This album is one of my favorites to talk about with friends because not only is it insanely good, but it’s one of the most interesting concepts and storylines to me.

In an interview with Billboard lead singer Dave Bayley said he drew from stories people told him while on tour: “I was recording all of these people telling me stories… As soon as you walk off the tour bus, you meet fans. You meet some radio people, taxi drivers, people at parties – you meet all these people and hear all their stories. I was a stranger, so I think people interacted differently than they would interact with their closest friends. But I also got the impression that people wouldn’t have told these stories to their closest friends.”

Each track is inspired by a character, with all of them creating the “awkward family portrait” on the album cover, however Bayley later in the interview clarifies by saying, “there are pieces I took from those stories, but for the most part, the characters on the record are made up. They’re actually quite autobiographical.”

How To Be A Human Being is the second album from Glass Animals- an Oxford-born indie-rock/ psychedelic-pop band consisting of lead singer, songwriter, and producer Dave Bayley and his childhood friends: drummer Joe Seaward, bassist/keyboardist Ed Irwin-Singer, and guitarist/keyboardist Drew MacFarlane.

The members of Glass Animals were all in the middle of getting degrees- including frontman Dave Bayley who was working towards a medical degree- when producer Paul Epworth saw the band performing in London and signed them to his label Wolf Tone. Bayley ended up switching his major to neuroscience and wrapped up his degree while creating music to post online before choosing the band as a full-time career.

One of my best friends, Caroline, is the biggest Glass Animals fan I know and is actually the one who introduced me to them. So I felt that it was only fitting that I let her help tell you about our two favorite songs (Take A Slice and Season 2 Episode 3) from this album!

Take A Slice follows a college aged woman who is a sex worker. The song opens with the conversation ‘Smells good up here. Yeah, it’s the candle, yo it’s uh… (laughs)…Sausage candle… Most people don’t do it the way I do it, very personal… Y’know, like whatever… I just like sausage-‘ which implies that it smells like sex in the room, but also that they liked that fact.

“Take a slice is just- *chefs kiss*. The intro is cool to listen to with the distorted voices and the fact that you can only make out some of the words. The subject of this song is a sex worker and the song talks about how she’s gonna ‘f*ck [her] way through college’. Which has a double meaning because she’s a sex worker to put herself through school, but it’s also because she wants to do it, and in my opinion I think that’s great!”

“Some of the very first lyrics in the song refer to an old riddle, but they captivated me even before I understood the reference. When they say ‘I don’t ever wanna pick a slice; one is pretty but the other lies’ it is referring to the riddle of being in a jail cell with two guards and two doors; one guard is telling the truth (the pretty slice) and will give you freedom, but the other is lying and will kill you (the lies slice).”

“Season 2 Episode 3 immediately caught my attention the first time I heard it because it sounded like a retro Super Mario game. Dave Bayley’s voice provides a unique and dreamy sound which makes it appear as a love song, but when you actually listen to the lyrics it’s about how the subject is better off without their partner, who is gonna struggle without them. Some of the first lyrics are ‘now my head is on backwards and my feet at funny angles’ and I think that’s so weird and therefore amazing! The song has got a super funky beat and is so easy to groove to in any situation.”

Caroline showed me Season 2 Episode 3 for the first time and I was immediately drawn to the unique arcade-game-like sound in the intro. Plus, just as Caroline said, Dave Bayley’s voice is dreamy and makes the song flow well. You can’t help but wanna bob your head along with the beat.

It’s also interesting because it’s the only song on the album where the character doesn’t represent the narrator, but rather the subject of the song. The character and video created for this track is another college-aged woman who likes to get high and be lazy which caused their relationship to fail.

Overall, this album deserves 45 minutes of your time to sit down and listen to whenever you get a chance! *cough* during quarantine? *cough*

*Queue Closing Time by Semisonic*

This blog has pushed me out of my comfort zone in the best way possible. I’ve always loved talking about music, but never would’ve gone out and made a music blog on my own accord. With that being said, I was nervous and it’s my first time doing this so it wasn’t perfect- but it was fun and informative which is what really mattered.

Some things I want to improve on is finding more content that is super interesting and that not everyone knows. I believe that getting to know the artist and the why of their work makes you appreciate it so much more.

I also wish that I exposed my work to more people. I created a separate Twitter account because I didn’t want to crowd my followers feeds with school posts, but now I wish that I would’ve been prouder and showed off my work.

