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Best Album of 2023 , so far.

Not sure when Jessie Ware randomly decided to become the best artist of the decade but I respect it

By all accounts, the hay days of disco should be far behind us. Back in the ‘70s and early ‘80s, club dance floors sparkled and shined under the illuminating gleam of disco balls; polychromatic floors flashed with a wide array of vivid, eye-catching colors. Mesmerized and seduced by the vibrant, glistening glow that paints the room, and probably under the influence of a shit ton of drugs, people Moonwalked and Macarena’d to Off the Wall and Heart of Glass, throwing their cares to the wind and enjoying the moment. Disco was the perfect soundtrack to losing yourself to the moment; basslines ripped straight from the playbook of funk coalesced with the overwhelmingly rich orchestral aspects of soul and conventional song structures/direct yet breathtaking vocal performances of pop music, usually with lyrical themes of pouring yourself out over a lover. It was music for living for today and not worrying about tomorrow. Blunt and catchy, it’s not difficult to see why disco became such a sought-after sound. But as the era of the disco ball began to fade and the ‘80s began to depart, disco faded out of popularity. It saw a slight renaissance in the early 2000s with the works of Kylie Minogue and Madonna’s Confessions on a Dance Floor, along with the development of nu-disco, which introduced more modern electronic elements into the tried and true disco formula, though that wave of disco revival was short-lived. Aside from that, for nearly three decades, disco fell to the wayside behind other styles of straight-to-the-point popular music like synthpop and dance-pop.

But something magical happened at the turn of the recent decade. A resurgence of ‘80s pop trends began to boil up at the midway point of the 2010s, though really hit a fever pitch in 2019-2021. Some of pop's most substantial names were calling for a revival of the same sounds that populated those glitzy dancefloors all those years ago (i.e. Dua Lipa’s Future Nostalgia, The Weeknd’s After Hours, Lady Gaga’s Chromatica). But the most surprising part of it all was that the one doing it best wasn’t necessarily the most popular- in fact, it was somebody who wasn’t at the forefront of anybodys' minds. Jessica Lois Ware saw a brief moment of success in the early 2010s with hits like Say You Love Me and Wildest Moments, but the hype behind her quickly began to fade as her typical, and honestly quite generic, R&B aesthetic began to run thin. After dawning a new era beginning in 2018 with a couple of singles though not fully getting the chance to flourish until 2020s' What's Your Pleasure, Jessie Ware began to re-invent herself. How? Through that same disco revivalism that was driving the mainstream.

Though what separated Jessie from the crowd is she was not just paying homage to disco aesthetics by sprinkling disco undertones on songs of more contemporary genres like dance-pop or synthpop- instead, What’s Your Pleasure was a full-blown disco album, no holds barred. It wasn’t just a cheap imitation done by an artist desperately yearning for commercial success, it was evident by the musicianship displayed on What’s Your Pleasure that it was an album built out of love and care for disco. Back-to-back-to-back quality that harkens back to the undeniable grooves of decades past.

That! Feels Good! is not a sister album that merely treads the same ground as What’s Your Pleasure; instead, it feels like an extension of that sound. While Jessie’s vocals on What’s Your Pleasure typically feel a bit restrained to emulate a feeling of sensualness, this record really feels like Jessie’s freeing herself with a more assured and expressive delivery. The luxurious, more maximalist, and even more expansive instrumental palate- bringing in lush, soaring orchestral sections that feel even larger than the orchestral moments on What’s Your Pleasure, flashy brass instrumentation, and influences from house music aplenty- take on a totally separate strand of disco also deviates That! Feels Good! from its predecessor. The more overtly sexual energy That! Feels Good! has compared to any of Jessie’s other material is also quite notable. As many will take notice, That! Feels Good!’s lyrics carry a lot of sexual energy, which are topics deeply tied to the genre of disco. Like disco legends such as Donna Summers that paved the way for her, she marries erotic, lustful themes with more nuanced, lovey-dovey romanticism. This right here is Jessie Ware’s horny album.

That sexual energy is channeled best in the listener’s first taste of the album, the title track, a song about unloosing yourself by putting your responsibilities to the wayside. An undeniably punchy and irresistible bassline akin to Stevie Wonder’s most powerful cuts, bombastic horns, and an ensemble of vocals sexually moaning out the album’s title at the onset of the track, which the artist herself has stated she included to stimulate the feeling of a musical orgy, punctuate Jessie Ware’s vocal elasticity as she does parkour from one melody to another, seducing the listener into a hypnotized state which forces them to bop their head up and down with her gorgeous voice. Vocal layering causes Ware’s vocals to swirl and spiral around your speakers as they tumble over each other, creating this oddly overwhelming feeling that makes it nearly impossible not to groove along to the song. It all culminates in a sexy-ass trumpet solo that will surely make you smile if the rest of the song hasn’t yet.

