From Panoramic Point to Pearl Street Mall, the city of Boulder has so much to offer. I recently vacationed to the Broomfield area of Colorado for my step-sister’s wedding that was held in Estes Park, roughly an hour out from there. I had an amazing time visiting Broomfield, Denver, and Centennial but my favorite city had to be Boulder, and that's what this article is about! This wasn’t my first time in Boulder however, I had visited Colorado for the first time in 2019. I spent more time in Denver since that was the location I had a residency at along with having other things to fill my time there. This time, I had to take advantage of what this beautiful city had to offer inside and out. Since it was my first time being back, my step-brother and I wanted to make a day trip and check out the area. Before all of that, we stopped at Proto’s Pizza to have lunch with our parents. This place was amazing, their pizza was delicious. They had a lot more to offer than just za, but I would highly recommend their pizza. We ended up getting rained out after lunch and headed back to our hotel. The next day, we planned to have dinner in Boulder at The Western Tavern. Really good food and atmosphere, considering it was in the college town of Boulder. Before dinner, my step-brother and I decided to check out a park nearby called Panoramic Point. We didn’t know it offered so much scenery until we got there, which made it even more thrilling to reach the destination. As I’ve stated, Boulder has a great collection of cuisine and things to do and see. The last thing I want to share was my favorite part of the trip. I was eager to find a record store around Boulder to see if they had any gems in my subjective music taste. And in fact, this location had something that took me by surprise. In high school, I was a part of the jazz band as a drummer for four years. Being warped into the realm of jazz is something else, especially if you’re a music guru. It expanded my discography and opened up so much more music to me. I didn’t know that half of those records existed. The one record I was really drawn to was Getz/ Gilberto released in March of 1964. This album combines jazz, bossa nova, and samba into a true masterpiece. I was so happy to have found it at Paradise Records in Boulder. That’s my second experience wrapped up. I highly recommend you all to visit Boulder in your lifetime. Take it easy everyone, and make sure to tune into The DJ Drez Show Thursdays from 4-5 PM!

Jim Morrison was one of the 60s legendary icons in the world of rock n roll, along with his band members in "The Doors" including Ray Manzarek, John Densmore, and Robbie Kreiger. Jim was born on December 8th, 1943 in Melbourne Florida to a family of five including his parents, brother, and sister with his siblings being the only surviving members. Throughout his childhood, Jim became interested in something that most kids his age wouldn’t appreciate: knowledge of one’s inner self. This interest may have spiked from an event that took place in his childhood. While traveling on a desert highway with his family, they passed a major accident leaving several people injured/dead. Jim is credited with saying that when he saw the calamity of all the persons involved and killed in the accident, an apparition of an older Native American tribesman entered his soul. On The Doors' 1970 LP Morrison Hotel, the second track titled "Peace Frog" tells the story of of Jim’s experience on that desert highway. “Indians scattered on dawn's highway bleeding. Ghosts crowd the young child’s fragile eggshell mind.” This is to recap his experience and how it followed his whole life. Morrison called himself a Shaman while practicing rituals of absorbing as much knowledge about philosophy and psychology with the aid of the Shaman’s apparition. This brings Frederich Nietzsche into this conversation. Morrison was obsessed with the works of the 20th-century philosophical writer and his work eerily reflected that of Nietzsche. His father, George Stephen Morrison, has even shared that Jim wasn’t infatuated with materialistic objects throughout his adolescence. Jim asked his father and mother for The Complete Works Of Friedrich Nietzsche for his high school graduation gift while his peers wanted cars and money. It's crazy to think how these two visionaries were intertwined in an obvious but somehow ambiguous sense. The way that Jim absorbed Nietzsche’s teachings and applied them to his life experiences will always put me in awe. I could never stop loving The Doors with their inspiration from Jim. They are such a diverse group of people that came together and made some amazing records. Their personalities are probably what got them to do the work they needed, there were always ideas in their minds for a project with many outside musical influences. They managed to put together masterpieces and brought out cohesiveness in their respected communications. The Doors will be talked about for centuries, leading newcomers to explore the realm of this almost-unreal sounding band, leading future generations to never douse the flame and set their nights on fire.

