19 Welcome to Hell – Black Midi
20 Center – Weatherday & Asian Glow
21 Tastes Just Like It Costs – MJ Lenderman
22 Woohoo – Fleshwater
23 Wild Animals – Liv.e
24 Después de la Playa – Bad Bunny
25 oh my love – FKA Twigs
26 Shlut – shygirl
27 stabilise – Nilüfer Yanya
28 Make Me Wanna – Babeheaven feat. Navy Blue
29 Jumper – Courting
30 Window – Dehd
31 Gasoline – The Weeknd
32 Birthday Party – Porridge Radio
33 Fungal City- Bjork ft. serpentwithfeet
34 Slaughterhouse – Chat Pile
35 That’s Physics, Baby – Pool Kids
36 Promise – Knifeplay
37 Lights On – Hatchie
38 Big Disappointment- Militarie Gun
39 AMERICAN GURL – Kilo Kish
40 43 – Florist
41 Julianne Moore – Pearly
42 Survivor’s Guilt – Hailey Blais
43 50/50 – Extended Mix – Jockstrap
44 Did You Know That There’s A Tunnel Under Ocean’s Boulevard – Lana Del Rey
45 Neck & Wrist – Pusha T (feat. JAY-Z & Pharell Williams)
46 Eye In The Wall – Perfume Genius
47 Would’ve, Could’ve, Should’ve – Taylor Swift
48 Only You Know – Beach House
49 Plan B – Megan Thee Stallion
50 Virgo’s Groove – Beyonce
51 Mr. Put It On – AG Club
52 Clues To Read – Fievel Is Glauque
53 Helmet – Steve Lacy
54 Expert In A Dying Field – The Beths
55 Loose Talk – Show Me The Body
56 God Is A Circle – Yves Tumor
57 Suffer – Destroyer
58 God, Turn Me Into A Flower – Weyes Blood
59 Meet Me In Brooklyn – Yaya Bey
60 Should’ve Been Me – Mitski
61 Ravyn Lenae – Venom
62 Problem With It – Plains
63 Too Dead Inside – Yeule
64 Vanishing Coin – Tenci
65 All The Good Times – Angel Olsen
66 Flag Is Raised – Bladee
67 Footprints – Asunojokei
68 Hover like a goddess – Willow
69 Sweet Jesus Wept Shit – Cold Gawd
70 PUPTHEBAND Inc. Is Filing For Bankruptcy – PUP
71 Happen – Nick Hakim
72 Heaven Come Crashing – Rachika Nayar
73 No Curse Lifted – MIKE
74 Time – Pom Poko
75 Prescription Refill – Alex Cameron
76 Pg.4 a picture of three hedges – Julie
77 Foreground Music – Ron Gallo
78 Purple Hearts – Kendrick Lamar (feat. Summer Walker, Ghostface Killah)
79 You Will Never Work In Television Again – The Smile
80 Shotgun – Soccer Mommy
81 Nothing – Gladie
82 The Loneliest Time – Carly Rae Jepsen
83 F.N.F – Glorilla
84 Shadow Paradise – Burial
85 Happy Accident – Tomberlin
86 Iron Lung – King Gizzard and The Lizard Wizard
87 Mi Manera de Querer – Natalia Lafourcade
88 Hardest Cut – Spoon
89 Billie Toppy – Men I Trust
Lansing-born owner of The Record Lounge, Heather Frarey, started her business with a partner during the 2008 recession. Against all odds of the national financial crisis, Frarey became the only female record store owner in Michigan. Her partner later left the business, and though a few women in Michigan own record stores with their husbands, Frarey is the only woman doing it all on her own.
Frarey does have the support of a close-knit staff and a loyal customer base. Employee Annie Dillard spoke about the shop, its customer base and the culture of The Record Lounge, while Frarey spoke of her business’ history and goals for the future.
