Lav's Music Corner

Last best new songs of October, here's hoping my year-end lists will come out on time.  5.  I Killed Captain Hook  - Unknown Mortal Orchestra I had a pretty negative reaction to this when I heard it for the first time as it very purposefully sounds like a demo but it seems like it's genuinely the next single of this UMO era. While it's nowhere near as good as last year's That Life  the presentation did grow on me, particularly after really digging into the song's instrumental bridge where every little nuance of guitar sound is put up front and center behind the thin crackling distortion.  Listen 4.  Feedback  - La Roux (Feat. Baby Tate) Yeah, I'm just as surprised as you are. La Roux is back and her new single is an R&B banger with a Baby Tate verse that honestly kinda rules. That sentence feels randomly generated. There certainly isn't any new territory broken on the song but I am genuinely shocked at how comfortable La Roux sounds on it. This is ...

Dirt Femme  - Tove Lo While you could argue that at points Tove Lo has maybe been a bit too stylistically trashy to break back into the mainstream, I've always been a big fan of her music regardless. This album Dirt Femme  definitely felt like her turning over a new leaf, not in terms of it being a more mainstream effort as her previous record Sunshine Kitty  already made that transition. But on the singles leading up to Dirt Femme  it felt like Tove Lo had the life and personality back that gave her a breakout hit nearly a decade ago. The lead-up to the record was marked by some killer singles starting with the Euphoria  soundtrack cut How Long , probably my favorite Tove Lo song in years and one that I'm very happy made it onto this record. It also delivered the shimmering relationship-examining anthem No One Dies From Love  which kicks off the record with an absolute bang. The record is further supplemented with solid singles in both 2 Die 4  and Gr...

Arctic Monkeys are one of the UK's biggest indie acts that have been delivering a variety of punk, indie and lounge-flavored rock albums for over 15 years. On their 6th album, 2018's Tranquility Base Hotel & Casino  they strayed away from rock music entirely into a much more lounge-focused sound that divided fans. 4 years later The Car  is a continuation of the band's journey into lounge aesthetics. Review by Lav: I don't care how many people call me Tumblr core, I really like Arctic Monkeys. Their first two albums are among the best of the 2000s including a debut album that's a certified all-time classic. When they came roaring into the USA in 2013 on the back of singles like Do I Wanna Know?  and R U Mine  for their 2013 album AM . They followed that success, surprisingly, by taking a 5 year break and returning with a lounge concept album about a hotel on the moon. While I wasn't head over heels for Tranquility Base  right when it came out, it grew on me q...

Taylor Swift really needs no introduction. She's one of the biggest stars in all of music whose various eras, controversies, and commercial successes have been documented ad nauseum for the past 15 years. Midnights  is her 10th record which comes loosely themed around all the songs being conceptualized late at night and promising a return to pop after the folk departure of her previous two records. Review by Lav: When I started this blog in 2016, I was a Taylor Swift "hater". I didn't actually hate Taylor Swift but my own reputation among my friends and the people I interacted with online didn't have room for that nuance, but it was when Taylor started evaluating her own Reputation  that my tone shifted. For the first time, I found myself genuinely enjoying her music and more importantly, interested in her as an artist. Despite following that up with a very putrid record in Lover  I think Taylor Swift has generally been on a much more enjoyable artistic path throu...

The first time I opened this I realized I had written "October 23th" in the header so there are sure to be more errors from here.  Enjoy <3 5.  Sunset  - Caroline Polachek I went back and forth on this one quite a bit as the plucky Spanish guitars felt like a very strange combo for THIS song when performed by THIS artist. But honestly as I kept listening the song started to grow on me primarily through its incredibly infectious refrains. While I wish the bridge had a little something more than just Caroline's extended vocalizing I do still like the song.  Listen 4.  Where I Go - NxWorries (Feat. H.E.R) NxWorries, the collaborative project of Anderson .Paak and Knxwledge is back after a long hiatus and they're announcing their return with this silky bedroom anthem which pairs Paak with H.E.R. Once you break down the lyrics there's quite a bit more going on here than the normal bassline of love and lust but you couldn't tell just from how infectiously smooth...

Paraglow  - Parannoul & Asian Glow This is the new collaborative project from two artists whose EP wells I've already dipped into in 2022. Parannoul's breakout album To See The Next Part Of The Dream  was one of my favorite releases of 2021 and I was craving new music so badly I reviewed both the Parannoul ambient side project Mydreamfever's album Rough And Beautiful Place  and the B-Sides EP that followed it with leftover tracks from Dream . Asian Glow on the other hand is dipping back into the well of collaborative EPs with recent breakout internet core artists after dropping the very solid Weatherglow  collaboration with Weatherday earlier this year. Given that I enjoyed that project a lot and I love Parannoul this felt like a slam dunk. Unfortunately, no matter how much I listen to the opening track Hand  I'm just not crazy about it. Even compared to the B-sides dropped earlier this year it just sounds too much like a song that wouldn't have made the cu...

The 1975 are one of the biggest English indie and pop acts of the last decade. The four-piece have been dropping music for over a decade now to massive commercial success and spots of critical acclaim along the way. In the process, they've developed a cult fanbase that has followed them as they've expanded their reach to various genres and styles. Being Funny In A Foreign Language  is the band's 5th album which features production from Jack Antonoff.  Review by Lav: Liking The 1975 is no longer a guilty pleasure. The days of quietly jamming to Sex , Chocolate , Girls  or The City  in my bedroom are out the door for one of the biggest acts in the world, who are no strangers to their fair share of critical acclaim. On their third album A Brief Inquiry Into Online Relationships  they took a huge step in the right direction sending their sound into new and exciting directions without abandoning their pop sentimentalities. They dialed that up a notch on their follow-...

