LIL YACHTY'S LET'S START HERE BY: Ian Sherry 2/14/23 My go-to word when asked about Lil Yachty’s music has always been “fine”. That’s exactly what it is. To be fair, he does some things really well. His production is often compelling and he showcases versatility in his delivery when he is at his best. He also has been a part of a few fun pop crossovers. But, those songs are just that: fun. He falls victim to repetitive flows and occasionally leans too hard on autotune, but these problems aren’t unique. That is probably my biggest issue with Yachty: he is very talented in multiple facets of music-making, but he still makes mistakes that every other mediocre mainstream rapper does. So, as much as I like Yachty as a person, prior to this release, I would describe him simply as “fine”. The last few years have been interesting for Yachty. He’s gained a sizable media presence, mostly because he is a genuinely entertaining personality. He also has expanded musically. For example, in 2021, he decided to come to Detroit to make his album Michigan Boy Boat. The album featured some of the biggest artists in the Detroit scene -Tee Grizzley, Sada Baby, Babytron, YN Jay, RMC Mike, and Rio Da Young OG, to name a few- and his deep dive paid off in what felt like an authentic Detroit Rap project. As a Detroiter, I can attest that although for some people Detroit Rap can be an acquired taste, it is unique and hard to duplicate just for a given album. For the most part though, that is exactly what Yachty did, embracing the punchline-focused delivery that makes Michigan artists great. On top of his time in Michigan, over that last year or so, Yachty has reportedly been a part of studio sessions for several rap projects, and he’s written songs for other artists as well. He also released his single “Poland” recently which immediately blew up because of its show-stopping autotune, even though it was admittedly one-dimensional. There was some buzz over his upcoming album, but, even with the knowledge I had, I still wasn’t convinced it would be more than just a slight improvement over the previous Lil Boat albums. Simply put: I was wrong. Let’s Start Here is essentially an alt-rock/hip hop crossover, and it's good. The album could not have started out with a better track. “The BLACK seminole.” starts with heavy base and drum hits, immediately diving into the unique atmosphere of the album. Then, after the first verse, the guitar comes in. Not just a guitar riff or sample, a guitar solo. Not only does this speak to his immediate commitment to this new concept album, it shows his confidence in his musical expertise and versatility. After a somewhat lengthy tension release (something Yachty does well on this record), “the BLACK seminole.” finishes with the moaning vocals of Diana Gordon, who is brilliant throughout her multiple appearances. Once again relieving some tension, Yachty rolls right into the second track “the ride-”. It’s a relaxed, upbeat track that feels like Yachty’s version of what Steve Lacy does often on his 2022 album Gemini Rights. And, guess who is featured! Steve Lacy. Steve’s feature is simple and enjoyable, even though simplicity is not Yachty’s style on this album. Upon closer listen, “the ride-” has plenty of complexity to it. The baseline which roams throughout the song, keeps pace and bolsters the song’s personality. The third song “running out of time” is very easy to listen to, as is the fourth song “pRETTY” which features autotune reminiscent of “Poland” and a solid feature from Foushee. Unfortunately track five raises my first big issue with the album. “:(failure(:” is an interlude that consists of Yachty reflecting about his failures in a roundabout way. Here’s the thing: Yachty has a great personality. The problem is the placement. He led off the album with four great tracks but he then broke up the momentum with an interlude that could have slotted in anywhere. “THE zone” and “WE SAW THE SUN” come next. Both have their strengths. The first features, possibly, his best songwriting on the album, and the second includes more great autotune and a perfectly done mini-interlude. The interlude reminds me of some of Kendrick Lamar’s best. It simultaneously entertains and leads into the next song, as the bass kicks in towards the end for a seamless and satisfying transition. “drive ME crazy” and “IVE OFFICIALLY LOST VISION” mark the last two Diana Gordon features. Her impact on this album is probably greater than it appears on the surface. Her voice is a familiar mix between Alanis Morrisete and Tracy Chapman, and it adds completeness to the album by tying songs together stylistically, in a way miscellaneous features could not have. “sAy sOMETHINg” flirts with Yachty’s habitual repetitiveness but avoids it by pushing the limits of autotune and leaning into it heavily from the bridge throughout the conclusion of the song. “paint THE sky” opens with a muffled sample of the Weeknd’s “Save Your Tears”. Yachty does a mild stylistic Weeknd impersonation for the remainder of the song and executes it tastefully. “sHouLd i B” and “The Alchemist” combine for the weakest pair of songs on the album. Both are fairly repetitive, and though they stay within the niche of the rest of the album, they are missing the palpable creativity on every other song. “The Alchemist” has a nice finish that leads into the album’s final song. But aside from that, I could do without them, especially on such a strong and reasonably lengthy (57 minute) album. “REACH THE SUNSHINE” is the final song on the album. Although it doesn’t reach the heights of the opener, it brings in some of the same elevated vocals. Daniel Caesar has a great feature, adding to the atmosphere of the album’s conclusion with great vocals. Yachty decides to ride out the album on a wave of synths and sound effects, the same synths and sound effects that create the exotic sonic world that is Let’s Start Here. Lil Yachty’s Let’s Start Here is a musically alternative take on mainstream music industry style. It has its flaws, namely: the occasional grating vocal performance, incoherently high decibel combinations of instruments, and Yachty’s repetitive flow. But, it is a triumph nonetheless. Let’s Start Here sits in a strange yet surprisingly common set of circumstances, where the album can easily rub a given listener the wrong way. Yet, it would be a mistake to miss the genius behind it regardless of personal taste. Other albums that share these circumstances, especially within alternative hip-hop, are: Tyler The Creator’s Igor, Danny Brown’s Atrocity Expedition, JPEGMAFIA’s Veteran, even Death Grips’ The Money Store. If you’re familiar with those, I think Let’s Start Here is on its way to their level. Yachty is young, talented, and after this album it seems he’s poised to start making timeless albums. Lil Yachty’s Let’s Start Here is an 8.5/10.

Even More Gecs (10,000) BY: Ian Sherry 4/1 /23 On March 17, 2023, 100 Gecs released their sophomore album 10,000 Gecs. Following the release of their debut album 1,000 Gecs, the St. Louis native duo, Laura Les and Dylan Brady, has become one of the most polarizing and impactful groups of the last five years. Hyperpop is a genre born from a combination of internet culture, and the mistaken notion that music can’t progress beyond its current stylistic barriers. In many ways it is the Gen Z equivalent of the punk movement of the mid-70s that serves to demolish the assumption that there are no more musical worlds to conquer. The impact of 100 Gecs on their audience is immeasurable, and I suspect their influence will be felt more and more in the mainstream over decades to come because of their impact on the young, underground scene. Despite all of this, 100 Gecs has much to prove entering 2023. Like many of the albums I review, they face numerous questions, but, unlike other reviews, their questions include: Is this real music? Will they use real instruments? And most importantly, what is a gec? Because their first album often sounds like it was composed using a microwave, autotune, amber alerts, and a drum machine, these questions aren’t unreasonable. And while they don’t care much about answering anyone’s questions regarding stylistic choices, 100 Gecs did a good job of cementing themselves as the ambitiously creative musicians that their audience swears by. As a listener it’s easy to dismiss the chaos of 100 Gecs as accidental, but I can assure you it’s a choice. They have a plethora of influences which only became more obvious with this year's release. Being from St. Louis, midwest emo is a natural inspiration for them, but they do a great job of incorporating elements of punk, pop-punk, and ska on this record; and for a group that can be intentionally offensive to the ears on occasion, they incorporate their various influences tastefully and in different ways. For instance “Hollywood Baby” is a straightforward emo-pop song. They enter a genre which suffers from over-replication and put their own spin on it. It’s simple but enjoyable and it was received very well, making it a great choice for one of their leading singles. They also include “Billy Knows Jamie”, a grinding punk song with wailing guitars, a variety of equally intense vocal deliveries, and a death metal break (if death metal can be considered a break) at the end of the song. “Billy Knows Jamie” is a shift in mood and lyrical content as well as music and it showcases their ability to convey emotion even with their unconventional sound. One observation, if not critique, of their first album was their only two moods were ecstatic highs and lows that cried for help. Along with their music, the emotion infused in every song has become more diverse. “Dumbest Girl Alive”, the first song on the album, gives a taste of that emotion. It provides a window into the performer’s struggles with self worth and does so very matter-of-factly. “I'm smarter than I look, I'm the dumbest girl alive”. They aren’t asking for pity, they’re giving an honest assessment of their character, however concerning it may be. 100 Gecs not only makes music young people enjoy, they accurately represent a problem that many internet-era teens struggle with, and they do so on a catchy track. Maybe the catchiest track on the entire album is “Doritos & Fritos”. It is the first taste of the ska on the 2023 record, something they haven’t shown much before but are clearly comfortable executing. It has that signature upbeat baseline of the 90s genre along with verses that flow really well and choruses that are perfectly timed. The guitar solo bridge adds to an already enjoyable song by keeping the energy going while also providing a welcome pause in the vocal action. However, what makes this song great to me, is the attention to detail in the production. Their previous album certainly didn’t lack excitement, but it did fail to provide breathing room in a lot of the tracks. The mixes often blended together because of the countless minute soundbytes mashed into a beat. “Doritos & Fritos” does a great job of using lengthier instrumental clips and an added focus on layering within the mix, to create a really full sound while falling short of overwhelming the listener or spiraling into sonic disorder. This is encouraging as a fan because it shows not only an improvement in skill level, but a willingness to shift their style without conforming or losing their sound. In true 100 Gecs fashion, the most emotionally raw track is called “I Got My Tooth Removed”. It’s a silly fun little song that incorporates the best parts of “Dumbest Girl Alive” and “Doritos & Fritos”, with both masked and forefront emotions to go with an upbeat experimental ska sound. It starts with an emotional, instrumentally stripped down, vocal intro that establishes the conflict (tooth removal) before jumping into the loud ska jam. The pace is fantastic, and once again, their variety of vocal deliveries are essential, along with the horns of the chorus that keep it moving along without becoming repetitive. However, what I like most is the tooth removal narrative. It is a metaphor for the inevitable end to a toxic relationship and they don’t try to hide it. Their choice to design the song how they did reflects the attitude of someone who is hinting at something heavy, but choosing to bury it in favor of positivity. The metaphor is present throughout the song but 100 Gecs' rarely emphasizes their lyrics or vocals, so the narrative can be easily ignored, and that is exactly what they want. 10,000 Gecs is a definite improvement. Despite the success of their debut, they had lots to work on, and that’s what they did. They improved their vocal skill and diversified their deliveries. They employed more airy, smooth production and layering, which made for more palatable sonic highpoints. Their songwriting vastly improved. And, they spread their influences and inspirations over the course of entire songs, instead of a matter of seconds. 100 Gecs, as pioneers of a young genre in need of refining, had a lot of responsibility to deliver in 2023, and even with “Frog On The Floor” (a straight up dumb song) they did. And for those concerned they may have changed too much, allow me to point you in the direction of “757”, “One Million Dollars”, and “mememe”. If it’s not for you that’s understandable, but Gecs will always be Gecs, don’t worry. There’s still room for improvement, and when stacked up against other big-time releases their lack of seriousness on some tracks can hold them back. But their ceiling is higher than they get credit for and I think they proved that this year. 10,000 Gecs is a 7.75/10.

