FEATURE: The Digital Mixtape: Songs from Brilliant 2020 Albums

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The Digital Mixtape

Songs from Brilliant 2020 Albums

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I am returning…

IN THIS PHOTO: J Hus/PHOTO CREDIT: Olivia Rose

to albums and songs from 2020, as Dua Lipa’s phenomenal second studio album, Future Nostalgia, turns five on 27th March. Maybe five is not a significant anniversary, and it definitely shouldn’t be marked with a vinyl reissue of an album! I think a tenth anniversary is the earliest we can do that. However, this time five years ago, we were in the grip of the pandemic and lockdown. 23rd March, 2020 was when the first lockdown was announced. As such, an album like Future Nostalgia was strange but wonderful. Dua Lipa could not tour it or do much promotion. There were some fantastic albums released in 2020, at a time when things were stopped and we were experiencing music in a slightly different way. I found April 2020 especially interesting when it comes to albums. Works of brilliance from Laura Marling (Song for Our Daughter) and Fiona Apple (Fetch the Bolt Cutters) helping us get through a very difficult time - as were many other artists. We can look back on 2020 albums with a different perspective and set of emotions. However, it is important to recognise how impactful the albums were considering what the whole world was experiencing in 2020. It has been a pleasure to revisit important albums…

FROM 2020.

FEATURE: Groovelines: Amy Winehouse – Tears Dry on Their Own

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Groovelines

PHOTO CREDIT: Jason Bell

Amy Winehouse – Tears Dry on Their Own

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THE reason…

I am examining Amy Winehouse’s Tears Dry on Their Own is two-fold. For one, it is one of her career-best tracks and a perfect distillation of her vocal and lyrical talents. A stunning song that was included on her second studio album, Back to Black, of 2006. In 2005, twenty years ago, Winehouse began recording songs for Back to Black at Salaam Remi's (who co-produced the album) Instrumental Zoo Studios in Miami. The songs recorded there included Tears Dry on Their Own, Some Unholy War, Me & Mr Jones, Just Friends and Addicted. Winehouse sang while playing the guitar. Remi played the piano and bass guitar, and added other instruments. Vincent Henry played the saxophone, flute, and clarinet. It must have been so spellbinding watching a song like Tears Dry on Their Own come together. As it is almost twenty years since the first recordings for Back to Black were laid down, I wanted to spotlight one of the most celebrates tracks from the album. Tears Dry on Their Own was the fourth single released from Back to Black. It came out on 13th August, 2007 where it reached sixteen in the U.K. Even if the melody and lyrics were composed by Winehouse, the music that backs Winehouse’s voice is an interpolation of Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell's 1967 song Ain't No Mountain High Enough. That classic was written by the legendary by Ashford & Simpson. The original ballad version of Tears Dry on Their Own  is featured on the posthumous album, Lioness: Hidden Treasures (2011). Blending Soul and Motown, it is a distinct and extraordinary song. Track seven on her iconic Back to Black, I wanted to explore the track a little more before finishing up.

It is a shame more has not been written about Tears Dry on Their Own. I haven’t included a review from Drowned in Sound who, when the single came out, were somewhat cynical about why it was released. As the fourth single from Back to Black, they bemoaned artists releasing more than three single. Even if song only just cracked the top twenty, it is a song that deserves its moment in the spotlight. Plenty of artists today release multiple singles from their album. Rather than it being about making money or bleeding an album dry, it was an opportunity for Tears Dry on Their Own to separate from the rest of Back to Black. Get its own amazing music video. I like the fact that Winehouse got the be involved in the video and it looks like it was a good set. I am going to end with an article from last year centred around the release of a lyric video version. One with some unreleased footage. Before getting to that, American Songwriter wrote about the meaning behind one of Amy Winehouse’s greatest songs:

“In the opening verse, Winehouse tells the listener how her relationship soured. Once it was so right, when we were at our high, she sings, setting up the painful reality of her love story.

“I was with someone that I couldn’t really be with and I knew it wouldn’t last,” Winehouse once said of the inspiration behind this song. “But I think because I knew it couldn’t last, it’s kinda like saying, “I’m upset, but I know I’ll get over it, I guess.”

You can find those themes easily in these powerful lyrics. I knew I hadn’t met my match…I don’t know why I got so attached, she sings in the second verse.

I don’t understand, why do I stress the man?
When there’s so many bigger things at hand
We coulda never had it all, we had to hit a wall
So this is inevitable withdrawal

Winehouse had many songs that were about the pitfalls of love. She often sang about unfaithful men and the pain they caused her. While many artists have delivered similar messages, few are as visceral as Winehouse’s tale of love gone awry.

This song is no exception. She says things that many of us would find hard to say out loud. Even if I stop wanting you, a perspective pushes through / I’ll be some next man’s other woman soon, she says. This song sees Winehouse partially defeated and partially emboldened by her ability to speak plainly about her pain”.

Last year saw the release of the Amy Winehouse biopic, Back to Black. With Marisa Abela portraying Winehouse, it was an extraordinary performance. Even if reviews were mixed, Abela’s performance was incredible. It also provided a new opportunity for fans to think about Amy Winehouse’s award-winning album. It is brilliant that we got to see new footage of Winehouse for the lyric video for Tears Dry on Their Own. NME reported on the new video:

“The 2007 single appears on Winehouse’s classic second studio album, 2006’s ‘Back To Black’. Today (April 10), fresh visuals for the song have been shared ahead of the new Back To Black biopic hitting cinemas this Friday (12).

Per an official description, the ‘Tears Dry On Their Own’ lyric clip was created by using outtakes from the original David LaChapelle-directed music video, which was shot in Los Angeles, California.

The first scene finds Winehouse kneeling on her bed in a motel room before she walks out onto the street. Later, we see the star fixing her iconic beehive hairdo in between takes as a clapperboard enters the shot.

Further unscripted and unused moments from the shoot show Winehouse laughing on set and rolling her eyes at the camera while singing the chorus.

Directed by Sam Taylor-Johnson, Back To Black tells the story of Winehouse in a feature-length film for the first time. The biopic follows the star from her teenage years, growing up in north London, through her meteoric rise to a Grammy-winning sensation in the ’00s”.

I have been thinking about 2005 and Amy Winehouse out in Miami working on songs with Salaam Remi. Some classics that would appear on Back to Black. Sounding different in production tone to the ones she recorded with Mark Ronson – such as the epic and sweeping title track -, I wanted to mark twenty years of Tears Dry on Their Own. One of the jewels from Back to Black, I know there will be celebrations next year when Back to Black turns twenty. It will be bittersweet. We lost Amy Winehouse in 2011. There has been no one like her since. There never will be. A once-in-a-generation talent whose legacy will be felt for generations…

GIFT to the world.

FEATURE: Do Bears…? Kate Bush and a Notable Charity Connection from 1986

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Do Bears…?

IN THIS PHOTO: Rowan Atkinson and Kate Bush sing a duet, Do Bears…?, at Comic Relief Live, a live comedy show presented on the evenings of 4th, 5th and 6th April, 1986 at the Shaftesbury Theatre in London's West End/PHOTO CREDIT: Comic Relief/Comic Relief via Getty Images 

Kate Bush and a Notable Charity Connection from 1986

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IN a recent feature…

IN THIS PHOTO: Kate with Lenny Henry and Dawn French (out of shot) at the launch of the Comic Relief book and VHS video in 1986

I asked why Kate Bush was not invited to perform at Live Aid in 1985. Even though this was a couple of months before Hounds of Love was released, it is not like she was obsolete. However, many of those in the press were writing her off. It was a case of poor timing I guess. If Hounds of Love was released earlier in 1985, I am sure Bush would have been included to perform for Live Aid. In 1984, the Band Aid single, Do They Know It’s Christmas?, was released. Again, Kate Bush was not asked to be part of that. This might suggest she turned down the offers or did not want to be involved. She has said since how she probably would have agreed if she has been approached. Even if Bush was not involved in two of the biggest charity endeavours of the mid-1980s, this would be corrected in 1986. Kate Bush was part of the Comic Relief line-up. Maybe disappointed she was not part of the and Aid/Live Aid collective, Bush was more visible than ever shortly after doing work for charity. Kate Bush fans know how much she has given to charity through her career. Even recently when Little Shrew (Snowflake) was released last year to raise money for War Child. Kate performed Breathing (from 1980’s Never for Ever) and a brilliant duet with Rowan Atkinson, Do Bears...? Recordings appear on the album, Utterly Utterly Live at the Shaftesbury Theatre: Comic Relief. After releasing Hounds of Love in 1985, there was a lot of new critical love and respect for Kate Bush. Rather than tour or taking time off, Bush spent a lot of the period after its releasing engaging in charitable events. Comic Relief is memorable, not only because it was the one and only time she performed Breathing on television. The duet with Rowan Atkinson allowed Bush to display some natural wit and comic timing.

A great pairing with Rowan Atkinson, it must have been a thrill for her singing with an actor who was best-known at that point for his role of Edmund Blackadder in Blackadder II. Comic Relief Utterly Utterly Live took place on 4th, 5th and 6th April, 1986 at the Shaftesbury Theatre. It wasn’t until 1988 when the first Red Nose Day and Comic Relief took place. Blackadder II aired its final episode on 20th February, 1986, so audiences would have been quite surprised to see Rowan Atkinson out of period costume performing alongside an artist who, until that point, had not been too involved with comedy. Do Bears…? is one of the highlights of Utterly Utterly Live at the Shaftesbury Theatre: Comic Relief. 1986 was a busy year for Kate Bush. I shall return to her charity work. Kate Bush was also an award winner in 1986. When she attended the BPI Awards (which would become the BRITs), where she won two awards,  including Best Female Solo Artist. She also performed an amazing version of Hounds of Love that evening.

The same year, her brother John Carder Bush released the Cathy photobook. Black-and-white photos of his sister taken when she was a girl, it was a moment when there was a lot of commercial success and critical acclaim for Bush, so this release found a more willing audience. That book was meant to be the first of a trilogy but, respecting his sister’s privacy and owing to production problems, only one volume was released. Bush featured on Peter Gabriel’s album, So, on the incredible duet, Don’t Give Up. She also appeared on a Big Country track, The Seer (from the album of the same name). Enjoying a great relationship with EMI, David Munns suggested a best of compilation Bush was reluctant at first. Munns argued it would buy her time between albums; it was a great commercial moment to ‘cash in; it would reengage fans who dropped out after 1982’s The Dreaming but also provide new fans a glimpse back at her previous singles. Munns let Bush know she would have to do little promotion but did want a new song for the album. Offering a big-budget video, this appealed to Bush. EMI mounted a big T.V. and print campaign. Bush agreed and insisted that the album cover be a simple black-and-white photo that was to be shot by John Carder Bush. After providing the world her masterpiece in 1985, the following year saw this mix of retrospection and charity work. Bush wanted to give something back.

On 25th May, 1986, Bush participated in the Sport Aid mini marathon in Blackheath, south London. I look back on the Richard Curtis-written Do Bears…? Comic Relief was co-founded by Richard Curtis and Lenny Henry. Curtis, who co-wrote Blackadder II with Ben Elton, knew Rowan Atkinson would be perfect for the song. However, he would not have known whether Bush would be able to match Atkinson’s chops. She did! Even though Atkinson and Bush definitely looked the part – Atkinson in a gold lamé jacket; Bush in her shoulder-padded suit jacket -, the song wasn’t especially funny. The joke being they were avoiding singing the word ‘shit’. Instead, substituting the words with ‘sha-la-la’. However, it was great to see Bush in comedic mode. Giving up her time for a worthy cause. This comedy connection carried into her music. For Experiment IV, the newly-written song for the greatest hits collection was The Whole Story. The video featured, among others, Dawn French and Hugh Laurie (who appeared on the same Comic Relief bill as Bush). This 1986 appearance lit a bit of a fuse. Bush back on stage. The following year, in 1987, Bush performed at the Secret Policeman’s Third Ball, raising money for Amnesty International. On stage alongside David Gilmour and his band, although Bush seemed nervous or on edge to start, she soon relaxed in and delivered a stunning rendition of Running Up That Hill (A Deal with God). In think 1986 was one of her busiest years. One where she was still promoting Hounds of Love and very much in the public eye, there was her greatest hits album and the Sport Aid mini marathon that must have been a lot of fun. It was that appearance with Rowan Atkinson and their duet that really strikes me. It proves that Kate Bush had…

A wonderful heart and sense of humour.

FEATURE: To Give Away a Secret: The Solitary Performance of the Majestic Under the Ivy

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To Give Away a Secret

IN THIS PHOTO: Kate Bush in 1981/PHOTO CREDIT: Clive Arrowsmith

The Solitary Performance of the Majestic Under the Ivy

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IT originally…

IN THIS PHOTO: Kate Bush in 1985/PHOTO CREDIT: John Carder Bush

started out as the B-side to Hounds of Love’s Running Up That Hill (A Deal with God). The first single from Hounds of Love was released on 5th August, 1985. I am excited to mark the song’s fortieth anniversary later in the year. Many who bought the single in 1985 were unaware that such a phenomenal song was on its B-side. A month before the album came out, the first taste of it was released. It is a shame that Under the Ivy was not written during the making of Hounds of Love as it would have been a magnificent album track and would have got more exposure and discussion. As it is, this song remains a bit of a curiosity. In my view Bush’s first B-side, not a lot has been written about the song. Under the Ivy was recorded in the studio in just one afternoon. This beautiful song flowed out of Kate Bush. I am going to come to the solitary performance of this song. Ask why it was not include in Bush’s 2014 residency, Before the Dawn, and why the song has not been given more focus. Before discussing the sole performance of Under the Ivy, here is some background about the song. Kate Bush talking about what Under the Ivy is all about:

“It’s very much a song about someone who is sneaking away from a party to meet someone elusively, secretly, and to possibly make love with them, or just to communicate, but it’s secret, and it’s something they used to do and that they won’t be able to do again. It’s about a nostalgic, revisited moment. (…) I think it’s sad because it’s about someone who is recalling a moment when perhaps they used to do it when they were innocent and when they were children, and it’s something that they’re having to sneak away to do privately now as adults.

Doug Alan interview, 20 November 1985

I needed a track to put on the B-Side of the single Running Up That Hill so I wrote this song really quickly. As it was just a simple piano/vocal, it was easy to record. I performed a version of the song that was filmed at Abbey Road Studios for a TV show which was popular at the time, called The Tube. It was hosted by Jools Holland and Paula Yates. I find Paula’s introduction to the song very touching.
It was filmed in Studio One at Abbey Rd. An enormous room used for recording large orchestras, choirs, film scores, etc. It has a vertiginously high ceiling and sometimes when I was working in Studio Two,  a technician, who was a good friend, would take me up above the ceiling of Studio One. We had to climb through a hatch onto the catwalk where we would then crawl across and watch the orchestras working away, completely unaware of the couple of devils hovering in the clouds, way above their heads!  I used to love doing this – the acoustics were heavenly at that scary height.  We used to toy with the idea of bungee jumping from the hatch.

KateBush.com, February 2019”.

Referring back to Tom Doyle’s book, Running Up That Hill: 50 Visions of Kate Bush, he has a chapter dedicated to Kate Bush performing Under the Ivy on The Tube in 1986. This show is not one you would think would platform Kate Bush. There is nothing quite like it now. Free-flowing and chaotic, it was hosted by Jools Holland and Paula Yates. Launched on 5th November, 1982 – four days after Channel 4 was launched in the U.K. -, this live show as untameable and exciting. Rather than being filmed out of London, The Tube was filmed in Newcastle for Tyne Tees Television. One of the most memorable moments in the show’s history was when Miles Davis was involved in quite a strange and stilted interview. Apparently, Jools Holland took Davis to a pub across the road after the show. A grumpy landlord looked at Davis and his trumpet case and said that there was no way he was playing that in here! Even though Bush did not travel to Newcastle for her appearance, she was involved in a pre-recorded performance at Abbey Road Studios. Celebrating the show’s one-hundredth episode, Bush was in a safe space at Abbey Road. Somewhere she had recorded before it was the only airing of one of her most overlooked songs. A song that needed to be written quickly so that there was an original B-side for the first single from Hounds of Love, I wonder how many listeners who bought the Running Up That Hill (A Deal with God) – simply called Running Up That Hill then – flipped over the single and listened to Under the Ivy.

The Newcastle crew came down to St John’s Wood in London to film Kate Bush. Walking across the world-famous zebra crossing, they all started singing The Beatles’ Here Comes the Sun. In her introduction, after calling the crew “silly fools”, Paula Yates explained how they were not here “to do The Beatles”. Instead, they were there to “do Kate Bush”. Yates incorrectly said how Bush had her first hit aged nineteen – it was corrected to eighteen in post – and how she broke barriers and crossed boundaries with her music. Even if the tone and wording towards the end of her introduction seemed slightly “piss taking” (as Tom Doyle writes), Bush later said how touched she was. Doyle notes how a song that is about finding a private sanctuary to hide away was appropriate for Abbey Road Studio One. A space Bush often hid way in, I did not know that when she was recording in Studio Two, an engineer led her through a secret route into the rafters of the larger room. They would go up over the ceiling, through a hatch and crawl across a high beam, where they could look down on the orchestral players below. Bush said how she loved doing that. How the acoustics were “heavenly” listening from that height. Bush often imagined herself bungee jumping down. In a stripped-back performance of the song, Bush delivered a sublime performance. Under the Ivy is about the narrator/her slipping away from the party and under the ivy. To a secret spot to meet a lover. Whether they were there to fool around or find some quiet, it was maybe two people who used to have a crush in childhood and are picking up this romance. It is a fascinating song that is not often played or talked about.

For the performance at Abbey Road, Bush was behind a piano. She looked completely calm and composed – though I can imagine she was nervous – and ended the song by looking up and smiling at the camera. It is a shame that this song was never performed live after that. I do wonder why it was not included for Before the Dawn. It would have been good to include in the encore alongside Among Angels and Cloudbusting. There has not been an animated video or anything for the song. Under the Ivy is not available on Spotify. Such a shame that a song as wonderful as this has a brief period of exposure! It came out in 1985 and was performed for the only time the year after. Nearly forty years later, very little engagement with the song. I do think that it deserves a reissue. If there are plans for Bush to commemorate the fortieth anniversary of Hounds of Love in September, maybe a new single reissue of Running Up That Hill (A Deal with God) with Under the Ivy as the B-side again. Without doubt her finest B-side, this gem of a song is worthy of so much more. I would urge people to listen to it now. One of Bush’s most stirring and beautiful vocals. I love the performance she gave for The Tube in 1986. It is a moving and…

HUGELY evocative track.

FEATURE: Can I Kick It? A Tribe Called Quest’s People's Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm at Thirty-Five

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Can I Kick It?

A Tribe Called Quest’s People's Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm at Thirty-Five

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THIS anniversary feature…

IN THIS PHOTO: A Tribe Called Quest. From left to right, Jarobi White, Q-Tip, Ali Shaheed Muhammad and Phife Dawg/PHOTO CREDIT: Ernie Paniccioli/Courtesy of Sony Pictures Classics

Is about a remarkable debut album. A Tribe Called Quest’s People's Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm turns thirty-five on 17th April. I wanted to spend some time discussing the incredible debut from the Hip-Hop group. I guess People's Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm was quite radically at the time. When it came out in 1990, its laidback lyrics and use of samples was not common in Hip-Hop. Similar to an album that came out a year previous: Del La Soul’s phenomenal debut, 3 Feet High and Rising. For their debut, A Tribe Called Quest began recording sessions for People's Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm in late-1989 at Calliope Studios. It was completed in early-1990. In terms of legacy, not only did People's Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm widen Hip-Hop’s vocabulary and was forward-thinking in terms of its use of samples. All these years later, the album has inspired so many other artists. From Ms. Lauryn Hill, D’Angelo and J Dilla, People's Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm has made a huge impact. I am going to end with a review for the twenty-fifth anniversary release (2015). I am starting out with a couple of features for one of the most influential and stunning Hip-Hop albums ever. One of the best debut albums ever. I want to start out with a 2015 feature from Legacy Recordings. They were marking the twenty-fifth anniversary of People's Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm. It arrived at a time when there was a diversification of Hip-Hop. Even if Del La Soul and their Daisy Age sound was criticised by some, it did offer something more thoughtful and gentle. Not that this sound lacked impact and power. Many expected groups like De La Soul to have the same sort of attitude and sound as Public Enemy and the sound of West Coast Rap. More political and cutting. A Tribe Called Quest arrived in 1990 and provided new colours and layers. Maybe their lyrics sound out of place now and have not aged as well as other Hip-Hop groups/albums. However, it is clear how important People's Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm is:

“But, before they could create legendary hip-hop, they had to locate each other. Q-Tip and Phife did that in 3rd grade, as Jonathan Davis and Malik Taylor, at the Linden Seventh-day Adventist School in Laurelton, Queens. Perhaps the fact that both were transplants drew them together; that they’d both recently changed schools after getting into fights at their former institutions. Their connection was instant. “He was just a funny dude to me,” recalls Q-Tip. “Funny as hell. He just had everybody dyin’.”

Of course, this being the late ’70s, hip-hop was becoming the lingua franca of young Black men. This also bonded them. Tip had discovered the culture at the age of 6, not only as he was dragged to park jams by a sister twice his age, but as the rowdy motorcycle club next to their home blasted beats by night.

Phife’s intro came around age 8, while staying with his grandmother. (He did this throughout elementary school while his parents worked.) A friend from across the street deejayed, and kept tapes of the Cold Crush Brothers, Funky Four + 1, Treacherous 3, on PLAY. “I latched on everything he had. I used to say everyone’s raps. Then, I started making up my own words. And Q-Tip was my best friend, so we started doing it together.”

Around 12, Phife met Jarobi, and introduced him to Q-Tip. Then, in high school — that is, the Murry Bergtraum High School for Business Careers, in lower Manhattan — Q-Tip would meet Ali Shaheed, and connect him with the others. The quartet was now complete.

Taking the name Quest — it won out over “The Crush Connection,” says Phife — the crew labored to put together a demo. Four tracks — “Funky Fire,” “Routine,” “Bonita Applebum,” and “Pubic Enemy” — soon made their way out to the labels. Needless to say, the companies loved what they heard, and the group was immediately signed. Right?

Nope. The feedback came in both fast and furious. “They totally just shitted on us,” admits Jarobi. “Tip was ‘bad,’ Phife was…something, and I was ‘just horrible.’ All the bad superlatives you can think of (laughs), that was us. They hated us.”

Quest were still in their mid-teens, at that point. Recording People’s was about three years away. However, today, Jarobi chalks up the reviews, not to their youth, but to the labels’ un-youth. “They weren’t ready.” He explains, stressing that, up until then, “there was a more…mechanic sound to hip-hop; not as melodic as the music that we’d started making.” The era’s dominant rhythms were all “straight 4/4, 808 drums, and James Brown samples, everything on the one, very straightforward. It wasn’t until De La, Jungle, us, and a couple of other groups came in that the music started getting movement.”

But that didn’t happen right away. Engineer Bob Power, with Dr. Shane Faber, oversaw the People’s Instinctive Travels recording sessions at the now defunct Calliope Studios. Power says that rap artists were facing fairly widespread resistance at the mixing console, too.

Because of sampling, “hip-hop used different techniques of recording,” he notes, “and different source materials, and the sonic ethic was very different than conventional engineering at the time.” When the culture’s creators showed up at most studios — rough-talking Black teenagers rocking skullies, Carhartts, Tims, and lugging crates of vinyl, their rhyme notebooks, 40s, pagers, and blunts — “the white, male boys’ club of the engineering establishment saw them and said, ‘I don’t understand how these people are dressed, I don’t understand how they talk, and that’s not music,’” he admits, adding, “I think, to some degree, there may have been an unconscious factor of racism involved.”

Perhaps, Power states, because “Calliope was one of the cheapest studios in town, and the engineering staff there, didn’t ever really say, ‘Oh, that’s wrong, that’s not the way to do things,’” they won over hip-hop’s intelligentsia. “Jungle in one room, recording,” recalls Phife, of the period. “De La Soul in another room, recording. Latifah in another room, recording. Prince Paul,” alternately with De La, or his band, Stetsasonic. “Everybody was there.”

As for the process of making the album, says Q-Tip, “it was exciting. We were kinda left to our own devices, pretty much. It was just a great environment, conducive for creating.”

When I ask Tip what he means, he’s reflective. “When we were in the studio, we didn’t have the cell phones, we didn’t have the internet, we didn’t have a whole bunch of things to tear at us.

“When we got to the studio, the specific job was to make music. There was no TV in there. It was all instruments, all speakers. It was just music. Eat food, listen to music, that’s it. If there was a phone call, somebody would come in from the office and say, ‘There’s a phone call,’ and usually, it would be for the adult engineer. It was just great. And I really believe that’s how it should be, when you’re cre-a-ting.” He sounds out each syllable for emphasis, before summing up. “The process, for People’s Instinctive Travels, to me, was utopia.”

If it was perfection for Tribe, it would prove to be even more so for a number of hardy souls. These are the ones who, on the strength of the singles and amazing word of mouth, ponied up to the registers on Tuesday, April 10, 1990 and bought the premiere album by this untried group.

As a result, People’s Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm reached #91 on Billboard’s Top 200, and #23 on the magazine’s Top R&B/Hip Hop Albums chart. “I Left My Wallet In El Segundo” and “Can I Kick It?” both became Top Ten Hot Rap singles, hitting #9 and #8, respectively, with “Bonita Applebum” achieving Top 5 status, at #4. Finally, People’s Instinctive Travels has been certified gold, having sold over 500,000 copies.

