By: Meadow Mellon As American as apple pie is, it has a surprisingly un-American history. Apple pie’s origins began in Europe, so how did it become one of America's classics? The fact is that apples weren’t even native to North America until Columbus brought them from Europe along with cinnamon and nutmeg. “Apple pie was brought along by the culinary influences of France,” says Overdeep from Southern Living. “There were also influences from the Ottoman Empire and the Netherlands,” says Rossi Anastopoulo from 52. In colonial times, apples were actually referred to as winter bananas or melt-in-the-mouth.
The early settlers of Jamestown brought along European apple seeds and cuttings with them. The only native apple at the time was the crab apple, which was said to be a poor excuse for malus domestica or the domestic apple tree. The first apples were intended to make cider and not made to eat because they were so tart. According to the Smithsonian Magazine, “They [the settlers] usually only used apples to make cider. It was more preferable to water and easier to produce than beer.” Later, due to cross pollination, there were over 14,000 varieties of apples, but only some of those varieties were fit to be made into apple pie. The phrase “as American as apple pie” came much later. “[Apple pie] became a staple of America...during World War II when soldiers were asked why they were going to war, they would say ‘apple pie and Mom,’” says Travel Mamas. Apple pie represents America, but not because it originated here. The mixtures of cultures that brought apple pie to America is why it is representative. Southern Living says, “Just like apples, we are transplants.” This is the history of a staple for American dessert. It is amazing that this wonderful food came from a mixture of so many different cultures.
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By: Enoch Whitaker Welcome to the second edition of New Music Friday, where I will be reviewing the most notable releases from last Friday. This includes Albums, EPs, and Singles from a variety of musical genres. After listening to each project a couple times, I will give my personal thoughts and opinions on it, then a score out of 10. This week we will be reviewing “Tyron,” the latest album from rising British rapper Slowthai, and “3,2,1,” a single by rising American popstar 24kGoldn.
To start off, I will be reviewing “Tyron,” the latest collection of songs from one of Britain's most polarizing musicians, Slowthai. This is his second commercial release after his debut album “Nothing Great About Britain” that came out in 2019. The British rapper had an interesting start to last year with his controversial performance at the NME awards. His performance was filled with many political statements and derogatory gestures, and left me wondering where his career could possibly go facing all of the backlash. Despite all of the controversy, Slowthai delivered an album full of personality and passion. This record has a total of 14 tracks and interestingly enough has two “sides.” The two “sides” provide a switch in musical direction halfway through the album. The first “side” of the album provides listeners with the Slowthai that fans have learned to love with song titles stylized in all capital letters. It’s full of tough, raw, and grimey song production with strong rhymes and flows from the British rapper. The most standout track on the first “side” is “MAZZA” featuring A$AP Rocky. This track is incredibly produced with many different layers to the instrumental. The main synth chords are complemented by the heavy hitting bass and rapid rim dum hits. On the second “side,” however, Slowthai opens up about his struggles growing up and with depression with songs stylized in all lower case letters. For me, this is where Slowthai shines the brightest. With smooth and beautiful instrumentals and samples, Slowthai gives you a short glimpse into his mind. The track “push” is easily one of the best songs that has come out so far this year. Featuring Deb Never, the song starts out with her melodically singing a chorus with a long acoustic guitar. After around 30 seconds Slowthai comes in and the song starts to build around him. It eventually continues to build up to a climax and then slowly drops around the vocals from Deb Never. I frequently find myself coming back to this album time and time again. It shows Slowthai at his highest highs and at his most vulnerable moments. I loved the idea of having the two “sides” to the album and it made the record so much more memorable. This album is a serious contender for my personal favorite album that has come out in the last year. I can say with confidence that this record feels like a strong nine out of ten. The next track I will be reviewing is “3,2,1” by rising popstar, 24kGoldn. In early 2020, the American singer