hana-umag

[hana-umag]

noso, stay proud of me (2022)

ALBUM OF THE YEAR I AM SO SERIOUS fellow gay koreans PLEASE give this a listen.

like from a purely musical standpoint it's just incredibly solid kinda synthy indie rock. SO good,,,

but the songwriting so beautifully captures queer yearning and gender dysphoria and honestly its so steeped in metaphor that there are still some verses im struggling to parse.

my favorite tracks are the man who loves you and suburbia

not to expose myself as wackadoodle but when noso was opening for molly burch in dc i went to the show just to see them.,, i got their autograph on a napkin but i LOST IT what is WRONG with me

[hana-umag]

Bubblegum strawbs

[hana-umag]

Joni Mitchell, “Big Yellow Taxi,” Isle of Wight, August 29, 1970.

[hana-umag]

soccer mommy, color theory (2020) +demos

i really did not appreciate this album when i first listened to it like wtf was wrong with me

the reason i listened to it the first time was i think the aesthetic of the cover which is... valid... i guess

the first song that drew me in was circle the drain just for its catchiness, but as I've spent more time with the album i think bloodstream and royal screw up have also become favorites

i remember reading an interview where sophie allison mentions that she is really influenced by pop, so she tries to incorporate catchy motifs and hooks into all of her music, and i think that influence is very clear even though the album certainly is more of a "rock" album, whatever that means

i liek the songwriting in this album,,, it's very descriptive and a little abstract but also somehow very clear in what it's alluding to. it's also very layered, meaning that more depth is evident as soon as you start actively spending time engaging with the lyrics.

recently i encountered the demos for this album and i don't have much to say abt it lol besides that it's nice to hear a stripped back version; it's more reminiscent of her earlier work

anyways this is definitely one of my favorite albums at the moment

fave tracks: bloodstream, circle the drain, royal screw up

[hana-umag]

big thief, masterpiece (2016)

i really adore this album. i think the first song i encountered form it was paul, which just. hurts.

my favoriute tracks are masterpiece, real love, paul, humans, and animals. i think real love might be my favorite because of how dynamic it is. i feel like the alternating between relatively sparse sections and then much more,,, lush (wc?) phrases.

also like not going to lie i feel like ive been listening to too much man music these days so this is a nice change.

this album is 100% bangers i love it !!

[hana-umag]

black country, new road, ants from up there (2022)

faves: bread song (!!!!!!!!!!), the place where he inserted the blade, basketball shoes, snow globes, haldern

least fave: any song w the billie eilish line. sorry im a hater.

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opening so jazzy. sounds like airplane commercial from 1960s (i’m saying it reminds me of rhapsody in blue)

chaos space marine— it reminds me of musical theater. opening verses sound like astonishing from the little women soundtrack lmfao. devolves into rushed catharsis. i rlly don’t get that billie eilish line.

concorde opening sounds saur classic. like very late 2000s depressed indie. i wish i was better at identifying instruments but there’s a very lowkey mildly escalating something that reminds me of that song i wont give up which was big like a trillion years ago. ok this song is sweet whatever it reminds me of family *screams*.

THESE SONGS ARE SO FUCKING LONG LMAO

bread song also reminds me of something. idk why for all of these songs my first thought is “oh this reminds me of…” ok this song is fucking fantastic what. ik i’ve heard it before but it hits diff while laying in bed at 1130am on a weds

SORRY the opening of good will hunting EXACTLY sounds like the opening of a diving woman. i feel like bcnr is like a pretentious version of the war on drugs in a way where it’s like. im better than u bc i have a sax and 8 types of woodwinds. ok like once again i just dont understand why are we referring to billie eilish so much. this whole song is giving man version of soft sounds from another planet. ok sorry to keep harping on the billie eilish thing but like i feel like it’s honestly such a dumb line that it sticks out from everything else ??? like why r u talking abt this ?? is she that relevant ?? i genuinely think abt her like once a month max bc i never hear abt her like what the fuck r u talking abt rn? is there a large degree of overlap btwn bcnr and billie eilish fans ???

haldern is making me insane i love it. strings work really well as a driving force,,, adding a sense of urgency especially with the layered syncopation. honestly, i feel like a lot of the songs on the album would benefit from the conciseness of this song.

OH MARKS THEME !!! i really like how it sets up these incredibly classical motifs/ common musical phrases and then just. resolves them in a way that is very slightly dissonant

the place where he inserted the blade is another fave it feels very cathartic . i like the internal music references in the lyrics n it feels like an indie rock version of blues music which is cool.

snow globes about a minute in when the ??? kicks in is very nice. you are a lovely song WAIT HAHAHAHHAHAH WAS THAT A FUCKING KILLERS REFERNECE ???? THIS IS SOME INCEL MUSIC FOR REALLLLLL. oK poking fun aside the classical sounding strings w the absolutely insane escalating drums plus screaming is so GAHHHHH this song is making me fucking insane.