I’m excited to report that Remi Wolf has done it again! And by ‘it’ I mean created yet another musical masterpiece this time in the form of her new single, “Liquor Store”. I’ve shared Remi Wolf’s music with people before and I always have a hard time explaining exactly why I like her so much... but (and I feel silly saying this) it really comes down to vibes. Remi Wolf is the ultimate curator of vibes which I have felt in every single song of hers I have heard. Her lyrics are generally pretty simple, but they always act as a vessel for the vibes that the instrumentals create. I would recommend Remi any time of the year but for me, summer feels like the best time to listen to her music, which is why I was so excited for the release of “Liquor Store”. And that’s what we’re here for today, to review this fantastic single, so read on to hear my thoughts! Like I mentioned earlier, I love Remi Wolf for her vibes and “Liquor Store” really hits different... but in the best way possible. This song has a bit of a heavier feel than most of her other music, almost like that heavy feeling from drinking too much (or so I’ve been told). The reverb-y tones feel like the unsteadiness of walking while intoxicated. Something about the lyrics in this song feel even easier to belt than some of her other songs which is saying something. I really can’t imagine anything better to yell out while drunk than “mother fucker” which “Liquor Store” delivers in spades. I really can’t express how much I love this song and Remi Wolf as an artist overall. She makes me feel all the good feelings when I listen to her music and that’s all I could ever ask for. I can’t recommend checking her out enough and staying tuned for her upcoming album!

Stanley Getz was born in Philadelphia on February 2nd, 1927. He was a very famous saxophone player that indulged in his projects as well as collaborated with other jazz musicians such as Nat King Cole. Stan played with him in a Los Angeles-based group called The Second Herd. He left the band to pursue his solo career, as well as one of the bandmates named Stan Kenton telling him that his inspiration was “too simple” - and that’s where the dagger struck Kenton. Getz went on to have a very successful solo career creating hits like "So Danco Samba" and "The Girl From Ipanema". His collaborations with Joao Gilberto on the album Getz/Gilberto released in 1964 is an amazing LP to start with for those who are unfamiliar with his work. He has paved the way for so many modern samba and jazz musicians. He demonstrated how much you can do with a 32 bar solo as well as trade-offs with other instruments that opened up a more experimental approach to soloing. "So Danco Samba" was the first track I ever heard from Getz. In my high school jazz band, we would usually have a lot of time to learn new pieces after gigs. Our instructor would divide us into bands of four to play a piece of our liking from his options and Getz’s track was our choice. I’m so thankful to have been introduced to this music. Jazz band did a great job of opening my music library and theory, a two-in-one combo that cannot be beaten. Hope everyone is doing well and has a wonderful rest of their day!