THE ODYSSEY 8/5/2026 - Dawson Sarcona - Ian Thomas Sherry The following is a transcribed and edited conversation between CG reviewers Ian and Dawson about Christopher Nolan's The Odyssey DAWSON: Just starting off, Ian, I know you've read The Odyssey before. Were you a fan of the casting and the performances? Do you think they kind of held up to Homer’s version? IAN: Yeah, well, starting with the story. First of all, you had to tell me the bard was Travis Scott, but I thought that was fantastic, the way that they included that, 'cause that's the way it was told for so long. They hit all the points, obviously. And I thought that the plot moved along pretty well for such a long thing to adapt. You know, I just watched O Brother, Where Art Thou. It's so loose to call it an adaptation of the Odyssey - I mean, I get it's a comedy, but this (Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey) is right on point and moves along. And yeah, with the casting, I had some favorites for sure, but I'm gonna kick that back to you. Were there any favorite castings or performances for you? DAWSON: I mean, there's a lot of performances getting gassed up from this movie, and I feel like rightfully so. Anne Hathaway did a really good job (as Penelope). And I like the direction Nolan took her character too. But my favorite, and this is the basic answer, 'cause it's the main character, I really like Matt Damon's performance. Really enjoyed just the energy he brought to it. I've seen him in a lot of other action movies like the Jason Bourne films, and they're really boring to me, so this kind of solidified to me like - oh, he actually knows how to do this stuff, because I found his performance very captivating and I like the complexity that he brought to the character. Though Nolan has a bit of… I wouldn't say an issue, but he does this thing with all his characters where he kind of.. makes them extremely noble and tries to make them the most, you know, complex ‘I'm gonna take accountability for everything’ characters. When from what I've heard, in the original Odyssey Odysseus is kind of just like a trickster and is kind of a little bit just like… IAN: -He’s not so apologetic.- DAWSON: Yeah, so I think that that was a good change and I think that Damon portrayed that well. And I also really thought Robert Pattinson shined in his role. I would have liked to see more of his character just being a douchebag because he was good at it. IAN: He is. I went with my sister, and she was raving about how good he was as a villain. And yeah, I totally agree. And like Dawson said, Anne Hathaway was great; she was strong in her performance, you know, that's important in this day and age… So what did you think of Tom Holland’s Telemicus? DAWSON: So, Tom Holland was... Well, he didn't have a bad performance by any means, but I would like to see that they gave him more to do. I am a fan of him as an actor, and I feel like - I say this wearing a Spider-Man hoodie, but I still think No Way Home was one of his best performances, and I would have loved to see him allowed to bring that emotion in this movie. It just wasn't necessary for the character, so like I get it, but it (the performance) was kind of middle of the road for me. IAN: I think part of that is the character, like he's limited; he never even gets to step into the throne room in any aspect, leadership-wise, and his main function in this film was to move the plot along with the cutting back and forth. And I thought that was pretty easy to understand, given I already knew the story, but still it flowed pretty well, so I thought he did well. I enjoyed his performance. DAWSON: We’re there any castings that were distracting for you? IAN: Charlize Theron as Calypso, that was a little strange. Only because I didn't feel like it was well enough introduced, but that situation was eventually explained. It's supposed to be mysterious to an extent, but I also don't know how accurate it is, her living washed up on the beach. That's not how I interpreted reading it. - What about yourself? DAWSON: Yeah, I can agree with that. She just kind of felt like an empty character, just kind of a plot device. And I know that she has more acting chops in her, so maybe it's just more of a writing issue. But yeah, her and Benny Safdie, as Agamemnon, I felt very like he stood out most specifically, probably. With the helmet off, he just kind of gives off, for lack of a better term, dorky energy. IAN: He did. DAWSON: - They spent so many of his shots in the movie, framing him as, like, very imposing and cinematic and a guy that you don't want to mess with. Then like, they have Odysseus speak to him, and he's very soft-spoken and kind of friendly with Odysseus, which I’m not sure if that's how it was in the book, but I would assume that maybe it was not. IAN: I would have expected the character to be, furious, you know, and to have some sort of facial wound from being killed - a crazed warlord that sacrificed so much, and was caught up in his own home, I think, he would probably be more bitter and angry. But we're kind of splitting hairs here, I think, overall, that (oracle scene) was pretty great. DAWSON: This is probably his (Nolan’s) biggest accomplishment. I mean, I think that's fair to say. It's the first movie ever filmed completely on IMAX, which means it was also filmed completely on film, like traditional film, which is not something you see a lot nowadays. And watching it, seeing all the love and care put into it; it's just very clear. Especially when it comes to the practical stuff that they do with the Cersei scene in the pig transformation and in the Cyclops stuff. For perspective, there was a guy in full Cyclops makeup, and then for other scenes they had a full 60-foot Cyclops puppet that they built for the characters to interact with. So it’s stuff like that could have just been blue-screened and CGI-ed, but instead they took the time and really actually made it to the best they could, that is a testament to how much not only Christopher Nolan cares about movies, but how important that stuff still is to making a great movie - and you can really tell when you're in that theater, especially the IMAX theater. IAN: I thought the way that the Cyclops moved was really awesome; it was otherworldly, and it made the whole scene a lot better. That's one of the more famous scenes I was wondering how they were gonna execute it, what it was gonna look like, you know, and it was like a mutant child type-thing, which makes perfect sense because I believe it's a giant and Poseidon’s offspring, so it was pretty wild, and it was the same with Cersei. They could have had her wave a wand and poof them (Odysseus’ men) into pigs, and nobody would have batted an eye, but the idea to kind of go the horror direction, that ended up being one of the more memorable scenes in the whole film to me. DAWSON: I learned the other day that Ithaca, the island that they used for that, is a real island and that's a real castle, and they got permission to film there, but they weren't allowed to build anything, so like they couldn't build a road to get their film supplies up there. So they had to literally airlift and then, by hand, carry like thousands of dollars of equipment up this hill every day to film there. And I think that's just another cool example of the people who worked on this movie really putting in the effort, and I think it shows in volumes when you see it. IAN: This is interesting because it looks really genuine, the castle, and it looks pretty untouched and like weathered. I also thought the plucking of the bow- that was a great moment. They planted that seed early on, and it was pretty cinematic when it did it in the end, so I thought that was pretty cool, and I'm not sure I remember that from the book; I think the book is moreso about being able to execute the challenge, just stringing it and shooting, so I think that was pretty cool. DAWSON: Yeah, and I noticed a few things about that on my rewatch too of like how much that is woven into the story, and it's stealthily. There's a lot of stuff, Nolanisms, just a lot of really interesting details that are just sprinkled in there. Like, for example, a few that I can remember are: there's a song on the score called "Sirens," and it's the song that plays when Odysseus hears the sirens' song, and he's strapped to the, you know, pull in the ship and is listening to it. - IAN: - And it's at the same time; it's just the song on the score that we hear while he's listening to them. - DAWSON: - Right, yes, exactly, thank you. But that song is titled that, but it's technically like him and Penelope's theme in the movie because the only other times we hear it are when he and his wife are together. And so when he talks about the siren song being like “a song of like everything you've ever wanted and everything you ever wanted was something you had and lost,” I think that's just a really cool way to musically tie it into, like, when he hears that song, he's hearing something about Penelope and Telemicus. And going back to Telemicus, another thing is, any time they are viewing his flashbacks of his family, Telemicus is not facing the camera. It shows like a kid facing away from the camera, which is something Nolan does in like all of his movies. IAN: Now I'd like to get to my last big question if you don't have anything else. DAWSON: No, I don't think I have anything else. IAN: So The Culture Gyre is based on a concept, the gyre, which is a shape. Imagine two funnels facing into each other so at one end you would have an open circle and then a point in the center which would be the point of the other funnel going the opposite direction; would you consider this movie to be closer to “the point,” the thing that everybody in film is driving at, or would you say it's pushing an edge in the grand scheme of the film? DAWSON: I think it's interesting with Nolan because he is something - he's someone that all filmmakers kind of strive to be like; he is kind of anointed, almost anointed himself as like filmmaker royalty because he is, I believe, the president of the filmmakers' guild. So a lot of people, they kind of view him as like the one above all, and to be honest with you, he still has duds, he still has movies that fall through, so going into this movie I was excited, but I was not 100% certain, kind of like you are saying. I think the concept for this movie is kind of on that outer circle; it's something that you know a lot of people can do, and a lot of people have made adaptations of the Odyssey, right, and it's a general idea a lot of people have, but it's not necessarily always executed properly. There are so many ways that it can be done, and I think what's great about Nolan is he can kind of bring it into that inner focal point, like that thing that everyone's striving towards, because of the way he's able to direct things. And I think a lot of this comes down to the people going to the movies now who are so much more invested in cinema. I think just because of the nature of social media and how it's heightened everybody's opinions on things you're either going to the movie because you love this movie or you hate this movie, right? Like, there's rarely ever an instance now where someone's like ‘I have no thoughts on this’ and that's compounded by social media with people sharing those opinions. So he's kind of being built up and built up, and I think the fact that Nolan keeps pushing forward shows he's not the type of person who's building up this reputation for himself and just kind of going with the flow. He hasn't plateaued yet. He keeps pushing the bar farther for himself, and you don’t know what his next movie is going to be or when it's going to be, but he's been pushing out movies every three years. Which is a crazy production turnaround, especially considering the scale of stuff he's making. So my long-winded answer to your question is, yes, I think that this movie, especially in Nolan's way of approaching film, is pushing for the center of the gyre. I think the future of film has to be like this; it has to be more people who care, people who are doing things practically and who are trying new things with reliable stories, even if just because there's only so many stories that can be told. I would say the same about Obsession this year by Curry Barker, right? The one wish willow. The monkey paw- that is a story that has been told countless times by countless people, but he sat down, and he found a way to make it fresh, and he put a lot of love and practicality into it, and it was probably the second biggest movie of the year so far in terms of box office success. So yeah, I think right now the future of film, the focal point from that poem is this notion of bringing more originality to movies, and we need to do it out of love and care and not for the purpose of making money for a studio. And it's in the details, but careful detail. IAN: I agree. DAWSON: Yeah, and you know, obviously studios care about money, but I think people - I think studios right now are kind of finding that if they prioritize originality, it benefits them more in the long term.

