Object Of Sound

What does anger look like? In Yaeji’s case, the answer is simple: a fearsome, bedazzled hammer. At least, that’s the idea behind her forthcoming debut album. “It's a story about me and my anger,” says Yaeji. “My anger is materialized into this hammer that I befriend.” In this episode, Hanif sits down with Yaeji to talk about her songwriting process, her debut album, and the usefulness, the beauty, and the complicated nature of anger. Hanif closes the episode with a final thought: when we stop pushing away our anger and listen to what it is telling us, what greater acts of love, service, and creativity can that anger propel us towards? For the playlist of songs curated for this episode head over to https://bit.ly/oos-yaeji.

Music In This Week’s Episode:
When I Grow Up - Yaeji
Hit ‘Em Up Style - Blue Cantrell
You Oughta Know - Alanis Morissette
Caught Out There - Kelis
Never Again - Kelly Clarkson
Breaking Point - Keri Hilson
What About - Janet Jackson

Show Notes:
Hanif’s essay collection, A Little Devil in America: Notes in Praise of Black Performance, was released just over a year ago.

Check out the music video for ‘29,’ Yaeji’s recent single with OHHYUK, where she appears wielding a hammer.

Recently, Yaeji has been reading Minor Feelings: An Asian American Reckoning by Cathy Park Hong.

You can see Jiji in all her cuteness on Yaeji’s instagram.

Credits:
This show is produced by work by work: Scott Newman, Jemma Rose Brown, Kathleen Ottinger, Rhiannon Corby, and by Hanif Abdurraqib. The show is mixed by Sam Bair. Extra gratitude to Joe Dawson and Saidah Blount at Sonos.

Before Tegan and Sara sat down to make Crybaby, they had to navigate a series of breakups—with their label, their management, and (almost) with each other. “This is our breakup record,” says Sara Quin, “but we're not going to break up. We’re siblings. We can’t.” In the turmoil that followed, Tegan and Sara rebuilt their professional team, repaired their relationship, and completely reinvented their collaborative songwriting process for Crybaby, one of their most exciting releases yet. In this episode of Object of Sound, Tegan and Sara talk to Hanif about tenderness, tantrums, and the delight of destroying everything so you can make it all over again. To close the episode, Hanif guides us through a selection of breakup songs. For the playlist of songs curated for this episode, head over to radio.sonos.com.

Music In This Week’s Episode:
This Ain’t Going Well - Tegan and Sara
Evergreen (You Didn’t Deserve Me At All) - Omar Apollo
Cherry Blossom - Pom Pom Squad
Self Fulfilling Prophecy - Pretty Sick
We Can’t Be Friends (with R.L.) - Deborah Cox, R.L.
Happy After - Algebra
How Long Do I Have To Wait For You? - Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings
Bad Friend - Rina Sawayama

Show Notes:
Crybaby is out now.

Credits:
This show is produced by work by work: Scott Newman, Jemma Rose Brown, Kathleen Ottinger, Rhiannon Corby, and by Hanif Abdurraqib. The show is mixed by Sam Bair. Extra gratitude to Joe Dawson and Saidah Blount at Sonos.

Sylvan Esso’s Nick Sanborn and Amelia Meath are tired of your typical love song. They’re more interested in the music that flows from an argument, singing about heartbreak, and falling back in love with yourself. As Valentine’s day approaches, we talk to the duo about what it takes to make art together as romantic partners, crack open what a love song can be, and Hanif reads a poem by Nicole Sealey. For the playlist of songs curated for this episode visit http://bit.ly/oos-love

/ Show Notes /

Hanif references “God Only Knows” by The Beach Boys.

Amelia references the song “Free” from Sylvan Esso’s recent release, Free Love.

Amelia references “Juke Box Hero” by Foreigner as her first favorite love song.

Nick references “They Might Be Giants” by Ana Ng as his first favorite love song.

Amelia and Nick reference Robyn’s “Dancing On My Own” and Adele’s “Send My Love” as redemptive self-love songs.

