Music Monday (not really): Summer!

I can’t believe I haven’t posted one of these since the spring semester. Looking back, it’s always fun to see how much my music taste changes by season.

It’s summer, which means my rotation is summery! Enjoy!

Evil Eye – Franz Ferdinand

This is a placeholder for any of a few Franz Ferdinand tracks: Evil Eye, Ulysses, This Fire, Take Me Out, No You Girls, etc. After listening to Always Ascending and Take Me Out sporadically for a pretty long time, I finally got around to delving deeper into their discography, and I was pleasantly surprised!

Franz Ferdinand is a Scottish rock band. All anyone knows from them is Take Me Out. I can see why; Take Me Out is a certified indie rock banger. If you like their sound, though, it’s super consistent throughout the 2000’s, so there’s a lot to like! Evil Eye isn’t quite from that era, releasing on Right Thoughts, Right Words, Right Actions in 2013. 

Some people get a freak outta me

Some people can’t see what I can (see)

Some people wanna see what I see

Some people put an evil eye on me

Franz Ferdinand has one sound and they do it well, at least on their older stuff. It’s dance-rock, an excellent blend of synthesizer and guitar that I continually find myself drawn to nowadays. Permanent wave, I think it’s called? Regardless, if you ever find yourself driving down a highway on a summer afternoon with the windows down with nothing fresh to listen to, play some Franz Ferdinand! 

Dreams – Fleetwood Mac

This is one of those songs I knew already that I hadn’t assigned to a name or a band. Turns out, it’s Fleetwood Mac, a band to which I’ve devoted shockingly little attention during my time as a dad-music fan. I remember being unimpressed by whatever limited exposure I had a few years back, but it’s obvious to me now why Rumors is constantly mentioned in discussions about the best albums of all time. It just sounds classic and perfect, even with no prior context. 

For once, the biggest hit is the biggest hit for an obvious reason. Even on a deep album, something about Dreams is intoxicatingly powerful. Stevie Nicks’ vocals shine through on lead and backup. It’s beautifully simple, supported by some guitar, bass, and drums. Steel guitar adds some brilliant touches occasionally. What a track, perfect for a summer night as the sun finishes setting and the fireflies come out for the night. 

Me In Honey – R.E.M.

Is Out of Time my favorite R.E.M. album? Find out when I do an R.E.M. album rating! 

Me In Honey is one of the most jubilant pieces of music they’ve ever made. You can read more about it here. For now, just know this is a track guaranteed to lift your mood, best played in a space where you can dance around a bit. 

Paranoid Android – Radiohead

This is like WhatEmorySays – basic edition. Another huge hit on another critically acclaimed album, but it’s so worthwhile! Paranoid Android is a windows-closed song, best appreciated in a not-bad, not-hyper mood. A true rollercoaster of emotions, it’s a musical masterpiece, a magnum opus, if you will. 4/4-3/4 switches, dramatic tempo switches, creepy backing vocals, weird clicks and computer effects – all brilliantly combined to create a compelling, impressive feat of music.

Come to think of it, basically all of OK Computer is a musical masterpiece, even if it’s hard to listen to sometimes. I’m still struggling to listen to the rest of Radiohead’s critically acclaimed discography. Maybe that means I’m not depressed, which is probably a solid trade-off. 

Money Trees – Kendrick Lamar

Oh, man, I feel like I’ve already talked about Good Kid, m.A.A.d. City ad nauseam on this blog and I haven’t even posted anything about it. Honestly, I might never post anything about it; sometimes it feels like I’m not even qualified. I can’t write this post without shouting out Money Trees, though, which is brilliant on many levels. An excerpt from an album review that I was writing but will probably not finish:

“In Money Trees, Kendrick explores dreams held by his friends and himself back in his teenage years; dreams of "livin' life like rappers do," a life of comfort and respect, but also one that's far, far away from the horrors of the street.

Sometimes, Kendrick illustrates these dreams beautifully, making money and the pursuit of it seem all-important. He abruptly brings us back to reality ("we poor, ya bish") and reminds us just how oppressive and heavy the streets of Compton really are; consequently, the ends do not justify the means, which are violent and immoral (see The Art Of Peer Pressure). It's a vicious cycle, one that Kendrick portrays in two verses, with an excellent third verse provided by Jay Rock…

Money Trees is another vivid exploration of a vice; rather than lust, Kendrick explores materialism and wealth. To me, this is done much more effectively here than the former in Sherane. Money Trees is not overrated.”

Let me know if I should review that album or focus on other projects. That implies that I have other projects, which is only slightly true. Someone please tell me what to write about, I’m desperate. 

See you sometime!

Emory