GLASSIO; YOU'LL READ ABOUT IT IN THE MAGAZINES

Sometimes grief and sorrow can sink us to the lowest of the low. Some people take longer than others to recover, and some never recover at all; whatever may be the case, we're all marked for the rest of our lives, and it's the contours of those scars that the memories trace when they come and go over time.

"Magazines" it's not specifically a song about grief, it's not even a song that sounds moody and sad, quite the contrary, DJ and Producer Sam R. as "Glassio" produced an uplifting and flighty track saturated by a kaleidoscope of colorful sounds that is equal parts danceable Acid-House and 90s alt-rock/power-pop. So where does that subject of loss comes into play? Well, as it happens, Sam R. spent most of his 2020 in a "low" place, and things took a turn for the gloomier when his father sadly passed from C*vid. Right as both "Magazines" and Glassio's upcoming album were right in the middle of being fully realized. His father, Sam Says, "loved how it sounded and beckoned [Him]to finish it -along with the rest of the songs on the album- in the last few weeks of his life".

 I am sure that this information changed the way I subjectively appreciated the song, it may affect yours as well if a similar pain is fresh on your heart as well, but let's not bring the mood down too much, because this song doesn't really work that way, it works in a place that Frech-Spanish musician Manu Chao called "Malegría", which he describes as that sensation you feel when joy and melancholy mix together and everything seems to be going well enough, just not exactly like you would want it to.

Very much in spite of the sour note underlying "Magazines," it is still dripping with charm on every end you look at it from. It uses a hefty sound library in its electronic composition, one that falls on the side of the classics, producing a dense and complex machine with tons of moving parts, all working together To deliver a cheerful and childlike melody that teases a smile out of you little by little. The song doesn't have anything truly "retro" about it, yet it somehow manages to crystalize in my mind the perfect image of the budding digital era of the late 90s and early 2000s, a time of great technological novelty, optimism, and electronics covered in trendy clear-plastic psychedelia. The only flaw that I can find with this song is that its 3 minutes and 4-second runtime feel more like 1 minute 30 instead.

Between here and next year, Glassio will be releasing his sophomore album, "See You Shine", a record that promises to Marry his  "[...]passion for French-electronic music with American singer-songwriter tropes akin to Jackson Browne, or Wilco."  Something which to me sounds like a very fresh proposal and has piqued my interest like you wouldn't believe, after all, "Magazines" does offer something in the way of a narrative-driven electronic motion, the likes of which we simply don't seem to have enough showing up nowadays. It's very enticing, and I'm eager to hear more of Glassio in the months to come

MEET THE AUTHOR

Samuel Aponte is Venezuelan-born raised and based. 

I joined Rival Magazine after a few years of doing PR work for independent musicians of all stripes; understanding their struggles to be heard in a sea of constant  ADHD noise and paywalled access to platforms, I now bring a willingness to always appreciate and encourage the effort and creativity that artists put into their work . Can also find some of my writings on LADYGUNN and We Found New Music.