Month: August 2021

This week in the best new pop music saw several stars kick off album roll outs. The Weeknd dropped an addictive single, Finneas officially announced his debut album, and Lady Gaga shared a first look at her second collaborative album with legendary singer Tony Bennett.

Each week, Uproxx rounds up the best new pop releases. Listen up.

The Weeknd — “Take My Breath”

Following up on his wildly successful 2020 LP After Hours, The Weeknd ushered in a new era of music this week with the trance-like track “Take My Breath.” The club-ready tune showcases into the synth-heavy style The Weeknd first perfected in After Hours, resulting in a driving single perfect for late-night listens.

Finneas — “A Concert Six Months From Now”

Finneas may be best known for his production work on Billie Eilish’s music, but he’s also an established songwriter of his own. This week, the musician announced his debut album Optimist with the tender ballad “A Concert Six Months From Now.” The acoustic guitar track hones Finneas’ stripped-down sound, melting his far-ranging vocals over wistful and subdued instrumentals.

Lady Gaga, Tony Bennett — “I Get A Kick Out Of You”

Lady Gaga may have dropped her hyperpop-leaning LP Chromatica last year, but this week, the singer showed off her versatility with the Tony Bennett collaboration “I Get A Kick Out Of You.” The swooning single blends the two iconic singers’ loungy vocals over a jazzy beat and offers the first preview of their joint project Love For Sale.

Aventura, Bad Bunny — “Volví”

Global superstar Bad Bunny continues dishing up hits this week with “Volví,” a collaborative single with Dominican-American bachata group Aventura. The summer-ready song combines reggaeton and pop sensibilities for a pumped-up tune that’s sure to get anyone up and moving.

Blackear — “@ My Worst”

Though it’s been less than a year since Blackbear released his 2020 album Everything Means Nothing, the musician is already gearing up for yet another release. His vibe-heavy track “@ My Worst” marks his latest compelling single and offers another preview of his forthcoming EP Misery Lake, which is set to drop next week.

Black Eyed Peas — “Hit It” Feat. Saweetie, Lele Pons

Serving up a club-ready banger, Black Eyed Peas teamed up with Saweetie and rising star Lele Pons for the fiery track “Hit It.” The up-tempo tune boasts a sultry bassline and clever verses, marking Black Eyed Peas’ first song of the year following their 2020 Shakira collaboration “Girl Like Me.”

Victoria Monét — “Coastin’”

After releasing her debut LP Jaguar last year, R&B star Victoria Monét returns with another irresistable tune with the carefree song “Coastin.’” Though the tune was actually written in the winter time, the funk-forward beat combines with Monét’s honeyed vocals for an undeniably sunny single.

Adam Levine — “Good Mood”

After a tough year all around, Maroon 5 vocalist Adam Levine is here to put his listeners in a “Good Mood” with his latest song. Penned to be a part of PAW Patrol: The Movie‘s original soundtrack, “Good Mood” is a happy-go-lucky jingle reminding us of the importance of sticking by your loved ones.

Glaive — “1984”

Prolific 16-year-old hyperpop songwriter Glaive showed off his hitmaking skills on his All Dogs Go To Heaven EP. The 8-track effort gives a snapshot of the rising star’s life: angst, heartbreak, fallouts with friends, and everything in between. “1984” opens the EP, detailing the story of a painful goodbye over deliciously distorted synths and a hyped-up beat.

Holly Humberstone — “Please Don’t Leave Just Yet”

Breakout songwriter Holly Humberstone returned this week with the resonating tune “Please Don’t Leave Just Yet.” The radically honest and intricately layered single officially announces her upcoming EP The Walls Are Way Too Thin, which Humberstone said is inspired by the feeling of being lost. “This EP represents a feeling of being lost,” she said. “It’s the kind of lost that makes you question who you are and where you belong. So lost that someone might need to find you again because you can’t find yourself.”

