MWE 2024

You know what they say about best laid plans, right?

So, welcome to my recap of MWE 2024. For those that don't know, here's how it works: #MWE, or Music Writer's Exercise, is a hashtag that comes around every February and the idea is you listen to one album you've never heard before every day in the month of February, and review each of them in one tweet. I've done it the last three years and had a lot of fun, but the world's been changing, as you may know. Twitter became untenable and I had to bounce, so I wound up on Mastodon and Bluesky. Since I now had two audiences with virtually no crossover, I had an idea:

What if I did DOUBLE #MWE?

I knew it would be a lot of work, but it seemed like a lot of fun! There’s an ever-growing list of albums that “Yeah, I should listen to that sometime” and I decided February would be the time! I started planning as far back as August, making a list of what I wanted to tackle, thinking “Yeah, Twitter and Mastodon, we’ll do 28 for one, 28 for another, and it’ll all be gravy.”

Then Twitter got…look, we all know how Twitter got. I couldn’t do it no more. So after eight years, I left. Set up a Bluesky, and things moved on.

Then (as I’ve mentioned in my last several blogs) my computer blew up just before list season and threw everything into chaos. Those problems persist to this day, but I found workarounds. That process cost me time though, pushing my [HTML]Best Of List[HTML] back to late January. I was hoping to take a break from music altogether after mixing an album and then having to comb through GOD knows how many albums and write about ‘em before…listening to 58 more albums and writing about ‘em.

But things were happening. I was moving right along, keeping up (barely) with the schedule, and then on February 12th, I wound up in a car accident and because I messed up my leg, I can’t even get into my converted attic apartment. I missed like a week of posts, and just decided to condense it back down to SINGLE #MWE because yeah, this is the universe telling me to slow the fuck down.

One silver lining is because my entire life has been upended for weeks now, I’m able to deal with some of my chronic burnout. Writing that Best Of List was like pulling teeth because everything became like pulling teeth. It’s all survival mode; even my leisure activities are just a series of “To Do” lists. But now everything has slowed to a crawl. I can breathe. Things are healing. I’m able to think about things instead of just worry. I can untangle a few items I can reach with a phone or a keyboard.

So what we have here is my annual tradition of rounding up my #MWE posts and turning them into one centralized blog (because yes, there’s CONTENT that goes with this winging session!) The initial idea was to do two different feeds of 29 albums, but when shit went down, I figured I’d just crosspost from the other feed and vice versa to catch them up. So “Day 1” on the Mastodon feed is also “Day 12” on the Bluesky feed, and “Day 1” on Bluesky is “Day 12” on Mastodon. They sync up again on “Day 23” and go from there to the end. So here’s 29 rapid-fire reviews of albums I’ve been meaning to get to:

MASTODON

 

 

Day 1:

Red Hot Chili Peppers "Uplift Mofo Party Plan" (1987)

 

SO much better than their self-titled. The Peppers are finally finding themselves here, planting a stake in a sound that they'd add on to with the next two projects. The lyrics are purile, but that's Anthony Kedis; it's what he does. At least here they're mostly fun. Benefits from the shorter run time; gets in, gets out in half the time of their new millennium output.

 

 

Day 2:

RecordCollector1972 "Pray MCMLXXII Reign (Tribute Album To "Pop Champagne")" (2024)

A five hour, 100 song mashup shitpost-fest dedicated to an infamous meme song, Ron Brownz's "Pop Champagne" (feat. Jim Jones & Juelz Santana). Wouldn't recommend listening to all five hours (or listening at all), but I'm still glad it exists. It's so dumb.

Day 3:
The Residents "Duck Stab" (1978)

The phrase "Proto-Primus" comes to mind, but it's also wilder than that. Reminiscent of Early, early Devo and Captain Beefheart. Outsider music that does not even think about giving a fuck. Not gonna float everybody's boat, but I'd definitely put it in the "Challenging but rewarding" category. Try it on for size; see if it fits.

Day 4:
Ahmad Jamal "One" (1978)

Some 70s piano/synth jazz. Light fusion, in the sense that it fuses jazz sensibility into late 70s radio rock. Kinda Steely Dan-ish (especially because of the "Black Cow" cover) but better because it doesn't have Donald Fagen singing. A nice time.

