boygenius
For me, 2018 has been the year of crying in public. You know, normal stuff. Hot tears of rage on lunch break after Christine Blasey Ford’s testimony. Covert weeping on the bus listening to recordings of kids separated from their parents at the border, or reading about the Parkland school shooting, or the Pittsburgh synagogue shooting, or some other monstrous act of violence.
So maybe I was primed for it, but I was still caught off guard when I felt a lump forming in my throat during Julien Baker’s solo set at The Sylvee on Nov. 16. It makes sense — her songs are sad, her voice is very beautiful. I maintained composure through “Appointments” and “Turn Out the Lights” (barely). I mentally lost my shit, but physically kept it together, when Phoebe Bridgers and Lucy Dacus joined her onstage for their supergroup, boygenius. But then during “Salt In The Wound,” when Bridgers and Dacus literally bowed down to Baker as she unabashedly shredded a classic-rock solo, my eyes finally overflowed.
Slow Pulp
More than anything, music has been a source of joy and hope and renewal in 2018. Mitski taught us how to reclaim our narratives and Be The Cowboy. Robyn made us dance and gave us Honey, a sweet and healing salve for melancholy souls. Janelle Monae, Ariana Grande and Cardi B made transcendent, subversive, life-affirming pop. A new guard of supremely talented and inspiring women took up the mantle of indie rock. It’s a sign of more good things to come — a study this fall found that 50 percent of new guitar players in the U.S. and the U.K. are women. I bought my first guitar this year, too.
Locally, 2018 has brought a continued groundswell of organizing, activism and community-building within Madison’s music scene. Communication, the new nonprofit all-ages venue on Milwaukee Street, has in six months established itself as a hub for local performers, artists and creative workshops exploring concepts from conflict resolution to fostering safer spaces. The new partnership with arts and culture website Tone Madison was a brilliant move that bodes exciting things to come in 2019.
Half-Stack Sessions, the advocacy group for women and non-binary musicians, has branched out into more public-facing events this year and helped foster intergenerational connections. DJs Sarah Akawa and Joey Bee continued to build up an inclusive, safe and accessible dance scene with their Queer Pressure events; promoter Lili Luxe has championed consent culture in the local club scene. At long last, the city’s Task Force on Equity in Music and Entertainment has laid out a much-needed plan to make Madison a more equitable place for hip-hop artists.
Scotify Studios
Disq
People in this community astonished me with their talent — bands like Seasaw, Gentle Brontosaurus, Labrador, Gender Confetti and Proud Parents delivered knockout albums this year. Others, like Disq and Slow Pulp, debuted gorgeous music videos and promising new singles — more of this in 2019, please! I’m a novice jazz-head, but I was blown away by releases from John Christensen and Michael Brenneis — and the stellar cast of collaborators who played on their albums.
It felt good to cry tears of joy at the boygenius show. It felt like cheering on a friend — like cheering on all the girls with their new guitars who will someday play to their friends, to empty bars, to sold-out crowds. After the last song, I rushed across town to catch a local band’s album release show. I used to hate going to gigs alone, but I looked around and saw a room full of friends — people I knew from playing music and writing about music. The night ended with Tijuana hot dogs (the only acceptable order at Burrito Drive), safe rides home and a lingering feeling the world might actually be good.
