nothing at all

my year in media: 2026; reviews of everything i consume

[jonijoanblue]

How I Do, Res (2001)

I think some of my lack of opinions of music comes from a lack of knowledge surrounding music as a whole. This album was a completely pleasurable listening experience, however I have no idea what ‘genre’ of music this, what it is blending, what it is doing, is it doing something completely new or just repeating old. Wikipedia states that this album ‘combines a number of musical styles, including hip hop, pop, rock, and R&B.’ Other descriptions call it a ‘rock soul album’ and ‘seductive collection of post-punk’ or merely ‘neo-soul’. What ‘neo-soul’ exactly is, well, I will need to google that as well. This album was a great time. Laid back and seductive, I would agree with that. It is womanly and sensual, like dancing in a late night club, like a night out on the town, like you’ve glimpsed a girl as she is walking you by, and she turns and gives you one look back. She is your Madonna in a Fur Coat. Well produced, each song is like a dive into a new water; distinct in its elements and sound - that still contribute to the overall ‘neo-soul’ nature. Golden Boys and Ice King help cement the tone, the cynical nature of a self assured woman; one that wants love (see Let Love) and everything that comes with it, but knows her worth and won’t tolerate no bullshit. A modern woman. 

[jonijoanblue]

Breath From Another,, Esthero

Breath From Another, Esthero (1998)

Metallic, clean. 90s pre Y2k minimalism. An electronic exploration of a girl and her life - distant, you’re distant. You’re lost, half a world away. I like the low and slow female vocals, against the solid tempo of the beginning of Breathe From Another, and then the quicker contrast for the chorus. The change in pace feels like running, an elusive subject matter, you’re running from something or she is running from you. The beginning beats of Heaven Sent feel back road and rural, an admittance of imperfection, maybe you have to kill the perfect version of you to be happy. An open road in front of you, you’re young and you’re scared of the people in fron of you, all you have is the belief in yourself. Intimacy of souls connecting.

[jonijoanblue]

Night Ride Home

The album feels like a young summer night; the kind of romance and contentment you felt when you were young. Romance in its simplest terms, most basic, innocent form - when hands feel hot and heavy when you hold them. The constant murmuring melodies of the guitar, base rhythms, like a lull to send you dizzy, feel comforting. Mitchell’s lyrics, ranging from societal commentary to soft love songs, fit together well. Come in From the Cold is one of my favourite - the opening lines - Back in 1957 // We had to dance a foot apart - already set the tone of the song - taking the listener back to the past, where the barest of touches sparked desire, sensuality, those finger tips glancing was all you were allowed, the forced separation amplifying any meeting of flesh. It explores the first base desire - to touch, to be touched, when you are first discovering it, when you cannot have it, when it is all you want, to come in from the cold. Again, Nothing Can Be Done brings us the contrast between old and young, comparing the perception of love and partners from both ages. This song takes a more cynical view; nothing can be done. She hears him leaving, and she lets him - she remembers the hunger that she felt in her youth (tying back to Come in From the Cold), but she is not young anymore, and she must face the realities of life instead. She’s looked at love, from both sides now. 

Songs, ranked:

Slouching Towards Bethlehem

Night Ride Home

Cherokee Louise

Come in From the Cold

Nothing Can be Done

Passion Play

Two Grey Rooms

The Windfall

Ray's Dad's Cadillac

The Only Joy in Town