Letter 3 - Inside You There Are Two Wolves
It's sad girl indie season and the best hip-hop album of the year just dropped - plus some cosy autumnal films.
Hi,
I planned to write about Tyler, the Creator’s new album Chromokopia, but as it’s number one album in Ireland, the UK, the US and Australia, recommending it here feels antithetical to the primary purpose of this newsletter, which is to get you to listen to music you otherwise might not. With that in mind I’ve recommended some recent hip-hop records that I probably prefer to Chromokopia.
In a drastic tonal shift, the indie girlies are releasing albums so fast at the minute its hard to keep up, so I’ve picked a handful from the past few weeks to help your Seasonal Affective Disorder really bed-in.
I tried to come up with a tenuous link between these two sets of releases, and all I could come up with was Clairo’s recent appearances singing the hook on Crime Pays at Freddie Gibbs gigs.
Finally I’ve included a few (non-horror/Halloween) films that I generally watch every autumn, as they perfectly suit this time of year.
If you missed either my last two letters, you can read them below:
Please like & subscribe, share with anyone who would enjoy, and let me know what you think of any of the recommendations (either directly or in the comments below).
Much love, Odhran x
Music - Recent Releases
You can listen to a playlist of the songs I’ve recommended on Apple and Spotify.
Freddie Gibbs - You Only Die 1nce
Genre(s): Hip-hop & gangsta rap.
For fans of: Vince Staples, Schoolboy Q & Earl Sweatshirt.
Songs to try: Brick Fees, It’s Your Anniversary & Wolverine.
Gangsta Gibbs is back with a surprise album drop. Freddie’s last album was 2022’s Soul Sold Separately, which despite being his biggest commercially successful album and a record I really like, paled in comparison to his collaborations with Madlib (Piñata and Bandana) and The Alchemist (Alfredo) in terms of quality. This led to whispers (from morons) that Freddie was carried by his producers on those records.
You Only Die 1nce (YOD1) completely dispels any such nonsense - Gibbs is absolutely firing with a host of different producers in what might be the best hip-hop album of 2024. From a technical perspective, he is now undeniably amongst the greatest rappers of all time, and outside of Kendrick I’m not sure any active rapper is at his level - some of the flow shifts on Brick Fees are crazy, and his innate ability to layer each syllable to act as a beat on top of the drum machine under his bars is a marvel.
Always the comedian, YOD1 contains genuinely funny skits that don’t interrupt the flow of the album, nor prevent me from playing it out loud in company (looking at you, Biggie). There’s also bars on the record clearly written in the past few weeks, e.g the chorus on On The Set starts with the line “Goddamn, they done got Diddy”.
In some ways YOD1 reveals Freddie introspective side e.g. on It’s Your Anniversary, he discusses his past relationships and the fact other rappers are scared to collab with him as they think he’s “too controversial”. This introspection isn’t surprising - YOD1 is in conversation with his 2018 album You Only Live 2wice (YOL2), a similarly self-examining and revealing record released in the wake of his acquittal of a sexual assault charge in 2016. Ever in the mire of extremely public and often embarrassing disputes with ex partners, YOD1 dropped several months after a twitter spat with his ex Jasmin Greenway, which included Greenway alleging physical abuse, and Gibbs posting screenshots he believes demonstrate the allegations are false.
Thematically YOD1 has biblical tones and shows Freddie examining the error of his ways, with the devil pursuing him across the record, tempting him back to wicked ways (e.g. on Status and the interlude Nobody Like You). It would be lovely if this reformed character crystallised, but we’ve been here before; on YOL2 he acknowledged he lost his way and lays out a path to salvation (to be clear, from his lifestyle, not the sexual assault charges in respect of which he has always maintained innocence and was exonerated from by all evidence (including DNA)). He may have partially found that salvation in his career since, but the fact I know more about his personal life than any other musician, leaves me skeptical.
Setting aside any assessment of Freddie Gibb’s character, in my eyes he’s one of the greatest of all time - he is the funniest and (again, Kenny aside) most technically gifted rapper around, and YOD1 represents an astonishing level of consistency from a 42 year old rapper, an age at which most of his peers are, frankly, washed.
Haley Heynderickx - Seed of a Seed
Genre(s): Indie-folk.
For fans of: Joni Mitchell, Phoebe Bridgers & Big Thief.
Songs to try: Gemini, Foxglove & Seed of a Seed.