Free Yourself is yet another liberating song about doing exactly what the title indicates. Cascading pianos reminiscent of Europop circa ABBA and Diva House in the vein of Beyoncé’s Break My Soul are intertwined with a lavish orchestral section backing the song’s emancipating chorus. Vocally, Jessie is really letting it all out here, adding to the song’s themes of unbinding oneself from the restraining shackles of reality. It’s her most ferocious, fiery performance to date; fervid performances are what help differentiate this album from What’s Your Pleasure more than anything else. Whereas What’s Your Pleasure felt like Jessie Ware trying incredibly hard to be the shit- which is not a knock on that masterfully refined record, I actually feel as if it allowed for a more mature, subtle, and controlled album- That! Feels Good! feels like Jessie Ware knows she is the shit. Confidence is key; her dramatic vocals glide over the dazzling assortment of strings and brass on These Lips, and the charmingly child-like “La La La La” refrain on Pearls is sure to capture the listener's ear as it fades in and out with kaleidoscopic color. Yet that newfound confidence also comes instrumentally with Jessie taking an everything-but-the-kitchen-sink approach to What’s Your Pleasure’s grandiose orchestration; the pounding, bouncy, and consistent house of rhythms of Freak Me Now along with the glamorous trumpets that underscore Shake The Bottle carry just as much flashiness as Jessie’s own performances, the ladder of which has captivating Talking Heads influences aplenty encoded into its DNA.

I cannot end off this review without giving a nod to Begin Again, perhaps the best Jessie Ware song to date. It’s That! Feels Good!’s most unabridged and uncompromised ode to disco; at five and a half minutes, it’s a multifaceted, wild homage that brings the listener back to years of those classic ‘70s dancefloor anthems. Drums heavily influenced by the music of the Brazilian culture, more specifically the sound of Samba, a tropical-sounding piano bridge, and celebratory horns/eloquent strings populating the background all work in tandem to create handily the album’s most infectious grooves. Though Jessie Ware’s vocal splendor delivered in this song really steals the show, it’s truly something to behold. It is her most dynamic and compelling vocal performance yet, perfectly balancing euphoric highs that contain layers of vocals tumbling over one another, each one fighting to be the most noticeable in the mix which makes the song feel all the more untamable, and more lowkey moments where the song calms down while Jessie croons over some more subdued instrumental sections, all before reaching its monumental crescendo where every instrumental and vocal element that has been building up coalesce in an intense explosion of groovy magnificence. Begin Again really captures the spirit of the entirety of That! Feels Good!; it’s a collection of instrumentally dense, lyrically carefree songs where every track sounds like it has had hours on top of hours spent on it just to make sure it’s as thoughtful of a tribute to the sound of disco as possible. Stop being that old pretentious asshole for a minute and enjoy some fun music for once; That! Feels Good!’s sure to get a couple of good head-bops out of even its most reluctant listeners.

Favorite Tracks: That! Feels Good!, Free Yourself, Pearls, Hello Love, Begin Again, Beautiful People, Freak Me Now, Shake The Bottle, These Lips
Worst Track: Lightning (if I had to pick)

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Lyrics - Vanessa Daou « Joe sent me « 

step into a velvet blue subterranean room

Two steps down it's underground

The exit sign blinks illicitly

The word is "sin", it'll get you in

Strange days are brewin' with my strange ways

Strange things I'm doing, it's a sweet fall from grace

Now don't be thinking you're the only one who knows

If I say "yes", would you lose respect? I hope that you do

So come inside, break a law we can hide

There's nothing left for me and you

But the love between us, like the arms of venus

Now don't be thinking you're the only one who knows

(Speakeasy, say "Joe sent me")

At midnight it's love so close you can kiss it

Illicit promises to keep

Somewhere between thinking and feeling

It's like a burning moonshine

So you come inside

So easy to break down

Her trembling sighs

Singer's moaning

Don't let your knees get dirty on your way to eternity

At midnight it's love so close you can kiss it

Strange days are brewin' with my strange ways

Strange things I'm doing, it's a sweet fall from grace

Now don't be thinking you're the only one who knows

(Speakeasy, say "Joe sent me")

What the video below

#Youtube

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Did anyone call #BANKS?

To put it the Wilde way, she does not lack the indefinable charm of weakness. She can still easily put up a cold front while singing R&B inflected break up songs, underscoring innate emotional depth.

Banks , 2013’s kid du jour, hails from LA. + 1 [phone]. That’s Jillian Banks’s phone number, and she doesn’t care who knows it. That’s the only way to contact her directly, because she does not do social media. On her facebook page she writes: “I like making connections outside of a computer screen. Twitter, Facebook and Instagram have never really been my thing. If you ever want to talk , call me. “ Scheming at creating anti-hype?In the era where the anti-hype is the new hype, maybe not.She still has managed to create ( a lot of ) buzz.She says that music helps her release her emotions and for that reason kept her music private while she earned her bachelor’s in psychology. So an anti-heroine perhaps. Let’s not forget, she has uber-hipster credientials- Jamie Woon, Lil Silva, Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs, SOHN featured, produced and remixed her songs adding dark, minimal production to her sultry vocals. Speaking of buzz, Francesco Carrozzini directed the video of “Waiting game”, which was featured in Victoria’s Secret 2013 holiday commercial.There is more. She announced yesterday that her American tour is completely sold out. One month in advance.

Her 2013 “London” EP was released by British Label Good Years. It led to a support slot with her electronic R&B soulmate, The Weeknd . She has now put the finishing touches to her debut album, out on Universal Music, date #tbc.She will not tweet the release date of the debut album. She will write it on your bedroom wall. You fool! Watch the video of “ Waiting Game” and listen to “Bedroom Wall” below.