Some of the artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

Beyonce has been a successful and busy artist for a long time: Destiny’s Child formed (as Girl’s Tyme) before Beyonce was even a teenager. Not long after things started to take off, though, Beyonce suffered an injury that she thought would derail her singing career.

Beyonce is the subject of a new Harper’s Bazaar feature, and in it, after speaking about her introversion during her early childhood, she continued:

“I started taking voice lessons from an opera singer at nine. By 10, I had already recorded at least 50 or 60 songs in the recording studio. This was before Pro Tools, when you recorded to tape. I had my first vocal injury at 13 from singing in the studio for too many hours. We had just gotten our first record deal, and I was afraid I had developed nodules and destroyed my voice and that my career could be over. The doctors put me on vocal rest all summer and I was silent once again.”

She also talked about how seriously she took her music career as a teenager, saying, “I committed to always being a student and always being open to growth. No one in my school knew that I could sing because I barely spoke. My energy went into Destiny’s Child and the dream of us getting a record deal and becoming musicians. If something wasn’t helping me reach my goal, I decided to invest no time in it. I didn’t feel like I had time to ‘kiki’ or hang out. I sacrificed a lot of things and ran from any possible distraction. […] I knew I was given this amazing opportunity and felt like I had one shot. I refused to mess it up, but I had to give up a lot.”

Read the full feature here.

It’s hard to argue with Popeyes’ Spicy Chicken Sandwich. It was a sensation when it dropped and had a huge impact on fast-food culture by revitalizing an old and often-overlooked category of fast-food alternatives to the regular old burger. Still, Popeyes didn’t invent the spicy chicken sando and, arguably, did not perfect it either.

Personally, I’ve always found the sandwich to be overrated. My main gripe has always been that the “spicy” just comes from a very mildly spicy mayo on a plain piece of fried chicken breast. Why isn’t that spice built into the brine of the chicken breast and/or the damn breading of the cutlet? For me, spots like Wendy’s and Culver’s get this and always stuck out in my mind as having the better, spicier option built into the chicken on the sandwich and not just the sauce.

So, I decided to put this theory to a test. While in Sioux Falls recently, I had access to both Culver’s and Popeyes. It was a two-lunch Tuesday for Zach as I hit them both for a taste test of each chain’s spicy fried chicken sandwiches.

I’m also doing more than just tasting the sandwiches and declaring a winner. I’m going deeper than that by looking at five categories for this adjudication: The bun, the dressings (sauces, lettuce, etc.), the chicken, presentation, and the heat. There’s just no way to judge these sandwiches without breaking them down by their components to find a clearer sense of the whole.

Okay, preamble over. Let’s get to tasting and judging some spicy fried chicken sandwiches!

Round One: The Bun

Popeyes:

No one goes to Popeyes because they have amazing buns. It’s pre-toasted and kept warm for the build. There’s more of a vegetable oil taste to the toasted vibe than a buttery one, which is fine. I guess…

Overall, it’s not sweet or buttery. It’s just white bread with almost no discernable flavor besides white bread and vegetable oil.

Culver’s:

The potato roll on this has a slight heft to the softness of the milk-inspired bun. There’s a sweetness to the crumb on this bread and it feels like there’s something there besides a soft sponge.

The bun is also buttered and has a buttery toasted vibe. It’s almost lush.

Winner:

Culver’s by a mile.

Round Two: The Dressing

Popeyes:

So this is where things diverge dramatically. Popeyes is dressed with their spicy mayo and a few pickles. The spicy mayo is on the top and bottom bun, providing good distribution of mildly spicy sauce and moistness to the overall eating experience.

The pickles kind of get lost in the mix. They add a nice crunch every now and then but don’t live up to the crispy outer crust of the fried chicken. I tried a bit with and without pickle and there wasn’t really any difference.