Today, many consider the first time they heard the album a personal, life turning point. Twenty-five years after its 1990 release, it is widely recognized as the seminal statement by artists who are now, unquestionably, legends; their names carved indelibly in the great walls of hip-hop history and culture. We hear their massive influence whenever we listen to the music of Common, Talib Kweli, The Fugees, D’Angelo, Mos Def, Erykah Badu, and Kanye West, among numerous others. And it all started here, on this album. Clearly, Jarobi, Phife, Ali, and Tip did something incredibly right”.

I will get to a review soon. First, Albumism explored People’s Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm as part of a series that looked at one-hundred dynamic debut albums. Published in 2017, they showed a lot of love for a work of genius that has no filler at all. A Tribe Called Quest carried this debut momentum into their subsequent albums. A force to be reckoned with:

“Released in the spring of 1990, People’s Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm has admittedly gained more respect as time has passed. But it still resides in the shadows of its two immediate successors (1991’s The Low End Theory and 1993’s Midnight Marauders), relegated to a role akin to the forgotten first child within the broader context of A Tribe Called Quest’s recorded output. Which is perplexing, at least to my ears. For while the album may be understated relative to its more universally lauded counterparts, it is exceptional in its own right, and one of the most imaginative debut albums ever recorded, hip-hop or otherwise.

Harboring neither grand schemes nor lofty delusions of crossover pop grandeur, Tribe’s debut didn’t purport to be anything other than what it is: a cleverly unorthodox and sonically inventive celebration of life, love, and music. Following in the creative footsteps of Jungle Brothers’ Straight Out the Jungle (1988) and Done by the Forces of Nature (1989), as well as De La Soul’s 3 Feet High and Rising (1989), People’s Instinctive Travels embodied and expanded upon the Native Tongues collective’s trademark virtues of playfulness, positivity, and pride. Equal measures whimsy and wit, the album exudes an unparalleled bohemian cool, Afrocentric sophistication, and admirable humility, all of which combine for an irresistibly vibrant and soul-affirming listening experience.

Sonically, the album is an intoxicating mélange of melodic sounds and expertly incorporated samples, primarily culled from 1970s jazz, soul and funk records, which together provide the perfect canvas for Q-Tip and the late great Phife Dawg to flex their skills. Clocking in just shy of eight minutes and riding along a sweet Grover Washington, Jr. sample (“Loran’s Dance”), the album’s first track “Push It Along” is an epic way for Tribe to introduce themselves. I’ve always loved Q-Tip’s opening verse, which formally announces Tribe’s noble musical vision and humble disposition: “Q-Tip is my title, I don’t think that it’s vital / For me to be your idol, but dig this recital / If you can’t envision a brother who ain’t dissing / Slinging this and that, cause this and that was missing / Instead, it’s been injected, the Tribe has been perfected / Oh yes, it’s been selected, the art makes it protected / Afrocentric living, Africans be givin’ / A lot to the cause ’cause the cause has been risen.”

Other highlights abound. A document of an impromptu road trip gone awry, “I Left My Wallet in El Segundo was Tribe’s first-ever single and video that cemented their unconventional approach to songcraft and penchant for compelling storytelling. “Bonita Applebum,” the album’s second and arguably most recognizable single, is Q-Tip’s endearing plea to the object of his infatuation, articulated over a fantastic sample of RAMP‘s “Daylight.” The combination of Q-Tip & Phife’s inspired rhymes, the playful call-and-response chorus, and ingenious lifting of Lou Reed’s “Walk on the Wild Side” and Dr. Lonnie Smith‘s “Spinning Wheel” on “Can I Kick It?” coalesce for one unforgettable track.

A wonderful ode to an idyllic day spent in the comfort of close friends, it’s damn near impossible to resist bopping your head and tapping your feet to “After Hours,” a feel-good anthem that samples Sly & The Family Stone and Richard Pryor. A tough call, but my personal favorite happens to be “Footprints,” an addictive groove with Q-Tip’s fervent rhymes gliding across a harmonious mix of samples courtesy of Donald Byrd, The Cannonball Adderley Quintet, Stevie Wonder, and Public Enemy”.

I will end with a review from Pitchfork for People's Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm. I have compared A Tribe Called Quest to De La Soul. In the sense of the delivery. However, People's Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm is full of conscious rap that they carried into future albums. However, like many of their more energised and ‘angrier’ peers, there was something distinct about the delivery and vibe of A Tribe Called Quest:

“Approaching A Tribe Called Quest's seminal debut in 2015 is a loaded venture. The Queens, N.Y. trio (and sometimes "y" quartet, counting Jarobi) is one of the most revered acts in hip-hop—and with good reason. As part of the Afrocentric and innovative Native Tongues collective—which included De La Soul,  Jungle Brothers, Queen Latifah, Black Sheep, and others—they created and refined a template for '90s hip-hop that was street-astute, worldly, and more inspirational than aspirational.

Even without the Native Tongues' legacy, Tribe's heritage is not a light one. There's no stretch in saying that, without A Tribe Called Quest, the biggest rap artists of this year—Drake, Future, and Kendrick Lamar—would not exist as they do. Drake would not be Drake without Kanye West's 808s and Heartbreak; Kanye would not be Kanye without his Tribe influences. Without Tribe, the Dungeon Family—birthplace of Outkast, Goodie Mob, and Future—arguably does not exist. And the improvisational looseness of Kendrick's opus is unthinkable without the innumerable branches of jazz and hip-hop sprouting from Tribe's experimentation, which differed significantly from the cooler jazz-sample leanings of Stetsasonic and Gang Starr. There's no Mos Def, no J. Cole, no Common, no J Dilla, no Digable Planets, no Neptunes, and no Clipse as we know them. Tribe is that important. And this album—the first ever to receive a perfect "5 Mic" rating from The Source magazine—is where it all began.

Arriving a year after De La Soul's 3 Feet High and Rising, People's Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm showed Q-Tip, Phife Dawg, Ali Shaheed Muhammad, and Jarobi to be whimsical yet grounded in reality. They weren't heady, hermetic, and puzzling like De La; in comparison to 3 Feet High's astounding range and informative sound collages, People's Instinctive Travels was clean and focused. Where De La went wide musically, Tribe went deep; where De La was deep and dense lyrically, Tribe went wide and abstract. That both projects managed to do all they were able to do and remain fun is one of the great wonders of hip-hop's first golden age.

Encountered now, in 2015,  A People's Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm feels like a palette cleanser. Considered with Kendrick Lamar's layered and angsty self-examination on To Pimp A Butterfly, the blunting and numbing escapist bounce of Future's DS2, and Drake's bombastic and moody mythological affirmations from If You're Reading This It's Too Late, it's an album that's largely focused outside of itself and its creators. There are three added cuts for this reissue—remixes by Pharrell, J. Cole, and CeeLo—that are passable and melodic but unneeded. Tribe's music needs no updating, even when it sticks out like a sore thumb, because that's exactly what it did in 1990.

"I Left My Wallet In El Segundo", with its eight-bar flip of the Chamber Brothers' "Funky" and Wes Anderson-like narrative, is sparse and simple. But it more than stands up, thanks in no small part to Bob Power's remastering, which makes everything sound fuller and crisper and which uses the empty space between the newly clarified sounds to create groove and warmth. On a fresh listen, the reason "Bonita Applebum" (powered largely by a generous  sample of  Ramp's "Daylight") is still considered one the best loved songs hip-hop has ever produced becomes clear—musically it's sunny and spry, capturing blushes of virgin courtship. It's objectifying, but respectful; cocksure but awkward; flattering and freaky: Q-Tip praises his desired's "elaborate eyes," promises to "kiss you where some brothers won't" and offers that, "So far, I hope you like rap songs."

The rhymes here are at once conversational and repressed, the topics concurrently large and small. Diet is tackled on "Ham 'N' Eggs" with Tip and Phife rhyming in tandem, "A tisket, a tasket, what's in mama's basket?/ Some veggie links and some fish that stinks/ Why, just the other day, I went to Grandma's house/ Smelled like she conjured up a mouse. " Sexual fidelity and STD's are dealt with on "Pubic Enemy" via "Old King Cole" who "wore the crown but not the jimmy hat" until one day "the fair maiden in the royal bedroom/ Caught the king scratching." Sex and safe sex were at the forefront of Q-Tip's mind—props (women) are referred to often, and the most important thing about retrieving his wallet from El Segundo seems to be reclaiming his "props' numbers" and condoms, or "jimmy hats."

The group is marked for their social consciousness, but not merely because of their awareness, but their ability to wax simultaneously about politics and art. On "Push It Along", Tip traverses police brutality, community unity, and rap dreams in a few bars, managing to be an approachable advocate for responsibility without seeming didactic: "The pigs are wearing blue/ And in a year or two/  We'll be going up the creek in a great big canoe / What we gonna do? Save me and my brothers?/ Hop inside the bed and pull over the covers?/ Never will we do that and we ain't trying to rule rap/ We just want a slab of the ham, don't you know, black?" The lyrics are 25 years old. But were they released today they'd seem right on time, while being out of place—because all these many years later People's Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm is more than a nostalgia artifact. It's a worthy listen, not because of what it was, but because of what it is”.

Even though some sites say People's Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm came out on 10th April, 1990, Discogs and other sites say it is 17th April. I will go with the latter. Thirty-five very soon, I wanted to shine a light on one of the all-time great debuts. This album kicked off the career of one of Hip-Hop’s…

MOST innovative and influential acts.

FEATURE: Spotlight: Six Sex

FEATURE:

 

 

Spotlight

PHOTO CREDIT: Paula Montenegro for Remezcla

Six Sex

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ONE of the most…

PHOTO CREDIT: Catalina Jacobo

arresting artists of the moment is Six Sex. Although there are not many interviews out there with her, I want to bring in a couple. I will end with a review of Six Sex’s recent E.P., X-sex. If you do not know about Six Sex then make sure that you follow this brilliant Argentinian artist. I am going to start out with an interview from last year. Hailing the “Queen of the Perreo Rave”, it is an interesting insight into someone who I think is going to have a remarkable remainder of 2025:

“Just write mocatriz: modelo, cantante y actriz,” says Argentine perreo vixen Six Sex, giggling from her Buenos Aires bedroom. The cheeky reference to Spanish camp provocateurs Ojete Calor aligns perfectly with her patented brand of sonic and aesthetic irreverence, where raunchy mutant reggaeton meets strobing rave excess. Pull up her music videos, and you’ll see long black tresses cascading down to an exposed washboard midriff, while her decked-out fingernails are longer than the barely-there skirt hems. Six Sex epitomizes the delicious, genre-voracious hedonism flourishing in underground Porteño parties, and her music produces a unique type of synesthesia where instead of seeing sounds, you actually get a strong whiff of poppers.

“Six Sex is kind of a character that comes to life through music and video,” she confides to Remezcla. “I’d love to be a guiding light for any young people who feel lost or confused, and that through my music, can be empowered to do whatever the hell they want without being judged. There’s a song on my new EP called ‘Hot and Perfect,’ and though I don’t always feel hot and perfect, the point is to confidently affirm yourself even when your hair and makeup aren’t fully done up.”

Hailing from Villa Tesei in western Buenos Aires, Six Sex is the hentai avatar of 25-year-old Francisca Agustina Cuello. While she didn’t quite aspire to pop stardom as a child, she performed living room shows for her family and — the consummate hustler — always made sure to pass around a hat for tips. She cites MTV and MuchMusic as foundational in her upbringing, with Madonna, Britney Spears, and Lady Gaga kicking open a world of glossy possibilities and preparing her for paradigm-breaking stars like Arca and Björk. She started frequenting clandestine perreos at age 14 and felt an instant connection with Las Culisueltas, a kitschy troupe of young women that melded reggaeton with flashes of house and cumbia turra. Beyond discovering she could throw ass to sounds and hooks that echoed her Porteña experience, the chaotic melange of rhythms broke down any preconceptions that might have otherwise limited her libertine approach to music.

“These days, rave and perreo culture intersect often, but back when I started going out, that wasn’t the case at all,” she adds, noting the game-changing advent of Neoperreo. “I used to work at a place that only played dubstep, and there was no chance they’d ever touch perreo. Even though I can’t really palate dubstep anymore, my time there led me to SoundCloud. I started listening to mixes that were weird and special. That’s where I met Merca Bae, and then we started chatting on Instagram before eventually collaborating [in 2020] for ‘Purple”.

Earlier this month, Six Sex spoke with PAPER. An artist who has been cosigned by Charli xcx, her X-sex E.P. moves into Pop music. If previous work was more club-based, this one has a slightly different sound. There is perhaps not a huge amount of awareness of Six Sex in the U.K. at the moment. That is starting to change. When the summer hits, I think her music will get much more exposure and attention:

“Your sense of humor comes through in a lot of songs and videos, like “My boyfriend is gay,” on “U&ME,” which went viral, at least on my side of the internet. Where does that playfulness come from?

Everything I write is real, but also slightly mixed with fiction. A big part of reality, some [aspects] of fiction. That phrase comes from being on tour and constantly speaking to my gay friends. So it was basically true, you know? A lot of people just see this relationship... some girl and some guy, but there are so many ways that people can relate to each other, and I’m referring to that kind of emotional intimacy that you can have with someone, even if it’s not heterosexual intimacy.

For example, when we were on tour, Leandro Bucha, who is my creative director and my best friend, played a lot of roles, professionally and personally. He will be the one doing the videos and the live show direction, but he will also be the one holding the purse for me when I’m in the toilet... a lot of really important and really simple tasks that make our relationship very special.

You’ve been partying and touring in so many different places. Do you have a favorite in recent memory?

When it comes to a favorite experience, it was the first show of the European tour. Last July, in 2024, in Switzerland, in a small city called Lausanne. They had a festival, and it was a free festival, and we actually didn’t know what to expect, we didn’t know if it was going to be 50 people, 100 people, 200 people. So our hopes and expectations were really low, and we don’t really know how this happened, but apparently word got out that her show was worth watching and the music was worth seeing live. At some point they had to stop letting people in, because there were so many people. For 45 minutes, we had this amazing little rave right beside a cathedral. It was crazy that the first Europe tour started like that.

It must feel good to know that your music has gained such a global audience and reached so many places you didn’t expect, like Switzerland.

It happened in an organic manner, since the beginning of my project, I’ve had small groups of people listening abroad and studying my music. And that crowd began to grow over time. It was not normal, but I was used to it. Even at an early stage, I had more listeners in Mexico, or the US, than in some cities in Argentina. It makes me happy that in a lot of different places with a lot of different people, fans can appreciate my music, even though I sing in Spanish, or even in English, it doesn’t really matter, because what they love is the artistry and the storytelling and the whole package.

PHOTO CREDIT: Catalina Jacobo

You’ve been working on new music, and you’re putting out an EP very soon. What can you tell fans who are excited to hear what you’ve been working on?

For this new EP, it’s a transition, because I have, along the way, done different genres and styles of music. My last EP was definitely club music, and this one has some sparks of that, but maybe transitions a little into pop music. I wanted to try new sounds, and try new textures in the music. I want to know how people react to that, and I’m also getting ready for my debut album, which is a process that will be happening this year. I want people to not take my music so seriously, as in obsessing over labels and cataloging my music, because I will always be changing my style and searching for new sounds.

What inspired the transition to pop?

I’ve put out four EPs, and this will be my fifth. My first was electronic textures and moods, the second was very alternative, very special reggaeton, the third was also reggaeton but more mainstream and also Mexican sounds, because it was made in Mexico. The fourth EP was also electronic, but dedicated to the club. My music is a winding road through the mountains, up and down. There’s definitely different phases.

What pop artists have you been inspired by, or would hope to work with?

When it comes to artists, Brat and Charli xcx had a huge impact last year. Maybe not so much an inspiration for me personally, but definitely an affirmation that when certain big, really valid artists talk about certain subjects like partying or clubbing or going out, drugs, everything, it makes other artists able to talk about certain subjects without feeling overexposed. It was a good impact for a lot of artists, and especially female artists, to be able to talk about subjects we usually wouldn't, and show ourselves in a truthful way instead of hiding some subjects because they are taboo. I think that when more mainstream pop music utilizes subversive esthetics, it creates a really big cultural shift, which maybe enabled my Satisfire EP, in some ways, to reach the virality it did because of timing”.

I am going to end with a review for the extraordinary X-sex. I have only just discovered Six Sex. Someone who very much can fit into the modern Pop scene, there is something extra and different about her. The way she can fuse genres into something that id distinctly her sound. NME note how she doesn’t so much as create music but a sonic riot. I would encourage everyone to go and follow this incredible artist:

“At just 26, Six Sex (aka Francisca Agustina Cuello) has crowned herself the queen of perreo rave. Hailing from Villa Tesei in Buenos Aires, she’s been setting dancefloors alight with her warped, high-octane fusion of reggaeton, dancehall, and club-ready electronic chaos. Her 2022 breakout project ‘Área 69’ catapulted her from underground raves to this year’s NME 100, and now, with ‘X-Sex’, she doubles down on the lawless energy that made her a cult icon. This isn’t just music — it’s a sonic riot.

The first taste of ‘X-Sex’ we got was via its lead single, ‘U&Me’. With pitched-up vocals bouncing over a beat that feels like it’s been jolted back to life with an electric shock, it feels like a sugar rush laced with something much, much stronger. It’s sweaty, messy, and addictive, but it was only a small glimpse of the club-drenched collection that Cuello’s fourth EP is.

‘Performance Actitud (Pose)’ takes a more sultry turn, dripping in menace with its twisted synths and pulsating percussion. The distorted vocals sound like they’re being dragged through a tunnel of strobe lights and static for a hypnotic effect. There’s almost a voyeuristic quality to the track, as though you’re peeking into a hedonistic after-hours world of flashing cameras and salacious acts.

Throughout ‘X-Sex,’ Six Sex proves she’s not here to make palatable, radio-friendly bangers. ‘How To Make Your Ass Bigger’ sees her instructing us to unlock new levels of sex appeal over a nostalgic eurodance-inspired instrumental: “bend your knees, press your hips back” and “press our heels into the floors”. ‘Ahhhhhh’ is a dark and frenzied cut where screeching synths and vibrating percussion take over for an experience that’s equally euphoric and chaotic. And ‘Tócame’ – with fellow rising Argentine star Dillom – cranks up the tempo with a hyperactive blend of reggaeton swagger and glitchy electronic flourishes, spinning you into a hypnotic, feverish haze.

‘Bitches Like Me’ is the brilliantly cheeky highlight of the record. While interpolating the immortal Kylie classic ‘Can’t Get You Out Of My Head’, she lets it be known that only “Bitches like me like bitches like me”. Those that get it, get it: Cuello only wants the baddest bosses in her circle.

‘X-Sex’ is a no-holds-barred audio assault, revving up the BPM and refusing to hit the brakes. Six Sex pushes every sound to its limit, proving this fearless sonic agitator thrives in mayhem – love it or hate it, you won’t forget it”.

Six Sex is going to be a sensation. Hailing from Villa Tesei in western Buenos Aires, this artist now belongs to the world. Even if she is still a rising artist, her music has travelled the globe and Six Sex is being tipped to have a very big and long career. You cannot argue against that. It is going to be exciting just how far she can go…

IN the coming years.

__________

Follow Six Sex

PHOTO CREDIT: Paula Montenegro for Remezcla

Instagram:

https://www.instagram.com/sixsex_bb/

TikTok:

https://www.tiktok.com/@sixsex_bb

YouTube:

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCNY7sHgXH9g_OZdhw6tdx_Q

Spotify:

https://open.spotify.com/artist/29rvPhemBdOLYdLr2xI8dr?si=jFSZntZkRnGi29vgdb9ipg

FEATURE: Odd and Even Numbers: Bringing Feminist Books and Writing More Into the Mainstream

FEATURE:

 

 

Odd and Even Numbers

PHOTO CREDIT: Ricky Esquivel/Pexels

Bringing Feminist Books and Writing More Into the Mainstream

_________

THIS sort of follows up…

IN THIS PHOTO: A mural by Irish artist Emmalene in Dublin, March 2021/PHOTO CREDIT: Artur Widak/NurPhoto/REX/Shutterstock

from a previous feature where I talked about feminism’s next wave, a need for positivity and this desire and requirement for a positive men’s movement. I was inspired by an interview from Cailtin Moran. She discussed how she is putting her next book on hold and instead writing one of positive notes and almost love letters. How there needs to be positivity and hope right now. Moran also discussed how there is not a positive men’s movement. Moran’s book, What About Men?, was sort of her response to this. Writing about issues affecting men. Among other things, the book discusses the effects of pornography use in men, and the interest in Andrew Tate for an adolescent. Some asked why Moran did not write a book about, say, the transgender right’s movement. Caitlin Moran explained, in a recent interview, how she came under attack from left-wing and right-wing men alike. Accusing her of saying men are not in touch with their feelings and attacking her book and motives. It is frustrating that there was this response. In my recent feature, I explained how nearly all feminist authors (of which Caitlin Moran is one) are women. Nearly everything written about feminism or related to it has been written by women. I guess in theory that might be a small number of men who have written about feminism or published a feminist book. However, they are hard to find and I have Googled seeing what the numbers are and I could not see any male authors, journalists or academics who would be seen as feminist writers. It is quite baffling. A real lack of engagement from men when it comes to feminist writing. Many might say men do not have the real-world experiences and perspectives or women so are not qualified. They seem inauthentic or ingenuine. I do understand many might think like this but it is not the case. Nobody is expecting men to walk in a woman’s shoes. Instead, it would be nice if there were books and articles by men published that add to the incredible feminist literature and articles that are out there. Authors like Caitlin Moran. However, given the negativity she faced when published a book about men, it might seem improbable that many men would jump at the chance to write a feminist book, article or thesis. However, I may be wrong and there are some out there – which I would be interested to read!

International Women’s Day took place yesterday (8th March). One of the great things was reading all the celebratory and serious features alike highlighting brilliant women. From politicians to authors through to athletes and those in entertainment, there was so much discussion. There were great articles highlighting incredible women in music. Women and men alike saluting amazing women. Something I am becoming more and more invested in is feminist literature. I am pledging to buy one book a month. Great feminist literature. Not to flex or to appear cool. It is definitely an important thing I want to do. To be a more well-rounded feminist. At a time when there is so more misogyny and gender inequality, I am more compelled to not only read feminist literature but urge other men to. I have just purchased Laura Bates’ Fix the System Not the Women. I want to source from the start of a 2022 review from The Guardian:

“For Laura Bates, it began with a heavy piece of gold jewellery that her mother found on the passenger seat of the family car. It was a gift from her grandparents. Her mother, after two daughters, had been rewarded for giving birth to a son. “I am five years old,” Bates writes, “and have no idea I’ve already been weighed, valued and found wanting.”

This incident is the first on what the feminist writer and activist calls “my list”. She encourages all women to make one, charting a life in sexism, from the playground to the street to the workplace. “By the time I leave university, aged 20,” Bates writes, “I have been sexually assaulted, pressured to perform topless in a theatre production (I stand my ground, but the experience leaves me in tears) and cornered in the street by two men shouting, ‘We’re going to part those legs and fuck that cunt.’”

Fix the System, Not the Women is an attempt to highlight “the interlocking systems of domination that define our reality” – and to pull apart the myth that women are complicit in our own oppression. Bates’s central message, which she has developed through her Everyday Sexism Project, the online forum that has now received 200,000 stories of sexism and misogyny from all over the world, and books including Girl Up (2016) and Men Who Hate Women (2020), is that there is a spectrum of gender inequality. Sexist jokes and stereotypes are at one end. Rape, domestic abuse, female genital mutilation and so-called “honour” killings are at the other. Maternity discrimination, workplace sexual harassment, the gender pay gap “and so much more” lie somewhere in between”.

The reason for writing this feature is because feminist literature is still seen as niche, outside of the mainstream or maybe heavy-handed. You can go to websites like Amazon or Waterstones and search for feminist literature. However, in some bookshops, there is not a specific section for feminist literature. It does seem alarming. I visited a large Waterstones in Piccadilly, London and there is a section for feminist literature. Called ‘Gender Studies’. it does sound more academic. I wonder why they do not go for ‘Feminism’. If it is seen as too narrow or specific. Not serious enough. We are living in a time when feminist literature like Fix the System Not the Women or books from Caitlin Moran – and many of her female peers – are essential and should be part of the curriculum. They are not propaganda or books so heavy and depressing they are hard to read. They also are not angry and attacking men all of the time. Instead, these are female writers sharing their experiences and highlighting statistics. Raising subjects such as gender inequality and male violence that is powerful and designed to change attitudes and society. It is hard to overstate the urgency and importance of these books. It is great that bookstore stock feminist books, though they are often reduce to a very small space. When I was at Waterstones, their Gender Studies section was on the fourth floor of the store right at the further point from the entrance. I wonder why there is not more prominence put on these authors and books. It is brilliant that there is such a broad range of topics around equality, female empowerment and women’s safety. Books that very much should be front and centre at major bookstores. On Saturday, I visited Upper Street Bookshop in Angel. They have an L.G.B.T.Q.I.A.+/Feminism section. About three or four shelves for the former and I think one fewer for feminism. However, there is a nice selection of books. The fact it is that independent bookstores stock feminist books but some larger bookshops do not. It does seem shocking that, in 2025, feminism is still seen as underground or less important (than other types of books). With Donald Trump President in the U.S. and him removing women’s right to abortions, his attitudes towards women and claims of rape and sexual assault against him, there needs to be greater exposure to feminist literature that is so timely and illustrative.