struck gold by releasing his multi-platinum single “Valentino.” The track went viral, and 24kGoldn seems that he could not take a wrong step by following that single up with his first mixtape “DROPPED OUTTA COLLEGE.” Now a year after initially hitting the mainstream, he has announced his debut album, “El Dorado'' with a single “3,2,1” being released last Friday, February 22. After listening to this song many, many times through, all I can say is that I have mixed feelings about this song. While this song has great production and lyrics, this is nothing really new for 24kGoldn. I wasn’t impressed or surprised with the song itself because this is the same type of song that 24kGoldn has been releasing over the course of the last year. I feel like the American singer took the “if it isn’t broke don’t fix it” approach with this track because it sounds good, but fails to stand out. This song also feels very repetitive as if all of the lyrics are the chorus because they all get repeated many times over. There are some things I do love about this track though, such as the use of the electric guitar on a mainly pop song. Not many artists are able to incorporate that into their pop style music and this is a perfect example on how to do it. Overall, this is a good preview of an album that I am excitedly anticipating and I am feeling a strong six out of ten on this single. This week we had a lot of fun and enjoyable music released. From Slowthai’s hard and gritty production to the sweet melodies of 24kGoldn, there was plenty of great music released last Friday. I would like to thank you for reading the latest edition of New Music Friday and I hope to see you next week. By: Madisen Child Welcome back to the third installment “This Day In History,” where we feature a prominent event, birth, and death from one day spanning all of human history. This week is focused on February 26, just two days before the end of the month.
Birth: In 1802, one of the greatest and most well-known French writers, Victor Hugo, was born in Besançon, France. Hugo is responsible for writing Les Miserables and The Hunchback of Notre Dame. Both works have since inspired musicals of the same names and a Disney rendition of The Hunchback Of Notre Dame in 1996. Hugo was born to Sophie Trébuchet, a painter, and Joseph Leopold Sigisbert Hugo, a general in the Napoleonic wars. He had two older brothers named Abel and Eugène. Abel was four years older and Eugène was two years older. Hugo showed an interest in writing poetry at a young age, even winning a poetry contest held by the Académie Française when he was 15 years old! Even now, Hugo is regarded as the greatest poet in French Romanticism, the style he wrote in. Death: “Paul Revere’s Ride ” by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow is a well known poem written in 1860. During the American War of Independence, Paul Revere rode across the country to alert Americans of the oncoming British attack. What most people don’t know is that Revere wasn’t the only one who rode that night. One of these others was Sybil Ludington, a woman from New York. She was only 16 years old on the night of the attack. Although longer than Revere’s famous, “The British are coming,” Ludington has a quote of her own that she yelled that night. “The British are burning Danbury! Muster at Ludington's Mill!” She actually rode farther and warned more people than Revere! In 1836, 61 years after the fact, Ludington died in Catskill, New York at age 77. Event: Ever since President Theodore Roosevelt signed it into law in the early 1900s, US Presidents have held the right to reserve spots of land as national parks. One such area of land is Grand Teton National Park, located in Idaho. Grand Teton was established as a National Park in 1929 by President Calvin Coolidge. Grand Teton boasts many recreational activities, such as rafting down the Snake River, hiking, fishing, and boating. The park took decades to establish. The original order was one of Coolidge’s last acts as president in order to protect the Teton Mountain Range. As time went on, more presidents added to the park until it became the scenic, beautiful place it is today. By: Jordann Witt How does strict parenting affect children? First of all, it deprives children of opportunities and it limits self discipline and responsibility. There are lifetime effects due to strict parenting, like lack of self control or becoming mature at a very young age, which means losing childhood and sometimes having behavioral problems. Strict parenting has different variations. At Bear River High, a few students were polled to ask if they had strict parents. Surprisingly, most said they did and they had several things in common with one another, like major discipline, phones taken away for no reason, yelling for no reason, and unreasonable expectations.
