npr.org
Musical Reviews: Swims, Booker, and Young Showcase Diverse Styles and Emotions
Ken Tucker reviews new music from Teddy Swims, Benjamin Booker, and Neil Young, highlighting Swims's soulful love songs, Booker's raw and distorted rock, and Young's powerful, grungy track, "Big Change," which may reference the recent presidential election.
- How do the lyrical approaches of these artists differ, and what implications does this have for interpreting their work?
- The review highlights diverse musical styles: Swims's smooth soul, Booker's distorted rock, and Young's grungy sound. The artists express deep emotions, but leave interpretation to the listener, demonstrating a range of artistic approaches to conveying feelings. The release timing of Young's song suggests a political context, although this is not explicitly stated.
- What are the key musical styles and emotional themes explored in the new releases by Teddy Swims, Benjamin Booker, and Neil Young?
- I've Tried Everything But Therapy Part 2" by Teddy Swims offers soulful love songs showcasing his vocal range and romanticism, while Benjamin Booker's "LOWER" uses distorted guitars and obscure lyrics to convey raw emotion. Neil Young's "Big Change" with The Chrome Hearts is a powerful, grungy track, possibly referencing the recent presidential election.
- What broader trends or implications can be gleaned from the artistic choices and the potential political context of Neil Young's new song?
- The contrasting styles and emotional depth across these three artists reflect current trends in music, showcasing both traditional influences and experimental approaches. Young's song, with its ambiguous political undertones, exemplifies how music can comment on significant societal events, even without explicit statements. The diversity across genres shows the evolving landscape of popular music.
Cognitive Concepts
Framing Bias
The review frames the artists in a positive light, highlighting their strengths and interesting musical choices. The description of Teddy Swims' romanticism is presented favorably. Similarly, Benjamin Booker's 'musical chaos' is characterized as 'beautiful'. Although the review acknowledges Neil Young's song's potential political implications, the ambiguity surrounding its interpretation presents a neutral stance, avoiding clear bias toward either political side. The sequencing of the reviews, starting with a relatively positive view of Teddy Swims, continues with a similarly positive, albeit more complex, review of Benjamin Booker, and concludes with a relatively ambiguous review of Neil Young, may subtly influence the listener's perception, creating a somewhat positive overall impression.
Language Bias
The language used is largely neutral and descriptive. Terms like "gruff, but supple ballad singing," "glowing clarity," and "musical chaos" are evocative but avoid loaded language. The reviewer uses descriptive words such as "obscure" and "grungy" to describe the songs' style, but these remain largely neutral descriptive terms.
Bias by Omission
The review focuses primarily on the musical aspects of the songs, neglecting any potential sociopolitical commentary that might be present within the lyrics. While the review mentions Benjamin Booker's past engagement with current events, it doesn't delve into the possible implications of his current, more obscure lyrics. Furthermore, the review acknowledges Neil Young's song's possible connection to the presidential election but avoids speculation on its meaning. This omission, while potentially due to space constraints, prevents a fully nuanced understanding of the songs' context.