In the world of athletic footwear, New Balance is a brand that often flies under the radar. The brand is very underrated, especially in comparison to some of the bigger players in the industry. This is despite a legacy in sportswear as big as any other and a history that includes some very iconic shoes.
The New Balance faithful will say that this is actually a good thing, as it keeps the shoes anonymous. New Balance footwear does not really suffer from the insane hype wars and crazy price markups that other popular shoes have. However, in recent years, New Balance has released some very special shoe lines that have captured the attention of the public. They are the 327 and the 550. This article will discuss why these shoe lines are so great.
The 327
The New Balance 327 line is one of the brand’s most successful modern lines. Fans love it because it combines two of any shoe lover’s favorite things: comfort and retro styling. The 327 is such a great throwback that it is hard to tell it is actually an ultramodern line released just 2 years ago in 2020. The design contains nods to a few of New Balance’s older lines, such as the 320 and 355. It has a classic 70s silhouette that is really ageless.
The old-school vibe does not carry over into the material quality, and that is said with no shade towards older shoe lines. The 327 is made to the highest modern standards of quality and comfort. Designed as a running shoe, the 327 is durable and lightweight, which is important for rigorous activity. The heritage-inspired yet ageless design means that a pair can be used as a great match for any casual, summertime outfit. The 327 offers a winning combination of high craftsmanship, durability, versatility, and an iconic, distinctive design. It would be a great addition to any wardrobe.
The 550
Where the 327s are a retro-inspired throwback, the New Balance 550 line is an actual resurrection of a shoe line from the past. This 2020 release of the 550 line is a continuation of the original 1989 line that has been given new life. The shoes never took off back in the 80s and early 90s. They were unable to break into the basketball arena, which was New Balance’s intention. They couldn’t compete with the other brands that already had a firm hold on that sport. At the same time, it strayed too far from New Balance’s usual running crowd.
This new take on the original has absolutely none of those problems. They are absolutely trending right now, and have gotten rave reviews. The loss of sporting pretensions has allowed the shoe’s other great qualities to stand out. Those qualities include a really great design, with leather uppers and a premium build quality. A favorite of celebrities, they are flying off shelves and are getting hard to find anywhere.
This article was not written to tell you about shoes that are out of your reach, however. In fact, both the 550 and 327 are currently available. This is the best time to get your hands on a pair or two of these great shoes.
If I had to pick one day out of the two weekends of this year’s Primavera festival, it probably be the second Friday of the festival. Not just because Lorde was set to headline – though that was certainly a big factor for a lot of people who booked tickets early – but because some of the most iconic artists in rock, pop, and hip-hop would be taking the stage. Even with the incredible range of acts I’d gotten to see over the last ten days, and despite the unfortunate cancellation of Clairo’s performance, my excitement still hadn’t diminished. It was enough to carry me through the day, which ended up more than meeting my expectations. In chronological order, here were six highlights from Primavera Sound 2022 Friday, June 10.
The Echoes of Hurray for the Riff Raff’s LIFE ON EARTH
Credit: Sharon Lopez
When I arrived at Parc del Fòrum on Friday evening, the sun was still burning bright, and the music of Hurray for the Riff Raff echoed all the way through to the entrance. Alynda Segarra and their band had just started their set – announced at the last minute following the cancellation of Clairo’s performance – and hearing LIFE ON EARTH highlights ‘POINTED AT THE SUN’ and ‘ARROWS’ as I made my to the Pull & Bear stage was even more memorable than being close to the front. Segarra gave a stirring, beautiful performance that focused heavily on songs from the band’s latest album, whose resonance was amplified in a live setting. Though I’m sure many were bummed about not seeing Clairo, and others were there early waiting for Lorde to come on, there was a group next to me who couldn’t be more excited to be watching Hurray for the Riff Raff. Singing along to songs like ‘SAGA’ and ‘RHODODENDRON’ with them was a joy, and the performance came to a strong conclusion with the album’s title track and ‘ROSEMARY TEARS’. Life on earth might be long, but the band’s set felt all too short, ending a quarter of an hour ahead of schedule. It won’t be hard to hold onto the memory of it, though.
Britanny Howard’s Stirring, Radiant Voice
Credit: Sergio Albert
It’s hard to leave the audience in awe when they already expect a world-class performance, but that’s exactly what Britanny Howard did at the Estrella Damm stage late on Friday evening. Along with her band of virtuoso musicians and backup singers, the Alabama Shakes singer’s set was stirring and rapturous, her voice radiating joy and love . Even if her storytelling doesn’t have the same resonance in a festival setting, Howard’s restless energy vibrated through the crowd as she showcased her powerful and uplifting fusion of soul, synth-rock, and funkadelia. She was just as confident covering other people’s songs, which more than suited her message: her take on Jackie Wilson’s ‘(Your Love Keeps Lifting Me) Higher Higher’ landed perfectly after the Jamie highlights ‘Stay High’ and ‘Georgia’. “My spirit,” she proclaimed towards the end, “will never be stopped.” In that moment, it was impossible not to feel the love.
