What a beautiful post. Thank you for sharing something so deeply personal.
I'll have to check out Kacey's latest -- I remember listening to her first or second album quite a bit when she first came on the scene, and I'm glad to hear she's still making music.
I confess a serious failing in that I’ve probably never knowingly listened to her; or, at least that I remember. But we’re driving home from Durham with still two hours to go and, well, here goes. (My wife’s driving, by the way, thus my typing!) Thanks for the inspiration!
I had never listened to her either until it was the album pick of the month! It took me several listens to appreciate it - the 2nd half of the album is much better IMO.
Thanks, Andres. I so appreciate your words. I have a lot of drafts of essays about my sister and our relationship, though they are really long so I'm planning on figuring out a way to shorten them or turn them into segments.
I hear you. Something that works a treat (for me at least): record yourself reading them aloud and then play them back. Even if you don't want to do voiceovers, this exercise helps a lot with editing.
I’d first like to send my condolences for your loss. I smiled when the photo of your sister appeared and she was wearing red. Perhaps Cardinal was her conduit to you, as she understands how music affects you spiritually. Thank you for sharing such a personal perspective for the album review. It still amazes me how music heals and enlightens. Have a great weekend.
Thanks, Thea. I didn't realize the red connection! Maybe she guided me to pick that photo to share. It's so lovely to be continually reminded of the power of music. Not that I forget, but it's always wonderful to get a hit of that musical high.
Wow Steve, another lovely column with so much to unpack. I appreciate your ability to “put a pin” in the tangential, but important, discussion about the musical overload that comes with our current streaming era. I too struggle to find the balance between going deep and going wide. The former brings me much joy and connects me more deeply to an individual album and artist but the latter exposes me to so much more new music yet tends to leave me frustrated at my inability to delve as deeply into everything I’d like to. I look forward to reading your thoughts in a later post.
I’m certainly enjoying the new Musgraves album. Her 2018 album Golden Hour was a top 20 release for me and this feels like a return to form after 2021’s star-crossed which just didn’t do it for me.
I’m sorry to hear about the recent loss of your friend. Sending you positive vibes for navigating the grief journey; hang in there.
I appreciate your evolution from a close-minded to an open-minded skeptic, a journey I’ve been on for some time. I can still be quite cynical and skeptical but have accepted that (believe it or not!) I don’t know everything.
I do my best to be open-minded about things but perhaps more importantly, unless someone’s beliefs and viewpoints are harmful to people I love, I no longer ridicule the beliefs of others or try to disabuse them of their notions or opinions. Life is just too short so I’ve learned to live and let live and follow the golden rule.
Thanks, Mark. I was new to Kacey Musgraves before a couple months ago, but replayed everything from Pageant Material onward. I get why Golden Hour is such a favorite, but I'm relating to the newest one most. Coming in blind, I got a kick out of the sonic experimentation on star-crossed. I do think it was less substantive and more about playing around, but I appreciate how much she seems to want to push herself and not repeat what she's done before (even if people think Deeper Well is similar to Golden Hour).
The topic of streaming is a big one -- and you tackle it yourself in your essays, I know. I've always been a crazy collector type, to an unhealthy degree probably, which morphed from physical media to digital, but the pull of "wanting everything" is/was still there which is bad. I have a bit of discipline, but not enough to keep me from loading up on too many new releases. More to come on this.
And thanks for the kind words about my friend's recent passing. I had to be pretty vague about it as mutual friends read this and there's elements of guilt (on my behalf) as I hadn't been in touch for a while so it took a bit of time to feel her loss. But then I found a bunch of letters she wrote to me just after college and it all came rushing out.
I am one of those people who found Musgraves' Grammy winning "Golden Hour" to be quite listenable with a few outstanding tracks that I still listen to regularly. I also liked a couple of the songs on her follow-up "star-crossed" but that album hasn't had lasting energy for me. I listened to the new album once or twice and while I like the first three tracks, I agree that the rest of the album kind of blends together in a bit of a bland way. None of it really grabs me. That's disappointing because I do like some of her songwriting. I just wish she's pick up the tempo a bit more than she does!
It's a different listening experience, the new one, and if you think of it as an album, side 2 is much more sonically (and lyrically) interesting. It's still fairly mellow, but tracks like "Anime Eyes" and "Lonely Millionaire" are full of surprises and go in unexpected directions. And lyrically, "Dinner with Friends" is gorgeous and is essentially a list of all the things she imagines she'd miss if she was no longer with us. There's a calm wisdom to these tracks, as well as with "The Architect" where Kacey marvels at the natural world and wonders what it would be like to meet the architect of such beauty. Maybe The Architect is a stand-in for God. But then she expands the canvas and it points the camera wider and wonders about the passivity of just noticing and not taking action on the horrors of the world: "Does it happen by chance? Is it all happenstance? Do we have any say in this mess?"