Forever Howlong: OK, Now Everyone Play At Once! By Ian Sherry 4/16/2025 Black Country, New Road’s newest project, Forever Howlong , is every bit as creatively constipated and authentically heady as their last cult favorite. In 2022 Black Country, New Road struck a 7 on the alt-rock Richter Scale with their second studio album, Ants from Up There . I listened, my head spun, and I moved on. At the time it wasn’t something I felt ready to formally rate as my thoughts didn’t match my friends’ positive ravings, but Pitchfork awarded it a 8.4 (and Rolling Stone currently has not 1, not 2, but 3 stories about Donald Trump on its homepage – just read The Culture Gyre instead). Now, I’ve got 3 years of patience and unwaveringly correct opinions under the belt I’m wearing to this BCNR review; let’s see what they brought. The density of the Black Country, New Road sound is what makes it so polarizing. While the reception of their music has been overwhelmingly positive, confused and overwhelmed appreciation is the dominant sentiment. I believe I’m starting to see through the haze (or hear rather). A true British situation, the BCNR instrumental repertoire includes drums, piano, sax, and a truckload of strings – electric guitar, acoustic guitar, bass, banjo, and violin. In true folk style, they use that litany of stringed instruments to form a steady sonic bed under the rotation of lead vocalists. From there, tradition is thrown to the wind. On Forever Howlong , the budding sextet of creatives leaned into their art-rock sensibilities in the absence of Isaac Wood, the gravitational center of their last sonic system. With their lead singer and strongest guitarist stepping aside, Black Country, New Road has begun to drift further from contemporary song structure. This record is defined by striking shifts within tracks that are dictated more by lyrical content than rhythmic progressions. The West Coast art-pop scene of the 60s and 70s lived by a similar code. Their dramatics were more so the product of free will than the type of musical reasoning BCNR operates with, however, the results are a bit too similar. Dramatic shifts between or within songs, which were a common issue on those LSD records, became an inexplicable normality on Forever Howlong . The stop-and-go is likely intended to draw the listener in, but the overuse of these atypical progressions makes for a laborious listening experience. “Socks” and “For the Cold Country” took years off my life. Luckily, BCNR has the power to give those years back. Just as soon as “Socks” pushed my face in the dirt, the pleasant build of “Salem Sisters” lifted my back up. A refreshingly decipherable and sprightly instrumental, a bit of solid structure, and beautifully done background vocals throughout the entirety of a track is all it took for me to buy into Black Country, New Road 4 songs in. When organized sonic clutter presents itself effectively, the results often feel elevated from an average band’s sound, but a balance is needed. The abstract needs normalcy to define itself, and BCNR checks that box when absolutely needed. Forever Howlong provides just enough straightforward material to anchor the rest of its content, and “Mary” is the perfect example. The instrumental bones are as simple as any track on the record and with that easy synchronicity on display, the group vocalists are free to steal the show as they deliver one of the record’s most powerful performative stretches over the final third of track 6. Some of their best displays of talent came just like that – naturally. On an album where they’ve clearly reconfigured to fill a Wood-shaped hole, it often feels like BCNR is chasing the dragon of bombastic songs like “The Place Where He Inserted The Blade.” The instinct to mimic one’s best work is tempting, but they don’t need to force conceptual complexity to make high level music. That’s obvious on the title track, which affords the rare opportunity for the listener to sit back and experience Black Country, New Road creating without having that creation thrust in our faces. “Forever Howlong” throws zero curveballs, stays within itself, shows just enough life on the bridge, and concludes with a quality finish, all to beg the question: why don’t they approach every track like this? I’ve got two answers, “Two Horses” and “Nancy Tries to Take the Night.” The first dreamily starts with a singular guitar and some lovely voices, then a whistle and a second guitar that continue to lull the listener through the 2-minute-mark when the track begins to come to life. It takes off fully at 3:00 when a firm bassline, dual guitars, and flourishing high keys flood the airwaves in perfect unison for an organically incredible sonic highpoint the likes of which I’d yet to hear across any of their work. The second begins with a 2-minute-long, guitar-forward introduction that gives way to a temporarily Adrienne Lenker-like vocal performance, before the song morphs into a tight, beat-like instrumental that continuously and relentlessly builds on itself before finally relinquishing to a theatrical minute-long vocal conclusion. It’s a ridiculous but inexplicably well-executed example of the musical behavior I’ve been trying to discourage. Sonic maximalism and track-to-track overambition plague this record but result in songs like those, which makes it much harder to condemn the approach. While the pursuit of 10/10 tracks feels forced on the majority of songs, Black Country, New Road is able to justify those pursuits, even within the songs that suffer from them. This record feels like a step back, but not the permanent kind. Wood’s guitar feels fairly irreplaceable at this point, but the trio of vocalists, Tyler Hyde, May Kershaw, and Georgia Ellery, was extremely effective, and their group vocal ability adds more to the sound than Wood’s vocal persona could alone. The balance of instrumental complexity and dynamic vocals led to their strongest work when properly struck, but the many lengthy intros tend to expose a less complex sonic palate that their structurally ambitious songs work to mask or overcome. Further mastery of their many moving parts and a matured understanding of listenability could result in their best record, but a deepened obsession with sonic maximalism and out-of-the-box track development may lead them down a path of creative anti-progress. Black Country, New Road: professional line-toers. Forever Howlong is a 7.6 .

Before The World Blows BY IAN THOMAS SHERRY 9/18/2026 On August 28, in cahoots with The Alchemist, Erykah Badu released her first studio album in 16 years, Before The World Blows . On September 11, 2026, I had the pleasure of seeing the duo live. SETTING THE STAGE It’s been a decade since Ms. Badu’s cell phone-centered concept EP, But You Caint Use My Phone (’16), and her digitimaterial focus has only sharpened in the time since (yes, I made that word up). If you’re lucky enough to see ‘The Abby & Al Experience’ live, like I have, you’d immediately see what I mean. The set consisted of two beds on the far right and left connected by a circular cushion that stretched the back perimeter of the stage, all white, kinda freaky. Two spotlights switch on, and there they are – Abby n Al in their respective beds, Erykah Badu outfitted in red heels, a white trench coat, and a blonde wig, which she’d chuck, and The Alchemist in the boyish black hoodie – speaking to each other ‘on the phone,’ hatching a plan. Quickly, The Alchemist retreated to the platform hidden at the top of the set beside his dark-dressing-DJ counterparts, and the beats began. SOUND REASONING The lines between Abby and Al go back to a wannabe Alchemist selling weed to Badu’s mentor and career-breaker D’Angelo and follow the gyre of neo soul to its current resting place, in the palms of women like Ms. Badu. Her hands have been anything but idle in the years since soul’s sound slipped away. If you caught the two-part New AmErykah series (’08, ’10), or her last LP, you’ll notice Badu’s increased interest in digital hip-hop production. Each record was en vogue, impressive for an aging genre-crossing solo artist, but each aged quickly. Met with the task of creating an updated, lasting product and continually interested in marrying analog hip-hop and modern digital production, Abby went to Al. THE GOODS They played the album in order (with bonus tracks interwoven), starting with the ethereal (Track 1) “Echoes.” As the album chimes and whirs to life, Erykah Badu’s singular aesthetic descends upon this decade of music. Lyrically, she comes out muthafuckin firing: “Ah, if we can't agree on the God we pick / Then, my God / Let's at least agree on this snare and kick / (Red, yellow, black, white, or brown) / Oh, if you can't love the one you with / Ah, then you ain't her God, mm / (Red, yellow, black, white, or brown) / Ah, John Lennon said / “They treat women like the n- of the world,” yes, he did / (So watch how you trеat your girl) / Ah, 'cause the future looking odd thеse days That's on Tyler, Frank, and Earl .” This opening lyrical rampage is more musically dynamic than your Spotify streaming quality can capture; but live, as the synths soared, beat lurched, and Badu wailed through her autotune I was met with a bombastic opening track (only rivaled by Action Bronson’s “Live From The Moon” in my concert-going experience). 