By the Ocean, Lorde Shows Us the Path
Back in my first recap of Primavera 2022 – man, it feels like a lifetime ago – I wrote about the pandemic having essentially wiped out all memory of what live music could do. Well, Lorde was the exception to that. Seeing her on the Melodrama tour a few years ago was the most transcendent live experience I’ve ever had, and even when live music seemed to have become a thing of the past, I hadn’t forgotten how that show made me feel. Lorde (who also played Primavera in 2018) has kept a habit of introducing ‘Liability’ with a somber monologue, and the one she delivered that night honestly crushed me – and that was before she sang what is easily one of the most heartbreaking songs of the century. I’m already largely basing these reports on my subjective experience, but the context here is too personal to ignore.
‘Liability’ is, quite simply, a song about loneliness. I went alone to that London concert in 2017, and I was alone at Primavera last night, when Lorde gave another speech about what the song means to her. “When I sing it in front of crowds like you,” she said earnestly, “I don’t feel alone.” I was reminded of that night, and realized how many things have changed since then. For a long time, whenever I felt nostalgic or emotional, I would sometimes get flashbacks to that moment of shared vulnerability. It stirred something in me. Now that it was happening again, that first time felt so distant that I could only identify what I was experiencing as deja vu. But I didn’t feel alone, either.
Despite my mixed thoughts on Lorde’s third album, Solar Power, I wanted her performance to give me back that feeling – of being completely overcome by emotion, no matter where you are in life, how lost or hopeful or well-adjusted you might be – because at the end of the day, it’s still life. Somehow, it’s easy to forget how much that means. Even with the overwhelming amount of great music I’d heard over the past week, I didn’t think any artist other than Lorde was capable of doing that. I just hadn’t realized it was something I needed until I was there, a few feet away from the stage, and I didn’t realize I’d been needing it since Lorde was announced as one of the festival’s headliners in May 2021, when Solar Power was just a rumour.
Having heard the album multiple times, I knew that if there was a time for those songs to really shine, it would be in a festival like this. Lorde herself reiterated how good it feels to be playing summer festivals again, to be singing these songs in a beautiful place by the ocean. “I write a lot of songs about summertime,” she admitted. “Always have, always will.” She played four tracks from the album, opening with ‘The Path’ before performing ‘Secrets From a Girl (Who’s Seen It All)’ and ‘Mood Ring’ and concluding with ‘Solar Power’. The reaction they drew still couldn’t rival the songs off Melodrama and Pure Heroine, but they all sounded more at home in this setting, aided by a chorus of passionate fans. Even the voiceover part originally delivered by Robyn in ‘Secrets’, spoken here by Lorde, made more sense as part of an actual show that also featured a unique, shimmery stage design. Halfway through, she even indulged in a cover of Bananarama’s ‘Cruel Summer’, a song that probably comes closer to evoking what summer means to her than any of the ones on her own record.
Except, of course, for ‘Solar Power’ itself. Before performing the song, Lorde started talking about the summer, how it tends to bring out a side of you that’s a little bit more out there and makes you do things you’d probably regret, and how the song is an attempt to recapture that spirit at any given moment. (I wondered how many more times Lorde giddily uttered the phrase “by the ocean” in the last 24 hours.) It was very different from the ‘Liability’ speech – less somber, but also no less genuine. Essentially, it boiled down to this: as time goes by, things seem to be getting a little bit better and a little bit crazier at the same time. I’m not concerned about the same things I was five years ago, but I’m still the same person. The same is probably true of Lorde. I just know the songs better now, and I know myself better. For me and anyone who sang and danced along last night, that could only be enough.
The Strokes Don’t Let Us Down
Credit: Sergio Albert
Right before The Strokes came on to the stage on Friday night, the Beatles’ ‘Don’t Let Me Down’ started playing through the speakers, which I found to be pretty hilarious. Wouldn’t it be ironic if the band whose headlining performance the first week had to be canceled didn’t show up the second time? When they did, of course, Julian Casablancas couldn’t help but follow his apology by joking that he was the member of the band’s crew that got COVID before proceeding to cough at the audience. (If only I had a dime for every time he was “just kidding, obviously.”)
I could sit here and give you a detailed report about the musical component of the show, but that would be boring – their set was predictably solid and included enough of their hits (with the exception of ‘Last Nite’) to leave fans satisfied. I love a lot of those songs, too, but I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t mostly waiting for them to end to see what words Casablancas would use to fill out the next moment of silence. Allow me to offer a sample: “I was told I would be speaking to my Catalan people. Bullshit!” “Do animals find us cute? That’s the question of the night.” (They then launched into ‘Reptilia’.) My favorite ones were about how much endurance it takes to be at Primavera: When he said, “I think if I went to this festival I would never listen to music again,” I felt that. But there was still plenty to look forward to.
