ILLINOISE – Sufjan Stevens
August 3, 2025
Celebrate the ancients!
Hello all! My eurobeat playlist couldn’t satisfy a whole week, so here is a surprise album recommendation! After being recommended this record myself, I found it very compelling and had to speak about it here. It’s Illinois (AKA Come on feel the Illinoise!) by Sufjan Stevens! The album sounds almost like a soundtrack, with beautiful, indulgent instrumental breaks and soaring motifs. Illinois combines songwriter/storyteller ballads on guitar and piano with more unlikely instrumentals comparable to the likes of Tom Waits. There is an interesting motif of celebration throughout the album, with big horns and high bells.
I must confess, I am confident I will not fully appreciate the excellent lyricism on Illinois until perhaps several more years of listening to it. The complexity and depth has so much to offer.
Highlights include Come On! Feel the Illinoise! Part I: The World’s Columbian Exposition Part II: Carl Sandburg… acting as the march of the record, simply devastating Casimir Pulaski Day, heartfelt The Predatory Wasp of the Palisades Is Out to Get Us!, Chicago (you have to love that myxolydian 5!), and The Seer’s Tower, whose solemn, almost sinister mood sets the tone for the penultimate tracks. And as always, I cannot neglect to mention the number of excellent interludes that transition between and flesh out the track listing. My favorite track has to be They Are Night Zombies!! They Are Neighbors!! They Have Come Back From the Dead!! Ahhhh! The blend of bass, chorals, vibraphone, and strings amass into a spooky and trepidatious atmosphere. So, as Sufjan Stevens invites you to do…
Come on! feel the Illinoise!
Riot! – Paramore
August 8, 2025
I won’t let you give up on a miracle, ’cause it might save you…
Hello all! This week, it’s time to cover an iconic record and one that has quickly become a favorite—Riot! by Paramore. If you’re going to be part of the late end of a movement, you have to bring your own style, and Paramore did just that. Before the band progressed into some of the best pop rock of the decade, Riot! captured the energy of pop punk while bringing uniqueness to the table. Plus, it’s just really well-done. The Farro’s guitar and drum work on this album is excellent, rocking massive hooks and fills while always staying conscious to add subtler complexity when it’s time to other elements shine. And who could forget the versatile vocals by Hayley Williams? It takes a talented voice to carry anthems like That’s What You Get or Misery Business, but a practiced and intentional one to express the gentler side of the record. Like the vocals, the whole record feels massive, but the reason it sticks with me is the moments of sincerity and vulnerability that make every minute feel like it matters. Every performance feels careful to suit the expression of each lyric. My highlights include awesome That’s What You Get, heartbreaking When It Rains, jazzy and unexpected Fences, rebellious Let The Flames Begin, and dynamic, heavy crushcrushcrush. My favorite track as of late is Miracle. I really appreciate the uplifting yet grounded lyrics, and it helps that that epic hook has been stuck in my head for a week. Go give Riot! a listen!
Meteora – Linkin Park
August 15, 2025
I CAN’T FEEL the way I did before!
Hello all! It’s time to recommend a massive record—it’s Meteora by Linkin Park! There is a quote from Pete Wentz that’s stuck with me, a metaphor about cooking and music. Meteora makes me think of this quote, because the album is 100% dry, no sauce, no spices. It’s just the very best ingredients in the very best pattern. Bands had done nu metal before, but I’d argue Linkin Park does it best, and nowhere is it more apparent to me than Meteora. There are a two excellent sides of this record, both which really shine sonically. One is the metal side. The guitars are thick and heavy, but also pack a crazy high end that almost mimics the ringing after an explosion. The sound is aggressive without being violent. The other side is the hip hop side—scratching beats, chopped up hooks, and catchy flows from Mike Shinoda. What might be my favorite part of this record are the hooks, which are coarse and scrappy and beautiful. And we all know the part that brings it all home is Chester Bennington’s flawless, expressive, crushing vocals. My favorite tracks include explosive Faint, venomous Hit The Floor, transcendent Easier To Run, and of course the gut-punch closer Numb. I have to give an honorable mention to two very compelling instrumentals, Foreward and Session. Foreward is a great start to the album, while Session is an excellent transition piece into Numb from my personal favorite track, Nobody’s Listening. The song feels emotional yet so energetic, significantly thanks to that incredible shakuhachi loop. At the risk of being on the nose—it’s as if it’s coming at you from every side. Go give Meteora a try!
