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crowdvscritic · 3 years

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round up // JANUARY 21

New year, not-so-new Crowd vs. Critic! It’s another batch of films, TV, music, and reads that were new to me this month and think you would enjoy, too. As we cozy up inside for the winter, nothing warms you up like a good piece of pop culture.

January Crowd-Pleasers

Wonder Woman 1984 (2020)

Does this sequel reach the heights of 2017’s Wonder Woman? No, but I wish more superhero movies were like this one. I explain why at ZekeFilm. Crowd: 9.5/10 // Critic: 8/10

21 Bridges (2019)

A solid action crime thriller with a solid Chadwick Boseman at the center. Crowd: 8.5/10 // Critic: 7.5/10

The Lethal Weapon Series (1987-98)

I watched the first Lethal Weapon in 2017 for ZekeFilm, but now I’ve a decade’s pleasure of progressively over-the-top action sequences and progressively more absurd ways to destroy Roger Murtaugh’s (Danny Glover) house. The Murtaugh/Riggs bromance holds this progressively sillier series together, and an supporting cast of charismatic actors (Jet Li, Darlene Love, Chris Rock, Rene Russo) are game for whatever comes their way. Joe Pesci is the true MVP. Series Crowd: 9/10 // Series Critic: 7/10

The High Note (2020)

Tracee Ellis Ross’s Grace Davis is a diva in every sense of the word. A high-strung and highly successful singer, she’s also highly demanding of her assistant Maggie (Dakota Johnson), who wants to step out of her shadow and become a music producer. This rom-com-adjacent flick is one of the most fun escapes I’ve had from a 2020 movie, and it’s perfect for a girls’ night in. Crowd: 8.5/10 // Critic: 7/10

Double Feature—Rom-Coms With a Magical Twist: Just My Luck (2006) + When In Rome (2010)

Disclaimer: These movies are not good. In fact, they’re junk, but they’re my kind of junk. In Just My Luck (Crowd: 7.5/10 // Critic: 6/10), Lindsay Lohan loses her life-long lucky streak when she kisses schlimazel Chris Pine. And When in Rome (Crowd: 8/10 // Critic: 6/10), Kristen Bell attracts unwanted admirers (Will Arnett, Danny DeVito, Josh Duhamel, Jon Heder, and real-life future husband Dax Shepard) after she steals their coins from a wishing fountain. To their credit, both of these movies know they’re silly, which means you have permission to just sit back and laugh along with (or, honestly, at) them.

WandaVision (2021)

I sometimes fear for the world of entertainment when I think of how much intellectual property Disney has gobbled up, but WandaVision is evidence the company is a benevolent dictator at least for now. This odd delight is a send up and a tribute to sitcoms like I Love Lucy, I Dream of Jeannie, and The Brady Bunch, and Paul Bettany and Elizabeth Olsen are so charming and weird I don’t need whatever mysterious sub-plot they’re building.

Robin Hood: Men in Tights (1993)

If you want to make the most of watching Robin Hood: Men in Tights, first watch Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves (1991), an action flick I saw last February and didn’t include in my monthly Round Up. This Mel Brooks spoof is a direct response that self-serious Kevin Costner adventure, even down to copying its costumes. While I wish I could find a Mel Brooks comedy with any substantial female character (in every movie I’ve seen so far, the joke is either, “She’s got a great rack!” or “Wow, she’s an uggo!”), I still couldn’t stop laughing at this 104-minute version of the Robin Hood scene in Shrek. Crowd: 9/10 // Critic: 8/10

Aliens (1986)

Peak ‘80s action. Peak alien grossness. Peak girl boss Sigourney Weaver. Crowd: 9/10 // Critic: 8/.510

Big (1988)

After talking about Laverne & Shirley with Kyla on SO IT’S A SHOW?, I had to check out Penny Marshall’s classic. While a few moments haven’t aged so well, its heart is sweet and the script is hilarious. And that Tom Hanks? I think he’s going places. Crowd: 9.5/10 // Critic: 8/10

Unstoppable (2010)

I’ve laughed at SNL’s spoof of this movie for a decade, so it’s about time I got around to enjoying this action thriller very loosely based on the true story of a train that got away from its conductor. Denzel Washington (“You’re too old!”) and Chris Pine (“You’re too young!”) are our heroes in this over-the-top ridiculousness, and their chemistry is so extra it makes me hope they team up for another movie again. Crowd: 9/10 // Critic: 7/10

January Critic Picks

Double Feature—‘90s Space Adventures: Apollo 13 (1995) + Contact (1997)

I have no desire to join Tom Cruise as he films in space, but I know I’ll be pumped to watch whatever he makes because I love sci-fi and space adventures. Apollo 13 (Crowd: 9/10 // Critic: 9/10) tells the story of an almost-disastrous NASA mission in the ‘60s, and it taps into our hope for the human spirit to overcome obstacles. Contact (Crowd: 8.5/10 // Critic: 8.5/10) surmises what might happen if we received communication from extraterrestrial life, and it taps into our struggle to reconcile faith and science.

McCartney III by Paul McCartney (2020)

I spent January catching up on the albums on Best of 2020 lists, and the one I listened to for hours and hours was Paul McCartney’s latest solo album. Catchy, thoughtful, and musically surprising, it ranges from pop to rock to folk in 45 minutes and still feels like it’s over too soon. Like Tom Hanks, this Paul McCartney guy is going places!

The Thin Man Series (1934-47)

Like Lethal Weapon, I watched the first installment of The Thin Man awhile back, and Kyla and I even covered the series on our podcast. But thanks to a full series marathon on TCM earlier this month, I’ve now laughed through all five. When you talk about great chemistry, you’ve got to talk about William Powell and Myrna Loy, who make Nick and Nora’s marriage feel lived in and romantic as they solve crimes together. Witty, suspenseful, and jaunty, this series is still sexy cool over 80 years later. (Also, Asta? Still one of the cutest dogs in cinema.) Series Crowd: 8.5/10 // Critic: 8.5/10

The King and I (1956)

Here’s your regularly scheduled reminder Hollywood works differently now, and many casting decisions of the ‘50s wouldn’t fly today. What has aged well in this film: The Rodgers and Hammerstein music and the sumptuous costumes and set design. I love extravagant musicals of yesteryear—perhaps it’s time for Hollywood to revisit and remake The King and I for modern audiences?

youtube

Inauguration Day

In a year with no major televised events with celebrities in a room together, Inauguration Day felt like the most exciting cultural event in ages. We’ve been missing major fashion, but then we got Lady Gaga! We’ve been missing live performances, but then we got Amanda Gorman! And I got a lot of tears during that poem—not just me, right?

Good Reads

Writing that made me think and smile this month:

Steven Soderbergh’s list of everything he read, watched, and listened to this year, Extension765.com (2020) – An indirect inspiration for these monthly Round Ups!

“My Year of Making Lists,” NewYorker.com (2020) – I made a lot of lists in 2020, so I feel this author’s #mood

“Betty White Says She Will Spend Her 99th Birthday Feeding Two Ducks Who Visit Her ‘Every Day,’“ CBSNews.com (2021) - “Betty is a treasure,” I say as I watch The Proposal for the 99th time

“A Sculpture’s Unusual Journey to SLAM [St. Louis Art Museum],” SLAM.org (2020) – With a casual mention of an attraction I never knew about in St. Louis

“The Culture Is Ailing. It’s Time for a Dr. Fauci for the Arts.” WashingtonPost.com (2020) – An idea that occurred to me a few months ago: Why don’t we have an Arts Cabinet?

“The Arts Are in Crisis. Here’s How Biden Can Help.” NYTimes.com (2021) – Partly in response to that Washington Post piece, a historical look at how artists have made it through difficult times in the past and how we can revive artists’ livelihoods mid- and post-pandemic

“The Right’s Message to Silicon Valley: 'Free Speech for Me, But Not for Thee,'” TIME.com (2021) – A more thoughtful and less reactionary take on a volatile moment in the history of modern technology

“'It Makes Me Sick With Grief': Trump's Presidency Divided Families. What Happens to Them Now?” TIME.com (2021) – A study on how politics has done damage to family dynamics in America

“Help, the Only Cinema I Can Handle Is Zac Efron Prancing Angrily in High School Musical 2,” Vulture.com (2021) - In a lot of ways, same

“50 Easy Things To Do When You are Anxious,” ShopTwentySeven.com (2021) – I especially endorse coloring, puzzling, and watching happy movies!

Double Feature—Miss Marple Mysteries: Murder at the Gallop (1963) + Murder Ahoy (1964)

Remember when I was all like, “Watch these Agatha Christie movies so you’re not sad Death on the Nile is delayed”? Remember when I said I was just a few movies away from becoming an Agatha Christie junkie? Well, I think I’m there because I can’t stop with the murder mysteries! Margaret Rutherford is a treasure whether she’s solving a murder at a horse ranch or on a boat, and a cast of colorful supporting characters (including Rutherford’s husband) makes these breezy instead of heavy. Crowd: 8/10 // Critic: 8/10

8½ (1963)

File this with 2001: A Space Odyssey—I don’t know if I really understood this film, but I think I liked it? Federico Fellini’s surrealist, male gaze-y drama blurs the lines between reality and imagination, love and dysfunction, and the past and maybe some future that involves clowns? What resonated with me was the story of a director with creative block, wondering if he’s already peaked and if he’ll create anything worthwhile again. Crowd: 6/10 // Critic: 9/10

Sense and Sensibility: The Screenplay and Diaries by Emma Thompson (1995)

Sense and Sensibility is not just one of my favorite Jane Austen adaptations—it’s one of my all-time favorite films. One of the co-hosts of one of my favorite podcasts has raved many-a-time about Emma Thompson’s journals from the making of film, so it was only a matter of time before I read them myself. Witty, informative, and all-around lovely, Thompson’s journals are an excellent insight into the filmmaking process and how novels are adapted.

Also in January…

I reviewed the new-ish documentary Flannery for ZekeFilm, which is all about the writer Flannery O’Connor and feels a little like going back to high school English class.

In addition to the Lethal Weapon and Thin Man series, I rewatched all of the X-Men series this month. You can see everything I am watching on Letterboxd, including favorites I love returning to (i.e. X-Men: Days of Future Past) and the movies I try that don’t make my monthly recommendations (i.e. The Wolverine).

Photo credits: Paul McCartney, Zac Efron, Sense & Sensibility. All others IMDb.com.

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sweetlilpaulie · 4 years

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Ciaccona in D Minor.

Paul X Reader

Your a talented violinist that catches McCartney’s eye.

Enjoy, My cuties.

~~~

“Now remember, be respectful! This man has very kindly invited you to his home, I should see nothing but good manners from you lot!”

“We always have good manners!” John shot out.

Paul snorted. “Sure we do. Don’t worry, we’ll behave.”

Brian narrowed his eyes at them. “You will be, if you want to live till tomorrow. Now, go get ready! This is a formal party.”

The boys sighed “Well, alright then.”

The boys, stood up and went to change.

George stared at himself in the mirror.

“I hate tuxes.”

He continued to straighten out his bowtie, never satisfied with the result.

“Ey, George! Looks nice!” Paul complimented. “You’ll be a real knockout with the girls!”

“There’s gonna be girls?”

“Of course there’s gonna be girls. They’re everywhere!”

George shook his head. “Rich people don’t have fun parties. It’s just gonna be more old men, pipes, wine, and old ladies.”

“Aw, c’mon don’t be like that! It’ll be fun!” he gave George a little nudge.

“Shove up, time to go.” Paul motioned to the door.

“Well, let’s get this over with, shall we?”

