FEATURE: Sisters in Arms: A Time for New Documentaries and Historic Representation of Women in Music That Embrace Their Significance

FEATURE:

 

 

Sisters in Arms

IN THIS PHOTO: Beyoncé for British Vogue in July 2022/PHOTO CREDIT: Rafael Pavarotti

A Time for New Documentaries and Historic Representation of Women in Music That Embrace Their Significance

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WHILST there are…

 PHOTO CREDIT: lookdtudio via freepik

attempts to highlight women in music and their amazing contribution, there is not a tonne being done. I will come to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame soon but, although they have not done a good job at inducting and nominating as many female artist as they should, they did a #WomenWhoRock campaign for Women’s History Month a couple of years ago. There have been documentaries made about women who has inspired and changed music, and you get playlists on Spotify spotlighting amazing women and the best of various genres. That is great but, at a time when there is still massive inequality and a real lack of recognition regarding the importance of women in music, more needs to be done. I shall come to that. First, as I said I would come back to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, Courtney Love Cobain reacted to the fact that women have been marginalised by them for years. Why is that the case? She wrote a piece for The Guardian last month:

“The bar is demonstrably lower for men to hop over (or slither under). The Rock Hall recognised Pearl Jam about four seconds after they became eligible – and yet Chaka Khan, eligible since 2003, languishes with seven nominations. All is not lost, though – the Rock Hall is doing a special programme for Women’s History Month on her stagewear ...

What makes Khan’s always-a-bridesmaid status especially tragic is that she was, is and always will be a primogenitor. A singular figure, she has been the Queen of Funk since she was barely out of her teens. As Rickie Lee Jones said: “There was Aretha and then there was Chaka. You heard them sing and knew no one has ever done that before.”

IN THIS PHOTO: Chaka Khan

Yet Khan changed music; when she was on stage in her feathered kit, taking Tell Me Something Good to all the places it goes, she opened up a libidinal new world. Sensuality, Blackness: she was so very free. It was godlike. And nothing was ever the same.

But for all her exceptional talent and accomplishments – and if there is one thing women in music must be, it is endlessly exceptional – Khan has not convinced the Rock Hall. Her credits, her Grammys, her longevity, her craft, her tenacity to survive being a young Black woman with a mind of her own in the 70s music business, the bridge to Close the Door – none of it merits canonisation. Or so sayeth the Rock Hall.

The Rock Hall’s canon-making doesn’t just reek of sexist gatekeeping, but also purposeful ignorance and hostility. This year, one voter told Vulture magazine that they barely knew who Bush was – in a year she had a worldwide No 1 single 38 years after she first released it. Meg White’s potential induction as one half of the White Stripes (in their first year of eligibility) has sparked openly contemptuous discourse online; you sense that if voters could get Jack White in without her, they would do it today. And still: she would be only the third female drummer in there, following the Go-Go’s Gina Shock and Mo Tucker of the Velvet Underground. Where is Sheila E – eligible since 2001?”.

IN THIS PHOTO: boygenius (Phoebe Bridgers, Lucy Dacus and Julien Baker)/PHOTO CREDIT: Mikayla LoBasso

From legends of music through to incredible modern heroines, it is almost impossible to put into words the impact women have made. I have said it so many times, but the best and most interesting music of the past few years has been made by female artists. That is the case this year. Albums from the likes of Caroline Polachek, Lana Del Rey, and boygenius are proving that this year is no exception. It is not only established artists that are dominating. Rising artists are also adding something indispensable. Playlists and features are helpful when it comes to highlighting the strength of women in music. When festivals are still not quite gender-equal and there is a definite lack of female headliners, I hope that things will change soon. It would be good to see documentaries produced that highlight the amazing women who have changed music. From Hip-Hop pioneers to R&B legends, and Pop queens, it is time for updated and comprehensive documentaries that react to Courtney Love Cobain’s article – and show why the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame should stop putting women second! It is an industry-wide issue. There have been improvements through the years. I think that radio playlists are becoming more balanced, and there are efforts being made to ensure festival bills are equal. It is still quite slow going, and that is frustrating to see. Not only is it important to produce documentaries that acknowledge the legends and established artists who have  transformed music. As I said, there is a crop of rising female artists that are producing incredible music. Regular playlists highlight the best albums and tracks from those incredible emerging acts.

 IN THIS PHOTO: Caroline Polachek

What would be great is a website dedicated entirely to women in music. It would be an archive. You would have playlists, documentaries, articles (such as Courtney Love Cobain’s), videos, and features. Such is the tsunami of wonderful music from women, there could be a menu that takes you to different sections. Events that celebrate women in music, the best newcomers and fresh tracks from female artists. Directories of the full scope of female artists around the world, plus classic albums from female artists. Maybe something similar exists already - but a more extensive and wide-ranging website that is constantly updated would be amazing. It is not only designed to bring about faster equality and greater recognition of women in music. It is also a worthy celebration of all they have given the industry. Pioneers and groundbreaking artists. Wonderful producers and those who have brought about change. Stunning new artists who will be future legends, and those more than capable of headlining festivals. There could be podcasts and all manner of artefacts that look to those legends of the past and the new generation. For an industry that owes women so much, there is not a lot being done to make sure they have an equal platform and get the acclaim and acknowledgement they deserve. New documentaries definitely need to come to light. Maybe a website that is a one-stop archive that is like a living and constantly updated museum, or new podcasts and series that look to those who have gone before and the wonderful female artists coming through. There is so much that can be done. I hope that amazing women in music across all genres and decades are…

 IN THIS PHOTO: American artist Blondshell (Sabrina Teitelbaum) is among the wave of rising female artists shaping music in 2023/PHOTO CREDIT: Daniel Topete

PROPERLY recognised and respected.

FEATURE: Spotlight: Special Interest

FEATURE:

 

 

Spotlight

Special Interest

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NOT that I am late to the party…

because I have known about the music of Special Interest for a while now. I have not got around to putting them into my Spotlight feature. That changes now. I would recommend them to anyone who has not heard them. This is a group hat have been around for a while, but they may not be as known here in the U.K. as they are in their native U.S. They have a string of great albums under their belt – 2018’s Spiralling, 2020’s The Passion Of, 2021’s Trust No Wave -, and they released their finest work, Endure, back in November. I will get to a review of Endure at the end of this feature. I will come to some interviews soon. Before that, here is some background regarding an incredible band:

“Special Interest was born out of New Orleans’ evasive DIY scene. After a demo tape (Trust No Wave) and a debut 12” (Spiraling), the group released their second LP The Passion Of in 2020. The Passion Of finds the band with a fuller realization of their sound. While Spiraling documented a band discovering their purpose, The Passion Of is both more chaotic and melodic, daring to finally live up to their notorious wall-of-sound live performances. Massive, juddering beats from an old Electribe sampler and distorted bass provide much of the rhythmic backbone. The effect is purely physical, circumnavigating the brain and heading straight to the body’s core. Crass, decolonized guitar work and haunting synth lines cut through the low end noise to serve the album’s layers of drama. It’s a cloying, intense dynamic that builds to almost unbearable fever pitch at points, threatening to overwhelm and overpower. The Passion Of is a true document of Special Interest as the intense and radical unit they are”.

Even though most of the group are not based out of New Orleans now, I think that the city is still very important to them and their music. Many of the interviews with the group are from last year. There is one from 2020 that I want to highlight. Around the release of The Passion Of, The Quietus caught up with Special Interest and asked how New Orleans has impacted them and their music:

“Members Alli Logout (vocals), Ruth Mascelli (synth and drum machine), Maria Elena (guitar), and Nathan Cassiani (bass), together manage to make their instruments and vocals sound like a fight for our existence. Logout's vocals leap from raspy gasps to full throated screams echoing socio-political angst, backed up by Cassiani's pummelling bass, Elena's cutting distorted riffs, and Mascelli's driving beat.

Both the band's first album, 2018's Spiraling, and their latest release, The Passion Of, contain an element of chaos, creativity and surprise that is hard to predict, changing genres and making swift left turns with little warning. 'Disco II' opens with a throbbing, gabber-esque beat and siren like cutting riff, while 'All Tomorrow's Carry' slows down the pace slightly and centres its energy around a pulsating beat.

The band all see New Orleans as the inspiration for their no rules approach to music making. Mascelli explains: "When I first came to New Orleans, the scene was really DIY and supportive in a way I'd never experienced anywhere else. It kind of really encouraged me to try things I wouldn't have tried otherwise."

I spoke to Special Interest about why they want to create space for punks of colour, writing punk anthems, and how they want to be defined as a band.

Since you're all from different places, what is your relationship with New Orleans? Is it somewhere you would stay forever?

Alli Logout: Once you live in New Orleans, you're really fucked because there's no place in the whole world like this city. I spend all my time here and I only travel for art stuff. I like creating art here and I have a family here.

Do you mean in terms of kind of like a community?

AL: Yeah, the community. I got drawn here by Black punks, specifically Osa Atoe who does Shotgun Seamstress.

You cover issues of gentrification and displacement in your music. Has this been influenced by New Orleans and the punk scene there?

AL: I just wanted to start having that conversation. I can barely afford to live in some of the places I do live. I'm currently staying in a place where I don't even feel safe. Housing is consistently always going to be an issue all throughout America. Just thinking about the Black diaspora migrating from different places and still being Black doesn't make you not a gentrifier, you know. I want to talk about that because I'm thinking about it a lot.

I'm thinking about the people that I'm affecting. I'm also thinking about myself and my safety. I'm trying to hold all the nuances that come with having those conversations because being an active gentrifier in a place where you didn't grow up. You do have to come to terms with your existence being violent.

Your music is incredibly energising. How do you want your music to affect people? Is that something you consider?

AL: I want people to be affected. I want to make an album like the ones that carried me through really hard times. I feel that on this album there's so many different emotions, it can really meet people where they're at and hopefully carry them through. The whole reason I've done music is so that Black kids can see me doing what I'm doing”.

As they prepared to launch Endure last year, Special Interest were doing a fair bit of press. It was an album that so many people were excited about witnessing. In a chat with The Quietus once more, Emma Garland chatted with them about radicalism, resilience and transcendence. Led by their amazing frontperson Alli Logout, their amazing voice and power is a big reason why the songs from Special Interest hit so hard and resonate. They are a group to watch very closely and sure that you add to your playlists. Endure is a truly remarkable album:

“Work on Endure began in mid-2020, when the band – composed of Logout, guitarist Maria Elena, bassist Nathan Cassiani and Ruth Mascelli on synth/drum machine – found themselves in the depths of a brutally hot New Orleans summer, during a time of exceptional anger and isolation, with very little to do besides get together and play music. They responded to their constraints by doubling down on their influences, with Funkadelic-inspired vocals and dancefloor rhythms pushing some songs into house territory while their 70s glam and post-punk side took a more brutal and theatrical turn. “We were writing much moodier, darker music as well as a lot more… I hesitate to say poppy," Cassiani reflects, "But it was working out a different response to the feelings that we were having at the time."

The result sees Special Interest operating in a more dancefloor-ready register. Mykki Blanco-featuring single ‘Midnight Legend’ is all thumping bass and synths whirling like loose hair, functioning as a "love song to all the girls leaving the club at 6AM". It’s also a sombre nod to the darkness behind the glamour, namely the void-chasing behaviour we engage in when we feel lonely or isolated, and the opioid crisis that's been ripping through at-risk communities in the States for decades. "The song is about being enabled by other people, but also by the institutions that we're able to be ourselves in a lot," Logout explains. "I feel like everybody is quite literally silently screaming all the time, and that we don't really know what to do or how to take care of each other. But I do think we're learning that every day."

Elsewhere lead single ‘(Herman’s) House’ is a raucous disco ode to Herman Wallace, one of the Angola Three Black revolutionaries who were held in solitary confinement for 41 years at Louisiana State Penitentiary. During his imprisonment, Wallace worked with the artist Jackie Sumell via hundreds of letters to create his dream house down to the last detail – from the hobby shop to a skillet placed under a fire making shrimp and oyster gravy. Logout and Elena describe it as "a battle cry for dreamers who persist in spite of and because", and in practice the song bursts at the seams before it even starts, demanding to be played so loud it risks blowing the speakers and cracking the ceiling. Rave whistles and a “ooh! ooh!” go off like a Pride float full of leather daddies behind impassioned lyrics like “we’ll all be Basquiats for five minutes or Hermans for life, so when I say build I mean dream”. In October 2013 Wallace was released from prison. He died of cancer three days later.

“The link between Basquiat and Wallace is a very American link,” Logout says. “I think that just being Black in America means being exploited. Essentially Basquiat died because of the white people in his life and the pressure to be this particular kind of person. It's two different sides of what being Black in America is. You're either fully idolised and destroyed, or you're thrown in a cage.”

Throughout the first half of Endure there is a dissonance between sound and subject. While most of Logout's lyrics are heavily weighted rallying cries (though often bitterly funny), there's an appeal to resilience through movement that sends the whole thing reeling towards transcendence. As Mascelli puts it, the music is "joyful, but still about real shit."

"[We wanted] to make people respond in a way other than just catharsis or dismay or something," they elaborate. "The last album really focused on that type of release, but joy is an important tool for gathering for the collective and for people coming together. So it felt right to make music that could facilitate that.”

The second half of the album takes a much darker turn, feeling more obviously attuned to the imminent threat of collapse that's been a theme of Special Interest's music since their 2018 debut Spiraling. In one interview around the time of Spiraling's release, Logout claims to want the “complete, total destruction of everything”. This of course was two years before the pandemic, the Black Lives Matter uprisings, the Capitol Hill riots that took place after the Presidential Election – and, more recently, Russia's war with Ukraine and the fact that leaders across Europe are advising people to prepare for a harsh winter of financial hardship and energy blackouts. Relaying that quote back to them now, they find it quite funny.

“Maybe that’s why everyone thinks that we’re nihilistic,” they suggest, before adding that we're definitely "on the same timeline" as we were when that interview took place. "I think that things are going to get intense, and resources are going to get intense in a way that we haven't seen yet."

More to the point, though, Logout – who was raised in Texas by "Christian rednecks" – has a perspective on America that's deeply informed by their experiences of extreme ideology, and of whiteness. "One of the very first things I was taught was if they ever come for our guns, or if they ever come for God and Christ and Christianity, we're going to go blazing," they say. "I know what white America is really thinking and feeling, and it's intense and it's extreme. We had this LOL insurrection, the storming of the Capitol Building by all the Trumpers, and, you know, that couldn't happen if anybody of colour was doing that. There's so much protection for those people and those things”.

There are a couple of other interviews I want to get to before the review of Endure. Loud and Quiet caught up with the band in Los Angeles over the course of a couple of days about their amazing and career-best Endure. One of the most challenging, important, and exciting groups in independent music, we get to know more about the spectacular Special Interest:

“They’re all a little like this in conversation: invariably friendly and charismatic, but honest and unsentimental at the same time. There’s little in the way of convenient myth or simple categorisation with this band.

“I moved from Pennsylvania to New Orleans in 2009,” says Ruth. “And I never really played music at all; I was in my mid 20s and I really wanted to be in a band. So I started doing a little solo project to try and attract some people, and I was a really big fan of Maria’s band at that time – like, obsessed – and I did a T-shirt design for them. And that’s how I met them, going to the same shows. Maria and Alli were the ones who really started Special Interest.”

Before New Orleans, Maria had been in Minneapolis, part of an arts collective who brought a series of underground artists to the city.

“I was part of the post-punk revival thing,” she recalls. “They were the things that I was booking in Minneapolis. There were bands coming out of Texas that were really exciting, and also in the Midwest. And there were all the British bands I booked too – like Rachel Aggs and her pre-Shopping stuff.” She already knew Alli, and they’d spoken about forming a band together before; the plan eventually came to fruition once they were both in New Orleans. Nathan was already there – “You were so established [on the scene],” Maria tells him when this comes up, “I didn’t realise you’d only been there a year” – and Ruth was recruited soon enough, his clattering drum machine and windy synth production favoured over a live drummer.

PHOTO CREDIT: Mathew Scott

“We didn’t want a real drummer,” says Alli. “One, because they’re unreliable; two, because of how much space they take up. They have so much stuff to carry around.” Although relying on a drum machine presented its own challenges. “It was like, ‘How do you play these DIY shows and get to hear it?’ We had to carry an extra PA around with us.” 

The practical choice of drum machine over drummer immediately informed the aesthetic direction of the nascent group – after all, machines are “uncompromising, so we just adapted our composition to that, creating angles. Nathan would find the groove [on bass], and it’d take a while to figure out. But we knew something was interesting.” The early shows also featured Alli ‘playing’ the power drill, the band taking ‘industrial music’ quite literally, Einstürzende Neubauten-style. The drill actually makes a welcome return on Endure track ‘LA Blues’.

“Yeah, I didn’t know how to play anything, but liked playing music and loved performing,” says Alli. “In my first band, I just sang and loved it. Then I started wanting to jam with other people but I didn’t know how really, and I wasn’t interested in, like, learning a chord. So I just took a more noisy approach. This was happening when I was in Denton, Texas, and there were a lot of really great OG noise people there. Being friends with them really encouraged me to be like, ‘Fuck it, make noise, with anything.’

PHOTO CREDIT: Mathew Scott

“That’s actually the whole reason my first band went to New Orleans – to play this festival, but our drummer got arrested and our guitarist hated the bassist, so we couldn’t go and I was hanging out with these noise girls at a bar, crying like, ‘I’ve never done anything outside of Texas!’. I hadn’t like travelled at that point in my life – I was like, 19. And they were like, ‘Fuck it, get a toy drum machine and just write a whole new set.’ And that’s what we did. And we went and played in New Orleans.”

Those early shows, in different bands across the South, clearly mean a lot to Alli. But it’s also obvious that like so many queer people of colour in contemporary America, their experiences were far from uniformly positive; they wince a little when recalling them now.

“In my first band I was really adamant about being like ‘We’re a queer band’, but it completely destroyed me. I had no idea what was going on, and I didn’t understand how my blackness was being fetishised, and it killed my soul. One day, the memoir…” Alli lets out a hollow laugh.

It’s a recurring trauma that continues to this day. At one point in our conversation, I briefly reference an interview with Special Interest from another publication, and their groans come out immediately, in perfect unison.

“The headline [which caricatured the band’s identities and politics with tabloid crudeness] was so embarrassing, it was one tiny thing Maria said at the end…” Alli is still lamenting as I try to steer the interview in another direction. But it’s clear what the issue is: quite correctly, they’re sick of being pigeonholed and caricatured by the mainly white, heterosexual gaze of the music press, and even in supposedly ‘progressive’ publications (or DIY scenes for that matter), they can’t seem to escape its othering tendencies.

PHOTO CREDIT: Mathew Scott

“Nathan hit it the other day: queerness isn’t a sound,” says Alli. “We’re just so clearly part of a queer legacy, and that is something that’s really important, but it doesn’t describe what we sound like at all, so being put under that umbrella doesn’t make sense. But we definitely see ourselves as part of that lineage, and a lot of our art is about being queer and the politics of that; but we don’t need to be lumped in with a lot of [corporate queer culture] stuff, we don’t really have anything to do with that. It goes back to branding. It’s just such bullshit.”

“As homosexuals, we love it when we find out people are gay,” says Maria. “That’s cool and it’s nice to interact with them. It is exciting when there’s a band you like and you see that they’re queer – I get it, I would be pumped on that too.”

Alli nods sympathetically. “Even the bands we played with last night, they’re queer, and we had a great time with them, but we’re not marketing our show as a queer show. I know how important that is to people, and I know how important that was to me – if I saw something labelled as queer, I knew that I could go there. It’s just really frustrating when people do that all the time, just talk about literally who we’re fucking – there’s more to everything than who we’re fucking.”

All four of the band are queer, and they’re visibly tired of their identities being commodified and fetishised in this way. Ruth even fake-protests, “We’re all straight!” as a jokey way of evading the question; yet through their own internal bond, as well as the solidarity they share with other marginalised artists and communities, it seems like they’re finding new ways of at least keeping that shit at arm’s length”.

 PHOTO CREDIT: Alexis Goss for NME

In an interview from February, NME helped bring the music of Special Interest to British audiences. They already have a big fanbase here, but I think the more press they do, then the more people they add to their army. I hope that they do more gigs over here. At the moment, I think the only U.K. date is Green Man Festival in August. There will be a lot of demand to see more of them, as their music is really starting to turn heads. They are a force that will continue to grow stronger and stronger. Make sure that you investigate the wonder of Special Interest and their stunning music:

“It’s fair to say that into the present, Special Interest continue to reject all things po-faced or solemn, embracing weirdness in all its forms. Instead, they’re heavily influenced by the most raucous, playful strains of punk-rock: alongside the glam-infused T-Rex, the surrealist leanings of art-punks The B-52s, and genre-blurring The Slits, Mascelli pinpoints the anarchic, kazoo-enlisting Swiss trio LiLiPUT (formerly called Kleenex, until lawyers from the tissue company came knocking) as another huge early influence.

