Yes, I know this article is going live on Saturday. Time is an illusion. So… every day is New Music Friday if you put your mind to it.
Hi! I’m back with a half-dozen tunes that came out Friday, June 11. As you may know, I’ve been doing a Twitch stream at twitch.tv/duckthepianowire at noon PT / 3pm ET on Fridays. I use my expertise as an opinionated 40-year-old dude to listen to the new music and give my unfiltered thoughts. This strange undertaking is called New Music Friday.
I bestow one of four possible verdicts on each new song after one listen: SKIP!!, Add to Playlist, Play the Whole Album, BUY THE VINYL!! SKIP!! is the worst designation and BUY THE VINYL!! is the absolute best.
I spent too much of the day today editing a highlights video of the Twitch stream that was acceptable to Youtube’s copyright algorithms. But, I think it was worth it. Today’s edition is informative and probably the funniest so far. Interested?
Here’s a recap of the songs covered in the video.
Song 1: “Solar Power” by Lorde
Final thoughts: Summer fun of the acoustic funk persuasion. Has a gradual build that finally climaxes in the kind of hippie dance party most listeners will be unable to resist. Play the whole album
Song 2: “Thot Shit” by Megan Thee Stallion
Final thoughts: A fierce and funny manifesto about how Megan is gonna get what’s hers, trifling women and foolish men be damned. In other words, a typical Megan Thee Stallion anthem. The hilarious music video involves the demoralization of a hypocritical conservative senator and is overflowing with big twerking butts. Masterpiece. BUY THE VINYL!!
Song 3: “Shockwave” by Marshmello
Final thoughts: Oh boy, I dislike everything about this. Abrasive vocals, bombastic production, ludicrous Fight Club images in the music video. SKIP!!
Song 4: “Teenage Eyes” by St. Lenox
Final thoughts: St. Lenox’s unique vocal melodies and literary lyrics make this another offbeat delight. Still need to rewatch the video to follow the onscreen Dungeons & Dragons story. BUY THE VINYL!!
Song 5: “Feelin Peachy” by Kodak Black
Final thoughts: Copyright bots made me cut this out of the video. I didn’t have much that was meaningful to say. The repetitive minor-key beat with no chorus wasn’t really my thing. Only a few lyrics jumped out at me, but I might need to re-listen and educate myself. For now… Add to playlist
Song 6: “We’ll Be” by Filmore
Final thoughts: This is super generic pop country with a lot of strained metaphors in the lyrics. SKIP!!
Song 7: “Need to Know” by Doja Cat
Final thoughts: Feels more like an album track than a single, but Doja Cat delivers another hot and sweaty ode to knockin’ boots. Keep it up! Play the whole album
The next New Music Friday livestream will be at noon PT / 3pm ET on June 18 at twitch.tv/duckthepianowire. Should be fun!
Justin Remer makes movies, directs music videos, and plays in the bands Duck the Piano Wire and Elastic No-No Band when he is not writing movie reviews. His folk-rock documentary MAKING LOVERS & DOLLARS is currently streaming on Amazon.