Song of the Week: The Late Summer Melancholy of Zach Bryan and Kacey Musgraves’ “I Remember Everything”
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The post Song of the Week: The Late Summer Melancholy of Zach Bryan and Kacey Musgraves’ “I Remember Everything” appeared first on Consequence.
Song of the Week delves into the fresh songs we just can’t get out of our heads. Find these tracks and more on our Spotify Top Songs playlist, and for our favorite new songs from emerging artists, check out our Spotify New Sounds playlist. This week, Zach Bryan and Kacey Musgraves embrace the dog days of summer.
It’s late August, and it’s hot out there. It’s the time of year Fitzgerald wrote about in The Great Gatsby, and the kind of heat Tennessee Williams steeped his characters in throughout A Streetcar Named Desire. It’s overwhelmingly warm, particularly here in the South, in a way where it’s too late to romanticize it; it just feels oppressive. It feels like melancholy.
For as hellish as it is at the moment, the timing couldn’t have been better for Zach Bryan and Kacey Musgraves to release their new duet, “I Remember Everything.” There are a few different collaborations on Bryan’s new self-titled LP, including team-ups with The Lumineers, Sierra Ferrell, and The War and Treaty, but working with Musgraves feels like a no-brainer for the artist who built his reputation on strong songwriting that feels homespun without veering too far into hokey.
“I Remember Everything” is set on the water as a beachy summer romance comes to a close. “The sand from your hair is blowin’ in my eyes/ Blame it on the beach, grown men don’t cry,” Bryan sings. When it’s Musgraves’ turn to chime in, she does so with a line that is so utterly and quintessentially her: “You’re drinkin’ everything to ease your mind/ But when the hell are you gonna ease mine?” It’s the sort of quietly clever lyric she conditioned us all to expect with her most beloved project, Golden Hour, and if there’s one thing Musgraves is almost always game for, it’s a song about yearning.
There’s a wistfulness to “I Remember Everything,” laid over simple guitars with the barest touch of strings towards the end. These two might as well be playing together on the front porch, especially considering the fact that they’re the sole writers on the song. “I Remember Everything” is for those of us who sometimes have trouble untangling threads of nostalgia from reality: “I wish I didn’t, but I do remember every moment on the nights with you,” they sing together on the chorus, coming together one last time.
In a time when so much (mainstream) country music feels boring, forced, or, worst of all, written exclusively for the ease and safety of a radio hit, Bryan and Musgraves have consistently been breaths of fresh air. Together, that energy is a gale.
— Mary Siroky
Associate Editor
Honorable Mentions:
L’Rain — “Pet Rock”
L’Rain has returned with “Pet Rock,” a psychedelic, majestic slice off her forthcoming third album, I Killed Your Dog. Though the album’s title suggests some kind of carnage or violence, “Pet Rock” is much more concerned with breakthroughs, expansion, and release. The trippy, pinwheeling guitars are more central to the track than L’Rain’s hypnotic, heavily-filtered vocals, resulting in a hodge-podge of psychedelia that deepens as the song unfolds. “Pet Rock” may feature two distinct halves, but both are indicative of L’Rain’s utterly unique and inimitable style. — Paolo Ragusa
Hemlocke Springs — “Enknee1”
At long last, Hemlocke Springs has announced her debut EP, Going…Going…Gone!, and shared the bubbly single “Enknee1.” The track falls in line with her recent synth-forward sonics and now hi-fi production; after the second chorus, she cracks the song open for a brief half-time explosion, her laser beam vocals cutting clearly above hazy synths and psychedelic flourishes. With each new song, Hemlocke Springs — who has undoubtedly taken her time crafting her output, and prioritizes a release feeling deliberate over obligatory — shows a different side of herself. On “Enknee1,” it’s the tension between deep yearning and twitching anxiety, her stylized alt-pop becoming more personalized with each skittering beat and full-throated roar. — P. Ragusa
The Armed — “Public Grieving”
The final track of The Armed’s brand new LP Perfect Saviors is one of their most expansive, bewildering tracks yet. “Public Grieving” combines the album’s emphasis on evocative, accessible sonics with their usual exercise in controlled chaos. Much of why “Public Grieving” seems to stand out is the utterly remarkable work behind the drum kit from Mark Guiliana, a jazz aficionado whose credits include drums on David Bowie’s Blackstar. Though “collective” is how The Armed is typically described, Guiliana and the rest of the band’s instrumentalists seem to exhibit an otherworldly, telepathic bond, resulting in one of the project’s most compelling offerings and rounding out Perfect Saviors with both pandemonium and emotion. — P. Ragusa
Slow Pulp — “Broadview”
Slow Pulp’s latest preview of the upcoming Yard, “Broadview,” is their honkiest, tonkiest ditty yet. Standing in contrast to the noisy indie rock of the previous few singles, the track forgoes any level of abrasion. Instead, it opts for pedal steel, harmonica, and guitar licks that’d make a member of Crazy Horse proud. It’s a softer side of the group, but one that’s no less engaging, exciting, or impressive. — Jonah Krueger
Sprain — “We Think So Ill of You”
“We Think So Ill of You,” the latest single from experimental rock outfit Sprain, is one of the band’s harshest tracks yet. Far from the slow-core or Slint-ian stylings of their early work, “We Think So Ill of You” sounds closer to label mates Chat Pile than it does Spiderland. With pummeling drums, disorienting guitars, a wandering bass, and an absolutely ferocious lead vocal performance, the track is grimy, grim, and irresistible to anyone able to stand its stomach-churning tones. — J.K.
Ratboys — “Empty”
Ratboys’ newest effort, The Window, is finally here in all of its glory. It’s likely the best work yet from the Chicago rockers, and that’s thanks in large part to the immediacy of tracks like “Empty.” The closest the band has ever sounded to the LVL-UP strain of indie, “Empty” is one of the hardest rocking, most fun tunes on The Window. The compressed vocals, upbeat tempo, and one-note piano stabs come together to form a song that’s guaranteed to be a live favorite. — J.K.
The Serfs — “Club Deuce”
Cincinnati’s The Serfs, now signed to Trouble in Mind, have a new record on the way, and “Club Deuce” comes as its first taste. A dance punk track that comes across like an off-kilter take on early LCD Soundsystem, the song is built upon layering synth arpeggios and gargling voices. Melodic vocals ominously strut over top as the track builds itself up piece by piece, before ultimately breaking down in the same fashion. It’s an engaging mix of timbres and influences, one that bodes well for the upcoming Half Eaten by Dogs. — J.K.
Foley — “What Got Into You”
New Zealand pop duo have dropped an irresistibly fun single, “What Got Into You,” which arrives alongside their debut album, Crowd Pleaser. It’s not too late to sneak in a few last summer bops (although it’s currently midwinter in New Zealand), and this bouncy, breezy new offering from Foley is an utter blast. The pair say the song was inspired by the feeling of a passing rumor getting out of control, and that they leaned into their own creative chaos to make it happen. Bring on the chaos, then, because “What Got Into You” just leaves us ready for more. — M. Siroky
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Song of the Week: The Late Summer Melancholy of Zach Bryan and Kacey Musgraves’ “I Remember Everything”
Mary Siroky and Consequence Staff
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