2017 was undoubtedly a great year for music. An exciting batch of young artists from Lorde to SZA to Tyler the Creator led the way, all releasing fantastic albums throughout the year. Veterans like Kendrick Lamar, Jay-Z and LCD Soundsystem also released great albums that found them reinventing and tweaking their sound. It was overall a very well-rounded year in music. And the Grammy’s reflected none of this.

The Grammy’s has devoted itself for years to not awarding the best music, but the most popular; so it should come as no surprise that 2018 was more of the same. Here is a list of albums that have been snubbed from album of the year in the last decade: Kanye West- My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy (2010), Frank Ocean- Channel Orange (2012), Kendrick Lamar- good kid M.A.A.D City (2012), Kendrick Lamar- To Pimp a Butterfly (2015), Beyonce- Lemonade (2016).

The winners those years? Adele- 21 (2010), Mumford and Sons- Babel (2012), Taylor Swift- 1989 (2015), Adele- 25 (2016). And that’s just for the Album of the Year category; not even mentioning the fact that Macklemore & Ryan Lewis’ The Heist won Rap Album of the Year over Kanye West’s Yeezus, Kendrick Lamar’s good kid M.A.A.D. City, and Drake’s Nothing Was the Same.

The lack of acknowledgment for great artists and their work is undeniable, with cookie-cutter pop artists consistently taking home all of the major awards. Innovative, forward-thinking music is put on the backburner in favor of commercial success, which typically leads to the majority of awards going to white males.

This brings us to the 2018 Grammy’s. 2018’s nominees looked extremely promising, with a plethora of fantastic nominees up for Album of the Year and Song of the Year. Yet, at every turn, the wrong decision was made. In a year full of exciting young artists and great releases from legendary music figures, the star of the night was none other than Bruno Mars.

Bruno Mars’ 24K Magic won album of the year over Kendrick Lamar, Lorde, Jay-Z, and Childish Gambino. And song of the year. And record of the year. He won all 6 awards that he was nominated for.

Jay-Z had a late-career gem with 4:44, and was the most nominated artist at the event with 8; he walked away empty-handed for the night. Not only did Lorde not win any awards, but she didn’t even get clearance to perform one of her own songs. Every Album of the Year nominee got to perform one of their own songs, yet Lorde was required to sing a cover song; she refused, and thus didn’t get the chance to perform.

The Grammy’s is terribly flawed and in 2018 it’s more clear than any other year. The easy cop-out is to say, “If you don’t like the award show and know it’s a joke, then why watch it?”. To answer that simply: the show is a big deal. It’s the biggest music award show annually and the longer that great, diverse artists are denied recognition, the longer our society will be in quicksand, lacking exposure to anything outside of the pop music churned out by white artists each year.

It’s time for the Grammy’s to recognize true artistry, as 2018 was a new low.

The post Music Matters: Another Year, Another Grammy Disappointment appeared first on KRUI Radio.

After the slightly disappointing yet hugely commercially successful release of “Views” in 2016, Drake kept the momentum going into 2017 with his March release of “More Life”. Dubbed as a “playlist” the project saw a looser structure characterized by a variety of styles being incorporated.

No track stands out as a better representation of Drake in 2017 then “Passionfruit,” the third song off of “More Life”. The track features Drake’s voice effortlessly gliding over a groovy beat as he spews out cliches that only he could pull off, “Passionate from miles away/ Passive with the things you say”. The song is the epitome of the pop crossover hit that Drake has become, and shows again how versatile he can be.

9. The XX- “On Hold”

The XX’s third album, “I See You,” was released on January 13th, and has been largely forgot despite being one of the best albums of the year. More than any other XX album, “I See You,” is bursting at the seams with energy and shows the band exhaling a bit, free from the restrictive and claustrophobic sound of their first two brooding albums.

“On Hold,” draws influence from band member Jamie XX’s 2015 solo album “In Colour,” and relies heavily on a sample of Hall and Oates’  “I Can’t Go for that (No Can Do)”. The tension builds as the back and forth singing of Romy Croft and Oliver Sim eventually breaks free as the chorus is unveiled, standing as the most fun moment in any XX song.

