By Bradan Donahue

On September 1, 2023, the world had to say goodbye to beloved singer Jimmy Buffett after he lost his battle with cancer at the age of 76. Buffett, who was known for his laid-back, genre bending music, had a career spanning 53 years. November 3, 2023 saw the end of this career as his 32nd and final studio album, Equal Strain On All Parts, was released posthumously. 

Much like his other works, this album is filled with the style and personality that made Buffett who he was, as well as venturing into unexplored territory on some songs, guaranteeing there to be something for everyone. This is true for the other artists featured on this album as well, including a bassline played by Sir Paul McCartney of The Beatles on My Gummie Just Kicked In. Along with switching genres throughout the album, there are also clear tonal switches between many songs. The constant switching between tone and genre may make the album feel somewhat out of order, but doesn’t take away from the overall experience. 

1. University Of Bourbon Street (feat. Preservation Hall Jazz Band) - (7.5/10)

An upbeat, energetic song with a simple rhyme scheme, clear inspiration from the jazzy singing of a barbershop quartet, and Buffett’s impressive story telling. 

2. Bubbles Up - (8.5/10)

A more somber song that uses gentle instrumentation to put an emphasis on Buffett’s impressive vocals and lyricism. It is also the longest and most popular song on the album. 

3. Audience Of One - (6.5/10)

The first song on the album that is in his traditional style, but it is hindered by a repetitive chorus and the lack of anything to make it truly stand out. It just blends in with many of his other songs and is overall forgettable. 

4. My Gummie Just Kicked In (feat. Paul McCartney) - (7.5/10)

This song is inspired by traditional rock and almost feels like a musical number due to the singing style, story told, and the way that it builds up. 

5. Close Calls - (7/10)

A traditional honky-tonk country song that starts to become repetitive, but makes up for its repetitiveness with a catchy chorus. 

6. Equal Strain On All Parts - (8.5/10)

The spacey instrumentation puts an emphasis on Buffett’s vocals and deeply sentimental lyrics.

7. Like My Dog - (8/10)

Traditionally styled song for Buffett that tells a story of his loved one and their relationship together. 

8. Ti Punch Café (feat. Angelique Kidjo) - (7/10)

First full calypso song on the album, and gives Kidjo a platform to show her multilingual skills as she sings. 

9. Portugal Or PEI (feat. Lennie Gallant & Will Kimbrough) - (8/10)

For the most part this song feels similar to his other songs, but has a bit of a twist of modernization with the features and use of atypical musical techniques, which pays off in the end. 

10. Nobody works on Friday - (8/10)

One of the most classic Buffett songs on the album with its upbeat energy and catchy lyrics. 

11. Fish Porn - (3/10)

This song features traditional instrumentation, but with very questionable lyrics that make the song nearly impossible to listen to.

12. Johnny's Rhum - (8.5/10) 

This song is the most straightforward country song on the album, but has meaningful lyrics and tells an impressive story. My personal favorite.

13. Columbus - (8/10)

This song continuously feels as though it is going to build into a more energetic upbeat song, but stays as a slow, sentimental song. 

14. Mozambique (feat. Emmylou Harris) - (8.5/10)

A very good send off for the album and Buffett as it is more similar to his other music, and uses the feature well as an emphatic factor for Buffett’s vocals. 

Overall: (8/10)

By Sophie Piro

Jungkook’s first solo album, Golden, is a rollercoaster of emotions, from songs that make you want to get up and dance to slower songs that make you want to cry. All of the songs are in English, which is very impressive because Jungkook's first language is Korean. The diversity of the music on this album is notable, along with the many collaborations with other artists. A mentionable highlight is the catchy “Seven (feat. Latto). It's a fantastic album, overall, that and will leave listeners looking forward to hearing more of his music.

1. 3D (feat. Jack Harlow)-  8/10

This song is easy to sing-along to, and Jungkook’s vocals are nothing less than impressive. However, Jack Harlow’s rap verse feels off-putting and the song would be better off without it. 

2. Closer to You (feat. Major Lazer)-  6/10

A slower song with groovy beats. Major Lazer’s electronic sound mixes nicely with Jungkook’s satisfying voice, leading to a sound almost similar to reggaeton.

3. Seven (feat. Latto)-  10/10

This song is a highlight of the album because it is very catchy and fun. The lyrics are clever and Latto’s verse fits well within the song. 

4. Standing Next to You-  7/10

This song is a funk-pop mix that’s sound blends with some elements of jazz. It’s not what one would expect, but it really stands out from the rest of the album in a positive way.

5. Yes or No-  8/10

Jungkook’s English improvement is very apparent in this song. His vocals are a highlight of this song and flow in a way that’s satisfying to listen to.

6. Please Don’t Change (feat. DJ Snake)-  7/10

A short song,  but calming and enjoyable to listen to.

7. Hate You 7/10

Originally this song sounds a bit boring because of how slow it is, but after listening closer the song is both beautiful and holds a lot of meaning. Jungkook’s pronunciation provides a unique sound to the song and his vocals are undeniably impressive.

8. Somebody 4/10

My least favorite on the album because it simply isn’t good. It has too much autotune and Jungkook’s voice sounds much better without it. 

9. Too Sad to Dance 7/10

The lyrics are very relatable. It’s a very slow but pretty song. Jungkook’s signature whistle stands out. Fans will recognize a reference to BTS’s single “Butter” when Jungkook sings “talk that talk” and “walk that walk.” 

