Adele’s ’25’ Goes Diamond

Jason Tate

Adele’s 25 has gone diamond.

On the strength of the seven-times platinum single “Hello” as well as hit singles “Send My Love (To Your New Lover)” and “When We Were Young,” 25 reached diamond in a little over 10 months. Her previous album, 2011’s 21, propelled by hits “Rolling in the Deep” and “Someone Like You,” took almost two years to hit diamond in November 2012

Goodbye, Yellowcard (Encore Episode 133)

Encore 133
Jason Tate

On this week’s episode of Encore I bring in special guest Craig Manning to discuss the final Yellowcard album and say goodbye to the band. Yellowcard have been a part of the formative years of our lives, and on September 30th they will release their last album. We discuss what the band’s meant to us, our favorites in their catalog, and then go track-by-track through the new album to talk about we like, don’t like, and how it stacks up with the rest of their discography. I think it’s safe to say that we’re going to miss this band quite a bit.

Read More “Goodbye, Yellowcard (Encore Episode 133)”

Spotify Launches Daily Mix Playlists

Jason Tate

Ingrid Lunden, writing at TechCrunch, on Spotify’s new Daily Mix playlists:

Tapping into your own history of albums and tracks that you have listened to on the platform, Daily Mix brings together a selection of these alongside a few new things to create long, “bottomless” playlists of music to keep you listening. As its name implies, the playlists change every day, and range in number between one and six, depending on how prolific you are on Spotify.

Review: Cymbals Eat Guitars – Pretty Years

Cymbals Eat Guitars - Pretty Years
Aaron Mook

Ah, The Weirdness.

Generally speaking, The Weirdness hits plenty of artists looking to follow-up their most critically acclaimed album. The timeline goes something like this: The Artist has likely released several albums to generally positive reviews. The Artist may have a modest-yet-loyal fanbase. Then, something happens to The Artist, causing them to reach within and write The Defining Statement. The Defining Statement is an album that makes critics take notice; The Defining Statement is a bridge between fans and critics. In fact, sometimes (but not always), The Artist goes on to resent or even loathe the success of The Defining Statement, and in an act of defiance, they give into The Weirdness.

The Weirdness is an album that turns heads. It is commonly experimental, a sonic left turn that pays more attention to The Artist’s tastes and less attention to what the fanbase may want. It can be an unfiltered and honest look into The Artist’s thoughts and influences. In short: The Weirdness can be awesome.

Read More “Cymbals Eat Guitars – Pretty Years”