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A conversation with the R&B up-and-comer @Tinashenow

Tinashe wearing Hood By Air photographed by Michael Schwarzt 

Tinashe Jørgensen Kachingwe aka Tinashe, the girl group singer turned-actor-turned R'n'B songstress hauls from Los Angeles. She was just eight years old when Aaliyah Haughton tragically died in a plane crash.The artist crafted three excellent mixtapes over the course of 2012 and 2013. The song “2 On” featuring Scoolboy Q and produced by DJ Mustard, hit-maker of the moment, garnered Tinashe some international attention as a solo star.It was her first big look.Just when we were about to dismiss her as a one hit wonder she releases her first debut album Aquarius,following her record deal with RCA Records in 2014. The album involved the who’s who of 2014’s top producers , including Dev Hynes.The artist emerged in a year where R&B male singers like Kanye West, Drake, The Weeknd, Frank Ocean or even James blake became household names. Later we saw the new wave of R&B female singers rising. Acts like FKA-Twigs,Grimes,Banks, Poliça, Jessie Ware, Kelela meshed R&B with the emotional , ultra-moody, left-field, indie-minded swagger.Aquarius heralded a new voice and music that falls right in like with the “PBR&B” tag that a lot of these new cats were getting. However for too long the genre has been deprived of that female artist who not not only sings but also dances and entertains with a well-produced album about love, sex, and party anthems.Much like Aaliyah’s music was nearly a decade and a half ago. But with a lot of alcohol and cannabis. In 2015 we can say that the new wave of R&B has reached its saturation point. But even if there was any ground left between the so-called “indie R&B” movement and the mainstream,Aquarius closes that gap for good. I sat down with the artist in Zurich shortly before her first live show in Switzerland. We talked about her DIY approach to music making and how she managed to blend artistic vision with commercialism to become an A-Lister in R&B and receive critical acclaim. Read the conversation and watch below Stephen Garnett directed video of “Cold Sweat”.

Hi Tinashe, how is it going?

I’m great. How are you? It’s beautiful out here. I’m trying to speak as little as possible before the show tonight.

Ha!Ok.Here is my first question.Did you get to dictate your terms to your record label, artistically speaking?

Yes. When choosing the record label it was really important for me that they respected who I was as an artist and where I was coming from. They did not try to mold me into any particular direction. They really support my artistic vision. They respect what I have to say. I am aware this is rare, especially for a new artist.

How did you do that?

I think it helped that I already had projects out there. And that I had built my fan base out of that.

You also rose to success with the release of “2 On” in a year where male R&B singers were prominent.

I know. I think there was an open lane for a West-Coast female Hip Hop and R&B singer. So why not be me? It worked.

There was an open lane for what kind of music exactly?

For music that was fresh. I also think the public responded because there were many party oriented songs. There has always been a taboo when girls make songs about partying and drinking, which does not really make any sense. Because girls do party. This is why I think there was an open lane.

In addition to the public, “Aquarius” was well received from a lot of publications focused on independent music. Why do you think that was?

That was really amazing! I think they respected my DIY approach. The fact that I did “Aquarius” out of my own studio in my room, creating out of my own content, filming my own music videos.

Or was it maybe the production? I mean “Aquarius” has a killer production.There were a lot of low-end, almost vintage moments and atmospheric interludes.

Production played an important part. For me it’s all about setting the right tone. I wanted to get something solid out there. Making those interludes was very important to set the scene. I wanted it to feel like a movie. Through the right production I wanted to help people paint pictures in their head.

And then there were the cheeky, bubblegum girly fantasies on one side with hints of a more shadowy, darker subtexts of a young female mind.

That’s just my personality. There are different sides to me. I like to be fun, but I also have a more emotional, darker side. I as an artist always wanted to walk that fine line between commercialism and mood and atmosphere. So it was important to have both sides in this project.

Is it this approach that made you stand out among the plethora of PBR&B artists?

I think  lot of artists are not doing things as organically as I am. I write, produce, record, mix and film my music. I don’t know any artist that does that. A couple of other things set me apart. The energy. The dancing. I have been dancing since I was four years old. I also have a commercial appeal.

Maybe Aaliyah. Or Janet used to. In “Aquarius” I felt there is a strong debt to Janet circa “Velvet Rope", especially with the spoken word interludes.

I idolized Janet since I was a child.  From a dance perspective, to performance, to music videos, to the music, just all around.

What about FKA-Twigs. What do you think about her?

I think her aesthetics is amazing. It’s a very particular mood though. I prefer to listen to stuff that energizes me.

Which song from the album best reflects your artistic vision?

Cold Sweat.

That’s my favorite one.

Really?

Yes.I think that’s where you are at your best- the lyrics about how stardom affected your friendships,the way you bulid tension sowly. It’s sexy.The synths at the end are amazing. (listen to it below).

Yaay! Thank you.I created that one that out of my room.

How can a new artist remain faithful to its artistic vision and at the same time sells records?

You have to write music that people can relate to.

You started performing at the age of 3. That was 19 years ago.What is your advice to other young people who want to succeed in this business?

