New songs for October 14th, 2024

 here they are:


"A Fragile Thing" by The Cure:  Was The Cure's last single, "Alone," too long for ya? Fear not, then, because they have a shorter song for ya! The second single from The Cure's latest album in over 15 years, "A Fragile Thing" is a moody song, in typical Cure fashion, but it bases its sound with piano as its core instrument instead of relying on an orchestral wall of sound the way "Alone" seemed to. The guitar slowly seeps in, crescendoing to a solo towards the middle, but nothing too loud (I mean when have The Cure ever been too loud?! It's not their style!) The lyrics are more typical of an actual Cure song than "Alone" was. Instead of wallowing in despair and isolation, "A Fragile Thing" is a love song, which most Cure songs are, but more a love song in the way it depicts love as enduring than it is in the traditional way.

"Aren't We One?" by My Morning Jacket:  Another song that starts with piano as its central instrument, My Morning Jacket's "Aren't We One?" is a yearning song that seeks to find an explanation for whether we are truly unified or not. Unified how, you may ask? As a species? As a nation? As multiple races? The answer is probably all of these things! MMJ's Jim James sang over 15 years ago that he was "amazed by the divide in nations" (in "I'm Amazed"). "Aren't We One?" continues that amazement in a more somber, reflective manner. Jim, we are one! And as a fellow Muppet fan, Jim (and one who did an amazing cover of "Our World" from Emmet Otter's Jug-Band Christmas, which is also about the desire for unity), I would think you'd already know how connected we are as a species. But in an increasingly, divided world, it is hard to realize that sometimes, isn't it?

"Feel" by The Heavy Heavy:  The fourth adult alt radio hit for The Heavy Heavy, "Feel" is rooted in the hippie era and sound of classic rock, as much of their material is (it even shares a title with a Big Star song!!) Fitting with the spirit of the era, "Feel" is all about celebrating life! Its influences, surprisingly, are more rooted in the '90s than they are the '60s. The "slacker" sound of some mid '90s alt-rock songs such as "Love Spreads" by The Stone Roses and "Loser" by Beck apparently inspired The Heavy Heavy to do this song, and upon closer listen, it does share that kind of lazy but fun folk-blues-rock hybrid that those songs do.

"Future Enemies" by Yola:  "Future Enemies" marks an interesting turn for Yola, whose sound is normally rooted in vintage R & B from the '60s and '70s. This song sounds more like a moody electronica number. The song seems to be about both a relationship in jeopardy and how she has trouble surviving as plus-size British woman of color, four minorities in one. In the relationship aspect of the song, she declares it over before it can even start, hence the title of the song (she does not want to have "future enemies"). Yola has never been this vulnerable in a song before, but I'm glad she's starting to be!

"Much Ado About Nothing" by Waxahatchee:  The title of Waxahatchee's song, most likely borrowed from the famous Shakespeare play, is only mentioned twice in the song - once in the first verse and once at the very end. Sandwiched in between is a tale of ongoing angst woefully crooned in a country-rock ballad by Katie Crutchfield. Something tells me we don't wanna be in Katie's shoes! Nonetheless, all of the anger she spills out is not yelled, but rather whispered, as though she has just given up on something that was once important to her.

"Payphone" by Illiterate Light:  After a pair of catchy adult alt radio hits from the late 2010's/early 2020's ("Better Than I Used To" and "Sometimes Love Takes So Long"), I began to wonder if indie-rockers Illiterate Light would see the light of day again. It took about 4 years, but they've come back! Their latest song, "Payphone," seems to trend in a bit more of a rock direction than their previous material did, touching on a sound that sounds like a cross between The Strokes and Foo Fighters. The song has odd starting lyrics ("fake t!ts and Diet Coke") to say the least, and the lyrics don't seem to have a coherent narrative from there either, except that IL's lead singer seems to want reassurance from someone. 

"Rain Can't Reach Us" by Yannis and The Yaw:  A side project of indie band, Foals, Yannis and The Yaw have made quite an interesting, unique song with "Rain Can't Reach Us," both lyrically and musically! Lyrically, Yannis seems to be singing a prayer of sorts to protect him from bad times and difficult situations. Meanwhile, the song itself is one of the rare rock/alt songs that is not a Jethro Tull song that makes prominent use of flute (or perhaps it's a synth that sounds like a flute). Unlike Tull's medieval sound, Yannis seems to be going for something almost akin to a Native American tribal chant sound, utilizing more of a rock/alt sound during the chorus. Towards the end of the song, the rock instrumentation exits, leaving it with just the exotic tribal sound it started off with!

"Sailor Song" by Gigi Perez:  In only two weeks of popularity, this song has already become a hit on both the alt and adult alt charts, so I figured something must be special about it! Though there are some nautical lyrics in the song, as can be expected from a title like "Sailor Song," the song is not actually about sailing or the ocean, but rather about how she braves the "tides" of how people view her being in a same-sex relationship. She compares peoples' polarizing points of view to how sailors face constantly fluctuating weather that makes aquatic navigation difficult. In the chorus, Gigi also mentions how, although she is atheistic, she still believes that love itself is her "savior." For a musician who gained fame through TikTok, this song is pretty deep (in more ways than one)!