Jules' Jewels

Still Woozy, “If This Isn’t Nice, I Don’t Know What Is”

Blog Post 1:

Part I:

Hi y’all! My name is Julia Best, and I am currently a senior at DU. I am majoring in English Literature with a minor in Psychology. I am also in the Dual Degree program here at DU, getting my Master’s in Education. I am on the club soccer team and I really enjoying working out. I have been trying to ski more this season, and I love spending time at home. Reading is one of my passions! I am currently reading American Psycho; I highly recommend it! My favorite band of all time is Fleetwood Mac. I also love Van Morrison, Cat Stevens, and James Taylor. Harry Styles is my favorite artist. I also really enjoy listening to piano music by artists like George Winston. I do not have a specific taste in music, I really enjoy anything from Bon Iver to ACDC. My favorite venue must be Red Rocks. I have seen Zeds Dead there multiple times and it was probably some of the better nights of my life. But the best concert I went to was Harry Styles Love on Tour, I sat front row for my 22nd birthday! It was phenomenal. My email address is julia.best@du.edu.

Part II:
1. HTWAM Chapter 1 gave great insight into how album review as a genre should be written. Some key take-away’s I got from the chapter were “First, the critic both uses and is sometimes blind to his prejudices and ideals – the more you know about yourself and how you process what you’re writing about give that self-knowledge, the better.” Which I felt spoke to the writer as a person, rather than a critic. I also found the statement, “Second, don’t write as someone who doesn’t care about what you care about. Don’t be hipper or more sanguine, less cranky or suspicious than you are. Show up on the page as yourself.” Again, heightening the idea that when writing album reviews, the author should stay true to their narrative rather than conform to what they believe their audience might want to hear. Lastly, “and concern that what he’s hearing may not be authentic” meaning that it is okay to challenge the work, as long as you “make sure when you’re wrong, you’re wrong on your own terms.” Basically, I understood the key roles of album review to be true to oneself, give background for your audience, and make sure to identify what speaks to you as the author. Balm does all three of these things when she wrote “Heavy Metal Will Stand”. She places emphasis on her own experiences and feelings towards the metal genre, then she explores what the sounds, temperament, and vocals meant to her while also engaging in a historical background of the band. She states, “Proficiently transporting a time earp is a hard stunt to pull off, and I’m pretty sure the Dictators know damn well what they’re doing and why,” pointing to her praise of the album while also keeping true to herself and her writing techiniques. (Balm, 218). Powers explores the same kind of writing when covering Daft Punk’s “Random Access Memories”. She states, “Musically, RAM harkens back to another 1970s pleasure source – the promiscuous eclecticism of the pop scene. Though the image of disco hardened into its Top 40 version after the success of Saturday Night Fever, in reality the genre made room for everything from Florida soul to Italian synth suites…” which shows the intricate details in which Powers found on the genre, while also staying in the realm of reality and applying these notions to the album (Powers, 25). Derogatis and his piece of Simal and Garfunkel’s Bookends also solidifies the movement an album review writer takes to make their point about the album. He states, “Nothing is resolved, but the musical coda of Garfunkel’s amazingly pure and soaring vocals and Simon’s smoothing guitar and organ indicate that maybe, just maybe, our heroes and their many peers will eventually find what they’re looking for.” Which is so eloquently put as he places himself in with the audience to seemingly make sense of the album (Derogatis, 27).
2. Kelefa Sanneh tells the audience in his album review a lot about how Olivia Rodrigo’s album came to be so notorious for lovesick and heartbroken teens and how her past impacted the tempo of the album. He speaks a lot about her past relationship with her co-star on a High School Musical reboot and how another one of her co-stars had started dating him right after they broke up. This gives the readers the ammunition to understand the validity of her feelings and lyrics. He also speaks to her heritage and how that had a roll in her casting as well, as Disney wanted a more ethnic cast.
Part III:

Still Woozy (Also known as Sven Eric Gamsky of Oakland, California) released his debut album “If This Isn’t Nice, I Don’t Know What Is” this year. His style is unlike any other artist I have listened to; his rhythm maintains an upbeat pace with a concentration on interesting instruments as well. Though many of his songs are fast paced, he also can slow them down while still maintaining a catchy form. His vocals are fascinating as he has a higher voice than many of his male pop counterparts. He also has the ability to manipulate his vocals to fit the beat he creates. The beat varies per each song but still has his theme attached, giving the album a specific feeling. While listening, I thought about how rare it is to find someone who so perfectly masters their own style. Still Woozy attaches himself to every song by utilizing his rare voice and intricate way of changing each instrument. That is how he labels himself on his own work, by making it unlike anything the world has heard before. I think the mood that he wants to encapsulate his work is one of upbeat, feel-good type of music. Which he does a fantastic job of as he introduces so many different sounds and somehow manages to place them together to make a fantastic album of inspiring and storytelling songs.

Still Woozy is Sven Eric Gamsy, a 29-year-old born and raised in Oakland, California. He started playing music in his early teens which inspired him to continue to play music for a long time. He played the bass and guitar and his high school band, Shoot For Roots, won their Battle of the Bands competition. After graduating, he still had a passion for music, so he became a guitar teacher, then followed his calling and majored in Music with a classical guitar emphasis from the University of California. This is his first album that he has released, but he has released many singles such as “Goodie Bag” or “Cooks”. Prior to his singles, Still Woozy was in another band who released other albums, but this album in 2021 is the first of his own creation. His attention to detail and extremely different voice landed him a place at Coachella when he had not even released an album yet. Many have described his music as psychedelic pop where his audience is often lying-in bed while listening to his songs. Others say that he fulfills the indie-pop genre and is making his way to solidify his spot within. What brings him many listeners, though, is his temperament for honesty and emotional depth. Many young listeners are devouring his lyrics as they feel connected to everything Still Woozy sings and places into his songs.

Focusing on a particular song that rounds out Still Woozy as an artist would be his song “Window” on his debut album. This song has such an interesting grab for listeners; he plays on romantic ties with his lyrics while also creating an upbeat tempo that makes you want to dance around your home. He uses so many instruments in this song that someone with no musical background, like me, could not possibly identify. His other song, “Rocky” gives off the same energy. The repetition in this song is so catchy that it makes you want to keep starting the song over to experience it all over again. Both songs get slow, then speed up, then get slow again. I love that he is so different from other artists that I have heard in the past year. I am so tired of pop, give me this indie-bedroom-vibes music forever.
November 29, 2021

Uncategorized

Julia Best on Harry Styles

Harry Styles and Stevie Nicks, One Night Only at The Forum, 2019

Harry Styles is one of the most influential singers within the music industry as he has climbed through the charts year after year. In 2010, the singer was on The X Factor, placed with four other boyband-ish young men to create the hit band One Direction. Their rise to fame was quick and influential as their music became extremely popular. And what’s not to love about five young men in skinny jeans? Though, in 2015, Styles left the band to create a name in music for himself. Although his previous band had much success, the group decided to pursue other career options. Quickly, Styles’ career skyrocketed after releasing his debut hit single “Sign of the Times” in 2017. He quickly rose to fame after releasing another single, “Sweet Creature”, from his debut album Harry Styles in 2017. He has over 34 million listeners each month on Spotify and sold out his 2021 Love on Tour. Styles continues to create music and reach top hits on the billboards.

Not only is Harry Styles great to look at, he prides himself in inclusion and self-love while also being an activist for the Black Lives Matter movement and LGBTQ+ communities. At the beginning of his career, Styles focused mainly on sentimental singles, aiming towards love, confidence, and self worth. As he progressed as an artist, he was more vulnerable and willing to speak to his sexuality, heartbreaks, and fear of losing himself to the music industry. Many fans connect with him because they believe he is true to himself and that his lyrics are relatable to real world struggles. Some of his music is upbeat, catchy, and feel-good whereas other songs omit real feelings of doubt, loss, and sadness. He is arguably one of the most popular artists in the world and cherishes every second he gets to perform for his loving fans.