The Go! Team. That’s literally the tweet. What’s there to say about them? You’d have to have a Sequoia up your ass not to love them. They just released an album a couple weeks back now. It’s the picture on this article. Get Up Sequences Part One it’s called. Is there a Part Two in the cards? Well, hey… I’d not fight it, but nothing about this smattering of HEATERS seems particularly out of character for TGT at this point. Pretty standard horn and tambourine-heavy plunderphonics guaranteed to wrench your frown into a smile before you even know what happened. And I’m not writing this to get you to listen to it. It rules, but if you give 10 seconds a chance, you’re finishing the thing. I’m not even worried. I’m just here to give you an objective ruling on the newest outing from one of the most fun, most consistent bands still cranking stuff out--a ruling on an album I’ve been looking forward to for ages--and to totally OWN the fools out here confusing that consistency with staleness. That’s right. You will be owned as you will be pwned, and believe you me when I tell you that you will be pwned. So, imagine you and I exist in a void. Just us. Actually, imagine you’ve floated around your whole life by yourself just with an iPod Nano and on that Nano is enough music for you to form some basic opinion about the medium. Now imagine you bump into me and I say “Hey, I’m going to tell you about Get Up Sequences Part One by the Go! Team!” Then I flash you my iPod Touch, because I manifested one and you were only able to manifest the Nano. So, not relying on any preexisting knowledge of TGT on either of our sides, I would tell you the objective facts about the thing: First and foremost, it’s a headphones album. From the opener, “Let the Seasons Work,” on through my least-favorite-single cum impeccable closer “World Remember Me Now,” the music runs deep. Beneath the crashing of cymbals and quacking, beeping synths one will find more beeps and whistles, more horns and claps than you could ever rationally expect a band to crank out. They’re maximalists in that way, and use their musical drive to tap into the part of one’s brain to find that gland that loved the music of Sesame Street and all of those upbeat dance songs on their nineties VHS tapes. Oh, I forgot! Neither of us have any idea what those are. I guess what I’d say is that what we have here is everything that you could want in an album, and that you should start moving away from me. Chances are after twenty-three years of floating I will be hungry. My frustration in the album is not remotely the fault of the album itself. It’s the critics giving this album some arbitrary rating. Like six out of ten, think like that sort of rating, and I know taste is subjective, music moreso than any other, but digging into what could possibly warrant a rating this low one is likely to find only a couple excuses: Those couple excuses being “The Go! Team aren’t evolving musically” and “Three of 10 songs are instrumentals, and that’s… a bad thing(?)” Okay. Fine. Now, I’m going to knock this second one out first, because, well, it’ll take two sentences. The Go! Team was never about the lyrics. They were, and are, about the feeling. Got it? Lit. They aren’t filler, sans “Freedom Now”. In fact… they’re killer. And I came up with that. As for the musical-evolution, that’s tricky. I’m in the “if it don’t broke, don’t fix it” camp, but Marc Hogan of Pitchfork and Charlotte Krol of NME to a lesser degree feel as though plunderphonics has been dead in the water a good while. TGT seem to want to be a band out of time, but according to Hogan, they’re a band firmly rooted in the days of De La Soul (nearly a decade apart at their peaks) and The Avalanches’ Since I Left You. In the big days of sampling. In the days of the early internet. And reading this review, it read to me as though Hogan himself can’t separate the era of a band from when he discovered them personally. Now, maybe I’m cherry-picking here, maybe he’d argue I was twisting his words, but one thing he did say was, and I quote, “[Ian] Parton honed his “channel hopping” approach... right before mash-up artists like 2ManyDJs and Girl Talk knocked down the walls between musical styles for good. But the notion of genre has diminished potency today. And plenty of mysterious magpies have followed in the Go! Team’s footsteps.” Who, Mark?? Who are we talking about here? Fergie? Who else samples at all anymore?! We have The Avalanches, who have evolved, sure, but what nobody seems to realize is that evolution isn’t some sine qua non. Artists evolve because they want to try something new, learn more, get smarter… and it is often a relatively unconscious effort. While some see TGT as being stuck, it’s just as easy to see--considering they’ve not got a weak album in the bunch--that they’re doing it on purpose, and have not lost their special sauce. And make no mistake, the fans aren’t complaining. None of them are throwing their earbuds at the ground going “Dammit! Fun again!” Which isn’t to say the album is just mindless pop either. Even apart from the nineties-era rapping, sampling and varied instrumentation, the lyrics are surprisingly quite mature. Both Hogan and Krol don’t seem to feel