Album cover art for feeble little horse's "Girl with Fish"
Pittsburgh based band feeble little horse released “Girl with Fish” on June 6 2023, it has since became one of my favorite albums of the year.
On feeble little horse’s Bandcamp page for their May 2021 release “modern tourism”, the band was comprised of just their two guitarists (a lineup lacking their current main vocalist and bassist, Lydia Slocum). I found it pretty interesting to look at this album and see the band in its primordial state.
With time and the addition of new members, the group’s sound has since developed to fall in a middle ground between noise pop and shoegaze.
Favorite track – “Steamroller”
This track is a fantastic example of just how well feeble little horse does dynamics within their songs. About half way through the song, all the instruments and vocals completely pause as if they were taking a breath- listening to it feels like looking down over the edge of a cliff. Next, you are knocked off the cliff and are meet with a wall of sound ornamented by a brief eerie and unfamiliar sounding guitar solo. The part then leads into the second verse of the song.
A combination of opposing qualities: a strong driving power is maintained in the song while soft, pleasing melodies are carried throughout. Of course feeble little horse is not the first band to make a song with both of these attributes, but they bring their own sound to these songs in a way that I can’t help but love.
Official audio for feeble little horse’s song Steamroller
Other Recommended Tracks
It’s hard to not list all the songs off this album in this because it is just so consistent, but below are a few I would recommend.
“Freak”
“Tin Man”
“Paces”
“Pocket”
Concluding Thoughts
This has been the third album the band has released in a two year span and I feel they have continuing to improve with each album. I am super excited to see what this group puts out in the future.
Album cover of "Everyone's Crushed" by duo Water From Your Eyes
Water From Your Eyes is a duo made up of Rachel Brown and Nate Amos. In late May 2023, the duo released an album worth writing home about– it’s a unique mix of art pop and rock. It’s the sort of album your somewhat-elitist music friend would like.
The album, “Everyone’s Crushed,” begins with a song titled “Structure,” paying homage to Water From Your Eyes’s 2021 album “Structure.” The opening of the album is slow, almost cryptic, but still inviting– at the very least, intriguing.
The album feels a little bleak– it’s got catchy songs, high-tempo beats, interesting vocals with thoughtful lyrics, but it still leaves the listener with a feeling of melancholy, though not overwhelming. The musical choices made within the album are also pretty unique, and although the music doesn’t sound alien in any respect, it does maintain an “out of this world” sound.
The aforementioned bleakness of the album is the result of the artists’ perspective, which is focused on the struggles and discomfort of the pandemic and what’s come since then.
The album’s title reflects this. “Everyone’s Crushed.” It’s something you’d normally hear at a funeral, or upon hearing tragic news. In the case of this album, Water From Your Eyes seems to be attempting to relay the idea that everyone is struggling, it’s the nature of right now.
The album ends with a song called “Buy My Product,” which seems to be a kitschy kick at capitalism and corporations that spew adverts implying that a product or material good could bring you peace from the ugliness the rest of the album expresses.
The album is vulnerable in a way that’s not overt or cliched, and it makes for a good listen for those interested in new and different pop.
2023 has already been a great year for music. In honor of reaching the year’s halfway mark, I’ve compiled five of my favorite albums released so far in 2023 (in no particular order), as well as five albums I’m looking forward to spinning later this year.
Memento mori, a Latin phrase meaning remember you must die.
Ironically, also the subject of my most recent tattoo.
This phrase, adored by the Victorians, stands as a reminder of every individual’s inherent mortality. Its interpretation varies across cultures and individuals.
In Depeche Mode’s album, I see “memento mori” as an invocation of sensation: a narrator lays himself bare before an audience, succumbing to self-doubt and despair.
Through an assortment of carefully-woven sounds, the audience enters the narrator’s “mind palace” (“My Cosmos is Mine”).
An almost smoky synth arrangement coalesces with the dismal energy of Dave Gahan’s vocals. An undercurrent of gloom stripes the band’s characteristic sensuality, painting a romantic picture of misery and yearning.
For an opening track, “My Cosmos is Mine” does an excellent job of setting the auditory scene.
However, the album’s second track, “Wagging Tongue,” is a sharp stylistic pivot. The song is comparably upbeat, though still decidely morose with the lyrics “watch another angel die.”
