eflecting, like I said yesterday, but there isn't too much to be said. pretty boring, yeah, life goes on. I'll regret this decision when I'm feeling particularly nostalgic later tonight, or tomorrow. but oh well.
the rest of the fam are watching a movie in the other room. .today was really really cool, though not a lot happened. had dinner, played a game, relaxed. just savoring the days until this beautiful time of year must be over. Wow I love the holidays.
yes, I am doing a Top 40 of 2010 because I'm an obsessive organising freak. also a music freak. there go, end of year top 40 Singles lists are perfect for my slightly odd brain. it's also good, because these say a lot about my year without me having to go off on endless rambles about things. so here we go.
40. All These Things - Darron Hanlon
Put simply, this song is adorable. it's cutesy boy-girl folksy stuff in one of the best forms I've yet to find. plus aussie accents and some pretty creative, interesting lyrics. also, ukuleles and horns. reminds me of the blogging world. always good.
39. Hannah - Freelance Whales
I can understand why a lot of people would dislike Freelance Whales, but I myself am quite the fan! Yes, the follow an overused formula; multi-instrumental folktronica, nostalgia coming out of the band members' ears. however, the music in this song provokes a very vibrant, topsy-turvy colorful world, and a nice little story of meetings on spiral staircases, to an addictive melody with gentle electronic vocal affects. very nice!
38. Skinny Genes - Eliza Doolittle
Eliza's been is the newest addition to the ever-expanding Kooky British Female Singers clan, and good for her. her sound isn't all uninteresting, as you perhaps might expect. on top of being unabashedly summery, the production in Skinny Genes is minimalistic, yet creative and lovely. also, the slightly risque lyrics clash with Doolittle's sugar sweet voice.
37. Wonderful Life - Hurts
Another new band for 2010! And yes, Eurotrash they may be, but an interesting group to watch they still are. this is a pretty basic pop song in form, however they create a very sleek sound, and some catchy melodies. like taking the best of the 80s and the worst of today and throwing them together. then randomly becoming huge in all of mainland Europe in six months and getting a seven foot opera singer to perform with you live.
36. Upside Down - Paloma Faith
the production on this is one of the best on Paloma's debut; shiny, shimmering, bright, and abundant in steel pans and Paloma's frankly, quite fantastic voice. it'll make you want to sing along. and dance. and lose all sense of reality. in other words, perfect pop.
35. Memories - Weezer
when the rest of the world was least expecting it, Weezer's charm returned. in the form of a traditionally simple chord change, uninteresting lyrics, super catchy melody, and nerdy joy. and painfully nostalgic lyrics. also, is that a harmonica in there somewhere?
34. Starry Eyed - Ellie Goulding
Hey, another newcomer. Weird. This is one of my favorites from Ellie's album. the melody, format, and lyrics of the song are worth attention. plus, the production values are endless, and the layout of the song really stands out from most pop/electronica combination music at the moment. really good!
33. Resistance - Muse
it is physically impossible for Muse to not appear somewhere on these lists whenever possible. for one thing, this is Muse. classic muse. muse all over. need I explain? Must I explain? It's just the perfect guitar song for the Masses, a la Muse.
32. Hollywood - Marina and the Diamonds
gosh, female pop singers, they never stop. personally, I do believe Marina to be one of the best of the group this year. on top of having a stunning voice and being a really cool person(who wears cool clothes...), the quality of the music is most definitely there. the melody and the chords flow really well, and an interesting choice of synths were used.
31. Talamak - Toro Y Moi
Because basically, every one in a while, there is an actual hipstertronica band with talent. this band is basically a song for late August, early September--must see the music video. something about it is very haunting, though it is not in the least a depressing song. it's pretty catchy, and the sounds are interesting.
30. Cosmic Love - Florence and the Machine
I'm a Florence fan yes. And I do like basically all of the songs on her album, though this finds itself near the top of that list. Florence's gorgeous voice coupled with some gorgeous music and really vivid lyrics and a nice melody proves for some really, really interesting music. Florence has just generally been a good thing for the last couple years.
29. Ambling Amp - Yasayer
trust Yaesayer to create one of the most catchy, danceable singles of the year, right? plus, the sounds they used were interesting, and very ear-catching. caught a lot of attention when it first came out.
28. Ghetto Stars - Tricky
I love Tricky. as far as pure musical and lyrics talent, I believe him to be one of the best at the moment for both. this is classic for him--and by classic, of course I mean very, very good indeed--but somehow doesn't fail to spark interest in the listened. didn't catch as much attention as it should have, which is a shame, for he is amazing.