You have finally gotten time with your significant other. It took the entire night, but you finally managed to trap them underneath the mistletoe. As you lean in for your tradition-mandated kiss, they whisper in your ear, “I think we should go our separate ways.” They leave you alone under the mistletoe as they close the door on their way out. As the tears well up in the corners of your eyes, this playlist fills the air with the seasonal melancholy that you hoped would never arrive this season.
The term is done. These last 12 weeks have felt all too long. Maybe it was 14 weeks. These last 14 weeks have felt all too short. Maybe I meant to say all too long. I don’t think it matters. Late August was sweaty. Another goodbye. Home is far away now. My heart is in East Lansing, but my home is elsewhere. 14 weeks. I’m shocked at how much I’ve changed. I’m embarrassed at how much I’ve stayed the same. It’s been a long road but a short time. Maybe it was a short road and a long time. I don’t think it matters. I’m going home now, headed towards what I love, but away from what I love at the same time. Headed towards my family, but away from my friends who feel like family, too. I think that means I have two families now. I know that that matters.
These are songs to ease the pain of saying goodbye. A comfort for before you’ve said hello again.
In three short weeks I’ll be back, and I will have never been happier. Until then, I need some time to myself.
I’m taking the long way home.
All I wanted for the holidays this year was a homoerotic song about Santa Claus. I mean, come on — We all know Santa is a DILF, and with all of the songs about wanting to get into Santa’s sack flying around holiday radio stations, like “Santa Baby” by Eartha Kitt or “I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus” by the Jackson 5 and the seemingly infinite number of covers each song has, we could absolutely use a version that adds a bit of fruitiness to the holiday song cake that we get fed every single year. Clearly, Kevin JZ Prodigy decided to give this gift early.
But who exactly is this giver of gifts named Kevin JZ Prodigy? Prodigy is a fixture of the Philadelphia ballroom scene, having gotten his start in the scene as a competitor in the vogue fem category at balls affiliated with the House of Prodigy. As of 2022 though, his chants and music have been the biggest focus of attention on him. It all started back in March, when a TikTok featuring a group of high schoolers voguing in their library, featuring his chant “BAM BAM SHAWAM ORIGINAL,” went viral. This marked the beginning of Prodigy’s rise to contemporary fame. He then followed this up by joining Billy Porter and several other icons of the Ballroom scene at the BET Awards in June. This would eventually result in his voice being featured in “PURE/HONEY” off Beyoncé’s newest album, Renaissance, chanting the intro to the song alongside fellow ballroom chanter, Kevin Aviance.
While both of the Kevins’ chants were taken from songs that were released prior, their inclusion definitely was important to Beyoncé, as the twenty seconds of just the Kevins’ chanting was used to tease the album. And right before the release of “Santr,” another one of Prodigy’s chants went viral. This one, “HERE COMES THE hURRICANE LEGENDARY KATRINA,” was a tribute to the fem queen performer Katrina Ebony. 2022 was the year of Kevin JZ Prodigy, but he isn’t the only one on this track. RealXman, the stage name of Brandon Hale, is a rapper who finds new ways to add his flair to the music he releases. He features his voice to the verses of the song, letting Prodigy chant over the chorus, while also giving him a verse of his own. The combination of these LGBTQIA2S+ artists lends itself quite nicely to the homoerotic overtones of this song.
Melding the Ballroom background of Prodigy with Xman’s rapping background created a beat in which both artists are able to showcase their chops in a way that is the most natural to them. And what would be a queer holiday song without a reference to Mariah Carey, who recently lost her trademark bid for the title of “Queen of Christmas”.
“At the end of each and every year /
Mariah says ‘Come for me if you dare.’”
Much like the annual defrosting of Carey comes with the end of Halloween, “Santr” I hope will become the next song to join the unspoken annals of wintertime traditions for the rest of time.
