I was not aware, for example, that alongside a basic listening exercise (although often of an excerpt of a track, not the whole thing) there is also a process that looks at data analytics related to the artist’s presence online. Well, to some extent this is true listening, experiencing and responding to the artist in question are components of the process, but there is much, much more. Now, in my naivety I thought that this was a straightforward enough process, at the heart of which was the simple act of listening to the artist in question (ideally both recorded and live) followed by inviting others to also listen to the same artist and deciding if they warranted further exposure through national radio. Five years later, I'm still finding new things about "Ctrl" to fall in love with - and the metamorphic nature of "SOS" promises an equally surprising and rewarding relationship.Recently, I was listening to a BBC radio feature exploring how new artists are identified for the Radio 1 playlist. The album's fearless genre-hopping mirrors the moody, multidimensional woman at the helm.I may be accused of recency bias for putting "SOS" in this year's top five just one week after its release, but I know its poignance will only increase over time. Instead of shying away from her insecurities and impulses, she magnifies each one, wielding humor and hyperbole as weapons against shame. The voice is now coolly amused, witty, now sour, now fanciful, girlish, charming, now sinking to the strident rasp of the vampire."Much like Plath, SZA self-consciously creates a spectacle of her own darkness. I'm reminded of Robert Lowell's thoughts on Sylvia Plath in the forward for "Ariel," her most celebrated collection of poems: "Everything we customarily think of as feminine is turned on its head. She teams up with Phoebe Bridgers to lament the lonely, soulless music industry one song later, she uses sex as revenge for self-hatred and longing on the early highlight "Kill Bill," she confesses, "I'd rather be in hell than alone."The tracklist is long and wide-ranging, but it works to SZA's advantage. ![]() The hype for a follow-up seemed insurmountable.And yet, SZA's long-awaited sophomore album "SOS" is a 23-track tour de force that delves into her psyche with brutal candor. "SOS" by SZA It's no simple task to succeed one of the most acclaimed debuts of all time, particularly after a half-decade of false starts and public label scuffles.As affection for "Ctrl" deepened over the years (it was certified triple platinum in August), so did SZA's reputation as an elusive mastermind with one perfect album ( la Lauryn Hill). For it to make history again as the category's first Spanish-language winner feels extremely unlikely, particularly when a clear winner by a longtime industry icon already exists.Much like Styles, if Bad Bunny's remarkable trajectory continues, an album of the year trophy is very much within his grasp. It's extraordinarily difficult for me to choose a favorite, but today, it's a three-way tie between "Tit Me Pregunt," "Otro Atardecer," and "Un Coco."Downfall: "Un Verano Sin Ti" already made history as the first Spanish-language nominee for album of the year. Bad Bunny told the New York Times that he was inspired by childhood trips with his family to the west coast of Puerto Rico, where he recorded the majority of the album."It's a record to play in the summer, on the beach, as a playlist," he said.Highlight: Bad Bunny wrote or cowrote all 23 songs on the tracklist, which is an impressive feat on its own - but especially for such a consistent collection of hits. ![]() ![]() 1 in the past decade.This wide appeal is emphatic and very much by design. 1 for 13 nonconsecutive weeksIf one album achieved world domination this year, it was Bad Bunny's surprise "Un Verano Sin Ti." The superstar's fourth album was an unavoidable smash, topping the Billboard 200 for 13 weeks - the most of any nominee by far - and tied Drake's record for the most weeks at No. "Un Verano Sin Ti" by Bad Bunny Metacritic score: 85/100Billboard 200 peak: No.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |