Kanye West: Yeezus. Review Sketch

year: 2013

tones of: crystal castles, death grips, kid cudi

genre samples: glitch hop, minimal techno, indie electronica, gary glitter (on black skinhead), hip hop

music: jarring, spacious, moody, stark, minimalist, ominous, forward, pounding, dark, soulful, rhythmic

lyrics: scattered, unfiltered, careless, frustrated, honest, disrespectful, defiant, poignant, nostalgic, self centered, weak, blunt, flippant, exhausted

favs: i am a god (minus the croissants), new slaves, hold my liquor, blood on the leaves, bound 2

note: yeezy had another classic on his hands here. RIDICULOUS production, but the overall lyrical content is underwhelming. still a very solid album though.

score: 8/10

Youth Lagoon: Wondrous Bughouse. Review Sketch

year: 2013

tones of: the flaming lips, the beatles (sgt. pepper style)

genre samples: indie-rock, psych pop

music: expansive, personal, intimate, radiant, enveloping, vibrating, sonic, slow, prodding, sonorous, hazy, mystical, sparkling

lyrics: paranoia, mortality, loneliness, trust, abandonment, darkness, illness, instability

favs: through mind and back, mute, pelican man (beauifully bleak lyrics), raspberry cane

note: not many specific songs stand out here, but the ambiance they all produce is this album's greatness.

score: 8/10

Vampire Weekend: Modern Vampires of The City. Review Sketch

year: 2013

tones of: the shins, paul simon, the beatles

genre samples: indie-rock, world music, punk

music: sedate, busy, slow, sombre, quick, ominous, compact, calming, heavy, abrupt, marching

lyrics: dark, disenchanted, spiritual, futility, slow, sad, mortality, life, depressed, thoughtful

favs: obvious bicycle, unbelievers, step, diane young, don't lie, hannah hunt, ya hey

note: if your band name is vampire weekend, using "vampire" again in an album title is a bit much, no? and this from a band full of columbia language arts majors. tsk tsk.

score: 8.5/10 (the first half of this is simply incredible)

Daft Punk: Random Access Memories. Review Sketch

year: 2013

tones of: george clinton, scissor sisters, the flaming lips, david bowie, elton john

genre samples: disco, house, progressive rock, funk, psychedelic rock, movie/show/stadium sounds

music: fun, meticulous, robotic, dreamy, danceable, retro, light, ernest, big, kaleidoscopic, fromage, diverse

favs: give life back to music, instant crush, lose yourself to dance (despite the cheese), get lucky*, beyond, fragments of time, doin' it right, contact

note: apparently this was produced using NOT one sample? - almost unbelievable, but definitely impressive.

bonus: *i like this get lucky version without pharrell much better

score: 8/10 (rounded up)

A Long Distance Poem

Untitled

She reminds me of the summer

When all about is blinding white and frozen

Do you deserve the warmth you wonder

When the seasons have said you didn't

Fate brought her to me by chance

I do hope that choice brings her back again

Earlier and often

For longer and later

Dismissing any physical restraints of nature

Distance....Time....

That conspire to keep us apart

Because my heart begins to beat

Through sparkling rays of her light, heat

Reflections in the pool of water at my feet

I just need a few more days, weeks 

To figure out how to get her not to leave

Shlohmo: Bad Vibes. Review Sketch

year: 2011

tones of: flying lotus, four tet

genre samples: house, r&b, glitch hop, techno, indie-electronica

music: dark, simple, spacey, light, tinkering, warm, slow, building, jazzy, ambient, nostalgic, serious

favs: places, anywhere but here, sink, i can't see you i'm dead, get out, your stupid face, seriously, same time

cover: the cover art comes off abstract at first, but it's really just the artist standing to the left of a kitchen sink (probably his own since he took the photo himself) with an image of leaves projected all over the background. pretty cool stuff.

score: 8.5/10

Local Natives: Hummingbird. Review Sketch

year: 2013

tones of: grizzly bears, radiohead, the shins, coldplay (some vocals), black keys

genre samples: indie pop, indie rock

music: somber, driving, melodic, fast paced, tumbling, harmonic, sweet, sad

lyrics: searching, love forlorn, longing, reflective, earnest, yearning

favs: heavy feet, wooly mammoth, colombia

cover: the cover is apparently a photo of the band climbing up onto the roof of their practice space mashed up with the desktop background of one of the members. interesting.

score: 7.5/10