Culver’s:

Culver’s sando comes with shredded iceberg, tomato, and pickles but no sauce. It’s mind-blowing that there’s not a spicy mayo or just plain mayo on this sandwich. Culver’s has a massive, interchangeable menu yet they don’t have sauce on this entry. Granted, you can ask for them to add anything to this. So you can just have them put some mayo on there or a slice of cheese. But, still…

As for the lettuce, tomato, and pickle, they’re not bad. They all 100 percent add to the textural experience of eating this sandwich. Culver’s also has very distinct pickles with an old-school deli saltiness and pickle crunch that stand the test of time.

Winner:

Popeyes because at least there’s a sauce element.

Round Three: The Chicken

Popeyes:

This is where things get prickly. Popeyes assembles your sandwich to order from pre-cooked pieces. I watched mine get made. The bun was pre-toasted and kept warm and the chicken cutlet came out of a warmer tray.

Here’s the thing, my chicken was pretty dry and not seasoned all that well. There was a nice crunch to the coating but that was made a little mushy by all that sauce.

Overall, it was underwhelming and I was reminded of something our own Dane Rivera said while ranking spicy fried chicken sandwiches. “Popeyes also sells a non-spicy version with mayo. It’s good but not great.” And, yeah, that kind of sums it up on the quality of the chicken at play here.

Culver’s:

This isn’t hard to give the win to because this chicken breast was juicy, well-seasoned thanks to the spice being built into the chicken and not the sauce, and fried fresh.

Look if we’re talking moister chicken breast and better seasoning, I have to give it to Culver’s. Plus, this piece of chicken actually tasted of something.

Winner:

Culver’s, easily.

Round Four: Presentation

Popeyes:

That is a thing of beauty. Look at it up there!

Culver’s:

This looks like it was served at a college cafeteria and I’m not mad about it.

Winner:

Popeyes in a walk.

Round Five: The Heat

Popeyes:

Is a simple, even non-descript “spicy” enough to push Popeyes over the top? I don’t know. The spice is certainly there, but it’s tame and a little blank. It sort of dissipates within less than a minute, leaving you with the mayo and dry chicken, and there was a lot of sauce on my sandwich. Any note of spice was already gone by the time I put the wrapper in the garbage can and headed to the car.

The actual spiciness was fine but felt very entry-level, which is probably the point since we’re not talking Nashville hot chicken here.

In the end, my memory of this non-descript spice on this sandwich being just “okay” was still accurate.

Culver’s:

The spice of this is built into that chicken breast cutlet. That’s a plus already. But what really helped this edge out Popeyes wasn’t the intensity, it was the staying power.

I had a 15-minute drive from Culver’s and Popeyes between eating these two sandwiches. During the whole drive from Culver’s to Popeyes, I could still feel the slight tingle of spice on my tongue and mouth. It wasn’t an overpowering chili-spice bomb. It was more a pleasant, peppery, and chili-forward tingling spice sensation. It was a nice feeling that stuck with me. Comparatively, the spice from the Popeyes sandwich barely made it out the door, much less a 15-minute car ride.

Winner:

Culver’s all the way.

The Winner

That’s three to two for Culver’s, folks.

It probably sounds crazy to rank a fried chicken sandwich from a burger joint from Wisconsin over the same sandwich from a fried chicken joint from Louisanna, but here we are.

That dry chicken breast and extremely mild spicy sauce just weren’t enough to put Popeyes over the top. In theory, Culver’s should lose for having no sauce at all. Still, no sauce and plenty of spice on a moist piece of fried chicken are better than sauce with “okay” mild spice sauce and dry chicken. So, there you have it! Culver’s wins this round.

As the pandemic raged in late 2020, Warner Bros. made the controversial announcement that it would release its entire 2021 film slate on HBO Max simultaneously with theater release dates. The move angered not only top filmmakers like Christopher Nolan but also the theater industry, which has been hit significantly hard since the pandemic started. Things were looking up as both F9 and Black Widow performed well, and made it seem like theatrical movie-going was roaring back. But just a few weeks later, the Delta variant rapidly spiked cases, and The Suicide Squad felt the brunt of it as box-office sales cratered.