~~~

“Remember what I told you boys! Be courteous! If i’ve heard anything else, so help me....”

“Relax Ep. t’ll be good.” John gave him a strong pat on the shoulder.

The four boys knocked a brass knocker on a tremendous oak door towering over them.

The door opened instantly. A long skinny man with greying hair appeared.

“You must be the Beatles. Come in.”

He opened the door further, allowing them entrance.

“Woww, would ya look at the place?!” John exclaimed staring up at the ceiling. “Lookie at the chandelier!”

Their eyes widened in awe, taking the giant room in.

The man who had opened the door, came back into the room with another man.

“Henry Argarlin the III.” pronounced the man. “These are the Beatles.”

He eyed them. “Ah, yes of course. I’m Henry. It’s a pleasure.”

“The pleasures all ours, Mr. Argarlin.” John raised his hand to shake.

He smiled. “Well, come! We have a buffet ready, and champagne to drink, there’s a few people I’d like you to meet!”

He ushered them through a vast hall. They couldn’t stop staring at all the beautiful craftsmanship of each room they passed.

They were finally led to a beautiful lounge filled with velvet stuffed chairs and silk cushions, a long oak bar on the far right.

“Please, make yourselves comfortable.”

They all looked at each other.

“This place is massive!” whispered Ringo. They all nodded in agreement.

They headed over to the long table of delectable goods. They piled sandwiches on their plates along with some shortbread cookies and chocolate dipped biscuits. They enjoyed a glass of champagne.

Mr. Argarlin would take them around to meet other rich and very snobby people. Most of them seemed disinterested in their work, and called it “sheer luck” that they got their popularity.

It seemed like George was right.

Old people, smoking pipes, telling them how much they didn’t deserve any of it.

They had just about had enough.

Thank God, you showed up.

You came down the stairs, in a simple midnight blue gown, to talk to your father about something.

The boys hadn’t seen you as of yet talking to chester (the butler) about when the tea would be ready.

“Excuse me!” Mr. Argarlin exclaimed. Everyone turned from their discussions to face the man.

“My daughter has a song she would like to play for you all.” he nodded to you, and you nodded back.

That was when you got the boys’ attention. They gaped at you like they had never seen a woman before.

“Is she real?” Paul whispered.

John pinched him “OW, Christ, what was that for!?”

He smirked “I guess she is.”

You pushed up on the clasps, letting them drop and opening the lid to a beautiful chestnut violin.

Pulling it out conscientiously, as you pulled out the bow as well. Adding some much needed rosin, you then placed the instrument under your chin.

“This is Ciaccona in D Minor.” you declared.

You let the bow hairs skate across the strings, moving your fingers quicker than lightning, and somehow still managing to stay in tune.

Paul stared at you in awe.

You didn’t notice, you were too focused on the sound of the music. Every time you played, you got lost, and found yourself in a place far away from this world.

When you had graced them with the last vibrant note, you looked up at your audience.

Most of them smiled and clapped politely.

But, you turned to Paul.

He was absolutely awestruck. He clapped louder than the others.

“That was lovely (y/n).” replied one woman, which you took no notice of.

You said thank you’s rather quickly, you wanted to talk to the boys. It was your idea in the first place to bring them here, after all. It took some convincing, but your father finally agreed to it.

“Hello.” you said rather breathlessly, after all, you were talking to the people you basically worshipped.

“That, was.....brilliant, what you did up there.” Paul said, almost blushing himself. John looked at Paul, grinning wickedly.

“Trying to charm up the only lady here? We’ve got just as many rights as you do, mate. Stop trying to steal the talent.” he winked at you.

You blushed madly. “It’s such a-a pleasure to meet you! I listen to your records all day!” ok, maybe that was a little to much. You told yourself.

You talked with them for a while, about music mostly. The only one who seemed to have nothing to say was Paul. He just kept...staring.

“Paul, say, you should teach me how to play guitar. I am left handed, after all.”

He seemed to snap out of a trace. “Huh? Oh, yeah, love to! That’d be great! Wait, you’re left handed, really?”

You smiled, “yes, as a matter of fact, I am.”

“Well, I’m in serious need of a fag. How about we leave you to chat, ay?” John nudged Paul.

“C’mon Ringo, George, lets go outside.”

Ringo didn’t seemed to pleased to just leave you with Paul, after all you were really pretty.

“Oh, c’mon mate! Paul gets all the birds!” he groaned.

Ringo’s grouching continued the entire way down the hall.

“That was a really pretty song you played.” Paul murmured.

You smiled. “Yeah, it’s one of my favorites.”

“(y/n), I know this is going to sound a bit strange, and you may never want to talk to me again, because I’m being so alarmingly forward, but.. I just want to say, that you are one of the most beautiful women i’ve ever met in my lifetime, and when you played, I just felt we were meant to be together, like we were soulmates or something, I don’t know, I’m probably just going crazy and you probably want me to shut up, oh, I don’t even know what I’m saying anymore..”

Before he could utter another word, you kissed him. Hard.

When you released him, your heart was hammering in your chest.

“God, I’ve wanted to do that since the moment I saw you.”

“So I’m not crazy?”

“Absolutely not! I like you Paul!”

He grinned from ear to ear “So, would you like to go to the cinema with me sometime?”

