My Shout-Outs: Last Semester/Graduation

Well, I did it y'all!

4.5 years after I left high school, I have officially graduated college!! And though it's been a very rewarding last semester, I still have to thank everyone who has gotten me to this point. But before I do that...

When I first left for college on that hot August day in 2012--my first day in the Blugold Marching Band--I did think that I was going to blossom into the person I always wanted to be. I thought that I was going to find my "people" in the music students at Haas Fine Arts Center. If you've already been reading this blog, you don't need to guess that I indeed found wonderful human beings at my university...just not in the places I expected. I have spent much time obsessing over how differently I wanted my experience in the music program to be, but once and for all, I think that I need to just lay out my one true regret about my time there. I know that my communication skills are still being perfected, but there is one part of me that wishes that I could've been more myself in HFA. I wish that they would've given me a real chance to show that I definitely was there with the best intentions. I could've shown them more character, and they could've shown me more patience. I don't know if I ever will see any of them past this point, but I do think that everyone I've met (and myself) will achieve what they were meant to achieve. This isn't necessarily an apology to them, but I am recognizing that there was a lot that didn't come out. And as much as I've been misunderstood, I wish that I could've understood more about where they were coming from--mentally and emotionally. Maybe it was a lost opportunity, but I know that this was an experience for me to learn from. 

Regardless of what I didn't accomplish, I've grown to appreciate the fact that I've made it this far. This one door has been closed for good, but now I can knock on 100 more until someone finally says yes. 

And, with all of that said, I will take the rest of this time to list every one of those special people that made my journey worthwhile. 

Lauren Hintz, Zack Bartsch, Lacey Kroll, Lucas Brawdy, Logan Kaduce, Alex 'Plato' Plaetzer,
Alycia Crowe, Alex Herrera, Sam Zimmerman, Rosie Evans, Becky Olson, Andrew Nicholson,
Haley Reichardt, Kelsie Hines, Paul Soulier, Angie Coyle, Autumn Schacherl, Bobbi Freagon,
Sam Olson, Gage Donkers, Chad Mantey, Trent Spatenka, Deidra Gibson, Mariah Kewin,
Marie Kaczmarek, Lexy Henkleman, Emily Spence, Bryan Kujawa, Makayla Chandler,
Sarah McAlveen (I hope I spelled that right), Sarah DiPiazza, Karlie Korish, Christi Ladwig,
Ashley Sukhu, Alex Exworthy, Mitchell Marten, Josie Peterson, Anne Sandell, Courtney Mensink, Hunter Jeske, Summer Underwood, Amanda Koval, Quinn Reinhard, Gaby Calawerts, Siri Stensberg, Alex Knoepker, Heather Jones, Karlie Hansen, Kristine Mienke, Michael Lindau, Brielle Cummings, Garrett Aalfs, Nathalie Burmeister, Courtney Walin, Matt Strom, Forrest & Clarissa Cleven-Peterson, Adam Accola, Nalika Nom, Rachel Burtman, Madeline Reilly, McKenna Heintz, Britany Chartier (now Turinske!), Joe Poncelet, Cody Norling, Grace Luebben, Molly Jones, Mackenzie Palmer, Rachel Battles, Rachel Eckwright, Anika Reinighaus, Nicole Karlove, Christine Lasee, Jasmine Hanson, Michael Dellutri, Megan Skrbec, Carlee Schneider, Sara Rieke, Leslie Hoffman, Jordan Jenkins, Matt Halverson, Hannah Steig, Heather Colwell, Abby Schultz, Brady Scafe, Shelby Moore, Anastasia Rauland, Tyler Tolan, Annie Jackson, Emilie Zamarripa, Elizabeth Brunner, Hannah Nennig, Alyse Weber, Melissa Ruhbusch, Alli Wilmes, Brandon Hoege, Andy Michor, Sierra Joswick, Brianne Ackley, Bronte Stewart, Sam Kelley, Eli & Spencer Webb, Kristen Heller, Nathan Cicero, Shalaine Buehl, Jake Sabel, Jess & Emily Ecker, Sarah Leppert, Peter Beckwith, Maggie Donovan, Briar Swann, Rosie Moua, Kirsten Miller, Shannon Durley (now Schield!), Jenn Peterson, Tyler Stromquist-Levoir, Judi Johnson, Courtney Yeager, Allison Litke, Melissa Erath, Joel Paltzer, Kara Metzger, Sarah Faste, Grant Sachs, Marc Cain, Adam Wysocki, Mariah Sands, Heather Jordan, Dominic Meinke, Jenni Nueske, Jacob Brunnquell, Alyssa Gorell, Amanda Nieman, Emily Bacon, Lara Bockenstedt, Kelli Gasparka, Amy Whiteman, Hannah Hodgett (now Holman!), Rose Mish, Hayley Kubler, Lexi Meier, Megan Schuknecht, Meredith Enjaian

