Max's Weekly Roundup
Dora Jar, Olivia Rodrigo, and A LOT MORE
Another week another bunch of really good songs, it’s crazy how this keeps happening. This week was basically non-stop bumping SOUR (more to come) but still found some time to enjoy a few other beautiful new releases.
Have a great weekend, see you Monday :)
What’s New This Week:
mhm that’s right it’s my other playlist!! my little baby, I love this one so much, it’s really good and I’m genuinely always listening to it myself. I cannot stop adding to this one, please enjoy!!
New additions to MMATOD:
favorite crime & brutal - Olivia Rodrigo
I mean…. what even is there to say.
^^^ just reiterating that. favorite crime is an instant winner for me, those harmonies just too much for my little heart to take. Delightful songwriting, sad as they might be. The urgent bridge, over one guitar - beautiful!!! And then explodes into so much emotion while maintaining such restrained production. It’s masterfully done, it feels like my heart is coming up and out of my body, still keeping the spotlight on these shining voices. Then brutal just goes off, love the anger, love the punk, love the chorus. It’d be so easy for that last line of the chorus to be a flop, but somehow she found the perfect delivery and I buy it completely. If you’ve stayed away from this album for whatever reason… don’t???
Polly - Dora Jar
90’s Pop meets 90’s R+B meets a singular and magical (almost mystical??) 2021 sound, yearning for someone but being cool the whole time, becoming invincible.
Man oh man do I love Dora Jar. Her single, Multiply, caught me at the end of last year and hasn’t let me go since. It’s really a breathtaking song. This one is a dang smash and equally breathtaking. That riff is catchy as could be, the percussion hitting hard with a range of fun sounds. But the fun doesn’t stop there!! That first line is perfectly heartbreaking, just asking the question outright. Dora Jar’s performance is so sick throughout, each moment feeling different and totally natural. We cross the 2min mark and things just fucking go. It’s a powerful powerful song, a beautiful chaos swirling together at all the right moments, one of a kind. Love it so much.
The Hearse - Mustafa
The sweetest voice, the darkest song. Trying to stay warm under the blanket, but the world around you is just so cold.
Mustafa’s voice… my goodness. It’s so dang smooth. I love the drums and the little vocal chop going wild in the intro. That first line got me good, just the way he says ‘there’s a war outside’ something about his tone is so haunting. It’s full of this quiet wisdom, quiet anger, a dark emptiness in the production. And it carries throughout the whole song. Some beautiful flutes hand us off to the final bit of the song - repeating those first few lines over just the vocal chop, filtered to indecipherability and it is the perfect end. It sounds like looking out at the skyline alone at dusk and I can’t get enough of it. The album just dropped and it made James Blake cry so, make of that what you will.
Let Go - Soft Streak
Every Soft Streak release is cause for celebration, remember when they played Ways To Lose live in MMM’s???
Did I know the Frou Frou song this is a cover of? No! Is that embarrassing? Yeah, slightly!! But there’s no place for any shame here, too much beautiful music to admire and enjoy. The song is a great fit for Soft Streak. These dreamy and ethereal verses, with descending synths, light guitar, and a jaw-dropping vocal performance!! I feel like I’m walking near a pond?? It breaks loose into a welcoming chorus, both in sound and lyrics. The whole band coming out of their shells, meshing perfectly and giving such life to some moving songwriting. “So let go, let go / jump in / Oh well, whatcha waiting for / It's alright ‘cause there's beauty in the breakdown” :tearing up emoji: A really touching song and a lovely cover.
Take It Back - JAWNY
Playing it cool then letting loose the moment you can, it’s rock n roll folks.
JAWNY continues his hot streak, this time with a certified ripper. This one just rocks! What can ya say!! The verses are simple and cozy, and then the friends show up, they’ve got your back and they’re screaming right by your side. The guitar solo reminds me so specifically of the solo from The White Stripes’ Girl You Have No Faith In Medicine one of my first rock obsessions, so naturally this one made me feel right at home.
Superstar - Zola Courtney & Caleborate
Unexpected but perfect collaborations, funk but make it r&b but also make it hip hop and also a little soulful since we’re here.
OK ZOLA! I got on the Zola Courtney train back in 2019 when Nothing to Lose came out, this dreamy R&B number just full of love and incredible production. But on this one, Courtney went ahead and cranked the funk level up to ‘Very Funky’, and I’m thrilled. The bass is thumping. The vocals are as strong as ever, so light as they float us through that pre-chorus. I’m dancing I’m dancing and then before I know it, Caleborate shows up??? This party keeps getting better and better. A breezy bouncy verse, the pair fit together seamlessly, it’s a real treat. Then to top it off, Courtney goes bonkers at the end, some gorgeous runs and harmonies to match.
Mol y Sol - Brijs
A timeless riff, strong and gentle at the same time, just sounds like a music festival
Ok so I’m a little late to the party here, but this song is freaking infectious. It’s bright and summery, it’s easy and playful, it’s just nice. Another one of those songs that just feel like you’ve known them forever. The thick first note of the riff like you’re smashing a dang gong. I’ve been kind of hooked on that one note, it is somehow so heavy and yet not disruptive? I can’t quite put my finger on the metaphor, but something so beautiful about something you can’t ignore happening - and the world around just continues on. The bridge build-up is so pure and beautiful. It’s a fun song :)
Six songs that just dropped that I bet will be good but I haven’t listened to enough to actually write about. Give ‘em a try! I think you’ll like them.
WOW… a little something for everybody here… this Yola song is big!!! Buscabulla always worth a listen/dance. Deem Spencer x Okay Kaya is surprising but perfectly weird. LPX rules. Lecx Stacy only ever doing their own thing and it’s working. Orah & the Kites undeniably easy and warm.
Ok that’s enough!!! My fingers hurt from typing, my feet hurt from dancing.
So much good music here I hope you’ll share with anyone else you know who might be looking for new music, everyone is welcome! plz + ty.
XOXO,
Max