Compared to its darker predecessor, the song strikes a New Wave tone with a brighter, more colorful energy.
Synths function to produce vibrant electronic beats while Gahan harmonizes with bandmate Martin Gore, whose angelic voice obfuscates the song’s pessimistic lyrics.
Following “Wagging Tongue” was “Ghosts Again,” originally released as a single Feb. 9, 2023.
The song features ebullient synths and a danceable beat, again far removed from the deep gloom seen in “My Cosmos is Mine.”
Together, “Wagging Tongue” and “Ghosts Again” complement each other. However, they fail to connect to the album’s opening song.
As a fan of Depeche Mode’s more woeful sounds, (and a passionate hater of “I Just Can’t Get Enough”) I began to worry about my compatibility with the album moving forward.
I had expected something mournful and dark, but the album appeared to be moving towards the figurative “light.”
I almost considered canceling my review and selecting an album from a different artist, accepting the disappointment of “Memento Mori.”
However, everything changed as the album’s fourth track began to play.
“Don’t Say You Love Me,” the fourth track on “Memento Mori,” marks a drastic tonal shift away from the colorful New Wave beats of “Wagging Tongue” and “Ghosts Again.”
One may argue that the track represents a return to the style that first garnered Depeche Mode’s admiration within the goth subculture, a melange of cold industrial sounds and Gahan’s reverent voice.
Listening to Gahan wax poetic about tumultuous and toxic love was enough to restore my faith in the album. Each track moving forward continued to capture the often-theatrical melancholia of Depeche Mode and the idea of beautiful darkness.
Final Thoughts
My first introduction to Depeche Mode was through “Violator,” an album they released a decade before I was born.
I didn’t discover the album until around 2015. By then, mainstream discourses surrounding the release had long since faded.
With no point of reference, I consumed the album without an ounce of criticality (arguably one of the best ways to experience albums).
Eight years later, I approach “Memento Mori” with a wholly different perspective.
For individuals unfamiliar with the works of Depeche Mode, “Memento Mori” may not be the best place in the band’s discography to start listening.
While the album is ultimately satisfying, it maintains distance from what I would consider to be the schematic Depeche Mode.
For those just getting into the band, I would recommend starting with “Violator” or “Music for the Masses” before visiting “Memento Mori.”
"All of This Will End" album cover. Art by Kimberly Oberhammer
I was first introduced to Indigo de Souza by my boarding school roommate who had gone to the same school as the singer in Asheville, North Carolina. When I began playing a radio show, I was always excited to play a small, local artist like Indigo de Souza. In the coming years, she would become not-so-small, and her discography would expand in a way I could not be more pleased about.
This band got on my radar after seeing the now-infamous video of their set at a Sonic Drive-In, but it wasn’t until I got the opportunity to see them open for High on Fire and Municipal Waste in December, a night that made my top 10 list of shows from last year, that I truly fell in love with this New Jersey 5-piece (specifically, that moment was when I heard “Bitchmade” live).
This band plays a style of hardcore punk that has been injected with so much groove that I struggle to listen to this band without throwing a chair out of a window. This sound and energy has been perfected from their new album “Only Constant” released March 31 through Convulse Records.
The Music
“Only Constant” starts out strong with a slow groove on “Honed Blade,” the second single released to promote the album. This track builds in intensity throughout its duration before ending on a powerful breakdown, however this song only gives a taste of what’s to come on the rest of the album.
Where the album really spreads its wings is the third track “Attainable,” that incorporates an almost jazz-like drum beat on the cymbals before coming back in with pure d-beat goodness to remind you that this is indeed a hardcore album.
From this point the album does not let up, going into my favorite song “Out of Mind,” that has a massive sound and intensity that winds down into a groovy breakdown. This continues through songs such as “Dicey,” which features a slightly more upbeat tone in the chorus but still retains the aggressive character of this style of music, as well as “Snake Skin,” that progressively slows down over the course of the track into a stomp-inducing finale.
The closer of the album is “Composure,” a track that clocks in at just over 3 minutes long, making it the longest song both on the album and of the band’s whole catalog of songs. While this song is likely my least favorite of the album, it is by no means a bad song and works excellently as a bookend to this otherwise phenomenal album.
