New songs for September 28th, 2022

 Here they are:


"Evergreen" by Mt. Joy: Probably Mt. Joy's hardest-rocking song to date, "Evergreen" is surprisingly upbeat and electric-guitar driven for the mostly psychedelic folk-rock-y Mt. Joy. "Evergreen" is also very upbeat and doesn't dip into weird beat-changing territory the way that, say, "Lemon Tree" did. Another thing that makes "Evergreen" stand out in Mt. Joy's catalog is how funny it is! You probably didn't think the band behind bittersweet songs like "Silver Lining" could be so hilarious, but their humor is proved here in lines like "This is the part where your wedding ring gets pulled across your eye." Ouch! Definitely subversive humor there, but funny nonetheless! 

"Fairweather Friend" by GA-20: Continuing our streak of rock-oriented songs for this week is "Fairweather Friend" by GA-20, with a sound whose roots go back to the blues! The song's syncopated shuffle recalls groups like The Black Keys, but GA-20 seems to be a bit more authentically blues-y than they are. Even their name is a nod to a classic electric guitar model from the 1950's. One particularly interesting thing to note about the instrumentation of this song is that its melody comes from two guitars. There is no bassist to be heard on this track! The combination of the thickness of the guitars and the song's prominent drumbeat could easily fool listeners into thinking there is a bassist. 

"Night Moves" by Lissie: Not to be confused with Bob Seger's bittersweet mid-'70s country-rock tune of the same name about becoming a teenager, Lissie's "Night Moves" has a bittersweetness of its own for entirely different reasons. It is a stark song that, fitting to its title, has a rather nocturnal sound that is as mysterious as it is mellow. Her "Night Moves" takes place in her post-teen years and is about being betrayed by love, as opposed to Seger's ode to curiosity about the mysteries of sex and romance. Another interesting parallel between the two songs is how they both illustrate a folk-rock sound, although Lissie's is less influenced by roots-y country and more by the melancholy, isolated, yearning sounds of musicians like Stevie Nicks, and probably by Joni Mitchell as well. It's probably mere coincidence that Lissie has a song title identical to one of Bob Seger's most popular songs, but both the coincidences and contrasts between the two songs are rather striking!

"Should've Been Me" by Mitski: In the ever eclectic catalog of indie-pop musician, Mitski, we find her once again channeling pop music of the 1980's, but it's a rather specific song she's set on emulating this time. Perhaps you could say she has a "Maneating" appetite for '80s musical nostalgia here! Both the riffs and beat for "Should've Been Me" are practically identical to Hall and Oates' "Maneater," although she slips in a middle section between the verses that have enough usage of major 7th chords to distinguish itself from that song. Beneath the upbeat vibes of the song are troublesome lyrics about how Mitski wanted to be more available to her partner in a relationship that had shaky, questionable communication. The song's title basically serves as an apology for how she "should've been" the one to satisfy her partner's needs, but in a relationship both as rocky and as shady as the one she's describing, how are you supposed to know what's going to happen?! This song has a great way of masking feelings of regret with a catchy, nostalgic beat and melody, which in turn serves as a great and clever way for people to listen to you!

"Supernatural" by Barns Courtney: Barns Courtney is great at churning out catchy rock/indie-pop anthems, particularly his blues-by-way-of-pop debut single, "Fire." With each new song and album, Barns reinvents himself, but the way "Supernatural" sounds is something that I don't think any of his fans would've anticipated! "Supernatural" sounds a bit like what Adele's "Rolling in the Deep" might have been like if she felt scorned enough to create a fiery, back-with-a-vengeance rock song over a pop/soul template. "Supernatural" has surprisingly blazing electric guitar riffs during the chorus that shake the listener by the neck and demand they listen to what he has to say! So just what does Barns have to say in his latest tune?! From what I can gather from its lyrical content so far, "Supernatural" seems like Barns' way of getting back at a former lover who wronged him. In the chorus, he claims he is unstoppable and "supernatural," perhaps to signify how he won't get out of his ex's life no matter how much they want him out of it. Way to haunt your ex, Barns! "Supernatural" is a swinging song that's somewhat scary, yet still soulful, sweet, and satisfying!