With his regime filled with alleged sex offenders and there being this seemingly hatred of women, the world’s most powerful nation very much does not care about women’s rights or protection. A lot of the posts I saw on social media on International Women’s Day highlighted this fact. Talking about the rise in violence and sexual assault against women. Celebrating vocal and angry feminists. Saluting brilliant women across multiple fields. It is not only one day of the year when these conversations are taking place. There is a definite demand for writing about feminism and women’s rights. I bought Laura Bates’ Fix the System Not the Women on International Women’s Day because I was appalled and shocked by so many of the social media posts I saw. I wanted to learn more. Her book stood out to me but, as I say, I am going to purchase a new feminist work every month. Even if you can access all manner of feminist articles and e-books online, the visibility of feminist books is low. There seems to be very little prominence or consideration given to it. It is wonderful you can go to sites like Spotify or Audible and listen to great feminist books. However, when it comes to physical books, why is feminism seen as specialist interest or inferior to other types of literature?! Even if there was a great range available at the Waterstones I visited, the fact the books seemed tucked away in a large shop as quite telling. A definite imbalance when it comes to these books. Maybe there is misperception around feminist literature. Not enough knowledge about what types of subjects are addressed. I don’t know. It seems improbable that these books do not sell so giving them valuable or more accessible shelf space is risky. After all the interaction and discussion on International Women’s Day, I wonder if things will be redressed. As I mentioned before, it is crucial, now more than ever, that books around feminism (that tag and word itself may need broadening when it comes to the types of books published) are made more…

PROMINENT and readily available.

FEATURE: Kate Bush’s Symphony in Blue at Forty-Six: Inside One of Her Most Underrated Singles

FEATURE:

 

Kate Bush’s Symphony in Blue at Forty-Six

Inside One of Her Most Underrated Singles

_________

A reason why…

it is an underrated single as it was only released in Japan and Canada. However, I wanted to mark the forty-sixth anniversary of Symphony in Blue. The opening tracks of her second studio album, Lionheart, this was one of a few tracks newly written for that album. The remainder were older songs that were brought into the studio. One of the greatest tragedies of Kate Bush’s career is how a second album was rushed. How different things could have been if she was given more time and support in that respect. After the huge success of The Kick Inside, Bush was charged with releasing her second album. Both came out in 1978. It was an unreasonable to expect something as good as her first. However, Lionheart contains quite a few gems. Wow, the second single from the album, among them. The highlight of the album for me is Symphony in Blue. A song I have written about before when celebrating its anniversary, I will try and approach it from a different perspective this time around. One of Bush’s best singles, I think it deserves a worldwide release. Wow and Hammer Horror were released in the U.K. but I always wonder why Symphony in Blue was seen as a good single for Japan and Canada but not anywhere else?! It is weird how there used to be this thing of releasing different songs as singles in different countries. A masterpiece that is not really talked about much, I will come to an excellent article that explores this song. Even if Kate Bush said the song was inspired by Erik Satie’s Gymnopedies, this source says “The descriptions of God, sex and the colour blue seem to be inspired by reading about Wilhelm Reich’s theory in A Book Of Dreams”.

Symphony in Blue was performed during her tour of 1979. It also featured in her Christmas special at the end of that year. Whereas Hammer Horror was the B-side of the Canadian release, in Japan Fullhouse was the B-side. There is so much that I love about Symphony in Blue. In terms of the personnel on the record, musicians that played with Kate Bush on The Kick Inside. Most notable is Ian Bairnson’s electric guitar. The song also features some of her most thought-provoking lyrics. One of my favourite verses is this: “I associate love with red/The colour of my heart when she’s dead/Red in my mind when the jealousy flies/Red in my eyes from emotional ties/Manipulation, the danger signs”. I can’t recall hearing Symphony in Blue on the radio. Whereas other deep cuts have been given an airing, why has Symphony in Blue been ignored? Most of the Lionheart gets overlooked. I have heard Wow, Fullhouse, Kashka from Baghdad and Hammer Horror played on the radio. However, nobody really talks about Symphony in Blue. Such a mature song from a teenager. How Bush discusses God, love, sex, reincarnation, changing moods and a range of emotions. Consider these lines: “Blue on the walls, blue out of my mouth/The sort of blue between clouds, when the sun comes out/The sort of blue in those eyes you get hung up about”. I always think Bush wrote this song with every intention of ensuring it opened Lionheart. A newly-written song had to open that album. However, I also think she had this track in mind as a single. It is far too strong to be left as a Japanese and Canadian single. I have not even mentioned the release dates yet! Symphony in Blue came out in Japan on 5th May, 1979. It was released on 1st June in Canada.

I am going to end with part of a feature from Dreams of Orgonon. Some interesting perspective on one of Kate Bush’s greatest songs. A single that didn’t do much in Canada and Japan yet could have been a success in the U.K. A fantastic video would have accompanied it I am sure. If you have never heard this track then go and listen to it and the Lionheart album:

“To Bush, blue is “the color of my room and my mood.” It’s a ubiquitous color for her, present on the walls, in the sky, “out of my mouth” (a possible pun), and “the sort of blue in those eyes you get hung up about,” perhaps an allusion to the ever-growing canon of songs about blue eyes. Bush is making a world of blue, one where external hue, metaphor, and internal state collide in a musical act of mise-en-scène. “Symphony in Blue” is a dive into introspection wherein the act of introspection becomes the entirety of Bush’s world. Bush’s fixation on blue largely rises from dissatisfaction, remaining in a state where all you can grasp is the banal details of your immediate environment.

The second half of the first verse fixates on the thoughts that arise when “that feeling of meaninglessness sets in,” ones that pertain to “blowing my mind on God.” This part of the verse is mostly a list of idioms describing God, from the basically metaphorical (“the light in the dark”) to the scriptural (“the meek He seeks/the beast He calms”) to the bureaucratic (“the head of the good soul department”). Bush’s God always occupies the role of the enigmatic man in Bush’s songs, more an amalgam of resonances and qualities than an identifiable person. He is a presence, but a largely offstage one used by Bush to hurl her anxieties at.

In its second verse, “Symphony” explores red, a more fatal, dramatic, and alarming color than blue. “I associate love with red/the color of my heart when she’s dead.” Bush invokes a sense of viscera, with thoughts of death coming to mind as she ruminates in her room. For a second it looks like she might not survive the song. The rest of the verse is more straightforwardly physical, with Bush delivering the astonishing line “the more I think about sex, the better it gets.” As the song navigates its way out of emotional traps by listing potentials ways out, sex is inevitably going to come up.

The best way for Bush to articulate her ennui is visually: she will compare her mood to something visible. Blue is of course the color of many songs — in many ways, it’s the most musical color. One of the foundational genres of popular music is the blues. Blue is used as a synonym for sadness, a catalyst for innumerable amounts of music. Lord knows there’s no shortage of songs about blue — an even slightly comprehensive list would take up several blog posts. “Symphony in Blue” obviously apes its title from Gershwin’s “Rhapsody in Blue,” yet kicks things up a notch by moving the color up from a mere rhapsody to a whole symphony. Perhaps the most relevant song to “Symphony in Blue” for our purposes is David Bowie’s contemporaneous and relatively similar “Sound and Vision.” From its title to its repetition of “blue, blue, electric blue,” the songs are similar in a way that’s difficult to nail down as a total coincidence (although it is entirely possible Bowie’s influence on Bush in this case was subconscious). Both use the surroundings of blue rooms as reflections of internal dissatisfaction. Crucially, both songs unify sight and sound into a single phenomenon. Bush’s chorus begins with “I see myself suddenly on the piano as a melody,” wherein melody is both a reflection of self and a visual reflection. Bush’s favorite theme of music’s tangibility has reached its apotheosis. Lionheart is paying off a debt to The Kick Inside via one of its fullest realizations of its ideas.

Musically, “Symphony in Blue” references more artists than just 20th century ones such as Gershwin and Bowie. The song deliberately gestures at 19th century French composer Erik Satie’s most famous piano compositions, the Gymnopédies. Like “Symphony in Blue,” Gymnopédie No. 1 is in ¾ and begins with a G major 7th chord. Both pieces are airy and chromatic (a trend in 19th century music to be found in the work of, for example, Debussy, another favorite composer of Bush’s), and Bush’s drifts slowly through G major, often falling onto 7th chords or flattening 6ths. There’s a jazz-influenced airiness to “Symphony” which is also inherited from the Gymnopédies and is clearly evidenced by its use of F7sus4, a true mind-fuck of a chord. The resemblance is intentional — “Symphony in Blue” is a pop song, as its reliance on Iain Bairnson’s electric guitar demonstrates, but it’s outright smuggling classical music into the charts. In Bush’s Christmas special, she begins “Symphony in Blue” by playing Gymnopédie No. 1, dutifully playing the song in G before pivoting on a D minor chord to “Symphony.” Bush is playing the cultural creator, collecting influences and displaying them for posterity. When she draws on tradition, it’s not merely to recreate visions of the past, but to find new directions for preexisting ideas. Bush spends a lot of her time looking at blue, so there was no chance she’d blue it”.

On 5th May, it will be forty-six years since Symphony in Blue was released in Japan. A county that embraced Kate Bush’s music early on, she previously released Moving and Them Heavy People (titled Rolling the Ball for the Japanese release) – both from The Kick Inside – in Japan. They were more successful and lauded. However, we should not overlook Symphony in Blue. It deserves to be written about more as it is without doubt one of Kate Bush’s greatest recordings. Stunning lyrics and a beautiful vocal performance, an overlooked gem that should get a lot more focus, love and attention. Kate Bush’s gorgeous blue symphony is a song that sparkles in gold. It is a treasure that….

MORE people should know about.

FEATURE: Kate Bush: The Tour of Life: Numbers, Astrology, Synchronicity, Otherworldly

FEATURE:

Kate Bush: The Tour of Life

 IN THIS PHOTO: Kate Bush in 1978/PHOTO CREDIT: Getty Image

Numbers, Astrology, Synchronicity, Otherworldly

_________

REVISITING and reapproaching…

IN THIS PHOTO: Kate Bush in 2005/PHOTO CREDIT: Trevor Leighton

a subject I wrote about a while ago, I have been fascinated when re-reading a section of Graeme Thomson’s biography, Under the Ivy: The Life and Music of Kate Bush. I have written about how the paranormal and otherworldly have been present in Kate Bush’s work from her 1978 debut, The Kick Inside, to her most recent album, 2011’s 50 Words for Snow. It is amazing to think how she goes beyond the ordinary and puts the strange and spectral in these beautiful songs. It is clear that Bush’s mind is very open to things that cannot be explained. Even if God and religion were really not a large part of her work, there were references to him in some of her tracks. I think the gothic and dark is a particularly appealing subject to investigate. Think about all the songs where there are shadows or darkness weaving through the lyrics. For this feature, I wanted to look at a different side of this colour spectrum. The inexplicable, fictional or otherworldly. If the spectral and gothic are shades of grey, black (I know it technically not a colour) and red, then I want to look more at oranges, yellows and greens. Go with me on this. Returning to that Graeme Thomson reference and he mentions how Kate Bush was always taken with synchronicity and a deeper meaning behind numbers. The fact that both Kate Bush and Emily Brontë share a birthday. Of course, Bush’s debut single, Wuthering Heights, was inspired by Brontë’s only novel of the same name. Well, a 1967 T.V. adaptation of it at least! However, both Bush and Brontë were born on 30th July. Brontë in 1818 and Bush in 1958. Rather than it being a coincidence – which it is -, Bush felt that this connection had a deeper meaning. Maybe seeing it as something bigger and more spiritual than mere coincidence, that strange connection definitely would have opened her mind and imagination. Exploring the meaning and connection between dates and numbers.

Somewhat different I think to the paranormal and ghostly, there was this other side to Bush that was to do with numbers, synchronicity and astrology. I think it dated to before The Kick Inside. One song from that album, Strange Phenomena, is about coincidences and synchronicity. Menstruation and the “punctual blues”. The secret meaning behind women’s moods. I am not sure exactly when Bush started to think this way. Maybe it was something instilled from birth. Whereas most of her peers had one way of thinking about the world, it is clear Bush had this intrigue that meant she had this insatiable curiosity about life beyond the ordinary and everyday. You can trace this side to Bush back to her childhood. Not only did it inspire her most interesting and original songs. I think it impacted everything she did. Bush never really thinking and writing in a conventional and joined-up way. Maybe not until the 1990s at least. I do like Bush’s fascination with numbers. A friend of hers, David Paton (who played bass on many of her songs and contributed guitar and vocals too), noted how she thought it was spooky how he and her boyfriend, Del Palmer, had the same initials. That is common enough. However, the two shared the same birthday – it is not quite true as Paton was born on 29th October; Palmer was born on 3rd November. Maybe it is bad science, though I do like how Bush was curious about the relationship of numbers and synchronicity. How birthdays and star signs were fascinating to her. Bush definitely believes in astrology and thinks there is something in it. How when you were born affects your personality. The movement and relative positions of celestial bodies affects human affairs and behaviour. There are entire websites that talk about Kate Bush’s star sign and draw her natal chart. Kate Bush is a natal Sun-Uranus in Leo person with Scorpio Rising. In her natal chart, Bush's North Node (her destiny) is in a tight conjunction to the Lord of Fame and Success, Jupiter, in airy Libra.

IN THIS PHOTO: Kate Bush in 1978/PHOTO CREDIT: Brian Aris

Coming back to birthdays and coincidence, it does sort of link in to the paranormal. When thinking about the song Strange Phenomena at least. I will move on a minute. However, this article about Strange Phenomena highlights some interesting observations about the song and Bush’s beliefs:

“There’s a philosophical dimension to this as well: Bush once referred to Synchronicity while discussing “Strange Phenomena” in an interview. In short, Synchronicity is psychoanalyst Karl Jung’s concept of the interconnectivity of coincidences. Coincidences bearing similarity but no common cause are termed “meaningful.” This is a pretty easy way to argue for paranormality, and Jung did so (this is not the last time a psychoanalyst will influence Kate Bush. If you’ve read this blog’s title, you already know how). Bush picks up on this, heartily saluting the spectres and weirdness of everyday life.

“Strange Phenomena” is textured with little mysteries and details. Without the Internet at one’s disposal, listeners would go years not understanding some of the song’s allusions. There’s the obscure line “G arrives/funny, had a feeling he was on his way,” which seems inexplicable in context (apparently G was a person Bush knew, while my initial guesses were that G was the Almighty Herself, John Berger’s character G, or David Gilmour himself, most plausibly) yet brings a social instinct to the song, suggesting that people can be just as mysterious as events. The presence of people is mystical to Bush — the living can be ghosts as well. In many ways, “Strange Phenomena” is about clustering: when people gather and events happen close together, magic occurs. “We raise our hats to the hand a-moulding us,” sings Bush, nodding to spiritual forces beyond human understanding”.

It is not only the case that Bush talked about numbers, coincidences and synchronicity in her earliest albums. Think about Pi (π) form 2005’s Aerial. Bush fascinated with numbers once more. This time, she was reciting π to seventy-eight decimal places. The song is about a man’s fascination with reciting π. This is what Bush told Ken Bruce in a 2005 about one of Aerial’s most interesting and overlooked songs:

“I find numbers fascinating, the idea that nearly everything can be broken down into numbers, it is a fascinating thing; and i think also that we are completely surrounded by numbers now, in a way that we weren’t you know even 20, 30 years ago we’re all walking around with mobile phones and numbers on our foreheads almost; and it’s like you know computers…”

I might go into it a bit more in another feature. From her childhood to the present day, there is this depth and side to Kate Bush that not a lot of people discuss. Alongside her embrace and portrayal of the paranormal, scary, gothic and dark is this curiosity about the relationship of numbers and synchronicity. How she and Emily Brontë shared birthdays. Here is what Bush said about Strange Phenomena: “Strange Phenomena” is about how coincidences cluster together. We can all recall instances when we have been thinking about a particular person and then have met a mutual friend who – totally unprompted – will begin talking about that person. That’s a very basic way of explaining what I mean, but these “clusters of coincidence” occur all the time. We are surrounded by strange phenomena, but very few people are aware of it”. Later in life when she was reciting a mathematical constant. Whereas most artists focus on their own life and love, Kate Bush has always looked beyond that. Bringing film and literature into her music. Exploring the paranormal and otherworldly. In addition, the relationship of numbers, synchronicity and coincidences. It is all part of Kate Bush’s…

DEEPER understanding.

FEATURE: Spotlight: Sunny War

FEATURE:

 

 

Spotlight

Sunny War

_________

AN artist who…

PHOTO CREDIT: Joshua Black Wilkins

is currently on tour, I wanted to shine a light on the brilliant Sunny War. This is an artist I am new to but wanted to recommend to everyone. I am going to end with her new album, Armageddon in a Summer Dress. This is an album that you will want to check out. I am going to get to a couple of new interviews with Sunny War. First, this feature caught my eye. This is someone whose brilliance and importance goes beyond her music. I do hope that more and more interviews are published so that we can learn more about this incredible human:

“In 2022, punk-blues innovator Sunny War moved into her late father’s house in Chattanooga, Tennessee, and began making repairs. There was no heat that first winter and the house needed a full electrical rewiring. By winter 2023, she had the money to heat the place, but as the temperature rose each night, Sunny felt a strange impulse to patrol the house in the dark, swinging her grandfather’s machete at the ghosts inhabiting the top floor.

At the start of our Zoom call interview in January, Sunny recounts the bizarre magical realism of the weeks she spent living with an undiscovered gas leak. I ask enough follow-up questions to be reassured that my friend is not still being fumigated in her own home before I allow myself to belly laugh. “I have to fix everything,” she sighs.

Sunny goes on to explain that by the time the city discovered and fixed the problem, the mood had already been set for her forthcoming album, Armageddon in a Summer Dress. I would describe the results as psychedelic and subtly dangerous.

My friend Sunny can be a little hard to read, a fact which she mentions at one point during our call. We first met at Americanafest in 2019. It was my second year traveling from New York to Tennessee for the annual roots music conference and festival. That summer I had made up my mind to bring Black artists together during the festival for our own unofficial day party. I booked Dee’s Country Cocktail Lounge, cross-referenced names on the festival poster with Google image searches, and sent out a few invitations. Sunny agreed to perform, as did Tré Burt and Milwaukee folk duo Nickel & Rose (featuring Carl Nichols, the artist soon to become Buffalo Nichols). One after another we played our songs then stepped out onto the Madison, Tennessee, porch, most of us meeting for the first time. It was the greatest number of Black people I had ever been around in a professional space since releasing my debut album in 2017.

It was clear to me even then that Sunny was a star. Carl, Tré, and I were on ascendant career arcs of our own, but Sunny was out ahead somehow. She was already well known in songwriter circles for her inimitable movements on the guitar and for her punk rock roots, but it was the intensity of her stage presence that stood out to me most on that first meeting. I watched her suck in the air and light around her as she sang, quietly commanding the audience’s attention. Songs like “Drugs Are Bad” and “Shell” became spells when sung in War’s almost-effortless, warmly breathy style. She appeared peaceful in her own creative world amidst the restless energy of the festival.

2019 was also the year that Sunny founded the downtown Los Angeles chapter of Food Not Bombs, a national network of community groups addressing hunger. In interviews about the movement she was candid about having experienced houselessness herself and how she noticed the disproportionate presence of veterans on the street. She organized weekly meetups in which volunteers made meals and shared them, potluck-style, with their unhoused neighbors on skid row. When COVID hit they switched to burritos and sack lunches. On “Deployed and Destroyed,” one of the outstanding tracks from Sunny’s 2021 album, Simple Syrup, she invites her listener to spend three minutes and 54 seconds in the shoes of a 26-year-old unhoused veteran experiencing PTSD. When I listen to her sing “I still love you/ We’re still friends” I feel like I am sitting beside her. This is what Aristotle and contemporary Marxists call “praxis.”

Sunny is fearless on stage. Six years into our friendship I remain awed by the way in which she commands attention without ever seeming contained by it. Her presence has a kinetic power that you can more easily get lost in than describe. We met up in Chicago on a winter night in early 2023 when Sunny was on tour and I was in between tours. Both of us were depressed, I think. Wide, wet snowflakes were beginning to fall outside while we caught up over drinks. We bribed the DJ into letting us jump the line for karaoke and then launched into a formally unconventional performance of Destiny’s Child’s “Jumpin’ Jumpin’.” The mostly-white crowd of beer-drinking twenty-somethings were amused at first and then bored. I gave up. Sunny stayed the course, winning the audience over with mischief in her eyes.

Later that year Sunny released Anarchist Gospel on New West Records to well-deserved, unanimous acclaim. The album featured Americana heavy hitters Allison Russell, Dave Rawlings, and Chris Pierce. She also toured with Mitski, broadening her fandom to include more indie listeners. I cheered my friend from afar, mostly on Instagram, as her star continued to rise.

When I ask about her memories of that album cycle, Sunny enthusiastically recalls the younger audiences who discovered her music. She expresses gratitude that a 14-year-old at a Mitski concert, someone who “actually is into music for the first time in their life, in the way that you are when you hate your parents and all you have is music” would become a fan. A lot of journalists described her as an “emerging” artist or a songwriter soon to be one of the most beloved in Americana. But for those of us on the fringes of the format, Sunny had been the best around for a minute and the momentum of her career spoke for itself.

Sunny’s latest album, Armageddon In A Summer Dress, comes out on February 21. I ask her to describe the new record in her own words. “Silly,” she responds. I ask if there is a genre descriptor for her music in general. She says, “No.”  I am going to follow the artist’s lead and not do her album the disservice of describing it too much. I will say that Armageddon In A Summer Dress is her seventh full-length effort and contains her most inspired vocal performances yet – and some of her finest lyrics.

There is a haze hovering in the top layers of some of these tunes. The winding guitar melodies often weave themselves into the vocal lines, but sometimes they go their own way. I ask her if audiences are reacting to the Black anarchist content of her songs differently than they did the last time she released a folk album with transparently leftist politics. “I don’t feel like people pay that much attention to my lyrics,” she responds. Her primary musical concern, she reflects, is playing the guitar. And in any case, the best way to metabolize these songs is by listening to them repeatedly.

Sunny, Carl, Tré, and I have remained loosely intertwined in the years since that first Americana kickback. We have toured together. We run into each other at festivals and in thrift shops. Tré and Sunny were roommates for a time and in the summertime can be seen riding bikes like cousins in Sunny’s recent music video for “Scornful Heart.” I interview my friends periodically.

We all continue to embody aspects of the blues tradition while resisting categorization. Sunny continues moving patiently through her own cycles of living, transforming, creating in darkness, and then telling the story. She leaps unexpectedly from now to the future and then doubles back to sample tradition, inviting you to keep up. Her lyrics are disarmingly empathetic. Like all great artists, Sunny moves in her own time, less concerned with debating the canon than she is with creating the future. She looks back on the nights she hunted ghosts with her grandfather’s machete joking, “That wasn’t me!”

There is great integrity in Sunny’s storytelling, which means that no matter how long it has been since we last spoke, she will catch me up quickly when we meet again. I ask her who the narrator of “No One Calls Me Baby” is, trying to signal that I am a feminist who recognizes women writers as authors beyond the world of autobiography. But she quickly tells me that the narrator is her and fills me in on the past few months of her life. She has been single for over a year, and has been learning to enjoy the alone time in a house she owns. We commiserate about being single, but we are both leaned back by this point, looking down on loneliness together. “No one calls me baby anymore/ I hold my own hand now…”.

I want to move to an interview from The Line of Best Fit. Speaking with her around the release of her fourth studio album, they found her at her most maximalist. An artist documenting the American decline. This is somebody that the whole world needs to know about. One of the most compelling and important artists in music today:

“Sunny, born Sydney Ward, was destined to be a bluesperson. “My grandma took me to see B.B. King and I saw Bo Diddley when I was a kid. My whole family is really into blues. Blues and gospel, that’s just what I grew up listening to,” she tells me from her home in Chattanooga, Tennessee on an overcast winter’s morning. But just as her career has already stretched much further than blues singers of the early twentieth century, so too has it meandered into other genres, other modes of working and writing.

“Punk rock is the other side of me. I listen to a lot of trap music. I like a lot of electronic music. Then I also really like bossa nova. I listen to a lot of country. I listen to reggae. Well, only old reggae and ska. I listen to a lot of soul music. If it’s good, I fuck with it,” she says, barely pausing to take a breath. Ward’s string of full-length albums mirror this broad tapestry of taste; while 2018’s With the Sun is sparse and to-the-heart blues songwriting in the traditional mode, 2021’s Simple Syrup adds splashes of jazz to this near-perfected template and 2023’s Anarchist Gospel salutes her Nashvillian roots with a nod and a wink to country.

In 2024, the nonagenarian elder of country music Willie Nelson covered Ward’s own “If It Wasn’t Broken” for his album Last Leaf on the Tree, the track nestled amongst his interpretations of songs by, among others, Nina Simone, Tom Waits, and Neil Young. Like the 91-year-old Nelson, whose battered, bruised, scraped, and scribbled-on nylon-string guitar has travelled the road with him for over half a century, Ward, too, has kept her instrument close at hand throughout. Her commitment to those six strings is such that, like Nelson, she recently developed nerve damage and carpal tunnel syndrome in her hand. “They gave me a steroid injection and I’m supposed to wear a brace every day. It is better than it was. It still kind of hurts sometimes, though,” she tells me. “I’ve been playing for 27 years,” she adds, laughing, by way of an explanation.