Six long years after her debut album I Need to Start a Garden, my heart swells as I hear the frantic finger plucking of my favourite modern indie girlie. Seed of a Seed was recorded amongst the trees in a wood cabin recording studio in the hills outside Heynderickx’s hometown of Portland, Oregon. Nature and our connection, or disconnect with it is an ever-present theme across this record. You feel the importance of it, and a carefully crafted atmosphere associated with it, in each song.
The opening track Gemini features a split-personality view of Haley being a woman addicted to her phone, avoiding texts and purchasing “useless things” for “someone’s profit”, and being a woman who pulls “the fuck over / just to stare at purple clover off the highway / and see the clover as a gift / a gift I almost missed / you know I finally begin to feel better”. This dichotomy speaks to the core of this album; the challenge of existing as a consumer in the modern world, when really simplicity of life, primarily in the form of connection with nature, is what we crave, as Haley sings on the title track “like I need / a silent mind / in the consumer flood / and if I’m lucky / maybe a glass of wine / and if I’m lucky / maybe a hand next to mine … / if I get lucky / maybe a simple life / maybe some free time.”
Haley is a fantastic guitarist, something that really sets her aside from many of her peers - her intricate but metronomic plucking a constant cosy bed for her lyricism. The addition of strings at various points gives the album significant depth sonically, and musically this record is at least on-par, if not better, than her debut.
I don’t know why it took over 6 years for her sophomore album to come out, but given it took three attempts to record I Need To Start A Garden, I’m not hugely surprised. I’m just glad she’s back.
Spotify - Apple Music - Bandcamp
Doechii - Alligator Bites Never Heal
Genre(s): Hip-hop & R&B
For fans of: Wu-Tang Clan, Nicki Minaj & Lauryn Hill.
Songs to try: Denial is a River, Nissan Altima & Catfish.
Fucking hell. A 19-track mixtape from the hottest act on the come up in hip-hop today. Alligator Bites Never Heal (Alligator) is a tour de force, showcasing the TDE signed rapper’s versatility and skill across a seemingly never ending list of vocal and songwriting disciplines.
I was locked in from the opening track and all-in by track 3, The Pharcyde-reminiscent Boiled Peanuts, which also contains an impressive Nicki Minaj-like vocal fry). But I was completely obsessed by the fourth song Denial is a River, which is structured around a conversation with her therapist alter-ego, features incredible Wu-Tang/ODB style rhyming and flow, and ends with Doechii literally gasping for air.
Some of the lyricism is genuinely hilarious, with the nonsensical Boom Bap presumably being a two-fingers-up to someone who criticised her for not properly rapping, and her breath control on the following track Nissan Altima leaves no doubt to her skill on the mic.
I can’t list all the other styles on display across the mixtape - she shows off her R&B singing chops on Bloom and the Channel Orange-inspired Beverly Hills & the bright synths on Slide allow her rapping to be more pop in tone. Honestly I could have listed about 12 different sub-genres at the top of this section.
The only draw back on this record is that it is very much a mixtape and not a coherent album, and it does feel like Doechii is holding something back here. It’s clear that Alligator is not an attempt to achieve critical or commercial success, but to show the world how talented she is, and to set the stage for the soon-to-be queen of hip-hop to take her place on the throne.
Flower Face - Girl Prometheus
Genre(s): Indie folk, alt-rock & dream pop.
For fans of: Phoebe Bridgers, Mitski & Clairo.
Songs to try: Cat’s Cradle, Valentine & Eternal Sunshine.
Had your heart broken recently? Needing a cathartic cry, or an album to wallow to? Look no further than Canadian singer-songwriter Flower Face (Ruby McKinnon).
There’s a moment on the opening track Biblical Love, which I’ll not spoil, that makes it very clear this album is a top tier sad girl indie record. If you’ve been looking for something to scratch the Phoebe Bridgers itch, this is the perfect solution.
Her lyricism is clever and stunningly relatable for anyone who has experienced heartbreak. Ruby’s ability to relay that feeling into her lyrics through vivid imagery is impressive. It’s a raw and exposing record that took a lot of bravery to write - her deep sadness seeps through every word.
It’s not all doom and gloom - there’s real uplifting moments both musically within the strings and drums kicking in at the end of Eternal Sunshine, and in the strength found in the lyrics on the final track If I Beg You. There’s some nice stuff about her songwriting process in an interview here. I have no idea why Flower Face has made such little impact outside of Canada so far, but I don’t think it’ll stay that way.
