I Want My Music Television: 5/5/14

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.


Fever – The Black Keys


Praise The Black Keys. They even got me to watch the video again just to read the names and donations. And for those that want to know what is on the other side of the phone number but do not want to call, it is online too.


Already Home - A Great Big World


When I first saw the split screen I thought this was going to be a cheap Closing Time rip off, but actually turned out to be really touching. As for the song, I think it is safe to say it will not lift A Great Big World out of one hit wonderdom. But at least we learn the other dude is also a singer, I was thinking he was a Ryan Lewis type guy who just stands around. But even singing, it is still a little weird. They should really give him an instrument to make his less weird even if it is just a tambourine.


Last Love Song - ZZ Ward


ZZ Ward got her start when her song Til the Casket Dropped was used in a promotional campaign for Pretty Little Liars and it looks like she is becoming the in house musician for the show because her new single got tapped to promote the summer premiere. Unfortunately the music video is dedicated to the horrible Ezra and Aria storyline. Since they dedicated a who music video to the affair I am fearing that the bullet wound to Erza was not fatel.


I Shot the Sheriff – N.A.S.A. featuring Karen O


Does the world need a disco version of I Shot the Sheriff? Probably not. But thanks anyway N.A.S.A..

I Want My Music Television: 5/8/13

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.


Come and Get It - Selena Gomez


If her role in Spring Breakers was not evidence enough, Selena Gomez has moved into her mature part of her career. This song and video is reminiscant of Mandy Moore, who a decade ago was also a second tier pop starlet who was better at acting than singing, and released an grown up Indian influenced In My Pocket to set hr apart from her peers. But In My Pocket is a bit catchier and like Moore, I hope Selena starts focusing on acting for the next couple years. And if the Mandy comparison continues (they both dated humongous douchebags during their teen starlet days), I will look forward to Gomez releasing a folk influenced album in five years as she transitioned into a classier era in her life.


Mosquito - Yeah Yeah Yeahs


When the Yeah Yeah Yeahs released the album art for Mosquito, it was met with a resounding, “Huh?” They have just released a music video for the title track and I have a feeling it will get the same reception.


New Day – Alicia Keys


Apparently Alicia Keys is going with the spaghetti approach to a new single as she really has not had one catch fire (no pun intended) from her new album because she has released two new music videos in as many weeks. I definitely prefer the one with Maxwell to this one. And if you are going to stretch one word out ten syllables, avoid lip-syncing because you are just going to look silly.


Q.U.E.E.N. – Janelle Monae featuring Erykah Badu


Considering the song involves both Janelle Monae and Erykah Badu and I wanted to like the song more than I do. But maybe it will grow on my like many of their past songs have done. But the music video is instantly awesome.

I Want My Music Television: 4/2/13

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.


Sacrilege - Yeah Yeah Yeahs


A couple weeks ago on Community, Chang Kevin revealed some Memento-style tattoos which made me wonder why the show never did a full Memento homage, telling a story backwards. Really no one has tried the telling a story in reverse until the Yeah Yeah Yeahs latest music video. You would think it would be more popular type of storytelling than it is. On a side note, Lily Cole should be a bigger star than she is.


The Phoenix - Fall Out Boy


When watching their comeback video, I was thinking to myself, I really wonder how Fall Out Boy got in the back of that van, well now I know. Okay, I did not really care. And how do you do a prequel without 2 Chainz?


Soothe My Soul - Depeche Mode


Are we sure that Depeche Mode did not make the exact same video in 1992 and are just recycling it?


Let Me Back In – Rilo Kiley


Rilo Kiley recently went on hiatus, possibly a permanent one depending on which member you ask and when you ask it, but if this is the end, the band is cleaning out their vaults for a album full of rarities including this catchy track which is good enough that it could have made one of their proper albums.

I Want My Music Television vol. LXXII

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.


On to the Next One – Jay-Z featuring Swiss Beatz



Pretty wise of Jay-Z to debut a video called On to the Next One as the first of the decade. But dude sure likes his black and white videos just like his last one. No comment on all the weird vinaigrettes aside from following up the Obama line with a picture of a crucifix and bullets.


Skeletons – The Yeah Yeah Yeahs



On to the next artsy video, this time courtesy of The Yeah Yeah Yeahs. But the video does fit the song very well.


Dreamer – K’naan



K’naan landed three songs on my Best Songs of 2009 list and it looks like he may land another one for the 2010 list and maybe be crack the Best Videos list with this one.


I’ll Never Let You Go – Flavor Flav



So this Flavor Flav video happened. If Jay-Z wasn’t able to kill auto-tune, this song may inadvertently do the trick.

