PUNK: curated by Anna Wilson, reviewed by Naomi Todd

1. My Brain Is Hanging Upside Down (Bonzo Goes to Bitburg) – The Ramones
2. I Don’t Care About You – Fear
3. Oh Bondage, Up Yours! – X-Ray Spex
4. Waiting Room – Fugazi
5. Slumlord Sal – Downtown Boys

I liked most of the songs on this playlist. I feel like sometimes with punk there’s too much happening in a song for me to focus on it between heavy instrumentals and loud vocals, but with these songs I tried to focus on the lyrics too, and I liked the general attitude that they gave. I liked that most of the songs on this playlist, and most punk songs in general, seem to be anthems of some sort and have a clear message to them. I couldn’t relate to the songs for the most part because I felt like the subjects of the songs were about things that were specific to the people who wrote them and were generally an experience or the artist’s opinion. I already knew the Ramones song and really like that one and the Fear song, but would probably pass on the Downtown Boys song next time. Overall I liked this playlist and would consider myself a fan. •

BLUES ROCK: curated by Naomi Todd, reviewed by Anna Wilson

1. Have You Ever Seen the Rain – Creedence Clearwater Revival
2. When Love Comes to Town – B.B. King/U2
3. Kozmic Blues – Janis Joplin
4. Voodoo Child – Jimi Hendrix
5. Layla – Derek & The Dominos

I’m definitely familiar with all of these songs, and overall, this playlist is pretty solid. “Have You Ever Seen the Rain” is a song that I’ll bet everyone knows, and John Fogerty is an amazing songwriter with a signature sound to his music. “When Love Comes to Town” was never really my favorite B.B. King song, but as usual, the guitar licks are right on. “Kozmic Blues” is awesome. I love songs in 3/4 time, and Janis is always great at adding dynamics to a song because of the way she sings. “Voodoo Child” speaks for itself. How could you not like Jimi? I’m definitely more of a fan of Clapton’s work in other bands, like Cream and the Bluesbreakers, so “Layla” doesn’t really appeal to me all that much, but he always has good guitar work, so that’s cool. Judging from this playlist, I would consider myself a casual Blues Rock fan. •

INDIE ROCK: curated by Lily Forte-Fast, reviewed by Talia Zitner

1. Seymour Stein – Belle & Sebastian
2. Tugboat – Galaxie 500
3. Wash – Bon Iver
4. The Bends – Radiohead
5. Something Good – alt-J

I feel like with most indie rock, it’s either a big hit, or an even bigger miss. I generally enjoy indie music, and a lot of the music on this playlist I especially liked. I particularly enjoyed alt-J and Bon Iver, both of whom I’ve heard before but mainly their bigger songs. It’s nice to be able to listen to some of their music that’s just as good as the popular stuff but not as recognized. I’ve been listening to Radiohead for a while, but I had kinda forgotten about “The Bends,” which is a great song. Super relatable. I didn’t really enjoy “Tugboat” or “Seymour Stein.” The lyrics were good, but like a lot of indie music, the actual instrumentation is a lot to handle. There’s often too much going on in the song to actually be able to focus on it in its entirety. Overall, I enjoyed most of the playlist, and would listen to some of it again but would pass on others. •

RAP: curated by Talia Zitner, reviewed by Lily Forte-Fast

1. The Art of Peer Pressure – Kendrick Lamar
2. No Church in the Wild – Jay Z
3. II. Worldstar – Childish Gambino
4. Power – Kanye West
5. Headlines – Drake

I thought that this music was cool and interesting: I felt like it would be good music to listen to at a party. I don’t usually listen to Kendrick Lamar, Jay Z, or rap artists as much, but they make cool music and if I was down in the moment I would listen to this music again. I have heard songs from all the artists on the playlists before but I don’t listen to them very often. I specifically liked the Kanye West song because I know Kanye’s music more than I know the rest of the artists. I didn’t really feel the Jay Z song because I don’t know his music that well, and I’m not a huge fan of his. Overall I thought this playlist was pretty cool. •

HEAVY METAL: curated by Sam Cohen, reviewed by Emma Jacobson

1. Stone – Alice in Chains
2. Battery – Metallica
3. Painkiller – Judas Priest
4. Becoming – Pantera
5. Hole In the Sky – Black Sabbath

I liked the melody and beat of some of the songs but I didn’t like how long it took to get to the lyrics. The only two songs I didn’t like were “Painkiller” and “Becoming”, because it was more screaming than singing, the other three songs were closer to singing. However, the intros to both “Becoming” and “Painkiller” are really cool. They both come out really strong and make you want to listen to the rest of the song, or at least until they start singing. I have not heard any of the songs on the playlist before, but I have heard heavy metal songs, some of which sounded like these. I wasn’t really listening to the lyrics but I don’t think there was much I could relate to about batteries or painkillers. I appreciated the songs and the quality of the music, although it was not my favorite genre. I would listen to heavy metal again but I feel I would have to be in a certain mood. •

COUNTRY: curated by Emma Jacobson, reviewed by Sam Cohen

1. Beautiful Drug by Zac Brown Band
2. Highway 20 Ride by Zac Brown Band
3. Die a Happy Man by Thomas Rhett
4. Smoke Break by Carrie Underwood
5. Stay a Little Longer by Brothers Osborne

I thought it was alright, honestly didn’t hear anything special or groundbreaking in it. The lyrical content across the board was very repetitive, as well as the instrumentation. I have heard country before, but only from the likes of Johnny Cash. I couldn’t really feel anything connecting with the music either. Personally, I don’t see myself listening to country in the future, with the exception of Johnny Cash. •