It’s All (A Little Bit) New for The Smile
Credit: Dani Canto
I was expecting the Smile set to be chaotic. If you knew that the band is a Radiohead spin-off consisting of Thom Yorke and Jonny Greenwood plus Sons of Kemmet drummer Tom Skinner – or at least cared enough to look at their picture on the Primavera app (if it worked) and were like, “Hey, that looks like the guy from Radiohead” – you had a good enough reason to be there. Because of that, I thought putting them on the Cupra stage rather than one of the main stages was a bad decision. It certainly didn’t help that Julian Casablancas announced that’s who he’d be checking out later (“you know, Thom Yorke’s band”). Not only was the place not too packed, but it also ended up being a pretty ideal environment to hear the band’s music. Though it would have been nice to be able to watch Greenwood on the side screens, the presentation turned the focus almost solely on the music itself.
Seeing them live confirmed my suspicion that the project serves as an opportunity both to preserve what Yorke and Greenwood have built their name on and experience the thrill of something new – of performing under a new name, to potentially (if not that many) new fans. It all felt so new, in fact, that if I hadn’t already read reports of earlier live shows, I wasn’t sure how they’d be able to fill their set with only an album’s worth of songs (a couple of unreleased songs plus a rendition of Yorke’s solo track ’Feeling Pulled Apart by Horses’ were enough). Walking on to William Blake’s ‘The Smile’ – not, confusingly, the Ted Hughes poem they take their name from – the Smile gave a captivating performance that even those not yet familiar with their music would have been mesmerized by. The rawness and frenzied intensity of the punkier, more fidgety songs – by far the most refreshing part of the project – shone through, but of course, the more Radiohead-like songs sounded gorgeous, too. I’ve seen Radiohead live, and it felt a lot like that, but it also had that newness about it. I don’t think many people were silently begging for them to play at least one Radiohead song. The Smile more than sufficed.
Run the Jewels’ Blistering Return
Credit: Sergio Albert
I wasn’t there when Run the Jewels last played Primavera in 2017, but Killer Mike and El-P still managed to make last night feel like a comeback. The group took a moment to reflect (maybe not in the same way as Lorde) about how we’ve all changed in the time since. It’s been over two years since they released their fourth album, Run the Jewels 4, in the midst of Black Lives Matter protests following the death of George Floyd, and the music remains as blistering and pertinent as ever. Like that album, Run the Jewels’ show was also a reminder of how things haven’t changed, including the group itself, whose energy was as riotously fun as you’d expect. What made the performance so potent was the fact that, even when the heavily political and incisive nature of their lyrics didn’t land with quite the same impact, Run the Jewels were more than capable of channeling its spirit of defiance, using even the more somber cuts to spread a message of positivity. They had no issue riling up a crowd that, as Julian Casablancas put it earlier, was probably “music-ed out” by that point. “You’ve just watched the best rap group in the motherfucking world,” Killer Mike exclaimed at the end of the show. And honestly, who could argue with that?
Finally, the warmer months are here! Winter is great and all, but it is always exciting to finally feel the sun’s warmth and enjoy some much-needed time outdoors. However, the return of summer also means you would need to conduct a quick review of your apparel. Although everyone’s style may differ, there are always essentials you need to complete your look and stay trendy. So, what essentials do you need in your wardrobe this summer? Here are a few ideas for you!
A white shirt
The usual presumption is that black goes with everything. Black is versatile, but wearing a black outfit in summer can be quite uncomfortable, especially when temperatures are high. Fortunately, a white shirt can do the same for you. You can wear a white shirt with just about anything. For instance, a white linen shirt is a great option if you want to layer it in your outfit to keep things casual. Or, you can pair it with a cute black leather skirt for a classy style for date night. Regardless of the style of your shirt, you would find that you can pair just about anything with a white shirt. Additionally, white is a great color to wear during summer because it helps keep the body cool by reflecting light instead of absorbing it.
Denim shorts
What’s summer without showing some skin? Summer gives you a chance to strut your walk and show your beautiful legs. That’s why you need a pair of shorts this summer. A pair of denim shorts are a great choice as you can wear them with any style and color shirt. These pieces are essential because they help you stay cool during hot days and can be used to create different attires. For example, you can create a very laid-back look by wearing your denim shorts with a pair of sneakers or flat sandals. Yet, those same shorts could be a great brunch or late-night attire if you include a pair of heels or knee-high booties (especially if your shorts are quite short). There are also various lengths and designs you can choose from, so you would find something that suits your fashion sense.
Boyfriend jeans
Admittedly, you may not be too keen on wearing shorts. Or, perhaps, it’s not your style. If that’s the case, you should consider including a pair of boyfriend jeans in your summer wardrobe. Unlike regular jeans or skinny jeans, boyfriend jeans are more convenient for summer. These jeans are way cooler than regular ones, lighter, and more fun. Additionally, their baggy feel gives you a more comfortable and airy feel, which you need during summer. They are also convenient for both casual and casual-formal attires. However, do remember to get them in shades of light or faded denim for a more summery loo
Open toe shoes
After spending months wearing socks, stockings, and boots, it’s time to let your toes wriggle in the sunlight. Also, due to the warm weather, you wouldn’t want to deal with sweaty feet and the issues that come with it. Open-toe shoes such as sandals, slippers, and everyday slides are options you should consider when putting together your summer outfit. Shoes like Birkenstock Gizeh are timeless and stylish pairs of shoes you would need every summer. According to Bustle, open-toe shoes such as ancient Greek style sandals, square-toed heel sandals, platform sandals, and elevated flip-flops are also must-haves trending this summer.