The Vocals
A discussion of this album wouldn’t be complete without addressing the vocal tracks from singer Sami Kaiser. In all honesty, hardcore vocals are very hit-or-miss for my ears, but I firmly believe that Gel is a band that has hit the mark on them.
Sami delivers the vocal lines with enough grit and aggression in their voice to fit the music, while also maintaining clarity and enunciation. That aspect of the vocals I think is necessary when it comes to having politically and socially relevant lyrics as punk music often does (especially where an artist’s lyrics aren’t readily available online or even in physical media inserts).
In the case of this album, the lyrics appear to be more introspective and focused on personal experience and thought rather than commentary. This shines through on “Snake Skin,” which discusses committing to being in control of one’s own life rather than submitting to the expectations and desires of someone else.
This message of personal empowerment rings throughout the record, and I think it’s a great way to remain fresh and feel new to the music.
Final Thoughts
Overall, this album shows an upward trajectory for Gel, following up 2021’s impeccable “Violent Closure” and last year’s sonically unique split EP “Shock Therapy” with an incredibly strong release. It’s a gut punch of a record from start to finish, doesn’t overstay its welcome, and is faster and groovier than their other releases. If in-your-face punk rock is something you enjoy, this album will certainly be up your alley.
I implore you to not only give this album a listen for yourself, but also to find a chance to see Gel live to get a full feel of their music, as well as supporting them, the bands they play with, and the independent venues they perform at. The phrase “it takes a village” is one I think applies strongly to music scenes, especially those that are more underground such as the hardcore punk scene.
“Only Constant” from Gel can be found on streaming services, with a digital purchase available through their Bandcamp, and is still in stock as of writing this through Convulse Records on CD and cassette.
Live video of Gel’s Sonic Drive-In show from Hate5Six
To commemorate his tenth year as Flume, Harley Streten put out an old unreleased track on November 6, 2022: “Slugger 1.4 [2014 Export.WAV].” The track strongly resembles the warm, grainy, not-quite-polished songs found on Flume’s self-titled album, released in 2012. Shortly after, on February 8, 2023, fans were gifted an entire mixtape of unreleased tracks on “Things Don’t Always Go the Way You Plan.”
Zorn is a Philadelphia-based band that has a sound which blends the intricacies and vocal style of GISM, the hard-hitting intensity and power of Discharge, and some black metal flair. The result is nothing short of incredible, and this band has truly captured some black magic on their new self-titled debut album.
The Music
Released in early March through Raleigh’s own Sorry State Records, “Zorn” is an album that does not let off the gas until it ends.
The opening track, “The Spell of The Fairy Tree” jumps straight into a killer bass line only made better by the power in Max’s bass tone. From there, the album balances melody, aggression, and dissonance in an absolutely stellar way.
Zorn establishes their musical prowess by weaving between black metal rhythms and hardcore punk grooves between and within songs accompanied by blistering guitar solos from guitarists Harley and Nao.
Just about halfway through the album comes my personal favorite track, “The Delco Devil Mosh” which opens with a haunting arpeggio leading into a more scandi-punk riff that goes back and forth throughout the song before slowing it down for an intense breakdown section.
The speed and intensity picks up until the finale “Würm,” that works well to close out the album with a slower and more melodic song that really shows the black metal influence in the band.
Last Thoughts
The only gripe I have with this album is that my record didn’t come with a DVD or VHS of them playing live. I say this because the truest way to experience this band is to see it in person with vocalist Alex waving a flaming sword at you while lyrics are ferociously belted out. Luckily for me, I will be catching a hometown Zorn show at this year’s Something To Talk About concert series in Philadelphia this June.
Zorn’s self titled album can be found on streaming services, with a digital purchase available through Bandcamp, as well as on vinyl at Sorry State Records.
Yves Tumor is back with his fifth studio album, “Praise A Lord Who Chews But Which Does Not Consume; (Or Simply, Hot Between Worlds)”. This extensively titled album actually has a somewhat short playtime, though not anything particularly shorter than their previous albums.
“Hot Between Worlds” keeps up Tumor’s heavy-hitting basslines and echo-y, melancholic vocals from their past works on songs like “Meteora Blues”. Unfortunately, so many tracks on here have such similar melodies that songs become difficult to distinguish from each other with a few exceptions.