Nairobi sound artist Joseph Kamaru, also known as KMRU, is one of modern ambient’s most fascinating and trailblazing talents. Currently based in Berlin, he treats the act of listening with a reverence unknowable to many: What has entered his ears from the surrounding world has been translated into a discography hypnotic, dream-like and intriguing to no end. He has experimented heavily with field recordings, synths, machine learning and more to tap into the overflowing wealth of sounds our world has to offer, presenting us with an entirely new world within our own just waiting to be listened to and absorbed. Mike Merucci, editorial assistant and host of The Afterglow at Impact 89FM, was able to sit down with KMRU for a conversation covering his recent albums, his tour with Big Thief, his future endeavors, the art of listening and more.
The following transcript has been edited for clarity purposes.
Mike Merucci: It seems like you’ve been having a really busy year: touring with Big Thief, playing a lot of shows in the UK, two albums releasing. I imagine it’s been equally exciting but also draining.
Joseph Kamaru: Yeah, it’s been quite a busy year. I think it’s the year that I’ve been so grounded in a way, like with everything. Just being able to work and at the same time to have a grounding with the things that I’m doing. It’s been busy, but I appreciate showing up for the music things that I have going on and playing shows and even having time to make music, because I think this is the year that I felt like I didn’t have as much time to create music. But I’ve made so much music already and, yeah, I feel grounded. Even if it seems a bit busy and a lot going on.
Merucci: And you have a lot of schoolwork to do, right? You’re in a master’s program, so how’s that fill into your schedule?
Kamaru: Yeah, that’s also another weight on my back… this summer semester had classes, so I was in and out arriving from the airport to class. And at some point, it was a lot, but it happened when I was touring with Big Thief. So for the whole tour I scheduled all my flights around my classes because I didn’t want to miss so many classes, but I really appreciated having this cool routine. So at some point, I always have to remind myself that I have to also think about school because it’s also a priority for me to finish my Master’s.
Merucci: So with Limen, the first album that you worked on this year — did you mostly work on that last year, or was that partly this year as well? What drew you to that sound? And that collaboration specifically? Because when you look back at your work prior to that, it’s such a big shift, but it’s so interesting.
Kamaru: Aho Ssan — I met him maybe three years ago. And we were exchanging music ideas, thoughts about our processes of creation. And luckily, we ended up being on the same booking agency and also getting commissions together. So we made some music together and we were like, let’s compile some of the music we’ve made and share it because his approach of composition and mine is like two different worlds. But I feel there’s a really strong connection, which was quite seamless… We don’t think so much — it just happens — and an album just came to be. Effortless, in a way. But also, with my move to Berlin, my music became a bit louder or abrasive because it’s a bit silent here and wanting to hear more noise stuff or even performance has really influenced how my music sounds… if it’s not the Limen live sets, but my own performances, there’s a way that playing in different sound systems has affected how I make music in a way, also.
Merucci: And what you said about Berlin being so quiet: I remember I read an interview that you had partaken in where you said that Berlin is really quiet for a city. Do you still seek out field recordings as often in Berlin as you did in Nairobi? Or do you have to shift your musical style in Berlin?
Kamaru: I haven’t been recording as much here as compared to Nairobi because in Nairobi there’s a lot. There’s, like, so much interesting things to record as opposed to here, but I do have recordings from Berlin. I’m still using field recordings in my music as the basis for my work a lot. I became more of a listener here than a recordist, where I was trying to attune myself to this new soundscape. It’s quite silent. And even the fact that when I close my window that I cannot hear anything outside is just bizarre. I’m trying to listen back to the recordings I’ve done from Nairobi or different places a lot. And also going for walks and just listening for what’s new. It feels like I already know the sounds that I’d expect outside, so it’s not as interesting.
Merucci: I will say that the silence of early winter — for me — has been especially jarring. I would go outside and, compared to summer time, summer is much louder. Do you also see a distinction between seasons in terms of sound?
Kamaru: Yeah, that’s true. Because I moved here in November around this time. Yeah. Earlier in November, and it was just deafening, like, quite silent. And in the winter, it gets too quiet. But it’s also nice, sometimes, where it’s super silent. But, sometimes, noise is also good.
Merucci: With your newest release, epoch — since Berlin is so quiet, are your field recordings on that album sourced in Berlin? Or are they from elsewhere?
