Monday, March 28, 2022
MOTOMAMI (2022) 🤩 – ROSALÍA
Rating: 9.0/10
Favorite song(s): “LA FAMA” and “CHICKEN TERIYAKI”
Favorite lyric: “Pa’ ti naki, chicken teriyaki” – “CHICKEN TERIYAKI”
It’s not surprising that ROSALÍA was a flamenco dancer before she became an international sensation. Her masterful control of rhythm makes MOTOMAMI entertaining and entrancing.
Tuesday, March 29, 2022
OIL OF EVERY PEARL’S UN-INSIDES (2018) 🤩 – SOPHIE
Rating: 9.0/10
Favorite song(s): “Faceshopping” and “Immaterial”
Favorite lyric: “My face is the front of shop / My face is the real shopfront / My shop is the face I front / I’m real when I shop my face” – “Faceshopping”
OIL OF EVERY PEARL’S UN-INSIDES is monumental because imbued with SOPHIE’s experimental sound and style, it inspired a new wave of hyper-pop musicians. This album pushes the boundary of pop and does not force itself to be pleasant or digestible. OIL OF EVERY PEARL’S UN-INSIDES is not an album I would not usually expect to listen to or like, which is entirely the point.
Wednesday, March 30, 2022
CRASH (DELUXE) (2022) 🤩 – Charlie XCX
Rating: 9.1/10
Favorite song(s): “New Shapes” and “Good Ones”
Favorite lyric: “I’m about to crash into the water, gonna take you with me / I’m high voltage, self-destructive, end it all so legendary” – “Crash”
CRASH has some banging collaborations (shoutout to Rina Sawayama and Caroline Polachek), fiery production, and songs that just get stuck in your head.
Thursday, March 31, 2022
HOW MANY TIMES HAVE YOU DRIVEN BY (2018) 🤩 – Hana Vu
Rating: 9.2/10
Favorite song(s): “Crying on the Subway” and “Cool”
Favorite lyric: “In my dream I’m in that gray room / In my chest I’m feeling dark blue / Take the redline into downtown / I’m trying to escape you” – “Crying on the Subway”
This album is worth the listen simply for the masterpiece that is “Crying on the Subway.” The rest of the songs are good, but “Crying on the Subway” is a complete work of art. Hana Vu’s impassioned vocals and incredible guitar work make her songs especially stirring.
Friday, April 1, 2022
QUARANTINE SESSIONS (2021) 😊 – Tom Misch
Rating: 6.0/10
Favorite song(s): None
Favorite lyric: None
QUARANTINE SESSIONS is an absolute bore; a purely instrumental collection of songs that neither excites nor elicits any sort of emotional response.
Saturday, April 2, 2022
PUBLIC STORAGE (2021) 🤩 – Hana Vu
Rating: 9.3/10
Favorite song(s): “Aubade” and “Keeper”
Favorite lyrics: “Save me, my creator / And I’m not clever / Enough to know better / I will crumble
‘Cause that’s my nature / Just like you” – “Maker”
PUBLIC STORAGE sent me into an existential crisis (in the best way possible). The album’s lyrics are scathing, honest, and thought-provoking. Just like HOW MANY TIMES HAVE YOU DRIVEN BY, the guitar instrumentals are spot-on, and “Aubade” has one of the most intoxicating preludes I’ve ever heard.
Sunday, April 3, 2022
GEOGRAPHY (2018) 😊 – Tom Misch
Rating: 8.3/10
Favorite song(s): “Lost in Paris” and “Disco Yes”
Favorite lyric(s): “Our memories on my screen / Two lovers in this mystic dream” – “Movie”
Bonobo meets Rex Orange County in GEOGRAPHY, but in this case, the whole is less than the sum of its parts. While it has the sunny, upbeat guitar riffs similar to Rex Orange County, it lacks Rex’s emotional depth, and while it has complex instrumentals similar to Bonobo, it fails to engage your imagination or paint a vivid picture like Bonobo does.
