I love love love the feeling of spring. The sun no longer goes down in the afternoon, the weather gets increasingly hotter, and we see life come back into plants in real time. I even admire the dashes of rainy days (if I can remain inside during them). It's the season of coming out of hibernation, the big push to reason with the reclusive parts of my mind and its unceasing desires to stay cooped up in my room all day. I'm ready to feel human again, enjoy the breeze, garner tales about how I've spent my day, and just experience all I can. As the Brazilian classic "Águas de Março" mentions regarding the sweet transition into the rainy season and the beauty in our mundane world, "It's the promise of life. It's the joy in your heart." A little cheesy, but spring is my season of hope—you get me?
The spring equinox is the real beginning of the new year for many cultures and those who feel off schedule in working toward their resolutions. That's how I've been feeling, and while I figure out how to let myself blossom, music has my back, as always. There's lots of music that I associate with spring, whether it's due to the timing of its release or because it possesses the warm and airy feeling of this time of the year. A significant amount of my favorites are what I call spring projects; they make me dance, they accompany me on my walks, and they fill me with optimism. You guys know how I roll at this point; I won't gatekeep my blooming soundtrack because I want us to find our footing together, and we surely will, with some sublime tunes gracing us.
Minnie Riperton, Come To My Garden (1970)
Leaving an indelible impression based on the highly regarded opening track alone, Come To My Garden is a sanctuary of an album. Minnie Riperton's debut features comforting elements, such as the mesmeric orchestra and the gentle yet all-consuming handling of the theme of love narrated by sweet vocals. It's an invitation to feel; it's the sonic equivalent of a handhold and the trace of a thumb across the dorsal side as a confirmation that everything will be okay. Riperton's whistle register appears throughout the album and, as always, affects me. It evokes the same wonder and delight as hearing birds sing. Come To My Garden is dreamy soul music to a T, poetic and straightforward in its lyricism, a 37-minute odyssey guided by a passionate romantic.
Toni’s fave track: “Only When I'm Dreaming”
Blood Orange, Coastal Grooves (2011)
Devonté Hynes (Blood Orange) has an exceedingly fitting title with grooves galore in his debut album under this pseudonym. An indie rock, synth-pop, and funk blend create a rhythmic atmosphere that emulates new wave characteristics, and Hynes has a modern twist. Ambiguity is a big theme in this album, as is its relation to identity, love, and survival. The sound echoes the feeling of being on the run, hectic and thrilling but steadily glum, too. Coastal Grooves is moody in the best way, and it covers my bases this season: the days of rainfall and the days of sunshine. A body of work that has the gall to leave us with "Champagne Coast" in its finale is something we all should cherish continuously; that's the true meaning of ending with a bang.
Toni’s fave track: “Sutphin Boulevard”
Her’s, Invitation to Her’s (2018)
With swoon-worthy melodies and peculiar sounds coloring the project, Invitation to Her's is a pop-rock collection of songs wrapped in a bouquet. The cover already screams spring to me, and once I hit play, the band's intro reminds me of a cartoonish rising of the sun, immediately brightening the mood. Despite the light feeling, conversely, Her's lyrically ruminates on change, insecurities in relationships, and how happy endings are still only a possibility in a roll of the dice. The lead vocals stay within a low and hushed register, a charming kind of crooning that pop ballads don't usually bring to the table. Unconventionality takes this debut far, and you can hear the experiment with details that could've been signatures, like glitches and jittery rushes dancing around in the background. Invitation to Her's is velvety and is an album that makes the blues feel just as good as joy.
Toni’s fave track: “Blue Lips”
Talking Heads, Speaking in Tongues (1983)
Speaking in Tongues, titled after the urge to utter an unknown language from uncontrollable passion, awakens a similar powerful impulse to dance. Talking Heads, a trailblazing band that fell into the new wave genre as it emerged, has a compact art rock album that unravels as a summoning to a party where everyone can let loose. It's a sequence of tracks that initiates sporadic movement, such as tapping a foot, nodding a head, and then a striking burst of energy through all limbs. Speaking in Tongues is an album that simply feels good; it's a taste of euphoria after a long rut. I appreciate how I sometimes don't exactly know what David Bryne is saying, and when I look into it, I still don't know, but that's actually the point. Not everything has to make sense, and the one clear thing is that I should be having fun (and I absolutely am).
