Despite the small stage and minimal set up, Folick showcased a riveting roller coaster of emotion, and the crowd responded accordingly.

I wouldn’t have expected Miya Folick’s opening act at the Great Scott – indie-pop band Barrie – to elicit such an electric response from the crowd. The band’s performance was humble in nature, given their gentle-sounding discography and the soft voice of the lead singer. Still, the audience was loud and boisterous, not necessarily fitting in with the more reserved sound of Barrie. My confusion at everyone’s excitement was soon answered when Barrie paused their set and the lead singer stated that she was from Boston. The crowd cheered in response. While Barrie’s sound couldn’t have been more different from Miya Folick’s headlining set , the crowd’s energy after Barrie was only amplified throughout the night, never lapsing despite the changing moods.

Folick began her performance quietly, snapping her fingers into the microphone and singing an unreleased minute-length song in acapella. She then moved into the first full-length song of the night, “Premonitions,” with a full band. I was struck by her immediate strength and presence – her voice glided all the way to the back of the venue, easily rising over the voices of mingling bar patrons. It was impressive, but not surprising: Folick is a classically-trained vocalist with the skills to belt out verses that are powerful but never grating.

Despite the small stage and minimal set up, Folick showcased a riveting roller coaster of emotion, and the crowd responded accordingly. When she swayed to the slow groove of “Cost Your Love,” everyone lazily moved along with her. Afterwards, Folick showed off her goofier side with the upbeat, sassy numbers “Leave The Party” and “Stop Talking” as she made lasso movements with her hands and danced with band members. People danced along with vivacious intensity to the sprightly music, and it felt like the whole crowd experienced the same pleasurable feeling that only a disco-sounding track could create.

Folick’s musical prowess truly shined as she sang the rock ballad “Thingamajig,” a song about guilt and remorse. Her voice was restrained yet sincere as she crooned, “so take it all / I want to be out of control.” Folick addressed the crowd with her band quietly playing in the background. “I feel like I’m unworthy…like I don’t belong on this stage,” she spoke somberly. “But that’s a myth. What if the people who perpetrated that myth…what if they apologize and tell you the f*cking truth.” The crowd was emboldened by her statement, an admission of her own self-doubt and an acknowledgement of personal responsibility. She returned to the song, singing the lines “only you know what to do know,” as if to emphasize her message.

Throughout the night, Folick proved that the excitement she brought to Great Scott was through both her loudest and quietest moments. Near the end of the set, she cheekily sang out the names of her band members, and then passionately belted out her last song, “Give it to Me.” Even at the concert’s close, the energy was as electrifying as the start.

Miya Folick’s musical prowess shines in Allston

Avril Lavigne / BMG · February 15, 2019

When Avril Lavigne stepped onto the music scene in 2002 with her debut single, “Complicated,” she established herself as a brash, loudmouthed, rebel pop-punk superstar. I, like so many others, grew up with Lavigne’s message of embracing the weird and outlandish part of yourself, all to the tune of commercially packaged punk rock.

But in 2014, after the release of her fifth studio album, 

 and a particularly embarrassing Japanese 

, the grunge-pop queen seemingly dropped out of the industry altogether. Lavigne later revealed in 2015 that she had been diagnosed with Lyme disease, and would be taking a break from releasing music in order to recover. It was a tumultuous time for the singer, who also divorced Nickelback frontman, Chad Kroeger, that same year.

Three years later, Lavigne penned an emotional letter to her fans and released “Head Above Water,” billed as a powerful track about facing one’s mortality. Her album of the same name was released five months later and continues in the same vein as the lead single. 

 is relentlessly personal, there is no doubt about that. Unfortunately, there isn’t too much musical identity anywhere else in the record, and the rebellious spirit of Lavigne’s earlier music is absent.

 is abundantly clear — Lavigne has survived the turmoils of disease and toxic relationships — the actual music fails to have a consistent theme throughout. It doesn’t help that most of the tracks just aren’t that great to begin with. The production sounds too dry, and Lavigne’s vocals too bland. An album filled to the brim with rock-driven ballads, the more pop-oriented tracks tend to come out of left-field, and not in a good way. In particular, the fourth track, “Tell Me It’s Over,” is a doo-wop disaster of a song that would make Billie Holiday roll in her grave.

The slower ballads that make up most of the album don’t bring much to the forefront. The title track “Head Above Water” is the most powerful of the bunch, which would be fine if the other songs were nearly as good. Most of them sound like tunes that a Christian rock band would put out. On the sixth track “It Was In Me,” Lavigne sings about turning to her faith on top of a very uninspired orchestral accompaniment: “All I needed was a little faith in my life.” Indeed, there are quite a lot of references to God throughout this record, which might put off someone who never really listened to Lavigne’s music wanting to be more religious.

Other songs revert back to the boldness of Lavigne’s earlier music but fail to pack much of a punch. “Dumb Blonde” touts itself as a sassy, anthemic track for marginalized women, but not even Nicki Minaj can save this song from being a dated mess. Not only does it sound like it belongs in the 2000s, but the idea of claiming that blonde, white women are oppressed is quite laughable, especially in a time where women of color are claiming more agency than ever before.