Sneakers and flat ballet shoes
Despite the need for open-toe shoes in summer, you can’t completely ditch your sneakers or flat ballet shoes. Open-toe shoes may not be ideal for some occasions or may not be your style. Besides, wearing such shoes all the time can get pretty boring. So, you can switch it up by incorporating sneakers and flat shoes into your outfits. Sneakers add a bit of chic and sass to your outfit— which is definitely what a summer outfit is all about. Due to their various styles and colors, ballet flat shoes serve as a great alternative to wearing heels but still looking formal or casual-formal. Be sure to select fun colors besides black to give off a summer look.
Denim jacket
It may seem odd to include a jacket option when discussing the essential clothing items for summer. But you need a denim jacket during summer, and here’s why. Denim jackets offer versatility. For instance, if you’ve got on a strappy dress or cute crop top, a denim jacket can serve as a stylish form of layering to add to your look.
Although the weather is a bit warmer in summer, it can get chilly at night or in the morning. Temperatures may also drop due to the occasional summer rains. A denim jacket is an excellent source of warmth. It isn’t as thick as a winter jacket and can complement any outfit.
Maxi dresses
Of course, as the days get longer, the dresses get shorter. However, besides cute and patterned summer dresses, you should consider getting yourself a maxi dress this summer. Despite their length, there’s something so summery about maxi dresses. These dresses aren’t body-hugging, tight, or restrictive. The length of maxi dresses does little to remove its style or functionality during the summer. Maxi dresses hang loosely on your body, giving you an airy and comfortable go-to outfit. Additionally, they come in various patterns, colors, and styles for any occasion and to keep up with summer vibes.
A staple summer tote bag
Cute cross bags and mini-bags are in vogue this summer, but you need a staple tote bag for a more functional look when you go out. Think about it; you need many things when you go out, like your water bottle, sunscreen, sunglasses, make-up, and so much more! It would be difficult putting all that in your cross bag. With your summer tote bag, you can keep all your items and do so with still. Tote bags are also easy to carry, so you wouldn’t feel uncomfortable.
So, there you have it! It’s time to have fun in the sun with some style. Be sure to get these essentials this summer.
When it comes to engaging with online casinos, there is a lot of room for risk in the hobby. However, if you truly love casinos, then it is far better to ensure that you know exactly how you can most effectively protect yourself while engaging with the hobby. This article aims to highlight some of the best tips to help you ensure that you are able to protect yourself effectively.
Start with a Plan
As with almost any important task, you should always start with a plan when trying to learn how to defend yourself online and gamble responsibly. There are plenty of elements that you should consider including in this plan in order to keep yourself safe. After all, you never know what is going to end up being vital to protecting you from disaster.
There are plenty of tools that can help you to develop this plan and set in some more concrete terms for it. For example, you might want to consider utilizing a time management tool in order to outline how long you are spending on the online casino and how much time you are allowed to spend on the site.
Set Firm Limits and Stick to Them
Once you have a plan set out, you should use it to quickly and methodically generate some hard limits for you while you are engaging with online casino sites such as Les Ambassadeurs. These firm, unavoidable limits allow you to bring a little more control to your engagement with these online casino sites.
Some of the most important limits you are going to be able to set are the limits you should be placed on how much you can spend on the casino. This solidly laid-out budget makes it far more difficult for you to make impulsive purchases. Plus, these limits can help you to visualize how much you have spent on the casino and how much more you have available before you have to break away and stop playing.
Always Keep a Buddy Nearby
Finally, another fantastic way to help ensure that you are on your best behavior is to have a buddy with you whenever you engage with online casinos. This buddy system ensures that you are never making decisions entirely alone, which theoretically helps to ensure that you make more informed and less impulsive decisions.
There are more benefits to having a friend around, too. The opportunity to spend some quality time with someone you care about is a brilliant thing, not to mention the fact that you are spending time engaging with your hobby with the company.
On top of that, you might be able to have a little more fun with your online casino experience if you and your buddy are able to throw yourselves into the process of spending time with one another. After all, it can be a lot of fun to compete with one another to see who can do better in certain games.
