#imo there are few things as beautiful as choir singing

[scallionpallion]

I was tagged by @aki-draws-things to share my lock screen, home screen, and last song I listened to. Thanks for tagging me 💖

This inspired to me to change my background, I have had a generic pre-installed background for far too long

Those are both artworks at the Nationalmuseum/National Museum of Fine Arts in Stockholm. I took photos when I was there earlier this year (:

Last song I listened to was The First Nowell by some church choir (working on that christmas spirit 😂)

I tag you @psykceptionist 😘

[ohstylesno]

Fine Line Album Review

Golden 

Great, great choice of opener. I agree with Harry, it def sounds like a song I want to drive down the highway to :) I love the layered vocals and the summery background vocals. Love the vocals panning back and forth in your ears during the bridge. Love the slide guitar that comes towards the end, and that his voice goes up an octave. This song leaves me feeling excited and ready for an adventure.

Watermelon Sugar

This song is and always will be a BOP. I love the horns in this song, they add a lot to the song. This is a really funky song, I esp love his vocals on the “I just wanna taste it, I just wanna taste it, watermelon sugar high” parts. Camille said in an interview once that this was her favorite book so this is a subtle little hint from Harry. I do wish he’d changed up the chorus a little, but other than that, all good. 

Adore You 

I love love love the thick bass that runs like a river through this song. So sexy. This song is also such a bop. This song has some really tasteful guitar licks and an amazing chorus - super melodic and those harmonies after “like it's the only thing I'll ever do’ are so beautiful. I don’t see myself getting tired of this song. 

Lights Up

I still love this. I love that the opening acoustic guitar gets louder and louder as it kicks off. The drums at 0:18 (and again at 1:44) are two of the sexiest moments on the record, no doubt. I love the dreamy feel this song has, the groove sits so well in the pocket. Same with his lighter, more uplifting voice. Love the scream before the “step into the light” lyric, and the choir effect is super cool. This song is like laying in the dark with colorful floaty lights everywhere. 

Cherry

I love this song very much a lot. I love the quiet, folky plucked opening guitar, and it’s so cute that the song starts with Camille’s “coucou”. This song is the perfect example of the pettiness Harry has referred to. The lyrics “don't you call him what you used to call me” and “does he take you walking around his parent's gallery” are such petty lyrics, haha. Love that throughout the song you hear the “coucou” parts here and there in the background - nice little detail. The crescendo towards the end is beautiful, even though I do wish the drums were a little louder by the end, but wow. And I actually really love the voicemail. It makes the song feel so much more personal. We’re hearing something that initially wasn’t for us, but he chose to share it in this song and it fits so well. 

Falling

LISTEN. This is currently my favorite song on the album. This was the first song I went back to after I’d finished the record for the first time. This tune sounds like a breaking heart.. and THAT you can’t teach. Can we talk about the riff he adds on the third “falling” in the choruses? STUNNING. I love how emotionally invested he is in each song on this record, it’s so cleverly done across the whole board, his voice connects the lyrics to the sentiment and tone perfectly. *chef’s kiss*  

“What if I'm someone you won't talk about?” “what if I’m someone I don’t want around?” - those lyrics go straight to my heart, every single time. There’s no irrelevant shit with this song. And the last “I’m falling” he sings where his voice breaks because of the passion he’s singing it with, made me tear up when I first heard it. Truly a ‘wow’ moment on this record. I LOVE it. *grabs another tissue* 

To Be So Lonely

Love the dulcimer in this song, and the double cello bass. I love the more arrogant and flippant tone this song has. It’s a little more tongue-in-cheek, after some self-reflection and realization perhaps...? And it’s so petty that he sings “don’t call me baby again” after learning that that’s what Camille used to call him in Cherry, haha. At 1:12 he lights up a match and then blows it out. He’s so good at adding these little things that make the whole sonic landscape really interesting. Nice nice nice. 

She 

Again, I love the thick and prominent bass you hear in this. Def hear his Pink Floyd admiration here. Again he changes up his vocals and we hear his voice in an octave we haven’t heard much of - really cool. This song is over 6 minutes long, and I like that he's challenging our attention span with these longer songs. You get so used to the standard format of 3 and a half minute song, but by adding that guitar solo I’m reminded of the rock songs of the 60′s and 70′s where they made these longer songs all the time. I think I’ll appreciate this even more live than I do on the record actually. 

Sunflower, Vol 6 

Very fresh-sounding, interesting and trippy. I feel like I’m on a tropical island with this one. I love how much he experiments with new sounds - fun that they brought in a sitar here. And again he’s using his vocals in a really cool way, adding layers, echo, and reverb. Love the “I couldn't want you anymore, kiss in the kitchen like it's a dancefloor” lyric. And the added lil thing of taking deep breaths before starting several of the lyrics. No one is making songs like this now?? Saw someone describe this as “This song is the cute part of a romance movie where they’re just vibing and doing cute shit together” and I agree. 

Canyon Moon

I feel like harvesting some corn, haha. I’m getting summery vibes during the cold Norwegian winter and thank you for that, Harry. The campfire handclaps are really fun and jovial. This song feels very Simon & Garfunkel-ish imo and again, there’s so much is going on sonically. The whistling in the background is cute. This song makes me feel like we’re a young couple in the 70’s traveling around the world. 

Treat People With Kindness

This song is giving me major Queen/musical but also commercial vibes?? I do appreciate the sentiment behind this song - it brings a dose of positivity and it’s warm-hearted. We do need this message in 2019 for sure. The “here we go”, “one more time”, “just a little more kindness” and “all together now” are really fucking cute but this is my least favorite on the album. Sorry. 

Fine Line 

What a fucking way to close off the album, wow. Very Bon Iver-y with the layered vocals and the reverb. This feels very emotional, very raw, very intimate.

I like that throughout the album we heard a few different variations of ‘sun’ references when it comes to Camille. Addressing her as “golden”, “sunflower”, and here again with “you sunshine you temptress”. I love how he holds some of the notes and leaves them lingering a little, and it’s really beautiful to hear how easily he goes up into a falsetto from his head voice. After feeling like I’m standing in the rain, the skies finally open towards the end and we’re greeted with sunshine. The trumpets and drums that kick in adds to a more optimistic and joyous ending. 

And ending the song and the album with “we’ll be alright” - what a beautiful message to leave us with <3 This song is gorgeous and it’s gonna be incredible live. 

Final thoughts

All in all, I’m super happy and impressed with his sophomore album. My faves are Falling, Adore You, Lights Up, Golden, Cherry, and Fine Line. I love that he’s paving his own way and not following any trends. He’s also experimenting so much with new sounds on this album and using a lot of different vocal techniques. which keeps things really interesting for us listeners. The one “complaint” I have, is that he tends to get a bit repetitive with his lyrics, esp on his choruses. But ugh, I really love this album, it’ll be on heavy rotation forever and I can’t believe he’s making music like this at 25 tbh. He’s amazing and I’m reallyyy proud. 🥺

[laceymorganwrites]

Haikyuu band AU

Band:

Kuroo, Bokuto, Kenma, Akaashi: 

they´d do stuff like Falling In Reverse, a bit of emo, but with a few genre mixes. 

Kuroo would sing (Bokuto backs him up an does the screaming), as well as play guitar, Akaashi would play bass and piano, Bokuto would play drums, Kenma would mix everything and do social media alongside marketing

Tendou, Ushijima, Goshiki:

I feel like they´d do progressive rock and do a few openings and endings for niche anime.

Tendou writes the lyrics and melodies, he also has all of the connections, Ushijima does the instrumentals and Goshiki sings.

Asahi, Daichi, Suga:

They are a solid rock band with a few slow songs as well, like Stone Sour for example, or Rise Against. 

Daichi sings and plays guitar, Asahi plays bass and Suga plays the drums. 

Iwaizumi, Oikawa, Kageyama:

They´re a very controversial idol band. A lot of scandals involving them which gains them publicity alongside the rumors that they don´t do anything themselves and they´re just faces for the industry.

Kindaichi, Kunimi:

I feel like they´d do music similar to Twenty One Pilots. Both sing/rap and play instruments.

Kindaichi always finds the best places for music videos as well.

Atsumu, Osamu, Suna, Kita, Aran:

I think they´d do classic pop punk like Neck Deep (their old stuff, their new album isn´t that good imo, it was a letdown for me)

I just really think it fits their vibe, the whole thing about small town bands rising to fame. A lot of bickering going around, brothers in the band, a lot of similarities. 

Suna sings because he has a beautiful singing voice, Osamu plays drums, Aran plays bass, Atsumu plays a mean e-guitar and Kita is their producer, he does all the managing and marketing too.

Futakuchi, Aone:

They´re street artists. It started in college when they needed money. Futakuchi always wrote his own songs and Aone learned to play instruments for him.

Nishinoya, Tanaka, Saeko:

Pure chaos. Saeko basically dragged them with her to start a band. Noya learns to play guitar and Tanaka sings. Writing sessions are all over the place, everyone got too many ideas and they get a lot done, but in the end they have too much material.

Yaku, Lev, Yamamoto:

Kind of like a joke band (maybe Eskimo Callboy vibes). Yamamoto wanted to start a band to impress girls, naturally Lev hopped onto the idea and Yaku couldn´t stop them so he decided to be the voice of reason. They do hard rock with a bit of electronic.

Matsuwaka, Hanamaki:

They´re sound producers and everyone wants to hire them because their work is so good. They worked with almost everyone on this list, but quit working with Oikawa´s band after the rumors.

