Lav's Music Corner

DJ Shadow is a California based music producer who released his legendary debut record Endtroducing  in 1996 to massive critical acclaim. Since then Shadow has failed to truly replicate his success on another record, arguably coming the closes on his most recent record The Mountain Will Fall  in 2016 which featured one of the most popular tracks of his career in Nobody Speak . Now three years later he is dropping a massive record that comes in two halves, the first part instrumental sample based songs, and the second vocal collaborations with a myriad of artists. Review By Lavender: DJ Shadow's Endtroducing  is an absolutely fantastic record that absolutely everyone should listen to, which is strange because since then I have been consistently let down by his output. Maybe as the world caught up with him some of the creativity on display on his debut record faded away. Of all the post Endtroducing  records my favorite has to be the most recent The Mountain Wil...

1. The Weeknd - Heartless Abel is finally back with his first solo single since last years My Dear Melancholy  EP and fans of pop and R&B have been rejoicing for days. 2. Grimes - My Name Is Dark For the first time in soon to be 5 years we are prepping up for Grimes album mode and the pretty solid collection of singles seem to point towards yet another special release. 3. !!! - Tambores Serbia !!! is taking a unique approach following up their Wallop  record earlier this year with Spanish versions of some of the most notable tracks from that album. 4. Kilo Kish - Spark Frequent Vince Staples collaborator Kilo Kish is always a bet for some interesting tunes and has seen fit to drop Spark to the world tonight. 5. Destroyer - It Just Doesn't Happen (Week #2, Down From #4) 6. PARTYNEXTDOOR - The News (Week #2, Down From #1) 7. Moses Sumney - Virile (Week #3, Up From #8) 8. HAIM - Hallelujah  (Week #2, Down From #5) 9. XXXTENTACION - bad vibes forever ...

Have A Nice Life is a Connecticut based experimental rock band who arose from the underground in 2008 when their debut record Deathconsciousness  became an internet sensation and developed it's reputation as a modern masterpiece through online word of mouth. It was a long time before the band released their second studio album The Unnatural World  in 2014, which was met with positive reviews from many, but not nearly to the level of the groups first record. After another long absence the duo is back and after a release of some varied singles are have dropped the already legendary bands third release. Review By Lavender: If you've never heard Deathconsciousness  before, it is as good as everyone has always told you. The record blended so many different experimental rock genres together into an absolutely monstrous and mentally crushing record that is an experience everyone should have. I even enjoyed their follow-up record The Unnatural World  quite a bit as we...

FKA Twigs is a British R&B singer who emerged around the halfway point of this decade with a brilliant and near universally acclaimed debut record, 2014's LP1 . She followed this up quickly in 2015 with the genre-bending M3LL155X  EP which was also met with tons of critical acclaim, and we haven't heard from her in a full length format since. Review By Lavender: When it comes to FKA Twigs debut album LP1  I agree with just about everyone else on earth, in that it is fantastic and one of the best R&B releases of this entire decade. I felt just as strongly about her EP the next year as she combined the worlds of indie, trip hop and electronica into her sound, and then kind of vanished, at least musically. As if I couldn't be more excited to hear from her again after a 4 year absence, the lead single to this thing and her first official release in years, is one of the best songs I've heard in 2019. Now that it is here Magdalene  seems to live up to just abou...

Electric Light Orchestra  is a legendary British rock band who spent the 70's and 80's releasing a series of classic rock records to universal critical acclaim. The band released music off and on until the early 2000's before reforming in 2015 for a moderately well received comeback record. After a series of huge tours the band has assembled a second record, their 14th overall. Review By Lavender: I have always been a big fan of what Jeff Lynne has done with ELO, and the incredibly distinct sound they crafted on a legendary run through the mid 80's. I was also decently surprised with their comeback record in 2015, while it didn't blow me away I was surprised by how much of the groups former magic transferred over into some of the songwriting. I was actually pretty pleased when I heard the two singles for this record, and it gets off to a red hot start, but ultimately it is about what I anticipated. So about that hot start the record gets off too, it is trul...

1. PARTYNEXTDOOR - The News After a long absence of studio material and mostly silence on the social front from PND he has emerged with two new singles, hopefully on the way towards new material.  2. XXXTENTACION - bad vibes forever (Feat. PnB Rock & Trippie Redd) Even a year and a half after his death Jahseh is still turning heads wherever his name emerges and grabbing some contemporary trap stars to join in on posthumous material it seems the well of X's music isn't quite dried up yet. 3. Marilyn Manson - The End Marilyn Manson made headlines recently for performing at Travis Scott's Astroworld Festival but he has emerged with a second cover in the last few weeks, this time of The Doors classic The End . Certainly an intriguing prospect released at a good time with his name already in the headlines. 4. Destroyer - It Just Doesn't Happen Destroyer dropped a second single after a return to form first release and is coming around with a second single on his...

