A few days ago, I saw a post by Blak Emoji, pointing to a WIRED article claiming that the success of the Brooklyn band Geese was the product of a „PsyOp,” meaning a campaign that manipulated public opinion using somewhat shady methods on social media, particularly TikTok. From there, the algorithm got me: my Instagram feed quickly filled with people chiming in on the topic.

This came on the heels of an interview with the founders of the Chaotic Good Project agency, which laid out how they helped Geese and other artists (without mentioning them), including glamglare favorite Oklou, achieve success with a strategy they call a ‘narrative campaign.’

This all has nothing to do specifically with Geese, by the way. They seemed singled out because, among all the names on Chaotic Good’s client list, they are the least likely to rise to international stardom, and many commenters dislike their music. I hope they take this as a compliment.

But so what? When radio was the main source of music discoveries, record companies wooed and paid DJs. PR agencies wined and dined bloggers in the name of their clients. To be written up in glamglare, it helps to employ certain PR agencies (or simply submit directly on the site). That there is an agency that helps artists become the next TikTok sensation should not be a surprise.

The musician Eliza McLamb explains in her article „Fake Fans“ that she did not expect an indie band like Geese to use such strategies - she rather wished that their success had been organic, even though she admits that she is unclear what that means these days.

Chaotic Good Projects does not use bots to manipulate the TikTok algorithm, but “a network of TikTok pages of all kinds — from fan pages, meme pages, sports clips and more.” An additional unease comes from the fact that radio DJs and bloggers are at least people, while the algorithms are faceless things that care about nothing (not even money)! Who wants to be the marionette of a machine that serves unknown interests?

Geese is a genuine band that has released four albums. Sombr, also a Chaotic Good client whose Coachella set we watched on TV last Saturday, writes and produces his own songs. Oklou does weird, but catchy synth-pop unlike any other. All deserve success. One just wishes that it did not have to be engineered by smart guys who figured out how to game the system.

There is a lesson here. The more machine-driven our culture becomes, the more we will recognize the value of direct human connection.

Discovery of the Week: Let DJ Lika show you Munich

We have already talked about DJ Lika from Munich and how much we enjoy her DJ sets on YouTube. Now she has released her first song, the upbeat dance track “Gravitating.”

The music works especially well with the beautiful video, shot in golden hour on a spring day in Munich, her “favorite city in the world.” She dances on the streets in a less touristy part of the city, not far from where we lived 30 years ago. Homesick? No. Nostalgic? You bet!

Cover Song of the Week: Lara Snow - Wicked Game

Does the world need another “Wicked Game” cover? In this case, yes: first, it’s still a good song; second, it’s by Lara Snow, whom we met in 2015 at CMJ in NYC; and third, its story shows how slow virality worked more than 35 years ago. Chris Isaac originally released the song in 1989. A year later, David Lynch used it for his movie Wild At Heart. But only when a radio director in Atlanta started playing the song did it spread to ubiquity on airwaves all over the world.

This Week in glamglare history

1 Year Ago: Rudey - U

“U” is from the debut EP of the Nashville-based pop producer RUDEY.

5 Years Ago: Castells - Falling for You

“Falling for You” is an upbeat pop song by UK quartet Castells, even though the video shows the band playing in an empty bar. Well, it was spring 2021. “Soon we all will be able to immerse ourselves again in live concerts!” Elke wrote, hoping we had the worst of the pandemic behind us.

10 Years Ago: JPNSGRLS - Bully For You

“Bully For You” is a feminist anthem by the Canadian indie rock band JPNSGRLS around singer Charlie Kerr. They changed their somewhat awkward name to Hotel Mira in 2018, and continue to release music, lately the EP After Party in fall 2025.

Song Pick of the Day

Listen to all seven songs on YouTube, or follow our daily updated Song Pick playlists on YouTube, Apple Music, or Spotify.

• Lenka - Sunshine Girl
• Lily Kincade - People, Places, Things
• Kelsey Olivia - Quit
• Twayn - Wouldn’t It Be Better
• Emma See - How to Drive
• Glazyhaze - Do You?
• Remington Super 60 - Time to Breathe

We publish one Song Pick of the Day every day. You can subscribe to receive them by email.

Nine Photos - Cascais

Even on our third visit to Lisbon, we still hadn’t explored everything this beautiful and endlessly fascinating city has to offer. And yet, we also wanted to see a little more of Portugal beyond the capital. On our first trip, we took the classic day excursion to Sintra with its magical palaces and castles. This time, we boarded the commuter train at Cais do Sodré and, after a joyful 40-minute ride along the coast, arrived in Cascais.

Like Lisbon, Cascais charms with intricate mosaic sidewalks and tiled façades. It also carries the unmistakable feeling of a place that has been cherished for generations, not one that only recently became fashionable. Think of the Hamptons, Montauk, Starnberger See, or Sylt — places where city people escape for weekends and long summer stays. In short: I LOVED Cascais. And little did I know that the rice and shrimp dish we enjoyed by the sea would turn out to be the best meal of the entire trip.

We then walked along the coast to Estoril, the next town over, and took the train back toward Lisbon, hopping off at LX Factory for a local DJ party before heading home.