A New (To Me) Way To Listen To Music

We’re fully immersed in a new era of music that is most easily defined by one thing: digital streaming. Music services such as Spotify, Apple Music, and others make it easy for artists to spread their projects to the masses, and for listeners to easily access the latest, hottest bops. One underrated component of streaming services that I hadn’t taken advantage of until recently is the playlist. Being able to group similar tracks together to create a coherent mood and sound has always been nice, but recently I’ve been doing something new: creating “Best of…” playlists for each of my favorite artists in which I put all of my favorite songs of theirs.

No more skipping. No more “Ugh, not this one!” Every single song that I include in a particular artist’s “Best of…” playlist is a song that I’m entirely willing and excited to listen to every single time. I’m able to throw these playlists on shuffle and not worry about dealing with what’s playing for as long as I’ll listen. This is revolutionizing the way I listen to music. Not really, but it’s cool.

I’m sure that you’ve known about and done this for a long time. There are probably lots of downsides to how I do things, too, for example not being exposed to new music and not being able to broaden my horizons by revisiting tracks I once deemed unworthy. I don’t mind it - it’s working for me for now and I figured I’d let you in on it in case this new strategy appeals to you, too.

You can check out my Spotify profile here which features all of my “Best of…” playlists, which so far include the likes of BROCKHAMPTON, Father John Misty, Fleetwood Mac, and many more. Thanks for reading - now go listen!

Album Review: Hollywood's Bleeding - Post Malone

Post Malone has returned after the release of his two critically-acclaimed and highly-streamed albums Stoney and beerbongs & bentleys. His newest project, Hollywood’s Bleeding, promoted its release with multiple successful and impressive singles. Unfortunately, besides a couple of impressive feature tracks, this album disappointed me generally and is my least favorite from Malone’s discography. The highs are sky high here, but the lows are much worse than the standard of quality Post has set for himself.

Let’s start with the positives: every single released in preparation for this album was excellent. “Circles”, “Sunflower (ft. Swae Lee)”, “Goodbyes (ft. Young Thug)” and “Wow.” are some of the best tracks Post Malone has released in years. The featured tracks that succeed here could have gone very wrong, for example pairing Travis Scott with Ozzy Osbourne (“Take What You Want”) or Future with Halsey (“Die For Me”), but these pairings along with Malone’s presence lead to very successful tracks. The opening track, “Hollywood’s Bleeding”, sets the mood for things to come, and “Myself” was partially written by Josh Tillman, so of course I loved it. As previously stated, the highs are high on this album.

But the lows are low. It seems like Post Malone is embracing the role of being a pop star, which is fine, but some of the musical risks he takes because of that on this project are questionable. The lyrics on “Saint Tropez” and “Enemies” leave a lot to be desired. Both SZA’s and Meek Mill’s features are subpar to me and both artists feel underutilized. “Allergic” is Paramore-esque, but in all the worst ways. The lows are as low as the highs are high on this album.

I feel about this album how I feel about the rest of Post Malone’s discography. I absolutely love some of what he has to offer, and the rest is mediocre at best. I expect this album to enjoy commercial success and to break streaming records, and I’m glad it provided a lot of good songs to add to my ‘Best of… Post Malone’ (more coming about that soon) playlist on Spotify. Hopefully his next project is more refined and is less of a roller coaster than this one.

SCORE: 5/10

Best Foot Forward: A Sneaker Series (Part 6)

The sixth installment of my Best Foot Forward series features everything black, white, and grey. That’s right, we’re in for a monochromatic look at some of the most versatile sneakers in my collection. Ranging in price, accessibility, and style, these sneakers are all very distinct from one another, but match with most outfits and situations handsomely. Let’s take a look.

Pair 1 (Upper Left): Nike X John Elliott Vandal in Anthracite

If you’ve been playing really close attention, the name John Elliott should ring a bell. One of my favorite designers John Elliott has collaborated with Nike on multiple occasions, and it always able to reinvent or reimagine iconic Nike silhouettes by giving them tasteful modern twists. We already covered my JE Air Force 1’s here on the blog, but today is a look at Elliott’s take on the classic Nike Vandal. A premium suede upper gives this sneaker a luxurious appearance countered only by the bold white midsole and gradient strap at the top of the tongue. While these weren’t the easiest sneakers to break in, they are fairly comfortable now that I’ve paired them with enough outfits. Any time John Elliott’s name is attached to something, it’s a possible purchase for me.

Pair 2 (Upper Right): Vans Old Skool in Black

I’m a firm believer that everyone could and should have a pair of these sneakers in their collection. Fashionable, timeless, and comfortable, the Old Skool has its roots in skating culture but has transcended into a streetwear staple for years to come. You can’t tell easily from this picture, but the midsole of my pair is showing clear signs of wear that, if it were any other pair, I would wipe away with a Crep Protect wipe, but I instead let build up to add character to this classic silhouette.

