Max's Music Mondays with Hailes and i-sef u-sef
March Madness? Yeah, it's mad how good these songs are!! (sorry)
Idk if you already saw, but uh-huh, yes, absolutely, you can in fact now read Max's Music Mondays in the new Substack app <3 <3
Is it gauche to promote substack’s app even though I don’t make a dime for doing so? Yeah, maybe?? But I genuinely have enjoyed the app already. I subscribe to wayyyyy too many substacks (way too many in the I-can’t-keep-up way) and this has offered a really nice way to catch up with a few more from moment to moment. And maybe it’d be worthwhile for you too.
Anyways!!!
Welcome to Max’s Music Mondays. My ~music discovery newsletter~ where I get too excited about songs I love. I hope you love them too. If you do, follow along on spotify and please be sure to absolute smash that dang subscribe button! tysm :)
Yeah yeah yeah, it’s Tuesday. Ok, you know it, I know it, but hey I was… busy…? Mostly just tired, as my time in Brooklyn comes to a close I am exhausted. I’ve got another day or so before I head back, and while I’ve loved every minute, the reminder of what winter actually feels like has me well and ready to go. It helps that I do miss LA too.
But enough about my bi-coastal opinions. This week there’s a more of-the-moment topic. March Madness! Yes that’s right, our favorite time of year where madness is actually good!!
Yesterday (i wrote this monday…) was selection sunday, and I’ve got to say, as an active alliterationist myself, I respect the NCAA’s hustle on those two. But it was pretty special to see. Besides getting to enjoy it alongside some of my closest friends (always special), it’s moments like that which give me so much perspective and appreciation for life. The broadcast flies through the men’s bracket, announcing/showing the 68 teams and their matchups. Each reveal offering the team 10 seconds of reaction time, someone in each frame achieving their lifelong goal. It’s really a joy to see others’ joy, but these announcements mean so much to so many people. To the players, staff, families, students, and endless list of names, list of lives that are forever changed by the moment. Worlds that I don’t even know exist, worlds that I probably won’t remember this time next year. And yet, how special to get to witness their moment.
Of course I love it. It’s right up my alley. It feels like I’m working the camera every week here on the MMM broadcast. And even though you aren’t witnessing the seasons that lead us here, the ups and the downs that made these musicians who they are, musically and as humans, you get to see them in this moment. This incredible achievement in song form. It’s such a joy to share those with you, and hope you can appreciate them too.
This Week’s Songs
Please please follow along here ^^ for this week’s and every week’s songs. They’re all really good I swear!!! <3 Please like and enjoy and send to someone you like and enjoy!!
Hailes - Draft 7 “fruitless love”
It’s too easy to say, “well if this is a draft i can’t wait to see the real thing” but folks, this is the real thing. The real deal, a beautiful and mesmerizing song. Each tone more beautiful than the last, this intro just works. That beautiful bass line, a perfect flair just when it’s needed. That guitar soloing across octaves as it emerges from the water. You can feel so many rich greens and blues, dark and dewey. I love that first breathe, of course. It’s slow and deep, not in any rush, just wanting to get this right. And Hailes does. What a voice, it’s strong and full, but so dynamic, holding on for those gentle moments as lines come to a close. She calls for a window to be opened and it brings us into another world. This new voice, which I suspect is Hailes’ pitched down(?), comes flying in, such a mystifying rhythm. One that caught me off guard landing just before the bass and drums. It all mixes perfectly, urgent but not rushing, a great groove, a necessary pace. The contrast in the give and take with these lower vocals and Hailes’ return “cuz i all i have is fruitless love” makes for a delightful one-two punch. The first so unique and ear-catching as it hustles by, Hailes so calm and inviting. And of course, that lyric is so magnificently devastating, a gut punch of its own. I’m glad it’s given the spotlight like that. The chorus gives way to another new wrinkle, rapping through this post-chorus. More brutal writing - in the good way - Hailes coming to terms with fears of abandonment, feeling a lover slowly pulling away. Hammering home this admission that all she has is fruitless love :,(
Repeated back with an added layer or two, it feels like this conversation isn’t new - self-talk returning to haunt us again and again. The bass keeps shining here, that riff just so dang juicy. Some nostalgic and warm keys lining the way forward, the gentle guide we need to keep moving forward. Floating forward, as each piece of the puzzle swirls and mixes, the whole thing intertwining further into itself. Somehow we’ve already made it to the end? So much beauty packed into this one, it’s one you can kind of just step into and let wash over you. As I type, I couldn’t be more relaxed or at ease, even with the pain in the lyrics. Just a sick tune, so well made and performed.
