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26 May ' 13:11
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25 May ' 03:02
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22 May ' 22:21
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21 May ' 13:11
This is what happens…
May 21st, 2012…when people thing they’re the shit and they’re not. Or they are, but not in the way they think.
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16 May ' 23:17
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16 May ' 12:30
Sincerely Uninspired
May 16th, 2012
Hot 100 Roundup—5/19/12B.o.B. featuring Taylor Swift—“Both of Us”
#18
Well-meaning, well-crafted sincerity, devoid of any deep emotion. Swift’s hook is gorgeous, and B.o.B., despite the clichéd lyric, gets a certain intensity into his voice, but not even the most talented pop artists could make much of such generic sentiments. As the success of “We Are Young” suggests, we’re going to get a lot more of what I call “get together” music in the near future, which is a good thing overall. But fun. had the sense to include some specific personal details in their anthem; this is just B.o.B. and Swift wishing the world well and signing off. I expect more from both of them, especially Swift.Carrie Underwood—“Blown Away”
#66
Is Linkin Park writing Underwood’s songs now? Because that’s what this reminds me of more than anything else. I know she has good intentions and is trying to do something serious (the obvious precursor is Garth Brooks’s “The Thunder Rolls”), but the record starts too big and then never really builds; it just goes on, without giving you enough detail to justify the overwrought arrangement. I appreciate Underwood’s willingness to experiment, but she’s either trying too hard or being misled. Couldn’t she get her pal Brad Paisley to produce an album for her? She could use his sense of proportion.Juliet Simms—“It’s A Man’s, Man’s, Man’s World”
#70Glee Cast—“Shake It Out”
#71Jana Kramer—“Why Ya Wanna”
#97
Kramer’s traditionalism is refreshing, but her songs aren’t. This is fine, but it’s also ordinary, and it lacks something to give it a kick and allow her real personality to come through. Though I like Kramer better, in its own way this is as mechanical as Lady Antebellum.The Band Perry—“Postcard From Paris”
#100
This shares all the strengths of the band’s previous singles—the clever turns of phrase, the melodic grace, the youthful romanticism—only in a milder form, and in a way that makes them feel rote. But then, this is the fifth single from their first LP, so it’s understandable if the inspiration seems pale this time out. Where’s that new album?Listen on Spotify
B.O.B.Brad PaisleyCarrie UnderwoodFun.Garth BrooksGlee Cast, Jana Kramer, Juliet Simms, Lady Antebellum, Linkin Park, Taylor Swift, The Band Perry, , , No Comments »
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15 May ' 17:50
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15 May ' 08:59
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14 May ' 22:57
Anybody Can Do This—Even Glee
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14 May ' 13:30
Anybody Can Do This
May 14th, 2012
Hot 100 Roundup—5/12/12Wiz Khalifa—“Work Hard, Play Hard”
#17
The most pop-oriented track from Khalifa since “Black and Yellow”, the first in over a year that doesn’t emphasize his dope smoking, and, no surprise, his best in a while. It’s very controlled for a rap brag track, almost stately, and ends with a little bit of self-help advice. Despite the repetition of “nigga” in the opening verse, it seems custom made for radio, and gives off the feeling that Khalifa is holding back more than he’s giving out. But then, the idea of self-control is the unspoken heart of the lyric, so maybe that’s the point. Not a great record, but a very smart one.Flo Rida—“Whistle”
#64
Flo Rida has two things going for him: a mastery of hooks, and a gift for meaningless flow that never gets in the way of the hook or the beat. As pop rap intended purely for dancing it couldn’t be improved. Which means, of course, that it can only get worse, especially as the vagaries of pop taste lean toward lyrical clarity and force him to make his words more explicable. It’s not that he doesn’t have a gift for them—his flow wouldn’t work if he didn’t—it’s that he has no sense of taste when it comes to subject matter. Following the rough sex endorsement on “Wild Ones”, he comes up with yet another record, following “Down”, about oral sex. There’s nothing inherently wrong with this, even if it does sound somewhat obsessive, but the sing-songy, teen-pop emphasis, combined, once again, with the sexual power-play aspect of his approach, makes it more than a little creepy. I’m not suggesting that Flo Rida actually is a leering, lisping sociopath, but that sure is what he sounds like.Glee Cast
“How Will I Know”, #65
“It’s Not Right But It’s Okay”, #92
It’s been easy to ignore Glee this year: overall, the quality of the music has dropped below even their minimal standards, and I’ve found it difficult to listen to most of the tracks all the way through, much less more than once. Their a capella version of “How Will I Know”, though, is the exception that proves the rule, and can be taken as further evidence for one of the maxims of pop: anybody can make a good record. It’s too smooth, but if anyone else has come up with as good of a Whitney Houston tribute I haven’t heard it. It’s greatest strength is that it actually sounds like what Glee is supposed to be about: a bunch of kids who love music getting together and making it as best they can. This is polished and honed far beyond the abilities of most high-schoolers, but the concept holds, and it raises this far above anything else Glee has produced. If only everything they did was as graceful, dignified, and intelligent.Usher—“Scream”
#70
No one expected Usher to top “Climax”, which may be the greatest thing he’ll ever do, but after all his talk about the new album and how different it would be, this is surprisingly ordinary. It’s not terrible, but it’s a standard Usher track with a slightly more electronic backing than usual. He’s trying to have it both ways—the old R&B Usher and the new, electronic Usher—and as should be expected the result is neither. I wouldn’t call it half-assed, exactly, but if he’s going to embrace a new style he should go at it full-force, not in baby steps like this.Calvin Harris featuring Ne-Yo—“Let’s Go”
#89
I have a hard time understanding how Harris manages to get hits out of records that are so musically uninteresting, so lacking in the ebb and flow of melody and structure that create enjoyment and meaning in pop music. All he has is a beat and occasional shifts in dynamics and texture (most of which, in this case, are provided by Ne-Yo’s vocals, not the music). Which doesn’t mean he’s a minimalist: it just means that he’s dull. It’s sad to see Ne-Yo, who’s career has been in a stall for a couple of years now, being wasted on music that ignores his melodic and rhythmic gifts. He’s a better singer than Harris to be sure, but on records like this what difference does it make?Hunter Hayes—“Wanted”
#99
When it comes to teenage country singers, I prefer Scott McCreery (not to mention Taylor Swift, though she isn’t a teenager anymore). McCreery has major flaws, but at least he doesn’t sound like he was made in a country-pop factory and delivered cellophane-wrapped and ready-to-serve.Calvin HarrisFlo RidaGleeGlee CastHunter HayesNe-YoScott McCreeryTaylor SwiftUsher, Whitney Houston, Wiz Khalifa, , ,
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