If you’ve heard anything about the first weekend of Primavera Sound 2022, you know that things got off to a rocky start. Despite the unbelievably stacked lineup, there were complaints about the lack of water access and huge queues, not to mention the cancellation of several performances, most notably that of The Strokes, who are still set to headline later on Friday. (Clairo, PinkPantheress, and Holly Humberstone are among the artists who will no longer be performing this weekend, however, with Hurray for the Riff Raff taking Clairo’s spot.) The situation seemed to have improved on the second and third days of the festival, or at least people came more prepared. Having camped out at the main stages for most of the night on Thursday, the only difference I noticed was the water bottles intermittently being thrown into the air. (Two of them happened to land on me, so your chances of not getting dehydrated aren’t that low – though the sea of plastic left behind wasn’t a nice image at the end of the night.) As for music, my day started with a lot of dry post-punk before turning more and more in the direction of pop. Here were six memorable moments from the first day of Weekend 2.
The Colour in Dry Cleaning
Credit: Eric Pamies
A couple of songs into Dry Cleaning’s Thursday evening set at the Binance stage, the screen that zeroed in on Florence Shaw’s near-static yet uniquely captivating performance turned black-and-white, as if to say: We get the vibe. Dry Cleaning may not be the darkest or most inventive of the recent wave of talky UK post-punk bands, but people certainly like to think of them as the talkiest. Their music stews in a way that requires patient listening, and Shaw’s deadpan delivery and absurdly specific non-sequiturs aren’t exactly easy to follow when the volume of the instruments threaten to drown out her hushed vocals – but that’s not to say that the band sounds joyless in a live setting. If anything, their set was a reminder of the simplicity that belies their songs, as well as the dynamism that often makes them so thrilling. The bass, of course, did much of the heavy lifting, but it was Tom Dowse’s guitar theatrics that stood out, his energetic performance contrasting that of Shaw, which was evocative in a much more elusive way. It was hard to discern a narrative out of the whole thing, but one couldn’t imagine it any other way; if it left you feeling less curious and confused, would it really be a Dry Cleaning show?
Squid Face the Sunset
Credit: Eric Pamies
I assume bands don’t have a lot of say in what stage they get to perform at a festival, but it must have been someone‘s decision to get Squid to play the Cupra stage just as the sun was about to set. (This is my attempt at not turning this into another spiel about post-punk, which was especially tempting after seeing Dry Cleaning and Squid back-to-back. Suffice to say, their performances couldn’t have been more different, unless you want to compare them to the night’s headliners.) Regardless, the timing was billiant. At the beginning of the set, the sun would still burn your eyes if you were to turn around as they rolled through some of their more chaotically driving tracks. The lines from ‘Boy Racer’ set the dystopian scene – “As the sun sets, on the Glaxo Klein/ Well it’s the only way that I can tell the time” – and the synchronicity had a chilling effect. Showcasing their fusion of post-punk, krautrock, and jazz, the band oscillated between the simmering intensity of their more well-known tracks and dronier, more avant-garde passages that made their dynamic builds all the more invigorating. With drummer/vocalist Ollie Judge’s unhinged performance at the helm, the band closed out with the blistering one-two-punch of ‘Pamphlets’ and ‘Narrator’, and their surroundings were irrelevant by that point – the stage was the only place you could lock your eyes at.
Remembering Interpol
Credit: Christian Bertrand
I don’t have much of an emotional connection to Interpol’s music, but I was hoping their melodic approach to post-punk would win me over to balance out the last two bands I saw. As someone who doesn’t remember them at the peak of their popularity, I’m still not sure how a band like Interpol, whose aesthetic is so minimal and their music equally haunted and spare, could get quite so big. Seeing them play one of Primavera’s main stages made me appreciate the cinematic sweep and ambition that clearly set them apart, but that’s something I also enjoy whenever I put on Turn On the Bright Lights. It still didn’t hit me; if anything, their professionalism detracted from the parts of their performance I found evocative, with the notable exception of ‘Pioneer to the Falls’.
Yet it did help me understand the sentimental appeal their music holds, even if, for me, it’s not tied to a particular era of indie. There are, of course, songs by them I recognize and have grown to like. But there are just two I love, and both have different memories attached to them. I’m one of those people who were introduced to ‘PDA’ through Rock Band 2, so I have a particular fondness for the song, even if the lyrics now only sound more absurd, even downright stupid. The other is ‘Slow Hands’, which I enjoy because it’s catchy and doesn’t make sense to me. So when those were the final songs in the band’s set, and both old fans and casual fans like myself were singing along, it’s not a moment I’ll forget. It’s not often that I get to be that guy.
Gorillaz’s Feel-Good Set
Credit: Clara Orozco
Gorillaz drew one of the biggest crowds last weekend at Primavera, and this Thursday night was probably just as crazy. Being there the second time, it wasn’t hard to see why. The hits kept coming throughout the duration of their crowd-pleasing set – which was significantly longer than any other I saw that day – yet it didn’t feel dependent on them. They were balanced out by newer songs as well as tracks that didn’t turn into massive sing-alongs, but even those songs were so colourful and layered that they became a portal to the group’s ever-expanding world. You didn’t need to be amazed by Damon Albarn’s vocal performance (I really wasn’t) in order to get sucked in, not even during the first half that was focused around songs where he takes center stage. There were so many different factors at play – from the visual spectacle of the show itself to the crowd’s reactions – that it was pretty overstimulating at all times. When guests started coming in later on, including Mos Def/Yassin Bey (who also made a cameo during Khruangbin’s earlier set) as well as De La Soul, it couldn’t be clearer that this was just one giant party. But whereas last week it must have been a euphoric note to close the weekend off, this time felt like only the beginning.