Torches – Foster The People
August 22, 2025
Call It What You Want!
Hello all! This week, I’m recommending a great record by the name of Torches by Foster The People. There is a great pain in listening to singles, only for the album to diverge or fall flat. Torches is perhaps the strongest example of coming through with an excellent record that perfectly captures the feeling it aims for. Boasting hits such as Helena Beat, Don’t Stop (Color on the Walls), Houdini, Call It What You Want, and Pumped Up Kicks, this record blends a peculiar mix of instruments in a fascinating way. To me it embodies the label alternative pop, because I think it sounds like the sort of pop music you’d hear in another reality. Not quite rock, not quite electronic. Not polished, but so intentional. Call it what you want! It’s excellent regardless. My favorite tracks include eclectic Call It What You Want (that super chromatic piano line is INCREDIBLE), mesmerizing Houdini, addictive Life on the Nickel, heartfelt Waste, and almost spooky Downtown. It’s hard to choose, as this album works really well as a whole. While each song is great in its own right, it’s also a well-balanced and consistent album to put on front to back. My favorite track is probably Broken Jaw. The lyrics are creative and the arrangement is genius, carrying the listener through a voyage between hooks and verses and interludes without ever losing their attention. It is almost a testament to all creativity and attention to detail on Torches. Go give it a listen!
Hot Fuss – The Killers
August 29, 2025
Smile like you mean it!
Hello all! It’s time to feature a beloved album and a staple of the 2000s—Hot Fuss by The Killers! I admit it took me a few listens to really understand this record, but when I did, I really saw why it connects with so many people. The debut record of The Killers, featuring hits such as Somebody Told Me, All These Things That I’ve Done, and of course the legendary Mr. Brightside, Hot Fuss makes what could have easily sounded like an 80s synth rock throwback sound contemporarily indie rock even today. It has an ever-present grandeur to it, but also a very touching emotional side. The synths are beautiful, the drums are dynamic, and the bass is groovy, but the thing that really brings it all home for me are the riffs. Whether on guitar, synth, or bass, the subtle hooks layer all throughout the record flawlessly, making each track memorable without compromising their depth. I am really struggling to choose a favorite off Hot Fuss. I think almost everyone agrees Mr. Brightside is a great song. The synth line in Smile Like You Mean It paired with the nostalgic lyrics cements it as a favorite. I really like the arrangement of the bleak, stark, yet compelling Andy You’re a Star. Synthy On Top is another great track. Why not just choose one I really like—Somebody Told Me! The call and response instrumental in the verse, the disco drums in the chorus, the dark but fun energy, all make it an overall great listen. But wait! There’s more! I’m going to spotlight Believe Me Natalie as well. The atmosphere is mysterious and pressing, and the horns really make it shine. Go give Hot Fuss a try!
Evanescence – Evanescence
September 5, 2025
I’m sorry. Nothing can hold me.
Hello all! This week, I’m recommending an old favorite I can’t believe I haven’t gotten around to yet. It’s Evanescence by Evanescence! This record compromises the tactile, baroque sound from The Open Door in favor of a more proggy, synthy flavor. This is also potentially the most metal album the band had done so far, with all the chugging and picked bass one could hope for. The piano work is stellar, adding some very necessary high end without distracting from the showstopper that is Amy Lee’s vocals. I also have to mention the drums on this record. It’s exceedingly hard to make drums feel catchy, and Will Hunt pulls through doing so on several tracks. The exciting intro to What You Want is iconic! What a way to open the record. Other favorites include stunning, crushing My Heart is Broken, confident Made of Stone, energetic almost to the point of panic Erase This, acidic Sick, and massive, moody Oceans. Despite also being featured on Synthesis, tracks The End of the Dream, Never Go Back, and Lost in Paradise are 100% worth the listen on this album as well, particularly The End of the Dream. Swimming Home is the perfect sendoff for an era of Evanescence we wouldn’t see for another 12 years, serving as an epic prelude to Synthesis. It’s so sweet yet so heartbreaking. My favorite track may just have to be The Other Side. The line “High, above the world below” just hooks me in every time. Evanescence has a tremendous talent in twisting the memorableness of pop hooks into heavy and meaningful anthems, which is on showcase in The Other Side. Like really all of their records, Evanescence’s self-titled album is a proper no-skip listen. Go give it a listen! Also, if you love the record and want more, I would recommend the bonus tracks as well. If it were part of the intended experience, Disappear and Secret Door would both be contenders for my #1 favorite tracks.
