Tag: rnb

Geekly Tunes: March 2026

Published on by KyraLeave a comment

Hey, hey, Geekly Gang! Kyra Kyle here. Today, our writers share what they’ve been listening to over the past month. Feel free to share what you’ve been listening to in the comments. We’re all part of the Geekly Gang. I’ll get things rolling with what I’ve been listening to during the month of March.

Kyra’s Tunes

I’ve been listening to Childish Gambino’s “Lithonia” on repeat. The soulful voice. The vocal harmonies. The fusion between Gospel, Rock, and R&B. Ah! I love it. If you haven’t yet listened to “Lithonia” (named after an Atlanta suburb), do your ears a favor and give the Official Audio Video a play on YouTube. “Lithonia’s” Official Music Video is also great, but you don’t get the full song. I also recommend watching the Music Video after the Audio Video. And after watching “Lithonia’s” Music Video, you’ll learn why there are so many reaction videos to that music video. Yowza!

Bando Stone & the New World (the album in which “Lithonia” originates) is a return to form for Childish Gambino. Some of his more recent albums (Altavista) didn’t hit the same as Awaken, My Love!, which includes the amazing “Redbone.” Brando Stone & the New World shows Childish Gambino (soon to go by Donald Glover as a music artist) at the peak of his powers. And I love how this album serves to set up Glover’s upcoming movie of the same name, Brando Stone & the New World. I can’t wait to watch the film. Until then, I’ll listen to Brando Stone & the New World on repeat.

I’ve also been kicking it old school with Nirvana’s In Utero. This album deserves all the praise it receives. Sure, there are the singles “Heart-Shaped Box,” “All Apologies,” and “Pennyroyal Tea,” but the deep cuts set In Utero apart. It may be blasphemous, but I’d say In Utero is slightly better than Nevermind. “Serve the Servants” opens with a bang. The opening lyrics, “Teenage angst has paid off well, now I’m bored and old” let the audience know this is a different Nirvana. “Serve the Servants” does a great job of melding autobiographical lyrics with working-class anthem ones. The track even sounds vaguely like surf rock.

“Serve the Servants” is an excellent opening track, but “Scentless Apprentice” marks the direction Nirvana may have taken had Cobain stuck around for a few more years. “Scentless Apprentice” was Nirvana’s biggest sonic departure on the album. Not bad for a track with an original name of “Chuck Chuck Fo Fuck.” The nickname is a reference to how the rhythm guitar line sounds.

Frances Bean Cobain (Kurt’s daughter) has cited “Dumb” as her favorite Nirvana song. According to Frances Bean, she sees “Dumb” as her father showing his vulnerability. And “Rape Me” was an attempt by Cobain to speak his mind against violence toward women. His previous work in Nevermind fell on deaf ears. Despite dropping all pretenses, “Rape Me” may be one of Cobain’s most misunderstood songs.

All of this and the singles folks know so well make In Utero a fantastic album.

I went from Nirvana to the other band that dominated the early Nineties, R.E.M.. Ironically, R.E.M. was struggling to finish their eighth studio album, Automatic for the People, so lead singer Michael Stipe, who suffered from writer’s block, reached out to Kurt Cobain. Cobain joked with Stipe that people thought Nirvana used too many yeahs in their songs. And Cobain did have a habit of finishing a line with a yeah. Cobain challenged Stipe to write a song with a lot of yeahs. Stipe accepted the challenge and wrote the classic, “Man on the Moon.”

Mott the Hoople and the Game of Life
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Andy Kaufman and the wrestling match
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Monopoly, Twenty-One, Checkers, and Chess
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Mister Fred Blassie in a breakfast mess
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Let’s play Twister, let’s play Risk
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
I’ll see you in heaven if you make the list
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah

The number of “yeahs” in “Man on the Moon” dwarfed the ones Cobain sang with Nirvana, and it went on to become Automatic for the People’s second single. I would say something similar for Automatic for the People as I did with In Utero, that obviously the singles were fantastic, but the deep cuts elevate this album to iconic status. But half of Automatic for the People’s tracks would get released as singles. That’s a lot of singles: “Drive,” “Man on the Moon,” “The Sidewinder Sleeps Tonite,” “Everybody Hurts,” “Nightswimming,” and “Find the River.” Yes. Any two or three of these singles could anchor an album. Automatic for the People had six. Woah!

