snowball

This is my favorite sound of theirs to date. This album is full of grooves. Highlights for me include the drums in The Steps, the melodies in Gasoline, the guitar in Leaning On You, and the intro to Now I'm In It. The instruments come together so naturally you can feel them in conversation with each other. They're just as crucial to the narrative of the songs as the singing itself.

favs: 3 AM, the steps, gasoline, Don't Wanna, Leaning On You
skips: man from the magazine, ... read more

Sam Fender is a standout for me in the male singer/songwriter genre, mostly due to the emotion beaming out of every song he writes. I keep returning to this album not only for that, but also his talent for storytelling. This is especially strong in Crumbling Empire, Nostalgia's Lie, Wild Long Lie, and Something Heavy. Beautiful album.

Favs: Rein Me In (ESPECIALLY the Olivia Dean version), Arm's Length, Nostalgia's Lie,
Skips: TV Dinner, Remember My Name

12.19.25

I like the direction willow's going with this album, and she's doing a lot of interesting experimentation. She takes clear inspiration from funkadelic, so the George Clinton feature is a great opening track. The rest of the album unfolds very naturally, grounded by the jazzy backbone and willow's great vocalizations. Her harmonies on this album are very pretty, especially on hear me out, play, and ear to the cocoon.

as with most truly experimental projects, I'm not a fan ... read more

the very definition of groovy. the baselines. the samples. the flows. the lyrics. just completely excellent.

5.1.26