Lav's Music Corner

Rosalia is a Spanish singer, songwriter, and musical auteur. Her major critical breakthrough came on her conceptual 2018 album El Mal Querer. A few years later, she transcended her experimental darling status into a full-blown superstar on the massively acclaimed and massively popular Motomami . Now, 3 years later, she remains one of the biggest stars of Spanish music, making LUX  one of the most anticipated new albums of the year. Now that it's here, the album resoundingly lives up to every expectation leveled upon it.  LUX  only had one single, but god is it a swing for the fences fitting for an album so bold. "Berghain" sees Rosalia teaming up with Yves Tumor and Bjork, but more than any of those brilliant artists, it's the blasting baroque instrumentation that absolutely steals the show. The album follows this trend with several of its shorter songs aiming high and hitting their mark. That starts early with the excellent table setter "Sexo, Violencia y Llanta...

Anna Von Hausswolff is a singer/songwriter who has always made waves for their distinctly intense and occasionally brooding style of music that makes prominent use of the pipe organ. Her peak of critical acclaim came on 2018's brooding yet expansive Dead Magic . Her 2020 follow-up was an entirely instrumental record, meaning ICONOCLASTS  had the chance to be a long-awaited return to form. Instead, the record presents a sound both brighter and more intimate than ever before, but finds a similar level of fascination in doing so.  The singles predicted this shift in style, but they were all so good that I never had the chance to even be suspicious about it. "Facing Atlas" is the first of the singles to pop up on the record, and it's a great way to begin the experiment. The song sounds more like something you'd hear on a Susanne Sundfor record than what I expect from Anna. The beauty of its angelic chimes matches really well with a chapel-sized performance from Anna. ...

Agriculture  are an LA black metal band who erupted onto the scene with a challenging but visceral self-titled debut in 2023. While I enjoyed that record, what I enjoyed even more was the Living Is Easy EP that followed it up and contained one of the band’s best songs to date, “In The House Of Angel Flesh.” With even stronger singles leading into their sophomore effort, The Spiritual Sound , I was expecting another outside-the-box black metal experience. That's exactly what I got.  The album is essentially split down the middle by a titular instrumental interlude, and everything that comes before it is pretty great. That includes the staggering single “The Weight.” I still think it's one of Agriculture’s best songs yet, and the way it builds to an absolutely pummeling peak across 5 minutes should be studied. The way it concludes is so eerie and suspicious, it's just irresistible.  As a whole, the record is often unsettled, both in its compositions and influences. The bes...

Review by Lavender: Geese are a NYC indie rock band that erupted onto the scene in 2023 with a breakthrough sophomore album,  3D Country. That record went on to become a major critical darling, and in 2024, the band's frontman, Cameron Winter, released a solo album that showed off a more intimate and singer-songwriter-influenced style. I was hoping that dynamic range would come together perfectly on the band's third album, which quickly became one of the most highly anticipated releases of the year for many indie fans. While I may not see the album as a slam-dunk masterpiece like some fans and critics have rushed to declare, it's undeniably great regardless.  A big reason for my excitement for this record was the trio of excellent singles released before it dropped. The second single, "Trinidad," is the first song in the tracklist, and what a ferocious start to the record it is. The more sparse elements of the instrumental don't really prepare you for the repe...

Straight Line Was A Circle - The Beths I was late to The Beth's rock-solid 2022 album Expert In A Dying Field , something I still regret. That's why, going into this album cycle, I was paying close attention to the singles, something that paid off. The New Zealand indie rockers conjured hazy, dreamy, catchy bliss one time after another, starting with the sentimental "Metal." That same indie punk zeal pops up on the delightful "No Joy" whose verses have been drilled into my head for weeks. But the band also showed off a more sentimental side on songs like the gentle "Mother, Pray For Me" and the deep cut "Mosquitos."  The opener and title track, "Straight Line Was A Lie," is a punky tongue-in-cheek opener that sets up some of the punkier themes of aimlessness that the record explores in depth and does it with an irresistibly sweet guitar riff. Just like it starts on a strong sequence, the album ends strongly, starting with my fav...

Maruja are an English post-punk outfit that I've been paying a lot of attention to recently. They represent the newest addition to an ever-growing string of recent acclaimed European post-punk acts and approach the sound with a raw fury and political edge that's unmatched by any of their contemporaries. Like those contemporaries, the band is also off to a red-hot start to their careers with a trio of EPs already under their belt. The first of which, Knocknarea , blew my mind a few years ago. Now the band is back to blow it all over again with a razor-sharp, righteous, and pummeling debut album.  The first half of Pain To Power sports two singles I loved, but not before the ripping opener “Bloodsport.” The track hits the ground running with explosive punky instrumentation and undeniably grimy lyrical themes. By the time the sizzling saxophone pops up on the hook, I'm already fully bought in. The other shorter cut on the first half of the record is the single “Saoirse.” It...

