Category: Music

This startlingly dark, lustrous EP kicks off with “Figure 8,” and I have to say that I am entranced already. At the start of this stunning video (linked below), you will hear Twigs’ gorgeous, soothing voice layered over the visuals of what I can only describe as an inky, dark, female anglerfish mixed with Ursula and a tinge of an oracular voodoo high-priestess.

I can assuredly tell you that FKA twigs, at this point, has to be the human equivalent of a siren with her wanton voice. Her seductive and rapture-inducing vocals will surely tempt me wherever she wanders. What I truly enjoyed about this part of the video and track was its reference to Glass & Patron (reviewed here), when Twigs utters so beguilingly “Hold that pose for me.”

As Twigs, in a deflated state, is born of what I described as a dark priestess who emitted a glowing orb, “I’m Your Doll” begins to play. As She transforms to that of a sex doll, we hear her ethereal voice utter yet another magnificently creepy track. This part of the video is so befitting the lyrics. Yes, it may be dark, and even fear-inducing, but, for me, I find its frighteningly dark nature to be ensnaring. It is like an episode of American Horror Story, and I am incapable of looking away. No, not every part of this video is easy to watch, but I believe art is not always beautiful in a positive way. I find this part of the video to be captivating in the sense of grotesque beauty that makes a point.

I’m your doll

Wind me up

I’m your doll

Dress me up

I’m your doll

Love me rough

I’m your doll

I’m your doll

Next, we move to an impregnated FKA, after her time as a doll. In this next part of the video, “In Time” layers over the video. Cut to what I can only describe as a TLC/Left Eye and 90s inspired outfit, and we see some of twigs’ choreography come into play. Did I mention she is stunningly gorgeous? I have to say, this track is my favorite, with “Glass & Patron” and “Figure 8” following close behind. With its pop roots and dark sounds, “In Time” is blended with emotional lyrics and perfect vocals. I do believe her water just broke in a spew of metallic, rainbow paint. She is still ridiculously gorgeous, though.

Cue the paint smeared, white van from “Glass & Patron,” and we know what enticing song is up next. With an intro from “Mothercreep,” we transition to the grand finale of the EP with “Glass & Patron.” In this section of the video, we enter the vogue battle of the century, and we are seductively drawn to the lustrously mysteriousness and beautifully perplexing voice of twigs.

I have never been so intrigued yet intimidated (in the best way) by such an artistic video as this. When I first found Twigs, I did not fully understand her style, her character, her art, but as I perused her LP1 and EP2, I realized how gorgeously enigmatic she is. Now, I find the beauty in her art, I adore her genuine personality, and I love her confident, dedicated nature towards her music career. I loved this unique EP being released with an entire video to tell its story. FKA twigs is incredibly haunting with M3LL155X. I loved every second of it, and it is a rarity to be graced with such a gem of true artistry and music in an era of diluted talent and ghostwriters for shallow pop stars. This is not just a 16 minute video to layer over an EP. This is spectacular, well thought out, strikingly tantalizing, shadowy art.

Pure Heroine is an achievement in production and songwriting. Lorde proves herself to be one of our generations voices with one of the greatest debuts of the decade.

Based on festival scheduling this year, it looks like we will finally be getting that long-awaited second Lorde album. Ever since her debut Pure Heroine dropped, people have been enraptured in the mystery that is Lorde. The first time I heard her was off her The Love Club EP. The second I got to the end of “Bravado” I knew that she was going to do great things. Still, I didn’t anticipate the level of success she reached. Even more, I didn’t anticipate how incredible of an album she was able to debut with.




The first thing you notice when you listen through Pure Heroine is the truly phenomenal production. Similar to the xx’s debut album, the minimalist approach to the instrumentation is what makes it shine. However, they infuse the album with strong percussion — most notably in “Royals” and “Team” — that brings the songs up and makes them danceable.

However, what makes Pure Heroine a truly great album is Lorde’s ability to grasp youthful ignorance in her lyrics, then completely question it. There are endless gems of lyrics throughout this album. In “Still Sane” the lyrics “only bad people live to see their likeness set in stone/what does that make me.” It’s the maturity in songwriting that propels the album. Even the beginning of the album, in which she uses simple but effective imagery to portray her point, is complex.

Very few albums demand to be listened to in order from front to back. Pure Heroine is certainly one of those albums. The album tracks her maturation from ignorant teen to her sudden adulthood in just ten lean songs. “Royals” revels in her youth in a synth pop earworm, while “Still Sane” has her coming to terms with her new status. “400 Lux” is about her aimless life in the suburbs while “Glory and Gore” talks about her motivation and fight as she finds success. She begins with matter-of-fact lyrics and ends with hopeful and powerful ones.

“A World Alone” brings together all the elements that make the album so powerful and effective. With minimalist instrumentation — the verses simply use a bassline to hold it down — and metaphoric lyrics, the song has an ethereal quality. But when you’re hit with the danceable and catchy melodies of the chorus, the song comes to life. However, when you listen closely, its message and lyrics are an anthem for millennials.




Pure Heroine is simply an achievement in music. It’s both singular and nostalgic in its sound. Lorde is one of the most innovative and talented songwriters of our time. I can talk about production and songwriting all I want, but there’s one piece of genius that will leave you high at the end of the album. Listen closely to the first and last lyrics. It’s a simple, but genius piece of writing that makes Pure Heroine one of the most satisfying albums and best debuts of all time.

9.5/10

Pure Heroine is available on vinyl and digital download on Amazon!

Get “Blurryface” on vinyl or MP3 download on Amazon!

If you know me, or don’t know me since I’m so vocal about it, you know that twenty one pilots is one of my favorite bands of all time. From their self-released self-titled to “Regional at Best” to “Vessel,” there is really not much they’ve done wrong. However, there is already something clearly wrong with their newest album in 3 years. What I love most about them is their genre defying sound. There’s influences of hip hop, reggae, dance, rap, and rock that feed into the indie pop sound that they carved out with “Vessel.”

There in lies the problem with Blurryface. It isn’t influenced by these genres. Tyler Joseph instead wrote songs for each of the genres and forgot to root it in that indie pop sound that made “Vessel” so fun. Some people have complained about the meaning of their songs and that it’s going away from the mental illness and angst charged lyrics of their previous albums, but my argument in that is that Joseph always wrote about his struggles in his life. This time around it’s about his struggle with his new found fame and success as well as his desire to please the people in his life. The titular “Blurryface” represents his insecurities.

Similarly to “Ode to Sleep” on “Vessel,” “heavydirtysoul” acts as an introduction to the album by simply being the most raw song of the album. It prepares listeners for the quick grabs for the heart and audio assault on their ears. That’s why I found it interesting that they followed it up with the subdued, but standout “Stressed Out,” which brings us the clear theme of the album. It’s about Tyler’s struggle with the fame of the band and the pressure to produce good, but also profitable music.

They follow it up with one of the few songs that follow the formula that brought them so much success in the past. “Ride” is reminiscent of the ukulele driven “Screen” from “Vessel” that felt like the anthem for the band. “Ride” does the same thing, however this time as a love letter to the clique. It combines rap and reggae with their pop sound in what becomes the best song of the first half of the album.

[Tweet “My name’s Blurryface and I care what you think. Check out our review of @twentyonepilots Blurryface”]

The album’s lead single “Fairly Local” (which I reviewed here) quickly dissipates the calming energy of “Ride” as the dark anomaly of the album. I’m pretty sure this is going to be the track that I’m going to skip during listen-throughs. Not because it’s a bad song, but because it simply doesn’t fit in with the album. As much as I talk about the inconsistency of the album, there is still some general arrangement between the first and second half of the album. “Fairly Local” is out of place in that arrangement and feels like a song written as a single, which is ironic considering the song “Lane Boy” has the line, “in the industry it seems to me that singles on the radio are currency / My creativity’s only free when I’m playing shows.” It feels like he’s criticizing the exact thing they just did, which could be brilliant, well-placed irony or a sad inevitable move by their label.

The album’s halves are divided at the second ukulele driven song “The Judge,” which serves as an incredible and emotional transition into a lacking second half. It’s not necessarily a bad run of songs, but the strength of the first half of the album is not matched by the relatively safe second half. It’s also hard to justify a 14 song album when trimming 3 of the weaker songs would easily bolster the album. Those 3 songs would pretty much be the run of songs following the catchy “Doubt” and “Polarize.”

“We Don’t Believe What’s On TV” and “Message Man” sound like Twenty One Pilots knock offs, while “Hometown” is an easily forgettable indie pop entry. However, the album redeems itself with the extremely fun “Not Today,” which easily holds its own with album standouts like “Tear in My Heart,” “The Judge,” “Ride,” and emotional album closer “Goner.”

While the album disappointed in some aspects, the highs help make up for the disappointing lows in the second half. What I love about Twenty One Pilots is that they’re a band that never really does anything right, at least by the music industry standards. They never give in to the pop standards or what the mainstream public is looking for. They put out hard to swallow lyrics matched with erratic music. They wear masks, drum on top of audiences, and are grateful for their fans and understand the reason for their success. They are simply a couple of great guys in an industry that hasn’t been great for a while. Did “Blurryface” live up to the heights of “Vessel”? No. But they stayed true to themselves and that’s all we needed, as much as we needed them. |-/

Get “Blurryface” on vinyl or MP3 download on Amazon!

For those of you who like Jazz, I commend you. It’s one of the genres that’s a passing fancy nowadays, dominated only by big, dead names like John Coltrane, Miles Davis, Thelonius Monk and others. I grew up listening to jazz, it was my first genre I ever really explored and it still remains my absolute favorite type of music. It gets you in the mood, it helps you study, it can be fun, contemplative, and sometimes raunchy if need be. So, no doubt when I heard about BADBADNOTGOOD, a jazz trio from Toronto, I was psyched to see what they offered, not only in terms of listenability, but with what new concepts they brought to change the game. With “BBNG” and “BBNG2”, freeform hip-hop, post-punk, and even Legend of Zelda covers were found within seconds of putting the record on. But as these guys evolved they put their efforts into making some pretty decent original singles, and with that evolution comes “III”.

If the first three tracks didn’t get you going and into their original stuff (because believe me, I didn’t like it at first listen until it got to track four), “Kaleidoscope” is going to do it for you. Combining subtle bass, shining electric piano, what sounds like a bassoon coming out of the corner of the room, and horns that these guys hit on the head the VERY. FIRST. TIME. Sounding like something out of an old 90’s courtroom drama, and then everything picks up when the bass starts belting out this 3 minute solo that keeps impressing you no matter how many times you repeat it. “Hedron” is the lead single off of this album and it brings you back to the old-school feel of BBNG with it just being about the piano, bass, and drums that bring you into this hip-hop groove and doesn’t let up when all three start going complete MAD. It may sound smooth at first, but don’t let this track fool you, this is what BBNG should sound like. These are the sounds that made me fall in love with them in the first place.

The fact that the Black Keys are around in the music world and they continue to sell out stadiums and records with an old-school sound is appalling to me. It’s not because they’re bad or anything, but it’s because I don’t think a lot of people in this generation of music really appreciate the roots of where a lot of their favorite radio-played rock comes from. Dan Auerbach and Patrick Carney are two people who love their roots and show it in their blues/garage-rock driven musical odysseys that bring you to a booming Nashville, or a rockin’ Chicago. And even though the rock is still here in it’s cleanest form because of producer Danger Mouse, the blues and the sadness and somberness of these songs are the elements that push it forward.

What drew me to the album besides the lead single, “Fever”, was the story behind the songwriting and Auerbach’s hard times in the past few years. Following the divorce with his wife and losing custody of his child, Carney even said that it was the saddest he’s ever seen his bandmate. But, sadness does fuel tempestuous and visceral songwriting that is heard throughout and that’s one of the strongest suits of the album. Never once do you feel as if the heartbroken songs are contrived or cliched, and instead you end up feeling for Dan more than anything. Especially on the track “10 Lovers” that says “Don’t leave us down and out again/Your little girl can’t comprehend/She had another dream that her mama’s gone/She’s all right, but you’re all wrong”.

From the start of the album we’re greeted to a heightened production value on “Weight of Love” where you’re brought this country acoustic and electric piano that just strums in like a passing cloud and this burst of electric guitar like a lightning strike in the distance, and then as soon as it gets going, the bass thumps with that familiar Gorillaz-like sound and Auerbach’s voice has a particular drab inflection with a hint of genuine soul and sadness that is accompanied by a higher-pitched Auerbach in the chorus. Actually, in a lot of these songs he decides to take the falsetto road. “Turn Blue”, “Waiting on Words”, “10 Lovers”, “In Time”, all take the high-pitched way to resemble a wail or a cry, which is effective in most of these cases. There are some times where the Black Keys actually sound like the Black Keys of lore with “Fever” and “It’s Up To You Now” which are cool tracks on their own, so for all of you purists out there who want to hear some blues-rock with more rock, there are those tracks and the closer, “Gotta Get Away”.

For the most part, I enjoyed the album. I loved the somber tone, I like the little hints of female voices in the production, the sound effects to make it like a 70’s psychedelic road trip was fantastic and when it was put in, it really worked in it’s favor. There are some songs that fell a bit under the GREAT spectrum for me, but they’re few. (Only like “In Time” and “It’s Up To You Now”) Other than that, the people who mistake the emotion for blandness and blame it on Brian Burton’s brilliant production, I’ve got no idea what their talking about. But I may be biased considering he produced a couple of my favorite albums… *cough* Demon Days *cough*

Final Verdict: While it’s not as sad or as punchy as something like Queens of the Stone Age’s “…Like Clockwork”, it’s still a great, dour album with moments that will make you look down with your eyes closed and say “sing it, brother, I feel you”. And that’s what an album is supposed to do, right? It’s supposed to make you feel something whether it be happy, sad, angry, joyful, or anything else. It’s a win for me.

