There is an endless abundance of music in our world. Because of this wide expanse of music, there are unlimited opportunities to learn about new albums. Usually, the music you hear on the radio is popular for a reason, but music not normally mainstream is often more interesting than its more popular counterpart. The music people listen to is usually very important to them, especially when that music is more obscure. Below, some Berkley students have recommended some of their favorite lesser-known albums.

Brandon Urikh, ’22
Album: Good Morning It’s Now Tomorrow (2021)
Artist: Matt Maltese
Number of Songs: 13
Genre: Alternative Pop
Favorite song: “Oldest Trick in the Book”
Describe it: “It’s this post-pandemic collection of ballads that don’t exactly have a connection to each other. They all just have a sense of happiness of being out, or hopefully soon being out, of being alone, and getting back to being with each other. It’s an exploration of past relationships because of the fact that we were alone for so long.”
Why would you recommend this?: “If you’re sad, you’ll like it. And if you’re happy you’ll also like it.”

Ava Heiler, ’22
Album: Kiss My Superbowl Ring (2020)
Artist: The Garden
Number of Songs: 11
Genre: Alternative
Favorite song: “Kiss My Superbowl Ring”
Describe it: “It’s crazy. It’s like if you gave a monkey a keyboard or a soundboard with a bunch of different things, and then got some slightly monotone guy to just, like, sing-off of some third grader’s short story, that’s essentially what it is. . . It’s loud and insane and kind of just noise, but at the same time it just works so well!”
Why would you recommend this?: “If you are an open-minded person who likes a lot of noise, The Garden is good for you!”

Josh Bianca, ’23
Album: Old Ghost (2018)
Artist: Renata Zeiguer
Number of Songs: 9
Genre: Rock
Favorite song: “Neck of the Moon”
Describe it: “It’s kind of strange. There’s a good amount of variety on the album. There are super upbeat, very instrumental, improper singing, and funky songs, but then some of the songs are very slow and emotional ballads. It just has a lot of variety.”
Why would you recommend this?: “It is a good example of a really good, well-constructed album that does not get enough recognition.”

Mark Redman, ’22
Album: Timely!! (1983)
Artist: Anri
Number of Songs: 11
Genre: Japanese Pop
Favorite song: “Cat’s Eye”
Describe it: “It is very upbeat and really embodies the changing of the weather. Summer to fall esque or winter to spring esque.”
Why would you recommend this?: “There is definitely a song in there for everybody. Even though it is in Japanese, and you can’t necessarily understand it, each song has its own vibe. It kind of sounds like a bunch of random stuff put together, but somehow it works.”

Alexandra Vilencia-Arcila ’25
Album: Triplbt Theme (2019)
Artist: Jagger Finn
Number of Songs: 3
Genre: Indie
Favorite song: “Please”
Describe it: “It’s a very soft, peaceful album that you could just relax or do homework to. It really calms me down and helps me when I’m overwhelmed.”
Why would you recommend this?: “You listen to it once and you kind of just get obsessed with the songs. It’s just so calming, a great way to end your day.”