I don’t want to dismiss the pains that Lavigne has gone through over the past years; no one is doubting that Lyme disease is terrible and sometimes fatal. However, since the record is overloaded with slow ballads and emotional lyrics about sadness and toxicity, I found it extremely difficult to continue listening by around the 30-minute mark. My favorite track of the album, the groovy sounding “Bigger Wow,” is upbeat and fun, but comes way too late in the record for it to make much of an impact. 

 is a strikingly intimate record for Lavigne, but regrettably, not her best.

Avril Lavigne releases mediocre-at-best ‘Head Above Water’

WRBB’s Rachel Saywitz chatted with Lorely Rodriguez, known by her moniker Empress Of, ahead of her show at Brighton Music Hall on February 24, 2019.

Your headlining tour is starting in just a few days. How are you feeling about it?

I’m really excited and really nervous. I haven’t been on tour like this in a while.

I saw on Instagram that you posted an outfit that you designed yourself, and it was sewn by your mom, which I thought was adorable. Are we going to be seeing any more of your design work on your tour?

Yes, I’m going to have more outfits! They just take a while to make. But I am making stuff for… I think one or two pieces for the LA show.

You’ve spent some time in Boston because you studied at Berklee. Is there anything about Boston that makes it different from other cities you’ve lived in?

Everyone is smarter than you.. [laughs] I mean, it’s so different because there are so many students in such a small mile radius. You’re getting a lot of people and students who are in a similar age range, so it’s always fun to play for that crowd. Also… wow. I’m driving in the rain and it’s flooding.

Crazy. Yeah. I’m terrified right now. Anyway, so that’s one thing. The other thing is that I got to know a lot of musicians [in Boston]. It was always fun, and I remember going to concerts in college and thinking, could I see myself with these people? So it’s interesting in that way, to be on the other end of it. Sorry, this rain is insane.

That’s so crazy. Very different from what’s happening here.

Actually, the first time I saw snow was when I was walking out of the library of Berklee. I grew up in California and I never saw snow. I was at the library and someone was like, “It’s snowing outside!” So I ran out of the library and I went and fell on my back because I didn’t know that the ground was gonna be so slippery.

How do you pass the time while you’re on tour?

There’s a lot of time in the car. I’ll be like, cool, let’s listen to every record that so-and-so put out. And there will always be that one record that feels like its soundtracking the whole tour. The last headline tour I went on, Tame Impala had put out a new record. Whenever I hear it, I think of touring for my last album.

Perfume Genius released a cover of “When I’m With Him” at the beginning of February. Who would be another artist that you’d love to have cover a song that you’ve written?

Perfume Genius was the first person I thought of when I was thinking that it would be really cool if someone did a cover of “When I’m With Him.” I heard his voice sing it and I heard him really reimagine it. So I’d have to choose something where I felt this person could do something with my lyrics and melody that isn’t being done in the song. Obviously, Britney Spears. That would be a dream. I love Britney, I’m a huge fan of hers. I don’t know what song she’d cover though. But it would be a dream.

? It seemed that the awards really tried to recognize the achievements of women way more than they did last year.

I never really understand the Grammys. Who are the Grammy voters? Why do they get chosen to become Grammy voters? Are they really representing what pop culture reflects? From my understanding, there are Grammy voters, they all vote on all the categories, and the most votes get the win. Maybe the voters this year wanted to highlight achievements by women more? I don’t know, but I’m really happy Kacey Musgraves won. I think that record deserved Album of the Year. I’m really happy that there was a female engineer, Emily Lazar, that won. She was the first ever female engineer to win in that category. That to me, it’s only gonna mean more representation for women and what is possible. I think representation is where we can really make an impact.

Are there any music releases that you’re most excited for this year?

I don’t know! I don’t know who’s releasing music this year. Last year I felt like everybody put a record out. James Blake, that record came out already, but it’s one of my favorite records of the year. It’s so good. I’m really supportive of him. It seems like he’s discovering a side of himself that I think is important for him to go explore. Because you can’t make sad music all the time. That doesn’t reflect real life.

I’m parked in the rain. Real romantic Valentine’s Day here.

Yeah, parking your car in the rain, talking with someone you don’t know… real romantic! I’m just kidding.

Q&A with Empress Of

Singing out from the stage, proud and with an emboldened voice, NAO truly looked like somebody who had been reborn.

Walking into the Royale, I noticed that the front of the stage was already bustling and full of people enthusiastically watching the opening act of the night, Xavier Omar. Xavier was animated in his approach to singing, belting notes and riffing easily with a voice that sounded smooth and accustomed to performing. From my spot on the balcony, I saw that the audience was swaying and dancing along with Xavier when he started to rhythmically move his body on stage. The night was already in full swing, and NAO, the headlining performer of the night, hadn’t even taken the stage.

Once Xavier’s set ended, the crowd’s excitement heightened drastically. When the lights finally went off, signaling that NAO was about to perform, loud screams pierced the air. A group of attendees to my right were particularly overjoyed – their mouths were open with pure adoration and they jumped up and down in ecstasy as NAO surprised the crowd by starting her set from within the audience. Singing the song “Another Lifetime,” I saw that most people around her were smiling wide, singing and swinging along. NAO spread her hand out to the crowd and acknowledged everyone in the small, intimate venue.