Kogane, Tsukishima, Kyoutani;

They give me major Palaye Royale vibes. While they´re not brothers, the utter chaos is still very prevelant. Kogane would play guitar like Sebastian, Tsukki would have Emerson´s role and play the drums and piano and Kyoutani would be Remington and sing (he can also play piano and guitar). I feel like the lyrics also fit very well and overall I recommend every single mentioned band! PR is my favorite band and I was lucky enough to see them live.

Konoha, Yamaguchi, Komori:

I know you´re all thinking this is a weird combo and it is. They met in college when they were roommates and all got along very well, they all are very kind and sweethearts so their dynamic overall is very friendly. They´re an indie band and are very big on fan interaction.

Yachi, Kiyoko:

The managers every band wishes they had. They have their own record label and push their artists to the max. Not in the bad way though, all of them are famous.

Solo artist:

Semi:

He used to be very underground, but blew up one night when his song was used on tiktok. He was so mad at that because he hates the app, but he gained a lot of followers through that and could finance an album.

He´s the artist that you´ll meet at a bar and could just talk to really chill.

Yuuji:

He gives me major MGK vibes, from his looks, fashion, to his personality.

And also I think he definitely would play the guitar and piano like him, the lyrics are so fitting, as is the genre mix and the collabs.

Takeada, Ukai: 

producers (as well as the other coaches). They treat their bands really well too and want to stand up for artists´ rights.

Udai:

Gives me Jessarae vibes, just a small artist, just a dude and his guitar, singing some ballads.

Inuoka:

Started as a soundcloud rapper, does collabs with Hinata a lot. Very inspired by Linkin Park and such.

Hinata:

Used to sing in a choir and now he´s an indie artist. Only positive songs and can play a lot of instruments. 

Instrumental only:

Sakusa:

A very famous violinist or pianist, either fits very well for him, but he hardly does interviews.

Shirabu:

He´d play the piano and appear on multiple bands´ albums.

[redmalbec]

My top 10 favorite openings

Yeah I know nobody asked for it, but welcome to discover new music and hopefully new animes/mangas if they catch your eye. I won't include openings of romcoms or a few slice of life stories since I should make a different list for them. I'll add the name of the band if I find it. There's a couple of songs here from animes I didn't watch. If you think there's another amazing opening that should be listened to, share!

BTW I tend to listen to music on Youtube music, if you can support the work of these artists with this app, or Spotify, iTunes, or CDs, please do it!

DURARARA!! [Uragiri no Yuuyake - Theatre Brook]

Wonderful music, I don't have much to add since I haven't watched the anime but it looks interesting. This only time I'll only share the link to the video (couldn't find an official one) since I reach the limit of linked multimedia.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M5-4eQuExgE

MOB PSYCHO 100 I [99 - Mob Choir]

I always thought this was some uninteresting anime, and well I was totally wrong. The animation is AWESOME, the story is really cool and explores some interesting perspectives about life that other shonen (or seinen?) ignore. It has a different style, it's kinda plain at times (and this might be good because it avoids unnecessary complexity) but in my opinion, much better than some popular animes of the moment. I feel it's very original, and stays as part of my top 10 manga/animes too.

FULL METAL ALCHEMIST BROTHERHOOD [Again - YUI]

This might be my favorite song. If I ever fall in a coma, try to wake me up with it, I'm sure it will work. I might be biased because this is the first anime I watched (when I didn't care about these kind of series) and I love it, and it's definitely my favorite (I was lucky to be gifted the first volume in japanese). The melody is calm and the lyrics are heart touching. FMA is a manga and anime you should add to your watch/read list without a doubt. Sharing short version of the song to find the channel of the artist.

BOKU NO HERO ACADEMIA [The day - Porno Grafitti]

I will never regret being on the bus playing this song on my phone (with headphones) being seen by people who would think something about the name of the band (like listening to anime openings almost every day wasn't already a weird thing). None of the other songs of BNHA surpassed the greatness of this song IMO.

About it, even though it gets criticism I think it's a good story, and I feel it can be incredibly creative at times - there's a reason why it's so popular after all. I should also remark that it pays attention to a lot of characters, secondary or villains have good development (something that I haven't seen in other shonen or they fail to do it, and remember BNHA has A LOT of characters).

This story is definitely going to be long, I think it's close to reach its first half, expect probably 70 volumes or so.

NARUTO [Kanashimi Wo Yasashisa Ni - Little by Little]

Wait? WHAT? Did you really pick this opening over Silhouette? I mean, no offense to Silhouette and the fantastic band KANA-BOON, but I've listened to it so many times (best memes lol), and I already didn't have it as my favorite. There are other openings that I love (Naruto Shippuden this time): 2, 3, 5, 9, 10, 14, 15 (Guren is the best one IMO), 16, 17, 20.

You didn't watch Naruto? Then what are you doing here? It's a must watch! It's a shonen with beautiful messages, inspiring characters, and this song probably embodies one positive vibe of the story - best part "the most important things are those without any shape".

PSYCHO PASS [Abnormalize - ling tosite sigure]

This anime is definitely in my favorite list, I feel it's the best seinen I've watched. Its manga is an adaptation, but the original story is the one that's animated. Some people say that season 2 and 3 aren't as good as the first and honestly it's hard to do something more brilliant than the incredible season 1, nonetheless you would miss the progress of the story and interesting characters if you only leave at the first one.

It reaches some philosophical thoughts that not all sci-fi can explore on the same way. Don't expect it to be an easy watch though - you better click pause to understand every dialogue.

SHINGEKI NO KYOJIN [Shinzou wo sasageyo - Linked Horizon]

Yeah, the first opening is AMAZING, but I might have a thing for 2nd openings. I must say that the synchronization of the scenes don't make justice for the melody of this song, though. Attack on Titan might reach the top 5 best shonen (is it shonen anyways?) anime/manga of all time.

I saw everyone talking about it and praising it, so I decided to watch the first episode and I couldn't get through it because of its disturbing art LMAO. My eye is accustomed to other kind of art, but I have to say I WAS TOTALLY WRONG. Good thing the second time I watched it I felt comfortable and discovered not only a mind-blowing story, but yeah, its animation is fantastic (take a peek at a few YT videos showing the process on the making of Levi's scenes). I only follow the manga to be updated, and I'm bad at recognizing characters, but you won't waste time or money by giving this one a chance.

THE PERFECT INSIDER [Talking - KANA BOON]

I tell you, this is a list of favorite openings, it doesn't mean I've watched all the anime, but I'm going to do it thanks to these fantastic songs, and KANA BOON deserved a mention. Also known as "Subete ga F ni Naru" this seinen anime is based on a novel.

MOB PSYCHO 100 II [99.9 - Mob Choir]

Wasn't this anime already on the list? No, no it's not (?) I mean, HOW CAN'T I INCLUDE THIS ONE. Fantastic. I thought I wouldn't be able to fall in love with the new opening but after listening to it twice I couldn't get it off my mind. There's a reason, well deserved reason, why it got chosen for the Crunchyroll awards...

NEON GENESIS EVANGELION [Zankoku na Tenshi no Te-ze - Yoko Takahashi/Hidetoshi Sato]

Starts with an angelic voice to a disco-like rhythm, and it's without a doubt a fantastic song. This might be the most famous opening of anime. Pay attention or watch twice if you want to understand the story, though.

🎹🎹🎹🎹🎹🎹🎹🎹🎹🎹🎹🎹

There is a song that's missing, don't you think so? This one can't be part of a top 10 because it's honestly so amazing that leaving it there would make it shine less, and it deserves the BEST recognition.

Special mention

TOKYO GHOUL [Unravel - TK from ling tosite sigure]

If I'm in a coma and the song Again didn't work, then this one will wake me up FOR SURE. I love how it embodies the angst of the story, the tragedy, the bad luck of the protagonist. I recommend to read the manga instead of keeping too loyal to the anime - it's no surprise that SP messed up with the storytelling of another manga... Did I say how hard it must be to play it on the piano? Or even sing it?

[spaceorphan18]

The Best Music of Glee Vol. 1

So, I’ve been thinking for a while about the music of glee, and what worked and what didn’t.  So I figured I’d put together a list of music that I felt was either as good as the original or better than the original.  Of course, this is my own subjective opinion -- but what else am I going to use this Master’s in Music for? Anyway - I thought I’d brake it down by season, otherwise it’d be way too long. 

Season One (Part 1 Eps 1-13) 

1. Don’t Stop Believin’ (Various Episodes) 

Yes, I know, so many of you are so tired of this song - but let’s be real. The first time I heard this at the end of the Pilot it gave me goosebumps.  It hit the right emotion the show needed to elevate it from quirky, dark comedy to wow, this is going to be something special isn’t it?  Not only did this become an anthem for the show itself - I think it reinvigorated the song for a new (and younger) audience.  Music, at its best, can evoke a strong emotional response, and this song managed to strike all the right chord (pun intended).  

2. Bust Your Windows (Acafellas) 

The arrangement of this song does little to the original, and mostly, replaces Jazmine Sullivan’s vocals with Amber Riley’s.  While Amber Riley has a different sound to her voice, I think she perfectly portrays the song’s intent, and knocks this one out of the park.  

3. Maybe This Time (The Rhodes Not Taken) 

The interesting thing about Broadway music is that there are many different definitive versions out there of various songs.  While this one is probably most well known being sung by Liza Minnelli for the film version of Cabaret, I think both Kristen Chenoweth and Lea Michelle, both of whom have versatile Broadway backgrounds, bring a powerful edge to this rendition.  It’s utterly fantastic. 

4. Dancing With Myself (Wheels) 

I’m of mind that Kevin McHale is one of the better male vocalists on the show and maybe overshadowed by a few others.  This acoustic version is actually really nice, and (imo of course) is much more listenable than the overly synthesized original version.  

5. Defying Gravity (Wheels) 

Look, I realize that Lea Michele and Chris Colfer are not Idina Menzel and Kristen Chenoweth - but not only do they sound great together in a version that is a little more radio accessible than the original Broadway number, it’s also one of the most iconic numbers the show ever did.  This one might be a little more on the subjective side - but I’ll stand by it. 

6. Imagine (Hairography) 

This song is simple in its beauty - so as long as you have a good singer on it, you can probably make a good cover of it.  And while, now, the scene might be a little iffy with the New Directions singing over the Deaf Choir, the studio version of this one is exquisite with Amber Riley and Kevin McHale leading.  

7. Smile - Lily Allen Version (Mattress) 

This is a rare time that I don’t dislike a Finchel duet - shocked, I know, me, too.  The arrangement is pretty much the same, substituting Lily Allen’s voice for Lea Michele’s - and it really works.  The performance choreography may be a little weird, but the fact that Cory Monteith is only supplemental to Michele’s vocals actually works and I think it’s as strong as the original. 

8. Jump (Mattress) 

Glee does these power ballads pretty well, and while it isn’t as gritty as the original version, the performance of them jumping around on mattresses really elevates the entire thing.  

9. Smile Charlie Chaplin Version (Mattress) 

It’s a song I like the studio version more than the aired version - but the group sounds lovely on it.  This is another one of those songs that as long as you have some good singers on it, you’ll probably have a good cover. 

10. And I’m Telling You I’m Not Going (Sectionals) 

I mean - I don’t really need to explain this one - Amber Riley brings the house down here.  

11. Don’t Rain on My Parade (Sectionals) 

Lea Michele is strongest on Broadway numbers - and she makes this one her own.  I wish they would have given her more showstopping tunes like this more so than the weepy pop ballads she’s going to end up getting a lot of.  

12. My Live Would Suck Without You (Sectionals) 

This is another one of those songs where the arrangement didn’t change all that much, and it becomes whose voice do you prefer on it.  Kelly Clarkson is fine, but I have no emotional attachment to her.  Lea Michele belting this out at the end of the emotionally charged Front 13 really brings this version ahead.  It’s fantastic.  

Songs that I think are good but I don’t believe equal or surpass the original: On My Own (Pilot); Taking Chances (Preggers); Somebody to Love (Rhodes Not Taken); It’s My Life/Confessions II (Vitamin D); Halo/Walking on Sunshine (Vitamin D); Lean On Me (Ballad); True Colors (Hairography) 

Continued on in Vol 2 - which will cover the second half of season 1. :) 

[grimelords]

October Playlist

My October playlist is finished and it’s complete from Rico Nasty to Rachmaninoff. I absolutely guarantee there’s something you’ll love in this 3 and a half hours of music, and probably something you’ll hate too! Something for everyone!

If you’d like to have these playlists delivered to your inbox instead of having them randomly appear on your dash, please subscribe to my tinyletter here.

listen here

Santeria - Pusha T: In anticipation of Jesus Is King I relistened to the entire Wyoming Sessions project a few times, and a year removed from all the hype and controversy here's the thing: it's fucking great. The individual albums ranged pretty widely in quality and felt slightly unfinished for how short they were sometimes, but taking the project as a whole 5-album 120 minute playlist it turns out it's a masterpiece. My personal tracklist goes Ye/Daytona/Nasir/KTSE/Kids See Ghosts, which isn't release order but I think makes it flow the best - both Kanye albums bookending it and the less impactful Nas and Teyana Taylor albums buried a bit further in where you can appreciate them now that you're deep in the mindset of the whole thing rather than alone on their own.

Puppets (Succession Remix) - Pusha T & Nicholas Brittel: This remix is such a perfect match: Pusha T’s corporate villainy finally given a context and prestige it deserves. It’s also short enough that it could feasible be the actual theme song next season, which would be a marked improvement imo.

Use This Gospel - Kanye West, Clipse & Kenny G: I am and remain a Kanye stan, even after everything. It’s nice to see him going back to the extremely uneven mastering of MBDTF era, it’s a sound that is uniquely his and it’s fun to see him revisit it. The thick vocoder harmony is so soupy you get lost in it, and the way it opens up to include the full choir in the No Malice verse is beautiful. Kanye reunited Clipse through Christ and we have Him to thank for that at least. The Kenny G break is great, and the grain and dirt on the whole track when the beat kicks in is so gritty you can feel it.

Man Of The Year - Schoolboy Q: I didn't love the Chromatics album they surprise released but it did thankfully remind me of the time Schoolboy Q sampled Cherry for Man Of The Year. Taken exclusively on lyrics, Man Of The Year is a triumph: he's the man of the year and it's all worked out but the sample and the beat underscores the dead eyed melancholy that runs through the whole of Oxymoron of never winning even when you've won.

Cold - Rico Nasty: This song fucking tears your face off. Imagine STARTING your album at this level of intensity. She just goes straight to 100 and burns the house down. Outside of Lil John so few rappers can get away with just straight up screaming in the adlibs but the way she just lung tearingly screams GOOOO through this is fucking sick.

Fake ID - Riton & Kah-Lo: TikTok songs are becoming their own genre, but it’s a very nebulous sort of a mood encompassing everything from aughts pop punk hooks to skipping rope raps like this. It’s a strange new way for songs to blow up that everyone seems compelled to write articles about but my take on it is it’s exactly the same as ads were in the old days. Remember how many songs did absolute numbers because someone put it in a Motorola ad? Same thing except you’re not being sold a phone this time, so in some ways it’s better. Anyway, this song bangs. The spirit of 212 era Azealia Banks lives on even if she’s doing her best ever since then to kill it.

Doctor Pressure - MYLO & Miami Sound Machine: There was a very good era in the mid-2000s where you could just put mashups out as singles and they’d chart, it was sick. My only two examples are this and Destination Calabria but I’m sure there’s more. Drop The Pressure is a masterpiece but as an alternate version this mashup is equally masterful.  

If You’re Tarzan, I’m Jane - Martika: Martika is unfortunately best known for the 1989 one hit wonder Toy Soldiers, a sort of boring overdramatic ballad which is best known for being sampled by Eminem in 2004 in his quite bad super duper serious song Like Toy Soldiers. I say unfortunately because every other song on her first album is great, it’s all hypercolour 80s synthpop and I love this song especially because it is so completely stuffed with activity it becomes dizzying. It gets so lost in itself that they completely abandon the dramatic pause before “I’m Jane” for some reason toward the end and instead just layer three different tracks of vocal adlibs. Every part of this song is great, the weird ‘o we o we o’ chant before the second verse? The neighing horse guitar before the bridge? The musical tour of the world IN the bridge? The part where she says ‘I want to swing on your vine?’. This song has everything.

You Got Me Into This - Martika: Every part of the instrumentation in this is amazing. The bass sound, the main synth, the extremely athletic brass, the wonderful echoing 80s snare that’s as big as a house. I just love it. She also does some really intriguing slurs on the word ‘love’ all the way through, just moving it around absolutely anywhere.

Space Time Motion - Jennifer Vanilla: I love when someone has such a clearly defined aesthetic and mission from the very beginning. Jennifer Vanilla is the alter ego of Becca Kaufmann from Ava Luna who I've had in this playlist before but never competely investigated. Jennifer Vanilla feels like an episode of Sex And The City where Samantha gets really into Laurie Anderson and she is incredible. This video is the best mission statement I’ve ever seen and is currently criminally underviewed so please do your part and support the Jennifer cause by watching these two videos.

So Hot You’re Hurting My Feelings - Caroline Polachek: Caroline Polachek said watch me write a Haim song and did it. Apparently the very early versions of this album started when she was in writing sessions for Katy Perry, but then it started to turn into something else and she took it for herself, and I think you can hear that. With more normal production and a little faster this is a hundred percent a Katy Perry song, but instead it’s completely uniquely Caroline Polachek and it’s all the better for it. And also Katy Perry must be furious because her new songs are simply not good at all.

Electric Blue - Arcade Fire: I just love the obsession of this song in the outro, chanting over and over and over “Cover my eyes electric blue, every single night I dream about you”

Promiscuous - Nelly Furtado and Timbaland: I got a youtube ad for one of those Masterclass videos the other day and it was Timbaland teaching production. This ad went for five minutes for some reason and I watched the whole thing and it made me admire Timbaland even more. He’s demonstrating his compositional technique which is basically to just beatbox, and then loop it, and then add some extra percussion layers with more beatboxing and hand percussion, then loop that and add a little melody by singing or humming. ‘It’s that simple’ he says. Then later he goes back in and puts in actual drums or synths or whatever. I was stunned because suddenly a lot of his music makes sense. Without the barrier of instrument or timbre to get hung up on it allows him to write from this instantly head-nodding place of just making up a little beat you can sing and dance to immediately. Listening to a lot of his music now you can hear the bones underneath everything so clearly, all his beats are supremely beatboxable and all his melodies are very hummable, they’ve never overcomplicated by instrumental skill or habits, they just exist to serve the song.

