Larissa G. Barth

Ten Songs For Getting Through A Breakup

The following ten songs depict the various stages of breaking up with masterful songwriting and storytelling, inviting you to reflect, reminisce, and heal.

‘Paragon’ Album Review: Floor Jansen Sets Alight The Dark

“I won’t give up just yet / Gotta lose sometimes to gain,” sings Dutch singer-songwriter Floor Jansen on her debut album “Paragon."

So You Want to Listen to K-Pop

Diving a bit deeper, listeners will find a treasure trove of stylistically diverse songs, underscored by the rise of soloists and singer-songwriters.

Floor Jansen’s ‘Daydream’ Single Review: How Music Awakens Us

The lyrical complexities and dynamic instrumentals of "Daydream" artfully explore themes of seclusion and hope.

Amber Run Album Review: We Can Never Truly Understand ‘How To Be Human’

“And in the dark I’ll be your eyes,” sings British indie rock band Amber Run on “Hurt,” the second track of “How To Be Human,” released on Feb. 24.

From Our Bookshelves: The Forest of Wool and Steel

As a pianist and lover of words, I treasure the tender, poetic prose and imagery of "The Forest of Wool and Steel;" as a Harvard student, I value its remedial guidance for how to maneuver through some of Harvard’s greatest challenges.

‘Life Ceremony’ Review: Sayaka Murata’s Normal is a Type of Madness

With childlike naiveté and disorientingly flat prose that never passes judgment, Murata takes taboos to extremes to expose the ultimately arbitrary nature of societal norms.

The Rose Concert Review: Group Therapy At Roadrunner

Huge black roses filled the stage as props, and the band and fans handed each other roses, the symbol of the band’s simultaneously sweet and thorny music.

'Fickle Game' Retrospective: Amber Run is Haunted and Haunting

“Fickle Game” is a desperate outcry against the disorienting absurdity and impermanence of life, a haunted yearning for stability and control, a solitary search for meaning. How, then, shall we play this fickle game?

Larissa Pham’s ‘Pop Song’ Review: A Distressing Memoir about Delusive Coping Strategies

While the "Pop Song" should be applauded for its poetic prose, intelligence, and raw honesty that will certainly resonate with young readers grappling with hurtful experiences, Pham’s vulnerability borders on trauma porn.

So You Want to Listen To Kpop