Staff Pix 4/22: Music We Got From Milk Crate
In our final Staff Pix of the semester, the Milk Crate staff reflects on the music we came to though each other. Sure, we might be a little self-obsessed, but it’s the end of the school year and we’re allowed to be mushy.
Nia Tucker
Crystal Clear by Hayley Williams
At the time of Williams’ solo album release in parts, I loved her as a long time fan but found it difficult to really get into her music and listen regularly. My first semester with Milk Crate I worked on social media and we would post “song of the days” and I remember Nat picked this song for us to post and I finally had a better of Williams’ album and immediately fell in love with this track. It’s spacy, it’s moody, it’s dynamic and it was one of my top songs in my Spotify wrapped that year and the year after that. To this day it remains one of my top songs that Williams’ has performed across her discography.
Everly Orfanedes
Lola by Maude Latour
As usual for this time of year, I have been compiling a playlist of songs for this summer, and while I know that is not a unique or innovative idea, “Lola” by Maude Latour is without a doubt making the list. First of all, I have to complement the fantastic taste of fellow staff-picker Maura. “Lola” is fun, flirty, and overall real. It is a song worth listening to on car rides, picnics, really any quirky and fun summertime activities. Maude Latour is an up and coming independent artist studying at Columbia University, and her music strongly reflects this. The experiences she talks about in her music are telling of the challenging time one's late teens and early twenties can be, and this adds to the raw and relatable atmosphere her music provides.
Karenna Umscheid
Year of the Spider by Shannon & The Clams
At the end of last semester, any members of Milk Crate who could spare the time met up to decide on the top albums of the year, based on a Google form everyone filled out. After the popular picks, we moved down to the more niche albums selected by fewer members of the group. We listened to snippets of a song from each album, including the title track to the Shannon & The Clams album Year of the Spider, chosen by Milk Crate director Lily Hartenstein, and I was instantly hooked. Listening to the track today brings me back to that calm and fun December evening, full of random music I had never heard of and strong musical opinions from my fellow Milk Crate writers.
Will Ingman
Hecky Skelters by Godcaster
It feels almost insulting to say “discovering new music isn’t easy”. Of course it isn’t — if finding your next favorite band was as easy as snapping your fingers, the biggest selling point for most streaming services wouldn’t be “discover your new fave here” or “listen to our curated playlist for this hot-button microgenre”. But, if you’re looking to detach yourself from the corporate machinations of streaming music, take fellow staffer Maura Cowan’s advice, and “get out, and see a local act”. Godcaster may not be “local”, per se (they’re from Philly), but when they took the stage at Allston’s Tourist Trap last February, I knew I had stumbled into something totally refreshing. Comments on their recorded Audiotree performance call Godcaster “the time Jethro Tull gave birth to Shellac”, or, more simply, “the only thing that matters”. I call them a dazzlingly angular, synchronized, and methodically chaotic band of jazz-punk psychopaths, best-suited for basements and meant to be played loud. It’s hard to fully enjoy a concert when you spend the whole show taking photographs, but when a group like Godcaster are on the other side of your lens, your assignment becomes to capture even a fraction of their blistering, unhinged live energy with just your shutter.
Julia Norkus
Twin Snakes by Winkler
After reading Sophie Severs’ interview with Winkler, I felt compelled to take a listen to the Boston band’s discography. In their interview, you can tell by their words alone that their commitment to music and making magic runs deep, as well as to each other and just having a good time. With strong elements of surf rock, it’s no wonder I fell in love with the group’s sound right away, and in their song “Twin Snakes,” the opening hook immediately had me in a chokehold. There are also some suggestions of the cabasa or an egg shaker in the background that brought me back to my days as a percussionist in my high school marching band. One line specifically stuck out to me, “You call it modern love/I call it making our mistakes in harmony,” showing Winkler’s lyrical prowess in addition to their ear for groovy hooks. Winkler’s honesty and authenticity have made me a fan, and I’m excited to see where the band goes in the future!
