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Easter Term 2024 The Hooter team
Northern Lights Visible in NYC! Theodore Forcer
Durham Poetry Slams It Out Theodore Forcer
Klute's Closure Annabelle Langley
DUWS - South Around Durham Annabelle Langley
Albums of 2024 (So Far...) Harriet Hurley-Sweeney
South On The Compass Compass team
The Formal Tradition Amy Shuttleworth
Diving Into Southern Charm and Northern Grit at Durham Jagoda Szalewicz
Hooters Take On South Day Jagoda Szalewicz
The North East in South: The Impact of the Mayoral Election Tilly Bishop
16th June 2024 | Harriet Hurley-Sweeney The Hooter General Editor (24/25)
Albums of 2024 (So Far...)
Image: Adrianne Lenker
Adrianne Lenker perfectly captures her stripped back, lyrically led song writing style in her fifth solo album. On first listen this album had everything that I expected, from sorrowful lyrics to lesbian heartbreak mixed with perfect, detailed storytelling. It is this showcase of her natural and effortless storytelling that cements this album, in my humble opinion, as the best of the year so far. I find that too often songwriters are too concerned by appearing intelligent or witty, but Lenker possesses a niche skill of writing songs that are simultaneously complex and simple.
This album is a truly personal experience, with it consisting of only Lenker, her guitar and tape recorder.
There’s nothing to hide behind, no big production or large band, and yet her sound is still huge. I feel as though I cannot fairly describe this album or begin to approach the connection to the songs that you feel as a listener, you must listen to this album yourself. This album receives a 9/10.
Image: Taylor Swift
Taylor, Taylor, Taylor, where do I begin? I have been a huge fan of Taylor since 2008 when she released Speak Now.
I think it’s important to preface this review by stating that I do like the album, but it just simply isn’t that great.
The choice to make it a double album seems to stem from the success of the vault tracks of her re-releases yet it is the album’s downfall. There are a myriad of great songs, like 'Fortnight', 'Florida', 'The Bolter' and 'The Tortured Poets Department' but it is a real drag. We witness Jack Antonoff’s production talent turning into a curse, with a style that starts to feel monotonous and fatigued. It fails to be a good, cohesive album, disappointing as it could have been great if somebody had told her that quantity does not equal quality. Aside from the production, another issue is found in the absolute cringe that exudes from some of the lyrics in these songs. To be honest, I am quite unsure of the paradox of cringe as I do sometimes find it very endearing, however, it occurs too often in the album to be played off as cute. Despite the undeniable quality, a lot of this album is unfortunately forgettable. This album is getting a 6/10.
Image: Charli XCX
I would be lying if I said I was very familiar with the rest of Miss XCX’s discography, but this album is simply a great listen from start to finish. This album takes me back to the dancefloor of Revenge in Brighton, the smell of hotdogs and room odourises inescapable, and the ‘club classics’ flowing. But it’s not just a surface level, energetic, overly produced album, there’s a lot of emotional themes underlying in the songs, especially detailing Charli’s struggles as a woman. Pop finally feels fun again, with experimentation and upbeat production seeming to be becoming more mainstream.
It is fair to say that camp is back.
Exploring the more sombre aspect of the album, grief seems to be a key theme, as she explores the recent loss of her producer and collaborator SOPHIE. She explores the loneliness and intense self-criticism that haunted her after the loss. Charli’s ability to write deeply personal and vulnerable music without losing the fun, party focused vibe of the album, is what makes this a truly special and rare album. 8.5/10. ∎
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