My Playlist

About the DJ: Alden is a high school student at Garfield High School, in the 2017 graduating class. More interested in music than writing in his free time, he’s been writing his own material for a few years now, primarily electronic and orchestral or both. He hopes to study biotechnological genetics or music production/management for a career and to be honestly happy and self-loving for a lifetime.

1. CLPPNG by clipping
We all know and love Sub Pop Records, and if you don’t, then you don’t exist. But I can see why you wouldn’t (at least immediately) like clipping. Not only is their funky grammar funky, but it’s also is a fusion of noisehop and straight-up gangster rap. Yet, isn’t this extreme eclecticism enough to make you want to listen to it? I find that the answer is not only yes, but that it’s especially great if you look at the lyrics as more of a poetic observation of poor, hood culture, not just an glamorization of gangsta culture. Look them up, and you'll find you either hate ‘em or love ‘em.

2. Einstein on the Beach by Philip Glass
Philip Glass is a minimalist composer who’s become undeniably important and influential throughout all of music, but especially so of modern classical. He’s written a number of operas, but most notable is his first and most popular, Einstein on the Beach, written and performed in 1976. It's almost 5 hours long, with no definite plot and no intermission. The score is amazing; it’s playful, ridiculously minimal, gorgeous, and overall very, very likeable. And the choreography, lighting, read texts, and everything else about it is pure artistic sublimity. Get with it.

3. In Return by ODESZA
Released a few months ago, this is easily one of the best albums to come locally all year. If you’ve heard any of ODESZA's previous material, you know it’s chill. Specifically, it’s some very nicely produced chillwave that not only maintains an organic trend, but moreso a danceable one. Here, ODESZA provides a much more developed sound than their previous releases, with more guest vocalists, longer song lengths, and more-gorgeous-than-usual production style. You almost feel bad for jiving along to it and feel like you should just be and listen as its gorgeous waveforms wash over you in the pristine cloud of catchiness and organic LP that it is. With such singles as "Sun Models" and "Say My Name" and the flowing-better-than-water quality of it as a whole, In Return is nothing short of a modern local classic.

4. The Money Store by Death Grips
I’m one of the sadly overwhelmingly large amount of people who will look into, and get into, an artist/band after they’ve already broken up or died. The same holds true with the infamous experimental and industrial hip hop group Death Grips; they broke up on July 2 of this year. Their albums are neurotic, painful, inhuman, and overly visceral, to say the least. Yet that’s what makes Death Grips so enticing, and even enlightening — that we all share these qualities, whether we like to acknowledge them or not. I suppose I’m recommending them as an entire group to check out, but The Money Store is easily the best album they ever made. Go out and check it.

5. Bumbershoot 2015
I’m not going to say I had the most interesting, most exhilarating, or most ethereal summer ever because I didn’t. It wasn’t boring, persay, there just wasn’t that much notable about it. However, I was extremely excited for Bumbershoot, considering that not only had I bought a three-day pass, but that the lineup was as amazing as it was —the Wu-Tang Clan, the Replacements, Elvis Costello, ScHoolboy Q, Savant, Manatee Commune, Pickwick, La Luz, and almost 100 amazing others. And that’s not even mentioning the sublime non-musical arts programs: writers for The Simpsons, writers for The Onion, Tom Robbins himself, and Bill Nye. BILL NYE, yo. Nothing’s solid for next year's Bumbershoot right now, but rumors involve Macklemore and Ryan Lewis, Soundgarden, Allen Stone, and Gifted Gab. Fingers crossed. Now, please, get your presale tickets soon! The first presale is all three days for just $99. Only $99! Mark your calendars, y’all.