“Sign of the Times”

Following the breakup of his band, Harry Styles released his debut single, Sign of the times. This release highlighted Styles’ vocal talent that went under shadowed in his previous stint boy band One Direction. The pressure was insurmountable with this realize as it became the defining moment of the singer’s capacity to be successful as a solo artist, a feat that many ex-band members struggle to achieve. In an interview, Styles speaks to the meaning of the song. He states, “The song is written from a point of view as if a mother was giving birth to a child and there’s a complication,” squashing the rumors of the song being about his previous group, One Direction (Geffen). The song belongs to the genre of pop rock, showcasing both vocals and guitar. The use of guitar in the opening seconds of the song immediately captures listeners, followed by the singers’ unique vocal sound. The interviewers also highlights that death in childbirth is a continuous theme in rock music, making this song fall into the genre of classic rock. He is also able to successfully write about feelings of sadness, which speaks to his level of comfort defining his own emotions.

https://www.mtv.com/news/3003895/harry-styles-rolling-stone-sign-times-about/

“Sweet Creature”

“Sweet Creature” perfectly encapsulates the soft and calming nature of Styles’ voice. His vocals are unmatched as the light guitar plays in the background. The song mostly highlights Styles’ talents as a vocalist. Sheer talent and drive, the song was released before he released his debut album. With calming and simple lyrics, Styles manages to capture feelings of love and lust. He emphasizes passion though his lyrical genius while singing “We’re still young / Dunno where we’re going / But know where we belong.” By being able to articulate feelings that many young individuals have, he gains more authenticity from his audience. He speaks in an interview saying, “Maybe there’s one thing in there that only they’ll notice about them…It’s so much easier to say something in a song than it is to say it to someone and I think it’s really amazing to be able to communicate through that and be able to wrap up everything that you want to say in three and a half minutes and say it in a song.” Which I think perfectly displays Styles’ truth and heart when speaking about his music. Truly, an icon.

“Woman”

“Woman” signifies a slight change in genre as Styles begins to write about his sexuality. Many popular artists take a long time to be comfortable enough to share their own sexual feelings, but Styles speaks to his in his debut album. Which in turn, furthers his career and credibility as a sexual being, making his fans and listeners realize that he is human, not just a celebrity. It also emphasizes real feelings of jealousy. He sings, “I hope you can see / The shape that I’m in / While he’s touching your skin,” with soft guitar in the background which is then taken over by deep instrumental transferring the audience to another place with Styles. It is as if the drums are the sheer feeling and deepness that jealousy takes through the body. This feeling is further captured with the use of guitar and the slowness that the song emits. This song reveals the artists raw talents on the guitar.

“Falling”

This song not only expresses true vulnerability but Styles’ ability to share his challenges with the world. Authenticity is so key to being a successful artist in the 21^st century. It shines on the piano as well as just Styles’ powerhouse vocals. In an interview with Apple Music’s Sane Lowe, Styles responds to Lowe’s question of the meaning of the song, to that, Styles replied, “The chorus says like “What am I now? Am I someone I don’t want around?” – it was a big moment where I was kind of asking myself – “What am I doing?” I kind of started to feel threads of where I could see myself becoming someone that I didn’t want to be.” (Woods). His ability to write his songs with such eloquence and heart are what separate him from other artists in his genre.