Day 5:
Steely Dan "Pretzel Logic" (1974)

The first two songs are kinda great. I thought to myself "Is this finally gonna be when Steely Dan clicks for me?" The third song is decent, the fourth and fifth are ass, and the rest are passable, but forgettable. The last song is the weakest finish to an album I've heard in awhile; it just stops.

Day 6:
Janelle Monae "The Audition" (2003)

The first half of the album makes me really wonder why this is out of print. It plants the seeds for the Metropolis storyline, "Lettin Go", "Metropolis" and "My Favorite Nothing" stand toe-to-toe with her amazing period to come. But the back half is slow as molasses and the lyrics are incredibly basic. There's also two songs where the harmonies just clash. Stop after track 8.

Day 7:
Arctic Monkeys "Favorite Worst Nightmare" (2007)

I think the first two Arctic Monkeys albums deserve more credit for inspiring the Black Midis of the world. Out of the first two, I'd go with the debut because the first one has the energy, but this has the songs. It's fine tuning what they were doing and I'm on board.

Day 8:
Death Grips "Government Plates" (2013)

A subtler approach this time around (but not too subtle; newcomers won't notice). Still plenty abrasive and took me about a third of the (kinda short) runtime to get into it, but I was vibin by the end. "Birds", the title track and "Fuck Who's Watching" were my faves.

Day 9:
Kim Dracula "A Gradual Decline In Morale" (2023)

NO.

Day 10:
Whitechapel "Kin" (2021)

I believe Phil Bozeman when he does his deathcore vocals. That's rare. He's visceral in a way most in the genre aren't. The production is clean and detailed, but with a lot of teeth. Also rare. And I relate heavily with the theme of fighting a war with your darker half over your very right to exist. Here's to hoping everyone fighting that battle can win.

Day 11:
Little Simz "Drop 7" (2024)

Simz goes in a different direction on this EP, rapping over carnival, house music and island percussion. It's far more sparse than her most recent releases. The hooks have her getting more high pitched and nasal, and it doesn't work so good. "Drop 7" ends up feeling half-baked, but it's also a series of experiments, so maybe you'll get something out of it.

BLUESKY:

Day 1:
Red Hot Chili Peppers "Mother's Milk" (1989)

My favorite Peppers album is "What Hits?" so I didn't get much new out of this one. (A ⅓ of that one is ½ of this.) The other songs were kind of hamstrung by the 1989 production (I swear that's the worst sounding year in music history; at least wax cylinders had character.) You might get more out of it than me.

Day 2:
100 Gecs "1000 Gecs" (2019)

It's like if you pitch shifted 10,000 Gecs and put it through a Metal Zone pedal. Still, there's a couple of songs I liked in spite of that ("Stupid horse" and "hand crushed by a mallet" in particular.)

Day 3:
Green Day "Saviors" (2024)

Aaand I'm done with Green Day. Not only is this their most bland album, but if you're a reviewer, get the counting gag ready for how many times they blatantly rip off other songs! The Taco Bell ad was the second best song on here, and I thought that one was weak.

Day 4:
Porter Robinson "Nurture" (2021)

Took me awhile to get into it, but from "Musician" onward I started paying attention to the lyrics and every song speared me through the chest. They saw right through me and allowed me to see through myself. This shit hurrrrts. It's reassuring to see someone else pinpoint my own feelings in their lyrics, but damn, why do either of us have to go through this?

Day 5:
Steely Dan "Katy Lied" (1975)

I liked "Black Friday", "Daddy Don't Live In That New York City No More" (in spite of myself), "Doctor Wu" (I guess), the first half of the solo in "Your Gold Teeth II", "Throw Back The Small Ones" and Michael McDonald's backing vox. Other than that, this is Donald Fagen's most annoying vocals yet and the band largely feels like they're running in place.

Day 6:
Arctic Monkeys "Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not" (2006)

I get why kids would've been into this in 2006. It's a no bullshit rock and roll record from a time when rock was supremely bullshit. It has get up and go to it. I can vibe with it.