I don’t know. Start early ( laughs). No seriously, get out there and just do it.It’s all going to be about people you meet and relationships you are going to build.Every little step you take will get you eventually closer to where you want to be.The hit song will not fall out of the sky. You have to be actively involved in trying to make your dream come true.

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#DebutAlbum Review - Björk «  Début »

Debut is a great introduction to one of the most singularly unique and idiosyncratic artists ever. With this debut record, Bjork took the 90s dance and trip hop sound she was immersed in and fused it with her iconic and powerful voice. The songs here are often simultaneously danceable and elegant, which is a contrast that I feel would continue to exist throughout the rest of her career. While Debut lacks the experimentation and innovation that would come with later Bjork albums, it does succeed at capturing a variety of moods and emotions in its tracklist. Human Behavior is a bouncy and rocking opener that also introduces a few aspects in the vocals that would become synonymous with Bjork's music, namely her unrestrained singing style and her occasional usage of half-Icelandic and half-gibberish lyrics. Venus As a Boy is a definite highlight, not just on the album but for Bjork's career as a whole. It's an ethereal piece of pop that notably features Bollywood style strings and percussion. They add so much atmosphere and charm to an already beautiful track. I also feel a need to highlight the criminally underrated cover of Like Someone In Love and Big Time Sensuality . The arrangement here is incredibly simple, with just a harp and Bjork's singing, but it allows the power of her voice to really shine through. Pretty much all of the other tracks here fall into two camps. First off, there are a few songs which definitely feel like they have a more dance-centric focus in mind, namely Crying, There's More to Life Than This, Big Time Sensuality, and Violently Happy. The second type of song here is the more downtempo atmospheric track, like One Day, Aeroplane, and Come to Me. Debut is a medley of so many different sounds and textures, from dance to jazz to electronic and everything in between, but at the helm of it all is an artist who exudes confidence and ambition. This album may not be the best Bjork record, but it is undoubtedly an incredible launching pad for the rest of her career.

Venus as a Boy Lyrics

His wicked sense of humor

Suggests exciting sex

His fingers, they focus on her and touches

He's Venus as a boy

Ól lit glatt á mér

Ól engin skil er álver

He believes in a beauty

He's Venus as a boy

He believes in a beauty and gentle

He believes in a beauty

He's Venus as a boy

He believes in a beauty and gentle

He's exploring the taste of her

Arousal, so accurate

He sets off the beauty in her

He's Venus, a Venus as a boy

All across your lips, oh, then until

Well, be that, it's a little now, until

He believes in a beauty

He's Venus as a boy

He believes in a beauty and gentle

He believes in a beauty

He's Venus as a boy

He believes in a beauty and gentle

just see me melt

Just, oh, understand me, challenge me

Just a little, a little, oh

#Youtube

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Classic Album Review - Kate Bush “The Sensual World”

Happy birthday , Kate. Thank you for the music.

Back before Madonna, Björk , Tori Amos, Gaga,Beyoncé and Joanna Newsom, there was Kate Bush.

Although I find the term "underrated" (and also "overrated" for that matter) displeasing and annoying at times, that is the first word that comes to my mind whenever I listen to “The Sensual World” .I understand “The Kick inside “"Hounds of Love" and “The Dreaming “ as being the holiday trinity of art pop, but sometimes I think lots of people think her discography ends there and "The Sensual World" doesn't get talked about enough.

It’s Bush’s"Vespertine" (actually Vespertine should be Björk's Sensual World but you know what I mean😅): Gentle, delicate, intimate and, of course, sensual, with electronic and rock influences to create a solid sound across the record that really offers no skips at all and truly sounds like nothing around its time. The title track kicks off the record and flawlessly sets the tone: it's hypnotic and intriguing, with Kate almost whispering the lyrics and some bagpipes to the ambient electronics of the instrumental. "The Fog" is one of her finest moments, and so is "This Woman's Work", which was the album closer of the original release.

In 1989 Kate Bush explained that the track “Deeper Understanding” is about how people are replacing human relationships with technology ( video below). Self-explanatory .

The Sensual World explores relationship and romantic themes in almost every track, with the bluesy experimental "Rocket's Tail" maybe being the exception, but it handles them in such a classy way that it never gets corny. But class is something that you will always get from Kate. Her artistic vision is unparalleled, her creativity knows no limits and her focus is intact considering this album came after her magnum opus. The vocal acrobatics and the fairy tales are not here, but it's also her maturity as a singer, songwriter and producer that makes this album so impressive, even though a lot of people won't want you to believe that by completely ignoring this masterpiece.

Deeper Understanding Lyrics

As the people here grow colder

I turn to my computer

And spend my evenings with it

Like a friend

I was loading a new program

I had ordered from a magazine

Are you lonely, are you lost?