FEAN IS WAR – NXCRE & the Villains
September 12, 2025
We’re all down here alone!
Hiya all! This week I’m recommending a new release I’ve been excited for, and no, it’s not Breach (that one is booked soon!). I’m talking about NXCRE and the Villains’ debut album FEAN IS WAR. NXCRE and the Villains is what I would consider a contemporary grunge band with lovely R&B vocals from singer/songwriter NXCRE. The guitar work is great, moving between almost mathy, midwesty melodies and crushing alt rock chords. I’ve found the band to be really good at writing songs that support and enhance the super catchy top lines that sit above them, incorporating the subtle rhythms and harmonies that really make a composition shine. I also have to pay a compliment to NXCRE’s voice. It’s a great challenge to have a unique and recognizable voice without sounding novel or unpleasant. His beautiful delivery of the vocals adds a lot of context the band. Some of my favorite tracks include sinister powerhouse USURPER, exhaustingly devastating ENDLESS, shadowy and significant SALVATION, energetic DABBINGTON CITY, and melancholy INDIGO. I’ve also found that DON’T FLY TOO CLOSE TO THE SUN has grown on me—I can’t resist some orchestra! My favorite track is FALL ANGEL (We’re All Down Here Alone). The moodiness of the verses and power when that chorus hits is phenomenal! It’s good to remind yourself of how much dynamic energy you can still write with four people on drums, bass, and guitar. When the genre feels overdone and sucked dry, someone comes along and does something that feels unique. To me, this album is one of those. The whole project is drowned in this deep melancholy, yet it never relinquishes the unwavering motivation that has driven NXCRE. When you break, and when the world breaks around you, there is nothing to do but keep going, even when it feels impossible. I hear this album as being about fighting your own personal war instead of another’s. It’s about making peace with others so you can fight against what holds you back inside. I think it’s absolutely worth a listen, so check it out!
Bone Machine – Tom Waits
September 19, 2025
IN THE COLOSSEUM
Hello all! Before reviewing Breach next week, I want to recommend a classic record that I’ve been rather hypnotized with lately. It’s Bone Machine by Tom Waits. If you’re not familiar, Tom Waits is the original Chappelle Roan. If you haven’t heard of him or his music, chances are one of your favorite artists is a fan. Some consider him a first in the industrial genre, not bothering to take a towel to jazzy, folksy songs and leaving in an unprecedented grit and metal. Others appreciate his storyteller lyrics and expressive vocals. 1990’s Bone Machine is regarded as one of his most strange and experimental projects. Following an impressive catalog, this record expresses Tom Waits’s poetic waxing on mortality and virtue in beautiful, sinister, sometimes frightening detail. There is a great variety of tracks on this album, and a lot of them are favorites. Gritty All Stripped Down, rocking Goin’ Out West, and intense Earth Died Screaming carry the weighty, industrial side of the record. Gentler songs like Dirt in the Ground give it its contemplative heart. I nearly chose The Ocean Doesn’t Want Me as my favorite. The peculiar, off-balance monologue is backed by an artfully minimal track. Another contender was Let Me Get Up On It. It’s very short, but pound for pound, this weird little interlude sits just right in the mind. My true favorite has to go to In The Colosseum. What a track! The intensity, the grit of the imagery, and the unsettling power of the upright bass and percussion track all blend to serve this chilling narrative. I can’t force you to enjoy Bone Machine as much as I do. But I think we have to admit, there is nothing else that sounds quite like this record, and few records that capture the rawness and strangeness expressed on it. Give it a try! And if you don’t like it the first time—I recommend giving it a second try. For myself, it takes a second listen to really love music so ambitiously experimental.
Breach – Twenty Øne Piløts
September 26, 2025
Still now, you believe in me somehow.