The heavy pulse of dance music also courses through their records like a cavernous heartbeat – many of Logout’s lyrics unfold in hidden basements after dark. “Disco, disco, disco, we want disco!” they demand, early on the band’s 2018 debut record ‘Spiralling’. On its successor – 2020’s ‘The Passion Of’ – Special Interest focus even more keenly on their flaming cocktail of desolation and ecstasy, pulling from industrial techno, glam rock, art pop and pulsing four-to-the-floor dance beats. Hitting somewhere between a techno banger and a strange, distorted ripper from an early Kitsuné Music compilation, ‘A Depravity Such As This’ is one such moment that finds its home firmly on the dancefloor.

On ‘Endure’ meanwhile, these increasingly well-honed influences collide with the claustrophobia of the times in which the record was written. “[The pandemic shuttering live music] meant we couldn’t test songs for an audience,” Maria Elena says, “which is what we usually do. It was directly influenced by our emotional state at that moment.”

Despite the backdrop behind creation of ‘Endure’ – the isolation of the pandemic, coupled with Black Lives Matter protests, and the dystopian horrors of the Capitol riots – Logout reckons it’s a record that would’ve resonated whenever it was released. “I feel like this album could have come out at any time,” they say, although “it feels a little different than when we released ‘The Passion Of’, offers Mascelli. “In June 2020, during all the uprisings happening across the US… that album was born out of so many things before, but it really hit at a moment that struck a chord, in a way that feels different. Like Alli was saying, [‘Endure’] could have come out at any time, and resonated”.

PHOTO CREDIT: Kevin Allen for Flood Magazine

Get a copy of Endure if you can. I want to end up with one of the many positive reviews for the album. Pitchfork were impressed with what they heard when they sat down to tackle this work of brilliance. I do feel that Special Interest are one of these groups that you simply need in your life, regardless of your musical tastes and preferences. They are going to go a very long way, that is for sure:

“In a big enough mosh pit, the world jostles loose. You enter the pit as one person, and you leave as someone else. The late queer theorist José Esteban Muñoz described this transformation as a portal in his 2009 book Cruising Utopia. “I remember the sexually ambiguous punk clubs of my youth where horny drunk punk boys rehearsed their identities, aggressively dancing with one another and later lurching out, intoxicated, to the parking lot together,” he wrote. “For many of them, the mosh pit was not simply a closet; it was a utopian subcultural rehearsal space.” In the squall of the music, reality starts to split and curl. Through communal, friendly violence, punks build muscle memory of what it’s like to feel unhinged and cared for at the same time. The thrash of bodies clears a channel, however fleeting, into a more survivable life.

Special Interest drill down into that same molten core. Across three ferocious albums, the New Orleans band traces the line where the thirst for a new world meets the rage that torches the old one. Lit up and led by searingly charismatic singer Alli Logout, they call out the stakes of the era as they see them, excoriating gentrifiers, cops, warmongers, and trust-fund art-school kids with keenly tuned sneers. Songs about bracing for revolution brush up against songs about great sex on great drugs. Running on the tireless engine of Ruth Mascelli’s clattering drum machine, they follow in a legacy of queer perturbations from the ’80s and ’90s that include Coil, Frankie Knuckles, and the B-52’s—all of whom, in their own way, worked with the same mix of political dissatisfaction, biting humor, and erotic fantasy. On their third album, Endure, Special Interest push their sound to both its bleakest and its sweetest brinks. Pop, disco, and house all melt into their reliably raucous glam punk, and questions of communal caretaking press against a grief-riddled apocalyptic outlook. This time around, their thorns drip with honey.

Across Endure, Special Interest embellish the cornerstones they established on 2018’s Spiralling and 2020’s The Passion Of with gestures that wouldn’t sound out of place on ’90s radio. The after-dark sounds of house and techno started spilling onto commercial daytime airwaves toward the end of the last millennium, many of them drifting onto the Top 40 from overseas in the pan-flash genre called Eurodance. Logout stretches into certain vocal timbres and minor-key intervals that echo the perfect, ephemeral dance pop of a group like La Bouche, while behind their voice, delicate piano lines fringe the band’s hard-driving foundation. These shifts clear more air around Special Interest’s sound. While certain moments still feel immediate and unignorable, others seem to waft out from a club’s open back door, beckoning passersby to come take a closer look.

The album’s most compelling songs use both strategies in tandem. They invite you to wander in of your own accord, then enclose you inside a fever pitch. On the rollicking dance track “(Herman’s) House,” Special Interest forge an incandescent call to anger out of a surging hook. The song shares its name with a 2012 documentary about the imaginative collaboration between artist Jackie Sumell and activist Herman Wallace, a member of the Black Panther Party who spent 41 years in solitary confinement after serving a life sentence for a murder he denied committing. From his tiny cell, Wallace described his dream house to Sumell, who rendered it via computer graphics and as a tabletop model. In 2013, Wallace finally stepped out of prison, then died of cancer three days later. Sumell made plans to build the house he described to her as a youth community center in New Orleans, but property developers bought the proposed land out from under her.

Special Interest began writing Endure in the middle of 2020, in the wake of uprisings against police killings that stirred cities around the world. Across the insistent drumbeat spikes of “Concerning Peace,” the band bemoans the whittling down of those revolutionary impulses into a neoliberal mold of nonviolent personal enrichment: “Liberal erasure of militant uprising is a tool of corporate interest and a failure of imagination,” goes a call-out line reminiscent of the interjections on System of a Down’s “Prison Song.” Over Maria Elena’s frothing, sidelong guitar chords, the band’s voices come together for the chant-along chorus, where they collectively quote the Black Power activist Stokely Carmichael: “We are not concerned with peace/Peace is not of our concern.” Power disguises its own violence as the natural order of things; to call for violence in retaliation clarifies the terms of a smiling oppressor. “No one will ever rest in peace/When their value is less than property,” Logout seethes, pillorying commentators who expressed more concern over broken store windows than the lives of Black people killed by police.

Amid calls to destroy every kind of cage, Special Interest stay attuned to what might sprout from the ashes. The music video for “Midnight Legend,” a sweetly melodic dance track whose single version features a verse from Mykki Blanco, follows a group of clubgoers through a messy night out. They flip off a handsy bouncer, ingest a few too many drugs, argue with exasperated bartenders, and get kicked out of the bathroom in the middle of a gay threesome. This club houses little of the utopia the dancefloor can sometimes tease; all night, it plays host to low-grade, aggravating conflict. Then the dancers spill out into the morning light. As passersby hustle their way to work, three of the clubgoers sync up for an impromptu dance routine. The people who have just woken up scowl at those who have been up all night. But the dancers look at each other and beam. Their movements reassure each other that they have each other’s backs even if no one else does. Under the new sun, they practice another world inside the cracks of this one”.

Go and follow Special Interest and keep an eye on them. I discovered them last year, but I have been hooked on them ever since. I suspect that there will be more U.K. dates soon, but they are very busy and taking their music around the world. This American quartet are…

SIMPLY amazing.

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Follow Special Interest

Official:

https://specialinterest.band/

Instagram:

https://www.instagram.com/specialinterest.no/

Bandcamp:

https://specialinterestno.bandcamp.com/

Spotify:

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FEATURE: Kate Bush’s Breathing at Forty-Three: A Reason Why People Should Not Overlook Never for Ever

FEATURE:

 

 

Kate Bush’s Breathing at Forty-Three

IN THIS PHOTO: Kate Bush on the set of the Breathing music video/PHOTO CREDIT: John Carder Bush

A Reason Why People Should Not Overlook Never for Ever

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I know that the title track…

from The Red Shoes has an anniversary before this song (it was released on 4th April, 1994), but there is not a lot of information about the single out there. I might come to that when I look at The Red Shoes album nearer its thirtieth anniversary in November. Another song that has its anniversary this month is Breathing. Taken from the mighty third studio album from Kate Bush, Never for Ever, it boasts some of her finest production (she co-produced it with Jon Kelly), songwriting and vocals. Released on 14th April 1980, this is a song I have written about a few times before. I think that this was the most accomplished and symphonic track Bush wrote to that point. One can listen to Breathing and look ahead to Hounds of Love and some of the tracks from the conceptual suite, The Ninth Wave. I have argued before why Babooshka wasn’t the lead single from Never for Ever. It is more commercial and would chart higher (five to Breathing’s sixteen), but Bush was quite deliberate I think in that choice. Criticised and almost written off in interviews before recording Never for Ever as she was not seen as political or serious, there was a conscious effort to bring politics into her music. Whilst it, luckily, did not dominate albums like Never for Ever, it continues through 1982’s The Dreaming with songs like Pull Out the Pin. Breathing was a signal that she was venturing into new territory and, for those who doubted her credentials and the fact that shows was a serious musician, this song left no minds in doubt!

I think it was journalists like Danny Baker who scoffed slightly and wrote her off as a hippy or someone who was writing weird songs with no real depth or social conscience. To be fair, Bush was writing in a hugely original way. By 1979/1980, Punk was not as potent a force as it once was, and I feel many were clinging onto it desperately and expected all artists to write political songs. Even if the nation was under Conservative rule at the time (with Margaret Thatcher as the Prime Minister), female artists like Bush could not be expected to fit into the old boys’ club in terms of expectation, image, and sound. Breathing was very much Bush showing that she was conscious and caring. Delivering something far more arresting and interesting than the far too boring, direct, and unsophisticated music from the Punk scene, Breathing is almost operatic and Progressive Rock. It also features one of her most startling and memorable music videos. Before continuing, this is what Bush said about Breathing and where the idea came from:

“When I wrote the song, it was from such a personal viewpoint. It was just through having heard a thing for years without it ever having got through to me. 'Til the moment it hit me, I hadn't really been moved. Then I suddenly realised the whole devastation and disgusting arrogance of it all. Trying to destroy something that we've not created - the earth. The only thing we are is a breathing mechanism: everything is breathing. Without it we're just nothing. All we've got is our lives, and I was worried that when people heard it they were going to think, 'She's exploiting commercially this terribly real thing.' I was very worried that people weren't going to take me from my emotional standpoint rather than the commercial one. But they did, which is great. I was worried that people wouldn't want to worry about it because it's so real. I was also worried that it was too negative, but I do feel that there is hope in the whole thing, just for the fact that it's a message from the future. It's not from now, it's from a spirit that may exist in the future, a non-existent spiritual embryo who sees all and who's been round time and time again so they know what the world's all about. This time they don't want to come out, because they know they're not going to live. It's almost like the mother's stomach is a big window that's like a cinema screen, and they're seeing all this terrible chaos. (Kris Needs, 'Fire In The Bush'. Zigzag (UK), 1980).

From my own viewpoint that's the best thing I've ever written. It's the best thing I've ever produced. I call that my little symphony, because I think every writer, whether they admit it or not, loves the idea of writing their own symphony. The song says something real for me, whereas many of the others haven't quite got to the level that I would like them to reach, though they're trying to. Often it's because the song won't allow it, and that song allowed everything that I wanted to be done to it. That track was easy to build up. Although it had to be huge, it was just speaking - saying what had to be put on it. In many ways, I think the most exciting thing was making the backing track. The session men had their lines, they understood what the song was about, but at first there was no emotion, and that track was demanding so much emotion. It wasn't until they actually played with feeling that the whole thing took off. When we went and listened, I wanted to cry, because of what they had put into it. It was so tender. It meant a lot to me that they had put in as much as they could, because it must get hard for session guys. They get paid by the hour, and so many people don't want to hear the emotion. They want clear, perfect tuning, a 'good sound'; but often the out-of-tuneness, the uncleanliness, doesn't matter as much as the emotional content that's in there. I think that's much more important than the technicalities. (Kris Needs, 'Fire In The Bush'. Zigzag (UK), 1980)”.

There are a lot of reasons why Never for Ever should not be overlooked. Breathing was a first shot of brilliance from a ten-track album with no filler. Bush was co-producing for the first time, and I feel that she was eager to show her true depth and range. The fact that singles like Breathing and Babooshka had original B-sides rather than other album tracks. Breathing has the brilliantly original The Empty Bullring as the B-side, whereas Babooshka featured the quirky and risqué Ran Tan Waltz. I have written before how there was such a great atmosphere in the studio when recording Never for Ever. As producer, Bush made sure there was plenty of fun. It was a laugh most of the time. Takes and days would often go into the night, as there was this great environment and connection between the musicians. I think it is the first album where she was truly making music with the people she wanted and thew way that suited her. If she has since said that it was not until Hounds of Love when she was fully ‘her’ and pleased with what she was recording, Never for Ever is a terrific album. Breathing is forty-four on 14th April, and I wanted to celebrate that. The first single and final track from Never for Ever, I love the fact the lead single was the album’s swansong! That does not happen often. Another political song, Army Dreamers, would be the third single (released in September 1980). It is interesting that Army Dreamers is track nine and Breathing is track ten.

I guess the epic Breathing just had to end the album, but the two more political songs are at the end. This was not to hide them away. Quite the opposite. It was ending it with a high and real potency. To ensure that the listeners was intrigued what came next. The Dreaming arrived two years later and took a lot of people by surprise with its experimental and dense sound and production. It is a real shame there are not photos from inside the studio when Never for Ever was being recorded. No real footage of that process happening. I can imagine how keen Bush was to ensure the production and process was very much to her liking. Exacting more than a perfectionist, I also feel that Never for Ever beautifully balances experimentation and accessibility. There are more commercial tracks like Babooshka and even Army Dreamers with darker tracks such as Breathing or Violin. The strangeness and beauty of The Infant Kiss alongside the propulsive Violin, gorgeous Delius (Song for Summer), The Tour of Life-connected Blow Away (For Bill) – a track written in tribute to lighting assistant Bill Duffield, who died in a tragic accident after the warm-up gig for Bush’s tour -, right through to the majestic and hugely underplayed The Wedding List.

Songs like The Wedding List and All We Ever Look for could have been successful singles. The bridge track, Night Scented Stock, is a tantalising snippet that links The Infant Kiss and Army Dreamers. So much to enjoy and revel in, I think that Never for Ever remains underrated and under-explored. If radio stations play anything from the album, it is usually Babooshka. There are at least five or six tracks from the album almost never played or extremely rarely. Only twenty-one when Never for Ever was recorded, it came into the world in September 1980. At the start of Bush’s most successful decade, she put into this world a phenomenal album that sounds so freeing and liberated. An artist truly expressing herself without other producers in the mix. Yes, there was Jon Kelly, but as they were pretty much the same age, there was more of an easy connection. Breathing is forty-four very soon, so I wanted to salute that song and also shout out to Never for Ever. It is an album that…

EVERYONE needs to hear.

FEATURE: Don’t Take It Personal: Ellie Goulding’s Higher Than Heaven, and Escapist, Joyous Pop

FEATURE:

 

 

Don’t Take It Personal

IN THIS PHOTO: Ellie Goulding/PHOTO CREDIT: Nathan Jenkins

Ellie Goulding’s Higher Than Heaven, and Escapist, Joyous Pop

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NOT that it has always been the way…

but Pop music has become more open and personal over the past few years. That might seem like a generalisation, but I do feel more depth and vulnerability has come into the scene. This is needed, but I do think that there is something important about putting out joyous, simple, and impersonal Pop. Not that this applies to all artists but, if they have a child or go through a big event, eyes are on them to release something personal and emotional. Pop music at the moment has a lot of variety, so there is no judgement and expectation now for everything to be revealing and inward-looking. When Ellie Goulding announced her fifth studio album, Higher Than Heaven, people might have expected something that was very personal. Since 2020’s Brightest Blue – an album I recently featured – was released, she has given birth and gone through a lot of life changes. The pandemic has happened too - so you might have got an album that was quite mushy, dark, emotive, and cliché. There is nothing wrong with artists documenting struggles and personal fulfilment, but it can be quite serious and loses a lot of what makes Pop special. You can have fun and escapist Pop that has personal elements and depth (I am thinking of albums like Dua Lipa’s Future Nostalgia and Charli XCX’s CRASH). The press have been very positive towards Higher Than Heaven. Goulding wonderfully revealed that her fifth is her least personal album. After the terror and struggle of the pandemic, she wanted to put out something that was fun and brings people together.

I am seeing a lot of well deserved four-star reviews for the album. I recently wrote how BBC Radio 1 have taken artists like Ellie Goulding off of the playlist. She is featured as a collaborator, but I do hope that she is back on the playlists as a solo artist, seeing as her latest album has a sound and vibe that is very cool and fits perfectly on BBC Radio 1 – though there is a chance that it may struggle to get into the mix. As of the date of writing this (7th April), she is not there as a solo artist, though other great female artists like Caity Baser, Lizzo and Lana Del Rey are included. I reacted to a report that artists like Ellie Goulding, and Rita Ora were being taken off of the playlist because they are seen as ‘too old’. BBC Radio 1 does feature female artists over thirty on their playlists. Lana Del Rey, and Lizzo as solo artists, and the leads of CHVRCHES, and Paramore are too. I am not saying they are ageist against all women but, if it is true that a few were seen as out of fashion or less relevant because of their age, then that is a damaging and concerning policy. In any case, Goulding warrants a place back on the playlists as a solo artist. I am going to expand more on escapist Pop. First, it is worth highlighting Higher Than Heaven. The Guardian reacted to Goulding’s declaration that Higher Than Heaven is her least personal release:

“Saying your new album is your “most personal yet” is the oldest pop cliche in the book. It’s an easy – or lazy – way to say that fans should be invested in your next record without telling them why, exactly; a tease that buying a copy of the album will get them ever-so-much-closer to the inside of their favourite star’s head. It’s a line used by the media as much as by stars themselves; a cursory Google of “most personal album yet” will bring up examples ranging from Adele to Stormzy to Post Malone. Sometimes, the descriptor is accurate – I would say that Lana Del Rey’s new album actually is her most personal yet – but often it’s what you deploy when you have nothing else interesting to say.

That’s why it was so charming when, at a Q&A earlier this week, British pop singer Ellie Goulding went on record to say that her forthcoming album Higher Than Heaven was her “least personal” album ever. “In the best possible way, this album wasn’t taken from personal experiences, and it was such a relief and really refreshing to not be sitting in the studio going through all the things that happened to me and affected me,” she said. “It’s the least personal album, but I think it’s the best album because I got to just explore other things about myself. I just really, really enjoy writing; really enjoy being a singer.”

This is a funny and knowing comment from someone who’s been through enough promotion cycles to recognise hoary pop cliches. It’s a breath of fresh air because, now more than ever, singles are treated like marketing tools for personal celebrity – commentaries that only really work in tandem with a media narrative”.

 PHOTO CREDIT: Madison Phipps

I am going to come to a review for Higher Than Heaven. First, Rolling Stone interviewed Goulding to promote the album. It has been a couple of years of change and transformation for her. Higher Than Heaven is very different to 2020’s Brightest Blue. I do like the fact that, when many might have felt she would be more personal and awe-struck on her new album, there is a sense of frivolity, togetherness, abandon, and fun – almost like a return to her earliest days:

“This album process was a lot different from the last one. You mentioned before that you still didn’t know who you were with Brightest Blue. Have you finally found who Ellie Goulding truly is?

No, and I think I will never know, and I think that’s just how I am. We’re always striving to figure out who we are and figure things out through writing and through music… So no, I don’t think I do. But I’m happy in that place. I’m happy being in a place of curiosity and exploration.

I’m always searching for that. I definitely know myself a lot better now than the person I was when I was 20 years old signing a record deal and a publishing deal, suddenly thrust onto television in the UK, normalizing it. I’m meant to be doing this. But actually, my brain saying, “No you’re not. This is just mental. You can’t just go from university to suddenly just being on television, walking out my house being photographed. That’s not normal.” I didn’t ever really have a chance to process that. So the lead-up to Brightest Blue, I wandered around New York by myself for hours just thinking about everything that happened to me.

At least in that way, I feel like I’ve gotten to know myself a bit better. Maybe at some point I’ll know, but right now I don’t know what’s going on and I’m happy with that.

Finding yourself is a lifelong process. This new album just shows a very joyous and fun you though, which is very exciting.

There’s certainly something about becoming a mom that does make you explore yourself as a woman, even sexuality and all those things. I do feel like before I had Arthur — this sounds really strange, but I didn’t feel necessarily womanly. I just felt like a human that was going on stage and performing and I didn’t necessarily feel feminine or masculine. And then when you have a kid, there was something that just gets injected into you that suddenly you’re just this kind of power.

You just take this to another level of being a woman, realizing that you’ve just done this insane thing and then given birth to another human. That’s wild. Before that, I didn’t necessarily feel that kind of pull. And then on this album, I feel like there was a new kind of confidence there, in being a woman and sensuality.

Sabrina Carpenter sings, “Tell me who I am because I don’t have a choice,” referring to the tabloid headlines about her own life. I feel like that’s something that you’ve had to deal with too. Looking back at that now, how do you think you were able to grapple with that and find yourself after that?

“Tell me who I am because I don’t have a choice.” Yeah. British press likes a story. They sort of delve into your personal life. It’s like a fascination. You can sell millions of records, which I have, and they still focus on the other things that aren’t necessarily that relevant. But you know what, they have been sort of kind to me, so I can’t really complain too much. But you get really tempted to be influenced by other people’s sort of interpretation of who you are, what their perception of you is, their opinion on what you look like.