"The Perfect Pair" by beabadoobee: Unlike the recent alt-pop/rock-oriented experiments beabadoobee has ventured into with her last few singles, "The Perfect Pair" is a back-to-basics folk-pop song that seems like it could work equally well on acoustic guitar and ukulele. The first four chords almost sound like a folks-y, elevator music version of "Stairway to Heaven," but not in a bad way. With such a sweet, mellow sound, you would think this would be one of beabadoobee's few positive songs lyrically, right? Wrong! Beabadoobee's bitterness can still be detected in "The Perfect Pair" as she repeatedly directs her partner to "break her heart in two" due to the hopelessness of her latest relationship. Is every song for this week a breakup song?! I guess so! Well, not every week can have nice lyrical content, can it?! 

New songs for April 27th, 2022

 Here they are:


"I'm on Your Side" by Nathaniel Rateliff and The Night Sweats: After having had singles with both a powerhouse soul song ("Survivor") and a more bittersweet country-rock song ("Face Down in the Moment") recently, Nathaniel Rateliff and The Night Sweats decided to combine the two factors for their latest song, "I'm on Your Side." One can infer from the title alone that "I'm on Your Side" is a heartfelt song, and it certainly is, and this gives it sort of a bittersweet flavor. However, the song's steady beat and heavy use of horns should be pleasing to fans of Nathaniel's more upbeat, soulful side. 

"Just a Little While" by The 502s: Although nowhere near as memorable as groups like Mumford and Sons, The 502s are already drawing comparisons to the famed 2010's neo-folk act for a few reasons. For one, both sound like Irish folk-rock groups with a roots-y flavor, and both also have gratuitous yet still enjoyable use of horns. The difference? Mumford and Sons sounded Irish, but The 502s actually ARE Irish. Another notable difference is how upbeat and summery this song sounds in comparison to Mumford and Sons' more melancholy winterish chill and autumnal calm. 

"Love Me More" by Mitski: I've reviewed Mitski's material a few times on my blog, but no Mitski song so far has compared to the compelling sound and surprise success of her "The Only Heartbreaker" from last fall! Will her new song, "Love Me More," outdo the success of "The Only Heartbreaker"? Time will tell. It doesn't seem too likely at this point, although both songs are catchy synth-pop based numbers. Both songs are pleas for love, although "The Only Heartbreaker" seemed to indulge more in self-pity, whereas "Love Me More" is a song of hope...kind of. There is still an urgency to this song, but at least Mitski has now moved from self-blame to the desire for love.

"Sidelines" by Phoebe Bridgers: Probably the most vulnerable song on my list for this week, both in terms of its sound and in terms of its lyrics, Phoebe Bridgers really spills her heart out on her latest song, "Sidelines." In a change of pace for Phoebe, "Sidelines" is more rooted in synth than it is in guitar, but it manages to be quite a powerful song nonetheless (the string sections in the background help to draw the listener into a deeper sense of pathos than they were already in). She claims she's not afraid of anything in the song, but that statement is clearly meant to be a cover for how she actually feels about things like aging, dying, living on a fault line (literally, in this case - Phoebe lives in Southern California like I do). "Sidelines" is such a poignant song! It is the story of someone who has survived emotional trauma, is willing to come forward about it, but still not fully willing to face what she has gone through head on. I can relate!

New songs for November 17th, 2021

 here they are:

"Chapstick" by Coin: Coin are a band worth every penny to listen to! Their style is one that hasn't really been attempted before, mixing fuzzy, blues-y garage rock riffs with more electronic rhythm instruments. The title of the song is probably one of the strangest sexual metaphors I've heard yet in a song so far, with lead singer Chase Lawrence saying to his objection of affections that he "wants to taste (their) chapstick." Both the lyrics and the music to this song are weird and cool at the same time!

"Face Down in the Moment" by Nathaniel Rateliff and The Night Sweats: Nathaniel is usually more soulful and peppy with The Night Sweats, as opposed to his sweeter and almost country influenced solo material, but there are exceptions to the rule, such as the bittersweet country-rock of The Night Sweats' "Wasting Time." "Face Down in the Moment" is another tune where Nathaniel sings with The Night Sweats that's a bit of a slower song. It is perhaps the most bittersweet song he has come up with yet as a performer in a band. It's a song that seems to want to show comfort and sympathy to its listeners. I do prefer The Night Sweats as a more energetic and soulful act, but this song is still worth listening to if you feel like no one understands what you've been going through.