This voice console is a must

I press Execute

Hello, I know that you've been feeling tired

I bring you love and deeper understanding

Hello, I know that you're unhappy

I bring you love and deeper understanding

Well I've never felt such pleasure

Nothing else seemed to matter

I neglected my bodily needs

I did not eat, I did not sleep

The intensity increasing

'Til my family found me and intervened

But I was lonely, I was lost

Without my little black box

I pick up the phone and go Execute

Hello, I know that you've been feeling tired

I bring you love and deeper understanding

Hello, I know that you're unhappy

I bring you love and deeper understanding

I turn to my computer like a friend

I need deeper understanding

Give me deeper understanding

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Reçension I nje albumi klasik - Dua Lipa “ Future Nostalgia”

I want to conquer the world! - Dua Lipa, 2017.

Ështe disi e ekzagjeruar te thuash që muzika pop ka vdekur. Sidoqofte, nuk jemi shume larg te se vertetes. Muzika pop gjendet ne nje vakum artistik prej shume kohesh. Perveç idhujve te se kaluares qe po rrezikojne reputacionin e tyre , shume artiste relativsht te rinj nuk po arrijne dot te shpetojne kete crash artistik ne te cilin gjendet muzika pop.

Ka ne fakt ka edhe surpriza te mira tek tuk. I tille Eshte rasti I Dua Lipes. Kurioziteti im per te lindi qe ne fillimet e saj - artistja angleze , e bija e nje rockstari Shqiptar, dukej si nje modele qe kendonte alla Tumblr. Ky mélange ne fakt duhet te me bente indiferent, por jo, Dua kishte nje “Je ne sais quoi” artistik.

Pergjigjiet i mora ne albumin e saj te dyte.

Welcome to “Future Nostalgia”.

Pasi degjon dy hitet boterore, ne kenget e tjera te albumit gjen nje vizion artistik pa ekuivok te artistes Shqiptaro-Britainike dhe nje perzjerje influencash pop , funk dhe disko.

Megjithate prape nuk arrita te kuptoj te verteten e muzikes se saj- Ishte zeri i saj? Ishte adhurimi per Madonnen, Prince , Grace Jones, INXS apo Lew Stone?

Jo.

Ishte kurajo e saj. Ndermarrja “Future Nostalgia”’ ishte shume e rrezikshme. Dua Lipa e fitoi bastin duke i qendruar besnike vetvetes.

“Future Nostalgia” ishte albumi pop me i mire i 2020. Princesha pop e Londres u be mbretereshe e tij ne saj te origjinalitetit te saj.

Kenget e preferuara :

“Don't Start Now", "Break My Heart",", "Levitating", "Hallucinate", "Love Again"

#Youtube

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TBT - Björk “ Homogenic”

Homogenic is an album of excellence in every possible way, from the production to the melodies and lyrics. This project is a complex work, which can be difficult to digest bulletin, but when we sit with it for a while we are immersed in a reality completely from another world.

One of the things that I like most about this album is how well everything is built, so cohesive and coherent but still doesn't leave the extravagance aside. The project does an incredible job of bringing together two elements that at first glance do not seem to combine together and these are: electronics components and strings. Sounds so distinct but that fused with Björk's intelligence are simply perfect, creating an unforgettable and memorable sound during all the album.

Björk approached fashion designer , one Alexander McQueen, to create an outfit that would evoke Homogenic’s song about a someone who “had to become a warrior. A warrior who had to fight not with weapons, but with love.”

This turns out to be my second favorite Björk album (just behind Post) and marks another masterpiece in my musical experience, being perhaps the electronic album that I fell in love with most and objectively perhaps the best of all time in this genre.

Joga (10/10)

Hunter (10/10)

All is full of love (10/10)

#Youtube

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Album Review Radiohead “Kid A Mnesiac”

In 2021 Radiohead reappears after a hiatus. they brought Kid A and Amnesiac together in one album, and released a compilation of works from the time they were recording these albums.

Kid Amnesia is a combination of Kid A and Amnesiac but with some "new" songs at the end. If you haven't listened to Amnesiac or Kid A yet, you are simply living wrong.

Mixing is the Radiohead standard, countless layers, different designs and textures in the melodies and instruments, everything is its right place .The songs range from mega dark, climatic and dense sounds to sounds that sound like lullabies. The band's creativity is something to applaud. They followed Brian Eno's advice to the letter when he said never to release a similar work. I ended up "listening to colors" or "filling colors" in songs.


While Kid A has my head , my heart is with the A Moon Shaped Pull, which is their last album and which by the way is one of those cases of re-records of songs not yet released. But even so I would like to see them doing something new, work without getting anything they have already done.

The album gave me the feeling of being like a child alone in a dark room. Afraid of the unknown but still able to unravel the wue he is behind the shadows because of his "childish curiosity". Even though they sound dense and heavy they manage to deliver soft sensitive sounds.

Kid Amnesia is not what I wanted to, but is what we have for today.

#Youtube

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Classic Album Review - Radiohead “Kid A” . Part 2

Peak Radiohead

Kid A, is the greatest left turn in music ever.Coming off of releasing “OK Computer’ , one of the greatest albums of the 1990s ,” Radiohead throws the listeners into a dystopian sounding electric whirlpool of emotion. It isn’t hard to feel the emotion that is being portrayed through the songs.This record has some of my favourite songs of all time on it, especially Optimistic, which is one of the most triumphant sounding songs ever. Everything in its Right Place is a perfect intro, the National Anthem goes CRAZY and How to Disappear Completely and Motion Picture Soundtrack are beautiful and harrowing songs. Easy must hear.