Izzy Desmarais
There’s No Other Way by Blur
At the beginning of the semester, everyone on the Milk Crate staff was put into pairs and made playlists for each other — an activity dubbed “Playlist Buddies.” My buddy, staff writer Lauren Larking, put this on the playlist she curated for me. I am a huge fan of ‘90s alternative rock, but I had never delved into Blur’s discography much and I was only familiar with the popular track “Song 2.” When I first listened to “There’s No Other Way,” I immediately fell in love. It’s such a fun song with a funky upbeat guitar riff that easily gets stuck in your head with lead singer Damon Albarn’s dreamy vocals. It’s been a staple in my current song rotation and I can’t help but groove along when this song comes up on shuffle. Thank you, Lauren, for introducing me to this quintessential ‘90s band! I really have been missing out.
Sophie Severs
Never in my Wildest Dreams by Dan Auerbach
Milk Crate co-director Lily Hartenstein submitted this song as their Valentine’s Day staff pix, and I have been listening to it ever since. The track is a sweet acoustic ditty, with a melodic style reminiscent of Jack Johnson (I could easily see it being the soundtrack to the Curious George movie). To Auerbach, nothing can ruin his moments with his “love supreme,” not even the most mundane tasks. He gingerly asks his lover to, “Walk in the cold cold wind/Carry my laundry bin/Take my recs for a spin/Watch daytime tv.” Auerbach’s lyrics are teeming with undying love, though he is hesitant to express it for fear of his dreams being shattered by reality. As the academic school year comes to a close, I have to say, “Never in my Wildest Dreams” did I think I would find a wonderful community like Milk Crate here at Emerson!
Lily Hartenstein
HelGa by Phony Ppl
I’ve been on staff since Spring 2019, so in my seventh semester of being part of this beautiful community of music lovers picking one song I’ve gained is nearly impossible. For ease, I’ll go back to the beginning. When I joined Milk Crate, I was incredibly intimidated; I’ve always been around musicians and music lovers but for the first time I felt inadequate in my knowledge, like I had to study before meetings to stack up. When the director at the time, Simon, showed me this track, it was the first moment I felt like I belonged. “HelGa” sounded familiar to me, the swelling piano and subtle strings with Elbie Thrie’s gentle vocals instantly soothing. The end feels like the crashing of a wave, a crescendo of cinematic sound full of excitement until it ebbs back. It reminded me that my knowledge of subgenres like dungeon synth or my (lack of) collection of bootleg Bob Dylan tapes didn’t matter: my love of music did.
Harry Bates
Cowpoke by Colter Wall
Maxwell Reid, a fellow writer here at WECB’s Milk Crate, made a playlist for me at the beginning of this semester, and “Cowpoke” was one of the songs that I immediately gravitated towards. I absolutely love this smooth, old country sound, and I feel like just becoming a farmhand whenever I listen to its 3 minutes and 12 seconds of complete cowboy chimera. It’s so comfortable to listen to, and it’s a nice tune to have around on a rainy day. Thanks, Max!
Maura Cowan
Drifty by Sjowgren
Fellow staffer Lydia Aga made me a wonderful playlist at the start of the semester filled with some favorites of mine, but Drifty by Sjowgren was a particularly lovely new discovery from that mix. The San Francisco-based trio knows how to create the perfect atmosphere with their music, and their frontwoman’s soulful tone makes me just want to live in their songs forever. This track is a pure lazy afternoon, and it’s soundtracked many of mine in the past few months– reclining on the Esplanade, stretched out in the Public Garden, or (like right now) staring at the ceiling from my bed, letting my thoughts run wild.
Sara O’Connell
Picture Me Better by Weyes Blood
Throwing it back to my playlist buddy Sophie. This song is probably gonna end up in my top streams of 2022 on Spotify. I find the story Weyes Blood paints with her lyrics completely unmatched to anything I’ve heard before. Accompanied with melancholy instrumentals, this song is the perfect song to ponder your future to. Thank you Sophie & thank you Milk Crate <3
Nat Szczepanski
Concorde by Black Country, New Road
I can’t pinpoint which staffer in particular pointed out this album because literally everyone was hyped about its release. I may be late to the party (again) but now that I’m here, it’s got me feeling a bit nostalgic and melancholy. Black Country, New Road reminds me a bit of the Canadian band Stars: haunting lyrical content, a dedicated string section, and longing for something left in the past. Well, it looks like I’m entering my ‘sad girl summer’ phase thanks to my lovely fellow staffers — and I’m glad because the soundtrack is going to include bangers such as “Concorde.”