I’m a huge fan of Carly Rae Jepsen’s 2015 album Emotion, as sparkling and clever a pop collection as you’ll find on this side of the 21st century.
Her follow-up, 2019’s Dedicated, somehow flew right past my radar. I recall opening track ‘Julien,’ but I don’t think I ever heard the whole thing through. It suffered a similar fate as Emotion, receiving widespread critical acclaim but very few sales. Is there no room these days for Jepsen’s brand of danceable pop?
Hailee Steinfeld has quietly put together one of the most interesting careers among her peers in young Hollywood. The 25-year-old actress and singer has established herself in movies, TV, and on the music charts, a rare feat for performers of any age.
Steinfeld received an Academy Award nomination at age 14 for her stunning debut in the Coen Brothers’ True Grit. She followed that success with impressive turns in more than a dozen films, including The Edge of Seventeen, Bumblebee and the Pitch Perfect movies. On the small screen, she is a Peabody winner for her work as the titular character in Apple TV+’s Dickinson and recently starred in the Marvel series Hawkeye.
I’ve always been a devotee of Beyoncé as a celebrity, force of nature, and all-around iconic goddess, but I’ve never been a huge fan of her music.
I’ve enjoyed her singles over the years (specifically, ‘Crazy in Love,’ ‘If I Were a Boy,’ ‘Irreplaceable,’ Halo,’ and ‘Single Ladies’) but the accompanying albums never grabbed me.
That changed with the singer’s 2013 self-titled release, her first “visual album,” a contemporary R&B release that hit on all cylinders. Whether it was the erotic hip-hop of ‘Drunk in Love,’ the disco-funk of ‘Blow,’ or the ecstatic pop balladry of ‘XO,’ I suddenly understood the hype.
Today we have a Random Weekend selection that coincides with a family birthday, always a fun turn of events. The birthday in question is that of my older sister, Amy, who turns a very young 55 today.
Let’s spin the wheel and see what the Random iTunes Fairy has in store to commemorate the occasion…
It’s ‘The Last Laugh of the Laughter,’ from Scottish band Travis’ 1999 album The Man Who.
Here’s a song from the debut album of The Negro Problem, a four-piece band that was the brainchild of singer-songwriter Marc Stewart (who goes by the stage name Stew).
Stew released two albums with The Negro Problem before recording under his own name, in a very different (less overtly pop) sound. His last solo album was 2003’s Something Deeper Than These Changes, a record I have featured on the blog a few times.
Meet Me In Montauk 