I still remember vividly the first time I ever heard Linkin Park. I had an office job back in college crammed into a small room with two other departments. One of my office mates asked if she could turn on internet radio, which was in its very early stages back ten. I said fine, and when she turned it on, the first thing blaring over the speakers was some dude screaming, “Shut up! Shut up when you’re talking to me!” My first response was, well that was not very nice. She was embarrassed to admit to liking the song but said she forgot about that part of the song. I overcame this horrible first impression and actually ended up owning two of their album and Bleed it Out is one of the greatest workout songs ever recorded.
There was one song off of Demi Lovato’s first album I actually kind of liked (the title track) but since then she has been a mainstay on my Worst Songs of the Year lists, usually very high. So I was not expecting much when she released a new single. Except, I actually kind of liked it. I has a English pop retro vibe to it (the good kind as much English pop is as bad an American pop) instead of her usual trashy pop she has done recent. And she weirdly looks like Olivia Munn in the hot tube scene.
At the end of the Bad Liar video, Selena Gomez teased a continuation. Except Fetish turned out to be a nonsensical weird video that had nothing to do with the previous one. And the song is not very good, maybe my least favorite of her singles. At least video will not be continued.
I remember reading an article a few years back where the reviewer in Rolling Stone calling every single album R.E.M. released in the new millennium the best R.E.M. since the mid-nineties. Basically trashing all the albums that at the time they were calling R.E.M.’s comeback. That came to mind after all the reviews calling it Jay-Z’s latest album the best since The Black Album. Now I have not listened to the whole album because I am certainly not signing up for Tidal to listening to it, but from what I heard, it is about as good as the post nineties R.E.M. album: not very.
Po-Dunk – Kid Rock
People have been theorizing who Trump would inspire to run for political office with no experience other than being famous. The Rock has teased a few times but Kid Rock is the first to actually say they are putting their hat in the ring. Sure hee has not officially signed any paperwork and his Rock for Senate website redirects you to his merch page on his label’s website, but I am a little worried. Of course a video like this may play in the South, but isn’t this just an advertisement as why not to vote for him in states above the Mason-Dixon Line, including Michigan, the state he is running for Senate?
Do no ask me why Vic Mensa recruited Carl Gallagher for his video, but thankfully he recruited Pusha T for the song because King Push makes everything better.
If someone were to do an Adam Sandler / Drew Barrymore movie for their music video, I would have guessed The Wedding Singer, not 50 First Dates. But at least Jhené Aiko did not pick Blended.
Little Big Town is a weird group. Sure they are a county group who can make boring, clichéd country song, but they also can be weird and interesting. Girl Crush was a straight up sixties soul record and this song sound like something eighties Fleetwood Mac would have made.
You may not know the name Jesse Peretz but if you watched MTV in the nineties, you have seen his work as he directed many Foo Fighters videos (including Learning to Fly where Dave Grohl played multiple roles) as well as Popular by Nada Surf. What those videos had in common have in common were that they were weird and fun, but that was mostly lacking here except Selena Gomez dressing up as a nerdy dad. And what was that “Coming Soon” at the end? Is there a second parter to this because that looked like a completely different video. I hope this does not become a trend.
It is a shame Edgar Wright is not a big a big a director as he should be, his trio of British films with Simonn Pegg and Nick Frost were brilliant. Scott Pilgrim should have been a massive hit (seriously, the film featured up and comers Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Anna Kendrick, Brie Larson, and Aubrey Plaza). Ant-Man was going to be his first blockbuster but ended up leaving because of creative diferences. Maybe a movie featuring Jamie Foxx, Jon Hamm, and Kevin Spacey will finally get him widespread recognition. At the very least the Danger Mouse song from the soundtrack is cool.
What struck me during the new video from Prophets of Rage was where are the rebel rousers of today. The nineties had Rage Against the Machine, Public Enemy and many others but nobody seems to rage very hard against the machine these day other than the occasional strongly worded tweet.
Mount Kushmore – Snoop Dogg featuring Redman, Method Man, and B-Real
Oh my goodness, a song with Snoop Dogg,
edman, Method Man, and B-Real may have been the greatest track of 1995. Now, meh. And that has to be the worst Trump impression ever.