Damn that's a lot of people! (146 to be exact), but I still have a few more! 

Daniel Steiner-my first roommate, who I still love to this day
Crystine Adams-the person who got me through orchestra, and took me to DQ for smoothies!
Kelly Noltner-my first friend from music theory, who is always nice to me and is forever on my side
Hannah Zirbes-my world music buddy who is also a BAMF at flute
Teresa Wolfe-my music history study partner and soul-mate
Jesse Kozak, Trevor Kent, and Katie Lane-my lit squad fam from Haas, who always made me laugh and happy that I got out of bed that morning
Shane O'Neil-my best guy friend who provided me with plenty of moral support and life advice
Katelyn Klevgard-my lunch buddy, MacDons buddy, and horn studio friend that is hilarious

And now, some love letters:
Nathan Gilger, Jake Kavinsky, and Dom Faraglia-The best roommates in the entire world
Andrea Ranzau-My soul survivor sista, continue to fight
Briana Buchholtz-The first friend I ever made in college, and still kicking ass today
Emily Watkins-Probably my bestest friend in the entire universe, I honestly can't thank you enough

Everyone I've mentioned here is special to me, and I'm glad to have known every single one of you. Goodbye for now; I know I'll see you around when we've reached the top of the world that is opening up to us with each passing day.

Peace out.

Albums and Songs I Liked in 2016

Now that I got the worst songs out of my system, I'll move on to the music I actually liked in 2016. 

Rachel Platten-"Wildfire"
Track Picks-"Astronauts" **Favorite Song of 2016**, "Better Place"

Sia-"This Is Acting"
Track Picks-"Bird Set Free", "Alive", "Cheap Thrills", "Broken Glass", "One Million Bullets", "Move Your Body"

Foxes-"All I Need" **Best Pop Album of 2016**
Track Picks-"Better Love", "Body Talk", "Cruel", "Shoot Me Down", "Amazing", "Money", "Wicked Love", "Feet Don't Fail Me Now"

Shura-"Nothing's Real"
Track Picks-"What's It Gonna Be?", "Indecision", "Make It Up"

Pet Shop Boys-"Super"
Track Picks-"The Pop Kids", "Groovy", "Undertow", "Burn" 

Rihanna-"Anti"
Track Picks-"Kiss It Better", "Never-Ending", "Desperado"

Empire of the Sun-"Two Vines"
Track Picks-"High and Low", "Friends", "There's No Need", "First Crush", "Ride"

Tove Lo-"Lady Wood"
Track Picks-"Influence", "Lady Wood", "True Disaster", "Cool Girl"

Kristin Kontrol-"X Communicate"
Track Picks-"White Street", "(Don't) Wannabe", "X-Communicate", "Skin Shed", "Going Thru The Motions"

Ariana Grande-"Dangerous Woman"
Track Picks-"Into You", "Side to Side", "Thinking Bout You", "Be Alright", "Greedy"

