The Music Lover’s Complete Guide to Taurus Season
(April 19th — May 20th)
24 min readMay 3, 2021
I’m sorry — I missed Aries Season. In my defense, Aries Season didn’t miss me. I lost my job, gained two-and-a-half jobs, started apartment searching, and decided jewelry is my ✨ thing ✨. I am working towards an apprenticeship. Thus, I have less time to dedicate to writing. However, I am still a music lover, and I still have recommendations and thoughts.
Therefore, the following series will be just that — a monthly, casual recap of album anniversaries, birthdays, and a sprinkle of my own thoughts.
Thank you to all who’ve ever read a single one of my thoughts — I truly care about you.
Aries Season Album Recap
March 20th
- Panda Bear releases Person Pitch (2007).
- The Weeknd releases his debut mixtape, House of Balloons (2011).
March 21st
- Death releases Symbolic (1995).
March 22nd
- Bob Dylan releases Bringing It All Back Home (1965).
- Iron Maiden releases The Number of the Beast (1982).
March 23rd
- Madvillain releases Madvillainy (2004).
March 24th
- Mount Eerie releases A Crow Looked at Me (2017).
March 25th
- Panic! at the Disco releases Pretty. Odd. (2008).
March 26th
- Young Dolph & Key Glock release Dum and Dummer 2 (2021).
March 27th
- Slint releases Spiderland (1991).
- Dua Lipa releases Future Nostalgia (2020).
- 42 Dugg releases the mixtape Young & Turnt Vol.2 (2020).
March 28th
- Big L releases Lifestylez ov da Poor & Dangerous (1995).
- Ghostface Killah releases FishScale (2006).
- Big K.R.I.T releases the mixtape, Return of 4eva (2011).
March 29th
- Godspeed You! Black Emperor releases Slow Riot for New Zerø Kanada (1999).
March 30th
- Miles Davis releases Bitches Brew (1970).
- Herbie Hancock releases Sextant (1973).
- Prince releases Sign “☮︎” the Times (1987).
- Sons of Kemet release Your Queen is a Reptile (2018).
- Conway the Machine & the Alchemist release LULU (2020).
March 31st
- Gang Starr releases Moment of Truth (1998).
- Sheena Ringo releases Shoso Strip (2000).
- Death Grips releases the Powers that B (2015).
- Sufjan Stevens releases Carrie & Lowell (2016).
April 1st
- Burzum releases Hvis lyset tar oss (1994).
- Basic Channel releases Quadrant Dub (1994).
April 2nd
- Neurosis releases Through Silver in Blood (1996).
- Stars of the Lid release And Their Refinement of Decline (2007).
- Tyler, the Creator releases Wolf (2013).
- JPEGMAFIA releases Communist Slow Jamz (2015).
April 3rd
- Yves Tumor releases Heaven To a Tortured Mind (2020).
- Thundercat releases. It is What it Is (2020).
April 5th
- Saba releases CARE FOR ME (2018).
- Weyes Blood releases Titanic Rising (2019).
- Lil Nas X collaborates with Billy Ray Cyrus and releases “Old Town Road” (Remix) (2019).
April 6th
- Modest Mouse releases their highest selling album, Good News for People Who Love Bad News (2004).
- Kali Uchis releases her debut album, Isolation (2018).
April 7th
- The Chemical Brothers release Dig Your Own Hole (1997).
- Autechre releases Draft 7.30 (2003).
- Capital Steez release AmeriKKKan Korruption (2012).
- Joey bada$$ releases ALL-AMERIKKKAN BADA$$ (2017).
April 8th
- The Clash releases their self-titled debut (1977).
- Massive Attack releases their debut, Blue Lines (1991).
- Fleet Foxes release Sun Giant (2008).
- The Knife release Shaking the Habitual (2013).
- Ratking releases So It Goes (2014).
April 9th
- Frank Ocean releases a remastered version of Endless (2018).
- Autechre releases NTS Sessions 1 (2018).
April 10th
- A Tribe Call Quest releases their debut album, People’s Instinctive Travels and Paths of Rhythm (1990).