One student who was polled wished to stay anonymous. She explained that she has unreasonable punishments like taking away all freedom, no more having and going out with friends, no more working, and no more phone. On one occasion she was late walking into the house. Her parents then installed a ring doorbell to see why she was late and what time she entered the house. Her grandpa even took extreme measures to install a sensory system to indicate when a window or door has been opened. One time she opened the window to get fresh air and her grandpa ran in yelling asking why the window was open. This strict environment has a huge impact on her life. She feels like she's in a prison and can't do anything without fear of having everything taken away. Emma Stanworth said her parents weren't too terribly strict unless she didn't get her stuff done. If she didn't, her parents would take away everything. Which may seem a little too much, but everyone has their own opinion. It can cause issues later in life like the feeling of constantly needing to get everything done, or stuff is going to be taken away. According to Morgen E. Peck, a psychologist with Scientific American, a “new research suggests that parents who stoke their children with harsh scolding may also be saddling them with anxieties that last a lifetime.” Strict parents come in all varieties because we all have different views of what's strict and what's not. Some think that if parents take away phones, then they are strict, but some kids have it much harder like cameras and sensory systems and even tracking devices on our phones and on our cars. Having strict parents can affect us later in life. The feeling of fear causes you to feel like you're forgetting something, so you feel as though you're going to get yelled at. Sometimes it causes clinginess or emotional deprivation with people. Some kids never get the emotional love they need as a kid, so they seek it as an adult. Strict parenting can have long term effects on people. Even though the effects of strict parenting aren't always visible, it does have long lasting, negative effects. By: Emma Hofer Whether you think video games have an effect or not, they do. Many studies have proven they do have some effects, good and bad. Although most people primarily think of the negative effects. But there are positive effects that can occur and help people with certain disorders in playing video games that are overlooked.
First, what actually are the effects of video games on young minds and bodies? According to the American Psychological Association, video games, more specifically violent video games, will increase aggression in both the short and the long term. However, there isn't enough evidence to link aggression from video games to crimes or delinquency. Aggression isn’t the only negative effect, though. Other effects include low self-esteem, a preference for solitude, loneliness, negative attitudes/emotions, and poor work/school performance. Video games can also affect your physical health. According to a study done at Georgetown University by Sandra L. Calvert, students who had played a violent game experienced a higher heart rate, increased dizziness, nausea, and demonstrated more aggressive thoughts compared to someone who played a regular video game. In another study done by Dr. Moberg, other physical effects of video games could include wrist, neck and elbow pain, skin blisters, calluses, and, in some cases, sleep disorders. Some effects from long-term addiction to video games can also include obesity, weakness or numbness in your hands, or even blood clots. While the above effects sound pretty bad, there are some positive effects to playing video games. According to the American Psychological Association, some positive effects from video games are that they can help improve depth perception, increase helpful behaviors, and even increase physical fitness. Mentally, some positives are that it can help those who suffer from mental disorders such as anxiety, depression, antisocial personality disorder, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder, and Alzheimer's disease. Even violent video games are now showing that they might have some positive benefits that haven’t been considered in earlier research. Video games have effects, whether positive or negative, they have an effect. Not all effects are mental, but that’s mostly what people think of when it comes to the effects. Some of these effects are very damaging and some are very helpful to the mind and body. By: Macie Gardner When trying to choose where to go to lunch, there are many different factors that play into your decision. Three students at Bear River (from different grades) provided their opinions on the best places to get food during lunch time.