basketball shoes is a queen. “if you see me looking fresh with a new style” yeah is that billie eilish style fuck you. ok that section that ends around 8 min in is very good. i think it’s insane that i even have to say that actually like these songs are insanely segmented. it’s definitely out of the norm compared to what i listen to but im not actually sure how i feel abt it. i dont think im mad abt it bc i think it actually works. like this song feels like a collection of vignettes organized around a central theme/ stylistic impulse. ok i looked on genius and it’s literally listed in parts ive never seen this before lol. a lot of the songs have like “instrumental intro” written in w the exact time stamps which i feel like is funny. concorde again :’))) i feel like this is a just really technically solid closer like maybe im projecting but i think i hear a lot of repetition of musical devices that were used throughout the album? like theres a lot of intentionality there.

overall references to the concorde remind me of my great grandpa. idk if theyre tlaking abt the airplane (i assume they are based on the album title) but my great grandpa used to tell us about flying on it while we sat around eating peanut butter oreos.

i feel like i was so mad abt the billie eilish thing bc everything else has such good lyrical depth like “you are the only one i’ve known/ who broke the world so quietly/ and turned your perfect hands to me/ and you ruptured every bone” (haldern) that is just fukcing WILD like. ur just gonna SAY THAT

i jsut said this but i like how intentional everything feels. like it feels like every choice has a desired impact. sad to report i really like this album

[hana-umag]

weyes blood, titanic rising (2019)

i honestly want to drown in this album,,, i think i’d encountered it a few times just randomly (like through discover weekly), but after blues clues kids showed me movies i got hooked and finally listened to the album all the way through

i dont know anything abt her other music, but this album is just so expansive !! i also feel like it captures feelings of nostalgia really well,,,,

the delivery of/ arrangement surrounding the line “stop calling/ it’s time to let me be” on andromeda is just so absolutely heartwrenching it actually makes me insane,,, i love how in the subsequent verses it changes to “love is calling” i am going to cry.

perhaps this is a ridiuclous take but everyday kind of sounds like late 60s beatles,,,, like,,,, im fixing a hole where the rain gets in and stops my mind from wandering,,, amirite,,,

ofc movies is one of the best songs ever it ,,, i dont even know the running synths at the beginnning are so beautiful and i love how the layers build up

also i feel like some parts are sort of yeehaw core but i cant figure out why,,,

[hana-umag]

lucy dacus, home video (2021)

ok edit opinion on this has changed completely i am now obsessed with this album. i think hot & heavy was on my discover weekly and it just spiraled from there.

I feel like hot & heavy + cartwheel are similar in their extensive use of harmonies but obvs the former is much mroe lush in its arrangement,,, the way the production steps up when she says “led me to then floor even though im not a dancer” is just. chefs kiss.

i also really love first time. i feel like the imagery in the beginning of the song where she talks about drooling on the kitchen tile etc is very evocative

my favorite lyrical moments are (unsurprisingly) in brando. especially “you admit you think we’re fated/ i’ll be lucky if i’m your third wife” like damn that hurts !!! i also like the structure of the song a lot-- i feel like each of the verses build on each other really well to the point that it feels like a theme is really developing

honestly,, the one track that’s kind of a miss is partner in crime. i get what she was trying to do with the autotune like produce an air of alienation and distance but in actuality it just sounds disjointed, especially when considered in the context of the rest of the episode.

generally though this album is amazing,,, there’s a coherence to it, both sonically and lyrically that holds up really well to the example set by historian,,, i love u lucy dacus

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OLD REVIEW [bad]: look this is not my FAVORITE lucy dacus albim but damn does it hit i feel like it must rlly capture that repressed queer christian girl vibe and i love that it feels so small town core like damn this is so personal

[hana-umag]

the wombats, fix yourself, not the world (2022)

first 2022 album ive listened to,,,, very very exciting !! (but honestly,,, not my fave)

i felt like this album was jsut sosoosoososos grim like ik the juxtaposition thing is very classic wombats but i just felt like this time it felt more gimmicky than meaningful? ik im just speaking very broadly and vaguely atm but. it’s just my opinion for an audience of one (me).

i think the best songs on this album were already released. imo if you ever leave im coming with you and ready for the high are the best songs and those have been out for a while. of the “new” songs, people dont change people time does and wildfire were my favorite songs

also im sad bc i cant go to their concert even tho i got a ticket bc of the m*******,,, pain

anyways ill think on this one but so far. not a fave sorreee

[hana-umag]

samia, the baby (2020)

i like this album,,, i feel like the lyrics are so evocative of childhood like espcially in big wheel when she talks about her bug bites and in does not heal when she talks about her cut up thigh,,,

the line “everyoine dies byt they shouldnt die young” from is there something in the moveis actually makes me lose my mind,,,,

WAIT HER MOM IS KATHY ANN NAJIMY ??? HELLO ??? that like. rules i think ??

favorite tracks pool fit n full triptych is there somethign in the movies. honestly i feel like i dont resonate as much with the lyrics as some other albums but still very solid and enjoyable. i think the relatively minimalist production is very well done and highlights her voice whihc is truly lovely !!