- Public Enemy releases Fear of a Black Planet (1990).
- billy woods release History Will Absolve Me (2012).
- Big K.R.I.T releases King Remembered in Time (2013).
April 11th
- Iron Maiden release Seventh Son of a Seventh Son (1988).
- Friday Original Motion Picture Soundtrack is released (1995).
- Grouper releases A I A: Alien Observer (2011)
- 春ねむり [Haru Nemuri] releases her debut album 春と修羅 (Haru to Shura) (2018).
April 12th
- Autechre releases NTS Sessions 2 (2018)
- Anderson. Paak releases Ventura (2019), his first album to win a Grammy.
April 13th
- David Bowie releases Aladdin Sane (1973).
- Lil Wayne releases his magnum opus, Da Drought 3 (2007).
- MGMT releases Congratulations (2010).
- Jai Paul’s self-titled debut is uploaded to Bandcamp without his consent — it would result in a nearly 7-year hiatus (2013).
- Tyler, the Creator releases Cherry Bomb (2013).
April 14th
- Wiz Khalifa releases Kush & Orange Juice (2010).
- Playboi Carti releases his self-titled debut (2017).
- Kendrick Lamar releases the Pulitzer-prize-winning DAMN (2017).
April 15th
- Lil Uzi Vert releases Lil Uzi Vert vs. The World (2016).
April 16th
- Anathema releases Weather Systems (2012).
- Ghostface Killah releases Twelve Reasons to Die, produced entirely by Adrian Younge (2013).
- Xiu Xiu releases Plays the Music of Twin Peaks (2016).
April 17th
- Pixies release Doolittle (1988).
- Nick Cave & the Bads Seeds release the Good Son (1990)
- Unwound releases Leaves Turn Inside You (2001).
- Frank Ocean releases his first studio single, “Thinkin ‘Bout You.” (2011)
- Beyoncé releases her live album, HOMECOMING (2019).
- Fiona Apple releases Fetch the Bolt Cutters (2020). It is the first album by a woman to receive a 10 from PitchFork on release.
April 18th
- Autechre releases Untilted (2005).
- Slauson Malone releases A Quiet Farwell Twenty Sixteen to Twenty Eighteen (2019).
Taurus Season
April 19th
- Suge Knight is born in the Compton neighborhood of Los Angeles (1965).
- SosMula of City Morgue is born in a favela near São Paulo, Brazil (1988). He immigrated to Spanish Harlem when he was two years old and joined the Mac Baller Brims — a violent set of the Bloods — when he was around 11. He left prison in 2016 after serving a sentence for crack distribution — that day, he met ZillaKami.
- Nas releases his debut studio album, Illmatic (1994).
- Guru of Gang Starr dies of a heart attack stemming from rare blood cancer (2010).
- Autechre releases NTS Sessions 3 (2018).
- Lizzo releases her breakout album, Cuz I Love You (2019).
April 20th
- Luther Vandross is born in Manhattan, NYC (1951).
- Killer Mike, known mostly for his role as one-half of Run the Jewels, is born in Atlanta, Georgia (1975).
- Pavement releases their debut studio album, Slanted and Enchanted (1992).
- Boards of Canada release Music has the Right to Children (1998).
- Massive Attack release Mezzanine (1998).
- MF DOOM releases his debut studio album, Operation Doomsday (1999).
- Ghostface (Killah) releases the Pretty Toney Album (2004). It is the only album by GFK to be released simply under “Ghostface.”
- Caribou releases Swim (2010).
- Gucci Mane and Young Thug release their collab album, Young Thugga Mane LaFlare (2014).
- Sleep releases the Sciences (2018).
- Avicii commits suicide — he was 28 (2018).
April 21st
- Charles Mingus is born in Nogales, Arizona (1922). He is a major proponent of collective improvisation, he is considered one of the greatest jazz musicians and composers in history. In 1993, the Library of Congress acquired Mingus’s collected papers — including scores, sound recordings, correspondence, and photos — in what they described as “the most important acquisition of a manuscript collection relating to jazz in the Library’s history.”
- Robert Smith of the Cure is born in Blackpool, England (1959).
