Music Reviews
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Hemlocke Springs — The Apple Tree Under the Sea (2026)
I’d like to describe this record as “Lemon Demon meets Chappell Roan”, but I might be biased because this record’s cover is strangely similar to that of Spirit Phone. I wouldn't be surprised if there’s some inspiration from Neil Cicierega, since the album’s former half has some vague Halloween vibes and both artists specialize in theatrical, unapologetic synthpop.
Despite an unignorable amount of filler, it’s an engaging listen start to finish, and never gives up its energy. It’s an album where the strongest tracks were quickly charming and only took about 2 listens to grow on me. My favorite part, by a slim margin, was the intro of “w-w-w-w-w”, specifically the kick-in of the drums followed by the organ. Said track, among others, touches on some serious topics for dance-pop, but puts an empowering spin on them such that they feel completely apt. Every song can be described as empowering and quirky, but not necessarily always as energizing as it wants to be. There’s something about Udu’s vocals that feel… disconnected from the instrumentals, and I’m not the only one to notice it. I don’t even know how I’d fix it.
It’s also refreshing to hear an album made by someone I feel like I’d know in real life - Udu’s master’s degree, MacBook-native music production, and valiant vocal style make her feel closer to me than other artists. I liked this a lot more than her debut EP going...going...GONE! and I’m overall happy with this listen.
Favorite tracks: the beginning of the end; head, shoulders, knees, and ankles; w-w-w-w-w; sever the blight; be the girl!
Rating: 7.5/10
Underscores — U (2026)
I looked forward to this album after enjoying Grey’s previous work Wallsocket but not being particularly blown away. I saw the potential and loved a couple distinct moments, but it was never one of my favorites, and I hoped she’d lean further into the things that she did well - melodic bounciness, buzziness, and hard-hitting beats. After listening to U, I figured that I had missed something with Wallsocket, since it fully employed those aspects that Underscores fans had been raving about for years.
The first thing that stood out to me was the vocal chops, high-pitched and arranged as synths. They go really well with Grey’s voice, and they work with the synths to give that danceability that a lot of modern electropop has lacked. The EDM-inspired beats such as in “Do It” and “Innuendo (I Get U)” add that extra abrasive punch the album needs, and they make the album as a whole feel much more intentional and alive. The record peaks when it feels like it’s bouncing around - “Music” and “Do It” give it that side-to-side plunderphonics feel despite the album not being sampling-driven at all.
Overall - great vocals, great instruments, and great mixing. But some tracks fall flat with underwhelming drops and exhausting dance sections that give me a mild headache; I often got tired of the uncreative electropop sections that boomed into my ears without much substance, as well as the uninteresting quieter/slower parts that don’t really balance out the more intense ones that well. Nonetheless, U is remarkably consistent across its 9 tracks, and it’s one of my favorite listens of 2026.
Favorite tracks: Music, The Peace, Innuendo (I Get U), Do It
Rating: 7/10
Sweet Trip — Velocity: Design: Comfort. (2003)
I discovered this album when I heard "Dsco" playing in the background of a YouTube video - I quickly pulled out my phone to Shazam it, became intrigued by the sounds, and spent the rest of my winter exploring the works of Sweet Trip. I've always cared more about sound texture than actual content, and Sweet Trip was ridiculously ahead of their time in producing these glitchy sounds in the early 2000s. Combining glitch pop with shoegaze makes it sound like it'd be my favorite album ever, at least on paper - and it's not far from that.
My favorite parts of the album were the most abrasive, sparse, punchy synth breaks (for example, 2:47 to 3:36 of "Fruitcake and Cookies" is my favorite part of the album). I felt like I had been looking for such satisfying sounds my whole life, and I've yet to hear another artist replicate it even closely. Contrasted with the soft, melodic vocals, it strikes a balance unlike anything I've heard before. My mood while listening can best be described as pensive, introspective, calm, and analytical, but I wouldn't actually listen to it to focus on something or get well-structured thoughts going, since I'd just focus on the hypnotic buzzes and glitches in my ears instead.
Looking at YouTube comments for individual tracks, it looks like people really love the shoegaze breakdowns (like the latter halves of "Fruitcake and Cookies" and "To All the Dancers.") To be honest, these parts consistently underwhelm me and end up skipping them 40% of the time. This album is weakest in the parts that drag on - long, droning guitar segments and unprogressive synths are this album's hamartia, but I'll admit they help balance out the chaos and energy the rest of the album keeps up, and they can be a great time for me to turn down my focus and feel immersed. Overall, this is one of the most unique and unreplicable albums I've ever heard, and it carries some of the best sonics I've ever encountered.
Favorite tracks: Tekka; Dsco; Fruitcake and Cookies; Pro: Lov: Ad; Dedicated; Chocolate Matter; To All the Dancers of the World, a Round Form of Fantasy
Rating: 9/10