Falling

“Golden”

An up-beat hit single, “Golden” rose to the top of the charts when released. Styles’ lyrics play on his fun-loving side while also talking about his love life. The song is catchy and an extreme summer vibe. Styles sings, “Take me back to the light / I know you were way too bright for me / I’m hopeless / Broken / So you take me back to the light” which correlates to his feelings of doubt within himself, but emphasizing the person who is his target audience showed him what feeling “Golden” was like. He, again, is channeling his inner feelings and expressing them through his music. Although an upbeat song, he is still able to highlight his own emotions and then capitalize on how this person makes him feel, and how he looks up to their beaming presence. When it came out, I remember rolling down all the windows to my car and listening at full volume while driving past the ocean. Main character moment.

“Adore You”

Once again, Harry Styles does it; a catchy tune with an immaculate vibe. “Walk in your rainbow paradise / Strawberry lipstick state of mind” what does that even mean? Honestly, I don’t even care — I feel these lyrics in my bones. I felt like dancing around my room in my towel and singing into my hairbrush. Electric.

“Watermelon Sugar”

“I want more berries, and that summer feeling” perfectly describes the summer anthem that is “Watermelon Sugar”. This hit single rose to the top charts in 2019 when the album was released, and continues to be played continuously on the radio. Styles capitalizes on his sexuality as well during this hit when in concert he stated, “It’s also about the female orgasm. But that’s totally different. It’s not really relevant.” (Lash). OK Harry, of course it is relevant. Here, one can see how important sexuality is to Styles. He is no longer lightly referencing his sexual tendencies, he is confident enough to make a literal song about the female orgasm. This is also important to Styles’ career because he highlights his sexual encounters through his music, which is important for a rising artist to gain the trust of his fans.

https://ew.com/music/harry-styles-watermelon-sugar-meaning/

“Treat People With Kindness”

TPWK is Harry Styles’ brand. He believes in treating every human with kindness, respect, and love. He highlights these feelings with lyrics such as, “Maybe we can / find a place / to feel love / and we can treat people with kindness” which perfectly demonstrates his full heart of passion and love.

Although Harry Styles solo career just begun in 2017, his fans are already wanting more music from him. His album Fine Line was rated by Rolling Stones in 2019 as one of the top 50 albums of the year. With impressive vocals, a heart of gold, and curly boy-band hair, Styles has easily captured the hearts of so many. Today, Styles is juggling the role of solo artist while also launching his acting career. Many find it unfortunate that he is dating again, too. What a shame. I thought a woman from Denver like myself could really steal his heart away.

Kacey Musgraves Golden Hour

Kacey Musgraves Golden Hour Desert Island

A desert island doesn’t sound like the worst thing that could happen to me, as long as I had good music to keep me company. Being stranded and away from humanity might be a nice break for me as I cherish my alone time. Due to this, I would want an album that would bring me back to self care and rehabilitating vibes. Something that would remind me of good times and people that I love. Kacey Musgraves’ Golden Hour encapsulates everything I want to be as a woman. Independent, strong, and resilient. More truthfully, it would help to remind me of what I want out of this life, and how I can do anything I want. The album is perfect for sunrises, mid-afternoon chill sessions, early evenings, and sunsets. Which is why I would want it with me on my small island where there is nothing but Kacey and I.

On this love ballad album, Musgraves’ muse for her writing was her husband, now ex, who she wrote the album about. It was written during the honeymoon phase of their marriage, which ended in 2020. The couple split and now Musgraves finds it hard to sing the album and disassociate from the lyrics which once had deep meaning to her and her husband. But, through all of this, Kacey Musgraves is trying to find new meaning for her album. And I think that this speaks true for how many consumers feel about music. One day, it had a certain meaning to it, but life happens, and that meaning can also change. Though my connection with the album has little to do with romantic love, it has a different meaning where I became the woman I want to be. And I think that is beautiful.