Tegan & Sara-"Love You To Death"
Track Picks-"That Girl", "Faint of Heart", "Dying To Know", "Stop Desire", "U-Turn", "Boyfriend"

JoJo-"Mad Love"
Track Picks-"FAB", "Honest"

Melanie C-"Version Of Me"
Track Picks-"Anymore", "Numb", "Blame"

Gwen Stefani-"Make Me Like You", "Used To Love You", "Rare", "Splash"

Britney Spears-"Glory"
Track Picks-"Better", "Clumsy", "Invitation", "Coupure Electrique", "Man on the Moon"

AlunaGeorge-"I Remember"
Track Picks-"Mean What I Mean", "I'm In Control", "Hold Your Head High", "Jealous"

Banks-"The Altar"
Track Picks-"Gemini Feed", "Trainwreck", "Poltergeist", "To The Hilt"

Carly Rae Jepsen-"Emotion: Side B"
Track Picks-"Higher", "Fever", "Body Language", "Cry", "Roses"

Deadmau5-"4ware", "Let Go"

Katy B-"I Wanna Be"

Miranda Lambert-"The Weight of These Wings"
Track Picks-"Runnin Just In Case", "Highway Vagabond", "Ugly Lights", "Use My Heart", "For The Birds", "I've Got Wheels"

Swimming With Dolphins-"Let You Love"

The Veronicas-"On Your Side", "In My Blood"

So, what were your favorites of 2016?

Lady Gaga-"Joanne" Review

Never the one to do things half-assed, Lady Gaga's greatest strength is also her greatest weakness. Her success has always hinged on whether this ambition ignited her imagination--"The Fame" and "The Fame Monster" remain kaleidoscopic and thrilling listens--or stifled it. "Born This Way" started the trend of Gaga's determination undermining itself, but her excessiveness reached a fever pitch in 2013's "ARTPOP". It tried so hard to marry pop and the avant-garde, that it rarely satisfied both audiences at once. But despite feeling claustrophobic, it was still something only Lady Gaga could make. That's more than what you can say for "Joanne", her 2016 sequel to the affair. Her ferocious work ethic is the weakest link in this frustratingly ordinary album. Lady Gaga finds one rock groove--accented with twang and folk sensibility--and stays relentlessly stays there. She throws in some  R&B/Soul--most explicitly and predictably on the Florence Welch assistsed "Hey Girl"--but the entirety of "Joanne" is one track repeated ad nauseam. Even if there are slight changes in the particulars, the overall impression is the same languid beats accompanying the most unimaginative songs Lady Gaga has ever wrote. It's as if she thinks that adding country and adult contemporary alone makes an album great (which of course it doesn't), and she makes glaring errors in her execution because of it.


She has already proven herself to be a gifted vocalist, in range and force, but she, for some reason, feels the need to deliver these songs with the most neck-cringing enunciation she could manage. This is mostly prevalent in the lead single "Perfect Illusion", where 'illusion' is E-LOO-SION and 'love' is LAHVE, but these moments come fast and furious throughout the rest of the album as well. Gaga still has plenty of on-record personality, but she's lost her charisma to the faceless-ness of 90s/modern country. She isn't, nor has she ever been, a honky-tonk woman like Shania Twain or Faith Hill, and even if she truly values Americana and roots-rock, on "Joanne" it feels like she's dressing up in Sheryl Crow and Jewel hand-me-downs. Unsurprisingly, though, Lady Gaga's biggest enemy here, is herself. Her past work haunts "Joanne" like 80s Madonna did in "The Fame". She has done country and rock very well before--"You and I", "Speechless", "The Edge of Glory", "Bad Kids"--but it's actually to "Joanne"'s detriment that it bears so many retreads to "Born This Way". There's nothing fresh here; even if Gaga is still trying so hard to make this record work, the productions, songs, and performances don't have much life to them. They're self-conscious and flat, as is the pretense that she's being more 'personal' and 'honest' than her previous work. Of course she isn't: she's always been a character, someone who's life is fueled by the creative and the artistic. There's nothing creative or artistic about "Joanne": the protest songs "Angel Down" and "Come to Mama" are weak at best, ballads like "Million Reasons" are dull, and any attempt at rock-n-roll ("John Wayne", "Diamond Heart") kicks up dust and grinding guitars but little fun.


