Cursive – “Noble Soldier/Dystopian Lament”

Lost in the wave of protest songs that washed over us from 2016-2019 is perhaps one of the most important messages to come out of the entire decade. “Noble Soldier/Dystopian Lament” is the curtain call and thematic crux of 2018’s Vitriola – an album whose overarching themes damn both politics and society, deeming both “fucked” as guitar chords slash away at listeners’ optimism. Lead vocalist Tim Kasher laments the abuse of power and financial wealth, self-prioritizing civilizations, and endless finger-pointing – frequently wrapping it all up into plainly stated disgust. The culmination of this miserable album is this seven minute all-damning epic, in which Kasher lists a series of things that used to give him hope, then swats down each one with a reason why it is corrupted:

I used to fall for love
For family and for friends
I used to fall for unity
Despite our differences
I used to fall for trust
The decency of man
I used to fall for secrecy
‘Til a neighbor played my hand
I used to fall for math
A universal truth
I used to fall for science books
Until they were removed
I used to fall for hope
The promise of our youth
I used to fall for change
‘Til our youth became recruits
I used to fall for currency
To dictate what I’m worth
I used to fall for ancestry
Now I know we’re fucked from birth
I used to fall for news
I’d check…

Julia Holter – “I Shall Love 2”

When I first reviewed Aviary, I surmised: “At fifteen tracks, each hovering in the six-to-nine minute range, Aviary presents a daunting task. It’s a world that requires dedicated immersion; a commitment to its unwieldy time length but also a staunch distancing that allows you to engage its thousands of intricacies. It’s like a dot painting; there’s plenty that can be observed up close, but it’s prudent to step back and see the entire picture for what it was intended to be.”  While that remains true of the album in its entirety, I’d like to think that “I Shall Love 2” does a damn fine job of capturing all of the record’s best traits in a tiny gorgeous bubble.  Holter breathes enticing melodies into the music seemingly without effort, and they swirl around like leaves caught in an updraft – wispy and insignificant in the grand scheme of things. Chimes echo, strings swell from miles off, drums clatter, and electronics bubble and murmur. Her voice sways with the flow of the song, adding in a gorgeous hum or chirpy quip in spurts and however the music dictates. A grander nature surrounds this mini-opus, and it feels as though Holter is merely observant, as opposed to in charge. It all feels very autumn-esque, and it’s hands down one of the most beautifully picturesque tracks of her entire career.

Read more from this decade at my homepage for Sowing’s Songs of the Decade.

FKA Twigs – “Fallen Alien”

Magdalene is backloaded with some of FKA Twigs strongest individual tracks to date. ‘fallen alien’ is a career highlight and immediate song of 2019 contender, possessing one of the most rhythmically complex and aesthetically rich atmospheres that she’s ever crafted. The track commences with gentle piano notes and electronic effects that are jolted to the forefront with the synth-equivalent of nails on a chalkboard. FKA Twigs’ opening verses are then interrupted by extremely high-pitched, digitally-altered chants of “I feel the lightning blast”, and it’s clear that this is going to be the most epic bid on all of Magdalene. Thematically, the song again deals with relationships gone awry – in this case, that feeling of claustrophobia when you sense that someone is restricting your potential: “I never thought that you would be the one to tie me down…but you did.” FKA Twigs went on record confirming as much, stating, “For me, it’s that line, When the lights are on, I know you/When you fall asleep, I’ll kick you down/By the way you fell, I know you/Now you’re on your knees. You’re just so sick of somebody’s bullshit, you’re just taking it all day, and then you’re in bed next to them, and you’re just like, ‘I can’t take this anymore’.” Of course, as per Twigs’ reputation, the song’s motives aren’t overly transparent – so while such meaning can be derived through interpretation, ‘fallen alien’ is, at least from a technical/musical standpoint, an absolute blast.…

Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds – “Bright Horses”

Nick Cave has written some pretty bleak verses, especially following the passing of his son Arthur, but I’m not sure any have hit me as hard as the lyrics to “Bright Horses”: I can hear the whistle blowing, I can hear the mighty roar / I can hear the horses prancing in the pastures of the Lord / Oh the train is coming, and I’m standing here to see / And it’s bringing my baby right back to me.  Cave has been wallowing in gloom since 2016’s Skeleton Tree, but somehow the hope (denial?) present in this track is even more obliterating.  Here’s this man who has lost his son tragically, just waiting at the train station to see his child again.  Whether he’s literally waiting at a station, or if it’s a metaphor for some kind of afterlife, is up to interpretation.  As a new father, this passage during the more broadly breathtaking Ghosteen absolutely broke my heart.  It’s also the most beautiful and memorable song on what might be Cave’s best album – so no matter how you look at it, “Bright Horses” is a must-hear moment.

Read more from this decade at my homepage for Sowing’s Songs of the Decade.

Flying Lotus – “Arkestry”

I’m not what you’d call an electronic expert and, to level with you guys, this is the only Flying Lotus album I’ve ever heard more than once. Still, that should tell you something about just how impactful this album was at the time of its release, and how influential it remains. I’m not well-versed enough on popular opinions surrounding Cosmogramma to accurately predict what the most popular songs are (although a cursory search of review threads seems to suggest either ‘Zodiac Shit’ or ‘Do The Astral Plane’ [maybe ‘Pickled!’ low-key?]), but I’ve always been drawn to ‘Arkestry’ – a stunning electronic symphony of freestyle jazz elements. Other songs on Cosmogramma offer more layers and textural complexity, but this is always the moment that stops me in my tracks with its sheer beauty. Bubbling electronic effects give way to cascading drums, which eventually split the center of the song open into a gorgeous ravine of jazz horns. As subtle pianos underscore the transition into the track’s final minute, an eerie, apparition-like voice begins to hum in a theatrical-yet-ominous fashion. The way the song fluidly progresses within itself is a thing of beauty, and while it may not be the most popular pick from Cosmorgramma, it’s the one that captured the attention of an indie-head like me.  If Cosmorgramma is the album that got me into electronic music back in 2010, then I have to credit ‘Arkestry’ as one of the most influential tracks on my own personal…