- Shavo Odadjian, the bassist for System of a Down, is born in Yerevan, Armenia (1974).
- DJ DRAMA! Philadelphia, Pennsylvania!!! (1978).
- Gang Starr, made up of rapper/producer duo Guru and DJ Premier, release their debut studio album, No More Mr. Nice Guy (1989).
April 22nd
- Yo La Tengo releases I Can Hear the Heart Beating as One (1997).
April 23rd
- The Rolling Stones release Sticky Fingers (1971).
- Best known for his undisputed classic album You Can’t See Me, John Cena is born in West Newbury, Massachusetts (1977).
- Wilco releases Yankee Hotel Foxtrot (2002).
- Beyoncé releases Lemonade, along with an accompanying visual (2016).
April 24th
- Steve Reich’s Music for 18 Musicians premieres at the Town Hall in New York City (1976).
April 24th
- Aphex Twin releases …I Care Because You Do (1995).
- Kehlani is born in Oakland, California (1995).
- Death Grips officially releases the Money Store (2012). They had leaked in 10 days earlier on YouTube to get out of their contract with their label.
April 25th
- Ella Fitzgerald is born in Newport News, Virginia (1917).
- Mobb Deep releases The Infamous… (1995). The album’s dark, haunting style, defined by its evocative melodies, rugged beats, and lyrics dealing with crime in inner-city neighborhoods, reflected the destitute side of New York’s urban landscape in a manner that received special recognition and critical praise. Along with albums such as Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers), Illmatic, and Ready to Die, The Infamous is widely credited as a major contributor to the East Coast Renaissance. Furthermore, the album is credited with helping to redefine the sound of hardcore hip hop, using its production style, which incorporated eerie piano loops, distorted synthesizers, eighth-note hi-hats, and sparse filtered basslines.
- Lisa “Left Eye” Lopes of TLC is killed in a car crash (2002).
- Death Grips upload their debut mixtape, Exmilitary, for free on their website (2011). According to Flatlander, the cover art “[is a] photograph that one of our members carried in their wallet for roughly 10 years straight. It’s a power object.” The photo was eventually identified as “Bearded Man at Oenpelli,” taken by Australian anthropologist Douglass Baglin in 1968. Gunbalanya (also spelled Kunbarlanja and historically referred to as Oenpelli) is an Aboriginal community in west Arnhem Land in the Northern Territory of Australia.
- Rico Nasty & Kenny Beats, Anger Management (2019).
April 26th
- Tionne “T-Boz” Watkins of TLC is born in Des Moines, Iowa (1970).
- The Colors originally soundtrack is released, featuring Rakim, Ice T, Big Daddy Kane, Rick James, Salt-N-Pepa, and many more (1988).
- OutKast releases their debut studio album, Southernplayalisticadillacmuzik (1994). One of the first Southern rap records received overwhelmingly positive reviews from critics and helped distinguish Southern hip hop as a credible hip hop scene amid East Coast and West Coast hip hop’s market dominance at the time. Music journalists have since viewed the album as an important release in hip hop and Atlanta’s music scene.
- 50 Cent releases his debut commercial mixtape, Guess Who’s Back? (2002).
April 27th
Today (April 27th) in High Art Music History:
- Beethoven composes Bagatelle №25, better known as Für Elise (1810).
- Patrick Stump of Fall Out Boy is born in Evanston, Illinois (1984).
- Lizzo is born in Detroit, Michigan (1988).
- Janelle Monae releases Dirty Computer (2018).
April 28th
- Kim Gordon of Sonic Youth is born in Rochester, New York (1953).
- Squarepusher releases Hard Normal Daddy (1997).
- Portishead releases Third (2008). After releasing the aptly-named third album and touring for about three years, Geoff Barrow told Rolling Stone it could be over a decade before the next Portishead album — it appears he wasn’t joking.
- earl sweatshirt releases Solace (2015).
- Colin Stetson collaborates with Sarah Neufeld of Arcade Fire — also his wife — on the post-minimal masterpiece, Never Were the Way She Was (2015).
April 29th
Duke Ellington is born in Washington, D.C. (1899).
