Listen OUT - Music Reviews for September
Macy Rodman – Greased Up Freak
The first single off the Juneau-native, Brooklyn-based musician’s sophomore set Endless Kindness is a slithering, dirty stomp that recalls artists like Nina Hagen and Danielle Dax.
“The song is about morphing in one way in order to keep another part of you protected — changing your look or your behavior to relate to someone or fit a certain role,” Rodman recently told Out.
The song frenetically recalls 90s rave floor-fillers, as Rodman coos “I want to be a greased-up freak” over blipping synths and a punchy beat and deals with the particular shapeshifting women are taught to employ throughout various situations in life.
The music video for the tracks finds Rodman gyrating and clapping through a series of costume changes with a thoroughly 90s pleather-clad fervor.
Sam Smith – How Do You Sleep
In megastar Sam Smith’s new song How Do You Sleep, he details the healing process after moving on from a failed relationship. The song builds and burns over a grinding groove and staccato percussion, with Smith crooning his best blue-eyed soul in fine form.
“How do you sleep when you lie to me? All that fear and all that pressure / I’m hoping that my love will keep you up tonight,” Smith sings to a former (?) lover, incredulous that it’s all over. He details looking through his lover’s phone, asking, “What have I become?”
Resigning himself to starting anew, Smith finds purpose in moving forward, wondering how he managed to lose himself in this process. The song is accompanied by a stylish video featuring Smith dancing alongside a dozen shirtless men.
Kelechi – Forever Tonight
“Vintage romance pop” artist Kelechi has just dropped a slice of perfect pop/soul in his new track Forever Tonight. Of his music, the artist states, “I write songs I feel I could play and sing over and over and over again,” he said, “essentially songs to sing in the bathroom mirror. There's a sense of nostalgia there, the feeling of dancing like nobody's watching and singing like no one else is in the room, but you.”
The danceable slice of pop heaven will trigger a sense of warm nostalgia in listeners, sounding like something you’d easily hear on the radio in the past few decades. The song is accompanied by a stylish music video, out now. For the clip, Kelechi says he aimed to create a visual representation of the beauty of falling in love.
Pabllo Vittar ft. Charli XCX – Flash Pose
Squeezing in one last party bop before the close of summer, Pabllo Vittar and Charli XCX have released a perfect 90s club jam in Flash Pose.
Brazilian drag supernova Vittar may be hoping for her first big American hit, as the song is sung in English, rather than her typical Portuguese.
“We can try this out / But you gotta know what I'm about,” Vittar sings in the pre-chorus, before demanding in the chorus: “Get in my picture, pose / Get in my frame, close.” XCX takes over in the second verse, singing “Look good when I walk in the party / Ride pink cars like Malibu Barbie / Dressed up 1999 Versace / I love Pabllo, Pabllo loves Charli.”
The slick music video to accompany the track features both artists flanked by an entourage of scantily clad sporty male dancers.
Copyright The Gayly. 9/27/2019 @ 7:02 a.m. CST.