Scooter McGavin's 9th Green: Vampire Weekend

Showing posts with label Vampire Weekend. Show all posts

Wednesday, September 04, 2013

The Peter Bjorn and John Award for Catchiest Indie-Pop Song of the Summer of 2013

Two years ago on a whim I declared that Young Blood by The Naked and Famous would have won the Peter Bjorn and John Award for the Catchiest Indie Pop Song of the Summer had it not been for Pumped Up Kicks. I actually liked that fake award idea so much last year, I actually made it a real thing (and awarded it to The Lumineers). Now it is time to hand out the second official award. But before that, let take a look at some of the other contenders from this year.

Legacy Artist: Diane Young – Vampire Weekend: With a lackluster first couple months of the year music wise, Vampire Weekend was poised to finally break into the mainstream with their most accessible song yet, a cross between Buddy Holly and their usual Ivy League humor. Alas that sadly did not happen but those of us in the now had a great summer song to add to the playlist.

Honorable Mention: Get Lucky – Daughter: Daughter has made some great indie music but really is too depressing to be considered “catchy” but of the millions of Get Lucky covers that blanketed the internets this summer, their version is far and away the best, most interesting, and proved there are many different ways to get lucky.

5. The Wire – Haim: A late addition which came in at, dare I say, the wire (very bad pun intended). A great teaser for the group’s full length debut album coming out this fall.

4. Change – Churchill: Well, this is weird. The group was on the precipice of stardom with an absurdly catchy first single that could have made the band this years The Lunineers or at the very least Of Monsters of Men. Then out of nowhere the group dropped out of their tours opening up for Sara Bareilles this summer and the upcoming Pink tour this fall and broke up. I do not think this is going to be a The Civil Wars situation where they still end up recording an album full of awesome tension.

3. Torpedo – Jillette Johnson: This song is pretty awesome as it is, but it also gets bonus points for the Etch-a-Sketch themed lyrics video. Even more bonus points for putting DVD’s of Freaks and Geeks and The Virgin Diaries in the background.

2. Pompeii – Batille: Quite simply the best use chanting in a song since Hooked On a Feeling. (Sorry Enigma.)

1. Royals – Lorde: I may be the worst prognosticator of music on the internet so I rarely tag anyone with the “Next Big Thing” tag because it seems to be the kiss of death for an artist (see Churchill who literally died before they could break big). But let me hop into Scooter Time Machine back to June when I kind of hyperbolically called this song, “not only is it the best song of the year so far, but it is the best anti-materialistic song since Ante Up, the best song by a teenager since Genie In a Bottle, and the greatest song ever to come out of New Zealand.” Fast forward three months and the song is even out performing the new Lady Gaga song. It has become so popular; it is a stretch to even to still be calling it indie-pop at this point. But since I jumped on the bandwagon back in March when it was a weird pop song from New Zealand, I will give it the title.

Tuesday, July 09, 2013

Scooter McGavin's 2013 Summer Jam Playlist

Last week Grantland posted their 2013 Summer Playlist and I really did not think much of as it ranged from pretentious crap to not even semi-ironic crap. My view of a summer jam playlist is something you throw on at your backyard barbecue with songs everyone will enjoy, sing, and groove along to. Realistically, I would just summer jams of the past like Summertime by DJ Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince, The Sundays, and Sam Cooke and basically the entire The Beach Boys library with a couple new songs sprinkled in. Here are a few new songs that made it in this year that would add an extra hour to your playlist which you can listen to on Spotify.

Get Lucky [Daft Punk Remix] – Daft Punk featuring Pharrell: The most egregious omission from the Grantland playlist, maybe because it is just too obvious. Not only is it wise to have this in your summer playlist, but go ahead and also add the radio edit and the ten minute remix too. And if you want to mess with your guests, play the Daughter version and wait and see how long it takes people to realize what they are listening too.

Blurred lines – Robin Thicke, Pharrell, and T.I.: It is the summer of Pharrell, just give in. Well, you can skip the 2 Chainz song but as the great philosopher Meat Loaf once said, two out of three ain’t bad.

Royals – Lorde: The only song that also appears on the Grantland, and since I have already sprayed the some hyperbolic superlatives, I may suggest you just go ahead and add her whole EP if you are going with an all 2013 playlist.

Falling – Haim: Ever wonder what Stevie Nicks would sound like if she instead of joined Fleetwood Mac, recruited two sisters and tried to be a nineties RnB girl group? Haim may just be that. It should not work, but it does. Hopefully the group has a full album out by the end of the year. No matter who is at your party, fans of RnB, Rock, Pop; they should all enjoy this song.

