June Star – Here We Are
Genre: Indie Folk, Americana, Alt-Country
Singer-songwriters are a peculiar bunch. Their desire to write is usually determined by the feeling that they just might be better than most other people. However, in order to feel successful, they require that the same people acknowledge their work. A genius always needs an audience willing to pay.
The songwriter needs to tread carefully once they’ve acquired the public that they’ve desired to reach. Just like being invited for Sunday dinner, communication must be kept civil yet enjoyable. The audience must be stirred but not reminded about the artist’s superiority complex.
June Star’s Here we achieve a wonderful and rare balancing act. This is highly intelligent songwriting that feels designed for toddlers. It’s working-class baby music. Humor and great knowledge of the craft are required for this. This kind of juggling act is reminiscent of John Prine and of few else. It’s a tricky way of putting words and music together. And, precisely because of this, it’s something worth holding dear.
Dreaming – Homebody
Genre: Surf Rock, Lo-fi Rock, Dream Pop
Similar artists: Mac DeMarco, Homeshake, Men I Trust, Turnover, DIIV, Castlebeat, Jaws, Vacations
David Lee Roth once famously opined that the music critics’ love of Elvis Costello over the music made by his own band was a direct result of the fact that most critics physically resembled Costello much more so than they did the sun-drenched Californian members of Van Halen. Maybe there is some truth in this.
But, the fact is that most people have more in common with regular-looking songwriters than with people like Roth, who designed their lives and their public image to be akin to that of a modern-day, world-trodding explorer. However, the strange thing is that few songs are made to speak about the issues of people who lead regular lives.
Dreaming’s Homebody is a shoegaze-influenced indie-pop song that reads like the diary entry of a person that just wants to be left alone. The lyrics are precious observations about anxiety and the discomfort that many feel when forced to deal with other people. There are no fast cars here and no dangerous somersaults. But, it’s an honest and pretty song that many people will be glad has been written.
