2024 Album-a-Day: Week 21

It's a little worrying that I can never remember how many weeks it's been without checking. Playlist here, recommend albums as you see fit.

May 20th: Almost Killed Me by the Hold Steady

This is one of those bands that I frequently confuse with other bands that get played on the local college station, so it's possible that I've heard a number of their songs and confused them with songs by The Record Company, Monophonics, Stereophonics, Nathaniel Rateliff, and Dawes. The only song I could safely say was the Hold Steady before this week was "Sequestered in Memphis." That brings me to my thoughts on this album: Pretty solid. The music is Springsteen inspired (always a good thing), and the music is frenetic spoken word with a lot of ironic references, such as the opening track being about how they should start the album with a fun song. It takes some getting used to, but once you do, it's pretty great. My favorite song was "Most People are DJs." (If I might add, it's a little weird for a band to say their own name in their music so often.)

May 21st: Sports by Modern Baseball

Yet another album I've been aware of for some time and been meaning to get to, I'm glad I finally checked this one out. My familiarity with midwest emo is mostly limited to the similarly named American Football (I'm sure many people have confused these two bands), and this album is kind of similar, but only kind of. For one thing, the lyrics are extremely online (but in a 2012 way), with moments of humor that remind me of the Front Bottoms. I get the feeling Jeff Rosenstock likes these guys, which is one of the highest compliments I can give. My favorite song on the album is "Re-Done."

May 22nd: Nearer My God by Foxing

I don't know where to begin to categorize this album. It's... post-punk but it's also emo but there's synths... It's kind of like TV on the Radio....? And maybe Enter Shikari? (I've heard two songs by Enter Shikari. I should add them to the list.) I don't know how to characterize it, but I like this a lot. It's dark and weird and fascinating, and the opening track has the amazing lyric "I'm shock collared at the gated of heaven" and there's solos and screaming and "Gameshark" is about outsmarting death and it's my favorite song on the album. I need to listen to this again to understand it more.

May 23rd: 24 Hour Revenge Therapy by Jawbreaker

I love power pop. I'd heard this album discussed in power pop circles and general music nerd circles for a long time, and I can safely say I understand why. It's catchy, intense, and concise, which are the core tenets of power pop. The lyrics are the perfect combination of longing and self-defeating, and I really like these songs. My favorite is "Do You Still Hate Me?"

May 24th: The Ugly Organ by Cursive

DAMN. I mean DAMN. This thing, man. I'd seen this album cover around before, without having heard any of it. I'm so glad I finally have now. I can't really follow the concept (from what I can tell, it's kind of a Sunday in the Park with George story), but I love this dramatic post-hardcore with strings and evocative lyrics, sometimes reminding me of Coheed and Cambria, with other songs reminding me of Sea Power of all things. My favorite song is "Art is Hard."

May 25th: Expensive Shit by Fela Kuti

My first experience with Fela Kuti, and with afrobeat in general. This album is two (2) over-10-minute songs, but they do not feel that long. As a fan of Herbie Hancock, this was not as unfamiliar to me as I might have assumed it would be, because this really is, on many levels, jazz-funk, but with Kuti's unique twist on it. I love the guitar licks and the group chants. There's only two songs, so I guess my favorite track is "Water No Get Enemy."

May 26th: Salad Days by Mac Demarco

After a shamefully long time not knowing much Mac DeMarco, this album is really good. It's laid-back, somewhat melancholic, but not without humor. The jangly, chorused guitar tones and synths drenched in reverb provide a backdrop for DeMarco's weary voice, and his skill at songwriting is sharp, as shown on "Blue Boy," "Goodbye Weekend," and "Chamber of Reflection," which, incidentally, I heard a few times and had been looking for the name of ever since. My favorite is "Goodbye Weekend." I also think it's kinda funny how it ends like a YouTube video, I almost expected him to ask me to like and subscribe.