Quick Hits, Vol. 120 (Angel Olsen, Warpaint, Phish, Danny Brown)

Angel Olsen - My Woman.  This album was one of those critical darlings from last year that made loads of best-of lists, and parts of it are pretty good, but I don't know that it is really my jam.  I think the only one that I want to hear anymore is "Shut Up Kiss Me," the rest devolves into kind of whiny, torchy, breathy stuff too much for me to like it.

Rockin' enough to pique my interest, but if that is the best the album has to offer, then it isn't my thing.  Although that video did kind of make me want to go roller skating.

Taking a break from new music today to just listen to the Beastie Boys.  Sometimes you just need to go back to the best things and stop searching.  OK, back at it.  By the way, if you've never done the "Root Down" remix that was on the single, that beat is freaking dope as dope can be.

Warpaint - Heads Up.  I really wanted to like this album, I thought their last one was pretty good, but honestly this disc just doesn't do much for me.  Kind of a mix between rock and electronic and indie, I don't know what you would actually call this music, but it is odd enough to be offputting to me.  The most popular track on here is more of a straight pop tune, "New Song," with about 4.7 million streams on Spotify.

Nah.  I mean, its catchy and poppy and I'll probably still be singing it under my breath in 3 hours, but their older music was more impressively different and interesting, where this is uninteresting to me. I'll let this album go.

Phish - Big Boat.  Man, Phish is annoying to me.  I have always wished that I really liked them, ever since my sister gave me a mix tape of her favorite tracks, but nope.  I can't get there.  Something about the sing/song pattern of these noodly little tunes makes me feel like this is children's music. Maybe it is - tunes for drug addled people who are in the mental state of children.  The top track right now from the album is "Blaze On," with 343k streams.

I can just imagine a field full of Bonnaroo dudes grooving out and dancing while they sing along and blaze their fat joints in their nice shades.  "You got one life, blaze on, bro!"  Don't get me wrong, this music is all fine.  Each time I've listened to this disc, I've found myself bouncing along and kind of grooving to it, but nothing in here would ever make me want to come back for more.

Danny Brown - Atrocity Exhibition.  Apparently this entire post is going to be me griping about all of this music.  This is another guy who the critics really like, and I think the beats and the lyrics are both pretty great, but I can't listen to the tone of his voice.  He is so nasal and up high in his vocal register for every rap that it just kills my brain.  The track that features Kendrick Lamar is the best one, as it lets a different voice come on there and stop the destruction of my eardrums.  Here is the song with an official video from the album, "Pneumonia."

For the chorus he drops his vocal range down to a regular rapping voice that is just right, but then when the verse starts up he jacks it back up into hell voice.  I can't freaking take it anymore.  I never want to hear this again.