Metztli Aguilar, a sophomore, said her favorite place to go during lunch is Harris Market. She said, “It's so close and nobody thinks to go there. Also, the workers are very friendly and give you good deals.” Aguilar thinks that gas stations, including Maverick, are one of the best options people have because you are not depending on anyone else to get your food in time. For example, Aguilar said, “I hate going to Golden Spike during lunch because it is so crowded and they take forever.” Speed and good deals are a must. When asked where the best place is for that, Aguilar said, “Pizza Plus has a very good student special and they are very fast workers.” Reagan Tureson, a junior, on the other hand, said she doesn’t like going to gas stations for lunch. She thinks it is better to go to actual restaurants so you can order exactly what you want, don’t have to worry about being fast, and you don’t have to depend on yourself. Tureson says she likes to go to Subway the best: “They are pretty close to the school, and don’t take very long to get your food to you.” Tureson says that if you try to go anywhere that is more than a couple minutes away, you won’t have enough time to eat and get back to class in time. She says, “The line to get out of the parking lot takes a long time, plus the drive time, then you have to eat. You barely have enough time to do it all.” Last, we have Porter Hammons, a senior. He said that his all time favorite place to go for lunch is home. His second favorite is McDonalds. Other than fast food restaurants, Hammons thinks that grocery stores are better than gas stations. He said, “Kent's has a very good deli option, and they have so much more than a gas station does. The only bad thing is that it's such a good option, everyone goes there so you have to be fast.” As with Aguilar and Tureson, Hammons pointed out that time is a key factor. You have to hurry after third hour, get out of the parking lot, and stay close to the school if you want to make it in time. By: Madisen Child Welcome back to “This Day In History,” where we feature a prominent event, birth, and death from one day spanning all of human history. This week is focused on February 19.
Birth: In 1473, Nicolaus Copernicus Sr. and Barbara Watzenrode welcomed the youngest of four children. Nicolaus Copernicus Jr. would grow up to become one of the most famous mathematicians in history. Copernicus is featured briefly in Pixar’s “Soul” as one of 22’s mentors. He is seen angrily shouting, “The world doesn’t revolve around you, 22!” This is a clever reference to his work for science and astronomy. Copernicus, as you may have learned in your science class, was the first to propose the heliocentric model of the universe. He believed the controversial idea that the sun stood in the middle of the universe while Earth revolved around it. Before him, humans believed in the geocentric model, meaning the sun revolved around Earth. As we know now, he was right. His outburst is a reference to our old belief of the universe literally revolving around us. Event: If you have a bit of theatrical knowledge under your belt, you probably know about Alexander Hamilton and his nemesis, Aaron Burr. The musical “Hamilton: an American Musical” by Lin Manuel Miranda tells the story of Hamilton and Burr’s friendship, and how it devolved into hatred. Burr ended up fatally shooting Hamilton in the stomach in 1804. What musical fans don’t know is that, 214 years ago in 1807, Aaron Burr was arrested for treason in Alabama. According to History.com, Burr was charged for “...plotting to annex Spanish territory in Louisiana and Mexico to be used toward the establishment of an independent republic.” In 1806, Burr led armed colonists toward New Orleans, prompting his investigation and eventual arrest. He was acquitted on September 1, 1807 because he never engaged in an “overt act.” An overt act means that he didn’t do anything to give concrete proof of criminal intention. This was a key part of treason according to the Constitution, which Burr helped to defend during the American War of Independence. Death: “To Kill a Mockingbird” is a well known book among high school and middle school students. The story of Scout Finch and her family is a required reading book in many school districts. As such, it holds a place in many hearts and minds throughout America. The book won a Pulitzer prize in 1961 and has since become a classic. The author of this book, Harper Lee, died at 89 years old on February 19, 2016. She died in her sleep, according to her nephew Hank Connor. She’d had a stroke in 2007 and had since struggled with various health problems. Hearing and memory loss along with limited sight are only a few among these problems. Today, she rests at Hillcrest, Penville and Baptist Cemetery in her hometown of Monroeville, Alabama. By: Meadow Mellon Hot dogs are one of the staples of American cuisine. They are most commonly found in sports’ stands and cookouts for the neighborhood. But how did this food become so popular in America? The origins of the American hot dog actually start in 1487 Germany. A Bratwurst was put onto a milk roll and sauerkraut was added on top. Hot Dog History said before that, in ancient Rome, the head chef at the palace discovered that a pig served to the emperor had not been properly cleaned. When he cut into the pig stomach its empty intestines fell out and they were bloated from the starvation diet that they were subjected to. These intestines were later used to make casings for hot dogs.
