Nü Song, Nü Me: Writing A Nü Metal Song in 2024
Plus the week's best from Liam Benzvi, Sampha, Jack White, and more!
Hello! Welcome to the Unskippables, where we get to vote for a Roy Ayers fan?
A few months ago, I wrote about what felt like the inevitable revival of the sounds of nü metal in Gen Z rock and pop. From bands like Turnstile to pop stars like Rina Sawayama, I heard the sounds of Ibanez-slinging seven string 2000s radio echoing through Pitchfork’s Best New Music.
I really, really disliked it – but like almost everything I've had a really strong negative opinion about (dub reggae, Bruce Springsteen, Real Housewives) it turns out my disgust was merely my brain telling me it desperately wanted to figure out a way into something other people really enjoyed. So this is a long way of saying I have written a deeply nü metal track with New York City singer vampireluvr, and I think it rips.
If I'm being honest, it was actually very refreshing to release my inhibitions and feel the rain on my skin with the sounds that were synonymous with getting picked on in Junior High and High School. Big searing scooped guitars? Check! A wailing Evanescence chorus? Check. A harmony line I wrote after listening to “It’s Been Awhile” like 20 times on repeat?? You bet your ass. Okay – there are elements of dream pop and shoegaze in the track, sure, but at the song’s heart is a chorus chock-full of 2000s rock melodrama.
So, I was wrong. I've linked the song below – it's called “Proof” and it's out everywhere today – maybe it's not for you, but for me it's the end result of tackling a genre of music that in some ways has haunted me ever since I had to ride the bus home everyday in Modesto California in 1999. So put on your Adidas tracksuit, spike your hair, grab a cup of hot dog flavored water, and dive in.
And now, for some Good Links:
Who is asking for three FEWER hours of Prince? I wasn’t aware that “OJ: Made In America” director Ezra Edelman was sitting on a NINE HOUR Prince documentary held up by the Prince estate for being…too long????
A Bop In A Pineapple Under The Sea – How a library arena rock song became a generational hit on Spongebob 25 years ago
What *is* Going On – Matt Buechele launched a new podcast last week asking the time-old question. I’m sure he’ll figure it out!
Over..extremely easy – this supercut of egg scenes in movies is oddly satisfying
I owe you an apology Cheryl Miller, I wasn’t familiar with your fit game.
Vance Vance Revolution – Slate found JD Vance’s Spotify playlist.
As always, you can follow along on our playlists on Spotify and Apple Music, which update every Tuesday along with the newsletter. Enjoy!
Sampha & Little Simz
Sampha flipped this interlude from last year’s Lahai into a full workout with Little Simz. “Satellite Business 2.0” drops into a thick bass-and-drum groove that’s equal parts R&B jam and gospel vamp (I see those tom fills!). The song never quite releases into its backbeat, stammering and sliding the snare just enough to keep simmering through Simz’ excellent second verse, before dissolving into thin air with just Sampha’s vocals and backing choir.
Liam Benzvi feat. Blood Orange – Other Guys
Liam Benzvi’s voice is one of my favorites in New York – a glassy, easy instrument that glides between sounding like he’s singing just to himself to perfectly winding into a soaring chorus. “Other Guys” skips along in 12/8, cruising at such a leisurely pace it’s easy to miss the track’s effortless hooks amidst the sunny synth chords and tight harmonies. Blood Orange’s Dev Hynes floats in the backing vocal mix, but everything is in service to Liam’s winning croon.
Jack White – No Name
Another surprise non-streaming record hit the streets last Friday, with an unnamed, vinyl-only LP from Jack White given out at Third Man Records. I’m not a huge fan of White’s solo work, but the album…kinda rips? It’s gritty and dumb in the right ways, and over-performs, not just because it under-promises – this very much feels like a “first thought best thought’ session with minimal overdubs on vocals or instruments (minus guitar solos, obviously). The whole LP moves with the speed and force of a bar band’s final late-night set that makes even the tracks that ape White’s past moves feel fresh.
Threshold – Don’t Say Goodbye
Threshold is the solo project of Isaac Eiger, formerly of Strange Ranger, and “Don’t Say Goodbye” is an lurching, haunting piano ballad that's somewhere between Black Heart Procession and loungefly slowcore. Eiger’s melody takes some Thom Yorke-ian turns, but there’s a “drunk alone at an empty karaoke bar ” vibe to the song that make it tactile, human and endearing.
Karen O & Danger Mouse – Super Breath
I can’t imagine I’m the only one who was disappointed that 2019’s Lux Prima was the only collaboration between Karen O & Danger Mouse? Their LP brought the most convincing vocal performances from Karen O in years, and her big energy on mic balanced out Danger Mouse’s 60’s paisley pocket. “Super Breath” is their first track together since then, as part of a deluxe version of the LP, and the chemistry holds – Karen still sounds amazing over the track’s cruising motorik girl group groove, and she pushes the song out of an LA afternoon snooze into something searching, restless, and cool.
throwback
Explode Into Colors – How Adee Got Her Groove Back
I think about this Portland band a lot, especially in the current third wave of post-/dance-punk revival, mostly because of how much stranger the tablestakes were in the 00’s. This song is like desiccated ESG meets Electrelane, and the group’s strangeness comes from feeling like you’ve peeked in on a secret – a band aimed at a provocative idea, a fun debut show, instead of built for scaling the algorithm. I’m not pining for a simpler time, but it’s amazing how much more interesting the art is when its built first for a community. It doesn’t hurt that the band still rules.