Track Reviews

Does the Song Remain the Same with Greta Van Fleet?

Raw, emotional, expansive, monumental, dynamic: all words to describe an era of classic rock that has seemingly come and gone. Although recent musical acts have channeled the soulful ten-minute-long guitar jams of the classic rock movement, none have transcended and embraced the purity of the music heard decades before.

April Artist Retrospective: Sidney Gish; Ravyn Lenae

(courtesy of https://sidneygish.bandcamp.com/album/no-dogs-allowed)

As we start on a new month and this truly, unexplainably terrible Nashville weather seems to be slowly improving, I thought it might be a good opportunity to take a quick look at two artists who are leaving the youth™ movement in music at the moment. Both Ravyn Lenae and Sidney Gish have blessed our ears with some excellent music in the last few months, and exciting things are surely in store for them as they progress and develop their skills. I’m going to limit things to one standout track from each respective project, but both of these releases are great front to back.

Courtney Barnett is as Unapologetic as Ever on New Single ‘Nameless, Faceless’

(“Nameless, Faceless” music video still, from Youtube)

Subtlety has never been Courtney Barnett’s thing. So far, that’s been to her advantage. Native to Melbourne and on the rapid rise to fame since the 2015 release of her debut LP Sometimes I Sit and Think, and Sometimes I Just Sit, Barnett has made a name for herself through witty, avant-garde lyricism and garagey guitar riffs. Her previous work resonates with a sort of comfortable honesty, regardless of the first-glance mundanity of the everyday occurrences she so often addresses. This past October’s Kurt Vile collab album Lotta Sea Lice saw the further development of this knack, and quietly allowed Barnett to temporarily side step the anxieties of following up Sometimes I Sit and Think’s success. Now ready to tackle those fears head on, her second full length solo project, Tell Me How You Really Feel, will be released May 18th on Mom+Pop, Marathon Artists, and Barnett’s own Milk! Records. In tandem with this announcement, first single “Nameless, Faceless,” as well as an accompanying music video, were put out ahead of the upcoming album. 

WRVU In-Depth Look: Ranking Every Song on the SATURATION Series

Last weekend I was able to fulfill a year-long dream of mine when I saw BROCKHAMPTON in concert in Indianapolis. If you listened to music in 2017, you probably heard about this group at least once. The 15-member “boyband” took the nation by storm at the tail end of what already was a fantastic year for music. Driven by outstanding production that’s somehow simultaneously progressive and nostalgic and verses from off-kilter personalities such as the unapologetically gay frontman Kevin Abstract, the charmingly sluggish Matt Champion, and electrifying Merlyn Wood, BROCKHAMPTON truly stands out among the hordes of hip-hop projects released each year. In this list, I will attempt to rank every song BROCKHAMPTON released in their SATURATION series, from worst to best. (Note: This includes songs only, not Skits, Scenes, Cinemas, or any of the bonus tracks included in the box set.)