here they are:
"Becoming All Alone" by Regina Spektor: The quirky yet sensitive music of Regina Spektor was all over the adult alt airwaves during the mid to late 2000's, yet her power just didn't seem to stay as strong in the decade that followed. She was kind of like an unlikely but irresistible cross between Tori Amos and They Might Be Giants. "Becoming All Alone" is a bittersweet comeback song for Regina. The song might be a bit more electro-pop than the less flashy piano-pop that Regina's fans might be used to, but it really gels in this song, which gradually adds other instruments like percussion and brass as it goes on, winding down towards the end into a more typical piano-and-strings Regina song. As is to be expected with Regina, oddball lyrics (such as "I asked God, 'Please call my name,' and I said, 'Hey. Let's grab a beer") accompany a more somber musical sound. Her mid '10s song, "Bleeding Heart," was somewhat of a disappointment, but I think she's come back to her musical roots with "Becoming All Alone." Welcome back, old friend!
"Come Back" by Trombone Shorty: The sounds of '60s and '70s soul have always been part of the Trombone Shorty sound, but on "Come Back," he really flaunts that sound! As one might think with a title like "Come Back," Trombone Shorty's latest song is basically a lovesick plea. The lyrics aren't anything new to the music world, but the way Shorty delivers his music and the passion with which he delivers it inject fresh life into the rather stagnant musical climate of the 2020's. Fans of early '70s R & B will probably dig this song, and, true to his stage name, Trombone Shorty has heavy use of brass in this song, as he does in all his material.
"Everything's Electric" by Liam Gallagher (Oasis): Two of the major players of '90s rock collide in the Oasis frontman's latest song, "Everything's Electric." In addition to Oasis finding new musical life, Foo Fighters also do in this song, in which FF's lead singer Dave Grohl is featured on the drums! The song overall sounds like some of the attempts at "new" music that vintage rockers like The Rolling Stones, U2, and Lenny Kravitz have attempted during the new millennium. In other words, it definitely sounds like a rock song, but it doesn't sound like it's trying to add anything in that hasn't been done before. How a notoriously friendly guy like Dave Grohl and a notoriously unfriendly guy like Liam managed to make it work here is anyone's guess, but the chemistry is noticeable here and it works somehow.
"Highest Bidder" by Fantastic Negrito: Like our entry from two songs ago, this song is also a foray into '70s R & B in the modern era. Fantastic Negrito's "Highest Bidder" really captures the more minimalist side of the funk movement, with almost the entire song defined by just the E minor chord (and guitar solos being played over it sometimes). The song is not without a dose of dark humor either, taking on such topical issues as racism, capitalism, and other subjects of a political nature while both gleefully and sarcastically singing in the chorus that "Everything goes to the highest bidder." In other words, Fantastic Negrito is commenting on how the greedy people of the world are profiting while those on the lower yet more generous end of the economic totem pole are suffering. Fantastic Negrito clearly knows what he's talking about here and isn't afraid to put it in our faces! The song culminates with an E minor riff that's noticeably more distorted than the rest of the song, perhaps as a way of symbolizing the anger he feels throughout the song and just letting it all out for the last few seconds!
"Made Up Mind" by Bonnie Raitt: Not actually a Bonnie tune, but actually one from the bluegrass-influenced rock group, The Brothers Landreth, that came out in the mid-2010's. The original version wasn't very memorable, but Bonnie has a knack for making just about anything she does good, and her cover of "Made Up Mind" is no exception. She turns the mild country sound of the original into a slinky, blues-y vamp all her own here! The fact she is now two years past 70 and still churning out juicy blues-rock tunes just as she did at the start of her career is also truly a wonder to behold!
"Problems" by Neal Francis: Neal's first big adult alt radio hit, "Can't Stop the Rain," had a very blues-y, gritty sound to it that quickly caught on with its demographic! His followup song, "Problems," is not as blues-y, but still attempts to go with the whole "blue-eyed soul" feel that he had with his first big song. In fact, the song sounds an awful lot like something Hall and Oates, arguably the best-known blue-eyed soul group of the 1970's and early '80s, would have come up with, though it has noticeably more synth than the typical H & O song does. Perhaps it's the song's seamless, fluid mixture of meaty rock riffs, crooning vocals, and soulful rhythm that give me the H & O vibes here. Also distinguishing "Problems" from its predecessor, "Can't Stop the Rain," is the fact that "Problems" has a bridge that doesn't quite sound like the rest of the song does that almost feels like it doesn't need to be there, yet it still comes back strong in the end.
