Belle and Sebastian, "The Stars of Track and Field"
The opening to my favorite Belle and Sebastian record, and therefore one of my favorite records period. We listen to a lot of really rancid shit around here, all grind this and noise that, and broadly engage deeply with the ugliness of music. The jagged edges and novel noises keep things fresh and surprising, and there's an exhilaration in listening to that kind of stuff that is a consistent pleasure. But, at the same time, it's also worth balancing all that savagery with something from the beautiful end of things, a reminder that music can lift spirits.
Public Enemy, "Long and Whining Road"
A+ name here!
Little Simz, "Venom"
I know that this probably makes me parochial, but I still am always amused by an English accent in rap. Little Simz is fantastic, and this record rules, but a tiny part of me is giggling nonetheless.
Gang of Four, "Not Great Men"
Music critics (and, um, me) will often use adjectives from other domains when describing music. Hell, I just did it above, saying stuff here has "jagged edges". Our vocabulary that is specific to music or sound is often inadequate for really capturing our experience with music. So we borrow terms, and we hope that the analogy carries across to others.
And so we come to "angular". It's a word often deployed for a certain type of rock sound, and if you ever wonder what people mean, they mean this. Just keep this in your brain as a reference.
Piss Vortex, "Devouring Intent"
Jagged, see?