Kamaru: It has field recordings from Berlin, also old ones from Nairobi. Other recordings from the US, actually, while touring there. Yeah, but very subtle.
Merucci: So, when you’re touring — because it seems like you do a lot of shows in the UK as well, and you went to the US — do you pick up noises frequently from when you’re touring and then you just compile it later and look back?
Kamaru: Not as much, actually, but I try to carry my field recorder. And most times I don’t use it, but sometimes when I’m, like, at the hotel, I’ll just put the microphones outside the window and record a long recording, and mostly just listen back, actually — not use it. Because if I’m playing a show and I have, like, three days in the city or four, that’s when I can do lots of recordings. But I’ve also been carrying a camera, so I also take pictures of places I have been, just to remember.
Merucci: Do you see yourself bridging more into visual art? Like, when you’re taking pictures, do you see yourself doing exhibitions anywhere down the line with photography or anything like that paired with your music?
Kamaru: Yeah… I think I’ve never mentioned before, but I used to have a camera when I was maybe 13 or something and I used to take pictures with a family camera, but I wasn’t interested in, like, images of objects or things. And then that stopped when I lost the camera, but I bought this camera just to sort of document as a way, also — together with sound. But yeah, I take lots of pictures also thinking of artworks, sometimes album artworks because I feel there’s a strong effect or affect with really strong image. And sometimes I’d take a picture and think that maybe I could make a short EP based on this image.
Merucci: In association with images: memory. When you’re making music, do you use your music as a capsule for memories, sometimes? With Limen — to me, that sounds like a prediction of the future. That album, to me, sounds like the end of the world. But then when I listen to something like Jar, that sounds like an album full of memory to me. Or when I listen to Peel — Peel is like a weird bridging between, like, disturbing silence, but also peaceful memory. Do you walk along that line in any way, or no?
Kamaru: I think, with field recordings, the sense of memory [comes] from doing actual field recordings, because I’ve done lots of them. And I stopped, like, documenting or naming them because I want to remember when I listen back to them, and most times when I’m making [music] like Jar, for example, which is heavily with field recordings… I can remember different places or spaces that I was recording or the environment or the people who are around there. But — for example — with Limen, with Aho Ssan: We’ve had ideas where it sounds like it’s the end of the world or it has a visual memory of something, which is depicted maybe after the project is done… I think it just transpires slowly when the music feels this way, but it’s not in the initial conception… Maybe if it’s something specific to a specific place, and I’m only using the recordings of this one place, and then there’s different nuances of this place. And the way the music just feels like there’s an environment around it: like different sounds, memories.
Merucci: Yeah, that makes sense because a lot of people I’ve talked to — when they create — don’t specifically have something in mind at first, and then after you make it, then it’s like, oh, maybe this was subconscious or something. Things always on your mind, somewhere tucked deep.
Kamaru: Yeah.
Merucci: Well, there is one specific track from you that I do want to talk about: “Why Are You Here.” Why did you title it “Why Are You Here?”
Kamaru: It’s, like, this normal day where you open Ableton and jam on something or try a new plug in, and I made the track. And this is the first track that I made for Peel — and I knew this was going to be an album after making this. And it also happened when I had, like, a transition of life… There was COVID — things had stopped, and there’s things happening. I just finished my studies — my undergrad in school — and I stopped teaching. I lost this teaching job that I was teaching production and guitar. And then I was just constantly in my bedroom making music for, like, three months or something. And, yeah, in between [was] this night where I started experimenting with drone, this genre called drone. I just titled the track “Why Are You Here” mostly in a connection to what was happening in my life. And I knew that this was going to be a record from this track.
Merucci: I read that you previously said that [Peel] was the first album that you made where you wanted all the tracks to relate to each other. So when you made “Why Are You Here” you decided everything wants to relate to each other?