Dua Lipa’s Future Nostalgia Shines Bright
Credit: Christian Bertrand
When Future Nostalgia became a pandemic hit, it was tied to a promise that couldn’t yet be fulfilled. “I used to spend so many nights on my own/ I never knew I had it in me to dance any more,” goes one notable line on ‘Love Again’, and I probably wasn’t the only one who never thought they’d be dancing to the album’s brilliant fusion of disco and contemporary pop with other people. At the Pull & Bear stage on Thursday, Dua Lipa herself admitted there was a time when putting on a show like that didn’t feel like a possibility, which of course meant that it had to be even more extravagant and euphoric. Having already toured the album across the world, the pop star and her crew of dancers quickly turned the show into a non-stop dance party that served as a loving (and knowing) tribute to pop’s past with a hint of where it might be headed.
Despite all the excitement, I had doubts as to whether Dua Lipa would have enough material to fill a headlining set, even though Future Nostalgia plays like a greatest hits collection. I’d almost forgotten she had huge hits from her first album (don’t blame me – even her latest album seems like a century ago), all of which became big sing-alongs. If those songs didn’t make a fan out of you at the time, the way Lipa injected them with the commanding presence that defines Future Nostalgia was more than enough to keep the whole show infectious. She also showcased more recent singles like ‘Fever’, her duet with Belgian singer Angèle, who made a rare onstage appearance, as well the ‘Cold Heart’ remix; if you’re not a fan of the latter one, either, it was still rousing to hear a crowd of young fans singing the lyrics to Elton John’s ’Rocket Man’ while Lipa held up a rainbow flag.
Compared to other pop singers who took the stage at Primavera and operate at the edges of the mainstream – Charli XCX, Rina Sawayma, Caroline Polachek – you might think Lipa’s music has the least amount of personality, but her show, which wasn’t without surprises, proved otherwise. After all, how many pop stars would pick out a member from the audience and dedicate a song to them before delivering the lines, “We don’t know how to talk/ But damn, we know how to fuck”? She also made the bold decision of extending ‘Boys Will Be Boys’, an anthem about male violence (“…but girls will be women”) and transforming it into another dance track that included an interpolation of ‘Hollaback Girl’. It could have easily fallen flat, but like everything else about Lipa’s performance, it felt like a long-overdue celebration.
Tyler, the Creator Howls Into the Night
Credit: Clara Orozco
When you go see Tyler, the Creator, you expect to have a wild time. Few rappers have a catalog as enviable as Tyler’s, and at this point, his show is made for arenas. But even if the stage design was more pared back than it might have been in a non-festival setting, transporting us somewhere far out in the woods, it was still one of the most spectacular and insane shows I’ve ever seen. As soon as he charged into the hard-hitting ‘Sir Baudelaire’ with pyrotechnics erupting onstage, you could feel the heat – and it wasn’t long before it was actual flames that rose up from the floor. Throughout, Tyler balanced the constant intensity with a rawness that was just as gripping. As he served up highlights from Flower Boy, IGOR, and Call Me If You Get Lost, as well as some of early fan favorites, his flow careened from unhinged to precise, his energy vulnerable and chaotic. Whatever character he embodied, the audience responded with the kind of fervour you wouldn’t expect that late into the night, from the tender ‘See You Again’ to rousing sing-alongs like ’EARFQUAKE’ and ‘I THOUGHT YOU WANTED TO DANCE’ that came towards the very end of the show. The connection was palpable, and Tyler embraced it as much as he kept pushing it to another level.
Lizzo has released a new song called ‘Grrrls’, which will appear on her upcoming album Special. It’s produced by Benny Blanco, Blake Slatkin, Ilya, Max Martin, and Pop Wansel. Give it a listen below.
Special is set for release on July 15 via Nice Life/Atlantic. Lizzo announced the album with the single ‘About Damn Time’, which she performed along with the title track on Saturday Night Live.
Joyce Manor have returned with their sixth LP, 40 oz. to Fresno, out now via Epitaph. The follow-up to 2018’s Million Dollars to Kill Me spans 9 tracks and was produced by Rob Schnapf (Elliott Smith, Tokyo Police Club), who also produced the band’s 2006 album Cody. It was mixed by Tony Hoffer (Beck, Phoenix) and features Tony Thaxton of Motion City Soundtrack on drums. “This album makes me think of our early tours, drinking a 40 in the van on a night drive blasting Guided By Voices and smoking cigarettes the whole way to Fresno,” vocalist Barry Johnson said in a statement. The singles ‘Gotta Let It Go’ and ‘Don’t Try’ preceded the record.