8. Vince Staples- “Bagbak”

2017 was a huge year for Vince Staples, kicked off by “Bagbak,” the first single off of his new album, “Big Fish Theory,”.

A party/club banger disguised as a political song, Staples nonchalantly floats over the pulsing electronic beat, casually proclaiming, “We need Tamika’s and Shaniqua’s in that oval office/ Obama ain’t enough for me we only gettin’ started/ The next Bill Gates could be on Section 8 up in the projects/ So till they love my dark skin, b*tch I’m going all in”.

As one of the most promising young rappers in the industry, Staples has a unique ability to seamlessly weave scathing political commentary with ear-friendly beats, with no song being a better representation of this than on “Bagbak”.

7. Run the Jewels- “Call Ticketron”

“Run the Jewels 3,” is as urgent, politically-charged and explosive as anything Run the Jewels has ever released. The beats are harder, the rhymes more intricate and humorous, and the production is top-notch on every song.

The back-and-forth braggadocio of Killer Mike and El-P is in full force on “Call Ticketron,” as the song pulses along as the two dance around the chorus of “Run the jewels live from the Garden/ li-li-li-live from the Garden”.

The song is an imagining of Run the Jewels playing at the iconic Madison Square Garden, and after listening to the explosive “Call Ticketron,” it’s not too hard to envision Run the Jewels playing to a sold-out Madison Square Garden crowd.

6. Jay-Z- “4:44”

After the earth-shattering release of Beyonce’s “Lemonade,” questions immediately arose about Jay-Z’s infidelity, with the music world waiting for his response. After the disappointment of 2013’s “Magna Carta Holy Grail,” not many thought that the 47 year old Jay-Z had another classic album in him- they were wrong.

According to Jay-Z himself, he woke up at 4:44 AM to write the title track, a song that serves as an open apology letter to his wife Beyonce for cheating on her. The opening sample starts the track off slow until the beat drops, with the first words uttered from Jay-Z being “I apologize, often womanize/ Took for my child to be born, see through a woman’s eyes/ Took for these natural twins to believe in miracles/ Took me too long for this song, I don’t deserve you”.

To see Jay-Z so vulnerable is completely new, as he is often seen as an untouchable deity within the music community. The phenomenal production paired with the soul-bearing lyrics make for the best song off of “4:44” and a real triumph in Mr. Carter’s careers.

5. Arcade Fire- “We Don’t Deserve Love”

While Arcade Fire’s fifth studio album “Everything Now,” wasn’t what many fans were hoping for, there were still incredible high points on the album from a band that has already proven they are one of the best of the 21st century. The band has traditionally been known for having fantastic penultimate tracks on their albums, from “Rebellion (Lies)” to “No Cars Go” to “Sprawl II”, their penultimate tracks have been some of the best they’ve ever made.

“We Don’t Deserve Love,” the second to last song on “Everything Now” is no exception, and stands out as the crowning jewel on an album that got panned relative to Arcade Fire’s other albums.

The song starts off slow with a droning synth as Win Butler’s soft voice comes in proclaiming “Keep both eyes on the road tonight/ Cuz I’m driving home to you/ a terrible song on the radio, baby what else is new?”. The song builds to a glorious climax as Butler and his wife Regine Chassagne harmonize the chorus, with Butler painfully exclaiming “Maybe we don’t deserve love”.

For an album filled with dance-heavy tracks with forgettable lyrics, “We Don’t Deserve Love” is a reminder of how powerful Arcade Fire can be.

4. Frank Ocean- “Chanel”

While Frank Ocean didn’t release an album in 2017, he still stayed on the music radar with a string of fantastic singles, highlighted by “Chanel”. On March 10th Ocean released another episode of his Blonded Radio show which debuted, “Chanel”.

The song continues where Blonde left off, featuring Ocean crooning over a minimalist aesthetic and piano, incorporating lyrics dealing with Ocean’s bisexuality. Ocean opens the song by proclaiming, “My guy pretty like a girl, and he got fight stories to tell/ I see both sides like Chanel”. The way that Ocean takes the minimalist production and makes his voice the primary driver of the song is remarkable, and couldn’t be pulled off by many.

