Mark Grondin

@spectrum-pulse.ca

1848 Followers 152 Following

Canadian author and critic. On YouTube. Strategist elsewhere. Metamodernist punk. Postmodern audiophile. He/him. If you know you know. Host of Spectrum Pulse. https://www.spectrum-pulse.ca/

Top Albums / Songs of 2026 - Midyear
From a writer and editor in tech: "A few years ago I would have said no, but the slop era may be great for criticism. Readers want someone to tell them what's worth their time and why. Also, people seem to be reminded, for now, that human judgement matters. Criticism might actually be the exact right product for this particular cultural panic!"
“We’re talking about a two-year-old review here where I’ve remained mostly silent on the reception of the review, despite the fact that Halsey and her fans, for the duration of that time, have pushed the narrative that I disliked the album — or said in my assessment of the album that there was a ‘self-centeredness’ about it — because she was sick,” he offers to Variety. “That I specifically attacked this album and tore it apart because there’s some cartoonishly evil characteristic about me that somehow just singled this album out because of who she is or the illness that she suffered during that time in her life that inspired the record, which couldn’t be further from the truth.”
D&D then and now, with the left as a generic human fighter and the right as an extravagantly overworked and overpowered character
YouTube thumbnail with the hipster timeline gradually forming into the newest Olivia Rodrigo album, with the caption 'This Is Not A Review'
A picture of Vince Staples' album 'Cry Baby' alongside an American Flag with Freedom 250 beneath it, with the words 'Seriously.' written over top.
Thumbnail for Video Essay on Canadian Music
A SONGWRITER SHOWDOWN, between Noah Kahan and 'The Great Divide'.
Spectrum Pulse Video Thumbnail featuring Ella Langley's 'Dandelion' with the text 'Album Review' in quotations.
YouTube Thumbnail featuring RAYE's 'THIS MUSIC MAY CONTAIN HOPE' and the tagline 'This Is Not A Review', also featuring Hamilton and &Juliet
Video essay around Johnny Blue Skies (aka Sturgill Simpson) and 'Mutiny After Midnight', with the subtitle 'Keelhauled'
Spectrum Pulse Thumbnail for a hip-hop album with the tagline 'The Best Rap Album for MEN in 2026?'
Gorillaz video essay thumbnail, with the tagline 'This Is Not A Review'
A thumbnail for a Bruno Mars "album review"
Hyperpop video essay thumbnail with the tagline 'This Is Not A Review'
Norm McDonald meme about how everyone involved in this story should die
Title card featuring J Cole, 'Might Delete Later', and 'The Fall Off', with text stating 'This Is Not A Review'
Video essay on Roc Marciano with the tagline 'This Is Not A Review'
'Valentine' by Courtney Marie Andrews
Video Essay on A$AP Rocky with the text 'This Is Not A Review'
Grimes tweeting / complaining about AI, specifically udio being used by the music industry
'Dry Cleaning, 'Secret Love', and the Cowardice of 'Landfill Post-punk''
Zach Bryan, 'With Heaven On Top'
Brave Faces Everyone by Spanish Love Songs
The Top 50 Best Albums of 2025
The Top 50 Best Songs of 2025
'The Good Son' by Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds (1990)
Top Ten Best Hit Songs of 2025 thumbnail, featuring Chappell Roan, Olivia Dean, sombr, Kehlani, and BigXThaPlug
Thumbnail of Top 10 Worst Hit Songs of 2025, featuring Taylor Swift, Drake, Morgan Wallen, and Chris Brown
I'm so excited 😤 Daozivin "Dao" Jalrepvad (Nori) — 2:22 PM Same here 🤩 Helvhali "Haley" Willowrock (CT) — 2:36 PM Likewise! Remember though Mark, we are... Weirdly good at making the worst choices when it comes to open ended stuff. *Looks over shoulder at the giant skeleton dragon fucking up the southern coast. Daozivin "Dao" Jalrepvad (Nori) — 2:38 PM what do you meeeeean? we make great choices! Helvhali "Haley" Willowrock (CT) — 2:45 PM *Looks over shoulder at the slaves/plague/fountain of knowledge and information we left behind in North Keep... Sure thing. 🤪 Alanis Elanesse (Adam) — 2:49 PM did someone say steal a boat and sail it halfway around the continent :eyeshake: Daozivin "Dao" Jalrepvad (Nori) — 2:53 PM what about partaking in an event with a well known sore loser, resulting in the destruction of multiple civilisations in the continent, killing plenty of people (including one of us) and allowed dragons to freely roam Helvhali "Haley" Willowrock (CT) — 2:53 PM ...Mark, are you SURE you want to leave this in our hands? 😂 Daozivin "Dao" Jalrepvad (Nori) — 2:54 PM I really question our decision-making skills at times. 🙃