Serpent - TNGHT:  TNGHT are back baby and this song is like nothing I’ve ever heard before. It feels like afrofuturist footwork from another dimension, the mbira sounding lead against the oil drum percussion in this cacophony of yelps and screams that just builds to an irrepressible energy without a bassline in sight.

Ghosts Of My Life - Rufige Kru: I'm reading Mark Fisher's Ghosts Of My Life right now and some good person has put together a spotify playlist of all the songs he mentions. He has a whole essay about why this song is sick so I’m not going to go into it here but it’s interesting to hear about someone growing up with jungle when it’s a genre that has always felt very niche to me. I guess partly as a result of it never really making it mainstream as a genre here, and also me being a little too young for it.

Renegade Snares - Omni Trio: My biggest introduction to drum and bass comes from the game Midnight Club 3: Dub Edition and this really great song from the soundtrack that is finally on spotify after a very long absence. At almost the exact same time as I discovered this song with its spacious piano and repitched snares, I discovered Venetian Snares and breakcore in general. Having no particular frame of reference for breakcore as an offshoot of drum and bass only amplified its appeal to me as a completely alien genre that sounded like nothing else I’d ever heard, and so my personal history with drum and bass is a story of walking backwards into it after the fact which is interesting if not helpful.

Punching In A Dream - The Naked And Famous: The Mark Fisher book also mentions the Tricky song which I’ve never heard from which The Naked And Famous got their name and I thought ‘man remember The Naked And Famous, they were sick?’. The sort of harder edged Passion Pit instrumentation mixed with pop punk, a winning combination.

Vegas - Polica: My favourite part of this song is the unexpected blastbeats after the chorus, using their two drummers to their full advantage and just shaking the song by its foundations every now and then lest you get too comfortable.

Right Words - Cults: I’m beginning to suspect I may be the last surviving Cults stan but if this be my lot I’ll gladly do it

Running From The Sun - Chromatics: The new Chromatics album got me to relisten to their definitive document Kill For Love, and something new I appreciated this time about an album I love a lot is its length. Kill For Love is almost 80 minutes long and it luxuriates in that length. It’s sequenced perfectly so it never feels like it’s long for no reason, but large chunks just completely space out and go out of focus in the soft neon light and the second half of this song is a good example. The whole thing just evaporates into smoke and it feels perfect. If this were a shorter and more concise song that had a proper ending it wouldn’t feel right, this whole album has no straight edges at all and it’s all the better for it.

Chance - Angel Olsen: I cannot belive this song. This feels like she wrote her own version of My Way looking forward instead of back. Instead of the ruefully triumphant "I've lived a life that's full / I've traveled each and every highway" it's “I don't want it all / I've had enough / I don't want it all / I've had a love." before the turn from the future to the present at the end, where she gives up on a forever love in exchange for right now. I love how raw this vocal take feels. It's not her best voice but it feels very very honest as a result. She's just singing her heart out in this huge showstopping closer. In an interview she said "I didn’t love the recording of it very much, and now I just feel in love with it as a closing statement, because it’s a way of saying, ‘Look, I have hope for the next thing in my life.’ I’m not going to anticipate negativity or hate or an end. But instead of us looking towards forever, why don’t we just work on right now?"

Something To Believe - Weyes Blood: This album just keeps paying dividends. I’m systematically going through long obsessive periods with every single song on it and now it’s Something To Believe’s turn.

Don’t Shut Me Up (Politely) - Brigid Mae Power: Without meaning to, Brigid Mae Power seems to have created some incredible fusion of folk music and stoner metal. The way this song absolutely sits unmoving on one deep and resonant chord for so long is amazing. When it does change chords it feels like a full body effort to get up and shift. She has a similar feeling to Emma Ruth Rundle, who more explicitly wears her metal influences, but Brigid Mae Powers' strength is in how much it resembles the traditional folk side of the spectrum. Her voice is also amazing, with the huge effortless runs she goes on about halfway through just coming unmoored from the song completely and floating off into space.

Sweetheart I Ain’t Your Christ - Josh T. Pearson: I had a real problem with Josh T. Pearson for a long time because of how he presents as so authentic on this album, and as I’ve previously discussed in these playlists the concept of authenticity in country music is a source of neverending anguish for me. But his newest album The Straight Hits! has largely cured that for me because it’s not good at all, is extremely contrived (all the song titles have the word ‘hit’ in them) and he’s shaved his beard and replaced it with one of the worst irony moustaches I’ve ever seen. So now I’m free to enjoy The Last Of The Country Gentlemen as a character construction, which allows me a far deeper and truer engagement than the idea of a man actually living and thinking like this which is frankly a little embarrassing.

Codeine Dream - Colter Wall: I love this song, it has that feeling that great folk songs do of feeling like you’ve always known it. The strongest moments on this Colter Wall album to me are in songs like this that chase this particular feeling of morose isolation, and where he leans away from storytelling like his biggest hit Kate McCannon - a kind of cliche country murder ballad. This song is fantastic because of the way it wallows in this black depression not as a low point, but as a reprieve from the lower previous point. Things are as bad as they get now, and they’re always going to be like this, but at least I don’t dream of you anymore.

Motorcycle - Colter Wall: I only just found out about Colter Wall this month and have been listening to this album over and over. When I first heard him I though it was strange I'd never heard of him before because he's obviously some old country veteran based off his voice, but it turns out he's 24 and this is his first album he just sings like he ate a cigar. I love this song especially because it's so straighforward. It's a simple and supremely relatable mood: what if I bought a motorbike and fucking died.

Who By Fire - Leonard Cohen: I watched American Animals a couple of weeks ago and it’s a great movie, highly recommended. This song plays near the end and I waited for the credits to find out what this great song was, and like a rube found out it’s only one of the most celebrated songwriters of all time. I’ve never had much of a Leonard Cohen phase, somehow. In my mind I always get him mixed up with Lou Reed, which I’m learning is actually way off. I love the harmony vocals in this, and the way they move around into the shadows in the ‘who shall I say is calling’ parts.

Words From The Executioner To Alexander Pearce - The Drones: Alexander Pearce was a convict who escaped Sarah Island’s penal settlement in Tasmania with seven other convicts in 1822. He was recaptured two months later alone. In 1823 he re-escaped with a fellow convict, Thomas Cox and again was returned alone.He was executed by hanging later having eaten six men during his escape attempts.

It Ain’t All Flowers - Sturgill Simpson: I found this album going through the Pichfork 200 albums of the decade list and I feel like a fool for not having heard it sooner because now I am completely obsessed. Sturgill Simpson is doing the very best work in country music right now because he's looking backwards with one eye and forwards with the other and this song is a great illustration: a perfect Hank Williams Jr type country song with big voiced hollers that morphs into a surprise psych freakout for the whole second half.

Desolation Row (Take 1, Alternate Take) - Bob Dylan: I’ve always liked Desolation Row a lot as a song but the acoustic guitar on the album version is simply not good, it's just kind of mindlessly playing this long directionless solo the whole time and over the course of a song this long it really adds up to just being annoying. Luckily because it’s a Bob Dylan song there’s a whole universe of alternate takes and mixes and this is a great pared down version I found without it. The best kind of Bob Dylan songs are the ones where he just makes an endless stream of allusions and bizzare imagery, and this and Bob Dylan's 115th Dream are my favourite examples of it.

Living On Credit Blues - El Ten Eleven: This is a groove I get stuck in my head a lot, and this is also a song I think would work well as a theme for a tv show. I've been meaning to do a 30 second edit of it just for my own amusement, maybe I'll do that soon. El Ten Eleven are a duo where one guy plays drums and one guys plays a double necked guitar/bass and looping pedals and somehow against all the odds of that description they manage to make emotional, driving instrumental music of very deep feeling, like this song which is one of my all time favourites.

Dusty Flourescent/Wooden Shelves - Talkdemonic: This is sort of a companion Living On Credit Blues, and Talkdemonic are similarly an instrumental duo with good drums. This entire album from 2005 is highly recommended, it's a sort of halfway between the post rock of the time and a kind of acoustic hiphop instrumentals that ends up sounding very rustic and homemade, like a soudtrack for a winter cabin.

Turnstile Blues - Autolux: This is a perfect song, built around a perfect beat. Every part just fits perfectly.

Fort Greene Park - Battles: The new Battles album is finally out and I absolutely love it. I cannot think of another band that has shed members in the same way as Battles; originally a quartet on their first album, then a trio for their second and third and now down to a duo for their fourth album - and somehow still performing material from their first album live. The paring down has seemingly only servers to focus them and the new album sounds fresh but still distinctively Battles, with no sense of anything lost or missing. This song is my standout so far, and the guitar line in particular is so good and interesting to me because I don’t think I’ve ever heard Ian Williams play something so distinctly guitar-y in his whole career. This is a straight up pentatonic riff with bends and everything. Filtered through his usual chopped and looped oddness it feels like he’s almost gone all the back around the guitar continuum and is this close to just doing power chords next album. And I’ll support him!

Diane Young - Vampire Weekend: I've listened to this song a lot in my life and I only looked up the lyrics the other day to find out that the opening line is 'you torched a SAAB like a pile of leaves' which I somehow never noticed. What a power phrase. There's also this very good quote from Ezra about it: "I had this feeling that the world doesn’t want a song called ‘Dying Young’,“ says Koenig, "it just sounded so heavy and self-serious, whereas ‘Diane Young’ sounded like a nice person’s name.”" and he was right to do it. This song is 100 times better because he’s saying Diane Young than it would be if he was saying ‘Dying Young’. That’s a songwriting tip for you.

