Effie – Pullup to Busan 4 More Hyper Summer It’s Gonna Be a Fuckin Movie: I listened to this so much at the end of December that Pullup to Busan became my fourth-most streamed album for the month. Effie is pushing hyperpop to its limits while giving a middle finger to K-pop. I don’t particularly care about either genre, but… Read more »
Laufey – A Very Laufey Holiday: I’m not a fan of holiday music but I couldn’t let 2025 pass without playing this one. The first three standards were unremarkable interpretations that left me feeling grinchy. When Laufey’s original “Christmas Magic” came on, though, it made my heart grow three sizes. The next three tracks are sweet and charming versions of… Read more »
Cameron Winter – Heavy Metal: I didn’t want to like Heavy Metal, despite thinking Geese’s Getting Killed is arguably the best album of 2025, but I finally listened and it immediately grabbed me by the throat (or maybe the heart) and refused to let go. It is the yin to the yang of Getting Killed, an album of night and… Read more »
HAAi – HUMANiSE: As I let “Satellite” wash over me for the first time, it’s clear that HAAi has given us another set of songs that will slowly unfold and drop little shimmers of light as they do so. Robert Plant with Suzi Dean – Saving Grace: Is the band Saving Grace? Is the album Saving Grace? I prefer to get… Read more »
De La Soul – Cabin in the Sky: When I saw this, I wondered how De La would move forward without Dave Jolicoeur. When I started playing it, I wondered if Cabin would get lost in annoying skits the way so many of their records do. But then the end of the opening track came, and all my questions were… Read more »
Bruce Springsteen – Greetings from Asbury Park NJ: When my wife bought me a turntable a few years ago, I vowed to use it to fill some of the gaps in my musical knowledge. Springsteen is one of the more egregious gaps. Some friends told me to listen from the beginning, so I started with Asbury Park this week. What… Read more »
Laufey – Tiny Desk Concert | Amazon Songline: I’m still riding the wave of last week’s concert in DC, so Laufey was my go-to this week. The more I learn about her background—the way her Icelandic and Chinese and American experiences and her classical and jazz and pop influences all swirled together into a unique whole—the more I appreciate her… Read more »
Laufey – A Matter of Time: The more I listen to A Matter of Time, the more I find what I wanted—and didn’t get—from The Life of a Showgirl. A Matter of Time possesses a level of humility, vulnerability, and humanity that I just don’t hear on Showgirl. I didn’t expect to fall so hard for this record, but it’s… Read more »
Beth Gibbons – Lives Outgrown: The first time I listened to this, I focused on the lyrics and completely missed the arrangements and instrumentation. This time, I’m focusing on the music instead of the words, and I’m blown away. Gibbons refusal to wallow in nostalgia continues to remind me of Robert Plant. Do these songs have shadows of Dummy or… Read more »
Leon Vynehall – In Daytona Yellow: In four listens, I’ve gone from meh to hmm. The record doesn’t have the bangers I expected but it does have a vulnerability that surprises me. I can tell I’m going to either forget about In Daytona Yellow or listen to it obsessively, I’m curious to see which way it goes. Madison Cunningham –… Read more »