Summer is OVER! (Is it too early to say that?) Well, I wish summer was over anyway. While the sun may still be shining, and the hot hot weather disagrees with me - I’m already falling into ‘Gothic-Horror Fall.’ I’m more than ready for the chilling weather, the falling leaves, and the foreboding mood of spooks (but let’s not think about elections right now, okay?) I’ve already started reaching into the werewolves, vampires, and ghost films at my fingertips. School has started, the public pool has shut down for the year, and the local amusement park is taking it’s last calls. So in the final brutally hot month of summer I’m taking a look back at some of the albums that’ve come out and have left an engraved etching on my summer 2024.
brat by Charli xcx:
I’ve never been much of a Charli xcx fan. Wherever I go she shows up is how I tend to find her music. But I ended up getting dragged into brat summer late in the game (after maybe just a little snobbish resistance.) And while Charli’s music isn’t usually something I would listen to in a successive manner - I’d prefer to put it in rotation among COBRAH, Kesha, and Slayyyter - to put my feelings about brat as Dazed put it - ‘it was a marketing scheme and it worked pretty damn well.’ I didn’t find brat that unique - at least not in a way that organically warranted the massive and immediate buzz it got. “Vroom Vroom,” arguably Charli’s best song, was released eight years ago, but it would feel right at home in the brat mix.
What brat excels at is what Charli herself excels at - club classics. Mixed with the crunchy aesthetics and sounds of the compressed font of the album’s cover - in contrast to the often lifeless blown-out airbrush AI image aesthetic that has thoroughly creeped into the mainstream - it makes brat look almost rebellious. And I think beyond anything brat coincided with massive anxiety-inducing events happening worldwide-wide, and the ‘fuck it’ attitude people were feeling. An album that essentially documents the never ending worry-less summer of a party girl felt fun.
Following the released photos of Charli’s 32nd birthday party, a bizarre resurgence trend of young people gloating about not having friends, or hobbies, or the fervor to do anything other than cynically decry others behavior of going out like baby-faced Washington Wives, came in to fiercely oppose Charli’s birthday bash by bashing the attendees and asserting that they were all ‘faking it,’ rotting the brat summer excitement and creating a mini feud (which I wouldn’t blame you if you never heard of it - I didn’t even hear of it until well after it happened.) But it was truly the US Democratic Party, which swiftly came in like older parents chaperoning at a high school dance and getting on the floor themselves that really undid the whole thing. Brat summer officially became uncool.*
But honestly, brat summer is over. It’s too hot and too late in the year to be this hot - and the only ones partying anymore are the mosquitoes who refuse to leave and quit biting, and I’m more than ready for them to drop dead and don my sweaters.
*Of course, only jokingly, it’s only uncool if you put too much stock into it.
Downfall of a Midwest Princess by Chappell Roan:
Initially, when i saw Chappell Roan’s performance of “Red Wine Super Nova” on The Late Show With Stephen Colbert, with kitschy 60’s wedding arch set designed by Maris Jones, I had two thoughts:
This girl’s got style and moves like Mick Jagger.
I don’t know that I like her music.
After some time, I later listened to “Karma’s My Kink” and didn’t think much of it, it sounded sort of like typical pop and I just figured for as much as I liked her weird kitschy aesthetic, her energy and charisma, her music just wasn’t for me. Well, fast-forward a few months on a Spotify radio sesh, Roan started coming into rotation, I knew it was her, she has a distinctive voice, and I listened intently with a smile “Alright girl, you got me.”
As of now, I haven’t listened to Downfall of a Midwest Princess in its entirety, but I felt I had to add it anyway. It really is true boppy-music right to its core and reminded me of Kesha during her Warrior era when she was making music because she wanted to make something fun to make people happy. I think Roan’s story is also one that feels like a sort of triumph. Roan, who had previously tried to make a go of a music career at 17, had moved to LA to do just that. Instead, she was dropped by her label and decided to move back home where she took a break. Downfall of a Midwest Princess was released in 2023, but took a full year to catch on. A dedicated fan base and more importantly, a dedicated Roan saw the album’s rise and success. The album has since peaked at number one in Ireland, New Zealand and the UK. As an un-dying Brett Smiley fan, seeing an artist who took a shot but didn’t make it and never gets to know the impact and joy their work has on people (even in a cult circumstance,) it is very awe-spiring to get to see an artist be able to take that chance again and experience the gratification of success.
Unfortunately, I was worried Roan’s jolt-rocket to fame would create the ‘womaning’ or idolship effect that’s happened so many times before, and it unfortunately seems to have been an inevitable, with Roan stating her plans to withdraw a bit after the over-stepping of boundaries and stalker behavior has crept in. I only hope this doesn’t hamper Roan’s genuine love of music and performance - it really would be unfair for Roan to be undone by people who swear to have (but clearly do not have) her best interests at heart. Regardless, I look forward to the continuation of Roan’s musical career moving forward and what new glammy costumes she dons.
As a side note, I don’t understand why she decided to use the term ‘fugly’ on a song not supposed to be dated 2014, especially when ‘ugly ass pants’ would’ve fit the rhyme scheme so much better. I will also never condone her donning of those fugly ass white sneakers with her cute pink satin bloomers outfit - girl, have you never heard of Justin boots?