“Of course. I’d love to.”

~~~

This is the song I mentioned:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aBQkRzZYN8I

Hope you enjoyed!

#beatles #paul mccartney #paul mccartney x reader #john lennon #ringo starr #george harrison #violin #soulmate #cute #happy

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piiixlexia-blog · 7 years

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‘ * ░ “ ━ lungs filled with sweetness

❝ ONE GOOD THING ABOUT MUSIC, WHEN IT HITS YOU, YOU FEEL NO PAIN. ❞ ━ BOB MARLEY

side a: “dance off”

i. ) mr. blue sky electric light orchestra. ii. ) thrill me taron egerton. iii. ) i want you back jackson five. iv. ) surrender cheap trick. v. ) we will rock you queen. vi. ) valerie amy winehouse. vii. ) queenie eye paul mccartney. viii. ) give it up kc and the sunshine band. ix. ) i feel love donna summer. x. ) enjoy the silence depeche mode.

side b: “punch break”

xi. ) mr. brightside the killers ━ “ but it’s just the price i pay, destiny is calling me / open up my eager eyes ‘cause i’m mr. brightside ”

this part of the songs reminds vanellope of the sugar racers’ prank, in which they told her about a fake road in order for her to get lost. before being a part of the group, penelope ( who very preferred going by ‘vanellope’ at the time. naïve and sweet child she was ) was a very optimistic, innocent person, hence why she felt right into their trap. afterwards, something broke. things stopped clickling. the girl became more doubtious, careful and bitter -- it was the price she paid. the lyrics resonate with that tiny optimistic bit left inside the girl, that no matter how many times it’s been damaged, still manages to keep her going.

xii. ) kill your heroes awolnation ━ “ i say ya kill your heroes and fly, fly, baby don't cry / no need to worry 'cause, everybody will die ”

vanellope used to put the sugar racers on a pedestal. tiffany, francis, candice and carolina, they were like heroes to penelope. they were filthy rich, they were ambitious, they were fakely sweet and they were great drivers. there was no flaw to them, and thus, pennie idolized them. things eventually got heated, and now all the girl feels towards them is disdain. it was because of them that she shed so many tears and became the person she is today. the song, speaking about not worrying and ‘killing your heroes’ is somewhat of an anthem of reassurance for the girl.

xiii. ) the love club lorde ━ “ i joined the club and it's all on / there are fights for being my best friend / and the girls get their claws out / there's something about hanging out with the wicked kids ”

xiv. ) pity party melanie martínez ━ “ maybe it's a cruel joke on me / whatever, whatever // maybe if i knew all of them well i wouldn't have been trapped inside this hell that holds me ”

again, the racers. empty promises -- fame, money, friends, fun, time of her life, yada yada -- lured penelope into the clique. at first, things were coming up roses, but things took an abrupt turn around torture lane and became sour. the group isn’t what they claimed to be, and penelope feels angry at herself for noticing this too late. the lyrics speak about a club very similar to that of the racers, hence why these song can be found in this playlist.

xv. ) can’t pin me down marina & the diamonds ━ “ you can paint me any color and i can be your clown // yeah, you can't pin me down // do you think i'm stuck-up ‘cause I'm always picking fights / you might think I'm one thing but I am another / you can't call my bluff ”

if there’s a thing the girl prides herself in, it’s her resilience. despite the pranks and mockery, despite the struggles caused by her dislexia, penelope’s stand remains high. she’s a battler ( a person who refuses to accept defeat despite the difficulties. ) she’s a tough cookie, a forced to be reckoned with ( unfortunately, this may lead to her getting into unwanted fights ), and despite her size, penelope von schweetz has got strength to spare.

xvi. ) afterlife ingrid michaelson ━ “ you and me we’re beautiful / we all we’re gonna be alright / we always got the fight in us / we all we’re gonna live tonight like there is no tomorrow ‘cause we’re the afterlife ”

xvii. ) gold owl city ━ “ go on, It's got to be time, you're starting to shine cause what you've got is gold ”

in most playlist, there is a song of encouragement. that melody that fills the hero with energy and pushes them back into the battlefield. that sweet tune that heals wounds and pulls lips into smiles. this is penelope’s. the upbeatness and enforcing lyrics hit a soft spot inside her. it may be cheesy to feel inspired by a sound, but this is the case. the lyrics glitter her day with hope when listening to it.

xviii. ) new paul mccartney ━ “ all my life i never knew what I could be, what I could do / then we were new // we can do what we want / we can live as we choose / you see there's no guarantee / we got nothing to lose ”

this fits penelope’s love for racing. she has known it’s what she wants to do ever since she got behind that wheel on that unfateful day, and even though it ended in misery, the girl discovered her true passion. racing is what she aims to devote her life to; it’s in her code. she’s not very good right now, but she hopes with all her heart that training and some contacts-acquiring can get her there one day.

xix. ) jump van halen ━ “ i get up, and nothing gets me down / you got it tough / i've seen the toughest all around / and I know, baby, just how you feel / you've got to roll with the punches to get to what's real ”

such an epic song had to be a part of the playlist. not only does pre-2000 music have a special place in penny’s heart due to her parents & their love for that kind of music, but also because this song, like a couple before, revives the hint of optimism inside her. it’s a hopeful song, whose vibe makes penelope feel somewhat younger.

#I LOVED THIS SO MUCH #i'm not going to do the link thing. soz #( musings. )#astratask #astratask01 #UPDATE: i actually did it. click the link.

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blunder-x-blog · 6 years

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The 25 Best Albums of 2017

the Staff

