Lav's Music Corner

Nine Inch Nails   is a Cleveland based industrial rock and metal outfit fronted by Trent Reznor who has been pushing the envelope of rock music since the late 80's. After departing from a major label in the 2000's the band released Ghosts I-IV  a long ambient style soundtrack record, and earlier this year released two more records both over an hour long to serve as the next installments in this series. Review By Lavender: While my love for Trent Reznor's music and Nine Inch Nails in general is no secret I also have a ton of admiration for Ghosts  as well as Trent and Atticus' work on various soundtracks. So I was excited to dive into these albums and first heard them back in March when they were released. But given the nature of the music and the fact that it was over 2 and a half hours of material, well, I put it off. But here on a slow week I'm finally getting around to properly reviewing the records and in short if ambient music is your thing listen to Together  ...

Nas is a New York rapper who made hip hop history with his 1994 debut album Illmatic  which is still considered among the greatest of all time. It has been a turbulent road since then as Nas has tried to reach a similar level of success with mixed results. Following up his 7 track Nasir  produced entirely by Kanye West in 2018 King's Disease  features front to back production from Hit Boy.  Review By Lavender: I like Illmatic  as much as anyone but with 25 years between then and now it is safe to say that Nas has not had a very consistent career. Though most of his albums at least have points where they show off his immense talent it is often just that, moments. The last record we heard from Nas definitely had those moments particularly the excellent Cops Shot The Kid . While there isn't a song as good as that one to be found here, King's Disease  is definitely an improvement as an album. The record is 13 tracks and under 40 minutes but the brevity manages ...

Troye Sivan   is an Australian pop singer who has been releasing electronically tinged emotional pop music since the mid 2010's. His recognizable sound and willingness to address personal topics of love and sexuality, alongside collaborations with the likes of Charli XCX, Allie X and Lauv have helped him gain a profile and a fanbase. In A Dream  is Troye's first release since his critically acclaimed sophomore record Bloom  in 2018.  Review By Lavender: I would consider myself a fan of Troye Sivan. i responded pretty positively to his Bloom  album back in 2018 and his pair of collaborations with Charli XCX are two of my favorite songs on one of my favorite records of 2019. On top of that the lead single for this EP released closer to the beginning of 2020 still remains as one of my favorite pop singles of the year so far, which had me excited for this set of tracks. Now that the EP is here I'm happy to report that I think it is pretty solid and I'm excited for w...

The Killers   are a Las Vegas based indie and alternative rock band who have been dropping consistently successful studio albums since their 2004 debut Hot Fuss . This was the bands first record without regular guitarist Dave Keuning and it was produced in full by Johnathan Rado of Foxygen fame.  Review By Lavender: It is safe to say I was very very excited for this record. I saw the bands last album Wonderful Wonderful  as a really solid and critically underrated album from the band and they have a back catalog that I think can stand up to most any other bands from the 2000's. Given my love for the groups glamorous dramatic alternative rock sound the pairing with produced Johnathan Rad seemed perfect given that Foxygen have helped carry the torch for that sound into modern indie rock. Not to mention he proved his versatility on one of the most immaculately produced albums of last year Weyes Blood's Titanic Rising . Now that the record is here I have to say it has both a ...

Bright Eyes   is a legendary indie folk and emo folk band originating from Nebraska who released some of the most critically acclaimed indie records of the 2000's. After going on hiatus in 2011 the various members stayed busy in the music world but have re-united 9 years later to release a 10th Bright Eyes record.  Review By Lavender: If you know me you probably know I have been a huge Bright Eyes fan for pretty much as long as I can remember. I've long called records like I'm Wide Awake It's Morning  and Lifted  personal favorites and I've enjoyed much of what frontman Conor Oberst has done since the band initially broke-up with his solo records and Better Oblivion Community Center solo project. I was very excited for this record especially given a few of the singles that I liked quite a bit and now that it's here I think the imperfections are largely outnumbered by great songwriting, impassioned performances and swelling instrumentals.  Even though I liked som...

 

Blu & Exile is the pairing of the California based rapper Blu and producer Exile. While they both have numerous projects under their belt their most well known and critically acclaimed records came together, particularly with 2007's Below The Heavens . Miles  is their third collaboration together and their first in 8 years.  Review By Lavender: I'm late on this record I know. I had it on my to-do list knowing that it was a comfortable 90+ minutes of material but the A.G. Cook record was almost twice as long and took quite a bit out of me. But I am now getting around to reviewing the record and I've been really excited about it because these two have made some very meaningful collaborations in the past. 2007's Below The Heavens  is a big favorite of mine and I was excited for this record after hearing the singles and even more so after seeing the positive reception the album has been receiving from critics. Ultimately, while not all of this records enormous runtime i...

