What I'm Listening To: June 2019
The Festa, Henry Herbert La Thangue
Caer - Twin Shadow
I can say without reservation that Caer is Twin Shadow's worse album. I welcome the exploration of records and think that artist branching out of their genre into different sounds can be refreshing. This album feels disjoint, and I feel a little embarrassed even listing it here. Despite lack of cohesion, I like a lot of the songs on here, and instead of cherry picking them, I end up listening to the album more than I would for a mediocre record. Both Sympathy and Saturdays put me in a good mood, and the rest of the album is good background music for studying.
Born in the U.S.A. - Bruce Springsteen
I'm not sure what it is about the summer, but every summer I end up listening to Born in the U.S.A. again. Every time I hear it, I gravitate toward different songs. This year Bobby Jean is the song that resonates with me the most. The song is speculatively about Bruce Springsteen's bandmate who left the band around this time and the lyrics about losing a friend but longing to see each other again hits hard. I'm not missing a friend, but I feel like the change I'm going through feels like I'm leaving my old self behind. Sometimes I long for who I used to be, but I can't be that person right now, and I know I'll be able to bring a lot of these things about me back in the future. So the farewell but see you later feel of the song hits hard right now.
Dedicated - Carly Rae Jepsen
Dedicated is the first Carly Rae Jepsen (CRJ) album I've ever taken the time to explore. After a bumpy start, I grew to like the album quite a bit. It takes a lot of skill to use a pop music canvas and explore the complex emotions and stories of personal growth and change that found on this album. I don't have a good comparison point for this album, but it's so accessible that I think anyone would enjoy it. I doubt I'll reach for this album again this year; however, I'm confident I'll go through something that'll remind me how I felt when I listened to this album 3-4 years from now.
13 Minutes to the Moon - BBC
13 Minutes to the Moon is a podcast from the BBC about the 13 minutes from the Moons Orbit to landing on the surface of the moon during the Apollo 11 mission. It chronicles the people and technology required to get to that historic moment. Its execution is impeccable, and it's the podcast I look forward to hitting my podcast catcher the most every week. If you're an Apollo mission junky, you'll love it, and if you don't know much about Apollo, this is a great place to start.