What We Heard: October 2017
In What We Heard we highlight a few choice quotes from our writers regarding albums that stood out from this month, and provide you with a playlist of this month’s best songs (featured in the “Favorite Tracks” section of each review).
“Musically it’s also a glorious meeting of worlds, with Parquet Courts providing tight bass licks and melodic, yet jagged, guitar jangles while (Daniele) Luppi adds touches of synths, horns, and bells for twisted, gloomy atmospheric effect… Any of my apprehensions about MILANO’s shortness or cast of artists were completely shattered; it’s raw, soulful, evocative, nostalgic, and in contention for my album of the year.” — Blake Michelle on Parquet Courts and composer Daniele Luppi’s team up album, MILANO
“Quiet soliloquies juxtapose otherwise frenetic moments on the record, and despite the piano ballad ideas sounding semi-recycled from Lorde’s MELODRAMA, they are gilded with a gentle, unguarded charisma that must have been kept in hibernation since her 2007 debut… However comprehensible her identity or her work may be, it is nearly impossible to be disappointed by Annie’s dexterity as an artist, whether it be lyrically, instrumentally, emotionally, or even conceptually.” — Sienna Kresge on St. Vincent’s powerhouse artpop album, MASSEDUCATION
“MR. DAVIS is stacked wall-to-wall with slappers galore. There’s no life-altering musings and the grandiose is nothing new, but Gucci makes all of the tracks a joy to listen to, swathing you in all the luxury and power you could imagine for its 61 minutes… On MR. DAVIS, Gucci Mane makes you an offer you can’t refuse.” — Nick Funess on Gucci Mane’s true-to-form package of trap standards, MR. DAVIS