“Would you like to go to another planet with me today?” NAO asked an uproarious crowd as she made her way to the front of the stage and passed white balloons out to audience members. Her latest record, titled 

, is an ode to interplanetary rebirth and acceptance, and the night continued on that theme. The talented R&B songstress looked ethereal in a shimmering emerald jumpsuit, cheekily smiling and occasionally busting some moves during smooth, sensual tracks like “Adore You” and “Gabriel”. I felt chills during a phenomenal performance of “Orbit” as NAO emotionally sang out to the cosmos of a failed relationship with a powerful voice that resonated deeply within me.

Other highlights of the night included a mash-up of “Inhale Exhale,” off of NAO’s 2016 full-length 

, and the inspiration for it, D’Angelo’s “Brown Sugar”. It was fun to watch NAO sneakily transition from one song to the other, and she seemed happy to show off her knowledge of legendary neo-soul singers. The whole show felt like a personal conversation between NAO and the audience. At one point, she got worked up while talking about the meaning of her newest album and how it represents the astrological Saturn Return, 29 year period when Saturn makes a complete orbit around the Sun. NAO related this idea to her own cosmic transition from adolescence into adulthood, which was full of hard lessons and heartbreak. She seemed genuinely happy to see so many cheering fans who had still stuck with her after so many years.

Near the end of the set, she performed “Girlfriend,” another memorable hit off her previous record. Singing out from the stage, proud and with an emboldened voice, NAO truly looked like somebody who had been reborn.

NAO gives an other-worldly performance at the Royale

There were a ridiculous amount of standout performances this year, and unsurprisingly all of them were helmed by women.

Sunday night was met with a bit of trepidation from Grammy viewers and musicians alike, given the tumultuous year the Recording Academy went through. Last year’s Grammy awards were deemed a 

 by many for not acknowledging enough female artists – only one woman won a televised award that night, and Lorde, the only woman nominated for Album of the Year, was not offered a performance slot. When asked about the debacle shortly after the Grammys ended, Recording Academy president Neil Portnow said that if women want more recognition in the music industry, they needed to 

Neil Portnow gives a farewell speech at the 2019 Grammys. 

Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images for The Recording Academy.

His response was not received well, to say the least, and shortly after, Portnow announced he would be 

 in July of 2019. Additionally, the academy announced major changes to the Grammys in an effort to avoid a repeat of last year’s disaster. A Diversity and Inclusion task force was developed and 

 were invited to join the academy based on the task force’s recommendation. Going further, the Grammy’s four biggest award categories – Album of the Year, Song of the Year, Record of the Year and Best New Artist – 

 to house eight nominations instead of five. When the nominations for this year’s awards came out, it seemed the Academy might have learned their lesson – women were much more present in all of the major award categories – but it remained to be seen whether the ceremony itself would follow suit.

The Grammys also seemed to be in trouble in the week leading up to its broadcast. Nominated artists Drake, Kendrick Lamar, and Childish Gambino all 

, most likely due to the academy’s tendency to ignore hip-hop in the major categories. Newly-turned pop superstar Ariana Grande also dropped out of performing and 

 Grammys producer Ken Ehrlich for not allowing her to express her “creative freedom.” However, when the 61st Grammys aired Sunday night, the absence of those A-list stars wasn’t felt. Instead, the awards flourished with a crop of new and old talent, who were, surprisingly, mainly women.

In addition to performing, Alicia Keys performs a medley of songs she wishes she wrote. 

The entire night boasted a female presence that was so conspicuously different from recent years. For one, Alicia Keys was the host and brought on an air of humility to her role. It was a welcome break from two-time Grammys host James Corden, who muddled the job the last two years with anticlimactic musical numbers and generally unfunny skits. Keys showed off her talents in more ways than one, from playing two pianos at the same time to showcasing her friendship with Michelle Obama; the former first lady made a 

 at the of the show with fellow “bad-ass” ladies Lady Gaga, Jennifer Lopez and Jada Pinkett Smith. “Music shows us that all of it matters…every note within every song,” Obama stated to uproarious applause. This opening monologue set a tone for the night that was hopeful and optimistic, and decidedly, the rest of the night followed through.

Michelle Obama makes a surprise appearance alongside Lady Gaga, Jada Pinkett Smith, Alicia Keys, and Jennifer Lopez. 

There were a ridiculous amount of standout performances this year, and unsurprisingly all of them were helmed by women. Some were straight up fun and felt they should have belonged on the Super Bowl stage in place of a shirtless Adam Levine. 

performance of “Make Me Feel” was astounding and showcased her natural talent for live performance. Complete with funky choreography, guitar licks, and moonwalking, Monae championed 

 and even brought on dancers wearing pants that looked like a certain female anatomy. She then unabashedly said the words “let the vagina have a monologue” on national television, which really let viewers know that this was not like the Grammys of the past. Another high-energy performance belonged to Cardi B, who became the first woman to receive Rap Album of the Year later that night. Cardi’s 

 was a visually gorgeous ode to her love of high fashion and featured a piano player that offered quite a performance on her own.

Janelle Monae performs at the 2019 Grammy Awards. 

Other women brought on a more subtle form of spectacle, illustrating their talents with powerful vocals and stage presence. Kacey Musgraves gave an understated but emotional performance of “Rainbow,” the last track in her critically-acclaimed album 

, which is seen as an anthem for the LGBTQ community. With her steady, crystal-clear voice, Musgraves showed the world why she deserved the award for Album of the Year. In that same vein was Brandi Carlile, who was nominated for six awards but was probably the least well-known artist of the night. Carlile made the most of her time on screen with a heartfelt and 

 of her ode to marginalized people, “The Joke.” Lady Gaga sang a somewhat 

 bringing the energy of a seasoned rock star and less so of a shy pop vocalist. While it was a bit weird to see her moving her body erratically as she sang the Oscar-nominated track in the style of a rock-opera, it was a classic demonstration of how multi-talented Lady Gaga is as a performer.

