#alt-pop

[haveyouheardthisband]

[haveyoulistenedtothisalbum-poll]

Tracklist:

Calcutta • Nazareth • Jericho

Spotify ♪ Bandcamp ♪ YouTube

[eeveeistired]

WHEN WE ALL FALL ASLEEP, WHERE DO WE GO? - Billie Eilish

I like this album, and have found myself coming back to it several times over the last few months. Billie has probably become my favorite pop artist (although to be honest, I listen to very little pop), and the songs on this album are a lot of the reason. I honestly don't understand Bad Guy being the highlight of the record, with my favorites being Xanny and You Should See Me in a Crown. I just don't see it being significantly better than every song on the album to warrant it overshadowing the rest. Another thing I've noticed is how much I enjoy the vocals and the vocal effects! This is probably a big chunk of why Xanny is one of my favorites; those vocal effects are just sooo good. Apart from that, there's not terribly much else that stands out about this record to me, and honestly as you progress farther through it does somewhat lose the intrigue. songs 11-14 just aren't terribly memorable to me, and definitely aren't what I listen to the album for (if I have a particular song in mind). Overall good, but definitely not great.

[6/10]

[pacificwanderer]

If you think I'm pretty, lay your hands on me

Know you can't stop thinkin' 'bout it

I know that you're shitty and you're bad for me

But I can't stop thinkin' 'bout it

[nineteenfiftysix]

Nia Archives - Unfinished Business (Silence Is Loud, 2024)

[reckonslepoisson]

Hit Me Hard and Soft, Billie Eilish (2024)

Critique this as you would something produced by a non-mega-popstar and Hit Me Hard and Soft is a bit flat and superficial and rather baggy. But one can only expect so much of mass-marketed music; there are, at least, some good tracks on this, some boppy and fun tunes (indeed, I do love fun) and texturally weighty bits – that makes it markedly better than most charting stuff. 

Pick: ‘Lunch’

[ubykh]

DUDA BEAT - NiGHT MARé

Eu não quero o seu carinho Se tu vem bem de pertinho Eu vou ter que te apagar e escrever Nossa história sem memória Todo mundo comentando Eu não queria ser você

[thoughtswordsaction]

Charlotte Sands Releases Long-Awaited Debut Album 'can we start over?'     ​ 

Photo by Dillon Jordan Breakout pop/rock star Charlotte Sands released her long-awaited debut album can we start over?, available to stream on all DSPs worldwide. The album is the culmination of years of unprecedented independent success, and showcases a dynamic and eclectic work of songwriting art. The record effortlessly weaves its way in and out of rock and pop, highlighted by a subtle homage…

[luuurien]

Garrett Atterberry - Vectrex

(Electropop, Synthpop, Alt-Pop)

Garrett Atterberry’s third full length pulls out every trick he has, breakbeats and psychedelic rap and dramatic balladry all part of Vectrex’s brilliant formula. It’s a colorful, bold, and lovingly overstuffed album that makes the most of his maximalist production and greater confidence as a vocalist.

☆☆☆☆½

Garrett Atterberry’s music is a combination of luxurious pop and a messy interior world, his sound the result of endless self-teaching and a constant pursuit of connection. It’s what made the best moments of his sophomore album Fairchild Channel F, surprise turns into pop rock and industrial dance-pop and atmospheric indie folk surprising but always delightful despite how far off course they veered, his wonderfully layered production and subtle vocals the throughline for it all. In the last two years, though, he’s further refined his style while holding onto all its distinctive qualities, his third and latest album Vectrex a loving overstuffed album that makes the most of his maximalist production and greater confidence as a vocalist, still jumping between genres and placing every texture he can fit in there but tightening the hooks and committing to a cohesive atmosphere even if he’s focused on playful hyperpop or brooding pop rap. It feels much longer than its 37 minute runtime because of how much is going on, pulling you into Atterberry’s world and balancing out weighty pop songs with slow jams and atmospheric electronica until there’s few other pop albums this year able to match its addictive formula. Vectrex knows what makes good pop stick and fuses it with his impossibly detailed production - it’s easy to see why it sticks the landing.

