Week 11: 7.20.25 - 7.26.25
ＳＵＮＳＨＩＮＥ ＡＥＲＯＢＩＣＳ - Lovestory (2015) - Desired
This is one of the first albums I ever listened to way back as I journeyed into Future Funk and similar albums. Sunshine Aerobics has always had a special place in my heart as one of the songs that made me fall in love with the genre, as well as it just being a wonderfully fun song overall. This was also the first ever vinyl that I bought online funnily enough for an overpriced amount off of ebay of all places because I was new to the hobby. Also, as with the large majority of the Future Funk genre, it plays so heavily into my love of older Japanese music by using those songs and giving them a new life in Future Funk. Sometimes this can fall painfully flat and just feel like a cheap copy, but Sunshine Aerobics and I'd even say the album Lovestory overall does a great job changing it up. This time, Sunshine Aerobics uses the song Dancing with the Sunshine by Cathi Linn which is the English performance version of the song of the same name by Japanese City Pop legend Anri. The original Anri version was used as the ending theme for the anime Cat's Eye and I truly do love both of the original versions - the Sunshine Aerobics version just stands out to me as one of the more influental Future Funk songs in my life. I also highly recommend the song Cat's Eye which was used as the opening for the anime of the same name - the original opening (full HD version here) not the new take on Timely!! though that is a banger too.
Week 10: 7.13.25 - 7.19.25
Lightsabre Cocksucking Blues - Mclusky Do Dallas (2002) - Mclusky
I don't really have any strong connection to this album as a whole, but this song I've listened to a lot. It came on one day years ago as a Spotify recommendation and got played on repeat in the car on my way to/from work. One day while browsing for some more information on it I happened upon this crazy video for it and really came to love it all the more. Anyways, to keep this one short, crazy song that goes crazy hard. Give it a listen!
Week 9: 7.6.25 - 7.12.25
Nepotism - Hymn for My Dad (2024) - Finn Carter
Hymn for My Dad very quickly became a top jazz album for me upon listening to it for the first time. I found it one day randomly while looking up information on the (at the time) upcoming album The New Sound by Geordie Greep to see if Morgan Simpson was making an appearance on the album. I think he is an incredible drummer in every sense of the word and a random comment on a video I've long forgotten pointed towards Morgan Simpson being on this album as the drummer. Sure enough, he was, so I gave it a listen. Man, I am so happy I did. This entire album is quite a ride and feels emotional despite having no lyrics. As for the chosen track, Nepotism, I think it's where Morgan's drumming shines through the most: If not a bit obviously said due to the nearly 2 minute long drum solo (drum improv? drum-focus?) that starts at about 4:30 and ramps up until 6:09 with an incredible transition back into the bombastic grand finale for the song. That's not to say Morgan is the only one killing it on this track though - the bass opening and sound throughout is to die for, the piano is frantic and keeps a nice pace for the song, and the saxophone is going OFF throughout. I think it might be offputting to some but I think the almost squealing sax in a sense throughout is amazing and you could pick a point at any point in the song and be happy with how they're playing. Just such a hidden and incredible jazz album overall, but Nepotism shines brightest for me.
Week 8: 6.29.25 - 7.5.25
Thrilling! Is This Love? (Hyper Panic Park remix) - sketchbook vol #1: 12-17 (2017) - Slime Girls
The OMORI ost before the OMORI ost... Slime Girls has an incredible discography. Yes, there's some controvery around the artist himself, but I choose to believe that you can consume a creative work without cosigning every action the creator did. Now for the song itself, I love Rhythm Heaven a lot so to hear an incredible remix of a song from it only makes it all the better. The words get stuck in my head for this for a long time after listening and I think that the instrumental is insanely energetic and fun to listen to. I adore the vocals and one of my favourite motifs throughout the song is the "Boom boom boom!" and the instrumental breakdown that changes each time afterwards. Some other standouts from the album are: California Kidz, Bonfires (Demo), and Space-Fold Romance. I also yearn to get the Vacation Wasteland EP vinyl pressing from Slime Girls. Maybe one of these days I'll just snag a copy when it goes up for sale on Discogs. Anyways, check out Slime Girls and check out the OMORI OST that they went on to contribute heavily to if you enjoy it!
Week 7: 6.22.25 - 6.28.25
Kayfabe - Rong Weicknes (2024) - Fievel Is Glauque
My favourite song from my 2nd favourite album of 2024, Kayfabe is an absolute blast to listen to from start to finish. Not only that, but I feel like the entire album is such a welcome change from the sound previously known and loved from Fievel Is Glauque in their first two albums. Previously in those two albums, God's Trashmen Sent to Right the Mess and Flaming Swords, we got a very fleeting, spontaneous, and lo-fi in-and-out experience of fun and jazzy progressive/jazz pop. Those two albums are amazing in their own right, with The Perfect Idiot being my introduction to the band, but the shortness of the songs (most being under 2-min) kept me wanting more. In this album, Rong Weicknes they take everything, dial it up to 11, and put some truly insanely quality studio mastering on it. In particular when it comes to this track of the week, Kayfabe, I just adore everything about it. Right from the get go there's a quick and energetic feel to the song and Ma Clément's usual beautiful vocals over top of it. The energy in the instrumentation and vocals builds to a point where it all culminates in a scream which feels new and welcome for the band as well as the themes of the song! It then take a short breather before getting right back into building up that insane energy with the instrumentation feeling louder and louder, more chaotic and unhinged yet ever coherent as the vocals in the back repeatedly tell you to Keep kayfabe. There is such a clear and smooth ramp up in intensity throughout the song that just feels so in-tune with the contents of the lyrics themselves. I could keep going forever, and I'm certainly no expert music reviewer, but this song is just easily one of my favourites of all time: like top-5 level for me. If you haven't listened to any of these yet this would be one that I would suggest you give a try the most!