Thom Yorke photographed in March 1999, two months after Radiohead’s Kid A recording sessions began.

National Anthem Lyrics

Everyone

Everyone around here

Everyone is so near

It's holding on

It's holding on

Everyone

Everyone is so near

Everyone has got the fear

It's holding on

It's holding on

It's holding on

It's holding on

It's holding on

#Youtube

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Classic Album Review - Radiohead “ Kid A” . Part 1

The Epitome of Abstract Art.

artworks by Stanley Donwood,

That there

That's not me

I go

Where I please

I walk through walls

I float down the Liffey

I'm not here

This isn't happening

I'm not here

I'm not here

In a little while

I'll be gone

The moment's already passed

Yeah, it's gone

And I'm not here

This isn't happening

I'm not here

I'm not here

Strobe lights and blown speakers

Fireworks and hurricanes

I'm not here

This isn't happening

I'm not here

I'm not here

#Youtube

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Best Album of 2023 - Jessie Ware "That! Feels Good!"

Not sure when Jessie Ware randomly decided to become the best artist of the decade but I respect it

By all accounts, the hay days of disco should be far behind us. Back in the ‘70s and early ‘80s, club dance floors sparkled and shined under the illuminating gleam of disco balls; polychromatic floors flashed with a wide array of vivid, eye-catching colors. Mesmerized and seduced by the vibrant, glistening glow that paints the room, and probably under the influence of a shit ton of drugs, people Moonwalked and Macarena’d to Off the Wall and Heart of Glass, throwing their cares to the wind and enjoying the moment. Disco was the perfect soundtrack to losing yourself to the moment; basslines ripped straight from the playbook of funk coalesced with the overwhelmingly rich orchestral aspects of soul and conventional song structures/direct yet breathtaking vocal performances of pop music, usually with lyrical themes of pouring yourself out over a lover. It was music for living for today and not worrying about tomorrow. Blunt and catchy, it’s not difficult to see why disco became such a sought-after sound. But as the era of the disco ball began to fade and the ‘80s began to depart, disco faded out of popularity. It saw a slight renaissance in the early 2000s with the works of Kylie Minogue and Madonna’s Confessions on a Dance Floor, along with the development of nu-disco, which introduced more modern electronic elements into the tried and true disco formula, though that wave of disco revival was short-lived. Aside from that, for nearly three decades, disco fell to the wayside behind other styles of straight-to-the-point popular music like synthpop and dance-pop.

But something magical happened at the turn of the recent decade. A resurgence of ‘80s pop trends began to boil up at the midway point of the 2010s, though really hit a fever pitch in 2019-2021. Some of pop's most substantial names were calling for a revival of the same sounds that populated those glitzy dancefloors all those years ago (i.e. Dua Lipa’s Future Nostalgia, The Weeknd’s After Hours, Lady Gaga’s Chromatica). But the most surprising part of it all was that the one doing it best wasn’t necessarily the most popular- in fact, it was somebody who wasn’t at the forefront of anybodys' minds. Jessica Lois Ware saw a brief moment of success in the early 2010s with hits like Say You Love Me and Wildest Moments, but the hype behind her quickly began to fade as her typical, and honestly quite generic, R&B aesthetic began to run thin. After dawning a new era beginning in 2018 with a couple of singles though not fully getting the chance to flourish until 2020s' What's Your Pleasure, Jessie Ware began to re-invent herself. How? Through that same disco revivalism that was driving the mainstream.

Though what separated Jessie from the crowd is she was not just paying homage to disco aesthetics by sprinkling disco undertones on songs of more contemporary genres like dance-pop or synthpop- instead, What’s Your Pleasure was a full-blown disco album, no holds barred. It wasn’t just a cheap imitation done by an artist desperately yearning for commercial success, it was evident by the musicianship displayed on What’s Your Pleasure that it was an album built out of love and care for disco. Back-to-back-to-back quality that harkens back to the undeniable grooves of decades past.

That! Feels Good! is not a sister album that merely treads the same ground as What’s Your Pleasure; instead, it feels like an extension of that sound. While Jessie’s vocals on What’s Your Pleasure typically feel a bit restrained to emulate a feeling of sensualness, this record really feels like Jessie’s freeing herself with a more assured and expressive delivery. The luxurious, more maximalist, and even more expansive instrumental palate- bringing in lush, soaring orchestral sections that feel even larger than the orchestral moments on What’s Your Pleasure, flashy brass instrumentation, and influences from house music aplenty- take on a totally separate strand of disco also deviates That! Feels Good! from its predecessor. The more overtly sexual energy That! Feels Good! has compared to any of Jessie’s other material is also quite notable. As many will take notice, That! Feels Good!’s lyrics carry a lot of sexual energy, which are topics deeply tied to the genre of disco. Like disco legends such as Donna Summers that paved the way for her, she marries erotic, lustful themes with more nuanced, lovey-dovey romanticism. This right here is Jessie Ware’s horny album.