27. Zorbing - Stornoway
pfft, Mumford and Songs? Those idiots? No, I am most definitely Team Stornoway. for one thing, folk in 2010 never sounded so unique. it's very lofi, though never fails to impress, and the layout of the song is different from most of it's contemporaries. plus, his voice is amazing. plus, they hate Mumford too(good!).
26. Born Free - M.I.A.
Now we're done with the recent M.I.A. backlash, I can say this, right? Good. It's not Paper Planes and it's not lyrical gold, but it's good. really good. somehow, M.I.A never fails to catch my attention, even when shooting ginger kids or threatening to murder my eardrums with its boundless energy. regardless, she's good.
25. Drunk Girls - LCD Soundsystem
Again, I love LCD Soundsystem, I think they're great, in their light weight, almost satirical, summery kind of way. this is very much the height of this band's ability. it'll make you want to sing along, every single time. and dance, of course. and watch the video, you must. it's all fun fun fun.
24. Flash Delirium - MGMT
as far as pretentious art-physcadelica-electronica-whatthefucishness goes, you can never, of course, forget about MGMT. personally, I do believe this song is in the leagues of Kids and Time To Pretend. it's just as melodic and easy to sing along to(trust me) yet the layers of the music are more interesting, and ever more weird. pan pipes? cool!
23. New York - Paloma Faith
as far as British Top 40 goes, this is honestly one of my absolute favorite songs of the year. like I said before, I love Paloma's voice, and the power that I seem to find in this song with every single listen. plus, I genuinely thought the storytelling in this song was really interesting. really a level above a lot of people around at the moment.
22. Blah Blah Blah - Kesha
Kesha is on this list. just so you know, Lady GaGa isn't--I like her, but not always her music. I apologise! I must be soooo stupid, right? well, good, because that's part of the reason I wound up actually liking this girl. because everyone else thought it was moronic to do so, and did their best to make this clear whenever possible. if this wasn't by Kesha, this song wouldn't be half as good. oh, you noticed padlocks don't zip, feel so smart now, do you? Gonna call her a whore now on no basis, are you? well, this song is a blatant fuck you to all of that and to the entirety of pop music in general. plus, it's super catchy.
21. Love The Way You Lie - Eminem
Eminem's lyrics are decidedly simpler to what we're used to, but regardless it still holds all of the power and the aggression and the emotion we've come to expect. the verses till an important, complicated tale and is both dark and fiery. the choruses, featuring Rihanna, provide an interesting contrast in their lightness, yet somehow, it works. really, really good.
20. Only the Young - Brandon Flowers
so basically this is the vastly underrated sibling over the overrated Crossfire, which I'm sure you're all familiar with. the musical and lyrical ability of the two songs are similar, though that synth line in this song...wow, it just kinda pops. very Day And Age. good work, Brandon.
19. Vlad The Impaler - Kasabian
Genuinely one of the finest songs from one of the best albums I own. like every other song on this record, their sound is completely unique, very catchy, and musically, required a serious amount of talent to create. it is my belief that everyone should own this record. just saying.
18. Hammock - Howls
this really is an interesting balance between light and colour in a way I'd never really seen before. their sound is really nice, as I said, the production values are good, and the melodies and singing in here are very, very good indeed. shame they're not more popular, but they're a new band, what are you gonna do?
17. High Five, Swan Dive, Nose Dive - Pulled Apart By Horses
to some it may just be uselesss noise or the typical Jo Whiley hyped-up band. but to me, this is one of the best songs in the 'alternative rock' genre of the year, if not the best, simply for the fact that it just doesn't care. at all. it's the perfect balance between loud and quiet, rock and pop, catchiness and screaming, incoherent lyrics and hipster-ness. I love it.
16. Home - Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeroes
Chances are you hate this, think it's really boring, and one of the most trite, overrated songs of the year. right? However, I disagree with you on every single point. the song really builds, is somehow very sweet, the lyrics are stylized and cool and while this band may just be a hippie freeforall most of the time, this song is very nice and I love it nonetheless.
15. Echoes - Klaxons
Finally, Klaxons return--and they don't disappoint. I've heard this album is amazing, and if this song is anything to go by, it must be. the sound and production on this is just fantastic, and is lacking in all the random horns that made up the last Klaxons album. somehow, it's kinda spacey too, but very pop. very very good indeed.
