Angel Olsen - My Woman

There's somewhat of an "indie girl syndrome" going around music lately - all of these indie rock bands popping up led by a woman have the same exact voice. Angel Olsen gives us a refresher from that scratchy, tired vocal style. Her third record My Woman is both a solid indie record with originality and a compliment to her career.

Fans of Olsen may go into this record expecting someone along the lines of the crunchy production style of her sophomore effort, Burn Your Fire For No Witness. This album takes into account something that was brewing since the start of her career. Under the thick production of her last two records was a clean side of her grunge and pop rock flair. The grit of her music is mostly gone and replaced with a new sense of writing and artistry.

My Woman is a songwriter's album at its core, the vocals and messages being backed by other instruments not out of necessity, but rather for accentuation. The album is separated into two halves: a pop rock half with more radio-friendly numbers, and a back half with more personal and grabbing tracks. The first track is 'Intern', a sweet track backed by synths that's a lot shorter than you'd wish it'd be. It's followed by the lo-fi and nostalgic 'Never Be Mine'. The guitar progresses from being a light backing number to the driving backbone of the song in an awesome buildup from beginning to end. Another highlight of this half of the record is the Nirvana-esque 'Give It Up' - I can't help but feel like the song should start with "I'm so happy, because today I found my friends" rather than the message of hate sent to past loves.

The second half of the record isn't as upfront as the first half is. It takes a step back from the ballad tracks and instead focusses on songwriting and reflection. It's start is marked by 'Heart Shaped Face' which is almost like a twangy slow dance. This song really starts the point where we see Olsen broaden her vocal variety, of which there is a lot of on this record. Her approach is very folky on this track, while in 'Those Were The Days', for example, her vocals are very jazzy. The album ends with the somber 'Pops' - it's the most stripped down track on the record and is the appropriate amount of reflection to end the record with. It's sad about the loss of a relationship and it's one of the most relatable tracks on the record. It's hard to not feel a familiar sadness listening to this track.

The true gem of the record, though, is 'Sister'. It is one of two tracks (the other being 'Woman') that clocks in at over seven minutes, and it's really a journey. The song goes through what Angel Olsen would tell her sister (if she had one - Olsen was adopted at the age of three) as she grew up. Olsen describes how this image of a sister helped shape her own life and how there was always a light at the end of the tunnel when she wasn't sure there was. The track has the build of a Fleetwood Mac track, folky and bluesy guitar et al, as it builds up to a more driven track with punchy piano and a truly electrifying guitar solo with Olsen belting in the background to bring the song to an epic and emotional climax.

There's little to complain about with Olsen's new record. The only sad part is that the first half of the record seems weak compared to the emotions of the second half. My Woman is a musical accumulation of who Angel Olsen is. This album is her soul and her spirit. The album is almost like a life lesson, or, for Olsen, a reflection on who she's become and how she got here. It's beautiful and provides for a very revealing experience. My Woman isn't just one woman; it's the experiences that everyone goes through, and delivers one message: you are a product of yourself.

Favorite Tracks: Sister, Pops, Never Be Mine

Least Favorite Track: Shut Up Kiss Me

Rating: 85 / 100

Crystal Castles - Amnesty (I)

The distorted synths of Crystal Castles are something you can't mess with. Amnesty (I) is the band's first album in four years, and the first to not feature ex-vocalist Alice Glass. It's an eclectic album, though distortion can't save everything.

It begins hauntingly with a haunting reversed choir sample (apparently singing a cover of 'Smells Like Teen Spirit') on top of a hip-hop beat and layered synths. This element of creepiness finds different motifs throughout the album. 'Fleece' displays it with distorted tortured vocals screaming above huge synth blasts, while 'Enth' ups the creepy factor in the same way with crunchy synths under urgent distorted vocals. The whole album has a similar vibe that repeats throughout, but there's a lot more to it.

Despite the unsettling sounds that find their way into the record in nearly every track, there's a wider array of emotion being displayed. See 'Char' - a much sweeter track, with bouncier synths and a more gentle vocal line. It's a chiller track than the preceding 'Fleece', which is a bombardment of distortion. This track, on the other hand, is smooth and rounded around the edges in comparison. Similarly smooth is the epic closer, 'Their Kindness Is Charade'. It's like a more epic version of CHVRCHES' 'Afterglow' - it has all the same elements (closing their albums, atmosphere), but this track builds with a lot more meaning. The synths constantly build into one last epic hurrah to end the record on a big note. It's an appropriate send off for an album so diverse, as it displays the best of the record within the span of three minutes.

