Song of the Week Roundup: November 2022

ICYMI: A roundup of our song of the week features from the month of November.

​ "Kryptonite (Reloaded)" - Jeris Johnson

T&E writer Alex says, "I recently had the pleasure of catching Jeris Johnson's set at Aftershock this year. This was my first time checking out his music, and he turned out to be one of my favorite acts from the whole weekend! I can't say I enjoy early-2000s post-grunge OR Soundcloud Rap all that much, but Jeris has an uncanny knack for combining these genres into something that sounds fresh and exciting. One of my favorite songs from his set was the brilliant spin that he put on 'Kryptonite'. He brings a new, much-needed layer of depth to the original, turning it into a gritty portrayal of a toxic relationship from the perspective of a hard-partying young man in his early 20s. Jeris wasn't allowed to stream this for a while, but it sounds like the industry kinks have finally been worked out and 'Kryptonite Reloaded' is now available on all streaming platforms."

"Dreamstate" - Dayseeker

​T&E writer Chelsea says, "On the surface, 'Dreamstate' is an upbeat and dancy tune. But if you dig deeper, it’s full of truly heartbreaking lyrics about losing someone you love so much, only to have these vivid lucid dreams where you can’t decipher reality from dream. Vocalist Rory Rodriguez says, 'I would hug him, we would cry, it truly felt like we were actually communicating at times. Very beautiful and very sad all in fleeting moments but it was also somewhat disorienting to my sense of reality.' 

​'Dreamstate' is a single from the latest Dayseeker record, Dark Sun, available everywhere now."
​

"Bella Ciao (Extended Version)" - Diego Moreno

T&E writer Greg says, "When it comes to protest and revolutionary hymns, you can't go wrong with "Bella Ciao." Essentially, the story goes, a revolutionary fighter says goodbye, dies for the cause, and flowers grow out of the spot where they rest, where the people honor them. Abused workers sang it in 1800s Northern Italian paddy fields, the Partisans (likely) sang it through the Italian Civil War, and now movements worldwide adopt it as their own. Diego Moreno's version fuses the Italian Partisan battle cry into that of the guerrilla warriors of the Mexican-American War, swapping out "Partisano" for "La Guerrillero" in the final lines, mixing together Spanish and Italian throughout. You can find this song in almost every language and every genre — no matter where we live, there's a cause worth dying for.

Honorable Mentions:

Chloe Stafler (French folk)
​https://music.youtube.com/watch?v=kz5ns3r4nUc&feature=share

La Fanfarria del Capitan (Balkan beat, Cumbia, ska): 
https://music.youtube.com/watch?v=dSBp2Nasl8g&feature=share

Skassapunka (ska-punk): 
https://music.youtube.com/watch?v=remR-3kjmks&feature=share

Chumbawamba: 
​https://music.youtube.com/watch?v=ZaomLvwS8Rw&feature=share