BIRN: Albums + Songs of the Week

By BIRN

BIRN is a radio station run by students at Berklee that aims to supply music to the community within Berklee as well as the surrounding areas. Articles from BIRN are part of our Community Partner initiative. Meet BIRN and learn more about them here.

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Song of the Week:

Pen To Paper is the tenth song on Giant Sand’s latest album, Heartbreak Pass. The duet is a slow minor balled where the vocals seem to drag over the lyrics. The vocals aren’t there to sound perfect, it’s an unprocessed song that anybody with writers block could relate to while having a stroll in the rain. The acoustic piano accompaniment with the underlying synth creates a flowing and moody atmosphere. This seminal erosion-rock band is composed of 12 members, with their base in Tucson, Arizona. Check the song out and be prepared to feel melancholic, but in a good way.

Album of the Week:

Leon Bridges’ debut album, Coming Home, is a smooth and soulful 10 track ride into the past. This 26 year old combines the effortless nature of Marvin Gaye’s voice with the rougher tone of Jimi Hendrix’s to create a very nostalgic tone. He’s able to bring the listener back to the times of singing about the Mississippi River and finding the love of a girl. Bridges started out playing open-mic nights around Fort Worth, Texas and was soon picked up by Columbia Records. He has since been rising in fame with the first track, Coming Home, recently being played over an iPhone 6 commercial. Bridges is on the fast track to success so definitely try to catch him while he’s currently on tour.

-Zoe Mitchell

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Song of the Week:
“What You Don’t Do” is the first single from Lianne La Havas’ highly anticipated Blood, set to be released later this month. Aside from her vocal ability, La Havas has written a song that has classic components of a hit. It is dancable, feel-good, and still manages to convey a true and unique emotion. She croons, “No grand gesture could ever be made to measure you,” telling us that there is no need for words when it comes to loving another person. La Havas’ style brings Estelle, Janelle Monaé, and Jill Scott to mind, with more of a synth-oriented flair. Be sure to pick up her debut album, Is Your Love Big Enough? and be on the look out for Blood.

Album of the Week:

Imaginary Life, is the Worriers’ first full-length release to date. Brooklyn based, punk influenced, and incredibly skilled at writing catchy tunes, Worriers never fail to create an important set of songs. This album encompasses just exactly what songwriter, Lauren Denitzio, can do lyrically. Imaginary Life is a collection of anthems for our generation spanning a range of different topics. “Yes All Cops” is a relentless tale of police brutality. Denitzio sings, “Sometimes silence is a loaded gun” with Ramones-style blaring guitars underneath. Even the first single off the album, “They /Them/ Theirs,” raises awareness of important issues. This song in particular is for those who do not subscribe to the gender binary, an identity that rarely has light shed on it. Grungier than most songs on the album and with lyrics like, “You’ve got a word for one, so there’s a word for all … you are floating between two ends that don’t matter,” “They/ Them/ Theirs” shares a rebellion for the socially constructed idea of gender and the roles that come with it.

Check out Imaginary Life by Worriers, which is set to be released August 7th, as well as the rest of their discography on Bandcamp and iTunes.

-Liz Klammer

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BIRN Video of the Week:

NYC based songwriting collective, Secret Someones dropped by to play BIRN Alive on June 27th.

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