Lav's Music Corner

  Review by Lavender:  Bon Iver is one of the most acclaimed indie folk artists of the past 20 years. Helmed by Justin Vernon, the band's first two albums were beloved folk darlings of the indie blog era. Their next two albums in 2016 and 2019 were much more divisive, largely on account of their interpolation of electronic elements. Personally, though, I MUCH prefer those two records to the band's colder, sleepier early work. Their 5th album SABLE, fABLE  brings these two styles together while also introducing a sunny optimism and saccharine sweetness they've never had before. The result may very well be the best crop of Bon Iver tracks yet.  I'll start this review off by saying that the album's first four songs are excellent. They include the wonderful single S P E Y S I D E  that dropped last year and was released alongside the other songs that start the record off as an EP. I'm skipping a full breakdown of the songs here because I reviewed that EP last year, ...

Review by Lavender: Bon Iver is the beloved indie folk project of Justin Vernon which has been a magnet of critical acclaim for nearly 20 years. The project's 4th album I,I  dropped in 2019 but Bon Iver hasn't exactly been quite since then. In addition to two singles that dropped in 2020, Vernon has popped up as a producer and collaborator for a variety of other artists in the meantime. The most notable of the bunch are Taylor Swift and Travis Scott, but he's also collaborated with Zach Bryan, The Japanese House, and most recently Charli XCX. But now Bon Iver is back returning to the format where they once made a smash with the critical darling Blood Bank  EP all the way back in 2009. The EP has a short intro, but its bulk is made up of just three songs. Let's start with the single S P E Y S I D E which lands in the middle of SABLE. It's an absolutely wonderful song I've loved since the moment it dropped. Not only is it catchy in the same way Vernon's best w...

Some major announcements this week didn't dissuade from a few surprising names landing on the list. Enjoy <3 5.  Nail In A Wooden Trunk  - Tapir! Earlier this year Tapir! dropped one of my favorite debut albums of 2024 so far and though I wasn't crazy abotu their first follow-up single, this song reminds me of EXACTLY why I like them so much. From its subtle instrumental versatility to its rustic sound palette to an understated but still truly bizarre vocal performance that's been stuck in my head all week. This is another hit from Tapir. Listen 4.  No Comma  - Slayyyter A classic Slayyyter banger for 2024. After an album that felt like a bit of an experiment wandering away from her pummeling pop swagger she's back with a song that feels like it could have slipped into her early mixtape. This song is even better when you realize it's a slight subversion of the kind of expectations Slayyyter often faces. She manages to even make being less slutty than her reputati...

Lil Mariko  - Lil Mariko I first heard this girl on Dorian Electra's album last year and I just new she was gonna be somebody to look out for. Her songs here follow a formula of fusing trap and pop for catchy simple tunes, that randomly explode into Poppy like industrial metal right at the end. Mariko pulls it off pretty well with her raunchy in your face personality and hilarious lyricism. The bad bitch bangers on this thing are instant anthems and I can't get enough of songs like Hi I'm A Slut , Catboys , Shiny  and I'm Baby . While the songwriting and production here aren't going to blow anyone away the EP is overflowing with unforgettable personality. The only major complaint I have is that the stop and start refrains make it really difficult for Mariko to pen catchy hooks, which is usually a must for music like this. I think with just a splash of improved songwriting and more interesting beats she could follow this up with something absolutely spectacular. But ...

Taylor Swift is a pop artist who at this point needs no introduction. After racking up a decades worth of hits and massive commercial success in the late 2000's and 2010's Taylor finally reached a place of critical success earlier this year on her indie inspired Aaron Dessner produced 8th studio album folklore . Just a few months later Taylor is following this up with a second album in a similar vein. Much like it's predecessor evermore  is an indie folk inspired record with a similar set of collaborators that was also surprise announced and dropped with no singles. Review By Lav: I have never been a big fan of Taylor Swift, see my Lover  review here . While her first few records are just as utterly intolerable today as they were when they first came out she has had a few points where it felt like she was moving slightly in the right direction. 2012's Red  was easily her best album to date but she followed it up with the middling mediocre 1989 . 2017's Reputation  w...

Taylor Swift is a Nashville based pop superstar who began early on in her career fusing country into contemporary pop music before slowly transitioning to a more synthetic pop sound over the next decade. Less than a year after her 7th studio album Lover  she surprised announced and then dropped without any singles  her 8th record, folklore .  Review By Lavender: I was worried about this record. I have never been a big Taylor Swift fan but even after her first three records nauseated me I thought she was improving leading up to my favorite of her projects 2017's Reputation . The improvement slowed to a halt however on last year's Lover  which wasn't a total disaster of a record but featured far more misses than hits. The 2nd thing that worried me was that Aaron Dessner, the man responsible for two of the 2010's most boring indie records (The National's Trouble Will Find Me  and I Am Easy To Find ) was responsible for much of the songwriting and production on the ...