Ward’s connection to Nelson is also borne out in her collaborations with Nelson’s son Micah (Particle Kid), with whom she made the 2018 collaborative album Particle War. What is especially remarkable about Nelson’s cover of "If It Wasn’t Broken", though, is how easily it translates into his own style. When sung by Ward, the song is inimitably in her own world-weary but defiant style, but sung by Nelson it takes on a timeless and malleable quality; it becomes, in other words, a modern standard. Fittingly, then, songwriting is what Ward sees as her ultimate vocation, transcending even her role as singer and performer: “I don’t want to be a singer as much as I want to be a songwriter. I want to write for other people. If somebody was like ‘I need you to write a song for Mariah Carey,’ that would be fun.”

These songwriting aspirations speak to the inherent humility at the core of Ward’s music, her eagerness to collaborate and to willingly vacate the spotlight at particular moments. Her latest album, Armageddon in a Summer Dress, contains such an array of open-hearted and open-minded collaboration that it feels near-maximalist when compared with her bare-bones early recordings. Take "Scornful Heart" for instance – a bold and telling choice for the record’s second single that features friend and collaborator Tré Burt on lead vocals rather than Ward herself. “That song is for me and Tré’s band, which is going to be called Smooth Harrisons. That was the only song we finished and I was just like… we should put that on the album – on my album.”

Her work with Andrija Tokic, who produced both Anarchist Gospel and Armageddon in a Summer Dress, has also broadened her sound. “I like Andrija because he’s down to record, like, hitting a can with something and then putting a bunch of effects on it. He's down to do stuff just to see. He’s more experimental. Like, let’s just try this. There’s one song [on the album], ‘No One Calls Me Baby’, where we’re using an autoharp. Just doing fun stuff, fun studio stuff.” This collectivist approach is something Ward says she wants to replicate live, too: “My first two shows of the year are going to be with a five-piece band and I’m hoping that we tour as a band. I’ve never done that before. You can’t even jam when you’re by yourself, and I actually do take solos and shit if I’m playing with other people. It gives you room to just do more fun stuff musically”.

PHOTO CREDIT: Joshua Black Wilkins

I am going to finish with a review for Armageddon in a Summer Dress. Even if I am new to Sunny War, I am determined to discover as much as I can. Her music is so moving and arresting. Some of the most heart-stopping and shocking words on her album arrive on the song, Walking Contradiction: “Doesn’t matter what your silly little signs have to say/‘Cause the genocide is funded by the taxes that you pay”:

“Sunny War has done it again. Her brand new album, Armageddon in a Summer Dress (out February 21 via New West Records), is yet another anarcho-punk-roots masterpiece in her already deep-and-wide catalog of superlative recordings. The project builds on the sonic and rhetorical universe of her critically acclaimed and triumphantly received 2023 release, Anarchist Gospel, further expanding her charming, down-to-earth doctrine of mutual aid, community, and truly radical ideas – musically, and otherwise – exactly when we need them most.

That fact – the apropos timing of this collection of songs and their release – feels most striking because this music wasn’t written expressly to be a response to the current critical mass of fascism, oligarchy, and attacks on human rights in our country and around the world. Instead, the messages and morals in these songs are well-placed, not as slapdash reactions to the current political discourse or as activist-branded cash grabs in a terrifying societal moment, but by focusing on the real day-to-day implications of such imperialism as evidenced within War’s own life and her own inner circle.

On Armageddon’s opening track, “One Way Train,” she sings:

When there’s no one left to use
And no police or state
And the fascists and the classists
All evaporate
Won’t you meet me on the outskirts
Of my left brain
Close your eyes and take a ride
On a one way train

This album is exactly such a refuge on par with the singer’s “left brain” – and stemming directly from it! – in “One Way Train.” Armageddon is a respite from the noise of the news cycle and the sensationalism of consumerist media that needs not deny the realities we all witness and live through in order to be a resting place. This isn’t toxic positivity or “joy” and “hope” as cudgels to smack down criticism of inequalities, corruption, and ruling classes, thereby reinforcing the status quo. The songs of Armageddon in a Summer Dress do feel hopeful– but because they acknowledge and grapple with these issues, instead of willing them away under the rug or into hiding.

The deft and artful positioning of these incisive songs is directly tied to the ways anarchy, mutual aid, and solidarity have been woven into War’s life as an artist – and as a human, since even before she picked up the guitar. These are embodied, real concepts to Sunny, not just intellectual ideas and hypotheticals.

Punk and blues, folk and grunge ooze out of songs ripe for protest and resistance, but never packaged in a pink crocheted pussy cat hat or internet-ready bumper sticker quips. Sunny War knows the violence and tyranny we all face – she has faced it her entire life – and gives it the treatment it deserves, but without ever preaching or finger-wagging. The beliefs evident in Armageddon in a Summer Dress are never contingent on which team, “red or blue,” holds the power. Rather, the hope and tenacity in these songs feels derived from an intrinsic understanding that it’s always been “the many versus the few” and “the powerless versus the powerful” where the battle lines are drawn, instead.

“Walking Contradiction” – which features punk icon Steve Ignorant – is searing in its indictment of toothless neoliberalism having landed us in this exact political and social scenario:

…While the war pigs killed more kids today
Picket signs were made 6,000 miles away
And all the lefties and the liberals were marching so you know
Just because they pay their taxes doesn’t mean that they don’t know
All the pigs and the big wigs foaming at the mouth
Look down at us laughing like we’ll never figure out
All the war outside starts here at home
If they didn’t have our money they’d be fighting it alone
Doesn’t matter what your silly little signs have to say
‘Cause the genocide is funded by the taxes that you pay

Stopping and inhabiting this song, one of the project’s singles, and its message is illuminating. Especially when you realize it was written under the prior administration, but applies to the current one as well. And, perhaps, to every other presidential administration in U.S. history.

Armageddon in a Summer Dress still feels light and rewarding, though. It’s flowing and intuitive, and decidedly charming, even with these stark messages. Because, like most of Sunny War’s creative output, it actually drives to the heart of the issues we all turn over in our minds and on our screens each day, rather than tilting at superficial, sensational windmills that end up reinforcing our oligarchic status quo.

Of course, this album is not solely political and anarchic and intellectual. In fact, it’s not attempting to be cerebral and be-monocled at all. These are songs of love, of grief, of being an individual with a collective mindset in an individualist world with collective blindness.

There are songs of introspection, of perception, of self growth, of regression. Each feels fully realized in production, lush and deep. But there, in the gaps, in the bones of each track, are War’s signature fingerstyle licks, hooks, and turns of phrase on the guitar. She plays banjo throughout the project as well, and though the referenced genres evident on the project are endlessly rootsy, the blues and folk approach that charmed much of the bluegrass, folk, and Americana worlds previously serve a more subtle purpose here. War’s personality on her instruments is still prominent, and is ultimately successful playing more of a support role to the greater whole. Above all else, you can tell creating this album and these songs must have been so much fun to make.

Tré Burt, Valerie June, and John Doe – along with Ignorant – all guest on the record, which was produced by Andrija Tokic and recorded in Nashville, just up the highway from War’s current hometown of Chattanooga, Tennessee. Like Anarchist Gospel, seeing War’s community of collaborators grow and morph on the new project again speaks to the way this guitarist-songwriter-performer’s mission is an active, constructive one. It’s never merely a mantra hung on the wall to be admired from afar.

As we all face an ongoing apocalypse, as we each reckon with the indisputable fact that we are already living in dystopia – and have been – Armageddon in a Summer Dress is the perfect album to bring along with us. Dancing and flowing and twirling through the end of the world is certainly not a winning strategy, but dancing, marching, caring for one another, and lifting each other up despite Armageddon and imperialism might just do the trick.

She perhaps encapsulates this feeling best alongside wailing organ on “Bad Times:”

Had nothing so I had to borrow
What I owe’s gonna double tomorrow
Maybe now or in an hour or so
I’m gonna have to let everything go

So long room and board
And all the other things I can’t afford
You’re overrated anyway
I’ll be good soon as you
Bad times stay away
Bad times stay away
Bad times stay away
Bad times stay away…

This affirmation is not the end game, it is merely the beginning. If we take Sunny War’s ideals to heart, if we sing along at the top of our lungs, if we do mutual aid on a daily basis, if we take each moment, one individual second at a time– we, too, can navigate through Armageddon in a Summer Dress, emerging on the other side in a better, more just, more sunny world”.

I am not sure whether Sunny War is coming over to the U.K. anytime soon. I hope that her music catches the ear more fully of stations like BBC Radio 6 Music. So that there is more exposure for someone who I think is going to have a long career. I will return to her music soon enough.  I wanted to use this opportunity celebrate and highlight…

A phenomenal artist.

____________

Follow Sunny War

Official:

http://www.sunnywar.com/

Instagram:

https://www.instagram.com/sunnywarmusic/

Twitter:

https://x.com/SunnyWar

Spotify:

https://open.spotify.com/artist/01GKiTphQwz4guZQntMha8?si=IoOlxYiOR6eYMuRGUN0G_A

YouTube:

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCbkvZUD6w-3QWR4qjJQpP-w

Facebook:

https://www.facebook.com/sunnywarmusic/

FEATURE: The Digital Mixtape: The Lady Gaga Collection

FEATURE:

 

 

The Digital Mixtape

The Lady Gaga Collection

_________

THE reason for…

PHOTO CREDIT: Domen & van de Velde

highlighting Lady Gaga is because her latest album, Mayhem, is out and receiving positive reviews. I wanted to use this Digital Mixtape to compile a selection of Lady Gaga’s songs. The best-known tracks and some deeper cuts. I am going to get to that mixtape soon. Before that, I wanted to include a review for Mayhem. This is what NME said

“When Lady Gaga first announced ‘Mayhem’ in January, she said it “started as me facing my fear of returning to the pop music my earliest fans loved”. She hasn’t literally tried to recreate the sound of 2008 – there’s no reunion with her ‘Just Dance’ producer RedOne – but Gaga has tapped into her old sense of excess. On her first proper pop album since 2020’s house-infused ‘Chromatica’, she dials absolutely everything up to eleven.

Gaga telegraphed her return to core values on recent single ‘Abracadabra’, a sinewy synth-pop banger that culminates in a truly ludicrous vocal hook: “Abracadabra, amor-oo-na-na!” Thankfully, it’s no red herring on an album that stomps out of the speakers with unselfconscious confidence. We get Gaga delivering a stuttering, ‘Poker Face’-style vocal hook on ‘Garden of Eden’, Prince-ish slinkiness mixed with punk on ‘Killah’ and the dark melodrama of ‘Bad’-era Michael Jackson on ‘The Beast’.

Longtime Little Monsters will find plenty of references to Gaga’s pop past as well. Take ‘Perfect Celebrity’, where she comes across as a battle-hardened version of the starlet she played on her 2008 debut ‘The Fame’. “You love to hate mе, I’m the perfect celebrity,” she sings, before an onslaught of lashing guitars remind you that Gaga’s stage name is a nod to a Queen song.

Co-producing with Andrew Watt (Rolling Stones, Post Malone) and Cirkut (Charli XCX, Rosé), Gaga infuses her bombastic dance-pop sound with stadium rock theatrics throughout. ‘Don’t Call Tonight’, an evocative and anthemic snapshot of a toxic relationship, is begging to be belted out in front of 70,000 lit-up smartphones. Then there’s disco-rap banger ‘Zombieboy’, where Gaga sometimes sounds a bit like a musical theatre kid channelling Blondie’s Debbie Harry – but just about gets away with it.

There’s a nonchalant confidence in the way Gaga sticks to her maximalist vision without pandering to contemporary pop trends. Most ‘Mayhem’ tracks run close to or over four minutes, making them mini-epics in the TikTok era. Only ‘How Bad Do U Want Me’, which has shades of ‘1989’-era Taylor Swift and Yazoo’s synth-pop classic ‘Only You’, doesn’t sound totally and thrillingly Gaga. ‘Die With A Smile’, her relatively restrained soft rock duet with Bruno Mars, is sequenced at the end like a palate cleanser after a feast of bold flavours.

Ultimately, ‘Mayhem’ feels like a great Gaga album because it’s just so much fun. At times, it’s a bit like reconnecting with an old friend who makes sense even when they seem to be chatting nonsense. When she sings “river in my eyes, I’ve got a poem in my throat” on ‘LoveDrug’, it’s just her overblown way of saying she’s sad and tongue-tied. Seventeen years after she broke through with ‘Just Dance’, Lady Gaga remains pop’s foremost agent of impeccably crafted chaos”.

I am going to wrap things up. One of the most original and influential artists of her generation, I wanted to mark the release of an excellent new Lady Gaga album. A look back through her career. Someone who has many more albums in her. If you are fairly unfamiliar with her work or are a huge fan, this mixtape should give you a thorough representation of…

A music great.

FEATURE: Classic Acts and Modern Icons: Reacting to the First Wave of Names for This Year’s Glastonbury Festival

FEATURE:

 

 

Classic Acts and Modern Icons

Reacting to the First Wave of Names for This Year’s Glastonbury Festival

_________

EVEN though…

IN THIS PHOTO: Neil Young/PHOTO CREDIT: Ryan Pfluger for The New Yorker

every year the Glastonbury Festival is announced there is division and wildly differing reactions, this year does have some clear positives and exciting first-timers. At such a horrible, unpredictable and frightening time, I think music and festivals in particular are more important than ever. There are some big takeaways from the names that have already been announced. Of course, there will be more names coming up. The poster will get fuller. What we did get yesterday (6th March) were the three headline acts that will take to the Pyramid Stage, together with those that will headline other stages. Before getting to some reaction, The Guardian wrote about the varied and exciting names that have just been announced:

“This year’s Glastonbury set will feature two first-time headliners in the British pop-rock group the 1975 and the US pop-punk songwriter Olivia Rodrigo.

The band, led by Matty Healy, will top the Friday night billing on the Pyramid stage. Rodrigo will perform on Sunday. In 2022, the Drivers License singer performed on the Other stage, a set that boasted a guest spot from Lily Allen and an excoriation of the US supreme court following the overturning of Roe v Wade a day earlier.

In between on Saturday comes a previously – accidentally – announced headline set from Neil Young and his band the Chrome Hearts. On 1 January, Young declared, out of the blue, that he was withdrawing from this year’s festival owing to his perception that it was under broadcast partner the BBC’s “corporate control”. Two days later, he said he had received “an error in information” and that the festival was “back on our itinerary”. He previously headlined in 2009.

The soul-pop star Raye will play on the Pyramid stage before Young. The 27-year-old Londoner is already something of a national treasure after walking away from her major label to find critical and commercial success with her debut album, My 21st Century Blues.

The festival previously revealed that Rod Stewart would take this year’s “legends” slot. Stewart, who turned 80 in January, said he was “more than able to pleasure and titillate” at his age.

The Other stage headliners have also been revealed. After turning the world lime green with her culture-dominating album Brat last summer – and rivalling Dua Lipa’s headline extravaganza with merely a DJ set at Glastonbury 2024 – Charli xcx will headline the festival’s second stage on Saturday. The London rapper Loyle Carner headlines it on Friday, and the Prodigy will close the stage on Sunday – the dance group’s first Glastonbury performance since the death of their frontman, Keith Flint, in 2019, just before that year’s festival.

A raft of talents old and new are among this year’s first-time performers. At the breakout end of the scale, there is the Stick Season troubadour Noah Kahan, the That’s So True songwriter Gracie Abrams, the Messy singer Lola Young, the euphoric Brits-minted star Myles Smith, the cheeky American-Ghanaian rapper Amaarae and the A Bar Song (Tipsy) star and Beyoncé collaborator Shaboozey.

There are more surprising debuts from Alanis Morissette, Busta Rhymes, Brandi Carlile – who will be fresh off the back of a duets album with Elton John – the US girl group En Vogue, Anohni and the Johnsons, the cult British funk act Cymande, the hard-touring Osees and everyone’s friend electric, Gary Numan.

Worthy farm stalwarts scheduled to perform include Ezra Collective – riding high off winning best group at this year’s Brit awards – the Australian punk tykes Amyl and the Sniffers, Jorja Smith, Creedence Clearwater Revival’s John Fogerty and the roots reggae stars Burning Spear and Black Uhuru.

Friday also sees the return of the Isle of Wight indie duo Wet Leg, presumed to be back this year with their second album. The Irish pop star CMAT is another returning talent, along with the Bath dance iconoclast PinkPantheress and Sheffield’s Self Esteem, who returns with her new album, A Complicated Woman, in April.

After winning best rap album for her mixtape Alligator Bites Never Heal at this year’s Grammy awards – which also featured a performance hinting at the magic she will bring to Worthy Farm – the Florida rapper Doechii will headline the West Holts stage on Saturday”.

The biggest ‘negatives’ perhaps – or things that seem odd – revolve around the headline slots. One can appreciate the fact a legend like Neil Young has been booked. He and his band will be a popular choice. I was expecting Olivia Rodrigo to have been booked a couple of years ago. Although it is a really good booking, I wonder why she was not a headliner closer to the release of her 2023 album, GUTS. However, as an established artist, it is appropriate she is given a bigger stage. However, it just seems like the timing is a bit off. I wonder whether someone like Sabrina Carpenter was considered for a headline slot. With such much momentum behind her right now, she would have been a huge booking. Carpenter plays at London’s Hyde Park on 5th July, but maybe there was a budget issue. Perhaps Carpenter was approached but did not feel up for it. There could be a lot of reasons for it. However, I do think it is great that the headliners are a mix of ages. You have the iconic Neil Young and he will bring this golden set. It will be a hugely emotional experience for older and younger fans alike. No line-up is ever going to unite people. D.J., broadcaster and journalist Georgie Rogers said in an interview when asked for her reaction that it is impossible to please everyone. You always get people saying it is the worst line-up ever or the best. In truth, the past few years have definitely been more towards the ‘best’ end of the scale. The fact that there is gender balance being struck is vital. Upcoming artists given exposure and opportunity. More varied in terms of the musical palette. Icons like Paul McCartney and Elton John headlining. We have also seen Dua Lipa and SZA headline. One of the festival’s biggest issues was a lack of female headliners on the Pyramid Stage. Before they booked two female headliners (SZA and Dua Lipa) last year, there had only been four female headliners since the year 2000. That is a shocking and frankly depressing statistic! I was expecting either two or three female headliners this year. Will we ever see a year when female dominance is reflected in an all-female line-up on the Pyramid Stage headline slots?! The fact that such a big step forward was taken last year pointed at a new tide and improvement. If we have incredible women headlining other stages, the Pyramid Stage has only one female headliner.

Some might say the fact it is not all-male is a positive. That is true. It was be a massive step back to have no women. However, like last year, there is one odd inclusion. I can appreciate Coldplay were a crowd-pleasing booking last year. However, it didn’t seem fresh or a reaction to this new album that was wowing critics. It seemed a little lazy. This year, The 1975 have been booked. Aside from the fact that their lead Matty Healy – who I have made no secret of disliking enormously – is controversial, the band have not released an album since 2022. Being Funny in a Foreign Language got positive reaction but the band have not put much out in the three years since. It does seem another case of bad timing. It is baffling why they were selected when there are so many other bands that are more worthy. Fontaines D.C. would have been awesome headliners. Solo artists like Sam Fender. I was also thinking about Kylie Minogue. She was due to headline in 2005 but was replaced by Basement Jaxx. Minogue was diagnosed with breast cancer and one would have hoped that twenty years on, she would have been given that headline slot. She has played since 2005 but with the remarkable TENSION (2023) ranking alongside her best albums, she would have been a phenomenal booking. Also, her 2000 album, Light Years, turns twenty-five in September. Its iconic lead single, Spinning Around, turns twenty-five shortly before Glastonbury starts this year. As Glastonbury does not started until 25th June, Minogue will be done with The Tension Tour. It would be a perfect finale or encore if she was a Glastonbury headliner! The biggest omission is Charli xcx. Headlining on the Other Stage on the Saturday night, why not a Saturday headline slot on the Pyramid Stage?!

Dua Lipa was booked last year. Olivia Rodrigo this year. Charli xcx is arguably more popular and worthy. I reckon her Saturday headline slot will get more attention and buzz than The 1975’s headline slot. It does seem a weird oversight. Her time is now. With the momentum created from last year’s BRAT – which many highlighted as their album of the year -, she would be one of the best headliners from recent years! I think that her set will be a five-star spectacle, but you have to ask why she was not asked to headline the Pyramid Stage. It would mean two women headlining the festival’s biggest stage. Keeping that advantage from last year. Even though this year is not a step back, it does seem to be a missed opportunity. However, it is good that artists like Charli xcx and Doechii get a big platform. That might not have happened in years past. The festival organisers (Emily and Michael Eavis) aware of more female visibility in headline slots. Greater parity across the bill. Still a festival leading the way when it comes to gender inequality, though there is clearly room for improvement. The Pyramid Stage headline bookings have raised some questions. Though we have to celebrate the positives. Neil Young and The Chrome Hearts will be amazing. Olivia Rodrigo is definitely going to smash it! The biggest takeaway from the announced names is how broad it is. Something to please everyone. Alanis Morisette a first-time booking. Timely, as her third studio album, Jagged Little Pill, turns thirty on 13th June – two weeks before she plays Glastonbury. Busta Rhymes is an unusual call but a great one! En Vogue, Lola Young and Supergrass playing on the same day (Friday) as Self Esteem. It is a great Friday that promises so many treats. We will get more names but the ones announced so far are amazing.

Saturday is a brilliant one. Doechii and Charli xcx. Nova Twins and Gary Numan. Aside from some questionable calls like The Script and Kaiser Chiefs, they do work when you think about their demographic and fanbase. Appealing to a different crowd than Doechii or Beth Gibbons. Sunday ending the festival with a bang. Possibly the most diverse day, the Legends slot sees Rod Stewart take to the stage. He plays on the same day as The Prodigy, Olivia Rodrigo, Kae Tempest, The Brian Jonestown Massacre and the newly-reformed The Maccabees. When more names are announced, I think we will see a lot of rising artists given incredible recognition. Although I have some concerns and issues with the line-up – especially the main headliners -, it is subjective. Again, you cannot please everyone! Eclectic genres and time periods. Gender parity and important headline slots for women. Some older and classic bands sitting alongside modern icons. Perhaps one of the most enjoyable diverse line-up in many years! Last year’s festival was a wonderful thing. I think that this year’s could be even bigger and better. When more names are announced, we will get a clear picture of what Glastonbury 2025 will look like. However, the first wave of names offers plenty of positives! That is the main thing: the positive majority. My niggles aside, it is great that the U.K.’s biggest music festival is still going strong. Down at Worthy Farm, from 25th to 29th June, there is going to be…

A huge celebration!

FEATURE: Spotlight: Sienna Spiro

FEATURE:

 

 

Spotlight

 

Sienna Spiro

_________

I will end with a review…

for her new E.P., SINK NOW, SWIM LATER. One that has got a lot of critical praise, it is no wonder the amazing Sienna Spiro is being talked about as a talent to watch. The nineteen-year-old London-based artist is turning heads right now. I am going to move to a few interviews with her. So that we can discover more about this incredible artist. Sienna Spiro is the daughter of jeweller Glenn Spiro, who named a yellow diamond ring the Sienna Star after her; when auctioned in June 2021, the diamond sold for $3.4 million. It is a pretty cool fact. However, it is her musical upbringing that is more important. The artists she was exposed to in her earliest years. Influenced and affected by artists such as Frank Sinatra, Etta James, and Amy Winehouse, Spiro began writing songs at the age of ten. She was also inspired by Hip-Hop artists of the 2000s. During the pandemic, in 2021, Spiro started uploading videos of herself perform to TikTok. Gaining momentum and love across the platform, she released a series of popular and extraordinary singles. Last year was a busy and exciting one for her. She is in the middle of a run of tour dates at the moment. Tomorrow (11th March), she plays at the 02 Academy Brixton alongside Nao and Nectar Woode. I predict that she will be playing huge international dates and big festivals stages soon enough. I am going to start out with this feature from New Wave Magazine. They are big fans of Sienna Spiro’s work:

“You may know Sienna from her breathtaking covers on TikTok that distract you from scrolling and pull you in to listen to the 18-year-old’s newest releases that hear her soulful raspy tone. What is for sure is the talent Sienna Spiro has possessed from songwriting since ten years old. Beyond her years in her capabilities within sound, composition and performing, the singer debuts two new singles this year, ‘NEED ME’ and as of today, ‘MAYBE’. Sienna tells us, “It’s a super intimate project. These songs are for people to get to know me but also to interpret and feel in their own way”.

In conversation with New Wave Magazine, Sienna opens up about her journey so far into the music industry and learning the process behind creating, finishing and releasing a song. Something that is quite clearly natural for the artist. From pre-teens into adulthood, Sienna’s well versed background of sounds has evolved her into a multitalented songwriter with no limits to her talent in genre techniques. “It comes really naturally because it’s what I listen to growing up as a kid”.

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A post shared by SIENNA SPIRO (@siennaspiro)

“It feels weird to have something out. Going from bedroom songwriting to writing with other people but I love the writing process”.

The single ‘NEED ME’ hailing in over 1.2 million streams, is an experimental ballad drawing from Sienna’s personal experiences in a soulful captivating sound. The minor chords and key changes create a solid foundation as a mature and delicate introduction to the singer’s artistry. Inspirations include jazz musicians such as Etta James and Frank Sinatra but also include a range of Hip hop legends from the early 2000’s who have created a natural influence over her music and fashion styles.