7 minutes later it gives way to (Track 2) “I Just Play A Part.” Initially my favorite, and certainly the most climactic song on the record, the first of two Westside Gunn features consists of purely gun sounds for effect as the Clintonian techneo anthem roars to life. Badu picks a cadence and rolls with it for two minutes, until she runs out of bars and resorts to a scream solo that rips at the fabric of the track until it splits and the beat switches for DJ Creole Princess to spit a silky verse. (Track 4) “Witch Doctor” was this record’s lead single and the first look at Abby and Al’s sound. The lurching bassline’s rumblin nicely backs Badu’s mumblin and the simple but syncopated melody allows the entire track to swing in cadence with Badu’s words, before giving way to a hand drum solo which she performed alone at center stage to the crowd’s excitement. The stop and go effect of “Witch Doctor” was something to behold live. The crowd, including myself, floated entranced by her witchly wordplay, and by the end I knew all the lyrics. The sentimental being that I am, (Track 6) “Next 2 U,” which samples Mobb Deep’s “The Realest,” plucked my heartstrings on first listen, and has since burned itself into my brain. “I-IIIIIII wanna smoke blunts with you” too Erykah. (Track 7) “Love Me Not” details the uncertain progression of a relationship before giving way to a tape of Ms. Badu getting her booty waxed – thrilling stuff really – but it was easy to see why she chose to go a different direction for this portion of the show. In place of Track 7, The Alchemist descended to perform a medley of “Life Is Beautiful” and “Hold You Down” (both covers of originals he produced). FLASHBACK When Al was done, attention returned to Abby and her soundboard at center stage. She starts, 'You know, they say 90s babies were born with an irregular heartbeat… and it sounds like this,' - dundun duuuun, dundun duuuun – the first notes of the iconic, immediately recognized, “On & On.” As the crowd revved to life, Erykah Badu, filling with the energy and spirit of her youth as it poured out of the crowd back into her, began to deliver by far her most authoritative, studio-similar, and frankly legendary pair of performances of the night as she medleyed into “Didn’t Ya Know” with ease. When I saw Erykah Badu tour Mama’s Gun a year ago, in the climactic confines of the Fox Theater, she delivered every individual performance with the aforementioned moxie. Not only did this year’s venue, Freedom Hill, lack any sonic containment for her vocals, this year’s album doesn’t feature any such performances. To avoid belaboring my point, allow me to state with absolute certainty: Erykah Badu is 55 years old and holding back (no doubt conserving energy for the arrival of aliens). Badu returned to the tracklist and concluded her flashback with a mashup of (Track 8) “Breezy” (the album’s toughest listen) and “Bennie And The Jets” for the concert’s most surprisingly fun moment. (Track 9) “Abracadabra,” is a good interlude. (Track 10) “To The Moon (Plan C)” features Steve Lacy, who brings his sound to Badu’s record with the same grace she visits his newest release Oh Yeah? The three-way fusion between the sounds of The Alchemist, Badu, and Lacy, all of which are unique and individually decipherable, ought to be an intriguing listen for any music fan. Well-grouped features, Thundercat is next. (Track 11) “They Ain’t You” isn’t the album’s most exhilarating track, but the transition between Lacy’s sound and Thundercat’s bass is clever, but it drags on as TC tracks tend to do. (Track 12) “What The People Say (Apostle 1)” picks up the pace and Badu shakes off the mumbles, ramping up into the fastest-paced rap performance (Track 13) “Hot BiBi (Apostle 2).” Another well-intentioned pairing, but the best bars had yet to come. (Track 14) “No I.D.” captures a true freestyle feel as Badu names legendary DJs over the most quintessential Alchemist beat of the record. It was fitting then, to feature Westside Gunn for the second time, laying viscous flexes over the creepy-crawly instrumental and Erykah Badu’s sweet hook “Ain't nobody fuckin' with the K-I-D (No) / Big ball bangin', need no ID (Doot-doot-doot-doot-doot, ah) / I'ma get a beat from No I.D. (Mm, woo) / Ain't nobody fuckin' with the K-I-D (Yeah) / If Alchemist don't come through for me / I'ma get a beat from No I.D. (Woo).” That’s taste folks. (Track 15) “I Know That Man” mutters Earl Sweatshirt, before stating blankly atop the beatdrop “Everything is not a joke,” at the beginning of the album’s best verse over The Alchemist’s most emotionally charged beat only to give way to this chorus on gospel-style-repeat: “I, wanna be seen / as good / in the eyes of that which made us.” It brings tears to my eyes, even in listening to write this article. Now for the final time, check this shit out: “Too much dopamine can make a man mean / Dimethyltryptamine make a man dream / Ozempic and promethazine make a man lean / Mars' daddy Jay Elec', make a bitch real mean / Turn into a meme, make a big scene / Broadcast it on the whole block, live from the black box / Phone call, liberation or entrapment? / Mercury in retrograde, at midnight all was well / But suddenly the box became engulfed with a beam of light / Somebody gettin' some pussy, tonight.” Is your jaw on the floor? Mine was the first time I heard Ms. Badu rattle this off for a teaser at last year’s show, and so were the jaws of any fan who hadn’t heard (Track 16) “Black Box” before last Friday’s concert. Oh, and the second verse is just as good, so give it a listen and yours may be too. My name is Ian Thomas Sherry, but I’m Mr. Badu if she’ll have me. Before The World Blows is an 8.9.

Tabs On Tigers: Atop The American 5/9/2025 BY: IAN SHERRY On May 2, 2025, the Tigers released Kenta Maeda. The Tigers are the best team in the American League, and they are beginning to act like it. Tabs On Tigers Vol. 3 For a long time, I’ve dreamt that the Tigers would see success with rising prospects and, with the intention of taking themselves seriously, cut Javier Baez to free themselves of his $28 million-mid-career crisis and a roster spot. This is that moment. However, in the undeniably turbulent developments of the last year-plus, it was the Japanese legend Kenta Maeda’s $14 million contract that needed to be shed. Meanwhile, Javier Baez is, for the moment, the Detroit Tigers’ everyday centerfielder. The former all-star shortstop’s infamous struggles at the plate lost him his position to Dodgers’ system acquisition and frequenter of Anaheim’s short porch Trey Sweeney. Forced into a utility role, Baez took on the role enthusiastically, according to manager AJ Hinch on 97.1 FM’s pregame AJ Hinch Show. In that same interview, Hinch added that he’d continue to play Baez because “he’s a winning player” – a compliment that resonated with me. Weeks later, Hinch remained true to that insistence, and Baez has responded accordingly. On top of playing a smooth, instinctive center field Javy is looking like himself consistently at the plate. The hitter that can adjust to pitches and drive balls, who’s only shown up in flashes for Detroit, mostly with runners in scoring position, is showing up on a more consistent basis this season. He’s bumped his average to a perfect .313 over the recent Tigers offensive explosions and is sitting at a 1.6 WAR. In other words, he’s a winning player. As for those prospects, one in particular is starting to act his age. Spencer Torkelson looked like a new man in Spring Training. His stance is more athletic and upright, centered on his right leg. So far, the adjustments he’s retained have allowed for a simpler path to the ball, most notable in his compact homerun swings, of which he’s already had 10 (2 shy of Judge and Raleigh for the most in the AL). Torkelson’s .254 batting average is encouraging, though it fluctuates, and the theoretical benefits of power hitter status may lead to more on-base appearances anyhow. Tork’s success has complicated life for sophomore Colt Keith. His rookie season was ultimately a success at the plate after a slow start, which he’s mirrored so far this season. However, the ball is starting to leave the ballpark for the Tigers system product (and I don’t want to hear about the ‘Coors effect’ because 450 ft is 450 ft). Still sitting at just a .207 AVG and 4 homers, Keith is tasked with recreating last season’s offensive ramp-up while establishing himself in the field (the DH position has Kerry Carpenter’s name written all over it for the foreseeable future). One more Tiger prospect has made pleasantly surprising strides on both sides of the ball. With the injury to starting catcher Jake Rogers, Dillon Dingler was pushed into the everyday starting lineup, and he’s proved ready for the moment. So far, Dingler is batting .290, which is second best among catchers. A strong-hitting catcher in an age where putrid offense is tolerated at the defensive-minded position is no small advantage. Dingler is an athletic young player with a great arm, room to improve behind the plate, and the ability to whack the ball out of the park – who wouldn’t like to imagine a long career for him as Detroit’s backstop? Injury Update I imagined Parker Meadows (nerve) might return early in the year, but that proved a pipe dream when the Tigers signed Manuel Margot to a one-year deal. Since then, Meadows was placed on the 60-Day IL and Margot himself went to the 10-day with a knee injury from which he’s rehabbing now. In good news, Matt Vierling (shoulder) homered in a Toledo win on May 6th in his rehab assignment. Things have been quiet regarding Alex Cobb (back) lately, but he tracks to be rehabbing soon assuming no hangups. Jake Rogers (oblique) has begun throwing but is not immediately close to returning. John Brebbia (triceps) and Sawyer Gibson-Long (elbow/hip) have also resumed throwing. The Tigers have a top 3 pitching staff in the MLB, which was a possibility headed into the year, and a top 5 offense, which was not. We’ll see if the bats stay hot, but they are right now (even McKinstry!) and the Tigers are taking advantage. Do not take it for granted.

