here they are:
"Baby Outlaw" by Elle King: If you can picture what it'd be like for a musician like Lorde to cover "Ghost Riders In the Sky", then you've pretty much got Elle King's "Baby Outlaw" in a nutshell! Just the opening of the song gives off imagery of a showdown in an old Western movie. This song has a similar premise to Elle's song, "Good Girls", which was her contribution to the 2016 version of "Ghostbusters". "Baby Outlaw" and "Good Girls" both revolve around how Elle has never been a "good girl", and how, as a result of this, she's no one to mess with. You'd better watch out, 'cause this song is the "Bad" and the "Ugly" to King's "Good Girls"!! (Cue Ennio Morricone theme here).
"Back On the Chain Gang" by Morrissey: The original "Back On the Chain Gang" by The Pretenders came out about a year before Morrissey's best known hit with The Smiths, "How Soon Is Now?", both in the mid 1980's. So how does this mopey alt-rock king interpret one of the best loved songs of a tough but tender rock and roll queen, you may ask?! Well, as you might have guessed, not as good as the original, but it's still worth hearing, and it's a pretty good attempt at covering the song, too! Moz retains the jangle-pop feel and heartfelt emotion of the original quite well. I never would have thought this cover was going to happen (I would have pictured a band like R.E.M. covering it first), but somehow, I'm glad it has!
"For Me It's You" by Lo Moon: With just a pair of singles ("This Is It" and "Real Love") under their belt so far, I'm a little surprised that Lo Moon are back with a second album after only a year, but "For Me It's You", their first single off of their sophomore record, retains the atmospheric electro-pop vibe of their first two breakthrough songs. "For Me It's You" could be viewed as a parallel to "This Is It", with its mostly melancholic but sweet atmosphere set off by a sudden burst of electric guitar after the chorus, though it does not disrupt the flow of the song overall. With lead singer Matt Lowell's technique of placing whispery, romantic vocals against an ersatz smooth jazz ensemble that briefly turns into a wall of noise, it's not hard to see why Lo Moon have recently toured with bands who use similar techniques, such as The War on Drugs, Phoenix, and Glass Animals, not to mention the band Ride, a legendary group of the "shoegazing" subgenre who have been around since the late '80s that inspired the other bands mentioned here (including Lo Moon themselves).
"Hey! Yeah!" by Deer Tick: Deer Tick have been all over the rock and roll map, primarily dabbling in either folk-rock or Southern rock. "Hey, Yeah!" marks what I believe is the first time that Deer Tick have taken on power pop, albeit with a somewhat Southern flavor to it. Think Big Star meets The Allman Brothers - a combination that sounds like it could just be crazy enough to work, and DOES, in this song! Here's what's even crazier, though. The music video for "Hey! Yeah!" features the band members as DANCING MAYONNAISE JARS!! Who on Earth thought THAT idea up?! I'm pretty sure the band members were ingesting far more than just mayonnaise when they made the music video for this song!! The video can be viewed here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mbdcr5_tcd8
"Movement" by Hozier: Hozier's "Nina Cried Power" seemed unbeatable almost throughout this fall! Like all songs, though, its star eventually faded out on the radio airwaves, so here to take place of the Irish soul-ster's thunderous anthem is a more subtle, quieter song called "Movement". No matter what Hozier does, it always seems to gel well with adult alt radio stations, and it's not hard to see why! Whether he's dramatic or romantic, quiet or loud, he always manages to give soul stirring performances in his songs! "Movement" is not revolutionary like his previous hit, but is instead more fluent and more intimate. Regardless of what kinds of songs he puts out, the "movement" of Hozier's music will last a long time!
Showing posts with label Morrissey. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Morrissey. Show all posts
Wednesday, November 28, 2018
Wednesday, October 4, 2017
New songs for October 4th, 2017
here they are:
"Domino (Time Will Tell)" by Hiss Golden Messenger: Much like in Van Morrison's similarly titled "Domino", we never really find out who (or what) "Domino" is in the context of this song, but in both cases, they appear to be a person. Both songs also center around the joys of music. However, this "Domino" has more of a roots-y country-rock sound, as opposed to Van's soulful jazz-rock ditty. It appears to be more lyrically influenced by The Grateful Dead's "Truckin'" than it is by Morrison's "Domino" (which both came out in the year 1970, coincidentally) with its constant name dropping of famous cities and venues in the U.S. and its narrative of life on the road. Will this song hold up as well as The Dead and Van the Man have?! Well, as the parenthetical title of this song implies, "time will tell"!
"If We Were Vampires" by Jason Isbell: After Jason's scathing, rocking, "Hope the High Road" from earlier this year, he has come back a second time around with a much softer and more reflective song, albeit with a spookier title apt for the month Halloween happens to fall on. The song actually has little to do with vampires, and a lot to do with contemplating the meaning of life and whether it's worth living. The song only gets more poignant as it goes on, culminating with the lines, "Maybe we'll get 40 years together/But one day I'll be gone, or one day you'll be gone", quite possibly the deepest lyrics in a country-rock song since "Dust In the Wind".
"It's A Shame" by First Aid Kit: It was just about a month ago that First Aid Kit, a folk-rock duo of Swedish sisters, released a surprisingly catchy song called "Revolution" with newcomer, Van William. Now, First Aid Kit have once again struck out on their own. "It's A Shame" isn't quite as catchy as "Revolution", but it's still memorable, and First Aid Kit fans will likely be drawn to it, since it has the trademark harmonies and bittersweet yet buoyant folk-rock instrumentation the sisters have become known for. The "shame" that is talked about in the song is the shame that is felt when a relationship ends. The vintage sounding organ in the song gives it a slightly Dylan-esque flavor, and was apparently recorded in Jack White from The White Stripes' studio.
