Song of the Week Roundup: Fall and Winter 2023

ICYMI: A roundup of our song of the week features from August to December.

​"INLA" - Emarosa

T&E writer Alex says, "Emarosa dropped their newest album, Sting, back in January and I’ve kept the standout track “INLA” on heavy rotation ever since. Dreamy synths, a soaring chorus, and a soulful guitar solo lift this 90s R&B-inspired ballad so high, that it’ll have you missing a former flame that you never actually dated and who only exists in your imagination. Also, I’ve gone to LA for work twice since this song came out and I can verify that the vibes are immaculate when you listen to it as you’re getting off the plane at Burbank."
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"I Got The..." - Labi Siffre
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T&E writer Parisa says, "I've been spending a lot of time arbitrarily thinking about what I consider to be the greatest songs of all time, or at least what are my all-time favorite tracks, and this has to be up there for me. Who would've thought that lyrics about soul-crushing loneliness could be complimented so well by funky basslines? Pure genius."
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"1000 Whispers" - Illogic

T&E writer Brandon Biallas says, "Nothing compares to the feeling I had going down YouTube rabbit-holes at 2am back in the day. Scouring the edges of the search results for weird music. All it took was one song with 42 views to change my life. After a few years of conducting these internet deep-dives, I truly struck gold the night I found '1000 Whispers' by Illogic. To this day, Illogic's music represents so much of what I love about hip hop and what it can be when we tap into unconventional sounds. It's a reminder that one of the only limits in creating anything is our imagination. I still glean things from his lyrical puzzle-boxes that make me stop in my tracks. Illogic's music strikes a crisp balance between being appealing to the ear and cerebral to the mind. The Who sample taken from 'Won't Get Fooled Again' for this song's beat doesn't hurt either. I appreciate that whenever I revisit his music, I continue to get the same feelings of discovery and wonder. It's a nice reminder to stay curious and never stop exploring what the world has to offer."

"Tareeq" - Al-Bara'em

T&E writer Parisa says,"Al-Bara'em was Palestine’s first rock and roll band. Starting as a Fairuz cover group, they decided to write original music after the Six-Day War of 1967, marking both a symbol shift towards national identity as well as a historical shift in Palestinian music history. There’s not a lot of recorded material that remains today, as so many Palestinian historical records have been destroyed by the Israeli and US military,  but this psychedelic, melancholic song is my one of my favorites from their reissued catalog. The lyrics are, unfortunately, still painfully relevant..."

I come from the way, do not ask me from my father
جئت من الطريق لا تسلني من أبي

And who does my mother see?
ومن ترى امي

I don't know any of them and my ancient grandfather
فما أعرف منهم أحدا ومن جدي العتيق

My family, my family, are the bones of the earth from its formation
أهلي أهلي عظام الارض من تكوينها

Dirt and stones in a wall
تراب وحجار في جدار

The remains of a planet after its destruction
بقايا كوكب بعد الدمار

Sweet shadows in a delicate stream
ظلال حلوه في جدول رقيق

Am I a stranger or a friend?
أنا غريب أم صديق

Don't ask me who my father is or who my mother is
لا تسلني من أبي ومن ترى أمي

Guidance is not enough for me as long as I am drowning in a sea
فليس يكفيني الهدى ما دمت في بحري غريق

As long as I have a depressing story with the drivers
ما دام لي ما دام لي مع السواقي قصة كئيبة

A story in which I lost my country
قصة فقدت فيها بلدي

And I have a lost brother with the art
ولي مع الفنا ضائع شقيق

And the one who is in the sky does not wake up
ولي سماء لا يفيق

Don't ask me who I am
فلا تسلني من أنا

It is enough for you that you are my companion in my loss
حسبك انك الرفيق في ضياعي

I am your comrade
وأنا لك الرفيق

All I know is that my sail
وكل ما أعرف ان شراعي

He walked me blindfolded
سار بي معصب العينين

muffled
معصب العينين

So I came this way
فجئت من هذا الطريق

"I'm on Fire" - Gus Dapperton

T&E writer Noa says, "A cover song that scratches a sonic itch, without doing anything extraordinarily unique or extra. It's just a good, catchy, singable lil freakin' tune."