ten good songs 3/17

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hi team. welcome to the latest edition of ten good songs, where we dive into the week’s biggest music news, new record releases, and a curated list of ten hidden-gem-tunes you won’t find anywhere else.

i wish i had a good way to describe this week’s playlist other than the fact that you will get at least three of these songs stuck in your head. we dive into the 60’s nostalgia of up-and-coming artist Aviram, the slapstick crooner music of Jelly Crystal, and the “second coming of Laura Marling” catalog of Hannah Frances. also, Fortuno is worth a mention, who comes at us with one of the more uplifting songs i’ve ever heard for those who need some good ol’ hope in their lives.

but first, let’s dive into this week’s news…

headliners

WHAT MAKES AN ALBUM THE GREATEST OF ALL TIME? — here at MTIG we love The Pudding and their brilliant visual essays that examine our culture from some pretty fascinating angles (see: this and this.) well, they’re back with an examination of the biases and propensities behind why an album might make it onto Rolling Stone’s top 500 albums of all time. TLDR: the albums that make the list are largely determined by the demographics of those who are polled. for example, 90% of the voters in 2003 were men, and 83% of the albums that made the top 500 that year were by men. shocker. happy to see the voter pool is more diverse these days but we’ve still got a long way to go.

KEN SAVES THE OSCARS - yeah, okay, i’ll admit it. Ryan Gosling’s performance of “I’m Just Ken” made me feel hot on heavy, just like everyone else. it’s no surprise with the amount of effort that went into every little detail. so it’s a shame that he didn’t take home the Oscar (that ended up going to Billie and Finneas again) but if there’s one consolation prize, it’s the fucking amazing press he got the next day. so with that, it would appear the Oscar’s magic is still alive, and we have the original song category and Ryan Gosling's jaw line to thank for it.

NEIL YOUNG TO RETURN MUSIC TO SPOTIFY - so Neil Young tried to outlast Spotify to see who lost all of their money first. it would appear, in the upset of the century, that the $50B corporation came home the victor. even so, when Neil Young announced he was pulling his catalog from Spotify in response to COVID misinformation spread by Joe Rogan’s podcast in 2022, it was generally received as a bold statement that didn’t help Spotify’s brand in the slightest. this should be considered a smol win because Neil single-handedly created a PR storm that forced Spotify to take a public stance. they sided with Joe Rogan and refused to moderate their own content. many in society guffawed and i don’t think Spotify ever recovered from that. i do indeed think Spotify has a duty to stimy misinformation on its platform, but i think Neil and other artists will have more luck in the halls of Congress than trying to hit Spotify’s wallet. so it goes.

best new albums

rated on a scale of “👍really good” to “👍👍👍 really really really good”

💿 Three by Four Tet (ambient electronic dance indie)
👍👍👍 really really really good - the winning streak continues and Four Tet has once again produced a lush dreamscape that grips you and never lets go
⭐ Standout Tracks: “Loved” “Skater” “So Blue”

💿 Keeper of the Shepherd by Hannah Frances (indie folk rock, singer/songwriter)
👍👍 really really good - a booming voice with lyrics that could only come from someone who identifies themself as a poet, this is an album that is truly impressive and of course Pitchfork liked it
⭐ Standout Tracks: “Bronwyn” “Vacant Intimacies”

💿 Save It For Later by BLUAI (indie rock)
👍 really good - the Belgian version of HAIM has arrived on the scene and in their debut album they do a lot of things right
⭐ Standout Tracks: “Buffalo” “Vetiver” “The World is Dangerous”

bonus tracks

• similar song finder is the best tool on the gd internet

• American Football anniversary tour

• the origin of the Joy Division album cover