Pair 3 (Lower Left): Common Projects Achilles Low in White

After purchasing the CP Achilles Low in white is when I realized that I was truly entering a new phase of the kind of sneakers I’d be adding to my collection. Aside from some minimal golden branding on the outside of the shoe that is innocuous to the average person, the CP Achilles looks the same as any other white leather sneaker. So why is it worth its somewhat lofty price tag? The CP Achilles is a staple for me not because of hype or clout, but because of timelessness and craftsmanship. The leather on this pair is as nice as any of the other leather sneakers I’ve ever worn. Comfortable, modern, and minimal, the CP Achilles low can be dressed up or down to give entirely different vibes. I love this pair.

Pair 4 (Lower Right): Air Jordan 1 Retro “Shadow”

This is the fourth and final pair of Air Jordan 1’s that I have to show you as a part of this sneaker series. Contrary to what some think, the Shadow 1 is actually an original Jordan 1 colorway released in 1985. This cool grey pair is less of a statement piece than either the red or blue variants of the shoe that I wear so often, which compliments the other pairs nicely. I wear my Shadow 1’s on rainy winter days and am not surprised to see the resell price increase day by day as this pair becomes more and more popular.

Thank you for reading another installment of my sneaker series! I look forward to posting another soon, which will likely feature more color than this post did. We will see.

Movie Review: IT Chapter Two

Thought to be defeated by the members of the Losers’ Club, Pennywise the dancing clown has returned twenty-seven years later to terrorize the town of Derry, Maine, and movie audience members across the nation. While this sequel may not surpass its predecessor’s record-breaking box office success, it shoots for the stars - unfortunately proving that bigger isn’t always better. A heavy reliance on acting performances is what keeps this overly complicated story afloat.

This movie just isn’t as good as the simplicity as the first installment. As a disclaimer, I have not yet read the source material, Stephen King’s novel, so any of my criticism of this movie that relates to the novel is unintentional. That being said, the story and information given to the audience is overcomplicated and hard to follow throughout this movie. Having more of an understanding of Pennywise’s backstory and motives would’ve been intriguing to me, but instead that is glossed over in favor of ancient rituals which end up not amounting to much of anything. More scares and less exposition would’ve made this an easier watch.

That isn’t to say that it’s all bad. I enjoyed the “artifact finding” portion of this movie, which gave exposure and backstory to all of the well-cast adult versions of the child characters we grew to love in the first movie. Bill Hader, Jessica Chastain, and Jay Ryan give stellar performances here, in my opinion, and are the life vests to an otherwise complicated and long movie. There is more than enough comedic relief for the amount of scares, but the scares included are clever and innovative enough.

The almost three hour runtime feels unnecessary and a somewhat unsatisfactory and anticlimactic ending doesn’t supply the payoff that this series could’ve had to offer. At the same time, there is a nice moral to the end of the story, that accompanied by laughs, amazing special effects, and the occasional scare, keeps IT worthwhile and worth watching. I didn’t love everything about this movie, and in fact there’s quite a bit that I would’ve changed, but I’m glad that I saw it and was able to enjoy the best of what it had to offer. Also, the amount of red balloons I spotted before and after seeing this movie is quite unsettling. Now counting down until JOKER - spooky season is almost upon us.

SCORE: 5/10

Album Review: Norman F*cking Rockwell! - Lana Del Rey

2019 has been an absolute powerhouse of a year for music, and that continues with Lana Del Rey’s most recent offering Norman Fucking Rockwell!. While I wasn’t able to connect to her two previous projects, Ultraviolence and Lust For Life as objectively impressive as they were, things are completely different here with NFR!. This indie project is revealing, relentless, and beautifully organized. This might be the biggest surprise for me this year.

This project’s runtime is a long one at over an hour, but there are hardly any lulls throughout this entirely enticing project. A sometimes emotionally distant and mysterious Lana is telling a story here of pure and unadulterated personal strife, self-discovery, and dealing with the complexity that is love. Each track is unique enough to stand out on its own, but there is a general cohesiveness achieved here in which each song flows intentionally into the next. Del Rey sings beautifully about freedom, self-imprisonment, and comments subtly on the musical and political climate she finds herself in 2019.

Some of my favorite musicians are able to achieve a sense of levity and comic relief paired with a staggering sense of tension and importance on their projects. That is why, for instance, Father John Misty’s Pure Comedy is a perfect 10/10 project for me. Del Rey achieves a similar balance of self-awareness and wit accompanied by an urgency and importance; this music has to be heard now.

This project glamorously packages an empathetic and heartfelt message of sorrow and sympathy to the world around its messenger. What Del Rey does here that impresses me most, just as Misty did on Pure Comedy, is to paint what could be considered a pessimistic picture of the world around her, and then say despite what she’s facing, she has hope.

This is a fantastic project that completely caught me off guard. While it isn’t necessarily perfect, and its runtime could be considered slightly long for some, this project is a bold and beautiful statement that cements Lana Del Rey as one of the best American songwriters practicing their craft. Must listen.

Favorite Tracks: “Mariners Apartment Complex”, “Venice Bitch”, “Cinnamon Girl”, “Happiness is a butterfly”, “hope is a dangerous thing for a woman like me to have - but I have it”

SCORE: 8/10