New music this week from a newly revived Kesha, NoSo, Ethan Tasch, The Vanns, The Lemonheads, Men Without Hats (in a glorious return to form), Blake Rave, Lucius, Remerge Band, Curtis Harding, Ida Marie and so much more. Enjoy!
Not a lot of people release music on the 4th of July weekend so I really had to go digging into new singles and indie bands. That said, the new Kesha album, the first on her own label, is really pretty good. It sounds to me like she had a "let's liberate Taylor Swift" moment of her own. A lot of it is a breakup album, but it's also about freedom and I for one have to applaud that spirit.
In the new singles department is the GLORIOUS new single from Men Without Hats, called "I Love the 80's". To be fair to them, they never actually went away, but I dare you to name a single song of theirs other than "Safety Dance". We just haven't been listening. We should - the new song is fantastic.
I think my favorite discovery this week is NoSo, who has only released a few singles so far. The songwriting and production is first rate, and I've been listening to their singles a lot the past few days.
It's also nice to see Evan Dando and his collection of misfits known as The Lemonheads still out there plugging away.
I'm not a fan of auto-tune, but there are two songs this week by artists who use it. The first is 88rising and 8RO8's collaboration - which instead of the usual hip-hop cliches is a heart-felt tribute to 8RO8's home state of Hawaii. The other is 4stro with Kid Moon, because Kid Moon uses auto-tune on everything, which is kind of a shame as he has a good voice. But he's friggin' everywhere these days. Every week I discover a new artist because he has done a collaboration with them.
I'm not really a fan of AI music either, but there is an AI artist on this playlist, who I have featured before, called BBBL. There is a lot of controversy around right now about fake vs. real bands and the conversation can get heated. That said, I can get behind BBBL because there's obviously a guiding hand behind their sound, with real production going on.
I have been accused of promoting AI because of Remrge Band as well. I hate to break it to you, but they're a real band; I've met them. I do think they're using AI to master their works, which a lot of digital distributors offer these days for a small fee. I've never done it myself because to my ears it all starts to sound the same, but that music does get noticed by the algorithms various streaming services use - they're AI too.
Sometimes I read the bio's of AI bands, because they're almost always so bad that they're funny.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
I keep seeing Texas officials saying that they "had no warning" and that "no system exists to give us a heads up" when flooding comes. They used to, as recently as last January. Incoming Presidents always like to lay blame on the previous administration until they get their first budget passed, and I think there's some validity to that - but not in this case. The weather service and early warning systems in Texas are understaffed at about 50%, and that's all on the new/old guy. They were fully staffed at the first of this year.
We have to stop saying "they're going to get people killed" in the present or future tense. It's past tense now.
I also want to point out that MEXICO responded to requests for aid in the Texas floods faster than the federal government..
Oh Ms. Bondi... the list you said was on your desk and was earth-shattering in its revelations doesn't exist? Did you destroy it?
Oh Ms. Blackburn, it's never the day to talk about it, is it now. Why can't you say the words you really mean? Allow me: Shut the Fuck up.
What to Denmark, Vietnam, Ireland, Croatia, Canada and Malta all have in common? Better economies that the U.S. So do 18 other countries.
It should come as a shock to no one that golfing is the new fiddling.
Get ready for eggs to cost $12. Not per dozen, but each.
144 employees of the EPA signed a letter stating their disapproval of the direction the EPA is being led to. All 144 have been suspended without pay. So much for the Champions of the First Amendment.
Part of how a new ICE has a budget larger than the DEA, Marines, IRS and Dept of Education combined is not only the cuts to those agencies, but a 40% cut in research to all of the top 10 leading causes of death in the US. Is that really the intent?
Yes.
Doc Severinsen turned 98 years young today. Retired, but still with us.
And because I love you, Fight Like a Girl