In the digital age of TikTok, the platform has grown Sienna’s audience into a community she deems feels more like “friends rather than fans” who recognise the singer and relate to her on a personal level. Reinforcing this connection through both singles, the artist utilises each track to draw emotion, frustration and confusion into riffs, runs and a strong vocal range that carries her raspy notes.

Most recently performing at London’s KoKo Camden venue, Sienna says she is most comfortable when singing at acoustic shows and expresses the value of gaining feedback from her performances. Not to mention the importance of what she is wearing she says, “what I wear matters massively, I cannot sing in a dress”.  It comes naturally for the singer to dress in style, it impacts more than comfortability, combining her love for Hip hop in music with streetwear in her style”.

There is a lot of new press interest for Sienna Spiro. Someone who is going to have a very long and illustrious career, at only nineteen, it is incredible how assured and complete she sounds. Like she has been making music for decades. It will be exciting seeing how Spiro expands and evolves through the years. I want to move to this interview from 10 Magazine and highlight a lot of their chat with this stunning and original artist:

“With a voice that lingers long after the last note fades, Sienna Spiro is more than just a rising star – she’s a storyteller, weaving raw emotion and intimate confessions into every song. At just 19, the London-based singer-songwriter has already built a powerful presence, amassing millions of streams and captivating audiences with her distinctive blend of soul, R&B and pop.

Sienna’s journey began in quiet moments of self-discovery, writing songs from a young age of 10. But it was her spine-tingling cover of Donald Glover’s Redbone – which racked up over 6.7 million views on TikTok – that first revealed the sheer magnetism of her voice. That moment of viral recognition wasn’t just a fleeting spark; it was the ignition of something much bigger. When she finally introduced the world to her own music, the response was instant. From the hypnotic allure of her debut single Need Me to the vulnerable, aching ballad Maybe., Sienna’s ability to translate emotion into melody has earned her nods from the likes of SZA and Snoh Aalegra, as well as chart placements across Denmark, Sweden, Norway and the UK.

Now, with the release of her highly anticipated debut EP on February 21st, Sienna steps fully into her artistry. Featuring the passionate defiance of Need Me, Back to Blonde and a collection of unreleased gems, this body of work cements her as a voice impossible to ignore. It’s not just music – it’s an invitation into her world, where heartbreak, self-discovery and resilience come alive in every lyric.

Fresh off a sold-out headline show at Hoxton Hall and celebrating one million streams for Back to Blonde, Sienna Spiro is ready for the next chapter. If her path till now is any sign, this is just the start.

1. Who is Sienna Spiro?

Still trying to work that out.

2. Three words that sum up your vibe?

Stubborn. Passionate. Honest.

3. Which artists had the biggest influence on you growing up?

My dad used to play the greats – Frank Sinatra, Nina Simone, Etta James, Donny Hathaway, Marvin Gaye and Sara Vaughn in the house all the time and that’s really what started my love for music.

4. What can fans expect from your new EP?

They can expect a really intimate project, where I feel they can get to know me on a personal level but also discover their own meanings within the songs. The EP is also split into two sections with ‘sink’ songs and ‘swim’ songs so I feel there’s something in there for everyone.

5. What do you hope fans take away from this EP?

I hope they take away whatever they are needing at this moment in their life. I also intentionally kept the music stripped back, so people can focus on the real song and  get to know me better.

6. What has been your career highlight so far?

Definitely my headline show in November. That was really an insane unmatched experience which I’ll never forget.

7. How does TikTok influence your creative process?

I don’t think TikTok influences my creative process, but it definitely is a sounding board and a place of discovery which I think is amazing”.

I am going to get to a new interview from NME very soon. Before I come to that, I want to highlight Wonderland. and their interview with Sienna Spiro from last month. Someone I am new to but am committed to following, I can definitely understand why there is a tonne of excitement about her. Like she could raise to the same heights as some of her music idols. Perhaps our next true great voice. Someone that will be talked about many years from now:

“How would you describe your sonic identity? What ingredients go into the Sienna Spiro melting pot?

My sonic identity at the moment feels both intimate and expansive. It’s grounded in raw vocals, paired with interesting and original melodies and textures. Lyrically, I strive for honesty and visceral expression, without dictating too much of what I think the listener should feel. Frank Ocean is kind of the pinnacle of lyricism for me. I have a deep love for jazz and soul, which will always be part of my sonic DNA, alongside influences from hip hop, R&B, folk, and even Latin music.

Why did you decide to start pursuing music as a career?

It was never really a conscious decision to be honest, its always been the natural thing to do. I don’t think I could or would want to do anything else. Music is such a big part of me and the fact I get to do it as a job is insane and such a blessing.

Congratulations on your debut EP, “SINK NOW , SWIM LATER”! How are you feeling about the release?

Thank you so much!! It’s a weird feeling you know, I’ve been working on this project for so long and its been such a process to get all the songs and creative right that it feels like a relief to finally have it out but i’m also very nervous and really hope people resonate with it!

What was the process of creating the work?

I wrote these songs over a period of time where I was finding my sound and finding the people I wanted to work with- so the songs came first and then I found the title which just made everything make sense and the world started coming together.

What inspired you sonically throughout the process? Is there any key influences?

My main influences have always been jazz and soul so naturally that was a huge influence for me, As well as different sounds, I love different textures and weird sounds usually things I hear in everyday life or in the studio would just spark something in me and id feel inspired and that where some of the songs where born. But some artists that I listened to during the time I was writing these songs where Frank Ocean, Nina Simone, Olivia Dean, Lianne La Havas, Mustafa, Stevie Wonder, Donny Hathaway, Beatles, Little Simz etc.. Theres been so many artists that have inspired me so these are just a few.

What are you tackling across the project, thematically?

This project was written at a time of significant change in my life. It explores the complexities of being young and a woman, the beginnings and endings of relationships. Even though the songs all have their own story and world they all relate to the feeling of being on the outside, whether thats needing validation, the desire to be kept around or even just needing an escape and doing that through fantasy. This project (I think) really captures what its like to be a young person who feels a lot in todays society.

Your songwriting is admirably vulnerable throughout. How did you find the comfort and confidence and be open and honest in the way you express yourself as an artist?

Thank you! To be honest I really struggle with vulnerable songwriting because it often means being honest with yourself! Which I am not very good at. But I really surrounded myself with people that allowed me to feel safe and pushed me to do better, and i’m so grateful because for the music on this project where its so intimate it’s incredibly important”.

Before finishing off with a review for SINK NOW, SWIM LATER, I want to come to a great interview from NME. A breakout artist who has such a distinct sound and is both grounded and ambitious, it is amazing people like SZA not only know about her music but are cosigns. Putting their name and weight behind her! Not a bad achievement for someone who is just starting out in a professional sense:

“For Spiro, the journey to her debut EP has been long and, at times, challenging; she started writing her own songs from age 10 and found solace in words when she struggled to fit in growing up. “I always felt like the biggest weirdo ever and I got bullied,” she shares. “Everyone made me feel so alien. And I also think that had something to do with being undiagnosed with ADHD at the time.”

But that all changed when she joined East London Arts and Music (ELAM) aged 16 and connected with fellow musically-minded creatives. At the same time, her online covers – often filmed from the floor of her shower or planted on her bed – began to take off thanks to her truly powerful voice, which channels the timeless blues, soul and jazz vocals of legends like Etta James and Ella Fitzgerald, who Spiro listened to during her childhood.

In fact, mere weeks after uploading her TikTok cover of Finneas’ ‘Break My Heart Again’, she found a manager and decided to drop out of music school after eight months to move with the momentum of her fledgling career. Now signed to Capitol Records, her new EP is an intimate introduction to the personal stories behind her soulful vocals. As she looks to the year ahead – which includes a support stint on tour with Nao – Spiro reflects on the last nine months of growth, her first ever shows and hopes for the year ahead.

Your first TikTok cover was ‘Break My Heart Again’ by Finneas. What was your reaction when you saw the viral response?

“I filmed that cover literally just before I was about to get on a train to go to Reading Festival. I remember I posted it the first day I joined music college. I didn’t think anything of it, and then it was so overwhelming. It reached a bunch of people and I got so many messages from people that wanted to collaborate and people that wanted to meet. The most full circle thing to me was I ended up doing a session with him last year.”

Your live vocals are so powerful. Have you always been a confident performer?

“I’m quite a shy person, even though that’s quite shocking. But I feel the most myself [when] performing. It’s where I feel the most present. When I was younger, I really felt like nobody would ever listen to me, and I’ve always had trouble speaking and expressing myself, and I’ve felt the most seen and the most listened to when I was performing and when I was on stage.”

SZA commented on Instagram that your cover of Childish Gambino’s ‘Redbone’ was “insane”. What was going through your head when you read that?

“There’s been a bunch of things that have happened where I’ve just been like, ‘There’s no way this is real!’ I had a bit of a silent moment and I had to step out of the room, called a couple of my friends and just freaked out for a second. I’m such a huge fan of hers, and I’m so in awe of her and love her so much, that that was a very crazy moment.”

You said the songs on your new EP were written during a time of trying to navigate the “layers of being young and being a woman”. What did that look like?

“There’s so much that didn’t make sense, especially in the world at the time for women and in politics. There’s so many struggles that women have and that I’ve had myself, especially with body image. I struggle with that a lot, and there’s a song called ‘Cyanide’ which is quite toxic but it’s very real. And I really wanted to make sure I wasn’t lying and being honest. A song like that is the stuff that was going through my head, and it was me trying to make sense of things.”

Your numbers across streaming and social media are already huge. How have you found that process of making fans so quickly?

“It’s a really surreal process because you’re kind of thinking ahead of everything. And there’s rarely a moment that you sit back and think, ‘These are real people’ until it’s in real life, and then you see people, and you interact with people, and you watch people interacting with your music.

“I don’t even know how to compartmentalise it, because that’s what I need to do to understand things. But it’s really crazy, to be honest; I sometimes find it hard to believe myself.”

What do you see when you think about the future of Sienna Spiro?

“The main goal that I’ve always wanted to achieve is writing an album that I hope changes music in a good way, and that I feel completely proud of, start to finish. Because I think that’s hard to achieve with all the rush these days. I really hope that is something I achieve”.

I am going to end up with and return to New Wave Magazine. Their thoughts on the spellbinding and phenomenal E.P. from Sienna Spiro. Do make sure that you are aware of her and get involved with her music. I would expect her name to be in the mix when the full line-up for this year’s Glastonbury Festival is announced. She is going to go very far in music, that much is clear:

“Teasing singles throughout the year, giving a jaw dropping debut performance in Hoxton this past November, and announcing her UK & European tour this week, we included have been counting down the days to hear the full project of Sienna Spiro’s debut EP SINK NOW, SWIM LATER. Writing the material for the EP since Sienna was 16 years old, the four year journey has been executed into an exceptional 8 track project delivering more than our expectations.

PHOTO CREDIT: Petros

Reminiscing on our conversation for New Wave in July of last year it is hard to believe how far the artist has come in such a short amount of time. Then, listeners from TikTok were melting over her Donald Glover & Amy Winehouse covers and requesting classics for the singer to record which eventually catapulted into her original verses being shared for the world to hear. “BUTTERFLY EFFECT” opens the project with a sombre entrance to the project with a title that foreshadows the effect of Sienna’s debut, one intital beginning that is about to make a large difference in this chaos theory.

Her magnetic performances via the screen were enough to have viewers and fans hooked creating a young loyal fan base for the singer to relate her lyrics to. This fan base were the ones who sang word for word at Hoxton Hall to the five songs of the EP that were already released last year. Sienna used her first solo show as an opportunity to give us a glance at the full track list including newer additions “ORIGAMI” and “CYANIDE”. There was a lingering sense of awe and emotion in the crowd which is exactly how it feels to listen to this EP back to back. A complete journey of ups and downs, feelings of loneliness, anger, frustration and insecurity comes along with tracks that also create an empowering sound of vengeance, power and confidence.

The EP’s cover art is expectedly on brand for the singer featuring her signature tomboy style, an oversized tailored look and a vintage car for what we can only guess to be part of her admirable storytelling approach, photographed by Petro Studio.

Last week Sienna’s second track on the EP featured as BBC Radio 1’s Song of the Week which currently has almost 4 million streams. Radio hosts compared Sienna’s vocals to those of Raye and a “young Adele”. Counting jazz musicians from Sinatra to Fitzgerald to hip hop legends as her inspirations, there are fusions of both genres combined with pop melodies that build her unique sound. The slower acoustic track “I DON’T HATE YOU” captures Sienna’s soulful raspy tones that magnetically draws you into her lyrics through a scalic minor crescendo. Effortlessly, Sienna’s voice glides off the back of strings and drum rolls on this track layered with echoing backing vocals that build up to a breathtaking outro. Tracks like this one and “BACK TO BLONDE” build Sienna’s repertoire that cements her as one of the contenders you think of for a record like the Bond theme song.

“ORIGAMI” begins with semibreve accordion notes giving an eerie introduction into the heartfelt gospel-like track. Sienna mixes her production with string sections, heavy bass instrumentation and fluctuates between soft vocals and raspy riffs and runs that blend so well together you never know how the next verse is going to sound. In contrast to the London born artist’s favourite track “MAYBE”, hears forte piano chords and arpeggios and violins form a breakup anthem accentuated by Sienna’s powerful voice on what is by far her most popular track so far on the project reaching over 37.5 million streams.

Experimenting with a more sultry sound “CYANIDE” has a darker feel with an electric guitar underpinning the heavier lyrics Sienna sings. The words create a sense of numbness that flow over metaphorical lines on body confidence, young love, and simply the mind of a young woman’s tribulations, “just wanna be thin, I know it won’t be enough… if you wanna see my blueprint it’s not under my blue jeans”. The artist’s debut project unleashes a rare lyrical vulnerability and talent of executing multiple tracks that share this feeling in a variety of ballads and anthems for her audience.

Every year, month and week there are new artists entering the music space, even more frequently from London within the pop scene. Less often are they 19 years old with a tour including Australian/EU & UK shows with co-signs from the likes of Snoh Aalegra & SZA, and an EP under their belt. Since her viral TikTok covers there was an unwavering confidence in Sienna’s listeners that she was destined for success in the jazz and pop industry, this EP has just confirmed it. If you came from a first listen of “TAXI DRIVER” or “NEED ME”, there is more of the personal journey to hear on this project. Be prepared to have your heart strings pulled on in Sienna Spiro’s debut EP as it unleashes a new sound experience that you didn’t know you needed to feel until now”.

I will end things there. Undoubtably one of the most important artists of this year, there is so much love out there for Sienna Spiro! Being tipped as a massive name of the future, it is jaw-dropping hearing her sing. That voice so distinct and soul-stirring. In Sienna Spiro, we have in our midst a…

BREATHTAKING artist.

____________

Follow Sienna Spiro

Instagram:

https://www.instagram.com/siennaspiro/

TikTok:

https://www.tiktok.com/@siennaspiro

YouTube:

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCd5sMkyvImc50eLIpwy3UaQ

Spotify:

https://open.spotify.com/artist/02gSuSAWEdWa5UOvqzjX6v?si=tCAGWFcDQsiTkgMykZUBNw

FEATURE: The Gold Standard: Brilliant Queens of Rap and a Genre Still Struggling with Misogyny and Inequality

FEATURE:

 

 

The Gold Standard

IN THIS PHOTO: Megan Thee Stallion

Brilliant Queens of Rap and a Genre Still Struggling with Misogyny and Inequality

_________

LIKE so many people…

IN THIS PHOTO: Doechii

of my generation, I grew up listening to and inspired by the music of Rap’s queens. Some real icons and queens came through in the 1990s. As we recently celebrated International Women’s Day (8th March), it made me think of genres where women are still overlooked or discriminated against. Even if women are ruling Pop and other genres, Rock, Alternative and others still struggle with gender imbalance and misogyny. One of the worst offenders is Rap. It is a genre still seen as a man’s place. Still very much struggling when it comes to supporting and encouraging women. Still great toxicity and sexism. Even if the U.S. is seeing new queens like Doechii rule and strike forward, here in the U.K. there is a much less balanced Rap scene. Very male-dominated. A genre of music not as active and notable compared to Rap coming out of the U.S. Women in Rap are breaking barriers and setting records. It was notable that Doechii became only the third woman in GRAMMY history to win the Best Rap Album ever. Here is some more information:

“Don't mind us crying after watching Doechii's acceptance speech at the 2025 Grammy Awards.

The Tampa born rapper became only the third ever woman to win Best Rap Album at the 67th Annual Grammy Awards on Sunday for her standout mixtape Alligator Bites Never Heal. The moment was especially meaningful considering the last woman to win in that category, Cardi B, was present to award Doechii with the honor. Before Cardi B and Doechii, Lauryn Hill was the first ever woman to take home the award for Best Rap Album for The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill in 1999. Doechii accepted her award, one of the first of the evening, in a custom Thom Browne number, a designer that has been supportive of her since her rise as an emcee to watch in recent years.

"I don't wanna make this long but this category was introduced in 1989 and only two women have won— Lauryn Hill — wait, three women have won! Lauryn Hill, Cardi B, and Doechii!" the rapper began her speech. "I put my heart and my soul into this mixtape—I went through so much and I dedicated myself to sobriety and God told me I would be rewarded and he would show me just how good it can get."

Doechii continued her speech with an inspiring message to her fans and any young women watching tonight's ceremony.

“I know there’s some Black girl—so many Black women—watching me right now. And I wanna tell you, you can do it," she said through tears. "Anything is possible. Don’t allow anybody to project any stereotypes on you”.

It is important to highlight women across Rap and Hip-Hop. Think about the legends and icons of the past who paved the way for the queens of today. I don’t think enough is said about women of Rap. Last year, Spotify presented The Gold Standard: An art exhibit celebrating Hip-Hop’s women-led renaissance:

“Women have been integral to hip-hop from the beginning, contributing to its growth despite encountering barriers and significant challenges. As early icons like MC Lyte, Salt-N-Pepa, and Queen Latifah used the their bold lyrical styles to advocate for women’s rights, they paved the way for Lil’ Kim, Missy Elliott, and Ms. Lauryn Hill to command the spotlight in the ’90s and ‘00s through their diverse expressions of confidence, femininity, and allure.

Today we are in a golden era of women in hip-hop, one in which MCs like Cardi B, Megan Thee Stallion, and Doja Cat have simultaneously enjoyed unprecedented success. To celebrate this renaissance, Spotify hosted The Gold Standard, a special art exhibit in NYC spotlighting the new generation of women in hip-hop, celebrating their influence on music and culture from 2018 to today.

Featuring the work of fine artist Manon Biernacki, The Gold Standard features Cardi B, Megan Thee Stallion, Doja Cat, City Girls, Saweetie, Latto, Sexyy Red, Ice Spice, GloRilla, and Flo Milli as subjects in a series of Spotify-commissioned portraits.

Following a Renaissance theme, each piece in the series nods to each woman’s artistic mastery and honors their contributions in shaping the genre.

“A playlist like Feelin’ Myself continues to prove that there is strong demand for women in hip-hop and the music they make. The listeners are often early adopters, and they tend to go hard for their faves,” said Briana Younger, Spotify Editorial Lead, Hip-Hop. “Over the years, we’ve seen more women than ever breaking out and having these big cultural moments that energize people. The playlist is best for being a snapshot of the most recent stuff, but with the exhibit, we wanted to showcase the longevity of this era. All of the women we included and even others that we didn’t—they aren’t just one-hit wonders or has-beens. They’ve consistently been a part of the conversation, evolving the way artists can function and have success in this landscape, and it’s important to celebrate that”.

Even if, in the U.S for sure, there is a new wave of incredible women in Rap, there is still an issue with lyrical themes from male artists. Even to this day, there is still objectification and misogyny. This not only encourages other male Rap artists to follow suit. It sends out an incredible toxic and troubling message of how men in the genre view women. A decades-old issue that has not really died down at all. In 2024, NME published a feature looking at a resurfaced clip from 2022, where AJ Tracey discussed objectification of women in Hip-Hop and Rap:

“Recently, a clip recirculated online of the West Londoner talking at the prestigious Oxford Union in October 2022. A student asked Tracey if the objectification of women in rap and drill was integral to the genre’s culture and how to change it.

The ‘Ladbroke Grove’ star began by thanking her for her question, adding that it is “a serious one”.

“I do not think the culture and the objectification of women are one and the same,” he said. “I think it’s a decision young men make – to rap about certain topics. Sometimes they feel that they are rapping about their lived experiences but, in general, they’re actually hurting a large group of people by the comments they make.

He explained further: “And, I’m sure a lot of them aren’t aware because they’re young and naïve. I’m sure I’ve said things in the past that are offensive to certain groups but as you learn and grow – as a human and as an artist – you learn to not say these things. Some of the environments you grow up in are very toxic and we don’t learn these lessons as a kid, and we have to learn them as an adult and, by the time you get to an adult – if you have the spotlight on you – these mistakes that you’re making are amplified.”

He added: “So, to answer your question: it’s, again, something that we have to tackle. I don’t think a lot of the youth that are making a lot of the comments that you are alluding to: they’re not aware of the severity of what they’re saying and how hurtful it is to other people. So, it’s something that we need to teach, for sure.

“As I say, any good artist is growing and evolving – any human, to be honest. We’re all changing and we need to look out for each other and make sure that we’re pulling people up when we can”.

Not only is there misogyny throughout Hip-Hop. There is this continuation of misogynoir (hatred against Black women). The Rap beef continuing between Kendrick Lamar and Drake not only reveals a nastiness and some rather obnoxious accusations – Lamar accusing Drake of being a paedophile -; women are used as pawns and collateral damage. The genre has a real misogyny issue. I am going to move on in a minute. For Black women, misogyny is nothing new. This article highlights that in the wake of the Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs sex trafficking case from last year. Amy DuBois Barnett wrote about Andre Harrell, the founder of Uptown Records and the kingmaker who gave Diddy his first break, and words of advice he gave to her. If Hip-Hop and Rap used to be a battleground for men to sort out their feuds and beefs, it was also about how they were going to (mis)treat women – who they viewed as property and assets. Have things really improved at all?

“Andre’s wise words stuck with me as I puzzled how to command respect within a culture that valued physical attractiveness and style over my master’s degree and my position running a key source of relevant journalism for a critical demographic. I understood what Andre meant, that much of the male bravado in hip-hop masked anger, frustration and corresponding deep insecurity that stemmed from poverty, trauma and emotional voids. And that the misogyny within hip-hop culture ran as deep among the mostly male execs as it did the music itself.

After its explosive growth from a regional subculture to a multimillion-dollar international industry, hip-hop was at a zenith. Hip-hop and mainstream culture were indistinguishable; models were walking high fashion runways in dookie chains and durags, and hip-hop music executives and artists ran a key part of New York’s social scene. I’d watched hip-hop’s decisive takeover in the 1980s from the front stoop of my family home in Harlem. Kurtis Blow, Run DMC, LL Cool J, Queen Latifah and Will Smith were releasing party songs that still get people to the dance floor. Though the music began to change in the late ’80s, the predominant vibe into the early ’90s was still funky, fresh fun.

But the increasing violence of inner cities altered by drug use and poverty spawned the rise of gangsta rap, which would end up dominating the genre by the mid-’90s. At first, music labels wouldn’t even sign music with misogynistic overtones. But as gangsta rap’s glorified depictions of violence gained acceptance within lyrics and urban iconography, so did sexually explicit themes that, ultimately, expanded into widespread misogyny. Women were derided with vulgar nicknames and viewed as whores deserving of violence.

Sociologist Ronald Weitzer and criminologist Charis E. Kubrin, both of George Washington University at the time, wrote a 2009 journal article titled “Misogyny in Rap Music” that described five main misogynistic themes: derogatory naming and shaming of women, sexual objectification of women, distrust of women, legitimating violence against women and celebration of prostitution and pimping.

When music labels saw the traction that violent and misogynistic music was getting, they shifted their approach to distributing gangsta rap records (while still not signing the artists). When music chronicling murderous street life and sexist violence began to get radio play, the labels gave in and started signing gangsta rap artists. Interscope’s groundbreaking partnership with Dr. Dre, Suge Knight and Death Row Records opened the floodgates and led to the proliferation of “controversial” hip-hop.

The culture surrounding the music shifted too, emboldening artists and executives to unabashedly play out the misogynistic musical themes in real life; it became aspirational for men to be violent toward women. Because, at its peak, hip-hop culture was synonymous with mainstream culture, the impact of this was felt not just in music but also in fashion, sports, film and all entertainment forms. It became acceptable for a platinum rapper to grab my ass in a club, for a well-known label executive to lock the doors of a limo and refuse to let me out until I kissed him, for my Motorola pager to be filled with lewd propositions from entertainment and sports power brokers, or for men to casually call me a “bitch” or “ho” when turned down. I heeded Andre’s advice while watching women without benefit of his sagacity make one too many missteps with the wrong baller and get treated much, much worse”.