Despite half of this album being released as singles, I still have at least a couple of deep cuts. “Try Not to Breathe” is haunting. Honestly, I thought it had been released as a single; it’s that good. “Sweetness Follows” is one of my favorite tracks on Automatic for the People. The strings on this track are arranged by none other than John Paul Jones, Led Zeppelin’s bassist. Throw in the awesome instrumental and “Monty Got a Raw Deal,” and you get one of those few albums that don’t have a single skip track. You’ll want to listen to them all. I need to pick up Automatic for the People on vinyl.

I’ll finish my segment by including the other song I’ve had on repeat this past month, “Move Your Feet.” This infectious 2003 dance-punk song by Danish pop duo Junior Senior will get anyone off their feet. While I like “Move Your Feet’s” official music video (with its pixel art pictured above), I’ve watched/listened more to one of Junior Senior’s live performances of the song. I didn’t think the band could pull off a great live performance of a song like this. It sounded too produced. But Junior Senior proves they don’t need a silly little thing like autotune.

The full band adds an extra layer of authenticity. The backup singers make “Move Your Feet” come alive. And I’m talking about the “Oh Yeah” woman singer, providing a Disco-like melody leading into the chorus, and the “From Downtown” man singer, harmonizing with Junior on the chorus. The drummer is mesmerizing whenever he clashes the cymbals. This live version of “Move Your Feet” is near-perfect. I prefer it to the studio version. With everything happening in the world right now, sometimes you just need to “Move your feet and feel united.”

That’s all I have for what I’ve been listening to this past month. Let’s see what tunes Skye picks.

Skye’s Tunes

I have succumbed to the K-Pop Demon Hunters hype. I did this a long time ago; I listened to the soundtrack on repeat for the past month. What can I say? K-Pop Demon Hunters is a good movie with a fun soundtrack that’s perfect for dancing. Considering how much I love to dance, you can see why the K-Pop Demon Hunters soundtrack would appeal to me. I’ll keep this entry brief since I know Season has previously discussed this soundtrack, but if y’all would like me to do a breakdown of K-Pop Demon Hunters’ story, themes, and characters, let me know in the comments.

Sometimes you need something to keep you going. “and the day goes on” has been providing me with sufficient energy over the past month. For those who’re unfamiliar, “and the day goes on” is a song uploaded to the YouTube channel Bill Wurtz, which is well-known for the viral video “history of the entire world, i guess.” There isn’t much rhyme or reason to Bill Wurtz’s content, yet they still manage to capture an uplifting tone and a hummable melody while making no sense at all in “and the day goes on.” If you need a little pick-me-up, “and the day goes on” is very good for that. However, I must warn you that it’s gonna be stuck in your head forever.

Hey, hey! Kyra Kyle here again. Those are the tunes our writers have been listening to over the past month. Let us know what you’ve been listening to in the comments, Geekly Gang. Thank you for reading, and wherever you are, I hope you’re having a great day.

Geekly Tunes: November 2025

Published on by KyraLeave a comment

Happy Wednesday, Geekly Gang! Today, our writers share what they’ve been listening to over the past month. Feel free to share what you’ve been listening to, Geekly Gang. I’ll begin by sharing my monthly tunes.

Kyra’s Tunes

Typically, I don’t pay much attention to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, but this year’s class was an interesting one. Headliners include Cyndi Lauper, Soundgarden, Joe Cocker, The White Stripes, Chubby Checker, Outkast, and Warren Zevon. Wow! What a group! I’m surprised it took Warren Zevon over 30 years to make the Hall. Notable exclusions like the Excitable Boy himself are the biggest reason why I don’t pay much attention to the Hall’s Inductees. Zevon’s Excitable Boy is a hallmark Rock album. “Ah-woo! Werewolves of London.” And I love “Lawyers, Guns, and Money.” The latter song is as pertinent today as it was when it was first released.