Kamaru: Yeah, because — apart from Peel — all the other records are made in different, like, projects, but Peel — It’s like a book, like one long project. And it’s just the one project file, which was interesting to approach making an album this way. And also the fact that I finished it so quickly that I wasn’t sure if it’s finished, or it sounds finished. And constantly going back to it and, yeah, eventually it came out.
Merucci: So, you have not continued that process with your most recent ones, like epoch? How did you make that one in comparison?
Kamaru: I knew I was going for this US tour earlier this year, and I made a promise that when I come back, I’ll buy a synth — I bought a Prophet Rev2 — and I’m gonna make an album just with it. And yeah, that’s what I did. So I came back, had the Prophet, and the whole month was just, like, recording noises and bloops and using the pedals. Because I knew I wouldn’t have more time to make music in one setting, so I made some sketches when I was home, and then Big Thief happened and when I was coming home, I was just working on it.
Merucci: So did Big Thief just reach out to you or your manager one day? Just how’d that happen?
Kamaru: So the drummer, James: He’s the one who wrote to my booking, Carin, and it was a very personal email. It was during COVID that he discovered my music and he sat with the whole band, and listened to maybe my entire discography. And they were like, you want to tour with this guy? And they reached out and it was quite special because I learned so much from them because they’re so human. And just seeing them play and getting to know them very closely. Because my friends were saying bands wouldn’t, like, want to build a relationship with the support act, and I bonded so much with them. And yeah, I just appreciate that I had this experience with the band in the summer for so many shows.
Merucci: In the future are you going to be doing any more supporting acts — do you know as of yet — or are you unsure what the next year holds?
Kamaru: In the future? I’m not sure if I’m gonna do another support act, but maybe, I’m not sure. At the moment, next year, I’ll just be working on a dance piece. Yeah, I can’t say much about it, but that’s the only thing that I have.
Merucci: That sounds exciting. That’s something that you’ve never truly delved into before. Is it new for you, or have you kind of dabbled [in it] in the past but just not fully gone into it?
Kamaru: Just with an individual dancer, because it’s something that I wanted to do — where a dancer, like, reaches out and wants to use my music for their choreography. But me being the one curating and working on the music? I’ve never gotten the chance, and I think this one will be interesting.
Merucci: Awesome. That certainly does seem interesting. So I’m mostly curious: How many more semesters do you think you have in school?
Kamaru: I finish next summer, so I only have maybe one or two. Yeah, two.
Merucci: Do you think you’re going for a PhD as well, or is Master’s where it’s at?
Kamaru: Yeah, I’m doing my Master’s now, so if I do my PhD, maybe it’s going to be something creative and not, like, quite theoretical. But not now: I think I need some break.
Merucci: Theoretically speaking, any ideas for what you would write a doctoral thesis on if you were ever to do that?
Kamaru: I think it’ll have to do something with listening because with my university, my program in sound studies, I realized the discourse is so specific to the Western Eurocentric or occidental ways of thinking. And, yeah, most of all my school projects are just about my history, my growing up, references from home, which sometimes is hard to get, but I try to use sound in a way to provoke this. And if I’m going to do a thesis, it’s going to be something around listening.
Merucci: So, growing up, were you taught a certain way of listening, or did you just observe other people listening around you, or did it just kind of happen where you ended up listening to everything around you in a way that’s just kind of different from anyone else? Or from experiences that you have listening elsewhere?
Kamaru: I think the environment where I grew up also changed how — not how I listened — but how you relate to things around you, with people and even listening, I guess, because I grew up in a really noisy neighborhood — really intense. And I realized when my parents moved to, like, a silent neighborhood… is when I could hear things clearer. More in a technical way, but also understanding how people relate to each other on a social level. And I think this was what interested me when I bought a field recorder: I was just amazed, like, oh, I can listen even more with this device. And trying to connect both the listening, like, the ear, and also relation with spaces, people, and sound, because I realized people don’t think about sound. Like, in Nairobi, I realized people are not thinking about sound a lot just as a sound, not as a musical thing. And yeah, it was quite odd all the time trying to explain what I’m doing. Because I’m just using sound — it’s not music. It’s just field recording and I use it to try and find something that we can learn from listening to, like, this market [for example] and try[ing] and get information just from the sound of it. Like how busy it is, what time it is based on the levels of interaction and stuff like this.