10. Shot Glass of Tears 6/10

A cliche song because of the lyrics but has a calming sound.

By Jack Dowdall

Stepdream, the sophomore release from artist Quannnic (stylized in lowercase as quannnic) sees some impressive artistic progression as they delve further into the depths of the shoegaze genre. My introduction to quannnic and their work happened recently, when I became aware that they’d be accompanying their labelmate and one of my favorite artists, the fantastic Jane Remover, on their co-headlining Designated Dreams tour. At the time, quannnic’s only release was the wonderfully inventive and atmospheric indietronica record, Kenopsia (2022), which delighted me and led me to feel immense anticipation for their follow-up (and for their live performance). 

On Stepdream, quannnic has set out to demonstrate their maturation sonically and artistically, as demonstrated in part by the higher profile collaborations; drawing upon the talents of The Smashing Pumpkins’ guitarist Jeff Schroeder, and Julian Koster of Neutral Milk Hotel. This album’s range from walls of thrashing drums, distorted guitars, and drowned-out vocals to the more intimate, spacey, and acoustic tunes can be jarring at times and hypnotic at others. Their (quannic’s) effort to blend tracks seamlessly between one-another, an effort also demonstrated on Kenopsia, offers an immersive experience, although one which is detracted in some parts by the big jumps in tone between songs and even within songs, leading to what some might perceive as an issue of cohesiveness. 

At the same time, I also found myself listening to several of the songs on repeat trying to distinguish any major differences in their sound, often to little avail. This similarity of certain portions of the album, as great as the sounds may be, does detract from the listening experience overall. Along with that, the album is quite unabashed in what it derives from quannnic’s influences. Regardless of these aspects, Stepdream is a moving album with some very great moments of both ambience and cacophony.

1. Defense - (9/10)

“Defense” opens with a grungy guitar blasting through dense distortion. As it continues, after a minute of slowing down the pace, the vocals enter under an airy veil of grain, eventually being allowed to flourish by the time of the track’s final overwhelming wave of noise-rock. 

2. South - (9/10)

“South,” immediately follows, with a beautiful albeit similar sound to the previous track. A ghostly vocal performance from quannnic is allowed to flourish atop haunting spaced out guitars, yet still below a thick compression that feels as though it detracts from the very obviously passionate performance that should be on full display. This use of vocals as more of an instrument to be layered into a song’s soundscape isn’t anything new-to-me, however quannnic’s beautiful singing voice and lyrics can be left unintelligible as a result. 

3-4. How to Hold a Knife (8/10) / Sheets (7/10)

“How to Hold a Knife,” and “Sheets,” are a pair of tracks which employ infectious riffs reminiscent of an Ok Computer-era Radiohead song. While they did a good job at achieving the desired sound, I found the guitars and the vocals to sound rather similar on both songs, with the latter having nearly the same robotic filters ran over quannnic’s voice. 

5. Comatose (8/10)

“Comatose” begins with grimy, crunchy distortion on loud guitars which leads into the much quieter, plucky riffs and dusty drums of the verse before reigniting into a passionate outro of quannnic repeating the line “”Til I drown,” over a chilling discordant instrumental.

6. Cover (9/10)

“Cover” takes a minute to get going, with a simple instrumental at first, however it also features very heartfelt and emotional vocality at it’s climax - some of the best on the album. Additional vocals by Eranine lend an extra layer to the already gorgeous verse 

7. Ache (10/10)

“Ache” begins as a pretty laid back and intimate acoustic performance, with a beat sounding like it’d been ripped straight from Bon Iver’s Dear Emma, Forever Ago. The song’s cathartic crescendo of distortion only comes pounding in after the two-minute mark, and after listeners are treated to a beautiful moment of relative vocal clarity from quannnic. 

8. Bryn Mawr (9/10)

This vocal beauty is further demonstrated by “Bryn Mawr,” where the raw performance leads to an impressively moving moment of emotion, underscored by the dreamy guitars. Lyrics like, “I walk through beautiful flowers, I'm spreading the sin / I lie on everything, suffocate all that could win,” are delivered on the chorus with an almost whiny rasp to quannnic’s voice, lending itself perfectly to the ballad. 

9. Family Means (8/10)

“Family Means,” the album's shortest track, comes in at just over two and a half minutes. Packed into this dense runtime are even denser waves of crashing guitars and drums, punctuated by quannnic’s drowned out singing to add a layer of ambiance. 

10. Jophiel (10/10)

“Jophiel” goes full-on Deftones, using distorting metal guitars mixed seamlessly with quannnic’s screaming vocals, creating an almost industrial feel. The electronic sounds layered within serve to further the song’s intense atmosphere. 

11. Rummage (feat. Orbiting Human Circus) (9/10)

“Rummage” is one of the most unique tracks on the album, with rather eccentric folksy instrumentation on the verse, leading up into a fervent chorus above intense strumming electric guitars. Contributions made by Julian Koster draw clearly upon his work on In the Aeroplane Over the Sea, while quannnic still manages to maintain their own spin on the sound. 

12. How Much Time To Quit (8/10)

“How Much Time To Quit” is an immensely intimate and stripped-down conclusion to this album, juxtaposing the work’s bombastic moments while simultaneously drawing parallels to the Bon Iver influence of earlier tracks like “Ache” and their melancholic acoustic guitars.

Overall: (9/10)