Earl Sweatshirt is a California rapper who rose to popularity at the beginning of this decade with the hip hop collective Odd Future. While Earl was a frequent participant in Odd Future and their sketch TV show Loiter Squad he has become more and more separate from the group, and some of its marquee members. His music has taken a much more experimental tone as well, all coming to a peak with last years Some Rap Songs . Earl's critically acclaimed third record saw a number of changes of pace, including lyrics that were much more centered around Earl's depression and substance abuse. While musically the record became more experimental and unconventional than ever before, and pushed the envelope for hip hop music in the internet age. Review By Lavender: I like Earl Sweatshirt, and I LOVE Earl Sweatshirt's music. Last year as I was well in the works of my year end lists when Earl dropped a record that stopped me in my tracks. Some Rap Songs was one of my most anticipated...

The World Is A Beautiful Place is a Connecticut based indie rock project that has gone through a number of line-ups and stylistic approaches throughout this decade. After three positively received records across this decade, the band saw fit to release a collection of unreleased material and B-Sides during the long break between records they've been on. Review By Lavender: I have always been a fan of The World Is A Beautiful Place since I heard their first record Whenever, If Ever . I also enjoyed their most recent album Always Foreign  in 2017, so I was excited to hear a lot of these songs. Despite my enjoyment of the bands work I did go into this record with my expectations low. B-Sides collections are typically randomly collected collages of tunes often left on the cutting room floor for other records and with not much care to their order or arrangement. Despite this I think there are a lot of pretty solid tracks that help prove how fantastic the creativity of the group i...

Swans are a New York experimental rock band who first arose out of the cities No-Wave scene in the early 80's, before transitioning into a myriad of experimental rock genres in the 90's. The group took a long break and reformed in 2010 for a string of 4 records that have been some of their most critically acclaimed of their entire storied career. Front-man Michael Gira has been the consistent presence around a revolving cast of musicians, and after 4 records with a generally similar line-up, some new musicians have been recruited for Leaving Meaning . Review By Lavender: If you know anything about my views on Swans, you probably think that I hate the band and their music, which just isn't the case. I have a soft spot for some of their early no-wave releases like Filth  and Children Of God , their 1998 record Soundtracks For The Blind is an effortlessly unique marvel of experimental rock music. When the band reformed in 2010 many were skeptical of their first record M...

Cigarettes After Sex are a Texas based ambient pop band who date all the way back to the early years of the 2010's. They released their debut EP in 2012 and the record contained a sleeper his tune Nothing's Gonna Hurt You Baby  that caused the band to continue released new music three years later. When their debut record turned heads in 2017 they went into full on band mode and soon announced the release of this record. Review By Lavender: I was actually pretty excited for the debut Cigarettes After Sex record when it dropped a few years ago, the single intrigued me and their sleeper hit debut song Nothing's Gonna Hurt You Baby had grown on me a lot. Unfortunately I didn't love as much of Cigarettes After Sex  as I had hoped I would, and in my review I noted that I was worried about the band trying to put together a complete record of unique sounding tunes in the future. Cry  is exactly what I was worried about as the ratio of good songs to utterly drab indie wal...

Rex Orange County is a British singer-songwriter who grabbed some attention in 2016 with his self-recorded and self-released debut bcos you will never b free  before attracting the attention of Tyler, The Creator and landing two spots on his Flower Boy  record in 2017. Around this time Rex Orange Country released his second record, the also self-released Apricot Princess , which was noticeable more popular after his boost in attention on Flower Boy . Now after a string of singles highlighted by the big success of Loving Is Easy  Rex is dropping his debut full length album with Sony Records and his first full project since 2017. Review By Lavender: There are moments where I really, really enjoy the music of Alex O'Connor, AKA Rex Orange County. His debut album was an internet cult classic and while it spotted some major flaws it was overflowing with personality that had me excited for his future. His two features on Flower Boy  excited me as well hoping he woul...

1. Glass Animals - Tokyo Drifting  (Feat. Denzel Curry) A team up that I never knew I needed shows up on the doorstep of 2019 as we transition into the long awaited and incredibly promising new era for Glass Animals. 2. Grimes - So Heavy I Fell Through The Earth With a release date and a solo song we are finally starting to understand what the new Grimes record may sound like, and the first record she's dropped in 5 years is finally starting to take shape. 3. Moses Sumney - Virile Moses Sumney is dropping his long awaited second record in two parts next year and if it follows the artistic progression of the EP he dropped in 2018, then it is liable to be an album of the year contender right out of the gate. 4. Camila Cabello - Living Proof Camila is saturating these last few months with a lot of music and starting to define herself as a solo artist with a second full record on the horizon, an exciting prospect for any pop music fans. 5. Foxygen - On Your Own Love Again ...

