FEATURE: And the Award Goes to… A Look at Four Big GRAMMY Categories

FEATURE:

And the Award Goes to…

IN THIS PHOTO: Brittany Howard is nominated for five GRAMMYs, including Best Rock Performance for Stay High/PHOTO CREDIT: David McClister

A Look at Four Big GRAMMY Categories

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THIS coming Sunday (14th)…

IN THIS PHOTO: Coldplay are nominated for Album of the Year for 2019’s Everyday Life/PHOTO CREDIT: Atlantic Records

the GRAMMYs will take place. It is another year where things are very strange. Although it is going to be a ceremony where a lot of the nominees are remotely connected, the music nominated this year is phenomenal. I am not going to include all categories in this feature (as there are so many!). I wanted to feature four of the biggest categories, say a little about each album/artist and then predict my winner – how accurate I will be is yet to be seen! Looking at the Album of the Year, Record of the Year, Best New Artist, and Best Rock Performance, I think we will see female talent clean up. In fact, this year is especially positive when it comes to female representation and balance. I am interested to see who will win across the broad; I think the hotly-contested award for song and album will be intense. I think that the Rock nominees are especially intriguing. Ahead of the GRAMMYs on Monday, here is a brief rundown of the exceptional talent in…

IN THIS PHOTO: Dua Lipa is nominated for six GRAMMYs, including Record of the Year for Don’t Start Now/PHOTO CREDIT: Hugo Comte

FOUR important and privileged categories.

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Album of the year

Jhené Aiko – Chilombo

Release Date: 6th March, 2020

Labels: ArtClub/ARTium/Def Jam

Producers: Jhené Aiko/Fisticuffs/Lejkeys/Micah Powell/Heavy Mellow

Review:

“In fact, one of Chilombo’s many highlights is “None Of Your Concern,” which the couple recorded and released last year while broken up. It’s a bracingly honest and sometimes explicit postmortem on their romance, and it’s one of many unflinching moments on the album. Recording in Hawaii in the wake of her breakup from Sean, Aiko incorporated the sound of crystal alchemy singing bowls tuned to specific chakra frequencies as a mode of healing. If that sounds serene, the lyrics are strikingly raw. “You muhfuckin’ right, I’m bitter/ You muhfuckin’ right, I’m triggered,” Aiko sings over zoned-out keyboard chords and trap drums on early single “Triggered,” one of many elegant reunions with longtime producers Fisticuffs and Lejkeys. On the ghostly “Speak,” she taunts, “I’m moving on I’m putting on my favorite dress, the one you hated/ Said I looked naked in.” Alongside H.E.R. on “B.S.,” she continues the offensive: “It seem like I give so much and don’t get nothin’ back/ I really thought it was love but you’re so fuckin’ wack.”

The original Chilombo tracklist maintains this vibe for an hour. Even brief stylistic detours like the languid funk track “Tryna Smoke” and the John Legend duet “Lightning & Thunder” — a retro soul update similar to Rihanna’s “Love On The Brain” — sound like natural outgrowths of the album’s world. “I know life’s a bitch, but she could at least give me head sometimes,” she memorably quips on the former, and seemingly every track offers up some similarly memorable lyric, often broadcasted in the song titles. On the sparse “Define Me” she proclaims, “You cannot define me.” On the acoustic “Born Tired” she sums up her exhaustion: “Baby, I was born tired.” Few images this year are more evocative than Aiko as the “Pussy Fairy on the way.” By the time Ty Dolla $ign shows up for the thumping and surprisingly upbeat but still fundamentally misty closer “Party For Me,” Aiko has completed one of the most accomplished R&B albums in recent memory” – Stereogum

Standout Tracks: Triggered (freestyle)/ B.S. (ft. H.E.R.)/Pray for You

Choice Cut: None of Your Concern

Black Pumas – Black Pumas (Deluxe Edition)

Release Date: 21st June, 2019

Label: ATO

Producers: Jon Kaplan/Adrian Quesada

Review (Standard Edition):

“Possessing a voice that can slide into the slipstream with ease, Burton lends an elegant elasticity to Quesada’s tightly layered productions. Occasionally the producer/guitarist performs this trick in reverse—“Sweet Conversations,” the album’s dreamy denouement, draws upon a demo Burton recorded at home—but the core of the album lies in how the singer helps shape aural paintings into songs, providing them with warmth and a slight trace of spaciness.

Burton may command attention with his sweet, plaintive voice, but Quesada’s densely woven tapestries are the key to Black Pumas. Inspired by RZA’s crate-digging productions for the Wu-Tang Clan extended universe, Quesada relies on scratchy drum loops, hits of strings, funky electronic pianos, and fuzz guitar. Actual samples may be rare but the fact that the guitarist cobbled together all of this on his own is admirable, particularly when he marshals all of his skill on one cut. The minor-key march “Fire” gains gravity from its blend of ghostly organs and guitar twang, “Stay Gold” shimmers with the sultriness of a heat wave, and “Black Moon Rising” unfurls with a hushed sense of spectacle.