"Love Dies Young" by Foo Fighters: Foo Fighters manage to combine two unlikely retro rock styles here with their latest song, "Love Dies Young." The beginning of the song clearly borrows from the chugging, charging guitars of Queen's debut single, "Keep Yourself Alive," while the second verse onward was apparently influenced more by the disco-pop of groups like ABBA. Well, if Blondie can manage to combine rock and disco, why not The Foos?! Apparently, the song started out as kind of a joke in terms of the rock/disco combo it ended up with, but it still manages to shine through in earnest as a solid anthem of both rock and dance-pop. 

"Once Twice Melody" by Beach House: Beach House's combination of electro-pop and light, dreamy psychedelia has always been endearing to me, and lead singer Victoria Legrand's soothing vocals only hooked me into their music more. Their latest song, "Once Twice Melody," attempts to dive a bit more into the avant-garde than they have done previously while not completely alienating their core audience. The song is slightly more bouncy than I'm used to with the largely airy, ambient music of Beach House, but it still manages to rank along with "Norway," "Zebra," and "Myth" as one of their best tracks (and the only one out of the four to have a title longer than one word!) The sighing instrumentation and Legrand's breathy vocals against pulsating synthesizers that aren't present on all of their material make "Once Twice Melody" the perfect chill-out song!

"Stand for Myself" by Yola: Yola's unique take on soul music has managed to win over adult alt radio programmers for the past two or so years, and with her latest song, "Stand for Myself," Yola takes herself in yet another new direction! Yola has sounded neither this blues-y nor this country before. Burning, churning acoustic guitars mark the intro of the song before the even more fiery electric guitars take charge from the chorus onward. The cutting lyrics of the song could fit in the context of both a political situation and in that of a relationship, and there's a good chance that Yola probably meant for the lyrics to be taken either way. There's no telling whether she wants to "stick it to the man" or to walk out on someone who did her wrong, but either way, Yola unleashes her fury here like never before and she really lets her victim have it!

"The Only Heartbreaker" by Mitski: This track, which seems to lift heavily from '80s pop tunes like "Take on Me," albeit with a slightly darker twist, is a pretty simple song lyrically. Buried beneath its repetitive lyrics, however, is the story of a woman scorned that seems more rooted in sadness than in fury. Mitski's fear is that she will be "the only heartbreaker" in her relationship. In other words, she will be the only one feeling as passionately about it as she is. That could leave anyone feeling cold, so it's no wonder the song seems so icy!

New songs for October 13th 2021

 here they are:


"The Last Dance" by St. Paul and The Broken Bones: Neo-soul group, St. Paul and The Broken Bones, seem to keep moving further and further forward in time with each album they make! Their debut boasted Al Green-ish vintage soul with an early 1970's sound, they progressed into a more mid-1970's sound with their next two albums, and with a fourth album on the way, St. Paul and The Broken Bones seem to be heading into an early 1980's soul sound, evoking vibes of acts like Prince and Hall & Oates. There is a reason, by the way, that this song is called "The LAST Dance." It is yet another song reflective of a world facing imminent danger, hence it could be the last time that they (or anyone) is able to perform music, or do anything, really. Might as well go out with a bang, right?! That is exactly what St. Paul and The Broken Bones do here!

"The Tipping Point" by Tears for Fears: A fave band of people nostalgic for the 1980's, Tears for Fears are back for the first time in 17 years! Although the song uses familiar elements, like the beat of "Everybody Wants to Rule the World," TFF's latest song, "The Tipping Point," mostly sounds like something that would be indistinguishable from current indie-pop-tronica. TFF have never been a band to shy away from dark subject matter either, and they continue to delve into bleak territory with "The Tipping Point," as the title alone might indicate to some. It refers specifically here to singer Roland Orzabal's former wife, Caroline, who passed away a few years ago, and how Orzabal remained uncertain as to when she had officially crossed the "threshold" (or "tipping point") from life to that which lies beyond.