Alongside the seasoned performers were some new faces, most notably H.E.R., whose voice was raw and full of passion as the R&B songstress 

 complete with a chorus and violin players. It was her first time on the Grammys stage, but there was no hint of nervousness at all – when H.E.R. broke out into a guitar solo to cheers and whoops from the crowd, it felt like she was where she belonged. R&B sister-duo Chloe x Halle also debuted on the Grammys stage with a gorgeous take on Donny Hathaway’s “Where is the Love,” and an 

 between St. Vincent and Best New Artist winner Dua Lipa worked surprisingly well. The two gave an extremely sensual performance as they sang sultry covers of each others’ hit songs “One Kiss” and “Masseduction” while staring deep into the others’ eyes.

There were not a lot of performances by men this time around, and none of them were particularly great. Post Malone and the Red Hot Chili Peppers delivered a 

, falling in line with the horrible collaborations that the Recording Academy likes to scrape together every year in order to appease straight, white men. Travis Scott had James Blake and Earth, Wind & Fire as back up in his performance of “No Bystanders,” which was a welcome surprise. However, he was not a captivating performer on screen, despite the fact that he continues to sell out stadiums and raise children with Kylie Jenner.

Diana Ross celebrated her upcoming 75th birthday at the 2019 Grammys. 

As far as tributes go, most of them were magnificent. Dolly Parton shined on a 

 of her familiar honky tonk tunes with her goddaughter Miley Cyrus, country stars Maren Morris and Little Big Town, and Katy Perry. For a 75th birthday celebration, Diana Ross, a true diva, walked onto the stage in a massive and overflowing red ball gown as she proudly proclaimed “happy birthday to me!” (Her birthday isn’t actually for another month.)

Not as good was a tribute to the 60th year of Motown. For some reason, Jennifer Lopez was chosen to carry this show, and while she is a perfectly capable performer, she was a non-black artist performing in a genre that was originally created by black artists for black audiences. It seemed extremely disingenuous of the academy to choose her given that plenty of talented black women were in attendance at the Grammys that night and could have easily carried a Motown tribute such as Alicia Keys, Janelle Monáe and Chloe x Halle. Also somewhat disingenuous was the Aretha Franklin tribute. R&B and soul veterans Fantasia, Andra Day and Yolanda Adams gave an impassioned performance of “You Make Me Feel Like (A Natural Woman),” but it came directly after an in memoriam segment which was in turn preceded by a lengthy tribute to departing Recording Academy head, Neil Portnow, who I doubt anybody wanted to see on stage this year.

Cardi B is the first women to win Best Rap Album. 

The majority of the awards given out that night were a surprise to many, as they seemed to accurately reflect the overall theme of what the Grammys tried to represent. Women dominated awards as much as they dominated their performances – Kacey Musgraves won four awards (including Album of the Year), Brandi Carlile took home three, and Cardi B’s win for Best Rap Album was an achievement in its own right. While hip-hop was not as prominent performance-wise, it was still well rewarded. Childish Gambino’s “This is America” became the first hip-hop track to win awards for both Record and Song of the year. Childish Gambino was not present for the awards, though he did appear in a Google Playmoji commercial that aired during the show. Someone who did show up was Drake, who used his time on stage after winning Best Rap Song to advocate against the culture of the Grammys. Notably absent during these award speeches was 21 Savage, who was scheduled to perform before he was 

. It was extremely weird that the only person who expressed support for the rapper throughout the night was producer Ludwig Göransson, who isn’t even from America.

This year, the Grammys wanted to prove that they had learned from previous years, and it seems like they did. However, small moments in the awards show shed a light into the fact that the Grammys and the Recording Academy alike are still a corporate entity with things other than championing diversity in mind. From the awkward Motown and Neil Portnow tributes to the fact that the cycle of abuse that still exists in the industry was never explicitly mentioned by anyone – instead, Alicia Keys vaguely talked about some academy-led programs for women. Overall, the Grammys tried to atone for their mistakes last year, and for the most part, it worked – though I would say that the reason this worked was not because of its organizers, most of whom are still men. The reason the Grammys were good was because of the achievements of women, who gave amazing performances, passionate speeches, and won awards.

As Portnow said, women stepped up, but not for the academy or for the recognition – they stepped up for themselves, and for the countless viewers and fans who rejoiced at their representation at home.

Grammys 2019 Recap: The Year of the Woman

The title of Broods’ third full-length album is somewhat confusing at first glance: 

 the Pop Monster? If you’ve been following the brother-sister duo since their entrance to the New Zealand pop scene in 2014, you might have a better idea of what they are referring to. The alt-pop group was poised for worldwide success after releasing their debut album, 

, which debuted at No. 1 on the New Zealand chart. However, after failing to receive that same commercial success in the United States with the release of their second album in 2016, Broods was dropped by their US label, Capitol Records.

The Pop Monster, then, according to Broods, is the pressure to comply to industry-regulated pop standards, or “doing stuff that we didn’t really want to do,” as frontwoman Georgia Nott mentioned in a year interview with 

, that pressure to comply has worked in some sort of backward way – this experimental synth-pop album is Broods at their best.