Monster Mash - Bootsy Collins & Buckethead: Hey did you hear Bootsy Collins and Buckethead did a cover of the monster mash? Thank god for freaks.

The Dark Sentencer - Coheed And Cambria: There's not that many bands that I absolutely loved as a teenager that I've completely abandoned. I've moved on from a lot but I'll still keep up with them if they have a new album or something. Coheed And Cambria are one that I've almost completely turned my back on. They've had 3 apparently pretty patchy albums since I stopped listening after Year Of The Black Rainbow, which was extremely bad and really taught me what people mean when they say an album is 'overproduced'. On a whim I decided to see what they're up to now and listened to their album from last year and guess what: it rocks. It's got everything you'd expect from them: big riffs, bad and confusing lyrics, his weird high voice, overwrought and overlong songwriting, cheesy muscleman solos. Everything about this band is sort of cheesy and embarrassing and takes itself way too seriously, but I'm discovering slowly that that's what's so good about it. The weird pulp sci-fi story and mindset that underpins this whole band is ridiculous and overwrought and as a result it gives the music a reason to exist the way it does. It’s so big and dumb because the story it serves is so big and dumb. It feels exactly like reading Perry Rhodan or some increidibly long and dense but not especially good series like that, it’s pulp music and that’s what I love about it.

Romance In A (6 Hands) - Sergei Rachmaninoff: Piano works for 4 hands (where two guys sit next to each other on the same piano) have always seemed to tend towards the realm of the gimmick or party trick, and works for 6 hands (where three guys do it) even more so - but this Rachmaninoff piece is just beautiful and I can’t believe I haven’t heard of it before this month. It doesn’t overload everyone with a million things to do, it just builds this very wide harmonic bed for the simple melody to swim in - then the way the melody transfers over to the middle register is just magical before the tension of the final section takes over and builds.

Love's Theme - The Love Unlimited Orchestra: I’m so glad I got to learn about the Love Unlimited Orchestra this month. Aside from having one of the best names in music, they were Barry White’s backing band and had their own solo instrumental records too. Here’s a fun aside: Kenny G was a member when he was 17 and still in high school. This is a genre of music that has seemed to totally disappear into the realm of parody and farce only which is sort of a shame because it is unironically very beautiful and dense in its own way.

Dancing In The Moonlight - Liza Minelli: Can you believe I thought Dancing In The Moonlight by Toploader was an original until the other day when my girlfriend played this Liza Minelli version that predates it by several decades? This also isn’t the original! It was written by a band named King Harvest in 1972, with this version AND a version by Young Generation both coming out in 73 and a whole bunch of others in between (including a Baha Men version in 94) before Toploader finally had a proper hit with it in 2000. Truly the world works in mysterious ways. This version is the finest I think, it just goes and goes, frenetically unwinding at a breakneck pace before opening up into a flute solo of all things and then winding up again even and finishing in a kick line breakdown. Absolutely no limits.

Girls - Royal Headache: The sheer amount of power and melody that this song manages to pack into a minute and a half is incredible, and I don’t think I’ve ever heard a more instantly relatable opening lyric than “Girl! Think they’re to fine for me! Oh girls! And I’m inclined to agree!”

Pov Piti - Matana Roberts: In anticipation of Matana Roberts new volume of her Coin Coin album series that just came out I relistened through the three previous albums and they are even more powerful than I remembered. This song serves as a pretty good mission statement for the whole project, and the heartrending tortured screams that open it set the tone for the rest of it. Matana Roberts sings the injustices of slavery into being, and her sing-song delivery highlights the trauma - her indifferent delivery mirroring the indifference of the world at large. The way she rattles off this story like she’s gone over it a million times and grown numb to the facts only accentuates the pain in the telling, a pain that rises to the surface in the screams of her instrument and herself.  

Kingdoms (G) - Sunn 0))): This new Sun 0))) album is one of my favourites they’ve ever done because it’s so straightforward and back to basics. Every song is just ten minutes of straight up no-nonsense, big, rich, drone. They even put the notes in the track names so you can drone along if you like.

listen here

[feitanswife]

Consider:

Types of Christmas music from most to least valid:

GOD TIER NO QUESTIONS ASKED: just look up “Kelly clarkson silent night live” it’s a trio performance with a few of the greatest singers of all time and every time I hear it I SOB!!!!! IM TEARING UP JUST THINKING ABOUT IT ITS ONE OF THE MOST BEAUTIFUL THINGS IVE EVER HEARD

Most valid- jazzy brass band w/ one person singing in between looong music breaks. Makes you feel like you’re at a swanky holiday party

Very valid- the Kelly Clarkson Wrapped In Red album on the whole. No I will not be taking criticism on this getting its own tier. Her voice was just made for this stuff it’s my favorite album of hers full stop.

Solidly Valid- beach boys, lady Gaga’s “white Christmas” version with the added verse, jingle bell rock in general but tbh I like the original version most, every rendition of “last Christmas” ever done more or less(it’s a good song ok!) , the role reversal of “Baby it’s cold outside”, any metal or rock covers, romantic Christmas songs but made gay, songs about Santa driving things other than a sleigh (for example, a convertible)

i’d put Mariah Carey in this tier for the sheer iconic value of her voice, but tbh if it wasn’t so iconic I’d put it in the next tier down for being overplayed.

Kinda valid- non-christmassy Christmas songs by any artist: “frosty the snowman”, “winter wonderland”, any songs that are just like “yay it’s winter it’s snowing lets go frolic in the snow!” Theyre up in this tier for being universally relatable but not any higher cause there aren’t a lot of them and they get kinda boring after a while.

Also the religious songs that are performed by just one person (usually a lady but I’ve seen dudes do it well too) without any super intense background music just absolutely BELTING THE SHIT OUT OF IT like going back to Kelly again like I will be Christian for three minutes listening to her just go ham trying to bust the windows of the recording booth.

This is where I’d also put the other versions of “Baby it’s cold outside”, they’re good but not as good as the role reversal or any of the artists I’ve mentioned above. It’s actually a pretty difficult song to make Fantastic, it requires a very good blend of voices and the right amount of goofy self awareness,

and IMO it’s best done in that old school ‘jazzy’ way, it feels warmer and more authentic with the tempo and singing style. Modernized versions just don’t sound right to me.

Entirely neutral: religious Christmas songs done in the very beautiful classic choir style. That’s it basically if it sounds like I’m back in my high school’s winter dinner-and-a-show fundraiser thing and they’re doing the crazy harmonies and everything, then yeah I like. Good singing is good singing what can I say.

cursed: religious songs recorded in sub-par ways or by sub-par artists. This may be a simply written tier but don’t be fooled this accounts for 75% of the Christmas music out there.

Also Elvis I just don’t like his Christmas music idk his voice doesn’t suit it

[miasswier]

miasswier’s ultimate glee ranking: no 39

39: Home

Written by: Brad Falchuk Directed by:  Paris Barclay

Overall Thoughts: Here we have yet another season one episode that I basically totally forgot about, and which I enjoyed a lot more than I thought I would. There’s actually a lot more that I like about this episode than things I dislike, which really surprised me considering I placed it pretty low in my pre-watch ranking. I feel like all I remembered of this episode was the Will storyline, and somehow forgot all the amazing Kurt, Mercedes, Quinn, and Finn stuff. It really is an amazing episode. Although it might also just be that it seems that way when compared to “The Power of Madonna”.

What I Like:

The start of Burt and Carole’s relationship! I don’t know whose idea it was to have these two get together, but I honestly want to bake them a cake.

Literally everything about Mercedes in this episode makes my heart sing. Her struggle is so palpable and real that it’s almost painful to watch. I teared up so many times during her scenes because I’ve felt that. I’ve felt that a thousand times over. Having attention drawn to it, showing how a bigger woman can love her body but still feel insecure and be willing to give into societal pressure is one of the most honest and heart wrenching stories Glee ever tackled, and unlike some of their later topic episodes, this one is handled perfectly. Bravo.

Having the person who brings Mercedes down from the edge be Quinn. It would have been so easy to stick Kurt, or Puck, or even Finn or Artie in there to give her a pep talk and remind her of how beautiful and wonderful she is, but they didn’t. And not only did they have Quinn come in, but they also let Mercedes tell her point-blank that Quinn is thin and fits the typical standards of beauty. It’s just a wonderful scene. I also really enjoy the contrast of Quinn saying “you are beautiful Mercedes”, compared to Artie saying “you know we like you no matter how you look”. With Artie’s, it sounds like “we can look past the fact that you’re fat. You’re beautiful despite being fat”. With Quinn, it’s just “you’re beautiful” point blank. Mercedes is beautiful because of her size, not in spite of it.

“You were conceived on a pinball machine” they really should have given Carole more comedic moments oh my gosh.

“You two have dead spouses, maybe you should talk” Kur you little shit.

Brittany and Santana linking pinkies and Santana leaning her head on Brittany’s shoulder. They’re so goddamn gay it makes me so happy.

Burt and Finn bonding. I’ve always felt it strange that Glee wanted to portray Will as the father figure that Finn never had, when Burt was literally right there and a much better role model for the guy.

Kurt apologizing to Mercedes at the end of the episode. It’s nice to see him like that, because it shows once again that even though Kurt can get really into himself and his wants and ambitions, he can also take a step back and realize how what he’s done has affected others. He’s the perfect blend of selfish and self-less, and it makes for a really compelling character.

The scene where Tina and Artie and Rachel and Jesse turn into food. It’s honestly hilarious, even if the context is upsetting.