3. Lorde- “Perfect Places”

Lorde’s second studio album “Melodrama” saw the 19 year old take a huge step forward in terms of lyrical maturity and production. With the help of fun. band member Jack Antonoff, “Melodrama” sums up the chaos and heartbreak of being a young woman in 11 tracks.

“Perfect Places,” is the final track on the album, and sounds like an anthem for the 4 AM walk home to your house after a night out. The lyrics reflect honestly the uncertainty of youth, as Lorde proclaims, “I hate the headlines and the weather/ I’m 19 and I’m on fire”.

As the song, and album, fade out, the repeated chorus of “All the nights spent off our faces/ Trying to find these perfect places” concludes the album. It’s a perfect ending point as Lorde enters her 20’s, and listeners begin to wonder where her career will go from here.

2. Kendrick Lamar- “Feel”

Picking just one song from Kendrick Lamar’s “Damn,” was a difficult decision. From the smash hit, “Humble,” to the explosive and relentless, “DNA,” the choice wasn’t easy, but ultimately the nod went to, “Feel”.

The track won’t be heard at any house parties, nor has any memorable guest features, but is instead a 3 minute track of Kendrick pouring out a stream-of-consciousness over a funky beat reminiscent of “To Pimp a Butterfly”. “Feel,” is Lamar at his most vulnerable, as he recounts how fame has opened his eyes to the fleeting nature of those around him, to the point where he doesn’t know who actually cares about him.

As Lamar uses the repetition and concept of “feel”, he finishes the song with the thesis of the album: “I feel like the whole world want me to pray for ’em, but who the f**k praying for me?”. The song is one of the most vulnerable of Lamar’s career, and serves as the emotional centerpiece of “Damn.”.

1. LCD Soundsystem- “Call the Police”

LCD Soundsystem broke up in 2011. Then they didn’t and were reunited. Then some thought the reunion was fake. Then the band released an official statement and announced they were working on a new album. The 6 year wait for a new album- one that many thought would never be released- was worth it.

The first single LCD Soundsystem released after their disbandment was, “Call the Police”. The song is a slow-burner, reminiscent of David Bowie’s “Heroes”. The wailing guitar drives the song as more instrumentation is added, with Murphy’s vocals gradually rising until by the end of the track he’s in a full out yell. “Call the Police” is an iconic and welcome comeback for the band, a 7-minute epic that is the epitome of what the band stands for.

The song’s lyrics are typical James Murphy, as he criticizes the current state of affairs in America, as Murphy closes the song backed by a wall of sound, begging listeners: “So call the police, yeah call the police/ Go call the police”.

“Call the Police,” is one of the best LCD Soundsystem songs to date, and the best song of 2017. It’s an urgent and slow-burning message from one of the most important indie bands of the 2000’s, and one that only gets better with repeated listens.

The post Music MATTers: Top 10 Songs of 2017 appeared first on KRUI Radio.

A great movie soundtrack includes songs that compliment the mood of the scene, seamlessly cultivating an immersive world within the movie that the viewer becomes a part of. Here are some movie soundtracks that accomplish this, and are critical to the identity of the film.

Boyhood 

Richard Linklater’s 2014 classic “Boyhood” features the 12-year progression of a boy named Mason. As Mason and his family mature and develop throughout the 2000’s, the film’s soundtrack plays a hugely important part in creating a sense of nostalgia, along with being a huge bonding point between Mason and his father.

The film opens with the sunny and innocent strum of Coldplay’s “Yellow” as a young Mason gazes up into the clouds. Various popular indie staples are mixed in throughout the movie with immediately recognizable pop songs that indicate what was popular at the particular time period Mason is being portrayed. Mason and his father (Ethan Hawke) share a bond in the car as the father gives Mason a lesson on how phenomenal the production is on Wilco’s “Hate it Here”.

Most of the film takes place in Houston, Texas, where director Richard Linklater grew up as a kid. As a result, many songs from Arcade Fire’s 2010 album “The Suburbs”, a concept album about growing up in the suburbs of Houston, are utilized. Later in the film, when Mason is driving down the highway with his girlfriend Sheena, Arcade Fire’s “Suburban War” plays and helps the scene to convey the sprawling, late-evening haze of the Texas countryside. As Mason delivers one final monologue with a friend he met at college and looks into the camera for a split-second, the credits roll and Arcade Fire’s “Deep Blue” plays, putting an end to the 3-hour epic.

