tidalwavvves

[tidalwavvves]

the miseducation of lauryn hill (ms. lauryn hill)

I've embarked on my mission to listen (and I mean really listen) to the ten albums Rolling Stone deemed the best of all time as of 2023. Before I start, I want to mention that these ranking lists are useless. They're historically sexist and racist, with critics' opinions centering on white, Western, male artists. The vast majority of us would wildly disagree with this list (myself included) but I just thought it would be a fun project, and a solid guide to follow.

10th Best Album of All Time: The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill by Ms. Lauryn Hill (1998)

Have I heard it before? Some songs (maybe half?) but not the full album

First impression: I knew it would hold my attention all the way through and keep me on my toes

Favorite song: Superstar (although it rotates with Doo Wap and The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill)

Least favorite song: Tell Him (but it's still an absolute bop)

Scores out of 5

Favorite Song: 4.8

Least Favorite Song: 3.5

The Cohesiveness of the Album: 5

Creativity and Innovation: 5

Vocals: 4

Lyrics: 4

Instrumentals: 4.9

TOTAL OUT OF 35: 31.2

Final Thoughts:

The fact that the album is almost entirely written AND produced by Lauryn is wild

I really love the ongoing classroom theme throughout. It really reminded me of middle school and high school, and honestly sounds like they just recorded one of my classes

I need to do a lyric deep dive because I just know I'm not fully understanding some of these

There are so many layers to every song. There's an organ in most of them, a lot of them on the back half have a harp, insanely layered vocals, it's all so interesting

I've listened to the album maybe 4 times since my initial listen, and I'm still not tired of it. I'm actually writing this thinking I might pause this episode of Gossip Girl to turn the album on

[tidalwavvves]

the pop punk/emo dream (a night with blink 182, et. al)

I remember when I was younger (even up to age 23 or 24) I was adamant that you should never go to a concert with the idea that you are only there for the headliner. I was so upset with friends when they would suggest we get to the show sometime towards the end of the openers, because they need an audience too! How are they supposed to grow their fanbase and be the Next Big Thing if no one is there to see them? Perhaps some of that was my internal Pick Me Girl attitude of needing to be an early fan, because if you're not, you're just jumping on a bandwagon, right? (lol)

Now, at the wise old age of 27, I recognize how inane that is. Concerts are meant to be enjoyed, so why not do what you need to do to enjoy it? If that means limiting the time you're there, so be it.

Last week, I got a last minute nosebleed ticket to see Blink-182 in D.C. and I didn't really bother looking further into it. But the day of the show, something told me to go for the start time, not just the headliner time, and I'm so glad I did, even though I hadn't even looked on Instagram to see who was opening. Although I had heard something about Pierce the Veil playing a show in D.C. as well. The first band, Astronoid, is a four-piece out of Boston and I was pretty impressed. Their description on Spotify starts with:

"Creation should feel like a moment of self-actualization. Full potential and promise become fulfilled, and the next step can be taken."

These two sentences sum up Astronoid's sound pretty damn well. Sure, they're a rock band. But they have a distinct sound that is every bit as layred and spacey as their description. With a full, intricate guitar that is clearly inspired by the metal bands from the 2000s, and vocals that are a bit more reminiscent of We Came As Romans' To Plant A Seed album, I haven't seen an act with this distinct of a sound, yet still so clearly in the scene, in a long, long time.

The second headliner I realized upon walking into the arena and seeing the merch table - Pierce The Veil. I don't think I'm alone in saying that, honestly, I haven't thought about Pierce The Veil in probably a good seven or eight years. While they're not my cup of tea anymore, I would be out of my mind to not recognize how iconic some of their songs are, and the impact they had on me as an angsty teenager. Along with their newer material, they played their anthemic hits Caraphernelia, Bulls in the Bronx, and, of course, King for a Day. After their set, I texted my friend:

Me: Dude remember that song King for a Day?