Out of entire semester-long project, my favorite part was getting to talk to my friends about some of our mutually favorite works as part of my research. It was also super interesting getting to do research on some of the music I’ve been listening to for years!

This has definitely given me more confidence in not only my writing skills, but my confidence online in general. I feel more comfortable asking my followers to read an article or share a post now that I’ve kind of been forced to not be bothered by it.

I also think this is great exposure since I hope to be in the music industry in some aspect so being able to mix my major with music has been a great tool I hope to utilize in the future- as well as knowing more about working with WordPress and building a website.

My most popular week was the week of February 24, 2020 with 52 views.

Two posts are tied with 23 views each for the most-viewed spot: my first post ever reviewing Hi, This is Flume and one from this week where I reviewed a popular music blog Gorilla Vs Bear. They not only retweeted my promotion tweet, but replied to my tweet with praying hands bringing me 23 views from Twitter.

I was very surprised that I had so many views in that first week of me posting. I just didn’t expect to get any views honestly so seeing that 29 visitors in the month of February and 24 this month is a pleasant surprise that makes me want to continue this for a while.

Tyler, The Creator; also known as Ace, Gap Tooth T, DJ Stank Daddy, Tyler Haley, or Wolf Haley; is one of my favorite artists… ever. While I wasn’t a fan during his infamous Bastard or Goblin days, I’ve been hooked since he released his album (Scum F*ck) Flower Boy.

After that discovery I began to dive into his work and I began to really appreciate his talent and the way he thinks about things. While his earlier music and actions were often criticized, he’s defended them by saying it was an act and a character- not his own opinions. He’s also grown in his artistry and mellowed out the harsh lyrics with each new album released.

Tyler hasn’t only worked with music either, he created the clothing brand Golf Wang, started the music festival Camp Flog Gnaw, and created the streaming service Golf Media which aired original scripted series from him.

Once I made these realizations, he quickly became one of my top artists who I consistently listened to. With that being said, IGOR is (in most opinions) some of his best work to date.

Not only did IGOR debut at #1- becoming his first number one single- but it won him his first Grammy for Best Rap Album. Did I mention that he wrote and produced the entire record?

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This IGOR character represents an alter-ego that shows up after Tyler pours out all of his heart for his love interest, though his love interest remains focused on his ex. The album’s first half follows that love triangle while the second half shows IGOR trying to move on. Comedian Jerrod Carmichael serves as the narrator, with snippets of him speaking making appearances throughout various tracks. It’s important to note that this is a narrative album which connects each song to each other to tell a story.

Puppet, featuring Kanye West, is one of my personal favorites from the record. This track is in the stage of the story where he’s crawling back to his love interest despite telling him in earlier songs that he wanted to stay just friends and never see him again.

I really enjoy how the song progresses slowly and builds with the chorus repeating “I’m your puppet” following with alternating lyrics between “you control me” and “I don’t know me”, then adding in vocals by Kanye.

Puppet ends with: Kanye telling Tyler to “breathe on a song”, a pitched-up Tyler (or someone) saying “cut me loose”, and Jerrod Carmichael stating, “But at some point, you come to your senses”, signaling finally moving on and the appearance of IGOR’s character in the rest of the album.

However, the next track on the album, What’s Good?, ends with “I don’t know what’s harder, letting go or just being okay with it” revealing that even though he seemingly “came to his senses”, he still can’t fully let go.

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My other top song from IGOR has to be its closing track, Are We Still Friends?. It’s not only a gorgeous, impactful number, but it’s the most perfect ending to a record that wraps everything up in a neat bow and sends you on your way. In the storyline, it’s the final scene where Tyler is hoping to finally move past this love triangle and is asking if they’re able to just be friends.

The song samples Al Green’s song “Dream” by fading it in and out of the intro and when you look at the lyrics of “Dream,” they’re all about a dream coming true and lasting forever. Now, looking at “Are We Still Friends?”, it’s obvious that Tyler hopes this dream of being friends with this love interest can come true.

He admits, “I’ve been back there, and I cannot die too” because he knows he can’t keep continuing in the love triangle because it was toxic to him. But Tyler also pleads “don’t get green skin, keep contact” then “don’t say goodbye, smell you later” making sure that he knows he doesn’t want him to become an alien (stranger) because he cares about him, even if they can’t be together romantically.

The build up in the end of the song is the climax of the entire album, with Tyler finally realizing he’d rather be friends with him than not have him in his life at all. Ending with Tyler yelling- presumably letting it all out finally- and then dropping off with the instruments almost abruptly.

A masterpiece of a finale.