- Willie Nelson is born in Abbott, Texas (1933).
- Aretha Franklin releases arguably her most famous single, “Respect” (1967).
- Master P, founder of No Limit Records is born in New Orleans (1969).
- Orbital releases the techno classic, In Sides (1996).
- Lil Ugly Mane releases The Third Side of Tape (2015). According to his Bandcamp, it’s a compilation spanning almost 15 years of unreleased music.
Noise, Industrial Hip Hop, Plunderphonics, Memphis Rap, Black Metal, Minimal Wave, Techno, Punk Rock, Jazz Rap, Black Ambient, Sound Collage, Hypnagogic Pop, Illbient, Darkwave, Boom Bap)
- Aesop Rock releases the Impossible Kid (2016).
- Drake releases Views (2016).
- King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard releases Nonagon Infinity (2017).
- Freddie Gibbs & The Alchemist release Alfredo (2020). Freddie Gibb earned a Grammy nomination but ultimately lost to King’s Disease by an aging Nas, adding another scoop onto the pile of indisputable evidence that the Grammy’s don’t matter.
April 30th
- Muddy Waters dies in his sleep at age 70 due to cancer-related complications (1983).
- Mac DeMarco is born in Duncan, British Columbia (1990).
- Travis Scott is born in Houston, Texas (1992).
- Autechre releases Confield (2001).
- Giles Corey releases their self-titled debut — it is named after a man accused of witchcraft during the Salem trials; he was subjected to pressing (crushed by rocks) to force him to plead — the only example of such a sanction in American history — and died after three days of this torture.
- Chance the Rapper uploads Acid Rap to SoundCloud and DatPiff.
- Altar of Plagues release Teethed Glory and Injury (2013).
May 1st
- New Order releases Low-Life (1985).
- Meryln Wood of BROCKHAMPTON is born in Accra, Ghana (1996).
- SpaceGhostPurpp — niche Internet micro-celebrity — uploads the mixtape, Blvcklvnd Rvdix 66.6 (1991) (2011).
- Tony Allen, a drummer who worked with Fela Kuti in developing the afrobeat genre, dies of an aortic aneurysm — he was 70 (2020).
- Drake releases Dark Lane Demo Tapes (2020).
May 2nd
- New Order release Power, Corruption and Lies (1983).
- Whitney Houston releases one of her most popular singles, “I Want to Dance With Somebody” (1987).
- The Cure releases Disintegration (1989). It became the band’s first commercial peak, charting at number three in the United Kingdom and number 12 in the United States, and producing several hit singles, including “Lovesong,” which peaked at number two on the Hot 100. The Cure’s highest selling record remains to date, with more than three million copies sold worldwide. After completing Disintegration, Smith noted that The Cure had “despite my best efforts, actually become everything that I didn’t want us to become: a stadium rock band.” Furthermore, Smith claimed the album’s title was the most appropriate one he could think of: “Most of the relationship with the band outside of the band fell apart. Calling it Disintegration was kind of tempting fate, and fate retaliated. The family idea of the group really fell apart, too, after Disintegration. It was the end of a golden period.” The band performed numerous high-profile concerts, including shows in front of more than 40,000 fans over two nights in Paris and their first performances in Eastern Europe. Following the European leg, the band elected to travel to North America for their upcoming US leg by boat instead of a plane. Smith and Gallup shared fear of flight and ultimately lamented the upcoming dates, wishing to reduce the number of concerts they booked. The record label and tour promoters strongly disagreed and even proposed to add several new shows to the itinerary because of the success of Disintegration in the US. The first concert in the United States was at New Jersey’s Giants Stadium, where 44,000 people attended; 30,000 tickets were purchased on the first day alone. According to Roger O'Donnell, the band was extremely displeased with the massive turnout: “We had been at sea for five days. The stadium was too big for us to take it all in. We’ve decided that we don’t like playing stadiums that large.” Smith recalls that “it was never our intention to become as big as this.” Backstage, there were ongoing feuds between band members owing to the strife onset by Smith. He recalled that towards the end of the tour, “I was tearing my hair out … It was just a difficult tour.”
