A Love Letter to Los Angeles 💘
A Love Letter to Los Angeles 💘
Shuffle Sundays #37 • Chvrches, Billie Eilish, Halsey, Radiohead, Eddie Vedder, BadBadNotGood, Comedy Wildlife Photography, & more!
Hello and welcome to Shuffle Sundays, a weekly newsletter with music recommendations to help you find your next obsession.
This week we’re listening to a horror-inspired synth-pop album, watching a concert from one of the biggest names in music right now, feeling inspired by some pretty funny wildlife photographs, checking out some new music released this past week, and more. Enjoy the read!
🎧 Soundtrack: Wednesday Campanella - Zipangu (ジパング)
💽 » Chvrches - Screen Violence
synth-pop, indie, alternative • 10 songs • 43 minutes
3 years after the underwhelming Love is Dead (2018), the Scottish synth-pop trio CHVRCHES is back with their 4th studio album Screen Violence, already considered one of the best in their discography. Not only they are sounding better than ever, bringing back the sound that made them famous almost 10 years ago, but this time taking all the production elements to the next level. And while everything sounds great, the lyrics are right behind adding many more layers into this polished work. The lyrical content explores themes like panic attack, isolation, and depression, in a way that sounds both extremely personal, but also very broad, making it extremely accessible for any listener to relate to. Another great thing about Screen Violence is the many references the album borrows from a sub-genre of horror films known as “final girl”, which also happens to be the title of one of the tracks here. My favorite song on the album (and one of my favorites of the year) is still How Not To Drown, which features The Cure’s own Robert Smith.
Listen on Spotify | Apple Music | YouTube
🎥 » Happier Than Ever: A Love Letter to Los Angeles
It’s been a little over a month since Billie Eilish released her incredible sophomore album Happier Than Ever, and I continue to enjoy every second of it. If you still haven’t listened to the record, this may be the best opportunity to do so, by watching the concert film “Happier Than Ever: A Love Letter to Los Angeles”. Different than many concerts available on streaming, here we watch Eilish performing the album live back to back, from an empty Hollywood Bowl, the seminal venue in Los Angeles, where Billie itself claims to have had attended many concerts as a fan. It’s weird watching a concert with no audience, but that’s easily forgotten the minute you get sucked into her world — kudos to the great cinematography throughout the whole set. Another beautiful surprise is the addition of the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra, conducted by Gustavo Dudamel, that accompanies the band on stage for some of the slower tunes, making the tracks sound even better than the original studio versions.
📺 » Halsey - I'm Not a Woman, I'm a God
I still have a lot of mixed feelings towards Halsey’s new album “If I Can’t Have Love, I Want Power”. Maybe because my expectations were way too high when I’ve heard that the album was being produced by Nine Inch Nails’ Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross, who has been making incredible work writing many memorable film scores. But despite my opinion about the record as a whole, I'm Not a Woman, I'm a God is still one of the best tracks by far.
Watch the music video on YouTube
🔀 » Shuffle News
• Radiohead is reissuing their classic albums Kid A and Amnesiac this fall, followed by a companion album called Kid Amnesiae, which will contain offcuts from both records. The triple-LP, titled Kid A Mnesia, will be out on November 5th.
• Eddie Vedder (from Pearl Jam) announced a new solo album, called Earthling, and released the first single Long Way. Listen here.
• The great Canada-based jazz ensemble BadBadNotGood is also back with a new single called Beside April, which features Brazilian legend Arthur Verocai. Talk Memory is out on October 8th.
⚡️ » Visual Inspiration
I had no idea there was such a thing as a “Comedy Wildlife Photography Awards”, but looking through the 2021 finalists put a big smile on my face. You can see the full list on the official website. Here are some favorites:
🎶 » New Music
This week’s new albums I'm particularly interested in checking out:
Also, new singles from Mars Motel, Sufjan Stevens, Thrice, Twenty One Pilots, and many more. If you’re curious to hear some of these songs and more, make sure to follow my 2021 playlist on Spotify, updated weekly with new releases:
👋🏼 See you next Sunday!
My name is Leo Mascaro and you are receiving this email because you signed up for Shuffle Sundays, a weekly publication that aims to bring music recommendations for people who feel overwhelmed with so much content out there, helping you find your next favorite artist, album, genre, and more. If this email was forwarded to you, subscribe using the box below:
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