I think that the most shocking thing for me at the beginning was how much people cared about your physical appearance: your weight, your hair, your clothes, and also your opinion on things.

It was kind of a case of, “We don’t need your opinion, stick to what you’re good at kind of thing.” And at the same time, “Why haven’t you spoken up about this?” It was just like, I can’t win. I was not prepared to be scrutinized in that way. And I think the thing that has always kept me going is that I never got lost in that. I continued to, from the very beginning, play live shows, and play festivals, the things that kept me grounded. I could just escape that stuff”.

Despite the fact that Higher Than Heaven might feature more on BBC Radio 2 than 1 (or BBC Radio 6 Music) is their loss. The fact is that the album has been winning terrific reviews across the board. It is Pop music of the highest order. This is what The Line of Best Fit had to say about Ellie Goulding’s fifth studio album:

“Higher Than Heaven keeps it refreshingly simple. After 2015’s excellent but lengthy Delirium, 2020’s Brightest Blue tried to be too smart and walked away with a noticeable lack of exciting songs. Goulding’s newest effort goes in the opposite way – there’s rarely a moment to relax amidst the shimmering synths and electric vocal performances. In a bit of irony, the album’s finest moment might actually be one of its most low-key: the glossy vocal performance of “Love Goes On” and its brooding, hypnotic background instrumentation mixes to a dazzling, momentous effect.

But oh, the bops. In this category, Higher Than Heaven more than delivers. The album opens with a one-two punch – “Midnight Dreams” is a slick disco track, and “Cure For Love”’s playful and catchy chorus sings of self-preservation after a breakup: “Given too much, didn’t get enough / Sick but I’m getting started.” The bass on both “Like A Savior” and “Let It Die” is so nasty and propulsive, something that could have been pulled out of The Weeknd’s catalog, and the title track “Higher Than Heaven,” fittingly, reaches new heights vocally.

There are some times when it’s clear the songwriting wasn’t a priority, and the instrumental isn’t enough to bolster the song. The near-monotone delivery on the chorus of “By The End Of The Night” doesn’t pair well with ideas that sound plucked straight out of 2015, and album closer “How Long” introduces an unwelcome trap beat that doesn’t make sense with the rest of the album.

Ellie Goulding has successfully recalibrated and offers a fun, high-energy dance record with her latest offering. There was a rumour, now debunked, that the lyrics to the album were AI-generated; but if it were true, would it really matter? Higher Than Heaven is pure candy floss in the best way – little substance, but the sugar rush is so immaculate it ends up not mattering”.

 PHOTO CREDIT: Jorge Fakhouri Filho/Pexels

I am going to wrap up soon. I wanted to react to the acclaim around Ellie Goulding’s Higher Than Heaven. It does go to show how people react to Pop that doesn’t necessarily have to be deep, personal, and overly-emotive. There is definitely a place for that, but it is nice to hear an album whose objective seem to be to raise the spirits and get people dancing. Goulding brilliantly had to state that Higher Than Heaven was her least personal album, as I feel there would have been expectation for it to not be. Maybe she will return to a more personal course for her next album but, with new motherhood part of her life, why wouldn’t her new album be joyous?! There is some great and fun Pop out there, and I do hope that this continues. It is good to escape and have music that doesn’t have to be serious or revealing. At a very difficult time for all of us, we will gravitate towards music that has more of a smile and sense of urgency. Compared to past decades, Pop has lost a certain prolificacy of joy and escapism. Maybe that is good in some ways, but it does take away an element of fun and celebration. Let’s hope more artists such as Ellie Goulding refute the need to be personal all of the time and make Pop music that embraces us all. There is a distinct need for Higher Than Heaven and escapist Pop. That is pretty evident in the…

FANTASTIC reviews!

FEATURE: Aqua Barbie: Dua Lipa and the Forthcoming Greta Gerwig Film

FEATURE:

 

 

Aqua Barbie

IMAGE CREDIT: Warner Bros. Pictures

Dua Lipa and the Forthcoming Greta Gerwig Film

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EVERYONE has probably grown bored…

 IMAGE CREDIT: Warner Bros. Pictures

of the Barbie-related posts that have been going on. It is all based on the poster for the forthcoming Greta Gerwig film of the same name. In it, there are various characters with descriptions of them. Each of the characters/actors portrays a different Barbie with different qualities. It is a striking and memorable poster that has rather unsurprisingly caused a lot of people to add their own versions. It will die down within the next few days, but my timeline has been awash with peoples’ own takes on the new poster. As marketing goes, it is brilliant and has got people talking. Starring Margot Robbie as Barbie and Ryan Gosling as Ken, the film opens on 21st July. Directed by Gerwig, she co-wrote it with Noah Baumbach. I am going to do a few more Barbie-related features closer to its opening, as it looks like it is set in the ‘80s or ‘90s. That is a guess, as it is quite hard to tell whether it has a distinct time setting. The teasers are not giving much away. It looks like a lot of fun, and I think it will be one of Margot Robbie’s most successful roles of her career. With a star-studded cast that includes Emma Mackey and Michael Cera, it is doubtless going to scoop a lot of huge reviews and clean up at the box office! Also, the script looks really sharp and interesting. I would not be surprised if the film won awards and was considered to be one of the best of this year. Such is the hype and interest around it at the moment, let’s hope that momentum pays off. In future features, I will look at the music side of things – and what we might hear in the soundtrack.

It is not unusual for artists to appear in films. Halsey looks like she will feature in the  upcoming X sequel, MaXXXine. An artist who is already proving her acting credentials, we are going to see Halsey feature in a lot of films through the years, as she has incredible presence and talent. Perhaps she will follow Lady Gaga in terms of the roles she takes and how successful she will be. One of our best artists, Dua Lipa, is set to appear in  the forthcoming Barbie film. I am going to continue in a second. With an aqua theme to Lipa’s Barbie poster image – I think of Aqua and Barbie Girl when I see the photo! -, it intriguing how big her role will be and what we might get. Pitchfork explain a little more:

“Dua Lipa has joined the cast of Barbie as a blue-haired mermaid. Greta Gerwig’s big-screen story based on the Mattel toys stars Margot Robbie and Gosling, with Issa Rae, Simu Liu, Michael Cera, and Kate McKinnon elsewhere in the cast. Helen Mirren is the film’s narrator.

In 2021, Dua Lipa announced that she’d make her acting debut in the spy thriller Argylle, which has not yet been released. Since she issued Future Nostalgia and its remix companion in 2020, the singer has collaborated on new material with Megan Thee Stallion and Calvin Harris. Last year, she was named as an honorary ambassador of Kosovo by the country’s president”.

The reason I wanted to highlight Dua Lipa is because she is also going to appear in a lot more films. I am not sure whether she is continuing a song to the soundtrack, but it is intriguing to see what comes about. Maybe, when we see the film, it is going to be a small but interesting part, here is someone who is going to be given plenty of scripts very soon. It is good that quite a few British names are popping up in the film. Among the cast is Helen Mirren, who will be the film’s narrator. Caroline Wilde is also appearing – I also think that she is going to be in a lot more films through the years, as she is extremely talented and versatile.

I feel music will definitely play a big part in Barbie. Again, I am not sure of the precise time setting, but I am glad that Dua Lipa has a role. Sorry for any repetition when I wrote about her recently. It is fascinating when artists appear in films. I am curious how they translate and fare. After Argylle and Barbie are released, let’s hope that there are a lot more opportunities for Dua Lipa. She is working on her third studio album – following 2020’s Future Nostalgia -, and is constantly busy and on the go. Whether providing music for the film or getting some additional screentime, this is wonderful exposure for an amazing talent. I am predicting a very varied acting career for the tremendous Dua Lipa. I was eager to write about the Barbie film, as there has been a lot of focus around it. The poster has definitely stirred up quite a lot of interest and social media posting! As I write this, there are still scores of people ‘casting’ themselves as Barbie as it were. The film is going to be a big success, and it looks like a perfect summer flick for everyone. It is great that, however substantial her role, Dua Lipa is going to be on the big screen. On 21st July, you will be able to witness and experience one of the most-anticipated film for years. I am interested what will be on the soundtrack, as there are so many options to choose from. As I understand, Aqua’s Barbie Girl will not feature – which is probably a bit of a blessing! Regardless, a stellar and eclectic cast are going to appear in a film that celebrate and reinterprets an iconic figure. Helmed by the remarkable Greta Gerwig, the footage and teasers we have seen so far are tantalising and are promising something special. When the film hits cinemas…

GO and discover that yourself.

FEATURE: Genre-lisation: Why Are Black Artists Like Arlo Parks Mislabelled When It Comes to Their Influences?

FEATURE:

 

 

Genre-lisation

IN THIS PHOTO: Arlo Parks/PHOTO CREDIT: Transgressive Records

Why Are Black Artists Like Arlo Parks Mislabelled When It Comes to Their Influences?

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THERE was something posted recently…

 IN THIS PHOTO: Little Simz/PHOTO CREDIT: Karolina Wielocha

that caught my eye. Arlo Parks is Mercury Prize-winning artist whose second studio album, My Soft Machine, is out on 26th May. It is going to be another terrific release from an artist whose distinct and honest songwriting has captured hearts and minds. I think I first heard her music prior to the release of her debut album, Collapsed in Sunbeams, in 2021. In terms of genre, I know that many artists don’t want to be defined. That is fair enough, but it is helpful to know what inspired them. You don’t have to define artists by genre, but I do feel that there needs to be some sort of guide or starting point. When it comes to Black artists, are we too ready to define them by cliché and stereotypes? It affects female artists more than men I think, but so many Black artists are labelled quickly. Many assume that their music is R&B, Soul or Rap when, in fact, they are influenced by other genres. Highsnobiety put out a feature last month that celebrated fifteen women currently killing it in Hip-Hop. A positive sign for sure, there is some amazing talent in the mix. Little Simz is up top, but artists such as Ice Spice are in the mix. Any feature that draws attention to women and Rap is wonderful. A genre still seen as male-driven and problematic in some ways (because of language and attitudes expressed in some songs), it is a genre that is broadening, opening doors and also showing more sensitivity and personal revelation.

 PHOTO CREDIT: Vlada Karpovich/Pexels

Many of the artists featured by Highsnobiety are going to go a long way. Arlo Parks is one of the fifteen. The issue is, I am not sure anyone can call her a ‘Hip-Hop’ artist. The same might be able to be said of one or two other artists listed in the future. It is great Parks’ music has been highlighted, but to see her as a rapper seems weird! The Line of Best Fit published a feature where they reported Parks’ reaction to the inclusion:

“Politely acknowledging that the publication have missed the mark by including her on their list, Arlo Parks took to Twitter to encourage black artists to "make whatever you want to make regardless of the boxes that people try and fold you into", noting that they are "on the right path" regardless.

At this moment in time, her response appears to have fallen on deaf ears, with High Snobiety responding to it with: "<3".

This feature is just a small example of publications trying to box artists into categories that do not fit their sound, simply judging them stereotypically by the colour of their skin.

Rachel Chinouriri is another artist who has been vocal about this in her career thus far. She has widely spoken about how artists such as Coldplay and Daughter have been a strong influence on her sound, but yet she still finds herself categorised into the wrong genre – often being labelled as R&B or Soul.

In an Instagram post following the tweet posted last January, she went into further detail, providing a statement on how being mislabelled has affected her.

"When I was 18 I started putting pictures of myself to my music artwork and sometimes I regret ever doing that," she begins. "Before then it was always “indie” or “alternative” or even “electronic”. Then it became… “You sound like a white girl”, “I can hear influences of soul”, “This is kind of RnB”, “Neo soul?”, “This is white music”.

Artists like Arlo Parks and Rachel Chinouriri have been mislabelled as R&B and Rap. Again, I am not sure whether male artists experience it as much, but are Black women too readily miscast in genres they are either not interested or influenced by? Look at some of the most incredible Black female artists coming through right now, and you will see many genres covered. I am thinking of someone like Samara Joy. A wonderful Jazz artist, I know it is not the case that every Black female artist is either seen as belonging to R&B or Hip-Hop. It does seem worrying that Parks’ music was seen as such. Someone who clearly is not a Hip-Hop act, you hear elements of Pop, Indie and Jazz in her work too. There is a vulnerability and softness, but so many interesting labels. I am not sure I have ever even heard Parks rap in a song. No real Hip-Hop elements in her work. The same is true with Rachel Chinouriri and R&B. She herself has named Coldplay as influences. In 2023, are we still in a position where there is ‘Black’ and ‘White Music’?! Maybe it is easy to make honest mistakes, but it does seem lazy to assume that a Black artist would naturally belong to genres traditionally seen as Black. The reverse is true. No genre should be defined by gender or race. For sure, I do think that the most important Hip-Hop artists coming through are Black, but it would be an oversight to stereotype or ignore the breadth of the genre. This is also true of R&B.

Apparently I’m on @highsnobiety’s list of 15 female hip-hop artists…all I will say is that if you are a black person make whatever you want to make regardless of the boxes that people try and fold you into - you’re on the right path pic.twitter.com/gBVc8ZzhlD

— Arlo Parks (@arloparks) April 4, 2023

Arlo Parks dealt with the article well. After all, it is important that her work has been highlighted, but to miscast and defined by the wrong genre is myopic and tone deaf. You only need to listen to a few songs to realise that Indie Pop and Indie Folk are closer to the mark. She has said, rightly, that Black artists shouldn’t be boxed - that they should be free to make whatever music they like without being narrowly defined. Also, even though her Wikipedia page says that R&B is a genre she is associated with, I also think that this is untrue. Listen hard and it is hard to see any R&B influences or connections. Again, this seems like someone assuming that as she is a Black artist that she would be R&B (or Hip-Hop). We need to get out of this mindset that fails to recognise that Black artists are influenced by a wide range of artists and genres. We never label and easily define white artists, so why should we do so with Black artists? From Pop and Indie through to Folk, Jazz, and Bluegrass, one cannot jump to conclusions or be ignorant when it comes to labelling. I do feel that there are genres that are still harder for Black artists to make a mark in and get as much attention as white artists. Even Pop, Rock and Indie still have a long way to go when it comes to equality and spotlighting more Black artists. With remarkable pioneers like Nova Twins and Arlo Parks coming through, we will see a day when various genes are not exclusively seen as white or Black-dominated and defined. It is terrific that incredible Black women are bossing Hip-Hop. This is a hugely important thing to recognise. We can’t assume that Black artists are not influenced by music and genres that go against the narrative. What people assume that Black artists are influenced by. Let’s hope that attitudes change because damage is done when this happens. It is vital that Black artists are not done…

A huge disservice.

FEATURE: The Kate Bush Interview Archive: 2005: The Toronto Star (Greg Quill)

FEATURE:

 

 

The Kate Bush Interview Archive

IN THIS PHOTO: Kate Bush in 2005/PHOTO CREDIT: Trevor Leighton

2005: The Toronto Star (Greg Quill)

_________

IN one of the final editions…

of The Kate Bush Interview Archive, I am sourcing a great 2005 chat from The Toronto Star. The reason I wanted to include this is because it relates to her double album, Aerial. Whilst the British press were familiar with her work and she maybe felt more comfortable speaking with them, I was curious to read what a Canadian newspaper would write when they spoke with Bush. Greg Quill was charged with promoting Aerial. Thanks to the always indispensable Gaffa for archiving the interviews Bush was involved with through the years. I have selected this interview for inclusion, as it is particularly interesting. I hope it compels some people who have not heard Aerial to pick it up and have a listen:

“Bush might have remained one of the curiosities of the 1980s Britpop explosion had it not been for a steady stream in subsequent years of performers who clearly owe much to her vision and style. Hip-hop star Antwan "Big Boi" Patton of OutKast has called Bush his "No. 1 musical influence next to Bob Marley." And if that's hard to believe, try listening to Bjork, Sarah McLachlan, Dido, Fiona Apple or Tori Amos without conjuring Kate Bush.

Her passion, frankness and musical daring with electronic and symphonic structures has its roots in 1970s British prog rock, but Bush, who's now 47, is one of those rare and preternaturally gifted artists whose work stands outside time, impervious to musical trends and changes in social, economic and political patterns.

In fact, the time away from the music biz whirl has passed so quickly for her that she barely feels it, she says.

"I've been having a good time. I've been raising my son (Bertie, aged 7), and living a quiet life, shopping, cleaning my house, going to movies with friends. And I've been recording, taking my time. Once I start recording, I have to make it as good as I can. This album didn't start out to be as big as it is, but by the time it was finished, I'd been at it for almost five years. I have a reputation for being overambitious."

Cheerful and talkative except when it comes to details of her personal life Bush sounds genuinely at a loss to explain her reputation in the media as a wacky recluse.

"Reclusive, mysterious and weird it's ridiculous, isn't it? Just because I've chosen to live a normal life, and not in the public eye. I've never promoted myself, I'm not a celebrity, I'm a worker, and I don't see a reason to do interviews unless there's something to talk about, a piece of work.

"I don't hide from people. I go shopping, I go to restaurants and movies ... yet somehow I'm made out to be some mad hermit. It's too much.

"I think my cult following got grumpy waiting so long," she laughs.

That all sounds a bit disingenuous in light of the number of high-end European art and fashion photographers whose ubiquitous images of Bush created at least the impression of a showbiz diva between 1978 and 1990, when an eight-CD anthology appeared in the box set This Woman's Work complete with a colour booklet containing nothing but these extravagant portraits.

In lieu of personal appearances erroneous reports of stage fright that have apparently prevented her from touring after 1979 are another bone of contention with her fans have had nothing to fuel their addiction other than Bush's wild, rich and allusive music, and magnificent, stylized graphics.

"I never consciously gave up touring," she explains. "I only did just one, in 1979 and 1980, and I think other people gave up on me. I remember it as a fantastic experience, like being on the road with a circus. We're working on some ideas about doing some shows to promote this album, but it's early days."

And she says she has no regrets about the image she helped create, though Aerial comes unadorned with large and ornate likenesses of her, and instead features realistic images of the ornaments of an ordinary village life washing on the line, a view from the kitchen window, a placid seashore, pigeons in the yard.

"Graphics are important," she adds, by way of explaining the effort that went into designing the honeyed landscape artwork for Aerial. "This may sound pompous, but I'm uncomfortable working with the CD format. I used to work in vinyl, when the artwork was big, and said something significant about an artist.

"And I loved double albums. They indicated that the music was conceptual, too important to be reduced, and you could open up the covers and get lost in the pictures and information inside.

"I liked it when an album was 20 minutes of music a side, with a breathing space in the middle. I think CDs are too long for people with short attention spans, people who are distracted by all the technological tools we have these days."

The Aerial format, she explains, is a respectful nod to the great days of vinyl. The package contains two discs, both around 40 minutes in length, the first a collection of single songs, the second a conceptual piece that unfolds as a musical panorama encompassing the span of a single day, with vast dreams and powerful reminiscences inspired by simple sounds of nature, the words of passers-by and routine chores.

The album lacks the frenetic pace and bluster of her last conceptual effort, 1985's Hounds Of Love, and achieves an almost elegiac, English pastoral grace. Several songs feature just vocals and piano, and expose matters closer to her heart than the turgid melodramas of her earlier work: the joy childhood brings in "Bertie," memories of her late mother in the eerie but strangely comforting waterscape "A Coral Room," the bucolic "Sky Of Honey" with its compelling echoes of Vaughan Williams. Orchestral charts were written by award-winning composer Michael Kamen, who died of a heart attack at age 55 in 2003. They were recorded just weeks before his death.

"He was a lovely person, very talented and brave," Bush recalls. "I'd worked with him on other albums, and he was never offended if I suggested changes he'd rewrite arrangements on the spot, even with the orchestra waiting in the studio. I admire his work for its visual qualities.

While it's debatable, as acolytes claim, that Kate Bush's impact on Western music and female artists in particular is as profound as Joni Mitchell's, it can't be denied that Bush has attracted more than a fair share of serious attention from new artists in the years since her so-called self-exile began. This includes R&B singer Maxwell, whose reworking of Bush's childbearing chronicle "This Woman's Work" was a hit in 2001, as well as male-dominated British rock acts Placebo and The Futureheads, who scored a hit last year with a version of her "Hounds of Love."

Her beginnings were more than auspicious. Bush was "discovered" at age 16 by Pink Floyd guitarist David Gilmour. He who paid for an orchestra to back her distinctive, hyperbolic soprano on demos of several elaborately theatrical, sexually loaded romantic fantasies that would become the core, three years later, of her hair-raising debut, The Kick Inside.

Though she had nothing in common with the post-punk, new wave acts with whom she shared the high end of the charts she was genteel, well educated, and possessed of aesthetic and artistic sensibilities that had less to do with rock than with the progressive side of opera, world music, jazz, musical theatre and epic cinema she became the darling of British prog-rock. Peter Gabriel gave her a nod by recording the moving duet, "Don't Give Up" with her in 1986. Procol Harum member Gary Brooker's organ and vocal contributions anchor Aerial, an exotic two-CD set.

Some pieces on Aerial will remind fans of the daring Kate Bush of old: "Pi" is little more than a series of numbers sung with dramatic extremes of emotion; "King Of The Mountain," the first single, is a contemplation on celebrity and its cost, with direct references to Elvis; in "Mrs. Bartolozzi," a washing machine becomes a sexual allegory in the romantic fantasies of a cleaning woman.

"After seven years with Bertie, I know a lot about washing machines," Bush chuckles. "He keeps me normal. I never wanted to be famous. I just want to create nice music, and I believe celebrity threatens creativity.

"What's important to me is to have a soul and my lovely little boy”.

Her first album after a twelve-year break (The Red Shoes came out in 1993), Aerial was a majestic and hugely accomplished new album from Kate Bush. It excited and amazed fans in equal measures! I hope that over eleven years since her latest album, we are going to hear something from Kate Bush soon. There is that desire and demand. I love the interviews from 2005, as Bush had come back after a long time away. She was treated with respect and affection. She must have been vey proud to talk about an album where her new son was very much at the heart of. You can feel that when she spoke with The Toronto Star. That warmth and sense of pride…

SPRINGS from the screen.

FEATURE: The Digital Mixtape: Modern Queens and Future Icons

FEATURE:

 

 

The Digital Mixtape

IN THIS PHOTO: Tinashe 

Modern Queens and Future Icons

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I recently put out a feature…

 IN THIS PHOTO: Katy Perry

that criticised reports that BBC Radio 1 are not playlisting some female artists who are over the age of thirty. Whilst there are female artists over thirty on the playlist at the moment, others have been phased out because of their age. Whereas some have argued this is not true and the station is reflecting what is considered cutting-edge and relevant, it is hard to ignore the fact that some of the artists no longer on the playlist are still very current and edgier than some of the tracks that are playlisted by the station at present. I wanted to react with a playlist of songs from female artists thirty and over. These are current queens and idols who will be legends of the future – some of them are already considered to be legends. It is proof of the variety and quality of the music coming from artists that some radio stations would feel to be ‘too old’. It does seem that thirty is considered a bit old for a youth station. Artists that are then passed to BBC Radio 2. Such a bizarre and insulting way to treat women in music! I don’t think this is something many male artists have to deal with. I wanted to showcase some incredible and inspiring artists whose music deserves to be played on all radio stations, regardless of narrow age demographics and perceptions of cool – and, as I said, guidelines and standards that don’t appear to affect and apply to male artists. Here are wonderful artists thirty or over that deserve nothing but…

 IN THIS PHOTO: P!nk/PHOTO CREDIT: Sølve Sundsbo

RESPECT and support.

FEATURE: Killer Queens: Fifty Year of the Legendary Band’s London Marquee Club Launch

FEATURE:

 

 

Killer Queens

IN THIS PHOTO: Queen in 1973/PHOTO CREDIT: Michael Putland

Fifty Year of the Legendary Band’s London Marquee Club Launch

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THERE I are some important…

 PHOTO CREDIT: George Chinn/Queen Productions Ltd

Queen-related anniversaries coming this year. Their debut single, Keep Yourself Alive, was released on 6th July, 1973. A week later, the band released their debut album, Queen. 1973 was a massive year for the band. Freddie Mercury, Brian May, John Deacon and Roger Taylor released an album that, whilst not their best, was definitely promising and contained some great songs. I want to mark another big anniversary. On 9th April, it will be fifty years since Queen performed their first official gig as a signed band. This feature from last year talked about quite a monumental introduction and showcase:

“Queen have been a worldwide rock institution for so long that it’s strange to think of the day that EMI Records launched them as a new signing. That date was Monday, April 9, 1973, when (after joining the label in November 1972, the month the band started work on a debut album during “down time” at Trident Studios), Queen made their first appearance at the Marquee Club in London.

The band’s very first gig had come fully two years before, at Hornsey Town Hall. It was the first of countless dates at which Freddie, Brian, Roger and John honed their reputation, even as each of them pursued other interests outside music. During the year of 1972, Queen began to turn heads in the industry. That led engineers Roy Thomas Baker and John Anthony to recommend them to their employers at Trident Audio Productions.

A production, management, and publishing deal was duly agreed, and the band’s demo tape was circulated around the business. By February 1973, Queen were recording their first session for BBC Radio 1, at Maida Vale Studios, for the Sounds Of The Seventies programme. With Radio 1 producer Bernie Andrews, they taped four songs: “Keep Yourself Alive,” “My Fairy King,” “Doing All Right,” and “Liar.”

That session was broadcast ten days later to great public response, which was enough to convince EMI, already interested in the band, to sign them. The Marquee showcase duly made a strong impression, including on Trident’s Ken Scott, who was in the audience that night. Well known for his production work with David Bowie, he later said of the gig: “My view now is exactly as it was then: ‘Wow.’”

Queen pass ‘OldGrey Whistle Test’

Ironically, when “Keep Yourself Alive” was released in July as Queen’s first single, Radio 1 rejected it for the station’s playlist, reportedly on five separate occasions. But it won support from the BBC’s music TV institution, The Old Grey Whistle Test, and another Radio 1 session followed, as EMI released the band’s self-titled debut album.

After another Marquee show, (opening for six-piece band Mahatma in July) and a first tour in the autumn, supporting Mott The Hoople, Queen were en route to their big breakthrough of 1974”.

To celebrate that fiftieth anniversary, I am using the occasion to compile a Queen playlist. Featuring their big hits and a few of the deep cuts, it commemorates fifty years since the band performed as a signee to EMI. The rest, as we know, is history. It must have been a moment being in that crowd at London’s Marquee Club. To have witnessed this young and captivating band taking their first steps. Led by the captivating and grew showman that was Freddie Mercury, audiences around the world got to witness this mighty force. Below are a selection of prime cuts…

FROM the majestic Queen.

FEATURE: (Far) Left of the Middle: What Significance Does It Make Who an Artist Like Mae Muller Supports Politically?

FEATURE:

 

 

(Far) Left of the Middle

IN THIS PHOTO: Mae Muller (who is representing the U.K. in Liverpool for Eurovision next month) in London on Tuesday, 14th March, 2023/PHOTO CREDIT: Vianney Le Caer/Invision/AP

What Significance Does It Make Who an Artist Like Mae Muller Supports Politically?

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EVEN if it is a bit of a hissy and outrage…

 PHOTO CREDIT: freepik

from the right-wing press and the most gammon-coloured and hateful on Twitter, the fact that our Eurovision hopeful this year, Mae Muller, has taken a shot at the current government made me think about musicians and political stances. In the U.S. in the past, artists such as Taylor Swift have held back or been judged for sharing political opinions. I still think there is a bit of a caution from labels about how explicit and ‘honest’ artists can be when it comes to voicing their disgust. We all know major and compassionate artists like Taylor Swift and Billie Eilish detest the Republicans and are democratic. In this country, we know which artists are more in line with the Conservatives and would support them. We are seeing a wave of young and engaged young artists coming through who naturally are appalled at what is happening in the country and have this platform. It is important than their views are not suppressed and controlled. That said, as this article from GB News explains, it can lead to hyperbole and vitriol from the right-wing press:

“Britain's Eurovision entrant is a Left-wing activist who hates Boris Johnson, it has emerged as the BBC is accused of having a lack of “common sense” for choosing her to represent the UK.

Mae Muller, who is set to perform her track I Wrote A Song next month, made the comments as Johnson was receiving medical treatment for the virus.

In a series of tweets, Muller also branded the Conservative Party “racist and elitist”, campaigned for Jeremy Corbyn and said “I hate this country” in a row over free school meals.

The 25-year-old, who grew in popularity on TikTok, was chosen by BBC bosses in partnership with management company TaP Music in the hope that she could win the contest on May 13.

While former Prime Minister Johnson remained in intensive care for a third day at St Thomas’ Hospital in London on April 8, 2020, Muller wrote a tweet saying: “Unpopular opinion but I do not feel sorry for Boris Johnson.

“Yes, he is human, yes, he has kids, but so do 100s of other people who have actually died due to Tory policies. Taking up a bed in intensive care but you’re not on a ventilator and in ‘high spirits’? Nah mate.”

In a second tweet, she said: “The same nurses you praise in your speeches are the same nurses you chose to cut all their benefits, and cheered while doing it.

“The same nurses that can’t even afford protective wear, and are literally dying because of you. Boris does not have my sympathy and never will.”

The previous night saw Downing Street describe Johnson as “stable” and “in good spirits” as it was confirmed that he did not have pneumonia and was not on a ventilator – but would remain in intensive care “for close monitoring”.

Ahead of the 2019 general election, the singer tweeted “f— the Tories” as she backed Jeremy Corbyn.

Adding: “Please register to vote today! And when you do vote please vote Labour! We have the power to take these racist elitists down so let’s do it!”

After Johnson won the election, she tweeted again saying: “f— Boris”, and when he tested positive for Covid she quoted his previous comments about shaking hands with Covid patients to say: “LOL life comes at you fast Boris.”

Lee Anderson, deputy chairman of the Conservative Party, criticised the Eurovision entrant's “vile Left-wing slurs” and accused the BBC of a lack of “common sense” for choosing her to represent the UK”.

It doesn’t need to be written or said out loud, but Mae Muller does not hate the U.K. The opposite is true! The fact she is so appalled by the Conservatives and former Prime Minister Boris Johnson is because of what they did to the country and how they were responsible of so many deaths during the pandemic. She is entitled to her views. Every sensible-minded person in the country feels as passionately. When the news articles were reported online and the right-wing press were up in arms, people responded by saying that most people in the country felt the same as Muller! It was not like she was a radical that was attacking a beloved government. She was merely using her voice to say what most of us feel! It is not surprising that the anti-woke and ass-kissers to the Tories would go after Muller and feel it is sick that someone representing the country in Eurovision would trash our country and bring about this shame. It is a storm in a teacup, but it brings to mind two questions. For one, nothing of what she said was an attack on the country or anything that would bring her good name into disrepute. In fact, it is brave to say such things when she is a major artist! She has a massive fanbase, and there is always the risk there could be backlash or judgement. An artist setting an example and inspiring so many young people, should music and politics be kept separate? I don’t think that has ever been the case and, even in an age where labels are very nervous about commercial depreciation and social media attacks, artists should be free to express themselves.

There is the flipside when it comes to those artists on the right that say what they want to. They will get called out on social media and in the press…but isn’t that a double standard? I think there is a big different between someone like Muller upset and angry at a government who inarguably damaged the country and were a disgrace, to someone displaying bigoted, racist, sexist, or inflammatory language designed to stir hate and division. Mae Muller voiced out because she felt distressed and bereft by the government. It is not a P.R. stunt or a way to draw attention to her ahead of Eurovision. Another question is why Muller’s opinions should be of such concern. As many rightly pointed out, she is taking part on a music competition and not storming the government or engaged in politics! The right-wing press have sort of conflated the fact that she is representing the U.K. in Eurovision with being this ambassador of morality and promoting the brilliance of the U.K. There is a lot to love about this country, but the government most definitely is not one of them! She is not slating the country or doing us any disservice in any way. I think it will get her more respect from people here, in addition to those around Europe! Whilst it shouldn’t be of any concern to the vile and hopeless right-wing journalists, I do think that artists like Muller should never be fearful when it comes to speaking out. At such a terrible time for the country, music especially is a powerful force was activation, awareness, and good.

 IMAGE CREDIT: freepik

There are very few political songs in the Pop mainstream, and I would like to think Mae Muller would explore and focus her anger into songs that point the finger at political ineptitude and villainy. Many might say that is not her role and the Pop mainstream is not political, but this is a genre that should be evolving and more openly reflecting the anger of many. If those on TikTok and Instagram who expect something a bit lighter and more conventional might balk at first, limiting or defining artists and making them hold back is wrong. I do fear there are certain conversations that take place that advise artists such as Muller not to be so inflammatory and, well, right in her music! It is great that she has made her feelings clear, as they are very much in line with what a majority of the country feels. I also feel that is a Rock artist or a male act took a shot at Boris Johnson and the Conservatives, then they would not be labelled as vile and a disgrace. There would not be the same sort of rapture and claws from the right of the press and political spectrum. Mae Muller, like so so many of us, are far-left. That is her position and her choice. I feel the vast overreaction displayed by some in the press should raise some conversations. Muller is taking part in Eurovision - so why they had to step in and get all offended is beyond me! It is an artist voicing her opinions. What have they got to be afraid an appalled about?! I think that she will give a nod and inspiration to other Pop artists who feel as fed up and angered as she is. Whilst hateful language against communities, races, genders and people based on hate and bigotry should be banned and called out, someone pointing out very obvious points about a corrupt and terrible government regime is not the same. It is something that should happen more. I hope that this does also not take away from the fact that Mae Muller is representing the U.K. in Eurovision in May. She is going to do us…

VERY proud.

FEATURE: Revisiting... Tori Amos - Ocean to Ocean

FEATURE:

 

 

Revisiting…

Tori Amos - Ocean to Ocean

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I wanted to look back…

 PHOTO CREDIT: Desmond Murray

at a terrific Tori Amos album from 2021 that is worth re-exploring. Whilst it received great reviews and got some airplay, you do not hear songs from the album played too much. If Amos is featured, you get the classic tracks from albums of the '90s. I wanted to shine a light on the marvellous Ocean to Ocean. Released on 29th October, 2021, Tori Amos produced one of her best albums of her career with stellar songs such as Speaking with Trees and Metal Wood Water. A top forty album in the U.K. and many other countries, it is well worth a spin. I am going to get to a couple of positive reviews for the incredible Ocean to Ocean. Before that, this interview with Amos in promotion of the album is really interesting:

“Throughout her iconic catalog, Tori Amos has often pulled inspiration from traveling – be that her frequent trips to Florida, or other travels around America and the rest of the globe. But like everyone else, the last two years have seen the inimitable artist restricted to one location. For her, that was the wild nature of Cornwall, where she lives with her husband and collaborator Mark Hawley, and its cliffs, shoreline, and greenery took on the role of muse in the place of new scenery.

The results are Ocean To Ocean, Amos’ 16th studio album, and a record of great beauty that works through the loss of her mother Mary with the help of the natural world. She summons her spirit on the spellbinding “Speaking With Trees,” while the gentle piano ripples of “Flowers Burn To Gold” find her searching: “Where are you?/I scan the skies/Voices in the breeze/I scan the sea.”

The contents of Ocean To Ocean weren’t necessarily always the shape the musician saw her first album in four years taking. She had been working on a different set of songs before it, but at the start of 2021 grew disillusioned with them and started again, returning to the soil to plant new seeds that would eventually grow and bloom into a personal and poetic ode to pain, family and the world around us.

The third lockdown in the UK was when ‘Ocean To Ocean’ started coming together, but that time also put you in a despondent place. What was it about that lockdown that took you to that place?

[Everything going on for so long] was one aspect. I think [also] the horror show of American democracy hanging by a thread with some elected officials just not wanting to respect the law. Whatever side you’re on, I really don’t like a crappy loser. It’s really not very interesting to me because I’ve been on the side where the candidate I voted for lost, but I’ve accepted it, that that’s the will of the people because that’s what democracy is. There’s no wiggle room there. You respect the constitution or you don’t – it can’t be rules for when you lose and rules for when you win. What kind of world is that?

You were working on a different album before ‘Ocean To Ocean’ that you scrapped because the 2020 election and events of January 6 made you feel like you’d become a different person. How did those events impact you?

There was so much that some of us believed was on the line. I remember talking to Sarah Kendzior and Andrea Chalupa [from the podcast Gaslit Nation] and they’re very informed experts in their field. One of them made it clear to me at a certain point when people were going on about these two older male candidates, and she said to me, “Let’s be very clear. We are not voting for one old man against another. We are voting for a system of government. That’s what we’re doing.”

After the events of not just January 6th and the insurrection, but how some of our leaders responded to that and did not stand up for America’s democratic values, but their own self-interest – I just put my hands up and I said, “Right, I’ve done what I can now. I can’t look at this for one more day.”

I didn’t like where I was going. I said, “Now I need to go into a world that people want to walk into because they’re tired of that. They’ve had enough of the disparity because the energy is so squalid.” I just felt like I needed to have a bath every time I picked up a paper or every time I was listening in on the issues.

I had to just let go and surrender that other album. I don’t know if it’ll have a life. I have no idea. But I needed the silence and I needed to get out in Mother Nature because she wasn’t in lockdown and she was regenerating. She was moving from winter to spring. That’s when I just said, “I want to reflect what you’re doing, Earth Mother.”

How did Cornwell influence this new album?

Cornwall is its own ancient thing. Sometimes the cliffs seem harsh but beautiful. But there’s a strength there. I felt protected walking out on those cliffs and seeing the force that the land holds and its interaction with the water, the ocean, and the rocks. Then coming inland a bit, how the trees are shaped with the gales. And it just became very, almost like its own story of, “Tori, you can choose to, be part of this story and you’re welcome to watch and engage with it.

Then it will shift your frequency and your energy and it will change the music, but you have to do it. And you have to be willing to admit where you are. It’s OK to admit that you’ve been in the muck. Just be honest about it. Because if you’re honest about it and write it from that place, you can write yourself out of that place”.

I am a big fan of Tori Amos, and I am fascinated not only by her consistency, but how every album has its own skin, personality, and story. Ocean to Ocean is definitely one of her very best releases. When speaking with SPIN, she elaborated more on the influences and inspirations behind the album. If you have not heard it yourself, I would recommend spending some time today and listening through. It is incredibly rewarding and will linger in the mind:

“SPIN: What was the inspiration for your album?

Tori Amos:I think that third lockdown here. I don’t know if the Americans really realized how severe it was here, but it happened after Christmas. It happened in early January. For London, it happened before Christmas, but we were down in Cornwall when they started locking the country down by different counties, but then everybody got thrown into this severe state. Hand on my heart, to try and be fair about this, I think hubby and I did pretty well on the first one with Tash and her boyfriend, Oliver, who thought he was coming for two weeks and stayed for five months.

Which song came first?

I think “Metal Water Wood” came first, and it acknowledged where I was with being fire and useless as a fire creature. It was just not working for me. The message from the muses was: Be like Bruce Lee, be like water. You need to then not do things like you’ve always done them, in that what you thought might work for you, what energy you thought would bring you to a place of a different frequency. I didn’t like where my energy was. I was like “I don’t want to be in that place of negativity and anger and destructiveness or victimhood.”

That was the beginning, and nature called me outside. Even though it was winter and cold, but once I got out there and started watching how nature was just, I don’t know, going through her cycles and paying attention and listening to it, I started to feel different things, and it started to shift my energy. The song started to say, “You have a choice to make, T. What energy feel do you want to be in? You need to sonically create it and step into it, and we will help you do it, but you have to make that choice.”

Was it a difficult process to go through?

I wish [my daughter] Tash were on the call. [laughs] She would tell you that there was a moment when she’s like, “I need my mom back. What do we need to do to do this?” She said, “Look, I’ve got you as my audience, so you’re going to get to watch my favorite documentary.” What was hard was getting out of that chair. I think I got to a place of emotional paralysis, because, again, we’d marketed the book (Resistance, released in 2020), we’d done a Christmas EP through the first lockdown and we did a virtual book tour from the studio we were working in that way, not playing live. We were doing all these things.

The messy part, that’s always the tough bit, and it’s not very glamorous or gracious, it’s when it’s the messy bit. I think before the beauty, for me anyway, comes the mess because you have to sit in the depression, in the sadness, in the grief, in the loss of– If you talk to, and I’m sure you have, to live musicians who couldn’t go out and play and to people whose lives are on the theatre stage, it was a very different reality for us.

I tried shaming myself out of it. That didn’t work. That’s why the music said, “You got to write. Start from on your knees. Write about it.” By writing about it, that will shift and then you’ll need to write about something else and another song will come and take your hands.” Another one did, and this is how the process kept drawing me outside to nature, to the cliff, to the water, to showing me. It was very humbling because the Cornish coast, yes, it’s beautiful, but it’s ferocious, ancient, and powerful. It’s like it’s a creature.

You use the word ancient, and I feel like there’s so much of that in the music here. There’s an innate history. Do you agree?

I hope so because I started revisiting Cornish mythology, not just Cornish, but the whole area. I think that had a big influence because it’s the longest that I haven’t been to the United States in my whole life. It’s the longest that I’ve been in one place in my whole life.

Once I pulled my head out of staring at my navel and realized, “Okay, what’s around you?” Hearing other people’s stories…a treasure trove of letters got sent to me through somebody who comes to the show. I got letters from all over the world about what people were going through. They just sensed that maybe I needed to share that. Normally, when I’m on tour, people bring me their letters and they share with me what their experience has been. That’s how then music becomes collaborative and the shows are collaborative.

While I was immersing myself with Cornwall and Cornish mythology in the angst of the land, and its power and being, again, humbled by it and realizing, “Okay, how do I approach this? I need to really ask permission of the land to show me her secrets.” I got stories from people all over the world, and these stories, Liza, what’s important, for the most part, people were having to come to terms with something. Everyone was pretty much challenged out of, I don’t know, 100 letters. Maybe two were going, “I’m an introvert. I’m winning. Can this last forever?”