Kacey Musgraves found success early, having released music as early as twelve years old. Throughout her adolescence, she continued to write and release music under a variety of labels. She is a country star, having won four grammys in 2019. Among those, she won Album of the Year. Though she has not put out any new music, the album still remains in history. Musgraves grew up in Golden, Texas where her musical talents started and shined at a young age. She began writing music and made appearances on Nashville Star but unfortunately only placed seventh. After this, the group Lady Antebellum asked her to tour with them. She then released her hit single “Merry Go ‘Round” and quickly rose to fame as the single reached the Billboard Country Airplay at number 10 in 2013. Quickly after, her music was placed number two on Billboard’s Top 200. Since then, she has released other albums that helped her climb to fame such as A Merry Kacey Christmas and Pageant Material. The two albums had much success. Apparently, Kacey Musgraves is working on new music for this year, too.

In times of struggle, I have found that music is my solstice. There have been so many times in my life where music was the driving factor for me to even get out of bed. Though I am not musically inclined, music has been a huge part of my life. More recently, the struggle of mental health has really taken a toll on me as well as eating disorders and substance abuse. The only way to motivate me to finish schoolwork, eat food, or even wake up in the morning was to listen to music. When I moved to California to better my health and mental well-being, I would sit at my kitchen table and look out the window and play Kacey Musgraves Golden Hour album. I usually hate country music, but something about Musgraves voice took me to a place that helped me enjoy the genre. It transcended me into a different place – one where I was successful, happy, and satisfied. Because of that feeling, I started to chase my dreams and applied to schools that I never thought would have accepted me, have a healthy relationship with food, family, and friends, while also getting out of bed and getting small but meaningful tasks done. This album solidified who I wanted to be and what I wanted to do.

Kacey Musgraves was not on my radar until my sister introduced me to her music. My sister and I had not always gotten along, but with my mental health slipping and my fight with anorexia and depression grew, she was one of the only people I felt I could talk to about anything and would understand what I was going through. She was instrumental in helping me become the person I am today, and I am forever thankful for her tiring efforts to bring light into my life. She was the one that taught me that having a “Lonely Weekend” or “Slow Burn” in recovery was okay, and nothing to be ashamed of. Because of her, I am here today, and she is my “Rainbow”.

Although Golden Hour was released in 2018, I did not discover the album until the beginning of March 2020. The coronavirus had just hit and I had made the decision to focus on my mental health and move to California to get away from the mess I had created in Colorado. My extended family lives in California so I was able to be connected with them, but I was away from my immediate family, which made things hard for me. There were days that I just wanted to fly back home and never look back, but I knew that if I were to do that, my hard work would not have paid off. Instead, I reached out to my sister and had her send me things that reminded her of me. She sent this album, and I listened religiously. I was working in the morning while also managing my online classes in the afternoon. So when I did finally have time to sit down and journal, I would put on this album. It grounded me and gave me a reminder that there were better things out there for me. Musgraves’ voice was as smooth as butter while enchanting me with her ballads and powerhouse vocals. She created a space for me to listen and admire an artist for their grit and talent, something that gave me chills for the first time.

The first song that grabbed my heart was “Butterflies”. Part of the reason I moved away from home was because of my endless amount of failed romantic relationships. Most fell apart due to me and my supply of problems. For a long time, I thought that maybe there was no one out there for me. No one could possibly give me the butterflies anymore. But, I soon realized that romantic relationships were not the only things that could provide that warm and full feeling in my stomach. When I listened to the song, it brought me back to the first time I had stepped onto the sand looking out on the ocean. The waves perfectly crashed over one another, and I thought how beautiful that moment was. I was thankful to have that moment because I was reminded that I cannot control everything, there was something greater than myself out there. And that feeling gave me butterflies. Since then, I have been chasing butterflies. In everything I do, I remind myself that that feeling is possible, and I have been resilient to find that feeling. Reading, writing, and quality time with special people are the things that remind me of this song. And I cherish them. Because without them, I would have lost my butterflies.