Sabrina Carpenter rapidly ascended to superstar status last year. After bubbling up as the bad guy in Olivia Rodrigo's debut album, she scored a few mid-level hits and then absolutely erupted on the back of "Espresso." But for me, her breakout was a pleasant surprise. Once her debut album arrived, it was easy to see on songs like "Juno" and "Taste" that she was a different caliber of talent than some of her contemporaries. But for a few reasons, I was a little bit suspicious going into this new record. Firstly, because it arrived so quickly after its predecessor. Secondly, because its lead single "Manchild" is good, but not great. And finally, because Jack Antonoff had a hand in production on almost the entire album. The result is exactly the drop in quality I expected, though how far is a matter of debate.  That's a negative way to start, so let me assure you, there are some GREAT fucking songs on this album. The second single, "Tea...

For the people who can tell the difference between all these genres, I'm sorry, and I promise I can to. But this was the best way to quickly talk about a bunch of records I wanted to comment on regardless in a rapid fire fashion. Enjoy <3 THE FUTURE IS HERE AND EVERYTHING NEEDS TO BE DESTROYED - The Armed When The Armed broke through to a massive new audience on their 2021 album ULTRAPOP  they seemed to hit on something unique. They mixed the sounds and compositional styles from the indie rock umbrella into the pure ferocity of their screamo and hardcore demeanor. While I appreciated what the band did, I had an issue with the actual sound of the record. The production and mixing seemingly robbed the band of their most intense elements, with screams and churning guitars that felt like they never sounded as heavy as they were supposed to. Unfortunately, the EXACT same issue plagues this record.  The trio of singles for the album are the main reason I decided to cover it at al...

Pile are a long-running, Boston-based indie rock band who have crossed over into other genres like post-punk throughout a pretty versatile career. I've touched on the band occasionally but never in a full review, something I knew I would have to amend after hearing the excellent trio of singles that preceded  Sunshine And Balance Beams . Even though the full record wasn't quite everything I hoped it might be, it still sports some of the best songs of Pile's already long and storied career.  That trio of singles pops up in the record's middle section, and what a run it is. "Bouncing In Blue and "Uneasy" are a stunning back-to-back punch. "Blue" has a brooding and plodding introduction that contrasts wonderfully with the high register singing. Even though the composition wanders around a lot, it manages to keep up its momentum and pay everything off with a satisfying finale. "Uneasy" deploys one of many great lyrical moments on the album...

Earl Sweatshirt really needs no introduction for hip-hop fans at this point. The Odd Future alum has transitioned his edgier, more provocative rap style into a much more earnest and human darkness as the years pass and collected heaps of critical acclaim every step of the way. I'll tip my hand and say that I got to catch the record early at a listening party Earl threw in LA. Because of that I went into my first proper listen already knowing that Earl recently became a father. As a result, both the sonic and thematic palettes have taken a turn for the brighter, but none of his unmistakable talent has faded in the transition.  That's how the album starts, with "gsw vs sac." It has this vibrant psychedelic instrumental that sets up the record's woozier sonic palette. It also concludes with a spoken word passage about introspecting and facing problems rather than running away from them, which feels perfectly aligned with the album's themes of fatherhood and matur...

Review by Lavender: JID is an Atlanta MC who spent the latter half of the 2010s establishing himself as a versatile and endlessly talented MC with a series of memorable mixtapes and features. His rise all culminated in the 2022 album The Forever Story, one of the best rap albums of the entire decade so far. In the 3 years since, JID has risen drastically in popularity due to a bizarre crossover with Imagine Dragons and an unpredictable TikTok hit in the Forever Story deep cut “Surround Sound.” Now he's back with a frequently promised new record, God Does Like Ugly.  The lead single is as good a place as any to start because it affirms the level of talent JID is working with. “WRK” didn't necessarily blow me away, mostly because its beat feels painfully standard and the chorus is very much nothing. But the longer JID goes on in his verses, it feels like he develops more and more to say. So even though the song is far from a highlight, it's a great example of how, even at th...

Review by Lavender: Tropical Fuck Storm exists within a scene of Australian psychedelic rock bands with silly names that I've only briefly touched on throughout the history of this blog. I briefly talked about their 2019 album Braindrops , but haven't said much since. That was, until earlier this year, when they started dropping one fantastic, experimental, dynamic single after another. In fact, it's Fairyland Codex ’s compositional dynamism that caused me to be so late on covering it. Somewhere in my drafts is an obnoxiously long, extensive, and frankly unbearable review of this album. Instead, I'm keeping it on the shorter side (relatively) as the record really speaks for itself.  Lead single “Goon Show” is a strong way to introduce the record, even if it avoids some of the wildest sonic excesses. It has these brooding undertones and a hypnotic chorus. I love the restraint the band deploys, saving any extra instrumentation for just the right moment. It makes for such...