2017 has been a little bit of a whirlwind year. If we thought that 2016 could get somehow worse in any way, 2017 has topped it. But taking a break from possible nuclear world war III, losing the power of the internet, men being whiny babies because retribution is finally coming for the awful scumbags in Hollywood, and our president cheeto’s tiny, waving hands, music is our savior. Music is universal, music is wondrous, and these artists made that abundantly clear. From collaborations made in heaven to strumming guitars recorded on Iphones, 2017 is diverse, daunting, and yes, oh so good. Throughout the year these albums have stuck with me in one form or another. They’ve come with me to Australia, and to my first solo apartment. They’ve played as I worked my first internship job, and they’ve been the soundtrack to my final senior thesis project. They’ve been with me as I’ve lost love and found it, and they’re with me as I move into my final semester of college. Today I present to you my personal top 25 albums of 2017.

Honorable Mentions:

As a radio host, this list began in 2015 and I only had 3 hours to do the show, so I kick off the list of the albums that would have definitely made a top 50 list, but neither me nor anybody else has that kind of time.

Toro y Moi // Boo Boo

King Krule // Ooz

Lil Yachty // Teenage Emotions (Bring it back)

Gorillaz // Humanz

All of which were absolutely fantastic, but ultimately did not make the list (hey, I’m only human). So, without further ado, from bottom to top:

25. Lil B // Black Ken

So here’s the thing about Lil B. Yes, he is the #basedgod, and yes, I did listen to his hundreds of mixtapes in high school, but one of my favorite things about Brandon McCartney is his undeniable message of improvement. He went on tour in 2009 for a self help book he wrote, which still cracks me up to this day (#staybased). And after 2015’s unforgettable Hoop Life, he went on a bit of a hiatus, coming back with one of the most well-produced, succinct rap albums I’ve heard in a long time, let alone coming from Lil B himself. He takes us through a little bit of the story with “Still Run It” and “DJ Based God”, and yet this album is worlds away from his previous work of drunkenly freestyling over unmastered beats. Slick and jazzy with excellent drops and good flow, Black Ken is unforgettable, coming from one of the most unforgettable rappers out there.

24. Jay Som // Everybody Works

Every so often there is an indie rock album that you hear that you cannot forget any time soon. Alvvays 2014’s Alvvays is in a similar vein, and Everybody Works is the kind of album you can put on, jam out to with gin and orange juice and forget a little bit that everything kinda sucks. And yet, most of these songs are about things sucking, at least in a romantic sense. Many of the songs feature heartbreak (“One More Time Please” and “The Bus Song”). And yet there is also overcoming fear; to go on and perform in front of a crowd, to share your message and have it mean something (“(Bedhead)”). Jay Som is definitely someone to watch over the next few years.

23. Mount Eerie // A Crow Looked At Me

Music is emotional, and this album is the kind of album that reminds me of Joni Mitchell’s Blue, of the sickness and heartbreak and sadness that is human. A Crow Looked At Me was a response to the death of Phil Elverum’s wife, and this loss can literally be felt with every pluck of his guitar strings. From the opening line of the album, that “Death is real”, to the final track of the album, of a tender walk in the woods with his wife, seeing a crow flying over the trees. The crow was an omen, says Elverum, he just wasn’t sure of what it was, and A Crow Looked at Me takes us that place of uncertainty, yes, but ultimately it takes us with Elverum as he returns to the world. It takes us through his loss and into the void to emerge from the other side, human, and not quite sure what’s going to happen next.

22. Alvvays // Antisocialites

Okay yes, I’ve already mentioned Alvvays on this list literally two slots ago but it was because I flipped out so much when this band released this album that I’ve been waiting for for three years. When they first made headlines in 2014, it was from their lead single, an extremely sarcastic anthem of...matrimony. There is no “Marry Me, Archie” on this album, and yet each track is still just as poignantly indie-rock as their debut. “In Undertow”, the first single released on the album, was released about midway through the summer. This song is ultimately about a relationship ending, and just having pulled myself from a similar situation as the narrator, it’s chorus of “there’s no turning, no turning back after what’s been said” struck a chord, as one might say, with me. There is no turning back, but “You find a wave and try to hold on for as long as you can”, says lead singer Molly Rankin, and I can at least hold onto that wave, too.

21. Torres // Three Futures

I saw Mackenzie Scott go on tour for this album, and she showed up on stage wearing a blazer over a sports bra and 5 inch heels. It was pretty intimidating. Scott made my best album list back in 2015 with her incredible release Sprinter, and yet, Three Futures resonated somehow more with me. Perhaps it was the title track’s chorus, singing, “You didn't know I saw three futures / One alone, and one with you / And one with the love I knew I'd choose”. Yes, something may end, but we may emerge from that darkness again and end with something w both want. Also, the music video for “Skim”, the lead single, is something else, and definitely worth a watch.

20. Kesha // Rainbows

This album for me was an anthem. Kesha Sebert has been kind of an icon for middle-school me; “Tik Tok” dropped when I was twelve, and it dominated the music of middle-school dances. And if it wasn’t “Tik Tok”, it was one of the gajillion other top hits. And then I learned that her producer had been sexually harassing her and preventing her from having practically say on any of her artistic releases. And Kesha’s struggle somehow that year became all of our struggles. Kesha fought a long, uphill battle separating away from Kemosabe and Dr. Luke, and this record is a direct response to that. It’s even more fitting then that men are finally getting what’s coming to them. As Kesha sings in one of the singles, “Woman”, “I'm a motherfucking woman, baby, alright / I don't need a man to be holding me too tight”

19. James McAllister, Bryce Dessner, Nico Muhly, Sufjan Stevens // Planetarium