If a surge in brilliant and empowering female talent in the U.S. existed in a scene that is still clearly misogynistic, there seems to be less attention paid to female rappers in the U.K. It is clear that male Rap artists in the U.S. do not protect or support women. Still very much a case of women fighting to be heard without much allyship from men. In the U.K., there does seem to be a real lack of female Rap and Hip-Hop artists. Do they look at the scene here and feel discouraged?! I am sure there are so many incredible women in Rap who want to come through but are looking at the genre in the U.K. and feel disheartened. This article from The Times reacted to Little Simz being the only woman nominated in the Best Hip-Hop/Grime/Rap act category at this year’s BRITs. She has won before but lost out this year to Stormzy. One woman in a five-person category. Very telling about the lack of female representation across these genres at the BRITs:

“We have to fight harder to be seen.” “As a woman you have to work much harder.” “Men can be mediocre and still thrive. Women have to be extra good, extra different, extra interesting.” These are the sentiments of three successful British rappers: Cristale, Ms Banks and Enny.

It’s no surprise — just look at the nominations for the major music awards in the UK. In the four years since the hip-hop/grime/rap category was introduced at the Brits, only one woman has been nominated: Little Simz (in 2022, 2024 and this year). She is also the only woman to have won the award for best hip-hop act at the Mobos in the past ten years, a prize she took home in 2023 and 2024. No British female rapper made it on to the Top 40 albums or singles chart in 2024.

This gender disparity is all the more striking because in the US it’s the opposite story. Doechii, a ferociously talented 26-year-old from Florida, won the Grammy for best rap album in February. More and more female rappers are making the Top Ten there — from Nicki Minaj and Cardi B to Megan Thee Stallion, Ice Spice and Doja Cat — to the extent that in 2023 the New York Times announced: “The future of rap is female.” That said, Doechii was still the only woman on the list of nominees for that Grammy category this year and she, Cardi B and Lauryn Hill are the only women to have won it.

“There’s a very masculine energy within rap. Sometimes women are made to feel like it’s not their place,” says Ms Banks, a 30-year-old rapper from London with 500,000 monthly Spotify listeners. She and Cristale both talk about receiving comments on social media telling them to “get back to the kitchen” and that women shouldn’t rap.

The history of the genre bears this out. “In the Nineties and 2000s, there was a one in, one out mentality. They could only ever support one woman at a time,” explains Arusa Qureshi, the Scottish-based author of Flip the Script: How Women Came to Rule Hip Hop. “In the UK we still haven’t got past that.”

In David Kane’s book on UK rap, What Do You Call It?, he interviews the British rapper Shystie, who tells him that in the early 2000s the radio wouldn’t play both her and Estelle, another female rapper, so they went for Estelle. “That kind of deterred me from making more music,” she recalls.

Despite the hurdles, British women have been making their mark on rap since it came over from the US, starting with Cookie Crew, the duo who formed in south London in 1983. “I remember seeing Ms Dynamite on the Mobos on TV and being obsessed with her,” says Tiffany Calver, 30, a BBC 1Xtra host whose show spotlights emerging hip-hop artists. She points to Estelle, Lisa Maffia, Lioness, Lady Leshurr and Shystie as other favourites from her childhood. “But the fact of the matter is I can list you all of these names quite quickly, whereas if you were to ask me about the male counterparts I’ve grown up listening to we’d be here for hours.”

In 2022 Little Simz burst into the mainstream consciousness with four Brit nominations, a win for best new artist, four Mobo nominations and a best album win for Sometimes I Might Be Introvert, as well as taking home the Mercury prize and an Ivor Novello for her song I Love You, I Hate You. “We were so happy because it was a ‘finally’ moment, screaming from the rooftops: finally she’s being seen,” Calver says. But, she adds, it was interesting to see her win best new artist. “I’d known Little Simz as an artist since ten years before that — it definitely was not an overnight thing.” In fact she released her first mixtape, Stratosphere, in 2010, aged 16.

Her independence and refusal to compromise have inspired other artists, such as Enny, 30, from London, who has two million monthly Spotify listeners. Marketing and image is a big part of that. “Women are starting to expand outside of the stereotypical idea of what a female rapper should be,” Enny says. For her this stereotype is “oversexualised — I’m not going to beat around the bush”. Ms Banks releases her music independently and promotes it herself.

Little Simz also became known to the wider public through her acting work, most prominently playing Shelley in Top Boy and herself in the Spider-Man film Venom: Let There Be Carnage. Cristale, 23, the only woman nominated in the hip-hop category at this year’s Mobos, also appeared in Top Boy as well as Channel 4’s Queenie, expanding her audience. “I definitely think acting has had a massive part to play in my development because it showed people that I’m a multi-genre artist.” She has more than a million followers on TikTok, not just thanks to her music but also her entertaining “get ready with me videos”.

Women still need more exposure. “The guys get to have a lot of fun,” Enny says. “They get to do football stuff and all these charity things. I don’t think there’s a space that pushes that same energy for women.” They also, crucially, are under-represented on the live scene, an issue that’s compounded by the closure of many grassroots music venues: 125 in 2023 and two still closing every month.

In 2021 researchers from Utrecht University and Universitat Pompeu found that streaming services were more likely to suggest male artists. Festivals are still male-dominated: 63 per cent of the acts in UK line-ups last year were either all-male or male-led. This month Wireless, a rap and hip-hop festival in London, announced that the Canadian rapper Drake would headline all three days. The top five most popular songs on UK radio last year were by men; female artists made up just 26.8 per cent of plays.

A report from the women and equalities committee last year also found that women were under-represented in positions of authority in the music industry. Ms Banks recalls moments where “you’re not really always looked at as a colleague or someone that you can just collaborate and work with. It’s more what they can gain from you … sexual advances and stuff.”

There is an overriding feeling of optimism, however, in all my conversations with rappers, writers and tastemakers. Calver points to the proliferation of women hosting rap, grime and drill shows, such as Ellie Prohan on Kiss and Sian Anderson, a fellow 1Xtra presenter”.

I wanted to talk about the modern women in Hip-Hop and Rap that are successful in a genre that has long been focused on men. Where women have been and are still seen as property or inferior. Whilst the U.S. is spotlighting some amazing women coming through right now, there seems to be a real issue in the U.K. A comparative lack of visibility. If rappers like Stefflon Don and Nadia Rose were killing it a few years back, how many women other than Little Simz do people name when they think of women in British Rap, Grime and Hip-Hop? There does need to be a change. In terms of the U.K. scene and making it more accessible for and conscious of women. Ensuring their voices are heard and new talent is nurtured. That contemporary Hip-Hop and Rap queens are given the same opportunities of their male counterparts in terms of festival slots and playlists. The recent success of Doechii at the GRAMMYs should both shine a light on female talent in Rap but also raise questions. A lack of award representation. Misogyny and misogynoir together with a lack of support from their male peers. Apart from a few cosigns and collaborations, women still crop up in Rap lyrics as objects. Subjected to violence, degradation and toxic remarks. The queens of Hip and Rap, past and present, deserve…

HUGE respect.

FEATURE: The Digital Mixtape: All Saint: Melanie Blatt at Fifty

FEATURE:

 

The Digital Mixtape

PHOTO CREDIT: David Fisher/Shutterstock (via The Guardian)

All Saint: Melanie Blatt at Fifty

_________

PERHAPS this birthday might not…

IN THIS PHOTO: All Saints (Nicole Appleton, Melanie Blatt, Shaznay Lewis and Natalie Appleton) in 1997/PHOTO CREDIT: Tim Roney

be on everyone’s radar. Melanie Blatt, a quarter of All Saints (with Shaznay Lewis, Nicole and Natalie Appleton) turns fifty on 25th March. All Saints were hugely important to me when I was a teenager. Their amazing debut album, All Saints, came out in 1997. I still have it somewhere. The group’s most recent album, Testament, was released in 2018. I live in hope that we have not heard the last of All Saints. Melanie Blatt has released solo material and collaborated with other artists. I will include a few solo tracks/collaborations into mix. Before getting there, I want to bring in a bit of biography from AllMusic:

“Melanie Blatt was the founding member of one of the most successful girl groups of the '90s, All Saints. Born in Camden, London in 1975 to a French mother and English father, Blatt attended the prestigious Sylvia Young Theatre School at the same time as Denise Van Outen, Emma Bunton, and future bandmate Nicole Appleton. After performing in Drive, a short-lived band featuring U.S. actress Julienne Davis, and providing backing vocals for dub-funk outfit Dreadzone, she met songwriter Shaznay Lewis and, along with Simone Rainford, formed All Saints 1.9.7.5. Following the departure of Rainford, the pair recruited sisters Nicole and Natalie Appleton, dropped the numbers from the group's name, and signed a record deal with London Records. All Saints went on to become the Spice Girls' biggest rivals, scoring five number ones, two multi-platinum albums, and two Brit Awards before disbanding in 2001.

Following collaborations with Artful Dodger on the Top Ten hit "TwentyFourSeven" and hip-hop outfit Outsidaz on "I'm Leavin'," she released her first solo single in 2003, the Xenomania-produced "Do Me Wrong," and began work on her debut album, Shine, with Aqualung's Matt Hales. However, following the failure of her second single, "See Me," to enter the Top 75, plans for its release were shelved and she parted company with her label. In 2006, she reunited with the rest of All Saints to record third album Studio 1, and has since abandoned a music career to concentrate on her TV work. Blatt also appeared in the critically panned Dave Stewart gangster film, Honest, and on ITV2 covering the Brit Awards and participating in the network's music chat show The Hot Desk”.

An artist I have always admired, I do hope that we will get All Saints back and another album from them. There is this great interest and revival of girl groups or all-female groups from the 1990s and 2000s such as Girls Aloud and Sugababes. Because the saintly Melanie Blatt celebrates her fiftieth birthday on 25th March, I wanted to assemble a mixtape with some All Saints and deep cuts together with a few solo/collaboration cuts. This is a hearty salute to…

AN incredible artist.

FEATURE: Early Risers: Predicting Which Albums Could Be in the Running for the Mercury Prize 2025

FEATURE:

 

 

Early Risers

IN THIS PHOTO: Sam Fender

Predicting Which Albums Could Be in the Running for the Mercury Prize 2025

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ALTHOUGH it is March…

IN THIS PHOTO: Lambrini Girls/PHOTO CREDIT: Nicole Osrin

I wanted to look ahead to the Mercury Prize. Although the awards are not until the autumn, we are sort of halfway between last year’s ceremony and this year’s. Last year’s prize was won by English Teacher. Their album, This Could Be Texas, was a deserved winner. I think there are some strong albums released late last year and this year that are likely to be among the shortlist when it is announced later in the year. That usually happens a few months before the ceremony. Highlighting the best albums from British and Irish artists, the Mercury Prize is one of the highlights of the music calendar. Because of that, I wanted to do an early temperature check. Ten albums that could be on the shortlist of ten. Some of the albums that could be in contention…

LATER in the year.

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Sam Fender – People Watching

Release Date: 21st February, 2025

Label: Polydor

Producers: Adam Granducie/lMarkus Dravs/Sam Fender/Dean Thompson/Joe Atkinson

Review:

“Sam Fender has had a hell of a few years. Granted, with the release of his 2019 debut ‘Hypersonic Missiles’, he rocketed to the top of the charts, but the fervour that would unfold in the wake of its follow-up, 2021’s ‘Seventeen Going Under’ was still hard to comprehend. Graduating rapidly to festival headliner, and bagging a slew of awards along the way, his step up to a bonafide stadium artist has been swift.


It’s little surprise as to why; on ‘Seventeen Going Under’ the North Shields songsmith penned a series of powerful, poignant offerings that dug deep into the heart of working class struggle, with the kind of consideration and compassion that only can only ever come via real life experience. It was stunning in its sentiments, and along with some perfectly-plotted meme moments along the way (his hungover appearance on BBC Breakfast still does the rounds now), his reputation as the ultimate man of the people was solidified.

That’s why his next step is all the more interesting. With a handful of stadiums already booked and on their way to selling out (this year will mark his third, fourth and fifth time filling his beloved St. James’ Park), it’d be easy to imagine Sam busting out ten ready-made bangers for this third record, but what he does instead is so much more satisfying. While led by its storming - but no less devastating - lead single ‘People Watching’ (its chorus’ anthemic refrain of “Somebody’s darling’s on the street tonight” is up there with ‘Dead Boys’ and ‘Spit Of You’ in terms of a lyrical trojan horse), the album is, on the whole, much more sedate than its predecessor.

Unafraid of delving into both the personal and political - and, at times, where the two very much intertwine - ‘People Watching’ is an album that burrows under the skin of current society and refuses to dress up its stark reality. Take ‘Chin Up’’s tale of the current cost of living crisis (“The cold permeates the neonatal baby / Can’t heat the place for fucking love nor money”) or the disastrous impact of privatisation and capitalism explored in ‘Crumbling Empire’ (“My old man worked on the rail yard / Getting his trade on the electrical board / It got privatised, the work degraded / In this crumbling empire”); these songs paint a vivid and all too real picture of society in disarray.

But in among these portraits of the “marred streets”, there’s also a glimpse into the mind of our narrator: a young man struggling to find his place in this new version of his world. The twinkling ‘Wild Long Lie’ - a song that will seems all too familiar for any expats heading back to their hometown at Christmas - showcases this best, with Sam’s quiet realisation of “I think I need to leave this town” perhaps optimising the feelings of displacement that fame can so swiftly bestow.

Unsurprisingly, for an album that feels so intimate, its music follows suit. Having worked with The War On Drugs’ Adam Granduciel, there’s an almost filmic quality to these tracks (especially in the widescreen, Joni Mitchell-nodding closer ‘Remember My Name’), matching the observational nature of their lyrics. Less adrenaline-fuelled than some of his previous work, it’s also easy to sense the fingerprints of his own musical hero here too; while ‘Seventeen…’ could mirror Springsteen’s 1975 break-out ‘Born To Run’, this feels closer to the darker, more meditative moments of ‘Darkness On The Edge Of Town’.

Is this the album that people are expecting? Probably not, but that doesn’t matter. Instead, ‘People Watching’ is a bleak but astonishing rumination on our current times, viewed through the lens of Sam’s whirlwind past few years - an album that undoubtedly firms up his position as one of the great songwriters of our time” – DIY

Standout Cuts: People Watching/Crumbling Empire/Remember My Name

Key Track: Wild Long Lie

The Cure - Songs of a Lost World

Release Date: 1st November, 2024

Labels: Fiction/Lost/Polydor/Universal/Capitol

Producers: Robert Smith/Paul Corkett

Review:

“Our first taster from the album was the opener, ‘Alone’, it still stands as a perfect vibe-setting number for the album. Reminiscent of the outfit’s ‘Disintegration’ era, the band builds a mood for over three minutes before Smith enters the picture, his voice unchanged since the 80s.  With imagery of birds falling from the sky and bitter dregs, it’s apparent that we’re not getting another ‘Friday I’m in Love’ on this album. That’s not to say there isn’t beauty to be found. The following ‘And Nothing Is Forever’ is gorgeously wistful, Roger O’Donnell’s sparkling keys adding sweetness to Smith’s tale of loss. It’s classic Cure and really captures what makes the band so unique. A command of shadow and light.

The icy ‘A Fragile Thing’ may be the closest the album gets to producing a ‘pop’ number. Matching the spirit of the group’s mid-90s b-sides, the track feels like an anti ‘Lovesong,’ Smith’s conversational vocal delivery dropping harsh truths about how love and commitment can be a blessing and curse. ‘Warsong’ sees The Cure at their most mighty in decades, guitarist Reeves Gabrels unleashing wailing guitars as Smith roars about the poisoning effect of hatred and pride. Especially poignant with the current geopolitical issues.

‘Drone: No Drone’ sees the welcome return of what this reviewer likes to call ‘Sassy Smith’ mode. During these moments – see also ‘Wendy Time,’ ‘Never Enough‘ – the messy-haired icon spits lyrics over a funky beat with a tangible level of irritability. It’s a fun reprieve from the emotional heft of its surrounding tracks and gets the head bopping. A good thing, too, as the following ‘I Can Never Say Goodbye’ deals directly with the loss of Smith’s older brother Richard. A stately affair, the track is bound to resonate with those who’ve felt the world-changing effect of grief, Smith delivering his best vocals on the record.

The previously unheard ‘All I Ever Am’ makes for a welcome surprise, Gallups’ zippy bassline leading the charge on SOALW’s most uptempo moment. Sure, it’s still focused on memories and regret, but it’s a bit of a banger at the same time, Smith’s baritone bass laying down some serious licks. Before we know it, we come to the aptly titled closer ‘Endsong,’ arguably the number that made the biggest impression when aired live a few years ago. With a length of 10:23, it’s clear listeners are in for something epic, and boy, the band delivers.

Sounding melancholic and majestic as only The Cure can, ‘Endsong’ is a behemoth of emotion. A thick wall of tribal drums and shrieking guitars creates an apocalyptic tone, only reinforced by Smith’s mention of ‘blood red moons’ and repeated refrain of “It’s all gone.” It quickly joins the ranks of other great Cure closers, such as ‘Sinking’ and ‘Bloodflowers.‘ It sounds enormous and best captures SOALW’s spirit. There is no escaping the passing of time.

The old idiom ‘Be careful what you wish for’ is often applied to veteran groups dropping a new album but definitely not here. With ‘Songs Of A Lost World,’ The Cure has not only produced something worth the wait but added another classic to their already sterling catalogue. This is a late-career gem from one of the world’s most idiosyncratic acts.

With a sense of finality running through the LP, it was fair to assume that this may indeed be the end of The Cure’s story. However, as fans know, Robert Smith’s future plans are ever-shifting and a recent interview has revealed another album is almost complete. Onwards then! 9/10” – CLASH

Standout Cuts: A Fragile Thing/Drone:Nodrone/All I Ever Am

Key Song: Alone

Laura Marling – Patterns in Repeat

Release Date: 25th October, 2024

Labels: Chrysalis/Partisan

Producers: Laura Marling/Dom Monks

Review:

“Laura Marling’s rightly-lauded last album, ‘Song For Our Daughter’ (2020), saw her achieve the supreme feat of creating an intensely moving body of work around an imagined child; in the four years since, she actually has become a mother, and the result is ‘Patterns In Repeat’ - a tapestry of love, lineage, and the inextricable links between parents and their children. Now eight albums in, Marling has always mined emotional depths with only the most simple of tools - namely, an acoustic guitar and that singular voice - and here, her signature understatedness is taken even further. The record features no drums at all; instead, each track is blanketed by swathes of lush strings, any additional embellishment having been deemed surplus to requirements. As such, ‘Patterns In Repeat’ is both stunningly intimate and endearingly raw; recorded in Marling’s home studio with her child there in the room, there are aural fingerprints of domesticity - her baby’s gurgling, or the shake of a dog collar - stamped across the finished product, enduring testaments to the context of its creation.

The love of a parent is an obvious, palpable throughline - opener ‘Child Of Mine’ is the purest distillation of such, a pact made and promise sworn: “Last night in your sleep you started crying / I can’t protect you there though I keep trying / Sometimes you’ll go places I can’t get to / But I’ve spoken to the angels who’ll protect you”. Around this central spool, however, are wound the threads of the myriad other emotions parenthood awakens. ‘Looking Back’ (written by Marling’s own father when he was in his twenties) and the incredibly poignant ‘Your Girl’ (which lands like a response to the call of ABBA’s ‘Slipping Through My Fingers’) both speak to a renewed, acute awareness of the passing of time; centrepiece ‘The Shadows’ is a reflective rumination on how the start of one chapter necessitates the end of another. The twinned ‘Patterns’ and ‘Patterns In Repeat’, meanwhile, see her consider her own childhood through a different, more empathetic lens, having gained a deeper understanding of the behaviours and decisions of her parents.

“I want you to know that I gave it up willingly / Nothing real was lost in the bringing of you to me,” Marling sings softly on the titular closing track. Ahead of giving birth, she has said she faced the internal question of whether motherhood would dilute or extinguish her artistry. ‘Patterns In Repeat’ is a deft and conclusive answer” – DIY

Standout Cuts: No One’s Gonna Love You Like I Can/Caroline/Lullaby

Key Song: Child of Mine

FKA twigs - EUSEXUA

Release Date: 24th January, 2025

Labels: Young/Atlantic

Producers: Aod/Jeff Bhasker/Marius de Vries/Eartheater/FKA Twigs/Felix Joseph/Koreless/Ojivolta/Stuart Price/Stargate/Tic

Review:

“This “bliss” is unlike any other. According to her, we can redeem its most exact sense by using the term “eusexua” that she coined while filming in Prague three years ago, with dance music and culture’s tremendous help. It encompasses propitious feelings born out of sexuality and – to add from her hypnotising performances for Valentino and On – honest desperation to feel a connection. In some way, physicality is naturally embedded into it: bodies doing freestyle choreographies in a hazy, brutalist warehouse, techno beats consuming every sound that dares to compete against them. On the titular record, that very sense paints a similar setting (see the music videos for this era so far) in which her vocal and musical power meet their most emotive selves.

As she remarked in a recent interview, EUSEXUA isn’t a bona fide dance album but rather a “love letter” to the genre that has reframed her thinking. The pulpish slashes and abrupt reverses on its spectacular high point “Drums of Death” and the head-spinning climax on “Striptease” may sound like extreme yearnings. Yet, the transformative music takes pride in externalising them and granting a concrete form that we can use as a mode of cathartic release. This is a fresh resolution for her music career. “Perfect Stranger” and “24hr Dog” reek of hopeless impulses sprung from the festering need for human contact, but they don’t develop like her past works. The hysterical pleasures overrule them, sustained by dance and techno’s gratifying template.

Twigs continues to emphasise more on how words sound and less on what they mean. Her lively 2022 mixtape CAPRISONGS was the starting point, on which “meta angel”, “jealousy”, and many more wring out syllables like clothes soaked in luxurious detergent water. Where words were cherry-picked to bring forth an irresistible manifesto of female power on 2019's MAGDALENE, they’ve transmuted into well-articulated carriers of limpid emotion on EUSEXUA – a pivot from complex syntax. Succinct instructions like “Turn your love up loud to keep the devil down” on “Girl Feels Good” and “Work me to satisfy the core of your mind” on “24hr Dog” dominate the lyrics while their orgasmic melodies take over as the singular showcase for twigs’ unique songwriting.

They sometimes leave an uncatered desire for more lyrical depth. In several cases, however, the electrifying music makes up for what’s unfulfilled. For the first time, Koreless takes up the role of EUSEXUA’s primary producer. He casts an eerie mist over every song, a motif that mostly clears towards the end of each piece where all kinds of beats collide and generate a more liberating version of themselves. On “Sticky”, twigs gives in to bodily pleasures, evading “overcomplicated moments”, then snappy, lightning-struck synths plummet down as an escape route. “Room of Fools” delivers a dreamlike transcendence led by her majestic voice after clashes of Björk-esque stems. Koreless’s outstanding lead in the production undeniably shapes much of EUSEXUA’s deliciously bizarre identity.

The vocal contribution from Eartheater on the title track, the ear-catching twists and turns from Stargate on “Perfect Stranger”, and the darker tunes from Ojivolta all make an unrivalled masterclass on world-building. Even the cranky shockwaves, like “Childlike Things”, lurch forth without alienating what’s already established. But EUSEXUA tumbles down into an undesirable hole at the last minute. When putting the healing message aside, “Wanderlust” is amongst her weakest closers for its more predictable structure; after many wild switch-ups and uses of left-field imagery, placing it as the finale feels like an unnerving undoing of their function. It may be a wake-up call to festering reality. All seismic pleasures must meet their end, after all, and what else can we do except relive them by clicking rewind?” – The Line of Best Fit

Standout Cuts: Eusexa/Perfect Stranger/Striptease

Key Song: Room of Fools

Lambrini Girls – Who Let the Dogs Out

Release Date: 10th January, 2025

Label: City Slang

Producers: Daniel Fox/Lambrini Girls

Review:

“The tree’s come down, the hangover’s passed and it’s time to rage again. Peace on Earth can’t last forever anyways, and no amount of tinsel can disguise society’s broken foundations. Thankfully, with their debut album, Lambrini Girls are here to sort it out. There might be protest albums everywhere right now, but Who Let The Dogs Out? goes far beyond mere chest-beating and shitting on the government. This one is special. It might also be the most fun you’ll ever have while screaming at the world.

For Phoebe Lunny and Lily Maciera, fun and fury are inextricable. It certainly helps the medicine to go down, but it gives them an irresistible edge as they make a righteous racket about gentrification, workplace sexual harassment, neurodiversity and more.

Impressively still, pretty much any of these tracks could have been a single. The quick-witted Filthy Rich Nepo Babies ('Hugo wants to be a rock star, smashing up five grand guitars / His dad works at Sony') and the sapphic twist-and-shout of No Homo ('I like your face and it’s in a gay way!') are overflowing with outlandishness, but this band can lurch between silly and serious quicker than you can say ‘patriarchy’.

Even in Nothing Tastes As Good As It Feels’ confrontational, often uncomfortable examination of eating disorders, they still squeeze in wisecracks. 'Kate Moss gives no fucks that my period has stopped' they rage. By its end, Phoebe’s screaming 'GIVE ME FULL FAT, YOU FUCKING BASTARDS!'

We know Lambrini Girls are noisy sorts, but they’ve not quite had enough credit for how great they are with guitars. If they happened to be on a mission to change that, it shows. The menacing buzz that powers opener Bad Apple sounds as much like a distress signal as the police siren that opens it. The squalling Love – a tirade against mistaking toxicity for genuine love – boasts riffs that must have been created with some secret sauce that induces cravings for endless repeat plays.

It all ends with a discordant dance party in the form of C**tology 101, a joyful celebration of self that reclassifies everything from letting go and setting boundaries to autistic meltdowns and 'Doing a poo at your friend’s house' as 'c**ty'.

