I consider myself a bit of a music aficionado. I mean, I’ve already written two Pleiad articles about music, and to begin my third, I want to express gratitude for the beats and melodies that have brought me joy this year. It’s been a tough year for me, full of death, mental breakdowns and a hospital stay, yet music has always kept me tied to reality and allowed me to see the bright side of things.
Nearly all of my favorite musicians have either released or announced new albums this year, and I couldn’t be more excited. It’s almost like they knew what I was going through and decided to share their talents to cheer me up. And can I just say, it’s working!
I love looking forward to album release dates, but I understand it can be difficult to keep track of music coming out due to responsibilities. I’d love to share some of my favorite music from this year in hopes that it brings you joy and keeps you up to date on new releases.
Spring Tunes
This spring, Kacey Musgraves released an album, and sadly I did not see her in concert. However, two artists I did see in concert over the summer released albums: Lizzy McAlpine and Vampire Weekend.
Musgraves released “Deeper Well” on March 15. On Aug. 2, she released a deluxe version of the album called “Deeper Well: Deeper into the Well,” but I haven’t listened to it fully yet. My favorite song from her initial 14-track album is the title track, “Deeper Well.”
In this song, a line that hits home for me is:
“So I’m gettin’ rid of the habits that I feel/ Are real good at wastin’ my time.”
I think we all have habits that waste our time, and one of the most common is spending too much time on our phones. Like Musgraves sings, I’m working on getting rid of habits that don’t serve me, like doomscrolling. Instead, I’d rather focus on my goals and the things that truly bring me joy. Personally, I’ve set a goal of reading 50 books this year – and I only have 17 to go!
On April 5, both Lizzy McAlpine’s “Older” and Vampire Weekend’s “Only God Was Above Us” were released.
The song I was most excited for McAlpine to perform was “All Falls Down.” Lyrics I love from this song are:
“I can’t stop the time from moving/ And I can never get it back.”
The song’s upbeat instrumentals may lead the listener to believe it is a happy tune, but lyrics like these remind us that just because something sounds happy doesn’t mean it truly is.
Another song that has upbeat music with deep lyrics is “Capricorn” by Vampire Weekend. My dad and I saw the band in Chicago over the summer, along with openers Princess. In “Capricorn,” the band sings:
“Too old for dyin’ young/ Too young to live alone/ Sifting through centuries/ For moments of your own.”
When I first listened to this song, much like “All Falls Down,” I was distracted by its upbeat nature. However, after paying closer attention to the lyrics, I realized that the song was deeper than I’d initially thought. I fell in love with it.
Summer Melodies
This summer, I discovered a new treasured artist in Katie Lynne Sharbaugh. Her violin is featured on most songs she releases, and she’s an incredible vocalist. Her EP, titled “Act II,” was released on July 19.
My favorite song on the EP is “I Think I Am to You,” a sassy, humorous song about how the singer’s past love interest does not quite view her the same way as she views them. In it, Sharbaugh sings:
“I wonder endlessly why you can’t understand/ That I am not the missing puzzle piece you think I am.”
I love the way that these lyrics encompass how a person might feel when the person they’re with loves them more than they do.
Another album that came out this summer was Sabrina Carpenter’s “Short n’ Sweet.” Now before you accuse me of hopping on the “Espresso” bandwagon, I have been a fan of Carpenter since her first album “Eyes Wide Open” came out in 2015, and I used to watch her religiously on “Girl Meets World.”
Carpenter super-fan rant aside, this album is spectacular. There are notes of 80s instrumentals on songs like “Please Please Please,” and the singer’s humorous lyrics kept me entertained throughout. An example of this is heard in “Slim Pickins” when Carpenter sings:
“Jesus, what’s a girl to do?/ This boy doesn’t even know/ The difference between ‘there,’ ‘their’ and ‘they are.’”
While the English major in me loves this play on words, it’s also a lyric that utilizes Carpenter’s cleverness, which she often makes use of in her songs.
Autumn Ditties
This fall is one I’m more excited about than I have been in recent years, because my all-time favorite artist, Shawn Mendes, is finally releasing a new album. I completely respect and understand the mental health break he took, but I could not be more excited for new music.
Mendes’ new album, titled “Shawn,” is set to be released on Oct. 18. He’s already dropped three singles, with the latest one having come out on Sept. 12. My favorite song off of the album so far is “Isn’t That Enough?” in which Mendes sings:
“Sweet is the sun/ Warm is the rain.”
Mendes’ appreciation for nature seems very apparent in this upcoming album, which appears to have a lot of folky undertones.
Rex Orange County also released an album on Sept. 6 titled “The Alexander Technique,” and I love it. My favorite songs off of the album are “One of These Days” and “Therapy.” In “Therapy,” he sings:
“The therapist knows who I really am/ They know me just as well as someone can/ There’s nothing in the world they’re expecting of me/ I’m simply here to speak.”
I love these lyrics because Rex Orange County normalizes mental health struggles and therapy. It warms my heart to know that the treatment of mental illness is being discussed more in the music industry and, hopefully, the world.
The last upcoming album I’m looking forward to this year is “For Cryin’ Out Loud” by FINNEAS, Billie Eilish’s brother. The album is set to be released on Oct. 16, and so far, has two singles out. My favorite is the title track, in which FINNEAS sings:
“For cryin’ out loud/ I’m calling your name/ You’re wearing me out/ But I love you the same.”
These lyrics, combined with the song’s overall beat, have had me playing it on repeat ever since it came out.
The Gist
Even if we don’t have the same music taste, I hope you enjoyed learning about recent releases I’ve loved. To me, the most beautiful thing about music is that it brings people together. I hope to experience all of these artists in concert someday, to both fully appreciate their vocals, and bask in the joy of a group of people who love the same music that I do.
If you’d like to check out the songs I mentioned, here’s a playlist I made of them!
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