2 September 2013 - Grimes - Oblivion

My path to discovering this artist, who has been around for a few years, is a bit of a convoluted one.  You see, this post started off life as a post by another artist.  That artist's name is Brooke Candy.  She's quite the character, with long pink dreadlocks, a wild wardrobe, and a foul mouth.   And, in my research about her, I found out that she is best known for appearing in a video by Grimes.

Well, that got me thinking - who is Grimes?  And I checked out that video - the song is called "Genesis", and it's a decent song in its own right, but it's not the song we're posting today - and it was good.  Then I found out she was signed to 4AD Records.  Anyone who knows me knows that I am a 4AD junkie.  (There's a special post coming someday dedicated just to that record label.  But that's for another day)

That got me investigating more music by Grimes, and it led me to our song today.  Born Claire Boucher, and raised in Vancouver, meet your 2013 Juno Award winner for Electronic Album of the Year.  This video was filmed at McGill University, in Montreal, where the artist attended. And yes, this is a real football game and a real motocross exhibition, where she's walking around with headphones and a keyboard and singing.

And now that you've enjoyed Grimes, check out Totally Covered today for an acoustic version of this song by Franz Ferdiannd

(Update: 10 Jan 2014): I had the song stuck in my head.  So here's a live version.

30 August 2013 - Lana Del Rey - Summertime Sadness

August is ending.  School is starting again.  So why not a super depressing song to end the summer?!

That would be the end of this post, except this song has become kind of a big hit.... because it's kind of good and deep and beautifully done.  Sure, we are still talking about Lana Del Rey's Saturday Night Live debacle (which I think was overblown, but that's opinion), but this song.... so stirring.

As of this writing, this song, at #9 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, is Ms. Del Rey's biggest hit to date.



To be fair, it is this remixed version by Cedric Gervais that has been getting all the airplay.... it's kind of a depressing song to get a lot of club airplay, and yet that's exactly what has happened.

29 August 2013 - The B-52's - Rock Lobster

Yeah, I could have easily posted the campy original Rock Lobster video by The B-52's, but this even campier "live" in-studio performance from Countdown is WAY better. I've watched this video three times today and I still can't stop laughing . . . Man, I'd kill for Fred Schneider's mad dance skills.



Five years ago I saw The B-52's in Virginia Beach on the beach. This weekend I get to see Daughtry at the same venue. Not quite the same now is it?

28 August 2013 - Cher Lloyd - Swagger Jagger

I don't quite know what it is about this song that makes me freaking love it so much.  Perhaps it is the bravado that this young woman practically bleeds with every note.  Perhaps it's because Cher Lloyd is so very clearly under the influence of the X Factor producers for this clearly overproduced song..... which, amazingly, doesn't make it a bad song.  Maybe it's the nod and wink to "Oh My Darling Clemetine" that the chorus of this song clearly takes.

Oh, and there is the fact that it was used in a milk commercial..... I think that must be it.


(By the way, you'll want to check out our prior Cher Lloyd post, which we updated today, too)

27 August 2013 - Eve 6 - Inside Out

Every Labor Day weekend the Mrs. and I head down to Virginia Beach for an extra long weekend. We hit the same bars and restaurants we like, my wife runs the half marathon and there's the American Music Festival, which is why I started going.

The festival has concerts every night on seven stages (the main-stage is on the beach and there are six free side stages near the boardwalk). Over the years I've seen some great bands there: The B-52s, Cheap Trick, Soul Asylum, Billy Idol, ZZ Top, Bret Michaels, Southern Culture On The Skids, Joan Jett, Train, Jamey Johnson, Warrant (one of Jani Lane's last shows before getting kicked out of the band), and dozens of others. Beer is cheap and the money goes to local charities. It's always a fun time.

Well this year it's going to take A LOT of beer because the line-up is to put it kindly -- a crapfest. The main-stage looks like this: Fuel/Daughtry on Friday, Smash Mouth/Barenaked Ladies on Saturday and Third Eye Blind on Sunday. Sounds like a killer festival . . . 15 years ago. The free stages are no better. On Saturday I have the option of seeing Eve 6/Sugar Ray. OR Eve 6 and then walk 5 blocks to see Modern English. Or say "screw it," find a bar and watch Georgia vs. Clemson. It's almost a no-brainer. Anyway here's the "Tender Heart in a Blender" song by Eve 6. I'm sorry.

26 August 2013 - P!nk - True Love (featuring Lily Allen (Lily Rose Cooper?))

We haven't done a Hall of Famer in awhile, have we?  No, we haven't.  We really should.  In the meantime, enjoy the latest single by our last HoF honoree, P!nk, who duets with potential future HoF honoree and co-author Lily Allen (who we featured on Friday).

Except that Lily Allen had changed her professional name to her real (married) name, Lily Rose Cooper (why she added the middle name I don't know), so my confusion was in the billing of this song, which clearly uses the old professional name.  So, when Mrs. Cooper's new album finally drops... who knows who it will be billed to.

But I digress.  This song is brilliantly and darkly crafted, and speaks to what a real relationship might look like in Pink's world... Plus, it stars her kid.  And Carey Hart.  And a bunch of toys from Ikea.  And Lily... whoever she is.... with a blender and a knife.  Despite the darkness of the song, it's generally happy and enjoyable, and not as dark as a couple of her recent hits.

23 August 2013 - Lily Allen - LDN

It is unbelievable to me that I haven't posted this yet.  It's a chipper-sounding song, but lyrically really dark.  And it's one of my favorite songs of all time.   And it's a song my eight year old daughter knows, word for word.

A "love song" to London, of sorts, it's a catchy pop achievement, with great beats and catchy horns.
This version of the video is version 2, which matches well with the lyrics.... where Ms. Allen sees a rosy London but a darker version of the city appears behind her - right down to the old lady being hit over the head by the kid seeking her jewelry and wallet.



It's important to note that Lily Allen is asking for her own album in the record store in the beginning of the video.  All the terms she used were ones used to describe her debut, Alright, Still....

Sadly, Version 1, which is also pretty cool, only shows the nice side of London. Filmed on a shoestring budget, it follows our intrepid artist around London on a bicycle, in fast forward.  And it's all rosy - no crack whores to be found.  Still, it's a fun video.