Hot Dog History said it is thought that the North American version of the hot dog is based on European sausage brought by butchers to the Americas. Now as to who sold the first hot dog, that is a mystery. It is theorized that a German immigrant in 1860 walked around with a push cart in New York. According to the National Hot Dog and Sausage Council, “In 1871, Charles Feltman, a German baker, opened the first ever Coney Island hot dog stand and sold 3,684 dachshund sausages in a milk roll in his first year of business.” Now how did “hot dog” come to be the name for this tasty food? According to Hot Dog History, it is said that the name was coined in 1901 in the streets of New York, where the vendors had hot water tanks filled with the sausages. Vendors would call out, “Red hot! Come and get your dachshund sausages while they're red hot!” An artist nearby drew a dachshund in a roll and, not knowing how to spell dachshund, he just put the words ‘hot dog.’ The name took off, but the original cartoon was never found even though the artist that made it was very famous. As for the classic bun, Hot Dog History said this wonder was created during the 1904 Louisiana Purchase. The story was that white gloves were handed out to hold the piping hot sausage. When the gloves were never returned the stock began to run low, so they had to come up with an alternative. The brother-in-law of the one handing out the gloves was a baker. He came up with the solution to his brother-in-law’s problem. He took the original idea of the soft roll and made them longer to fit the hot dog. This began the idea of the hot dog bun. Hot dogs, an American classic, began with German butchers that brought processed sausages to America to sell. Hot dogs have become a common and favorite dish in American households. By: Madisen Child Introduction: Welcome to the first edition of “This Day In History,” courtesy of The Red Pages! So much can happen in a year, let alone one day. That is what this column aims to highlight. Every week, this column will feature a prominent event, birth, and death from one day spanning all of human history. This week, our date is February 12. Although overshadowed by Valentine’s day, the 12th has some unique and interesting events of its own.
Birth: February 12, 1809, the future 16th president of the United States was born. Abraham Lincoln was born in Hodgenville, Kentucky exactly 212 years ago today. His parents, Thomas and Nancy Hanks Lincoln, lived on Sinking Spring Farm. The farm has since become an elegant Grecian-style monument with 56 steps to represent each year of the President’s life. Lincoln was raised in poverty, but would grow up to become one of the most well-known US Presidents to date. Though he was unpopular and even tyrannical in some minds, Lincoln has gone down in history as the man who led us through the civil war and freed slaves in the States forever. Event: 61 years later, in 1870, Utah became the second state to allow women to vote. Utah, just a territory at the time, granted women the right to vote in legal elections. Two days later, Seraph Young became the first Utah woman to vote. This was a major victory for suffragettes of the time, and we enjoy the fruits of their labor even today in 2021. Unfortunately, they would not keep these rights for long. In 1887, the Edmunds-Tucker Act revoked the voting rights of all Utah women. This act was originally passed in an effort to restrict polygamy among the Latter Day Saints. For this reason, the act was nicknamed the “Anti-Polygamy Act of 1887.” Once Wilford Woodruff officially ended polygamy, women regained their voting rights and have kept them ever since. Death: A lot of people know the story of Grand Duchess Anastasia Romanov. Her parents, Tsar Nicholas II and Tsarina Alexandra Feodorovna, were the last rulers of Russia before it was taken over by the Communists. Anastasia had three older sisters named Maria, Olga and Tatiana, and one younger brother named Alexei. Rumors got out that Anastasia and Alexei survived the attack and escaped. Their bodies weren’t found with the rest of the Romanovs. Since then, countless women have come forward claiming to be the lost duchess Anastasia. The most famous of these imposters, Anna Anderson, died of pneumonia on February 12, 1984. Although she failed to prove that she really was Anastasia, she’s become the most well known Romanov imposter in history. Looking back, it’s amazing how differently a day can go in different years. Each event here took place during entirely different eras. This amazing, unique history is something that I look forward to highlighting every week. By: Enoch Whitaker Welcome to the first edition of New Music Friday, where I will be reviewing the most notable releases from last Friday. This includes Albums, EPs, and Singles from a variety of different musical genres. After listening to each project a couple of times, I will give my personal thoughts and opinions on it, then a score out of 10. This week, we will be reviewing “The Voice,'' an Album by Lil Durk, “Forever is the Sweetest Con,''an EP by Taylor Swift, and finally “You,” a Single by Vance Joy, Benny Blanco, and Marshmello.