Okay, yes. This album is long, this album is kinda mostly experimental classical music. It’s a lot of beeps, it’s a lot of boops. But listen though; I still maintain that everything Sufjan Stevens touches is absolute gold; and also, this album is a classical music match made in heaven. I may be just making excuses, but when “Saturn” dropped back in June, I lost my shit. And again after “Mercury” dropped three weeks later. I may be one of the only few people who loved this album, but let me tell you, firstuvall, it’s an album about space, and seconduvall, the transitions from “Kuiper’s Belt” to “Black Hole” to “Saturn” is something remarkable. I know “Jupiter” is a little overblown, but like, let’s be real, “Mercury” makes up for it, following the nearly 15 minute long instrumental “Earth”, ending with Steven’s quiet voice over intimate guitar, singing, “All that I dream / Where do you run, where do you run to? / Now I am messed up”. Yeah, Suffy, I’m a little messed up too.

18. Slowdive // Slowdive

Okay, I didn’t think that I would get into shoegaze this year, but let me tell you, this release changed my mind. I’m sure that the infamous reputation of shoegaze concerts gets out there, but actually going to one and just kind of sitting there mesmerized in the green light, standing without moving as some guy is just staring at his feet as he mostly just changes the pedals on his guitar? I’ll admit that sounds silly, but ho boy is it pretty dope. And Slowdive kind of did the perfect thing you could do: have only a limited catalogue for fans, go on hiatus, keep all the people who actually mattered in the band, and then release a damn good album after ten years. “Star Roving” kinda changed my view on shoegaze; pedals guitars never sounded so good.

17. The National // Sleep Well, Beast

I think the National have yet to release something that isn’t brilliant in every way possible. I’m not intimately familiar with their catalogue, but on a cold evening when I’m working on studying and want to slam my head against the blackboard, the quiet guitars and the deep, soothing voice of Matt Berninger singing about how much more life can suck keeps me going. Like a bunch of other albums on this list it’s once again about heartbreak, this time a marriage falling apart. “Day I Die” has Berninger singing to you, “I don’t need you, I don’t need you”, but his hushed quiet whisper on the last track/title track of the album whispering, “I’ll tell you about it sometime” leading up to this almost weirdly crunchy guitar riff closes out the album leaving you with something of a sort of hope, at least. Which is mostly what the National does -- it’s pretty sad stuff, and yet, somehow, you keep coming back to its brilliance.

16. Sampha // Process

2017’s music scene came in two parts: part one was people we all love releasing really good shit, and then the second part was people I’ve never heard of releasing really good music from absolutely nowhere. Sampha was part two. He had done a bunch of stuff (in re, collaborate with Kanye West) but I had never heard of this guy. Until he released an album centered around his mother’s battle with cancer and ultimate death. The first time I heard “Timmy’s Prayer”, I thought to myself, damn. Quiet music has a good place, and Sampha’s hushed voice over the ambient chords singing “I messed up, ooh / I know now / There's no room for me to play now” reminds me that yeah, I’ve messed up too. The real magic of the song, however, comes from the building of the bridge as Sampha sings with increasing fervor, “I wanna tell you that love comes and goes / That it comes and goes.” We all make mistakes, and sometimes it’s pretty fucking hard, and yet that process can lead to something beautiful, something wondrous.

15. Kelela // Take Me Apart

There is a reason that pop music is changing. For so long it’s been defined by EDM, and finally (finally) it’s shifting -- yes, to r&b. Thank goodness. And this album is the kind of album that reminds me why r&b is so good. Take Me Apart is Kelela’s debut, and you can bet I’m going to be paying attention to her in the next few years. I like to save songs that I really enjoy on a playlist for the season and I had to keep myself from just saving the entire album on the list as each song was equally as brilliant as the song that came before. A transition between to relationships, the album begins with a breakup song, but the brilliance comes from not only the lyrics, but the utterly intoxicating build through the first verse until the beat drops as the chorus begins, Kelela singing, “Couldn't take it back even though you wish I could / If you think I'm going back, you misunderstood.” (”Frontline”) The album takes you through the emotional journey of beginning another relationship however, and ultimately ends with a track of encouragement, that yeah, black women can fuck up the world, too: “There's a place for everyone / Let me remind you, let me remind you.”

14. Arcade Fire // Everything Now

Arcade Fire never does anything lightly. They had a whole fake branding down to the fake website for Reflektor, which ended up being a nearly 70 minute long somewhat-bloated excapade. Then they decided to do disco, and for some reason the critic world decided they didn’t like it. Fuck that. Everything Now was my summer listening album (other than a few more noteworthy albums to come). My coworkers and I blasted the lead single “Everything Now” through the open window of our field sampling van as we took buckets of crabs into the lab, and my friends and I sang the lyrics to “Signs of Life” as we strutted through the streets of Manhattan on our 21st birthday. I don’t even care that Pitchfork tore this album to shreds, if you don’t dance when the chorus of “Looking for signs of life / Looking for signs every night / But there's no signs of life / So we do it again” drops, something is wrong with you.

13. LCD Soundsystem // american dream

I’ll admit, I have never listened to LCD Soundsystem that much. I respected them as one of the more well known rock bands of the indie scene, and I had obviously heard a few of their more popular numbers on college radio (“All My Friends”). When their synthesizer/DJ genius person Gavin Rayna Russom came out as trans, it caught my attention. So when american dream came along, the release after a hiatus (post hiatus albums always get me, in re: Fall Out Boy, Sleater Kinney and obviously Slowdive) I listened to it. And it was a fantastic intro to the band: the long dancy kinda songs (“other voices” and “tonight”) to the even longer anthems (“how do you sleep”) and the even longer experimental EDM songs LCD is so well known for (“pulse v.1”), this album impressed me, and I came back for more. I understood why LCD soundsystem was so acclaimed; their music was damn good, and worth the wait.

12. Migos // C U L T U R E

