New songs for November 24th, 2021

 here they are:



"Dream Never Dies" by Lo Moon: The atmospheric, ethereal electro-pop of Lo Moon first permeated the adult alt radio airwaves in 2017 with the songs "This Is It" and "Real Love." However, they have not had a significant adult alt radio hit since those two songs. Until now, that is. "Dream Never Dies" maintains the billowy, ethereal feel of Lo Moon's first two hits, but perhaps more importantly, the lyrical content of this song is also important. It appears to be about a death that one of the members experienced. As the lead singer mourns the death through song, he holds on to hope, the only thing him driving him forward, that the "dream never dies." In other words, he is hoping that the memory of the person he has lost will continue to remain with him throughout his life. A bittersweet song for an overall bittersweet year!

"Elizabeth Taylor" by Pete Yorn: A bit less folk-y than most of his songs, yet still maintaining the "indie" aesthetic, Pete Yorn's "Elizabeth Taylor" isn't actually about the Hollywood movie actress from days of yore, but rather about a breakup. Her name is used only once in the song as Yorn asks the subject of his song why she went "all Elizabeth Taylor" on him. Interesting metaphor...I guess! But it's the "I don't care" vibe of this song that really makes it worth listening to. Pete's songs don't usually have this much attitude, and even this song has one that's more subdued than outrageous, but it still makes this song easily distinguishable from his other material.

"Rose Pink Cadillac" by Dope Lemon: Both the attitude and sound of this song seems like a too-cool-for-school one. Laconic vocals, electronic beats, and funky guitar riffs coalesce into the epitome of techno-fied indie-pop here. That being said, one might be surprised to learn that "Dope Lemon" is actually the alter-ego of indie-folk singer, Angus Stone, who doesn't seem like he'd project as much confidence as he does here. As for the Cadillac he's singing about? Not an actual Cadillac, but a girl (again with these strange romantic metaphors). 

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 November 10th, 2021

 here they are:


"Billy Goodbye" by Franz Ferdinand: There's hardly a Franz Ferdinand song in existence that doesn't sound energetic in some way, but "Billy Goodbye" has a special kind of energy! The kind of energy and sound you would typically find in a David Bowie song from the early 1970's! Franz have taken on the post-punk sound plenty of times, but this time they go more for proto-punk, or more specifically, the glam rock sound. The titular Billy, by the way, is really a hodgepodge of different people in the band's lives that they've had to end friendships with, although not necessarily in a bad way. Most of these people have just come and gone throughout their lives. "Billy Goodbye" is not about resenting past friendships, but rather about celebrating them for what they were. Friendship IS magic, after all!

"Heading West" by Neil Young: Legendary rocker Neil Young (whose birthday is coming up shortly), offers us yet another way to reminisce about the past with his latest song, "Heading West." The song, which evokes a distinctly early 1970's sound that only Young and Crazy Horse could come up with, is about Neil Young's memories of traveling across the countryside with his mom and how that influenced his life growing up. Beneath the crunchy, blazing guitars of this song lie peaceful memories, and the song never gets too out of control, using a quaint piano sound and mellow beat to cushion an otherwise edgy sounding tune.

"Record Player" by Daisy the Great (featuring AJR): This one's an interesting one, for sure! It doesn't sound that different from most post-millennial mainstream pop, yet there's something "quirky" about this one all the same! Though Daisy the Great take the lead vocals on this track, it was actually AJR's idea when they came across an earlier version of the song (then called "The Record Player Song") and decided to duet with DTG on it. The result is the auditory equivalent of eating a sour lollipop: sweet and delicious, yet also something that perks up your taste buds (or ear buds, in this case). And the video for the song is also worth checking out with its surreal, cartoony look! (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oyuIHyOBFsU)

"Silk Chiffon" by Muna (featuring Phoebe Bridgers): Two of the most interesting and sweet-voiced women of the indie-pop/folk/rock world come together to create a song that sounds more pop-y than most of the material either of them have done before in "Silk Chiffon." The song brightly mixes acoustic guitars with electronic beats with a sound that wouldn't be out of place in your local mall or grocery store. It's possible that the song's topic could be about a woman falling in love with another woman given both the lyrical content and the fact that Phoebe Bridgers is bisexual. You know you're living in more progressive times when a soft, fluffy pop song is willing to explore modes of sexuality that go beyond what people might expect otherwise from such a song.

