These compositions evoke a sense of musicality that is ethereal, delicate, and cosmically spacey. From having toured as a bassist for the likes of Mitski and Lady Lamb, while simultaneously being a part of the pen pin pop duo alongside Emily Moore, Magaña conveys a versatility that is harbored through her fluency in a myriad of various sound techniques. These clearly show in the diverse array of what Teeth has to offer. 

Teeth kicks off with “Garden”, starting with a simple strumming pattern, attributing to an ominous yet mellow rhythm scheme. As the lyrics state “I will plant those seeds tomorrow/Watch my garden grow,” this song makes for a warm welcome. Magaña sings this hymn like tune about developing something out of one’s own creation, much like how she had crafted this album as a pandemic project. Although the track is basic in essence, Magaña’s vocals redeem the piece by how earthy and dainty it sounds melody wise.

The next song “Beside You” immediately begins with a much more vibrant, uplifting harmony that is spearheaded by a tapping piano and guitar with heavy overdrive and distortion. In the foreground of the song, there’s a groovy bassline that despite its subtleness, is a prominent distinction that makes the song more enlivened and light in mood. As Magaña sings “The future’s unknown/And I’m worried about it too/But you’re not alone,” she expounds on ruminations toward uncertainty and doubt of what’s to come. This is all within the pretense of figuring out how to proceed and go on with one’s life moving forward. 

Following that, the track “Matter” promotes more chordal qualities as it sets out a complex composition that includes pounding drums, guiding the rest of the instruments toward a path of monumental build-up. In this one, Magaña exudes more conflictions in the lyrics as she cites “I swore that I would never be like my mother/With all the weight upon my back/But it won’t matter, does it matter if it’s bad?” It discusses the intricacies of dealing with one’s dynamic with another person. This feeling of being lost within a relationship is compared to drowning. 

The track “Paul” returns to a slower pace that is looming and gentle in flow and tempo. Magaña sings “Paul, where did you go/When it was driving you insane/And I remember where I was when they first told me/You took those pills to kill your pain.” This is while being accompanied by a roomy guitar, airy flute, crystalline piano, and tender humming. It touches on what is essentially a heartbreaking tale of someone who suffers from drug abuse. The line comes from someone who loves passionately, their story of fading away under the seam of marriage embarks on a bittersweet narrative. 

“Break Free” lets out more funky riffs and twisted, warped contortions of sound. Magaña sings about every day feeling similar and monotonous, placing emphasis on what it is like for one to want to escape their daily bubble, as they crave for something more. The adjacent track “I Feel Like Ice”, is more so an instrumental. A dialogue that emulates a robotic, static-ridden voice buzzes out the message of the song’s title highlighting sensations of isolation and loneliness when placed in a position remote from the rest of the world. 

This perfectly bleeds into “To My Love” which sits upon a bed of cozy, homey guitar, and organs seasoned with reverb and resonance. Eventually, the drums make the song more boosted, as trumpet and violin come in to make the musicality of the song more elegant and graceful than it already is. One might believe this to be a love song that alludes to a romance too profound to describe, and even perhaps, too deep to pursue. 

The song dubbed “In My Body” has the bass take the lead, with a piercing synthline entering at odd intervals. While Magaña sings “And I feel somehow less than human/I am in body/not just this body,” she explicates what is the emotion of dissociation and detachment from a person’s own grasp of self, as they navigate something significant that had previously defined them for the longest of times. For the connecting song “Bones”, a more chimeric piano enters the ear, as her vocals here are more layered. She states “I’m nothing but bone/Now I’m alone/I want to go home,” transmitting the inkling of emptiness and vacancy within one’s soul when found at a brink of near unconsciousness. 

“I Cannot Breathe” allows for punchy, buzzing synths rippling into effect, as Magaña says “I’m a savior in my dreams/But I never sleep,” and “I’m not standing in the rain/But I cannot breathe/I cannot see,” exploring the theme of being close to losing contact with reality. Towards its closure, the track includes a short sample that has blurry talking in the surrounding setting, like dissociating in a crowded room, full of foggy, fuzzed-out entities. 