No mention of Boyhood’s soundtrack would be complete without mention of the song central to the film’s DNA: “Hero” by Family of the Year. Every trailer for the film featured the slow acoustic song that gradually builds into a rollicking anthem. The song plays in the most pivotal scene in the movie, when Mason finally leaves for college and drives himself alone across Texas to his new home.

Boyhood uses its soundtrack to support its narrative structure, and the songs featured are a huge part of the film.

500 Days of Summer

500 Days of Summer chooses songs to enhance the particular mood of each scene, whether it be funny or heartbreaking.

From the very start of the movie, it is clear that music choice is very important to the film. Summer (Zooey Deschanel) and Tom (Joseph Gordon Levitt) bond over their love of the Smiths, as Tom gets in an elevator with Summer early in the film and she comments on her love of the Smiths’ song coming from Tom’s headphones, “There is a Light that Never Goes Out”.

The first time that Tom and Summer hang out outside of work, Tom sings passionate karaoke to The Pixies’ “Here Comes Your Man”; later, after Tom and Summer break up, Tom sings a drunk and painfully funny rendition of The Clash’s “Train in Vain”. In one of the most recognizable scenes from the film, after Tom and Summer hook-up for the first time, Joseph Gordon Levitt’s character has a hilarious and charismatic stroll down the street full of dancing, set to Hall and Oates’ “You Make My Dreams”.

As Tom and Summer’s relationship flourishes, upbeat indie songs like The Temper Trap’s “Sweet Disposition” are used to convey the newfound spark found between the two. As their relationship disintegrates, however, the soundtrack reflects this and pairs heart-wrenching scenes with emotional songs. While Tom reflects on all of the signs that him and Summer’s relationship was doomed, Simon & Garfunkel’s “Bookends” plays in the background as Tom realizes that he romanticized his relationship.

Perhaps the most emotionally impactful use of a song in any movie comes from the incredibly shot scene towards the end of the movie, otherwise known as the “Expectation vs. Reality” scene. Tom thinks he has rekindled a relationship with Summer, and has an expectation in his head of how the night will go, contrasted with the reality of the night which is much more upsetting. Regina Spektor’s soft piano ballad “Hero” serves as a backdrop for this heartbreaking scene as Tom discovers that Summer is engaged.

Garden State

Garden State is a movie that defines the cluelessness and youthful angst of being in your mid-20’s with no direction. In Zach Braff’s directorial debut, he uses the same tender combination of humor and sentimentality that made Scrubs such a success. Also like Scrubs, the film has a fantastic soundtrack, a soundtrack widely responsible for popularizing The Shins.

The soundtrack of the film is comprised of soft folk and slow indie anthems. The first song in the film is “Don’t Panic,” a short and poignant song by Coldplay that starts playing after the main character Andrew (Zach Braff) learns of his mother’s death. The slow and sweet romantic songs compliment the emotional weight of the film very well as Andrew and his relationship with Sam (Natalie Portman) progresses.

The Shins make their first appearance in the film as Andrew rides his vintage motorcycle down the street, with “Caring is Creepy,” the first song off of their debut album “Oh Inverted World” playing in the background.

When Andrew first meets Sam in the waiting room of his doctor’s office, she is listening to music through her vintage headphones and hands them to Andrew, claiming that this song will change his life. The song turns out to be “New Slang” by The Shins, a song that effectively became cemented as one of the best and most recognizable indie songs of the 2000’s.

As the film ends, Andrew and Sam’s relationship is up in the air, as Andrew debates moving back to Los Angeles, leaving Sam behind. “Let Go” by the band Frou Frou plays and the ending is left on an ambiguous note. “Let Go” captures the uncertainty and spontaneity of being young and in love and is a perfect song to close the film on.

The Perks of Being a Wallflower

Whereas Garden State’s soundtrack succeeds in its ability to create the angsty nostalgia of the early 2000’s, The Perks of Being a Wallflower encapsulates the early 90’s era of cassette mixtapes, finding new songs through the radio, and bonding with friends over good music.

