2024 is shaping up to be a big year in music with many powerhouse artists planning to release albums. Some big releases have hit the mainstream in March, starting with Underdressed at the Symphony by Faye Webster.
Georgia’s own Faye Webster released “Underdressed at the Symphony” on March 1. She started this album rollout all the way back in June 2023 with the single “But Not Kiss” followed by “Lifetime,” a third single titled “Lego Ring,” the track featuring her high school friend Lil Yachty and finally “Feeling Good Today,” a track about the small victories and quirks of Webster’s day to day life. The album itself feels like a relaxed jam session, with Faye letting the music fill the silence at times rather than her own voice. In content, this album laments many things from breakups to Webster’s desire to keep her life private amidst her following. The name of the album leans into this desire for anonymity, Webster referencing her habit of buying last-minute tickets to the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, “I was quite literally underdressed at the symphony because I would just decide at the last moment that’s what I wanted to do.” Lyrically this record doesn’t leave room for interpretation, Webster lays her feelings bare in as few words as possible, often repeating lines many times. This sort of repetition adds to the “Garage Jam Sesh” type vibe present throughout the record.
On March 8, Ariana Grande released her highly anticipated seventh album “Eternal Sunshine.” The lead single “Yes, and?” as well as drama drummed up due to her relationship with Wicked costar, Ethan Slater paved the way for an explosive release. With “Yes, and?” dominating the billboard charts, debuting at #1. Its house-inspired beat and indignant attitude earned it that spot. This album isn’t all sticking it to gossips though, Grande also explores her past relationships as well. Namely, she explores her relationship with her ex-husband Dalton Gomez on the third track of the album titled “Don’t Wanna Break up Again” she reminisces on the pain she experienced with him and how she felt stifled by him. The entire album takes inspiration from the 2004 film “Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind.” In the short film “We Can’t be Friends (Wait for Your Love),” the influences are clear. The lyrics of other tracks on the album borrow from the plot, with Grande wishing she could erase these bad experiences from her mind.
On March 15, Kacey Musgraves released “Deeper Well,” her seventh album, an addition to a powerful discography. Following projects like Star-Crossed and Golden Hour, Musgraves leans towards the philosophy of self-growth. This is reflected in the music video for the title track “Deeper Well’ where Musgraves adopts a “wake and bake” lifestyle. Drawing inspiration from the pseudo spiritualism of crystals and incense popular with self-care gurus, citing astrological phenomena like Saturn “returning” and labeling people in her life as givers and takers. It represents an era of healing for Musgraves following her divorce from Ruston Kelly.
On March 21, Remi Wolf released the first single from her upcoming album “Big Ideas.” The album is set for release on July 12, Remi Wolf says, “I wrote these songs about love, lust, anger, fantasies, harsh realities, vices, low lows, and high highs.” Cinderella itself is a brass-laden track, with Remi’s vocals carving its way through the mellow keys. The music video features Remi Wolf dancing around an occupied golf course in color-changing socks, and jamming out with fellow artist Mac Demarco on the side of the road. Lyrically, the song shifts between questions of self-worth and nearly nonsensical lines. In the mount up to releasing the single and announcing the album, Wolf teased the song on social media with a pre-chorus that seems destined to be a dance trend.
Canadian, and space…and past…and future natives TWRP released their sixth album on March 22 titled “Digital Nightmare.” An album about the turn of the century internet chat rooms, HTML-based romance, the Sisyphean grind of content creation and IBS. This binary bad dream wasn’t a singular effort; with collaborations from Tom Cardy, Montaigne, Jazz Emu and McKenna Rae. It’s an exciting robo-funk jaunt through a growing internet that everyone should hear. The lead single “Ladybug” is a title with many meanings, lead singer Doctor Sung calling an unnamed object of affection his “little ladybug,” usually a symbol of luck, TWRP splits the word into its two components making this lucky bug into a malfunction of our robotic-sounding narrator. TWRP’s accompanying tour of the same name will be making its stop in Georgia on April 26 at the Masquerade.
On March 29, Beyoncé released Cowboy Carter, the second act of her three-act album cycle that began with Renaissance. Upon release Cowboy Carter, according to an Instagram post from Spotify, “Spotify’s most-streamed album in a single day in 2024 so far.” This album spawned as a result of the mistreatment Beyoncé experienced at the Country Music Awards in 2016. She explains on her Instagram, “It was born out of an experience that I had years ago where I did not feel welcomed…and it was very clear that I wasn’t.” This 27-track album was distinguished from other country albums by the artist who said, “This ain’t a country album. This is a “Beyoncé” album.” With artists like Willie Nelson, Miley Cyrus and Dolly Parton; Beyoncé seats herself among the biggest names in country music.
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