Sometimes I really can’t stand music, especially the newer stuff. I don’t mean that in a “I was born in the wrong generation kind of way” because I’m glad I live in the here and now. At my age—I say at 20—my taste in music is so diverse I confuse myself. I enjoy anything from hardcore rap to film scores. I was raised on 70’s-90’s soft rock and 90’s rap because that is what my parents enjoyed, and that plays a part in my likes and dislikes for music.
With all the music being made, many artists can go relatively unnoticed or even become forgotten. I praise the people of past generations who lived without music streaming because without Spotify spoon-feeding me the music I enjoy, I would be a lost babe in the woods that is content.
Caroline Polachek is an artist in her 30s who is just now starting to rise in popularity. She recently released an album this year called “Desire, I Want To Turn Into You.” Off the first listen, I found myself not really understanding the music or the lyrics at all. Polachek uses a lot of electronic sounds in all her songs which prohibited me from taking them seriously because I thought they sounded goofy. I’m not saying I dislike them. My thoughts are that these types of songs will become more popular in the coming years. Music and art change so much that it can be hard to catch up with, which is why I think I am not a fan of the album. Polachek’s vocals are sometimes very angelic and, combined with the electronic feeling, create what is perceived as a good song. Other times, her voice feels very heavily autotuned.
Polachek put her heart into this album. I can feel her emotions in the songs and that is my favorite part about the album. The lyrics are a little repetitive and sometimes lack storytelling which is one of my driving desires for the entertainment I enjoy. The point of this album is not to accept the norms of music but to create something new and meaningful that makes us question the stereotypes we push onto music. I gave up on trying to understand the lyrics or the music and just enjoyed listening.
People try so hard to find meaning in things that don’t need meaning. Art is more about feeling than meaning, and we should all strive to coddle our emotional reaction to art rather than try to pick it apart.
My thoughts sound like something my grandpa would say about “not understanding new music.” Music has changed a lot over the years, and my grandpa is not wrong about not understanding it, but in the case of this album, I see now why you are not supposed to enjoy it or understand it. “Desire, I Want To Turn Into You” is a love letter to the community of listeners who have been saying this for years. The album also displays how a creator’s fingerprints are all over their creations; She put her personality into her work and inspires me to do the same with my work regardless of what I do.
When I hear someone say “Art and beauty are subjective,” I understand now that they are completely right. I don’t think I’m going to add Caroline Polachek to my daily rotation of music as of now but my eyes were opened to the possibility of exploration into the realm of new music.