There's absolutely nothing wrong with a change of pace, but when the results are as startlingly mediocre as this, you start to wonder why an artist would abandon all of the things that made them a star in the first place. Lady Gaga's detractors may have been right in saying that she could put too much emphasis on garish over-eccentricity for its own sake, but it was her signature, that special quality that allowed her to rise head and shoulders above her peers. But "Joanne" isn't quirky or daring, it's safe and obvious. It shoots so far beneath Gaga's abilities as a writer and performer--as well as Mark Ronson's knack for monster hooks and funky rhythms--that it doesn't really have a reason to exist. At one point, it was endearing to see Lady Gaga trying so hard to prove herself, either visually, artistically, vocally, or musically, but now it's not only tiring, it's embarrassing. What she does next can only come as a pleasant surprise.


Recommended Tracks:
"Joanne"
"Sinner's Prayer"

Britney Spears-"Glory" Review



For all its criticism and commercial non-performance, 2013's "Britney Jean" wasn't THAT bad. It was too short, had its fair share of filler, and even a turgid ballad ("Perfume"), but we're still talking about it, aren't we? It was memorable enough to remain in the public consciousness when Brit Brit announced her ninth album, "Glory", in the summer of 2016. The resounding worry of this record being worse than "Britney Jean" was palpable. What was also heavily felt was the doubt of  "Glory" returning Spears to the pinnacle of pop. Despite a hugely successful Las Vegas residency (and two number one hits), the 2010s have not been kind to Britney. None of her albums have cracked one million in sales, she ceased to have top ten hits after 2011, and when she tried to shake things up with the Iggy Azalea-assisted "Pretty Girls" in 2015, it flopped. Big time. Such embarrassments are detrimental to pop stars in their early careers, let alone veterans of the industry well into their 30s. Indeed, the pressure for "Glory" to live up to its name was high.

It's interesting, then, to see "Make Me..." chosen as the lead single; a spacey, relaxed almost-ballad featuring a verse from G-Eazy. It was produced by Burns, an electronic producer already prominent in the UK. This is the closest "Glory" gets to high-thread producers, other than Mattman & Robin, who helm thee tracks overall ("Do You Wanna Come Over?", "Slumber Party", and "Change Your Mind (No Seas Cortes)". Cashmere Cat, Mischke, Nick Monson, and Tramaine "Young Fyre" Winfrey pick up most of the production duties (with cameos from Bloodpop and Andrew Goldstein). Based on these credits, it certainly appears like Britney is genuinely trying to expand her sound, while retaining enough pop appeal to please her longtime fans. On occasion this works--the deliriously fun "Clumsy", dreamy "Invitation", upbeat "Man on the Moon"--but "Glory" most often stumbles over its modernity. Witness the utter disaster that is "Private Show", a top contender for the worst song Spears, or anyone else, has ever performed. Other tracks like "Love Me Down", "Liar", and "Just Like Me" rely too much on their heavy-handed Hip-Hop, and not enough on Britney's still intact on-record charisma. The Las Vegas influence comes out on "What You Need", but its organs and bombast are too much for Spears to handle. Her signature thin vocal doesn't protrude through thick pop gloss that is drizzled through most of "Glory", and it unfortunately can't muster up enough memorable or even hooky melodies to keep a listener in its orbit. Of course it's admirable to hear Britney trying on different styles and moods, and the absence of will.i.am and Max Martin isn't felt (or missed). There's also a real sense of effort here--writing and singing a song all in French ("Coupure Electrique")?! You go Brit Brit--which is a relief considering how rushed and unfulfilled "Britney Jean" seemed to be. Overall, though, "Glory" more or less provides the same amount of strong songs as its predecessor, while still playing to Spears'  lingering bad habits. This is not a "comeback" record for sure, but at this point in her career, it might be too much to ask for anything more.