Hello all! This week, it’s time to finally recommend a very recent, very excellent release. It’s Breach by Twenty Øne Piløts! What a record. After 10 years, their narrative comes to a close. While there are some lovely lore references on the album, for this review I’m going to focus on Breach’s individual strengths rather than its position in the lore. Two recommendations when going into Breach. 1: Don’t go into it expecting a gritty rock record, and you’ll be pleasantly surprised by the awesome rock portions. 2: If you love Vessel, SAI, and Clancy, this is your album 100%. Let’s get into the tracks. City Walls feels like it completes the Trench-era sound, featuring driving bass (so simple, yet so perfect! That bend?) and addictive vocals. The rapped verses are maximum hype, the chorus is crushing, and the coda is incredibly climactic. The Vessel callback is much appreciated. City Walls also delves into a somewhat unfamiliar sound for the band, reminiscent of the likes of Linkin Park. Twenty Øne Piløts never let you down on an album opener! At breakneck speed, we turn the corner into RAWFEAR, a groovy track with a fun, laidback delivery. The anxiety in the bridge really completes it. Drum Show is an obvious anthem, with a very bold tritone in the bass riff and an enormous chorus. Some were upset that the physical edition didn’t feature the drum solo in the video, but I love that we can put on our own drum show when listening to it. Garbage is one of the bands’ most direct tracks, carried by catchy piano. The bridge vocals are devastating. The Contract is a certified jam. Beyond the unexpected melody, driving instrumental, and insane synth riff, my favorite part has to be the arrangement. My mind was blown when what I thought was the post-chorus exploded into the high-energy verse rap and screaming prechorus. So cool! Downstairs packs some massive emotional weight, with a climactic build and unmatched vocal delivery. Robot Voices is a super cute indie pop track, reminiscent to me of Owl City. This brings us to what’s currently tied for my favorite track, Center Mass. Wow. The uneasy verses make use of some lovely diminished 7 chords, while the bridge turns the whole track on its head with rushing drums, otherworldly synth harmonies, and some of the most expressive lyrics and melodies on the record. “I don’t want to say what happened, I just want to let it go”. So simple, yet so meaningful. Next is Cottonwood, a beautiful pause to the energy of Breach to contemplate. This takes us into One Way, which is all about the funky yet dark vibes. Days Lie Dormant is an adorable track with great melodies and a sick hook. After I listened to my other favorite track, I knew I had to buy the album that day. I did. The track is Tally, and if the strange and exciting riff and beautiful chorus were not enough, that bridge. That flipping bridge! The synths! The pure energy! What a track. Breach has so many great bridges. That takes us into the closer, which fittingly takes us back to where it all began. Intentions is a reversed version of previous song Truce, yet (somehow) it totally works. Intentions solidifies the themes on the record and in a lot of Twenty Øne Piløts’ previous works, cementing something we all need to know. Intentions are everything. It doesn’t matter if you lose, again and again. Keep trying. Stay alive.
Go listen to Breach please.
Let Go – Avril Lavigne
October 3, 2025
These things I’ll never say.
Hello all! This week, it’s time to recommend an album I must admit, I didn’t like the first time I listened through. I was enjoying the song Sk8r Boi at the time and was looking for more, but the album felt very different. Then by chance, I bought the album on sale mostly to share with my sister. I gave it another try, and I found myself enchanted! If you haven’t guessed yet, it’s Avril Lavigne’s debut Let Go. A word of advice—don’t go into this one expecting a Paramore record. It’s actually this sweet, singer-songwriter alt rock, which I found unexpectedly sincere and confessional. Let Go is an excellent debut record and a great listen. Hits like Sk8r Boi and Complicated are obvious highlights, but my favorites also include bouncy, confident Things I’ll Never Say, heartfelt My World, and gentle Naked. Holding down the rock side of the album are gritty, angsty Losing Grip and disillusioned Unwanted. Like many others, I’ve found I’m With You to be something of an anthem to loneliness and nostalgia. However, my favorite track has to be Mobile. The tiredness, the lostness, and then that soaring chorus! What really makes it for me is the guitars hitting on the second syllable of “mobile”. It’s those little moments of genius that really make Let Go more than the sum of its parts. Go give it a try!