catajouille talks about music :,)

codie ✧ they/them BANDS I LOVE: pinegrove ✧ flipturn ✧ geese✧ vundabar scared of sharing things so this is my exposure therapy :)

[catajouille]

album review #3: something you needed - flipturn

Savannah: 7/10 - just a short, acoustic nostalgic opening track :,) its really just like an old video you find somewhere in the recesses of your laptop files of something you forgot. the echoey-ness and just a taste of dillon's vocal capabilities are so great and build throughout the album so well. its just so short and small compared to the other tracks on this ep...

Something You Needed: 8/10 - a little abrupt from the first track, but is SO DAMN GOOD. the second the drums and synth come in the track just keeps expanding upon itself sonically,,,, also the backstory of this song is so fucking touching and just holds such a special meaning to me :) I have no idea what guitar tone they had on for this track but it is so bendy and fun!!

Poppies: 7/10 - once again, absolutely heartbroken over the backstory of this song </3 its a great track, but just isn't as full of contrast and interesting instrumentals like some of the other tracks on the album (besides the cello part that is so excellent and I'd die for it to be longer)!! parts of the chorus are just so good though oh dillon you and your voice

Glistening: 9/10 - ICONIC opening riff.... quite possibly my 3rd favorite flipturn song behind reason to pretend and did I love you. glistening has the most ADDICTING lyrics on this whole EP (like the "I could be a better man / I could be an elephant" part is the best thing ever fight me). its so SMOOTH and everything just fits EXACTLY how you want it to. dillon's vocals absolutely carry this song and its amazing... jesus christ what a good fucking song

Did I Love You (Like I Promised To): 10/10 - its genuinely disgusting how beautiful this song is. Like. i cant even physically comprehend this song when I listen to it. i need it injected into my bloodstream and holy shit. the drums? the trumpet? the vocals? the climax building of the chorus? yeah bud just pepper spray directly into my eyes. this is the love song of all time.

I've been a RABID INSANE DEGENERATE flipturn fan since middle school. I love flipturn. live laugh flipturn. They are absolutely my favorite band of all time... so this review is VERY biased... but who cares!! Anyway, I've wanted to talk about them for forever; flipturn's vocalist dillon just makes them SO unique,,, like the flavor of their indie rock/pop is so smooth and breezy compared to some other bands i've heard. Sorry, but a lot of other indie bands have a nearly identical man drawl (sorry peach pit, sorry vansire, sorry dayglow, sorry the shins, sorry RMCM, sorry,,, probably why I also love geese and pinegrove sm because there vocalists are on some crazy ball).

I have so much to say about this EP. Hot take but i prefer it to burnout days and shadowglow, which are also FUCKING EXCELLENT but something you needed captured this GLOW and EMOTION that just only reappears on a few of their later shadowglow tracks (whales, sad disco, space cowboy, hollow). Lyrically amazing, sonically beautiful, etc. The album is, I will admit, quite uniform, but I think as a continuous piece works wonders. The stories behind the songs on this EP are definitely flipturn's best work, and I've also had the privilege of edge of seeing many of these songs live a few times which just makes me appreciate them EVEN MORE,,,, amazing in all ways. its so different from anything else they've put out, and I'd give it a nice listen :)

[3/10/2026]

[catajouille]

album review #2: inertia - toledo

Cause & Effect: 7.5/10 - GREAT intro to the album, something about the melody is so freaking sweet to me combined with the strings and banjo in the bg,,, just so lovely :) i just feel like the lyrics are a tad clunky in some places, but the instrumentals make up for it

When He Comes Around: 8.5/10 - saw this live and BOY was it amazing,,, the studio vers reminds me of how powerful and absolute the guitar parts were irl and I just wish they were like that here :,) still love it tho

Zelda: 8.5/10 - one of my favorite toledo song,,, something about the melody and soft trumpet just gets me... dan's vocals are so great because they compliment the entire composition instead of overshadowing the instruments :,)) perfectly airy and a great summertime vibe... also the lyrics??? very so nice

Tall Kids: 8/10 - your quintessential toledo track :) smooth like spring water,,, the breakdown toward the end is interesting and a bit of a departure from the rest of the song which I have mixed feelings about, but its overall very nice :)

Perfect Blue: 4/10 - i know this is just an interlude track and I should give it some grace but I feel like this is the most instrumental song in the EP and the instrumentals just weren't cutting it ;-; same airy vibe, but it just drags and theres not a lot going on

Amends: 7/10 - every part of this song is constructed so well, and the buildup to the trumpet part is very nice :))) its just a taaad repetitive

