Tom Cardy: “H.Y.C.Y.BH”
Yet another story of an artisan so obsessed with his craft that’s willing to sacrifice anything, even friendships and family. Surely Daedalus, seeing Icarus plummet from the sky, whispered to himself: “Fucking worth it, baby.”
Berwyn: “I’d Rather Die Than Be Deported”
Hell of a title, and the latter remains a live possibility for this Trinidad-born Londoner whose murky immigration status kept him out of university, instead leading him to put his rather remarkable talent for double meanings to use in a rap career.
Apollo Brown & Ché Noir: “12 Hours”
Some of the best hardboiled storytelling of recent years. The only way her collectedness after the final stanza could be more chilling is if there was biographical truth to it. Please don’t do that though Ché.
Vincent Neil Emerson: “Learnin’ to Drown”
“I’m barely a man and livin’ hard/My father killed himself/My mother hit the bar”, but he’s not looking for sympathy. What is Emerson looking for? Just a way to negotiate each moment, difficult as it may be.
(I still don’t say it)
We Are the Union: “Morbid Obsessions”
The old contrast trick still works: sing about “razors, wrists, and self-abuse” and set it to the sprightliest ska-punk you’ll find outside of late Nineties MTV spring break specials.
Joshua Ray Walker: “Gas Station Roses”
Walker: “It’s also about how gas stations get away with selling crack pipes by hiding them in those glass tubes with the origami flowers.” There are worlds I don’t know about.
Sho Madjozi: “Jamani”
“A man must, a man must, a man must, wololo!”
Anz: “Unravel in the Designated Zone”
The title indicates both how boxed-in this is by historical rave conventions, and how much room that still leaves an old school super-annoying synth to bounce around.
Nao ft. Adekunle Gold: “Antidote”
English R&B vs. Afrobeats is not a fair genre fight, but the tendency of the former to treat relationships as having at least two active participants draws an unusually seductive performance out of Gold.
Melissa Carper: “You’re Still My Love”
Her brittle singing splits the difference between Dolly P. and Billie H., demonstrating the strength of her feeling even when she’s splitting the difference between pathetic in the Greek sense and pathetic in the English sense.
Doechii: “Girls”
Specialist in all styles of pop from the last 30-odd years (the backing vocals threaten to break out into All-4-One’s “I Swear” for a momemt), the closing eighty seconds of high-fly-flow rapping show why TDE made her the best offer.
Parker McCollum: “To Be Loved by You”
Pure petulance, but it’s not like that’s not a common enough attitude, and not just among cis het white male country singer-songwriters. All McCollum is looking for is an answer to “What in the hell does a man have to do to be loved by you?” Hey Parker:
have you checked your butthole
Underinformed Oscar predictions:
Best Picture
Will win: CODA. When in doubt, bet on the Academy to make me watch something I’d otherwise have no intention of seeing.
Should win (out of those I’ve seen): The Power of the Dog
Best Director
Will win: Jane Campion, The Power of the Dog
Should win: Steven Spielberg, West Side Story. The most showoffy work of his career, and the only reason the movie isn’t unreservedly great is it’s still West Side Story. Auteurism, it has its limits.
Best Actress
Will win: Jessica Chastain, The Eyes of Tammy Faye
Should win: The only one I’ve seen is Kristen Stewart in Spencer, and of course she’s good, but I don’t want to encourage her to do this sort of thing for the rest of her career.
Best Actor
Will win: Will Smith, King Richard. OTOH this sort of thing probably is the best use of Will’s remaining career.
Should win: Benedict Cumberbatch, The Power of the Dog
Best Supporting Actress
Will win: Ariana DeBose, West Side Story
Should win: Ariana DeBose, West Side Story. This year’s one thing we can all agree on!
Best Supporting Actor
Will win: Troy Kotsur, CODA
Should win: Kodi Smit-McPhee, The Power of the Dog. Let’s also acknowledge the unnominated Vincent Lindon for giving perhaps the year’s outstanding performance in That Carfjucking Movie.
Best Documentary
Will win: Summer of Soul
Should win: Summer of Soul. You definitely should also see Flee though.