"Flim flam filth! SMH! WORLD SERIES" - tweet by Pharoahe Monch
Quote from Billboard: Previously, descending songs were removed from the Hot 100 once falling below No. 25 after 52 weeks or below No. 50 after 20 weeks. Descending songs will now depart via the following thresholds, once they are: Below No. 5 after 78 weeks Below No. 10 after 52 weeks Below No. 25 after 26 weeks Below No. 50 after 20 weeks Songs gaining below those markers will be eligible to remain on the Hot 100 on a case-by-case basis. Plus, holiday classics will qualify to return above No. 50 regardless of total chart weeks, and then be subject to the rules noted above upon their descents; the same for newly-surging non-holiday catalog songs, with those without significant chart history eligible to debut at any rank, as considered individually. Songs will also continue to be removed from the all-format Radio Songs chart once they go recurrent on the Hot 100."
A tweet describing Charlie Kirk as basically playing a character in all of his politics, highlighting how one might grieve for the human behind all of it.
YouTube thumbnail for Spectrum Pulse Best Albums / Songs of Midyear 2025
Roman Roy from Succession, in his final scene
YouTube comment stating, "One thing about mark in 2025 is he’s going to be irrevocably disappointed by an album by an acclaimed artist, and you know what that’s so real"
Rapper Elucid (of Armand Hammer) mentioned that he used to ghostwrite for Brian Pumper (you couldn't PAY to have me admit this my God)
A list of modern texts in 21st century fascism that would seem facetious unless you know how fucking nightmarish and true it is
Nick Cave & Marilyn Manson
Ariana Grande 'eternal sunshine' deluxe
Skeet from Bill McKay quoteskeeting someone talking about the post-left dipshits who went fash now lionizing the low-wage factory job while all said dipshits are likely IT types or NEET in their parents' basement. Skeet is the following: 'There is a great shame among liberals and leftists alike that they do not work low wage factory jobs or live in rural towns because that is Real America, and their PMC jobs just make them sissy cosmopolitans. This is also pretty gendered too.
Booing at the Raptors game at the American National Anthem
Thumbnail for my Top Ten Worst Hit Songs of 2024
Spectrum Pulse Thumbnail for the Best Albums of 2024
Pop base announcement of Ethel Cain's release of 'Perverts' with a QT of 'She gets on Obama playlist once and now makes a drone album because she heard he likes that'
Mountains
Screenshot of Twitter highlighting how EMPIRE has filed copyright takedowns of my videos within minutes of disputes/appeals, but in my response decides to throw up an 'out of office for the holidays' message!
The Top Ten Best Hit Songs of 2024 thumbnail, featuring Kendrick Lamar, Taylor Swift, Chappell Roan, and Hozier
thumbnail of Spectrum Pulse's Top 10 Worst Hit Songs of 2024, featuring Drake, Nicki Minaj, Sexyy Red and Eminem
Frank Turner, Love Ire & Song
Lyrics from Kendrick Lamar's "man at the garden", 'How annoying, does it angers me to know the lames can speak On the origins of the game I breathe? That’s insane to me'
A tweet with an archive note from August 2017 about Look What You Made Me Do by Taylor Swift
The album art of 'God's Favorite Customer' by Father John Misty with red text saying 'DAMN.' overlaid across it.
Spectrum Pulse bluesky at 900 followers!
Spectrum Pulse Bluesky follower account reaching 800!
New York Times article called "the unspoken grief of never becoming a grandparent"
Profile indicating 666 followers.
Profile pic showing 600 followers!