Duncan Holzhall
Stories (5/0)
"Inside Friend" by Leon Bridges almost rips off Stevie Wonder
Fridays are my favorite day of the week, because I can put on my weekend pants and listen through a plethora of new music. Many of the songs that come out on Fridays don’t have a strong lasting impact on me; unless it is a single or an album from an artist who’s been quiet for awhile, it usually comes and goes. When I saw a collaborative single between Leon Bridges and John Mayer released in early April, I assumed it would follow the aforementioned “path to obscurity.” But from the first four notes, it had an unrelenting grip on my ear. It wasn’t a groovy bassline, it wasn’t a catchy chorus, and it wasn’t a shredding guitar lick that caught my attention. I’ve heard those exact four notes before.
By Duncan Holzhall4 years ago in Beat
I'm An Indie Bro. Is That a Bad Thing?
I wear corduroy shirts and grey plaid pants, I listen to Khruangbin and Avantdale Bowling Club, I go to house shows to see unsigned artists perform, I drink bubbly rosé out of a can and I think I’m better than everybody else for doing the above. By this definition, I am an indie bro.
By Duncan Holzhall4 years ago in Beat
- Top Story - May 2020
The Kendrick Lamar BracketTop Story - May 2020
This was so hard. Something you can say about both this bracket and the instrumental for “The Blacker The Berry.” One of the things I hated most about this bracket, as is the issue with any bracket, is that some of the pairings, as inevitable as they might be, made for tougher decisions than I wanted. In selecting who would move on in my bracket, I tried to judge these songs as objectively as possible based on how they work within the album, how effective they communicate their message, how ear-grabbing the music is, and I only relied on subjectivity when deciding a dead heat. Here were some of the more difficult or, in some cases controversial, choices I made.
By Duncan Holzhall4 years ago in Beat
Abstract Visuals and the Amplification of Music
The question “What the hell is this?” pops into my head more frequently than I can count. I am, however, able to track how many times I think “What the f*** is this?” With more urgency and power behind it, the latter question is warranted by a truly strange event during my day. On this day, it was watching the music video for “You’re Too Precious” by James Blake.
By Duncan Holzhall4 years ago in Beat