Most of them were…somebody worked on the front line, now trying to dealing with testing, and trying to help people and what they were having to go through on a daily basis in their hazmat suit getting sadder, getting cursed at. It was just taking on board what people face.

It was such a transformative time for you.

That’s right. It was, “Okay, if you want your life to change, then just change it, but you’ve got to start from the inside.” It’s so cliché, I know, and we know”.

I will come to some reviews for Tori Amos’ sixteenth and most recent album. This is what AllMusic noted when they reviewed an album from one of music’s finest songwriters and most memorable voices. Since her 1992 debut album, Little Earthquakes, Tori Amos has produced such incredible and enduring music:

“For many, the early 2020s was a course-shifting season of change, when a global pandemic and sociopolitical upheaval cast a shadow over much of life. It was no different for singer/songwriter Tori Amos, who, during one of England's many lockdowns, penned an entire album that she later scrapped for being too divisive. In its place, she started fresh, shifting focus and processing grief with her 16th album Ocean to Ocean. As she declares on "Metal Water Wood," "It has been a brutal year." Against this backdrop, Amos does what she does best: turning personal trauma into a universal experience, carrying both herself and listeners out of the darkness with sights set on renewal. Despite the bittersweet emotions and the still-lingering uncertainty at the time of release, Ocean to Ocean comforts like a warm hug, benefitting from a sumptuous depth of layered production that is at once soulful and satisfying. From the outset, a familiar team -- husband/guitarist Mark Hawley, daughter/backing vocalist Tash, drummer Matt Chamberlain, bassist Jon Evans, and orchestral maestro John Philip Shenale -- joins Amos as she whips up a storm of sound and emotion with her trademark piano and vocal sorcery.

Diving headlong into the album's main themes on "Speaking with Trees," Amos addresses the death of her mother, Mary Ellen, crying, "I cannot let you go" as she copes with the devastating loss. Mary Ellen's memory is also alive on "Flowers Burn to Gold," a heartbreaking piano ballad that dwells beside "Toast" and "Mary's Eyes" as one of Amos' biggest tearjerkers. Emotions flow on the tender "Swim to New York State," a sentimental declaration of love and recognition to a loyal partner that swells atop a grand string section and cinematic horns. Turning her focus outward, she revisits common themes such as religious hypocrisy and misogyny (on the smoky fire-and-brimstone "Devil's Bane"), while calling out "those who don't give a goddamn" about the climate crisis on the turbulent title track. Amos later brings "Me and a Gun" full circle with "29 Years," this time tackling trauma and the devastation it can cause by reconciling the past through reflection and rebuilding. Some much-needed mirth appears on the highlight "Spies," which rides Evans' bouncing bass and Shenale's stabbing strings like a propulsive late-era Radiohead tune filtered through a quirky Beatles lens. Named after the mischievous entities who protect us from the bad dreams, "thieving meanies," and "scary men," it's an antidote for unsure and fearful times that's destined to become a fan favorite. Closing on "Birthday Baby" -- a self-empowering tango that recalls the cinematic flourish of Abnormally Attracted to Sin -- Amos sings, "This year, you survived through it all," a testament to endurance and emerging from the gloom. Like Native Invader before it, Ocean to Ocean is a late-era standout for Amos, who reaches through the dark cloud of collective grief to be that supportive presence for listeners, healing with familiar touches and a timely message”.

Let’s finish off with a review from The Line of Best Fit. Not only is there a lot of love for Amos from her native America (she was born in North Carolina), but because she lives in the U.K., there is this huge support and affection from fans and the media here. I can’t wait to see what she delivers for her seventeenth studio album:

“Amos’s newest LP, Ocean to Ocean, arrives four years after it’s predecessor Native Insider. In that time, the world has changed beyond recognition and Amos, like the rest of us, has been forced to battle with trauma resulting from the pandemic and ensuing isolation - but has also had to deal with the personal trauma of losing both her mother and best friend in 2019. The emotional centrepiece of this album - lead single “Speaking With Trees” - explores both simultaneously; referencing the ashes of Amos’s mother, which she hid in a treehouse in Florida (and was unable to visit during lockdown). Like her best songs, it features mystical lyricism alongside left-field arrangements and instrumentation (most notably an addictive guitar lick during the pre-chorus). However, it’s most affecting moment occurs in the song’s most sincere, wounded line: “Don’t be surprised / I cannot let you go”.

Much of Ocean to Ocean opts for this style of forthright song-writing, over the surreal world-building that has traditionally defined her work. Album highlight “Swim To New York State” deals with the aftermath of a friend moving away; capturing the pain of rootlessness but also the enduring beauty of a relationship that transcends physical distance. Amos cycles through all the places she’d like to go to with the person in question (“There’s a rockpool we can dive in”, “meet at that cafe”), but ultimately comes to peace with the separation (“I had to face / Life just wasn’t the same”). The song captures the same mixture of heart-break and resilience that made her early work so captivating.

But whereas Amos’s early work felt unmoored by time, Ocean to Ocean feels like it could only have been made now; “I know, dear, it has been a brutal year” she sings on “Metal Water Wood”; the album’s most explicit reference to the pandemic. “29 years”, as it’s title suggests, seems to reference the 29 years between her debut album and now. Meanwhile, the title track offers the most politically charged and unmistakably of-our-time statement. “Ocean to Ocean” demonstrates, once again, why Amos is such a powerful writer; “There are those who don’t give a Goddamn / That we’re near mass extinction” she sings at one point, referencing the role of uncaring elites in the current climate crisis. But, within the course of one line, she expands her sights: “There are those who never give a Goddamn for anything they are breaking”. What was just seconds ago a relatively straightforward examination of the climate crisis, has now turned into a takedown of all of society’s breakers; all the way from the rich and powerful inflicting environmental destruction to all the exploitative men (who have long been the subject of her songs) who think they can violate women in pursuit of their own desires.

Ocean to Ocean ends up being Amos’s best album in recent memory for the way it manages to combine the strengths of her early music while incorporating newfound restraint and perspective. Even if there’s nothing here as utterly devastating as “Me & A Gun”, or as piercing as “God”, it’s a joy that Amos can at once be as mystifying and inscrutable as ever (singing of “anonymous” hippopotamus and, aardvarks on the London Underground on “Spies”) while finding newfound comfort and understanding on tracks like “Speaking With Trees”. 29 years on from Little Earthquakes, Amos remains an unrivaled talent, capable of discussing and dissecting the very best and worst elements of humanity without ever collapsing under the heaviness of such themes”.

An amazing album from 2021 that was very well-received and celebrated. I don’t think that it is as known and played as it should be. There are so many good tracks on it. Even if you are not a diehard Tori Amos fan, it is well worth exploring. It is a typically astonishing album from…

THIS music icon.

FEATURE: Talk About the Passion: R.E.M.’s Murmur at Forty

FEATURE:

 

 

Talk About the Passion

R.E.M.’s Murmur at Forty

_________

A very important…

 IN THIS PHOTO: R.E.M. in 1983/PHOTO CREDIT: Chris Walter

anniversary is happening soon. On 12th April, R.E.M.’s debut studio album, Murmur, is forty. The legendary band from Athens, Georgia began work on the album back in December 1982. The I.R.S. label paired R.E.M. with producer Stephen Hague. The sessions did not go too well. More technical and keener on the band doing multiple takes, R.E.M. asked if they could resume producing alongside Mitch Easter. He produced their debut E.P., Chronic Town. I.R.S. agreed a sort of try-out/trial session between R.E.M. and Easter. They travelled to North Carolina, where they recorded with Easter and his producing partner, Don Dixon. They worked on the song, Pilgrimage. After I.R.S. heard that recording, they allowed R.E.M. to work with Easter and Dixon. The producers were quite hands-off with the band. Following the bad recording experience with Stephen Hague, that approach yielded an album that is considered to be one of R.E.M.’s best. It is one of the truly great debut albums. Songs such as Radio Free Europe, Talk About the Passion and Perfect Circle are classics. I will bring in a couple of reviews for the legendary Murmur. Before that SLANT discussed the evolution of R.E.M. on their debut album, and how Murmur sat alongside other music released in 1983:

“With their first full-length release, Murmur, R.E.M. dumped the trademark jangle-pop of their lo-fi debut EP, Chronic Town, for much bleaker themes. Singer Michael Stipe took on a more cerebral socio-political stance, his distant tone casting an elusive cloud over the album’s cultural criticism. The opening line of “Laughing” (“Laocoon and her two sons/Pressured storm tried to move/No other more emotion bound/Martyred, misconstrued”) is an early indication that Murmur’s pleasures aren’t of the simple kind—its gloomy maxims about pilgrimage, spiritual sacrifice and lost time are smartly humorous and satirical.

“Talk About The Passion” finds Stipe at his most compassionate, describing a struggle to overcome despair with lyrics that are at once empathetic and pessimistic (“Empty prayer, empty mouths, talk about the passion”).

At the time, most of the folksy songs on Murmur didn’t fit within pop radio’s limitations—these were songs to be listened to, not just danced to. Despite its urgent, Chronic Town-like guitar licks and clickety-clack percussion, “Radio Free Europe,” the album’s only toe-tapper, offers up some of the most playful yet pointed political sarcasm of the band’s career. Inspired by the Radio Free Europe radio station (funded by the U.S. to promote institutional values to countries behind the Iron Curtain), Stipe’s propaganda-hating self-rule is passionate, pointed and biting without sacrificing the rhyme and ingenuity of his lyrics: “Beside defying media too fast/Instead of pushing palaces to fall/Put that, put that, put that before all/That this isn’t fortunate at all”.

One of the most distinct and notable elements of Murmur is how it does not fit in with everything around it. By 1983, there were some many synthesised and plastic sounds. Along came a band that were doing something genuinely different. Sounding more natural and original than almost anyone on the scene, it is no wonder Murmur made an impact and was so well-regarded upon its release. Retrospective reviews have been hugely positive. This is what CLASH wrote in their feature about Murmur in 2013. They looked at the album’s impact on its thirtieth anniversary:

“R.E.M. was undoubtedly one of the first American bands to take the underground to the mainstream. At a time when popular music seemed destined to be awash with lustrous and synthetic production, they formed one of several pockets of bands across the country attempting to provide an aural antidote.

And, after the type of relentless touring that is almost nostalgic within today’s music culture, they triumphed. With the release of their debut album, ‘Murmur’, they created a blueprint that opened the doors to a new wave of equally deserved acts acquiring wider audiences.

After an incompatible demo session with the established producer Stephen Hague, the band reverted back to Mitch Easter, alongside his friend and co-producer Don Dixon, who had worked on their earlier ‘Chronic Town’ EP.

The result of their efforts was a record free of constraints. Peter Buck’s rhythmic guitar is stripped of cliché and conventions, intertwining with Mike Mills’ melodic baselines, and punctuated by Bill Berry’s drum beats. It is not surprising to hear that much of ‘Murmur’ was recorded first take.

Whilst its sound would go on to inspire the likes of Nirvana and Radiohead, ‘Murmur’ is something of an anti-rock record. It took elements of folk and country and added pop sensibilities to create a sound that was unique yet highly accessible to those who heard it. Above all else, it is the carefully crafted subtleties within it that have made it such a highly referenced influence of such acts.

Easter and Dixon experimented with unusual recording methods, which created an air of mystery to the album’s sound. The curious buzzing sound that introduces ‘Radio Free Europe’ was achieved by filtering Mike Mills’ bass through a noise gate, whilst the intermittent dull thud on ‘We Walk’ was a slowed-down recording of Bill Berry playing pool.

This atmosphere was accentuated by Michael Stipe’s indistinct vocals. The songs’ lyrics are often indecipherable, yet his unique style still manages to capture the listener’s attention at the right moments, as demonstrated on the exclaimed delivery of ‘Catapult’. Nothing heard on ‘Murmur’ happened by accident.

Upon returning home, there was a joint consensus of positivity. “I can remember thinking, ‘God, I can’t wait until everyone hears this’,” recalled Peter Buck some years later. “It was so different – it didn’t sound like us live, and it didn’t sound like anyth­ing else that was coming out.”

Thankfully, both public and critics agreed, and upon its release, ‘Murmur’ went on to overshadow its more established competition. This lo-fi, low budget debut topped Rolling Stone’s Album of the Year poll, succeeding over the expensive production of Michael Jackson’s ‘Thriller’. R.E.M. was catapulted into the public eye and continually evolved during a career that spanned almost three decades.

After all this time, their debut stills holds the intrigue and excitement it had all those years ago. At a time when sound can often be secondary to image, ‘Murmur’ is a testament to the success of originality in music”.

I would recommend great articles like this. They give insight and background to a classic. I am going to end with a review from Pitchfork. In 2008, for the twenty-fifth anniversary of Murmur, a Deluxe Edition was released. Although R.E.M. sadly broke up in 2011, I hope the band members recall their debut fondly. It is one of the best albums of the ‘80s, and a remarkable debut from a band who would release a few classics through their career:

“There's a historical component to Murmur that often gets lost: In 1983, R.E.M. sounded unique. No bands were combining these particular influences in this particular way, which made this debut sound not only new but even subversive: a sharp reimagining of rock tropes. Twenty-five years and 14 albums later, our familiarity with R.E.M. means that Murmur has lost some of what made it revolutionary upon release. Fortunately, rather than collecting obligatory bonus tracks and outtakes-- most of which would have overlapped with Dead Letter Office-- the set includes a second disc documenting a show in Toronto from July 1983, just after the album's release. It marks the first time a full R.E.M. show has been released on CD (LIVE, from 2007, was culled from two nights in Dublin), and judging by the intensity with which the band run through old and then-new songs, it could have held its own as a separate release.

It's startling to hear some of these songs stripped down to their four basic elements, with no keyboard or guitar overdubs. Likewise, it's a bit odd to hear only polite applause after "7 Chinese Brothers", which would appear on Reckoning a year later, and surprising to hear people scream for "Boxcars" and a cover of the Velvet Underground's "There She Goes Again" (which they play) and especially "Shaking Through" (which they don't). Live, Stipe deploys an even wider arsenal of vocal tics: vamping on "Just a Touch", growling the chorus of "Talk About the Passion", and sing-speaking through a jaw-dropping "9-9", all while Mills' backing vocals soar overheard and Buck's guitar chimes reliably on every song. Because they were known primarily as a live band, and because they built their identity as such when the industry avenues of promotion failed them, this live disc, much like the remaster, goes a long way toward re-creating for listeners the context in which R.E.M. introduced themselves and making these familiar songs once again excitingly unfamiliar”.

A sensational and impactful debut album from the much missed and beloved R.E.M., Murmur is forty on 12th April. I know there will be celebrations and articles written about it closer to the time. I wanted to get in there and highlight a brilliant work. Their 1983 debut is a supreme, smart, memorable, enigmatic, powerful, and compelling album from…

THE Athens group.

FEATURE: The Digital Mixtape: This Is Her… Then and Now: The Very Best of Jennifer Lopez

FEATURE:

 

 

The Digital Mixtape

This Is Her… Then and Now: The Very Best of Jennifer Lopez

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I included Jennifer Lopez’s…

This Is Me… Then in Second Spin last year. That 2002 album was celebrating its twentieth anniversary. Perhaps her best-loved album, it was still one that I felt passed people by and was not played as much now. Interestingly, Lopez releases This Is Me… Now in July. The lyrics are very confessional, and she will talk about her love life and relationships. Lopez is setting the record straight, as people have perceptions about who she has been dating, what she is about, and all these rumours. Lopez is in a point where she wants to address that. I have not featured Lopez since then and, in fact, not much at all through the years. As she has a long-awaited album out soon, I wanted to compile a playlist featuring the best cuts from the New York-born legend. There are the hits and some album deeper cuts. Even if her more modern albums have not received a great deal of love and critical respect, they have sold very well. She is one of the most influential and popular artists in the world. Maybe critics are looking for the sort of ready hits and excitement that she produced on her first few albums. That said, even then they were not fully behind her and in support. It is baffling that a run as strong as (her debut) On the 6, J.Lo and This Is Me… Then did not get more acclaim considering, between them, they gave us hits such as If You Had My Love, Let’s Get Loud, Love Don’t Cost a Thing, Ain’t It Funny and Jenny from the Block!

The albums were huge commercial successes and it showed the gulf between the public’s love and the slightly less enthused critics. I hope that Lopez’s albums get re-evaluated, as they are incredible. I am going to end with a career-spanning playlist of Jennifer Lopez classics and deeper cuts. Before getting to that, AllMusic provide a biography of the actor and artist who has been responsible for some of the most recognisable tracks of the late-’90s and early-’00s:

“Actress, singer, dancer, producer, and businesswoman, Jennifer Lopez parlayed her Golden Globe-nominated portrayal of tragic Latin pop icon Selena in the 1997 biopic into pop culture superstardom, including forging a career as an influential pop star in her own right. Establishing a confident, sensual style, her first single, 1999's "If You Had My Love," went all the way to number one on the Billboard Hot 100. Just two years later, Lopez became the first woman to hit number one on the album chart and at the box office in the same week, with her second album, J.Lo, and her lead role opposite Matthew McConaughey in The Wedding Planner. In 2001, she launched the long-running clothing line J.Lo by Jennifer Lopez and received her second Grammy nomination in the dance recording category. The year 2002 brought the number one hit "All I Have" featuring LL Cool J, and her first fragrance, Glow, became a top-seller. While continuing to land occasional lead roles on the silver screen, she became a fixture in the Top Ten with albums including the Spanish-language Como Ama una Mujer (2007) and her seventh full-length, Love? (2011). In the meantime, on TV, the onetime In Living Color dancer co-created the reality series DanceLife, and in 2011 she began a multi-season stint as a judge on Fox's American Idol. Lopez issued another Top Ten studio album, A.K.A., in 2014 before leaving American Idol in 2016 to star in the NBC crime drama Shades of Blue (2016-2018). In 2020, Lopez received her first Golden Globe nomination in 22 years, for her portrayal of Ramona in the previous year's Hustlers, a film that she also co-produced. She combined her passions with 2022's Marry Me, a romantic comedy for which she starred and provided the soundtrack alongside co-star Maluma.

Jennifer Lynn Lopez was born in the Bronx, New York, on July 24, 1969. After starting out in musical theater as a child, she made her film debut at age 16 in the little-seen My Little Girl, but she was later tapped to become one of the dancing "Fly Girls" on the television sketch comedy series In Living Color. A recurring role on the TV drama Second Chances followed before Lopez was thrust into the limelight co-starring with Wesley Snipes and Woody Harrelson in the 1995 feature film Money Train. Smaller roles in pictures including My Family/Mi Familia, Jack, and Blood and Wine followed before she landed the title role in 1997's Selena, portraying the slain Tejano singer. The resulting acclaim for Selena included a Golden Globe nomination for Best Actress. Co-starring opposite George Clooney in 1998's acclaimed Out of Sight, Lopez became the highest-paid Latina actress in Hollywood history. The following summer, she returned to her musical roots with her debut pop album, On the 6, scoring a major hit with the single "If You Had My Love."

Lopez didn't waste time perfecting a sophomore effort, the appropriately titled J.Lo, which was issued in early 2001. The following year, Lopez released J to tha L-O!: The Remixes and This Is Me...Then, which spawned another hit single, "Jenny from the Block." The album reached number two on the Billboard 200. Although her high-profile romance with Ben Affleck created more headlines than her recording career, her follow-up, 2005's Rebirth -- released just after she married singer Marc Anthony -- debuted at number two on U.S. album chart. The Spanish-language album Como Ama una Mujer followed in 2007, peaking at number ten on the Billboard 200 while remaining at the top of the Latin chart for seven consecutive weeks. In October of that same year, Lopez put out a more "traditional" pop album, Brave, followed by an accompanying tour. It peaked at number 12. Love?, another pop album, was released in April 2011, a few months after Lopez debuted alongside Randy Jackson and Aerosmith's Steven Tyler as one of the judges on American Idol.

Love? proved Lopez's biggest hit in years, no doubt benefiting from her role as an Idol judge. Lopez stayed for two seasons, leaving after the 2012 season. Just as the news of her departure arrived, so too did news of her divorce from Marc Anthony. Her first hits collection, Dance Again...The Hits, appeared in July 2012 and entered the Billboard album chart at number 20.

Lopez returned to American Idol for its 13th season in January 2014. During its run, she started to tease her new album, releasing its first single, "I Luh Ya Papi," in March; it peaked at 77 on the Hot 100 and seven on the Hot Dance Club Songs chart. After the season wrapped, she released her eighth album, A.K.A., which was also her first record for the Capitol label. In 2015, she voiced a character in the animated feature film Home, and also contributed the single "Feel the Light" to the movie's soundtrack. Lopez kicked off an extended live concert residency at the AXIS at Planet Hollywood in Las Vegas in January of 2016. That same month, she premiered in the role of NYPD detective Harlee Santos on the NBC series Shades of Blue.