The two opening tracks, “Sucker” and “Why Do You Believe Me?” set the tone for what will be an extremely diverse listening experience. “Sucker” establishes the tone of the album as Georgia sings over hurried synths about how quickly she became duped by the pop industry: “I’m such a sucker for everything / I catch the bug, get sick, get well.” On the other hand, “Why Do You Believe Me?” is slower and stripped down, with the main melodies existing in Georgia’s processed voice, led along by production that stops and starts abruptly.

Moving into the first single off the album, “Peach,” Broods showcases a Georgia’s happy-go-lucky persona as she begins the singing in a quiet, pared-down voice, suddenly jumping to an abrasive, high-pitched mousy shriek, as she says, “I’m high and I’m low, no control / But everything’s looking peach now.” The song then moves into an explosion of sound as Broods continue to celebrate their newfound musical freedom.

Other songs on the record further highlight this mish-mash of low and high energy, though the tracks do seem to lean more towards the somber end of the spectrum. Songs like “Falling Apart” and “Every Time You Go” are laid-back but with enough melodic variety to make for an easy listen. It is a bit disappointing, however, to be faced with so many darker sounding songs like “Dust” and “Too Proud,” before moving to the more energetic side of the record.

“Old Dog” packs a punch unlike any other in Broods’ entire discography. The scrappy, garage-rock-esque track is straight up fun to listen to, from Georgia’s distorted but strangely sensual vocals to the groovy accompaniment complete with guitar riffs and jingling bells. Even the lyrics are ridiculous but seem to fit the absurdity of the track itself: “I’m an old dog now / Tried to wash off my fleas / Get your piss off my trees.” Other tracks like “Hospitalized” and “Everything Goes (Wow)” continue to play on playful, funky pop melodies and arrangements, and it makes one wish that Broods had put more of these kinds of tracks on the record.

 does a pretty good job of highlighting the newfound diversity in Broods’ sound. The almost six-minute long track “To Belong” – which lands right in the middle of the record – is basically a soundscape of the duo’s musical abilities all on its own. Starting with simple choral harmonies, the track begins to build on itself, adding a sticky bass line, then sparse drums, and then a bright acoustic guitar. Moving out of the first chorus, the song drops in some haunting synths and more choral harmonies, and this all happens in the first two minutes. It’s a track unlike anything Broods has never done before and maybe one that they could never have executed prior to this release. This simple notion really exemplifies the fact that Broods seems to have escaped the Pop Monster once and for all.

Broods escapes industry-regulated pop standards on ‘Don’t Feed the Pop Monster’

A lot can happen in three years. For aspiring diva chanteuse Ariana Grande, a lot did happen in the period between the release of her third studio album 

in 2015, and today, a few weeks after releasing her fourth full-length, 

, to much anticipation. Because of the many turns that Grande’s life has taken in these past three years, one could ascribe a number of labels to this newest edition in her discography: a breakup album, an album about newfound love, a dedication to the victims of the 2017 Manchester bombing. Whichever label you choose to apply to 

, one fact remains: this work is Ariana’s most personal to date.

 is taking its time to show us all the facets of Grande’s emotions, both sweet and sour ones. The singer is bold and brash on the sensuous “God is a woman”, and teases an imaginary lover in the fun and flirty dreamscape of “R.E.M.”. The record is not without unhappier moments, such as in “everytime,” a trap-infused song ranting about an unhealthy relationship, and “better off,” a mellow, introspective track about relationship insecurities. However, one of Grande’s most honest songs on the record doesn’t exist in a breakup anthem, but in the powerful and expressive “breathin,” dedicated to the struggles of dealing with anxiety and panic attacks.

While reminiscent of her older work (“Into You” from 

came to my mind at first listen), “breathin” displays an understanding of anxiety in the mind, and the importance of trying to find oneself in the midst of chaos. In the lead up to the 2nd chorus of the track, Grande sings, “just keep breathin’ and breathin’ and breathin’” solo and with a sense of urgency, but pauses, as if to take a big breath before continuing onto the chorus. When she finally sings “I know I gotta keep, I keep on breathin’”, the music lands with a crash on top of her vocals, as if determined to continue on this journey with her.

 is personal not only in its themes, but in its production. Much of the record adopts a minimalist style, trading Ariana’s signature loud, powerful vocal riffs in favor of subdued harmonies and sweet, dulcet tones. This change is mainly thanks to Pharrell Williams, who co-wrote and produced a number of tracks with his signature funky touch, allowing a playful and carefree Grande to shine on tracks like “blazed” and “the light is coming.” It’s fun to hear Ariana on tracks that aren’t just about her powerful and tantalizing sex appeal, a-la “Dangerous Woman”; take “successful,” a bouncy, delightful track celebrating girl power and success.

However, some of Pharrell’s input doesn’t necessarily do Ariana any favors. “sweetener,” while on the whole is upbeat and joyful, unfortunately makes Ariana’s voice grate on the ear as she repeatedly raps the lyrics “get it”, “hit it”, “twist it” and “mix it” like she’s yelling out instructions on a Bop It! game. Likewise, the track “borderline” in the latter half of the record sounds nice enough, but brings in a Missy Elliot feature that doesn’t pack as much punch as it should. That being said, it goes to show that Ariana sounds her best when she’s expressing real emotion on this record. The interlude “pete davidson,” dedicated to Ariana’s fiancé, is extremely cheesy, yes, but swells into a surprisingly beautiful vocal riff and gentle instrumentation, leading us to think that maybe this relationship might actually last. Ariana does sing that she’s “happy” on it at least 20 times, after all.