Recommended Tracks:

"Invitation"

"Clumsy"

"Better"

"Coupure Electrique"

Carly Rae Jepsen-"Emotion: Side B" Review

Since Carly Rae Jepsen's third album, "Emotion", was so ridiculously overpraised, expectations for its commercial performance were set far too high. It only reached the top ten in three countries, spawned no big hits, and sold less than 500,000 copies. This underwhelm shocked the legions of critics who deemed "Emotion" the best pop album of 2015. Of course, those same critics also deemed Carly Rae Jepsen a disposable pop-tart when "Call Me Maybe" swept the globe in 2012. And, of course, it was due to these low expectations that caused them to think of "Emotion" as a masterpiece of sorts. Any objective listener, such as yours truly, would've gawked at the 80s cheese--no more prevalent than in the boring "All That" or the clanging, cluttered "When I Needed You"--and the album's overall flaw of taking itself too seriously. There were fun songs ("Run A way With Me", "Making The Most of the Night"), but the majority of the album set its sights on critical acclaim, winding up over-calculated and chintzy. Nothing really explains why Carly Rae would release a companion EP of unused material a year after "Emotion" flopped, but it's interesting to hear songs that were excised from the original product. Perhaps they could provide a glimpse into the creative process; to put the songs that made the cut into a larger context.

What "Emotion: Side B" does, then, is prove that Carly Rae Jepsen has great instincts when writing pop songs and choosing producers to give them infectious beats and sounds. However, her state-of-the-art does not cross over into constructing a proper album. Even though this EP is billed as a collection of b-side leftovers, the best cuts here should've been included on "Emotion", instead of the twee that took their place. Lead-off track "First Time" is definitely rooted in 80s synthpop, but its balanced by enough modern techniques to give it a contemporary feel. Same goes for the infectious "Higher", the most obvious choice for a single here. Back-half highlights include the shimmery electro-pop of "Cry", and the EP's best dance track, "Body Language". Other than these highlights, the other songs are just OK ("Roses", "The One"), and some songs--particularly "Store"--sound like snippets of other bad songs meshed together. Carly Rae was right to leave the weaker cuts off "Emotion", but it's maddening to see that the better ones were overlooked. "Emotion: Side B" doesn't necessarily holds it own has a cohesive EP, but it ultimately shows that Jepsen can make some kick-ass pop songs when she's up for it. Her biggest challenge now is to translate her considerable skills as a song craftsmen into albums that fulfill her ludicrously large potential.

Recommended Tracks:
"First Time"
"Higher"
"Body Language"
"Cry"

