‘Bulo’s Fave Tunes: October 2024
A surprisingly superb selection this month. ‘Surprising’ in that I have a rule. It’s a stupid rule, but a rule nonetheless: If a song comes out, but is on an album that will not be released until the following year, I don’t include it. I will say that January and February of 2025 sound real promising. But, I digress. You’re here for the tunes, I’ve got ’em:
Should’ve had this song on here a couple of months ago. It’s grown on me. A lot. Love the laconic vocal. And the laconic horns:
Not sure any band has put out more good songs this year than these guys. Nathan’s favorite?:
I prefer takes on Christianity to come from drag queens, especially one who calls they/themself (?) ‘Flamy Grant‘:
Charles Mingus never wrote a simple tune. Samara Joy writes lyrics for this one, has an otherworldly voice, then adds a kickin’ band to bring it home. Pretty awesome:
Definitely one of the best bands out there. “I’m the God of everything else, you’re the God of losing me”:
How good can a song possibly be about a character in a video game? This good:
Tyler, The Creator:
You know her, you love her, and if this is a one-off, it’s an incredible one-off:
Yep, this month features mostly songs by women. Guys, time to up your game. This one, at least is a duet:
I really liked two songs by this band. Consulted with Nathan Arizona to find out which one he liked best. We agreed:
A singular guitarist. Now with collaborators!:
Ive got a question. Are we in a stage where it is just not possible for anyone to do anything new? I don’t mean that to disparage some very fine songs on this list but I feel like I’ve heard them all before.
I mean are we just at the end of a iteration and (since Kraftwerk and the swapping out of guitars and drums for electronic 1s and zeros) is everything just some version of a little less (X) and a little more (Y). Is music slouching towards Bethlehem waiting for whatever is next to be born?
Agreed, no new trails blazed here. Was at band practice and we all agreed: What we get today is “derivative” and tends to sound like everybody else, with no iconoclasts to be had. Waiting for the next blast of the new and different, hoping it will not be dependent on acoustic guitar. But I did like Ezra Collective.
Really? I heard a LOT of great new sounds this month.
Samara Joy? Tyler, The Creator?
Plus, good songs, while they may be informed by music that has gone before, are not derivative. Porridge Radio, derivative? Flamy Grant, derivative? Yasmin Williams, derivative?
Whatever, everyone’s welcome to their opinion. If I felt that I was posting a list of negligible songs that were more of the same, I’d stop posting them.
Everyone should check out the gorgeous collaboration between Madison Cunningham and Andrew Bird, “Cunningham Bird”. It’s a cover album of Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham’s album before Fleetwood Mac, that isn’t out for distribution (but you can find the original on Youtube). The whole of it is only 30 minutes, but “Crying in the Night” is a good start.
Agree. Actually had (but no longer do) the original Buckingham-Nicks album.
Yes, it’s a re-creation. But if you’ve never heard the original, it’s highly-recommended. Here’s the song that PS recommends:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DQ0CtjQbuO8
Everything comes from something else. Direct imitation is what it is, but innovation too is a reaction to something that was already there. Punk rock and blues-rock were derivative (the clue is in their name), Kraftwerk was derivative (plenty of electronics before them). The Beatles were derivative (Chuck Berry etc). Country music comes from folk and blues. Ezra Collective combines jazz and soul in new ways. None of these innovations came from nowhere, although when you first hear them it might feel that way, especially if you’re young and impressionable. The key is whether you’re excited or blasé about recent innovations.
Nobody ever said on American Bandstand, “It sounds too derivative.” It was usually “It has a good melody and you can dance to it. I give it an 85.”
1.Ezra Collective. I really like the new(ish) jazz/soul stuff coming out of England. This is a good example.
2. Good Looks. I’ve been playing their song “Self-Destructor” for a few weeks. I like this one too, tho not quite as much.
3. Samara Joy. Holds her own with the classic jazz singers.
4. Soccer Mommy.
5.Sleater/Kinney.
tyler is great, mahogakko is unlike anything i’ve ever heard, ag cook’s album is stands out as well, there’s plenty more out there but i don’t even think everything has to be groundbreaking. music for the longest time was simply a communal bonding experience through folk without any thought to artistry
I actually think of doing the lists as a communal experience–sharing music I think people might like. Which is why I encourage people to share and to provide feedback.
Nice job as usual. I’m partial to Waxahatchee and Gillian Welch, myself. Also love me some First Aid Kit
That Gillian Welch song is about how a tornado levelled their modest studio that they had built from scratch in Nashville.