Tuesday Tracklist: Convictions, Bruno Mars, Guerrilla Warfare, And More (3/28)

In this weekly feature, a different LEO staff member will share 7-10 of the songs they’ve got on repeat right now. (Songs by Louisville artists are marked with an asterisk.) Got a track that you think we’d like? Let us know at [email protected] or at the author’s email below.

Kurtis Blow — “Basketball”

This one’s been on repeat a lot for me lately because there was some, like, big basketball thing at the Yum! Center recently, and I wanted to get in the mood before covering three games over the weekend. You can’t beat the opening lines, “Basketball is my favorite sport / I like the way they dribble up and down the court,” for getting straight to the point. The rest of it is basically a fun ode to famous basketball players.

Quad City DJs — “Space Jam”

See above. Lotta basketball in my life lately. 

We The Kings — “Check Yes Juliet”

I was never an emo teenager, but I’ve gotten way into emo music in the last few years. This song came on either before or during (surprise, surprise) a March Madness game, and it reminded me not of adolescent years spent listening to songs like this, but of hearing some of them for the first time at Emo Nite in November 2021. It’s a banger.

Bruno Mars — “Runaway Baby” 

And speaking of nostalgia: I was very into Bruno Mars when I was in early high school, and when I learned that he’ll be headlining Bourbon & Beyond this fall, I had no choice but to go on a nostalgia-filled Bruno binge. This song is so fun.

Convictions — “Hurricane”

I did a documentary photography workshop in Grayson County last October, and as a way of immersing myself into my subject’s world, I decided that I’d only listen to Christian music during my trip, since that’s what he listens to exclusively. However, I decided to stretch the boundaries beyond Hillsong-y CCM — after all, Convictions is Christian, but their style is “aggressive worship,” aka Christian metalcore. Of all the songs on their latest album, this is my favorite.

Trace Adkins — “Ride”

I first discovered this when I was working on our slideshow of songs that mention Louisville. It’s pure country, and, like a previous Tuesday Tracklist pick, it makes me want to hit the road.

Guerrilla Warfare — “Run It Back” * 

I’m super psyched that we have three Louisville bands (White Reaper, Devil’s Cut, and Guerrilla Warfare) playing Louder Than Life. I dig this one in particular because they played during the opening weekend of my favorite bar, Losers 812; they recently toured with Gideon, three of whose members also play with one of my favorite singers; and because this track is just so… what’s not to love? Vocalist Garrett Hood raps, sings, and drums, and the song itself is powerful and raspy and just fucking cool.

The Nude Party — “Things Fall Apart”

I’m cheating a little bit by including this one since I already included The Nude Party in a previous tracklist (the first ever, incidentally, exactly one month ago), but I have been listening to this song recently. It’s actually one of my favorite Nude Party songs; it’s beautiful and full of longing. Ostensibly it’s about a breakup, but I thought it was also fitting for this week since I’m going through some other big life changes. IYKYK.