Donald Glover called “Bad n Boujee” the best rap song he had ever heard. I’m not sure it’s the best I’ve ever heard, but Migos’ Culture was a damn good album. Impressively produced by 18 people and yet the three rappers at the center of the album are never lost. “Bad n Boujee”, the obvious hit from the album and collaboration with Lil Uzi Vert, is pretty relevant in today’s materialism, talking about getting rich and being with women with expensive taste. With lines like “cookin’ up dope in a crockpot” and “I'm young and rich and plus I'm boujee (hey)”, the song is big, and relevant, and addicting. Bourgeois is the new 1%, and if you’re not living it up, then what’s the point of living.

11. Run the Jewels // Run the Jewels 3

Run the Jewels’ first album was a little more of an experimental thrust into the world, and their second album brought the politicism and polarized lyrics we’ve come to know. Their third album takes what has been established and solidifies it into something uniquely theirs: big, bad and in your face; only the lyrics pack a little more punch than you first thought on the first listen. With team-ups with Danny Brown (“Hey Kids (Bumaye)”) to songs that are just RTJ taking it to the next level and keeping it as hype and as loud and as relevant as we’ve come to expect (“Talk To Me” and “Legend Has It”), RTJ3 is excellent, staying with us all the way through 2017 since its release in January. Oh, and if “Pather like a Pather” isn’t featured in Marvel’s Black Panther, they’re doing something really fucking wrong.

10. Vince Staples // big fish theory

When Vince Staples announced that he was departing from the previous sound of his critically acclaimed Summertime ‘06, I wasn’t quite sure what to expect. Then I heard that SOPHIE, of PC Music notoriety, was helping produce his album. The songs that carrie SOPHIE’s touch are obvious (“SEMO”, “Yeah Right”); SOPHIE is not a subtle producer, but this newer, bigger sound didn’t drown Staples’ raps, they exemplified them. Staples thrives in this sound as he thrived in the atonality of Summertime, and songs like “BagBak” and “745” are impressively big, hooking the listener in and keeping them coming back for more. I was impressed, and big fish theory is an album I have returned to several times this year. Staples takes us into his life with “Big Fish”, looking out at the world from how far he’s come in his fish bowl, and somehow the intimacy comes through amidst the bigger, badder sound.

9. Syd // Fin

This album was released in February. My friend called me and told me I needed to “have sweet lesbian sex to this album right now”. I couldn’t, so I put it off (idiotically) until I finally (only) listened to the album months later, in July. And I felt like an idiot. Syd, one half of the funk/r&b duo The Internet, is a queer icon. She shits gold, and her voice is the kind of smooth, cocky voice that is addicting and extremely sexy. Fin exemplifies this. Only Syd can pull of a braggadocio, egotistical song about fame, money, and of course, bitches: “I’m the one your girl been posting tweets ‘bout / This the kinda life me and my niggas used to dream ‘bout / Riding round your city in a mother fucking spaceship” (”No Problem”). Only Syd can sing this explicitly about sex and somehow make it tender: “Baby we can take it slow, say my name / Don't let go, I can hear your body when I / Pull your hair, what’s my name” from “Body” basically sum up the album. It’s Syd bragging about how great she is, and fuck yes, is she great.

8. HAIM // Something to Tell You

HAIM has been my favorite band since I first heard “The Wire” on my college radio as I drove home one afternoon just before I graduated as a senior. I listened to that album nearly every day that summer, and since then, I listen to the band and think of home. I was so nervous the moment I heard the news about their new release; I was terrified it was going to be a sellout record and absolute garbage. It wasn’t. It was no Days Are Gone, but it was just as wistful, just as smooth as Days Are Gone was, with a little extra disco. Sure, there are moments when it’s a little overproduced (sorry Ariel Rechtshaid, I don’t really care to hear this weird pop fake horse neigh on “Want You Back”, I just want to hear Este Haim’s slap bass and Alana’s first extended vocal solo since “Spirit Wind”). I may not have every song memorized yet, but you can bet I scream along to the chorus of the cathartic “Found it in Silence”: “But I found it in silence, I finally see / There's no turning back, I know what's good for me” or the almost Imogen Heap-like “Kept Me Crying”: “I was your lover / I was your friend / Now I'm only just someone you call / When it's late enough to forget”, and finally we hear the Danielle Haim Guitar Solo we’ve been waiting to hear since the beginning of the album. There’s throwback disco (“You Never Knew”), there’s raging blues rock (“Little of your Love”), there’s cathartic goodbyes (“Right Now”), and yeah, I’m a little teary. My band didn’t disappoint, and I am happy.

7. Jlin // Black Origami

This album was released in February, and has stuck with me throughout the entire year. It’s a black woman who refuses to let people (aka, white men) produce her work for her. It’s experimental and percussive and sometimes makes your brain feel like it’s melting (“1%). There aren’t many lyrics in the album, it’s almost entirely EDM experimental percussion, and gosh man, is it good. I listened to the album for the first time and I physically felt myself leave my body for a few moments to forget I was human. The percussive roots of the album are apparent in tracks like “Kyanite” and “Nyakinyua Rise”, and she gives us quieter moments with “Calcination” a rest from the percussive sound centered at the album’s heart. This album blew me away and stuck with me, and was one of the most out-of-nowhere albums of the year. There are surprises hidden away in this world; you just have to find them.

6. Giraffage // Too Real