Spotify - Apple Music - Bandcamp
Some similar records I recommend
Laura Marling - Patterns in Repeat: 4-time Mercury Prize shortlisted Laura Marling managed against all odds to release another very good indie-folk record. Marling’s last album, Song for Our Daughter (2020), was written to an imaginary/fictional daughter, and Patterns in Repeat can be seen as a sequel to that record, this time written about parenting her (not-imaginary) daughter, born in 2023. Thematically that was a bit of gamble, but glad it worked out for her and that she didn’t have a son instead. The album really is brilliant though - will it win the Mercury Prize in 2025? Probably not but I’m sure it will get nominated (always the bridesmaid etc) but its still worth checking out Child of Mine and Caroline. Spotify - Apple Music - Bandcamp (Partisan Records).
Westside Gunn & DJ Drama - Still Praying: It's odd that Westside Gunn released a pretty mid album October 13th (And Then You Pray For Me), a fairly strong 5 song EP on October 31st (11), and then later that same day, released this stellar album. Not sure what kind of release strategy that is, but this is a very good record (and would be a great record with approx 20% less DJ Drama). Give Beef Bar & Dr. Britt Baker a listen. Spotify - Apple Music (Griselda Records).
Soccer Mommy - Evergreen: Soccer Mommy couldn’t let a slew of fellow sad girl indie acts release records without getting in on the fun. Evergreen is a return to the sound of her first album Color Theory and away from the shoegaze sound of Sometimes, Forever. But it doesn’t feel like a regression, and in many ways is an improvement on her debut, except it doesn’t have a song as good as circle the drain, but few records do. Give Lost and M a listen. Spotify - Apple Music - Bandcamp (Lorna Vista Recordings).
TV & Film
A complete list of every film and TV show I’ve recommended in the Odhracle is available on Letterboxd.
Autumnal Films (that aren’t Halloween or horror)
When Harry Met Sally (1989)
Genre(s): Romcom.
For fans of: You’ve Got Mail, Sleepless in Seattle & Notting Hill.
UK Streaming: MGM+ via Prime
The goat romcom, the goat autumnal movie and maybe my favourite film. There is nothing more autumnal than Meg Ryan and Billy Crystal strolling through the red and amber leaves of central park, with Meg in her lil’ hat. Incidentally I’d kill for Billy’s white jumper, they don’t make them like that anymore - 5 stars.
You’ve Got Mail (1998)
Genre(s): Romcom.
For fans of: When Harry Met Sally, Sleepless in Seattle & Notting Hill.
UK Streaming: Rental-only
Though inferior to When Harry Met Sally, primarily due to Nora Ephron directing rather than Rob Reiner (no disrespect to Nora, she’s a real one). Also, much of the technology hasn’t aged well, nor has the redemption arc of the corporate tycoon, it’s still a charming film nonetheless. It’s less fitting to this theme than When Harry Met Sally, but its about book shops which feel inherently autumnal, and it’s very cosy, so its going in - 3.5 stars.
Dead Poet’s Society (1989)
Genre(s): Drama.
For fans of: Good Will Hunting, The Holdovers & The Talented Mr. Ripley.
UK Streaming: Disney+
A tough watch in some regards these days, but a really beautiful cosy film. Robin Williams is such a comforting presence. It was actually filmed in November and over the later winter months, so it ticks enough autumnal boxes for me - 4 stars.
Fantastic Mr. Fox (2009)
Genre(s): Comedy, Animation & Adventure.
For fans of: The Grant Budapest Hotel, Ocean’s 11 & Wallace & Gromit.
UK Streaming: Disney+ & Amazon Prime
The critical feature an autumnal movie has to have is trees, and leaves, and lots of them - so Wes Anderson’s Academy Award nominated stop-motion animation telling of Roald Dahl’s story fits the bill, they even live in a tree. Also woodland creatures also feel fairly autumnal, gathering their supplies pre-hibernation. I do think its likely set in early autumn, as apple harvest season is in October, I think - 4.5 stars.
Twin Peaks (1990 - 1991), Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me (1992) & Twin Peaks: The Return (2017)
Genre(s): Mystery, Drama & Thriller.
For fans of: (nothing is really like Twin Peaks, but) The Sopranos, The Leftovers & Atlanta.
UK Streaming: Paramount+
Ok I know I recommended this in the last letter, but see above re trees. There’s literally no show or movie with more trees than Twin Peaks. Also sitting in the RR diner with hot cup of coffee and cherry pie is perfectly autumnal - 5 stars.