Becoming a Lorde fan
+ 5 new songs you NEED right now.
Every weekend, GOOD STUFF blesses you with one new album, five new songs, and a throwback track you need to hear. Listen to the official GOOD STUFF playlist on Apple Music, Spotify and Audiomack.
ALBUM OF THE WEEK
Lorde — Virgin
Lorde albums follow patterns. They arrive every four years. They each correlate to a different drug. They each have a lead single I love and then a bunch of other songs I never need to hear again. (“Love” is a strong word for “Solar Power.” Let’s just say it’s the only song from that album I remember.)
I’ve always been more interested in Lorde the person than Lorde’s music, but something’s different this time around. Maybe it’s that Jim-E Stack has replaced Jack Antonoff. Maybe it’s a post-”Girl, so confusing” bump. Maybe it’s just that the art direction has been so striking and messy in a way that captures the candid nature of the music without feeling forced. Maybe it’s just the right time in my life to experience CitiBike ego death. Whatever it is, I’ve been influenced.
Virgin opens with an “ode to city life and horniness.” New York City and sex are doors to endless possibility, new identities and beginnings. Clarity by way of chaos. The album channels each—it’s sweaty, pulsating, searching. The lyrics are raw and vivid, filled with body parts and mental anxieties.
At some point in your 20s you realize that life’s a lot bigger and weirder than you thought. Some people retreat and some people transform. Lorde’s search for answers feels fresh and honest and captivating. This time around I’m down for the ride.
5 NEW SONGS YOU NEED RIGHT NOW
Nourished By Time — “9 2 5”
There is no album I’m more excited about this year than Nourished By Time’s The Passionate Ones. “Max Potential” is already SOTY and “9 2 5” isn’t far behind.
Blood Orange — “The Field”
When was the last time you third wheeled on a rainy day road trip with your homies and they ran through a meadow and then you pulled over to eat oranges and ended the day feeling lonely at the field party?
dexter in the newsagent — “special”
Everyone is so afraid of being sincere these days it’s disgusting. Here’s a beautiful song about being in love.
454 — “CATEGORY 6”
Few things hit harder than the point in a 454 song when he switches the tempo up.
Lil Tony — “Divine Love”
Damn I guess this week’s just all about being honest about love and finding beauty in your surroundings. The world’s a fucked-up place but there’s boundless joy in the everyday. Find serenity in the whisper of the breeze and the rustling of the leaves.
THROWBACK TRACK
Keeping the sentimental theme going.
What’s going on?
13 years later, channel ORANGE is available on vinyl. It’s $69. True story in October 2019 I ordered a t-shirt from Frank Ocean’s website and it didn’t arrive until May 2021.
The Heinz team just heard the Kendrick album from November.
Goodbye:
