
Miss Grit - Grow Up To
Miss Grit's "Grow Up To" ignites with a fuzzy distorted guitar slide, somewhere between an alarm and a siren. It’s a wake-up call to something, energizing and restless. Suddenly, you hear a voice, sweet and clear, singing out a message like a radio broadcast: “When I fall dead, I’ll still crave the next place all the same." Not long after, drums and bass state their piece- aggressively percussive, kicking up the drive another notch. There’s a sense of pent-upness that reminds you simultaneously of being nine, seventeen and twenty-three. You want so desperately to be somewhere farther along than you are, even though you have no idea where that is. You’ve outgrown where you are, but all the same, it’s too soon to spread your wings in the way you crave. Just as it becomes almost too much to bear, a new rhythm guitar line gracefully enters, a welcome balm on the building sense of angst. This new layer also turns on a lightbulb; you’re always growing up. You’re an ever-evolving entity, an active agent in your own growth. There will always be growing pains but also the delight of climbing somewhere ever higher and more dangerous. Miss Grit's latest track is a delightfully raucous anthem for embracing the weight and the joy in the ceaseless desire for growth. Photo by Miss Grit.
— Allison Hill on February 5, 2021
Henry Jamison - The Wilds
Henry Jamison is a storyteller at heart. It may be in his blood — his father, a classical composer, and his mother, an English professor — but Jamison is a writer and artist in his own right, evidenced by his debut album The Wilds (released October 27th). Beyond writing, recording and arranging the album all on his own, Jamison has a special ability to bring each track to life. Take his song, “The Wilds”: it’s instrumentally rich without being overbearing, letting Jamison’s narrative whisk you away. “The Wilds” sounds like an old-time American love story - unassuming and familiar, but nevertheless, still surprising.
— Natasha Cucullo on January 7, 2018
Moses Sumney - Plastic
Los Angeles genre-bending artist Moses Sumney released his gorgeous and ethereal debut album Aromanticism into the world this September. Sumney has made a big impression on artists like Solange and Sufjan Stevens for good reason. His infusion of soul and folk come together on this album in a way that leaves us begging for more. A prime example of this heavenly blend is found on the third song of the album, “Plastic.” A previous version of the song can be heard on the first season of Issa Rae’s HBO series, Insecure. This new version serves as one of the more simplistic songs on the album, featuring just a fingerpicked electric guitar, a synth and Sumney’s captivating voice. The hook of the song repeats the line “my wings are made of plastic,” each time sung in a slightly different way than it was before, continuing to imbue the phrase with new meaning. This song of vulnerability, self-awareness and secret-spilling is the kind that you can leave on repeat and get lost in for hours.
— Dara Bankole on October 22, 2017