HIT ME HARD AND SOFT

Billie Eilish is back with her third studio album, "Hit Me Hard and Soft". Still working with her brother, Finneas O'Connell (with the album recorded in his home studio), Eilish has expanded her sound, diving even more deeper into her own personal experiences and desires. 

No singles were released prior to the album's release on May 17th with Eilish proclaiming she doesn't like her work to be viewed out of context to the complete project. With that being said, a single has been dropped on the release date and the song, "Lunch" is certainly an eye opener from Eilish who had recently come out as bisexual. In this guitar-driven dance track, she details her lust for a woman by making a comparison to wanting to eat her like a noon-time meal.

Here are few more songs from the album I like and Eilish will be hitting the road with the Hit Me Hard and Soft World Tour with a start this fall in Canada.

RANDOM SIGHTS + SOUNDS

John Prine, the Grammy Award-winning, Americana singer/songwriter sadly lost his battle against COVID-19 and passed away from complications on April 7th at the age of seventy-three. He was certainly a brave fighter, having previously battled against throat and lung cancer while also having heart issues. Prine received the Recording Academy's Lifetime Achievement Award at this year's Grammys after years of writing wonderful songs filled with humor and thoughtful insights on the human condition. I have to admit I had never heard any of Prine's recordings but I am familiar with his songs. Two of my favorites are Bonnie Raitt's 1974 cover of his "Angel From Montgomery", a song about a married, middle-aged woman looking for an "angel" to help her escape from a life of desolation. The other is "Hello In There", a heartbreaking tune about aging that Bette Midler recorded for her debut album back in 1972.





Here are a few unexpected pairings that provide some wild musical duets I found as I traveled down a YouTube rabbit hole that I would like to share:









And finally here is Finneas, the recent winner of the Grammy Award for Producer of The Year (for his work on his sister, Billie Eilish's album) who is showing off his skills as a performer. The single, "Let's Fall In Love For The Night", from his debut EP, "Blood Harmony" which was released last year, now has a music video that was recently released. This fun and whimsical clip perfectly enhances the song, giving off a vibe that makes it feel like it would fit right in place with the movie, "La La Land":