To start off, I will be reviewing Lil Durk’s newest album, “The Voice.” This is the deluxe version of the Chicago based rapper’s sixth studio album which adds 12 more tracks, making it his biggest album with a total of 28. Lil Durk has been making music for just around 11 years, with his first project coming out in 2010. He did not find instant success though, finally hitting the mainstream in 2015 with his debut studio album, “Remember My Name.” To give some backstory on this album, Durk’s life-long friend and fellow rapper, King Von, was tragically murdered last November. Durk dedicated this album to him and he is featured prominently on the cover art and the 18th track of the album. After listening through this album and his previous work around four to five times through, I can confidently say that this is Durk’s best work. This record has some great features from some of the hottest names in hip hop at the moment with artists like Lil Baby, Young Thug, and rising star, Pooh Shiesty. Most of the album is Durk rapping about his experiences growing up in Chicago, his time in jail with his contemporaries, and his life before and after fame. One of the better songs on this record, “Finesse Up the Gangway,” tells the story of Durk rising to the top of the rap game all while a brazen multi-layered piano instrumental perfectly compliments his voice. About two-thirds of the way through the song, Lil Baby comes in to tell his story, which is similar to Durks. Later down the record you come to the track, “Kanye Krazy.” Kanye West, just like Lil Durk, is a rapper who hails from Chicago. On this song, Lil Durk pays tribute to his “idol” and raps about how he himself is going “Kanye Krazy.” Another standout track on this release is named after the album itself and is simply called “The Voice.” The best thing about the track is no doubt the instrumental. While the instrumental is yet another piano beat, it has a guitar that is pitch-matched to the piano and the background vocals. Listening to the track like this, it is easy to lose yourself in the world the track creates around you. Throughout most of the album, it features many lamentful piano layed instrumentals but one track in particular stands out from the rest. “Still Trappin’,” featuring Durk’s late contemporary, King Von, has an energy that is not to be found anywhere else on the album. The instrumental on this track is tough, dark, and grimy in comparison to other songs like “Switched Up” and “Refugee” which makes it that much better. I can definitely say that I thoroughly enjoyed every listen I had through this album, but there is one big problem that I have with this album. Many of the songs seem so incredibly similar to one another. Of the 28 total tracks on this record, 23 of them feature a mainly piano instrumental. I feel this is because on these instrumentals that is where Durk really shines but often many of the tracks just seem just like the last with no real changes. I loved tracks like “Still Trappin’” and “Stay Down” where he took a risk to get off those piano instrumentals and it worked amazingly. Again, I can understand why Durk has so many of the piano instruments, but I would love to see him take more risks with his instrumentals in the future. Overall, this is a fantastic record with only one or two songs I’d skip if they were played. I am honestly feeling like a strong eight out of ten for this record. Next, we have Taylor Swift with her latest release in her “Chapter” series: “Forever Is The Sweetest Con.” Alongside her two album releases in 2020, Folklore and Evermore, she has released small, six track “Chapters” comprised of music released on those two albums. She has released a total of six chapters which include “The Escapism Chapter,” “The Sleepless Nights Chapter,”“The Salthouse Box Chapter,” “The Yeah I Showed Up At Your Party Chapter,” “The Dropped Your Hand While Dancing Chapter,” and finally, “Forever is the Sweetest Con Chapter.” True to the chapters before this, it runs for 24 minutes and is six tracks of songs from Folklore and Evermore. Despite having already heard these specific songs in those said two albums, “Forever is the Sweetest Con” brings new life to each and every single track. The EP starts out with “Cowboy Like Me,” an alternative song that has a twang of country placed perfectly in the background. Using simple guitars and drums, the music seems to swirl around you