If It's Too Loud...

Artist : Tujiko Noriko Album : PON Quick Thoughts : I try to give the first impressions of music with this type of post, but I find Tujiko Noriko to be difficult to describe in comparison to others. It's not quite experimental, but it's not ambient, either. There's a lot going on here, and all I know is that I keep coming back to it and finding something new to love. Worth your time, if only to see if it's your thing. Songs of Note : "Only on Love," "Knife of Yondr," "Boku Wa Obake," "Kareki Ni Hana," "Quarz Rework," "Kazeyo Pon," "Kikoeru Pon" Artist : Pussy Riot Album : CYKA Quick Thoughts : Yes, this is a proper album, and the first full-length from the Russian protest group, and it's great. It has the anger and rage you'd expect, but is also sonically interesting, with hints of electroclash and hyperpop mixed in. Given that Putin is still kicking around, Pussy Riot remains ...

I said it back when this came out, and I'll say it again: I am fully aware that I am not the target audience for Olivia Rodrigo's brand of New Adult breakup songs, but I am absolutely here for it nonetheless. 2023 will rightfully go down as the year of Taylor Swift, but for my money? Olivia Rodrigo is the dark horse candidate for stealing the crown away. Rodrigo excels not in changing the game, but perfecting it - every song on GUTS has clearly defined and obvious inspirations (I maintain that "all-american bitch" is her channelling Weezer's "My Name is Jonas," and no one can tell me "get him back!" isn't "Pepper" by the Butthole Surfers), but the raw, unvarnished honesty and self-deprication on the album is a welcome change from a lot of the pop music efforts to hide one's true feelings in a veneer of metaphor and code. As much fun as it is to conspiratorize over the color selection of Tay-Tay's confetti, it...

Artist : Olivia Rodrigo Album : GUTS Quick Thoughts : Nothing makes me feel like an old creeper quite like my enjoyment of Olivia Rodrigo. The 20-year-old singer-songwriter is back with a poppy follow-up to SOUR and she basically proves with this album that she wasn't just a flash in the pan. Her songwriting is super-confessional, extremely in-the-moment, and has its share of funny parts to balance from the very direct soul-bearing efforts. She's basically what we all thought Avril Lavigne was supposed to be when she first hit the scene, and I'm here for it. Songs of Note : "bad idea right?" "vampire," "ballad of a homeschooled girl," "get him back!" Artist : Allison Russell Album : The Returner Quick Thoughts : Allison Russell's latest is a bit of an evolution from her very rootsy debut, exploring different themes and songwriting while still staying true to what made her first album so appealing. Songs like "Sprin...

Artist : Olivia Rodrigo Album : SOUR Quick Thoughts : The running joke of the moment is that lot of us older folks are looking at this album and saying "crap, we're old." Because we are, and this is a young up-and-coming artist from the Disney starlet factory, and we all loved Billie Eilish and don't want to make it weird, I guess. But this album? Yeah, it's pretty good. I can forgive some questionable production choices (the album sounds somewhat hollow and light at times, and overly compressed at others), but the songwriting is tight and some of these are real bangers. It's a solid pop album from someone who is making music for our children's generation and that's okay. You might not relate to "drivers license," but so what? Songs of Note : "brutal," "drivers license," "good 4 u" Artist : Lord Huron Album : Long Lost Quick Thoughts : This is a really interesting album. It's rootsy folk stuff, b...