Week of 7/14: Izzy Johnson, Torres, and Blue Deputy
Michael clicks with an Izzy Johnson song on the highway, Eric praises the country music roots of Torres, Miranda thinks fondly about a Blue Deputy show, and.. Eli's on vacation.
Welcome to Endless Scroll, the brainchild of Eli Enis (he/him), Eric Bennett (they/them), Michael Brooks (he/him) and Miranda Reinert (she/her). Since Feb. 2019, we’ve been a weekly podcast about music, the internet, and where those two things intersect. On Substack, we’re also a weekly roundup of songs. Our format is simple: each of our four hosts picks a song they love and writes about it. There will be one free post every week, and more at the end of every month for paid subscribers. For the sake of your wallet, don’t start a paid subscription on Substack. Instead, sign up at the 2$ tier or higher on Patreon and we will gift you a subscription.
Izzy Johnson - “Loving”
Michael Brooks:
This past Sunday as I was driving back home after visiting my mother for lunch, I decided to put on Earth Tones by Izzy Johnson and let the nothingness of I-64 swallow me whole, and in that moment the album finally clicked with me. Released earlier this month on Driftless Recordings, Earth Tones is an unforgettable collection of atmospheric textures and shimmering melodies gently guided by Johnson’s haunting vocal lines. Tracks like “Loving” are stirring and deeply moving as a kaleidoscope of colors gently washes over you. It’s one of the most relaxing things that I’ve heard all year long, the kind of music that’s both serene and invigorating, and I can’t get enough of it.
Torres - “Don’t Go Puttin Wishes in My Head”
Eric Bennett:
Torres’ Mackenzie Scott has always had one foot firmly planted in the sphere of country music, even if her work has seldom sounded like it. Her last album Silver Tongue came out at the top of 2020, and was home to songs like “Dressing America,” whose video featured Scott roaming New York sporting a cowboy hat. On one level, Scott’s use of country could seem like hijacking an aesthetic. You might see her as using a currently trendy archetype as unoriginal. But that’s not the part of the genre Scott is drawing from. It’s the pleading, heartfelt undertone of songs like her new single “Don’t Go Putting Wishes in My Head” that’s shared by much of classic country. “Wishes” is specifically a song Scott claims takes inspiration from arena country, and despite its frenetic, synth heavy production, the emotion in its lyrics lead me to believe her. She’s never made anything this straightforwardly catchy, and it feels like a huge step up from an artist I already thought was at the top of their game.
Blue Deputy - “I Hate Steven Singer”
Miranda Reinert:
This song is everything I like to see come out of the more DIY side of emo. It’s got a funny cultural reference for a title, a few lines that can be picked out and shouted back at the person behind the microphone, great vocal melodies, some lightly noodly guitars.. What more could I want. They hit that perfect balance between scrappy emo and a killer singalong chorus that I can’t get enough of.
I got to see Blue Deputy play in Philly last week and it was so fun to see a crowd do exactly what I wanted them to during this song. There are some subtle gang vocals in the recording around the line “I still flinch every time I see the words I Hate Steven Singer” so there was nothing I wanted more than to watch a bunch of kids shout it at Andy. They didn’t disappoint.
So excited to see what the band does next. (Also for them to take requests and cover “Dogwalk” by Pity Sex.)