After a roller coaster of events and emotions occurring in Ariana’s life these past three years, it’s a marvel that 

 manages to express these important turning points honestly and delicately. Ariana ends the album with “get well soon,” a track that encompasses what this whole record is seeking out: a meditation on dealing with emotion. Deliberately running five minutes and twenty-two seconds, a dedication to the victims of the Manchester bombings on May 22nd, 2017, the song is Ariana at her best – gorgeous, hopeful, and deeply personal.

Ariana Grande gets personal with full-length ‘Sweetener’

I’ll admit that I wasn’t too excited right before seeing four-piece alt-rock band Wolf Alice during the Boston leg of their 

tour. It didn’t have to do with the band itself; their most recent album was once of my favorites released in 2017. The problem was that at the time I was suffering an extreme amount of academic stress, as is typical with most college students. The last thing I wanted to do that night was spend two hours going to a show when I could have been using that time to work on homework.

I rushed into Paradise Rock Club as their set was right about to start, having already missed the opener. The last thing on my mind was music, and all I wanted was for the concert to end as quickly as possible. With all of that said, it is pretty amazing that Wolf Alice was able to erase all of those gross thoughts from my mind with just their first song of the night.

Starting off with ‘Heavenward,’ also the first track on their newest record, Wolf Alice quickly established themselves as a band that thrives on a stage, and personally, I found myself caught in their sound the entire night. With each song, the band remained captivating, even when moving from a slower track like ‘Heavenward’ to the rowdy and chaotic “Yuk Foo,’ where lead singer Ellie Rowsell spent the whole song shouting into the microphone.

Part of this captivation had to do with the fact that almost every song seamlessly blended into one another, and the band barely stopped to take breaks or talk to the crowd. Because of that, they were able to fit in a hefty amount of material in an hour, playing music from both 

. It was amazing that the band had so much stamina to play almost twenty songs, with each one resonating the same amount of energy.

Rowsell also made excellent use of foot pedals and multiple microphones to layer her voice, automating sound effects in real time. It was mesmerizing to watch her lay down a repeating vocal while playing ‘Sadboy’ right in front of me, and it really made me feel like I was listening to the studio version, but with an added kick. It helped that there was lots of action to watch on stage, from Joel Amey’s powerful and frantic drumming, to Joff Oddie’s violent thrashing on guitar. It was even interesting to look at the crowd every once in a while, where the audience ranged from college kids my age swaying to the music, to middle-aged men head banging in fits of passion.

I came out of the concert with my ears ringing, as they started to adjust to the nighttime sounds of Boston and my brain began to once again fill up with worries about upcoming tests and assignments. On my way home, though, I allowed myself to reminisce back on the concert that was able to wash my problems away for a little bit, and take me into the fiery pit energy that Wolf Alice was kind enough to share with everyone who attended.

Wolf Alice @ Paradise Rock Club

In a year that has been filled with powerful women in entertainment sectors speaking out and standing up in the face of male abusers and oppressors, it’s unfortunate to notice that the music industry has continued to remain largely unaffected. Just last month, rapper XXXTentacion hit #1 on the Billboard Hot 200 despite facing domestic assault charges from a former girlfriend. On the charts last year, it took nine months for a woman to reach No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100; that so-called “honor” belongs to Taylor Swift, who hit No.1 on September 5th, 2017.

It’s easy to look at these occurrences at face value and feel somewhat hopeless for the state of women in the music industry; it’s true that in 2018, the mainstream music scene is still only allowing a select amount of women to achieve major success. However, it’s important not to overlook women who are achieving success in other areas of music – charts aren’t everything after all, especially not for indie artists.

Take, for example, The Aces, an indie rock band that just released their first full-length record, 

, last week on Red Bull Records. Composed of four childhood friends who have played together for over a decade, The Aces are part of a female resurgence in indie rock that has been long overdue, and their debut has the band triumphantly making their presence known, not as a “girl-band,” but a pop-rock band.

This triumphant sound is apparent in just the first few seconds of the record; ‘Volcanic Love,’ a song that details a toxic relationship, starts off with a bright, shimmering guitar line before moving into a groove that sounds more pop than rock. Glimmers of pop have defined The Aces since their first EP, 

, dropped early last year, but the quartet isn’t afraid to prove that melodic hooks aren’t their only strong suit. That much is apparent on the next track, ‘Stuck,’ which was originally released in 2016 but comes into this record sounding fresh and updated, featuring a fleshed-out instrumental and polished production elements like reverb and additional vocal harmonies. In many ways, its evolution represents the indie mentality that The Aces have stuck with for the past few years – indie label Red Bull Records signed the band just six months after ‘Stuck’ was first released.