I'm in agreement about the tempo, but like I wrote about, after a few plays, I surrendered to the tempo that it wanted to be heard and was able to sink into it.
Steve, nice tribute to your sister, your grandparents, and loved ones whose physical bodies may no longer be here, but their presence will always live within us.
I teach art at a large urban high school and several of my students love Lenker (and Big Thief). I don't know Musgraves' music, but I am sure they do as younger female alt-folk singers/songwriters are very popular with my upper-level art students.
Thanks, Michael. That's great that Lenker is so popular. I like that her solo stuff is quite different than Big Thief. They are great complements to each other. So much better than all the Taylor Swift pablum.
Beth, at the album discussion we had, Terry played "Follow Your Arrow" for the group and it floored me. I wasn't familiar with her first album. I've since been playing all her albums. She really has expanded her sound in so many directions, it's very impressive.
I have always viewed this as explicitly fat-inclusive: she’s saying your weight is your business, not anyone else’s, and you should do what you want. It fits with the song being about society having double standards (particularly toward women) on matters that shouldn’t even be society’s business in the first place
Yeah, that's what I was commenting on. I don't see it as being fattist, it's commenting on living for society's standards is a fruitless endeavor. That still holds true in today's world.
Steve, I laughed, I cried, I peed and I let out some gas. Great piece!
(note, this is Steve writing this - comments were turned off for some reason so I'm testing it from a dummy account...insert joke about me. being a dummy).
In March, I wrote this piece about Cardinal. I hope you enjoy it. ✌️
https://scottwinchell.substack.com/p/cardinal?r=2xtsf
What a beautiful post. Thank you for sharing something so deeply personal.
I'll have to check out Kacey's latest -- I remember listening to her first or second album quite a bit when she first came on the scene, and I'm glad to hear she's still making music.
I confess a serious failing in that I’ve probably never knowingly listened to her; or, at least that I remember. But we’re driving home from Durham with still two hours to go and, well, here goes. (My wife’s driving, by the way, thus my typing!) Thanks for the inspiration!
I had never listened to her either until it was the album pick of the month! It took me several listens to appreciate it - the 2nd half of the album is much better IMO.
I first heard this one on WBJB 90.5 The Night in NJ and have since heard it on there a couple more times. It's a fantastic song.
Yes, it's pretty much perfect IMO.
This was beautiful. Thanks for sharing something so personal and writing about it so beautifully.
Thanks, Andres. I so appreciate your words. I have a lot of drafts of essays about my sister and our relationship, though they are really long so I'm planning on figuring out a way to shorten them or turn them into segments.
I hear you. Something that works a treat (for me at least): record yourself reading them aloud and then play them back. Even if you don't want to do voiceovers, this exercise helps a lot with editing.
I’d first like to send my condolences for your loss. I smiled when the photo of your sister appeared and she was wearing red. Perhaps Cardinal was her conduit to you, as she understands how music affects you spiritually. Thank you for sharing such a personal perspective for the album review. It still amazes me how music heals and enlightens. Have a great weekend.
Thanks, Thea. I didn't realize the red connection! Maybe she guided me to pick that photo to share. It's so lovely to be continually reminded of the power of music. Not that I forget, but it's always wonderful to get a hit of that musical high.
Wow Steve, another lovely column with so much to unpack. I appreciate your ability to “put a pin” in the tangential, but important, discussion about the musical overload that comes with our current streaming era. I too struggle to find the balance between going deep and going wide. The former brings me much joy and connects me more deeply to an individual album and artist but the latter exposes me to so much more new music yet tends to leave me frustrated at my inability to delve as deeply into everything I’d like to. I look forward to reading your thoughts in a later post.
I’m certainly enjoying the new Musgraves album. Her 2018 album Golden Hour was a top 20 release for me and this feels like a return to form after 2021’s star-crossed which just didn’t do it for me.
I’m sorry to hear about the recent loss of your friend. Sending you positive vibes for navigating the grief journey; hang in there.
I appreciate your evolution from a close-minded to an open-minded skeptic, a journey I’ve been on for some time. I can still be quite cynical and skeptical but have accepted that (believe it or not!) I don’t know everything.
I do my best to be open-minded about things but perhaps more importantly, unless someone’s beliefs and viewpoints are harmful to people I love, I no longer ridicule the beliefs of others or try to disabuse them of their notions or opinions. Life is just too short so I’ve learned to live and let live and follow the golden rule.
Thanks, Mark. I was new to Kacey Musgraves before a couple months ago, but replayed everything from Pageant Material onward. I get why Golden Hour is such a favorite, but I'm relating to the newest one most. Coming in blind, I got a kick out of the sonic experimentation on star-crossed. I do think it was less substantive and more about playing around, but I appreciate how much she seems to want to push herself and not repeat what she's done before (even if people think Deeper Well is similar to Golden Hour).