Still, they’ve done something even more audacious than releasing a track with an off-the-scale number of C-words in it. They’ve dropped an album of the year contender just 10 days into 2025. Big power move, that. Verdict: 4/5” – Kerrang!

Standout Cuts: Company Culture/You’re Not From Around Here/Cuntology 101

Key Song: Filthy Rich Nepo Baby

Rose Gray – Louder, Please

Release Date: 17th January

Label: PIAS

Producers: Pat Alvarez/Zhone/Sur Back/Joe Brown/Alex Metric/Rob Milton/Sega Bodega/Ryland Blackinton/Vaughn Oliver/Sam Homaee/Frank Colucci/Shawn Wasabi

Review:

“Rose Gray’s ‘Louder, Please’ is a mission statement for life from an artist with a laser guided focus on ecstatic dance floor abandon and the transcendent power of dance music’s energy rush.

Hedonism and the desire to have more, more, more permeate the whole record. Opening track ‘Damn’ sets the tone with its rough and dirty groove while ‘Free’ is warm and enveloping in its blissed out expansiveness. The lyrics often have a spiritual and inspiring quality to them that harkens back to the prime era of late 80s dance discovery when anything seemed possible

The thing that makes the album so engaging is it’s not just a parade of beats and poppers o’clock bangers. There’s depth, feeling and rich emotion from Gray’s skilful songwriting, a testament to the years she spent honing her craft as an artist and writer. All this is highlighted in stunning fashion on the spoken word memories and reflections of ‘Hackney Wick’, nostalgic and stirring it’s a track that evokes The Streets ‘Weak Become Heroes’ and feels like something Gray has waited all her life to say.

The album is a sonic journey for head, body and soul to soundtrack all your partying needs for 2025” – DORK

Standout Cuts: Wet & Wild/Party People/Switch

Key Song: Angel of Satisfaction

Heartworms – Glutton for Punishment 

Release Date: 7th February, 2025

Label: Speedy Wunderground

Producer: Dan Carey

Review:

“You’d be forgiven for seeing the stark, black-and-white artwork of ‘Glutton For Punishment’ and assuming it contains a much gnarlier or darker set of music than it does. Its provocative title echoes industrial music’s aesthetic obsession with BDSM imagery; the kind of phrase Depeche Mode or Nine Inch Nails would have utilised back in the mid-1990s.

‘Glutton For Punishment’ is painted in dark hues, but its electro, industrial and post-punk blend is an impressively vibrant and straight-up fun listening experience, rife with kinetic rhythms and strong choruses that worm their way into your brain once they’ve conquered your heart. On her impressive debut, Heartworms (real name: Jojo Orme) unveils a seemingly effortless knack for making jet-black music that explodes in vibrant colour across your frontal cortex.

Produced by the in-demand Dan Carey (Fontaines D.C., Squid, Wet Leg), ‘Glutton For Punishment’ is a proper auteurist collection – nine tracks that revel in and unpick its creators’ myriad obsessions, both aesthetic and psychological. Along with the goth-tinged genre blending, Orme’s interest in military history rears its head on imagistic highlights ‘Warplane’ and ‘Extraordinary Wings’, while explorations of a fractured relationship with her mother appear on the engrossing ‘Smuggler’s Adventure’.

However, for all the intriguing and enigmatic lyricism, it’s Orme’ musical craft that really stands out. No two tracks on ‘Glutton For Punishment’ sound alike, but are held together by Heartworms’ commitment to an ambitious and successful attempt to juggle differing tones. A track like ‘Jacked’, built around dark techno synths, or ‘Mad Catch’ and its unusual, angular lead guitars, teeter on the edge of abrasion, but are fused to such strong, powerful vocal melodies and danceable grooves that they consistently materialise as gripping, singular goth pop bangers.

The only tiny criticism is that once or twice Heartworms’ palette ventures a little too close to retro eighties post-punk worship; see the guitars and drum machines of ‘Celebrate’ as an example. But other than that minor quibble, this is a seriously strong debut from an artist in total command of her craft, one that’s all the more impressive for so elegantly incorporating eccentric, sometimes abrasive ideas into its unabashedly pop vision. 8/10” – CLASH

Standout Cuts: Just to Ask a Dance/Extraordinary Wings/Glutton for Punishment

Key Song: Jacked

jasmine.4.t  - You Are the Morning

Release Date: 17th January, 2025

Label: Dead Oceans

Producers: Julien Baker/Phoebe Bridgers/Lucy Dacus

Review:

“Released via Phoebe Bridgers’ Saddest Factory Records, her signing is the stuff of indie legend. Having toured with Lucy Dacus pre-transition, they continued to demo-swap until Cruickshank convinced her friend to play the tracks to Bridgers. Both musicians wanted to produce the album, and with their boygenius bandmate Julien Baker privy to the conversation, it was settled that all three would take on the role. Cruickshank then flew her trans-femme bandmates to LA to join her for the recording.

The songs on You Are The Morning were born out of some of the darkest moments of Cruickshank’s life. After coming out to her friends and family in Bristol, she found herself homeless and dealing with a divorce. She moved to Manchester and slept on floors and sofas, quietly writing her thoughts, experiences and fears into song.

Tracks like “Woman,” the first song she wrote after coming out, are so dense in emotion you can feel them tightening across your chest. Recorded with the Trans Chorus of Los Angeles, the song takes on a new, and perhaps even more vital importance upon its release.

Community is a big theme for Cruickshank, and the bright reprieve of “Best Friend’s House,” with its Daniel Johnston innocence, captures the warmth and safety of something so simple.

First single “Skin on Skin” is a blow-by-blow of Cruickshank’s formative experience of t4t intimacy, the lyrics as evocative as Baker’s guitar solos, while the Elliot Smith indebted chug of “Elephant” eschews chorus for an ever-captivating rhythmic revolution of verse.

Her love of Adrianne Lenker plays out across some of the record’s more delicate moments, including its title track which platforms her intricate guitar-work alongside poetic ode. Written for one of her best friends, the song breaks into chorus with a message of hope.

It’s that promise that things might get better which forms the heart of You Are The Morning. Even on the wild-eyed bombast of the Bridgers duet “Guy Fawkes Tesco Dissociation,” as Cruickshank imagines herself floating in a blood-filled tub, there’s still the glimmer of a brighter future. “I won’t act,” she promises, the track itself alive with staccato turn of phrase. “With my eye movement I’ll see you dent cans just for to get the discount. We can rewind and un-dent reprocess and desensitise,” she sings, each line its own hook.

Just as Cruickshank has put her body and soul into the writing of her debut, the boys’ production perfectly complements its dynamics and sentiment. There are moments when they turn the pressure up; from the aching harmonies of “Breaking in Reverse” to the wall of sound on “Elephant,” and moments when they bring it crashing down. “New Shoes" – an old release reworked with loaded emotion – almost feels invasive to listen to.

You Are The Morning comes at a time when life is getting darker for the trans community. While Cruickshank couldn’t have predicted the political climate her album would be greeted with, she could probably have guessed it. Even though the songs are painfully personal, they offer a wider hope. The world feels dark right now, but albums like this give promise that the dawn is coming” – The Line of Best Fit

Standout Cuts: Skin on Skin/You Are the Morning/Guy Fawkes Tesco Dissociation

Key Song: Woman

Antony Szmierek - Service Station at The End of the Universe

Release Date: 28th February, 2025

Labels: Mushroom Music/Virgin Music Group

Review:

“Manchester’s Antony Szmierek has always had a knack for finding profound meaning in life’s mundane waypoints, and his first full-length record transforms these familiar pit stops into a metaphysical journey that would make Douglas Adams proud.

The former teacher turned word-wielding dance architect hasn’t just crafted an album – he’s created an entire universe where everyday characters cross paths at his imagined Andromeda Southbound services.

The album opens with its title track, a swirling blend that introduces us to an ensemble cast including a hen party, a wandering yoga teacher, and star-crossed lovers who could have stepped out of a Mike Leigh film. These characters weave through the record like threads in a cosmic tapestry, their stories intersecting and diverging with the precision of orbital mechanics.

The production throughout is masterful, echoes of musical heritage scattered throughout, but in a way that never feels derivative. Instead, Szmierek has absorbed these influences and reassembled them into something distinctly his own. ‘The Great Pyramid of Stockport’ might be the album’s creative peak, turning a local landmark into an existential meditation on permanence and legacy. It’s preceded by ‘Rafters’, where “the Patron Saint of Withington” meets “a pound shop Geri Horner” in a love story that somehow manages to be both ridiculous and deeply moving.

The record closes with ‘Angie’s Wedding’, a euphoric finale that brings the whole cast back together in what might be heaven, might be a wedding reception, or might be both. The Orbital-inspired synths and breakbeats create a sense of transcendence that feels earned after the journey we’ve been on.

What makes ‘Service Station At The End Of The Universe’ so special is how it balances its narrative framework with genuine heart. Szmierek has created something rare: an album that works both as a collection of immediate, affecting songs and as a larger narrative about how we find meaning in the spaces between destinations. It’s like overhearing a hundred different stories while waiting in line for a mediocre coffee, and realising we’re all chapters in the same grand novel” – DORK

Standout Cuts: Rafters/The Great Pyramid of Stockport/Angie’s Wedding

Key Song: The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Fallacy

Richard Dawson - End of the Middle

Release Date: 14th February, 2025

Labels: Weird World/Domino

Producers: Sam Grant/Richard Dawson

Review:

“The intrigue surrounding Richard Dawson’s latest album begins before you’ve even pressed play. With a title like ‘End Of The Middle’, the veteran Geordie folk singer is inviting multiple interpretations of his work without even needing to hear a guitar string strummed or his characterful drawl.

In an era of such political upheaval, it could very easily point to the end of centrism as a political ideal. The world over, politics is increasingly being fought by those on the fringes, in particular the far-right, who continue to shout the loudest and dominate a news cycle that simply cannot find a way to contain its pervasive, damaging rhetoric.

Equally, it could relate to our relationship with aging, a topic equally at home in the current zeitgeist with films like The Substance throwing a spotlight on both personal and societal reactions to that most natural of human process. Zeroing in on Dawson’s own personal context – approaching his mid 40s, originating from the north of England, with a career of socially-focused music behind him – seems to provide a third, most tantalising reading. Class.

The idea of a class system is not something unique to the United Kingdom, but it does feel like our specific approach to connecting people’s worth to their monetary wealth is uniquely long-standing and sophisticated, making it difficult to define and, therefore, even more complex to untangle in the name of progress.

With this reading, ‘End Of The Middle’ turns into a record that focuses on the end of an accepted definition of a British middle class. With those sitting on hereditary wealth beginning to define themselves as working class simply because they have a part time job with little-to-no stakes, there’s an argument to be had about whether it’s become redundant as a concept already.

Dawson, seemingly, doesn’t think so, as he takes 45 minutes and nine songs to construct a collage of the relative comfort and mundanity that comes with being envious of those richer than you and those worse off than you. In other hands, there’s the potential for this subject matter to transform a record into an embittered undertaking, but Dawson is a cannier operator than most.

Instead, he presents this reality at face value, injecting these compositions with the kind of humour that draws a wry chuckle, and the kind of quaint familiarity that makes this all seem fairly aspirational, even if the characters at the centre of its gaze are discomforted by their lot in life.

Taking his cues from Japanese film director Yasujirō Ozu, a man who used his entire filmography to track how intergenerational familial tensions reflect wider societal discussions about traditions and transformation, Dawson allows you to make the call for yourself on how you feel about those in this comfortable limbo. It’s an exceedingly impressive character study that, with its straight-faced and straight-laced perspective, gets under the skin of these conversations in a way that you fear a more judgemental or overtly sympathetic observer wouldn’t be able to.

An album of rare patience and empathy, ‘End Of The Middle’ doesn’t ever allow itself to descend into forthright commentary. Instead, it presents its scenes to you, inviting you in, and allowing you the time to reflect on the quiet luxury of finding such comfort a drag, in turn asking you to consider the fates of those who would find such a life an aspirational relief from the breadline. An album for our times, indeed. 8/10” – CLASH

Standout Cuts: Gondola/The question/Polytunnel

Key Song: Boxing Day sales

FEATURE: Groovelines: Kylie Minogue – Spinning Around

FEATURE:

 

 

Groovelines

Kylie Minogue – Spinning Around

_________

IT has been a while…

since I did a Groovelines feature. This is where I explore a classic song. The reason I am spotlighting Kylie Minogue’s Spinning Around is because it turns twenty-five later in the year. Minogue is currently on tour and is in the U.S. very soon. From all accounts, Kylie Minogue’s Tension Tour is getting huge reviews. There will be a lot of eyes on her. I wonder whether Minogue will be asked to headline Glastonbury this year. She has appeared at Glastonbury but never on the Pyramid Stage as a headliner. I hope she is booked soon enough. The past couple of years have seen her hit a new career peak. 2023’s TENSION got a lot of five-star reviews. Many see her work now as the best she has ever released. Many might argue it was her first two albums of the twenty-first century. After the mixed reviews for 1997’s Impossible Princess, few expected what Kylie Minogue delivered in 2000 with Light Years and 2001’s Fever. Two of her greatest albums, it was a renaissance and reinvention that showed you could never write her off. On 19th June, the first single from Light Years was released. Spinning Around was a number one in the U.K. and Minogue’s native Australia. The single was a revelation! I wonder if there are any plans for a twenty-fifth anniversary special. Something to mark one of the most important releases of her career. Before getting to some features about Spinning Around, I want to get to some information from Wikipedia regarding the legacy of Spinning Around:

“Following its release, the music video became popular for the gold hotpants Minogue sported. It resulted in a media sensation regarding her bottom. British national broadsheet newspaper The Sunday Times deemed her bottom a "wonder of nature" and The Sun sponsored a campaign to "have Kylie Minogue's rear-end heritage-listed, preserved for "posteriority" on the grounds that it's an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty." Readers were requested by the tabloid newspaper to persuade the government to make sure "[Minogue's] bum remains in safe hands - by turning it into a national institution." Rumours and speculations claiming Minogue had undergone plastic surgery to make her bottom look more appealing also began to arise during this time. In the same year, English broadcaster and journalist Johnny Vaughan commented "if an alien landed on Earth he would think Kylie's arse is the world's leader." Minogue's stylist and close friend William Baker explained his decision to "showcase" her bottom in the video, saying "Kylie's bottom is like a peach - sex sells and her best asset is her bum.” The singer's response to the attention regarding her bottom was "dry," claiming "You never know what the future holds. It could become a pear." It was reported that Minogue had her bottom insured for five million dollars”.

Co-written by Paula Abdul, Spinning Around is ranked alongside the best Kylie Minogue singles. I shall end with links to a couple of single ranking features where Spinning Around is high in the mix. First, in 2020, Official Charts spoke with the track’s producer, Mike Spencer. One cannot really overstate the impact the song made in 2000. A perfect summer hit, it was also seen as a bit of a comeback and career resurgence for Kylie Minogue. I was in sixth form college when Spinning Around arrived. It was a song that was played widely and fondly discussed. Having been a fan of Kylie Minogue since I was a child, it was a real revelation:

“As comebacks go, Kylie's Spinning Around, released in 2000, was less a reinvention and more a reminder of what Kylie Minogue is all about: fun, sparkly and undeniably catchy pop tunes.

After taking a left-turn on 1998’s Impossible Princess, an intriguing, experimental album that divided critics, Spinning Around was a return to the core principles of Brand Kylie. It was fun. It was camp. It was for the clubs. It was tiny gold hot pants.

Rather than re-treading her Stock, Aitkin & Waterman sound, which didn't hold the nostalgic value then that it has today, Spinning Around played into the disco-pop revival happening in 2000 (see also: Spiller’s Groovejet and Modjo’s Lady Hear Me Tonight).

The result was Kylie’s I Should Be So Lucky for the new Millennium - and it went down a treat with the public. Spinning Around landed straight in at Number 1 on the Official Singles Chart with opening sales of just over 82,000. Against the odds, Kylie was back.

To celebrate the release of her new album, Golden, read back our interview from 2018 with Mike Spencer, who produced Spinning Around (and has also worked on this incredible list of hit singles) and told us more about how Kylie's big comeback track came together.

Hello Mike! All these years later, Spinning Around is still a great pop song. It’s aged well, don’t you think?

"I guess it has, yes! It was part of the beginning of Kylie’s sort-of second incarnation. At the time, I was just starting out - I’d had very little chart success. In fact, Spinning Around was my first Number 1 record."

How does someone who was just starting out as a producer suddenly get to work with Kylie?

“I remember I was based in Roundhouse studios in London at the time. People at this point had assumed Kylie couldn’t get back inside the Top 20. Obviously she’s really famous and an iconic artist, but her career had gone adrift somewhat. I guess it was just one of those records that struck a chord.

“I’d been working with Beverly Knight at the time on music that had a very soul edge to it, and that’s what Spinning Around was in its original demo form. It was a soul record. The musicians I was using on it were Rob Harris from Jamiroquai and Winston Blissett who played for Lisa Stansfield. We upped the tempo and made it into a disco record. We didn’t know if it was necessarily the right thing to do, but it felt like a return to where she’d come from, back to what she does best."

You’d sort of updated Kylie’s '80s sound for the Noughties.

"In retrospect maybe, but we weren’t thinking like that at the time. The SAW (Stock Aitken Waterman) sound was very processed, very programmed. Although this was a processed dance record, it actually has real instruments playing, harping back more to the original disco era. In hindsight, it looks like a genius move, but at the time – honestly - it was a bit of a shot in the dark."

After that initial meeting, what was she like to work with in the studio?

"I recorded the instruments with the band in London and flew out to do the vocals with Kylie. I met her in a restaurant on Sunset Boulevard on January 4. I remember I was quite star struck actually. She was great in the studio. We spent a week out there recording the vocals [and] the whole experience was really fantastic."

Wasn’t Spinning Around originally intended for Paula Abdul? She has a writing credit on the song.

"I sort of knew it had been for her at some point – she definitely has a writing credit on it. That version was a lot slower – much slower in fact. It was a different song – the tune, production and concept were all different.”

Given Kylie’s career seemed to be on a downturn, was there pressure to make sure this was going to be a hit? Was there a brief on what sound they were going for?

“Not really, no. I’d had a level of success with Beverley at Parlophone and they seemed to like what I was doing with her, in particular a remix I’d done for her I’d based on Chic’s Good Times. The label liked that and asked for a similar treatment with Kylie. It was rough though. It was a, ‘Can you make this work? Can you unlock it?’ situation rather than specific instructions.

“There wasn’t much noise around Kylie at the time, which is probably why I was lucky enough to get the gig in the first place. Nobody was falling over themselves to work with her. I loved the whole experience though."

There’s an effortless quality to the song; how long did it take to bring it together?

“Quite a while. I remember I recorded the band in a studio in London on tape and ran it into Pro Tools. I also recorded a vocal on 2” tapes and took it out to LA. I remember because I got stopped at the airport with them”.

 Not as much has been written about Spinning Around. Not as much as there should have been. I do hope that there is more words written about Spinning Around closer to its twenty-fifth anniversary on 19th June. I want to bring in an NME review from 2005:

“And on she goes. The years might pass but Kylie will only look younger, keep wearing smaller and smaller hotpants and continue pumping out ever more hyperactive pop music. Even when she’s done little more than eat at The Ivy for two years, she attracts more interest than all the mini-Britneys can hope for in a lifetime.

It’s good to know there’s some things in life you can rely on. And after Dance Kylie, Dodgy Madonna Kylie and Ill-advised Indie Kylie, the pint-sized Princess of Pop has returned to what she knows best. ‘Spinning Around’ is made of the same fizzing, giddy disco-pop that made Kylie famous in the first place and will thrill gay discos everywhere. Co-written by (yikes!) Paula Abdul, it has gloriously little substance and little worth remembering above the glittery, hi-NRG chorus where Kylie reminds us all that she’s back, back, back (“I’m spinning around, get out of my way”). Indie chancers throw away your hair slides and take note. This is the sound of someone enjoying what they do. Does it scare you?”.

In 2020, The Guardian ranked Kylie Minogue’s singles. They placed Spinning Around at number one (“Over the course of her career, Kylie has tried her hand at being Indie Kylie, Moody Kylie, Mature Kylie and indeed Covering Toots and the Maytals on a Children’s TV Show Kylie (see her 2009 version of Monkey Man with the Wiggles). But the fact remains that Kylie was essentially put on this earth to make glitzy, euphoric, balls-out pop bangers, and Spinning Around is the glitziest and most euphoric of the lot. A bold restatement of core values following her 90s dalliances with the left field; a perfect pop-disco nugget, a single only the terminally joyless could fail to enjoy”). Last year, when deciding on Kylie Minogue’s best forty songs, Classic Pop placed Spinning Around twelfth (“Not necessarily everybody’s favourite Kylie song – even her new label Parlophone didn’t hear a hit at first – this track brought the forlorn princess back into the public consciousness after an extended plateau. Co-written by Paula Abdul (for whom it was originally intended), the original demo was a down-tempo affair, so much so that producer Mike Spencer dubbed it “a different song”… but once it had been augmented with a classy disco design, and with eye-popping gold lamé hotpants in the video, Kylie was propelled back to No.1”). A song that Kylie Minogue has performed multiple times live since its release (including on her current tour), Spinning Around is a real fan favourite. It turns twenty-five on 19th June. The lead single from her seventh studio album, Light Years, the album itself turns twenty-five on 22nd September. I wanted to shine a light on its most famous single as I wonder if it will get a twenty-fifth anniversary release. Maybe Minogue will say a few words about the song. Hugely influential to this day, there is no doubt Spinning Around has influenced legions of artists…

SINCE its release.

FEATURE: Kate Bush: The Tour of Life : The Success of Her Albums vs. Singles

FEATURE:

 

 

Kate Bush: The Tour of Life

The Success of Her Albums vs. Singles

_________

ONE of the most notable…

IN THIS PHOTO: Kate Bush in 1989/PHOTO CREDIT: John Carder Bush

aspects of Kate Bush’s career is the comparative chart success of her singles and albums. I know it can be difficult putting together a consistent run of singles. With each song sounding different and released at different times, it can be tricky finding that balance. Even though Kate Bush had quite a few top twenty singles, there were others that charted much lower. However, when you look at her ten studio albums, her greatest hits collection, 1986 The Whole Story, and the 2016 Before the Dawn, they all charted in the top ten in the U.K. In fact, with the exception of Lionheart – which reached number six – all of those albums charted in the top five. That is a remarkable achievement! Not many artists can claim such statistics. There is quite a gulf between Kate Bush’s albums and singles when it comes to commercial success. I suppose people will buy the album but think that the singles are really not as essential. In terms of singles released from her studio albums, I think Kate Bush has had four top five successes. There are a smattering of singles that reached the top twenty and a few that either didn’t chart or were very low. There Goes a Tenner reached ninety-three. That was from The Dreaming. Deeper Understanding (from Director’s Cut) reached eighty-seven, whilst Wild Man (50 Words for Snow) reached seventy-three. When those singles/albums came out in 2011, Bush had a run of eleven top ten albums. More impressive than this, top five albums in five different decades. I suspect, when an eleventh studio album does come out, it will place in the top five. One can look at some of her more modern singles. They charted quite low as they are digital releases. Maybe people streaming or buying the albums.

Kate Bush’s fans love to hear her music on a physical format. She urges her listeners to do that. If a single comes out digitally and there is no physical product then fewer people will buy them. Perhaps Bush does not see herself as a singles artist. It is about the albums. It wasn’t until 1982’s The Dreaming when we saw this huge and dramatic difference between the singles and album placings. The Dreaming reached three in the U.K. One of its singles, Sat in Your Lap, reached eleven. The remaining singles charted low or not at all. It wasn’t really a singles album. You can see albums like The Kick Inside (1978), Never for Ever (1980), Hounds of Love (1985) and even The Sensual World (1989) as having more obvious singles. It is hard when it comes to singles. Choosing ones that are commercial vs. ones that Kate Bush wants to put out there. If EMI wanted her to write singles and get radio play, Bush more and more was concerned with a body of work that was true to her vision and not motivated by the need to write hit singles. Hounds of Love compromised a bit in that sense. In terms of the album position (one in the U.K.) and the fact all of its four singles were top forty (three in the top twenty) meant that the balance was struck. However, since then, and especially from King of the Mountain (from 2005’s Aerial) onwards, Bush has not been too invested in singles. In the EMI years, they might have wanted three or four singles at least to come from each album. Aerial has one single. Director’s Cut and 50 Words for Snow had one single each. A taste of the album. Bush wanting people to invest in albums. Digital singles perhaps not holding any appeal. 50 Words for Snow sold 50,000 copies in the first week of its release.

I guess one can look at her album success and that is the main story. A single that went top twenty in the 1980s could have sold more than a top ten song from another decade. Same with the albums. The Kick Inside sold over a million and went to number three. It would have sold more than The Red Shoes, which reached number two in the U.K. The chart positions can be a bit misleading. In terms of the singles market, perhaps it was more about trying to fit in the scene at the time. Hammer Horror from 1978. Not really like anything around it. However, the album it is from, Lionheart, was a chart success. Is it a case of the albums being bought mainly by her fanbase and that love and dedication never waning. The singles being more about the general public. I wonder why there was such a discrepancy between the success of the singles from 1985’s Hounds of Love and those from The Dreaming. Was it a case of 1982’s music scene being dramatically different to what Bush was putting out or are the singles on Hounds of Love better and more radio friendly? Everyone will have their own views. Both of those albums sold well, though The Dreaming was dwarfed by Hounds of Love. Lionheart reached number six in the U.K. but has sold more than The Dreaming – which reached three in the U.K. I am fascinated by the numbers. Why certain albums sold okay and charted high whereas others sold big and charted slightly lower. The same with singles. From her number one debut single, Wuthering Heights, in 1978, through to and including Army Dreamers (1980), Bush had all top forty singles in the U.K. One exception was Hammer Horror reaching forty-four. From 1980’s December Will Be Magic Again through to Running Up That Hill (A Deal with God) in 1985, there was this weird period. Singles like Night of the Swallow and There Goes a Tenner struggling.

