Post by Tommen_Saperstein on Apr 22, 2020 19:43:33 GMT
some more catchup:
Ariana Grande's thank u, next: Pretty fucking great. Between this and the Charli XCX and Billie Eilish projects you get a full tasting menu of the best pop has to offer right now. Highlights--the title track (one of the best pop songs of the last few years tbh), Imagine, Bad Idea, Ghostin, and Break Up With You're Girlfriend I'm Bored. Wasn't a fan of 7 Rings at all, with its kitschy reinterpretation of My Favorite Things. I'm sure kids who've never seen Sound of Music or heard the songs don't care.
Big Thief's Two Hands: Couldn't get into this one. It's more hard-edged indie rock kind of in the vein of Angel Olsen and Mitski but I wasn't locking on this time. Nothing stood out to me in the tracklist except for Shoulders (an emotional wallop of a song which juxtaposes climate change anger with domestic violence imagery) and Wolf with its gently flowing acoustic melody.
Hot Chip's A Bath Full of Ecstasy: I'm new to Hot Chip but this was a delightful batch of synth-pop tracks. Warm, inviting, occasionally moving and profound. Highlights--the title track, Why Does My Mind, and especially No God.
FKA Twigs's Magdalene: Wow... loved that. Couldn't get into her first album so I didn't know what to expect, but this one really clicked with me. Very revealing and resonant. Lots of anguish on display which occasionally melts into a kind of thrilling indignation. A powerful musical experience. Favorite tracks--Home With You, Sad Day, Holy Terrain, and the much-hyped Cellophane.
Lana Del Rey's Norman Fucking Rockwell: Is the whole world collectively playing a trick on me by pretending like this is anything other than a pretty basic/typical LDR album? What am I missing here. I'm by no means a Lana hater either, I really liked her last LP Lust for Life but this one felt dead on arrival for me. Only two that held my interest were The Greatest and Hope Is a Dangerous Thing for a Woman Like Me to Have (the most revealing song out of these 14 tracks). I think I'm getting tired of her shtick and this album for me was mainly a continuation of that shtick just with more cussing.
Lizzo's Cuz I Love You: Everything on this thing was a fucking banger. The sound just washes over and overwhelms you. Love all the bragadociousness and posturing coming off these songs but Lizzo has the talent to back it all up. She murders these vocals. Best songs--the title track, Like a Girl, Jerome, and Tempo (featuring Missy Elliott!).
The National's I Am Easy to Find: I'm a casual National fan and I wasn't really getting into this one until the 5th track. Kind of a daunting tracklist (this thing is a full hour long) but there are more hits than misses and the back half is better than the first. Not as concise or as good IMO as Sleep Well Beast but has the same sound, and pushes that style even further this time around which results in some of the band's most listenable and musically interesting tracks yet. Favorite songs--Where Is Her Head, Not in Kansas, Hairpin Turns, and Light Years.
Taylor Swift's Lover: Hmmm, not feeling this one. Feels practically regressive next to 2019's more exciting and experimental pop projects. The post-Red formula feels relatively unchanged, at least musically. Some of Swift's songs are more personal this time around but you still get the sense that these sentiments are being filtered into a cheap formula and turned into easily digestible (and quickly-forgettable) bops. Has the kind of slapdash quality emblematic of this kind of pop music where the words come together after the fact, and a number of the lyrics feel forced. And the album is too damn crowded (18 tracks and a full hour). There were some bright spots--I Think He Knows (it's cute and fun, very Call Me Maybe which yes I still love), Miss Americana & the Heartbreak Prince, and Daylight.
Ariana Grande's thank u, next: Pretty fucking great. Between this and the Charli XCX and Billie Eilish projects you get a full tasting menu of the best pop has to offer right now. Highlights--the title track (one of the best pop songs of the last few years tbh), Imagine, Bad Idea, Ghostin, and Break Up With You're Girlfriend I'm Bored. Wasn't a fan of 7 Rings at all, with its kitschy reinterpretation of My Favorite Things. I'm sure kids who've never seen Sound of Music or heard the songs don't care.
Big Thief's Two Hands: Couldn't get into this one. It's more hard-edged indie rock kind of in the vein of Angel Olsen and Mitski but I wasn't locking on this time. Nothing stood out to me in the tracklist except for Shoulders (an emotional wallop of a song which juxtaposes climate change anger with domestic violence imagery) and Wolf with its gently flowing acoustic melody.
Hot Chip's A Bath Full of Ecstasy: I'm new to Hot Chip but this was a delightful batch of synth-pop tracks. Warm, inviting, occasionally moving and profound. Highlights--the title track, Why Does My Mind, and especially No God.
FKA Twigs's Magdalene: Wow... loved that. Couldn't get into her first album so I didn't know what to expect, but this one really clicked with me. Very revealing and resonant. Lots of anguish on display which occasionally melts into a kind of thrilling indignation. A powerful musical experience. Favorite tracks--Home With You, Sad Day, Holy Terrain, and the much-hyped Cellophane.
Lana Del Rey's Norman Fucking Rockwell: Is the whole world collectively playing a trick on me by pretending like this is anything other than a pretty basic/typical LDR album? What am I missing here. I'm by no means a Lana hater either, I really liked her last LP Lust for Life but this one felt dead on arrival for me. Only two that held my interest were The Greatest and Hope Is a Dangerous Thing for a Woman Like Me to Have (the most revealing song out of these 14 tracks). I think I'm getting tired of her shtick and this album for me was mainly a continuation of that shtick just with more cussing.
Lizzo's Cuz I Love You: Everything on this thing was a fucking banger. The sound just washes over and overwhelms you. Love all the bragadociousness and posturing coming off these songs but Lizzo has the talent to back it all up. She murders these vocals. Best songs--the title track, Like a Girl, Jerome, and Tempo (featuring Missy Elliott!).
The National's I Am Easy to Find: I'm a casual National fan and I wasn't really getting into this one until the 5th track. Kind of a daunting tracklist (this thing is a full hour long) but there are more hits than misses and the back half is better than the first. Not as concise or as good IMO as Sleep Well Beast but has the same sound, and pushes that style even further this time around which results in some of the band's most listenable and musically interesting tracks yet. Favorite songs--Where Is Her Head, Not in Kansas, Hairpin Turns, and Light Years.
Taylor Swift's Lover: Hmmm, not feeling this one. Feels practically regressive next to 2019's more exciting and experimental pop projects. The post-Red formula feels relatively unchanged, at least musically. Some of Swift's songs are more personal this time around but you still get the sense that these sentiments are being filtered into a cheap formula and turned into easily digestible (and quickly-forgettable) bops. Has the kind of slapdash quality emblematic of this kind of pop music where the words come together after the fact, and a number of the lyrics feel forced. And the album is too damn crowded (18 tracks and a full hour). There were some bright spots--I Think He Knows (it's cute and fun, very Call Me Maybe which yes I still love), Miss Americana & the Heartbreak Prince, and Daylight.