"Wake Me Up" by Foals: Are you wondering why indie-popsters Foals are sounding more disco-y than ever? Well, the answer is because they figure that ultra-catchy dance-pop is the antidote to the pandemic blues! The song was originally thought up while people were in fuller lockdown mode than they are today. Instead of relying on pessimism, they chose to rely on hope, and as a result, they have made what could just be their catchiest song since "My Number," which came out 8 years ago. So what are you waiting for? Get down on the dance floor and join us!

New songs for November 3rd 2021

 here they are:


"Fisher Island Sound" by Beirut: After about a decade experimenting with more electronic material, Beirut return to the combination of indie-folk Eastern European music that made them popular among their original audience back in the mid-2000's. Named after the Connecticut location where band member Ben Lanz grew up, "Fisher Island Sound" is something of an exercise in nostalgia for Beirut which dates all the way back to when they first formed as a band. The prominent use of accordion in the song is partially due to how fellow bandmate Perrin Cloutier was newly self-taught at playing the instrument at the time the song was first written. However, not all of the song has warmth and fuzziness to it, as it also serves as a reminder for lead singer Zach Condon about how he struggled to put vocals onto the initial recording of "Fisher Island Sound" due to personal bouts with negative emotions he had during that time. 

"Magnificent Hurt" by Elvis Costello: A master of his craft even into his sexagenarian years, Elvis Costello sounds just as righteously ticked off on his latest song, "Magnificent Hurt," as he did on nearly all of his songs from the mid to late 1970's! With its jagged guitars, bright keyboards, and "take that" lyrics, "Magnificent Hurt" wears its heart on its sleeve, but more in a furious way than in a sad one. This song makes it clear he is not going down without a fight. The "you" in the song is more than likely an ex-lover, but it could almost as easily be applied to society as a whole, or perhaps to certain political figures as well. The title of this song pretty much says it all. Whoever (or whatever) has caused Elvis Costello to be in such a bitter state has indeed caused him to feel magnificently hurt, but instead of bearing the cross of pain, he shoots it right back into his victim's face!

"Never Leave You" by The Record Company: "Never Leave You" continues in the blues-rock direction The Record Company usually goes in, but with a decidedly different approach. Much like The Rolling Stones' "Miss You" mixed blues-rock with disco, The Record Company's "Never Leave You" appears to be doing the same thing! I don't remember hearing anything quite so funky from The Record Company before, but they appear to be pretty good at it. The recurring phrase, "California sun," is in there because The Record Company are a Southern Californian band, and the references to things like Cadillacs and riding along with someone make me think this was probably meant to be a road trip song. These guys are too cool for school, I must say!

"The Hardest Cut" by Spoon: Spoon have dabbled in many styles of rock, ranging from post-punk to folk-rock to pop/rock, but they've never taken on blues-rock quite like they have with their latest song, "The Hardest Cut"! With both a beat and a guitar sound reminiscent of groups like The Black Keys, "The Hardest Cut" puts longtime indie-rock faves, Spoon, in a new direction, but one that their fans seem to be open to, thankfully. It's also the rare Spoon song with a prominent guitar solo, which was apparently inspired by groups like ZZ Top. As Spoon typically take their sound from either "lite-rock" faves like Fleetwood Mac and Steely Dan or more eccentric rock from roughly the same era like Elvis Costello and Talking Heads, the decision to make a blues-rock song might come as a surprise to Spoon fans, but with "The Hardest Cut," Britt Daniels and the boys prove they can boogie down with the best of 'em!