THE BOYS, IN FULL WRITTEN & ILLUSTRATED BY: DAWSON SARCONA, 5/28/2026 2026 marks the release of many new superhero projects, but in one case, it also brings the end of a 7-year superhero series, The Boys. As someone who was around age 11 when The Boys first released, I wasn't a day-one fan of this series. However, about three months ago, I decided to binge the whole series (and its spin-offs) for the first time. S eason One Season one of The Boys starts with a bang, immediately dropping us into a world that's, at first glance, not too different from other superhero universes we've seen on screen. But as the season goes on and we dig deeper into the world of The Boys and the Vought corporation, something crucial happens. This show begins to encapsulate the media dependency and celebrity idol structure of American society in a way I've never seen a TV show do. On its surface, The Boys is a story of a group of misfits, criminals, and ex-military members taking revenge against a group of corrupt superheroes. But the show is so much more. It breaks down American media, propaganda, and how powerful figures can control so much of what we see. Since the early 2000s, directors have been trying to figure out how to depict superheroes more “realistically” with Christopher Nolan and Zack Snyder taking their own cracks at it, but in my opinion, none of them come close to what showrunner Eric Kripke achieved with season one of The Boys. With a cast of very lovable, and in some cases very hateable, characters this show perfectly balances its comedic moments with serious and scary ones. Plus, Antony Starr as Homelander, especially in the last few episodes, flexes his acting muscle in such a way that rivals Heath Ledger for the best villain performance of all time. Season one has it all: decent action, comedy, a love story you can root for, a pure-hearted protagonist, a revenge story, and an ending that satisfies the emotional arc of its characters while leaving us on an immense cliffhanger. Season one of The Boys is one of my favorite seasons of television ever, a 9.5 out of 10. Season Two While initially starting much slower than its predecessor, this season builds upon itself very well, leading to an explosive finale that perfectly knots any loose ends from the first two seasons. Season two introduces a new character, Stormfront, who is an excellent addition to the series as her relationship with Homelander compels further descent into madness. The best parts of this season are series highlights, and it houses some of the most intense and chilling Homelander moments. The characters continue to grow, and we get to see everyone fall into their roles more. When you start a series its your job within the first season to set up who each character is and why they are that way, but once you get to season two, you get to really play with these characters. We know all of the core characters, so now we get to see them interact with each other and watch their dynamics develop. Seeing Hughie and Butcher on a more equal playing field, constantly arguing over the morality of what they're doing, is a great development rather than the mentor/mentee dynamic they had in the first season. This season is funny, more action-packed, and a great part two that enhances season one’s story. That being said, it does have its faults, the first two or three episodes being a bit of a drag. They're necessary to set up the rest of the season, but I wish they had a little more going on. Also, for at least half of the season, Hughie is in a depression, which makes sense for the character but darkens the show as Hughie is the only unwavering light and the heart in The Boys. In the end, like I said, this season starts bleak but it picks up a lot with some amazing prizes that bring it to an a 8.5 out of 10 for me. Season Three This season is hyped up as the best of the series by most fans of the show, and while I'm inclined to disagree, it is still peak television. This season gives us a lot of good things like Hughie and Starlight finally together, the Introduction of Soldier Boy, and the infamous episode “Herogasm”. The majority of the most iconic moments in this series stem from this season, and for good reason. I love how this season explores Homelander as he grapples with being on his own. In both seasons one and two, he had a woman that he clung to and directed all his affection and attention towards, but as we see him deal with the loss of Stormfront, he begins to truly unravel. Homelander is at his best, or I suppose worst, in this season. He is utterly terrifying, and it seems like they laid out some scenes purely to show off Antony Starr's acting chops. Jensen Ackles as Soldier Boy is a great addition to the show. He is a constant flow of hilarious (yet very offensive) one-liners, and his interactions with Hughie and Butcher are great television. As opposed to the gloomy season two, season three feels the brightest to me. The Boys are employed by the government, so they have funding and (for the first time) aren’t hiding from the law, and that lends a sense of growth for them as a group. Hughie has my favorite arc this season, however, as he obsesses over saving Annie (Starlight). This results in a great feud between them that is resolved in an awesome moment during the season’s final battle. This show is really great at executing good action or shocking moments that also serve their characters on a really emotional level, and this season has some of the best examples. We also get the introduction of TEMP-V, which allows both Hughie and Butcher to temporarily gain superpowers. This is a great way to continue upping the stakes in a natural way and allow for these characters to get in more intense scenes without having to use plot armor to keep them alive. One of these intense scenes is a fight between Hughie, Soldier Boy, Butcher, and Homelander during the episode “Herogasm,” and it is definitely one of my favorite scenes in the entire series. It's so well choreographed and put together that it outshines almost any other fight scene in the show. Here lies the problem I have with this season: Episode 6 “Herogasm” feels like the peak of the season. It's a bizarre, wildly explicit episode that ends in this awesome action scene, and it completely outshines the actual finale, which left me disappointed closing out the season. Still, the battle between Homelander and Butcher gains an extra layer of complexity entering the finale as they now fight for Ryan's affection, and inserting that emotional backbone does add to the weight of the episode. So while this is not my favorite season of the show, it's close with a 9 out of 10. Season Four Similar to how season three seems to be universally loved, Four seems to be universally hated. Likely because it doesn't stack up to the quality of 3, and that harsh decline makes it seem worse than it actually is. This season makes a choice that works very well for some fans of the show, and alienates others. Season four loosens the reins on its commentary and centers the heart of the conflict around politics. I personally think this is a GENIUS move, and I love the way it is executed. But, I also understand the argument that some plotlines are too accurate, that it's no longer a fun escape. That all being said, we get some great moments this season, but they are fewer and farther between than in the past three. The concept of someone like Homelander dipping his toe into politics is a very frightening one, a pre-made propaganda machine. One of the characters that comes out of this plotline is Firecracker, who is a great addition to the cast and a smart foil to Starlight's character. However, what doesn't work is Butcher's season four storyline. Butcher is dying for a majority of this season and is hallucinating a past colleague of his that basically is the devil on his shoulder. So for the whole season, Butcher is just making increasingly poor decisions and is becoming harder to like. This really bothered me and felt like a disservice to his character, especially as it ends with him killing a mother in front of her daughter. There's just unnecessary tomfoolery in this season. Hughie being tricked by a shapeshifter version of Annie is one such example, but it resolves itself quickly to avoid bogging down the plot. I am a big fan of the way this season ends, with Hughie, MM, and Frenchie all being taken to a Homelander freedom camp, especially because it delivers one of the most gut-wrenching scenes for Kimiko. The ending montage of season four is another one of my top scenes from the whole show, and I was kicking my feet like a wee little superfan watching it for the first time. While this season has more negatives than any others, I do find myself really enjoying the political commentary and other aspects of the show, so it's still a 7 out of 10 for me. Season Five Season five of The Boys just ended this week, and with it, so did the entire series. A lot of people also seemed to have issues with Season 5, but I personally think the 21st-century fan hates how any good show ends. We saw it on the internet with Stranger Things, and now we're seeing it here. This season is a clear improvement from the 4th, while running with a lot of similar commentary. With Homelander and his goons now in positions of power within the government, we start the season in a country run to the tune of Homelander's every request. The people who don't follow him are put into camps and stripped of their freedoms. This is a chilling way to start the season, and it only gets worse from here as Homelander attempts to become a god. This feels like the natural final progression of his character. He starves increasingly for praise, so for him to want to be the literal center of a religion is the ultimate fix. All of the characters are well acted and written this season, including the issues with Butcher, which are completely resolved, leaving season four’s arc to seem even more useless. We also get more of Jensen Ackles as Soldier Boy this season, and while most of his plot lines are blatant backdoor pilots for the Soldier Boy prequel series, Vought Rising, he is still a very welcome addition, and his interactions with Homelander are captivating. This was the first season of the Boys I've been able to watch week to week, and I have really enjoyed being able to react to it as it comes out with the rest of the community. Waiting week to week has allowed for more tension to build and hype to grow in anticipation of how this show would end. One thing I love about this season is that it feels final. It isn't afraid to kill off characters; in fact, it leans into it, killing more than half of its core cast. It carries these values into the finale and gives us a final fight between Butcher and Homelander that will also go down as one of the best scenes in the show. Finally seeing one of the worst villains in all American media be taken down after years of evil is so satisfying, and for it to be done by the hands of Butcher, a man who has dedicated his life to killing Homelander, made it all the better. Further than that, though, my favorite scene in this whole season is the final confrontation between Hughie and Butcher. Since basically day one, Hughie was been established as Butcher's “canary”, the only person with a pure enough heart to hold him back and prevent him from taking things too far. Their entire relationship across five seasons perfectly culminates in this scene where, to stop Butcher from spreading the virus and massacring all supes, Hughie ends up killing him. It's the perfect cap to this show, one last punch to the gut before sending us off to the tune of “Piano Man” by Billy Joel. As the credits rolled, I found myself satisfied. Was it the perfect final season? No. There were some blatant issues, like prioritizing the setting up of Vought Rising and the chase for V1 that added little to nothing. However, The Boys gave us everything we needed from its finale and managed an 8 out of 10. I can confidently say that The Boys is my favorite superhero TV show. The characters are just so likeable, and the ability to break down America and its faults through the lens of superheroes and comic book characters is something I haven't seen before and probably won't see again for a very long time. Yes, this show can be overly gory, raunchy, and all around inappropriate. But it's a wild ride, which, when it comes down to it, is about hope and determination. The mantra of this show is that no matter how dark things get, no matter how many times we fall down, if we get back up together and fight for what's right, we will win. That's an important message for America and the world as a whole right now.

