Welcome (back) to Jam Sesh! This series is a monthly celebration of good music (or just my guilty pleasures). For those who don’t know me, my name is Teddy and I’m a Junior at Carleton. I’m not a music major or someone who knows every album ever. I just have listened to music since I was little and wanted to share some of my favorites with the world. I’ve previously written music reviews for my high school newspaper (The Willistonian).
Each segment is a different album/song. The first paragraph is a summary of my thoughts. Below is a larger write-up. After that, I compare the album or song to a type of jam or condiment. Finally, for the albums, I’ll state three prominent tracks to listen to if you are pressed for time, and the overall runtime of the album.
Lost Thoughts
For A Moment, I Was Lost by Amber Run is a good, if generally generic, alternative-rock album. If I had to compare the album to anything, I’d say it sounds like if The Fray’s Self-Titled 2009 album was a bit more experimental.
Amber Run started their career sprinting out of the starting gate (sorry, I couldn’t help myself). The quintet came together at the University of Nottingham in 2012, and by the end of 2013 they’d signed a deal with mega-label RCA Records. Since then, they’ve released 4 EPs and 2 albums. Each product is solid, but For A Moment, I Was Lost is definitely their best yet, simply for its nice melodies and darker tone. Furthermore, unlike some of their other material, nothing ever overstays its welcome, as most songs range between 3 and 4 and half minutes. That said, nothing about the album really stands out either, and many of the songs blur together. The only exception is “Haze,” an experimental song which is weirdly stuck in the middle of the album, yet sticks out like a sore thumb for its reliance on synths over any guitar or piano. It’s still a good song, but it’s an exception, not a rule, and the album kicks back into standard gear less than 2 minutes later. All told, this is a solid album. It’s the ‘bread-and-butter’ of alternative-rock music— something you come back to for its consistent taste.
Summary: Bread and Butter
Saving Time: “Insomniac,” “Stranger,” and “Haze”
Runtime: 12 songs, 45 minutes.
Now for something with a bit more flare….
Sportsing
Literally any song by Sports Team is fun. They have a song named “Kutcher” after Aston Kutcher, and that’s all you need to know… well, that, and that they play silly punk-rock music.
As aforementioned, Sports Team is a fun, silly band that plays good head-banging music. It’s the type of band that would destroy The Cave with its wild sound and nonchalant attitude. Perhaps unsurprisingly, Sports Team got their start as a bunch of people just looking to have a good time. They were six students from Cambridge University who would perform shows at 6 am filled with jokes, dress-up, and fake guitar solos. That said, eventually, they got serious about making music… or SLIGHTLY more serious, and that caught the attention of a famous producer, Dave McCracken, who helped them craft their debut EP Winter Nets last year. Winter Nets, and everything they’ve made since, has so much joy and energy in it that it feels unique in this darker time. I highly recommend you check out their music videos if you’re looking for a good time. Already, Vice and the Guardian are calling them the beginning of a new Indie revival. No doubt exciting times lay ahead for the sextet from England.
Linking them to a condiment is hard, but since I have to, I’ll go with Orange Sriracha sauce. Like the sauce, Sport Team’s music has a spicy kick to it, but, in contrast to a lot of punk bands, that heat is suppressed by their silliness, or tang.
Summary: Orange Sriracha
Saving Time: “M5,” “Margate,” and “Beverly Rose”
Runtime: Their entire catalogue clocks in at 32 minutes and 44 seconds.
Album of the Year
I gotta end with a bang, right? As promised last article, here’s my pick for 2018 album of the year— Saba’s Care for Me, a lo-fi album about loss and reconciliation. If I had to compare the album with anything, I’d say it’s a more emphatic and quieter version of Kendrick Lamar’s song “Fear,” with more of an emphasis on lo-fi hip-hop beats and jazz.
Saba’s first record, Bucket List Project was simply alright because the beats often got in the way of Saba’s amazing lyrics, like on “Westside Bound 3.” Luckily, this issue got fixed with Care for Me, whose emphasis on lo-fi and jazz kept the beats sedated— as if they were in mourning, much like the rapper himself. Saba spends much of the album reflecting on his depression caused by the death of his cousin Walter Long and by the isolation he feels from newfound fame. These themes result in what is arguably the best rap song of last year in “Prom/King,” which has Saba explaining how he came to know Walter and what that relationship meant to him through some of the most intimate storytelling you’ll hear. If you don’t take my word for it, take Pitchfork’s, who gave Care for Me a place on its list of the best rap albums of last year. And while you’re at it, look out for Saba’s next album this year— a collaboration with many of his Chicago friends as part of a group called Saba Pivot. He currently occupies a spot next to Kendrick on my list of the best current rappers, and I think he’ll stick there for many years to come.
My pick for a condiment is sort of bizarre, but stick with me. I picked Giardiniera, a traditional Italian relish made from pickled vegetables in vinegar or oil. It’s especially prominent in Chicago as a condiment on top of Italian beef sandwiches. Given that much of the identity of the album is wrapped up in Chicago— many of the songs discuss the problems with it— it wouldn’t make sense to pick a condiment from any other city. Furthermore, given the sadness embedded in the album, it just made sense to select a condiment so bitter.
Summary: Giardiniera
Saving Time: “Prom/King,” “Busy/Sirens,” and “Calligraphy,”
Runtime: 10 songs, 42 minutes.