The topic of streaming is a big one -- and you tackle it yourself in your essays, I know. I've always been a crazy collector type, to an unhealthy degree probably, which morphed from physical media to digital, but the pull of "wanting everything" is/was still there which is bad. I have a bit of discipline, but not enough to keep me from loading up on too many new releases. More to come on this.
And thanks for the kind words about my friend's recent passing. I had to be pretty vague about it as mutual friends read this and there's elements of guilt (on my behalf) as I hadn't been in touch for a while so it took a bit of time to feel her loss. But then I found a bunch of letters she wrote to me just after college and it all came rushing out.
Live and let live, 100%.
I am one of those people who found Musgraves' Grammy winning "Golden Hour" to be quite listenable with a few outstanding tracks that I still listen to regularly. I also liked a couple of the songs on her follow-up "star-crossed" but that album hasn't had lasting energy for me. I listened to the new album once or twice and while I like the first three tracks, I agree that the rest of the album kind of blends together in a bit of a bland way. None of it really grabs me. That's disappointing because I do like some of her songwriting. I just wish she's pick up the tempo a bit more than she does!
It's a different listening experience, the new one, and if you think of it as an album, side 2 is much more sonically (and lyrically) interesting. It's still fairly mellow, but tracks like "Anime Eyes" and "Lonely Millionaire" are full of surprises and go in unexpected directions. And lyrically, "Dinner with Friends" is gorgeous and is essentially a list of all the things she imagines she'd miss if she was no longer with us. There's a calm wisdom to these tracks, as well as with "The Architect" where Kacey marvels at the natural world and wonders what it would be like to meet the architect of such beauty. Maybe The Architect is a stand-in for God. But then she expands the canvas and it points the camera wider and wonders about the passivity of just noticing and not taking action on the horrors of the world: "Does it happen by chance? Is it all happenstance? Do we have any say in this mess?"
I'm in agreement about the tempo, but like I wrote about, after a few plays, I surrendered to the tempo that it wanted to be heard and was able to sink into it.
Good to hear your assessment. I will have to listen again and a bit more closely!
Steve, nice tribute to your sister, your grandparents, and loved ones whose physical bodies may no longer be here, but their presence will always live within us.
I teach art at a large urban high school and several of my students love Lenker (and Big Thief). I don't know Musgraves' music, but I am sure they do as younger female alt-folk singers/songwriters are very popular with my upper-level art students.
Thanks, Michael. That's great that Lenker is so popular. I like that her solo stuff is quite different than Big Thief. They are great complements to each other. So much better than all the Taylor Swift pablum.
Amazing write up Steve!
Thanks, Stanley! I thought of you when listening to Adrienne Lenker’s latest album.
I need to invest in more modern artists. I'm either stuck in the 60s, 70a and 80s or in the 1700s.
Well, Jim, I'm happy to share some newer, modern artists with you! I've written about three of them, in particular....The Midnight (https://bradkyle.substack.com/p/audio-autopsy-2022-the-midnight-and?utm_source=publication-search), S.G. Lewis (https://bradkyle.substack.com/p/singerproducer-sg-lewis-elton-john?utm_source=publication-search)
and my favorite, Roosevelt (https://bradkyle.substack.com/p/audio-autopsy-2018-roosevelt-and?utm_source=publication-search)
Dig in, and enjoy!
There’s room to get stuck in all the decades!
I mean I laughed and cried and felt seen too. Love Kacey. Deeper Well is a bop. https://youtu.be/ZSPyunH-vX0?feature=shared. And I’m digging “Too good to be True” https://youtu.be/3lMxL0nAELE?feature=shared
Regardless, “Follow Your Arrow” is a tune that holds a special place in my heart
Beth, at the album discussion we had, Terry played "Follow Your Arrow" for the group and it floored me. I wasn't familiar with her first album. I've since been playing all her albums. She really has expanded her sound in so many directions, it's very impressive.
The lyrics need to be refreshed for 2024 and the age of Ozempic but yeah the rest holds up
These lyrics had me thinking of this:
If you can't lose the weight, then you're just fat
But if you lose too much, then you're on crack
You're damned if you do, and you're damned if you don't
So you might as well just do whatever you want
I have always viewed this as explicitly fat-inclusive: she’s saying your weight is your business, not anyone else’s, and you should do what you want. It fits with the song being about society having double standards (particularly toward women) on matters that shouldn’t even be society’s business in the first place
Yes me too. It’s a big “f-off” to society’s standards
Yeah, that's what I was commenting on. I don't see it as being fattist, it's commenting on living for society's standards is a fruitless endeavor. That still holds true in today's world.
That’s a fair point. Never ending cycle of shame and pain. And $$
I dunno - can't keep chasing trends and fads (and diet fads for sure). Ozempic will be in the rear view mirror before this song will.
Steve, I laughed, I cried, I peed and I let out some gas. Great piece!
(note, this is Steve writing this - comments were turned off for some reason so I'm testing it from a dummy account...insert joke about me. being a dummy).