[hana-umag]

indigo de souza, any shape you take (2021)

i did not know what to expect going into this besides that pitchfork likes it which is not. necessarily a good thing lmao but !! but !!!!!! i really like this honestly,,, it’s kind of dacus-y and snail mail-y if that makes any sense.

also the screaming in real pain was so. well. it fit the song title !!! “i dont think im ready for a clean cut kind of love” honestly !! true. bad dream is saurrrrr good. maybe the guitar at the end reminds me of lucy dacus in historian maybe in like timefighter ? or night shift ???? idk what im talking abt i love this.

oh she worked w bon iver’s producer ? i kinda hear it tbh

anyways i adore this album likely a new fave !!! obsessed w that for me.

[hana-umag]

car seat headrest, teens of denial (2016)

okay honestly im justg gonna preface this by saying that my friend who reminded me of this album called it “incel rock” and hes not wrong. so. consider that ig.

also i listened to this in high school and i feel like. i feel like it made my depression worse,,, i really like cosmiuc hero though and i love how they reference white flag in the battle of costa concordia. like i think that slays at lit actually. this is another album where i had some trouble actually distinguishing songs from each other which isnt necessariluy a bad thing especially bc i do like their sound but it also means i dont actually have a lot of intelligent thoughts about anything. which like. when do i ever but still.

this is loser music fr. i will revisit this when i really feel like a loser.

[hana-umag]

samia, scout (2021)

this ep just sounds soooo beautifull,,, as you are is like.,,, some parts of it remind me of psychopomp

LMAO the muna shoutout ???!? that slays

oh i adore the bridge of show up,,,,, i ususally dont love  like,, vocal effects but it wokred so well

the cover of the promise works so well like it sounds like 80s inspired struff these days but just way more melancholic and nostalgic,,, like i get the critique that it’s washed out ig but i feel like it lends a really low fi feel to the overall sound which i do like a lot,,,

overall very cute ep :))))

[hana-umag]

waxahatchee, saint cloud (2020)

this is a liiiiiiiittle yeehaw-core and i kind of adore that !!!

ok u know what having listened to hell this is extremely yeehaw-core. something abt the chords and the guitar strumming idk. i appreciate it, i do !!!

theres actually solid songwriting too. like not to shit on the corrs more (im sorry) but jsut since i was listening to them earlier i feel like they speak in these vague platitudes that ultimately feel meaningless and overly general,, like imo great songwriting makes the general feel personal and vice versa yanno. like here it feels like shes talking abt someone but also abt everyone and i think thats also the heart of the like “theyre jsut like me fr” thjing. i know saying that relatability is good is literally the most basic ass take ever but waxahatchee does it well !!

album was overall a slay i think

[hana-umag]

apink, one & six (2018)

i think this is the first apink project im listening thru fully ?? that’s kinda fun bc unironically i LOVE all of their title tracks like ive watched thru those like 몰라요부터 덤더럼까지 vids from kbs or whatver like i think theyre absolute queens

obvs im so sick is absolutely top tier kpop. a l r i g h t sounds kinda like a twice song to me. not to keep making comparisons but don’t be silly kinda sounds like early red velvet like be natural era. but whoever sang the first chorus sounds really really great like it’s a much more mature sound which i loveeeeee ok i looked it up it was eunji that makes sense shes honestly a queen

forever star ur avg kinda boring ish filler track. theyre queens tho so its good plus some of the instrumetals were fun and actually reminiscent of im so sick. so it’s nice that they maintained a bit of consistency even on the kind of track that would often be considered a total throwaway.

i like promise me it sounds like an old apink title track like its a quality track. i like that kiss also rules.

not gonna make comparisons btwn groups bc that would obviously be not a great idea but like. generally a pretty solid project !! liek sometimes it feels like eps are rlly all filler for the title track which is like fine ig but i appreciate that these r all pretty decent.

[hana-umag]

the corrs, in blue (2000)

this album kind of sucks but in a fun way do you know what i mean

actually i wrote that before i finished listeniung my thoughts have changed yes it was inoffesnive but it was WAY too long also the lyrics were so,, not rlly much. like at the abt halfway point i was kinda ready for the album to be over but holy fuck like 80 more songs,,, why,,, why,,,,,,,,,,,,, the album started off on a high note breathless is an amazing song but like. it jsut got worse and worse. currently listeming to hurt before i thought it was the last song bc it sounds like a shitty closing ballad off of a kpop album or something (at least those are like kinda good tho ??) but NO theres another song lets see how this one is.

so....... rebel heart............ i mean the strings are kinda nice ? is that other instrument like,,, bagpipe ? its ok,,,  not bad.,, like. fine. fine. if that prior song hadnt been there i wouldnt be mad at this as a closer but wHY two in a row. better than hurt before though. that shit sucked.

look., this album would be inoffensive if it was like HALF as long why is it a whole fucking hour long like ???????

cannot believe this is the only album ive gotten thru in days i am unhappy

[hana-umag]

the go-go’s, beauty and the beat (1981)

i think this album is the most throwback-y album of all time. our lips are sealed. this town, and we got the beat were my MIDDLE SCHOOL soundtracks,,, that and vacation (which is in the to listen queue)

i lvoe how its like punk influenced pop and i also love how i somehow know almost every word to every song despite not having listened to most of this album since ,,, 2009 ??