VOIR DIRE : RELEASED By: Ian Sherry 9/11/2023 On August 29th, 2023, Earl Sweatshirt and The Alchemist released their collab album Voir Dire . It features warm, sample-heavy hip-hop production via The Alchemist , and well-written verses by Earl Sweatshirt . With these two, that’s a given. However, Earl’s performances are all delivered with the same monotone cadence, which makes it hard to focus on his lyrical prowess. And, though his beats are catchy, most of them just loop or sustain the same, short-lived groove. It’s an exercise in simplicity. There’s nothing wrong with that, but it doesn’t give me a lot to say. I’m a fan of both artists, I was excited, and now I’m moving on. Voir Dire is a 5/10. Now for the article! Earl and The Alchemist whipped up a cute little album rollout this time around. Voir Dire came complete with internet lore, a strange streaming service, and NFTs! Can you feel my eyes rolling through these words? I get it, it’s just not my thing, and since custom album releases have become all the rage, I figured I’d take a stance. First of all, why? The easiest way to unpack any music industry phenomenon is to take a quick look around. For example, today’s context provides an immediate answer: everyone’s doing it. From Lizzo to Travis Scott , the mainstream has been taken over by album releases becoming a holistic experience. There are different methods, and Voire Dire is one such example. From the artist’s point of view, I can imagine it’s become a necessity to do something special to keep pace with consumer expectations. On top of fulfilling industry norms, it’s a creative and competitive opportunity: integrating personality into one’s music is a skill, and some are more skilled than others. Fortunately for the others, the release itself is a golden opportunity to put your personal spin on your artistic product. For Lizzo that meant a body positive mega-livestream. For Travis Scott, a huge tour complete with theatrical mosh-pitting. The commonality is an artist furthering whatever vibe they want for their album, whether it be positivity for an individual or pure energy for the biggest crowds. On a base level it's fun, and when done correctly, it can elevate a project. Let's not get carried away. Big rollouts set expectations. Regardless of the artist’s intent, everything they do in preparation for releasing an album feeds into the public’s perception and anticipation. Since the public tends to be very perceptive, that means the bigger you make it, the more pressure to deliver. So it better be good. Let’s talk about Donda . Kanye West , who seems to work his way into every article now, announced he’d be releasing the album Donda as an ode to his mother back in 2019. It was delayed and delayed, until its eventual rollout in 2021. That rollout was a failure. West tapped into all the theatrics, bringing out guests, selling tickets, and creating the ultimate spectacle. It was a massive celebration of the music industry superpower that is Kanye West. Once again, the purpose of an album rollout is to further the music’s message and bring the audience in closer before they hear the first note. So, now's a good time to remind you that the album was about Kanye’s mother, Donda West. Donda, not Kanye. Yet, the focus of the album’s content was all over the place, more reminiscent of a DJ Khaled ’s self-indulgent celebration on God Did than an introspective, vulnerable record like Jay-Z ’s 4:44 . Kanye packed the tracklist, loaded it with features, and his rollout mirrored that attitude: a celebration of himself packaged under his late mother’s name. Then, if his motives and focus weren’t already in question, he released Donda 2. The follow-up’s rollout was even more unique. In a move against the profit motivated industry executives, West released the literally incomplete album on the Stem Player in an effort to make money his own way. It’s always hard to say what West’s intentions are, but it seems like his mother’s name should’ve been kept separate. This is not artistic vision, it’s greed. As we delve further into the culture of the modern album release, I’m hopeful that artists can be more mindful and avoid crossing that line. The overall approach must stay on message and focus on the audience’s ability to receive it. Voir Dire again. Speaking of focus, let’s return to the Voir Dire . At first this album was an internet rumor. Then it was announced. And finally it became a complete rollout experience experience. As a fan of the two collaborators, I was excited that the album dropped without too long of a wait; that is, no advance release date was posted, a la Donda . Beyond that, their strategy provided anticipating fans with an opportunity to experience the content further through write-ups and NFTs. Did it pique my interest? Not especially. But their approach has merit, and I’m sure it’s resonating with the right audience. Voir Dire ’s release is a 8.5/10.

THE ODYSSEY 8/5/2026 - Dawson Sarcona - Ian Thomas Sherry The following is a transcribed and edited conversation between CG reviewers Ian and Dawson about Christopher Nolan's The Odyssey DAWSON: Just starting off, Ian, I know you've read The Odyssey before. Were you a fan of the casting and the performances? Do you think they kind of held up to Homer’s version? IAN: Yeah, well, starting with the story. First of all, you had to tell me the bard was Travis Scott, but I thought that was fantastic, the way that they included that, 'cause that's the way it was told for so long. They hit all the points, obviously. And I thought that the plot moved along pretty well for such a long thing to adapt. You know, I just watched O Brother, Where Art Thou. It's so loose to call it an adaptation of the Odyssey - I mean, I get it's a comedy, but this (Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey) is right on point and moves along. And yeah, with the casting, I had some favorites for sure, but I'm gonna kick that back to you. Were there any favorite castings or performances for you? DAWSON: I mean, there's a lot of performances getting gassed up from this movie, and I feel like rightfully so. Anne Hathaway did a really good job (as Penelope). And I like the direction Nolan took her character too. But my favorite, and this is the basic answer, 'cause it's the main character, I really like Matt Damon's performance. Really enjoyed just the energy he brought to it. I've seen him in a lot of other action movies like the Jason Bourne films, and they're really boring to me, so this kind of solidified to me like - oh, he actually knows how to do this stuff, because I found his performance very captivating and I like the complexity that he brought to the character. Though Nolan has a bit of… I wouldn't say an issue, but he does this thing with all his characters where he kind of.. makes them extremely noble and tries to make them the most, you know, complex ‘I'm gonna take accountability for everything’ characters. When from what I've heard, in the original Odyssey Odysseus is kind of just like a trickster and is kind of a little bit just like… IAN: -He’s not so apologetic.- DAWSON: Yeah, so I think that that was a good change and I think that Damon portrayed that well. And I also really thought Robert Pattinson shined in his role. I would have liked to see more of his character just being a douchebag because he was good at it. IAN: He is. I went with my sister, and she was raving about how good he was as a villain. And yeah, I totally agree. And like Dawson said, Anne Hathaway was great; she was strong in her performance, you know, that's important in this day and age… So what did you think of Tom Holland’s Telemicus? DAWSON: So, Tom Holland was... Well, he didn't have a bad performance by any means, but I would like to see that they gave him more to do. I am a fan of him as an actor, and I feel like - I say this wearing a Spider-Man hoodie, but I still think No Way Home was one of his best performances, and I would have loved to see him allowed to bring that emotion in this movie. It just wasn't necessary for the character, so like I get it, but it (the performance) was kind of middle of the road for me. IAN: I think part of that is the character, like he's limited; he never even gets to step into the throne room in any aspect, leadership-wise, and his main function in this film was to move the plot along with the cutting back and forth. And I thought that was pretty easy to understand, given I already knew the story, but still it flowed pretty well, so I thought he did well. I enjoyed his performance. DAWSON: We’re there any castings that were distracting for you? IAN: Charlize Theron as Calypso, that was a little strange. Only because I didn't feel like it was well enough introduced, but that situation was eventually explained. It's supposed to be mysterious to an extent, but I also don't know how accurate it is, her living washed up on the beach. That's not how I interpreted reading it. - What about yourself? DAWSON: Yeah, I can agree with that. She just kind of felt like an empty character, just kind of a plot device. And I know that she has more acting chops in her, so maybe it's just more of a writing issue. But yeah, her and Benny Safdie, as Agamemnon, I felt very like he stood out most specifically, probably. With the helmet off, he just kind of gives off, for lack of a better term, dorky energy. IAN: He did. DAWSON: - They spent so many of his shots in the movie, framing him as, like, very imposing and cinematic and a guy that you don't want to mess with. Then like, they have Odysseus speak to him, and he's very soft-spoken and kind of friendly with Odysseus, which I’m not sure if that's how it was in the book, but I would assume that maybe it was not. IAN: I would have expected the character to be, furious, you know, and to have some sort of facial wound from being killed - a crazed warlord that sacrificed so much, and was caught up in his own home, I think, he would probably be more bitter and angry. But we're kind of splitting hairs here, I think, overall, that (oracle scene) was pretty great. DAWSON: This is probably his (Nolan’s) biggest accomplishment. I mean, I think that's fair to say. It's the first movie ever filmed completely on IMAX, which means it was also filmed completely on film, like traditional film, which is not something you see a lot nowadays. And watching it, seeing all the love and care put into it; it's just very clear. Especially when it comes to the practical stuff that they do with the Cersei scene in the pig transformation and in the Cyclops stuff. For perspective, there was a guy in full Cyclops makeup, and then for other scenes they had a full 60-foot Cyclops puppet that they built for the characters to interact with. So it’s stuff like that could have just been blue-screened and CGI-ed, but instead they took the time and really actually made it to the best they could, that is a testament to how much not only Christopher Nolan cares about movies, but how important that stuff still is to making a great movie - and you can really tell when you're in that theater, especially the IMAX theater. IAN: I thought the way that the Cyclops moved was really awesome; it was otherworldly, and it made the whole scene a lot better. That's one of the more famous scenes I was wondering how they were gonna execute it, what it was gonna look like, you know, and it was like a mutant child type-thing, which makes perfect sense because I believe it's a giant and Poseidon’s offspring, so it was pretty wild, and it was the same with Cersei. They could have had her wave a wand and poof them (Odysseus’ men) into pigs, and nobody would have batted an eye, but the idea to kind of go the horror direction, that ended up being one of the more memorable scenes in the whole film to me. DAWSON: I learned the other day that Ithaca, the island that they used for that, is a real island and that's a real castle, and they got permission to film there, but they weren't allowed to build anything, so like they couldn't build a road to get their film supplies up there. So they had to literally airlift and then, by hand, carry like thousands of dollars of equipment up this hill every day to film there. And I think that's just another cool example of the people who worked on this movie really putting in the effort, and I think it shows in volumes when you see it. IAN: This is interesting because it looks really genuine, the castle, and it looks pretty untouched and like weathered. I also thought the plucking of the bow- that was a great moment. They planted that seed early on, and it was pretty cinematic when it did it in the end, so I thought that was pretty cool, and I'm not sure I remember that from the book; I think the book is moreso about being able to execute the challenge, just stringing it and shooting, so I think that was pretty cool. DAWSON: Yeah, and I noticed a few things about that on my rewatch too of like how much that is woven into the story, and it's stealthily. There's a lot of stuff, Nolanisms, just a lot of really interesting details that are just sprinkled in there. Like, for example, a few that I can remember are: there's a song on the score called "Sirens," and it's the song that plays when Odysseus hears the sirens' song, and he's strapped to the, you know, pull in the ship and is listening to it. - IAN: - And it's at the same time; it's just the song on the score that we hear while he's listening to them. - DAWSON: - Right, yes, exactly, thank you. But that song is titled that, but it's technically like him and Penelope's theme in the movie because the only other times we hear it are when he and his wife are together. And so when he talks about the siren song being like “a song of like everything you've ever wanted and everything you ever wanted was something you had and lost,” I think that's just a really cool way to musically tie it into, like, when he hears that song, he's hearing something about Penelope and Telemicus. And going back to Telemicus, another thing is, any time they are viewing his flashbacks of his family, Telemicus is not facing the camera. It shows like a kid facing away from the camera, which is something Nolan does in like all of his movies. IAN: Now I'd like to get to my last big question if you don't have anything else. DAWSON: No, I don't think I have anything else. IAN: So The Culture Gyre is based on a concept, the gyre, which is a shape. Imagine two funnels facing into each other so at one end you would have an open circle and then a point in the center which would be the point of the other funnel going the opposite direction; would you consider this movie to be closer to “the point,” the thing that everybody in film is driving at, or would you say it's pushing an edge in the grand scheme of the film? DAWSON: I think it's interesting with Nolan because he is something - he's someone that all filmmakers kind of strive to be like; he is kind of anointed, almost anointed himself as like filmmaker royalty because he is, I believe, the president of the filmmakers' guild. So a lot of people, they kind of view him as like the one above all, and to be honest with you, he still has duds, he still has movies that fall through, so going into this movie I was excited, but I was not 100% certain, kind of like you are saying. I think the concept for this movie is kind of on that outer circle; it's something that you know a lot of people can do, and a lot of people have made adaptations of the Odyssey, right, and it's a general idea a lot of people have, but it's not necessarily always executed properly. There are so many ways that it can be done, and I think what's great about Nolan is he can kind of bring it into that inner focal point, like that thing that everyone's striving towards, because of the way he's able to direct things. And I think a lot of this comes down to the people going to the movies now who are so much more invested in cinema. I think just because of the nature of social media and how it's heightened everybody's opinions on things you're either going to the movie because you love this movie or you hate this movie, right? Like, there's rarely ever an instance now where someone's like ‘I have no thoughts on this’ and that's compounded by social media with people sharing those opinions. So he's kind of being built up and built up, and I think the fact that Nolan keeps pushing forward shows he's not the type of person who's building up this reputation for himself and just kind of going with the flow. He hasn't plateaued yet. He keeps pushing the bar farther for himself, and you don’t know what his next movie is going to be or when it's going to be, but he's been pushing out movies every three years. Which is a crazy production turnaround, especially considering the scale of stuff he's making. So my long-winded answer to your question is, yes, I think that this movie, especially in Nolan's way of approaching film, is pushing for the center of the gyre. I think the future of film has to be like this; it has to be more people who care, people who are doing things practically and who are trying new things with reliable stories, even if just because there's only so many stories that can be told. I would say the same about Obsession this year by Curry Barker, right? The one wish willow. The monkey paw- that is a story that has been told countless times by countless people, but he sat down, and he found a way to make it fresh, and he put a lot of love and practicality into it, and it was probably the second biggest movie of the year so far in terms of box office success. So yeah, I think right now the future of film, the focal point from that poem is this notion of bringing more originality to movies, and we need to do it out of love and care and not for the purpose of making money for a studio. And it's in the details, but careful detail. IAN: I agree. DAWSON: Yeah, and you know, obviously studios care about money, but I think people - I think studios right now are kind of finding that if they prioritize originality, it benefits them more in the long term.