The record continues on a vein of shimmering 80s pop with ‘Fake Nice,’ a funk-driven song with a groovy bass line paired with sentiments on two-faced personalities and ‘Lovin’ is Bible,’ a joyous celebration of the honeymoon phase of love, and my personal favorite off the record. “Well you know I’m not religious but / Your lovin’ is bible,” lead singer Cristal Ramirez sings over hand claps and hard guitar strums, before moving into a call and response with Ramirez’s voice and Katie Henderson’s sugary-sounding guitar licks. It’s a perfect example of pop that doesn’t feel stilted or formulaic, yet makes for an easy summer listen. Other songs focus on the emotional aftermath of a breakup (‘Just Like That’) and attempted to end an unrequited crush (‘Last One’). Despite each song focusing on different moments of being in love, they all have a sense of being strung from the same musical cloth.

It’s somewhat remarkable to that kind of cohesiveness between the songs of 

, as debut records can tend to feel a little lost in terms of finding an exact sound that works for the band. However, considering that The Aces have been playing together since they were in middle school, it makes sense that they’ve already honed down a pop-sensibility in their music. However, the record is still able to contain some musical surprises, most notably in ‘Hurricane,’ a toned down, piano-driven ballad about a fading relationship. While it’s the first slow song that the band has released, The Aces make it sound like slow is familiar ground for them. Ramirez’s voice is intimate and up close as she sings over piano and softly-played strings, “How you’re pullin’ makes me push away, push away / Oh, you love me like a hurricane, hurricane”.

The Aces have only just started to make waves in the industry for the past two years, but their music shows that they’ve been together for much longer than that. To hear a band this tight and cohesive in terms of writing musically and formulating a clear sound this early in their professional career makes me excited to hear how the rest of their musical journey will sound like over the next couple of years. Not only that, but the band’s confidence in proclaiming themselves as a band with musical talents makes me hopeful in the idea that women are, and will continue to, put out amazing music in the indie scene.

The Aces release full-length ‘When My Heart Felt Volcanic’

The first thing that struck me as I walked into the small, intimate venue attached to The Middle East was a large crystal perched on top of a stand near the back of the stage. I was extremely intrigued, and while waiting for pop singer Ella Vos to come onto the stage, I couldn’t stop staring at this set piece that seemed out-of-place. When Ella finally appeared in front of the cheering crowd with a soft light on her and a drum placed near the front of the stage. as she started the show off with ‘Words I Never Said’, a track that appears in two parts in her album of the same name, I felt like I was seeing a physical manifestation of that crystal.

It was her crystal-clear voice, that was a true symbol of the gem. Even with some pretty heavy reverb on her microphone, I was able to pick out many of the lyrics to her songs. In fact, Vos sounded pretty much just like her studio voice, high-pitched but not shrill, restrained but passionate. When she spoke to the crowd she seemed slightly nervous but excited; after her first two songs she sheepishly said that she hoped the audience would dance with her.

The setup of the stage itself was sparse, with just Ella who sang and one other musician who handled guitars, the drum machine, and the rest of the electronic backing track. I was initially worried that the music wouldn’t shine with only one person playing all live parts rather than a band, but ended up being pleasantly surprised by the end of the show. The best parts of the set were when Ella got involved in the music by doing more than singing. In the intro to her song, ‘Little Brother’, she banged on a large drum in the middle of the stage as the lights turned changed to a dark green, creating a fun and mysterious atmosphere.

The set list was fairly predictable, as it can be when you’ve only released eleven songs publicly. However, the show was still exciting and even seemed to have a kind of story to it. Between songs, recorded interludes would play referring to times of heartbreak, loneliness, and depression. “My friends are doing everything that I want to do. I’m stuck inside”, went the spoken interlude before one of the more emotional songs of the night, ‘Mother Don’t Cry.’ I couldn’t help but feel like I was intruding into a space of Ella’s life that seemed very intimate. The song was one of my, and ended up being one of the audience’s favorites. When I heard people singing along, I realized that the intimacy was all a part of the experience.

Sometimes, however, the intimacy seemed a little forced. Near the end of the set, Ella moved to a piano to play a slowed down cover of Britney Spears’ ‘Toxic.’ The gesture was cute, and a few audience members sang along, but the piano cover felt a little off kilter and didn’t seem to fit in with the rest of the more emotionally charged music that was being played. Additionally, when singing ‘You Don’t Know About Me,’ a fun anthem that got the biggest reaction from the audience, Ella was a little awkward when trying to turn the microphone towards the audience to sing some parts, the gesture didn’t really translate well and not many people sang along.

But these awkward moments are to be expected for a singer that’s debuted her first full- length album and is only on her first headlining tour. At the end of the set, after playing a powerful rendition of her single, ‘Going Down in Flames,’ Ella walked to the piano to play a soft, short ending to her show, the second part of her track, ‘Words I Never Said.’ After dramatically walking off of the stage to a guitar solo playing in the background, it was immediately clear that the small crowd inside Sonia had become enthralled, they shouted for an encore almost immediately after she left. Ella came back to the stage to play two more songs and a flourishing piano solo, looking beyond happy to see an enthusiastic crowd. In that moment, as I saw her smiling face looking into the audience, I could feel her positive energy, radiating towards me in a crystal clear light.

Ella Vos @ Sonia

If you’ve never heard of indie-pop collective Superorganism, it might help to get a primer on how the group operates before you dive into a half hour of what could only be described as a journey to uncharted corners of pop territory. Maybe once you learn that the eight-member band initially bonded through an interest in Internet memes, used to write music through Skype conversations, and consist of members from all over the world (countries like England, Australia, Japan, and more), it may make a little more sense to hear an inspirational speech from life coach Tony Robbins plopped into the anthemic opener, ‘It’s All Good.’

 is full of these quirks, from sounds of cash registers and chirping birds littering the chorus of ‘Everybody Wants to be Famous,’ to Korean phrases sandwiched in between an English drawl saying “something for your mind,” in the song of the same name. It’s pop music at its maximum, though not always at its best.

