Spencer Griffin's New Music Mondays

 here they are: "Doors" by Noah Kahan:  After the surprisingly angst-y explosion of "The Great Divide" from earlier this year, Noah Kahan's fans might be looking for a more relaxing song characteristic of what he started out with. That song is "Doors," a song complete with a roots-y, acoustic guitar-centered sound and even a DADF#AD tuning! The title of the song is metaphorical, referring to ways his partner could leave his relationship. There's a very "push-pull" dynamic in this song where Noah seems torn between pushing his partner away and keeping her in his life, much like how doors themselves work. "In the Stars" by The Rolling Stones:  The Stones, as they say, just keep on rollin'! Even with Charlie Watts now absent from the group for a few years, Mick and Keith still keep the band alive with their unmistakable vocals and guitar playing! Their latest song, "In the Stars," still has plenty of guitar swagger as...

 It's Groundhog Day...again. And it's the day for me to review some new releases! Here goes: "Against the Dying of the Light" by Jose Gonzalez:  Ever since I heard Jose's quiet but powerful "Heartbeats" almost 20 years ago, I've always loved his material! He goes right in line with Joni Mitchell, Nick Drake, and Iron & Wine as a musician who relies primarily on alternate tunings and acoustic guitar. It's been nearly a decade since he last released something, but it was worth the wait! Jose's advice in this solemn song is almost Zen-like, with such lyrical gems as "accept who you have become," "embrace who we could be," "disconnect from every algorithm," and "kill the codes that feed the hate." Some of this advice is timeless, but other parts mentioning things like algorithms and codes seem more like lyrics for today's generation than they would have been for millennials and Gen Z-ers who were ou...

 here they are: "Dance With a Stranger" by Lake Street Dive:  While Lake Street Dive's sound is normally influenced by '60s and '70s soul music, they sometimes reach for vibes evocative of other times. Their latest song, "Dance With a Stranger," seems more like '80s funk and R & B a la Chaka Khan, Prince, and perhaps even Michael Jackson. Shimmering synths layer the song's shiny atmosphere along with the funky bass bubbling underneath. The song's lyrics, however, would not have been out of place in a song from the '60s, with its themes of unity. The title of the song, as well as the song itself, are just about having the freedom to do what you want when you want! "Sanctuary" by Wild Feathers:  Now a little over a decade old, Tennessee country-rockers Wild Feathers are still releasing songs to this day! Their latest effort, "Sanctuary," continues in the country-rock direction they debuted with. While the music is no...

 Green Day and blink-182 are BOTH back?! Say WHAT?! Not every day this happens (and I barely even like blink to begin with, but their latest song changes my opinion of them)!! The '90s are back, baby! Four other songs worth listening to here, too. Enjoy! "American Dream is Killing Me" by Green Day:  Green Day became the Clash of latter-day rock music with the release of American Idiot  in 2004, which expanded the formerly bratty punk-pop-rockers both lyrically and musically. "American Dream is Killing Me," the latest from the first '90s punk-pop group to be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, continues where American Idiot left off. In addition to having a similar title to that album, the song also has similar themes with its dissatisfaction of the American government and politics. The song has a similar riff and rhythm to their '04 song, "Holiday" (which itself seemed to borrow heavily from The Clash's "London Calling,"...

Wanted to give myself some time off for 4th of July, so I waited 'till now, but better late than never, right? Here are this week's songs: "Dial Drunk" by Noah Kahan: I must confess, I was never that big of a Noah Kahan fan when I first heard about him. He seemed like someone who was trying to be like Mumford and Sons or Phillip Phillips but without the charm of either act. "Dial Drunk" has made me change my mind about Noah, as he has added a bit more gritty electric guitar instrumentation into his music for the song in addition to his usual banjo stuff. The song is a breakthrough for Noah, who has earned his first spots on both the Top 40 charts and the alternative charts as a result. It was probably thanks to the social media app TikTok that the song has gotten as much attention as it has lately. The song is about a man who, as the title implies, dials his girlfriend while he's drunk after being arrested for driving under the influence. The reason he c...