Several months later, she marked a return to Epic Records after a six-year absence from the label with the release of the single "Ain't Your Mama." Lopez also premiered the song with a live performance on the finale of the 15th season of American Idol. In July 2017, she released the single "Ni Tú Ni Yo," which was co-written and executive produced by ex-husband Marc Anthony. "Amor, Amor, Amor," featuring Wisin, followed that November, and a bilingual single titled "Dinero," featuring DJ Khaled and Cardi B, arrived in May 2018. Shades of Blue aired its final episode that August. "Limitless," her contribution to the soundtrack of romantic comedy Second Act, followed later in the year. She also co-produced and starred in the film.

In 2019, Lopez appeared in the independent crime-comedy Hustlers, portraying strip-club dancer Ramona. It led to best-supporting actress nominations at the Golden Globes, the Screen Actors Guild, and the Independent Spirit Awards. In September 2020, she released two songs with Colombian singer Maluma, "Pa' Ti" and "Lonely," both of which were later included on the soundtrack to Lopez's 2021 romantic-comedy film Marry Me. She also released the solo track "On My Way" as a single from the film. Later that year, she teamed up with rising Puerto Rican star Rauw Alejandro for the single "Cambia el Paso”.

Ahead of the release of her ninth studio album, This Is Me... Now, I wanted to look back at the career of Jennifer Lopez and assemble some of her best music. Nearly twenty-four years after her debut was released, there is still this huge demand for and love of her music. As you will hear from the cuts in the playlist, Lopez has had…

SUCH a varied career.

FEATURE: Sprechgesang Durch Technik: Why Is Talk-Singing Becoming More Prevalent?

FEATURE:

 

 

Sprechgesang Durch Technik

IN THIS PHOTO: Wet Leg have harnessed and personalised talk-singing, as evidenced throughout their award-nominated eponymous 2022 debut album/PHOTO CREDIT: Terna Jogo for Rolling Stone UK

Why Is Talk-Singing Becoming More Prevalent?

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IT is not a new thing in music…

 IN THIS PHOTO: Artist and D.J. Gemma Bradley’s 2023 documentary for The Cultural Frontline asked why more and more guitar bands are speaking rather than singing - a phenomenon that is seemingly growing and expanding

but, maybe as part of diversifying and evolving genres, there is a definitely rise in talk-singing. The Germans call it Sprechgesang. For decades, we have heard songs where there are spoken lines or verses. I don’t think that there has been a particular revolution in that sense. One can definitely feel it becoming more popular and integrated into music. Maybe genres like Rock, Indie, and Pop have been quite homogenous and defined in past years. As we are seeing more artists push boundaries and find new ways to communicate with the audience, it is no surprise that many artists are mixing singing with speaking. It is not uncommon to find solo artists doing this, but bands especially (including duos) are employing speak-singing. I was compelled by a documentary from earlier in the year from musician Gemma Bradley. She asks why guitar bands are speaking instead of singing. I am quite torn over it, and I have theories as to why a lot of Rock bands especially are bringing talk-singing into things. I want to start with a couple of features that provide some background and context to this phenomenon. In 2019, The Guardian asked the question as to why many of the best bands preferred talking rather than singing:

‘It feels like acting,” says Florence Shaw, frontwoman – not singer – of the London indie band Dry Cleaning. “Speaking your lyrics is acting, more than singing is. Everyone knows what it sounds like in a person’s voice when they are irritated, or when they are in love. The voice changes, and it doesn’t whack you in the face – it can be quite subtle and creep up on you more.”

If you spend any time in small British venues, it is likely you have noticed there are quite a few bands like Dry Cleaning around at the moment – bands that don’t employ a singer so much as someone who declaims their words, and that are getting noticed. Do Nothing and Black Country, New Road have been winning admirers; Talk Show have been signed by Felix White, late of the Maccabees, to his Yala! Records label; Sinead O’Brien’s new single is on Chess Club, the label that brought the world Mumford & Sons, MØ, Wolf Alice, Sundara Karma and more.

It is not a complete surprise that all these artists are operating in that part of the musical spectrum marked, broadly, as post-punk. The late 70s and early 80s were when sprechgesang – literally, “spoken singing” – flourished as a means of expression, in part because of the embrace of musical limitations, in part because it was a clear point of difference from traditional rock music, and in part because it was ideal for conveying the scorn, sarcasm and disgust that performers such as John Lydon and Mark E Smith dealt in.

Smith, especially, is an inspiration for O’Brien, even if her style – poetic and allusive, with an often flowing and melodic backing – is more akin to early Patti Smith (she even started in the same way as the latter, reciting poetry to the accompaniment of a guitar). “Mark E Smith showed it’s not about perfection,” O’Brien says. “Every piece I ever listen to by the Fall can sound like a whole different mood board on another day. It completely transforms, and I’m stopped in my tracks.”

That sense of confrontation Lydon and Smith brought remains important to many of these new groups. They are all still playing small rooms, where eye contact is unavoidable, and there is something uniquely discomfiting about being singled out from a crowd to be spoken at by someone on a stage.

“There are people, understandably, who are cringed out by spoken-word stuff,” says Isaac Wood of Black Country, New Road. “It’s too direct. They think it’s like an open mic slam poetry night or something. But if you are in any way inclined towards it, it is less easy to ignore, because there are conversational elements to it. It’s more direct.” Like Dry Cleaning, whose breakthrough track was about Meghan Markle, Wood’s lyrical references to Kendall Jenner and Kanye West make him feel all the more immediate.

“They hate it,” says Do Nothing’s Chris Bailey of his own audiences. “They feel super-weird and wrong. A lot of the time I’ll stare one person down, and usually they just look away. If I’m playing a character, it makes it feel like theatre. Breaking the fourth wall always makes people uncomfortable.”

“I love being able to stand a metre away from someone and just stare at them,” says Talk Show’s Harrison Swann. “It’s really visceral and the most real thing you can get. You can’t shy away or hide behind a melody. It’s great as a performer; it’s really immediate.”

Unsurprisingly, sprechgesang did not come about as a means to enable scratchy indie bands to make their audiences feel uncomfortable. It was first used by Arnold Schoenberg in 1912, when he set 21 poems by Albert Giraud to music as Pierrot Lunaire. (Strictly, what he was doing, and what these bands are doing, was sprechstimme – which emphasises speech above melody – but outside classical music, the two terms are all but interchangeable, and sprechgesang is the one that has stuck.) Brecht and Weill developed it further, but it was never more than a novelty in rock until the post-punk years (you might make an argument that Bob Dylan deals in it, or you might say he isn’t a very good singer)”.

Whilst artists throughout music history have used talk-singing, I think what is remarkable about the last few years it the variety of genres that is exploring it. In terms of newer acts coming through, the likes of Wet Leg, Dry Cleaning, and Black Country, New Road cover a vast array of sounds and territories. I think it will be something that becomes even more common in the coming years. The Ringer investigated why Sprechgesang was very much in vogue:

“Yet the present state of talk-singing (or “Sprechgesang”—yes, there is a German word for this) is anything but a monolith. Consider the vast array of talk-singing styles on display in the early 2020s. If Shaw sounds ever calm and collected, her peers in the London-based groups Squid and Black Country, New Road sound agitated and distrubed, like Mark E. Smith on steroids, delivering feverish punk monologues coated with rage at the collapsing world around them. (The great eight-minute finale of Squid’s album Bright Green Field, for instance, finds singer Ollie Judge ranting and raving about political propaganda—“Pamphlets through my door / And pamphlets on my floor!”—with mounting hysteria.)

“The more melodic the songs were, the less excited we were about what we were writing. Then, as we tried things that were less melodic and more spoken, we just got more and more excited about what we were doing.” —Greg Katz, lead singer of Cheekface

Contrast that with the flirty, winking monotone favored by English duo Wet Leg on their debut single “Chaise Longue,” in which singer Rhian Teasdale cheekily quotes Mean Girls and repeats the phrase “chaise longue” 46 times without breaking a sweat. The ferociously addictive single became an unlikely success: By late September, “Chaise Longue” had amassed nearly 3 million streams on Spotify (The Ringer’s parent company) alone, and Wet Leg announced their first U.S. shows despite having only two songs.

Across the pond, more laid-back, stylized talk-singing approaches have flourished among indie acts like Sneaks (a.k.a. musician Eva Moolchan), whose four albums revel in minimalist post-punk mantras, and the band French Vanilla, whose records French Vanilla and How Am I Not Myself? draw links between the iconic, exaggerated Sprechgesang of early B-52s and the present-day queer-punk scene.

Meanwhile, Greg Katz, the lead singer of indie-rock group Cheekface, channels his anxieties into a dorkier, more conversational mode of talk-singing on 2021’s excellent Emphatically No., employing an untrained voice that evokes everyone from Jonathan Richman (whose stock has risen so much lately that he’s being impersonated at festivals!) to Cake. A typical Cheekface song finds Katz talking his way through the verses, riffing on subjects like climate collapse (“Original Composition”) and smartphone addiction (“Got my old phone replaced / Now I do nothing faster than I did yesterday,” he quips in “Wedding Guests”), before breaking into a singable chorus. He never sounds as cool or detached as, say, Florence Shaw. He sounds like a funny, self-deprecating friend cracking jokes to ward off despair.

Like many talk-singers, Katz has no formal vocal training. He embraced the style more or less by accident. When he and bandmate Amanda Tannen began writing songs together in 2017, they tried various approaches. “The more melodic the songs were, the less excited we were about what we were writing,” Katz says. “Then, as we tried things that were less melodic and more spoken, we just got more and more excited about what we were doing.”

In Katz’s view, his vocal style conveys the jittery emotional landscape of Cheekface’s music as much as the lyrics themselves. “You can tell when your friends get overwhelmed because they start talking so fast, right?” Katz says. “You’re like, ‘Whoa, slow down. You’re tripping.’ And I think that’s something you can do if you’re not concerned about keeping the cadence of the melody the same from line to line and verse to verse. What is the polar opposite of that? It’s a Max Martin song, where he would rather the words have less meaning and the melodies stay symmetrical.”

Yet in recent months, even the upper echelons of pop royalty have dabbled in Sprechgesang. Billie Eilish sexy-mumbles her way through the bleary-eyed Happier Than Ever highlight “Oxytocin,” doing her best Madonna-circa-Erotica impression, while St. Vincent affects a saucier beat-rap delivery in her comeback single “Pay Your Way in Pain.” Back in April, Mick Jagger delivered a rather lackluster brand of shout-singing on his Dave Grohl–assisted lockdown anthem “Eazy Sleazy,” which is disappointing, considering Jagger gave us one of the all-time great, sex-obsessed Sprechgesang performances on 1978’s “Shattered.”

Even Olivia Rodrigo, the newly anointed Gen Z pop queen, unleashes a caustic mode of talk-singing on her song “Brutal”: “I’m not cool, and I’m not smart / And I can’t even parallel park,” Rodrigo snarls, as though she’s too consumed by teen angst to conform to melodic orthodoxy. Curiously, Rodrigo’s song nicks a guitar lick from “Pump It Up” by Elvis Costello, which, by Costello’s own admission, borrowed heavily from Bob Dylan’s talk-singing landmark “Subterranean Homesick Blues,” which, in turn, took influence from the fast-talking proto-rap of Chuck Berry’s 1956 single “Too Much Monkey Business.” How about that: a talk-singing lineage that directly links Gen Z all the way back to the Greatest Generation”.

One would say that an increased number of groups and new artists would lead to a rise in talk-singing. This is true, but I don’t think it is a mere numbers game. I am a little divided over the phenomenon. I am someone traditionally who prefers singing as the best way to articulate a message and capture me. I do think a talk-singing can be a little weary and ruin the momentum of a song. On the other hand, artists can bring more nuance and personality to songs. I feel a greater range of dynamics and emotions can be deployed through talk-singing. Also, for many Rock acts who might have a more political edge, providing speech can be more impactful and clearer (in terms of vocal clarity) compared to singing. I do not like songs that are mostly talk-singing, but having Wet Leg have shown how effecting and interesting music with a more conversational edge can be. I guess speaking can seem a more direct link to the fans and lyrics. Singing can sometimes be unintelligibility, so there is that desire to be understand. Rock is a genre that is seeing more talk-singing. This might beg the question whether the genre is transforming into something different. We do still have guitar bands who write huge and raucous songs, but I think the sound and culture of Rock has transformed quite notably over the past decade. Regardless of age, even Indie heroes such as Arctic Monkeys are far removed from how they sounded on their 2006 debut, Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not. Lead Alex Turner has this interesting mix of singing and speaking. More Lounge and Orchestral than their early work, maybe they have lead a bit of a revolution.

The fact is that every artist has a different reason for talk-singing. I am not sure which song or artist started the trend, but we are talking many decades ago now. Whether people err more towards a more traditional approach of Rock songs largely comprising singing, or they are pretty open to talk-singing, it is definitely becoming more prominent. I do think it is a way for artists to distinguish themselves and get their natural accents and voices heard. It also provides something more cinematic, dramatic and even comic. It adds layers and depths to genres like Rock, and certain spoken lines can come across more powerfully, naturally or engaging than if they were sung. I would recommend people listen to Gemma Bradley’s excellent documentary from earlier in the year, where bands like Squid are put under the spotlight:

“Fontaines D.C., Dry Cleaning and Yard Act, as well as solo artists including Billy Nomates and Sinead O’Brien are just some of the acts using speech prominently in their music. It is not just vocal performance that has been commented on - many emerging bands have been described as having a ‘post-punk’ guitar music style and lyrics rich in social commentary.

Musician and broadcaster Gemma Bradley meets bands and vocalists to find out more about this exciting music trend and why.

James Smith, songwriter and vocalist of English band Yard Act explains why he was attracted to what he describes as ‘spoken word, politically forward’ guitar music. He reflects on the power of vocal performance and how the Covid pandemic affected his song writing.

Irish vocalist Sinead O’Brien performs on stage with a guitarist and drummer and works in poetry as well as music. She meets Gemma backstage before a gig to discuss how versatile and impactful speech in music can be.

Fionn Reilly from Belfast band Enola Gay explains to Gemma what inspires his energetic performance style, vocal delivery and the band’s song lyrics.

Gemma also visits the prolific and much sought-after producer Dan Carey at his London studio. He has worked with many guitar bands that use speech in their music including Fontaines D.C., Squid, Wet Leg and black midi, and describes the freedom available for artists unconstrained by the parameters of singing”.

I am a big fan of many of the artists included in the Gemma Bradley documentary. Whether they use talk-singing to bring poetry into music or something that builds dialogue and conversation into the mix, it is clearly providing very popular and enduring! These are artists with a rich catalogue that is setting them aside. As I say, there is a delicate balance where too much talk-singing (Dry Cleaning for instance) can prove a bit samey and unappealing to those who do like at least a bit of singing. That said, bands like Dry Cleaning are almost creating a sub-genre or sound that has a very growing fanbase. That is a good thing. New acts like Wet Leg are adding their own stamp to Sprechgesang. As it shows no signs of slowing, it will be fascinating to see…

WHERE it leads.

FEATURE: With the Beatle… Why Paul McCartney’s 1964: Eyes of the Storm Is a Must for Every Fan of the Band

FEATURE:

 

 

With the Beatle…

IMAGE CREDIT: Paul McCartney/Allen Lane

Why Paul McCartney’s 1964: Eyes of the Storm Is a Must for Every Fan of the Band

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IT seems…

 PHOTO CREDIT: Paul McCartney/Allen Lane

that there is always something to talk about when it comes to Paul McCartney and The Beatles. The legend celebrated his eightieth birthday last year, and I remember, when researching, thinking how much he has achieved through the decades! One would think that, as the genius gets older, that there would be less to enjoy and find. That is never the case with Macca. Whether he brings out a book of lyrics, a children’s book, or simply posts onto Twitter, we are always aware of this beloved colossus! I was wondering what treats we would get from McCartney in 2023. I am sure he will appear in a documentary or interviews later in the year, and we all hope there is going to be a follow-up to 2020’s McCartney III. I think that we will get some material later in the year. Before any of that, there is something interesting from the archives. I often wonder about The Beatles and photos. Paul’s late wife Linda was a photographer. The Beatles were involved with press photos, but what about journaling their everyday lives? Obviously, as it was the ‘60s, it was not as convenient and easy to take a lot of photos as it is now. It seems that Paul McCartney had his own camera and spent time at the height of Beatlemania taking some interesting shots. They are going on display at the National Portrait Gallery:

“An unprecedented exhibition, revealing – for the first time – extraordinary photographs taken by Paul McCartney.

In this show, we focus on portraits captured by McCartney, using his own camera, between December 1963 and February 1964 – a time when The Beatles were transitioning from a British sensation to a global phenomenon. These never-before-seen images offer a uniquely personal perspective on what it was like to be a ‘Beatle’ at the start of ‘Beatlemania’ – and adjusting from playing gigs on Liverpool stages, to performing to 73 million Americans on The Ed Sullivan Show. At a time when so many camera lenses were on the band, it is Paul McCartney’s which tells the truest story of a band creating cultural history – in one of its most exciting chapters”.

 IN THIS PHOTO: The Beatles’ John Lennon and George Harrison/PHOTO CREDIT: Paul McCartney/Allen Lane

There is something very evocative and cool looking at some of the images that will appear. In black-and-white, you get this very authentic and vintage look from the point of view from a man who was experiencing something that nobody else had and ever will again! The Beatlemania time must have been a swell of excitement, exhaustion, and nerves! Not knowing what it meant or where it would head, McCartney could not have had much downtime or chance to get away. I imagine that late-1963 period as being so full-on and crowded. Constant Intrusion and endless performances, getting these candid photos from a man who was changing Pop music forever, we also get a book with so many fascinting shots. I would advise anyone who even has a passing interest in The Beatles to pre-order it (it is available on 13th June - five days before McCartney’s eighty-first birthday):

“Capturing the moment when the sixties truly began, this stunning volume of recently rediscovered photographs - boasting must-read commentary from Sir Paul McCartney - chronicles the whirlwind months from the end of 1963 to the beginning of 1964 when Beatlemania erupted, with an immediacy, vividness and authenticity unmatched by any previous works on the era.

Photographs and Reflections by Paul McCartney

'Millions of eyes were suddenly upon us, creating a picture I will never forget for the rest of my life.'

IN THIS PHOTO: Paul McCartney during his Got Back tour of 2022/PHOTO CREDIT: MJ Kim

In 2020, an extraordinary trove of nearly a thousand photographs taken by Paul McCartney on a 35mm camera was re-discovered in his archive. They intimately record the months towards the end of 1963 and beginning of 1964 when Beatlemania erupted in the UK and, after the band's first visit to the USA, they became the most famous people on the planet. The photographs are McCartney's personal record of this explosive time, when he was, as he puts it, in the 'Eyes of the Storm'.

1964: Eyes of the Storm presents 275 of McCartney's photographs from the six cities of these intense, legendary months - Liverpool, London, Paris, New York, Washington, D.C. and Miami - and many never-before-seen portraits of John, George and Ringo. In his Foreword and Introductions to these city portfolios, McCartney remembers 'what else can you call it - pandemonium' and conveys his impressions of Britain and America in 1964 - the moment when the culture changed and the Sixties really began.

1964: Eyes of the Storm includes:

- Six city portfolios - Liverpool, London, Paris, New York, Washington, D.C. and Miami - and a Coda on the later months of 1964 - featuring 275 of Paul McCartney's photographs and his candid reflections on them

- A Foreword by Paul McCartney

- Beatleland, an Introduction by Harvard historian and New Yorker essayist Jill Lepore

- A Preface by Nicholas Cullinan, Director of the National Portrait Gallery, London, and Another Lens, an essay by Senior Curator Rosie Broadley”.

There have been quite a few Paul McCartney/The Beatles-related books from the last few years. Some would say this is inessential or money-grabbing. Rather than this being McCartney looking through his old photos and archives and putting this out knowing that the book will sell big, it is actually vital and beautiful insight into days in the life of a member the greatest band ever. It is called 1964: Eyes of the Storm. That sense of thrill and absolute spectacle will be put alongside more intimate and goofy photos. Beatlemania is one of the most fascinating periods in musical history. I think that there will be a lot of new Beatles converts following the Peter Jackson documentary-film, The Beatles: Get Back, from 2021. I am going to wrap up in a minute but, in this article we get a quite from McCartney himself about why he is making these photos public:

“Both collections will be titled 1964: Eyes of the Storm, both are due out in June and both will compile 275 photos taken as the band toured through Liverpool, London, Paris, New York, D.C. and Miami. McCartney himself wrote the book's foreword, as well as notes reflecting on the shots he took — which include portraits of bandmates John Lennon, George Harrison and Ringo Starr.

The archive's title alludes to the massive attention the band received, as Beatlemania took hold — as McCartney asks in his foreword, "What else can you call it [but] pandemonium?" — and the four musicians experienced life-changing upheaval. The three never-before-seen photos on this page capture not only that overwhelming change, but also moments of quiet contemplation.

