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Showing posts from March, 2019

Radiohead - The Bends (1995)

Radiohead – The Bends Radiohead had a lot to prove going into 1995, they had skyrocketed into the zeitgeist with their slacker 1993 hit “Creep” (peaking at #34 on the Hot 100, a feat for a British band in the early 90’s ) , and they had struggled to keep up with the enormous pressure of their first major tour that followed. More than anything else though, the cultural landscape had shifted, after the death of Kurt Cobain and the "death" of grunge respectively, the dingy “trend” was not hip anymore. This ended up working in Radiohead’s favor, as without that previous paradigm to squeeze into, they were in a unique position; a successful band releasing an eagerly anticipated follow-up to an album that was encouraged to be left behind. Radiohead seized on their opportunity and developed The Bends to exemplify all the strengths of Pablo Honey , along with a new and exciting sound that proved to be clear, concise and modern. The album proved to be a success and even though...

Virginia Wing - Ecstatic Arrow (2018)

Virginia Wing – Ecstatic Arrow Ecstatic Arrow begins with “Be Released,” a track that seemingly begins in medias res, the spiraling chiming motif circling back on itself as if the album had been doing so several times before you pressed play. The album toys with this sense of perpetuity several times throughout the record, playing down the distinct change this release marks for Alice Merida Richards and company. Virginia Wing’s newest entry shows a major development for the band, one that is a more mature, thought provoking entry then anything already in their catalog. Evolving from the amateurish but charming experimentation on the first two albums Measures of Joy and Forward Constant Motion , Ecstatic Arrow provides a similar blueprint for the sound, but with significantly more confidence. Virginia Wing had already improved on their ambition with 2017’s Tomorrow’s Gift but this time their album proves to be much more immediate. On the former album’s leadoff track, the band sh...

Beth Orton – Trailer Park (1996)

Beth Orton – Trailer Park At 26 years old Beth Orton emerges on “She Cries Your Name” as a seasoned veteran, sounding as though she had written and ripped up several pages before settling on what she believes the perfect pop chorus would be to deliver to a thirty year old in 1996. In realty, her boyfriend William Orbit had an enormous effect on the song and on Orton herself and it is most likely the confluence of their styles that provided the groundbreaking mix of 60’s California pop and the then contemporary folktronica flourishes that define Trailer Park . More so than his actual contributions, it is the product of Orbit's relationship with Orton that launched her musical career and although technically her second release, even she agrees to eschew Superpinkymandy in favor of a proper beginning. That first record proved to be more of an Orbit record that Beth had sung on, an album where she gained footing and confidence and for lack of a better term, found her voice. ...

Solange - When I Get Home (2019)

Solange – When I Get Home     Solange is deceiving, a seemingly perfect list of contradictions. Before 2016, few conversations could have been had that didn’t involve her epithet as Beyoncé’s younger sister, a shadow that only grew larger year by year as briefs stints on tour with Beyoncé and Destiny’s Child led to minimal exposure. The simple narrative focused on the talented younger singer, hanging onto the coattails of the biggest star of the 21st century as only family could . But in reality Solange is more complicated, a talented singer – yes, but a singular entity that strives to be heard against the back drop of a false flag. She did in fact come from the Knowles family, where she released her first album on her father’s label much like her sister, but as Beyoncé broke on to the scene with Destiny’s Child’s second album and was signed to Columbia, Solange struggled in ambiguity. It’s easy to follow this narrative when comparing the two for most of their career, in 20...

The Angels of Light - How I Loved You (2001)

The Angels of Light -  How I Loved You After dissolving Swans, Michael Gira poured what leftover songs and energy he had into The Angels of Light debut New Mother , a steady album that certainly was his most accessible release up until that point. For How I Loved You, Michael plasters his old mother on the front cover and pushes the band into developing a truly independent style. This gothic folk rock album starts out strong, with a sweet pleading track; "Evangeline" is a pretty love song, one that might have you double check to ensure you’re not listening to Calvin Johnson, but characteristically this song inevitable ends with a declaration: “Then it’s gone.” Slowly the album recoils back into the darkness, with only Bee and Flower vocalist Dana Schechter providing the light to Gira’s decidedly put-on middle America growl. How I Loved You is a dark, personal record that is as depressing as it is beautiful. ~9.0