06-27-2024, 07:39 AM
(06-21-2024, 04:08 PM)BostonCard Wrote: OK, now that the 2023/24 NCAA season is over (and now that my sabbatical has started), it is time to resurrect the periodic Cardboard music thread. Hat tip to Hulk for starting this tradition about 10 years ago.
I'll start with a song that was such Hulk bait that I actually PM'd him about it out of the blue. A Chinese/American/Icelandic singer with an amazing voice, check and a genre melding jazzy pop reminiscent of another age seems to check all the boxes. Allow me to introduce you to Laufey (pronounced Lay-vay). Here she is performing with the Icelandic Symphony:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PK02xDT_RWA
It's been a few years since the last music thread... since then, The Rolling Stones released their first album in ages (Cockney Diamonds) and it was good actually? Here's my favorite track:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r37-pVyI...bs&index=5
Songs of last summer:
Padam Padam by the ageless Kylie Minogue
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p6Cnazi_Fi0
It developed a reputation as a gay anthem, which is neither here nor there; it's a fun song. But also, happy Pride Month to those who celebrate.
Summer In New York by Sofi Tucker:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QO-4dnOJL7Q
Sofi Tukker is not a person's name, but rather a duo (Sophie Hawley-Weld and Tucker Halpern) who met at Brown; Hawley-Weld was born in Germany, raised in Canada, and majored in Portuguese (some of their other songs are in Portuguese or have lines in Portuguese); Halpern was a basketball player on the Brown team. But this song in particular captures the essence of title.
Murder on the Dancefloor by Sophie Ellis-Bextor
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hAx6mYeC6pY
Even though the song is something like 20+ years old, it got a bump with the release of the Amazon Prime Movie Saltburn. I hated the movie, but the final scene, with Barry Keoghan's character dancing to the song naked in the manor brought it back.
After getting reacquainted with Sophie Ellis-Bextor's music, I started to listen to more Nu-Disco, a genre that melds 1970's disco with modern EDM. Probably best encapsulated by Purple Disco Machine, an homage to Prince (Purple) and Miami Sound Machine. Here's a remix of a song by the EDM producer Diplo and Sidepiece:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AdapOc0xcLM
And here he is in a collaboration with Sophie and the Giants:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZDrlmlzY7cE
And finally, my newest musical obsession is the British (Ghanian/Swiss) singer/songwriter Raye. She defies classification, running from R&B to Pop/electropop, to Hip Hop. She has been favorably compared to Amy Winehouse (though I was never a fan of Winehouse), in that her voice is incredibly rich and her lyrics hit hard. She's also suffered from many of the same issues that Winehouse has in terms of drug addiction, being victimized by sexual abuse and harassment, and being upfront and honest about it. Many of the songs here are NSFW (or kids), so caveat emptor. I first heard her on an NPR tiny desk concert:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DL1zyUjzwno
The format really lends itself well to showcasing her voice. The other place her voice really shines is in this cover of Nina Simone's Feeling Good:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wgrvrvtH59c
The song that put her on the map was Escapism:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dll6VJ2C7wo
The song and album it was on (21st Century Blues) swept 6 awards at this year's BRIT awards, including Artist of the Year. But I also like some of her older stuff, which is more electro-pop, such as Regardless:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dmhqDfsOVV4
And since I know Imagine Dragons has come up a few times in these threads, I got to enjoy them as part of this year's Genentech Gives Back concert. I enjoyed Bones from their most recent album:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DYed5whEf4g
There next album (Loom) comes out next week.
I could go on, but I'm interested in what you all are listening to.
BC
Testing...
Strange, if I reply to a post that appears blank, I can see it all in the reply window. Let's see what my reply looks like.