Certain singles released for specific countries and territories. They tended to struggle compared to those more on general release or released in the U.K. From Running Up That Hill (A Deal with God), Bush did not have another top five U.K. single for twenty years. King of the Mountain. The expectation and wait for new material accounts for the latter’s success. It is surprising that songs like The Big Sky (Hounds of Love), This Woman’s Work (The Sensual World) and even Rubberband Girl (The Red Shoes) did not crack the top ten. After King of the Mountain, there was this dive in single chart positions. Lyra (which featured in the film, The Golden Compass) was released in 2007 and reached 187. Deeper Understanding and Wild Man reached the top 100 but not by much. Even if there was inconsistency and real peaks and troughs, her albums remained solid and popular. The Red Shoes and Aerial went Platinum. However, Director’s Cut and 50 Words for Snow went Gold. That may seem like a decline. However, both of those latter albums were top five. I guess the fact each only had one single released from it and it was a time where physical singles were not a thing accounts in some ways to a slightly less impressive album sales haul. However, Kate Bush has remastered and reissued her studio albums since 2011. The overall sales figures given a boost whereas her singles are a thing of the past. Like The Beatles releasing a boxset with all of their singles in for the fans, I would love to have all of Kate Bush’s singles in this nice boxset. I wonder what accounts for the mixed fortunes of the singles compared to the solid showing for her albums. Fans knew when the albums came out and knew they wanted to buy them. Maybe the singles did not appeal too much or mixed reception from the press put some people off. Her albums were going to sell well no matter what. However, the singles has to compete with what was out at the time and had to fit in too. No surprise Hounds of Love’s singles did well considering the Pop and Rock scene of 1985. Compare that to, say, The Dreaming’s singles from 1981, 1982 and 1983 and The Red Shoes’ singles from 1993 and 1994. Everything around them vastly different. Especially the 1990s.

Maybe other people will have their theories. I wanted to explore this subject. In her early career, certain singles were released for different countries. Bush sometimes battling EMI to make sure the singles she wanted to come out were released. It is about the timing of the singles. The third, fourth or fifth single from an album is not going to do as well as the first or second. Also, I guess it depends how close the singles came out in relation to an album regarding their success. The Dreaming suffered because its first single, Sat in Your Lap, was released two years before the final one. However, when it came to albums like Hounds of Love and The Sensual World, it was a bit more consistent. In terms of albums that have a fair few obvious singles, I would say only The Kick Inside, Never for Ever and Hounds of Love stand out. It is a hard thing to judge and explain. You can say that it doesn’t matter how well the singles did but it would have done at the time. Even in 2005 or 2011, Bush needed the single to get attention and radio time. Even if the albums got into the top five, that is not to say EMI were okay with the singles being a bit patchy in terms of their commercial lure. I love how twelve albums from Kate Bush have reached the top ten. Few artists can match that! However, Bush’s singles ranged from chart toppers and those in the top ten to ones that didn’t chart or were very low-placed. So curious and interesting. Although Bush released some iconic singles and we must acknowledge that, it is very clear that the chart success and consistent run shows that she is…

VERY much an albums artist.

FEATURE: The Digital Mixtape: Flower Power Cuts

FEATURE:

 

 

The Digital Mixtape

 ART CREDIT: Julia Tulub

Flower Power Cuts

_________

NOT really motivated by anything…

PHOTO CREDIT: Viktoria Slowikowska/Pexels

I have been thinking about the summer of 1967. That first Summer of Love. Images of togetherness, free love and flower power. Whilst some may dismiss that period as idealistic or ineffective, I do think that the modern world could learn from that time. We need a new Summer of Love. Against the hatred and division in the world, it is a very strange and destabilising time. I hope that things improve but they do not look good at the moment. To help distract for a moment from the unfortunately grim realities of the world, I have compiled a mixtape of Flower Power songs. Some peaceful, inspiring and colourful songs from back in the 1960s and 1970s. A collection that could and should appeal to multiple listeners and generations. Evocative songs I feel are still relevant today. Sit back and relax to this…

PHOTO CREDIT: cottonbro studio/Pexels

INCREDIBLE mix.  

FEATURE: Spotlight: Revisited: Doechii

FEATURE:

 

 

Spotlight: Revisited

PHOTO CREDIT: IB Kamara for DAZED

Doechii

_________

IT may seem…

PHOTO CREDIT: John Jay

underwhelming or lacking if I include Doechii in Spotlight: Revisited. Seeing as she is a huge artist now who is very much on her way to the mainstream, one might not be able to label her as a ‘new’ artist. However, as this feature is me shining new light on artists I originally included in my Spotlight feature, I wanted to return to Doechii. To me, she is the most essential and finest voice in Hip-Hop right now. I love her music. So distinct, compelling and original, this is someone who is going to the big leagues. Hip-Hop and Rap still have an issue with sexism and misogyny. Doechii is an artist who will inspire other women coming through. There is nobody on the scene who writes like her. I am fascinated to see where she goes. Her 2024 mixtape/album, Alligator Bites Never Heal, was received to critical acclaim. I am going to end with a couple of reviews for the mixtape. First, I want to get to a few recent interviews with Doechii. The first interview I want to spotlight is from The Cut. Fresh from her GRAMMY win, the unapologetic Florida rapper was only getting started. The rest of this year is going to be massive for her:

“Though she has experienced this kind of virality before, mostly on TikTok, where her songs tend to soundtrack everything from puppeteering performances to “Get Ready With Me” videos, this moment feels different. She’s collected co-signs from Kendrick Lamar (he called her “the hardest out”) and Tyler, the Creator, who told me, “She’s really sick. Like, super-duper-duper-duper good.” And then there are those Grammy nominations: Best New Artist, Best Rap Performance, and Best Rap Album. She’d go on to win the Grammy for Best Rap Album, giving a heartfelt speech to boot. Since the category’s creation in 1996, she said, “two women have won …” Then she corrected herself: “THREE women have won! Lauryn Hill, Cardi B, and Doechii!” The moment was capped off by a performance of her songs “Catfish” and “Denial Is a River,” in which she rapped with a fleet of dancers wearing Thom Browne. (“This is serious,” she told me between rehearsals before the show. “It reminds me of when I would do talent shows and it was cute for everybody, but it was very, very serious for me.”) Right after the ceremony, she dropped a celebratory track, “Nosebleeds,” with a gramophone as the single’s cover art. On the song, she boasts, “Everybody wanted to know what Doechii would do if she didn’t win / I guess we’ll never …,” seemingly referencing Kanye West’s infamous Best Rap Album winner’s speech at the 2005 Grammys.

Doechii’s career has been operating in hyperspeed ever since the artist released her 2020 single “Yucky Blucky Fruitcake,” an acerbic, wry song about bits of her childhood — food stamps, Lisa Frank lipstick, and getting caught masturbating. The title was inspired by Barbara Park’s Junie B. Jones children’s-book series. “I was a lot like Junie. She did what she wanted. She was very curious, and she just went for it,” Doechii says, settling into a small leather couch back at her hotel, both legs crossed beneath her, brown leather boots still on. “Even though she had her issues, she had this feminine rage about her that I really, really liked.” Since “Yucky Blucky Fruitcake,” she has received pressure from her label and fans to make cookie-cutter hits to please the masses, but she pushes back: “I don’t like making music just for a moment. I like to make music for therapy, for an inner experience, an inner purpose, and not just for an algorithm.”

Doechii was born Jaylah Ji’mya Hickmon in Florida. She says her dad writes raps in his spare time and her mother, the more “analytical” one, primarily raised her. She grew up in Tampa, a place she says will always inform her body of work. Her “Swamp Princess” persona and the reptilian titles of much of her discography? That’s all Florida. But it’s not only her artistry that’s been influenced by the Sunshine State — “My chaos, my freedom, just my raunchiness,” she says. Doechii remembers a night at her grandmother’s house by the railroad tracks when she, her cousins, and her younger sisters, all still children, tore off their shoes and began racing on a patch of concrete. “The whole family was outside barefoot. The little kids would race. The aunties. Then we made Grandma and Grandpa race. We just do it bare feet,” she tells me. “That’s the most Florida shit.”

When she was in the sixth grade, she says God told her to write down the phrase “I am Doechii.” The decision saved her life. “I don’t want to get super-dark,” she says, raising her eyebrows when she looks at me. “I was getting bullied so bad that I was thinking about killing myself. I realized, Oh, fuck, I’m gonna kill myself and then I’m gonna be the only one dead. The bullies aren’t gonna be with me, and everything they said is not coming with me either. I would just be gone,” she says matter-of-factly before cracking a half-mouthed grin. “And then I was like, Fuck that!” She’s almost yelling now, leaning back into the couch and waving her hands playfully. “Fuck that shit! I’m not going for that! And this wash of peace came over me, and I received ‘I am Doechii.’ But it was more like this feeling of — I made a choice, a decision. I am the most important character in this movie. This is my motherfucking movie.”

Doechii’s sound is a callback to old-school ’90s hip-hop; playful, up-tempo contemporary spoken word; pop-culture references; and Gen-Z shitposting. On Alligator Bites, which she says is for “the girls and the gays that have a passion inside of them and are sassy, independent, strong, but they need an extra push,” she mocks the hamster wheel of the music industry, blows raspberries, and trolls her own label, yet still pumps the brakes on the irony by peppering in soulful bridges. She claims the mixtape’s name popped into her head via the same higher power that christened her with her stage name. “God told me to do it, and I did it,” she says. The meaning of the mixtape’s title still evades her, but Doechii trusts the process: “I know that God will reveal to me what it means later.”

PHOTO CREDIT: Richie Shazam

On “Nissan Altima,” Doechii flexes her rapping chops and gets cheeky about her bisexuality — “She munchin’ on the box while she watchin’ Hulu” — in just two minutes. “Denial Is a River” is a traversing, therapeutic conversation. “People are a little bit worried about you … / Why don’t you just tell me what’s been goin’ on?” the other voice asks before Doechii admits to her experiences with drugs and alcohol: “I like pills, I like drugs … / I like daydrinkin’ and day parties and Hollywood … / The shit works, it feels good, and my self-worth’s at an all-time low.” It’s a relatable cycle of self-destruction, and Doechii’s vulnerability is striking. “I have moments where I am worried and I’m like, Maybe I should dial it back because that’s a little too honest, but I don’t give a fuck because I know that in the end, it’s going to pay off more for me to be real,” she says. “In my music, I have to be raw and explicit or else it’ll make me uncomfortable. I don’t like secrets.” To record the mixtape, she locked herself away for an entire month, letting only her sound engineer, Jayda Love, in on the process.

PHOTO CREDIT: Richie Shazam

Doechii attributes the retro sound of much of Alligator Bites to her newfound sobriety, a lifestyle she adopted this past summer to allow her brain to “remember things.” She has started to feel a little sentimental, too. “I’m gravitating back towards things that I used to love,” she tells me. “The first album I ever purchased and ever remember listening to in full length was The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill.” The nostalgia trip also inspired the creative direction of her “Denial Is a River” music video, a modern-day homage to the laugh-track sitcoms of the ’90s, starring Zack Fox, Rickey Thompson, and Earl Sweatshirt, among others. “Old-school hip-hop is vulnerability,” Doechii says. “I’m gravitating towards the pure skill that was incorporated. Anyone who doesn’t think that hip-hop is an intellectual genre, I think that assumption is rooted in racism.” The women who paved the way for someone like Doechii to come along — Lil’ Kim, Mary J. Blige, Missy Elliott — pushed back against the notion that sexual liberation had to come at the cost of vulnerable emotional transparency. “The feeling that I have when I listen to The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill is the same feeling I want some other Black little girl to have when she listens to me,” Doechii says. “And in order for her to have that feeling, I have to talk about my feelings”.

There is a lot of new buzz around Doechii after she won the GRAMMY for Best Rap Album. In the process, she became only the third woman ever to win that trophy (Ms. Lauryn Hill is one of the other two women). I want to start with a brilliant interview from DAZED. Discussing the GRAMMYs, Met Gala and Superbowl, it is a time when the whole world has caught up. People around the world know Doechii’s name:

“Outside of the big night, what is a typical day in the life of Doechii? Is there a routine you adhere to?

Doechii: Lately, I’ve been starting my mornings early with tea and a good stretch. I’ve been trying this peach ginger tea. It’s really good. I like to meditate and have time to myself before I start the day. I’m around a lot of people all the time and as much as I seem social, I’m really an introvert and I like to be by myself. I have my routine before I get social in the day, and then I either write a poem or try to create something in some way before I start. And then I get straight into work.

I’m sure you’ve seen everyone reposting your old YouTube videos by now. Coincidentally, the day before our shoot was 10 years to the day of your first YouTube upload. In the second video you posted, you spoke candidly about practising your confessions: “Every morning and then, right before I go to bed, I confess everything that I want in my life and watch it come to pass.” Is this something you still do today?

Doechii: Absolutely. When I talk about my meditations, a lot of it includes my confessions and the things that I desire. I still take time to imagine and dream and think of new goals... Actually, I’m going to change the word ‘goals’ to: I just like to imagine. You have to dream and find time to dream or else you stop creating new things to chase. So, yes, I like to do that, and I like to have my affirmations and claim them.

Tell me about that girl. Who was Jaylah back then, and what’s her backstory?

Doechii: I’m still that girl. I’m very good at chasing my dreams. I’ve always been mesmerised by my life and what it could be. The concept of being able to manifest anything is cool to me, and so I made it my business. I just wanted to share with other people the cool things that I’d learned and tapped into. How you could dream and be something. How you can change yourself and change your circumstances. And I would just vlog my life because I thought the way I lived was cool and I wanted to teach people how to tap into this thing. And that’s who that girl was and still is.

PHOTO CREDIT: IB Kamara

I’d love to get a sense of Tampa and some of your earliest memories or pivotal moments of growing up there. How has it informed you?

Doechii: One moment sticking out to me is around 2007, when I lived in Sulphur Springs and my house was one house over from this community rec centre. It was in the hood, and they would do barbecues and sports, and all the kids from the neighbourhood would go there. A lot of my earliest memories of Florida are based around community and culture. Black people coming together, being creative and doing cool shit. Everybody would come to the rec centre on the weekends and stunt in the hardest outfit, just to do it. My earliest memories of fashion and showing up in a look and getting a look off was at my local rec centre. Or playing tetherball in the heat; everybody coming with the hardest hairdos and music, rappers and mixtapes, all of that started in that community. A lot of my memories are based around that.

Where in those moments was Doechii born? How did she come to be?

Doechii: Doechii wasn’t born until years later. This was around sixth or seventh grade. I was bullied so bad that I was becoming somebody else for someone else’s comfort. It fucked up my head because I always knew I was that girl. I always knew I was dope as fuck. My taste level was very high when I was young. I was not into the shit that everybody else was into. Not to say they weren’t into cool shit, but my shit was just cooler. So, anyway! [laughs] I was in a position where I thought about killing myself because the bullying was so bad. Then I had this realisation: I’m not gonna do that, because then they’re gonna all get a chance to live and I’m gonna be the one dead, and look at my taste! Nobody wants that. I don’t want that. That’s not the life I want to live. It made me realise I had gotten down to a point where I was thinking about taking my own life because of what other people thought about me, and I realised, “OK, what do I really think is important? What do I want here?” I had that realisation pretty young, and that birthed Doechii.

Who were you becoming? Who did you want to be?

Doechii: When people bully you, they want you to feel ashamed of yourself. They want you to feel insecure, to feel bad. They want you to feel ugly, like, “Bitch! You shouldn’t have that confidence. Look at you, your dark skin, you’re ugly, you’re stupid, you’re weird. Why are you wearing that? You should not feel this confident and be looking like that.” That’s how they wanted me to feel, and I was starting to become that person. Like, “Oh, maybe I shouldn’t be acting like this. This confident. Maybe I shouldn’t be wearing these things, maybe I shouldn’t be listening to this type of music. Maybe I shouldn’t be going these places.” I was in gymnastics and shit when it wasn’t cool. I was becoming less of myself to make them more comfortable, to fit the box that they wanted me in, and that wasn’t truly who I was. I was brilliant and have always been stunning.

You’ve described yourself as an alt Black girl and have just detailed some of your struggle to fit in in the past. SZA recently discussed the lack of alt-Black-girl representation when she was growing up on The Drew Barrymore Show, and so I wanted to ask you your take on this. Did that representation exist for you at all?

Doechii: Yeah, that representation for me was in Janelle Monáe, Lauryn Hill, SZA in high school, André 3000 – Outkast in general, actually – Missy Elliott. Those alt-whimsical archetypes in music are what I lean towards. Grace Jones!

What role does storytelling play in your writing? Alligator Bites Never Heal has a clear narrative but how do you translate these personal stories into universal messages?

Doechii: I treat songwriting like my vlogs. I treat the songs like my diary. Just say what it is – say what happened, honestly. I have no idea. I don’t know how I’m doing this. I don’t know how it’s translating to the masses at all. I’m just being really honest about my life. That’s it.

How does vulnerability or transparency serve you and the work that you create?

Doechii: It is my gateway to the next part of myself; honesty, authenticity and audacity are how I unlock the next level of myself. I have to do that by being honest about who I am in each moment. Sometimes that can be hard. And that’s what vulnerability is to me. It’s having the audacity to be real with yourself and then love yourself. Like, this is who I am right now. I don’t like this part of me, but it’s still worth it, right? It’s still worth talking about and writing about”.

I am going to end with a couple of reviews for the phenomenal and award-winning Alligator Bites Never Heal. NME awarded it four stars and had a lot of praise for an artist blowing up right now. I hope that Doechii comes to the U.K. and performs a few dates as there are so many people here who would love to see her on the stage:

“With her last offering – the 2022 EP ‘She/Her/Black Bitch’ – Tampa’s Swamp Princess proved to the world why she was a hybrid-pop powerhouse in the making. Doechii’s effortless switch between her avant-garde rap bark and syrupy vocals showed she has musical agility like no other; pair that with her unapologetically quirky style, and she quickly secured a spot in the upper echelons of current hip-hop. But, on her third mixtape, ‘Alligator Bites Never Heal’, her wacky personality takes a dip, and Doechii adopts the darkness of the swamp.

The 26-year-old’s latest single ‘Boom Bap’ wasn’t just a satirical clap back at those who “said they wanted her to rap” – it sets the tone for the throwback hip-hop vibes that can be found throughout the record. That’s no bad thing – Doechii is a witty, comical songwriter who can tell you vivid stories with little effort, and this approach allows that side of her to shine (see ‘Denial Is A River’ for proof of that, where she narrates the heart-wrenching time she found out she was being cheated on while in her own therapist’s chair). But, compared to her recent singles’ dance and pop-R&B sounds, this lyrical style is a swift detour that takes over most songs on the 19-track mixtape.

‘Alligator Bites Never Heal’ doesn’t feel like a record made for radio or to show off how adaptable Doechii can be. Instead, it reflects her personal struggles – like the doom she feels about approaching her thirties, industry politics and label demands, and her place in the music world. Through it all, her honesty must be commended.

From the opening track ‘Stanka Poo’, she gets candid, sharing that she feels reduced to a “TikTok rapper, part-time YouTube actor”. ‘Boiled Peanuts’ continues her frank sharing, the rapper complaining, “Label always up my ass like anal beads / Why can’t all these label niggas just let me be?” before calling herself a “dying sunflower leaving a trail of seeds”. This sense of being trapped or feeling inadequate is all over the mixtape, turning what should be a bright and joyous record into something more upsetting.

‘Alligator Bites Never Heal’ ultimately finds its way to a brighter place as Doechii pulls us out of the dark and misty swamp and into the warmth of her current home in the Sunshine State. After ‘Nissan Altima’, the Floridian shows off her musical versatility, trying out new genres like bossa nova (‘Beverly Hills’) and synth-led hip-hop (‘Huh!’, ‘Fireflies’). The gentle guitar and airy harmonies of the soulful titular track, meanwhile, create an ethereal experience while Doechii begs us to “dance with her”.

At first, Doechii gets into the nitty gritty on this release, but – by the end – she finds solace and strength, making the mixtape feel more like a sonic diary of her emotional journey. It’ll take time to see if it becomes a standout in her discography, but this boldly brazen record definitely makes a statement”.

I am going to finish off with a review from Rolling Stone. I think most people in the U.K. know Doechii from DENIIAL IS A RIVER. It is a phenomenal cut. I would urge people to explore the rest of her catalogue. We are going to get many more albums from Doechii. There is no doubt this queen is primed for greatness:

“Doechii — a fierce and fearless lyricist with a natural ability to shape-shift — became Top Dawg Entertainment’s first female rapper right on the heels of Kendrick Lamar’s departure from the label. That could have set her up to be an heir to an impossibly gilded throne. It would make sense to look at her that way. The expanse of talented rappers left on the roster are Lamar’s friends who have solidified their own domains, too established in those roles to take such a vaunted spot. Though Doechii’s signing was preceded by young Long Beach rapper Ray Vaughn’s, she quickly garnered a broader audience with the viral hits “What It Is (Block Boy)” and “Yucky Blucky Fruitcake” — one a sexy, sung homage to early-aughts R&B with a sample of TLC’s “No Scrubs,” the other a hybrid of high-energy schoolyard bars and raps over dreamy Nineties hip-hop. She quickly crafted opening-act slots on tour with SZA and Doja Cat into major moments, crushed Coachella, and got loved on by women across Black music, from Janelle Monáe to JT of the City Girls. With SZA currently standing as the toppest of the dawgs on TDE’s roster, it’s fair to wonder if she and Doechii will shape the future of the label’s prestige.

Yet, with her full-length debut, Alligator Bites Never Heal (a gesture to the Florida roots of the self-proclaimed “Swamp Princess”), she makes herself more than a successor. She’s a fully realized artist, with immense technical and curatorial skill. (This is one of the only recent albums that deserves to be 19 tracks long.) On it, she slickly glides from gritty boom-bap, sensual electronic, dance music, Miami jook, and earnest soul with a wicked pen and brilliant charisma. Her varied vocal tics and beat selections are often akin to Lamar’s — like her creeping and nefarious “Skipp,” which plays like a spawn of Untitled Unmastered’s tracks two and seven — but she also sounds like as much a student of A Tribe Called Quest, Missy Elliott, and Nicki Minaj.

She’s also just a human being, and most often she simply sounds like Doechii. This is a feat of originality for someone so early in her mainstream career. The standout is “Denial Is a River,” in which Doechii gives an Oscar-worthy performance as both herself and a therapist of sorts in an immaculate display of her quirks, relatability, and tenderness. She dishes on her depression and failed relationships, and defends a pesky drug habit she picked up in Hollywood, before blasting into “Catfish,” an assertion of why she made it there. Doechii can be brash, reckless at the mouth, and dizzyingly dexterous, but her gentle heart is at the mixtape’s core — her fears, vices, and dreams as she becomes who she always knew she could be are at the center.

Early on Alligator Bites, she seeks to settle any debate about her rap bona fides, with track after track of hardcore spitting on beats that sound like they were plucked out of hip-hop’s golden era and had the dust blown off them. Yet, on the sarcastic single “Boom Bap,” complete with retro scratching by her touring DJ, Miss Milan, she pokes fun at the idea that her ability to skate like that is what makes her worthwhile. After making fart noises into the mic and peppering the song with deeply unserious scatting, she says, “Get Top on the phone/Tell him it’s all rap, nigga.” It’s a rather brazen evocation of her label head and a nod to Lamar’s Untitled Unmastered itself. “Say it’s real and it’s rap and it boom and it bap and it bounce and it clap and it’s house and it’s trap – It’s everything! I’m everything!” she screams.

Throughout the emotional journey of Alligator Bites, she confronts the expectations of her label as a major source of strife for her (without exactly differentiating between TDE and Capitol Records, where she is also signed). She bemoans that they’re “always up my ass like anal beads” and pushing her toward “TikTok music,” but also shows reverence: “Who’d-a got the ball from Big Moo,” she says of current TDE co-president Moosa Tiffith, who signed her, “and who’d-a dunk it?” Later, at the end of “Profit,” where she raps, “My label hate the direction I’m going, they knock my shit,” there’s a recording of a call between the two of them. “I just wanna tell you that I’m proud of you,” Tiffith tells her. “I love you, like, talk your shit, go crazy. I mean, go be the icon that you are.” It feels familiar, like the historically contentious but fruitful relationship between SZA and her manager and TDE co-president Terrance “Punch” Henderson, and you see what magic has come of that. Here, the result is one of the year’s very best albums”.

Let’s leave things there. Doechii will be playing in the U.K. on 23rd August. She will feature at Victoria Park. She has also been confirmed for Glastonbury. A huge platform and well-deserved booking. A perfect moment for her to slay in the U.K.! If you have not witnessed the brilliance of Doechii then check her music out. In years to come, she will rank alongside the queens of Hip-Hop. The icons she looks up to. This amazing artist has…

A bright future ahead.

_________

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PHOTO CREDIT: IB Kamara

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