ROCK'S PATH FORWARD BY: Ian Sherry 3/22/2023 HEADLINE: Rock is no longer the most popular genre. I could go on and on about the downward trend of the former super-genre. However, to be prompt I’ll simplify it to this: after being the dominant genre of the 70s and 80s and the 90s to an extent, mainstream rock sat too comfortably headed into the age of computers, autotune, and one-trick production brought on by the 2000s. The result is two decades of uninspired pop-rock (a real and pitiful genre in my opinion) and an experimental rock reaction, which often tries too hard to be different and not enough to be good. I could name a lackluster band like Imagine Dragons here, but I won’t because I’m a nice guy. This is all, of course, generalization, but the rising consensus is that rock is in serious trouble. Everyday the internet's ‘hot takes’ become more condemning towards the genre, with many declaring it dead. These claims gain credibility through validation from well-respected critics like Anthony Fantano. Fantano is not anti-rock, he’s realistic. Not only are these opinions reasonable, they are fairly true. Rock’s days as the number one genre are done for the foreseeable future and for good reason. For a long time rock was associated with pop, but pop is often just a reflection or variation of the most prolific and replicable style of music at the moment. So, with pop shifted in a non-rock direction, rock has become limited by its lack of reputable neighboring genres. However, rock is not dead as a genre, and, while I could point to countless contemporary artists and projects, I choose one man: Jack White. If I could have a conversation with the genre of rock I would request the following: steer away from pop (it will find you), dip into other contemporary genres, and don’t be afraid to draw from wherever you want. In 2022, Jack White did all of that and more. His two albums Fear Of The Dawn and Entering Heaven Alive cover all the bases and showcase his mega-talented studio presence. Between the two of them they display aspects of folk, hip-hop, and a plethora of rock sub-genres; I’ve even picked up on some reggae influence in songs like “Esophobia” and “All Along The Way”. There’s also a wide variety of emotions and themes, something White has employed since his White Stripes’ days. I know that all sounds fantastic, so allow me to elaborate. “Taking Me Back” is the first song on Fear Of The Dawn and “Taking Me Back (Gently)” is the last song on Entering Heaven Alive. Often artists will give you two versions of one song on the same album, with rap you may get a remix or instrumental version and with other genres, artists will often tack on an acoustic version. What White did here is less common. He took the same song lyrics and some of the bones, and stripped everything else, rebuilding it nearly from scratch. The original is a hard rocking loud track that leads into Fear Of The Dawn perfectly. It sets the pace of the album and introduces some of the tools he’ll use throughout it. My favorite is this sputtering guitar that cuts overtop the instrumental intermittently in this song and some others on the album. It seems like his equivalent of a record scratch and it brings energy every time it's used, breaking down layers of instrumentals that would’ve been overly dense otherwise. “Taking Me Back (Gently)” is much simpler. The rhythm is slightly different and the instrumental is more relaxed without killing the energy of the track. While it’s less of a standout in the scope of the entire album, it is a really enjoyable song with an energetic violin and a lengthy instrumental break that entertains and provides breathing room that the original version lacked. By including these two songs, and placing them on either end of the albums, White bookends his 2022 releases and puts an undeniable emphasis on the diversity between the two. He also showcases the kind of energy each album possesses, so if you’re deciding which to listen to first, I would suggest starting with these tracks to help you decide. “I’ve Got You Surrounded (With My Love)” is my pick for the best song on Entering Heaven Alive. It is a fantastic groove that uses a heavy bassline to give the track pace and depth. Over the top, White layers keyboard and a buzzy guitar as well as vocals that sound like they’re in the other room (in a good way). All these elements are mixed perfectly to create a unique atmosphere complete with well timed instrumental breaks. It is a 4:25 minute song that feels like two minutes, which is a great sign. A big reason for that is the song’s structure. There are technically two verses, with only two lines each, and two bridges, as well as several variations on the catchy chorus that works as a transition between unique instrumental breaks. What stands out when listening to these albums is Jack White’s creative abilities in the studio, but “I’ve Got You Surrounded (With My Love)” is a songwriting clinic. One of the biggest complaints about rock recently is its inability, or more accurately, its tendency, not to branch out into other genres. On “Hi-De-Ho”, featuring Q-Tip, White takes that step outside the confines of traditional rock stylings without departing from his aesthetic. The track opens with an impressive intro from that same buzzy electric guitar followed by a sample of Cab Calloway’s “Hi-De-Ho Man”. After about 1:20 of what can only be described as confusion, the baseline drops in and so does Q-Tip. He just flows over the looped baseline while drums roll over the top. Simple, but effective. Then White joins in on the bridge for some moaning vocals, that mainly serves to cut the track before it gets too repetitive, before riding out on the same catchy looped beat. It’s a fun song with lots for a listener to easily unpack, and on top of that, I enjoyed the Q-Tip feature which is frankly unusual. “Into The Twilight” is my favorite song on Fear Of The Dawn. It has the wailing guitar of “Taking Me Back” and the energy of “Hi-De-Ho”. It jumps in with another great baseline, a gentle piano riff, and that same guitar sputter. The vocals are kept to a minimum and the focus is on the rising and falling synths and various soundbytes that White weaves in. Brief samples of The Manhattan Transfer are twisted and woven throughout, being used to cut through the heavy guitar and replace the need for verses or bridges. On the way to the conclusion of the song the entire instrumental is torn down before being built up layer by layer. The chorus repeats one more time and it rides out on what feels like a fun improvised keyboard. But, nothing is improvised in this song. It is perfectly mixed and cut, showing a level of expertise Jack White seems to always have in his back pocket. Listening to an artist like Jack White forces me to understand I belong on this end of the music business. Because, I can’t fathom doing what he does in the studio; a depressing thought that is often washed away immediately by pure sonic pleasure. White, to me, should be the prototype for a genre that desperately needs innovation. His ability to involve traditionally genre-specific techniques without leaving his own stylistic comfort zone might be unique to him, but his willingness to try it shouldn’t be. Rock is not dead, but it needs help. In 2022, whether he meant to or not, Jack White gave the genre what it needed. It’s up to his peers to follow suit.