any cohesion with Get Up Sequences Part One, which is a complaint so nonsensical to me it’s like they pulled it from a hat. Krol is more polite, but they both said it, which leads me to question a lot of things. The songs flow into each other incredibly well, and the lyrics follow the same consistent theme so… are you still on about the instrumentals? Did you two even read the lyrics? Matter of fact, it’s one of the more cohesive GT records out there! The title refers to a collection of confidence-boosting songs, following narrators at particular low points (get-get, get-get, get-getting on up) and as the tracklist makes its way higher, their triumph becomes more palpable, leading to the absolutely earth-shattering climax of “A Bee Without Its Sting.” It’s the only overtly political song here, and even then it’s vague enough so as to not date itself. It’s the story of the little guy. It’s an empowerment anthem, and one of the lyrically more nuanced of its ilk I’ve heard in some time. Then our closer, the happiest sounding song on the album, offers an uncharacteristically downfacing take on what might happen if one doesn’t “get up,” so to speak. Unlike every other narrator on the album, this one is down on herself, and dooms herself to a life of yesterdays, just “carbon cop[ies] of tomorrow.” But you wouldn’t KNOW that if you didn’t read the lyrics, would you, Mark? Yeah. That’s what I thought. The tl;dr here is that Get Up Sequences Part One can easily hang with the Go! Team’s best output, and to give an album a chance even when that album isn’t as acclaimed. Particularly when it’s an artist you love! You never know what you’ll see in an album that others don’t, because nine times out of ten, any death knell delivered in an album review is a matter of opinion on the part of the critic. “But Hank,” you ask. “What makes you any better? You shit on music all the time!” Well, the answer is simple, I’d say. Because I live in a void, and this album’s there with me. Now don’t make me eat you. I need little to no provocation.

Yes, Tyler The Creator has done it yet again and released another legendary album: “CALL ME IF YOU GET LOST”. Since this has been the first album to be released in over two years by Tyler, it is safe to say that the media has gone crazy over this one, especially due to its features of popular artists including Lil Wayne, Lil Uzi Vert, and Pharrell Williams. I found this album to fit more of a chiller vibe when compared to his previous albums, which is arguably what the world needs given the multitude of stressful events it has endured over the past year with the pandemic. The opening track “SIR BAUDELAIRE” in particular was a perfect opener to set the “chill” mood, given the slowed, reverbed, and almost psychedelic sounding beat. Although, I was taken by surprise with the second track “CORSO” with its aggressive fast-paced beat that reminisces many of Tyler’s earlier tracks. I believe that it is also important to note how Tyler explains his rise to fame in this track in particular but also decides to hint at the downsides of his stardom when he adds that he’s “bout to spend millions just to fill voids up”. As the album continues, there are added “tracks” that are only about a minute long, which is the perfect touch to keep the listener’s attention. Overall, I would consider this to be not only one of Tyler the Creator’s most advanced albums but also one of his most emotional albums considering some of the darker lyrics. It is unbelievable to see how Tyler has grown as an artist over the past few years, and I think that I can speak for almost everyone when I say that the world eagerly awaits another release by him.

Hey everybody, happy July! We are really getting into the ‘heat’ of summer (pun intended) which is usually around the time that I personally start to long for the holiday season. I realize that sounds crazy but we’re halfway between the past holiday season and the upcoming one, and now that it’s crazy hot I’m starting to get excited for that time of year which I always really enjoy. Luckily for me, some people share in my love of Christmas even during odd times of the year like now, in July. Most years I forget that Christmas in July is a thing and am pleasantly surprised to hear Christmas music playing when I tune into Star 105.7 during July. In that spirit I have decided to host a Christmas in July episode of my show this Thursday, July 15th, at 9 PM! Now while I’m not above writing a blog just to promote my show, I thought I would also share some reasons why I think you should celebrate Christmas in July. So without further ado, here are the 5 reasons I will be celebrating Christmas in July this year and think you should too! It’s a great excuse to get festive Those who know me well know that I’m a very festive person which is just a nicer way of saying that I get very extra during the holidays. For me, December feels like a month where I always have an excuse to be happy and to be honest I wish there were something like that all the time. Even though July will never be as big a celebration as December (nor should it be), it’s nice to have a little excuse to be festive and have some fun! As I write this I’m listening to some Christmas music and it’s making me feel a little bit more positive which I imagine could be true for lots of people. 