PHOTO CREDIT: Paul McCartney/Allen Lane

"Anyone who rediscovers a personal relic or family treasure is instantly flooded with memories and emotions, which then trigger associations buried in the haze of time," McCartney writes in 1964: Eyes of the Storm. "This was exactly my experience in seeing these photos, all taken over an intense three-month period of travel, culminating in February 1964. It was a wonderful sensation to be plunged right back. Here was my own record of our first huge trip, a photographic journal of The Beatles in six cities, beginning in Liverpool and London, followed by Paris (where John and I had been ordinary hitchhikers three years before), and then what we regarded as the big time, our first visit as a group to America”.

I think that this is going to be one of the most interesting and essential Beatles releases. It  takes us back almost sixty years to a time that not only when Pop was changing and growing, but the world around it was also transforming. In the U.S. on 22nd November, 1963, President John F. Kennedy was assassinated. There was unrest across America. In 1964 Britain, Top of the Pops first aired on 1st January. Radio Caroline started on 28th March, and Labour’s Harold Wilson became Prime Minister later in the year. It was a changeable, turbulent, and exciting time, and Paul McCartney, John Lennon, Ringo Starr and George Harrison were right in the middle of it. How strange it must have been for these young men to be in such a weird and wonderful position. It makes Paul McCartney’s upcoming photobook (and exhibition) a must for…

IN THIS PHOTO: "The crowds chasing us in A Hard Day's Night were based on moments like this," McCartney writes. "Taken out of the back of our car on West Fifty-Eighth, crossing the Avenue of the Americas"/PHOTO CREDIT: Paul McCartney/Allen Lane

ALL fans of The Beatles.

FEATURE: Forty Years of the Compact Disc: Could We See a New Physical Format for the Modern Age?

FEATURE:

 

 

Forty Years of the Compact Disc

PHOTO CREDIT: Jorge Fakhouri Filho/Pexels

Could We See a New Physical Format for the Modern Age?

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THE compact disc…

 PHOTO CREDIT: cottonbro studio/Pexels

has been in our music world for forty years. Introduced in November 1982 in Japan, and in March 1983 in Europe, I wanted to mark forty years of its life here (in Europe) by thinking about its huge impact and legacy. I think that the compact disc was the last sustainable physical format. The cassette and vinyl came about before. Whereas cassettes are still used, as I have said before, they are hardly ever played. People don’t really have boomboxes or a devices they would have had in the ‘90s. It seems like many buy them to support artists. I do wonder where people play cassettes. I have also said how it would be awesome to revive the Sony Walkman and actually have a portable device one could play the cassettes on. I have always liked them, but I get that people feel they are pretty unstable in terms of durability. Whereas you get the dreaded unspooling and the tape being stuck in the machine, you also have to wind and rewind manually to skip between tracks. The vinyl has its advantages. You get this big and tactile product that you put on and enjoy. It is not portable obviously…and vinyl is still expensive. People deride the compact disc now, as a lot of the packaging used to house albums is plastic. Many feel C.D.s are too fragile and scratch easily. Also, like the cassette, where do people play compact discs?! I have a player in my car, but many do not now.

PHOTO CREDIT: freepik

Smartphones mean people hook that up in their car. Maybe people have stereos with a compact disc tray(s), but sales have steadily declined. Vinyl is the leading physical format, and that lacks a certain portability and sociability. In the sense people don’t swap vinyl in the way cassettes and C.D.s once were. The reason why the fortieth anniversary of the compact disc is so important is that it was the way that I properly discovered music. My parents’ vinyl was part of the house but it not widely played. I did do cassettes for a while when I was very young, and I do have very fond memories of playing albums in an old boombox that I got. Compact discs were a different league. I bought singles and albums, and there was a lot of swapping in the playground. The thrill of buying compact discs and taking them in. The feel of the casing and reading the inset you got too. I collected them too, and I have a vast array from across the years. They are memories and physical connections to past times. I am not against streaming and digital music, but it is convenient and inexpensive. I don’t think that sharing playlists and songs in this form is going to be as effective as physical forms. What do young music lovers do when it comes to having that same sort of connection and experience as I did when I was young?

 IMAGE CREDIT: freepik

It is not just a concern about young listeners. It is a pleasure to listen to music in physical formats. Streaming is great but, with criticism regarding how much artists receive and very slow progress, people are embracing vinyl more than compact discs and cassettes. The format is expensive and very much for a time and place. One is unlikely to have vinyl shared in playground and workplaces. There is a romance and wonder to listening to vinyl and that whole listening experience. What do you do when you not only want to enjoy something more compact and cheaper, but it also need to be environmentally conscious and ensures artists receive payment. Also, I miss singles being available to purchase physically. It may seem oldskool, but the fortieth anniversary of the compact disc has made me wonder whether we could have a new physical format. The fairly short-lived MiniDisc (MD) came out in 1992, but that did not really have the same impact as C.D.s, cassettes, and vinyl. With there not really being a popular, easily accessible, and inexpensive physical format out there, I fear so many will miss out. There is already an awareness when it comes to younger listeners not knowing certain artists and songs. If streaming is their main source of discovery, the way algorithms work mean they are being fed limits and music that is crafted for them. There is a clear demand for physical music today.

 PHOTO CREDIT: halayalex via freepik

I am not sure what the solution is, but I would like to think physical singles could be reignited (with artists more compelled to do B-sides), alongside physical albums on a new format. Something more durable than cassettes, it would be a cross between a compact disc and a MiniDisc. You need a device which is sturdy, well-designed, and compact, and you need the physical cartridge/product to be sized so that it is not too cumbersome. I love the old C.D. cases you got, but you would need to make the thing in a form other than plastic. Same goes with casing. I guess that is where the first challenge comes in. Also, it would need to be so that albums cost about the same as they do on C.D. Of course, if they could be priced the same as cassettes – which are slightly cheaper in general -, then that would take care of another issue. Not only would a new generation both be able to swap music like we did years back, in a physical and more sociable way. There would be this sense of preservation and posterity. I revisit and rediscover older music because I have the C.D.s, vinyl, or cassettes still. I am not going through playlists and being ignited and reminded in the same way. Also, as a way of passing music down, maybe there is not the same nostalgia and beauty of a cassette, vinyl, or compact disc, but there is physical archive and connection. That is so important. Being able to produce albums ethically and sustainably so they are durable, between £10-£12 (singles maybe £2-£3), and they are small enough to fit inside cases or a bag.

 PHOTO CREDIT: Yuri Manei/Pexels

Some might argue why we need an additional physical format, but I feel compact discs, in spite of enduring for forty years, are less popular and seen as old-fashionable by some. I love cassettes and would recommend them, but they have design flaws and limitations. There are no devices to play them on and, if they were, would people buy it at such a high price? Something sleek that would mix digital interactivity with the physical product and capabilities would combine the best of the digital and physical. Perhaps the device itself would be upwards of £100 but, as many would spend them on a record player, the investment is sound. It would be less problematic than the Sony Discman (which used to skip C.D.s if you so much as moved with it!), and it would enable new generations to bond with physical music in a very real way. I am not sure how practical and easy it would be to press old and new albums onto this format, but I would definitely buy more older and new albums if there was a format that was more affordable than vinyl (and one I could walk around with). It provides nostalgia and modernity at the same time. Using a material other than plastic and ensuring people could afford the device and albums/singles. I would hate to think that, in years to come, the only physical format we have is vinyl. It is a marvellous thing, but it really is for sitting at home. I think it is something for doing solo. Digital music has opened so many horizons and possibilities for so many people. I can understand why some physical formats are dwindling, but it needs to be kept alive. Having music that you can hold in your hands and play is…

 PHOTO CREDIT: freepik

SUCH a precious thing.

FEATURE: Fight for Your Rights: Is Strict and Expensive Music Licensing Hindering Filmmaking?

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Fight for Your Rights

PHOTO CREDIT: Ashutosh Sonwani/Pexels

Is Strict and Expensive Music Licensing Hindering Filmmaking?

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SOME of the best…

 PHOTO CREDIT: starline via freepik

and most iconic film moments involve music. Whether it is a song played in a scene or something on the soundtrack, we all have those standouts scenes that were aided and lifted by music. Filmmakers such as Quentin Tarantino are synonymous with their incorporation of music into films. Creating wonderful and eclectic soundtracks. I think the music can identify and define a film as much as anything else. More and more, I am reading about how various songs and artists were intended to be used in a film but they were not. Usually it comes down to one of two things. Either they could not get the permission to use that music, or the cost was just far too much. Artists, labels, and estates can charge hundred of thousands of pounds/dollars for a single song. As most films do not have a budget big enough to pay exorbitant amounts for music, less expensive options have to be considered. Here are some guidelines and clarifications when it comes to using music in films:

“To celebrate our Board Member matching campaign–which, your donation (and impact!) will be doubled through our Board Members and Friends Matching Challenge, available through this Thursday, September 29–we’re reposting our retrospective series The Fi Hall Of Fame featuring refreshed, expanded and updated versions of most popular blogs of all time. Special thanks to the original author of this piece, Lorena Alvarado.

Filmmakers often feel so attached to a song that it becomes a crucial and indispensable element of their story. A scene, or even an entire film, can revolve around a single piece of music. What many directors don’t realize is that the process of clearing that song can be very difficult and expensive. Brooke Wentz, the music supervisor behind Kings Point, Bully and Bill Cunningham New York cleared up some of the confusion and little-known realities of music licensing during a recent Film Independent education event.

PHOTO CREDIT: cottonbro studio/Pexels

The most important thing to know is that there are two rights to every song. There is the person who wrote the song (who holds the publisher rights, aka “sync” rights) and the person who recorded it (who holds the “master” rights). To use this piece of music you need permission from both entities. You can listen to a song like “All Along the Watchtower” by Jimi Hendrix, but you may not know that the writer is Bob Dylan. To determine who owns the rights to songs, the websites ascap.com and bmi.com are extremely helpful.

Once you’ve determined who owns the publishing and the master, you must contact them separately and ask for permission to use the song. This can get tricky when there are a lot of songwriters involved. Katy Perry’s song “California Gurls,” for instance, has five publishers. Therefore, if you wanted to clear this tune you would need approval from all five of the writers and on top of that you would need approval from Katy Perry. If one of them says no, then unfortunately you can’t use the song.

Here are Wentz’s top six secrets for music licensing:

For festival rights, most songs can be cleared at around $500 per side.

Meaning $500 for the publishers, $500 for the master. If you don’t have enough money in your budget to pay for all the rights up front, you can clear only the film festival rights and add an option to get all media rights up to two years later.

The fee is the same regardless of the duration of the cue.

If you use a song for five seconds or two minutes, it will cost you the same amount of money. The only exception to this is if the song is used over beginning or end credits.

PHOTO CREDIT: Karolina Grabowska/Pexels

The rate for a piece of music is negotiable!

Most filmmakers don’t know that they can offer a lower price, or if the artist likes the subject matter of the film, they might offer a better rate.

If you think a song is in the public domain, double check.

“I had a client who thought ‘My Sweet Lord’ was in the public domain,” Wentz explained. “I said ‘Nope, I’m pretty sure that’s a George Harrison song.’”

No response does not mean an approval.

It might be frustrating if they are not getting back to you, but you have to keep pushing. If you do not clear the rights for a song, you could receive a “cease and desist” letter from the rights holder which could incur fees.

PHOTO CREDIT: Stephan Müller/Pexels

If you’re doing a music doc, make sure you can secure the rights.

If the estate or the artist is not on board you will not be able to use the music. Many deceased musicians’ rights are owned by their spouse or ex-spouse—or both. Certain songs might never be clearable just because of inner conflicts that have nothing to do with you or your movie.

Filmmakers can get charged higher fees because they don’t know the numbers. That’s why it’s useful to have someone that knows about clearance to be the middleman. Brooke Wentz’s company, The Rights Workshop, helps filmmakers secure the appropriate rights for any budget.

Brooke recently worked on a film that got distribution at a festival and needed to expand the rights. She was shocked to discover that the director had licensed the songs himself and got charged five times what the fees should have been. Ouch!

Here some other stuff you should know:

Sync vs. Master agreements.

There are several different types of music-licensing agreements, but the two primary ones to worry about are sync and masteruse agreements– these agreements deal with pre-existing songs and sound recordings, not ones specifically composed for your film.

Sync refers to the actual composition/song—melody, lyrics and arrangement – as synchronized in timed relation with a motion picture. In almost all cases, a sync agreement is required in order to use a song in a film.

Take the example of U2’s cover of “Helter Skelter.” A filmmaker wishing to use this specific recording of the song will need first to seek a sync agreement from the copyright holder to the original Beatles composition in addition to a master recording agreement from U2’s record label”.

Maybe this is coming back to my own frustrations but, as someone currently working on a film concept where music is all over it, the logistics, realities, and expenses are daunting! I can appreciate how artists and labels want to ensure that the music being used in a film is paid for. A lot of films do really well at the box office, so it is only right that those that contribute music towards it get some of that cut. Most films do not have a huge budget to play with. So many films I see use snippets of songs or feature lesser-known artists. It can be good when smaller acts are featured, but I see similarities between getting rights to use music in films and getting clearance from artists to sample their music in original songs. There, it can be really expensive or problematic getting permission. I have said how this is hindering great music and the chance to use older songs and introduce them to the new generation. The same relates to film. A lot of the best film soundtracks ever are not packed with huge hits and well-known acts, but I don’t think there should be a price structure or the sort of restrictions there. Whether you are using a song by Madonna or a smaller band, I feel the costs should be based on the box office takings rather than this expensive and unreasonable price. Artists can choose not to have their songs used in films, and that is very much their decision. If they are fine with someone using their music, why can it be so expensive to use songs?

It is no exaggeration to say that hundred of thousands of pounds/dollars can be asked to use a song. As I said earlier, some of the most powerful and memorable moments in cinema have been supported by a great song. A musical drop that adds new life to something. An extra character or fresh emotion, I wonder whether there does need to be revision when it comes to pricing and permissions. Filmmaking is expensive and a challenge at the best of times, but also you cannot be expected to use a bunch of songs and pay a little amount. If you are putting together a film that wants to boast a great soundtrack featuring some classic artists, then costs will be incurred. There does seem to be this unreasonable gulf between relatively unknown artists and what they would charge, and the bigger acts. By doing a deal where a cut of the box office can be paid to artists (in addition to a smaller, flat fee), that would ensure that filmmakers could use music – and artists can set terms when it comes to how comfortable they are with its placement -, but they would also pay more to them if the film took a really big amount. From the start, when you are thinking about a soundtrack, having to really limit your ambitions and imagination is a real shame. I am in that boat at the moment, and it is quite a stressful thing! Music is such a universal and important aspect of life and culture. It can be arresting, emotion-changing and iconic when used in films. It can take a scene or shot to…

A who new level.

FEATURE: The Digital Mixtape: Pharrell Williams at Fifty: A Pioneering Producer

FEATURE:

 

 

The Digital Mixtape

Pharrell Williams at Fifty: A Pioneering Producer

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THERE is no doubting the fact…

 PHOTO CREDIT: Erik Ian

that Pharrell Williams is a legendary and pioneering producer. Alongside close colleague Chad Hugo, he formed the production duo The Neptunes in the early 1990s. They have produced for so many different artists. Their C.V. is staggering! As Williams turns fifty on 5th April, I am ending this feature with a playlist of songs he has had a production hand in. In January 2020, The Neptunes were announced to be inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame as a part of the 2020 class. A remarkably influential and respected producer, songwriter, and artist, some of the greatest records ever released have been produced/co-produced by Williams. Before getting to that playlist, AllMusic give us some biography avbout the iconic producer:

“Along with fellow Virginians Missy Elliott, Timbaland, and Neptunes partner Chad Hugo, Pharrell Williams has played a crucial role in the progression of post-new jack swing R&B and rap, and consequently pop. Williams actually got his start during the tail-end of the new jack era as the co-writer of Wreckx-N-Effect's number two 1992 pop hit "Rump Shaker," but he and Hugo truly distinguished themselves six years later as producers of Mase's "Lookin' at Me" and Noreaga's "Superthug," crossover hits that showcased the duo's uniquely chunky and choppy sound. Williams and Hugo built on this momentum throughout the 2000s, scoring hits that included Justin Timberlake's "Rock Your Body" (2002), Jay-Z's "Excuse Me Miss" (2003), Snoop Dogg's "Drop It Like It's Hot" (2004), and Ludacris' "Money Maker" (2006), all the while keeping their extracurricular genre-blind group N.E.R.D. afloat. After numerous accolades for the Neptunes, including a Grammy for Producer of the Year in 2004 and a Producer of the Decade acknowledgment from Billboard, the charismatic Williams remained a force in mainstream music as a producer, songwriter, tough-talking rapper, and falsetto-equipped singer. Working less frequently with Hugo, he added to his list of colorful hits songbook with Robin Thicke's "Blurred Lines" (2013), Daft Punk's "Get Lucky" (2013), and Kendrick Lamar's "Alright" (2015). Williams likewise prospered with intermittent solo material, highlighted by the Top Five albums In My Mind (2006) and G I R L (2014), and the number one pop hit "Happy" (2013). After Williams co-produced the Academy Award-nominated Hidden Figures, and contributed music for the film's soundtrack, he and Hugo reactivated N.E.R.D. with "Lemon" (2017), the group's first Top 40 hit. Following collaborations with Migos, Camila Cabello, and the Carters, he joined with Tyler, The Creator and 21 Savage for 2022's "Cash In Cash Out."

Pharrell Williams forged a long-term friendship and musical partnership with Chad Hugo while in seventh grade band camp. Among the Virginia Beach natives' aspirant peers in high school were Timothy "Timbaland" Mosley and Melvin "Magoo" Barcliff, with whom Williams recorded as S.B.I. (Surrounded by Idiots), but as the fledgling Neptunes, Williams and Hugo, joined by Shay Haley and Mike Etheridge, caught the attention of Teddy Riley. The new jack swing architect sponsored a talent show at Princess Anne High School, across the street from his Virginia Beach recording studio, and was impressed enough by the Neptunes' performance to sign the young musicians to a development deal. While producing his brother Markell's group, Wreckx-N-Effect, Riley enlisted Williams to co-write "Rump Shaker," which peaked at number two on the Billboard Hot 100 at the end of 1992. The following year, Williams could be heard calling out SWV's name throughout that group's Riley-produced "Human Nature" remix of "Right Here." Together and separately, Williams and Hugo acquitted themselves the next few years with work for Riley's Blackstreet, as well as SWV and Total. In 1996, the latter two groups were the first acts to release material crediting the Neptunes, by then the collaborative songwriting and production alias of Williams and Hugo.

The Neptunes left their first indelible marks in 1998. Mase's "Lookin' at Me," featuring Puff Daddy, became Williams and Hugo's first Top Ten pop hit that September, and Noreaga's "Superthug" -- with Williams also providing the amusing intro and a secondary vocal -- hit number 36 that October. The duo soon became among the most prolific, revered, and successful producers in commercial R&B, rap, and pop. Their sound, appealingly plastic-sounding with beats that could be replicated with a pair of fists pounding on a cafeteria table, became as identifiable and as mimicked as that of Timbaland and Missy Elliott, who had entered the mainstream a few years earlier. Among the Neptunes' most creative and popular productions during this early run were Ol' Dirty Bastard's "Got Your Money" (1999), Kelis' "Caught Out There" (1999), Jay-Z's "I Just Wanna Love U" (2000), Britney Spears' "I'm a Slave 4 U" (2001), Nelly's "Hot in Here" (2002), Clipse's "Grindin'" (2002), and Justin Timberlake's "Rock Your Body" (2003). The last of that bunch led to a Grammy award in the category of Producer of the Year, Non-Classical. As the Neptunes continued to take on commissioned work, Williams' voice became increasingly familiar. He was now more likely to provide the chorus and the background vocals of the same song, in addition to appearing in the accompanying video. Meanwhile, Williams, Hugo, and Shay Haley instituted N.E.R.D., an outlet for hybrids of rock, rap, soul, and funk that didn't conform with any particular radio format. In Search Of..., the debut N.E.R.D. album, was originally released in Europe in 2001, but when it arrived in the U.S. the following year, much of its electronic components had been replaced with live instrumentation, affirming Williams' and Hugo's desire to evade creative restrictions.

Although In Search Of... wasn't met with the same level of success as most of the synchronous Neptunes productions, the album enabled Williams to extend his reach as a frontperson, and cleared a path to his first solo single in 2003. Produced with Hugo and featuring Jay-Z, "Frontin'" built anticipation for The Neptunes Present...Clones, a compilation of all-new tracks from artists produced by Williams and Hugo, released on their Interscope-affiliated Star Trak label. The track sent the parent album to the top of the Billboard 200 and eventually reached number five on the Hot 100, thus maintaining the duo's momentum up to the release of N.E.R.D.'s second album, Fly or Die, in 2004. Neptunes' highlights across the remainder of that year and throughout 2005 included Snoop Dogg's "Drop It Like It's Hot" and Gwen Stefani's "Hollaback Girl," both of which topped the Hot 100. After a number of delays, Williams' first solo album, In My Mind, arrived in 2006. Produced by Williams alone, it featured appearances from several of his previous collaborators and debuted at number three on the Billboard 200 chart.