Meghan Trainor: "Thank You" Review

Well, this is awkward. After facing down backlash for "All About That Bass", Meghan Trainor's attention was then diverted to the enormous slander of her single "Dear Future Husband". Many insults were thrown--non-feminist! sexist! to start--and then she saw her stardom crumble further when Charlie Puth dragged her along for the abomination that was "Marvin Gaye". Less than a year after her debut became a smash, it looked like Meghan Trainor was on her way to be the next Robin Thicke: disgraced from the mainstream after one scandal too many. She was able to release the John Legend-assisted snoozer "Like I'm Gonna Lose You" just in time to score another hit, but the damage was done: Trainor no longer had the leverage to make any political or social statements like she did in "Title". Really, the only way for her career to continue was to wash away any sort of identity marker, blending in with the rest of radio and peacefully exist as an anonymous pop star. She introduced this image overhaul with "NO", a Destiny's Child hand-me-down that transparently appropriated Y2K for a modern audience. The song was catchy enough to become a top three hit, and would've made a pretty good base for Trainor's speedily released sophomore album "Thank You". Only one problem: the time she would've spent making a statement about feminism, body image, or independence, she has condensed into half an album's worth of shameless narcissism. It's clear that the only person she's thanking here is herself, and she doesn't even try to hide her inflated ego with the opening salvo of "Watch Me Do", "Me Too", and "NO". In this context, "NO" seems to be a kiss-off to men simply because they're not the greatness that is Meghan Trainor. Not one of the so-called "self-esteem" songs are catchy enough to be good ("I Won't Let You Down" being the least profane), and all of the 2000s hip-hop references get really old before the drums kick-in for the reggae-driven "Better". True, "Title" suffered for the same reason--50s and 60s doo-whop was good for a one song novelty, but certainly not an entire album--however, what "Thank You" severely lacks in freshness could've been made up in keeping the same level of hooks. But this isn't the Meghan Trainor we used to know, that's why she dyed her hair brown after all, and in order to preserve her as an agreeable pop-tart, she's done everything she can to make her new music as bland and unoriginal as her peers. This, in fact, is what makes this record inferior to her debut. Maybe it's some consolation that she's not as offensive as she used to be, but she's equated correctness for safeness, and has ended up with one of 2016's least enjoyable pop albums.

Recommended Tracks:
"NO"

"Dance Like Yo Daddy"
"Champagne Problems"

Ariana Grande: "Dangerous Woman" Review

When Ariana Grande released her sophomore album "My Everything" in 2014, she was launched from Nickelodeon star with R&B cred to a full-fledged pop phenomenon. She claimed no less than four top ten hits from that album, becoming the only artist to achieve the feat that year. However, 2015 wasn't as kind to Ariana: a slew of scandals threatened to tarnish her sweet and bubbly image and turn her into-gasp-a normal, flawed person! Add to that a single highly reductive of her earlier hits ("Focus") and she had a lot to prove with her third album. Cleverly titled "Dangerous Woman", Grande has put the syrupy ballads and air-thin pop-rap aside for a sleek, sexy collection of songs that are her most consistent and sonically fresh. She's not the wide-eyed ingenue of "Yours Truly" anymore--that was made pretty obvious with her "doughnutgate" incident last year--and she's just fine with that. Now that her teen fanbase have grown into young adults, she seizes her first opportunity to be her raw-unfiltered self and have loads of fun while doing it. But this isn't "Bangerz": Grande is looking to exist on her own terms, whereas Miley Cyrus was doing everything in power to shock. Her pipes are still her best trait, but this time she tries harder to enunciate so the lyrics stand-out just as much as the music itself, which keeps the urban-leanings of her first two records but strips away the flimsy hip-hop for soul and house grooves. Though hiring Max Martin to usher in this new sound was a predictable move, Grande actually defies expectations by being so unapologetically sardonic, playing against the conventions of pop and releasing profanities and innuendo with unabashed glee. Maybe "Dangerous Woman" isn't classy like her earlier records, but since most of these songs are way more fun and catchy, it's a small burden. Unfortunately, Grande couldn't let go of her bad habit to feature way too many artists--Nicki Minaj, Macy Gray, Lil Wayne, and Future all make appearances--and naturally it's these songs that don't work. Ariana is self-sufficient, and delivers her best hooks when it's just her and a mic. She mostly consolidates her strong suits for "Dangerous Woman" though, so even if the middle third is highly repetitive, it's saved by sweaty dance tracks that ride their funky beats and keep the mood going the entire way through. Even if Ariana Grande the person has made some bad decisions lately, it actually ends up empowering her music and taking it to a viable direction. This is an album that she can build a better career upon, now that she's making no excuses (or apologies) for her persona.

Recommended Tracks:
Dangerous Woman
Into You
Greedy