CACTI
Cacti – Billy Nomates – Jan 13, 2023
Billy Nomates is the moniker of British singer-songwriter, producer, and “no-wave” savant Tor Maries. This past Friday, Maries released her second full length LP, evoking strong influence from The Cure and Blondie, along with plenty of other 80’s post punk acts, but with a heavy dose of dance and electronic instrumentation as well. Nomates also does a much better job of displaying her vocal talent than on her first album, and various reversed melodies and reverb give the production a nice chamber, gothic touch. A great example of pop songwriting with noticeable points of reference, without being completely contrived and unoriginal. A fun party album, with strong moments of storytelling and heartfelt sentiments to counter the groove.
Favorite Tracks: “black curtains in the bag” ; “blue bones (deathwish) ; “saboteur forcefield”
- Will Lewis
the record
the record – Boygenius (January 18, 2023)
Boygenius is back! The indie pop band consisting of Phoebe Bridgers, Lucy Dacus and Julien Baker, just dropped the bomb (in the form of three new songs) that they will be releasing their first full studio album together: titled the record. The three artists gave us a sneak peek this week by dropping three singles: “$20”, “Emily I’m Sorry” and “True Blue”. The first single, “$20”, is primarily Baker’s vocals. It is the most upbeat song of the three releases. With a sort of grunge rock sound, it had me headbanging and screaming along by the end of it. The next song, titled “Emily I’m Sorry” highlights primarily Bridgers as the main vocalist. Her isolated vocals accompanied by a guitar and a slow beating drum gives this every characteristic of a typical Phoebe Bridgers song, and I am not mad about that. All I want to know now is who Emily is! The final song has Lucy Dacus singing the main vocal line. This track has an interesting drumbeat, it was the first thing I noticed when I listened to it. The second thing that caught my attention were the soul crushingly beautiful lyrics. It’s a tough call, but I would say “True Blue” is my personal favorite. All in all, the lyricism of all three songs is incredibly intricate, they all tell such different stories but still sound like they belong together. Boygenius now has their entire fan base anxious to hear what else is on their upcoming album, which will be released on March 31 (put that in your calendar right now, you are not going to want to forget.)
- Haley Mautz
Prize
Prize – Rozi Plain – Jan 13, 2023
Another singer-songwriter hailing from the U.K, Rozi Plain is here with her fifth full length, and her first in almost four years. Prize is a lush, warm, psych-pop album full of soft instruments and softer sentiments, all sung and played beautifully by Plain and her cast of instrumentalists. This album reminds me much of Aoife Nessa Frances’ 2022 album Protector, which regular readers will certainly be familiar with. A hazy, folk inspired record with a nice ensemble of string instrumentation, synthetic flare, and jazz composition to really help elevate this record past a skeletal familiarity into a dense unknown. An album that would certainly be better enjoyed outside in a moment of serious existential contemplation, or perhaps better in a moment of hypnotization, free of any thought at all. Prize is an escape from the mundane, a splash of color in the grey, a 40 minute relaxing stroll through anemoia.
Favorite Tracks: “Complicated” ; “Conversation” ; “Painted the Room”
- Will Lewis