Flo Milli is an up and coming rapper out of Alabama who blew up with a viral song that saw her borrowing the beat from Ethereal & Playboi Carti's Beef . She has maintained a level of popularity for much of 2020 releasing successful singles leading up to this, her debut mixtape.  Review By Lavender: I've liked Flo Milli since the first time I heard those enigmatic opening bars to Beef FloMix  that have been used in many a Twitter fancam this year. As far as viral breakout songs go it is one of the better ones in recent memory and has me excited for what she would do next. Ho, Why is You Here?  is a raw debut with some lyrical shortcomings and really only one type of punch to pull, but when she is working this formula to it's best she puts some immense talent and potential on display.  So yeah Beef  is the song everybody it talking about and I think it's very good. Despite a lyrical flaw or two the flow is so confrontational and the song is so hilarious I can'...

Lupe Fiasco is a Chicago based rapper who first emerged in the mid 2000's on Atlantic Records and has spent the last 15 years or so sporadically releasing records with a wide variety of sonic palettes and influences. On this EP he teams up with producer Kaelin Ellis and Louis Vitton and Off-White designer Virgil Abloh to create a mixtape heavily themed around the world of fashion and its creation.  Review By Lavender: I've always enjoyed Lupe Fiasco when he is operating at his peak. His last album Drogas Wave  was one of my favorite Lupe projects in years and I also enjoyed his single Run Game  last year. I didn't see much promotion for this EP and it nearly slipped by me when it was first released but ultimately I'm glad I listened to it, even if it isn't among my favorite works in his discography.  House  is 22 minutes long and features three songs that last over 5 minutes but the first track is just a short spoken word intro performed by Virgil Abloh. The nex...

A.G. Cook is a British songwriter, producer, and head of the highly influential PC Music label. Alongside influential PC Music acts like Hannah Diamond, GFOTY and umru as well as close collaborations with artists like SOPHIE, Charli XCX and 100 Gecs, Cook and his collaborators have been the driving force behind the meteoric rise of Hyperpop in the 2010's. Despite this 7G  is the first true solo album from Cook and is delivered in the form of a versatile 7 disc record.  Review By Lavender: If you've been reading my reviews for any significant length of time you'll know that I am a big fan of PC Music and pretty much all the artists listed in the bio above. I was excited for this record but also cautious as we had never heard much true solo music from him, and a nearly 3 hour record is a bold way to introduce yourself as a primary solo artist. As it turns out the quality of 7G  depends a lot on which section of the record you're in, as it is split into 7 discs each with a...

R.A.P Ferreira: is the new moniker for rapper Rory Allen Philip Ferreira who first made a name for himself under the Milo name particularly with 2015's critically acclaimed album So The Flies Don't Come .  Review By Lavender: I missed this record when it first came out way back in March of this year and that's on me. Despite the fact that I'm a big fan of Milo's So The Flies Don't Come  I hadn't kept up with him as closely as some others and didn't even know about this project until after it was already out. But after some strong recommendations and critical acclaim I finally got around to checking the album out and I'm very glad I did. While it is a little bit long and not the most varied record I've heard all year there is plenty here to love.  Normally I wouldn't talk about a short intro style track yet Decorum  is so ridiculously stylish in the way it introduces everybody who worked on the album and is so captivating and smooth I had no c...

Glass Animals   are an English pop rock band who blew up in the mid 2000's off of a pair of albums uniquely blending indie rock, electronica and hip hop together. Back in 2018 when they were initially working on a third album the bands drummer was involved in a serious cycling incident that caused the band to cancel their tour and delay work on the album while he recovered. Starting in November of last year the band released 5 singles in the lead up to Dreamland , which was delayed twice as a result of pandemic and social justice factors.  Review By Lavender: It's pretty damn cool that Glass Animals are back in action. While I have my reservations with their debut record Zaba  the bands 2016 follow-up How To Be A Human Being  was an instant favorite of mine upon release and has stayed in my rotation ever since. It is also cool because as details emerged surrounding Joe Seaward's scary bike crash it made many wonder if he would ever really play with the group again. S...

The Microphones are a long defunct music project of Phil Elverum who has been releasing music under the Mount Eerie name since 2003. Since then The Microphones and in particular the 2001 record The Glow, Pt. 2  have become one of the most universally acclaimed indie projects of all time. Just a few months ago Phil anounced the first Microphones record in 17 years which would consist of one 44 minute track titled Microphones In 2020 .  Review By Lavender: I have had some negative attention directed at me for opinions of the music of Phil Elverum over just the few short years I've been doing this. It started with 2017's A Crow Looked At Me  a record I responded to positively, just not AS positively as many other outlets and die hard Phil fans did. Since then it hasn't swayed as I wasn't a particularly big fan of 2018's Now Only  and I even skipped reviewing a collaborative project released under the Mount Eerie name last year. Despite what some Phil stans would tell y...