1. Frank Ocean - In My Room For the second time in three weeks Frank Ocean takes the number one spot on the charts with pure name recognition alone, and for the second time in two weeks he blocks a Coldplay tune at #2. Frank seems to be gearing up for a proper album release which is exciting for everyone even if the singles haven't received universal acclaim. 2. Coldplay - Everyday Life Coldplay is back with a third single in three weeks and this one came paired with a debut performance of the song on Saturday Night Live, proving that despite the years since Coldplay's last record they are still commercially dominant. 3. Poppy - BLOODMONEY Poppy has been nearly flawless in 2019 with not only my runaway EP of the year but also a handful of fantastic singles that are working us towards her third record in four years in early 2020. 4. Mura Masa/Slowthai - Deal Wiv It Given that the last time Mura Masa and Slowthai paired up they dropped the absolute banger that is Doorma...

King Princess AKA Mikaela Straus is a New York singer songwriter who emerged a few years ago on a wave of LGBT positive pop music with her debut single 1950.  After the song received a co-sign from Harry Styles, Mikaela was signed to Mark Ronson's record label. She released a debut EP last year and after dropping a number of singles has arrived with her debut record Cheap Queen here. Review By Lavender: While I wasn't initially impressed with Mikaela's first EP, last year her single Pussy Is God  caught my attention and ended up in the back quarter of my Year End Singles List for 2018. After a run of mostly solid singles leading up to this record I was excited to see what she could offer a full length record, and while Cheap Queen  may be a stepping stone to great things, it is far too inconsistent. The singles for the record were a solid 3/4 but that isn't to say that they were the best set of songs I've ever heard, with the exception of by far the best so...

Sunn 0))) is an experimental drone metal band who has been releasing material for over twenty years and has been pioneering and innovating within the drone genre for most of their career. The group released their 8th proper studio album Life Metal  earlier this year to generally favorable reviews. Pyroclasts was recorded in the same sessions as Life Metal  and is made up of four long tracks just like Life . Review By Lavender: Life Metal  was the best of the last few Sunn 0)) releases but that didn't have me convinced they were onto some new career renaissance. I had a feeling much like many projects released so close to each other that Pyroclasts  would just be the session material that wasn't good enough for Life Metal , and most records like it can't be as good as Untitled Unmastered  or Amnesiac .  Thankfully the creative wave the band was on seems to run deeper than Life Metal  because Pyroclasts serves up some excellent moments of its own....

Hemlock Ernst is the rapper pseudonym for Sam Herring, who is most commonly known as the front man of contemporary synth pop and indie pop band Future Islands. After a full decade of releasing records with the band and featuring across a number of different records from his indie and hip hop contemporaries Sam saw fit to finally release a full length Hemlock Ernst solo record. On Back At The House  Sam teams up with producer Kenny Segal, a regular in underground hip hop, to see Sam craft an experimental rap record. Review By Lavender: I've dished out some praise to Future Islands over the years and I've even enjoyed the few moments Hemlock Ernst has popped up on records like Open Mike Eagle and Paul White's Hella Personal FIlm Festival . After a pair of intriguing singles I was really excited for this record, and while I don't think it will turn many heads in the underground hip hop world it is proof that Sam is a true multi-talented artist. The lead-up to this...

1. Tame Impala - It Might Be Time Kevin Parker and Tame Impala grab their second number one of the year as he gears up to drop the long awaited fourth record from the critically acclaimed rock band. 2. Torres - Good Score Torres is finally back and as she is set to drop a new record in January of next year we get our first taste of what it may sound like and the first single from Torres since last years Two of Everything . 3. La Roux - International Woman Of Leisure La Roux is finally back after along five years since her last record to see if she can once again drop a record that is both sonically ambitious but incredibly catchy and successfully contemporary. 4. Vince Staples - Sheet Music Episode 2 of The Vince Staples show has been long awaited but his unconventional music rollout continues here with another song and video. 5. Pinegrove - Phase Pinegrove is leading up to their third record in five years and there hasn't been any indication so far that it won't b...

After September made for one of the best months of this year the brakes were pumped for some modest first two weeks of 2019, but it picked up bigtime in the second half of the month and became very competitive very fast. Tegan And Sara - Hey I'm Just like You Tegan and Sara fall further than ever, failing to rekindle their creative indie rock fire after adapting some of the earliest songs they ever wrote onto this record. Review The New Pornographers - In The Morse Code Of Break Lights The New Pornographers prove their consistency after a three year absence dropping another shimmering indie pop record with more highs than lows. Review Da Baby - KIRK For the second time in 2019 Da Baby fails to deliver consistently good songs, and gets lost in the world of repetitive trap music on a full length album. Review Remo Drive - Natural Everyday, Extended Play Remo Drive re-imagine their sophomore record on this decent EP that reinterprets one of the most notable song...