- Brother Ali releases Shadows on the Sun (2003), considered a landmark release in the Minnesota independent rap scene that continues to this day.
- Tool releases 10,000 Days (2006).
May 3rd
- James Brown is born in Barnwell, South Carolina (1933).
- Sly & the Family Stone release Stand! (1969).
- The Cure release Pornography (1982).
- Animal Collective releases Sung Tongs (2004).
- Flying Lotus releases Cosmogramma (2010).
Please read my review.
May 4th
- Ella Fitzgerald wins best jazz vocal performance at the First Grammys for Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Duke Ellington Song Book (1959).
- JME is born in the Hackney neighborhood of London, England (1985).
- PJ Harvey releases Rid of Me (1993). Recorded and engineered by Steve Albini, the album was written and produced following a nervous breakdown Harvey suffered while on tour for her debut album, Dry.
- Wu-Tang Clan releases their debut smash hit single, Protect Ya Neck (1993).
- Rex Orange County is born in Grayshott, England (1998).
- Neurosis releases Times of Grace (1999).
- Big K.R.I.T releases his 6th (and breakthrough) mixtape, K.R.I.T Wuz Here (2010).
- Deftones releases Diamond Eyes (2010).
- Roc Marciano releases his debut album, Marcberg (2010).
- Adam Yauch of the Beastie Boys dies of parotid gland cancer — he was 47 (2013).
- Jon Hopkins releases Singularity (2018).
- Tropical Fuck Storm releases their debut album, A Laughing Death in Meatspace (2018).
May 5th
- Adele is born in London, England (1988).
- Gucci Mane Zaytoven, & DJ Holiday releases EA Sportscenter (2008).
- Kamasi Washington releases his triple album epic, the Epic (2015).
- Perfume Genius releases No Shape (2017).
- Slowdive releases their self-titled comeback (2017).
- Childish Gambino releases “This Is America” (2018).
May 6th
- Meek Mill is born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (1987)
- Westside Gunn releases Hitler Wears Hermes II(2015).
- Death Grips releases Bottomless Pit (2016).
- Vektor releases Terminal Redux (2016).
May 7th
- J Balvin is born in Medellin, Colombia (1985).
- Rico Nasty is born in Washington, D.C. (1997).
- Meek Mill releases the mixtape, Dreamchasers 2 (2012).
May 8th
- Robert Johnson is born in Hazlehurst, Mississippi (1911). One of the earliest forefathers of rock music, he is best known for allegedly making a deal with the Devil at a crossroads to increase his talent with a guitar. Here is one of two confirmed photos of him.
- The Beatles release their final album, Let It Be (1970).
- The Cure releases Three Imaginary Boys, their debut album (1979).
- (Tekashi) 6ix9ine, the self-proclaimed King of New York, is born in the Bushwick neighborhood of Brooklyn, NYC (1996).
- Scott Walker releases Tilt (1995).
- cLOUDDEAD’s self-titled debut album is released in the United States (2001).
- Young Pappy releases the mixtape 2 Cups Pt.2 (2015).
- Radiohead releases A Moon Shaped Pool (2016).
- Young Nudy & Pi’erre Bourne release Sli’merre (2019).
May 9th
- Billy Joel is born in the Bronx, NYC (1949).
- Dave Gahan of Depeche Mode is born in Epping, Essex, England (1962).
- Ghostface Killah of Wu-Tang Clan is born in Staten Island, NYC (1970).
- Andrew W.K is born in Stanford, California (1979).
- Little Richard dies at age 87 (2020).
May 10th
- Donovan is born in Maryhill, Glasgow, Scotland (1946).
- Bono is born in the Finglas suburb of Dublin, Ireland (1960).
- Kraftwerk releases Computerwelt (1971).
- Weezer releases their self-titled debut, better known as the Blue Album (1994).
- Flava Flav hosts an episode of Monday Night Raw (2010).
- Matana Roberts releases Coin Coin Chapter One: Gens de Couleur Libres (2011).
- eLZhi releases Elmatic (2011).
May 11th
- Bob Marley dies of cancer — he was 36 (1981).