Atterberry’s writing and tone haven’t changed much, still painting in broad strokes with lyrics focused on heartbreak and mental instability, but it’s the triumphant tone and reinforced core of the music he uses to hold Vectrex together. Lead single Waste builds on its industrial percussion and buzzing pads with swirling vocoders that makes its anxious pining thick and overwhelming, later released in the warmth of The Road Home and Flatline Hotline’s final plea for understanding, the outline of Vectrex’s narrative found in the push-and-pull between waiting on connection and all the hope and anger between those few moments of release. The album’s first half is a killer six-track run, going from Sunshine (Like a Butterfly)’s apocalyptic electropop into the explosive back-to-back synthpop of Executioner and Heart Racer into the murky pop rap cut Mayday and Remains’ gorgeous drum and bass, culminating in the fiery centerpiece Light for a finale of jersey club drums and gospel harmonies - spreading the album out track by track might seem straightforward, but it outlines how Atterberry’s music can change in an instant, always pushing the boundaries of what can fit into his wiry electronica. There’s dozens of things to point out in any song here, be it Heart Racer’s panning arcade synths or the vocal sampling in New Vortex fully revealed in the outro, Vectrex filled with all these little things that make the full experience so fulfilling, sitting squarely in the sound and energy of homemade pop and operating on the idea that being able to make music on your own time should result in the fullest sound possible. Atterberry’s got as much time as he desires to pull off his vision, and Vectrex reaps the highest possible rewards from that.

All this detail can come at a cost to clarity, which is where the few rough spots of Vectrex reveal themselves. Vocal harmonies can feel unevenly balanced due to Atterberry’s lower voice and the digital effects needed to add those higher octaves, Sunshine (Like a Butterfly)’s chorus noticeably muddy between the thick chord layers and electric guitars and noisy drumming, while the undeniably lovely The Road Home is mixed quieter to fit in Atterberry’s dark bass voice, leading guest vocalist TaylorMae to stick out in her verse - none of these little things are enough to cause any major issues, but Atterberry’s fine tuning of the production for himself can leave features and certain instrumentation exposed much more than the rest, the monumental force of his music still tailored foremost to him. That’s not to say there aren’t fantastic features: hyperpop darling saoirse dream makes an appearance on the penultimate Flatline Hotline with a short and sweet verse atop its breakbeat drumming and thick piano chords; That Guy Veezy drops one of his strongest verses to date on the trippy final half of Mayday; shoegazer Divine Intentions layers their voice in hyperpop voice filters for the ear candy chorus of Heart Racer; but these features are given distinct sections where the production can be brought down to their level, whereas TaylorMae or The Arizon don’t fit in nearly as tight in their respective tracks. Regardless, Vectrex's uncompromising nature and passionate energy takes it all the way to the finish line, Atterberry’s quest for a steady path diverging across twelve lovely songs that make it clear how powerful he is with a specific and singular goal in mind.

A ton of ideas in just 37 minutes, Vectrex makes good on its promises, not a moment going to waste as Atterberry creates synthpop as catchy as it is adventurous. He never loses sight of what makes his music tick, even when drifting off into drum and bass or moody piano ballads, always daring to add one more level to his music and see how he can twist and turn it to fit somewhere in the mix. There’s no telling where he might go, but when he does reveal it the results are always electrifying - how many other albums would be so ambitious as to include a romantic dream pop cut between two of its heaviest electronic songs? It’s a joy from start to finish, cataloging the emotional waves of an uneven relationship and the loneliness that comes with every moment. His writing may speak of insecurity and confusion, but his music undoubtedly is not: Vectrex knows what it wants to be, and Atterberry materializes its every wish. He may still be doing it all on his own, but it’s tough to imagine him doing it any other way, Vectrex’s galactic pop achieved completely on his own terms. It’s a lot, and that’s exactly how he pulls you in.

[blood-powered-radio]

Content Warning: Explicit Language

Candi Carpenter - Nervous System

from the album Demonology (Part 1), 2023

Another song with a fantastic video! A friend sent me this, said it reminded them of me and I would like it, they were Very correct 🧠

Video Warning - Mild Flashing Effects

[haveyouheardthisband]

[haveyoulistenedtothisalbum-poll]

Tracklist:

Pompeii • Things We Lost In The Fire • Bad Blood • Overjoyed • These Streets • Weight Of Living Pt. II • Icarus • Oblivion • Flaws • Daniel In The Den • Laura Palmer • Get Home

Spotify ♪ YouTube

[tornbluefoamcouch]

Artista: Arlo Parks Álbum: Collapsed In Sunbeans Ano: 2021 Faixas/Tempo: 12/39min Estilo: Bedroom Pop/Neo-Soul/Alt-Pop Data de Execução: 30/08/2023 Nota: 7,0 Melhor Música: Eugene

[safety-pin-punk]

19 for the ask game!

19. Song You Just Found: Upgrade by TWIN XL

[nineteenfiftysix]

Nia Archives - Unfinished Business (Silence Is Loud, 2024)