Aster Tracks

This is a deluxe album review; we reviewed the original album when it was initially released. One year to the day of its release, Carolie Polachek has presented a new, eight track longer edition of her 2023 sophomore album. I remember being quite a fan of Desire in 2023 with my biggest issue being the latter half of the record started to feel stale on repeat listens and there not being much of a landed ending in “Billions.” While I can’t really say bonus tracks serve as an actual finale there have been some strong additions, the album now features four new songs, two new renditions, an interlude and the inclusion of the 2023 stand-alone single “Dang.” And let’s start there; “Dang” has an awkward production on the vocal side, some words feel cut off, it feels like entire vocalizations are edited out and it comes across as pretty jarring. I sort of felt this way when it was released as well, and it feels like it clashes with the rest of the record. I’m glad it’s being included on a reco...

This one and the one before might be shorter, you don’t get these in the order they’re released but I wanted you to know. Growing up I was sort of ashamed to be into this type of pop in the same way I felt shamed out of being queer. In my thirties I feel freer to take a ride on the boat I missed out on but in the case of this record I sort of feel like I should have stayed home. Girl with No Face certainly has its takes on the genre and in some instances even comes up with something worth exploring. “Off with Her Tits” goes into body shaming, envy and unwelcomed sexualization and is a pretty good club single. It also, even being the star track here, fails to do anything past albums of this genre have done in a much grander setting, especially sonically. For every song like “Galina,” a cool ode to a music scene, there’s also songs like “John and Jonathan.” On which Allie tries to relate to her audience but makes them sound so ordinary it makes the non-exciting content of her own record ...

I listened to this second-hand so much I was able to go straight to a note taking listen. In the past couple of years mainstream pop has progressed into something of a disco revival. If this is always the way Chromeo has sounded then forgive me, this is my introduction to the Montreal duo. I can’t help the comparison though, especially on songs like “BTS,” or “Better Than Sex,” a fun electro-pop cut with fast string dips and a reverse innuendo as its core message. As it is my introduction to Chromeo I want to say Dave 1 really won me over as a lead singer. The way the vocal melodies on this record are written are so cool and natural with the album opener “New Girl” being a prime and immediate example. He also backs this up in his delivery, he never puts a ton into the performance but it’s still his own. It’s a style not requiring any belted notes but this doesn’t stop us from getting huge hooks like “Lost and Found.” I don’t need a new- Girl, I feel so taken by you. I also just believ...

I don’t even have an interesting title here. This might be the best album of the year. I have tried and failed to get into Madi Diaz since 2021’s History of a Feeling . Every time I dig into a release by this artist I like the singles, maybe another track or two, nothing has ever connected quite like this. The first six words of Weird Faith is “what the fuck do you want?” Is an opening statement I could write an entire dissertation on. It poses hostility but follows it up with lines who pave the way for everything else we’re about to hear over the course of the next forty minutes. This record is spiked and icey tonally but just enough to melt at the warmest breath by its audience. This woman cares so much, in the hook to this track she talks about letting someone into her life to the point she’s risking ruining it and wondering if they on the other end are willing to do the same. This feeling as if you bow to everything someone wants, surely , it must work. Eventually though they’ll b...

Sometimes you’re just here for the features. After a bit of a dry spell for me album wise, it was the debut album by dubstep artist Nathan Merrill, better known as Eliminate, which finally got me out of my seat. I’ll be honest, I came here solely because I saw Frost Children and I Set My Friends on Fire on the track list but was pleasantly surprised by the entire record. I had no perception of genre or who this artist was going into it. While I’m not usually a rave girl this is presented in a way where you don’t really have to be to appreciate what’s going on. There are a lot of nice, thought-out moments of downplay which don’t feel overblown or like they’re using cheap shots to make them memorable. It’s all just very real and expressive and most of the time it conveys this without words. The progression and sequencing is all very natural as well, pretty much all of these songs could be used as singles, but they also go hand in hand cohesively. I know I likely sound a little cynical to...

Super short review today, gang. This year I tried a new method of listening where I stock up on releases then when the month is over I dive in. The plus side is it’s a fun, non-overwhelming way to hear new music. The negative side is sometimes I find strings of albums I find not so interesting. Still is a record so entrenched in paying homage to its influences it stops before shooting for any sort of personality of its own. This is all inspiration all the time, sometimes it's just more or less obvious. Songs like “The Princess” really emotionally resonate with me being about a girl who wants everything and ends up recognizing you need to make room for the things which truly matter. But also, I’ve heard this exact same song sonically both from underground artists and even other 4AD signings. The only track I walk away with enjoying here is “ice” featuring They Hate Change but even then, the thing I remember most is the feature and short, simple hook. I don’t think this is a bad reco...

Back in November, With Sails Ahead entrusted the AsterTracks team with “Darting Eyes.” We had a bit of fun with the write up to the lead single of their debut record, but now they’ve sent us the whole thing. I don’t even know what to say as an intro to this one. This band already feels so huge in this space we all occupy, it feels like they’re always in conversation for being the best of the best in DIY and it’s weird to call this record an introduction. Still, Infinite Void is here and will be available to everyone on April 26th, but if you want the recount of the journey we went on within as an appetizer, we’re ready to share it. Even the first eight seconds of the record feel huge. “every day the sky falls” opens with just a few piano strokes and some chirping birds. It's a moment where you’re transported into this band’s world if only you allow yourself to get fully immersed in it. Vocally, the first verse opens so soft and vulnerable and tonally it picks up though at a snail...