Tag: Top Releases

Susan Boyle’s Dream Continues to Shine

Posted by Kat – December 14, 2009

It seems only yesterday that the world was completely swept away by the surprising and unexpectedly beautiful voice of Susan Boyle. A contestant on Britain’s Got Talent, her plain appearance seemed to be a sign that she would never make it past her audition. In fact, renowned “world’s crabbiest judge,” Simon Cowell, was ready to sweep her off the stage before she’d even opened her mouth. But, Susan’s voice has completely taken the world by storm, garnering standing ovations on the show and the much-deserved success of a woman whose talent was only unrecognized because of her lifestyle.

Now, six short months after her initial appearance on Britain’s Got Talent, Boyle’s first album has been released and has broken the 1 million sales mark just in the U.K. alone, and the album was only released two weeks ago. A true sort of diamond in the rough story, Susan Boyle has gone from being a simple Scottish woman living a life on anonymity to being one of the proud emblems of the British spirit, perservering and daring to dream a dream.
It’s no wonder that Boyle’s main hit was “I Dreamed a Dream” from Les Miserables, given how difficult the global economy has been for so many people, but now it’s definite that Boyle won’t have those concerns to worry about for a little while at least. In fact, in the U.K., Boyle has beat out the sales of Lady Gaga’s new album The Fame Monster, as well as Michael Buble’s Crazy Love. It seems that no one is immune to the charm and brilliant voice of Boyle, as people from all over the world with all sorts of tastes in music have been buying her album.
How will Boyle fare in weeks to come? Who knows, but one thing is for sure: Boyle is certainly happy to have her dream come true.

Ke$ha Gets In Your Face With Tik Tok

Posted by Kat – December 10, 2009

When it comes to the electro pop scene, the music can be very hit or miss, either reminding us of a million other songs or really bringing something different that catches everyone’s ear. And just like Lady Gaga’s “Bad Romance” completely sucked us all in last month, Ke$ha’s single “Tik Tok” has managed to stay number 3 on the Hot 100, and that’s just the single. Only released September 23rd, everyone seems to have the same question over and over again – “What is it about this song that everyone likes?”

Sure, we all love the catchy lyrics, and even the most closeted pop lover isn’t afraid to turn this beat up in their car, but what is it about Tik Tok that keeps us putting it on repeat but then we don’t talk about how much we love Ke$ha? Maybe it’s the lyrics of this brand new hit that has us all wondering why we even like it. After all, the song is entirely about dropping everything to go party and booze it up. The music video expresses this same kind of teenage rebellion as Ke$ha stomps out of her house half-dressed while her 1950′s housewife mother drops a plate of perfectly made pancakes onto the floor. And at the end, Ke$ha is giggling a bit like an overly toked-up stoner in someone’s bathtub somewhere.

There is no denying that the musical track is perfect for dancing, but on top of the lyrics, Ke$ha’s voice also seems to be a complete stereotype-breaking one. While it is heavily vocoderized during some of the lyrics, her voice just doesn’t have the smoothness that many pop stars have these days. That isn’t a bad thing, but it does make us all take notice that Ke$ha is not afraid to jump onto the scene and party until the beat stops.

Daniel Powter Now Has A Claim To Fame: One-Hit Wonder

Posted by Kat – December 8, 2009

Poor Daniel Powter. After his hit song “Bad Day” hit the charts back in 2006, he seemed to be headed for a follow-up album that would make him more than a flash in the pan. That follow-up, though, never seems to have happened, and the final tally is that while “Bad Day” may have been 2006′s biggest hit single, nothing he has done has ever made it back to the top 100 songs. It seems that for Powter’s career, he’s been labelled by the music industry as having his own bad day.

But, what does this mean for fans of Powter’s music? His 2006 album with “Bad Day” on it is still available in stores, and it seems more than likely that people won’t be forgetting about this song any time soon. After all, “Bad Day” was heard as a major song for American Idol’s fifth season, so there are plenty of fans who will definitely not forget his music any time soon.

What qualified Powter as a one-hit wonder for this decade, you ask? Billboard ranked the artists between 2000 and 2006 to see what place their hit debuted at, and then what their subsequent songs showed up as. Unfortunately for Daniel Powter, “Bad Day” started at number one, but he never even had a hit to follow up with afterwards. So while Powter’s first hit may be one we never forget, he seemed to have joined the ranks of many a one-hit wonder in the past, such as Sugar Hill Gang, Mungo Jerry, and Eifel 65. But, that’s all right. Maybe Powter and Eifel can talk about being Blue and having a Bad Day together and have a come-back in the next ten years. In the meantime, all we can do is remember their music and enjoy the four and a half minutes of fame they did get.