“Joyride” by Kesha:
Although not an album, I feel I have to add “Joyride” in anticipation of Kesha’s upcoming album (release date TBA). Not only this, but I’ve got 3 nostalgic bands/musicians on this list who’re or have released new albums this year and I just can’t bear to leave Kesha out (it’s my list - I’ll change the rules if I want.)
I (shamefully, maybe) haven’t heard any of Kesha’s music since her release of the Rainbow album (2017) following the public fallout and assault allegations against her producer Dr. Luke in 2014. It is, very exciting to see Kesha’s new album to be released via her own label (aptly titled Kesha Records) and under her own rules. I’ve always been a fan of Kesha’s overt weirdness. Listening to the radio in my bed at 3 am on school nights was always when I waited (and hoped) for her songs to play. It was totally trashy and unpolished compared to other pop artists dominating the charts at the time. In many ways, Kesha’s 2010’s music with its feral girl storytelling and aesthetics feels in Joyride like fine aged wine. From the wild trailer-trash sister who was easy bait for misogynistic mockery, to the dominatrix mother figure commanding the ship of younger dirty pop stars who follow in her quake. Kesha has not only persevered in a situation where the lives and well-being of pop stars becomes little in the game of gossip and sensationalism - She’s come out on top, re-invented herself, and has no intentions of stopping. In many ways, it feels like Kesha is restarting her musical career, this time by her own design.
Joyride is equal parts weird (bringing to mind lady Gaga’s earlier work) and intoxicatingly catchy country (cunt-ry.) Kesha’s voice is deep and commanding, playful but controlled. The choir shout of ‘joyride!’ Brings such a unique sound to the entire song. I can’t wait to see what other singles Kesha puts out before the eventual album - I’m excited to see what Kesha has planned.
I Love You So F***ing Much by Glass Animals:
I was very intrigued following the announcement of what would be Glass Animals’ 4th studio album I Love You So F***ing Much. I was especially intrigued after watching an interview between Dave Bayley and Anthony Mason from CBS Sunday Morning talking a bit about the albums making. Dave showed off a collection of synthesizers he’d gathered for the project and talked about his always wanting to make a space themed album but having never felt like it was right until this one. Well, after listening to it, I’m afraid to say, I feel like this still isn’t it.
GA’s 3rd album Dreamland, released during lockdown in 2020, skyrocketed them into mainstream recognition with their hit song “Heat Waves,” something that is still very bizarre for me to think about (I fully credit the Australian fans who made a bet with Dave that if they could get Heat Waves to the top of the charts he would get a tattoo of Australia on his ass - and now it’s there forever.) And while I throughly enjoyed Dreamland, and even more so the inventive music videos Dave put together for the songs in true lockdown mode - I admit it was a little sugary sweet for me. Which perhaps was the point (it is an album about nostalgia after all.) But I think GA’s 2nd album How to Be a Human Being is still my favorite - a perfect trippy, opium-hazed feeling of Hollywood, wasted youth, and lackadaisical yearning for solid ground.
With I Love You So F***ing Much, I felt more like I was listening to a first pass. Dave’s intent was for the 60’s and 70’s Space Age sounds of the synthesizers to come through and create the feeling of an early sci-fi film. The songs more or less felt the same and the spacey thematics really didn’t come through for me - so warped through over-polishing and streamlining, it sounded maybe a little overly armored for the vulnerability Dave was trying to convey.
Paradise State of Mind by Foster the People:
Coming in at the very last moment for summer albums is Paradise State of Mind. When I first heard about Foster The People’s new album, it was because “Lost In Space” had just dropped and I heard it on the radio! The radio! Imagine that! A seriously good funk-disco song was playing that I’d never heard before, ‘Is this new?’ I thought. ‘Siri, what song is this? FOSTER THE PEOPLE! No way!’ Foster The People’s Torches had been to me what I assume My Chemical Romance and Evanessence was to other teenagers. So to suddenly see that they were making an album (however many years that have now passed since Torches release) in a totally new sound of one of my favorite music genres, and excelling at it was exciting to say the least.
I waited 2 months for the release of Paradise State of Mind and holy shit was it worth the wait! Paradise State of Mind hit me in a way I haven’t been hit since Janelle Monae’s release of Dirty Computer in 2018 (which I still staunchly stand by as one of the greatest albums to be created in the 21st century.) Foster masterfully mixes funk of the 70’s with modern sensibilities and bizarre orchestrations that pull the rug from underneath your feet. At times Mark even sounds a bit like Prince in attitude and spirit. The entire album truly feels like an experience. Like if Alice in Wonderland were set in the Space Age. The album mixes themes of loneliness, cultural anxiety, and the digital realm so succinctly. Even more appropriate is the way Foster never allows you to feel in control of the direction the album is going. “Glitchzig” for example, feels almost broken. So bizarre and unlike any of the other songs on the album, it also ends with a long trumpet solo.
Whereas Glass Animals attempted to create the sensation and relation of a torn heart with the audio aesthetics of the Space Age, Foster truly nailed it. Every song is it’s own story and yet together in whole take you on a journey. I only can’t believe there isn’t more praise or discussion about this album online aside from the already established Foster fans.
Well, so concludes my summer album review. So much good music has come out and I’m excited to see what will be released in fall (if anything.) Whatever the case, au revoir summer 2024, and please take these damn mosquitoes with you.