Saturday, September 23

Song of the Week(end)

Week/endly post highlighting a song or band that we think you need to hear.

Music, Song of the Week(end), Uncategorized

SONG OF THE WEEK: The Hollies- “We’re Through”

In need of 2 minutes and 16 seconds of cathartic dancing-around-the-room-by-yourself bliss? Maybe you’ve been fiending for this feeling since the weekend ended. Maybe you’ve got some pent-up frustration because, hey, the block can suck. Maybe you just want to listen to a nostalgic bop. Fear not, The Hollies’ “We’re Through” will provide what you’re looking for. Though not one of The Hollies’ most popular hits, the number of listens to this song on Spotify has been climbing and climbing since its feature in an episode of Netflix’s most recent series, The Umbrella Academy (based on comics written by Gerard Way, lead singer and co-founder of My Chemical Romance). Its exposure in The Umbrella Academy was what brought me back to The Hollies and here I am now, listening to “We’re Through” on...
Music, Song of the Week(end), Uncategorized

SONG OF THE WEEK(END): Mike Clark & the Sugar Sounds- “Burn You Up”

This song has haunted me all week. From the deep, deliberate drum beat at the song’s beginning to the singer crooning, “You know it’s gonna burn you alive…burn you up, burn you up” at the bridge, listening to this track transforms me into a more melancholic version of myself. “Burn You Up” reminds me of a failed relationship and lost love I’ve never even felt nor experienced before. However, the song isn’t overwhelmingly sad. It’s tinged with sweetness, present in the way the guitar chords are somewhat reminiscent of bells ringing, the way the lead singer draws out certain words while keeping others short, and also for the way the lyrics “you called me darling when you broke my heart” are sung- simply, tenderly, and truthfully. The simplest way I could explain this song to my friend...
SONG REVIEW: Roky Erickson’s Cryptic “I Think of Demons”
Music, Reviews, Song of the Week(end), Uncategorized

SONG REVIEW: Roky Erickson’s Cryptic “I Think of Demons”

Roky Erickson is considered an undeniable pioneer of psychedelic rock. He's mostly known for fronting The 13thFloor Elevators, a group out of Texas that many argue to be the first psychedelic band. More than ever, The Elevators’ sound can be heard in modern psychedelic garage rock like Oh Sees, The Black Angels, and Ty Segall. “I Think of Demons,” however, is less psychedelic sonically than it is psychedelic in its strange, surreal lyrics. Put out in 1980 under Roky's solo project, the song is more similar to a stereotypical hard rock song; the melody itself isn’t that innovative and it's more so a feel-good, familiar classic rock groove. The simple melody lets Roky’s lyrics shine. I, I, I think of demons They never kill I, I, I think of demons They never will They don't need to ...
SONG OF THE WEEK: Princess Nokia– “Your Eyes Are Bleeding”
Music, Song of the Week(end)

SONG OF THE WEEK: Princess Nokia– “Your Eyes Are Bleeding”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=87Cjow9lO2U Princess Nokia’s “A Girl Cried Red” was, to many, a surprise of a mixtape in its emo nostalgia. “Your Eyes Are Bleeding” seamlessly blends hip-hop elements with a teenage pop-punk aesthetic. While this mixtape is a very drastic shift from Nokia’s brujería feminist, rap heavy debut album 1992, Nokia has long been a cultivator and advocate for people of color’s involvement in punk, anime, video game and emo culture through her social media presence. The aesthetic of the video for “Your Eyes Are Bleeding” takes me back to my middle school days of fingerless gloves and knee-high converse. Despite emo culture being predominately thought of as a white subculture, most of the emo kids in my middle- and high-schools were people of color, queer or consid...
Music, Reviews, Song of the Week(end)

Song of the Weekend: Crack Mountain – Natural Child

spotify:track:4CLi9NO7mD786g9vp82jIW I JUST WANT TO SMOKE CRACK WITH MY FRIENDS! Ok... that's definitely not what I want to do but that is one of the quality lyrics from Natural Child's song, Crack Mountain. Crack Mountain is a crisp blend of garage rock with a southern twist. Like most Natural Child songs, it has refreshingly straightforward lyrics. Its upbeat tempo is nearly irresistible and as the weather gets warmer, Natural Child will make you feel like it is already mid-summer. You should definitely listen to Natural Child this weekend and you should certainly avoid their advice.
SONG OF THE WEEK: GHETTO DEFENDANT – THE CLASH
Music, Song of the Week(end)