GOD DID NOT WANT THIS BY: Ian Sherry 9/19/22 DJ Khaled is one of the most polarizing figures in the music industry. His albums often read more like who's who in popular music than a regular old track list. His newest album God Did is no different. A music tycoon known for producing hits with established stars and dominating the billboard, DJ Khaled is a master of marketing if nothing else. He makes this clear in his newest album which has produced 10 songs that graced the billboard hot 100 including the 47 second intro from Drake. Big numbers and recognition on the billboard unfortunately don’t guarantee good music. In this case they certainly do not. DJ Khaled has a habit of ruining songs that had a real chance of being good with repetition and drawn out verses which he doesn’t bother getting trimmed. Perhaps it is because he relies so heavily on features and is hesitant to step into the other artists’ world. A reliance that is completely unnecessary by the way. It is possible to make a great album as a producer without overloading on features. Kenny Beats did so already this year with Louie, an album I highly recommend. Speaking of good beats DJ Khaled showcases his best one on the second track of the album. The title track “GOD DID” includes an interesting beat and a great verse from Rick Ross. Unfortunately, it also includes an extra thirty seconds of Jay Z which feels purely unnecessary. Perhaps the greatest torture on this song though, is the well executed feature from John Legend at the end. DJ Khaled didn’t stop there though. He also includes the track “KEEP GOING” which includes several decent verses from Lil Durk, 21 Savage, and Roddy Rich respectively. Unfortunately it also includes a repetitive beat that demands the same flow from all three rappers and by the time the third feature rolls around it is unbearable. These songs were close to being good, in a way that's sadder than a completely awful song because the potential is obvious. That being said, it only gets worse from here. There are plenty of songs on this album that aren’t worth listening to, in fact it's the majority, but there are also songs that are ludacris in general. The first is “USE THIS GOSPEL” which features Kanye West and Eminem. This song was released in 2019 on Kanye West’s hip hop gospel fusion album Jesus Is King, which received mixed reviews at best. Admittedly the original release of this song was excellent. It had a feature from one of the greatest rap duos of all time in Clipse and a sultry saxophone feature from Kenny G. This re-release is bad in comparison. It has a painful feature from Eminem and anyone listening, having heard the original, would be tempted to listen to the first one. The most annoying part is DJ Khaled had no hand in the original song, essentially defeating the reasoning for its new version. Kanye himself has released songs over beats he made for other artists following the original release, but at least he made the original beat. There is also a postmortem song from Juice WRLD called “Juice WRLD DID”. The entire song is Juice WRLD and it feels more like DJ Khaled flexing the fact that he has a song with the beloved SoundCloud sensation who passed away in 2019. Suffice to say there's a reason this song wasn't released while Juice was alive. The song is lyrically weak and the hook is repeated far too often because the verses themselves are short and lacking. If it weren’t for the tone of Juice’s voice it would be impossible to listen to. There are a few highlights on the album. There better be with this much talent. DJ Khaled has so many connections that he often slips into different styles of production within hip hop. “THESE STREETS KNOW MY NAME” is well executed even if it isn’t everyone’s cup of tea. It has a beat that continually switches up and exciting features from Jamaican artists Bounty Killer, Skillibeng, Sizzla, Buju Banton, and Capleton. “IT AIN'T SAFE” is another good song. In this case he imitates the current southern rap style with hints of modern Detroit production. Nardo Whick and Kodak Black have solid features and the song glides as well as it can considering the style of production and lyrical flows that the pair of Florida rappers chose. “BEAUTIFUL” featuring Future and SZA and “BILLS PAID” featuring Latto and City Girls are probably the most palatable songs on the album. They don’t do anything groundbreaking but they are solid and I wouldn’t be surprised if they achieve the biggest streaming numbers in the long run. The first benefits from a smooth feature from Future and a perfect chorus from SZA. The second includes fun verses from Latto and City Girls over an upbeat soul sample from Eddie Kendricks. Overall this album is another bloated and overdone example of the pop rap DJ Khaled is able to reproduce every single time. Of course it has its high points, because of the sheer amount of talent, but it is ultimately dragged down by the repetition, ridiculous and cringy themes, and lack of musical creativity. I am sure it will make lots of money and be heard around the US for the next six months but it is important to separate the idea of commercial success from the essential resource that is good music. Someday I hope DJ Khaled can make this distinction. 1/10

A Perfectly Timely Review of Head of the Love Club BY: Ian Sherry 5/22/23 I discovered Hänlyn shortly after the release of this EP and after spending the last few months listening to her I decided she was the final piece to an article I’ve been wanting to write for some time. As I attempted to properly unpack Gretel Hänlyn’s talent in her section of “Putting You On Three” , I realized this EP needed its own review. So, months after the release, it’s here. On March 13, 2023 Gretel Hänlyn released her sophomore EP Head of the Love Club. Gretel Hänlyn’s debut Slugeye showcased a clearly defined and developed sound coming from a talented artist. Its production, song structure, and stylistic flexibility, (all things young artists often struggle with) were all standout quality. She thrived when creating complicated soundscapes and then singing right down the middle of them, allowing the music itself to shine while her voice pulls everything together. It was a musically diverse and well-rounded EP, but after this most recent release it feels safe. Gretel Hänlyn’s 2023 Head of the Love Club is exciting to say the least. Let me tell you why. “Dry Me” is a perfect start. Immediately Hänlyn brings an intensity, both vocally and instrumentally, she’s never shown before. She ranges up and down vocally within lines, hitting highs and lows in just one sentence. The vocal performance itself pulls the listener in close through the 1:30 mark, at which point she begins to build tension. Rising synths and a repeated acoustic guitar progression lead to the payoff at the 2:45 mark: her voice reaches peak intensity, and heavy piano slams in the low end along with the drums as a much lighter piano riff is sprinkled over the top. The intense soundscape provides the perfect release of tension, and though it lasts just over 15 seconds, it is a fantastic preview of things to come. Moving chronologically, “Drive” puts this EP in motion. Employing a lot of the keys to the success of Wet Legs debut project, Hänlyn nails the more raw end of this modern indie pop sound. The electric baseline rolls over and over, setting the pace alongside punchy drums. Her buzzy spoken vocals sit on top, letting simplicity command the audience’s attention, until the chorus serves as a well-timed interjection. She brings in poppy feminine vocals and electric guitar to do so. Sending the audience seamlessly in and out of witty verses is essential, especially with these kinds of spoken vocals, which can wear down an audience over long terms of exposure. “Drive” is a challenge, but a simple and effective one: Hänlyn is bringing the energy and you have to absorb it. “King of Nothing” immediately addresses the other end of the modern indie pop spectrum, and its placement directly behind “Drive” feels like no mistake. To use a literary term, it is essentially a foil of its predecessor. The baseline rolls just like before, but the distortion from the previous verses’ baseline is placed on the chorus’ guitar in “King of Nothing”. The distortion is also removed from the vocals, and the higher, more delicate layered vocals take hold of the verses instead of the choruses like before. Using a similar song structure to boot, Hänlyn is able to create a completely different sound with just a few small switches. Whether or not this particular contrast is intentional, Hänlyn’s technical and artistic abilities are on full display with “King of Nothing”. “Wiggy” provides more of a stylistic continuation than the previous transitions. Hänlyn amps up the vocal layering. The song moves along nicely, once again being subtly guided by the baseline. She uses the higher pitched guitar to insert air into the track by separating the upper and lower ends of the mix. Together, these factors create a very catchy sound. For most of the song she layers the instrumental up and down more seamlessly than any of her other work, even to a fault as the final chorus is frankly built up too much. While it doesn’t have the most sonically pleasing conclusion, track 4 is another detail-oriented success that transports the audience to a happy wiggy world. Yet another stylistic swerve, “Little Vampire” revisits the Slugeye vibe. Using acoustic guitar and drowsy vocals (a combo that reminds me a lot of Nirvana), Hänlyn begins to build tension like she does so well on this EP. As the song progresses, a buzzing sound creeps up and she begins to mix in eerily delicate vocals. She even sprinkles in some keys in place of vocals. As the buzzing persists and the wall of tension continues to build, her delicate vocals start to feel crushed under the weight of what’s coming. Then, the song ends. Gretel Hänlyn knows exactly what she’s doing. She knows how well she builds tension. She knows the power of her vocals to set the mood. She knows that her command over the mix only adds to that mood. And she uses this knowledge to trick us: leaving her audience with a conclusion that should be unsatisfying, yet somehow is completely the opposite. “Little Vampire” might not be the most exciting song on Head of the Love Club , but it's a masterpiece. Hänlyn knows that too. “The Head of the Love Club” is probably the worst song on the album. It begins with a grinding distorted guitar and it continues without much pause for 2 minutes. It is just too much. The points where it releases and is replaced with a pleasant baseline are very enjoyable, but it's not nearly worth the payoff. It also disrupts the flow of the song, preventing the instrumental from building properly, removing any chance for airiness, and taking away from an enjoyable vocal performance. I know what Hänlyn was going for, but the result is disappointing, especially considering she successfully executes this concept elsewhere in this EP. Thankfully, “Easy Peeler” is a complete release of tension. Weaving in three different acoustic guitars at some points, Hänlyn creates an elegant sound. Her beautiful vocals only add to it. She adds an electric guitar on the chorus and later verses, ensuring she won’t lose that familiar low end, as she thrives atop the mix. My only gripe with this song is its occasional struggles layering the instrumental, however she nails it on the last try. She lets the vocals rest a bit longer on the last attempt, allowing herself time to layer the final high point, piece by piece, and give this pretty song the ending it deserves. “Today (Can’t Help but Cry)” is as good of a conclusion as “Dry Me” is a start. The sharp contrast between the two allows the audience to reflect on the 26 minute journey as they enjoy the Kate Bush-like world Hänlyn creates down the stretch of this final track. A classic indie pop intro is followed by soaring verses. She clears out any distortion in favor of echoing vocals, for a dreamy sound. Hänlyn sings in stride with the music on this track. Instead of looking for a pocket in the mix for her vocals, she floats alongside it. She minimizes the instrumentation of the bridge in favor of those echoed vocals, before bringing it back to ride out the album. She lets the audience admire this soundscape as it fades away, taking her 2023 EP with it. My initial thoughts centered around how many risks she took considering the quality and consistency of her first EP. However, I now realize that for Hänlyn, executing risks comes naturally. She stays within her abilities, and those abilities are responsible for one of my favorite releases of the year. Things like building tension, mid-line tone shifting, vocal layering, and messing around with song structure, are occasional tools for most artists (something to try once in a while for effect). For Gretel Hänlyn they are an integral part of her sound. She is so advanced, it's hard to believe her streaming numbers aren’t higher, but it won’t be long. Of course, there are kinks to work out on this EP, but to me, they feel like the musical equivalent to first-world problems. There is one glaring miss on this album, but there are so many good things to unpack, even on that song, I have no problem looking by it (except when I’m rating). If you haven’t listened to Head of the Love Club please do, and if you haven’t heard of Gretel Hänlyn, you’re welcome. Head of the Love Club is a 9.25/10. Suggested Listening Balance