However, even as the fall movie season looks unpredictable, Warner Bros. has made a serious commitment to theatrical releases in 2022. The studio has agreed to a 45-day theatrical window with AMC, which will effectively end the HBO Max day and date release strategy. Via Deadline:

“We’re especially pleased that Warners has has decided to move away from day-and-date releases and commit to theatrical windows as well,” said [AMC Entertainment CEO Adam] Aron. “We’re having conversations with other movie studios in Hollywood.”

Aron said that studios’ experimenting with the theatrical window was as a result of the pandemic, adding, “We’re seeing the consensus that exclusive theatrical window is a good way to build major motion picture franchises.”

While the HBO Max release strategy was controversial thanks to being sprung on filmmakers with little to no warning, The Suicide Squad director James Gunn seemed to come around to it in recent days. For the record, he’s absolutely committed to the theatrical experience, but he’s not sweating how or where his movies are viewed.

“Listen, movies don’t last because they’re seen on the big screen,” Gunn told Variety. “Movies last because they’re seen on television. ‘Jaws’ isn’t still a classic because people are watching it in theaters. I’ve never seen “Jaws” in a movie theater. It’s one of my favorite movies.”

(Via Deadline)

Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson announcing that they tested positive for COVID-19 on March 11, 2020, was the day many Americans (although not enough…) started taking the coronavirus seriously. The Oscar-winning actor said that he had “crippling body aches” and that he was “fatigued all the time and I couldn’t concentrate on anything for more than about 12 minutes,” so a rational person might assume that Chet Hanks, the couple’s son, would be sympathetic to what they went through and be pro-vaccine.

Counterpoint: there is nothing rational about the former-Chet Haze.

The video posted to Hanks’ Instagram account started promisingly enough, with the rapper saying, “I’ve been on the fence about this for awhile, that’s why I never spoke on it, but with the amount of people I know recently that have gotten COVID, and with the numbers rising, I think it’s important for me to say I got the vaccine, I think everybody should. It’s really important that we all do this.” Then came the turn.

“I suggest to all my followers, you guys, set an appointment and get the vaccine first thing… PSYCH. Bitch! If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it! I never had COVID. Y’ain’t sticking me with that motherf*cking needle! It’s the motherf*cking flu. Get over it, OK?”

Hanks, who appeared to be screaming at his phone from a gas station, also advised his followers, “If you’re sick, stay inside.” That’s good advice! Even better advice: get the dang vaccine. Otherwise, you’ll be spending your “White Boy Summer” in the ICU.

Balcones is at the forefront of the American single malt whisky movement. Their Texas single malts continue to wow whisky drinkers, win awards, and push the envelope on what American single malt whisky can be.

Their latest release, Pilgrimage Texas Single Malt Whisky, is the first in a new series of whiskies from the Waco, Texas craft distiller. Their aim with this new series is to explore a “dynamic flavor experience” with a unique finishing for each expression released going forward.

Overall, this sounds very exciting, so we’re tasting the very first drop in the new Pilgrimage line below. Let’s get into what’s in the bottle!

Balcones Pilgrimage Texas Single Malt Whisky

ABV: 58.5%

Average Price: $76

The Whisky:

This single malt starts with Golden Promise malted barley in the mash with proprietary ale yeast and local Texas water. The distilled juice is then loaded into used barrels like all of the world’s great single malts. After a few years of aging under the hot Texas sun, the whisky is transferred into French Sauternes casks, bringing a distinct dessert wine vibe to the juice. Finally, the whisky is bottled at cask strength from very small, one-off batches.

Tasting Notes:

The nose is all sweet honey, soft white grapes, stewed peaches in syrup, light leather, ripe pear, and a touch of salted caramel candy. There’s also this fleeting moment of milk chocolate. It really draws you in.

The taste starts off a bit slow with an initial moment of sweet grains that translate to very clear pear notes by the mid-palate before ascending towards honeyed malts, Caro syrup roasted pecans, apple blossoms, and a small dusting of egg nog spices. All of that sweetness and fruitiness completely hides the ABVs under a wall of lusciousness.