2. Summer can get boring I love summer, don’t get me wrong but it can get a LITTLE boring. There are summer holidays of course but in my opinion they’re not as fun as the holidays throughout the fall and winter. Michigan tends to be exciting most of the year in terms of weather but summer is definitely the most boring season for it with it being hot nearly all of the time. Celebrating Christmas in July is a great way to break up that monotony and invite a little bit of chaos into your life. 3. It’s a way to trick yourself that it’s not that hot outside As I just mentioned, summer is hot a lot of places, including here in Michigan. As I sit here listening to Christmas music, it’s surprisingly easy to pretend I’m not sweating. Maybe I’ll even go throw on a Christmas sweater and confuse any coworkers that decide to call me during my internship tomorrow. Nothing like Christmas music, a Christmas sweater, and drinking hot chocolate to trick yourself into believing it’s not 80+ degrees outside. 4. We're still dealing with a (stressful) pandemic Although life is mostly getting back to normal here in Michigan, the pandemic unfortunately isn’t over and people are still getting infected with COVID-19. That still weighs on me personally and can be difficult to deal with, so why not do something wild just for the fun of it? Why not celebrate Christmas in July to distract yourself from this incredibly stressful period of life? If I were living on my own instead of with my parents right now I honestly think that I would decorate my apartment for Christmas just for the hell of it. Nothing in life is normal anymore and I personally am inclined to lean into that and celebrate Christmas in July which I think could help people feel even just a little bit better about life right now. 5. Who’s going to stop you? I feel like most people may disagree with my here... but I think doing something simply because you can is a perfectly good reason to do a lot of things in life, celebrating Christmas in July being one of them. Nobody is going to stop you from listening to Christmas music during July and celebrating in whatever way you please, so why not just do it? Assert your dominance on life and celebrate Christmas in July if you want to, y’all! Well, that’s my spiel! Hopefully you’re ready to get out there and have some fun celebrating Christmas this July. If you are looking to celebrate, tune into my show this Thursday, July 15th, at 9 PM for a full hour of some of my favorite Christmas music!

Olivia Rodrigo has been booking the trending suite in the music industry hotel lately with the debut of her full LP, Sour, released in 2021. "Brutal" and "Traitor" have been the highlight tracks over TikTok and other social media platforms. Before her solo career, she was a Disney actress in productions such as the High School Musical series. She has risen to the top of the charts as soon as her LP was released on all streaming platforms. Before I began listening to it, I had some predetermined thoughts. I was mostly unsure of how it was going to sound since her genre isn’t to my immediate liking. However, that all changed when I heard "Brutal". She went into a poppy-grunge type feel along with the trippy strings. It was heavier than I imagined it to be but I liked it a lot. The last track gave me the same feeling as well, "Hope Ur Ok", with a little more psychedelic and alternative influence. She surprised me with the way she composed the lyrics in this album. Usually, I lean towards more alternative and indie than pop, but she made me want to get back on the pop train again. It’s incredible to see her journey from being a well-known actress to the ultimate pop star.

When Listening to Mac DeMarco, it never felt like I was saying "Goodbye Weekend". His music has always made me feel laid back with a reassurance that everything will be alright. It was 2018 the first time I listened to Mac. It was the summer. My friend Ryan Ruiter, shoutout to Marty, joined me on an evening bike ride around town. I was shuffling through my playlist when he suggested a song. I didn’t know who it was when I looked at the title and played it. As soon as the record played, waves of euphoria set in on me. It was like a door had been opened to another path in life. I remember looking at the sunset while we were flying down this hill and felt nothing but pure bliss. Ever since then, Mac’s music has shaped me into the person I am today. His inspiration from The Beatles is very noticeable to me and always brings a higher connected emotional structure that feels so right. Mac has brought everything to the table he can. He never fails to be different in every project he makes. Salad Days was the first album of his I fully listened through. Funny how it was that album and not 2, the album that includes "Ode To Viceroy", my first encounter with his music. He has influenced a lot of the newer generation in this genre of music. He can capture you and put you under his chorded and vocal spell to evoke so much emotion. Mac has been one of my top artists since that day and I will always enjoy him and his records.