Wall of Glass – Liam Gallagher
It seems like I have been talking a lot this year about mediocre music from artists who had they heyday two decades ago (including everyone in this post). Liam Gallagher’s first solo track may be the most mediocre. I wonder if Oasis is going a Creedence Clearwater Revival situation where you assume they will reconcile eventually up until the point one of them dies. But unlike John Folgerty, neither of the Gallagher bothers have released anything worth caring about apart.
Fun fact: I grew up about fifteen miles away from Dan Auerbach around the same time. I am pretty sure we played soccer against each other, and let me say, that looked nothing like my teenage years, unlss you count watching Dazed and Confused which took place before me or Dan were even born. And wait, is that the chick from The Goldbergs? She just cannot do anything in present day can she?
Drink Up – Train
Well Train recruited the weirdest group to do a Wedding Crashers reboot.
Too Much to Think – 311
Oh hey, 311 are still a thing. It is weird these bands who were huge at one point just keep chugging along. Apparently this song has even charted on the Alternative Songs charts. Who knew there was still and Alternative chart? Oh yeah, that is a stupid name for a song.
I Was Born – Hanson
Speaking of relics from the nineties that never actually broke up and are still at it, Hanson is celebrating their twenty-fifth anniversary this year. Goodness that makes me feel old. Oh yeah, and all those kids in this video are the band members.
Ed Sheeran only had blink and miss it in his early videos, but ever since dancing in his Thinking Out Loud video he has been front and center in all ofg them. I guess he is back to not wanting to be in front of the camera instead letting the camera stay focused on Saorse Ronan while he remains POV. I just wonder if those are actually his arms or someone put on fake tattoos.
Haim put out one of the best debut albums this decade, an indie pop band that was heavily influenced but nineties rock and RnB. So I have been eagerly anticipating the follow up but the first single is kind of boring. And why even get Paul Thomas Anderson to direct if you are just going to record a studio video? Hopefully there are better things to come.
Does that make me less racist that I did not know what DNA stands for? Though I do not understand how a lie detector can make Don Cheadle channel Kendrick Lamar. Art, I guess.
Paramore have always been a power-pop band but a lot of songs on their last album lost that “power” part of their sound. This just sounds like something that come out of the new wave eighties, and visuals to match. But much like their power pop days, this is mostly mediocre.
Total Entertainment Forever - John Mayer Misty
I know Father John Misty is making some comment on pop culture with his new album, but it is getting harder and harder to enjoy his stuff anymore. Mackuly Culkin as Kurt Cobain? Pass.
John Mayer have done some soul infused songs before, but this is the first time he has done what sounds like a straight up RnB song. But I could have done without the really bad dancing.
This song by OThe Wild Reeds may be my favorite song of the early year.
Lights Out – Royal Blood
I have a short leash these days when watching new music videos, you better do something quickly or I may move on. About fifteen seconds into this video for Royal Blood, I was typing the name of the next video I was going to watch and right before I hit enter, something creeped out of the ceiling. Okay, I am glad I finished it, because this video is freaky.
Good With God – Old 97’s featuring Brandi Carlile
An Hour and 60 Minutes, ha, good one Old 97's, though why get Jenna Fisher to replace Matt Pinfield?
Of course a rapper releases a song called “Humble” and it is anything but. And the video features Kendrick Lamar as a pope (I think) and the head of The Last Supper (pretty obvious). And I just want to assume there is a New Jack City reference in there. I know when I see hot chicks counting money in their underwear (or less) I think New Jack City.
I thought the twist would be that Run The Jewels would not be fingered, maybe the police dog. Instead they went with the obvious Usual Suspects ending. Oh well.
Okay it is a simple camera trick, the new Marian Hill video is kind of cool.
Feels Like Summer – Weezer
It feels like a bi-yearly occurrence that I complain about the latest underwhelming lead single from a Weezer album, and this is no exception.
Don’t Look Back – Dia Frampton
Aw, Dia Frampton, still my favorite contestant from The Voice. I actually liked her big pop album Red, but this song has a great slow burn build to it.
Lavender – BadBadNotGood featuring Kaytranada and Snoop Dogg
So I have been hearing about this Snoop Dogg video where he shoots Donald Trump for a week before finally looking at it. How extremely lame. All Snoop does and aims a toy gun at a clown and a “bang” flag comes out. Again lame. Any conservative complaining about this can no longer be allowed to condemn liberals for being snowflakes. I remember when Snoop carried a real gun around him and he was not aiming them at silly clowns.
Super Crip – Snoop Dogg
Now that is more like the Snoop Dogg I remember, even if it is in cartoon form. Well, the Snoop made better music.
Heavy – Linkin Park featuring Kiiara
Linkin Park’s last album seemed to be heavily influence by eighties metal so it is weird just how mellow their new some, even featuring Kiira who is part of a new crop of shoe gazing indie pop scene. Kind of got me interested in a Linkin Park album for the first time… maybe ever.
Believer – Imagine Dragon
C’mon Imagine Dragons, why would you want to get in a boxing match with Dolph Lundgren? Dude killed a guy once in the ring. He will break you. Although, when is there going to be a Creed sequil with Vince Howard taking on Dolph’s kid?
My first impression when listening to the new Lorde song was, good, it sounds like she is not just making Pure Heroine 2.0. But on further listening, I am beginning to realize it may be too glossy. The rawness is what made her first album great. I think we have Jack Abramoff to thank, he of Fun and also produced Out of the Woods, the most bland of Taylor Swift’s single. I am still cautiously optimistic for the new album.
Bruno Mars said he wanted his new album to sound like the RnB heavy middle school dances he went to in the nineties. I did not think he quite hit his goal, except his latest video does look very nineties.
Beauty and the Beast – John Legend and Ariana Grande
Remakes are universally reviled by the internet but they keep happening because for some reason people in the real world keep seeing them. One of the worse remakes ever did not happen on the silver screen but was a musical remake: We Are the World 25. Seriously, Michael Jackson headlined the orginal. The biggest name in the remake was Lil’ Wayne. I think The Pussycat Dolls were involved too. Just a huge embarrassment. But where the eighties version featured a murders row of future first ballot Hall of Famers, in the new millennium, there just are not any superstar singers anymore. Taylor Swift. Adele. That is it. That is the list. Basically every other modern day singer would be happy to be Kim Carnes level of successful today. Now I will not call the Ariana Grande / John Legend remake as bad as the We Are the World Remake but it is weird that Ariana Grande is the best they can get to replace Celine Dion. I guess Legend is an upgrade for Peabo Bryson. But I fear the Sean Mendez version of Circle of Life for the upcoming Lion King Remake.
Nothing more annoying when both sides of the political divide fight over stupid thing (case in point: who the fork cares where people go to the bathroom). Now police violence against unarmed black man is important, but the fighting over the “(insert subsection here) lives matter” got way out of control. Leave it to Ice-T, (you know, the guy from the lemonade television commercial) and No Lives Matter - Body Count to tell it like it is, that in actuality, No Lives Matter.
Katy Perry makes annoyingly cheery pop music so it was weird that her Grammy performance of this song was kind of dire (even weirder was her Kristy Swanson in Higher Learning hairstyle). Then for the video she goes even more over the top cheery than usual for her. I guess there is supposed to be a deeper message but the problem is Katy Perry is not at good at all at be subtle.
Speaking of unusually cheery, so that is what Lana Del Rey looks like when she smiles? Okay, they real reason I am bringing her up was because “Lana Del Rey Joins Effort to Defeat Trump with Witchcraft” is the weirdest headline I read all week, and this is in a week when the saga of Kim Jung Nam got weirder by the day.
When people started making out on the roof of a car in front of Ariana Grande, I thought, um… what? By the time we get to the laundromat, I got it. I laughed at the office sex. But I draw the line at old people making out. I think th blonde next to them speaks for everyone.
Oh no, Kings of Leon are giving me really bad Under the Dome flashback which also featured random hot chicks finding an egg in the woods. I hope that was not intentional.
I guess we have Sia to thank for the proliferation of singular dancer themed music video, here are a couple by two artists you would not expect to have dance themed videos, Keith Urban and Erin McCarley. Urban especially being a country artist except the song sound more like a classic disco song than a genre that was once headlined by the likes of Johnny Cash. Carrie Underwood even looks like she came straight from a Flashdance remake.
All Around You – Stugill Simpson
All of Sturgill Simpson have had the same vaguely dark abstract images that I did not really put much thought into until this one. The dude with the fake golden big hands has to be Trump, right. And the kids destroying the objects of war was not all that subtle either.
I have to wonder when Depeche Mode wrote this song. Did they see the Trump thing coming and wrote this before the wide-spread protests after he was sworn in? Or am I being too America-centric and are they talking about their home country which recently revolted against the European Union.
There are three types of videos that can easily entertain me: ones taken in one shot, having kids versions of yourself lip sync for you, and the hardest of them all, the backwards video. But I was kind of disappointed in the Cold War Kids video which only featured people walking backwards and everything else filmed normally.
Two Wildly Different Perspectives – Father John Misty
Okay, maybe I spoke too soon about having kid stand ins. Much like Father John Misty’s last music video; the new one is kind of too depressing to watch in Trump’s America.
Undertow – Lisa Hannigan
Now Lisa Hannigan does a much better job mixing normal and backwards video.
Same-Drugs – Chance the Rapper
I may have to add a fourth to my list of videos that will easily entertain me and that is dueting with puppets. Thank you Chance the Rapper.
Ed Sheeran really is going all in on his music videos for the new album. Except Maroon 5 recently did their own boxing themed music video and that one featured Lyla Garrity. Oh Lyla Garrity, why are you no longer on my television every week in this age of too much TV? She could at least be a supervillain on Supergirl. Oh wait, plot twist, it is not a boxing video, but a sumo wrestler video, okay, that was kind of funny.
My first music video round up of 2017 was dedicated to On + Off - Maggie Rogers after two strong debut song and she gets the trifecta with her third single off her upcoming EP. Now I am always do for a one take music video but the close up where they switch her pants was kind of long and mostly seemed unnecessary. And why are you sining into an industrial fan? And the water bottle curls?.
So Good – Xara Larsson featuring Ty Dolla Sign
Up to this point Zara Larsson has been releasing mindless EDM-pop that is easily skippable, but is the first song of hers that perked up my ears thanks to the vaguely nineties feel in the sound and video. Okay so the song mostly rips off Ariana Grande’s The Way (which literally sampled nineties track Still Not a Player) complete with an unnecessary rap verse but I guess it is better than being just another mindless EDM pop song.
50 Shades of Grey started as a joke, it was fan fic of Twilight turned into an SnM story. Everyone who read it claimed to only doing so to see if it was really as bad as everyone said. Eyebrows were raised when it was announced to be made into a movie with big names attached. Except it ended up being Don Johnson’s kid and the dude from Sons of Anarchy. The latter of which dropped out because of embarrassment (or as he told it, scheduling conflict). But bizarrely when no one wanted to be associated with the film, somehow they managed to amass some big names for the soundtrack, most notably Beyoncé but it also spawned two hit songs and pretty muh launched The Weeknd as a pop star. The film was routinely mock upon the release and again everyone who saw it claim to do it ironically. Bizarrely they are actually doing another one and again recruited another major pop star for the soundtrack. But where Beyoncé exudes sex, Taylor Swift is very open about how she does not want to be a sex symbol. And really beside the Bad Blood video, she has succeeded at it. So it is really weird to she her parade around in her underwear in an ad for a crappy SnM movie. Meh. I am ready for her to go back to making cheesy county pop songs.
I always roll my eyes when conservative firebrands rail against the “mainstream media” and its anti-conservative bias (and roll even harder when normal citizens spot these same absurdities). Although I may be warming up to that bias when I recently read a headline that said (and I am paraphrasing) “Ed Sheeran fans, blame Donald Trump for having to wait until the New Year for his new album. Despite the obvious click bait headline, I still clicked on it and it turned out Sheeran’s record label had planned to release the album the week of the election but decide to delay until later because that news sucked all the air out of the room, because, you know, Sheeran fans across the world were so focused on the American election. And then since Bruno Mars already had a release date the next week and The Weeknd after that the label decided to postpone the release until after the start of the year because the crossover with these two artists and no one could possibly buy two albums the same week. No wonder the music industry is dying.
But Sheeran should have taken those extra months to try some new some new songs because the first single sounds like a cheap Coldplay rip off, complete with Sheeran walking with purpose like Chris Martin in the music video (maybe Ed should have stuck to not appearing in his videos except maybe a small cameo). But I do like him sticking to the math themed albums. I cannot wait until his eighth album differential.
The Weeknd had one of the weirder assents to the top of the pop music. He made moody shoe gazing RnB and then out of nowhere he decided he wanted to be Michael Jackson. Now he is getting weird again hooking up with Daft Punk on his new album. But I am beginning to wonder if all his power was in his hair because I am ambivalent to his latest songs as I was towards his shoe gazing phase.
Even though I usually check them out, I not a big fan of the Artists to Watch for the next year that pop up at the end or beginning of each year. My ears usually meet each artist with a resounding yawn. Most are not really that new, usually artists that put out albums or singles months before to crickets and outlets are dusting them off now because they have to write about something and less and less artists are putting out music in the winter. Really there are just less and less big name artists that push the needle period.
One artist that caught my ear on Billboard’s list was Maggie Rogers. Her song Alaska was somehow familiar and weird at the same time. Then the song kept popping up again and again over the last couple month until one day I heard it and realized, oh wait, this song is kind of great. So I went on a deep dive and there was a viral video of Pharrell listening to her song in front of her at the NYU Clive Davis Insitut where she talks about coming to the school as a banjo player who fell in love with French dance music, hence the “familiar and weird at the same time” vive. Maggie’s segment starts at 18:18.
What is great about the video, beside Pharrell bizarrely comparing her to Wu-Tang Clan which he manages to make a convincing argument, is Maggie awkwardly trying to sneak a look at Pharrell’s expression but clearly to scared to. And like I mentioned, she went to music school to play the banjo so clearly there is musicianship to her behind the French dance music esthetic which you can definitely her in the acoustic version of the song which turns the song into a heartbreak anthem that could have been been on one of Ryan Adams more sad albums.
Maggie has released a new single since them with an EP coming February 17 called Now That the Light Is Fading, (she also released two albums in high school that you can find on Bandcamp if you are interested in her banjo phase). Dog Years is another great song that gives me a modern update of Laurel Canyon feel to it. After a dire year for new music last year, and really music in general, 2017 is already looking up.
I have not watched the VMA’s since… oh my, it is been a while, I think the Frank Ocean year was the last one. But I did notice most of the performances made it on the YouTube legally I think for the first time (I have never understand why the live performance rarely pop up on iTunes to buy, but I guess this is why the music industry is on life support). Not that I had any interest in any of them beside Ariana Grande. I wondered why she was she was in some spin cycle class until the actual music video dropped the next day with its Olivia Newton-John inspired theme (though I wish they gone full homage and had the fat guys training with her). But much like every Grande song, a guest comes along and ruins what otherwise is cheesy fun.
City Lights – The White Stripes
Michel Gondry directed the Lego inspired video that put The White Stripes on the map so it is apropos that he directed what very likely will be the last video from the group (barring a new album in support of a big buck reunion tour in twenty years). The song is from a new collection of unreleased acoustics songs spanning Jack White’s entire career.
Holy DJ Shadow sighting! Who would have guess that guy would put out a great track in 2016? And I am guessing the video is what our government will look like after Premier Trump is sworn in. Seriously, Donald Trump just recently said Hilary Clinton slandering people was disqualifying. Seriously, Trump is mad at someone else for slander!?! And why I am being political, so the nut job wing of the Trump party keeps hammering Clinton health. That may actually get me to vote for her because if you are telling me she may not make it to her inauguration? Great, I would much rather have President Tim Kaine than Clinton or Trump.
Run – Bell Biv DeVoe
Speaking of artists not seen since the nineties, holy Bell Biv DeVoe sighting!!!!!! Seriously, BBD was the favorite group of the thirteen year old version of myself.