Time Bend and Break the Bower is the debut album by Irish singer-songwriter, poet, and performer Sinead O’Brien. Out now via Chess Club Records, it includes the previously released singles ‘There Are Good Times Coming’, ‘Girlkind’, ‘Like Culture’, and ‘Holy Country’. “The story of the album is built up in layers; one song giving context to the next,” O’Brien explained in a statement. “I thought about becoming undressed; testing my ideas, my voice. Working myself out across themes of identity, curiosity, creative process. Experimenting with the form and shape of language, using tone and delivery to get to the immediate centre of what I am saying. The record opens and closes with poems, these tracks have a really clear direction – a form which is set apart from the ‘songs’. I hold stops in different places, moving emphatically through the lyrics, changing the meaning. No punctuation – only the voice mapping out the way.” Read our Artist Spotlight interview with Sinead O’Brien.
Grace Ives has released her new album Janky Star, which follows 2019’s 2nd. Out now via True Panther/Harvest/EMI, the LP was previewed with the singles ‘Loose’, ‘Angel of Business’, and ‘Lullaby’. The Brooklyn-based artist made the record Star with co-producer Justin Raisen in Los Angeles. “Some people go through a version of something called rejection therapy, where they ask for things they simply can’t have,” Ives said in a press release, adding: “Everyone has a shitty star tattoo/stick n poke, that’s never perfect, or is rough around the edges. A beautiful thing to think about is that stars on earth look like blobs but in space really defined structures.”
Shearwater’s first new album in six years, The Great Awakening, has arrived via the band’s own Polyborus label in partnership with Secretly Distribution. Following 2016’s Jet Plane and Oxbow, the LP features the previously shared tracks ‘Xenarthran’, ‘Aqaba’, and ‘Laguna Seca’. “It was nice to not have any ambitions at all of making any kind of radio single or something that was supposed to be conventionally appealing in any way,” singer Jonathan Meibur said in an interview with Under the Radar. “Because we’d crowd-funded the record and we didn’t have a record label, we were beholden to no one really, except for the people who’d funded it. I did want to give them something that they would recognize as being Shearwater in some way and hopefully like. But beyond that, we’re extremely free and I just didn’t care. We tried to make something that we enjoyed and that felt interesting.”
Neneh Cherry has issued The Versions, a new LP featuring reimagined versions of her songs performed by a range of artists who have a personal connection with her music. The 10-track record features collaborations with Sia, ANOHNI, Jamila Woods, Sudan Archives, Kelsey Lu, Honey Dijon, Seinabo Sey, Greentea Peng, and Tyson, as well as Cherry’s version of ‘Buffalo Stance’ with Robyn and Mapei. The album follows 2018’s Broken Politics.
Other albums out today:
Elucid, I Told Bessie; BTS; Proof;The Range, Mercury; Jessie Buckley & Bernard Butler, For All Our Days That Tear The Heart; Steve Reich, Reich/Richter; Sam Gendel, SUPERSTORE; µ-Ziq, Magic Pony Ride; The Dream Syndicate, Ultraviolet Battle Hymns And True Confessions; Yann Tiersen, 11 5 18 2 5 18;Liss, I Guess Nothing Will Be the Same.
Pharrell Williams, Tyler, the Creator, and 21 Savage have teamed up for a new song. It’s called ‘Cash In Cash Out’, and you can listen to it below.
“I knew the track was aggressive, and it doesn’t let up,” Williams said in an interview with Apple Music 1’s Zane Lowe. “So it’s like those are the two. It’s like letting two pit bulls loose. Ravenous. Two ravenous wolves. Tyler went crazy. He had done that verse before he put his last album out.”
Earlier in the week, Williams announced the special guests for his Something in the Water Festival, which include Tyler, the Creator, 21 Savage, Clipse, Justin Timberlake, Q-Tip, SZA, Anderson .Paak & The Free Nationals, J Balvin, Dave Matthews Band, Roddy Ricch, Ozuna, Pusha T, and more. The festival takes place on Juneteenth weekend in Washington, DC.
There is no doubt that we all want to look classy when it comes to attending different events like office parties, club parties, weddings, and other occasions. There is a common perception as people think that wearing expensive branded dresses can make them look good however this is not true. We need to come out of this perception that our overall appearance depends on the price of the dress we wear.
Fashion is always about wearing the outfit that suits you the best and you should feel confident about whatever you wear. In this blog, we have discussed some important suggestions that can help you look classy. So, let’s explore the details:
Know Your Personal Statement
It is crucial to know your personal statement as to whether you like to wear soft shades or bold ones. There is no harm in trying something new that seems the latest fashion trend however keeping your statement in mind is important. For example, if you have a short height, a long maxi with high heels can look perfect.
The body shape also matters a lot as if you have a slim body, it means that you can try any outfit confidently but fat girls need to stay cautious in this matter. So, it will be good if you create a personal statement in which you will always feel confident. Trying new shades of lipstick will be fun so you can try them.