Also wow these keep getting longer - I'll try to keep it around this length or shorter (hopefully shorter) from now on!
Week 6: 6.15.25 - 6.21.25
No One Lives Forever - Dead Man's Party (1985) - Oingo Boingo
This is a great album all around but this song in particular I have a lot of good memories connected to it. I've been hunting for this album on vinyl for about 4 years at this point with no luck (in person, no online stores it takes the fun out of it). Whenever I would go out antiquing/thrifting with friends or even by myself I would play songs from this album both because it's a great album as well as a fun way to "manifest" finding it. The only copy I've ever seen in person was when I went to a vinyl showroom with friends and it ended up being a 2014 pressing which felt so wrong to me so I passed on it. I guess I'm picky and want an older pressing for the so-called "real" feeling! Other than that I've only ever seen two more instances of Oingo Boingo in the wild neither of which were Dead Man's Party. The first was a 12" single of Weird Science that I picked up even though - hot take - I don't really like the song, and the second was my friend finding a copy of Only a Lad which she immediately snagged while we were out shopping in Washington D.C. Not much to say about the song itself other than I love it and think it's great fun to sing!
Week 5: 6.8.25 - 6.14.25
Child Star - Who Will Cut Our Hair When We're Gone? (2003) - The Unicorns
To start, this album is a very strong contender for my favourite album of all time and I often say as much when asked. When I first discovered and was getting into this album, this song was almost always a skip for me. It wasn't until one random day at work when I decided to listen to this album to pass the time that I ended up listening to it by pure accident due to distractions, and subsequently fell in love with it. It's tough to say if this is my favourite song on the album - Sea Ghost and I Was Born (a Unicorn) are tough competition - but I cannot believe this used to be my skip track off of this album. I adore how this song is a conversation between the titular Child Star and a fan, as well as really intense commentary on fame for a song with such a short amount of lyricism. The instrumental is classic The Unicorns and I wouldn't have it any other way - and I love singing this in the car and trying to sing both parts as best I can. I could go on forever so I'll stop here and simply urge you to give the whole album a shot! There's nothing else like it.
Week 4: 6.1.25 - 6.7.25
アメリカン・ラヂオ - もも (1982) - ザ・ナンバーワン・バンド
American Radio - Momo (1982) - Katsuya Kobayashi & the Number One Band
I feel like people will have strong feelings about this song no matter how you look at it. Personally, I think it's incredibly unique and I love it. It's a comedy album at its core and the vocals and almost skit-like performances make that very clear, but at the same time man is it also an incredible funk/soul/pop rock album too. The instrumentation on this song really really vibes with me, in particular the insane funky groove that goes all throughout the song, the salsa section at 1:40-2:10, and the synthy breakdown at 2:18. It's such a strange and clashing yet cohesive experience. To end, I also believe the chorus of "We love the radio! American radio! We've got the DJs with our favourite music!" to be so incredibly catchy and it gets stuck in my head any time I listen to this song.
Week 3: 5.25.25 - 5.31.25
Solid State Survivor - After Service (1984) - Yellow Magic Orchestra
This is specifically the version of the song from from YMO's live album, After Service, that was released in 1984. The original is fantastic as well but this version improves on even that. The crazy synths, the punchy drums, the loud buzz throughout the song in place of the sharper ting in the original, and in particular the much clearer and more present vocals are what endear me to this version so much more. It's also so impressive to me how a live version of a song can sound this good. I'm usually not one for live performances but this album in its entirety is fantastic.
Week 2: 5.18.25 - 5.24.25
Skull Pop - GT Ultra (2017) - Guerilla Toss
GT Ultra is an album that I forget exists but as soon as I remember it does I listen to it on repeat for weeks at a time. It was picking between Skull Pop's insane instrumentation and Dog in the Mirror's vocals. I really love the drumming on Skull Pop which is what got it the pick. :3
Really loving their newest song Psychosis Is Just A Number!
Week 1: 5.11.25 - 5.17.25
Poppy - Pirouette (2025) - Model/Actriz
I've been obsessed with the entirety of Pirouette since its release, but singing along to Poppy has been particularly fun. Cole's vocals hit a different level on this track and the instrumentation is one of the best on the album in my opinion - in particular the faster paced parts at 1:16 and 2:21 really hit me.