Instrumentally, this album is a banger. To the pulsating synths of 'Sadist' to the soft buildup of 'Their Kindness Is Charade', there's a lot of ground covered on this record. You can find nearly anything you want on this album - 'Chloroform' even has the weird scratch synths that were iconic in the 2000's. 'Concrete' has bouncy and dark synths on top of a pounding beat (under vocals that sounds like a distorted cheerleading session), and you can find the extremes of distortion in 'Teach Her How To Hunt'.

Crystal Castles took their time crafting this album. It's creepy and often times off-putting, but it stands together well. Amnesty (I) is proof that Alice Glass wasn't the heart of the band - she was  an extension of it, but not the whole package. Ethan Kent and Edith Francis can hold it down just fine.

Favorite Tracks: Their Kindness Is Charade, Femen, Enth

Least Favorite Track: Ornament

Rating: 70 / 100

Halsey - BADLANDS

It’s not very often a new voice appears on the scene that demands such attention it can create a cult. Here we have Halsey, who’s debut LP has done exactly that. She seemingly appeared out of thin air, with her powerful voice garnering enough attention to already be demanding playtime on radios everywhere. After a powerful EP entitled Room 93 (containing ‘Hurricane’ and ‘Ghost’, found on the deluxe edition of the album) released late last year, Halsey has brought out her best for an eccentric and challenging debut: BADLANDS.

According to Halsey, the name of the album is derived from the state of her mind as she wrote the album; fair enough, considering the themes presented in the album. Containing everything from rebellion to love, this album covers a lot of ground thematically. Lyrically, this album is nothing short of fantastic. The chorus of the opening track, ‘Castle’ embodies rising up against the machine: “I'm headed straight for the castle / They wanna make me their queen / And there's an old man sitting on the throne that's saying that I probably shouldn't be so mean”. Lyrics should arrest your interest, making you delve into them, extracting meaning from them, keen on absorbing the next word. Halsey does great at this, with almost every track being able to capture your interest and hold it captive while it puts you in a trance you can’t escape. Her lyrics are also clever and relatable, especially the bridge of ‘Colors’, where she speaks of a mistaken love: ‘You were red and you liked me 'cause I was blue / You touched me and suddenly I was a lilac sky / And you decided purple just wasn't for you.” The songs are written with a lot of emotion and thought, and it does not go unappreciated.

Her sound in general is unique in its own right - think of it as The Naked & Famous meets Nirvana. Keeping the synths heavy and brooding while harkening back to rebellious styles like Nirvana is what Halsey does best. It’s undeniable that there’s just something about her voice that is so enchanting - is it the subtly raspiness to it? How introspective it is? Melody plays a big part in it too, each song having a memorable hook and backed up by having equally memorable lyrics. ‘Castle’ and ‘New Americana’ have particularly capturing lyrics and melodies that you just can’t get out of your mind. It isn’t all just power and catchy choruses, however. There’s a lot of little moments to be remembered, too. ‘Haunting’ begins with a little a cappella intro, almost in the style of CHVRCHES’ ‘The Mother We Share’. The instrumental of ‘Gasoline’ harkens back to ‘Hurricane’ when she sings the line, “Do you call yourself a fucking hurricane like me?” There, the little synth hook from ‘Hurricane’ plays - a small, but clever and cute moment. It’s these little inclusions that keep the album alive. No two songs sound the same, as well. You have a synth-rock track in ‘Roman Holiday’, but find yourself listening to the creepy, symphonic track ‘Control’ later on.

Halsey’s debut is one of the strongest first albums all year. It explores every nook and cranny it possibly could, while still holding together one progressive album that is relatable and fun all the same. I saw her live back in June when she opened for Metric and Imagine Dragons - even before she had a full length EP her shows were already massive. The attention she has garnered is very much deserved, and to be expected from such a massive debut.

Favorite Tracks: Castle, Colors, New Americana, Control

Least Favorite Tracks: Strange Love, Drive

Rating: 9/10

My Top 10 of 2015:

1. Muse - Drones
2. Halsey - BADLANDS
3. 10 Years - From Birth To Burial
4. Fall Out Boy - American Beauty / American Psycho
5. Halestorm - Into The Wild Life
6. Purity Ring - Another Eternity
7. Zedd - True Colors
8. Joey Bada$$ - B4.DA.$$
9. Years & Years - Communion
10. Kamasi Washington - The Epic