"One Foot" by Walk the Moon: There has always been something irresistibly cheesy about Walk the Moon's music. That's nothing new! What is new, however, is that their latest song, "One Foot", has a bit less guitar than their fans might be used to. Both their debut single, "Anna Sun", and the massively successful "Shut Up And Dance" have used guitar as a prominent instrument, sounding like an unabashedly pop-y version of U2 in doing so. "One Foot" just doesn't have that U2-ish sound. It is largely a synth driven song, except during the chorus when you can hear the guitarist a bit more clearly. One thing WTM haven't lost, though, is their knack for making radio ready pop music with a slightly "alternative" edge. They have turned the cliche phrase, "one foot in front of the other", into a group of words that can be shouted at a stadium! These guys could probably sing a section of the phonebook and still make a Top 40 hit out of it!
"Spent the Day In Bed" by Morrissey: And last, but certainly not least, the distinctly voiced, notoriously cynical lead singer of innovative '80s indie-pop band, The Smiths, has returned to make lyrical poetry out of complaints once again. Though Morrissey is a native Brit, he seems to pay attention to political affairs the world around, and is usually unhappy about them. This leads me to believe that "Spent the Day In Bed" is probably about the current state of American political affairs, particularly when Moz urges his listeners to "stop watching the news" during the chorus. Over a quirky, stilted keyboard sound that might not sound out of place in a Zombies tune, Morrissey broodingly croons about how agoraphobia might not be a bad choice with all the negativity going on in the world outside his house. Hopefully we'll be able to wake you up in 2020, Moz! In the meantime, sweet dreams...hopefully.
"Domino (Time Will Tell)" by Hiss Golden Messenger: Much like in Van Morrison's similarly titled "Domino", we never really find out who (or what) "Domino" is in the context of this song, but in both cases, they appear to be a person. Both songs also center around the joys of music. However, this "Domino" has more of a roots-y country-rock sound, as opposed to Van's soulful jazz-rock ditty. It appears to be more lyrically influenced by The Grateful Dead's "Truckin'" than it is by Morrison's "Domino" (which both came out in the year 1970, coincidentally) with its constant name dropping of famous cities and venues in the U.S. and its narrative of life on the road. Will this song hold up as well as The Dead and Van the Man have?! Well, as the parenthetical title of this song implies, "time will tell"!
"If We Were Vampires" by Jason Isbell: After Jason's scathing, rocking, "Hope the High Road" from earlier this year, he has come back a second time around with a much softer and more reflective song, albeit with a spookier title apt for the month Halloween happens to fall on. The song actually has little to do with vampires, and a lot to do with contemplating the meaning of life and whether it's worth living. The song only gets more poignant as it goes on, culminating with the lines, "Maybe we'll get 40 years together/But one day I'll be gone, or one day you'll be gone", quite possibly the deepest lyrics in a country-rock song since "Dust In the Wind".
"It's A Shame" by First Aid Kit: It was just about a month ago that First Aid Kit, a folk-rock duo of Swedish sisters, released a surprisingly catchy song called "Revolution" with newcomer, Van William. Now, First Aid Kit have once again struck out on their own. "It's A Shame" isn't quite as catchy as "Revolution", but it's still memorable, and First Aid Kit fans will likely be drawn to it, since it has the trademark harmonies and bittersweet yet buoyant folk-rock instrumentation the sisters have become known for. The "shame" that is talked about in the song is the shame that is felt when a relationship ends. The vintage sounding organ in the song gives it a slightly Dylan-esque flavor, and was apparently recorded in Jack White from The White Stripes' studio.
"One Foot" by Walk the Moon: There has always been something irresistibly cheesy about Walk the Moon's music. That's nothing new! What is new, however, is that their latest song, "One Foot", has a bit less guitar than their fans might be used to. Both their debut single, "Anna Sun", and the massively successful "Shut Up And Dance" have used guitar as a prominent instrument, sounding like an unabashedly pop-y version of U2 in doing so. "One Foot" just doesn't have that U2-ish sound. It is largely a synth driven song, except during the chorus when you can hear the guitarist a bit more clearly. One thing WTM haven't lost, though, is their knack for making radio ready pop music with a slightly "alternative" edge. They have turned the cliche phrase, "one foot in front of the other", into a group of words that can be shouted at a stadium! These guys could probably sing a section of the phonebook and still make a Top 40 hit out of it!
"Spent the Day In Bed" by Morrissey: And last, but certainly not least, the distinctly voiced, notoriously cynical lead singer of innovative '80s indie-pop band, The Smiths, has returned to make lyrical poetry out of complaints once again. Though Morrissey is a native Brit, he seems to pay attention to political affairs the world around, and is usually unhappy about them. This leads me to believe that "Spent the Day In Bed" is probably about the current state of American political affairs, particularly when Moz urges his listeners to "stop watching the news" during the chorus. Over a quirky, stilted keyboard sound that might not sound out of place in a Zombies tune, Morrissey broodingly croons about how agoraphobia might not be a bad choice with all the negativity going on in the world outside his house. Hopefully we'll be able to wake you up in 2020, Moz! In the meantime, sweet dreams...hopefully.
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