Quarter three of 2019 has been the best by far and the months of July, August and September were absolutely packed with killer records that you should definitely hear. But just in case you missed the lists earlier in the year here is the Januray-March   list and the April-June  list to check out. So without further ado here are ten more records you can expect to see populating my year end lists. 10. Infest The Rats Nest  - King Gizzard And The Lizard Wizard After disappointing earlier this year with Fishing For Fishes  King Gizz came out of nowhere to drop one of the most genuinely enthralling  thrash metal records I've heard in years. With very strong influences from the genres godfathers the band sounds straight out of 1986 with fiery performances all around and an exciting and youthful energy that genre has been lacking. Review 9. All My Heroes Are Cornballs  - JPEGMAFIA Peggy quickly follows up his breakout project Veteran  from las...

Whitney is a Chicago indie band who wowed in 2016 with their debut record Light Upon The Lake  which featured a unique low-fi indie sound that mixed in elements of folk music to create a brand of indie rock truly their own. Review By Lavender: I really enjoyed Whitney's debut album a few years ago and had the chance to catch them live to experience their unique approach to indie music which was a fantastic experience. I have been anticipating another record from the band for quite a while now and after a few solid singles I had high expectations for the album and now that is is here I'm mostly happy with it. Forever Turned Around  is a true sequel to Light Upon The Lake  in that it is about as consistent and features an incredibly similar sound. It also falls for for one of the same flaws as the first record with repeating a lot of sounds and making the record a cohesive but repetitive sound. That's why some of these songs serve better as singles and had me very ...

Bon Iver is an indie folk collective originating from Wisconsin and founded by singer-songwriter Justin Vernon.The first Bon Iver record For Emma Forever Ago  was released independently in 2007 where Pitchfork Media played a huge role in promoting it alongside many other indie folk releases around that time and helped make Bon Iver into an indie must hear. They followed this up with yet another critically acclaimed record Bon Iber, Bon Iver  in 2011 before taking an extended period off and returning in 2016. The third Bon Iver record 22. A Million  was also met with critical praise but reached for a very different sound, interpolating electronica heavily into their previously warm and folk cetntric sound. With teaser tracks that also dipped into the abstract electronic Bon Iver seemed to predict a continuation of this path making, i,i  a quick turn around on what will likely be an artistic evolution for the group. Review By Lavender: For a time before I began ...

Chance The Rapper is a Chicago based rapper who blew up earlier this decade with his gospel inspired style and youthful energy on his 10 Day  mixtape. The very next year after this debut mixtape Chance dropped his second tape Acid Rap  to universal critical acclaim and it became his breakout project. With numerous marquee features and an unmistakable style the mixtape turned Chance into an overnight sensation and is considered by many to be one of the best rap records of the entire decade. Chance took his time crafting a follow-up record, ultimately dropping "Chance 3" Coloring Book  in 2016. The album featured a historic list of features from acclaimed and popular artists across the board and was met pretty positively from critics. After another three year wait Chance spent most of 2019 teasing his upcoming "debut album". He dropped the single Groceries  earlier this year but the track doesn't land on the record and ultimately the album was released with...

1. Bon Iver - Faith Bon Iver grabs a second #1 debut of 2019 with the announcement of a new record and two follow-up singles to the two excellent songs they released a few months ago. 2. Jenny Hval - Ashes To Ashes Jenny Hval takes off strong in 2019 after her excellent solo EP and the debut of the lost girls project made waves in 2018. 3. Of Monsters And Men - Wild Roses Of Monsters and Men return with their second single and attempt to turn back the clock to the early years of this decade. 4. Common - Hercules  (Feat. Swizz Beatz) Common recruits veteran Swizz for production on the lead single to the legendary rap artists new project. 5. Nas - Jarreau Of Rap Nas' Lost Tapes  series gets its first true taste with this out of the blue single. 6. Future - 100 Shooters  (Feat. Meek Mill & Doe Boy) Future proves to be as prolific as ever and drops yet another single after releasing a full length album and a follow-up EP earlier this year. 7. Rosalia - M...

1. Bon Iver - Hey Ma Bon Iver takes a strong number one with a highly anticipated return single that picks up just where 22, A Million  left off.    2. Whitney - Giving Up Whitney starts the era for their second album with a much anticipated lead single that comes three years after their debut album made huge waves. 3. Kim Petras - Clarity Coming off one of the years premiere sex bops Kim Petras snipes the highest charting spot of her career as she continues to release single after single in preparation for a studio album. 4. Blanck Mass - House Vs. House Blanck Mass add to the 2019 debut singles this week with another much anticipated return coming off 2017's excellent World Eater . 5. Madonna - Dark Ballet Madonna finally drops a solo single and after a rough start to her new era rides her namesake to the #5 spot. 6. Big K.R.I.T - K.R.I.T Here K.R.I.T turns around quickly and attaches his name to yet another song and project here. 7. Goldlink - U Say  (...