Another really important song to me is “Wonder Woman” because it expresses how I have felt throughout the duration of my short 22 years on earth. For so long, I felt like I was gravitating towards unrewarding relationships. Whether that be to family, friends, romantic relationships, academia, or even my athletic life. The song is speaking to how troubling it is for someone, like me, with relationships that depend heavily on that person. The lyrics “Bet all that gold gets heavy weighin’ on her / I wonder if it’s scary, always tryin’ not to get hurt / I know how it feels, it ain’t easy” which heavily resonated with my soul. She also states “If I let you down / I don’t mean to” that I feel defines who I am as a person. I try to continue to block myself from pain whilst carrying the weight of others on my shoulder. If it were a perfect world, I would be able to help others and help myself. But I am no superhero, and I cannot hold other things before myself and that is something that I take away from this song.

I am now nearly two years clean and sober from substances and my eating disorders. Even on my worst days when I want to give up, I come back to this album. If not for my sister and for this album, I would not be the person I am today. I am so grateful to be able to share my experiences with others and pursue a life with meaning and dignity. Just because those things are in my past, does not mean I will let them impact my future. And to that, I think, “Oh, What A World”.

The Denver Brass – The Magic of Christmas

The holiday season is one of the most wonderful times of the year, especially in Colorado with the angelic snow. With family coming together, the celebrations are endless as well as somewhat crazy. With the absence of snow, the holiday season has felt further away from my spirit. The acceleration of Global Warming has exacerbated the separation I and many others have felt from the Christmas spirit in Colorado. Culturally, Christmas is connoted with a variety of wintery activities, including ice skating, skiing, and long walks along snowy avenues to see the lights. Thankfully, there are a considerable amount of activities and cultural events which can help distinguish and set the Christmas season apart even alongside the absence of snow. One of the most affecting and ubiquitous signs of the Christmas season is the holiday music which pours endlessly from seemingly every mall-speaker and radio station. Christmas music is unique for its transformatively festive nature, and there exudes a special aura from instrumental classics and modern pop ballads alike when performed by a live orchestra. In this reflective review I will examine the influence which The Magic of Christmas had on my own Holiday season this year.

I had never seen the Denver Brass in person before. I had no idea that they were even a group that performed outside of the symphony. My parents had always taken us to the theater when we were younger, so being able to go to a concert hall at the Newman Center was both a venture into new territory, and a tender rekindling of fond childhood memories. Having since established direct ties to the DU community, my experience was made that much more special and profound. I had been to one other concert at the Newman Center but it did not mean nearly as much as this experience did largely due to the fact I got to share this experience with my mom. My bond with my mother has always been tied to the activities and memories we share together. Hence, her accompanying me to witness this magnificent show in one of my favorite venues meant that we would cherish this memory for years to come.

The Denver Brass was specializing in holiday classics, but adding their own twist on things to reflect both experimental and classical musical methods. They opened with a holiday medley that I was unfamiliar with, but it sounded as though my childhood flashed before my eyes in the matter of three short minutes. I was overwhelmed with the power of the percussion; I felt it all the way to my bones. The deep beat matched with my heartbeat and I felt transformed to another place full of holiday cheer and wonderful memories of Christmases that had come before. The symphonic marriage of the many voices resonated in addition to this, creating an aural, celestial atmosphere inside of the concert hall. It made me feel that I was in my own world, and I grabbed my mom’s hand and held it the rest of the concert.

In between songs, a woman came to narrate the true nature and history of Christmas. She highlighted what it meant to her, and what it’s connotation was around the world through centuries. My mom turned to me for a brief moment and said, “I love that we are getting a history of Christmas. It feels really important.” and I found myself contemplating what Christmas really meant to me. What I loved the most about this concert experience compared to others that I have had, was that it gave me a safe place to reflect on the history of my own Christmas, and what the holidays mean to me. Not only was the music life-altering, but it created a newfound passion for instrumental music for me. I noticed as the songs continued, I could sense that the trumpet was essentially acting as the vocalist. Without words, the music portrayed a lyrical genius that I had not seen before.