14. Celastica - Crystal Castles
a return for another spectacular band. again, this is just what I expect from Crystal Castles, especially them being one if the finest electronic bands around, if not the absolute best. alice's haunting voice is everywhere on this, on top of bubbly, synth lines that build and beats from a more dub step background. plus, it positively oozes gothicness at every corner.
13. Bloodbuzz Ohio - the National
Best song of High Violet? Absolutely! like always, the music is there, in all its dark glory. the lyrics are there--absolute nonsense, since we all expect nothing else. and as always, Matt Berninger sounds like he's drunk to the point of collapsing. plus, it just sounds...good.
12. You - Gold Panda
finally, some good, and I mean really good, chill tronica/chillwave. this song is like nothing I heard this year. desperately catchy, very melodic, endlessly fun, and extremely unique. another randomly good hipster. hoorah!
11. Animal Arithmetic - Jonsi
I was kinda obsessed with this song for about a week. something about it. it's so lightweight and yet it manages to be a really interesting sound. and oh, the drums! those drums! it has percussion to kill! plus, its lyrics are very nostalgic. and there's Icelandic in there, too, which one can never get too much of.
10. Clay Bodies - Zola Jesus
Perhaps the best new female artist of the year! It's like synth rock, synth pop, again with fabulous percussion, a wonderful voice, and gothy artsy darkness absolutely everywhere. unlike anyone else around right now, and definitely someone to watch.
9. Walking Far From Home - Iron and Wine
finally, the random return of Iron And Wine, and it is absolutely incredible. it sounds like winter, in a very cold yet magical, beautiful kind of way with some of the most intrinsically poetic lyrics of the year. plus, what sound continued throughout the song, I haven't a clue--but I love it. a lot.
8. Go Do - Jonsi.
a journalist once said that if Sigur Ros were the sound of glaciers, Jonsi solo would be the sound of snowflakes. and the moment I heard that I had a sort of "whoa, that's exactly correct" moment. this song is so, so beautiful, so much so than almost any music I've heard in my life. it's very delicate, very graceful. the production is gorgeous and the instrumental choices are wonderful. it's so wintery. I love it.
7. Zebra - Beach House
my favorite new band of 2010 by quite a ling way. in contrast to a lot of their other material, this is very springlike, very bright, and somehow very spooky at the same time. the music is great and they have a ton of really interesting influences. part chillwave part lofi part alternative rock, part I don't know what. regardless, it's so good.
6. Friend - Cheyenne Marie Mize
part bluesgrass, part folk, kooky, nice voice, pretty, interesting lyrics--what more could you want, right? and yet it's remarkable how almost no one is familiar with this girl--oh well, people will find her, eventually. you heard it here first.
5. Sylvia - the Antlers.
The Antlers. put simply, I love them. Hospice is the absolute favorite of all the records I own. it's powerful beyond belief, with some genius lyrics along the way that will, seriously change you forever. this song is none of my favorites. Perhaps one of the most pop songs on the album, and still some of the most amazing lyrics and music on the whole record. brilliant.
4. Na Na Na - My Chemical Romance.
One of the biggest moments in music this year was when MCR randomly become trendy. yes, it was an odd experience for us all, when they ditched the knee-length jackets and eyeliner for red hair and space outfits, but it's all good when they had this hyper, electric, uber energetic music to match, pop rock that was just unabashedly fun and yet anarchic in its own special way at the same time, which is just great.
3. The Suburbs - Arcade Fire
yes, I am a victim too...I mean, I tried to resist. I wanted to hate Win Butler, I really did, but The Suburbs, wow, it just pulled me in. and now I'm stuck. these fucking hipsters are musical genuises. songs of nostalgia and teenage years, very autumnal, with a really nice chord change. very unique. very good.
2. Norway - Beach House
this song is absolutely phenomenal. it's very wintery and chilling, and yet it just bursts into imaginary colorful...things. anyway, the music in this, as chill wave as it is, is unlike anything else I've heard this year, honestly. it's nothing short of beautiful and you must, must listen to it if you haven't yet.
1. Fuck You - Cee Lo Green
Internet phenomenon gone wild. song screamed in my school's auditorium, despite everyone's best efforts to censor it. I guess, at the end of the day, that is the core of this song. Try as you might to censor it, it will never, ever work. especially when you're mixing a really cool voice, fantastic lyrics, mo town, jazz, blues, pop, and rock all into one massive pot and throwing it out to the universe which will hungrily obsess over it given half a chance. which is amazing. and as all singles go, it did its job; it's loud, it's proud, and it got the work out there. a perfect pop song, through and through, and one we'll remember for a very long time coming.
thank you.