Williams didn't release another solo album for eight years, but his name, as well as that of the Neptunes, continued to be of high value. Successful collaborations with the likes of Mariah Carey ("Say Somethin'"), Beyoncé ("Green Light"), Jay-Z ("I Know"), Solange ("I Decided"), and Madonna ("Give It 2 Me") continued through the latter half of the 2000s. There was a handful of Grammy nominations, as well as a win for Ludacris' "Money Maker," which took the Best Rap Song award for 2006. N.E.R.D. remained an occasional diversion with 2008's Seeing Sounds in 2010's Nothing, the latter released the same year as the animated comedy Despicable Me, for which Williams provided soundtrack material and co-composed the score. During 2011 and 2012, Williams produced material for dozens of projects, most notably Kendrick Lamar's Good Kid, M.A.A.D. City and Frank Ocean's Channel Orange, two of the era's landmark albums.

The roll continued through 2013 and 2014. "Blurred Lines," a number one pop hit for Robin Thicke, involved Williams as producer, co-songwriter, and featured artist. Williams co-wrote and fronted "Get Lucky" and "Lose Yourself to Dance," two songs from Daft Punk's chart-topping Random Access Memories. The soundtrack for Despicable Me 2 contained several Williams songs, led by the worldwide smash hit "Happy," a ubiquitous soul-pop throwback for which Williams conceived a 24-hour music video. When the nominees for the 2013 Grammy Awards were announced, Williams' name appeared in seven categories. At the ceremony the following January, "Get Lucky" won Record of the Year and Random Access Memories won Album of the Year. Williams also took the award for Producer of the Year, Non-Classical. Two months later, signed as a solo artist to Columbia, home of Daft Punk, Williams released his second album, G I R L. It reached number two on the Billboard 200, by which time "Happy" had achieved yet more success, becoming one of the top-selling digital singles of all time with sales of more than five million. In addition, Williams continued hit-making as a featured artist and producer with singles such as Future's "Move That Dope," Alicia Keys' "It's On Again," and Ed Sheeran's "Sing," and he joined the television singing competition The Voice as a judge.

Williams was as busy and relevant as ever during the latter half of the 2010s. Among his biggest hits during this period were Kendrick Lamar's Grammy-winning "Alright," Missy Elliott's Top Ten R&B/hip-hop return "WTF (Where They From)," and Camila Cabello's number one pop hit "Havana." He also contributed to high-profile albums by Alicia Keys, Frank Ocean, Little Big Town, Calvin Harris, SZA, Janelle Monáe, and Justin Timberlake, as well as Beyoncé and Jay-Z's duo recording as the Carters. Williams' Hollywood connections concurrently deepened with musical contributions to The Amazing Spider-Man 2, Paddington, and SpongeBob Squarepants: Sponge Out of Water, the last of which featured new N.E.R.D. material. For Hidden Figures, Williams not only contributed original music for the soundtrack and Golden Globe-nominated score but co-produced the film, itself an Academy Awards nominee for 2016's Best Picture. In 2017, Williams reunited with the Despicable Me team for the third installment in the series, and made a full return with Hugo and Haley as N.E.R.D., who scored their first Top 40 pop hit with the rowdy Rihanna collaboration "Lemon," and released their fifth album, NO ONE EVER REALLY DIES. He continued to work actively with other artists, writing and producer Migos' 2018 hit, "Stir Fry," and working again with the Carters on their single, "Apeshit." He landed his own hit that same year with "Sangria Wine," a collaboration with Camila Cabello. In June 2019, Williams contributed the track "Letter to My Godfather" to the Clarence Avant documentary The Black Godfather. Another soundtrack song, "Just a Cloud Away," arrived in 2022 as part of Despicable Me 2, after which Williams released the song "Cash In Cash Out," featuring Tyler, The Creator and 21 Savage”.

I am going to round it off now. There are so many terrific and hugely successful songs that were produced by Pharrell Williams. A visionary and one of the most trusted names in the industry, below are songs that have the Williams…

GOLD touch.

FEATURE: Serial Successes: Never Been a Cornflake Girl? Following Kate Bush’s ‘Stranger Things Revival’, Are Other Artists Going to Follow Suit?

FEATURE:

 

 

Serial Successes: Never Been a Cornflake Girl?

IN THIS PHOTO: Kate Bush performing Hounds of Love’s Running Up That Hill (A Deal with God) in 1985/PHOTO CREDIT: United Archives/Alamy 

Following Kate Bush’s ‘Stranger Things Revival’, Are Other Artists Going to Follow Suit?

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I have written about this before…

 IN THIS PHOTO: Tori Amos in 1994

but there are definite advantages to Kate Bush’s Running Up That Hill (A Deal with God) being played on Stranger Things last year. That Netflix series included the Hounds of Love song in a powerful scene with one of the central characters, Max. A song that literally saved their life, the track that was originally a single in 1985 reached number one in the U.K. and many countries around the world. Most of the impact is good. The original single went to three in the U.K., so it was sort of righted in 2022 when it deservedly got to number one in the U.K. Many who had not heard of Kate Bush found her music, and sales for Hounds of Love increased. Also, it brought Kate Bush back into the spotlight. She updated her website and provided messages and thanks to fans. She even gave her first full audio interview in six years when she spoke with Woman’s Hour. If it had not been for Stranger Things that would not have happened. So, in all, it had a very positive effect. I think a few worrying things came out of the Stranger Things inclusion. If Kate Bush finally became better known in the U.S., I wonder whether it is down to big T.V. series to awaken people and actually make them conscious of an artist that has been around for decades. The show also got a lot of credit from the press for ‘reviving’ Kate Bush. Like she was obsolete and needed that oxygen.

The fact is that actually Running Up That Hill (A Deal with God) is one of her best-known songs. Prior to 2022, it was played widely on radio. Maybe a new generation found the track this way, but it was troubling that they were not already aware. It makes me wonder whether her music is rare on U.S. radio and why here so many missed out on her. Is it the case vinyl and physical music is not passed down? In an age of streaming, are we relying on younger listeners to discover music this way rather than inherit it from their parents? I also think that is sort of undermines a successful and self-made career when you hear terms like ‘the Kate Bush effect’. This assumption that she, now, will influence other T.V. shows to feature an artist or band that might not be known to all that get a new lease because of a prime spot in an episode. I guess, if it creates more awareness of an artist or song then that is a good thing. Things like Stranger Things comes along does create this laziness and ignorance from the press. I recently wrote about how the press still refers to Kate Bush as the ‘Stranger Things/Running Up That Hill singer’. Is she only known for that one song?! Maybe Wuthering Heights gets thrown in there, but many see her now as this famous artist from the T.V. show, rather than the producer and songwriter who has been around for over forty-five years!

I will not rant any more. You have to focus on the good aspects and the fact Kate Bush is being talked about. That is a good thing. The Netflix series Wednesday featured The Cramps in a prominent scene where Jenna Ortega’s Wednesday (Addams) dances to Goo Goo Muck. I am not sure that song and band will have the same sort of revival ands success Kate Bush enjoyed, as they are a bit more niche and less commercial in that sense. I do think that more and more, we are going to see T.V. shows framing powerful and wonderful scenes with iconic and big songs. This is not a new phenomenon, but the success and revival of a classic song can bring attention and popularity to that T.V. series. An artist that gets compared to Kate Bush a lot of Tori Amos. As this Australian article asks, will the T.V. series Yellowjackets help give Amos the same sort of boom and attention as was afforded Kate Bush last year?

“Popular Showtime/Paramount+ series Yellowjackets has returned, with the season 2 opener premiering last Friday. The show came back with a bang, featuring music by Papa Roach (Last Resort), Sharon Van Etten (Seventeen), and the Tori Amos classic, Cornflake Girl.

Cornflake Girl was originally released in January 1994, with Amos' groundbreaking second album, Under The Pink, coming out a few weeks later. Cornflake Girl debuted at #19 in Australia, while the album hit #5 on the ARIA Albums Chart.

With Yellowjackets' increasing popularity, can Amos experience the same chart success as Kate Bush, years into their careers, with an older song? Well, with music supervisor Nora Felder on board, it very well might be possible.

Felder worked on Stranger Things season 4 and was a big reason why the show’s use of the Kate Bush number, Running Up That Hill (A Deal With God), found massive popularity on the charts.

Kate Bush first charted in Australia in April of 1978 with her debut single, Wuthering Heights, which logged three weeks at the top of the Kent/AMR charts from 22 May 1978 until 5 June, holding for three weeks at #1. 44 years and one week later, she landed her second chart-topping song in Australia, albeit with a 1985-issued single.

In a new interview with Variety, Felder outlined the fascinating multi-layered richness of Amos’ music, particularly her songwriting, as the reasoning behind featuring her music on Yellowjackets.

“When I first heard Cornflake Girl, my take on its core meaning was that it deals primarily with betrayals between women,” Felder said.

“The lyrics in connection with the ending of the first episode felt like a befitting underlying message. Cornflake Girl adds to the anticipation of things to come with these rich, multilayered and downright compelling female characters, our Yellowjackets.”

Tori Amos isn’t the only artist representing the 90s on Yellowjackets: when the trailer for season 2 dropped, it was soundtracked by Florence + The Machine’s take on Just A Girl by No Doubt.

Just A Girl has never sounded so creepy - the soft isolated piano definitely helps - but it’s perfect for a thriller television series about people who do what they must to survive, including resorting to cannibalism.

“I’m such a huge fan of Yellowjackets and this era of music, and this song especially had a huge impact on me growing up, so I was thrilled to be asked to interpret it in a ‘deeply unsettling’ way for the show,” Florence Welch commented in a press release.

“We tried to really add some horror elements to this iconic song to fit the tone of the show. And as someone whose first musical love was pop-punk and Gwen Stefani, it was a dream job”.

Both Florence Welch and Tori Amos are featured in Yellowjackets. It does worry me that this article asks whether Tori Amos will be ‘the next Kate Bush’. That is problematic for various reasons. Amos has always been compared with Bush. The former has her own identity and sound, and the latter probably is tired of hearing the comparisons made - and I am not sure whether Bush even listens to Amos’ music. I know it is meant will Amos have the same success, but it is another case of a T.V. show platforming a song and artist that people should already know about. I love Tori Amos, so I do hope that Cornflake Girl gets a new release and storms the charts. From the genius Under the Pink album, it would be great if a new generation bought that. The inspiration for the song came from a long-time friend of Amos’. They were discussing female genital mutilation in Africa, particularly how a close female family member would betray the victim by performing the procedure. ‘Cornflake girls’ was a term that Amos heard used when girls would betray and hurt close friends. Cornflake Girl’s lyrics where Amos says she is not a cornflake girl but a raisin girl. That is to do with cereal, and the fact that raisins are rarer and harder to find than cornflakes. Even if boxes of Cornflakes cereals did get released with Amos’ face on them, the 1994 single has deeper meaning. It got inside the top ten in the U.S. and U.K., but it did not reach the top spot. Like Running Up That Hill (A Deal with God), it does deserves to be number one and enjoyed by a new generation.

The eighth track on Under the Pink, that album did get to number one in the U.K. in 1994. Even though Tori Amos is American, it only charted at twelve. It seems a shame that her own country did not embrace the album the way the U.K. did! Amos now lives over here, but I would like to see Under the Pink get a new release and storm the charts. It is clear that T.V. shows have this power and influence. At a time when streaming dominates and we can scroll through songs, featuring a single song in a visual scene has this potency and pull. I wish all the best for Tori Amos, and it is good that important and popular T.V. shows are choosing to show love to older songs rather than feature someone brand-new or trending. It is about the quality and importance of the track and not how many streams it has and whether it is ‘cool’ or ‘relevant’. Tori Amos is still putting out albums, and we all hope that Kate Bush releases another album. She is someone who is continuing to influence artists in so many ways. Stranger Things did help in getting people talking about her. That is a good thing. So long as people then explore the rest of the catalogue, as radio stations still stubbornly spin Running Up That Hill (A Deal with God) in preference to anything else. It is a narrow focus and it risk an artist as important as Kate Bush being defined by a single song. Tori Amos’ Cornflake Girl will get this boost. I hope that people who discover her through Paramount+ and Yellowjackets also dig her catalogue and albums such as Under the Pink. It is evident that much influence can come from a great T.V. show. If a scene is judged just right and features a wonderful song, the overall effect can be mesmeric and seismic! Whether featuring Kate Bush’s Running Up That Hill (A Deal with God) or Tori Amos’ Cornflake Girl, it does prove…

THE power of the medium.

FEATURE: Rather Than Critics Aiming to ÷ and −, They = a Huge +: Why Ed Sheeran’s Recent Comments Are Insulting and Myopic

FEATURE:

 

 

Rather Than Critics Aiming to ÷ and −, They = a Huge +:

IMAGE CREDIT: rawpixel.com

Why Ed Sheeran’s Recent Comments Are Insulting and Myopic

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THIS is a debate…

 IN THIS PHOTO: Ed Sheeran/PHOTO CREDIT: Liz Collins for Rolling Stone

that I have seen raging for a while now. Ever since the dawn, growth and dominance of streaming services in fact. I think the digitisation of music has not completely dominated our tastes and how we discover music, but I do feel that it has taken something away from the music industry. Whilst music journalism can never die and will always be needed, many have argued why we need critics and album reviews at a time when people can stream albums and decide for themselves. The latest high-profile artist to do this is the incredibly privileged and successful Ed Sheeran. You will not get rising artists coming out and wondering why we need album reviews, as that would be career suicide! To be fair, Sheeran might already have set himself up for a beating ahead of the release of his fifth studio album, -. That is an ironically-titled album, as I think that there will be a lot of negativity around him and the album after what he has just said in an interview. Before going on, Rolling Stone provided snippets of that in-depth interview with him in this article. They highlighted what he said about reviews:

“Sheeran doesn’t see the point of music critics in the age of streaming.

“Why do you need to read a review? Listen to it. It’s freely available!  Make up your own mind. I would never read an album review and go, ‘I’m not gonna listen to that now”.

There is a lot to unpick when it comes to that comment. Ironically, Sheeran would not be quite as far ahead as he is without the press and reviews. Although his music has courted some mediocre reviews (which is perfectly fitting), then he has got more than his fair share of praise! So many people have bought his albums because of reviews. Whether it is a review from Rolling Stone – who I do not think will be queuing to give a positive review to his next album! – to smaller publications, there are several reasons why he should not complain. Even though he has millions in the bank and can rely on his hordes of fans (is there a collective name for Ed Sheeran fans?!) to stream the sh*t out of his music and make him lots of money, he seems to suggest that quality control is not that important. He can put out anything on his new album and it will earn him a bundle. Seemingly not concerned with reviews and whether people approve of his music, that seems myopic! In his case, reviews are less for his ego and self-validation and more a guide as to what makes an album great and what can be improved on. In terms of constructive feedback, it can be very useful for an artist. If there is a consensus regarding songs that do not work or production weaknesses for instance, they can then take that and bring it to their next album. Also, it is not about inflating or criticising. Sheeran’s publicity team have used big reviews to sell his tours and albums! If people did not review his album, then that is a huge slice of publicity gone. That would decrease sales and reach. It is not about someone giving their opinions on an album, as much as it is a way of making others aware of his mere existence.

 PHOTO CREDIT: Pew Nguyen/Pexels

It is perfectly well for Sheeran to question he validity and relevance of reviews in a streaming age. He can coast by on his fame and reputation but, as I say, part of the reason he is known is because of album reviews. If – does get trashed and critics decide to show their displeasure with him basically calling them redundant and time wasters, then that will definitely not bode well if he plans on releasing any albums after that! I like Sheeran as a human, and he is someone very easy to like. I can’t for a second say I like or have time for any of his songs, but I would not review his album just to kick it and rag on the man! Looking through the archives, there have been some very lovely things said about his music. That lack of gratitude and appreciation he has shown by making that comment (above) shows a slight contempt and disrespect for journalists. His view that album reviews can naturally be replaced by some wisdom of crowds streaming thing is nonsense. For a start, as far as I can tell, there are no comments sections when you stream on Spotify. You can leave YouTube comments, but there is not an ‘album reviews club/section’ on Spotify where listeners can give their interpretation. There is a natural bias towards people streaming your album…and I doubt that Sheeran would even read comments left on Spotify about his album. It is not a practical or necessary step when you have trained and experienced journalists who are giving invaluable and perceptive interpretations of your album. Deeper, more rounded, and useful than any brief and probably positively-skewed comments you’d get online, how can he equate music criticism to the impersonal, wordless, and subjective takes on streaming?!

 PHOTO CREDIT: freepik

Fine if an artist does not read reviews or like them. That is their prerogative. It can be nerve-wracking reading reviews, but they have to appreciate that people find them very instructive and useful. Also, there are many reasons why even major artists should appreciate album reviews. Not only does it tell them what people think and gives them validation. You also get that direct and personal feedback. Artists do not release album merely for sales and for people to listen and not give their thoughts. Music criticism provides takes on songs and important feedback. Those coming through can feel so uplifted and nourished by a positive response to a work that they have spent so much time putting together. Rather than compiling positive tweets and wading through notifications, they get this physical/digital review that they can keep and reference. Reviews help album sales and can give a huge boost to an artist. Also, as is true now as it was when I was a child, this is a chance to decide which albums you want to buy. People stream an album when it comes out, so you sort of go in blindly. I admit that it is handy to stream an album so I can then decide whether I want to buy it. Reviews also literally make people aware of an album. I have discovered so many great artists through reviews – which I would not have otherwise got through streaming. Sites like Spotify do not promote albums that I like and give me custom articles, links and emails that alert me to forthcoming albums. It is a largely unfiltered and huge universe that is easy to get lost in and miss so much! Reviews allow you to sit down and read what others have to say about an album. You can then make an informed decision and decide if you want to buy that album.

 PHOTO CREDIT: benzoix via freepik

Of course, reviews are subjective. But I also buy albums based on the strength of reviews and then see if I agree with what has been said. Streaming is so impersonal and detached! You are not getting that sense of the time and passion it takes to review albums, spend time with them and then offer thoughts. There is that sense of posterity too. You have an archive of words written about an album so that artists and future generations alike can use for reference. It is great for an artist to read their own reviews and look back on them years from now. The ephemeral and transitory nature of streaming is useless when it comes to noting the qualities, nuances and worth of an album. It is simply there for listening and easy accessibility. It is not or could never replace music journalism. I am sure that Ed Sheeran has read reviews of his albums in the past, so it seems hypocritical he wants to risk critics putting down their pens. That won’t happen of course! People will review -, and I am sure that it will get a lot of positive reviews from websites and magazines. Does Sheeran not care about this or think it is useful?! It will be for people new to his music that want to get a sense of history and context. It is also something I am sure his label and P.R. will use in adverts and promotion – those four and five-star reviews and standout quotes! You going to get that sort of love and insight from streaming? Of course not! I fell in love with music and the pleasure of buying albums by reading reviews and getting excited by a journalist’s opinions about something awesome arriving. Also, you can avoid certain albums if there is this universal apathy. Nothing has changed since then. As a critic and journalist, I want to show an artist what I think of their album and why I like it. It can literally make people aware an artist exists, and I like to think the artist will find strength in my words. Compel them to keep going and make music! They need to know how their work is being perceived, and it that connection and interaction that vital for fans, journalists, and artists alike…

 PHOTO CREDIT: freepik

Remove all of that and rely on the (let’s be fair) generic and rather pithy comments you’d get online, and that is not really a substitute. I am sure there are lots of people who do not read reviews and stream albums they want to listen to. I think that reviews also compel people to buy the physical product. I’d hate to think people are ignoring the press and streaming an album and then not buying it. It is also not the case that a young generation does not look to reviews or the music press. The growth and success of long-running websites and publications show that there is such a big demand for reviews still. Look at the interactions and click rate on reviewed from everyone like NME, The Line of Best Fit, Rolling Stone or The Guardian, and it is evident people are reading reviews and getting a lot from them! Ed Sheeran has named all of his five albums so far after mathematic symbols. If he feels that albums reviews are more negative and divisive than a plus, then he has to appreciate that so many of his millions of fans found his music and bought it solely based on music reviews. I am sure it will not matter a jot, but there are so many people who will sit down and review – ahead of 5th May. If he doesn’t care about reviews, so many others will! Music journalists also use reviews to promote their work and get employment. Strip that away, and you are depriving some very talented people of exposure and opportunities – and, in the process, many artists do not get that feedback and critique. It doesn’t matter. Music criticism and journalism will always exist, and I am sure that it will outlive and outrank streaming services when it comes to its value regarding albums’ value and depth. With so many terrific artists coming through right now, album reviews are more important than ever. By isolating and expanding on albums and spotlighting artists, it is a useful discovery service. You also get to know more about an artist, the album’s creation and why various songs resonate (or do not). This is something that is so precious and needed. When it comes to Ed Sheeran’s short-sighted, slightly disrespectful, and cavalier attitudes towards music criticism vs. streaming, let’s hope that his words do not come back and…

BITE him on the arse.