Rihanna Has Gone Totally Rated R

Posted by Kat – December 4, 2009

If you thought that Rihanna had started to show her “Good Girl Gone Bad” side last year, then you may not be able to handle the powerhouse experiment into Rihanna’s bad-ass side in her new album, Rihanna Revealed, Rated R. As if to signal a total break away from the bad press she’d gotten over her altercations with Chris Brown, Rihanna is showing her stronger side and bringing the sexy with it.

Take a listen to Rihanna’s track “Rock Star,” a song practically drunken on its electric guitars. This song is a break-out number for the singer, showing that she is not afraid to kick asses and take names later. In fact, some of her lyrics in that song “Got my middle finger up/ don’t really give a f—k” show the rebellious side of her that no one has really been able to see thus far, and she does it with heavy eyeliner and a wicked, edgy hairstyle that shows no one’s her boss any more.

In “G4L,” the audience gets hard-hitting, heart-pounding drums while Rihanna gives a powerhouse performance about how she’s done taking disrespect from anyone. And just like that, tracks “Hard” and “Wait Your Turn” give kick-ass lyrics that show Rihanna’s complete change from good girl who might be going bad to a bad girl ready for action. While songs like “Photographs” do show the softer, more sorrowful side of this artist, giving fans of Rihanna a whole new image for her. If you like the sound of pulsing drums accompanied with genuine ballad vocals, then “Stupid In Love” will really win you over. Rihanna clearly took some inspiration from her past experiences to create an album that is sure to change the way the public sees Rihanna.

How The E.N.D. Transforms The Black Eyed Peas

Posted by Kat – December 2, 2009

It’s no surprise that with studio album number five that the Black Eyed Peas are here to stay. But did anyone really expect the sudden change from their previous album, Monkey Business, to the much more futuristic hip-hop feel of The E.N.D.? Maybe, maybe not. After all, Kanye West did it before them, as did T-Pain, but now the Black Eyed Peas seem to have solidly landed in that niche of futuristic hip-hop and constructed an entire album from start to finish that exemplifies the genre.

While some fans have so far criticized the new album, most of the criticism seems to be coming from fans who do not like the futuristic style and prefer the mash-up of styles that has made Black Eyed Peas one of the most likeable hip-hop groups around the world for the last decade or so. But does nailing down one niche to create an album that is solid from start to finish such a bad thing? Personally, I wouldn’t say so at all.

The E.N.D. brings something new to the table. Especially in tracks like “Rocking the Beat,” where you can hear a clear homage to the work of Daft Punk, who really helped bring futuristic techno to the foreground with their groundbreaking “Discovery” album some years before. This album also brings a sense of unity to the Black Eyed Peas’ sound that seemed to be lacking in some of their previous albums, which may just mean that after their monumental success that the group has decided to take a different tactic to their music. After all, Fergie has broken out with a solo album, and will.i.am’s career has changed in such a way that at this point, Black Eyed Peas can do anything, it seems, or take any genre to a new level.

The Fame Monster That Is Lady Gaga

Posted by Kat – November 30, 2009

With the release of Lady Gaga’s newest 8 track album, “The Fame Monster,” featuring her newest single “Bad Romance,” it’s time to take a look at the Haus of GaGa and try to figure out just why everyone loves the blonde bombshell who likes to thank “God and the gays.” For many, it’s a combination of her theatricality and her music.

For the same reasons that so many people love Marilyn Manson and the Dresden Dolls, the people have cried out that they love Lady Gaga, and so she has brought them a new album. Lady Gaga’s theatrical nature and bizarre videos and live performances have managed to completely capture the public eye. In the newest video, “Bad Romance,” Lady Gaga’s choreography was grotesque and reminiscent of Michael Jackson’s Thriller, while also bringing incredibly vivid imagery. That might be what makes people like her so much, the fact that she can utilize this imagery and seems to be feeding the desire of the youth demographic to have hard, blood-pumping pop music.

But just like Lady Gaga’s previous album, “The Fame,” the new one doesn’t necessarily follow one simple formula. Another notable song from “The Fame Monster” is “Speechless,” written for her father and showcasing another side of Lady Gaga’s personality.

Thematically, just as “The Fame” dealt with the demons and obstacles faced in the quest for fame, “The Fame Monster” details the pitfalls of having become famous. The music is just as blood-thumping techno as the last album, and utilizes innovative lyrics to really sell the theme. Just take a look at “Bad Romance,” where Lady Gaga references and was utilizing a great deal of imagery from Alfred Hitchcock movies.

Overall, “The Fame Monster” has lived up to all the hype it was given before the release, if not more and is worth the purchase just for “Bad Romance” and “Speechless.” Another hit album from Lady Gaga proves she isn’t planning on being just another flash in the pan.