The end does have a spicy edge but it’s still tied to the sweet honey and orchard fruits and leaves you with this sense of a refined apple soda and more milk chocolate at the very end.

The Bottle:

Balcones puts all of their expressions in an old-school port bottle and it works. These bottles always stand out on a bar cart or whiskey bar shelf thanks to the stout size. The label on this one pops as well, albeit with a hard-to-see, gold-embossed logo of a barrel in the background.

Bottom Line:

This opens very close to one of my favorite single malts from last year, Aberfeldy 20, which was also finished in Sauternes casks. Overall, this is a winner, especially for lovers of sweet single malts. It’s complex, super easy to drink, accessible, and unique.

The overall finish is very warming as well. You’re left with a soft fruit and honey sweetness with zero burn or alcohol astringency. It’s just … nice.

Rating:

92/100 — This is a masterful dram of whisky. Still, it’s not a 20-year-old from Speyside but that’s okay. This is a great bottle to introduce someone to both Sauternes finishes and Texas single malt in general.

If there’s one position you don’t want to find yourself in, it’s being the governor of New York in the midst of pandemic and the a sex scandal. If there’s a second worst position to be in, it’s being the brother of that governor and a television news personality tasked with reporting on people like him, which is exactly the situation that CNN’s Chris Cuomo finds himself in at the moment as the number of sexual harassment cases against his big bro, governor Andrew Cuomo, continue mounting. And just when Chris didn’t think things could get worse for him, the unimaginable happened: Tucker Carlson came to his defense! Sort of…

On Monday night, the usually predictable Fox News host made an uncharacteristically unpredictable statement about Chris Cuomo, in which he sided with the CNN anchor for digging his heels in and sticking by his bro “in total sincerity” (Carlson’s words):

“One, you’re not responsible for the misbehavior of your relatives. Sorry, you didn’t choose them. In fact you’re not responsible for anyone else’s misbehavior. Only your own. That’s just true. It’s the basis of American justice and it’s the basic of human decency. Don’t blame people for things they didn’t do.”

Now, one would like to think that Carlson somehow grew a heart or conscience without anyone even noticing, but it’s hard not to detect some inauthenticity here. Yes, even with that “in total sincerity” remark, especially when you look at the graphics going on in the background while Carlson’s talking (see above). And while the silly graphic could be chalked up to a zero-dollar Photoshop budget, the second part of Carlson’s statement (and yet another illustration) calls that “total sincerity” even further into question:

“The other point to make is Chris Cuomo’s coming under a lot of fire for helping his brother in the middle of this crisis. Now, we can’t evaluate how true that is. But if it is true, let’s be real for a second: It’s understandable. It’s his brother. Your loyalty should be to your family above all else. Not joking at all. Maybe above your job. Maybe even above [CNN president] Jeff Zucker. If your brother calls and says, ‘I need help,’ if you don’t give him help — because you’re pretending to be a news anchor on some stupid cable channel nobody watches — you’re betraying your brother. And that’s a greater sin than any of the dumb politics they espouse on that channel. Totally true.”

You can watch the clip above and discern for yourself how much of Carlson’s “total sincerity” was total bullsh*t.

(Via The Wrap)

Billie Eilish is fresh off the release of her latest album, Happier Than Ever, which debuted atop the Billboard 200 chart. Last night, she got the word out with a visit to The Tonight Show, during which she performed the album’s title track.

Joined by Finneas and a drummer, Eilish sang the song on a large stage backed by a cloudy sunset-colored backdrop. When the song got into its more intense latter half, the lighting and everybody’s movements became increasingly kinetic and dramatic.

Elsewhere during the show, she chatted remotely with Jimmy Fallon. She explained that she didn’t know what the aesthetic theme and other elements of Happier Than Ever would be until she was pretty much finished making the album, saying, “It really just happened. I, like, didn’t know what I was going to do at all until really almost when the album was over. I didn’t even know what it was going to be called, I didn’t know what the vibe was going to be, I didn’t know what the artwork should be. I knew, though, that I wanted it to feel very specific, you know? I wanted it to have a real… feeling to it and a real aesthetic to it.”

