Holding off on a rating until we have the full body of work but I like what I'm hearing so far. Seems pretty clear his work in Brockhampton has helped him muddle his writing process in a good way, and also helped lessen the genre disparity that made American Boyfriend a somewhat disjointed listen. While I think there's some value to the notion that he still has a somewhat difficult time separating himself from the pack (am I the only person who gets hints of Janelle Monae's Metropolis EP out of ... read more

One of the main goals of the yeehaw agenda should be getting the gays to finally admit that this album is good.

Favorite Tracks: Diamond Heart, A-Yo, John Wayne, Hey Girl, Angel Down

As her single output gets less and less memorable, Banks makes it easier and easier for us to let her go. This song, which she has been teasing on Periscope since 2016, is her standard hip house faire, but the singing is less tended-to, messier, and the overall production quality makes me take a second look at that "HQ" designation on Soundcloud. Should she go on to defy expectations via an incredibly solid full-body release (as she's done at least twice in the past), I will gladly ... read more

I feel like you guys would have a very different perception of this song if it was billed as J Balvin ft. Rosalia instead of Rosalia ft. J Balvin.

This might be heresy but I really do think in terms of "beloved 2015 indie pop records," this thing shits all over Emotion. Marina Diamandis retains the personality of Family Jewels while dialing back the gaucheness that turned some listeners off, and also offers a thoroughly likable course-correction in the wake of the muddled Electra Heart.

"Can't Pin Me Down" seems intent to not label itself as a feminist song, but I think Diamandis knows the decision to write this ... read more

Honestly the best case scenario for what Maggie Rogers's album could have sounded like. Sure it's capital-P pop music but Sigrid has the vocals and enthusiasm to fill a noticeable deficiency in mainstream-oriented Scandinavian artistry. Even when the album gets overly sentimental (as mainstream-oriented Scandinavian artistry tends to do), it's hard to not like based on big production value alone. Take "Sight of You," which sounds like it was written for a made-for-TV Disney film, but ... read more

A fun mixtape with tons of quirk and personality. Fae separates herself from the pack of alternative R&B with some pretty bold beat selection, strong melody writing, and vocal delivery that occasionally recalls the nerdy passion of early Janelle Monae. Tons to love in terms of sonics (she herself spoke on her appreciation of how labeling a project a "mixtape" helps remove the boundaries of what she's "allowed" to do in a song), such as the gorgeous, droney meditiation of ... read more

In reading up on all the Lil Nas X controversy, I learned that this song is not only the most successful track of all time on Billboard's "Hot Country Songs" list, but that it stayed at the number one spot for 50 freaking weeks (two weeks shy of an entire calendar year).

Despite the hackneyed lyrics about kicking your feet up on a dashboard and going down a winding country road (sound familiar?), "Meant to Be" does have a pretty winning hook with a tried and true pentatonic ... read more

Do u think Billboard Country will re-add this now that it has a white?

Indie pop stars occasionally do this thing where they try a mainstream pop crossover without fully committing to the genre, and it only ever results in a middle of the road generipop project that inevitably fails to reach its target audience while simultaneously alienating the artist's original fanbase. Zola Jesus did it, How To Dress Well did it, Chvrches did it, Lykke Li just did it, and it seems like the latest victim may be Marina Diamandis (fka Marina and the Diamonds). It might be hard to ... read more

In some ways I feel bad that the cards were already stacked against Eilish, at least here on the site of the super smart very mature music contrarian types. She probably could have put out a Pure Heroine-quality album and I imagine the user ratings would be relatively the same. Across WHEN WE ALL FALL ASLEEP, WHERE DO WE GO Eilish offers a decent number of good ideas, here and there, but a sense of greenness seems perpetually ready to take her down.

So yes, I do think Eilish's age and ... read more

Kinda just feels like sitting in a record label conference room while some dusty old exec coughs up a completely uninformed and highly subjective opinion about which Sky Ferreira is the most marketable. The individual songs range from passable to great but as a full product it completely lacks the cohesion she would go on to gain for her debut. Truly less than the sum of its parts.

Favorite Tracks: Sad Dream, Everything is Embarrassing

Got to hand it to Ferreira for coming back with something totally different after the long gap since her last record, but it's actually not much of a surprise given her keen avoidance of having her debut be twelve more of "Everything is Embarrassing."

The best thing about "Downhill Melody" is how much it ups the ante in terms of Ferreira's experimentation; she was always slotted into the "alternative" label despite singles like "I Blame Myself," ... read more

Maybe I'm just in a bad place and also have a bias in favor of Ms. Whack but this was exactly the song I needed this past week. Not that I can really relate to the lyrics, but the general isolated atmosphere and not-so-hidden sadness that persists in her music is so welcome to me right now.

A great banger that promotes both female camaraderie and big boobs. The colorful beat and music video could do 90% of the heavy lifting, but fortunately Doja and Rico bring clever verses that parallel each other. Its Sister Sister-referencing hook is just icing on the cake.

Hoping she will not fall into the Big Shaq pit of failing to prove she is more than a one-time meme, and that this single is more than just promo for a reissue of her (so-so) first album.

The album feels a little disjointed and less purposeful compared to A Seat at the Table, and occasionally carries the "song sketch" feel we've come to expect from Flying Lotus or Earl Sweatshirt. By the time you get to the second half of the album the actual songs aren't much longer than the interludes, and some of the most intriguing ideas aren't given enough room to breathe (the electric piano mimicking her spoken word on "Can I Hold the Mic," the rhythmic jamming on ... read more

The paradigm for what a perfect indie pop record of its time should sound like. A trio of ultra-strong singles ("I Feel it All," "My Moon My Man" and of course "1234") are buttressed by equally-strong deep cuts. Feist draws from her work with Broken Social Scene ("Past in Present"), does a solid reimagining of a Nina SImone classic ("Sealion"), and disguises a stunning ballad in the guise of a field recording ("The Park"). When she ... read more

This has me much more excited for what she has coming down the pipeline than "Only Child." "Clones" is a harder rap track akin to pre-Whack World songs like "Toe Jam." Tierra continues to experiment with bizarre voices and flows, with her chorus hook honestly sounding like a lawnmower revving up and down. Only she could make that sound good.

Great way to end Whack History Month.

Overall a pretty solid record by Lavigne standards. Songs like "Rock n Roll," "17," and "You Ain't Seen Nothing Yet" provide much-needed volume and tempo after the morose, plodding Goodbye Lullaby. Lavigne herself sounds like she's having more fun, not to mention utterly in love with then-husband Chad Kroeger, who has writing credits on nearly 2/3rds of the album. 'Avril Lavigne' doesn't attempt to reconcile the Avrils of years past and instead lets them co-exist, ... read more

I think the short downtime between Sweetener and this album doomed it to have the "too rushed" accusation thrown left and right. In truth, it doesn't sound any less put-together than her other records; she probably could have sat on this material for another six months and released it unchanged to no complaint.

Overall a fine final product that knows just how far back it wants to lift the curtain, even with a few duds in the mix. "bloodline" is a banger, but also such an ... read more