That sexual energy is channeled best in the listener’s first taste of the album, the title track, a song about unloosing yourself by putting your responsibilities to the wayside. An undeniably punchy and irresistible bassline akin to Stevie Wonder’s most powerful cuts, bombastic horns, and an ensemble of vocals sexually moaning out the album’s title at the onset of the track, which the artist herself has stated she included to stimulate the feeling of a musical orgy, punctuate Jessie Ware’s vocal elasticity as she does parkour from one melody to another, seducing the listener into a hypnotized state which forces them to bop their head up and down with her gorgeous voice. Vocal layering causes Ware’s vocals to swirl and spiral around your speakers as they tumble over each other, creating this oddly overwhelming feeling that makes it nearly impossible not to groove along to the song. It all culminates in a sexy-ass trumpet solo that will surely make you smile if the rest of the song hasn’t yet.

Free Yourself is yet another liberating song about doing exactly what the title indicates. Cascading pianos reminiscent of Europop circa ABBA and Diva House in the vein of Beyoncé’s Break My Soul are intertwined with a lavish orchestral section backing the song’s emancipating chorus. Vocally, Jessie is really letting it all out here, adding to the song’s themes of unbinding oneself from the restraining shackles of reality. It’s her most ferocious, fiery performance to date; fervid performances are what help differentiate this album from What’s Your Pleasure more than anything else. Whereas What’s Your Pleasure felt like Jessie Ware trying incredibly hard to be the shit- which is not a knock on that masterfully refined record, I actually feel as if it allowed for a more mature, subtle, and controlled album- That! Feels Good! feels like Jessie Ware knows she is the shit. Confidence is key; her dramatic vocals glide over the dazzling assortment of strings and brass on These Lips, and the charmingly child-like “La La La La” refrain on Pearls is sure to capture the listener's ear as it fades in and out with kaleidoscopic color. Yet that newfound confidence also comes instrumentally with Jessie taking an everything-but-the-kitchen-sink approach to What’s Your Pleasure’s grandiose orchestration; the pounding, bouncy, and consistent house of rhythms of Freak Me Now along with the glamorous trumpets that underscore Shake The Bottle carry just as much flashiness as Jessie’s own performances, the ladder of which has captivating Talking Heads influences aplenty encoded into its DNA.

I cannot end off this review without giving a nod to Begin Again, perhaps the best Jessie Ware song to date. It’s That! Feels Good!’s most unabridged and uncompromised ode to disco; at five and a half minutes, it’s a multifaceted, wild homage that brings the listener back to years of those classic ‘70s dancefloor anthems. Drums heavily influenced by the music of the Brazilian culture, more specifically the sound of Samba, a tropical-sounding piano bridge, and celebratory horns/eloquent strings populating the background all work in tandem to create handily the album’s most infectious grooves. Though Jessie Ware’s vocal splendor delivered in this song really steals the show, it’s truly something to behold. It is her most dynamic and compelling vocal performance yet, perfectly balancing euphoric highs that contain layers of vocals tumbling over one another, each one fighting to be the most noticeable in the mix which makes the song feel all the more untamable, and more lowkey moments where the song calms down while Jessie croons over some more subdued instrumental sections, all before reaching its monumental crescendo where every instrumental and vocal element that has been building up coalesce in an intense explosion of groovy magnificence. Begin Again really captures the spirit of the entirety of That! Feels Good!; it’s a collection of instrumentally dense, lyrically carefree songs where every track sounds like it has had hours on top of hours spent on it just to make sure it’s as thoughtful of a tribute to the sound of disco as possible. Stop being that old pretentious asshole for a minute and enjoy some fun music for once; That! Feels Good!’s sure to get a couple of good head-bops out of even its most reluctant listeners.

Favorite Tracks: That! Feels Good!, Free Yourself, Pearls, Hello Love, Begin Again, Beautiful People, Freak Me Now, Shake The Bottle, These Lips
Worst Track: Lightning (if I had to pick)

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#TBT - Album Review “ Space is only noise “ , Nicolas Jaar

How fitting is it that for an artist as robust as Nicolas Jaar, his debut would contain some of his most varied and eclectic work? As a huge fan of the guy’s work, listening to Space Is Only Noise is a fascinating experience, not only because of how amazingly produced the whole thing is but for what it represents in Jaar’s discography.

The album doesn’t hone in on a single sonic focus or genre, instead housing individual flashes of sounds that come together for a greater, darkly-tinged picture. Spoken word samples, chopped-up vocal snippets, echoes of house production, and a prevailing sense of deep atmosphere and immersion can be found here. All these pieces would go on to become hallmarks of Jaar’s, only on this record, they were each being presented in a microcosm all at once, which is a joy to listen to! The varied sound palette doesn’t detract from the cohesion of the album, instead, each sound is given context with one another by being delivered with the same moody, textured vibe. To me, the album feels like the black void of space. It’s vast and difficult to fully grasp the sheer weight of, but ultimately, it functions with all its working parts, and what you make of it is entirely dependent on your own perspective.It took a good number of listens to fully make sense of it, but after clicking, I find it to be a stellar debut record from a stellar artist who would go on to make even more stellar music. I do think a handful of songs work more as transitory moments than full pieces, and it’s certainly a lot to take in, but I still believe Space Is Only Noise to be a strong figure in one of the most consistently interesting discographies in electronic music

#TBT

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#AlbumReview - Marco Mengoni « Materia Prisma »

Un disco da ascoltare. Non ballare.