while Swift sings about dancing with a cowboy but knowing she’ll never love again. Next comes “Mirrorball,” which is probably the most forgettable song on the EP. While a good song, it is easily outshined by every other track on this record. The third track is “Evermore,” a piano based song featuring Bon Iver. Singing about her struggles with being happy while the song continues to build up around her, eventually peaking when Bon Iver comes in. Continuing on, we have “Long Story Short,” a more upbeat pop sounding song that reminds me of her 2014 album, 1989. Getting to the bottom of the tracklist we have “Invisible String.” This song tells the story of Swift revisiting different parts of her past and thinking about time passing, all on top of an acoustic guitar. Lastly, we have “Willow,” another great sounding track with an acoustic guitar serving as the main instrumental. After listening to this EP around five to six times through, I have hardly anything negative to say about it. It has sounds ranging from a slow rodeo esque song to one more on the pop side and yet it still works really well. Swift makes it easy for the listener to be captivated inside her singing and the instrumentals. My only complaint to the EP is that I can’t help but wish there was more of the country sounding songs like “Cowboy Like Me.” Other than that, this is a very well put together EP without any skips in it. For me, the most standout tracks on this record are “Cowboy Like Me,” “Evermore,” and “Invisible.” Overall, this is a great listen and I would highly recommend this to anyone. This record is feeling like a strong seven to a light eight out of ten from me. The last record that I will be reviewing is “You” by Vance Joy, Benny Blanco, and Marshmello. This is a collaboration from three of the most notable names in pop music right now. This marks the return of Vance Joy, an Australian singer who will always be remembered for his 2014 hit song, “Riptide.” This is his first song to be released on streaming platforms from him in just around two and a half years. Benny Blanco, on the other hand, has been releasing many great songs over the last couple of years. Releasing his first album and nine other singles featuring major artists like Khalid, Halsey, and Juice WRLD. The third person to work on this record is Marshmello, the legendary DJ who first blew up nearly six years ago in 2015. He and Benny Blanco are involved with making the instrumental and Vance Joy was given the responsibility of singing over it. Now to the record itself on which I have mostly positive things to say. When the song starts you are immediately met with a lone acoustic guitar. After a couple of seconds of the guitar playing, Vance Joy comes in with vocals. The song seems to wrap around Vance until it builds to a climax where trumpets start to blare and the guitar and Vance are engulfed in it. The process repeats itself once or twice more and then the track is over. Overall, “You” is a great sounding pop anthem but does have some flaws to it. Vance Joy, Marshmello, and Benny Blanco work together very well and I could see this being played on the radio for months. The way the song builds itself up and then back down all whilst Vance is singing is fantastic. But after all of this, I can’t help but feel that this song feels forgettable. Even with the amazing singing and great instrumental, this just wouldn’t exactly stand out to me if I heard it on the radio or in public. Songs like this are a dime a dozen and seem to go on and off the radio for months with little fanfare. Though, I do think because it sounds so basic, that's what works for the song the best. Sometimes being basic and not taking any risks works, and it certainly does on this record. This record is pretty good overall, despite its limitations, and I would definitely recommend it. I would give this record a light seven out of ten. This week we had a lot of great and noticeable music released. From the ones that I reviewed, every single record was pretty enjoyable, and were from a variety of genres. From the country esque sound coming from Taylor Swift to the beautiful piano instrumentals from Lil Durk, I could hardly find a song I did not enjoy. Thank you for reading the first edition of New Music Friday and I hope to see you next week. |
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March 2023
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