Little Numbers – Boy: You will be hard pressed to find a catchier song this summer. Even if they have not heard it before, they will be tapping along in no time.

The War Within – Churchill: I could have gone with this song or Change, but this is newer, more upbeat and a much more fun song.

Diane Young – Vampire Weekend: Any good summer song has a great hook and you cannot help yourself from singing along to the Baby chorus which takes you back to the summer jams of the fifties and sixties.

San Francisco – The Mowgli’s: Sure the songs veer too far in the direction of hippies; “I’m been in love with love” which I guess should be expected from a song called San Francisco but the choir sing-along is infectious.

I'm Alive (Life Sounds Like) - Michael Franti and Spearhead: I all for any song with a whistle solo as a summer song.

Pompeii – Bastille: This may be the weirdest chanting in a song that works since Hooked On a Feeling.

Bleeding Out – The Lone Bellow: For those not yet tired of the passion folk the Mumford & Sons ushered in, you definitely will want to check out this Brooklyn band.

Wagon Wheel – Darius Rucker: Darius Rucker and been making catchy songs that will never make it on pretentious music critics lists for two decades now but sing-along’s are key for summer playlist and everyone will be singing along whenever the chorus hits.

Follow Your Arrow – Kasey Musgraves: I have to roll my eyes when liberal communists try to talk themselves into that horrible Same Love song from Macklemore and Ryan Lewis. A good message does not make a good song. I would much rather listen to the anti-gay Check Yo Self (and before you call me anti-gay, I would totally push my way through a group of women to make out with Shamar Moore). For those that want a pro-gay anthem that is actually good, you should check this song. It also gets bonus points for bea pro-gay country song which should trick the conservative wackjobs at your party into liking it and also gives time to the much more important cultural issue: the ability to roll a joint if you want to

Cruise – Florida Georgia Line: Yes this song is horrible, especially the Nelly version, aand it will probably be very high on my Worst Songs of 2013 list, but the thing is, if you put this song on at your party, everyone will spend the first verse talking about how horrible the song is, but will be signing along, possibly loudly depending on how much alcohol you provided to them, by the time the chorus hits. And if you want a more palatable version of this song, you should check out the Dia Frampton, Kina Grannis more mellow, backporch version.

Come & Get It – Selena Gomez: Yeah, we have hit the guilty pleasure portion of the summer playlist, might as well just stop here.

Tuesday, June 11, 2013

I Want My Music Television: 6/11/13

There have been a couple of videos that have caught my eye lately so I thought I’d give them some love since the death of Musical Television left a void for a forum on the art form. If you are interested in buying the video through iTunes, click the title link (where available). If you are interested in buying the song, look for a link in the analysis.

Everything Has Changed - Taylor Swift featuring Ed Sheeran

They psyched me out, I thought the kids were going to be the younger versions of Taylor Swift and Ed Sheeran but it turned out to be their kids, or more likely little siblings. I pretty much ignored Red because it was way too poppy for my taste, but this song reminds me there were a couple good songs on it. It is a shame that there not more songs like this on the album, it would have been much better.

Diane Young – Vampire Weekend

Pot use getsa bad rap for killing brain cells but we all knew that guy who could build a bong out of anything. Though I am not sure how practical the saxophone bong in the Vampire Weekend video is, seems like a lot of smoke would escape the keys holes.

Boomarng – Barenaked Ladies

I know the Barenaked Ladies has not had a big hit here in a decade, but I have to believe that made enough money from the Big Bang Theory Theme that they could afford to make a music video that look better than something that could have been made for the Super Nintendo.

The War Within - Churchill

Churchill were already in the running for the 2013 Peter Bjorn and John Award for Catchiest Indie Pop Song of the Summer with their song Change and they may have some competition with their new single whose outro gives me a very Where the Streets Have No Name vibe. I keep re-watching the video just trying to figure out which famous person the female in the group looks like. A grown up Millie Kentner maybe? But I am beginning to think she is just an amalgamation of every super cute chick I went to college with. If you like this song, you can download it for the low, low price of free on Noisetrade along with four remixes of Change.

Tuesday, June 04, 2013

Musings from the Back 9: Music Edition XV

A lot has been made about the sophomore slump, but the third album may be the hardest. Look at Coldplay, their debut was good and improved on their style with the follow. By their third album X&Y, they started to sound like just another Coldplay rip-off band that littered the English countryside by the middle of last decade. Luckily for Coldplay they started to evolve with their fourth album. Vampire Weekend recently just released that tricky third album, Modern Vampires of the City. And though their sound has not changed much from the Benetton anthems from that first album, Vampire Weekend had tweaked their sound enough not to fall prey to the same rut Coldplay did (it may also help that Vampire Weekend has yet inspired knock-off band). The best song from the new album is Diane Young which sound like a sound Vampire Weekend did for a Buddy Holly tribute album except it was not originally a Buddy Holly song. Go ahead and add the song to your summer 2013 playlist now.