Friend: Ugh yes

Me: I forgot that Pierce the Veil was opening for Blink-182 and they just played it and I think this is what Christians talk about when they go to church and have a religious experience

So I think that about sums up that experience. The volume of the audience during the entire song was something I've only experienced at a handful of shows. I imagine this is what The Beatles at Shea Stadium was like. I genuinely couldn't hear Vic Fuentes (vocalist) over the crowd, and it was pure magic. Something I will never tire of and will likely never find a suitable comparison of is the passion and energy at shows like this. The stereotype is true - very few people feel and experience music like emo kids do. That's the whole point of the genre, after all.

One factor I would like to put a spotlight on was the drummer. The band has not had a drummer since about 2018, and I think the flexibility of hosting a tour drummer such as Loniel Robinson boosted the show significantly. Very rarely have I seen a drummer command that much attention and power. Loniel didn't just play the drums (and damn well, might I add), but he performed. And with the Mexican roots of the band, mixed with their emo sound, their songs are notoriously drum heavy, including a solo with the bongos. If there was any thought in the arena that night that Pierce the Veil gave a mediocre show, Loniel singlehandedly put that thought to rest.

If I were to complain about something, I do have to say that the time between songs to switch guitars was a bit long. And with the stage lights out, it was just a pitch black, silent stage, that left us thinking 'Okay...? What now?'

Finally, we got to the main event. Blink One Fucking Eighty-Two. As a fan since probably about 2008/2009, this band has been on my bucket list for about 15 years. I don't claim to be their biggest fan - after all, I didn't even get tickets until the week of - but I am definitely a fan of more than just All The Small Things. I'd heard that they put on a great live show, but, to be completely honest, I thought they were saying they put on a great live show for their age. Please don't come for me, I know that's not a productive thought to have, but pop-punk music is still so relatively new that we are just not used to seeing many artists over the age of, say, 40 put on these large scale shows.

And boy did they prove me wrong. Their stage banter would rival any current 16 year old, with plenty of jokes about penises, sleeping with moms, and being the cause of your parents divorce. Their energy was nothing short of aspirational, and it felt exactly how a Blink show should feel (I would also love to mention that Mark Hoppus snuck in a "Washington Deez Nuts" joke, and it was a fantastic moment).

There is one thing about this show that really pushed it towards the top of my favorite shows of all time; the staging. To begin with, they played in the round. For my non-theatre kids, a stage being "in the round" means that the audience is on all sides, surrounding the stage. A big issue this poses is the lack of any sort of "backstage" or green room. My seat happened to be on the side of the stage where all the tech lived, so I got a great view of how the whole production worked.

But, even more badass, is that the stage moved. Yep. The mics and pedals for Mark (Hoppus) and Tom (DeLonge) were placed on a track on the outer edge of the stage, and every three or so songs they would rotate, giving every side of the stage a front-row view. Travis (Barker) and his drum set were stationed in the middle on their own platform that turned independently, and, later, floated maybe 10 to 12 feet above the stage. It was truly incredible to see.

The setlist included a great selection from nearly every era - including +44's When Your Heart Stops Beating, and Boxcar Racer's There Is. Although the entire show was unforgettable, there are two moments that stand out to me. The first is during Stay Together for the Kids. The entire arena lit up with cell phone flashlights, and this was one of those moments where you could feel the energy. You could feel the 20,000 something people who have all been profoundly impacted by this trio pouring their hearts out to a song that came to define vulnerability in a time that valued pure entertainment. The second, and the one that really hit me like a punch in the gut, was the closing. They ended with ONE MORE TIME from their recent album of the same title. One verse in particular always gets to me more than others:

I miss you, took time but I admit it It still hurts even after all these years And I know that next time, ain't always gonna happen I gotta say, "I love you" while we're here

It is an incredible decision to open the verse with an exact mimic of their 2004 hit I Miss You. The rest of this verse perfectly sums up the tone of not just the song, not just the album, but the entire era of the scene lately. I think this is something that people as a whole came to terms with during the pandemic, that it shouldn't take these incredible tragedies to tell your people that you love them. It is an unexpectedly raw track for the band, but quite possibly the best choice for a closer I have ever seen.

Blink's set felt a bit like a farewell show. It was that mix of introspection and retrospection that made the whole evening so special. While it was just another stop on a tour, the experience was so unique and thoughtful, you couldn't help but feel like you were a part of something big and undefinable.