The film shows high school freshman Charlie (Logan Lerman) navigate his way through high school as a shy kid that eventually finds himself through finding others. Charlie and his friend group pride themselves on their music taste, and there are countless iconic scenes from the movie that are made even better by the song choice.

Before Charlie meets his new friends Sam (Emma Watson) and Patrick (Ezra Miller), he sits in his room listening to his sister’s boyfriends mixtape that she pawns off on him. The Smiths song “Asleep” plays as Charlie struggles at the beginning of the school year, but it is a pivotal moment for his character as he begins to form an identity. Charlie bonds with Sam over their love of the Smiths, exactly like Tom and Summer in 500 Days of Summer.

At the school dance, Charlie stands off to the side as Sam and Patrick begrudgingly dance to crap popular music, until “Come on Eileen” by Dexy’s Midnight Runners comes on and the three new friends share a moment of friendship together. The high energy song combined with the new and exciting friendship is perfect and heartwarming.

Of course, the Perks of Being a Wallflower is most widely known for its use of David Bowie’s “Heroes”. The three friends refer to it as the ‘tunnel song’ as they first hear it when driving through a tunnel at night and don’t know what the song is until the end of the movie. The three main characters hop in a truck as Charlie gives an emotional final monologue while “Heroes” blares in the background. The unkempt emotion and freedom in Bowie’s voice mirrors Charlie progressing as a character and finally breaking through his exterior shell.

Why song choice matters

For many, music in a film is nothing more than background noise. When movies utilize music correctly in a movie, however, it has the ability to enhance a scene to another level. The song says what the screen can’t, adding emotional depth and energy to the scene.

From the career-changing use of “New Slang” in Garden State, to the final emotional apex of The Perks of Being a Wallflower, featuring David Bowie’s “Heroes”, these four films are just some examples of movies that used the medium of song to give incredible weight to their scenes, immersing viewers entirely. This is why a great movie soundtrack is so important.

The post Music MATTers: Iconic Movies with Even More Iconic Soundtracks appeared first on KRUI Radio.

Most fans of indie music know the story of Bon Iver’s first record like the back of their hand by now. Justin Vernon broke up with his girlfriend, band, got sick with mono, and decided to seek refuge in a remote cabin in the Wisconsin woods where he recorded his debut album as Bon Iver titled “For Emma, Forever Ago”.

The story has garnered Vernon a cult following and cemented his status as an indie legend. Recently, the band announced a vinyl reissue of the iconic album. Which, will feature new artwork and will be accompanied by a live performance of the album in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, on February 17, 2018.

Since the release of “For Emma, Forever Ago,” the band has gone in drastically different directions. The band’s 2011 release “Bon Iver, Bon Iver” featured sweeping soundscapes and lush instrumentation that expanded upon the raw acoustic nature of their debut. “22, a Million” released in 2016, and was an electronic extension of the band’s earlier albums, resembling Sufjan Stevens’ “Age of Adz.”

The widespread acclaim, Grammy wins and collaborations with artists such as James Blake and Kanye West would cease to exist without the framework built with “For Emma, Forever Ago.” Where the rest of Bon Iver’s discography utilizes grand soundscapes and unique combinations of complex instrumentation, “For Emma, Forever Ago” succeeds in its intimate lyrics and isolated, icy acoustic heartache.

The album opener, “Flume,” introduces the listener to Vernon’s beautiful falsetto, with a backdrop of a creaky and squealing acoustic guitar. Vernon doesn’t write lyrics with the intention of making total sense, but instead writes based on what words sound good together, as can be heard in the chorus of the song: “Only love is all maroon/ gluey feathers on the flume/ sky is womb and she’s the moon.”

“Skinny Love” is the third track on the album, and is the breakthrough song that vaulted Bon Iver to becoming a household name. It is a heartbreaking ballad that features a pained Vernon spitting: “Come on skinny love just last the year/ pour a little salt we were never here.” The song is the emotional center of the album and is one of the best breakup songs of all time.

The most upbeat song on the album comes towards the end of the album with “For Emma.” The song sees Vernon introducing horns and other vocals that harmonize in the background, indicating that maybe some light is seeping through the cracks for Vernon and there is some hope.

