Definitely got some Miley Cyrus vibes from this, not including the new hairstyle. This is one of the weaker Katy Perry singles, but I have faith that she'll put out a summer hit within the next couple of months.

There are a few really catchy tracks, but nothing is super engaging, and starts to kind of drone on for a bit longer than it should. Owens' singing doesn't add any more value to the record, and the production seems to flatline about 1/3 of the way through. Owens is still very young, so I think if she works on her own individual sound, she can easily produce one of the better electronic albums of the decade.

fav tracks: Lucid, Bird

In a Chainsmokers-era of blatantly commercial synthpop, Foster the People decided to hop on the bandwagon as well, with three tracks that are nearly impossible to tell apart. The band, who I have been a pretty big fan of in the past 6 years, took on painfully generic electro-trap beats and offered next to no lyrical value at all. It's a shame to see coming from a band with this much potential, but as one of the song titles says, they were Doing It For The Money.

K-pop is pretty much the epitome of music being used as a commodity, but Neon Bunny's approach to the eastern style of pop is completely unique to the rest. Her soft vocals over some EDM-style production makes for an album that is surprisingly pleasant and engaging. I don't understand the majority of the lyrics — only really picked up when she occasionally spoke English — but I still took away plenty from Stay Gold, a project that I never would have thought to check out, but I'm ... read more

One of Ween's earlier efforts is a fun listen, but the band doesn't quite excel at any of the different genres they try out as they did on The Mollusk. The band's sound is much more tame and indie rock-ish, adding the occasional oddball of a song. Inconsistencies aside, the album as a whole is a very enjoyable experience.

fav tracks: Roses Are Free, Joppa Road, Buenas Tardes Amigo

After a full, thorough listen of Humanz, I can wholeheartedly come to the conclusion that this is the worst Gorillaz album yet. There's damn near nothing of true substance or creative innovation, as the group's older albums possessed. Damon Albarn barely leaves his mark on the record, with brief vocal quips here and there, and only one whole song that does not have any features. The production is so generic it hurts, and only a handful of the features prove to be worth their while. Some ... read more

It's a tough transition going from an album like Mutant to this. I appreciate Arca's need for artistic progression, and I think that he's gonna find a really fitting sound for himself in the future. But his self titled album is just too raw and messy for me to enjoy it that much, going for a minimalistic approach instead of the warped and sinister sounds that were on Mutant. His vocals weren't really welcome on some songs; I really feel like he sang just for the hell of it sometimes. Ghersi ... read more

On his most critically acclaimed album as Why?, Yoni Wolf creates a blissful mixture of indie rock and hip hop that has a keen attention to detail. The lyrics are legitimately well written and relatable, with pop-like song structures.
The formatting and sheer quality of Alopecia is brilliant, but the music itself isn't anything super special. Wolf's voice isn't the best over the rock instrumentation, which is present more here than ever before, that he uses. And in addition to that, the ... read more

Its a fun and poppy album, but Nardwuar's music is much like his interviews: enjoyable for a little while, but the schtick gets old soon enough.

EDIT: Much less replay value than I had thought before, good album for the first few listens but nothing really stuck with me too much.

Shoegaze legends Slowdive return with their first album in over 20 years, and man is it an experience. The group not only maintains their classic sound (which I would call technical yet dreamy) but they also exhibit some new ideas and sounds. Everything is still very drawn out and relaxed, but also atmospheric, embedding into your mind the soundscapes and ... read more

It is a fact that this album will make you wear all black and start smoking cigarettes. You have been warned.

So much energy and raw power can be felt from this record. World Eater is the soundtrack to a fucking riot and I love it. Fast paced beats mixed with airy and ethereal atmosphere (almost like vaporwave at times) makes for a really crazy collection of songs. Blanck Mass took some tips from producers like Daniel Lopatin and Blanck Banshee and created something even more genre-bending than his counterparts. By far one of the best and most well-rounded releases of the year, I can't wait to see ... read more

Definitely the best output from Bones since last year's Useless. Unrendered is packed with banger after banger, and later in the album he includes some of the mellower singing he often does, and it sounds much better than it did on previous projects. The skits that are included at the end of a few tracks are actually pretty humorous, which is something that isn't shown in a lot of Bones' work. For the most part, Bones took all of the best aspects that have been a part of his music in the ... read more

Primus gets a bit more quirky, but their sound gets a bit more accessible, on their 4th album. Much of Pork Soda is extremely similar to Seas of Cheese, but the band gets their song structures down to a much more concise format, which likely caused their biggest commercial hit, My Name Is Mud. There isn't too much else to say because I said a lot of it already in the past, but Pork Soda is Primus dominating the 90's alt rock scene in the most unorthodox way possible.

fav tracks: The Ol' ... read more

Aside from an incredible cover of XTC's Making Plans for Nigel, this EP is merely obvious throwaways that weren't fit for a Primus full-length.

Primus' second record is the band getting into their own unique style in a sort of awkward manner. Claypool's lyrics are not as enthralling as they get to be in the future, and the instrumental work gets to be somewhat repetitive after about 2/3 of the album. The record is still terrific and fun, but Frizzle Fry is not the band's best work.

fav tracks: Mr. Knowitall, The Toys Go Winding Down, Harold of the Rocks (standout)

Really blown away by this track. I appreciate that Harry Styles is actually trying to make some solid music instead of the bland pop that his former One Direction groupmates are making while solo. The buildup in this song is great, and I always smile when that pre-chorus hits and Styles is singing in a softer tone. Definitely a high point in the track, and I am actually anticipating Styles' new self titled record because of this track.

Pretty much the same as many of the songs on Lady Gaga's late 2000's & early 2010's albums, which is good if you like those albums. But bad if you're pretty much anybody else.

Part of Growing Up is the standout here, but neither of these songs are as good as other's in the group's small discography.

Hold Back The Light Of Dawn is damn near as good as The Tammys' hit Egyptian Shumba, but Gypsy is just a track that fills the second side of the record, and doesn't really do much for me.