Merucci: I’ll ask you one more question here, also relating to that: Do you have — or, at least, did you used to have — a certain sound that was your favorite sound to record or a favorite genre of sound [to] record? And has that changed over the years as you’ve gotten older and moved from place to place?
Kamaru: I used to — when I had the field recorder in the earlier days — record a lot of nature sounds and things in the house… I was always saying, like, all the things we have around us have a life of their own, sound-wise, and they want to be voiced. At the moment, [I] have three cups on my table and a plate and a pedal and a headphone, and I’d voice them and sound them and make compositions for them. In a way like “This is my piece for the cup. The cup has something to say” and I recorded so much in the house, like doors. Just minute sounds, like Foley things, and then [I’d] collage them and make pieces for, like, my bedroom. Like, my bedroom sounds this way, and I use all the sounds I can get and I can make a composition about this room. And eventually I went to city soundscapes, which was interesting in Nairobi. And just trying to relate different cities, if there’s something I can find. For example, in Berlin and Nairobi I have recorded much, so I always try and see a similarity — if there is. When I travel, I try and record one recording and always listen to something that I can hear back, or that can relate to Nairobi. At the moment, it’s become so focused when I decide to carry a field recorder. And yeah, spaces like buildings where I’d want to stay for long or places where I can go back and listen again and sort of build a connection with a place or a community or a neighborhood. I think where I live in Berlin, I feel so comfortable recording because I’m sure people have seen me walking or they know you can see different people the same. You can see similar people sometimes, because maybe they live here, and I record much around here. Also, in a way, I hear more because I feel like I know how it sounds more.
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This week in music history, we did the mash. Wait, which one? 60 years ago this week, the “Monster Mash” began its two week stint at the top of Billboard’s singles chart. In October 1962, the novelty song by Bobby “Boris” Pickett and The Crypt-Kickers grew in popularity as the Halloween season approached. At this...
I am a firm believer that the more emotional heartstrings a song tugs at, the better that song is. More often than not, I find that trying to drag out the emotional tugs across a project that is several tracks long ends up muddying the emotionality of the songs. Either that or they start sounding...
It’s Oct. 31, 1975. You wake up to light shining through your drapes, casting an orange glow across the room. You slide into a pair of bell bottom jeans, turn on the kettle for your daily witchy brew and take out your favorite pop rock vinyl, Face the Music by Electric Light Orchestra. A chorus...
It’s 1987: The Beastie Boys are on their Licensed to Ill tour with Run DMC. They’ve found significant commercial success with their newly adopted hip-hop sound, rapping about “Girls to do the dishes” and “Trashing hotels like it’s going out of style.” But this isn’t where the Beastie Boys started. The Beastie Boys had formed...
As spooky season chugs on and Halloween draws closer, songs of superstition, witchcraft and black magic appear more frequently in my Spotify queue. A staple of my late October listening is the great Jimi Hendrix’s “Voodoo Child (Slight Return).” Appearing on Hendrix’s final album, Electric Ladyland — which was released in 1968 — this intense...
Looking back ten years to the dawn of widespread internet culture, you may recall a number of songs that were propelled into stardom — for the first time, or resurrected from obscurity. Rick Astley hadn’t touched the charts for decades until his infamous hit, “Never Gonna Give You Up,” won MTV Europe’s award for Best...
Playboi Carti’s 2020 album, Whole Lotta Red, turned heads with its unorthodox rollout and polarizing production choices. Gone was the drug-addled haze of his breakout projects, Playboi Carti and Die Lit, their soundscapes sacrificed for a new form that summons the association of dusk. Playboi Carti had transformed himself into a vampire, and with Whole...