The Bangers
First off, I don’t wish to imply that the songs that sound similar are bad by any means. For most of these tracks, if they come on a playlist on shuffle, I’ll gladly listen to them. There’s a lot of good introspection by Tumor on how his religious views and upbringing intersect with his queer identity. Some of the singles, like “Parody” and “Heaven Surrounds Us Like a Hood”, especially embody this type of discussion as well as Tumor’s percussion-heavy signature sound. They’re quite good in their own right, though I’m unlikely to seek them out independent of the greater album.
As for those exceptions mentioned earlier, “Operator” and “God Is a Circle” are definitely the highlights of “Hot Between Worlds”. While the former has the most inventive lyrics of the album, the latter has such a fresh, driving beat exemplifying Tumor’s exhaustion with feeling betrayed over and over again. The way “God Is a Circle” ends with such a climactic buildup is just perfect too.
“Operator” features Tumor’s most direct call to God yet, asking why God feels so distant. Their cries of “Hello” again and again only exacerbate that uncertainty over their relationship with God. Tumor’s trying to grapple with why there’s so much strain and hesitation which is amplified by the pervasive bass.
Official audio for “Operator” by Yves Tumor
The Flops
To be quite honest, no song on “Hot Between Worlds” is actively bad. Like I said earlier, there’s just not much differentiating many of these tracks from each other. Other than that, though, there isn’t much in the way of strong messages in Tumor’s lyrics on many tracks. They cover a lot of the same ground repetitively throughout the album, even in just 37 minutes.
Part of that issue may come from the minimal vocals on each song, leaving little room for expansive storytelling or metaphors. Songs don’t feel underdeveloped or rushed, they just feel like they need more space to work, which is something that seems to plague Tumor’s albums like “Heaven To A Tortured Mind”.
JPEGMAFIA and Danny Brown’s collab album, “SCARING THE HOES”, has finally arrived. This album is the first of supposedly three albums that each are releasing this year, and it does not disappoint.
Isn’t this supposed to be fun?
Both artists are on point in their verses and JPEGMAFIA’s production is filled to the brim with inventive samples. Their disregard for mainstream success and popularity drives much of their motivation for this album. That motivation is made explicitly apparent on the eponymous track “SCARING THE HOES”.
Stop scarin’ the hoes Play that s— have them touch they toes “We don’t wanna hear that weird s— no more” (Uh) “What the f— is that? Give me back my aux cord” (Yeah)
Lyrics from “SCARING THE HOES” by JPEGMAFIA and Danny Brown
The name comes from a tweet by JPEGMAFIA where he insults people who use this excuse to keep others from listening to weirder music. The song samples a piece of shrieking avant-garde jazz that may turn off a lot of mainstream listeners already. Peggy does work to turn the sample into a workable beat, though, making it more appetizing to a wider audience.
Through the rest of the album, the two artists just seem to be having fun with this collaboration. There’s so much bright percussion and synths on tracks like “Garbage Pale Kids” and “Where Ya Get Ya Coke From?” They’re not afraid to make music that sounds silly and lighthearted, even if the content is definitely not kid-friendly. It creates space for listeners to relax and unwind without feeling ashamed.
Nitpicks
Though, there does seem to be something off with Brown’s energy on this project. He seems to have mellowed out some from his former projects, which is not what I would expect working with someone as eccentric as JPEGMAFIA.
Additionally, Peggy’s production can sound quite shallow in places when there’s no bass supporting it. While this works for Peggy’s deeper voice, Brown’s nasally vocals on top of some of these beats can feel lacking on tracks like “Steppa Pig”. However, the fast vibrant style of songs like “Fentanyl Tester” seems to accomplish the work of bringing each of their styles together well.
Concluding Thoughts
It’s possible that we’ll be getting more extensive collaboration in the future from these two considering their invocation of duo Run the Jewels as a song title. If so, I cannot wait for it considering how well this album ultimately comes together. While some tracks lack the energy that might be needed to maximize the impact of both rappers, the finished project is fun, off-the-wall, and has the potential to expand both of their audiences significantly. Or, they’ll sit by satisfied with scaring the hoes.
Music video for “SCARING THE HOES” by JPEGMAFIA and Danny Brown