Follow Hailes on IG / Spotify
i-sef u-sef - it stays the same
Yeah let’s get a little silly!! Where silly really just means, different and fucking good. Over bass and some drums, an orchestra of bassoon’s fills the mix. Chords being born, mushrooming up with such a beautiful texture. The chords themselves feel unique too, rare almost, even though idk, can a chord be rare? But they still feel fresh to me, slowly plodding forward as that shaker rubs left and right, kick drum rolling, that snare popping. It’s very cinematic, moving through the streets, a city in motion at night. The groove keeping me on my toes, like the percussion and bassoons living in two different speeds, pulling at each other, finding a nice middle ground. The vocals really work for me here too, i-sef u-sef with one take in either ear, his voice finding a happy home between twig twig and James Blake, entirely i-sef u-sef all the same. The structure of the vocals is built so well. These long lingering lyrics, stretching on beyond the horizon, a couplet that feels like so much more. Relenting finally to the titular lyric - it stays the same. Of course, each time he lets out another ‘the same’ it’s changed completely, the energy shifting, grabbing some grittiness at the end of his breathe, the melody exploring something new, somehow unique each time. That second verse is mesmerizing. The lyrics like honey slowly falling from his mouth, feels incredibly sweet too. I kind of keep getting lost in this one, its beauty rocking me into a trance. But each time I listen, it’s this moment that wakes me up anew. 1:25 kicks off the sought-after and all-too-rare bassoon solo. It’s a tremendous showcase of i-sef u-sef’s talent, but also just a stunning moment of music. One bassoon rising above the rest, its first few bars like a candle burning, the flame dancing until it slows to that final wisp of smoke, floating up from 1:36-1:38. But we’re blessed, it’s not done yet. The second half of the solo showcases adventurous runs, fearless exploration, and just generally wild bassoon that’s a treat to listen to. It doubles as the outro, the “the same” still getting repeated over it all. It really is a song to get lost in. I love writing these because essentially all I do is listen to each song over and over and over, and what a joy this one has been to live in. It ends abruptly, as I gasp, not ready to lose that bassoon solo just yet. But hey, can always hit play again.
Follow i-sef u-sef on IG / Spotify
Here’s what else I’ve been listening to.
(click this ^^ for the full playlist lol)
Charli XCX - Every Rule
I am as excited as ever for this Charli album. This right-place-wrong-time ballad is a stunner. A bit more mellow and sparse than the previous Crash singles, opening the door to enjoy Charli’s performance and writing. Some tasteful production from A.G. Cook, what’s not to love? These kinds of songs always find a home on Charli’s records, and over time often end up being a personal fav. how i’m feeling now’s party 4 u, Charli’s Official. If you’re generous, Pop 2’s Tears too. Either way, this song rocks on its own and I will be listening to it a lot! Sorry!!
MICHELLE - LAYLA IN THE ROCKET
The MICHELLE album is here!!! LAYLA IN THE ROCKET is an early fav, that intro riff infectious, the drums exploding and the band stepping in. A beautiful first moment. The strong suit of MICHELLE, of course, the array and arrangement of vocals - each member of the band bringing their own unique tone and feel, and all of them sounding so dang fun and good together. The chorus is perfect too -
I’m blasting off in three
I watch you through the window, crying
the satelites and me
layla in the rocket, smiling
A fun pop song :)
Orville Peck - Hexie Mountains
The early fav off Bronco, it’s a beauty. Orville Peck’s vocals really on display from the jump, no holding back. A voice as big as the dang mountains!! I love the way the piano punctuates the first chorus, sticking around for the next verse. The gentle percussion galloping on, the whole team gathering steam as we approach another chorus. Brief as it is, Orville letting loose. A nice banjo solo, it’s all so dreamy. Topped off with a banging outro, the song threatening to explode with each step forward, I really love it.
Mitski x David Byrne x Son Lux - This Is A Life
hahahaha wow what a combo. Spoiled by any Mitski release, and here with David Byrne sounding like a damn dirty projector, it’s a wonderfully loving and equally haunting combo. I’ve been devouring it. It rumbles on, in awe at the drummer’s patience, until it erupts just passed 90 seconds, a true volcano, lava flying out. Then the whole thing settles right back down as if nothing had happened. Kind, loving, accepting. The chills I get from those last two lines. A stunner!!!
MHM that’ll do it, folks! We made it!! Thank you as always for listening, for reading, for generally just ~being here~ for me. Never getting over how much of a joy it is to get to share this space and these songs with you every week.
If you think another friend might enjoy? Please send it their way!! Like what you heard? See u in the damn comments!!!
Best,
Max
Give me a "sought-after and all-too-rare bassoon solo" any day.