While the various diverse sounds, samples, and voice effects threaten to ruin an enjoyable listening experience throughout this record, it’s lead singer Orono Naguchi who’s able to tie all these mismatched noises together with her voice. Despite not having an expressive vocal range, Naguchi is able to transition through various personas with ease, from a disillusioned millennial in ‘Nobody Cares’ to a jealous teenager in ‘Reflections on a Screen.’ The impressive lyrical content of the record helps her voice shine through and even creates a playful back and forth between her singing and the instrumental. For example, on the song ‘Relax,’ Naguchi tells the listener to “just relax” in the chorus, all while different car horns honk to the beat, almost trying to insinuate that one can relax even in what can seem like a hectic environment.

The whole collective consists of young members, and Naguchi herself is only 17. This helps give the record a very youthful vibe despite tackling some darker topics, like wanting to escape the violence of humanity by turning into a prawn, as expressed in ‘The Prawn Song.’ The entire record seems to enjoy inserting as much humor as it can, like in the outro to ‘The Prawn Song,’ which features a heavily filtered, aristocratic-sounded announcer discussing how “prawns have a highly sophisticated social system / similar to that of bees or ants” before Naguchi comes in with a disinterested “prawn, prawn.” The entire exchange is almost ridiculous, but fits in with the core of the collective’s humorous aesthetic – though one could definitely argue that the humor takes away from the main message of the song.

With all of the tracks on the record being so loud and in-your-face, the one song that is markedly different from the rest is ‘Nai’s March.’ It starts out simply enough with a slow, soft verse singing of “Tokyo, oh Tokyo / I’m aware of the deadly presence,” but abruptly stops and moves into an awkward, fugue-like state with statements in Japanese, video game noises, and other distorted vocals. It’s the one part of the record that really doesn’t seem to fit in, as there seems to be less of a purpose for these different, weird sounds.

 is a great debut from the collective, as well as a good example of what pop can sound like when pushed to its limits. Through this record, Superorganism is able to create a mess but successfully navigate through the clutter, taking us all on a pop-filled adventure that we may have never knew we needed.

Superorganism releases debut full-length ‘Superorganism’

2018 in Boston hasn’t exactly started out so well – the past few months have been filled with unexpected blizzards and rainstorms, not to mention the lack of a Patriots parade down Mass Ave. for the first time in a while. In these dreary times, I find that it’s always a good idea to pair a moody day with a moody album, and singer-songwriter Anna Burch’s debut LP 

The record tells tales of heartbreak and loneliness, anxiety and regret, all with Burch’s sweet, unassuming voice, straightforward lyrics, and pop sensibility. “I’ll still be okay when you walk my way publically,” she drawls in a monotonous tone on the first track, ‘2 Cool 2 Care,’ “But when I get home, I can’t be alone, can’t you see?” The song structure is simple; the lyrics aren’t filled with complex metaphors and perfect rhymes, and yet emotion can be felt throughout the track simply because there seems to be a lack of it. Burch seems bored even as she sings about her struggles of dealing with an indifferent lover, which makes the story of the song jump out more, dragging you into her love troubles.

Many tracks continue in the same vein of easy-going but weirdly depressing pop, like ‘Tea-Soaked Letter’ and ‘Quit the Curse,’ the latter song really bringing out a 1960s-esque girly-pop vibe. The last minute of ‘Quit the Curse’ helps to end it with a dramatic flair by adding to Burch’s voice, creating this harmonic trio reminiscent of doo-wop, mellow but still with a hint of sadness: “And you gave up the first time / And you thought you read my mind / And you thought I cared more than you did.” The song ‘What I Want’ also takes the same approach, with Burch’s voice doubling on the refrains and choruses of a song about trying to be okay with an ex-lover moving on. “I won’t play the victim just because I can’t get what I want,” she croons, though the endless repetition of that one line near the end of the song seems to suggest Burch might be doing the opposite.

Other songs show more active expressions of anger and aggression towards an ex-lover, such as ‘Asking 4 a Friend,’ where Burch sings in a high register over pounding guitar chords – “I think its suspect you ever feel lonely at all / You’re faking / You’re faking the fall.” One of the highlights of the record, ‘In Your Dreams’ contains a number of small but significant melodic interludes either in the form of nonsensical “doos” or slow guitar solos, as Burch sings about a regrettable love in a somewhat patronizing tone.

With every song focused on the deadpan singing of Burch, the record can tend to get a little bored of its own self. ‘Belle Isle’ takes more of a ballad-country approach, with a sweet story about finding an old lover in a new city, but the music itself feels slightly uninspired, and the lyrical meaning tends to get a bit lost. By the end of the record, I began wishing for some more variety in melodies or even other voices besides Burch’s own.

Despite the fact that the tracks on this record are very similar, almost too similar, to one another, they do create a cohesive body of work, which is definitely a feat that not all debut albums achieve. Overall, Burch’s first complete solo effort shines more than it disappoints, weaving stories together both clearly and emotionally over a bed of simple, clean-cut indie pop.