Melodic and Ambient, Gathering the Light Reflects Life

Nature is a strong influence. All around us, regardless of the specific environment, we are experiencing our surroundings; life creates its own music in genres that the industry would call ambient, or naturalist. Field recordings, also occasionally affectionately called “found sounds,” offer a sense of hyper-reality that, paired with the music itself, paints a vivid story of the listener’s choosing. Motohiro Nakashima achieves all this … Continue reading Melodic and Ambient, Gathering the Light Reflects Life

Freezing Time on Losing Light

Oh, the irony of my writing this on the first day of Daylight Saving Time. Back in November, to coincide with the autumn time change, The Antlers released Losing Light, a four-track sister EP to their 2021 full-length, Green to Gold. The LP came out nearly a year ago, but represented much more to the Brooklyn duo than simply a shift of the clocks. It … Continue reading Freezing Time on Losing Light

Best Albums of 2021, 11-20 (part 2)

Alice Phoebe Lou – Glow The first of two records released by Alice Phoebe Lou in 2021, Glow is filled with yearning. The South African artist discusses matters of the heart among cool, sparse soft rock. Vocals on the title track have a sassy lilt that embraces the guitar progression, all of which amounts to Lou’s brand of psych rock. There is much beauty in simplicity, … Continue reading Best Albums of 2021, 11-20 (part 2)

Best Albums of 2021, 11-20 (part 1)

Bryan Away – Canyons to Sawdust On the pastoral Canyons and Sawdust, Bryan Away’s storytelling is given the perfect stage. Among the tales he sings is a nod to Ingmar Bergman’s miniseries (you may know its adaptation with Oscar Isaac and Jessica Chastain) and that track’s direct foil, the jaunty “Scenes from a Wedding.” The title of Away’s summer LP derives from an analogy in an … Continue reading Best Albums of 2021, 11-20 (part 1)

Grammy Nominee Emily King Releases Emotional Acoustic Ballad “First Time”

Originally appeared on Grimy Goods. The post-pandemic blues are coming for all of us—no one is safe from the anxiety of establishing another new normal as the nation lines up for vaccines. But Emily King’s latest single reminds us that the love we knew before is still with us. The soft, sparse ballad is the first of many new releases from the Grammy-nominated artist this year; … Continue reading Grammy Nominee Emily King Releases Emotional Acoustic Ballad “First Time”

Describing the Indescribable: Sundry Rock Song Stock by Yves Jarvis

sngalbums: Prior to his 2019 album, The Same But By Different Means, Yves Jarvis was not used to having deadlines. It was only when he signed with ANTI- that he suddenly had stakeholders in his creative process. Not that they slowed him down; he didn’t compromise on anything and completed the project on his schedule. It stands out as a wonderful record on its own, … Continue reading Describing the Indescribable: Sundry Rock Song Stock by Yves Jarvis

Describing the Indescribable: Sundry Rock Song Stock by Yves Jarvis

Prior to his 2019 album, The Same But By Different Means, Yves Jarvis was not used to having deadlines. It was only when he signed with ANTI- that he suddenly had stakeholders in his creative process. Not that they slowed him down; he didn’t compromise on anything and completed the project on his schedule. It stands out as a wonderful record on its own, and … Continue reading Describing the Indescribable: Sundry Rock Song Stock by Yves Jarvis

Best Songs of 2020: 4. Chloe Foy

Best Songs of 20204. Chloe Foy – “Song for D” It was a tough decision to include just one of the tracks from Callous Copper on this list, but “Song for D” gripped me too tightly to be forgotten. This voice and string ballad needs little else to convey its deep well of vulnerability. Chloe Foy | order Callous Copper EP | website | Facebook | … Continue reading Best Songs of 2020: 4. Chloe Foy

Best Videos of 2020: 1. Jess Williamson

sawdustandgin: There’s no mistaking that sound—the new Jess Williamson single was sent straight from heaven.  Best Videos of 20201. Jess Williamson – “Wind on Tin” My bisexual ass could not be torn away from this music video. Thank you, Jess Williamson, not only for Sorceress, an album of introspection, but also for the iconic video for “Wind on Tin,” partially filmed at my usual hiking … Continue reading Best Videos of 2020: 1. Jess Williamson

Best Videos of 2020: 4. Half Waif

sawdustandgin: Half Waif Guides Us Through the Seasons on New Single “In August” Originally appeared on Grimy Goods.  During this quarantine, it will be difficult to keep track of time. In the short-term, it might also mean the inadvertent end to relationships that came with the routines we have now abandoned—I’ll personally miss my usual barista and the commuters I see every morning on the … Continue reading Best Videos of 2020: 4. Half Waif