Lav's Music Corner

5.  BACK ON  - SBTRKT SBTRKT has kinda been on one recently, that's something I bet you didn't expect to hear in 2024. Despite what I thought was a huge miss with THE RAT ROAD  last year I've enjoyed a number of the singles that have followed in the wake of it. This is another pretty direct embrace of sunny summery house music but it's consistently delightful throughout.  Listen 4.  Lies Lies Lies  - Morgan Wallen "Lies lies lies, eyes eyes eyes" is a lyric that's below Morgan Wallen's pay grade, let's start with that. While he can be one of the most obnoxious artists in music when he's coming with ego, but he's still an earnest conceptualizer of songs. This is a vulnerable cut where he gives in to the numerous lies he tells himself and others about having moved on from a woman no longer in his life.  Listen 3.  kms  - Los Campesinos! The first single from their new record might be the best Los Campesinos song I've heard in 15 years, bu...

Review by Lav: James Blake and Lil Yachty are a compelling duo for a myriad of reasons. As James Blake wandered further and further from the experimental electronic of his early career he began to intersect with genres like hip-hop and R&B more and more. Eventually, he formed into one of the most well-rounded artists in music with a versatile and extremely consistent discography. "Versatile" and "consistent" are not words many would use to describe Lil Yachty's discography, at least not until early 2023 when he shocked fans with his album Let's Start Here . The project was an embrace of vintage psychedelic rock music that went over surprisingly well. So this crossover being successful wasn't completely outside the realm of possibility, which is why it's extra disappointing that Bad Cameo  is a bit of a dud.  Let's talk highlights first. James Blake is one of my favorite artists in all of music so of course when he's allowed to roam in fam...

Now that I'm done undergoing the album rush leading up to my mid-year list video, it's time to cover some EPs that I've been neglecting in the past few weeks and there's three big ones we need to talk about first.  CMYK 002  EP - James Blake Having a "favorite" artist feels like an emotional distinction, to me at least. But if you look at my entire output as a critic it's hard to identify any single artist I've directed more praise towards than James Blake. That's come from numerous albums he's dropped both as they're released and in retrospect as well as numerous singles and shorter projects that have been equally as satisfying. In fact, the last time he indulged in the EP format with new original material came on 2020's Before , a stroke of absolute brilliance that is still among my favorite EPs of this entire decade.  So its no surprise that I was pretty excited for this surprise drop and spoiler alert, I like it. That's right ou...

This week was stacked FULL of potential favorites and breaking down the best to just 5 wasn't easy, but here's what rose to the top  5.  Getting No Sleep  - Tinashe Asking Tinashe to follow-up on Nasty, the freaky anthem of the summer, was always going to be a tall, if not impossible take. But honestly Getting No Sleep  does a pretty admirable job with a rumbling R&B instrumental with drums that pop out of the mix. More importantly, the song is effortlessly sensual in Tinashe's hands with vocals and charm that is nearly unmatched.  Listen 4.  Flipside  - Melt-Banana Melt-Banana have absolutely nothing to prove as the legendary Japanese rock outfit returns for their first new album in over a decade. That's why it's no surprise that their lead single is a fiery no-holds-barred slugfest of a song that pummels you for a rapid-fire two minutes and unceremoniously fades out. I fully expect it to be just one of many punches the band has in store.  Li...

Review by Lavender: NxWorries is the collaborative project of effortlessly smooth singer and rapper Anderson .Paak and prolific producer Knxwledge. The pair first linked up with a full-length project in 2016 with the still underrated Yes Lawd  which played a role in Paak's rapid rise to fame. It's been 5 years since Paak's last solo album, though he did churn out hits on his solid Bruno Mars collab project Silk Sonic, and now he's back with a long-awaited second effort alongside Knxwledge 8 years after their original.  The thing about the debut NxWorries album is how the incredibly smooth demeanor of both artists come together to make a tracklist that glides expertly along throughout the entire tracklist. That isn't the case here as the pair are intent on taking on a variety of subject matter, occasionally quite seriously, and to do it through a myriad of styles. Lead single Where I Go dropped back in 2022 and it's still a song I really enjoy. Paak and H.E.R are...

This week some big favorites dropped duds and the best songs came from a few surprising places.  5.  Life  - Jamie xx (feat. Robyn) Even lacking the variety of his legendary debut album, the singles from Jamie xx's long-awaited follow-up have still been satisfying. Life  sees him teaming up with Robyn, who appears to be fully back in 2024, for what may be the most satisfying of the bunch. Jamie's vibrant house beats combine with Robyn's unmistakable direct swagger for a crossover that meets the moment perfectly. Listen 4.  TGIF  - GloRilla Glo isn't slowing down off the release of her admittedly pretty solid mixtape earlier this year. Her voice continues to be one of the most commanding in all of rap and the sparse popping beats she chooses to lend it to make things hit even harder. Even if this track has one or two lyrical moments that tend to drag down the energy with silly punchlines it's still an absolutely thumping song.  Listen 3.  Favourite...

Review by Lav: Cola are a Canadian indie-rock outfit that emerged from the ashes of Ought, a group that released three albums in the 2010s. I was a huge fan of the band and all three of their albums which is why it was impossible for me to not come into Cola with high expectations. Despite that, I came away with mixed feelings on the band's debut album Deep in View  in 2022. That anticipation returned on this record after a few promising singles. And while The Gloss  may not reach the highest highs of Ought, it's definitely a step in the right direction.  This is a good record, let's get that out of the way. But the 10-song tracklist is split into a mixed bag first half and an absolutely excellent second half. Let's take that first half on, where three of the four singles pop up. Albatross  was a single I loved and still like a lot. The way it slides between a vibrant bright chorus into the more methodical and intense verses is perfect. Those verses really do steal t...