Courtesy of Genius To Pimp a Butterfly? What does that even mean? Why are all these shirtless dudes in front of the White House on the cover? Therapeutic. That's the only word to describe To Pimp a Butterfly. As I write this, I am at a loss for words about how this...
End of the Year Awards
WVAU’s #1 Song of 2015: "Hotline Bling" by Drake
Courtesy of Pitchfork When I was selected to write about Hotline Bling as WVAU's Song of the year, I was excited, yet felt a plague of pressure. This track is just so much more than a song. Hotline Bling is the summation of Drake's entire year. This record has so...
WVAU’s #2 Album of 2015: "Carrie & Lowell" by Sufjan Stevens
Courtesy of Wikipedia Sufjan Stevens' musical journey has left few territories uncharted - over the course of his career, the Detroit native has explored acoustic folk, ambient rock, orchestral ballads, electronic, and everything in between. But on his latest album,...
WVAU’s #2 song of 2015: "Should Have Known Better" by Sufjan Stevens
Courtesy of The Daily Gazette Ah, yes, the token feelsy Top 10 songs. Because even us angsty college hipsters have to let our dammed-up emotions flood out in private every once in a while. The wide appeal of “Should Have Known Better” likely stems from its...
WVAU’s #3 Album of 2015: "I Love You, Honeybear" by Father John Misty
Courtesy of Wikipedia In I Love You, Honeybear Josh Tillman AKA Father John Misty takes a big, gaudy, rhinestone-lined heart and sews it onto his sleeve for all to see. According to Tillman, himself, the album is a concept album of his life, and it focuses very...
WVAU’s #3 Song of 2015: "Chateau Lobby #4 (in C for Two Virgins)" by Father John Misty
Courtesy of Village Voice Say what you will about Father John Misty- trash his grimy hippie persona, poke fun at his hackneyed lumbersexual hairdo scoff at this pompous interview responses- but the man knows how to write a love song. And not just any love song, but a...
WVAU’s #4 Album of 2015: "The Most Lamentable Tragedy" by Titus Andronicus
Courtesy of Merge Records It's not every day that a band announces that their next album is going to be a rock opera. Sure, they were en vogue in the 70's and 80's, ushered in by the Who's Tommy and Quadrophenia, but the rock opera, arguably with the depreciation...
WVAU’s #4 Song of 2015: "Pedestrian at Best" by Courtney Barnett
Courtesy of E-Verse Radio Just like any other weekend, my friends and I were in my beat up Volvo cruising around suburban New Jersey with no destination in mind. The routine was simple: pile the whole friend group in the small sedan, fill up on gas, and turn on WFMU....
WVAU’s #5 Album of 2015: "Painted Shut" by Hop Along
Courtesy of Rolling Stone The second record from Philly rock band Hop Along starts with an awakening, with a dream immediately tugged away from consciousness in the early morning. From there it moves discordantly, but assuredly. From story to story, from paradox to...
WVAU’s #5 Song of 2015: "In Time" by FKA Twigs
Courtesy of Genius Beneath the modular synth and electronic string construction of “In Time” lies the girlfriend you don't want. Like, really don't want. Maybe you've already even broken up with her, but her texts keep coming in, and she shows up to all the same...