The song “Afraid of Everybody” presents itself with wavy, meandering, and winding waves of timbre, which goes with the zestful, potent stretches of striking drums. The clean, soft piano creates a serene symphony. The song promotes sensibilities toward questions of identity and finding oneself through experimentation and discovery. It generally lays commentary on what it’s like to feel alien, much like an anomaly. 

The subsequent track “Mary Anne” incorporates more hollow and wispy feelings, paired with balmy, peaceful guitar. The track communicates to another person who drags other people into their own struggles, having the pain be endured together. This song is raw and unfiltered, as it permits the gnawing sounds of the recording and of Magaña’s breaths in between lyrics to pervade the audio with no remorse.

“xxo” is an instrumental track of cyber computer sounds that preamble the closing track “Girl in Chains”, which makes for an ever devil-may-care exit with jaunty, breezy synth lines that convey the feeling of being set free and letting loose. As Magaña sings “I am just a girl in chains/Waiting for the spell to break,” one can see that she musters up the courage to confront her demons head-on, with the confession first. This is what most of Teeth is, a testimony to one’s bravery in facing what they have always feared, and trying to find a way to escape from one’s own isolation.

The post Track by Track Review of Magana’s “Teeth”  appeared first on KRUI Radio.

He cites Frank Ocean as one of his musical influences, and that is most evident on his latest single Body Rock, a romantic R&B ballad. His 2018 debut single Minutes (Rewind), on the other hand, is an upbeat dance song that reminds me of the pop songs I heard on the radio in the early 2000s.

CNTRL is a passionate alternative pop track that features a rap verse from A. Barb. It’s his most intense song, with Alyx singing about letting his lover take control of him. Runaway once again proves his musical contrast by making things soft again. An echoey guitar riff pleasantly compliments his rich voice.

Alyx’s voice is the highlight of all these songs. His melodies effortlessly combine emotion, technique, and power. When he does allow some autotuned distortion, you can tell it’s for stylistic purposes and not a tool that he relies on.

Alyx’s versatility proves that while he may have been inspired by established R&B/pop artists, he is successfully creating art that is uniquely his own. He started his musical journey at 15 years old, teaching himself how to play guitar and then eventually began writing his own songs.

Performing at Mission Creek and booked for Des Moines’ 80/35 festival this summer, Alyx is a rising star to watch. If you like discovering artists before they get big, make sure to check out Alyx’s show at the Englert Theatre on April 7, at 6:30 p.m.

The post Mission Creek Preview: Alyx Rush is just getting started appeared first on KRUI Radio.

Recorded and produced in his bedroom, Fuzzybrain by Dayglow, was released in late 2018. This is his first album, with another single, “Nicknames,” having been released this past September. Hailing from Austin, Texas, Dayglow is definitely an artist to watch. Dayglow, whose real name is Sloan Struble, created the 8 track album and released it before leaving for college in 2018. Throughout his freshman year, the album gained more and more popularity. 

His hit, “Can I Call You Tonight?” is easily the most recognizable and catchy tune from the album. Like the rest of his album, it radiates happiness and Dayglow’s unique energy. The song recalls the indecisiveness of furthering a relationship and not knowing how the other person feels, especially when one’s thinking they might leave.

Another relative hit from his album is, “Hot Rod.” This upbeat song is a song I easily put on repeat. It describes how a relationship became different than the couple first imagined it to be. The chorus is infectious with its lively lyrics: 

“But we both know-oh-oh
The way it’s gonna go-oh-oh
In the same way
Maybe I’m not all that you thought
And we don’t mo-o-ove
Like we used to do
In the same way
Maybe you’re not such a hot rod.”

“Junior Varsity,” is a song about change and moving onto a different part of life. This song particularly resonates with those either moving to college or away from it. How it all seems so ‘foreign’ but, is also something so anticipated. “Dear Friend,” is another song about change, but more personal. This song is about a changed relationship or friendship and how he reminisces about that individual from time to time.

Some of the other songs on his album display his lack of clarity and the uncertainty of his mind. “False Direction,” describes being led in a false direction and how he’s unsure of the right direction in his life. Similarily, “Fuzzybrain,” takes a peek into Struble’s ‘scattered mind.’ The song’s poetic lyrics create a mellow base for the many sounds featured in the song: “There’s rain inside my skeleton frame, a hurricane within my rib cage.”

