Song of the Week Roundup: Pre-Hiatus and it's return!

ICYMI: A roundup of our song of the week features from April 2024, and the first song of the week feature returning back from our posting hiatus in March 2025.

"Titan of Hope" - MSPAINT
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​T&E writer Brandon Biallas says, "Fueled by an infectious concoction of unmitigated energy, Hattiesburg, Mississippi natives, MSPAINT, bring an utterly satisfying blend of music genres to the table. This song in particular sort of sounds like Rage Against The Machine giving motivational seminars to the downtrodden masses in an alternate reality. It's synthy and electronically dense, possessing the immense heaviness of rock without the decadence or conceit. A beautiful abomination of chaos, positivity, and a titanic amount of hope."

"Un jour...la mort" - Catherine Ribeiro + Alpes
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T&E writer Parisa says, "A song to be filed under the 'One of the Greatest Avant-Garde Masterpieces of All Time that For Some Reason Not Enough People Talk About' category. It's a 25 minute prog-driven, psychedelic folk epic in which Catherine Ribeiro confronts the grim reaper. Written after her attempted suicide that left her unable to walk, speak or write for a year, this song narrates from the deepest pit of despair until the turnaround point where she decides she wants to experience life and 'get drunk on the saliva of [her] love'. Instrumentally carried along with acoustic guitar, microtonal piano lines, exquisitely lengthy organ solos, and bow-played cosmophone, though nothing stands out more than Ribeiro's vocal performance. Between the poignant spoken word segments and gut wrenching screams, it's clear that her soul lives at the tip of her mouth. If I had to best draw comparisons, I'd say this song carries the psychedelic qualities of Pink Floyd, the raw punk attitude of early-era Stooges, the vocal stylings of Nico with a freakish Diamanda Galas-esque twist."
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"Hide and Seek" - The Feminine Complex
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T&E writer Parisa says, "The Feminine Complex was a teenage all-girl garage pop band, formed in 1966 when four Nashville high school basketball players decided making music was their next big play. They recorded one album, Livin’ Love, and played a few local shows over the summer before disbanding at the start of the  school year. This lil’ doo-wop-she-bop gem has often been dismissed as a hoax, but thanks to TeenBeat’s 1996 reissue—complete with deeply researched liner notes—it’s certified almost, but not actually, too good to be true! The whole album is near and dear to my heart, but the opening track showcases all their best features: bellowing lead vocals, fuzzed-out guitars over a psychedelic backdrop, and some sweet, sweet harmonies."