Lav's Music Corner

Review by Lav: COWBOY CARTER  is the HIGHLY-anticipated follow-up to Beyonce's 2022 album Renaissance , an album that I was a pretty big fan of like everybody else. What's so interesting about COWBOY CARTER  is that it was billed through its marketing and promotion as an embrace of country music. And make no mistake, Beyonce does spend part of this record embracing a measure of country that is FAR more authentic than most of her contemporaries are capable of. But that sells the ambition of this album short. Bey genre hops a LOT throughout the nearly 90 minutes of this album and while its ambition can occasionally swallow it whole, for the most part this is pretty damn good.  COWBOY CARTER  starts out INCREDIBLY strong. You have to get a full third of the way through the album before it serves up anything I don't absolutely love. That includes the records two singles 16 Carriages  and Texas Hold Em . Those songs were definitely picked deliberately to help market ...

*mwah* 5.  I'm A Man  - Kim Gordon It seems like the uncompromising nature of the first single from this new Kim Gordon album was no accident. This second single is arguably just as intent to grab you by the throat and hold on tight. The instrumental once again featured rattling drums and rumbling bass but it's even more brash in its presentation. While the refrains here aren't quite as catchy as its predecessor they arguably set up for even more intense moments.  Listen 4.  Brown Paper Bag - DIIV In a world where a lot of music fans were excited for other things. I was hyped for the return of one of my favorite shoegaze outfits of the 2010s. DIIV's new lead single certainly fits in with the sound and style I was expecting to hear, but in a sense, that's why I'm not head over heels for it. While the slowed down and heavier demeanor is welcome, sonically parts of this song still feel like the band leaning into what they know they can do well. It's hard to see...

5.  Petroleum  - Yard Act While I came away from the first Yard Act album pretty mixed something tells me I'm going to like the follow-up a lot more. The singles have seen the band leaning into their grooviest eccentricities and the results are post-punk that fringes on danceability in the way very few bands can achieve. This may not be the most bombastic or infectious of the songs but I still like it quite a bit.  Listen 4.  Tunnel Lights  - Chelsea Wolfe While this track may not blow me away in quite the same way Chelsea's past two tracks have it still has everything I would want in one of her songs. From the spacious percussion marked by booming distorted drums to her haunting voice wrapping itself around mystical fairy tale refrains it's all still so compelling.  Listen 3.  The Fight  - Future Islands The most reserved single from Future Islands' new era might be its best moment yet. It has the patience to squeeze every moment of somber drama ...

Travis Scott is one of the biggest rap superstars in the world. He's managed to be both a massive hitmaker and a critical darling relative to his peers. UTOPIA  comes two years after Travis Scott found himself at the center of the Astroworld  music festival tragedy. Despite the festival's shortcomings and his maligned public reaction to it, fans were extremely excited for UTOPIA . The album was released with an impressive collection of featured artists and producers and has spawned extensive discussion among rap fans online. Review by Lav: It's hard for me to put into words how excited I was for Astroworld . After Rodeo  turned me into a big Travis Scott fan and the years he spent building up to its actual sequel generated so much hype, how could I not be excited. I stayed up till midnight to listen to the album with my friends and unpack all the features and credits that were initially hidden. But here's the thing, Astroworld  lived up to every bit of the hype. I st...

I've said a few times this year that it's been a kind of interesting year for albums. While there wasn't the same pile of records absolutely blowing me away this year that there had been in years past, I was pleasantly surprised by how deep the field was. There were definitely albums cut from this year's list that could have comfortably made it onto one of the last two years' editions. Ultimately, I think that's a good thing. If I had to choose between the two I would take more good albums. But if the praise seems particularly quick compared to other lists and other years, there's a reason. Enjoy <3 ( This list was originally posted on January 1st, 2023 but was remade due to formatting errors) 100. Rina Sawayama - Hold The Girl While Rina failed to impress me with some of the songwriting and in particular the hooks on her new record, the production of Clarence Clarity and her imposing personality are enough to carry this record through with its memorable ...