Let's get freaky with some outside-the-box, difficult-to-describe electronic artists.  Golden Skin  - Pale Sketcher Pale Sketcher is the long-running electronic music side project of Justin Broadrick of Godflesh and Jesu fame. I like Godflesh quite a bit and I absolutely LOVE Jesu so I've been paying attention to the short Pale Sketcher releases dropping every so often for the past 12 years. Given that this is the project's first full album I was excited to hear what Justin had to offer, especially after I read on the records Bandcamp page that the music was recorded between 2009 and 2013 and has been shelved since then for some reason. All things considered, it sounds pretty aligned with the annuls of contemporary electronica which makes me wish even more that it had been released years ago as it might be looked back on as ahead of its time. With that being said I also don't think the record is necessarily strikingly unique all things considered. For those versed in th...

On time even though I don't have wifi right now because I moved. The things I do for my little darlings.  Enjoy <3 5.  Grapevine  - Weyes Blood Even with Weyes Blood being known for playing it lowkey the verses on this track are on the sparse side. And while the hook doesn't quite erupt like some of her best tracks it doesn't have to because the beauty comes from the subtlety. With Johnathan Rado once again on board for production every single chime, keys and swell of strings sounds immaculately aligned.  Listen 4.  Stressed  - Doechii Top Dawg's new versatile wonder child is back with another impressive new single that shows off her ability to sing and rap across an effective array of styles. Beyond her impressive display the song also has a great instrumental that's creative and pretty uncompromising in its willingness to work in charming small details.  Listen 3.  ours  - R.A.P Ferreira In the middle of this song Rory explicitly says no...

Alvvays are a Canadian indie pop and dream pop band who have been around for almost a decade now but Blue Rev  is just their 3rd album. The five years since their sophomore record Antisocialites  hasn't dissuaded fans from generating a lot of hype for their new project, which predicted a shift to heavier shoegaze-inspired sounds across its 5 singles.  Review by Lav: I've always been a big fan of Alvvays since I first heard Archie, Marry Me  on some indie blog years ago. While I can't say they've ever been one of my favorite bands even within their genre niche, you can always expect consistently enjoyable songwriting and execution from the band. Both of those pretty much continue onto Blue Rev  which isn't rewriting the book on anything, but it still solid.  The album had 5 singles and the first two serve as the opening stretch of the record. Pharmacist  opens with a perfect meeting of the band's typically sweet sound and catchy refrains with more shoeg...

Yeah Yeah Yeahs are a New York indie rock trio who became one of the definitive indie acts of the 2000's with massively acclaimed records like It's Bliss  and Fever To Tell . The band released their 4th album Mosquito  in 2013 but it was met with shrugs from critics and disappointment from fans. After nearly 10 years the band has returned with a new project backed by a lead single collaboration with Perfume Genius.  Review by Lav: If you're the kind of person who is stupid you could look at my body of work and call me a Yeah Yeah Yeah's hater. While I am not quite as head over heels for the group as many who appreciate the era they came from, I still have a lot of love for their two best records. Given that I was pretty mild on Karen collaborative record with Danger Mouse a few years ago and I never want to hear the previous Yeah Yeah Yeah's album ever again, it's been a while since I really loved something that was YYY parallel. The closest thing probably being...

Better late than never. Enjoy <3 5.  Never Gonna Change  - Sharon Van Etten If you know Sharon Van Etten then you can probably predict what this song is going to sound like going into it, even if the fusion of Weyes Blood style chamber with a dash of classic heartland still manages to be compelling. It probably also won't surprise fans that despite it being a deep cut that missed the official tracklist of Sharon's album earlier this year, it's still great and should be headed directly into the ears of indie folk fans.  Listen 4.  The Loneliest Time  - Carly Rae Jepsen (Feat. Rufus Wainwright) The singles from Carly's new album have been pretty all over the place in terms of style but very consistent in terms of quality. This sort of disco ballad which yes, randomly features Rufus Wainwright actually turns out great. The song has the emotional poise to justify playing it a little slow but Carly refuses to make something you can't dance to, with wonderful resul...

Freddie Gibbs is an Indiana rapper who has spent the last decade establishing himself as one of the most cutthroat rappers in the genre today. After a series of collaborative records including Pinata  with Madlib and Alfredo  with The Alchemist Freddie is back with his first solo album since 2018's Freddie , Review by Lav: Dishing out praise for Freddie Gibbs is just something I've done on this blog pretty much since I started it. Once he released Fetti  in 2018 it started a run of great records and features that had me sprinting to put out positive reviews of Freddie every few months. After hearing some of the singles from this record I though that streak might be approaching its end. But I shouldn't have doubted Freddie, this album is as solid as ever.  Let's talk about those singles because I'm still not totally sure about them. Too Much  is certainly a song I've flip-flopped on mostly because hearing Freddie's singing on the track doesn't do much for...

Bjork  a name that really needs no introduction. The Icelandic art pop innovator has been creatively bending genres around her incredibly unique voice and style of songwriting for decades. Fossora  is Bjork's 10th album and comes 5 years after her previous project. It also sees her shifting almost entirely to self-producing the record after working with Arca in large part for her last two albums. Review by Lav: I love Bjork, big whoop, who doesn't. She's one of the best artists of all time and that's no hyperbole at all. She legitimately has three decades of musical innovation under her belt at this point with no signs of her timeless innovation slowing down. Obviously her return after a five year absence that felt more like 10 years is welcome, but even I wasn't ready for this. Her 10th album Fossora  isn't quite as new a stylistic shift as we're used to from Bjork, but it rides beautiful arrangements, excellent lyricism, and thorough conceptuality to becom...