As an upbeat song, “Run the World!!!,” is one of the best from the album. Especially shown with the number of exclamation points. However, the song is about running his own world and how that could be seen as narcissistic. He’s afraid that he’ll never be what others want him to be. 

“Fair Game,” is about a relationship and the constant ‘change of rules’ it required. The song mentions Dayglow, ‘losing his mind,’ which is a common – yet relatable – theme throughout his music. Also musically, “Fair Game,” has the most contrast. Most of his songs tend to be fairly repetitive, however, this song breaks out of the mold.

Dayglow is an artist whose music especially resonates with those of our generation. His music provides a warmth that blankets his audience with relatable lyrics. From creating music by himself to millions of streams to currently touring the country, Dayglow is an upcoming artist to follow.

The post Album Review: Fuzzybrain by Dayglow appeared first on KRUI Radio.

As a debut album, Don’t You excels– Zutrau’s vocals are haunting and clear, each melody compliments the next, and each song acts as a moving part, yet can stand on its own. Don’t You demonstrates obvious thought towards blending and cohesion.

The record opens with “It’s All in Vain,” where we first get to experience the silky smooth vocals of Kelly Zutrau. After starting this track I was completely sold on everything Wet had to offer in this album. The song starts off with easy, flowing vocals, that move into a slightly more upbeat chorus. This song builds and builds until ending abruptly, but successfully with a final synth beat. “It’s All in Vain” is an excellent choice for an opening track.

“Deadwater” is the following number and carries the same easy vibes that “It’s All in Vain” brought to the album. It seems impossible that a person could become more obsessed with Zutrau’s voice after listening to the previous track, but I stand corrected. The astonishing female vocals are complemented nicely by male vocals near the height of the song, adding to the mellow tone of the track.

The third song on the album is entitled “Don’t Wanna Be Your Girl,” and begins with a slightly quicker pace than the previous tracks. Zutrau sings “I don’t wanna be your girl no more, no,” and honestly, she has me convinced. I don’t wanna be whoever’s girl no more either. The ending of the track is a little off, but the flowing nature of the majority of the song makes up for this hiccup.

“Weak” shows up in the fourth slot on the record. This track gets a little angrier, which is a nice change of tone from the mellow, calm pieces that the album begins with. By no means does “Weak” get aggressive, but it seems a little more riled up, with a little more passion than what we’ve seen thus far.

“Island” is up next and has such an interesting opening sequence. Kelly Zutrau’s voice floats like a mother-freakin’ bird. There’s more experimentation with base here– it adds some depth to previously soprano- and alto-based melodies and harmonies. This track does get a bit repetitive towards the end, which takes away from the originality of the beginning.

The sixth track, “All the Ways,” feels similar in tone to “Don’t Wanna Be Your Girl,” but with a picked-up tempo. The soothing vocals once again carry this track through moments of tension and peace. While “Island” did some tricky base stuff, “All the Ways” plays around with voice synthesizers– perhaps not the best technique to try out on an otherwise cohesive song.

“Small and Silver” is yet another experimentation track that messes with some syncopation near the center, this time successfully. The vocals and supporting instrumental chords are still on par, making this track a standard Don’t You example– complete, interwoven, and smooth.

“You’re the Best” is the eighth track on Don’t You, and one of the best. It opens with a really inventive clapping rhythm, mixed with some base variations. This song also plays with some a cappella, which is just plain cool in light of all the other things that are going on throughout the track. “You’re the Best” has some truly depressing/creepy(?) lyrics to go with all the intrigue: “All I know is/when you hold me/are you thinking Rosalie/or is she in me?/and all the rest.”

“Move Me” follows “You’re the Best” and is lackluster in comparison. Perhaps if the song had been placed elsewhere on the album, it might have shined, but with its similar vibe it feels like a repetition. This is not to mention that the lyrics themselves are very repetitive.

“Body” is the tenth track on Don’t You and can be marked as a tapering off from the succession of peppier songs we’ve just previously encountered. “Body” is almost reminiscent of the smooth, calming tracks we felt at the beginning of the record. It adds some of the experimental elements like clapping and varying base of the median tracks to Zutrau’s easy vocals in the opening section. It’s a relatively mediocre track, but successful in its own right.