Modern Vampire of the City gets a Terror Alert Level: High [ORANGE]

on my Terror Alert Scale.

Legacy artists have been doing duet albums with modern artists since Frank Sinatra did it over twenty years ago but last year Lionel Richie added a new twist to the concept: do an entire duets album with artists outside your genre. And though John Fogerty’s Wrote a Song for Everyone is not totally a country duets album, half of the guests are pure country acts like Brad Paisley who may not be the best duet partner lately (*cough*Accidental Racist*cough*); most of the others have country and folk leaning. The best here is the trippy version of Long as I Can See the Light with My Morning Jacket. And though the Jennifer Hudson assisted, Bourbon Street version of Proud Mary with Allen Toussaint and Rebirth Brass Band is another stand out, you cannot help but wonder how it would be better if they could have actually gotten Tina Turner to sing the song one more time. There are two new songs her but neither that memorable. But much like the Ritchie duets album, I am content with just having the original versions on my iPod.

Wrote a Song for Everyone gets a Terror Alert Level: Elevated [YELLOW]

on my Terror Alert Scale.

The debut album from Eisley was extremely catchy and the band could have caught the indie pop wave of the past decade. Instead each successive album they released has gotten more and more melodic. By their fourth album, Currents, it almost sound like they are recording an Explosions In the Sky album with lyrics over them. I actually like the band better when they strip the sound down a little like when they do on songs like Milestone and The Night Comes.

Currents gets a Terror Alert Level: Elevated [YELLOW]

on my Terror Alert Scale.

Sunday, December 26, 2010

The 50 Best Music Videos of 2010

The links will lead you to YouTube and if you are interested in buying the video or song, click the corresponding iTunes badge.

1. Tighten Up - The Black Keys

2. This Too Shall Pass - OK Go

3. Next Girl - The Black Keys

4. At or with Me - Jack Johnson

5. Giving up the Gun - Vampire Weekend

6. Head Full of Doubt/Road Full Of Promise - The Avett Brothers

7. Runaway - Kanye West

8. Valentino - Diane Birch

9. White Knuckles - OK Go

10. Let it Be - Gylne Tider

11. (Expletive Deleted) You - Cee Lo Green

12. Opposite of Adult - Chiddy Bang

13. Stylo - Gorillaz featuring Mos Def and Bobby Womack

14. Madder Red - Yeasayer

15. In the Sun - She and Him

16. Cold War - Janelle Monáe

17. Erase Me - Kid Cudi and Kanye West

18. Young Blood - Norah Jones

19. Thinking ‘bout Somethin’ - Hanson

20. Skeletons - The Yeah Yeah Yeahs

21. The Ghost Inside - Broken Bells

22. He's Not a Boy - The Like

23. Do-Wah-Doo - Kate Nash

24. The Cave - Mumford and Sons

25. King of Anything - Sara Bareilles

26. I Wish it Would Rain - Mayer Hawthorne

27. The Catylist - Linkin Park

28. Pow Pow - LCD Soundsystem

29. Kandi - One EskimO

30. Misery - Maroon 5

31. Kush - Dr Dre featuring Snoop Dogg and Akon

32. Playing God - Paramore

33. Dear God 2.0 - The Roots and Jim James of Monsters of Folk

34. Power - Kanye West

35. On to the Next One - Jay-Z

36. One Track Mind - Mayer Hawthorne

37. Cousins - Vampire Weekend

38. The Fire - The Roots featuring John Legend

39. The Only Exception - Paramore

40. Barbra Streisand - Duck Sauce

41. It's Okay - Cee Lo Green

42. Song Away - Hockey

43. Waiting for the End - Linkin Park

44. Dilly - Band of Horses

45. Christmas Lights - Coldplay

46. Wake Up Everybody - John Legend & The Roots, Common & Melanie Fiona

47. Love the Way You Lie - Eminem featuring Rihanna

48. If its Love - Train

49. Holiday - Vampire Weekend

50. Drunk Girls - LCD Soundsystem

Thursday, December 23, 2010

The 25 Best Albums of 2010

If you interested in buying any of the albums below, click on the album title to go to Amazon and the artist name to download it in iTunes. Also check out my orginal album reviews in the link under the album where for those I reviewed.