SONG OF THE WEEK: GHETTO DEFENDANT – THE CLASH

Starved in metropolis... Hooked on necropolis... Addict of metropolis... Do the worm on the acropolis Slamdance the cosmopolis Enlighten the populace.... "Ghetto Defendant" is one of those songs that will never tire me. I've listened to it religiously for months, always finding something new in the lyrics and the way in which the different speakers' words interact with one another. That pleasing, old poet voice rhythmically purring is none other than Allen Ginsberg reciting lyrics he wrote for the song, communicating "the voice of God." Take a listen: https://open.spotify.com/track/4WidRX7HuOreEGkQ6tKBBi
SONG OF THE WEEK(END): Loving- “Bowlly Goes Dancing Drunk Into the Future”
Music, Song of the Week(end)

SONG OF THE WEEK(END): Loving- “Bowlly Goes Dancing Drunk Into the Future”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=13Tvr7Tz0Oc Loving is a mellow indie rock band from Victoria, British Columbia. Their song "Bowlly Going Dancing Drunk Into the Future" is off their 2016 self-titled LP, an album heavy with motifs of delicate nature, letting go, and wandering.  Listen to "Bowlly Going Dancing" while sharing a dessert with a friend this weekend. maybe you could talk freely  speak to me for once so truly  for once so truly  i could know  just where you're going  just where i'm standing.  that would really be something.  in most ways on most days  i am clearly disappearing  i am clearly disappearing  at the thought of our nearing  an end.  this morning i awoke  and read the words  that you wrote.  they were different from what you spoke  they were different from what you sp...
Song of the Week: Robbie Basho- “Variations on Clair de Lune”
Music, Song of the Week(end)

Song of the Week: Robbie Basho- “Variations on Clair de Lune”

Breaking the silence  Of an ancient pond, A frog jumped into water- A deep resonance. -Matsuo Basho, The Narrow Road to the Deep North  Daniel R. Robinson was an acoustic guitarist who changed his name to Robbie Basho in honor of the Japanese poet Matsuo Basho. Like Matsuo Basho's poetry, Robbie Basho's music captures a beauty and calmness deeply rooted in the natural world. In Robbie Basho's rendition of Debussy's piano solo "Clair de Lune,"  Basho's guitar echoes the effects a piano's sustaining pedal would produce in a typical performance of the song while adding a rugged folksiness and energy to the piece.  Take a listen: https://open.spotify.com/track/5gP8ytgXOcX2Enq9yS5UHh
Song of the Week(end)

SONG OF THE WEEKEND: Faust – Jennifer

https://open.spotify.com/track/71WhsFMZI3JhEczyfbaq9d Faust's fourth and arguably best album, Faust IV is one of the best krautrock records ever recorded. Full of the usual frenetic, psychedelic, free-form jams Jennifer is a gorgeous psych ballad. The lush, repetitive guitar arpeggio and oscillating bass drones meld into a reverberating soundscape, only to be interrupted by a wonky riff that seamlessly flows back into the verse. Jennifer is Faust at their most meticulous and refined, without loosing their experimental nature. As the weather gets colder and winter sets in, I keep coming back to this song. Dig it.
Music, Reviews, Song of the Week(end)

Song of the Week: Daddy issues – “Dog Years”

spotify:track:2HA3dQ2xVKv7kYN5tvUp2n   Dog Years is a “heart-shaped box”-esque slowburner. Its lyrics steam with hate. Dog Years reveals the vitriolic aftermath of a relationship. In its soul-crushing relentlessness, the song captures how the subject of the song meticulously ruined life’s simple joys. Jenna Moynihan begins by singing, “If you could do anything / You would ruin the best things / You would spoil the ending / You’d dissolve cotton candy.” Later on she seems to find sadistic pleasure from imagining the death of whomever she is singing about. The pain and disgust are palpable.
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