“These Days” closes Don’t You and is such an incredibly mournful track. Kelly Zutrau absolutely shines once again here– she goes into an almost painfully high soprano, but it works so well because “These Days” is painfully sad. Sad, in a good way. Sad in a way that makes you want to have a really good cry and yell at whoever hurt her. It’s such a beautiful song to end the album on, and really rounds up all of the talent that Wet has shown throughout.

Wet has created a cohesive, interesting album with Don’t You. Each song holds its own territory, trying out new techniques and styles within, but also acts as a matching piece of a larger work of art.

What have we learned here? I think we’ve learned that Kelly Zutrau’s voice is magic. Also, we might have learned that we need to be looking out for the next album from Wet.

Check out Wet on Facebook and Twitter.

Album Rating: A

The post Album Review: “Don’t You” by Wet appeared first on KRUI Radio.

From auditioning on the famous television series, The Voice, to releasing her new album Cry Baby, Melanie Martinez is well on the road to musical success. I first discovered Melanie’s talent by stumbling upon her viral cover of “Toxic” by Britney Spears, where she is seen playing the guitar while hitting a tambourine between her feet. From there, she continued on season three of The Voice and is certainly making her voice known today in the alternative music industry.

According to Artist Direct, Melanie states this album is a reflection of her childhood. She identifies with the Cry Baby character because as a kid, she claims she took things very personally and that led to the nickname that stuck. This album, according to this interview, was about Melanie coming to terms with this imperfect side to herself; hence the ongoing theme of infancy and child-like toys/activities present in the album.

The track listing for the album includes 13 tracks for the standard edition and 3 more bonus songs for the deluxe edition (digital only), all released by Atlantic Records/Warner Music. The album is a follow up for her EP released in 2014 called Dollhouse, as well as the tracks Pity Party, Soap, and Sippy Cup released more closely to the album drop. Another huge milestone to Mel’s success would be her track, also featured on the album, called Carousel. With its haunting music undertone and Melanie’s incredible voice to match, it is no wonder it was featured in the FX hit show American Horror Story: Freak Show. Because of this, her music career took off and helped with the success of Cry Baby.

The first track on the album is called Cry Baby, fitting for the album that is called just that. It perfectly sets the mood for the rest of the songs while being a fun opener with an upbeat tempo and eerie sound (which she nails so well). The next preceding songs include, as previously mentioned, Dollhouse, which was the first music video she ever produced.

Track number three on the album called Sippy Cup slows down the tempo and keeps a calming mood to the ghostly theme of the song. This is seen in songs Mrs. Potato Head and Training Wheels as well, which seamlessly glides along with the rest of the album. Melanie Martinez also does an excellent job of boldly experimenting with different drops and beats. Her song Soap demonstrates this perfectly and if you listen to it, I guarantee you have not heard anything like this before.

Melanie’s music has a theme of hostility along with the eerie sound she is known for. If you are looking for a song to run to in the gym to get over a boy/girl, her songs Alphabet Boy, Milk and Cookies, and Pacify Her are a must. These tracks are basically a big “fuck you” to anyone who makes Miss Martinez feel small and for that Melanie, we thank you.

I wanted to save my two favorite songs on the album for last: Tag, You’re It and Mad Hatter. Admittedly, these two songs are probably the creepiest of the album but the concepts and beats are pure genius. Tag, You’re It is the tale of a little girl being abducted by a man in a van. Yeah. Creepy. But that’s what is making her music so alluring… no one else is doing what she is doing! And lastly, as an avid “Alice in Wonderland” fan, of course Mad Hatter is a personal favorite. It is a great track because Melanie admits and embraces her weird (and arguably insane) mind. If you listen to anything from this album, this would be the track I’d recommend.

Don’t miss out! Check out Melanie Martinez’s album Cry Baby today!

Melanie Martinez- Cry Baby

Melanie Martinez- Instagram

Melanie Martinez- Soundcloud

Melanie Martinez- YouTube Channel

The post Album Review: “Cry Baby” by Melanie Martinez appeared first on KRUI Radio.