At these moments, which are the best Black Pumas has to offer, the duo’s flair for drama is so stirring, they can seem acutely cinematic. As appealing as this Technicolor sound may be, it can’t quite hide the seams created when the duo stitched their two sensibilities together in the studio. Burton’s misty introspection can give Quesada’s soulful prowess an ethereal edge, yet it can sometimes suggest the whole enterprise is little more than snazzy pastiche. While there may be pleasure in such a patchwork of sound, particularly when it’s done with such style and verve, the assemblage bears a pointed sense of insularity. Burton sings about interior voyages and the tracks were usually constructed by no more than two musicians; it’s music made at home, for home listening. That’s all well and good, since the duo has considerable skill, but this existential lonerism underscores a chasm between the pair and their influences. Unlike the icons of the era they find so inspiring, Black Pumas rarely look outside of themselves” – Rolling Stone

Standout Tracks: Colors/Fire/Old Man

Choice Cut: Black Moon Rising

Coldplay – Everyday Life

Release Date: 22nd November, 2019

Labels: Parlophone/Atlantic

Producers: Rik Simpson/Dan Green/Bill Rahko/Angel Lopez/Federico Vindver/Max Martin

Review:

“The song’s accompanying A-side single – and the record’s centrepiece – ‘Orphans’, details hope amid the bleak narrative of the Syrian civil war. It’s the album’s obvious lead single, thrust with a slinky bassline, syncopated Afrobeat percussion and spirited choral sing-a-longs. We’ve had our fill of “woops” and “woo-hoos” across the band’s ‘A Head Full of Dreams’ though. You’re tempted to think: Please, no more.

Thankfully, penultimate track ‘Champion of the World’ (which uses the emotive guitar hook from ‘Los Angeles, Be Kind’, the work of the late Scott Huchison’s Owl John side project) rescues an otherwise trailing part two of ‘Everyday Life’. It’s a slow-burning ballad dedicated to believing in yourself, replete with the widescreen indie rock flair reminiscent of Doves’ ‘There Goes The Fear’. The closing title track, with its blooming strings and repeated chants of “Hallelujah”, sets you up for a ‘Fix You’-style cry fest but slightly short-circuits the whole thing. Still, it’s an interesting decision for a band that trades in build-and-release euphoric pop – and maybe that’s the point.

Ultimately, ‘Everyday Life’ is something of a confounding experiment. On the one hand it’s full of eclectic sounds and ideas – an Iranian poem interlude here (‘Bani Adam’), a country-blues musing on gun control there (‘Guns’) – that offer a welcome respite from Coldplay tropes. True, these songs are sometimes more exciting in theory than in practise (not something you’d have said of, for instance, the Brian Eno-assisted ‘Viva La Vida’), but ‘Everyday Life’ regularly steps to the left-field, proving that Coldplay are more adventurous than they’re often given credit for” – NME

Standout Tracks: Daddy/Orphans/Everyday Life

Choice Cut: Champion of the World

Jacob Collier – Djesse Vol. 3

Release Date: 14th August, 2020

Label: Hajanga Records

Producer: Jacob Collier

Review:

“The third album in Jacob Collier's ambitious Djesse series, 2020's Djesse, Vol. 3 finds the acclaimed British singer, songwriter, and instrumentalist exploring a vibrant mix of contemporary R&B, vintage-inspired funk, and hip-hop, all woven together by his kaleidoscopic electronic-based production. The set follows Collier's previous Djesse albums and again features a bevy of guest artists. This time out, he joins forces with Jessie Reyez and T-Pain on the kinetic "Count the People," Mahalia and Ty Dolla $ign on the lushly emotive "All I Need," and Tori Kelly on the swaggeringly soulful "Running Outta Love." We also get equally compelling contributions by Kimbra, Daniel Caesar, and Kiana Ledé. These are all gorgeously rendered songs that again underline Collier's reputation as a pop virtuoso, ably bringing together his love of '70s soul, jazz, EDM, and hooky pop” – AllMusic

Standout Tracks: In My Bones (ft. Kimbra and Tank and the Bangas)/All I Need (ft. Mahalia and Ty Dolla Sign)/Running Outta Love (ft. Tori Kelly)

Choice Cut: Time Alone with You (ft. Daniel Caesar)

Haim – Women in Music Pt. III

Release Date: 26th June, 2020

Label: Columbia

Producers: Danielle Haim/Rostam Batmanglij/Ariel Rechtshaid

Review:

“When their lengthy tour supporting Something to Tell You ended, the women of HAIM found themselves in inescapable crises. Alana's best friend died; Este struggled with her health- and career-threatening Type 1 diabetes; and Danielle had the double whammy of post-tour depression and her partner Ariel Rechtshaid's cancer diagnosis. They confronted these issues head-on in their life and in their music, and the directness -- and genuine emotion -- of Women in Music Pt. III adds welcome depth to their catchy, genre-mashing songs. On "The Steps," a portrait of partners who go from crashing into each other to taking it all in stride, the roaring guitar lick and honeyed harmonies can't hide the poignancy when Danielle sings "I can't understand/Why you don't understand me." "Don't Wanna," a slick blend of warm '70s atmosphere and peppy brass hits straight out of late-'80s pop, is just as vulnerable as "FUBT," which strips its fears and devotion down to just Danielle's voice and guitar. HAIM document every step of their journey on Women in Music Pt. III with an unflinching honesty that reaps rich rewards. They sound intimately familiar with depression in all its states, whether they're turning away from the wearying, pointless challenge to prove themselves to men in media and the music industry on "Man from the Magazine," sinking into isolation on the oddly comforting standout "I Know Alone," or emerging from the darkness on "Now I'm in It," a slow-building anthem that could be the album's statement of purpose. Women in Music Pt. III's creative process echoes its feeling of growing agency. For the first time, Danielle took on production duties alongside Rechtshaid and Rostam Batmanglij, and impressionistic touches like the seagulls and alarm clocks that embellish "Up from a Dream" or the way the guitar and saxophones drift through "Los Angeles" echo Batmanglij's dreamy musical memoir Half-Light. HAIM let each song and each mood be exactly what it needs to be, making for a collection of moments that are more interesting and real than if they'd attempted a more uniform sound across the album. The band's love for the '90s is as strong as ever on the Roxette-like "Another Try" and "3 AM"'s flirty homage to the era's R&B. Their singer/songwriter and folk-pop roots get their due on "Hallelujah" and the gorgeous "Leaning on You," a pair of songs that unite the sisters' voices and struggles in perfect harmony. The lightness HAIM use to combat the heavy things going on in their lives reaches its peak at the album's end: Written in the wake of Rechtshaid's diagnosis, "Summer Girl," taps into memories of the good times to get through the bad ones and borrows the effortlessness of Lou Reed's "Walk on the Wild Side," but trades that song's aloofness for unconditional love. Sprawling and intimate, breezy and affecting, Women in Music Pt. III is a low-key triumph” – AllMusic

Standout Tracks: Los Angeles/Gasoline/3 AM

Choice Cut: The Steps

Dua Lipa – Future Nostalgia

Release Date: 27th March, 2020

Label: Warner

Producers: Jeff Bhasker/Jason Evigan/KozIan Kirkpatrick/SG Lewis/Lindgren/The Monsters & Strangerz/Stuart Price/Take a Daytrip/TMS/Andrew Watt

Review:

“The likes of Prince, Moloko and Chic have their fingerprints all over these 11 songs. It’s peak disco-revivalism, with “Levitating” feeling right at home in a roller disco. But it never feels like she’s copying other people’s homework. Even when she’s sampling INXS on “Break My Heart” or White Town on “Love Again”, her creative voice is always at the forefront, building fantastic bangers.

“Pretty Please” is a stripped-back slow burner that lets the thumping bass and shimmering guitars take you to a dancefloor right before the lights come up. “Hallucinate”, meanwhile, is a blissful early ‘00s club floor-filler. The kind that gets limbs and sweat flying everywhere with abandon. “Cool” is the only real misstep. It lacks that Dua Lipa personality; as though you could quite easily paste someone else’s vocals in and it’d still be a perfectly fine summer bop.

It’s the kind of unabashed frankness of tunes like “Good In Bed”, featuring a line about getting the “good pipe in the moonlight”, that drives a great Dua Lipa song. From the title track's “I know you ain’t used to a female alpha” to the dismantling of the patriarchy on “Boys Will Be Boys”, it’s this approach that makes her tunes more than just club bangers. Even when she swings to socio-political issues, it fits seamlessly.

Bores argue that all pop music is copy-paste manufactured, but if that’s true, then why doesn't all pop music sound this incredible? Future Nostalgia is an artist in total control. It’s built on such an addictive carefree spirit that it’s hard not to let loose and go with it. The greatest pop star of this generation? That’s for you to decide. But Future Nostalgia makes a very convincing argument that Dua Lipa just might be” – The Line of Best Fit

Standout Tracks: Don’t Star Now/Physical/Levitating

Choice Cut: Break My Heart

Post Malone – Hollywood’s Bleeding

Release Date: 6th September, 2019

Label: Republic

Producers: Andrew Watt/BloodPop/Brian Lee/Carter Lang/DJ Dahi/Emile Haynie/Frank Dukes/Happy Perez/Jahaan Sweet/Louis Bell/Matt Tavares/Nick Mira/Post Malone/Wallis Lane

Review:

“Post Malone, post breakup, brought us his new single ‘Circle’ just last week, appearing as a promise that he would not disappoint on his third studio album ‘Hollywood’s Bleeding’.