Beck’s 2005 album Guero is an album I historically have a hard time shutting up about. But there’s something special about track nine. Something a little eerie, a little sinister even. “Scarecrow” is the perfect song to listen to on your Halloween hayride or while carving pumpkins. “Scarecrow” is full of Halloween staples: crows, devils,...
Attention all nature lovers, bog dwellers, romantics, sad romantics, religious symbolism enthusiasts, tall people, revolutionaries, nihilists and everyone whose favorite season is fall — it’s here. Hozier has returned. “Swan Upon Leda” is a preview of his upcoming LP. The singer-songwriter posted about the story behind the song on his Instagram a few days before...
As Hispanic Heritage Month comes to an end, here are some Hispanic and Latine artists that have yet to blow up. The alternative scene has historically been a white-dominated space, but today the scene is becoming more diverse and accepting. Support smaller musicians by streaming some of these underrated hits.
Some people live their lives for the thrill, waiting for the next plot point to keep their earth turning. But for others, life isn’t a constant joyride. It is consistent and steady. Our lives are late Sunday mornings and a walk down a leaf-covered sidewalk. The song “High Tide Storm Rising” by Skinshape is a...
One slow and uneventful day at my old workplace, I was scrolling through Spotify, looking for some new music to listen to while tending to the shelves of a stereotypical Midwestern suburban pet store. Suddenly, a new playlist I had never seen before appeared before me: EQUAL Africa. As I scrolled through it, a song...
Bladee is a Swedish rapper and artist who has been making waves for the past decade as a member of Drain Gang and associate of Yung Lean. The meme rapper turned superstar has been getting long overdue praise for his poignant prediction of texture that 2020s pop has just explored. Both on a victory lap...
There is a quote that’s been attributed to many greats in both comedy and music, but belongs to none that goes, “Writing about music is like dancing about architecture.” To attempt to describe the emotive effect of this song or even describe what it’s about would be futile. But to recognize its influence and staying...
Chloe Moriondo has slowly been straying from the “Kalmia Kid” she made her debut as. She grew closer to indie rock with her second album, Blood Bunny, but her newest album, SUCKERPUNCH, takes her fans in a vastly different direction while they reminisce about their childhood through a blend of hyperpop and early 2000s pop...
I discovered Pretty Sick a couple years ago as a 16 year old girl. So began my “I’m a woman and I’m angry” phase of my music taste, accompanied by other female rock artists. Through Pretty Sick I developed a love for girl-led alternative rock bands that Pretty Sick takes heavy inspiration from such as...
Do you ever think that ants are tired of being bought by parents of young kids who will inevitably shake them up until they die? Ant farms are miniature societies that thrive when given a place to work. Now, give ants the whole world to work and see what happens then. Play these songs to...
Who would’ve thought that a song about dying would be so successful? “Another One Bites the Dust” is a notable sensation of a song, prominent in films, TV shows and even sports commercials. This week in music history, Queen’s legendary anthem went No. 1 on Oct. 4, 1980. Released on the group’s eighth album The...
When the album DECIDE by Djo was released on Sept. 16, I saw my roommate post the album on her Snapchat story. I thought, “well if she likes it then maybe I will too,” so I gave it a listen. My mind was blown. I was casually listening to the album but when I came...
Content warning: This article focuses on the death of a parent. Some days I don’t think about him at all. Other days, he’s the only thing on my mind. Like many things in life, it was entirely preventable. I think he himself even knew it. One has to imagine that it’s pretty easy not to...
25-year-old rapper Rico Nasty is known for her imaginative lyrics, explosive personality and diverse discography; her passionate, often angry rap music has an undeniable punk feel. In the past, Rico has dabbled in many different genres, including pop, rap, hip-hop and even hyperpop. Her latest album, Las Ruinas, follows her first album, Nightmare Vacation (2020),...
The prelude to Blood Orange’s new EP, Four Songs, is a short but impactful song that uniquely connects to the audience. Devonté Hynes, known musically as Blood Orange, has been receiving some well-deserved attention recently for songs such as “Charcoal Baby” and “Orlando.” In addition to that, he has collaborated with the likes of FKA...
