Rules:
The Friday 56 is a weekly meme hosted by Freda's Voice where every Friday you pick a book and turn to page 56 or 56%, and select a sentence or a few, as long as it's not a spoiler. For the full rules, visit the the page HERE
A young royal from the far north is sent south for a political marriage in an empire reminiscent of imperial China. Her brothers are dead, her armies and their war mammoths long defeated and caged behind their borders. Alone and sometimes reviled, she must choose her allies carefully. Rabbit, a handmaiden, sold by her parents to the palace for the lack of five baskets of dye, befriends the emperor's lonely new wife and gets more than she bargained for. At once feminist high fantasy and an indictment of monarchy, this evocative debut follows the rise of the empress In-yo, who has few resources and fewer friends. She's a northern daughter in a mage-made summer exile, but she will bend history to her will and bring down her enemies, piece by piece.
Last week, I talked about Rina Sawayama’s 2022 album, Hold The Girl. So today, I wanted to devote a post to all the other music that kept me entertained in October. I have two to talk about: Dirt Femme by Tove Lo and Midnights by Taylor Swift.--Dirt Femme by Tove Lo (Release Date: October 14, 2022)--
I’ve enjoyed Tove Lo’s work since the Queen of the Cloud (2014) days, and I was pretty excited when I heard she was coming out with new music in 2022. Sunshine Kitty (2019) was one of my favorites the year it released, and that influenced the expectations I had going into Dirt Femme. Tove Lo has always done pop with a grungy edge. Dirt Femme felt a little lighter, and was sold as dance/pop by the four singles that proceeded its release—How Long, No One Dies from Love, True Romance, and 2 Die 4—but the usual lyric and vocal complexity was present. Even the tracks where the production was scaled down and Tove Lo’s vocals were the focal point (I’m To Blame and True Romance) were songs I had on repeat so I could catch the full meaning of the lyrics. The album was telling a story, and I was along for the ride. Dirt Femme is another great one from Tove Lo!--Midnights by Taylor Swift (Release date: October 21, 2022)--
I’m not a consistent follower of Taylor Swift, but, over the years, I’ve amassed a list of favorite songs anyway. There’s been a plenty of good music released this year, so when I heard about her latest album, Midnights, I was interested in it too. This is probably my favorite Taylor Swift album to date, and I enjoyed pretty much everything about it. I have to give a special nod towards the production—which was consistent across-the-board—as well as the lyrics, for how poetic it was. There are so many examples I could give, but then I’d have to list the whole track list. Like I said above, it was consistent in its quality. All around, Midnights was an excellent album!
Rules:
One of my most anticipated albums of the year is Rina Sawayama’s sophomore album, Hold The Girl. Released on September 16, 2022, its two years since Sawayama’s self-titled debut. Since then, there have been a number of features, notably a duet with Elton John (Chosen Family) and Charli XCX’s Beg For You (Crash; 2022). However, I was more than ready to see what she would bring to the table with another solo studio album.
Hold The Girl is Pop, but it has a wide diversity of sound. Leading with the single, This Hell (one of my top favorites from the album), each track offered a different listening experience. There was a little bit of country, a little bit of R&B and rock with an early 2000s feel (It’s something she’s done before—for example STFU! from her debut album.) The songs here were bridged together by Sawayama’s vocals, lyric themes, and a smart arrangement.
Hold The Girl achieved an easy flow from one track to the next, and I was quickly immersed by the album. It was a lot of fun. And as far as sophomore albums go, this is a good one.