Refusing to remain bound by genre, he collaborated with Tame Impala’s leading man Kevin Parker to create a lethargic yet serene sounding track which presets the albums recurring theme of an unresting love.

Unsurprisingly, with the bold range which Post Malone wishes to exhibit on this record, this is simply one of the 10 features in this 17 track galore, which includes the likes of Da Baby, Future, Halsey, Meek Mill, Lil Baby, SZA, Swae Lee and Young Thug.

When anticipating an onset of kicks, snares, and high hats, his acoustic vocal start to the album feels somewhat unsettling; it isn't until a minute in when he gives us what we want, or rather what we expect. ‘Hollywood’s Bleeding’ is an inverted ode to the city, which as Post Malone describes it, inhibits “vampires that want to suck the life from you”.

Beginning the album in a realm familiar to the listener, allows for a more exciting adventure into the unfamiliar parts of the rest of the album. A tip of the hat to the good, moving on to the great.

Heavy pop punk with a light 50’s influence is an uncommon pairing done seamlessly in song ‘Allergic’, the meaning of which accompanies the albums more vengeful tone, however camouflaged in a light hearted and wistful production. It is a style which seems to reflect the imagery of the album cover itself - that at the end of it all, Post manages to rise above it.

What takes the album on a bit of a disappointing turn is ‘Internet’. Composed and written by Kanye West, its oddly placed string accompaniment and lyrics boasts the sentiment of apathy and ignorance. The strings by themselves? Moving, inspiring and touching. However, set against the lyrics it becomes disjointed, unusual and strange.

It’s a two minute interlude which can be easily forgotten in order to enjoy the rest. The most thrilling parts of the album come from its experimental nature, pushed furthest in ‘Take What You Want’ which features both Ozzy Ozbourne and Travis Scott. A collaboration which proves to be an explosive track featuring some insane guitar shredding.

Of course, among this, Post Malone still provides us with a sprinkling of the classics: bitches, butts and Millie on wrists, it’s appeasing. But for the most part, he created an insightful and eclectic record which is a testament to his versatility and willingness to do exactly what he wants” – CLASH

Standout Tracks: Saint-Tropez/Goodbyes (ft. Young Thug)/Wow

Choice Cut: Circles

My Predicted Winner

Taylor Swift – folklore

Release Date: 24th July, 2020

Label: Republic

Producers: Aaron Dessner/Jack Antonoff/Taylor Swift

Review:

“Swift’s longest lyrical obsession is the loss of innocence, a theme she makes fairly devastating here. Set to high piano flurries, Seven switches between hopscotch-rhyme verses about childhood rituals, and pleading, choral depictions of herself at seven, “in the weeds, before I learned civility,” she sings. “I used to scream ferociously / Any time I wanted.” What conditioning beat out of her as a girl, it beat back in decades later: the tense, slippery Mad Woman traces the self-perpetuating cycle of women being angered by being labelled angry – both massively improve on Lover’s slightly facile gender inequality treatise, The Man, because they’re personal, not projections. Later she recalls naive young love, “back when we were still changing for the better”, then, on Illicit Affairs, willingly entering into a deceitful relationship with someone who “showed me colours you know I can’t see with anyone else”.

The self-awareness that Swift displayed on Lover deepens in Folklore, where she subtly considers the murky line between corruption and complicity, between being a victim and a catalyst. The recriminations are fewer, the fights fairer, and her sense of responsibility in them greater. The seismic shocks of her Reputation-era rude awakening about her public image are still felt: “I can change everything about me to fit in,” she sings on Mirrorball, a gorgeous pedal steel wooze made with Jack Antonoff. Yet she tentatively asserts what’s at her core: the deep dedication she sings about on the resonant, minimalist Peace, and the abiding romanticism of Invisible String.

Lockdown has been a fruitful time for this sort of soul-searching, the absence of much in the way of new memory-formation triggering nostalgic reveries and regrets. This strange summer of arrested development is steadily ending. Folklore will endure long beyond it: as fragmented as Swift is across her eighth album – and much as you hope it doesn’t mark the end of her pop ambitions – her emotional acuity has never been more assured” - The Guardian

Standout Tracks: the 1/the last great american dynasty/betty

Choice Cut: cardigan