“The Village Priest” by Human Barbie: Preaching for Acceptance
I won’t lie. I often fall into phases where I solely listen to older music, especially from the ‘60s or ‘70s. To me, this music has a very specific sound and style which is hardly replicated in newer music today. That being said, I also value progression in music and believe that, for the most […]
“DAISY” by Asch-Rose: A Reflection on the Past
It’s always easy to look back on memories and realize things after the fact. How useful would it be if we could know how everything was going to turn out, so we could act before it happens instead of after? Of course, that’s a double-edged sword of a question, since I can only imagine how […]
Sam Burchfield’s “Blue Ridge June” Takes Us Back to Our Roots
If there were ever a song that could double as a teleportation device, it’d be Sam Burchfield’s “Blue Ridge June.” This track, which appears on his album, Graveyard Flower, is unparalleled in its ability to construct a world solely through sonic elements. For just over four minutes, Burchfield is the tour guide of Appalachia’s magnificence, […]
hd hausmann’s “A Modern Weight”: Enigmatic Beauty
The story of hd hausmann (all lowercase, a la e.e. cummings) began as an enigma. If you were to search for this artist online when they first released music in 2015, you wouldn’t find a list of bandmates or producers—only a hauntingly beautiful set of tracks: their first album, Wring the Moisture from the Surf. […]
On “Like the River”, Joey Vriend Sweeps Us Away
When you click onto Joey Vriend’s website, you’re greeted by a quote: “The whole universe is change and life itself is but what you deem it.” I don’t know about you, but quotes about the universe always make me anxious. There’s something about thinking in such a colossal scale—contemplating finitudes and infinitudes and our itsy-bitsy […]
“Stitch” by Allan Rayman: Hooks Never Go Out of Fashion
If you do a Google search of Allan Rayman, you might be surprised at what you find. Or more precisely, what you don’t find. Okay, it’s not like the Internet is completely scrubbed clean of his existence. After all, he is an artist who’s released four acclaimed albums and an EP, amassed over 150 million […]
Chuck Winter’s “The End” Takes Us to a Stark, Inevitable Conclusion
In March, Munich-based rocker Chuck Winter released a gritty and existential single titled “The End”. Accompanied by an ominous production, Winter’s dark and raspy voice illuminates the essence of human existence and mortality: we are all born and we all die, regardless of what we experience throughout life. The first two verses of the song […]
Jagd on “All work/all play”, Their Plans, and The Virus
Jagd, the Amsterdam-based band behind “All work/all play”, are usually a little less forthright. Their music has been described as a “hell of heavenly noise”, and their stylistic influences sit at the intersection of the surreal and the macabre. On the surface, “All work/all play” (the lowercase letters are intentional: it comes from their upcoming […]
“Miles from Nowhere” by Opus Orange: Learning from Unwanted Dreams
I’ve always found dreams to be so interesting. A sort of second life, we are able to live out our wildest fantasies simply by shutting our eyes and going to sleep. Unfortunately, this sort of freedom of imagination doesn’t come without some drawbacks. With few exceptions, we have little to no control over what we […]
Tristan Brooks’ “Haze”: The Disconnect of Isolation, Self-Imposed or Otherwise
While I can’t categorize the majority of my 141 days here in quarantine as all bad, barring a few particularly nasty outliers, I cannot call them all good days, either. The shaky-at-best sleep schedule that I had before has been shredded, along with just about anything resembling consistency and stability. Mindlessly plugging away at papers […]