Be sure to check them out here: GvB

This Texas-based music blog has been around since 2005 and has received high praise from Newsweek, Playboy, Rolling Stone, and other big names.

What sets them apart from other like-blogs is their ability to discover and recommend artists months, sometimes year(s), before they actually pop-off. According to their site, they “blog about relevant artists of the day, with no particular genre-specific focus,” which I enjoy because they don’t limit themselves- they just explore.

I appreciate the fact that they include a link on their home page to their Spotify playlist “Gorilla Vs. Bear: Best Songs of 2020” featuring the description “(so far)” that they created. It includes both newer artists, as well as some popular ones.

Gorilla vs. Bear does a great job of not coming off pretentious or like they’re trying to be cool. Famous. It’s clear that they care about music and have keen ears for the good stuff.

One thing that I wish was improved on the site would be a cleaner organization on the home page which seemed a little cluttered when trying to navigate the site. I felt a bit overwhelmed with all of the moving parts and there wasn’t a featured music section besides the home page, which I was looking for first.

I also found it difficult to differentiate what each blog post was about- even with reading the description sometimes- so having a few more pages that can organize album reviews, new music, and video premieres for example would be beneficial!

Overall, I love what they’re doing on Gorilla Vs. Bear’s page and I will definitely be keeping up with their new posts and playlists too. I’m looking forward to seeing what new music they’re going to bring to my Spotify!

Tell Me I’m Pretty is an album that holds a special place in my heart for a few reasons:

The first being that it brought me one of my best friends Jonathon Peterson. Back in our junior year of high school he tweeted about Cage The Elephant releasing their (then) new album which led to us dm’ing about how excited we both were for it, then to us talking about music for the next 5 years and counting.

The second reason I hold this album close is simply because it’s incredible and in my opinion their best album. I had the privilege of getting to see them perform twice during their TMIP album phase and they were two (yes, they hold two spots) of my top five concert experiences. This band has so much energy and their stage presence made me never want to leave those moments.

Cage The Elephant- who were originally named Perfect Confusion until a strange man ran up to them, repeated the phrase “you have to cage the elephant”, and inspired them to change it- consists of brothers Matt and Brad Shultz, Daniel Tichenor, Jared Champion, and recently Matthan Minster and Nick Bockrath.

After the success of their first album, Cage The Elephant released two more (beautiful) records before creating the masterpiece that is Tell Me I’m Pretty. The album was produced by Black Keys member Dan Auerbach and won the band their first Best Rock Album Grammy.

TMIP can be described as indie/garage rock, but no matter the genre it’s my personal favorite from the Kentucky born band. Each song is a unique experience that somehow all come together to create one cohesive vibe.

Vocalist Matt Shultz told Alternative Nation, “…the songs have so much diversity in them that I don’t feel like any song is representative of the entire album, kind of like each sound has its own personality.” Matt also said that the band found inspiration in David Bowie for his eclectic and ever-changing style.

Despite my love for the record as a whole, my top 2 songs are Punchin’ Bag and How Are You True.

Punchin’ Bag is a bad-ass song about an equally bad-ass woman who decides to finally fight back against an abusive partner. It’s full of strong feminist lyrics such as “If you take a swing, she swing back. She say I’m not your punchin’ bag” and “No more time for cheap excuses. If I were you, I would be leaving, Best you go while you’re still breathing. She won’t take no more”.

I love this take on a song about domestic abuse because it puts the strength in the voice of the victim. Its energy makes you want to sing the lyrics as loud as you can and reminds you that you should never put up with being treated any less than you deserve.

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While How Are You True has a similar theme to Punchin’ Bag about deserving better in life, the story is based on a true story about a young musician named True who was on his way to rehab when he encountered Matt Schultz on the plane to Nashville.

The song is Matt reflecting on how True might be doing now and giving him advice. He sings “Hey, how are you true? The light will guide you home, yes it will. Oh the years, they turn so fast, Soon the present will be past and you’ll look back and laugh, Yes you will”.

It’s a slow, rather sad, ballad, but it’s also a beautiful reflection on the possibility of a wasted lifetime due to addiction.

I need to preface this: This album is one of my favorite albums to ever be created in this lifetime. No exaggeration here.

From start to finish it’s full of nose-scrunching good music that combines punk, funk, and blues, all wrapped in beautiful instruments to create a new wave of rock and roll that you wouldn’t expect.

