here they are:
"Fool's Errand" by Fleet Foxes: Look up the phrase "fool's errand" online or in a dictionary and your answer will be, "a task with no hope or success". The Fleet Foxes song, "Fool's Errand", is NOT a fool's errand! Like many of Fleet Foxes' songs, "Fool's Errand" contains plenty of effort and emotion. For those who were a little miffed by the prog-rock-ish direction that Fleet Foxes took earlier this year with "Third of May", "Fool's Errand" might be a little easier to stomach, since it's more of a straight folk-rock song with no out of place meanderings in the middle. The "fool's errand" mentioned in the song, thankfully, is not the song itself, but a failed relationship, which is common subject matter in Fleet Foxes' songs, along with mysterious but alluring allegorical themes. Perhaps if I listen to this song more, I'll catch a hidden allegorical meaning(s) within it, but my first impression of this song is that it's already a good one!
"Golden Dandelions" by Barns Courtney: Barns Courtney blazed the alt and adult charts last spring and summer with his steamy, blues-y mega-hit, "Fire". This summer, he's already back with a new song, "Golden Dandelions". The hollow but catchy drumbeats that made "Fire" (and its followup hit, "Glitter And Gold") such a big hit are also present on "Golden Dandelions". A big difference between "Golden Dandelions" and Barns Courtney's previous songs is that it seems to want to sound more like a bright, energetic pop song, but even with that, "Golden Dandelions" still manages to win me over because it just sounds so unique! Plus, who wouldn't think of lyrics like "lay me down in golden dandelions" as being so full of vivid, poetic imagery?!
"The Man" by The Killers: The Killers release their first album in 4 years and we get...ummm...something that sounds like a cross between Daft Punk's "Da Funk" and The Who's "Eminence Front"?! Huh?!? How'd THIS happen?! Well, as weird as this description might sound, Brandon Flowers and co actually manage to make this song work in a way that only they can! So who is "the man", you might be wondering?! The answer is Brandon Flowers himself! However, no one is really sure if he's saying this because he has such a big ego (which I don't think he does, really) or because he's making fun of himself. The Killers' debut album from 2004 was actually filled with disco-meets-rock songs, so "The Man" actually sounds like an old Killers song instead of a new one! For those expecting the grandiose Springsteen/U2 type sound that The Killers had after their debut, you may be disappointed. For everyone else, Brandon Flowers really IS "the man"!
