The Official ACL Blog for like Eight People!
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One Liner: Just in case you wanted more weird EDM, you are in luck!
Wikipedia Genre: hyperpop, pop-punk, dubstep
Home: San Francisco
Poster Position: Second Quarter - Line 10 Weekend One Only. Sunday at 3:30
BeatBox Stage
Thoughts: Kill me now. April Harper Grey is another dubstep producer. She will apparently open for Charlie XCX on tour this year. She said that her inspiration and early influences was Skrillex and 100 Gecs. Two influences that make sense since I immediately dislike these sounds. She is also a trans woman.
Her early releases don't have that many streams, but by the time of the 2021 album fishmonger, she started getting a bigger audience. Her biggest recent song that is just her is a single that was added to her new 2026 album called U. "Music" has 8.3 million streams.
Very annoying, very nervy and stressful-sounding. Maybe this sounds just like Charlie XCX? I guess I will find out sooner or later when I listen to her. But that song feels like she wanted to copy Madonna but make it ten times worse. Her biggest streamer isn't actually her song, she is just featured on a track by something called Oklou. Let's go older for one song and give you the top track from fishmonger, "Spoiled little brat." 10.7 million streams.
Terrible pop punk. I was expecting for that one to be more of the Skrillex thing, not tragically awful high school talent show level dreck. Definitely will not see this.
One Liner: Another LCD Soundsystem-ish thing, but I like it Wikipedia Genre: No Wikipedia, but this is dance pop, synth electronic Home: Austin! Poster Position: Bottom Quarter - Line 24 Day: Friday at 12:45 (brutal time slot) Weekend Two Only.
Tito's Tent (fun venue though)
Thoughts: I rolled my eyes a few songs into this because it is another blatant LCD Soundsystem ripoff. I can't even remember the name of the LCD ripoff from last year's ACL, but I remember there being one with a song about slutty girls or something. Well, after a few songs, I stopped rolling my eyes and started boogie-ing around in my desk chair. This is kind of fun. But when the cowbell effect starts kicking in, I sometimes start to roll my eyes again.
An aside, based upon the name, is that I think it is extremely cool and good that "Take Me Home, Country Roads" has become an unofficial supporter song for the USMNT in the 2026 World Cup. That song freaking rules. Many decades ago, someone started the tradition at my summer camp that we would sing that on the first night in camp and awkwardly try to shoe-horn "Echo Valley" into the slot where the song says "West Virginia" and it felt very special at the time.
I searched Wikipedia for the band, and apparently Almost Heaven was the 10th studio album by European American pop group The Kelly Family. The cover of that album is giving me pedo vibes. But this is the joinder of Stefan Barraza, originally from El Paso, and Austin native and drummer Jaelyn Valero. Barraza says he was a student at Texas Tech when his professor walked into class to give a presentation about the Graphic Design program and he was smitten with the thought. He dropped out and started doing graphic design and video, working with a lot of musicians, but soon realized that he really didn't like some of the music he had to work with for the visuals. So, he decided to make the kind of music he wanted to go with his visuals, and this band was born.
Some of their earliest 2022 singles have no tracked streams on Spotify, so they didn't kick the door open right there at the start. 3 EPs since then, and even though I am digging some of what they are laying down, the stream count is really not there yet. Top track is called "FEEDBACK" with 18k streams.
I'm expecting some pretty damn good visuals to come along with this song, since the whole reason for making music was just to match the rad visuals. He wants her to bite his arm to take something away? She is not interested. "fever trying to blow" with 15k streams is the second-biggest streamer.
Hear that LCD thing? But here is the deal, I bet that song is absolutely fantastic to freak out to in a crowd of people looking to dance and have fun. he even tried to design a dance for it. "hypnoxia" has a similar feel, or "LOVE ON THE RUN." "power music (elektrik revival)" had me sitting here like "wheeeeere do I know that from, dammit!" before finally blurting out OUTKAST on my third or fourth listen. "THE GOOSE" is kind of cool in a different way, with some frenetic drumming in the middle and almost a Franz Ferdinand meets The Strokes thing.
I'd go watch. I wonder if the skuzzy club vice will come through very well as noon on Saturday in a dusty field with like 45 people there, but a man can dream.
One Liner: Dime store Billie Eilish (except better)
Wikipedia Genre: Electro-pop, EDM Home: Tel Aviv, Israel
Poster Position: Second Quarter - Line 10 Both Weekends.
Sunday at 5:30
BeatBox Stage
Thoughts: Last here in 2021, so here is mostly that review, and then a little added on to address her more recent releases.
Not what I expected. With the name and the photo on her Spotify page, I figured I'd be launching into yet another pop singer or R&B girl, instead this is sort of rap - oh no, wait, I know this girl. She has a song I've heard on the radio that I 100% thought was Billie Eilish. This is the dime store Billie Eilish person!
"YOU SO DONE" has 3.9 million streams (now up to 12.5 million in 2026). And it totally sounds like something from that old Billie Eilish album.
So, how'd you break your spine when you were 20? Oh, making a music video? Great plan! Other than the absolute spinal wreckage it would cause, that looks kind of fun to get rag-dolled around by that machine. Kind of a cool song, the ominous beat works.
The interesting thing is that is not her top single - I figured it would be for sure. Her top track is called "End of the Road." 5.1 million streams (now up to 20.9 million in 2026).
Another cool toy for her to use in the video. The treadmill cube! Doesn't seem nearly as fun as the Spine Smasher 2000 though. Don't love the song though. "VIEWS" sounds like she's going for dime store Gorillaz.
She's got two albums - 2017's Off the Radar (when she's blonde) and 2021's KIDS (now more!). Both of those popular tracks are from KIDS. The older album is wild electro pop - the off-kilter "Dance While You Shoot" is wild for sure. She is Israeli, originally from Tel Aviv. Her Wikipedia says she served as a soldier in an Israeli Defense Force military band. Why do they need a soldier in their band? Wouldn't it be more useful to have her serve as the guitarist or something?
I feel like I was rude in my One Liner up above, but it made me laugh, so I'm going to leave it there. She's better than just a dime store Billie Eilish. I find myself really enjoying the old album of weirdo pop music. It's not Bjork by any means, because that would be the highest of high praise, but it is definitely weird ass, adventurous music that keeps my attention. Which is a big deal these days...
She did a great cover of Lil Nas X's "Industry Baby." Her 2024 album, The Vandalist, has an excellent cover that makes me want to ask many questions. The title song is the top streamer, and it samples/interpolates something that sounds super familiar. Busta Rhymes? Yes, that is the beat to "Put Your Hands Where My Eyes Can See." Tight. 9.9 million streams.
PUT YO HANDS WHERE MY EYES CAN SEE! "Come Back Home" goes for the Eilish sound again, but "PC People" is more like a rap. "Police" is awful. But I am bopping along to this, pretty fun album overall.
I could see this show being fun. Kind of a rap/DJ show, kind of a pop party. Sure. I'll allow it.
One Liner: 70's indebted funky dance pop, but sounds like the live show may just be EDM
Wikipedia Genre: Electropop, indietronica, nu-disco, funk, psychedelic pop, soul, alternative dance, indie pop
Home: Byron Bay, New South Wales, Australia
Poster Position: TOP Quarter - Line 3 Both Weekends. Sunday at 7:30
Miller Lite Stage
Thoughts: I have to say I am confused how this is up here on line 3. It is perfectly acceptable funkpopdiscosynth, but I would expect to have heard of the things that are up here on the third line. Sort of has a Jungle vibe, but a little further towards synth-y disco.
Four of the members went to the same school growing up, and started sliding in and out of musical projects together as young as thirteen years old. Wikipedia says that they experimented with everything from metal to bluegrass to folk before landing on white-guy-disco-funk as their final spot. Two of them were the acoustic folk duo named Louie and Patrick. Several of them were the roots music group The Sugar Spinners. Some of them formed the rock group Lifeline. They also formed something called Potato Potato. Some of these bands got radio play and festival lineup spots. But then in their final year of high school, Parcels formed, named after a sign maybe stolen from a train station, and the group then moved to Berlin.
Which seems like a weird move on it's own, and then this is the explanation as to why: "The band notes watching a video in high school of band The Whitest Boy Alive performing in a shop window in Mitte, Germany as influential to the move, saying that the "huge crowd on the street [...] was super cool". Sure. One show, by one completely non-memorable band, and you should just pick up stakes and move across the world to a place where you don't speak the language. Fine.
But it worked out. A French label liked their initial electronic EP, signed them, and then brought them to Paris for a show at a bar. Daft Punk happened to be in the audience, and they invited these dudes to the studio to collaborate. The band showed Daft Punk an early demo of "Overnight," and the robot fellas agreed to get to work with it. Wikipedia says it took more than a year, with many studio trips and months in the studio. Are you kidding me? It is an entirely generic disco pop nugget that has a little of "Get Lucky" guitar swing in it. 215.1 million streams.
That took a full year and many studio visits? I mean, its a nice little funky strut and all, but I feel like this could have been done in 30 minutes. They didn't even make a video for it. I feel like there has to be something more to this band, like one of the members is the son of the owner of Universal Music or something.
A couple singles and old EPs, followed by 2018's Parcels, 2021's Day/Night, and 2025's LOVED. Strangely, none of their biggest tunes are on any of those albums. Not sure what would make a band leave their biggest singles off of the next album, that doesn't seem to click for me. So, their biggest streamer is a 2018 single called "Tieduprightnow," with 321.2 million streams, that was not then put onto the 2018 debut album for some reason (and same with "Overnight"). Odd.
Again, a perfectly acceptable little funk nugget to groove along to. Also, I very much would like to go surf and hang out with those people on the beach. That looks very chill and fun. "Comedown" gets a little jammy, which I appreciate. I think I need to ask my girls about this band and see if I can figure out what is going on here. I like it well enough, I dig rock and funk and all of that, but this one is just striking me as odd.
But then, I fired up the more recent live album available on Spotify. I think this is going to end up being another EDM-ish group once they are on stage. Sounds very much like they are turning their disco funk into a rave. It is much, much worse than just the regular studio music. That is a bummer.
I asked the girls. 18 year old said she had never heard of it. The 15 year old never responded. Chef's kiss.
Wikipedia Genre: electropop, dance-pop, synth pop, hyperpop
Home: London
Poster Position: Headliner Both Weekends Friday at 8:40 (just an 1:20 set from the main headliner is weaksauce)
American Express Stage
Thoughts: I truly can't believe this is the top artist on the poster. Like, yes, I understand economics and popularity and all of the similar drivers for the purpose of this poster. But I also cannot wrap my head around the fact that good old ACL is now this sort of package for forgettable pop drivel.
In 2015, I wrote an extremely short review of her second album, 2014's SUCKER:
Charlie XCX - Sucker. Boom Clap is a damn jam. Although, when my four year old can make a reasonable approximation of your lyrics, then you aren't exactly beating back the world with your lyrical innovation. That being said, great song. The rest of this album is forgettable pop with a weird punk-lite bent. British Avril Lavigne. Remember her? "He was a sk8ter boy, she said see you later boy." Ugh. Replaced with the effortlessly boring "Gold coins everywhere, dollars up in the air, it's a billionaire's love affair."
Here is "Boom Clap," in case you need a refresher. 598.6 million streams.
Ten years later in 2025, here is what I had to say about her world-conquering 2024 album BRAT:
Charlie XCX - BRAT. I am well aware that I am extremely late to this party, as this was the big album of last summer and the Kamala campaign and Saturday Night Live and everything else. But my ACL listening needs really interfere with my other listening action, and to be quite honest every time this album has popped up I have found something else to listen to. I got in to this a little with my Sabrina Carpenter review the other day, but I just can't get on board with the poptimism movement and the world declaring that this sort of thing is important music. I can't stand it. Sadly, this likely means that she will almost certainly be on the ACL lineup and I will be forced to dive more deeply into this stuff, but I have made my way through this album a handful of times and I hate the vocal effects and the generically uninteresting beats and the repetitiveness of it all. And I am for sure biased, because I wouldn't think a thing of it if the Black Keys had a generic and repetitive riff. But this is just not giving me any pleasure at all. The playcount is interesting to me, in that several of these songs, on the supposedly biggest album of 2024, have less than 40 million streams, while only four have more than a hundred million. Makes it seem to me like this wasn't as big a deal as the critics and media tried to make it seem. The top track by a ways is the album opener, "360." 334.9 million streams [now up to 531.4 million in 2026].
The start of that being a Google ad was deeply annoying to me as well, as, for sure, was the skit at the start. I hate it even more than the song itself. I'm sure its some meta commentary that an old white guy would not like that portion or the song, but at the end of the day I am what I am and this is not good. It just really feels like people felt like they needed to get on board with this in order to be cool or relevant or whatever despite its actual value. It sort of reminds me of the flow of Iggy Izalea. I will absolutely not be saving this album for later listens.
So, you're saying you really love her, huh, Jack?!? Let's go into the background, because I literally know nothing about her.
Charlotte Emma Aitchison is from Cambridge, England. Her mother is Indian and her father is Scottish, and she says she got bullied by the white people in school for her Indian heritage. She got her start by posting songs onto MySpace in 2008, but then got her big break by co-writing and being featured on Icona Pop's massive "I Love It" in 2012.
That song was an international smash and hit number one in the UK and number 7 in the US. Interestingly, none of her original songs appear to be on Spotify. Her first entry on there is 2012's You're The One EP (not to be confused with Tom Petty's excellent You're The One Soundtrack). Wikipedia says that her debut solo album, 2013's True Romance, "failed to meet commercial expectations." Personally, I didn't love it. Generic dark pop to my ears. Reached #85 on the charts in Britain.
But then, apparently being a very intelligent and opportunistic gal, she hopped on board with another One Hit Wonder mastermind and was featured on Iggy Azalea's "Fancy." Which is almost assuredly why she popped into my mind last year when writing that review. Her following albums made her more and more popular, culminating in BRAT, which pulled in three Grammys for Best Dance Pop Recording for "Von Dutch", Best Dance/Electronic Album, and Best Recording Package (the visual look of the album, which is dumb as hell in this instance, because the look of this album was just a slime green cover with the word "brat" on it).
Her name is apparently Charli Kiss Charli Kiss, which was her MSN Messenger name when she was a child. Her other biggest song, from before BRAT, is "party 4 u" that was on her 2020 album. 547.6 million streams.
Her most recent album is apparently just the soundtrack to the new Wuthering Heights movie. Which is sort of odd, but sure, why not. I've tried BRAT a little more, listened to some of 2022's CRASH, 2020's how i'm feeling now, and 2017's Number1 Angel, and I'm still in the same boat. Overly auto-tuned, relatively basic background music, nothing particularly interesting about the lyrics. I can't imagine choosing to go see this show, but I assume my girls will go and claim it was amazing. Good luck.
Wikipedia Genre: No Wikipedia, this is electronica, ambient, dance pop
Home: Mexico City (but Chilean)
Poster Position: Bottom Quarter - Line 23 Weekend One Only Sunday at 12:45 (ouch)
BMI Stage.
Thoughts: I was really hoping this was going to be Marco Rubio trying to be a sick DJ or something so that we could all go throw batteries at him. Wikipedia let me know that rubio is Spanish for blond, which is kind of odd, because it sounds more like it should be Spanish for ruby red. Several Spanish football players went by the one name Rubio moniker, and I would guess they are happy this week.
But this is actually the project of Chilean producer, drummer, and singer Francisca Straube. Some of her photos look like a young Winona Ryder. Her voice sometimes sounds like Siouxsie Sioux. The tunes are kind of a darker ambient electronic (although everything is in Spanish so I have no clue if the lyrical part of it is any good). Interestingly, she cited Radiohead's In Rainbows as the most important album to her. Feels like my 9th favorite Radiohead album or something, so fascinating that it was so important to her. She also said that when she was little, she loved Nirvana and learned all of the drum parts to every Nirvana song. That is dope. I literally just told the wife a week or two ago that I wanted to learn the drums just to be able to play Smells Like Teen Spirit on them. Oh wait - TINY DESK!!!
Damn girl, bring a posse! Again, no clue what she is talking about, but that sounds fantastic to me. If that is what the stage show would be, versus the electronica style of the studio albums, sign me up. That third song sort of sounds like a Radiohead groove.
Her top track is "Hacia el Fondo," from the 2018 album Pez. Apparently translates to "toward the bottom." 12.9 million streams.
That one comes on more like a Phantogram or Sylvan Esso thing - dance music with a dark tinge. I personally liked the Tiny Desk vibe better. I went and found a regular live performance, and it sounds like she does both - heavy electronica beats while also playing real percussion and guitars. Definitely more electronic than acoustic though...
Second biggest streamer is "IR" from the 2020 album Mango Negro. 6.4 million streams.
More of a reggaeton sound on that one. Chilly. Watching her float in the ocean is mesmerizing me right now. Of the Spanish language stuff, this is better than many. I doubt I'd go, but if the rest of the hour is lame, maybe I'd try this one out and be worldly.
One Liner: More pop schlock, this time with famous parents!
Wikipedia Genre: electropop
Home: L.A.
Poster Position: Third Quarter - Line 13 Weekend Two Only Sunday at 2:45
T-Mobile Stage
Thoughts: This first song sounds very much like Taylor Swift to me. Odd thing, ACL for some reason seems to book a lot of Charlottes. When I just searched to make sure this one hadn't already been here, I have written ACL reviews about Charlotte OC, Charlotte Cardin, Charlotte Sands, and Charlotte Adigery. And Charli xcx's real name is Charlotte. It doesn't feel like quite that popular of a name, and yet here we are on our fifth person using the name in their stage name. Now, this next song I am hearing sounds like Billie Eilish.
Her mother is the fantastic Liz Bishop in Shrinking - Christa Miller. She has apparently been in lots of things, but I have never seen Scrubs or Cougar Town, and don't remember her roles in Seinfeld (as a prospective boss to George and then later as a girlfriend to George named Paula). Charlotte's father is TV producer Bill Lawrence, who (hey, what a shocker!) produced or co-created Scrubs and Cougar Town, as well as Ted Lasso, Shrinking, and Rooster. Those last three shows are all fantastic. He was also a KA at William & Mary, so he probably has a confederate flag somewhere in his attic.
Unfortunately, her parents are infinitely more interesting than her music, which is generic pop. Prior to releasing any music of her own, she was featured on the Kaskade single "Cold as Stone" in 2018, and then started releasing her own EPs. In addition to the singing, she is a model who has been featured in Teen Vogue and Harper's Bazaar. She has also taken to acting, appearing in something called Doctor Odyssey and in the relatively funny Bad Monkey as Caitlin. Which was executive produced by her Dad.
Two EPs, tons of singles, and one 2025 album named Somewhere. None of the songs on that album have really popped off - most are in the 200k-300k range, with only one breaking 5 million. That one is called "Morning" and has 5.5 million.
Very cinematic video. I wonder if Dad executive produced that one as well. Perfectly nice little pop rock song with a little too much breathiness for my taste. Although, she really should consider getting a mattress. Sleeping on hardwood floors will be a nightmare for your back, girl. Her top song by a good amount is the single she had placed on the Birds of Prey (DC Comics thing) movie, called "Joke's On You." 148.1 million streams.
Funny thing about those superhero movies by now. I expect I probably saw that movie, but I have zero recollection of anything that might have happened in it. This girl could have played a major character in it for all I know. I don't think so, but coulda happened. These songs are fine. They are definitely not actively bad, but they I can't remember anything about them after spending a day and a half streaming them. Doubt I would go to this.
One Liner: Sexy electronic dance party Wikipedia Genre: Electronic Home: NYC Poster Position: Second Quarter - Line 8 Day: Sunday at 6:30 Both Weekends.
Tito's Tent
Thoughts: I definitely had an idea of what this music would be, and EDM was not my first expectation. I was really hoping for some grimy punk music. Instead, this is some incessantly pounding dance music with a lady repeating sexy phrases over it without end.
Two members of a band called Spud Cannon decided to quit the band because it was "some nimby kimby indie rock bullshit." They hooked up with the vocalist from something called The Shacks, and started exploring electronic, dubstep, etc. Early on, they got to collaborate with James Murphy of LCD Soundsystem, and soon thereafter were signed to a label. Only one album, 2026's Ö. Some of the songs are kind of cool, many of them get old really quickly because it is just the same thing for minute after minute. Makes me think of "Flat Beat" by Mr. Oizo from way back in the 90's. Top streamer is "Bon Bon," a 2024 single from their "early" days. 11.7 million streams.
Gotta respect spending 45 cents on the video. That one does nothing for me. But since this year appears to be the year of the EDM, I guess this is what we get. They do a cover of "Devil's Haircut" on their first single that I was sort of excited to hear, just because, Beck. But it is not very good. She's a little sloppy on the delivery of the vocals, and the beat is pretty generic - like my first Casio pre-set #7.
The top single from the album is called "I Like It Like That," but I hate that one even more, so I am going to give you the top track in the Spotify Popular list, the Daft Punk-considering "if you wanna party, come over to my house." 5.5 million streams.
Another big budget video in the books! I swear this group's name is doing some really heavy listing. I wonder if they were named PastaWater if people would be listening to this stuff? I do not care for it.
One Liner: Lovely indie pop that switches between groove and sorrow Wikipedia Genre: Indie pop, indie electronic, R&B, indie rock, dream pop, electronic rock Home: London Poster Position: HEADLINER! Day: Sunday Both Weekends
T-Mobile Stage at 8:30.
Thoughts: Last here in 2017. No new music since then either, which is weird.
I remember discussing this band a few times previously, including in a review of their 2017 album, I See You. I also recall making fun of the fact that their top song is an instrumental introductory track called, wait for it, "Intro," but then I see an article stating that "Intro" is the greatest, most important song of all time. They really do argue that it is "one of the greatest songs of all time." GTFOH. The reasons offered in the article:
"The fact is, "Intro" has been on a mix you once made, because the song makes you feel alive." Again, GTFOH. You know what else was on a mix I once made? The fucking Spin Doctors. Bryan Adams' "Everything I Do I Do It For You," for crying out loud. I wish I still had all of the mix tapes I gave to girls, because I bet even more cringeworthy stuff is on there that I can't recall right now. Point one in this argument is shit. Is "More than Words" one of the greatest songs of all time? No. Just no.
"Rihanna samples "Intro" throughout her 2012 song "Drunk on Love."" You know what else Rihanna sampled? Avril damn Lavigne (on "Cheers (Drink to That)"), the Fresh Prince of Bel-Air Theme song, and flipping Korn. Don't try to tell me that being sampled by Rihanna should lend your 2 minute instrumental a special gravitas in the history of mankind.
YouTubers have created a "seamless edit lasting 2:45 hours" or another that lasts ten hours. Yes, because a song gets infinitely better when you drill it into your head like a Guantanamo-style torture session.
"Soon after the world caught on to the short but mighty track, it was notably everywhere. It was used in the 2010 comedy/drama It's Kind Of A Funny Story during a drawing scene." This one actually seems to hold water, as Wikipedia mentions a bunch of other places (that are significantly more well known than that one movie) it was used. But so what? Again, the Spin Doctors had "Two Princes" all over the place back in the day, including in feature movies "So I Married an Axe Murderer," "Love and Other Drugs," and "Sesame Street."
"It's the definition of "epic minimalism": A song that feels only mightier and more massive for the scarcity of musical elements actually present in its construction." Here is the worst point of all five. "Dude, silence is totally mighty because the musical instruments used in it are like, scarce, bro." All of the xx songs are pretty low on ornamentation and excess. This just makes no sense to me.
I protest much. The fact is, its actually a pretty great song. I enjoy it too. But to add it to the pantheon of greatest songs of all time is just dumb. Here, give it a shot, with its 808.4 million streams [was at 199.7 million streams in 2017].
That is the two hour and forty five minute version, so just let it roll and see if you want to die after an hour. It really is a great groove. And that is the best part of these tunes overall, the groove. The album opener for 2017's I See You, is a track called "Dangerous" that fires out as a horn-laced groove that makes me want to shimmy around at my desk. Then, "Say Something Loving" is more of a slow burner of traded verses and echo-ey instrumentation. The hit from that new album, which isn't as popular as multiple tracks from the two older albums, is "On Hold," with 181.1 million streams.
Filmed in and about Marfa, I had some good commentary on that in my prior review of the new album. Suffice it to say that the transformation of Marfa from no-wheresville West Texas to the kind of place that a dream pop group of Brits would want to film their video is just damn weird.
The interesting thing is that their first album appears to be the most popular, in terms of number of listens. Several songs with more than a hundred million streams and all. Also insane, in the three hours that I spent listening to and writing my original post about this band, the streams for "Intro" went from 199.7 million streams to 200.2! Half a million streams in one day? Was this the most popular eclipse soundtrack song for the entire world? [I guess I was writing this on the day of an eclipse?] So crazy.
Obviously, XX has been out longer, so people could listen more, but even if you took out the greatest song ever, that first album would still be the tops. 2012 album has one song with 253 million, but nothing else approaches nine figures. I See You has two with more than 100 million, but one that doesn't even top 20 million. And then other than remixes and deluxe versions, they have no new music. Not sure that any of this matters, I just found it interesting, I guess because my Twitter feed made it sound like Jesus was back when the 2017 album was released, and I didn't even know who they were. Lets do something from that second album. Here is "Angels," with 253.9 million streams.
Damn, son. Put that shit on a mixtape and you're gonna be swimming in ass. Screw the "Intro" tune, when she sings about "being as in love with you as I am," I feel like she means it. And so will the ladies.
This band reminds of the Cure in their sound, as though Sarah McLaughlin fronted a new super version of that band once Robert Smith heads off to clown school. I think it is mainly the guitar work on these songs, kind of plucky in a way that reminds me of the Cure. Like on "Crystalised," which sounds like Alt-J, the Cure, and Sarah hooked up to do a quiet practice session for a benefit concert to help puppies.
The band won the Mercury Prize for 2010, for that debut album (which is the top album of the year for the UK and Ireland). Pretty impressive. Two of the members (the two who aren't Jamie xx), Romy Croft and Oliver Sim (which are such very Brit names) were apparently raised as friends from birth and independently started making music before deciding to go in together on it with a girl-boy group. They met at the Elliott School, which has spawned several other musical acts like Hot Chip and Four Tet, as well as Pierce Brosnan.
They originally just sang over a computer drumtrack, but early fan Jamie Smith came on board to make electronic tracks for them to sing over. Jamie Smith became Jamie xx, who does solo music on the side now, including a well-regarded album in 2015 (In Colour) that did nothing for me when I reviewed it. From reading a few interviews, the band members seem endearingly awkward and introverted, which seems perfect for this brand of chilly, dreamy pop. Seems like all of the songs on the older two albums could be about love or missing love. The new album has more bounce and fun to me, and I like it even more, but there are some real beauties on the old ones. I don't honestly know if I will see this show - not sure I care about this or 21 Pilots less? So weird that those are the two Sunday night closers. We used to get actual stars for those slots. But I guess if in a vacuum, I would totally would go check them out. I like the tunes. You should just go listen to the top ten on Spotify, you'll like it.
One Liner: 80's tinged synth pop formed from Craiglist
Wikipedia Genre: Indie pop, dream pop, electropop, synthwave
Home: L.A.
Poster Position: 5 Weekend One Only. Sunday at 5:30
SnapChat Stage.
Thoughts: Last here in 2024. Not a very long turnaround, so you'd think they have a bunch of exciting new music. You would be wrong. I mean, they did release a 2026 album, but no song on there has more than 2 million streams, so it isn't exactly burning up the charts.
Has what I would characterize as a lush, deluxe, smart pop sound, like the kind of stuff you'd hear playing in a nice boutique store in the background. It is interesting to me that there are three people in the band, because it definitely sounds like it is just a singer and a computer. The guitarist and keyboard guys had been friends since childhood, making music in their teenage years. In 2013, they formed the band after seeing a Craiglist ad from the vocalist, who had posted in search of a band needing a vocalist. That is wild to me. Is that at all normal? At first, they just e-mailed parts back and forth, before finally getting into the studio.
Five albums - 2017's Night Drive, 2019's Shadows, 2022's Fever Dream, 2023's Heartbeat Highway, and 2025's Everything Glows. The biggest song, by a large margin, is from that 2019 album and apparently blew up after it was featured on a show called Never Have I Ever. 284.9 million streams for "Fire For You."
Completely adequately pleasant little nugget of pop. The bassline is supremely delicious. They are definitely intelligent to use the lead singer as the screen grab for all of their videos instead of the two schlubby dudes. The second-most streamed track is from the third album - "Bad Dream" has only 43.7 million streams.
80's vibes in that one with the synth that comes in for the chorus. Seems like a terrible idea to dance with a butcher knife like that killer guy does. Weird that she needed Craigslist to find a band though, her voice is really great. My only beef after letting this roll over me for hours is that the songs definitely get to feeling same-y after a while - just more pretty vocals over 80's tinged synth rock all day. But I generally enjoy it as boring but pleasant backgroiund music.
One Liner: Moody synth pop that is higher on the poster than I expected Wikipedia Genre: Electronic rock, dream pop, electronica, trip hop, psychedelic pop Home: NYC (although now in L.A.)
Poster Position: Second Quarter - Line 9 Day: Sunday. Weekend One Only.
Beatbox Stage at 7:30.
Thoughts: Last here in 2014, which is surprising to me, as I figured they had been back since then.
The reason that I had heard of the band back in 2014 was that they appeared on one of Big Boi's albums - 2012's Vicious Lies and Dangerous Rumors - singing the hook on a few songs. Those songs were terrible – I kept wondering why Big Boi needed to add some weak-voiced hook singer to his songs. They really took me out of the flow on that whole album. But then when I actually dug in on the tunes themselves from the band, I can hear the good stuff. Female singer over pretty catchy new wave-y electronic. Drum machine with glitchy little stuff over the top.
I am listening to their 2013 album Voices, and it’s actually good. Making me re-think the fact that I thought they were weak with Big Boi. Catchy little ditties with just the one female singer. They also have a five song live EP from SXSW in 2014 that is very enjoyable.
"When I’m Small" is their top track from their debut album - 2010's Eyelid Movies. It is quite cool. Some funky business in the background of that one. 193.6 million streams.
I don't think I've ever had to click something agreeing that I am cool with seeing suicidal stuff before on YouTube, and then this video is just them jamming? That is a very cool song - makes me feel cool even just listening to it.
The members of the band have been friends since pre-school, which is wild. Sarah Barthel left Champlain College in Vermont and reconnected with Josh Carter. They formed an unfortunately named band called Charlie Everywhere and released a few EPs before signing with a label and changing their name. A phantogram is an optical illusion in which two-dimensional images appear to be three-dimensional. Sure.
Their 2011 EP (Nightlife) seems like they’d be nice to put on in the background while you are doing something else, but I was not sold after listening through it a few times. But their 2013 album (Voices) is much more fun and interesting. "Fall in Love" was the original hit that was getting radio play in 2014 (now has 80 million streams):
Weird that YouTube told me that I had watched that video eleven years ago. Stop looking over my shoulder, yo. That one is slinky and head-bobbing stuff. But the monster hit from that same album is "Black Out Days" with 386.2 million streams. Their top track.
Another great groove to it. That is the mastery here, is creating a funky groove that makes me want to bob along. Vocals sound like Siouxsie.
2016's Three didn't really have any breakout tunes, and nor did 2020's Ceremony. 2024's Memory of a Day doesn't appear to have caught on just yet - no song has more than 4 million streams. Starting to look like this is a band that was hot for a minute back in the day but hasn't done much to win over fans in the time since. I wonder what brought them back to the Fest this year, and on the 9th line. Some of the vocals on the new disc make me think of Miley Cyrus. It's not a bad disc, but there is definitely nothing on there that stands out in a major way. Just kind of washes by in a fog of chill beats. Maybe I'm annoying for only giving you links to their old stuff, but I just don't hear anything interesting on the recent discs.
I still can't decide whether this would translate to a good live show, but maybe I'll give them a chance.
One Liner: Very French electronic music Wikipedia Genre: house, electronic, tropical house, deep house, world, synth-pop Home: Paris Poster Position: Top Quarter - Line 3 (!?!) Day: Sunday Both Weekends.
Miller Lite Stage at 7:15.
Thoughts: You always wonder about the sliding doors of music. Would Jay-Z have been a megastar if Biggie and Pac had lived? Would Dave Grohl leave Nirvana to create the Foo Fighters without Kurt Cobain's death? Would one of the bands sidelined by COVID at their inception have become the biggest band in the world? What if a huge pile of folks had lived - Buddy Holly, SRV, Janis Joplin, Duane Allman, John Lennon, Jimi Hendrix, Jerry Garcia, etc. etc. It was the first of these that popped into my head this morning in the shower while listening to these guys, but that last name also brings up the same point that had me thinking. Because if Jerry Garcia had lived, and the Dead kept churning out more of their signature sound, then would the legions of copycat artists floating in their wake have ever existed? Interesting to think about.
Anyway, this group sounds to me like what happens when Daft Punk refused to keep making music. Daft Punk were a French electronica duo that quit in 2013 with their very-well-regarded Random Access Memories. This group is a French electronica duo that released their first album (EP?) in 2014. And, like Daft Punk, this is not the EDM of the majority of the artists on this poster, building towards a drop and thrumming with bass. Instead, this is sort of sexy, sort of groovy, the kind of thing that a smart-dressed Parisian would be playing from their Vespa as they insouciantly weave through traffic with a cigarette smoldering in their mouth. That is not always true, some of these build and bounce like regular EDM, but I find the less generic ones infinitely more interesting. "Canopee" is a good example of that, or "Peter Pan." I always wonder about electronic duos though - what is the second dude doing while the first one is twisting the fake knobs and moving the little fake switches up and down. Do they both act like they are doing something after they click play? Or does one act like he is the one in charge while the other just does the "pump it up" gesture?
I make fun, but I have actually enjoyed this more than the other EDM on this poster. They do a cover of Pilot's track "Magic" that is great, even if the commercials for Ozempic have now ruined that song for me. Four albums - 2014's Dorothy, 2017's Caravelle, 2021's Cyclorama, and 2025's 22:22. The top tracks are both from the 2017 album, with the #1 song being "Canopee" with 146.9 million streams.
I won't do the #2 song, since it comes from that same disc. Let's go to #3, which uses native American chanting for some reason, and is from the 2021 album. "Ani Kuni" has 62.5 million streams (well, that is for the edit, the full version has another 52.6 million itself). I believe this is the edit.
A Native American hymn originating from the Arapahoe tribes living on the plains of Colorado and Wyoming, according to Wikipedia. Righteous. I bet those native homies didn't know how to add a sick ass beat that sort of sounds like that one Madonna song! This was their top hit on the charts, rising to #10 in France and charting on something in Belgium called Ultrapop Wallonia chart.
Probably a no for this show, but if they had a 2pm show I could go just lounge to while waiting for friends to show up, I would wear my beret and sip red wine while lounging in the splendor.
One Liner: LCD Soundsystem-esque party pop Wikipedia Genre: Dance-punk, electroclash, electropop, new rave, indie rock Home: NYC Poster Position: Second Quarter - Line 9 Day: Sunday Both Weekends.
Miller Lite Stage at 3:15 (how you gonna put party music at 3:15?)
Thoughts: I have an uneasy relationship with LCD Soundsystem. I think their initial popularity grated me the wrong way, and so I was ready to dismiss them immediately, and then I sort of caught some of the bug and allowed myself to jam out to some of the tunes. And then I saw their ACL taping a few years back and was like, meh? I have documented my ambivalence for them here, back when they came to ACL a few years back.
Well, this is not that, but it is a damn good facsimile. And, I actually like it. Made me wonder if the name he uses for the band is because someone dared him to make LCD Soundsystem sound-alike music when LCD supposedly retired a few years ago.
Harrison Patrick Smith used to perform as Turtlenecked - indie music he put together after he graduated from Lewis & Clark College in Portland. Pitchfork and NPR both said nice things about Turtlenecked. He moved to NYC and kept doing his thing, even after the pandemic restrictions were lifted, teaching at a private school as he did his thing. But, during the pandemic, he was goofing around with electronic music to send to friends and play around with funny lyrics. As a riff on the Rolling Stones' album Some Girls, he wrote "Girls." He tried playing it at a Turtlenecked show, and even thought it was totally different than the usual indie tunes for that band, he noticed that the crowd was into it. 62.3 million streams.
Unhinged and funny stuff. Girls who hate cops and buy guns? And the girls with hairy asses? NPR named this the fifth best song of 2022, and Smith's response was to call it a rejection of the last five years of music. Good times though. Since then, he's gotten to open for Charlie XCX and Yves Tumor. He helped produce one of the songs on brat, called "Guess." I never got in to that album, at all.
Just one album, 2024's What's Wrong with New York? None of the other songs are nearly as huge as that one, but "Good Time" makes the best attempt at 7.1 million streams.
That one is another party anthem, but it has a little darkness underneath the party, like you're trying really hard to have that good time but underneath you are really having a terrible time and wish you could go home. I think it is the chorus sounding more like NIN than LCD, but the breakdown freakout is pretty fun.
Honestly, sounds pretty fun for a show. Which is sort of funny, since I just crapped on the Sammy Virji guy for sounding like generic EDM when this guy is pretty dang close to the same, just with better lyrics. I'd party.
One Liner: Gothy, unpleasant electropop with some heavy metal snips
Wikipedia Genre: indie pop, electropop, pop-punk Home: New Jersey Poster Position: Second Quarter - Line 13 Both Weekends.
Sunday at 3:30 on the Ladybird Stage.
Thoughts: One of those sorta goth pop singers. We've had a number of those come and go through the festival over the years. Sort of hard to quantify, because some songs sound like EDM, some sound like lite metal, one sounds like some sort of gypsy pop. Who knows. Lots of goth imagery and face makeup though. She is a featured artist on multiple of the top songs in her Spotify - rather than them being her tracks. Things I have never heard of, like Stand Atlantic, Arcane, Slash Puppy, Sleeping with Sirens, Jutes, or Lindsey Sterling, and them some I have heard of like Demi Lovato(?!?). The thing that makes this weird to me is that she doesn't have an especially amazing voice - why are so many other tiny artists seeking her out to add vocals to their song?
Ryan Jillian Santiago was born around the time I graduated from high school. She was a competitive dancer as a child, until she apparently shattered both of her heels at age 14 while jumping from a stage. Gaaaaaaah. Don't do that! She got into musical theater and taught herself how to play guitar. At 18, she moved to L.A. to attend art school and bartend. She says that the stage name translates to "Me + My Ego." Which, errr, sure. I guess I missed the part where she is actual royalty?
No albums, just three EPs. 2021's searching for nirvana, 2022's IF I DIED WOULD ANYONE CARE, and 2022's Happiness is an Inside Job. We have issues with capitalization, I see. The top song that she is featured on is one from Gayle, who was hear at ACL previously, with her catchy "abcdefu" song that somehow has over a billion streams. The top track that is just from Ms. Santiago is a single that was featured on that first EP. "overwhelmed" has 213.1 million streams.
Another popular track about being anxious. Between her and Doechii, we can fire up an anxiety party for all of the youth who need a mental health break. Don't love it. Top track after that is "FUCKBOI REJECTS" from the second EP. 11.3 million streams and just a terrible song name.
Well, that is a weird detour into a more straight-pop direction. Well, a dark as shit straight-pop thing, but that is a terrible song. If Avril Lavigne had no filter and tried to out-raunch Eminem. I thought about providing you with a new single, but honestly, if what you have heard so far is appealing, then please feel free to search that out on your own.
One Liner: Disco-fied Daft Punk electronic pop from Mexico Wikipedia Genre: No Wikipedia, but this is disco-pop-funk-retro-electronics Home: Chihuahua, Mexico Poster Position: Third Quarter - Line 16 Day: Sunday. Both Weekends.
4:30 pm on the Tito's Stage.
Thoughts: Man, I already used my Butterfly Effect discussion about what would have happened if Daft Punk had continued to make disco-tinged dance pop. These guys missed the boat. I don't know what that vocoder-ass thing is that Daft Punk used to such pleasure back in the day, but here we go again.
There was an Indian developmental feminist activist, poet, author and social scientist, named Kamla Bhasin, who "called herself 'The Midnight Generation', a reference to the generation of Indians born around the time of independence, 'at the stroke of the midnight hour...'" Which, okay. If you make up your own nickname, it had better be cooler than that, man. Anyway, nothing else on Wikipedia for this band name. But interestingly enough, these dudes are from Chihuahua, Mexico. I would not have guessed that a retro-pop-disco-funk-electronic band, with very clear English lyrics, would hail from just on the other side of the border from Big Bend. While their sound is overall pretty dorky and outside of my spot, I can see their live shows being a pretty damn good time.
Their first EP from 2015 looks like it is full of covers - "Hey Ya!" and "Gimme Some Lovin'" as two of the titles - but they are disco-tinged pop originals. Four albums - 2020's Odyssey, 2023's Afterlife, 2025's Teacher, and 2025's Tender Love. Strangely, but maybe it shouldn't be so strange in this era of weird streaming rules, the two 2025 albums share songs. The albums don't appear to have the top songs, those are mostly singles in between the albums. Which also seems odd, but the world is a different things now. "Young Girl" wins the streaming with 12.2 million, which was on a 2016 EP called Funk Your Bones (Side B).
That little synth/whistle line in there feels like something that has popped up in TikTok. It is fine, sort of sounds like a joke song that Lonely Planet would have made or something. I think that girl is sitting in poison ivy. Her bootie gonna be so sad. Let's do a new one as well, this is "Don't Wait Up" from the two new 2025 albums. 3.9 million streams.There's that robot lover crooning that I know you needed to hear. Again, not sure that the song is all that great, but I think it would be a hell of a lot of fun to funk around to in a big dusty field with a lot of friends.
But, sadly for them, there is absolutely no way they get any attention. At least not with anyone who likes anything I like - they are up against both Wet Leg and Rainbow Kitten Surprise. Brutal spot for an up-and-comer.
One Liner: Falsetto laced-synth pop behind that huge "Walking on a Dream" track Wikipedia Genre: electropop, synth-pop, dance-rock, electro-rock, new wave Home: Sydney Poster Position: Top Row - Line 2 Day: Friday Both Weekends.
Miller Lite at 7:00.
Thoughts: Several people I know were excited to see these dudes on the lineup, but they are just not something I am familiar with at all. I think I may have always thought that their big hit (the only song I recognize in here that wasn't featured on a rapper's album) was by MGMT or Milky Chance or M83 or Passion Pit. Some other synthesizer band with a singer who does weird things with his voice. But yes, I recognize the big hit for sure.
"Walking on a Dream" has 1.1 billion streams on Spotify. The singer with the white line across his face looks like Bowen Yang (one of the current SNL actors) mixed with Jordan Peele. Tell me I'm wrong! It is a fine song, I just don't necessarily go out of my way for synth pop tracks. But yeah, sure, that is catchy.
Do you remember the movie Empire of the Sun? That was the first movie I can remember watching that felt like it was four full days long. It was Speilberg, so it felt like required watching, but my memory of it was that it was the longest film ever made. Wikipedia says 2:34, so I guess that was me being 11 years old that was talking...
This band is not that movie. Or the book the movie was based upon. This is an Australian duo - Luke Steele and Nick Littlemore - formed in Sydney in 2007. Their first album was 2008's Walking on a Dream, and blew the doors off of their fame. Double platinum in Australia and gold in the U.S. Wikipedia says they had originally conceived of this music as being studio-only, once the title track exploded, they decided to go for freaky visual overload with giant graphics and many dancers and Steele on a pedestal wearing "a gigantic metallic headpiece and his usual 'Ming The Merciless' robe." Right. The usual. Littlemore opted out of performing the songs live, and it sounds like that stance held true for the entirety of that first tour.
After that initial huge album (with their second-biggest streamer, "We Are The People" also on there with 707.7 millin streams), they never caught that much fame again. The majority of the songs on that initial disc have less than ten million streams, and most on the back half have less than 5 million. Interestingly, the track "Half Mast" from this album ended up becoming the beat for a Mac Miller track on his 2010 album K.I.D.S., which is how I knew the sound of that song in the first place. Mac called it "The Spins," and it is SO MUCH BETTER than the original version with him bopping over the top. Almost a billion streams for Mac's song (and 97.7 million for the original). Ten times more popular. Maybe they should collaborate with rappers more often?
Their next disc was 2013's Ice on the Dune, which also generally flopped. At the time, Steele gained media attention by comparing Ice on the Dune with Daft Punk's 2013 album release Random Access Memories, stating: "They had a great marketing campaign, but we’ve got better songs." Riiiiight. Well, one track from that album blew up and was used for a bunch of random things: the intro video for Google's 2013 I/O, part of the intro video for a new Yahoo! logo, in the movie Dumb and Dumber To, in FIFA 14, and in the end credits of the 2013 film Paranoia. 313.3 million streams.
Yeah, I don't get it. Generic synths and generic lyrics. I cannot imagine how that song was integrated into the second Dumb and Dumber movie. Well, there you go. Matches it so well!
Interestingly, the band wrote at least two other songs for that movie. Also interesting, it looks like "Walking on a Dream" only finally blew up in the U.S. after a Honda Civic commercial was released in 2016, which shot the song up to #3 on the Billboard alternative chart. Kind of crazy that it was not the actual release of the song that made it big here, but a Honda commercial.
By the way, they claim their name has nothing to do with the book or movie. Which I find to be unbelievable. Littlemore claims: "the name comes more from the idea of ... the fact that we're traveling around the world going to all the places of empires of the civilization where the sun has been a theme of worship. It's not based on the Ballard novel nor the Spielberg film of the same name." Riiiiiiiiight. "No, man, my new band named Star Wars has nothing to do with those movies, man. It's just like the way that stars have always seemed at war with the cosmos, man!"
2016's Two Vines was next, and again the majority of the album has few streams. One big track though with "High and Low" with 144.8 million streams.
That one sounds kind of familiar, it must have gotten some radio play around these parts. I probably still thought it was MGMT this whole time though. The non-Jordan Peele dude cut all his lovely locks off! That song was featured in FIFA 17 - smart! After that, the band admitted that they struggled to write anything new during the pandemic over Zoom and whatnot. BUt they still had a hit song pop out in 2020, when Wiz Khalifa released a single called "The Thrill" that pretty much just yused the entire "Walking on a Dream" track just with Wiz throwing in some lame raps over the top of the original song. Still got 519 million streams and is good for the fourth-most streamed song for this band.
But then the lads came back together to release 2024's Ask That God. No real hits that touch anywhere near the heights of their prior hits. Two of the songs on here don't even crack a million streams. The top track is "Music on the Radio," with 23.4 million streams.
Catchy stuff again. Actually, makes me think of that Daft Punk album that this guy slagged.
I am actually terribly disappointed in my reaction to this music. My friend Jason had texted me that he was really excited about them being on the poster, calling them "bad ass." When I read that, I figured that this had to be a rock band - I was imagining Highly Suspect or Nothing But Thieves. Instead, just a pile of flasetto synth pop. Not sure if I will get to see them either way, I feel like Cage the Elephant or Hozier would be the trump to this band, but who knows.
One Liner: Techno stuff with tons of top end sounds and not enough bass for me
Wikipedia Genre: electropop Home: Brisbane, Australia Poster Position: Second Quarter - Line 11 Day: Friday Both Weekends.
Tito's Tent at 6:30.
Thoughts: When the first 30 seconds of the band makes you sigh very loudly at your desk, you know you are in for a real treat. It is house music, I think. Never entirely sure how to parse the different genres of EDM, but it is also deeply annoying to me. This is the kind of techno where it is really fast, like too fast to comfortably dance to it unless you are one of those scary tweakers with the little lights on the ends of your fingers, and a lady sings inane crap over the top the whole time. I was really hoping this band name was going to lead me to something cool. Not so much.
I know I should write this stuff myself, but the Wikipedia entry here is really just so weird that I feel like you need it: "The band was formed in 2016. The members had met on the Brisbane music scene, and had been in other bands including: The Belligerents, Moses Gunn Collective and The Jungle Giants, and use pseudonyms .... They started writing dance songs together, initially as a "kind of joke", but eventually reali[z]ed the material was worth pursuing. Planet and Bones provide vocals and dancing while Goodchild and McGuffie, who appear as masked figures, play keyboards and drums." Those are some special pseudonyms for sure.
3 albums - 2018's Confident Music for Confident People, 2022's Tilt, and 2024's 3AM (La La La). Their top streamers are not actually their songs, they are two tracks by DJ Seinfeld with these guys on the track. But a 2019 single called "Does It Make You Feel Good" is the top streamer that is just them. And to be honest, it is much better than the first six tracks on their Spotify Popular list. 15.6 million streams.
Not quite as frenetic as more popular tunes, although it still doesn't do much for me. I think when I want the techno music I want more bass and heft than this more top-end-heavy stuff that sounds like half of it is just high hats. " I CAN'T LOSE YOU" is from the new disc and has 5.2 million streams.
Naked people in a helicopter is pretty fun. But man, that song is terrible. All the worst parts of that Barbie Girl song sped up and repeated over and over. I don't know if she is Planet or Bones, but she is brave to hang half-way out of that chopper with her boobs flopping around. "Holiday" has 10.4 million streams.
Oh, a hot air balloon this time. They need to do that on stage in the Tito's Tent and burn that sucker down. That song is maybe better than the last one, but still relatively annoying for me.
I will let other folks enjoy the sounds of these weirdos.
One Liner: Influential indie/chillwave piece of Animal Collective Wikipedia Genre: psychedelic pop, electronic Home: NYC (via Baltimore, although now in Portugal, so, whatever) Poster Position: Second Quarter - Line 12 Day: Friday Both Weekends.
Beatbox Stage at 3:30.
Thoughts: I feel like I have heard about Panda Bear for years, but never really known what he has going on. I similarly never remember listening to Animal Collective, so I have missed out on his original band as well as his current thing. Well, no longer.
Noah Lennox started using the name Panda Bear in the late 90's when he added a drawn picture of a panda to the cover of a tape he made in his bedroom. He grew up in Baltimore, Maryland, went to Boston University to major in religion, and ended up in New York City. Since 2004, he has lived in Portugal. When he got to New York in 2000, he and some of the others from Animal Collective shifted that band from a loose, long-distance thing into a more formal band and started releasing music. They released five albums from 2000 to 2007, when Panda Bear released his first real solo disc - 2007's Person Pitch. But then they both just kept on doing their thing concurrently.
I fired up his new album, and it sounds like the Beach Boys are still making lush and catchy pop harmonies in my office. I absolutely love it. But I want to go back in time and dig in on this guy, so let's go to the beginning instead.
2007's Person Pitch still sounds kind of like it was influenced by the Beach Boys and that sort of spacey harmony thing, except that it also wiggles with samples and electronica involved. The album opener is the top track on it - here is "Comfy in Nautica," with 4.8 million streams.
If the Beach Boys had acquired an army and asked them to march upon Malibu, this would have been the sound as they goose-stepped up the Pacific Coast Highway. "Take Pills" burbles with random noise as the underlying song seems piped through a distant tunnel. "Bros" also has an echo-ey quality, but shines with the trippy harmonies of a Pet Sounds b-side, until it goes into the 12 minute trippy freakout of a Sargeant Pepper's b-side. There are nice little ideas and sounds in here, but I'd say that the overall feel of the album is stressful and weird for me. Wikipedia claims that this album inspired the chillwave genre and numerous other acts. This ain't the type of chillwave I want to hear then. Also interesting, to me at least, that multiple things I read called this album highly acclaimed and trailblazing and whatever, and yet the top streamer has less than 5 million listens. Doesn't feel especially acclaimed if no one listens.
I asked a friend who is in to chill music what he thought of Panda Bear, and his response was something like "the songs I love, I really love, but much of it is not great." He then sent me a link to "Good Girl/Carrots," saying that if you would just forward about three minutes in the song is amazing. But it sucks to have to forward a chunk of a song to get to the goods. Oh well!
2011's Tomboy also comes on with those trippy harmonies and Brian Wilson vibe, but there is more straight guitar in the mix. "Slow Motion" almost has a hip hop vibe to it. Hahaha - I was literally coming here to say that a song sounded like a hellacious drone track, only to find that the name of it is "Drone." Spot on, Panda Bear, spot on. That song sucks! Like the first one, the album is up and down, but none of the stream counts point to any particular hit here.
In here, the Bear appeared on one of Daft Punk's songs from that Random Access Memories album that won all the Grammys and reintroduced Daft Punk to the world. So, despite it being a collaboration, Pandaman has himself a Grammy.
2015's awesomely titled Panda Bear Meets the Grim Reaper is his highest charting album, reaching #2 on the US Indie charts and #34 on the regular US charts. He keeps the weirdness alive here too, with the layered harmonies and electronica sounds. "Mr Noah" is louder and harder than most of the other stuff though, while "Tropic of Cancer" is a harp-fueled cloud. "Come to Your Senses" is almost poppy. Just feels all over the place. But the big streamer from it is "Boys Latin" with 11.3 million streams.
It sort of loses the beat there at the start - that is weird. it's like I am listening to two songs at once. I just paused it to make sure I wasn't. Are any of those vocals actually words? Trippy, brah. Here is what I will give the guy with this album, I am genuinely curious to hear what is coming next. You literally cannot predict what the next song will be like the first time you hear this disc. I don't know if it is all good, but at least it is interesting for sure.
2019's Buoys starts out with a song that reminds me of the new Radiohead style of strangely sparse songs, although this one also has water drop sounds interspersed throughout for reasons. He is using effects on his voice here that are kind of trippy and remind me of the times that Vampire Weekend has used the same. No big songs here.
2022's Reset (which is done with someone or something called Sonic Boom) heads back towards the Beach Boys angle. And like that last disc, you really never know what is coming next. Spanish flamenco influence? Sure. Morose folk? Of course. "Edge of the Edge" is probably my favorite on here. No songs on here crack 2 million either. I am really interested to know how the songs from the new album sound so amazing in comparison to much of this. He also does an extended version of this and then a "dub" version too. No one listened to that.
Finally, we get to 2025's Sinister Grift. It is rad. I feel like he took the Beach Boy harmonies and the Tame Impala usage of that and wrapped them into a new set of tracks. I don't know why this one registers so cleanly with me, but I think it is really great. Still kind of trippy and weird, but also a more normal-ish indie rock record with guitars and drums and whatever. Top track as of now is "Defense," featuring the elusive Cindy Lee. 1.6 million streams.
Nice groove underlying that action. Ooooooh, wait, a Tiny Desk from 4 weeks ago!?! Fresh Tiny Desk!!!
Reminds me of Car Seat Headrest at times. The explainer on that says that this is the first time Panda Bear has toured with a full band since he started doing solo action. Two songs from the new disc ("Ferry Lady" and "Defense") and then a deep cut from a 2009 Animal Collective disc. Great harmonies. Definitely just seems like a regular ass indie band though - they stripped off the weird stuff. Which I dig! Let's go do it with the Panda!