Showing posts with label music. Show all posts
Showing posts with label music. Show all posts
Friday, December 31, 2010
Friday, December 3, 2010
Here I am, Here He Comes, Past My Locker, Don't Act Dumb
Hey, I love stereotyped vintage American high schools. I like them in the quirky 60 pop form, too.
I love this song. There are probably things of this variety riddled across the Internet, but I'm not cool enough to know them. I wanna milk this sorta 'vibe'.
I love this song. There are probably things of this variety riddled across the Internet, but I'm not cool enough to know them. I wanna milk this sorta 'vibe'.
Thursday, September 16, 2010
Teehee. Karma.
Hello world.
On a very usual Sunday-or-was-it-Monday night, I was at home. Doing homework, probably, because that's a pretty safe bet at the moment, or possibly watching Peep Show or lurking around Facebook or eating a yogurt or probably all of the above, when I came across something online. Then Iprobably put down my yogurt, stopped listening to Mark Corrigan's babbling, or forgot all about stem-changing verbs, because as it turns out, The Biff were having Visa issues.
Oh yeah. That band. Ha. I'm not sure if it's okay to say I almost completely forgotten about them...but I was nearly there. I hadn't completely, honestly, I was still pretty pissed but I was trying to forget the whole thing. My beloved were in the state, which is a rare thing because a lot of this country literally cannot understand the Biff, and I couldn't fucking go because I was born four years too late. But oh...visa issues. I can safely say that that beats Babyshambles last-minute ODs and that Kings of Leon pigeon-crap incident we've all heard way to much about, in terms of gig issues. Visas. Jesus! How great is that? It had never crossed my mind that such a thing could happen to a band. I mean, these people have people for all that stuff, right? But no. The impossibly baffling world of immigration, travelling, and visas strikes again. Two third of Biffy Clyro were not allowed inside the country for a Boston show. Instead, just Simon(minus the Reading and Leeds white hair and beard, I should add) came armed with an acoustic guitar.
I didn't see it, as I mentioned. Wasn't allowed. But the great thing is, not only do Visas strike again, but karma strikes again...you heard that, the Biffy management team? You fuck me over, I somehow subconsciously infiltrate the American Embassy and stop most of you from entering the country subsequently creating a free gig. Yeah. You do not mess with me.
In other music news, B-Flo's album came out a few days ago. Brandon Flowers. I'm getting it tomorrow if I can find it somewhere. Two years ago, I was a Killers hardcore fan. Like, scarily hardcore. I'm not saying I don't like them anymore, it's just that shirtless Scottish people(et cetera) have sort of gotten in the way. They write good pop songs. But I will tell you now, when I hear Crossfire on the radio, I am not loving what I hear. In fact, I'm not even sure I'm liking it at all. It's so bland, so boring, so cliched, it's frankly almost unlistenable. Yeah, I have a bad taste in music and stuff, okay? There seems to be this indie idea that Brandon's so uncool that he's now cool to like. Oh indie music. You're so pathetically transparent. But who knows, I'll get Flamingo tomorrow, maybe it'll be worthy of a 7/10 or something. You never know.
Have you guys heard Gold Panda? Looooove some of their stuff. I don't know the first thing about chillwave, but apparently this is it, and honestly, it's kinda good. It's crackly and calm. The title is fitting. But also a bit weird, and danceable and stuff. It's a very colorful band, I wouldn't say trippy, but you know. Colorfully vibrant. I love music like that.
From colorfully vibrant to black-and-white melancholy acoustic loveliness; Villagers. Have known about them for like a year now and just got properly around to listening to Becoming A Jackal. Un. Bel. Ievable. Every single song is incredibl, soothing, astonishing. Not only with Becoming A Jakcal, but ship of promises, Meaning of the Ritual, all the rest. It's getting better and better. Plus, Connor's voice is reminiscent of Peter Silberman from The Antlers. There isn't exactly a yawning chasm between The Antlers and Villagers I'd say, and The Antlers' Hospice is possibly my all time favorite record, so it's all good. If you wanna go folk and go folk well, Villagers are a must-cite influence.
My Spanish teacher's young and energetic and makes us do stupid things like sing songs, even though we're moving at too fast a pace for that. Spain and South America aren't necessarily famous for their music, so we're basically being force-fed Shakira every other day until the end of January. But we finally got round to Gitana...and...I really like that song, okay? Like, I find Shakira boring for the most part, and this so isn't. it feels both musically very rich and very organic, and her voice sounds great, especially en Espanol. the instrumentation is wonderful, too! Oh, it is just lovely.
