Welcome to The Notebook. Every month explore the new sounds that the Hult Center team (and some special guests) are listening to.
From calm and collected to saxophone synthwave this month we got you covered for every mood.
Christian – Hult Center Intern
Yonezu Kenshi’s newest release “Spinning Globe” for Hayao Miyazaki’s last film for Studio Ghibli had me at a loss for words. It’s a song that captures the essence of life. It reminds us to treasure the memories and relationships that make us who we are and embrace the beauty of the uncertainties that we might face. It’s truly amazing that Hayao Miyazaki and Kenshi Yonezu, despite their age difference of 50 years, living in the same era, created a new work together. It’s such a beautiful song, and I definitely recommend to give it a listen!
I absolutely adore Joe Hisaishi’s “One Summer’s Day” for its captivating melody and emotional storytelling. The piece evokes a sense of nostalgia for me, taking me back to cherished moments of my own summer memories. Joe Hisaishi masterfully captures the essence of these moments, and it makes me feel appreciation for the small joys in life.
Yonezu Kenshi – Spinning Globe
Joe Hisaishi – One Summer’s Day
Daniel Olbrych – Content and Design Coordinator
Have you ever asked yourself, I wonder whatever happened to that ripped saxophone player who tore it up in “The Lost Boys?” Well… Tim Cappello is featured on the new Gunship single Monster in Paradise, along with Dave Lombardo from Slayer and Milkie Way of Wargasm. It’s absolute fire. It’s the first single off the third album from British synthwavers Gunship and September can’t get here quick enough.
Though there have been a few collaborations and a new song here and there, Taking Back Sunday has not put an album out since 2016’s Tidal Wave. I’m not sure if The One is part of a bigger release, but I’m always down for some TBS. And is it just me or does Adam Lazzara’s voice get better and better with time?
Gunship – Monster in Paradise
Taking Back Sunday – The One
Rich Hobby – Director of Marketing
It’s no secret I have a huge interest and appreciation for anything touched by Hania Rani, a polish pianist and artist who constantly finds incredible ways to collaborate with visual artists into her releases. Her newest release is “Dancing with Ghosts” and while the music is more subdued and slower than some of her more well-known releases, it is the incredible pairing of dance and movement captured by the directing team of Sara and Nadia Szy that pulls you into an entire another realm, with the soothing music really mixing into the contemporary dance styles that really accentuate each other. It’s a whole vibe and I can’t stop watching and neither should you.
Hania Rani – Dancing with Ghosts
Eryn Hummel – Marketing Coordinator
Local Natives released their latest album Time Will Wait for No One in July and stand-out tracks “Ava” and “Desert Snow” have risen to the top of my playlists. Incandescent vocals and reflective melodies fold into LN’s signature sonic tapestries as each song builds beautifully, resonating long past the final note.
ODESZA and Yellow House team up for 6-song EP Flaws in Our Design released in late June and “Heavier” is absolutely magnetic. A sublime current of lush synth and daydream vocals feels like prismatic late-summer sunbeams, and I am in love with the synergy of this otherworldly duo. This collab is one that I never knew I needed and now I can’t live without.
Local Natives – Desert Snow
ODESZA and Yellow House – Heavier
Greg – House of Records
Lead singer of indie-pop band Best Coast goes in a completely different direction for her first solo album. Gone are the heavily-reverbed vocals and the shoegaze guitar sound of her band. These are, believe it or not, modern country songs with twangy harmonies and tastefully inserted weepy steel guitar parts. She even references her about-face in some of the lyrics. One of the most surprising and courageous releases of the year!
A new EP of ambient atmospherics with perky breakbeats in the background. This is an easily digestible work for those who are intimidated by some of his more glitchy, experimental music. “Comfortable” is the word I keep seeing in the reviews, and it reads like a put-down, as if these folks feel like Aphex Twin is coasting, resting on his laurels, aiming for the Hot Topic crowd. I think Aphex Twin has always been capable of making the perfect aural wallpaper, and this is just a continuation of that aesthetic.
Bethany Cosentino – Natural Disaster
Aphex Twin – Black Box Recorder 21F In a Room 7 f760