Day 7:
Buddy Holly & The Crickets "The Chirping Crickets" (1957)

Wow, how old were the old-ass people that thought this ancient ass old-person-ass music was ever threatening? I don't mean to be reductive, but it's mostly love songs that use the word love ten times in 30 seconds. That being said, "Oh Boy", "Not Fade Away" and "That'll Be The Day" deserve their classic status.

Day 8:
The Beths "Future Me Hates Me" (2018)

The only Beths project I hadn't got to yet. It sure is a Beths album, all right. And by that, I mean it's buzzing with life, it's the best album I've heard for MWE 2024 yet and I think it's the Beths' best album period. This whips ass.

Day 9:
Janet Jackson "janet." (1993)

Putting "That's The Way Love Goes" first was a good move to set the tone for a new style, a new era. Too bad it was kind of a bait and switch. Most of this album is pretty dated, even for then; track 3 is full new jack swing in 1993. Outside of the four big singles (which rule), there's not much to grab onto.

Day 10:
Nothing But Thieves "Broken Machine" (2017)

Another album of two halves. First half: This is exactly how I was feeling in 2017. In a post-college burnout I'd never recover from, disenchanted with everything. It helps the songs slap. Back half of the album gets maudlin and draaaags. Then ends on a wet fart "Number 13".

Day 11:
The Fearless Flyers "IV" (2024)

Starts out decent enough, track 2 goes off, but then track 3 slows everything to a crawl. I stopped paying attention, but then the closer brings it back. With the exception of the last song, most of them sound the same, but it's a decent sound, so hey.

CONSOLIDATED:

Day 23:
D12 "The Devil.s Night Mixtape" (2024)

WOOF. If you had any fond memories of D12 (which is a stretch to begin with, I know), don't bother. They're trying to "update" their sound, but the best they get is more than 10 years ago. The lyrics are pathetic. Avoid at all costs.

Day 24:
Stevie Wonder "Innervisions" (1973)

Liked “Music Of My Mind” more, but this is still great. “Don’t You Worry ‘Bout A Thing” is my favorite here. The hype surrounding Stevie Wonder’s 70s albums is real. If you’ve ever been curious, you won’t regret listening to this.

Day 25:
King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard "Quarters!" (2015)

I shouldn’t have forced it. I’m completely Gizz’d out. But it’s not like this album’s bad or anything. If you wanna hear them get really vibey and jam…well, they’ve done better since then, but “Quarters!” is still worth a listen.

Day 26:
Frost* “Others” (2020)

About inbetween the quality of “Falling Satellites” (Dishonorable Mention) and “Day And Age” (Honorable Mention). “Exhibit A” and “Fathom” were standouts. On the whole, a satisfying morsel of modern hard prog.

Day 27:
Florence + The Machine “How Big, How Blue, How Beautiful” (2015)

Now up to date on my favorite singer’s catalogue. Flo goes more rock on this one and it pays off in spades. The title track, “Queen Of Peace” and “Various Storms & Saints” are the shit. The feeling that she is in total control of the space she’s in just bastes your senses. Marinate in this shit.

Day 28:
Robert Johnson "The Complete Recordings" (1936-37)

An important part of history, but extremely repetitive to listen to. Each song is almost identical except for the lyrics. Sometimes the key is different, but it’s exaaactly the same. Having multiple takes of a lot of these doesn’t help to dispel that. Absolutely listen to a couple, but you get the idea real quick.

Day 29:
Adele "25" (2015)

Easily her weakest album; lyrics are shockingly basic and kind of clunky in a way Adele usually doesn’t do. That being said, there are some hidden gems I never heard before: namely “I Miss You” and “Sweetest Devotion”. The singles are all good too, but man this drags in places.


And that does it for #MWE 2024! (Just in time for BlueSky to get fucking hashtag support, because yes, the Twitter successor made by the former Twitter guy couldn’t make hashtags work until now.) Next up it’s already time for Spring Hit Mix 2024 and dear God I have even more songs on this one than last time, which was already a record. I think another week or two to get that one settled. But things are finally starting for 2024 proper and eh, it has potential.

You never know…