In a folk scene in threat of becoming stagnant in the face of major label commercialization, even Mumford & Sons are trying to reinvent themselves. Nobody wants to listen to the same Lumineers song over and over again, but if you’re the kind of music listener who just needs an acoustic guitar and some raw, rusty vocals to have a good time, you’re in luck: two time Grammy nominee Matthew Santos has recorded an eclectic, often surprising folk record that is as adventurous as it is soulful and organic.

Into the Further begins with a vaguely-psychedelic introduction that showcases Santos’ tight rhythm section — who go on to provide the record with some of its most memorable moments — with some jazz-influenced percussion that I wouldn’t have been surprised to hear Kendrick Lamar rapping over on his recent experimental opus To Pimp a Butterfly. “Ojos” on the other hand sounds like Timberland producing an Amnesiac-era Radiohead joint, as some skittery beatboxing propels the song’s dreamy synth textures towards a soulful, beautiful climax.

Santos doesn’t start singing until the record’s third song, but “Under the Microscope” is as fine a moment to step up to the mic as any; it’s more straightforward but as equally lovely as anything that’s preceded it so far, a sprightly folk pop tune with a plucked double bass that brings to mind the comfortable arrangements of Andrew Bird, or perhaps Sufjan Stevens in one of his better moods. Less comfortable is the moody “Seven Years”, which finds Santos over a track that is all fire and brimstone, its ominous bass line chasing Santos around as if he’s trailing gasoline. The tension breaks as the band transitions into “It All Works Out” without missing a beat, although Santos seems less than relieved as he belts out the song’s titular consolation.

While many of these songs could have been performed solely by Santos and his acoustic guitar, the singer’s simple folk tunes are elevated to a higher standing thanks to the brass and string arrangements of Matt Ulery, whose utilization of weeping violins and foggy horns help make songs like “White Gloves” and “End of the Pipeline” such compelling and enveloping successes. Santos and his arrangements manage great chemistry, as his liquidy falsetto winds and twists among the string to deliver some truly arresting vocal moments.

With Into the Further, Santos has crafted a record that showcases his versatile talents as a singer, songwriter and performer. While any folk artist can learn their way around an acoustic guitar, Santos proves capable of commanding a variety of more complex sound palettes to deliver cathartic results the likes of which every artist in his field should strive for. 

Neon Indian has basically remained consistent throughout all their albums and Alan Palomo has been able to pump up the quality of each one immensely. Their debut, Psychic Chasms, was a warm, summery dive into the emergence of chillwave. A few years later, he revealed his second album, Era Extrana, and remained steadfast that their 80s synths and adoration of nostalgia would keep them relevant and true while bringing a new swing to the genre. Now with VEGA INTL. Night School, the production value is top notch, the style is slightly different for the better, and by god is it good.

Palomo and company outdid themselves with this release. The sounds that are created and experimented with throughout the album are odd and fantastic, like the Pan’s Labyrinth of new sounds, different from anything we’ve seen before and extremely memorable. From the distorted saxophone of “Dear Skorpio Magazine” to the Crash Bandicoot-esque electric piano from “Street Level”, it sounds a whole lot funkier than anything that the group has done. Palomo himself does bring an extra ounce of soul to his songs with glitched falsettos and a vocal delivery that sounds like his own take on Jamiroquai.

The flow of this album works incredibly as well. There is great single material to almost all of these songs, but the ones that were picked, “Annie”, “The Glitzy Hive” and “Slumlord” all stick out the most. “Slumlord” in particular has two songs that follow it up so perfectly, it gets points on its own for progressive song placement. “Slumlord’s Re-Lease” and “Techno Clique” are offshoots of the single with “Re-Lease” being the bridge between the two. The way it all comes together is nothing short of genius.

The longest track on the album, “Baby’s Eyes” breaks up the album well with this distorted yet sensual slow descent into a hazy glow. Every synthesizer is bouncy and the guitar is reminiscent of the quick “chk” of Prince and other 80s pop stars at the time. “C’est La Vie (say the casualties!)” is the Neon Indian that fans would be used to; a call back to Psychic Chasms with treble-increased guitars and bubbly blips of textures spread across the track like globs of jam on a slice of bread. “61 Cygni Ave.” has that Miami Vice/island reggae sound with quick basslines and guitars lining the backbeat instead of front and center. A new-school old-school party anthem. Even the closer, a live bootleg of “News from the Sun” has single potential, and is a pop hit that was a bit more destined for summer.

Listening to “VEGA INTL. Night School” reminds me of the endless nostalgia that we’ve all grown accustomed to hearing. We listening to music that all uses samples of older, better songs. This album doesn’t need samples to keep it alive, it’s a homage to that time, not a ripoff that we constantly hear. And that’s coming from someone who just recommended a album made up of nothing BUT samples. Neon Indian could’ve just made something better than Era Extrana in terms of experimentation and consistency and a much better callback to themselves and the era they love.