Thank you for reading Perfect Sound Whatever. I write updates on the latest music news in New Orleans, feature stories, album reviews, and more. Whether you are from New Orleans or not, my goal is to help you discover new music; provide coverage to local artists, venues, and others creating the music scene in NOLA; and start discussions about music. For questions, comments, or concerns, please feel free to email me at daltonspangler25@gmail.com.
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Today in the newsletter: Updates on New Orleans music, new local music, upcoming shows, a feature written by me and the question “Who is your favorite artist?”
Updates:
NOLA artist, Dominic Scott contributed to the latest Sevyn album.
NOLA Mix Records celebrated its 6th anniversary on Sept. 18.
In the News:
The Latest from New Orleans/Gulf Coast Music:
Upcoming Shows in New Orleans:
Anne Elise Hastings @ Carnaval Lounge - Thursday - 8 p.m. ($8)
Jank Setup + Zoomst + Hans Williams @ Gasa Gasa - Friday - 8 p.m. ($10)
12th Planet w/ Guppi & Shiverz @ The Republic - Saturday ($15-28)
Work by me:
Feature on Hollise Murphy and the community outpouring following his passing
Who is your favorite artist?
My creativity is running on empty a bit this week and I had no idea what I wanted to write for this issue. My partner showed me a TikTok she watched that might make for a listicle-style article and I actually wanted to write it. Amazing! The video is by a Tik-Tok creator called @rosemarynthyme, who is strangely obsessed with Scooby-Doo, which is cool because her favorite of those movies is Zombie Island.
Anyway, the idea is “Who is your favorite artist?” depending on the context. Come up with your own and share with me. I’d love to see what answers people say.
Answer for a coworker you don’t know very well - Tyler, the Creator
Simply put, Tyler is the most famous artist I can call a favorite of mine. I’ve been a fan since the Loiter Squad days because I was an edgy teen who liked edgy humor. But he matured greatly and I did too. “Wolf,” “Flower Boy” and “Igor” are some of my favorite albums of all time. On top of all that, his influences on the world of DIY music helped create a path that many artist collectives are following today.
Seems safe until - Modest Mouse
They seem like a safe answer until I have to talk about their new releases or until I start thinking about my misanthropic, atheist phase in high school, which was heavily influenced by this band. I still love this band and have grown to appreciate them more, especially for their earlier releases.
Answer that gets a “Who?” response - Jeff Rosenstock
The number of times this has happened to me over the years- I really can’t keep track. It’s not like Rosenstock is all that obscure, but he seems well-known in certain circles. I vividly remember my history professor freshman year heckling the class because he thought our generation had no good music. I started arguing back with him and he asked what my favorite band was in front of the whole class. Although Rosenstock was my honest answer, it seemed like no one in the room knew. I backpedaled, stumbling over my words until landing on Clutch for some reason?
I’m testing to see if we had similar childhoods - Three Days Grace
My litmus test for wanna-be scene kids of late 2000s suburbia. This band was on repeat after my first date rejection in middle school. I also listened to most of my music on Youtube, and I fondly remember Halo 3 and Naruto music videos to tracks like “Riot” and “Animal I Have Become.”
We definitely had similar childhoods - Tenth Avenue North
You and I truly wanted to be emo so bad. But we just had to include Jesus, didn’t we?
If you know this I want you to know me - Mannequin Pussy
This one was really hard for me. I went with Mannequin Pussy just because you and I would probably have a lot of shared music tastes. We’d also both probably follow Missy on Twitter and could talk about her feed. She’s great.
You ask me what I listen to when I’m sad - Mount Eerie
Although most of his discography is pretty melancholy, if I need a good heart-shredding “A Crow Who Looked At Me” would be a 100-foot pit of spinning razors. This album helped me a great deal when I lost my grandfather and Phil Elverum is one of the best songwriters of the last 20 years.
You ask me what I listen to when I’m sad and you’re my therapist - Panucci’s Pizza or Jordaan Mason and the Horse Museum
I interpret this one as meaning sad music that is my most vulnerable. This one was tough to boil down to one artist because there are so many songs from various artists attached to all kinds of feelings. I chose these two because they both capture a raw, potent sadness despite the fact I can’t always personally relate to the lyrics. Jordaan Mason’s “Divorce Lawyers I Shaved My Head” puts me in a profoundly uncomfortable space because of its vivid imagery. Panucci’s Pizza has a couple of songs off “All The Toppings” in particular that throw me in a dark space. Their names are incredibly unrelated to the song’s contents, but one example is “Naruto Themed Sexting.”
Share your own answers. Comment on the blog or tweet @SoundWhatever your answers.
Support the newsletter
I started a Patreon because Substack’s minimum subscription cost is $5 a month which is way more than what most people would be willing to spend. So, I reworked the newsletter’s pay structure and benefits for those of you interested.
Patreon link: https://www.patreon.com/perfectsoundwhatever
$1 Tier - Patron Shoutout and Monthly Patron-Only Content
$2 Tier - Patron Shoutout, Monthly Patron-Only Content, and Personalized Music Recommendations (Monthly)
$3 Tier - Patron Shoutout, Monthly Patron-Only Content, Personalized Music Recommendations (Monthly), and you choose a topic, I’ll write about it.
Substack Tier - Patron Shoutout, Monthly Patron-Only Content, Personalized Music Recommendations (Monthly), you choose a topic, I’ll write about it and all-access to future merch/rewards (Stickers, pins, etc.).
Patron Shoutout - You will receive a personal thank you from me and a published thank you at the bottom of every newsletter
Monthly Patron-Only Content - At the end of each month I will publish one or more patron-only articles. These will usually be more long-form, time-consuming pieces with an informational bent to them.
Personalized Music Recommendations - We’ll correspond on your music tastes and what you are looking to discover. You will receive a list of singles/albums with my reasons for recommending them based on our correspondence.
You choose a topic, I will write about it - Pretty self-explanatory and please keep it within reason lol
Merch - I know this is something I’ve included in the past and has been something I’ve been exploring. I will likely have some small pieces of merchandise I can send out via mail soon.
I have a few supporters on Substack already, if you are interested in any or all of these benefits just send me a message via email @ daltonspangler25@gmail.com and I will be sure to include you in on them early. Otherwise, I will start in October.
Let me hear from you!
Send me love, hate, music recommendations, story tips, musicians you want to see interviewed, shows you want to see promoted, etc. by emailing me at daltonspangler25@gmail.com