Marco Mengoni non si è smentito e ha fatto un'altro centro con la sua ultima opera.

Tre CD da ascoltare e riascoltare perchè si scoprono sempre sfumature diverse sia nella musica che nella voce di Marco. Da ascoltare, assolutamente, rispettandone l'ordine.. Terra, Pelle e Prisma. Almeno la prima volta..E' una trilogia che prende tutto ciò che ci rappresenta, le radici, la pelle e l'anima rappresentata da tutti i colori che insieme danno origine alla Luce. Ogni singola canzone potrebbe essere la colonna sonora di ognun* di noi!Marco racchiude talento, umanità e passione in tutto quello che fa.

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Classic Album Review - Madonna “Music”

Mirwais Ahmadzi's “Production” album , a big electronic timebomb hugely exploded on Madonna's Music.

Madonna created a coherent album out of the juxtapositions of Madonna's vision, along with some help from former main producer, William Orbit. Carrying on the psychedelic leanings of Austin Powers hit 'Beautiful Stranger', Music sees Madonna melt together electronica, folk and Americana into an experimental sound perfect for the new millennium.

With this album Madonna really became known as a woman who was constantly reinventing herself, this time she decided to make a more folk/electronic album and surprisingly the result is amazing, this album probably has some of her stronger deep cuts and it includes three of my favorite Madonna songs, "Paradise (Not For Me)", "I Deserved It" and "Gone" both are absolutely amazing and the former is actually my favorite Madonna song, it's beyond perfect in my opinion.

The singles released were also really good as well, "Music" and "Don't Tell Me" are easily amongst her catchiest and best produced singles and the underrated "What It Feels Like for a Girl" is a very needed song even to this day.

Highlights: Paradise (Not for Me), I Deserved It, Gone, Don't Tell Me.

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Classic Album Review “ Histoire de Melody Nelson” by Serge Gainsbourg.

Histoire de Melody Nelson is peak French pop. The instrumentation remains unmatched in French pop until even today, this is ambitious and grand. The concept can be disturbing, but that's part of Serge Gainsbourg's persona : he had never been politically correct during his whole life, for the better or the worse. Listening to this whole album feels like I'm watching a film : the intro Melody gives me chills right from the start, with the haunting strings and Gainsbourg's sensual yet disturbing spoken word and poetic lyrics. Ballade de Melody Melson is magnificient, dramatic and psychedelic. Cargo Culte is an exceptional closer, finishing the roller coaster that is this album. A poetic, ambitious timeless masterpiece.

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Classic Album Review - Talk Talk “ Spirit of Eden”

"Spirit of Eden" is above all an improbable record. Who would have thought that one of the most commercial New Wave bands of the 80's would have changed their sound in such a radical way? I imagine the record label people sitting in their ivory towers, dismayed, drops of sweat beading on their bald foreheads and saying to each other "Where are the hits??? Where is the sequel to IT'S MY LIFE? How are we going to sell this thing?". It's a wonderful kick in the pants to the record industry (one more reason to love it). "Spirit of Eden" is more than just a perfect record. It's a mysterious, comatose, unreal, celestial, stripped down universe... It's a painting by Dali that mysteriously came to life. It is an impossible nature, rocking in the gusts of a soft wind and in a luminescence as strange as it is beautiful. It is the 4 elements (water, earth, fire, air) that weep all the beauty of the world. It is a music purified to the maximum, without any concession, which goes to the essential (not one note too many). And it's damn good.

From the very first seconds of "The Rainbow" (first part of an uninterrupted triptych with "Eden" and "Desire"), we are projected into this universe described above by a hybrid music, on the edge of pop, jazz, prog, blues and classical. Miles Davis-like trumpet hints majestically combine with strings that seem to come from a composition by Arvo Pärt. Then it's time for a quasi-silent night-time drone. If there's one thing the Talk Talk guys know how to use to good effect, it's silence (which becomes the most beautiful music here). This absent interlude gives way to gliding keyboards, bluesy and nostalgic harmonica, enveloping bass, minimal percussion, piano notes that hit us directly in the soul, and above all the dizzying voice of a Mark Hollis (singer, keyboardist and composer of the band) in absolute trance. This contemplative and spectral voice, all in sustained murmurs and tragic flights, is the reflection of melancholy in its rawest form. Through these three long pieces with a thousand and one subtle sound details, an almost imperceptible rise is accomplished to a bewildering climax of voluptuousness. This is the birth of what we call Post-Rock, no more and no less.

After this first half of the album levitating at will, the splendor continues with an "Inheritance" that could make a horrendous sociopath cry. This music has a heart, that's for sure. The brass instruments add an impressionistic hue to this dreamlike piece, alternating night and daytime atmospheres. "I Believe in You", a kind of disembodied Gospel-Folk, superimposes aerial keyboards on a ghostly choir of female voices. What can we say about " Wealth ", except that when listening to it, we see ourselves hovering up to the ceiling of an immense cathedral, contemplating the divine frescoes, a feeling of total well-being covering our physical and spiritual entity... It should be this music that we play at mass.

"Spirit of Eden", the most magnificent commercial self disctruction in the history of music? Probably...

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