One of my life's great tragedies is not being born in the late-eighties or early nineties and growing up with the music of that era, eventually plopping me at seventeen or thereabouts when The Hold Steady--American rock legends fronted by class-A poet, Craig Finn--were really at the top of their game. To be in high school when Separation Sunday and Boys and Girls in America dropped would have been a transcendent experience, and becoming an adult when the wistful Stay Positive came out… words couldn’t even describe what that would have meant. My parents took their sweet time, but I suppose what's done is done. Regardless, The Hold Steady are one of those groups that furnish your taste in music. Help you come of age in adulthood like an aural Fight Club. Discovering music has almost stopped being “magical” to me, despite still coming upon quality stuff, but The Hold Steady are the recent exception. Stay Positive found me at just the right time. Homebound and depressed, lost and not knowing what I wanted to do with my life. Those opening chords of “Constructive Summer” blew me out of the water in that simple way that I wasn’t expecting. I listened to the entire thing front to back about three times that day, and I believe I’ve now heard their entire output. I'm consistently floored by every lyric, the small details and powerful truths bottled down into them… but none have had such an effect as the closer of that introductory album: a song called “Slapped Actress”. Sitting dead-center at the transition between the presence and departure of keyboard-player Franz Nicolay, “Slapped Actress” finds the protagonists Finn had been crafting throughout his entire career at something of a juncture. Between the naivete of youth and the back-facing maturity that comes with real, authentic adulthood. When getting drunk every night and going to parties becomes self-defeatist. When you’re the oldest guy in the room and it’s just getting uncomfortable. Finn has stated in many interviews that the whole album was influenced by his reaction to the 1977 film, Opening Night, and knowing that, much is illuminated. In one particular Vulture article--one in which Finn and guitarist Tad Kubler picked their favorite songs from each album--Finn references a scene in which John Cassavetes tells Gena Rowlands that he’s going to slap her for real in the premiere of a play the film centers around. Rowlands’ character asks him why he can’t just pretend to slap her, and Cassavetes replies that otherwise it won’t look real. This scene and Finn's ensuant reaction spurred the album on, and this song in particular. It's about the face a person puts on… especially people in their position. Moreso than any album preceding it, instead of centering around the aimless Charlemagne and Holly, this one is more baldly about Finn and his own identity. Like Gena Rowlands in Opening Night, he’s getting older, and the tales he tells are simultaneously paralleling his own life greater and feeling more like a façade than ever. “Slapped Actress” sends off a record more truthful and soulful than any even Springsteen can boast, with a wail of confession, casting the pastiche of a stage-play over the set of a live show. The song opens with a kick--placed deliberately after two very good, albeit disposable, songs--to tell the story of one of Finn’s protagonists and for once his narrator seems truly mournful. Every line in the first verse begins with “Don’t tell…” as the narrator begs his friend, perhaps lover, not to mention what they did the night prior to anyone he knows or anyone who knows anyone he knows. Put this song aside “Party Pit” from Stuck Between Stations or “Your Little Hoodrat Friend” from Separation Sunday, and the difference is stark. Even the most sorry moments on those albums don’t probe as deep as those on Stay Positive. There's still hope in those moments. They're still muddled in the folly of youth--not to mention they relate primarily to lost loves and broken friendships. They are poignant and beautiful, but never before and never since have The Hold Steady stuck their fists so deep in the pie of wasted potential. Sure, these guys aren’t deadbeats, but Finn’s at-the-time depression and persona as the aging partygoer crafted one of the finest feats of musical poetry I’ve ever heard. Returning to the Opening Night parallels and to the metaphor of performance being like a play, lyrics like “we’re dust in the spotlight; we’re just kind of floating”; and “they come in for the beating, to see the stadium seating; and they’re holding their hands out, for the body and blood now,” not only work as beautiful imagery, but also cast the band as charlatans of their own making, as both a trapped audience and as godlike