Watch Eilish perform “Happier Than Ever” above and check out her Tonight Show interview below.

The Gulf Stream is in danger of collapse, and some people are very, very upset about the idea of putting on masks to help bring the pandemic to an end. In celebrity-land, though, a dividing line (with much lower, although still controversial, stakes) is shaping up: to bathe or not to bathe. Mila Kunis and Ashton Kutcher started the discussion by admitting that they don’t bathe their kids (nor does Ashton prefer to fully shower) very often. Kristen Bell and Dax Shepard joined the club while explaining that only visible dirt should earn a trip to bathland. Jake Gyllenhaal, as well, has expressed his finding that bathing is “less necessary” to him than it was in previous years.

Well, not every famous-type person’s on that train. Jason Momoa stepped up to point out that he’s freaking Aquaman, and he insisted, “I shower, trust me.” I can count myself on the lucky list of people to confirm that, yes, Momoa does smell like he showers, and now, The Rock is joining the shinier club. Here’s what he wrote on Twitter:

Nope, I’m the opposite of a “not washing themselves” celeb.
Shower (cold) when I roll outta bed to get my day rollin’.
Shower (warm) after my workout before work.
Shower (hot) after I get home from work.
Face wash, body wash, exfoliate and I sing (off key) in the shower

Not only does The Rock bathe, but he does so three times per day, and he exfoliates, so there. Maybe he’s going a little bit overboard? I’d safely say that most people are once-per-day fans when it comes to showering, and that happens either in the morning or at night. Yet of course The Rock goes a few extra miles in this regard, which makes sense, given that he works out about eight times per day. To each his own, but at least we all know that The Rock (allegedly) smells as fresh as a daisy.

On Friday, according to NPR, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported a total of 23,903 new coronavirus cases in Florida—a record single-day total since the beginning of the COVID pandemic… and then they continued to rise (to 28,316 and 28,317 on Saturday and Sunday, respectively). Last night it was reported that the state is looking for outside help, asking the federal government for 300 ventilators as its hospital capacity is pushed to its limit.

As if a deadly virus weren’t enough, the state also has to contend with Governor Ron DeSantis, who has reacted to his state’s troubling upward COVID trend by… [checks notes] threatening to withhold the salaries of any education officials who attempt to enact a mask mandate and blaming the state’s COVID problem on immigrants?

On Sunday night, Seth Meyers laid into DeSantis for his wild leap of logic in suggesting that Florida’s growing—and very, very deadly—COVID problem has nothing to do with a governor who is now threatening to punish people who do the one simple thing that every health official has been recommending since this pandemic began: wear a mask. No, no, no. DeSantis placed the blame at the feet of Joe Biden, saying: “This is a guy who ran for president saying he was going to ‘shut down the virus.’ And what has he done? He [has] imported more virus from around the world by having a wide-open southern border.” DeSantis then issued a challenge to Biden directly, declaring: “Why don’t you get this border secure? And until you do that, I don’t want to hear a blip about COVID from you.”

DeSantis’ decision to equate two things that have nothing to do with each other, i.e. border security and the fact that, per NPR, one in every four hospital beds in the state of Florida is occupied by a COVID patient, was not lost on Meyers:

“I’m no scientist, but I do have Google Maps on my phone and I’m pretty sure the border has nothing to do with the Florida COVID surge since the border’s like a thousand miles from Florida. You don’t get to blame something that far away from your problems. If a kid in Nebraska throws his frisbee in the neighbor’s lawn, you can’t say it was caught in the strong winds of La Nina.”

Except that’s exactly what DeSantis has chosen to do. And he doesn’t want to hear a blip otherwise.

You can watch the full clip above, beginning around the 11:10 mark.