No Rachel storyline! I think it’s one of, like, three episodes in all of Glee that doesn’t have a Rachel storyline. It actually is kind of refreshing. Plus, it shows that a Finn storyline that doesn’t center around the three hundred girls who want to have his babies is actually pretty interesting. Honestly, I always found Rachel and Finn’s storylines a lot more interesting when the other person wasn’t involved, or it didn’t center around a romantic interest. It’s a shame there were so few like that.

Burt calling Kurt out for setting him up with Carole and then getting upset when he started bonding with Finn. “Didn’t you do it to make me happy?” Even though I don’t think it fully got through, I do think Kurt needed to hear that.

Carole shutting down Finn’s pity party by reminding him that he didn’t even know his father. Something Finn does a lot that I’ve only noticed with this re-watch is that when something difficult happens to him, and that thing affects a woman in his life as well, he makes it all about himself. It’s so hard on him, he’s so stressed out, nobody wants to help him because they’re so focused on her. Meanwhile the show actually does focus on him, and the woman, who is usually suffering a lot more than he is, gets sidelined. It happened with Quinn’s pregnancy, and it’s happening now. I think it really shows the importance of having adult characters who are actually adults influencing these kids lives. Carole is able to tell Finn without any hesitation that his father’s death has been infinitely harder on her than it was on him, and that he needs to stop playing the victim and acting like she is the one being insensitive to his feelings. This is a message that characters like Will or Emma would never be able to get across, and it’s actually a great, emotional scene.

What I Don’t Like:

Once again, April sings three songs in this episode. She’s a guest star, and I get that she’s amazing, but it really does feel excessive.

Will’s storyline is a little boring. He never seems to be able to do anything without a woman who is attracted to him helping him pave out his path. He can’t come to any realizations on his own, and it’s starting to get really frustrating. Neither Emma or Terri are in this episode, so the role of Will’s Keeper falls onto April. It’s just annoying that this guy who is supposed to be this amazing leader and motivator literally can’t get his life together without someone there to help him glue the pieces together. While I understand needing help every now and then, it feels like the only purpose of any of the female characters that are interested in Will is to make his life easier and better.

Kurt is actually quite frustrating in this episode. First of all, setting up your dad with your crush’s mom is really fucking stupid. It’s not going to make you closer, it’s going to make you family. Ew. Secondly, he was really selfish in doing it, and Burt was right to call him out on that. As soon as things aren’t going his way, he wants to pull the plug, even though Carole and Burt are obviously very happy together. Third, he’s a dink to Mercedes, which IMO is inexcusable. Come on, Kurt. Get your shit together.

Sue acting like Mercedes pep rally was her idea, and taking all the credit for it. I mean, I know that’s just how Sue is, but it’s still a really ugly move.

Sue in this episode, period. Encouraging Becky to literally be bulimic, which is awful, and then asking Mercedes to drop ten pounds in a week?!?!? The most a person should lose per week is 2 pounds, and even that isn’t that healthy. Plus, what difference is ten pounds going to make? No, seriously. Maybe on someone like Quinn or Santana you’d be able to notice ten pounds, but on someone like Mercedes? I’ve been hovering around 200 pounds for about five years now, and I’ve looked exactly the same weighing 190, 200, and 210. On bigger people, something like ten pounds really does not make that much of a difference. Mercedes would have to lose 20-25 pounds at least to have a noticeable difference. Which means that Sue literally made her faint from hunger for no reason whatsoever. Fuck, that pisses me off.

April wanting to do an all-white version of The Whiz. April, that literally exists, and it’s called The Wizard of Oz.

Songs

Fire: This song isn’t necessary. It doesn’t work in the context of the episode, and it just takes away time from one of the actually interesting storylines in this episode. They sound good together, don’t get me wrong, but it’s just really not necessary.

A House is Not a Home: I think Kurt sounds incredible in this song, but it’s never been a favourite. It’s too slow for my taste, and I don’t like that it was a surprise sneak-attack duet instead of just a Kurt solo (I don’t actually think we’ve had one of those yet which is brutal). I’m counting down till “Laryngitis” here, people. I’m ready for my Kurt solo.

One Less Bell to Answer/A House is Not a Home: Holy shit. Okay, so. This song is way too long, and they could have cut a good two minutes from the performance (it’s literally a four-minute-long in-episode performance which is out of this world). That being said, holy fucking shit. The vocals on this are amazing. Not just April, but Will too. There’s not that many songs that make me think “goddamn, Matt Morrison can sing” but this one does. I actually only really noticed the length of the song once it ended because I was so enraptured by how incredible these two sound singing this song. Goddamn.

Beautiful: an absolutely amazing and powerful performance. I cried the entire way through. It’s so uplifting, and Mercedes obviously sounds incredible. Absolutely top-notch

Home: Boring, and once again, unnecessary. Kristen Chenoweth has a great voice, nobody is denying that, but three songs for a guest star is too much. And frankly, the choir-style background singing of the Glee club doesn’t really work for me. A bit of a mediocre ending to an otherwise fantastic episode.

Final Thoughts: This was an episode I started not expecting to enjoy it, as all I remembered about it was the Will stuff. When it ended, I was in a much better mood than I’d been when it started, and it made me excited to watch the next episode (something I don’t often feel in season one).

[haninabaninah-learning]

Musical Instruments: Adult Learning Experience

A lot of people we know who play instruments Started learning them at a very early age. Many of those who end up going to music schools learn at age 5 or 6. Mozart composed his first piece at age 5 for goodness sake! I’ve been watching TwoSet Violin and prodigies are just getting younger and younger.

I had a different experience. I started seriously learning instruments in high school.

PIANO

In my younger years, I knew how to play the really easy melodies on the piano (given that we have a piano at home and my dad and grandmother are very good pianists) - Happy Birthday song, Twinkle Twinkle Little Stars - the kind you teach 4 year olds with only one hand. Then for some reason, maybe during my first years of high school, I found myself trying to learn pieces from our electronic keyboard by following the lighted keys. I first learned Canon in D and Minuet in G. My parents were a bit shocked when they saw that I learned it from the keyboard.

***To be fair, I came from quite a musical family. As I mentioned, my grandmother and father are good pianists. My mother also knows a few classical piano pieces. My father and my brother play the guitar. My sisters sang at a choir. My dad, who is also knowledgeable in music theory, is the worship leader at our local church. Basically, nobody is tone deaf in my family. You can consider our family musical.***

From there, I started going to Youtube for song tutorials. I learned A Thousand Miles and White Houses, both by Vanessa Carlton. I learned a few other pop songs, but I don’t remember them as well as these two. I never liked reading notes, so YouTube was definitely my go-to. (Thank God for YouTube.)

I first formally took lessons (Suzuki Method) the summer before my 3rd year of high school. At first, I was intimidated because two of my classmates were very good sightreaders and they were already very good at our age. But they also became inspirations for me, that soon, I will be able to play as well as them. I loved the piano, so I practiced a lot, even at night. I finished Suzuki Book 1 upto the first 2 or 3 pieces in Book 2 that summer break. But school started again and I just didn’t go back to taking those lessons.

The more I listened to piano pieces, the more I wanted to learn and be an excellent piano player. Sadly, the excitement isn’t constant. My practice and learning jumps are often characterized by energy bursts - intense practice seasons (a few weeks) and a long hiatus (months or years). I always play on and off. But it’s always good to be reminded.

I took piano lessons in the UPCMEP after about 4 years, in the summer after my second year in uni. I was discouraged from continuing though, because my teacher was very harsh and hostile. I was totally scared of her! After graduating from uni (after about 3 years), I practiced on my own again and self-studied the rest of Suzuki Book 2 and the first few pieces of Book 3. I was fired up! I took lessons with UPCMEP again under a different teacher. She’s very kind and I love her! (Ms. Pia) Unfortunately, I had to move to Australia right after finishing the sessions. (I couldn’t even attend my own recital.) I just got back from Australia, after 2 years, and I took lessons from UPCMEP - and again under a different teacher because Ms. Pia is fully booked. She’s also a nice teacher, but I made a lot of mistakes. It felt a little bit stressful because I had other things to do, and I just felt there was a lot of homework. I think my skills weren’t at par with the expectations my teacher had. I couldn’t keep up. I was always tense during my lessons for fear of making more mistakes, which made my mind go even slower. Practice was also not fun (because of the pressure of learning many pieces/ exercises at once.) 

Now, I’m on lockdown and I can’t take the online piano lessons. I tried practicing my piece again with 0 pressure on myself, and I absolutely love it!

I might take piano lessons again, someday, when I can.

Ease of learning: 3/5

Lessons: Idk the local Teacher (Suzuki), UP College of Music Extension Program

Favorite pieces: Sonatina Op. 55 No. 2 (Kuhlau), 214 Intro (Hehe classic I love Rico Blanco)

VIOLIN

I took violin lessons during my first year of working. Aside from violin being a cool instrument that makes pop music sound grand, here is another weird reason for trying to learn violin: I liked playing melodies by ear, but I can't do it with chords. It doesn't work well on the piano, because playing single notes on it sounds very child-like. But it works on the violin. Simple tunes sound really good if you have the skill. I thought if I could get to a good level of violin skills, I could play any song I want and make it sound amazing. It would be a great addition to a band arrangement or something.

I must say - with piano it's easy to sound good as a beginner but it's hard to be an expert. With violin, however, a beginner sounds like crap. I sounded like crap (imo), most especially when I first learned with the group classes. I believe I still do.

