#20 on the 2023 Bacon Top 31 — Caroline Rose

January 12, 2024 by Royal Stuart in Top 31

The Art of Forgetting by Caroline Rose

I’m a big fan of Caroline Rose, the person. But they’re proving hard to pin down, musically. Their first album, Loner, was my #12 album of 2018, and it was tongue-in-cheek pop rock of the best kind. Then their sophomore album, Superstar – #21 in 2020 – was polished up like a gemstone, more pop, less rock. And now they’ve released a great third album, but again reinvented themselves into something else again.

The “rock” side of them has reared its head again, this time with a little garage and grit thrown in for good measure. The Art of Forgetting is a great album, on par with the other two. But because of these shifts they’ve made on each album, I think they’re having trouble finding their audience overall. Or maybe that’s just how it looks from the aging peanut gallery over here.

The two videos that have been released from the album, the above for the song “Miami”, and also “Tell Me What You Want,” are something of a marvel as well. The “Miami” video (“CHAPTER ONE” as it says at the beginning of the video), shown entirely in reverse, depicts Caroline and a companion in a night of fun and debauchery. Halfway through the video, the marquee overhead reads “THANKFUL FOR YOU.” The “Tell Me What You Want” video is the literal exact opposite, in video form. It starts where the “Miami” video ended, but this time moving forward through time (starting with “CHAPTER TWO”). It depicts the same events as shown in the “Miami” video, but this time Caroline is alone, drunkenly going through all the same motions they went through with the companion (in reverse). Drinking until belligerent, staggering around and falling into a pool, most of the letters on the marquee halfway through have been removed, leaving only “F O O L,” ending the story in the hotel room where Caroline then masturbates to, presumably, the memory or dream of the companion shown in “Miami”. The video ends where the “Miami” video began, with a hotel-room CRT TV tuned into television snow. Directed by Sam Bennett, the pair of videos make for a great story, posing more questions than providing answers, in a provocative way.

I suppose Forgetting is similar – Caroline tells a deeply (seemingly) personal story throughout the album, interspersed with answering-machine messages from their grandmother and other found-artifact noises, such as the starting and stopping “KA-CHUNK” of a tape deck. It makes for a wild ride, and one hell of an album.

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#21 on the 2020 Bacon Top 31 — Caroline Rose

January 11, 2021 by Royal Stuart

Superstar by Caroline Rose

From Loner to Superstar — I’m not sure either title is quite accurate, but it paints a good picture of the dual aspirations of Caroline Rose, whose fourth full-length earns the 21st spot on our countdown. She brings great indie rock with fantastic pop hooks worthy of superstardom, coupled with the strong ironic lonerism of a millennial that makes you want to stay just outside of arms reach, lest you get hurt. It’s a balance not many could pull off.

Her last album, Loner, thoroughly wowed me and consequently appeared at #12 two years ago. Superstar, her fourth, is a continuation of everything I loved about her previous album, and it’s a testament to the wealth of good music released this year that it appears only in the bottom half of the countdown.

“Feel the Way I Want To,” shown in the fun video above, is the biggest hook, featuring Rose’s signature keyboard work, constantly driving beat, and impossibly catchy chorus. The rest of the album doesn’t disappoint, carrying forward what I loved so much about Loner. If you didn’t pick up that 2018 album, I recommend starting there. By the end of it, you’ll find yourself compelled to keep the party going right into Superstar.

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1. Saint Cloud by Waxahatchee
2. Fetch The Bolt Cutters by Fiona Apple
3. Punisher by Phoebe Bridgers
4. folklore + evermore by Taylor Swift
5. Untitled (Black Is) + Untitled (Rise) by Sault
6. RTJ4 by Run The Jewels
7. Shore by Fleet Foxes
8. Serpentine Prison by Matt Berninger
9. The Ascension by Sufjan Stevens
10. Making a Door Less Open by Car Seat Headrest
11. Dreamland by Glass Animals
12. A Hero’s Death by Fontaines D.C.
13. Song Machine, Season One: Strange Timez by Gorillaz
14. Mordechai + Texas Sun EP by Khruangbin
15. Introduction, Presence by Nation of Language
16. Free Love by Sylvan Esso
17. Miss Anthropocene by Grimes
18. 3.15.20 by Childish Gambino
19. Women In Music Pt. III by HAIM
20. The Third Mind by The Third Mind
21. Superstar by Caroline Rose
22. Impossible Weight by Deep Sea Diver
23. We Will Always Love You by The Avalanches
24. Ultra Mono by IDLES
25. Visions of Bodies Being Burned by clipping.
26. Thin Mind by Wolf Parade
27. The Loves of Your Life by Hamilton Leithauser
28. Palo Alto (Live) by Thelonious Monk
29. color theory by Soccer Mommy
30. Fall to Pieces by Tricky
31. Quarantine Casanova by Chromeo

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#12 on the 2018 Bacon Top 31 — Caroline Rose

January 20, 2019 by Royal Stuart

Loner by Caroline Rose

Add another hard rocking female singer to the ever-growing 2018 Bacon Top 31 list. If you’ve not yet heard of Caroline Rose, then you’re in for a real treat. The song featured above, “Money,” is what drew me in, and it’s really fun, but don’t get fooled into thinking this is what the rest of her music sounds like. This album is full of smart, gritty pop rock that will have you singing along in no time.

Rose has accomplished quite a bit for being only 28. The fabulous Loner is her third full-length, although is a sharp turn in musical direction. Her previous two albums fall more into the alt.country genres, and fell flat, critically. Loner took her four years and lots of soul-searching iteration to arrive at this joyfully sarcastic record. Watch the other videos that she’s released for the album, and you’ll see that snide satirical humor come out: “Jeannie Becomes a Mom,” “Bikini,” and “Soul No. 5.”

In addition to writing great lyrics and hooks, Rose plays most of the instruments on her album, a true prodigy of music. She also co-produced the album, along with lead singer/songwriter of the English band The Bees (otherwise known as A Band of Bees here in the states), Paul Butler. Quick-strummed guitar, staccato keys and organ, basic drums and bass guitar fill out the sound, all with her voice sung mostly through a gravel-filled filter that gives it just the right amount of grit.

This album is fantastic. It’s catchy in all the right ways, and any time I’ve played it for other people (unannounced), they usually perk up and ask “who’s this?” Give it a listen, and you, too, can be that person. Enjoy!

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13. Big Red Machine by Big Red Machine
14. I’ll Be Your Girl by The Decemberists
15. The More I Sleep the Less I Dream by We Were Promised Jetpacks
16. Joy as an Act of Resistance by IDLES
17. Hell-On by Neko Case
18. Superorganism by Superorganism
19. Living in Extraordinary Times by James
20. Thank You for Today by Death Cab for Cutie
21. Black Panther: The Album by Kendrick Lamar
22. Suspiria (Music for the Luca Guadagnino Film) by Thom Yorke
23. Merrie Land by The Good, the Bad & the Queen
24. Room 25 by Noname
25. WARM by Jeff Tweedy
26. God's Favorite Customer by Father John Misty
27. Vessel by Frankie Cosmos
28. For Ever by Jungle
29. Twerp Verse by Speedy Ortiz
30. Remain in Light by Angélique Kidjo
31. This One’s for the Dancer & This One’s for the Dancer’s Bouquet by Moonface

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