[tidalwavvves]

because tonight, the world turned in me (chase this light, jimmy eat world)

I've been putting off writing this first post. Honestly? I'm a little nervous. It's been a while since I've dusted off the ol' journalistic brain cells, and while I know it will take some time to build them back up again, I'm not a patient person.

So. Anyways. With that aside, let's talk about music! Growing up, there was always music playing in the house. I know everyone loves to say that, but it's true. My dad was a drummer, and his 2005 iPod had somewhere in the ballpark of 2,000 songs - absolutely groundbreaking at the time. Who knew you could have that much music in such a small device?? Meanwhile, my mom had a shared Beatles Fan Club membership with her friend in the '60s, and her record collection, while minuscule compared to those that seriously collect vinyls, is one that most millennials could only dream of. Unfortunately, some of those records were Alvin and the Chipmunks "classics" (as she calls them), but overall, it is a pretty solid collection.

I was free to love The Beatles and Los Lobos (specifically Kiko and the Lavender Moon) just as much as I loved Hilary Duff and the Jonas Brothers. As much as I loved listening to music, I was not naturally gifted in playing music. My parents' rule was before we learned anything else, my brother and I needed to take piano lessons. I barely scraped by there, and as soon as I started the fourth grade - the first year my school allowed you to join the school band - I came home with a school-rented flute.

So, after piano lessons, being the sole flute player, a brief stint with the recorder, my mom running out of patience teaching me guitar, my brother buying me a baritone ukulele from a yard sale for my birthday, and memorizing the bass tabs to Seven National Army, I think it's safe to say I was lost in the sauce of music. And, yes, I did try vocal lessons. As a theatre kid, that was a no brainer.

So while I had no real talent to make music, I listened to it as if it was my livelihood. I eventually began writing for a very small online music magazine in high school, and went to college to major in music business. This is all a longwinded way to explain just how much of my life has been dedicated to music.

Eventually, in my mid-twenties I hit a patch of depression strong enough that I barely listened to anything. I remember going to shows with friends and just wanting it to end already. That was the first time in my entire life that I didn't care about music. So what changed? I'm not really sure.

In May 2022 I went to Nashville to BreakFest (a breakfast food themed music festival? Hell yes!) to see Cassadee Pope, Derek Sanders, and New Found Glory. For those who haven't been initiated into peak 2012 pop-punk, that would be the lead singer of Hey Monday and the lead singer of Mayday Parade - two of my favorite bands in high school. I thought it would be a fun trip, get some sightseeing in, feel nostalgic for a bit, try to convince myself to like whiskey, the whole bit. I'm no stranger to going to shows alone, but I've never really mastered the art of hanging out between sets or during bands you don't care to see without someone to talk to, so it was a bit awkward at first. But it got markedly better pretty fast. I elbowed my way to the barricade to see Cassadee Pope - really I was just trying to get past the six foot tall dudes camping out at the front to see the two final bands - and screaming along to Homecoming and Arizona was a religious experience. Later on, I was standing against the railing on a platform off to the side to watch Derek Sanders. It was already a great set, but about halfway through I heard a voice talking to someone behind me. I turned around, and saw Cassadee Pope about two feet behind me, watching the show. And I don't know why, but that moment hit me. Hard. I was sandwiched between two bands responsible for getting me through some really hard times as a teenager, and it was like someone reached into my chest and squeezed my heart.

After that, I was back in. I went to as many shows as I could, listened to all the music I missed out on during my off years, and revisited old favorites. In 2023, my Spotify Wrapped informed me that I was in the top 5% of global listeners. Like, app-wide. Since then, I've only pulled myself in further. It has been a long time since I've felt this passionate about something, and I cannot tell you how happy that makes me.

So, as you read through my posts, you're reading the words of someone head-over-heals obsessed with music. I'm not a professional writer, or musician, or producer. I don't have the vocabulary (yet) of someone who has worked in it technically for twenty years. Half the time, I'm not even sure how to explain what I think about a song, but I'm sure as hell going to try.

[tidalwavvves]

Hi! Welcome!

I have a lot of thoughts about music, and my cat is tired of hearing about 'em. Here ya go, Tumblr. Just like it's 2013.