By: Remy Brayshaw and Solomon Etuk
War & Leisure by Miguel
Since establishing himself with his 2010 hip-hop influenced album, All I Want Is You, Miguel has been able to showcase a number of incredible qualities including an admirable vocal range, inventive lyric writing, and skilled musical composition. In his newest album, War & Leisure, Miguel perfectly balances personal and political concepts while accompanying them with a variety of different and inventive backdrops. Through songs such as “Now,” listeners see Miguel beginning to address politics, while also paying subtle tribute to alternative rock music and inspirations, such as the Pixies and Sonic Youth.
In the album’s pre-released single “Pineapple Skies” he creates a song based around a tropical synth sound, ultimately creating a mood-lifting pop song that is sure to be marveled at. In other tracks, such as “Wolf,” Miguel introduces an entirely new dynamic to the album through the presence of a euphemistic sexuality and an underlying blues influence, allowing him to clearly showcase his range in not only vocals, but also musical style. Though he marked his place in the music industry long ago, War & Leisure is an album that will make his mark permanent. – RB
Offerings by Typhoon
Portland-based band Typhoon is well-known for their room-filling, carefully composed, post-rock-esque sound from their past release White Lighter. Boasting an 11-person lineup, with Kyle Morton being the mastermind behind the writing and composition, Typhoon returns (five years later) with a smaller sound in Offerings.
Clocking in at one hour and eight minutes long, Offerings takes you on quite the wild, emotive ride. This ride is split into four parts: Floodplains, Flood, Reckoning, and Afterparty. All these parts make up a narrative of a man who is slowly realizing that something is deeply wrong with him — he realizes that he is losing his memories and the listener follows the emotional strife and confusion that he endures throughout the story.
Compared to White Lighter, which had a bright and hopeful narrative about the future, Offerings is Morton delving into darker themes, both in music and in narrative. Incredibly underrated as a storyteller, Morton strips down the post-rock crescendos of White Lighter in favour of theme, narrative, and story. Morton doesn’t disappoint in this album. Offerings is both a compelling story, and an incredible listening experience. – SE
Pop 2 By Charli XCX
In her latest release, Charli XCX disregards everything known to pop music and succeeds in her newfound freedom and ability to innovate. Though this mixtape is meant to be all about pushing boundaries and stepping away from playing the music industry’s game, Charli is able to keep her music centred around the genre of pop while also embracing her daring side.
Pop 2 includes features from some of pop music’s strongest voices that are complemented by strong, catchy synth backgrounds which never really settle on a single sound. Charli stated in an interview with Vulture that she may never create a “proper” album again, and will be focusing more on making mixtapes in the future. Charli XCX’s powerful, enchanting voice and her new musical style are the perfect combination in creating an upbeat, positively infectious sound that will be hard to get enough of. – RB
Wrong Creatures by Black Rebel Motorcycle Club
Black Rebel Motorcycle Club (BRMC) is known for being a band that wanted to bring back rock ’n’ roll. They’re known for their bluesy, gritty sound from their past releases Howl and Beat the Devil’s Tattoo. With this new release, BRMC still tries to cling on to the 2000s rock-revival aesthetic while sticking to the staple subtleties they established in their past albums. In “Haunt” and “Echo” we hear twinkly guitar interludes, mixed with the familiar hypnotic, cyclical drum riffs, and sweet, crooning vocals.
BRMC fans will come out of this album a little mixed — although, they will appreciate both a safe return to form and the little experimentation this album brings. – SE
