Lav's Music Corner

Tame Impala is one of the most beloved indie bands of the past 15 years. It's the project of singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, producer extraordinaire Kevin Parker. While the second Tame Impala record,  Lonerism , remains their peak of critical success, its follow-up, Currents , embraced a psychedelic pop style that introduced the band to an entirely new fanbase. In the years since, songs like “The Less I Know The Better” and “Let It Happen” have been cemented as modern indie classics. Despite that, the band's 4th album was met with mixed reviews, though I came away liking the record more than most critics. Deadbeat has taken an even harsher critical beating than its predecessor, but this time I completely agree.  Not to say this record is a complete waste. The lead single “End Of Summer” still works for me. It reminds me of many great, lengthy Tame Impala songs before it, with the way it transitions from one infectious segment to another effortlessly. But it's th...

In celebration of Charli XCX's brat  I decided to do a week dedicated to dance music here on the blog. Since brat  didn't turn out to be the nonstop dance record I was anticipating, it's somewhat fitting that this week has blown so far off course. Earlier we discussed Iglooghost and Kaytranada and now were going to cover an actual dance music outfit's new dance album, a dance music producer's new ambient techno effort, and frequent Charli XCX collaborator AG Cook's completely undanceable new album. Enjoy <3 Hyperdrama  - Justice Justice is one of the definitive dance acts of the 2000s whose debut album made a crater-sized impression on the genre's history. Since then the pair have shared two follow-up records neither of which I was particularly head-over-heels for. In fact, it's Gaspard Auge's 2021 solo album Escapades  that stands as my favorite thing to spawn from the duo since their debut. So it's out of respect for the duo and acknowledgem...

These are three electronic music projects that I have a lot of respect and admiration for. Had I not been so sick and busy I would have definitely covered these albums in full but I still want to get my feelings out there on all of them.  Three  - Four Tet Even though I've been a Four Tet fan for a long time it's been a while since I was truly blown away by something he released. He's pretty consistent, but I find myself always hoping for more high-end material. That seemed like it would continue to be the case when I came away from the record's singles feeling just okay. That was made even worse when I realized that my favorite Four Tet single in years, Mango Feedback , also wasn't appearing on the album, though it seems like elements of it were reworked into the single Daydream Repeat, although I'm not positive.  After beginning with a dancier cut in Loved  the album shifts its focus towards ambient. That's not a complaint as I've enjoyed quite a bit o...

ULTRA PARADISE  - Angel Electronics Angel Electronics is a new music project from Black Dresses' Ada Rook and collaborator Ash Nerve. Putting the album into genre categories is exceedingly difficult as it blends pop punky refrains and sentiments with layering of screamo vocals and crushing metal guitars. Of course, as you'd expect there's also a thick electronic haze over everything and a vast array of synth leads heard across the record. So yeah, it's a bit of a whirlwind but that chaos is clearly on purpose and it keeps you from ever knowing where the album will go next. One thing I absolutely didn't expect this record to be was cute, but it's insanely cute. Not only are the sentiments here often overwhelmingly lovely but they're also played with an angsty pop-punk sentiment that is pulled off earnestly. Highlights like Party Girl  and One Thousand And One Nights  are genuinely adorable songs that if played only slightly less chaotic would be the kind of t...

I have a lot of albums that I'd like to catch up on. So during the next few weeks, which at least look initially like down weeks relative to the heavy schedules of May and June, I'll be covering as much as I can through these rapid fire reviews. Starting off we are diving into some accessible and more importantly danceable cuts from the indie pop and indietronica worlds that I have been meaning to talk about for a while now. Islomania  - Islands Islands is the indie pop project of Nicholas Thornburn, once a member of a personal favorite band of mine from the indie world of the 2000's, The Unicorns. The band has had a diverse selection of members around Nicholas, including fellow Unicorn Jamie Thompson across their 8 albums on 4 different labels. This is the bands first new album in 5 years since they dropped two records back in 2016, and the era got off to a good start with (We Like To) Do It With The Lights On , the records lead single which has been one of my essential su...

!!! are a California dance punk band that have been going for nearly 20 years and while some of their albums have been much more acclaimed and popular than others the band has been a consistent presence within their musical realm. After dropping what many saw as their best record in years in 2017 they released a number of singles to steadily build up hype for the release of their 8th studio album Wallop . Review By Lavender: I have always enjoyed the music of !!!, their unique blend of the manic energy of punk and the groovy, tight tempo of electronica and dance music. While their discograpy is far from perfect, albums like Thr!!!er , Louden Up Now  and Shake The Shudder  are solid records full of interesting tracks that I return to whenever I'm in the mood for the groups one of a kind sound. After hearing a number of these songs as singles my expectations for the record were mixed, and while there are plenty of sounds I enjoy across the record they end up being rehashe...

5. "Ti Amo" - Phoenix After a disappointing first single with J-Boy, Phoenix impresses with their second single for the upcoming album. They channel 2009 with a dancy beat complimented by characteristic and self aware vocals with a surprisingly non annoying vocal effect layered chorus. If you weren't excited for the new Phoenix album before, it's time to be. 4. "Hook, Line & Sinker" - Royal Blood If there is one thing you can give Royal Blood's eponymous 2014 debut album, it's that the singles were all fantastic, they look to keep this trend up. Hook Line & Sinker doesn't change up the bands formula or bring anything drastically new, but it doesn't have to. The formula has at least an album more before the staleness sets in and they know it. The song jams like it's 2017 (when rock music is going out of style). 3. "Adeline" - Alt-J Alt-J now have a trifecta of fantastic singles previewing a 3rd studio alb...