The summer semester is coming to a close. To celebrate our final week in the Lightning 100 office, we decided to go rouge and have no theme for our Intern Picks! Check out our random picks below!
Christina’s Pick
Girlpool — “Faultline”
For my final intern pick, I have chosen my current favorite song, “Faultline” by Girlpool! I have been a fan of the LA duo since their 2015 release of “Cut Your Bangs.” Their sound has transformed from DIY, abrasive vocals, to a more melodic and ethereal sound with this track.
“Faultline” maintains Girlpool’s sentimental themes in a devastatingly ballad. The melodic tune was the first single from their 2022 album, Forgiveness.
Yvette’s Pick
Mildlife — “The Magnificent Moon”
For my last intern pick, I decided to showcase one of my favorite songs of all time, “The Magnificent Moon” by Mildlife. Mildlife is a psychedelic fusion-jazz group that is sure to blow your mind if they haven’t already! The band is from Melbourne, Australia, and is made of members Tomas Shanahan, Kevin McDowell, Jim Rindfleish, Adam Halliwell. Mildlife currently have two studio albums and a live album under their belts, all of which are absolutely incredible. Their sophomore LP, Automatic, won the 2021 award for Best Jazz Album at the Australian Recording Industry Awards along with multiple other award nominations to their name.
“The Magnificent Moon” was released as the group’s debut track, setting Mildlife up for greatness from the get-go. Clocking in at just over 9 minutes long, this track is made up of oozing synths, smooth guitars, a bouncing bass, and driving drum beats all spiraling together to form the disco-jazz odyssey of this era.
Mildlife just finished their first trip to the United States on tour opening for Parcels, and are about to embark on their first North American headlining tour this fall. They kick off their tour with an appearance at this year’s Desert Daze Festival in California, a festival I’m extremely lucky to be attending this year! Mildlife is one of my most anticipated sets of the weekend out of a lineup that is absolutely stacked. Give Mildlife a listen, I promise you won’t regret it!
Sarah’s Pick
Sam Johnston and Emma Klein– “For a While”
By now, y’all know I love a good driving song and why not roll down the windows and blast a tune about our dear Nashville. So for my final intern pick here at Lightning, I’m going with “For a While” by Sam Johnston and Emma Klein. The track, which appears on his debut album Cannonball, is an ode to Music City. It perfectly encapsulates the essence of living, working and growing in Nashville and I for one can’t get enough. As someone who moved to Tennessee in 2020 and is about to graduate and join the real wold, anthems like this are a necessity.
There are countless songs about Nashville (I picked one a few weeks ago) but “For a While” is by far my favorite. These days, as summer ends and I gear up for my final semester at Belmont, blasting the lyric “I’m a no good Nashville nothing” from my car is the best stress reliever there is.
Jule’s Pick
Twen– “Automation”
My intern pick this week is the song “Automation” by Nashville-based indie psych-rock DIY band Twen. It can be hard to distinguish yourself in the music industry today. It seems that some bands have started clinging to recycling old ideas they know people already love, but not Twen. Twen is unlike any ordinary band. Jane Fitzsimmons and Ian Jones, the two founding members of the band, refuse to let the new music industry ways prevent them from being as original as possible. In an attempt to continue combatting the norm, the band released their second LP One Stop Shop on July 22.
“Automation” is the fourth track on the new album. This song is the perfect embodiement of Twen’s newer sound– funky, musically complex, catchy, and a spectacular showcase of Fitzsimmon’s insane vocal range. “Automation” has quickly become one of my favorite songs of the year, and I think other alt-rock lovers will find no difficulty in enjoying this song as well. If you want to hear it in person, make sure to check out “Automation” below!