I'm a big sucker for TOLEDO :) i've been listening to them for so long and their music has been part of some of my best memories, so I might be a bit biased as I write this... they have a very lovely, catchy, and consistent sound throughout their discography!! very slow, melancholy, but airy :) technically this isn't an album, its an EP, but we're just gonna say it is!!! Inertia is absolutely my second favorite EP they've released behind jockeys of love,, every song is distinct and has an interesting flavor, but also falls under the same umbrella of being mellow and spritely!! i heard when he comes around live at a gig in boston and I wish they would release a live album because OH my gosh </3 TOLEDO is one of those bands that somehow gets even better when you listen to them live... I adore this whole album though, and its a very gentle listen that sets a nice spring vibe. their music FEELS breezy like you can feel like the air whistling through ur headphones... [2/20/2026]

[catajouille]

album review #1: devil for the fire - vundabar

1. Aphasia : 8/10 - a pretty mellow starting track, but sets the mood extremely well and works well as an opening 2. Ringing Bell: 8.5/10 - kind of toes the line between energetic and sleazy: the album really starts to open up!! also has a lot of vundabar's signature dry riffs that accentuate all the right beats :) cool ass guitar line 3. Devil for the Fire: 9/10 - fucking LOVE the intro, its so anticipatory and Brandon's vocals are awesome along with the twangy instrumentals; the vibe really lives up to the name of this track :) it just sounds like a fire slowly licking its way up a bale of hay,,, kind of reminds me of alt-j a little? 4. Lore: 10/10 - genuinely one of my favorite songs OAT,,, i cant think of a single thing I dislike about it. the vibe shifts from the last track into something way more floaty,, its actually like travelling through time and into something crystalline and dark and oceanic,,,, such a unique song with an excellent melody and GREAT lyrics ohmygosh... Lore gives you exactly what you want when you want it to and is absolutely perfect. i simultaneously wish it was longer but also think its the perfect length. such a delicate song...

5. The Gloam: 6.5/10 - more traditionally surf-rocky, and I don't find it as interesting as some of the earlier tracks in the album. there are some pretty cool melodic elements going on though, and the guitar parts are the highlight of the track 6. Nosferatu: 8/10 - this is such a fun track and I enjoy it a whole lot!! the intro is very simple, but the song really grows further. the chorus is very snappy, but it doesn't really carry on the more intricate construction of some of the earlier tracks. I still freaking LOVE this song though, and it brings a great energy to the album :) 7. Heatwave: 7/10- very surf-rocky! I feel very similarly about this track as I do to nosferatu, but I just enjoy nosferatu's melody a bit more. Heatwave just gets a little repetitive at times but its still darn nice!! one thing I'll add is that the original flavor of the album gets slightly lost by this point, but thats ok!! albums with variety are by no means worse 8. Listless Blue: 6.5/10- i REALLY love the intricacies in the vocal performance, and it extremely nice track! i just wish there was more going on...

9. Deep Water: 6/10 - I feel like it isn't the MOST satisfying final track but is definitely a unique vibe. the vocals are definitely the defining part of this song :)

I feel like Vundabar is one of those bands that isn't able to shake off its reputation and thus dissuades some people from listening to them. Everyone kind of knows them from their Gawk album from 2020 (Alien Blues being the giant hit) and imo Gawk is VERY well made and absolutely has some great tracks, but it's known for being more "edgy" and "2020ish" (not my words!) and slightly traps Vundabar into being just a band from the bygone covid era. Devil for the Fire was released in 2022 and it instantly became one of my fav albums of all time,, so many tracks on this are so great!!! its a great listen start to finish and I would absolutely recommend it! I'd say the album starts of extremely strong with Devil for the Fire and Lore being some of the most incredible songs ive ever heard, but it does lose a bit of momentum toward the middle; it's overall VERY unique and has an awesome vibe thats totally different from Vundabar's other stuff :) you can almost imagine falling accidentally into a dark, sunken realm with deep chasms and high hills when listening,, lots of echo, brandon's signature interesting vocal delivery, and sick ass guitar lines!! [2/15/2026]

[catajouille]

what is the joy in oysters🦪

its so weird because whenever I get the chance to eat oysters I get super excited; its like wow! I love eating this slightly novel form of seafood that I believe that I enjoy! however, whenever I actually do the act of eating oyster I don't truly understand what I like about it. I saw this post once that was like "why do people like eating oysters? it's like eating a large saltwater flavored booger" and i was like. yeah. yeah it is. they don't really have a taste and their texture isn't particularly pleasant either. they're like sacks of salt + maybe some complex hint of sweet molluskian flesh but aren't exceptionally stunning in any aspect...

so why do i like oysters?? "large saltwater booger" is honestly the most succinct and accurate way of describing one. maybe its that weird but appealing umami aftertaste? or the animalistic joy one derives from sucking out the tender body of some inert creature from its rocky shell. idk

I definitely like eating oysters and i'd never turn down the opportunity to eat some but I really don't know why :/