So, um, that's more or less it, bar a bit of All Time Low and Jonsi and Freelance Whales. I promise, give me another week or two and school will straighten out, and I might stop complaining about it and actually write something, okay? Oh, not that you care. But I care. Writing's so fun.
Soo. Adios blog.
- Naomi
On a very usual Sunday-or-was-it-Monday night, I was at home. Doing homework, probably, because that's a pretty safe bet at the moment, or possibly watching Peep Show or lurking around Facebook or eating a yogurt or probably all of the above, when I came across something online. Then Iprobably put down my yogurt, stopped listening to Mark Corrigan's babbling, or forgot all about stem-changing verbs, because as it turns out, The Biff were having Visa issues.
Oh yeah. That band. Ha. I'm not sure if it's okay to say I almost completely forgotten about them...but I was nearly there. I hadn't completely, honestly, I was still pretty pissed but I was trying to forget the whole thing. My beloved were in the state, which is a rare thing because a lot of this country literally cannot understand the Biff, and I couldn't fucking go because I was born four years too late. But oh...visa issues. I can safely say that that beats Babyshambles last-minute ODs and that Kings of Leon pigeon-crap incident we've all heard way to much about, in terms of gig issues. Visas. Jesus! How great is that? It had never crossed my mind that such a thing could happen to a band. I mean, these people have people for all that stuff, right? But no. The impossibly baffling world of immigration, travelling, and visas strikes again. Two third of Biffy Clyro were not allowed inside the country for a Boston show. Instead, just Simon(minus the Reading and Leeds white hair and beard, I should add) came armed with an acoustic guitar.
I didn't see it, as I mentioned. Wasn't allowed. But the great thing is, not only do Visas strike again, but karma strikes again...you heard that, the Biffy management team? You fuck me over, I somehow subconsciously infiltrate the American Embassy and stop most of you from entering the country subsequently creating a free gig. Yeah. You do not mess with me.
In other music news, B-Flo's album came out a few days ago. Brandon Flowers. I'm getting it tomorrow if I can find it somewhere. Two years ago, I was a Killers hardcore fan. Like, scarily hardcore. I'm not saying I don't like them anymore, it's just that shirtless Scottish people(et cetera) have sort of gotten in the way. They write good pop songs. But I will tell you now, when I hear Crossfire on the radio, I am not loving what I hear. In fact, I'm not even sure I'm liking it at all. It's so bland, so boring, so cliched, it's frankly almost unlistenable. Yeah, I have a bad taste in music and stuff, okay? There seems to be this indie idea that Brandon's so uncool that he's now cool to like. Oh indie music. You're so pathetically transparent. But who knows, I'll get Flamingo tomorrow, maybe it'll be worthy of a 7/10 or something. You never know.
Have you guys heard Gold Panda? Looooove some of their stuff. I don't know the first thing about chillwave, but apparently this is it, and honestly, it's kinda good. It's crackly and calm. The title is fitting. But also a bit weird, and danceable and stuff. It's a very colorful band, I wouldn't say trippy, but you know. Colorfully vibrant. I love music like that.
From colorfully vibrant to black-and-white melancholy acoustic loveliness; Villagers. Have known about them for like a year now and just got properly around to listening to Becoming A Jackal. Un. Bel. Ievable. Every single song is incredibl, soothing, astonishing. Not only with Becoming A Jakcal, but ship of promises, Meaning of the Ritual, all the rest. It's getting better and better. Plus, Connor's voice is reminiscent of Peter Silberman from The Antlers. There isn't exactly a yawning chasm between The Antlers and Villagers I'd say, and The Antlers' Hospice is possibly my all time favorite record, so it's all good. If you wanna go folk and go folk well, Villagers are a must-cite influence.
My Spanish teacher's young and energetic and makes us do stupid things like sing songs, even though we're moving at too fast a pace for that. Spain and South America aren't necessarily famous for their music, so we're basically being force-fed Shakira every other day until the end of January. But we finally got round to Gitana...and...I really like that song, okay? Like, I find Shakira boring for the most part, and this so isn't. it feels both musically very rich and very organic, and her voice sounds great, especially en Espanol. the instrumentation is wonderful, too! Oh, it is just lovely.