Yes, at first I took violin lessons with a class my dad found online. I would not recommend it at all. Form and technique is very important when you are starting to learn violin, and the lack of focus on the student will be of 0 help to you. We played poor-sounding violin renditions of pop songs and Christmas songs for our recital. It's kinda sad. To be fair my classmates were all in high school and below. I was in my fourth year of uni.

After two years, I started working and I picked up the violin again (for some reason.) I started earning money and I can now (kind of) afford violin lessons. I would definitely recommend individual lessons with a teacher for violin (or I guess for learning any sort of classical instrument seriously.) I learned a lot from my teacher who was also very kind and encouraging.

Unfortunately, due to many reasons including my demands at work, my tiredness of the commute to the lesson, my innate stingyness (I still found the weekly lessons very expensive, considering my income), my spiritual issues, and my depression, it just became harder and harder for me to attend lessons. A big part of the misfortune here is that I was not being honest with my teacher about my issues, and I feel like I disrespected him along the way. :(

Someday, I would want to pick up my violin again and learn. (Or get a better quality violin, actually.) I will play that vibrato well, and enjoy beautiful songs on this instrument.

Ease of learning: 1/5

Lessons: Individual Teacher

YouTube inspo: TwoSet violin (LOL), Ray Chen, Hilary Hahn (the whole gang)

Favorite piece: I really don’t remember any of my classical pieces cause I wasn’t good enough

UKULELE

Everybody I know who plays ukulele learned it as an adult. It’s very easy to play but it’s very fun-sounding. 

I remember trying to play it many years ago when we got a cheap version, but that time, I just did not put any effort. I was a busy bee and had many other things to do. I was more 100% more interested in learning piano. On top of that, I had not yet discovered the magic of actual YouTube teachers. (I don’t know if there were uke teachers at that time already.) I basically forgot about its existence after a few weeks.

I think it was when we cleaned up that I saw our Ukulele again. At 24 years old, I was going to move to Australia - and I had to bring an instrument! I can’t bring a piano or a guitar because...how. I knew I was gonna go crazy if I can’t play music, especially if there’s nothing to do while I job-hunt. I liked singing and I really wanted to learn an instrument that could accompany my singing. I ordered a quality ukulele and moved. Being jobless in a foreign country with very little money, watching Youtube teachers and practicing was really a good way to spend my time when I’m not busy. I learned reading tabs in the process too.

I have loved the sound of fingerpicked instruments for the longest time, and I was so glad to finally be able to fingerpick songs.I am also proud of being able to “chuck”. It just adds so much dimension to the music. I still have a lot to work on (I am still horrible at strumming patterns because I suck at following beats), but I’d say I’m a fair player.

Ease of learning: 5/5

YouTube Teacher: Cynthia Lin Music

Favorite pieces - I only love fingerpicked songs lol so I love Cynthia Lin: Can’t Help Falling In Love, Here Comes The Sun, Canon in D (Pachelbel - but in key of C, lol, I haven’t finished)

CLASSICAL GUITAR

Here I am, at 26, learning classical guitar and music theory. I’ve always wanted to learn the guitar. As I mentioned, I love the sound of fingerpicked instruments. I love the sound of acoustic covers and the plucked strings. It’s so relaxing and calm.

I tried learning the guitar as a high school student, but I was overcome by my annoyance of the pain on my fingertips when I press on the strings. I was also bad at strumming patterns. (I suck at rhythm.) On top of that, I gave myself an excuse of not being able to reach most chords due to my small hands. I learned the easy chords and strumming, but it really is far from good enough.

Learning the ukulele gave me courage to start learning the guitar again. I really did want to be good at it. Luckily, as I applied for piano lessons, I figured it would be a waste to travel for 2 hours a day only for a 1-hour lesson. I thought it would be a good idea to take guitar lessons as well.

I initially just wanted ordinary guitar lessons, just so I can be forced to learn guitar for my pop songs. Apparently, they mostly (or only) teach classical guitar in UP (kind of obvious though). What a beautiful genre, though. This is my kind of music! I’m also very grateful for my kind and fun teacher- Sir Peter. He’s very encouraging!

Perhaps one of the factors of the success was also the implementation of online classes. It’s not so tiring to attend lessons because of the travel (unlike when I was learning violin). I love classical guitar now, and I’m continuing my lessons. I barely practiced and prepared for my classes before lockdown, but now I really enjoy each practice time I have. More on this on another blog post!

Ease of learning: 3/5

Lessons: UP College of Music Extension Program (Now online lessons)

YouTube additional learning: Brandon Acker, This is Classical Guitar

Favorite piece - (well I’m only starting so I have a very limited list) Andantino in G by Carulli, but I would like to learn Air on G String someday

MUSIC THEORY

I’ve also started to learn Music Theory (albeit still with little effort) during lockdown. From Youtube (of course). I barely finish any song I write. And I love arranging music, but I’m not very good at it. I figure Music Theory will help me a lot in this area.

[cafephan]

hey hey hey if you're bored and have time i'd love to hear your favourite songs off of and/or an analysis of each of lm's albums. thanks

*cracks knuckles* this is gonna be a long ride, kiddos

DNA

Wings - forever one of my favourite lm songs ever, it just has such a beautiful message about self-love and realising other people’s opinions don’t define you, this song helped me a lot when i was younger

DNA - their vocals in this are unreal (especially the harmony/choir part) and the music video is one of my favourites, i just love everything about the song and the video

Change Your Life - like Wings, this song helped me a lot when i was younger, it too has a beautiful message just in a more stripped back beat than Wings, and i still listen to this song a lot because it usually always helps when i’m having a down day

Always Be Together - THE HARMONIES. the vocals are just beautiful in this song and it’s one of my favourites, i honestly will never understand why this song is so underrated, beautiful vocals and beautiful lyrics

Stereo Soldier - just a feelgood tune really, isn’t it, one of those songs that just makes you want to get up and dance, and i’ve had many a midnight dance party including this song

Pretend It’s OK - this song amazes me, the fact it was primarily written as a heartbreak song is one thing but the fact that it can be interpreted about literally anything astounds me?? like i don’t know many other songs that do that, and i will always applaud the girls for that. also knowing jade wrote her part about her grandad always gets me a little bit emotional myself

Turn Your Face - MY FAVOURITE ON THE ALBUM AND SO UNDERRATED. i think each and every one of the girls’ vocals shine, and this song is a prime example of why the world shouldn’t be sleeping on little mix, if you ask me. jade and leigh-anne’s solos in particular always stand out to me, but it is one of the most beautiful songs i have ever heard, much like Love Me or Leave Me, but we will get to that in a while. but yeah if you haven’t heard this song PLEASE DO.

We Are Who We Are - i bloody love this song, it too has helped me so much. it’s a song with a message of self-love, and realising society’s standards don’t define you and control you, none of us will ever look like the magazines want us to look (”throw away the books and the magazines, i’m never gonna look like a beauty queen”) and ah i just love it

How Ya Doin’? - this song always makes me feel really sassy when i sing it and i’m glad it’s a feeling that’s carried through the five years since the first time i listened to the album, it’s a prime singing-into-your-hairbrush-in-front-of-the-mirror song! plus it’s just a bop isn’t it tbh

Red Planet - at first i didn’t really get this song, but after a few listens i absolutely fell in love with it and the vocals continue to astound me

Going Nowhere - I. ADORE. THIS. SONG. it’s so sassy and so fun to dance around your room singing (trust me) and it gets out all the frustration towards a partner i’ve never had. their vocals are just so strong and the harmonies floor me. plus jesy’s beatboxing and leigh-anne’s rapping are so underrated give the girls credit i’m begging you

Madhouse - i’ve had a concept for a music video for this since the first time i heard it but because they never released it as a single it’s sad i’ll never see it, just listen to it and i think you’ll immediately get a music vid concept too. but apart from that, it’s just a cool song with a nice beat and its fun to try and match their voices (and in my case, fail every time)

Make You Believe: A BEAUTIFUL SONG. the vocals are just unreal and i love it a lot

Love Drunk: i will never understand why this song didn’t make it on the standard edition of the album because it’s a good’un

Case Closed: i love this song so much ah tbh i dont know why all three didn’t make it onto the standard edition of the album they’re all worthy

favourites from the album: Always Be Together, Turn Your Face

Salute

Salute - the female empowerment song we all needed, and still as relevant today as it always has been. i don’t really need to say much about this, but i adore it and will always be a staple of pretty much any playlist i make

Move - this is one of those songs that i always try to match their vocals on (and fail). it’s just a song that i can’t help but sing along to, it’s so catchy and they sound so good and the music video is SO GOOD and have i mentioned i love it because i really do (plus who remembers when my blog title was jade’s solo)

Little Me - the song we’ve all needed to hear at some point or another. for me personally it’s more relevant than ever, i always want to go back in time and tell kirsten who was being bullied all of the things in the song. plus the unplugged version is beyond gorgeous (”you’ve got a lot of time to act your age, you can’t write a book from a single page” is such an underrated lyric imo)

Nothing Feels Like You - just watch this live performance. i need say no more.

Towers - the lyrics are just so good?? and the vocals are just so beautiful??? i feel like jesy’s vocals in particular shine on this song and she owns it. “sorry heart, i’m sorry heart but we’ll have to start again” makes me sad every single time i don’t know why, but it’s just the sign of a good song AND THIS IS AN EXCEPTIONAL SONG.