/ Music In This Week's Playlist /

Sylvan Esso, Rooftop Dancing

Roxy Music, In Every Dream Home A Heartache

Whitney Houston & Cece Winans, Count On Me

Ghostface Killah, The Sun (feat. Slick Rick, Raekwon & Rza)

Bill Withers, Lean on Me

Robyn, Dancing On My Own

Nina Simone, Feeling Good

LCD Soundsystem, All My Friends

The National, Bloodbuzz Ohio

/ Credits /

Object of Sound is a Sonos show produced by work x work: Scott Newman, Jemma Rose Brown, and Babette Thomas. The show is additionally produced by Hanif Abdurraqib. Our engineers are Sam Bair and Josh Hahn of The Relic Room.

Matt Berninger started out as the frontman of The National, but recently he’s taken off on his own artistic path. With the re-issue of the National’s early albums out today, we speak with Matt about revisiting past selves, his collaboration with Booker T. Jones, and take a broader look at artists who have reinvented their sound after going solo. For the playlist of songs curated for this episode visit http://bit.ly/oos-solo

/ Show Notes /

Matt Berninger says Willie Nelson’s Stardust was a large inspiration for his most recent album, Serpentine Prison.

Matt cites “Sunny” by Booker T and the MG’s as an example of a record where you can “hear musicians look at each other.”

Matt calls Roberta Flack’s “Killing Me Softly With His Song” and Dolly Parton’s “I Will Always Love You” as, what he calls, “direct, on your knees, love songs”.

Matt says “Collar Of Your Shirt,” is the song on his album where he feels he really hit the mark.

Matt says “Even Here We Are” by Paul Westerberg and “When She Walks In The Room” by Bryan Ferry as his favorite song by front people who went solo.

/ Music In This Week's Playlist /

Collar of Your Shirt, Matt Berninger

Adam Lives in Theory, Ms. Lauryn Hill

Even Here We Are, Paul Westerberg

Mall Music, Nice As Fuck

Love, Selfish Love, Patrick Stump

Lazaretto, Jack White

Comes the Night, Karen O

Jòga, Björk

/ Credits /

Object of Sound is a Sonos show produced by work x work: Scott Newman, Jemma Rose Brown, and Babette Thomas. The show is additionally produced by Hanif Abdurraqib. Our engineers are Sam Bair and Josh Hahn of The Relic Room.

For the first month of the pandemic, Hanif couldn’t listen to music. Then KeiyaA dropped her album Forever Ya Girl! and the idea that new music could be made, in this moment, shook him. This week on Object of Sound, we're thinking back on the exhausting, scary, revelatory year we’ve just lived through, and how the pandemic has changed the need for music in our lives. We talk to KeiyaA about crystals, writing scene-rich lyrics and the music that carried her through these last 12 months. For the playlist of songs curated for this episode visit http://bit.ly/oos-keiyaa

/ Show Notes /

KeiyaA’s most recent album is Forever Ya Girl. Her zine is titled, On Returning My Quikest Language Back To My Mouth.

Hanif’s book A Little Devil In America: Notes in Praise Of Black Performance, is set to release March 30th.

KeiyaA mentions Slauson Malone’s catalog for his exhibition ‘A star like any other’— at Midway Contemporary Art.

KeiyaA’s selects for music made in the last 12 months include “Use It” by Demae, “White Double Consciousness” by Nelson Bandela, and “Clock In-Out” by Cleo Reed.

KeiyaA mentions shows thrown by her friends AmaniFela and Maassai.

Hanif gives a shout out to Brown Recluse Zine Distro.

/ Music In This Week's Playlist /

I Want My Things, KeiyaA

I Refuse To Die, Sydney Sprague

Queendom, Girlhood

Other Side, Shamir

I Finally Understand, Charli XCX

Body, Megan Thee Stallion

White Double Consciousness, Nelson Bandela

Weird Fishes, Lianne La Havas

/ Credits /

Object of Sound is a Sonos show produced by work x work: Scott Newman, Jemma Rose Brown, and Babette Thomas. The show is additionally produced by Hanif Abdurraqib. Our engineers are Sam Bair and Josh Hahn of The Relic Room.