The album closer, “Re: Stacks,” is a slow and beautiful track, featuring the soothing and uplifting falsetto of Vernon tying the album up nicely. Its the sound of Vernon finally coming to peace with himself and indicating the new beginning and direction of his life: “This is not the sound of a new man, or a crispy realization/ It’s the sound of the unlock and lift away/ your love will be safe with me.”

“For Emma, Forever Ago” is a hugely important album in the scope of the music industry, as Bon Iver paved the way for all of the alternative-folk acts to follow in the coming years, from Mumford and Sons to the Lumineers to Of Monsters and Men.

Not only that, but Vernon’s impeccable falsetto became widely known after numerous collaborations with Kanye West. Vernon was featured on the songs “Monster” and “Lost in the World” from West’s “My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy,” and was also on West’s 2013 album “Yeezus,” which had great influence upon “22, a Million.”

The influence and impact of “For Emma, Forever Ago” cannot be overstated. Who could’ve guessed that one of the most iconic albums of the 2000’s would come from one man isolated in the Wisconsin woods?

The post Music MATTers: Bon Iver’s “For Emma, Forever Ago”- 10 Years Later appeared first on KRUI Radio.

OK Computer part 2 never came, however. Filled with dense electronics, icy soundscapes and vocal manipulation, the band released “Kid A (2000)“, one of the biggest out-of-left-field releases a major artist has ever had.

In 2001, “Amnesiac” was released, showing the band mix the electronic alienation of Kid A with jazz elements. “Hail to the Thief (2003)” was a politically charged, scattered collection of Radiohead songs that were unhinged and free-flowing rock. “Ok Computer” part 2 didn’t arrive until the year 2007.

October 10th marked the tenth anniversary of Radiohead’s landmark album” In Rainbows.” From the unique pay-what-you-want model of online release, to the stellar content of the album itself, the album is a landmark in the legendary band’s career. “In Rainbows” marked the return of Radiohead, and stands as one of their best albums they’ve ever made.

In 10 tracks, Radiohead incorporate many different styles and made sure the music community knew they were still capable of greatness. Many see “In Rainbows” as a companion to the iconic “OK Computer”, yet there remains a stark difference between the two: where “OK Computer” delves into the alienation and paranoia of modern technology, “In Rainbows” embraces being human. It’s a warm and comforting record, unlike any Radiohead had released before.

Gone are the overtly politically-charged lyrics and cold, desolate soundscapes of previous Radiohead records; “In Rainbows” is bursting at the seams with life and emotion. It is the sound of a band finally content with itself, simply settling for making good music over grand statements and boundary-pushing aesthetics.

From the opening, sporadic drums of “15 Step,” to the rollicking and high-energy guitar riff of “Bodysnatchers,” the record opens with a high-energy pace before the devastating third track “Nude,” hits. The track has been around since 1997, and was finally released 10 years later in the form of a slow and dozing track that features the falsetto of Thom Yorke proclaiming, “Don’t get any big ideas, they’re not gonna happen.”

“Weird Fishes/Arpeggi,” is one of the best tracks Radiohead has ever recorded, and showcases a repeating drum pattern that continues throughout the song as it builds into a wall of sound, finishing with one of the most beautiful moments in any Radiohead song.

“In Rainbows” forgoes traditional song structure time again, instead opting for songs that gradually build, with layer upon layer of sound being added as in “Reckoner,” and “Jigsaw Falling into Place.” The most devastating song on the album is the closer, “Videotape.” The song went through many iterations before the band decided on a sparse piano ballad featuring only Thom Yorke and his keys, and it remains one of the most poignant songs Radiohead has recorded.

Yorke looks at his own mortality throughout the song and ends the album with an oddly comforting line, “No matter what happens next/ you shouldn’t be afraid/ because I know today has been the most perfect day I’ve ever seen.”

For a band to reach another peak so far into its career is rare, especially when the peaks are as high as Radiohead’s are. “In Rainbows” not only reached those peaks of “OK Computer” and “Kid A”, but may actually have surpassed them to take the place as Radiohead’s best album to date. Regardless, “In Rainbows” is the sound of one of the greatest bands to ever do it making another classic album.

The post Music MATTers: Radiohead’s “In Rainbows”- 10 Years Later appeared first on KRUI Radio.