About The Boy - just watch this live performance. i need say no more, but just prepare yourself ok you’re welcome

Boy - SO. UNDERRATED. this song is mainly acapella minus drums, and people have never really spoken about it??? like they literally make up this song entirely with vocals??? solos, harmonies and backing alike??? p l e a s e listen to this song to get it some of the recognition it truly deserves i can’t sing its praises enough. WATCH THE LIVE PERFORMANCE AND FALL IN LOVE.

Good Enough - another of those songs that can be interpreted in more ways than just a heartbreak song. as the girls say in the salute album livestream, it can be read as feeling insignificant to a sibling or not good enough for your parents or friends, and it’s just a song we all need to listen to because we’ve all been in that position at some point (or in my case, very often) and it just needs more hype over it because it’s beautiful and the vocals are showcased beautiful and needs more love

Mr Loverboy - i love the subtle r&b influence on this song (even though so many people hate it) and it’s a song i can’t help but sing along to whenever it comes on shuffle, it’s just an easy listening song for me i love itttt

A Different Beat - a feelgood song that always gets the ol’ feet tapping. a wholesome message surrounded by an upbeat track and it’s a good all-rounder

favourite songs from the album: Move, Towers, Boy, Good Enough

Get Weird

Black Magic - the one that everyone knows, a song that you can’t help but sing along to, and catchy as hell. i’ve seen so many people say this song is their guilty pleasure which i always fnd really funny idk why. watch this acoustic version to fall in love yeah okay cool

Love Me Like You - another foot tapper and a v good all-rounder. also the music video is great (so much so i wrote a videofic on it lmao) i like it a lotttt

Weird People - this is a song that i feel represents me emotionally. every time i listen to it i can’t help but think back to tour when they just parade around the stage in ridiculous outfits and accessories and it was the best night ever i adore this song and i adore the girls

Hair - if you’ve not sung this into your hairbrush at least once i want you to stop lying to yourself. it’s such a bop!!!! i much prefer the original, it must be said, but i love the music video, it’s so fun and poppy and i think they did a great job (i’d say relatable but who am i kidding i don’t have friends to have sleepovers with) it’s also catchy as all hell it’s never just in my head for a few hours, it’s in there for days at least

Grown - I LOVE THIS SONG. realising you’re too good for someone who wouldn’t look twice at you in the past but now you’re going places they’re coming out of the woodwork? nah thanks kick ‘em to the curb. I LOVE IT IT’S SO GOOD I ADORE THIS SONG. plus in case you were wondering, it’s insane performed live, trust me. just really listen to the lyrics, they’re stellar

I Love You - SO. UNDERRATED. the lyrics are beautiful, the vocals are exceptional (jade steals the show for me with this song tho it has to be said) and where is this song’s recognition?? where the hell is it??? (”even if the tears fall and my heart hates me, baby i love you” // “and it doesn’t matter what no-one says, even if it’s broken, i love you anyway” // “even if these three words choke and take me, baby i love you” // “there’s nothing left but these i love yous” THIS SONG IS SO RAW AND FROM THE HEART IT MAKES ME FEEL HEARTBREAK AND I’VE NEVER EXPERIENCED HEARTBREAK

OMG - this. is. leigh-anne’s. song. she absolutely owns it and the song is such a bop and so sassy and makes me feel like i’m appealing to people which is always a winner. it’s such a good one to sing at the top of your lungs, trust me. try it.

Lightning - perrie’s vocals in this song, did you mean my death??? the girl puts her lungs to good use. if you’ve heard the song before you know which part im talking about when i say wow. the fact they can perform it live sometimes even better than the studio version is still unreal. i just love this song and i love the girls

A.D.I.D.A.S - this song is one of my all time favourites, i just love it so fucking much. it’s so cheeky and fun and my love for it just never ends. i like that they spoke about the topic of sex like this, in a nice and breezy, fun way, a lot of bands don’t do that. plus leigh-anne’s solo? end me. “slaving in the kitchen, iced you a cake, and i served you a plate, but boy that ain’t what you ate” is one of the most iconic lines in music history don’t argue with me 

Love Me or Leave Me - ONE OF THE MOST BEAUTIFUL SONGS EVER MADE (as i briefly spoke about in Turn Your Face) i will forever be sad that this was never a single and they never performed it live, not on tour or in interviews. all four of their voices shine on this song and their solos are all exceptional. it’s one of those songs that always makes me emotional. listen to it with headphones on in a silent room and really listen to the lyrics. i can’t even choose one in particular because there are so many that make me an absolute wreck. prepare for emotions to hit you like a ton of bricks. 

The End - MY. ACAPELLA. GODDESSES. 2 minutes of heavenly vocals. enough said.

I Won’t - i adore the message of this song. love yourself, you are enough as you are. listen to this if you need a pick-me-up, because it’ll work, i’m sure (”nothing good comes easy, if it did i wouldn’t be me” is literally the lyric that defines my life)

Secret Love Song, Pt. II - i’ve spoken about this song so much on this blog but it’s genuinely one of my favourite ever songs in the history of music, i just adore everything about it. (i didn’t list the version with jason bc he just ruins it #opinion) the lyrics, the fact they wrote it for their lgbtq+ fans, the vocals, everything about this song is beautiful and i will continue to scream its praises until i’m old and grey. this song is so important and dreamy and i just can never stop raving about it.

Clued Up - this song is so important and more people should know about it. the fact it’s acoustic makes me love it even more, it’s so stripped back and the fact it’s not layered with an intense upbeat backing track really highlights their vocals and the message of the song, and i just love everything about it. each and every one of them gets a chance to showcase their voice and they all do it flawlessly, i just think more people should know about this song. also try telling me this song isn’t the very definition of the journey that dan has been on over the years because it is

The Beginning - MY. ACAPELLA. GODDESSES. AGAIN. 1 and a half minutes of dreaminess and bliss , the vocals are unreal and the fact there is literally no music at all, is a prime example of why little mix need more recognition

favourites from the album: I Love You, A.D.I.D.A.S, Love Me or Leave Me, Secret Love Song pt. II

Glory Days

Shout Out To My Ex - this, my friends, is how you do a heartbreak song, let ‘em know what they’re missing out on now! i love how upbeat this is and how it’s not dwelling on the past, and the music video is so fun and shows off their friendship so well and i just love it

Touch - a fun little song with a fun beat, if you’ve not had a dance to this song i don’t know what to say to you

F.U - ONE OF MY FAVOURITE SONGS EVER. i adore the motown vibe, all four of their vocals are showcased so well (especially perrie), and the lyrics are so sassy and i still have a music video concept in mind though whether or not they’ll ever release it and i’ll see if im right or not, we’ll never know. definitely listen to this song, it’s one of my favourite songs lm have ever doe

Oops - i adore every little thing about this song. their voices and charlie’s work together really well (and that live performance on the x factor floored me) and it’s a fun song and an exceptional all-rounder, if you ask me. realising you’re still feeling things for someone you once had a thing with and eventually realising they feel the same, what’s not to love? (plus the beat is amazing)

You Gotta Not - the lyrics are absolutely savage but the girls deliver them flawlessly (perrie steals the show for this song imo) and honestly rip whoever meghan trainor thought about whilst writing it 

Down & Dirty - literally the epitome of a club banger. if you dont have an overwhelming urge to dance when the beat drops then you and i have nothing to say to each other (”we international divas, but i started out making your pizzas” TELL THEM HOW IT IS LEIGH-ANNE i love this line it’s so iconic)

Power - i. love. this. song. girls dominate in more ways than one amirite (a proper bop though, jesy’s solo forever remains a highlight)

Your Love - i could literally ramble on about my love for this song for at least four days. it’s so adorable and the vocals are outstanding (especially leigh-anne) and it makes me celebrate a relationship i don’t have and makes my heart warm, though maybe thats because i am a hopeless romantic and this song is the anthem for hopeless romantics. all in all, LOVE.

Nobody Like You - what. a. beautiful. heartbreaking. ballad. each of their solos is beautiful and breathtaking, and this song is guaranteed to make you feel things. it’s so raw and you can hear the emotion in their voices and it just adds so much to an already beautiful song. i cant recommend this song enough. must listen.

No More Sad Songs - an iconic heartbreak song. my initial thought on what the music vid would be was nothing like what the official vid is, and i actually started a songfic for it but it ended up going where i didn’t want it to so i scrapped it BUT i love this song dearly, turning something sad into something fun and positive, always a fan. 

Private Show - i love how cheeky this song is, and i love the choice of lyrics. it’s a proper bop and i love it, it’s one of those songs i can’t not sing along to whenever it comes on. their vocals are also on point and i can never match them despite how hard i try

Nothing Else Matters - this song is so precious. jade’s vocals steal it for me, it must be said, but the chorus harmonies are to die for. i love the lyrics and how down to earth this song is, and it’s no wonder that it’s one of the girls’ favourites (most of all jade’s)

Beep Beep - i will genuinely never know why i adore this song so much, but i just do. i love everything about it. it’s so fun and cheeky and poppy, and their vocals are fire as usual, i just can’t recommend it enough. one of my favourites by far!

Freak - i love jesy’s voice in this song, and how overall the song is slightly urban and a bit grunge, i really love those influences. and if you don’t sing along with at least the chorus then i admire your willpower i really do. i love the lyrics and how they tell a clear narrative and i just love it in its entirety. sold song, more than solid vocals.

favourites from the album: F.U, Oops, Your Love, Nobody Like You, Beep Beep

this was a journey and has taken nearly three hours to write, so thank you for reading if anyone has read this far, this was fun :’)