So it was not once but twice my friend called me in frantic haze, saying, “Molly. Remember when I called you in February to tell you you needed to listen to Syd’s album that very moment and you didn’t and it bit you in the butt? Listen to this album right now.” I had never heard of Giraffage, and when I pulled the album up on spotify I was greeted by a naked blue guy’s butt, resembling Watchmen’s Dr. Manhattan, looking at a crumbling earth. Little was I to know that some vaporwave album from nowhere would go on to be one of my absolute favorite albums of the year. It’s indietronica/vapor soul at its finest: little to no lyrics except for the vocal distortion of “oooOOh YEAH” on the album’s opener “Do U Want Me” (somewhat off putting) until the funk kind of chimes in about 15 seconds later and takes you on the smoothest journey to vaportown. This may seem like I’m chiding the album, but that is the album’s vibe. It chides you until you listen to it 8 more times just that week. Something about future funk is addicting, and I can’t quite put my finger on it.

5. St. Vincent // MASSEDUCTION

How about we take the fallout of a relationship between two of the most iconic women on earth, that we thought for sure were gonna get married, have the musician at the center of the fallout write an album inspired in part from it, and have Jack Antonoff produce it. And let’s have every track be so St. Vincent that the album may in fact be her best album yet. From the moment “New York” dropped in the middle of the summer and became one of my quickly most listened to tracks of the year (“you’re the only motherfucker in this city who forgives me”) to the dropping of “Los Ageless” as a crunchy indie rock anthem (“How can anybody have you? / How can anybody have you and lose you? / How can anybody have you and lose you / And not lose their minds, too?”) to the fervent listen I gave the entire album the second it dropped on a September Friday, to seeing Annie Clark herself perform the album in its entirety live in Maine, this album has been one of my defining albums of 2017. In the end, Clark hints at what made that relationship fall apart on possibly my favorite track of the album, “Slow Disco”: “Am I thinking what everybody's thinkin'? / I'm so glad I came, but I can't wait to leave”. We’ll miss you until next time, Annie. But we’ll keep coming back.

4. Kendrick Lamar // DAMN.

Kendrick Lamar has been on my top albums of the year list since 2015. The man releases a living masterpiece, To Pimp a Butterfly, to critical acclaim. Next year, the same year Kanye West releases one of the most overproduced albums I’ve seen in my living years, he drops untitled unmastered, which went on to steal my heart. This year, he decides to make an album about growing up as a young black man in Compton, CA, and somehow makes it the most listenable rap album of the year. He is deservedly on the top spot again for both Pitchfork and NPR and a number of other publications, and deserves nothing less. From the songs everybody has on their party playlists, “Humble” and “DNA”, to collaborations with Rihanna and, um, U2?, to the end track of the album “Duckworth” telling the story of Lamar’s now-producer avoiding a robbery at Lamar’s father’s counseling, rewinding back to the beginning of the album, right back where we started: “So I was takin’ a walk the other day...”. The cycle repeats, and Lamar is left right in the center of it all, exactly where he should be.

3. SZA // Ctrl

Sometimes there are people in this world who are born with the voice of an angel and Solána Rowe is one of them. I idiotically did not listen to this album upon its immediate release; it was not until I was recapping the summer did my friend berate me for not listening to Ctrl. I listened to it and immediately fell head over heels in love with Rowe and everything she’s ever released. Ctrl took the minimalistic groundwork laid in Z and upped the ante, making the songs even more listenable than you thought. There’s a reason that r&b makes such good soundtracks to any sort of activity you could imagine; exemplified by the smooth base and twinkling synths of “The Weekend” to the more laid back “Drew Barrymore” as she sings, “am I / Warm enough for ya outside baby, yeah”, worrying like all of us do, in a moment of self doubt, if we are in fact good enough for the loved ones around us. Ctrl exemplifies this self doubt, making it poignant, universal, and oh so listenable.

2. Lorde // Melodrama

Lorde is my age, and it’s a little bit jarring. And yet, every single thing she sings about being a 21-year old is somehow reflected back into my life. Perhaps it was the release order of her singles, from “Green Light”, which sounded like a typical pop song with pretty good lyrics, to “Liability”, easily the best song Lorde has ever released in her entire life (“They say, "You're a little much for me, you're a liability / You're a little much for me” / So they pull back, make other plans / I understand, I'm a liability”), to “Perfect Places”, one of the greatest party anthems I have heard over these years, Lorde has outdone herself again. And if it couldn’t get any better, she takes one of the weaker songs on the album, “Homemade Dynamite”, and releases a remix with Khalid, SZA, and Post Malone (yes, you heard me right). Everything about this album is exactly what it needs to be, from the “glamour and the trauma and the fuckin' / Melodrama” to her whisper at the end of the album as the music crashes leaving her alone and tired and young, Lorde has created a masterpiece. I still ask myself, since the album has released, as I dance in dark lights crossfaded on friday evenings, surrounded by people...“What the fuck are perfect places, anyway?”

1. Khalid // American Teen

I’ll be real; this album may not have been as poignant as DAMN., as universal as Melodrama, or as listenable as Ctrl, but the moment this album was released in May, from the ending chorus of the opening and titular track “American Teen” sung by Khalid’s friends, to his smooth voice over a single piano at the end of “Angels”, I knew Khalid had my album of the year. Heartbreak, frustration, independent and lack of it, struggle, peer pressure and over it all, Khalid’s molasses voice singing over the release of (in my opinion) one of the best r&b albums I’ve heard, this album is universal. Every teenager has been where Khalid has been; trying to hide the smell of marijuana in his car from his parents (“8TEEN”) to losing hope when we thought we could make it through the hardest part (“Winter”), to the heartbreak of young love (“Another Sad Love Song”) we’ve been there. I listened to this album a gajillion times this year. I may not be a teenager anymore, but I’m about to graduate from college and be an adult. It’s a little terrifying. And if a 19 year old can make it through that process of independence (and then go on to release an exceptional album), then damn it, I can make it through too.

#albums of the year #music #culture #blxnder

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