“Giving Up” – Michigander
This sounds super happy, which was how I wanted to start this week’s playlist. Then you evaluate the lyrics and see it’s not happy after all. There’s a metaphor in there somewhere.
“Jealousy” – Phantogram
While we need happy songs at the moment, I’m also down with ones that sound good and pissed off.
“Wants Needs” – Bartees Strange
Strange is like a 50-50 artist for me. Half his songs I really like, the other half I’ll listen to once or twice and be done with. This one definitely falls into that first camp.
“Erotica” – Miya Folick
A song that challenges the notions of what sex and fantasy are “supposed to look like” yet sounds this sweet is the perfect distillation of the Miya Folick experience.
“Following The Taillights” – Supercrush
Some series Posies echoes on this track. I like how it starts with 90s vibes then rolls in two very 80s guitar solos.
“Cradle The Pain” – Morgan Nagler
Nagler has been a member of a couple smaller bands, then helped artists like Phoebe Bridgers, the Breeders, and HAIM write their songs. This is her debut solo single, and it both kicks ass and shows a lot of promise for where she’s headed.
“Up To The Mountain (MLK Song)” – Patty Griffin
I heard this Monday during a radio tribute to Martin Luther King, Jr. and was completely floored by it. And was mad that I had never heard it before this week.
“10 Lbs.” – The Super Friendz
I’m not sure if I remember this band or song or not. Their name sounds vaguely familiar, but glancing at their discography nothing really jumped out at me. Spotify spit out this track from 1997 and I loved it right away. I especially enjoy how it spins a little out of control in the closing section.
“Fuck, I Hate the Cold” – Cowboy Junkies
Good grief, can we get a little warmup around here? I’d be thrilled with a couple days in the low 40s.
“Orange Crush” – R.E.M.
I did some random scrolling through my Spotify catalog and landed on this for our video of the week. Great, great song from that moment when the broader music audience (including me) was just starting to realize what a fantastic band R.E.M. was.