So, um, that's more or less it, bar a bit of All Time Low and Jonsi and Freelance Whales. I promise, give me another week or two and school will straighten out, and I might stop complaining about it and actually write something, okay? Oh, not that you care. But I care. Writing's so fun.
Soo. Adios blog.
- Naomi
Tuesday, September 7, 2010
I Still Owe Money To The Money To The Money I Owe
I never thought of love when I thought of home. The National.
Hello.
Hey, when you're in 8th grade like I was like last year, you know how you hear all the highschoolers talk about how much homework they have and you know what to expect but don't really think about it or mentally prepare? Yeah.
I did that. And the amount of homework I had today was enormous, inconceivable, unhealthy, miserable. and I had study hall. Basically, high school is okay for everything except the homework. I'm sick of the homework. Like, I've barely had time to look up new music this week. For me, this is pretty pathetic because it was a thing I used to do most nights. Finding indie music is actually pretty time consuming so the fact I've no time to consume is proving a problem. Also the fact that I have created a music blog in the time that I might actually have no time to look for new music is a problem.
Until I get such a problem worked out, I thought today I'd just kinda make a list of the Top Ten things I've been listening to at the moment. so far nothing is actually recycled. So it works--and is quick.
1. Headlock - Imogen Heap. So, Imogen...I kinda started getting into her music in the past few months. There are so many singer-songwriter types around, she just kinda blurred into the background, you know? But a blur-into-the-background musician she most definitely is not. I know she's very interested in the 'breathing life into electronic music' thing, which is something I'm always up for. I'm not a huge electro fan. For me, much of its music is just that, dead, boring, lifeless, soulless. It can never replace pianos and guitars for me. That is, except when played by Imogen--there is just so much beauty, wonder, tweeness, ambiguity, and complexity in Imogen's music that me and virtually everyone else finds irresistible. While nothing while defeat that oh-so-catchy Chasing Cars or that absolute beaut of a song, Hide And seek, Headlock is a catchy, deep, complicated, unique, brilliant song. Just listen to the synthesizers. Oh, you love it, don't you?
2. I Won't Lie To You - Let's Wrestle I literally discovered this about ten minutes ago but it's going here because it rocks. Let's Wrestle make this brilliant lo-fi, seemingly-drunken guitar pop-rock that in many ways sounds like unpolished crap, but in many respects is some of the most lovely, energetic, fun music of the year. This is most definitely a song for one-man dance parties in your bedroom.
3. Bloodbuzz Ohio - The National. I saw the National in June when I saw The Antlers. I like 'em. Hardly a super fan but after Mistaken For Strangers got its billionth play in on my iPod, I finally put High Violet on. It's very much an album that will take a long time to get into,but I'm liking what I'm hearing at the moment. This is the one track that stands out for me at the moment--oh, that border between the catchy and the dark. My my, they have done it will here, haven't they? It's something still troubling and brooding despite being totally accessible and probably having a million views on YouTube. I love it! Also, on a side note, like, could this guy's voice get any more attractive?
4. I Like - The Divine Comedy. One of my V '10 highlights, no question. Like everyone else, I'm a sucker for witty piano-pop(Ben Folds, Tim Minchin, et cetera) and Neil Hannon is no exception A lightweight, summery song with the most wonderful lyrics..."I like your mild political stances, I like your wild spontaneous dances". Oh, so brilliant. We love you, Neil.
5. She Said - Plan B. Because, if you live in the UK, you definitely haven't heard this a billion times, right? Both me and my mum are hooked. And summer=falsettos and catchy, cheap sell-out soul-rap at the moment, apparently, so this is good as it gets.
6. Celastica - Crystal Castles. HYPED HIPSTER CRAP, HYPED HIPSTER CRAP ALERT. But seriously, this is certainly above your usual hyped rave stuff. Crystal Castles are somehow moody, melodic, emo, dark, hyped, dance-ish, and brilliant. How weird is that? This song is great...at night or on your own or anything that requires a thumping beat and buzzy, swishy electronics. Somebody could explain it to you better, definitely. But oh, I love it.
Hello.
Hey, when you're in 8th grade like I was like last year, you know how you hear all the highschoolers talk about how much homework they have and you know what to expect but don't really think about it or mentally prepare? Yeah.
I did that. And the amount of homework I had today was enormous, inconceivable, unhealthy, miserable. and I had study hall. Basically, high school is okay for everything except the homework. I'm sick of the homework. Like, I've barely had time to look up new music this week. For me, this is pretty pathetic because it was a thing I used to do most nights. Finding indie music is actually pretty time consuming so the fact I've no time to consume is proving a problem. Also the fact that I have created a music blog in the time that I might actually have no time to look for new music is a problem.
