here they are:
"All I Ever Wonder" by St. Paul and The Broken Bones: Retro-soul revivalists St. Paul and The Broken Bones are on the run once again! In addition to the Al Green-ish R & B they've already become known for, St. Paul and The Broken Bones have a bit of an added gospel influence in their latest song, "All I Ever Wonder", that wasn't exactly apparent on their previous songs. So what is it that they "ever wonder", you may ask? Well, the song is basically about trying to make it through difficult situations. Perhaps the high-spirited gospel influenced sound of the song serves as a way to find light through the darkness of life.
"Better Love" by Hozier: The hits just keep on comin' from Irish soul/alt-pop hybrid, Hozier. Nearly half of his debut album has become well loved among indie and alt fans. With news of a new Hozier song that was NOT on his debut album, I thought maybe he had already released a sophomore effort! Sadly, this is not the case. His newest song, "Better Love", is actually a song featured exclusively on the soundtrack of the new movie, "The Legend of Tarzan". Most of Hozier's songs deal with the battle between the sacred and the profane, but it seems like it is mainly the former that is being focused on in this case. This is especially evident on the chorus when Hozier proudly proclaims that "there's no better love that beckons above me". What does sacred, pure love have to do with Tarzan?! As someone who has not seen the movie yet, I have yet to find out, but I'm guessing it has something to do with some heroic triumph that the title character has towards the end of the film.
"Good Grief" by Bastille: Since when has Charlie Brown joined an indie-pop group?! Come to think of it, that'd probably be pretty fitting for everyone's favorite "blockhead", considering how heavy the weight of his problems are, but I digress. Actually, "Good Grief" is pretty energetic for British indie-pop stars, Bastille, in spite of its pessimistic sounding title. The song plays out like Queen and David Bowie's "Under Pressure" filtered through a bright, flashy indie-pop lens. It seems to be more of a song about missing a girl than it is about general frustration (which I thought it would have been due to its title.)
