Music Monday (299): Earth Wind & Fire, Foster the People

Rules:

• Music Monday is a weekly meme hosted by Lauren Stoolfire at Always Me that asks you to share one or two songs that you've recently enjoyed. For the rules, visit the page HERE 

Breana: My pick this week is A Diamond To Be Born by Foster the People. This is one of my favorite songs from their new album, Paradise State of Mind.

Andrea: Hi all! This week I'm listening to September by Earth Wind & Fire. Have an amazing week!

What are you listening to this week?

I Listened to Imaginal Disk by Magdalena Bay

Magdalena Bay is one of my favorite music duos on the scene right now. I know their music best by their debut album, Murcurial World (2021), as well as their extended plays (EP)—Mini Mix volumes 1-3 (2019-2023), and A Little Rhythm and a Wicked Feeling (2020). Now, they’re back with their second studio album, Imaginal Disk. Released on August 23, 2024, this latest offering follows the same vein as a lot of their previous work, while also keeping it fresh and interesting. And with that, welcome back to the music minded corner of Our Thoughts Precisely!

Imaginal Disk falls right into synth/dance pop, and it’s done with Magdalena Bay’s usual flare. A little strange, completely fun, thematic, and with something a little dark but also light and dreamy to it (which was really sticking to the concept behind the album). (And if you have the chance, I recommend reading about it.) It also brought in some rock influences, such as on the single Tunnel Vision—one of my personal favorites off the album—That’s My Floor, and Love Is Everywhere. It also wasn’t afraid to slow the tempo down by a notch on tracks like Vampire in the Corner, Cry for Me, and Watching T.V., without losing the almost cinematic atmosphere that defines much of the album.

Magdalena Bay knocked it out of the park with Imaginal Disk. It was dramatic in all the right ways, and honestly, at the end of the day, just good music. So if you’ve enjoyed this duo’s music in the past, you’ll likely love Imaginal Disk too.

Clock Striker Volume 2: The Sharing Society by Issaka Galadima and Frederick L. Jones

Title: Clock Striker Volume 2: The Sharing Society

Series: Clock Striker #2
Author: Issaka Galadima; Fredrick L. Jones
Source/Format: NetGalley; eARC
More Details: Manga; Teen
Publisher/Publication Date: Rockport Publishers; September 10, 2024

Goodreads     Amazon     Barnes & Noble

Synopsis from Goodreads...

Clock Striker, Volume 2, is the exciting follow-up to the acclaimed first volume, featuring shonen manga’s first Black female lead character! Combining sci-fi, steampunk, action-adventure, and insightful humor, this new volume explores teenage hero Cast’s desire to (once again) save her friend Klaus while dealing with an entire town that confounds her with its unique sharing culture. Something is off—and Cast and her mentor, Ms. Philomena Clock, engineer-warriors called SMITHS, are determined to find out what it is before it’s too late.

Klaus is a runaway prince who has been captured by cybernetic outlaws, the Demon Bandits. Cast has almost never ventured past her hometown, so the demanding trek, including rough terrain and the strange kingdom of Alter, will test her beyond anything she has encountered before. With a rival SMITH and STRIKER on their tails, as well as the mysterious King of Alter—who seems to have a powerful kingdom despite rejecting cutting-edge technology—can our female dynamic duo save the day?

**Note: mild spoilers for volume 1 past this point, you’ve been warned.**

Another one of the sequels I was keeping an eye out for was Issaka Galadima and Fredrick L. Jones’ second volume of Clock Strikers. The series opening was one of my favorite manga releases of 2023, and I have been eagerly awaiting its sequel since.

Titled, The Sharing Society, the story charges right ahead and quickly picked up where the last volume left off. It combined a couple of humorous moments with plenty of action, while also continuing to explore some of the darker and far more complex themes present in the series. It had echoes of the conflict that took place in the first volume, but while the core was similar, this time around it was under vastly different circumstances—which kept the volume interesting as well as moving at a good pace. I flew through this one, and enjoyed every second of it.