- Bathory releases Under the Sign of the Black Mark (1987).
- The National releases High Violet (2010).
- Mac Miller releases Faces (2014). The mixtape is usually regarded as his best work.
- Playboi Carti releases the peak of music, Die Lit (2018).
- Beach House releases 7 (2018).
May 12th
- Jimi Hendrix released Are You Experienced? his debut album (1967).
- Morbid Angel releases Altars of Madness (1989).
- Prurient releases Frozen Niagara Falls (2015).
- Chance the Rapper releases Coloring Book (2016).
May 13th
- Stevie Wonder is born in Saginaw, Michigan (1950).
- Pusha T is born in
- Swans release To Be Kind (2014).
- Sturgill Simpson releases Metamodern Sounds in Country Music (2014).
- Glenn Branca dies from throat cancer — he was 69 (2018).
May 14th
- David Byrne of Talking Heads is born in Dumbarton, Dunbartonshire, Scotland (1952).
- Neil Young & Crazy Horse release their collab album, Everyone Knows This Is Nowhere (1969).
- Cole Bennett, of the music video production studio, Lyrical Lemonade, is born in Chicago, Illinois (1996).
- Frank Sinatra dies from a heart attack caused by being 82 (1998).
- El-P releases his debut album, Fantastic Damage (2002).
- Battles released their debut album, Mirrored (2007).
- Vampire Weekend releases the final album in their artsy polaroid trilogy, Modern Vampires of the City (2013).
- BB King dies from being diabetic, and 89 — being old kills you quite frankly (2015).
May 15th
- Brian Eno is born in Melton, England (1948).
- Melle Mel of Grandmaster Flash & the Furious Five is born in the Bronx, NYC (1961).
- Smokepurpp is born in Chicago, Illinois (1997).
- Tool releases Lateralus, usually considered their magnum opus (2001).
- Cannibal Ox releases The Cold Vein, entirely produced by El-P (2001).
- Beach House releases Bloom (2012).
- Killer Mike releases R.A.P Music, entirely produced by El-P, laying the groundwork for their super duo, Run the Jewels (2012).
- death’s dynamic shroud.wmv release I’ll Try Living Like This (2015).
May 16th
- Robert Fripp of King Crimson is born in Windborne Minister, Dorset, England (1946).
- The Beach Boys release Pet Sounds, usually regarded as one of the most influential albums of all time (1966).
- Janet Jackson is born in Gary, Indiana (1966).
- Sammy Davis Jr. dies of throat cancer — he was 64 (1990).
May 17th
- Johann Michael Bach dies due to an infection resulting from botched eye surgery — he was 46 (1694).
- Trent Reznor of Nine Inch Nails is born in Newcastle, Pennsylvania (1965).
- DJ Akademiks, a weirdo, is born in Jamaica (1991).
- Slowdive released Souvlaki (1993).
- GoldLink is born in Washington, D.C. (1993).
- Tyler the Creator releases IGOR (2019).
- Megan thee Stallion releases Fever (2019).
- slowthai releases Nothing Great About Britain (2019).
- Injury Reserve releases their self-titled debut album (2019).
May 18th
- Ian Curtis of Joy Division commits suicide at age 23 (1980).
- Janelle Monae releases her debut studio album, the ArchAndroid (2010).
- LCD Soundsystem releases This is Happening (2010).
- Red Dead Redemption, along with its OST composed by Woody Jackson, is released by Rockstar Games (2010).
- The Black Keys release Brothers (2010).
- Glassbeach releases the first glass beach album (2019).
May 19th
- Grace Jones is born in Spanish Town, Jamaica (1948).
- Kraftwerk releases Die Mensch Machine (1978).
- Autechre releases elseq 1–5 (2016).
May 20th
- Cher is born in El Centro, California (1946).
- Busta Rhymes is born in East Flatbush, Brooklyn, NYC (1972).
- Elton John becomes the first western pop star to tour the USSR (1979).
- Daft Punk releases Random Access Memories (2013).
- Car Seat Headrest releases Teens of Denial (2016).
❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤❤❤❤