Bold Patterns and Prints
If your age is from fifteen to twenty-nine, wearing bold patterns will make you look cool and you will enjoy the vibe. However, there is no age limit in general for wearing these colors as long as you love wearing them. Bold red and dark blue colors are in trend these days and you can wear a maxi, long coat, or short frock depending on your choice.
However, you can save money by visiting the supersales website where you can buy fashion products at discounted prices. You can find anything you like on the supersales website especially if you are looking for stylish jackets, denim, shoes, or party dresses.
Avoid Being Over Boarded with Accessories
If you want to look decent then you’ll need to skip some accessories like extra chains, rings, or bracelets. These days, one or two items of jewelry are in trend so you can wear earrings with one ring. If you do not have matching earrings, you can go for contrasting ones. Puravida Bracelets has some great fashion accessories to check out.
Light Makeup is Always Recommended
When you are done with the outfit, the next step is to do makeup and it shouldn’t be unnecessarily bright. You should simply apply a concealer on the face for hiding all spots and scars. After applying concealer, you should apply a light base that should be one tone lighter than your complexion.
Later on, you can apply shades on your cheeks and mascara on eyelashes to make them look bigger. It would be better if you avoid shiners and dark lipstick because they can add an over touch to the face. Light makeup adds a natural touch and you will look stunning.
Wear a Watch
You should wear a watch because it adds an elegant touch to the personality. It is up to you which type of watch you like the most, however large dials are in trend these days. If you are wearing a golden dress, you can wear a matching watch with a golden strap or chain.
Style up Your Hair
Hair styling is obviously crucial because, without it, the overall look will be incomplete. Hair styling should be done as per the dress you wear if you are wearing a long maxi, a messy hair bun will look classy with it.
However, if you need to wear a short frock, you can keep the hair open and they will surely enhance the appearance. In short, these are a few suggestions that can help you look perfect at every event.
There are many reasons why people love cannabis products. Some enjoy the psychoactive effects of THC, while others appreciate the medicinal benefits of CBD. Whatever the reason, there is no doubt that marijuana products are becoming increasingly popular around the world. In this blog post, we will explore some of the main reasons why people love cannabis products!
1. Cannabis products provide relief from various medical conditions
To many people, cannabis is more than just a plant that gets you high. It’s also a natural medicine that can provide relief from various medical conditions. For example, cannabis has been shown to be effective in reducing pain and inflammation, as well as nausea and vomiting.
Cannabis products are also said to improve sleep quality and help you rest better. Moreover, at Area52.com you can read more about how THC affects your dreams. And if you’re struggling with mental health issues such as anxiety or depression, cannabis products may be able to help you as well.
Some people even use cannabis to boost their creativity and productivity. So if you’re looking for an alternative treatment option, cannabis is definitely worth considering.
2. Cannabis products are non-addictive and do not produce harmful side effects
If you’re looking for an all-natural way to relax and enjoy yourself, cannabis products are a great option. Unlike some other substances, marijuana is non-addictive and doesn’t produce harmful side effects. This makes it a safe choice for those who want to enjoy its benefits without having to worry about becoming addicted or experiencing negative health effects.
Cannabis products are also popular because they offer a wide range of benefits. For example, marijuana can help to relieve pain, reduce anxiety, and improve your sleep. Additionally, cannabis products can be used in a variety of ways, so you can find the method that works best for you. Whether you prefer to smoke, vape, or use edibles, there’s a cannabis product that’s right for you.
3. Cannabis products come in many forms, including edibles, tinctures, topicals, and concentrates
When it comes to consuming cannabis, there are many different options. You can eat it in the form of an edible, drink it as a tincture, apply it topically, or smoke/vape it. No matter how you consume cannabis, you’re bound to enjoy the experience.
Cannabis edibles are becoming increasingly popular because they offer a more subtle high. Tinctures are also gaining in popularity because they’re easy to dose and offer a long-lasting high. Topicals are perfect for those who want the medicinal benefits of cannabis without experiencing any psychoactive effects. And finally, concentrates are perfect for those who want a powerful high that only lasts for a short period of time.
4. Cannabis products are affordable and can be purchased from dispensaries or online retailers
What’s not to love about affordable cannabis products? You don’t have to spend a lot of money to enjoy the benefits of marijuana. In fact, many people find that cannabis is more affordable than other forms of medication.
Plus, with the legalization of recreational marijuana in some states, it’s easier than ever to purchase cannabis products. You can even buy and grow cannabis seeds for home cultivation purposes. Zamnesia Seedshop offers almost a mind-blowing selection to choose from.!
Lastly, the main reasons people love cannabis products are because of the many benefits they offer. Cannabis products can help with a variety of issues such as pain relief, anxiety, and insomnia. They are also non-addictive and have very few side effects. If you are considering trying cannabis products, be sure to do your research and talk to your doctor first. Good luck!
Joyce Manor have returned with their sixth LP, 
Grace Ives has released her new album 
Shearwater’s first new album in six years, 
Neneh Cherry has issued 