The band got its start after frontwoman Brittany Howard and bassist Zac Cockrell met in their high school psychology class and bonded over a love of Led Zeppelin and The Ramones. After the two graduated, they approached drummer Steve Johnson about joining then later convinced guitarist Heath Fogg to leave a rival band and join them.

Alabama Shakes’ sophomore album debuted at number one on Billboard’s Top 200 in the US and received four grammy nominations: Album of the Year, Best Alternative Music Album, and Best Performance/ Best Rock Song (Don’t Wanna Fight).

The album’s most notable song, Don’t Wanna Fight, hits you with the most incredibly soulful squeal that will ever grace your ears at the start the song after a gradual build of guitar and drums.

Howard credits the song’s inspiration in part to global warfare and in part to the band members’ own difficulties in trying to start out their band while also balancing day jobs and personal lives. She told UK’s The Independent that it’s about “when you’re working to get ahead but you can’t because every time you try, someone gonna take it from you”.

One of my personal favorite songs from the album, Miss You, is a slow melody with a hard-hitting chorus that follows a heartbreaking love story.

Miss You follows a couple, based on a real-life pair Howard knows, who are both addicted to crystal meth. She described writing the song to Uncut, “it was so toxic and weird and I wanted to write a love song that wasn’t like a normal love song… it’s about two people ruining each other for everyone except themselves”.

Each song on this album is an incredible example of the band’s talent and musical ability. They each take you to a different place, allowing you to feel an array of emotion. Be sure to give them all a listen and let me know what your favorites are in the comments below.

Flume has been on my music radar since I was a sophomore in high school when one of my best friends, Andrew, and I bonded over our love of his album, Skin. We would jam out to “Never Be Like You” and other songs in the car for hours.

Flume- born Harley Streten- has been a huge name in the Australian DJ scene since he began creating music under his first persona: HEDS back in 2010. Since then, he’s released multiple albums and even won a Grammy for his 2016 album Skin.

However, his most recent release, a mixtape titled “Hi This Is Flume”, is my favorite of his works to date. I can (and have many times) listened to the 38-minute record all the way through without ever losing interest. Each song is a completely new vibe, but it all feels so in sync as a whole.

Streten uses sounds that are unexpected and even considered harsh by some to create sounds that have never been used before. This creates an exciting game in which you never know what you’re going to get next.

Comparing two songs from the mixtape: High Beams & ╜φ°⌂▌╫§╜φ°⌂▌╫§╜φ°⌂▌╫§╜φ°⌂▌╫§╜φ°⌂▌╫§╜φ°⌂▌╫§╜φ°⌂▌╫§╜φ°⌂▌╫§╜φ°⌂▌╫§╜φ°⌂▌╫§╜φ°⌂▌╫§╜φ°⌂▌╫§╜φ°⌂▌╫§╜φ°⌂▌╫§╜φ°⌂▌╫§╜φ°⌂▌╫§╜φ°⌂▌╫§╜φ°⌂▌ (or as I call it, #5) we get two very different sounds. In the first, it’s a fast-paced track that includes a rapper with a unique voice, while the latter is a dreamier almost transitional song. Despite those songs feeling like polar opposites, they both fit inside the album beautifully due to Flume’s ability to create a harmony with the sounds he uses.

The most impressive part about this mixtape to me is its transitions. If you were to listen to it all the way through (how all albums should be listened to the first time around) then you would notice that there is never a break in between tracks. Each song’s end connects with the next song’s beginning creating an almost infinite sound.

I had never been a big fan of Electronic Dance Music, but Flume’s sound felt like the bridge between the music I was already into and that genre. He does what isn’t expected turns his songs into pieces of art. He has been credited as the pioneer of future bass for a reason, bringing a new level to the genre of EDM.

My name is Shea and I’m a senior at Texas State University studying public relations and mass communications. A few quick facts about me: I have a 2.5 year old cat named Spooky, I dye my hair fun colors frequently, and I spend my free time with friends usually listening to music.

I have always loved music and try to find new artists and genres often, so while I was debating topics to write about for my blog, music was an easy choice! While I plan on sharing my own opinions on each album, I’m also going to include facts about the artists, how/why each album was created, and other interesting tidbits that I can provide.

This blog is a way for me to learn more about some of my favorite albums while also educating my readers (you!) and introducing them to new artists to (hopefully) fall in love with. This blog is for anyone of any gender or age to enjoy because music is universal and no one should limit themselves to what they currently listen to!

Be sure to check out my Spotify playlist below that includes every album reviewed on this blog. Also be on the lookout for mini-playlists including similar songs to the album that I review that week. Thank you for checking out my first blog!

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