Until I get such a problem worked out, I thought today I'd just kinda make a list of the Top Ten things I've been listening to at the moment. so far nothing is actually recycled. So it works--and is quick.
1. Headlock - Imogen Heap. So, Imogen...I kinda started getting into her music in the past few months. There are so many singer-songwriter types around, she just kinda blurred into the background, you know? But a blur-into-the-background musician she most definitely is not. I know she's very interested in the 'breathing life into electronic music' thing, which is something I'm always up for. I'm not a huge electro fan. For me, much of its music is just that, dead, boring, lifeless, soulless. It can never replace pianos and guitars for me. That is, except when played by Imogen--there is just so much beauty, wonder, tweeness, ambiguity, and complexity in Imogen's music that me and virtually everyone else finds irresistible. While nothing while defeat that oh-so-catchy Chasing Cars or that absolute beaut of a song, Hide And seek, Headlock is a catchy, deep, complicated, unique, brilliant song. Just listen to the synthesizers. Oh, you love it, don't you?
2. I Won't Lie To You - Let's Wrestle I literally discovered this about ten minutes ago but it's going here because it rocks. Let's Wrestle make this brilliant lo-fi, seemingly-drunken guitar pop-rock that in many ways sounds like unpolished crap, but in many respects is some of the most lovely, energetic, fun music of the year. This is most definitely a song for one-man dance parties in your bedroom.
3. Bloodbuzz Ohio - The National. I saw the National in June when I saw The Antlers. I like 'em. Hardly a super fan but after Mistaken For Strangers got its billionth play in on my iPod, I finally put High Violet on. It's very much an album that will take a long time to get into,but I'm liking what I'm hearing at the moment. This is the one track that stands out for me at the moment--oh, that border between the catchy and the dark. My my, they have done it will here, haven't they? It's something still troubling and brooding despite being totally accessible and probably having a million views on YouTube. I love it! Also, on a side note, like, could this guy's voice get any more attractive?
4. I Like - The Divine Comedy. One of my V '10 highlights, no question. Like everyone else, I'm a sucker for witty piano-pop(Ben Folds, Tim Minchin, et cetera) and Neil Hannon is no exception A lightweight, summery song with the most wonderful lyrics..."I like your mild political stances, I like your wild spontaneous dances". Oh, so brilliant. We love you, Neil.
5. She Said - Plan B. Because, if you live in the UK, you definitely haven't heard this a billion times, right? Both me and my mum are hooked. And summer=falsettos and catchy, cheap sell-out soul-rap at the moment, apparently, so this is good as it gets.
6. Celastica - Crystal Castles. HYPED HIPSTER CRAP, HYPED HIPSTER CRAP ALERT. But seriously, this is certainly above your usual hyped rave stuff. Crystal Castles are somehow moody, melodic, emo, dark, hyped, dance-ish, and brilliant. How weird is that? This song is great...at night or on your own or anything that requires a thumping beat and buzzy, swishy electronics. Somebody could explain it to you better, definitely. But oh, I love it.
Generator 2nd Floor - Freelance Whales. Oh, Freelance Whales. Gorgeous, gorgeous, hyped, cutesy Freelance Whales. If you do not like music of the cutesy type, then you are possibly not welcome here. Because I looooove Freelance Whales. This is possibly my favorite song on the album, Weathervanes, which I got this weekend. The lyrics + synthesizers _ banjo's. It is indie 2010, baby. This twee nonsense is what it's all about.
8. Spitfire - The Prodigy. I'm so into the Prodigy right now, after V, I really need some memorabilia. This is probably my favorite of their stuff. First, because it isn't stupidly repetitive dance sampling music. B, because it has a (probably bs) aura of danger and energy. And C, because that beat...that synthesizer...it's catchy to an extreme. Wow wow wow, this, Prodigy or not, is something else entirely. if I was in World War Two they'd call me Spitfire!
9. Shark In the Water - V V Brown. This is one of the songs they run on Nick. I know, because while I can assure you I do not watch Nick, my younger sister keeps it on in the background. Naturally one should be wary of the things they run on Nick so I didn't pay this much attention. But at some point I put down my book and my brain clicked into action and I was like "wow. This is really great". And indeed, it really, really is. Even if it wasn't one of the best produced pop songs I've heard in a long time, and it so is, like, it's so jolly and upbeat and happy, and she has a belter of a voice, and if this doesn't make you want to sing along on a beach chair in the sun...well, something isn't right.