"Working for the Knife" by Mitski: Mitski is not like everyone else, even in a world where it's the thing to not be like "everyone else." Over a bleak synthesizer functioning as the lead instrument and a throbbing guitar riff in the center, Mitski's latest song is one that seems to show her disdain for the music industry, and possibly for industries in general. The "knife" in the song's title serves as a metaphor for anyone and anything, including ourselves, that expects more of us than we intend to give. What can I say? Life is exhausting sometimes! And Mitski makes that clear in both the music and the lyrics of her latest song.

"You've Got a Habit of Leaving" by David Bowie: Did you ever wonder what David Bowie would have sounded like as "David Jones"? Well, now's your chance to find out! "You've Got a Habit of Leaving" was first written and recorded about four years before David Bowie became "David Bowie." Although the instruments themselves sound relatively modern on this track, the structure of the chords, the harmonies, and the "ooh-ah-ooh"s that dominate the chorus sound decidedly more "retro" than what you might otherwise expect of David Bowie. If The Beatles had survived into the new millennium, they'd probably sound a lot like what David Bowie sounds like here! Bowie may be gone, but his music lives on!

New songs for July 18th 2018

here they are:


"Keep A Little Soul" by Tom Petty: The last song Tom Petty had a hit with on adult alt radio stations before he departed to Rock and Roll Heaven was "Forgotten Man". Petty might be gone, but he certainly isn't forgotten, and his latest song to be released (actually an outtake from 1982), "Keep A Little Soul", shows just how much his fans have remembered him! The song certainly sounds like a vintage Petty tune, and would probably fit right into an album of his from the olden days, like "Damn the Torpedoes". "Keep A Little Soul" is an optimistic song, as its title implies. The message is simple. Just keep a little soul, as Petty says, and nothing else will matter. A short message, but a powerful one nonetheless!


"Nobody" by Mitski: There's something both nostalgic and futuristic about "Nobody", the debut song from Japanese-American musician, Mitski. It plays out like a Bjork song with Tori Amos-esque pianos. The lyrics to "Nobody" are just as intriguing as its music. "My God, I'm so lonely", Mitski pines during the song's opening verse, "So I open the window to hear sounds of people". In the lines that follow that one, she sings, "Venus, planet of love, was destroyed by global warming", echoing a popular speculation about the planet to the left of us, and then she wonders, "Did its people want too much?" From those lyrics alone, you can tell Mitski's music is far more than mere "ear candy", and is instead music that makes you both think and listen. The way the song meanders to somewhat unpredictable melodies throughout gives me hope for music of the future. I guess there's still a way to make "new" genres and sub-genres after all!


"Tidal Wave" by Portugal. The Man: After around 7 years under the radar, it seems as though Portugal. The Man just can't escape "Feel It Still" fever (the song even became my # 1 song of last year!!) The two other songs from the same album (this song and "Live In the Moment") are almost as catchy, though, so clearly PTM WANTED to appeal to the masses (as far as I can tell, anyway). "Tidal Wave" takes on a pop flavor with reggae rhythms and jazzy horns. It's no "Feel It Still", but it's a bit better than "Live In the Moment" due to its R & B influences (a popular factor in PTM's music). When PTM's lead singer sings about being "hit like a tidal wave" during the chorus, it seems quite apt for a song that will probably hit all its listeners like a tidal wave!


"Tonight Tonight" by Mondo Cozmo: Not to be confused for the Smashing Pumpkins song of the same name, "Tonight Tonight" combines the best of both worlds for Mondo Cozmo. That is to say, it takes the acoustic guitar sound that made "Shine" so memorable and mixes it with the more indie-pop flavored sound of their other songs. Come to think of it, "Automatic" and "Plastic Soul" didn't really have guitar at all in them from what I could tell, so the use of the instrument in "Tonight Tonight" is quite a welcome return to form. This might just be the catchiest song Mondo Cozmo have done so far, actually, as their other songs aren't quite this upbeat. It has echoes of other uber-catchy indie-pop tunes, like "Don't Stop (Color on the Walls)" by Foster the People. Also, since Mondo Cozmo's lead singer says "tonight" four times during the chorus, it should be called "Tonight Tonight Tonight Tonight" to avoid confusion with both The Smashing Pumpkins' "Tonight Tonight" and Genesis' "Tonight Tonight Tonight".