The 9th Green’s Readers Favorite Songs of 2009

Today is the one day of the year I turn the 9th Green over to you the readers. I have collected your top ten lists, powered up Microsoft Excel, plugged them in, and here is the list that it spit back out to me. If you don’t agree with this list, you should have sent in you on list and I hope you do so next year. For the list of my 100 favorite songs of 2009, check back tomorrow (a little warning, it may be late as I just started working on it last night and I get a little obsessive compulsive with these lists). So thanks to everyone who did submit their list and hope to see you back here in 2010, here is your list of the best songs of 2009:

1. 1901 - Phoenix

2. Just Breathe - Pearl Jam

3. Bulletproof - La Roux

4. Run This Town - Jay-Z featuring Rihanna and Kanye West

5. Daniel - Bat for Lashes

6. Heads Will Roll - Yeah Yeah Yeahs

7. No Sound but the Wind (New Moon Version) - Editors

8. Empire State of Mind - Jay-Z featuring Alicia Keys

9. World So Cold - Three Day Grace

10. Fireflies - Owl City

11. Half of My Heart - John Mayer with Taylor Swift

12. Swim - Jack's Mannequin

13. Houses - Great Northern

14. Impossible - Daniel Merriweather

15. New Divide - Linkin Park

16. Heartless - The Fray

17. Supernova - Mr. Hudson featuring Kanye West

18. Use Somebody - Kings of Leon

19. I and Love and You - The Avett Brothers

20. Help I'm Alive - Metric

21. The Debtor - Miles Benjamin Anthony Robinson

22. You Belong with Me - Taylor Swift

23. Poker Face - Lady Gaga

24. House of Flying Daggers - Raekwon featuring Ghostface Killah, Inspectah Deck, and Method Man

25. Day n Night - Kid Cudi

Sometimes I Think that I'm Bigger than the Sound

Whenever an indie band signs with a major label, there haters come out with sell out chants even before they have heard a note from the album. This holds true for the New York indie darling of two years ago The Yeah Yeah Yeahs. They took the place of The Strokes on top of every pretentious rock fan’s favorite list and even score a minor hit with Maps that Kelly Clarkson promptly stole the hook for her Since U Been Gone mega-hit. This led to The Yeah Yeah Yeahs to sign with Interscope and a new album, Show Your Bones.

The album starts off with a bang with Gold Lion, a boisterous slow rocker that builds until the crescendo of the chorus where Karen O starts screaming her last name incoherently. Throughout the whole album, Nick Zimmer’s guitar and Brian Chase’s drums are as tight as ever, and the extra instruments the band brings in brings extra layers that were missing during their indie days even though the boys still can make two instruments sound like a whole band when they want to. But the boys can keep it low key too as Warrior is a sparse bluesy song that sounds like something that The White Stripes would record.

But I’m not sold as Karen O as an album artist as she should been seen while heard because her energy onstage is her greatest advantage which don’t come across on a disk. She sounds like a combination of every 80’s female singer which is hit or miss at time. It’s a hit on Cheated Hearts that starts off as a New Wave song that morphs into punk decadence by the end. Another problem is that she won’t be winning any songwriting awards soon really likes to repeat herself, over, and over, and over, and over again. This becomes tedious at times. And the chorus of Phenomenon is creepily reminiscent to the LL Cool J song of the same title. But there is something enjoyable she delivers the line “Turn around, you weren’t invited” at the beginning of Honeybear.

Song to Download - Cheated Hearts

Show Your Bones gets a on my Terror Alert Scale.

I'm Sooooooooooooooooooooo Moving On

I spent a lot of time in my last blog blasting some recent music that has really bugged me. But not all music I find corny music I find absolutely horrible. Case in point is the latest song by Kelly Clarkson, Since U Been Gone. Yes I know Kelly Clarkson is a glorified karaoke contest winner. I know this song totally rips off the Yeah Yeah Yeah's Maps. I know this song doesn't come close to the best "I Hate You" tune, Song for the Dumped. I know most of her music is unbearable. But there is something about the song that makes it so corny that it becomes enjoyable. I have pinpointed that exact place to where she sings, "I'm sooooooooooooooooooooooooo moving on." It's soooooooooooooooooo bad that it become a great karaoke song in it own right, up their with ...Baby One More Time or a fat guy in a baritone voice singing I Feel Pretty (that one kills me every time). Sooooooooooooooooo for everyone who is ashamed to have Since U Been Gone on your iPod, I now make it sociably acceptable. Unfortunately I can't help you out with your Céline Dion fixation. Sorry.