deities, conducting a rock ’n’ roll mass in a massive theatre. Before kicking into the final barn burning chorus, Finn references that scene in Opening Night specifically. “Sometimes actresses get slapped,” he whispers. “Sometimes fake fights turn out bad, sometimes actresses get slapped.” He repeats this a few times before becoming more transparent with a line that is absolutely unheard of from a rock band. “Some nights it’s entertainment, and some other nights it’s work.” It is in this moment that it becomes abundantly clear that this is the climax. Not just of the album, but the band itself. They name-drop themselves like a roll-credits scene, and send themselves off on a cloud of “whoahs.” It’s earth-shattering. It’s downright beautiful. And, until recently, that was the end. Keyboardist Franz Nicolay departed after Stay Positive, leaving the band to put out two albums that were steps down in the same way falling off the Cliffs of Dover is a step down, proving that despite Finn’s lyrical prowess, the band at its peak was absolutely greater than the sum of its parts. Nicolay has since returned though, and all is well with the world. They're putting out some more adventurous stuff, retaining the poetry and trying new things, but despite these latest two albums being leaps and bounds better than I’d expected, they haven’t put out anything as good as “Slapped Actress,” and likely never will again. And that's okay. What’s most interesting to me though about Stay Positive is that while every quality Hold Steady record before or since has this sort of underground feel about it--regardless of whether or not they are--Stay Positive has a very accessible alt-country sound. It’s warm and inviting, despite its more depressive themes. It’s as if it was always meant to be their most honest effort, shedding any preconception of musical elitism with the illusion that they’re always going to be the cool band to listen to. It’s definitively adult, definitively American, and a musical coming of age story that changed my life and my outlook early on in the pandemic. The best art comes from a place of honesty, and growing up is never as scary as you think its going to be. Change comes with the territory of being human. “Slapped Actress” in particular encompasses all of the themes of the record in a way that I’ve never before seen an album do. Fans of the band know that they really pour everything they have into their closers and “Slapped Actress” is likely the best of the bunch. It’s hard to peel off the mask you’ve been wearing for as long as you can remember, but it’s a part of becoming who you really are. Many people came out of the pandemic forgetting how to socialize, but I came out not caring how I did. I am now the exact same person with my family, friends, coworkers and over the radio. It’s liberating. I don’t give “Slapped Actress” all the credit, of course... but it makes for a better story, doesn’t it? Check out my review of The Hold Steady's album, Open Door Policy here!

Hey y’all! So my music taste has evolved quite a lot since I was younger but some artists have stood the test of time for me and have helped define my current taste. One such band that has really grown with me is Vampire Weekend. My mom loved them while I was growing up so naturally their first two albums were on my first mp3 player that was completely filled with my parents’ music. Most of what was on that first music player was Dad Rock so the islandy Vampire Weekend was a very fun twist for me. I can remember jamming to them on walks and bike rides during the summer when I had minimal responsibilities and feeling so at peace with the world. Eventually I started gaining more responsibilities in my life with school and work and that care free mentality started to go away. At a certain point the Michigan Winters started to get to me and make life feel that much harder. Throughout these changes in my life, Vampire Weekend’s mellow and fun music stuck around with me. I would still listen to them in the Summer when life felt easier but during the long, hard Winters, Vampire Weekend was my getaway. Sure I would nearly freeze during my walks in the snow, but their music always made it feel like Summer and helped me endure the cold. I should also mention how excited I was when Father of the Bride came out in 2019 after the 6 year hiatus. I will forever love their older albums but it's great to have some new music to jam to! I’m sure most of you have heard the Vampire Weekend hits but I can’t recommend checking out the rest of their music enough especially now that it’s Summer! They even make an appearance on our WIDR Summer playlist which you can check out here. Have a great Summer y’all and enjoy all the Summer jams!

Hey y'all, we hope you enjoyed Pride Week this past week at the station! In case you missed any of the fun, we put together a collaborative playlist with everyone's favorite show songs who participated! Check it out here!

In May of 2018, my father attended the Kentucky Derby and participated in all the events - helping set up and partying at the Met Gala as well as the event the next day. The day after the derby, he called me and told me about his time there, telling me he had a story he was dying to tell me. To his recollection, he had gone to the elevator for something. He opened the door when another man appeared in the lift. He asked my dad for the designated floor and the doors shut. He started to make small talk with the man and asked him how he was enjoying the event. About 30 seconds into the conversation, my dad had an epiphany. He was speaking with Dennis Quaid. The star-struck feeling was overpowered by keeping himself reserved and talking to him like a normal human being. He then mentions something about Dennis’ career and asks if it was him. He responded with, “I’m surprised you didn’t say anything in the first place!” As they share a laugh, Dennis exits the elevator and says, “Nice to meet you and enjoy the night!” My dad has had many of these random meetings with celebrities in recent years. Before that, something similar happened while attending the 2015 Kentucky Derby. There was an occurrence at the parking lot exit of Churchill Downs. He saw this man talking on the phone and recognized him from somewhere. A woman was standing next to him while this was happening and he asked “Do you know who that is over there? He looks familiar.” “That’s Adrien Grenier from Entourage!” He then proceeded to walk over to him and asked if he could take a picture. The two had a selfie-and exchanged goodbyes. What boggles my mind when he texted me the picture was that I asked him to keep an eye out for him. A few days before the derby, I texted my dad he was in Louisville from his most recent Instagram post and told him to snap a picture if possible - and behold, my dreams came true and I was filled with excitement! After the Dennis Quaid spotting in 2018, another spotting occurred. He saw Victoria Justice at a table. This time, there was photographic evidence. When I was getting ready for prom that night about 300 miles away, he sent me a video of Victoria telling me to have a wonderful prom night. I was in shock as I stood in front of a random bathroom mirror. The last one I have is my favorite story of his celebrity encounters. I can’t recall the year, but my father was yet again at Churchill Downs for the derby. He ended up in a millionaire's row at one point. While standing there, another man walked up to the ledge and started throwing money off the row with my dad and others. Turns out, the man was Cheech Marin from Cheech And Chong. My dad recalled himself throwing a five-dollar bill off the balcony. The wind blew it right back to Cheech’s coat pocket, then casually walked back to his seats, giving my dad a funny smirk.

Hey y’all! We’re in one of the best parts of the year where spring/summer music releases are rampant and it’s WONDERFUL! I was incredibly to see Bad Suns in that feed of new releases who I have been loving since the beginning of 2021. Although, I was actually introduced to them about four years ago with “Cardiac Arrest” which was big on my list of songs to cry to at the time. I think associating that song with heartbreak was part of why I didn’t get into them right away but I’m very glad to be loving them now. Alright that’s enough of me blabbering, Bad Suns’ new song is “Heaven Is A Place In My Head” and I’m here to review it for all of you today. I’ve gotta start off by saying this song is sugary sweet. I don’t know who gave them permission to make a song this sweet but I’m here for it! I’m not religious but the idea of being with someone and having it be like Heaven in their head is just really nice. This sugary sweet message pairs great with the similarly sweet and poppy instrumentals in this song. I feel like Bad Suns hasn’t traditionally been quite this upbeat but they did a killer job with that vibe in this song. I really don’t have many more thoughts than that, I just really like this song and will definitely be continuing to listen to it throughout the summer to keep the good vibes going. Check out “Heaven Is A Place In My Head” for all of your lovey dovey, summer song needs and check out the newly released music video here! Also check out the rest of Bad Suns’ music, especially their first album, Language and Perspective which is my personal favorite!

Happy first day of Summer y'all! We put together a collaborative playlist from us at the station to enjoy today and all summer long! Check it out here.