This volume was story heavy and threw the characters into a number of perilous situations. Klaus is in a bind. He’s back in Altar and at the mercy of his father. However, there’s trouble in paradise for the Demon Bandits who were his captors, but it seemed like it was a deal/exchange that was always destined to go sideways. On the other side, our Striker and Smith duo, Philomena Clock and Cast, are in pursuit—while also being pursued. Some of the most unexpected twists arrived while the majority of the cast was in Altar, the supposed “sharing society.” The story peeled back the layers of that society and delved into the underlying darkness of the situation, and those were among the most compelling areas of the volume.

And, while a lot of ground was covered, the last chapter ends on a cliffhanger with the beginning of another mystery. However, that nicely set up the potential for the next volume.

Overall, Jones and Galadima have hit it out of the park with the second volume of Clock Striker.

 

Disclaimer: this copy of the book was provided by the publisher (Rockport Publishers/ Quarto Publishing) via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review, thank you! 

Music Monday (298): Tinashe

Rules:

• Music Monday is a weekly meme hosted by Lauren Stoolfire at Always Me that asks you to share one or two songs that you've recently enjoyed. For the rules, visit the page HERE 

Breana: One of my favorite music releases of August was Tinashe's Quantum Baby. I loved it, but it was definitely a very short album. As I said on my latest What I'm Listening To blog post, I'm looking forward to the next part of her trilogy. Anyways, one of my favorite songs from Quantum Baby is Red Flags!

What are you listening to this week?

What I've Been Listening To

In the last two months, there was a flurry of new releases, including some of my most anticipated albums of 2024. So, in addition to the other music related posts scheduled for this month, it was time to do another What I’ve Been Listening To. And with that, welcome back to the music minded corner of Our Thoughts Precisely!

Big Ideas by Remi Wolf

Remi Wolf has a particular style to her music, which I appreciate as a listener. As such, she’s one of my favorite artists, and I was excited about her upcoming album, Big Ideas, since I first heard about it. Big Ideas is Wolf’s second album, and it was preceded by the singles: Cinderella, Toro, Alone In Miami, and Motorcycle. Released in July, the album is aptly named. It had big ideas, lots of them in fact, supported by Wolf’s vocal performance and creative direction with the production. It reminded me of her debut, Juno, with its splashy pop infused with other genres. And you’ll find a lot of that on Big Ideas as well. This was another good album from Remi Wolf.

Quantum Baby by Tinashe

Tinashe is back with her seventh studio album, the follow up to BB/ANG3L, Quantum Baby. This was my most anticipated August release, and also the shortest album I listened to last month, with just eight songs. It was another good one, though. The two singles, Nasty and Getting No Sleep, were pretty accurate, when it came to gaging what the album was going to be. Themes are carried over from BB/ANG3L, but where that was more R&B, Quantum Baby gets a little more experimental with its arrangements, and dips its toes into synth-pop—which almost had a futuristic vibe going on. Overall, I’m left in the same position as I was by the end of BB/ANG3L: I want more. Luckily, from what I’ve read, Quantum Baby is only the second release of a planned trilogy. So there’s more to look forward to.

Trouble In Paradise by Chloe

You might know Chloe better as half of the duo (and sisters) that made up the group Chloe X Halle, and for the past couple of years she’s been releasing music as a solo artist. Trouble In Paradise is her second studio album, which was supported by the singles Boy Bye—an upbeat pop track about breakups—and FYS. It was summery and fun with an island vibe, and I enjoyed my listening experience, simple as that. It also had some great features such as Might as Well featuring Ty Dolla Sign, Favorite featuring Anderson .Paak, YG Marley on Never Let You Go, Shake with Jeremih, and Want Me featuring Halle. All-in-all, Trouble in Paradise was a great album.

And last, but certainly not lost, here are the singles that made it to my playlist: The girl, so confusing version with Lorde by Charli XCX featuring Lorde, Back To You by Kimbra, and Demi God by Kimbra featuring Sahtyre.