Many members of this inductee class are no longer with us, so several other artists paid tribute. Iggy Pop was hilarious when he sang the beat of The White Stripes’ “Seven-Nation Army.” The entire crowd joined the fun. And while there was a great version of Soundgarden’s “Black Hole Sun,” Lily Cornell Silver’s rendition of “Fell On Black Days,” with a picture of her father (Soundgarden’s lead singer, Chris Cornell) over her shoulder, sends chills.

While “Black Hole Sun” is a banger, I much prefer “Fell On Black Days.” It better explores Cornell’s range. Both Cornells. Lily did her father proud.

I’m getting choked up again. Chris Cornell (and his close friend Linkin Park frontman Chester Bennington) was always upfront about his depression. We lost Cornell and Bennington too soon.

My second entry pulls double duty: it’s a meme and a song. The Remix Brothers did a great job poking fun at President Trump’s Autism announcement from a handful of weeks ago. Here’s a link if you’d like to check out the remix. In short, the study President Trump references during this announcement says the exact opposite of what Trump declares. There is no correlation between Tylenol and Autism. Autism is hereditary. I’m a good example of the rise of Autism diagnoses. My daughter was diagnosed. I had some markers, and there’s a biological component to Autism, so I got checked myself and was diagnosed later in life. Tylenol is the only safe fever reducer pregnant women can take. Unchecked fevers can lead to issues far worse than Autism. Don’t listen to Trump. Returning to The Remix Brothers’ video, it’s eerie how they’re able to make Trump sound like Eminem. The Trump in this video has flow.

Sometimes one must laugh at the Idiocracy The United States has become. The Remix Brother’s “Trump Autism Remix” does a great job of doing that. Trump doesn’t need a third term. Can we get Dwayne Elizondo Mountain Dew Camacho as the 2028 Republican candidate for President?

That’s all I have for this month. Let’s check in with Skye.

Skye’s Tunes

It’s been a minute since I first heard The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess, and I was happy to revisit it this month. I forgot how much I enjoyed it. Listening to songs like “Femininomenon,” “After Midnight,” “Pink Pony Club,” and “Casual” reminds me of why this album is in my vinyl collection. I specifically own the Peaches & Cream version, which contains the songs “Super Graphic Ultra Modern Girl,” “HOT TO GO,” “My Kink is Karma,” “Picture You,” and “Kaleidoscope.” While it’s nice knowing I’m lucky to have bonus content, it feels weird having an album with an odd number of sides. I need to remind myself that the D Side is blank, and I’m worried one of these days I’m gonna scratch it by accident.

Despite my love of upbeat pop songs, I enjoy mellow vibes and soothing tracks. Enter The Very Best of Roberta Flack. Songs like “Killing Me Softly with His Song,” “Feel Like Makin’ Love,” “Where Is the Love,” and “If I Ever See You Again” are great for soothing vibes. Some people say that a nap is all you need after a long day of work, but The Very Best of Roberta Flack is all I need. I’ve been meaning to pay homage to Roberta Flack after her passing earlier this year. We’ve lost too many legends recently. Rest in peace.

On a lighter note, Olivia Rodrigo’s SOUR has been another of my staples this month. Rodrigo’s musical stylings are easy to jam to. I get lost in the melodies of songs like “Traitor,” “Drivers License,” “1 Step Forward, 3 Steps Back,” and “Enough for You” while I’m busy working on projects. I can’t deny that part of me is transported back to my teenage years whenever I pop in SOUR. I can’t imagine why that is. I still relate to many themes present in SOUR. Wherever Olivia is, I hope she’s okay.

Sublime is another classic album from my childhood. Understandably, my parents never shared the entire album with me and my sister, but certain (clean) songs quickly became staples. We would sing “Santeria” or “What I Got” as loud as we could. Being a kid, I never understood anything these songs were saying, but I loved them just because we were having fun. I love the nostalgic feelings I get from this album.

That’s all we have for this month’s Geekly Tunes. Let us know what music you’ve been listening to over the past month, Geekly Gang. Thank you for reading, and wherever you are, I hope you’re having a great day.