20 February 2014 - House of Pain - Jump Around

Some days are much harder for me than others to find "guilty pleasure" videos to post (Tony seemingly does not suffer from this affliction, for which I am extremely jealous). After alternating between staring at a blank screen and my Twitter feed for the last two hours I thought all hope was lost. Pack it in buddy. Admit failure. Blow it off yet again. Come back refreshed in 10 days. And then it hit me with all of the subtlety of a Jock Jams Compilation - JUMP AROUND BY HOUSE OF PAIN!!!

. . . And with that, my meteoric rise to mediocrity continues . . .

18 February 2014 - Lily Allen - Air Balloon

Tony is probably going to kill me for posting Lily Allen's new video for Air Balloon. Chances are he won't realize it until after Olympic curling ends and by that time I should be on a plane to the Dominican Republic to hide out. Or vacation. Anyway, we love Lily Allen here at Wicked Guilty Pleasures. Actually, we should seriously think about inducting her into Wicked Guilty Pleasure's Hall of Fame which currently has two members: Pink and Katy Perry. So kick back and enjoy the fun video for Air Balloon while I consider changing my ringtone back to the chorus of Lily's epic song F*ck You from her It's Not Me, It's You album.

17 February 2014 - Phantogram - Black Out Days

The new Phantogram album Voices is out tomorrow.  This is the first single, as well as the lead track off their EP from last year.  It's a little less dark than their prior stuff, and more hip-hop influenced (probably thanks to Big Boi) but it's still clearly Phantogram.

6 February 2014 - Broken Bells - Holding On For Life

James Mercer (The Shins) and Danger Mouse, collectively known as Broken Bells, returned this week with their second full-length album After The Disco. While they just released a lyric video for the atmospheric second single Leave It Alone, I think the album's first single Holding On For Life is just so freaking cool . . . so let's watch that one instead.

4 February 2014 - Jamie Lynn Spears - How Could I Want More

To be honest, I know very little about Jamie Lynn Spears other than the fact that she's Britney's little sister. Recently though, there's been a lot of buzz about her new country single How Could I Want More. I kind of shrugged it off in one of my fits of arrogant snobbery that sometimes still rears its ugly head when it comes to music (trust me, I've gotten A LOT better about this and I think this blog has certainly proved that point). I finally caught the video on CMT Pure a couple days ago and I was pretty much blown away by the time the first chorus hit. It's a finely written song (co-written by Jamie) that is sung with a strong, yet vulnerable voice. After hearing the song a few more times I have to say that I certainly wouldn't mind if Jamie Lynn Spears becomes the next big pop country star.

31 January 2014 - The Wreckers - Leave The Pieces

Did you know that Michelle Branch had a country career?  Indeed, The Wreckers were Michelle Branch and Jessica Harp.  This song was nominated for a 2007 Grammy, so clearly this venture was seen as respectable.  And I respect it, too - it's hard to go from a solo career, be it in pop or country, and move into a collaborative situation like this.

And, sure, this group didn't last very long, but I hope they come back. 

30 January 2014 - Lucy Hale - You Sound Good To Me

Pretty Little Liars actress Lucy Hale released her first single You Sound Good To Me a few weeks ago and it's tearing up the country charts with its breezy verses and big sing-a-long chorus. I suspect we'll be hearing a lot more from her in 2014, especially if the song hits the Top 10, which I think is very likely.