At the beginning of the semester, the Entertainment Team was still discussing this summer’s music releases. As a warm-up for a semester of writing ahead, volunteers new and old wrote about the song that personally defined their summer. Be it a season of fun or forlorn, everyone has their song of the summer. As fall...
For many, autumn is the best time of the year: the changing colors, the corn fields, the pumpkin patches, the brisk weather… I suppose we could go on and on. But one must admit there’s something slightly menacing in its arrival, in its sneaking up on us. In this playlist, we hope we embodied it:...
Autumn is the season of change. We’re all watching the summer fade as we continue to orbit the sun. Fall can be exciting, and equally terrifying — new semesters, new friends and fresh starts. There are some nights, as the days grow darker and colder, when we don’t know how we survive. Enter Death Cab...
It’s time to celebrate, all of you sk8ers, it’s a very special holiday. This week in music history, the pop-punk princess herself was born. Avril Lavigne was born on September 27, 1984, turning 38. When she was just a teenager, she blessed the world with hits such as “Complicated” and “Sk8er Boi,” off of her...
Maybe you’ve listened to them alongside their 26 million other monthly Spotify listeners, or maybe you remember their bassist’s appearance as a kidnapper in the 2022 Disney+ series Obi Wan. One thing is certain: the Red Hot Chili Peppers are one year away from being active for four decades. In spite of this, Anthony Kiedis,...
One of the first things I remember after gaining consciousness as a child is going to my neighbors’ house down the street and watching music videos on TV. And what was one of the first ones that I remember? Well, it happened to be the terrifying “Disturbia” off of Rihanna’s album, Good Girl Gone Bad:...
Wake up everyone, Dolly Parton is back and blessing us with a new song, the Communist Manifesto 2, a.k.a., a new version of “9 to 5.” Over 40 years after the original song and movie released, Parton teamed up with a new generation of music superstars to create a mellow version of the 1980 hit....
Everyone has experienced it: You’re at a party, tired, quiet and pensive — your social battery long drained — as you realize there’s something aching inside you that is deeply and painfully sad. Natalie Mering, otherwise known as popular folk-pop artist Weyes Blood, reflects on this experience in her song “It’s Not Just Me, It’s...
Everyone loves a good sip of Cherry Pepsi™ from time to time. Here’s some songs with energy just feral enough to give your beverage an extra kick.
This week in music history, a series of concerts were held and organized by the Musicians United for Safe Energy, also known as MUSE. The shows were held at Madison Square Garden in New York from Sept. 19 to Sept. 23, 1979. MUSE was founded after the Three Mile Island accident in March 1979 near...
Rowdy, bouncy and a little more professional is how I would describe the “Ticket Inspector” of The Chat‘s recent project Get Fucked. It feels like you’ve put a little suit and tie on a wild dog, and I am all for it. The band has moved away from the short one-minute compact tracks to full-length...
Copenhagen might be a bitter memory for Naomi Yang, Damon Krukowski and Dean Wareham. You might ask yourself — what do the Netherlands have to do with Galaxie 500? The answer is simply, the beginning of the end. Copenhagen is the location of their last European show as a trio in the 1990s, and marked...
Rina Sawayama’s unique mixture of upbeat instrumentals and introspective lyrics set her apart from the rest; she manages to keep her music lively while simultaneously addressing serious topics. Her new single, “Phantom,” is the latest addition to her newly-released record Hold the Girl, which includes tracks such as “This Hell,” “Catch Me in the Air”...
Like all things, nu metal changes with time. Given the renaissance of hardcore music that we are currently living through, it seems only natural that nu metal would find its new home snugly in the arms of the American punk scene. Tennessee hardcore outfit Orthodox has been dancing with the sounds of nu metal on...
For those times you succumb to the icy temptation of Ben & Jerry’s ice cream or the fizzy allure of a Monster energy drink, and your gastrointestinal tract lets you know it’s disappointed in your judgment. For our Irritable Bowel Soldiers: an honorary playlist.