Toni’s fave track: “Slippery People”
PinkPantheress, Heaven Knows (2023)
A lover girl through and through, PinkPantheress champions acceptance of her romantic fate. She's known for emotional lyrics over infectious hyper-pop production, and this debut takes it a step further with hope as the thematic climax and a dip into the alternative R&B pool. The opening track brings in heavy rainfall, and once it clears, the sound has a strong presence, like a rainbow asserting its beauty through the clouds. Her range in this project from a hopeless lover into someone fighting their delusion and realizing that solitude is not too bad is laudable since her target audience is a generation that tends to struggle with this belief. Despite the back-and-forth and doubts, PinkPantheress stands her ground and chooses herself, the pillowy essence of her work reflecting her reality.
Toni’s fave track: “Mosquito”
TV Girl, French Exit (2014)
A French exit (also known as the Irish goodbye) is a swift departure without notice. TV Girl cleverly uses this phrase as the title of their debut album about limerence, as the songs tell tales of longing, love, and the inevitable lack thereof. French Exit is full of hypnotic pop, lo-fi qualities, and smooth samples of 20th-century media. The band's sound seems simple because of its easygoing and laidback nature, yet it's impressively creative how the tracks can be so similar but are simultaneously so different. I remember tweeting how "Lovers Rock" scratched an itch in my brain around two years ago, and as I've given the rest of the project the same amount of attention, I'd say it has the same effect in its entirety.
Toni’s fave track: “Birds Don’t Sing”
Steve Lacy, Apollo XXI (2019)
Referenced plenty in pop culture, holding a boombox outside a lover's house is famously known as a grand romantic gesture. The song selection is crucial in winning over someone's heart, and truthfully, if I were the person listening from the window, I'd want to hear something from Apollo XXI. Steve Lacy's debut has open and honest lyricism adorned by a fresh alternative R&B execution. The indie rock, funk, and soul fusion make for a transfixing guitar-heavy trip. While having the ability to woo an audience, Apollo XXI doubles as a comforting coming-of-age album. Lacy is free of worry, focused on existing in peace and letting all parts of himself shine without anyone else's input. I'm sure I'd be in high spirits if I had the discipline to have "Only If" set my morning mood every day, and that just might be the goal for this spring.
Toni’s fave track: “Hate CD”
Victoria Monét, Jaguar (2020)
The Jaguar EP is an experience that only a superstar could make. A stylish and groovy celebration of sexuality and self, Victoria Monét's mastery of wordplay and precise patterns in production affirms her ingenuity. It's a perfect transitional body of work for this season, with lyrics questioning where things could take off from where they are. The instrumentals could very well be the theme music for the phase of life where you're on the cusp of greatness, and growth is imminent. Jaguar is sensational R&B with funk and disco additions and a signatory use of horns that add oomph to an already elevated project. Monét has something for sapphics, retro aesthetic lovers, and those working on building self-confidence.
Toni’s fave track: “Go There With You”
Stevie Wonder, Innervisions (1973)
Innervisions is an album that radiates compassion. It's arguably in the top three of Stevie Wonder's discography and a stark example of art that completes you. Full of soul, jazzy tones, rock, and even Latin influences, Innervisions is the workings of an artist whose versatility is innate to him. The heart of this project lies in meditations on love, spirituality, and pointed and conscious social commentary. Two Aprils ago, I would play "Don't You Worry 'Bout A Thing" to keep me going, and it still gets the job done. When I listen to Innervisions during my strolls, I have to remind myself that I'm in public because of how badly it stirs an emotional response. This album continues to become more compelling as it ages and has a curing nature that will never diminish.
Toni’s fave track: “All In Love Is Fair”
Wallows, Spring (2018)
I couldn't resist; how could I write about spring music without Spring?! Wallows' debut EP captures how this season would sound in the indie rock sphere. Spring is also quite nostalgic, and I always imagine it supporting a teen movie of its decade for fun, crafting the plot and scenery in my head. It reminds me of my teenage years: the nonchalant cadence and angsty lyrics, the pop blend, and the vocal inflection used in lyrics about love. During one song, I might be swaying to the sounds of the guitar and banging my head to the beat of the drums in the next. It's a short project with much to offer. Spring feels youthful and playful, and we could all benefit from having light-heartedness in our lives more often.
Toni’s fave track: “Let the Sun In”
I've let you in on all of the music I've been revisiting and loving lately, and I hope you can enjoy them too this spring and throughout any other season they feel necessary. For some playlists with selections from these projects and others that may be exactly what you're looking for, head over to my Spotify account here.
Happy listening!