10. Trophy Wifey - Partyline. My views on Riot Grrrl are extremely mixed and perhaps if I have the time and energy and will power, I might discuss them here. but today is not today. And I suppose this isn't even technically riot grrl, is it? Post-riot grrl, maybe? But anyway,this definitely has some elements of the movement in it, and I really like it. It partially agrees with my ideas, and also it's raw and addictive and just sounds so powerful and cool. I could listen to this all day and still have an undeserved sense of edginess--that's how great it is.
Ten songs in and miraculously, I have time to watch Peep Show before I sleep. I hope you got some enjoyment out of that, maybe. Well, I got enjoyment out of writing. next time I will try to do something moire substantial, better written, and more informative up, as long as homework cooperates. So, bye for now, blog.
- Naomi
Saturday, September 4, 2010
Hello World.
Hi there.
There isn't much to be said about this blog. My name's Naomi. I'm fourteen years old and like the vast majority of 14-year-olds, I love music. I keep my own blog to talk about other pointless little things, but I figured my music obsessions needed their own place to be talked about. So here it is! Welcome to my Kingdom For One Last Dance! First things first, the title is from Lantern On The Lake's Myspace. Not mine. But it sounds pretty great, right? Second off, chances are if you're actually part of the music blogosphere, you are not going to like the things I'll say on this blog here. Chances are I won't mention Arcade Fire every post or rave about Radiohead like that's a new thing to do. Sure, you'll probably get the odd dose of folktronica, dance, art rock, indie pop, and all the rest. But you'll also get a lot of pure pop, post-punk, electropop, that sort of thing. Frankly I'm bored of the indie world. Here, you will be informed with the latest from the Kooks and get rants about Dubstep just to alienate my blog from everywhere else. And obviously you'll get adolescent rambles about my favorites, including Arctic Monkeys, the Biff, The Libertines, Joanna Newsom, Peter Doherty, Muse, Editors, Kasabian, Snow Patrol, Florence, etcetera. Sounds fun? Well, I hope so, 'cause that's happening!
Basically, from the next now until whatever, I'm documenting what I'm listening to, my thoughts, any big moments in music history, and how my taste changes as time goes by. This will include talking about 'new' bands, pictures from live shows, album reviews, opinions on new singles and music videos, lists, playlists, and ranting. So perhaps if you're sick of a world full of NME Pricks and just want a silly, naive, lightweight blog of my childish views on music...then, well, this is your place I suppose!
And if this is your place and you choose tostay, thank you and welcome. to my kingdom for one last dance of my favorite song.
- Your Fellow Pretentious Hipster, Naomi
There isn't much to be said about this blog. My name's Naomi. I'm fourteen years old and like the vast majority of 14-year-olds, I love music. I keep my own blog to talk about other pointless little things, but I figured my music obsessions needed their own place to be talked about. So here it is! Welcome to my Kingdom For One Last Dance! First things first, the title is from Lantern On The Lake's Myspace. Not mine. But it sounds pretty great, right? Second off, chances are if you're actually part of the music blogosphere, you are not going to like the things I'll say on this blog here. Chances are I won't mention Arcade Fire every post or rave about Radiohead like that's a new thing to do. Sure, you'll probably get the odd dose of folktronica, dance, art rock, indie pop, and all the rest. But you'll also get a lot of pure pop, post-punk, electropop, that sort of thing. Frankly I'm bored of the indie world. Here, you will be informed with the latest from the Kooks and get rants about Dubstep just to alienate my blog from everywhere else. And obviously you'll get adolescent rambles about my favorites, including Arctic Monkeys, the Biff, The Libertines, Joanna Newsom, Peter Doherty, Muse, Editors, Kasabian, Snow Patrol, Florence, etcetera. Sounds fun? Well, I hope so, 'cause that's happening!
Basically, from the next now until whatever, I'm documenting what I'm listening to, my thoughts, any big moments in music history, and how my taste changes as time goes by. This will include talking about 'new' bands, pictures from live shows, album reviews, opinions on new singles and music videos, lists, playlists, and ranting. So perhaps if you're sick of a world full of NME Pricks and just want a silly, naive, lightweight blog of my childish views on music...then, well, this is your place I suppose!
And if this is your place and you choose tostay, thank you and welcome. to my kingdom for one last dance of my favorite song.
- Your Fellow Pretentious Hipster, Naomi
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