A Sweet Trip of Sweet Trip: A Guide Through the Cult Favorite Band’s Best Songs
Engaging with the music of Sweet Trip is a very personal thing. That’s true for all music–the thesis of this very blog is that the listener forms their own story when listening to a song based on their own experiences–but it’s especially true with Sweet Trip. A Sweet Trip song is never just happy or […]
Lem Jay and Charlyne Yi on “Stroll,” Voice Acting, and Heart-Shaped Baby Grand Pianos
“Stroll,” a new song by musician and songwriter Lem Jay alongside actress and singer Charlyne Yi (you may know her from House M.D. or her extensive voice acting career), is a song that hearkens back to the ramshackle roots of twee pop. Nowadays, the term is used to describe groups like Alvvays or She and […]
Lily Kelso on “DETAILS” and Balancing Study with Songwriting
After a brief period of stagnation in the latter half of the past decade, indie rock is in a particularly healthy place right now, due in large part to the success of female artists. While they haven’t crossed over in terms of radio hits, artists like Phoebe Bridgers and Mitski have captured the hearts and […]
“Beauxette” by Rey: A Heartfelt Ode to a Dog
Let me tell you about my dog for a moment. My dog is named Peanut, which was a compromise name after my dad wouldn’t let my mom name him Eli after Eli Manning. He is a mix between a cocker spaniel and a poodle, a breed that is known as a “cockapoo” against our collective […]
Luminous Kid on “Mountain Crystals,” His Favorite Narratives, and Phoebe Bridgers
It’s difficult to talk about Luminous Kid, the stage name of Swedish singer-songwriter Olof Grind, without talking about Phoebe Bridgers. The indie phenom has a way of catching the audience’s attention (see: the guitar smash on SNL and her subsequent beef with David Crosby), and in his other calling as a photographer Olof shot the […]
“Beggar’s Opera” by Yuma Yamaguchi: An Uncanny Plea for Connection
When John Gay wrote The Beggar’s Opera in the 1720s, its very title was an oxymoron. Opera was an art form for grand, important subjects, and grand, important people. Gods had operas, epic heroes had operas, royalty had operas. Beggars didn’t have operas, in much the same way that dogs didn’t have operas. After all, […]
“Through The Looking Glass” by Flowstate: A Quiet Psych-Folk Nightmare
Flowstate, the British singer-songwriter behind the eerily beautiful “Through The Looking Glass,” clearly takes a great deal of influence from Nick Drake. He plays his guitar with a similarly light touch, as though skimming his fingers along the surface of a pond, and his vocals bear more than a passing resemblance to Drake’s warm, hushed […]
“Don’t Mind The Weather” by Sunflower Thieves: The Peaceful Promise of Nostalgia
It’s easy enough to evoke nostalgia through music. Music, after all, is primarily an auditory medium, which means it can hit you more immediately than a book or a movie: consider how a five-second snippet of a song from your childhood can bring you back to the backseat of your mom’s car on your way […]
Moth Traps’ “Brittle Star (HSJNT)” Is a Mournful, Mutated Memento Mori
There’s a pathos inherent in the decline and fall of things. Big things, yes, like the fall of the Roman Empire, but smaller things as well, things that were ubiquitous for a time before gradually fading from view. A silent film star ruminating on her past glory; a legendary pop band performing in front of […]
Joe Pope and Luna Keller on “Barricades,” Collaboration, and Their Futures
“Barricade,” a new song by the Georgia-based singer-songwriter Joe Pope, has a warm and welcoming sound, but it never feels too easy. Perhaps it’s Pope’s voice, which has enough grit to add some texture to the sound; perhaps it’s the song’s structure, which never quite goes where you expect it to go. Whatever the case, […]
