Scratch Vinyl

  CHROMAKOPIA  I have a list of albums to write about that I have been following for each week but with the release of Tyler, The Creator’s new album happening today, I decided to cover this one instead. Tyler has entered a new stage of his life and is beginning to question himself and his choices. This feels far more personal than his previous albums. CHROMAKOPIA is a great high-concept album with many layers. Here he introduced a new persona to add to his many alter egos that make up his discography and identity. This is something that I’ve always admired about his music, how he attaches himself to his art in a way I haven’t seen other rappers do.  The persona for this era is presumably referred to as St. Chroma which is also the name of the opening track. A military motif can be heard in the form of chants as well as the military uniform featured on the album cover. This character is inspired by Chroma the Great, a character from the children’s novel The Phantom Tollb...

    How to Be a Human Being  Glass Animals released How to Be a Human Being in 2016. This is an album I’m very familiar with, however I will not waste the chance to write about one of the most interesting concept albums I’ve listened to. I was also fortunate enough to see them in concert a few years back so I have a personal connection to this album. How to Be a Human Being has a total of eleven songs, each representing one person on the cover art. I’d like to focus more on the meanings of these songs as they are inspired by the stories of real everyday people they encountered during their travels.  Life Itself is a lovely album opener and sets the tone for the rest of the album well. The instrumental in the beginning seems to contain a transition from the sounds of their previous album Zaba , into their new sound. The song has a lot of energy despite the dark contrasting lyrics about a person struggling to fit into society. The narrator is arrogant, the lyrics s...

  Disappear Here Bad Suns released their sophomore indie rock album, Disappear Here in 2016. This is another band that I have no knowledge of so I was pretty excited to give it a try. I enjoy getting to listen to something entirely new, leaving it up to me to form my own opinions without any preconceived notions or expectations of the band. Bad Suns is clearly influenced by ‘70s and ‘80s music as those elements are present in many of their songs. Disappear Here has a certain level of polish, making it a well refined album about the varying degrees of how love and heartbreak can impact you.  The title track, Disappear Here is a great opening that sets the tone for the rest of the album. The strong vocals and dynamic instrumental made me excited for what’s to come. The song explores themes of longing and the uncertainty of relationships. He entertains the conflicting feelings regarding if he should give their love another chance or let them ‘disappear here’. He wants to escape...

  2020  Released by English singer and songwriter Richard Dawson in 2019, 2020 serves as a prediction for what 2020 is going to look like. He places great emphasis on the dystopia of the modern world. The last few albums I’ve reviewed were a bit sad so listening to something so uniquely bizarre was a more than welcome experience. From the premise of the album alone, I knew that 2020 was going to be something special.  As far as first impressions go, I can best describe this album as aggressively British. The lyrics make it blatantly obvious with the most quintessential references to British culture. Many of these tracks feature him monologuing about his daily life, detailing his observations in song form. Even in its most mundane messaging, Dawson manages to tell a compelling story in each of these songs. The first track, Civil Servant is a ballad about not wanting to work. I found lyrics like Shoveling crisps in my face to be goofy but they added to the overall charm o...

  Pony  The debut album of country artist Orville Peck, Pony was released in 2019. Country music has a certain reputation, people will often view it as promoting a narrow worldview. This was a very unique listening experience to me because this is a genre that I don’t particularly like. Nothing against it but I haven’t connected to it as much as I would like. Pony made me realize that I just wasn’t listening to the right artists. Peck produces a more of an alternative genre of country music, featuring elements of goth, shoegaze, and indie rock. This was a new spin on a genre I have neglected previously, so this reimagining was a pleasant surprise.  His main trademark is that he wears a fringe mask, giving him a bit of mystique. I really enjoy his gimmick though I can understand if it's not for everybody. His take on the genre sets the mood quite well, being a pretty cohesive album. The traditional country music fan is usually depicted as having more conservative values b...