The Spotlight Radio

Welcome to week 6 of The Spotlight where Sarah Mae and Aaron highlight and discuss their favorite records!

The first album we brought to the show this week was model-turned-pop-star Rina Sawayama’s 2017 EP, 'RINA.' We discuss the EP’s infectious pop style which harkens back to the Britney Spears era of pop music. Tracks such as “Ordinary Superstar” and “Alterlife” (which we mistakenly/affectionately call “Afterlife”) carries the nostalgia of the aughts, but are still unique to Sawayama’s voice and style. We also talk through the lyrics of the EP which as a whole, seek to grapple our relationships with technology. Our second album of the week was Toro y Moi’s 2019 album, 'Outer Peace.' We discuss the ways in which Toro y Moi is unafraid to challenge himself through his music. Aaron points out that Outer Peace is unlike any of his previous projects which is bold and unusual for many artists. The album within itself takes on many different styles and we showcase that by contrasting tracks like “Ordinary Pleasure” and “Monte Carlo (feat. WET)” with one another. We hope you’ll give these projects the listen they deserve!

Join us for week 7 on October 28th for the next LIVE show!

Mondays at 6pm (EST) on wgmuradio.com

Welcome to week 5 of The Spotlight where Sarah Mae and Aaron highlight and discuss their favorite records!

This week we highlighted two of our favorite UK bands. First off we talked about the IDLES, a post-punk band from Bristol. We talked about their 2018 record Joy as an Act of Resistance, a record that although uses a very gritty production, lyrically, front man Joe Talbot, talks a lot about masculinity and the toxicity that it holds, love and growth, optimism and the current political climate in the UK. We discuss what the title of the record means to us and how Joe uses his witty lyrics to convey their theme of joy as an act of resistance. We also highlighted the 2016 record 'Bonito Generation' by Kero Kero Bonito a London based band comprised of front woman Sarah Bonito. 'Bonito Generation' their first full length record has a very cute/electronic pop production to it. Lyrically Sarah also sings a lot about optimism and their first sense of exposure into the industry. We also talk about the differences in sound between this record and their most recent 2018 record 'Time n' Place.' Make sure to give these records a listen and let us know what you think!

Join us on October 21st live from the studio for Ep. 6

Mondays at 6pm on wgmuradio.com

Welcome to week 4 of The Spotlight where Sarah Mae and Aaron highlight and discuss their favorite records!

This week we highlighted the 2019 record 'Titanic Rising' by Weyes Blood. A Baroque Pop album that incorporates a lot of themes of climate change, existentialism and modernism. Tracks like 'Movies' and 'Something to Believe' makes you think of the world we live in today. We dive into this record and discuss a lot of the instrumentation, the choices of timbre she uses, and her lyric choices. Following 'Titanic Rising' we discuss the 2018 record 'Be the Cowboy' by Mitski. An album that means so much to us as a whole and shows Mitski's constant growth as an artist. 'Be the Cowboy' is a record that uses a series of vignettes to reach an overreaching theme of wanting to be just like a cowboy and her love of music with tracks like 'Geyser.' Hope you enjoy this weeks episode! :-)

Join us next week for Ep. 5

Mondays at 6pm on wgmuradio.com

Welcome to week 3 of The Spotlight where Sarah Mae and Aaron highlight and discuss their favorite records!

This week we discussed two of our favorite records of 2019. Coming off his prolific 2017 record 'Flower Boy,' Tyler the Creator does it again! His 2019 record IGOR is packed with themes of love, jealousy and so much more! We discussed the themes behind tracks like NEW MAGIC WAND and the production off of tracks like RUNNING OUT TIME. Brace yourself for the blaring synthesizer chords on IGORS THEME as it starts off the show! The next record we talked about was Injury Reserve's 2019 self titled record, 'Injury Reserve.' Coming off of multiple EPs and Mixtape this is the first studio album that the rap trio is putting out after signing with their label. Injury Reserve is full of themes of brotherhood, growth, and the effect of the industry. With Parkers quirky production and Ritchies witty/emotional verses and Groggs powerful verses the group has become one of the better Hip Hop groups this year! Make sure to listen to 'IGOR' and 'Injury Reserve'

Join us next week for Ep. 4

Mondays at 6pm on wgmuradio.com

Welcome to Week 2 of The Spotlight where Sarah Mae and Aaron highlight and discuss their favorite records!!

This past week Sarah Mae highlighted one of her favorite albums from middle school, Metronomy's 2011 album 'The English Riviera.' On the show, Sarah Mae explains the emotional connection she has with this album; it holds special memories she has with her sister. Although the album has a sound that has been oversaturated since its 2011 release, it is nonetheless enjoyable. "The Bay" is her personal favorite of the record. Aaron highlighted a very special album that holds a lot of sentiment, The Pedrito Martinez Group self titled 2013 record. The Pedrito Martinez Group an Afro Latin Jazz album highlights a lot original Cuban music known as Timba. An exemplary album that was on NPR's best albums of the year list and was nominated for a Grammy. Give these albums a listen!

Join us next week for Ep.3

Mondays at 6pm on wgmuradio.com

Welcome back to The Spotlight, where Sarah Mae and Aaron highlight and discuss their favorite records!!

Our first episode back we highlighted the 2019 mixtape, 'Angels Pulse' by the one and only Blood Orange (Dev Hynes) which carries several themes of grief and growth. Coming off of his prolific 2018 album, 'Negro Swan,' we dive in to what this mixtapes means in relation to his previous record and what it means to us. The next album we highlighted was the 2019 Steve Lacy debut album, 'Apollo XXI' which carries an overarching theme of self discovery and acceptance and according to Steve Lacy himself is his "coming of age record." Coming off of his 2018 record with The Internet, 'Hive Mind,' he goes in a different direction for his solo debut release and we discuss what that means to us.

Join us next week for Ep. 2

Mondays at 6pm on wgmuradio.com