Sunday, September 25, 2016

Countdown Video: 50 Best New Good Songs of 2015!

A bit late to the game here, but here's a countdown video of my 50 favorite songs of 2015. Enjoy! The original post and complete list.

Sunday, September 11, 2016

New Good Song: "Send Them Off!" Bastille 9.11.16

Here's a new good song: "Send Them Off!" by Bastille. They did that song "Pompeii," which was OK. Enjoy!

New Good Song: "Somebody Else," The 1975 9.11.16

Here's a new good song: "Somebody Else" by The 1975. Apparently this isn't new at all, it's several months old, but a cover version of it by Verite was new a couple days ago, and that led me to discover this original, which I'd missed upon it's initial release. One of the benefits of remakes, I suppose. Enjoy!

New Good Song: "I Still Wonder," The Chain Gang of 1974 9.11.16

Here's a new good song: "I Still Wonder" by The Chain Gang of 1974. Straight-up, I'm a complete sucker for this (over-used) chord progression, but this group does a lot of neat things with it. Great lyrics, too. Enjoy!

New Good Song: "Errors," K.I.D 9.11.16

Here's a new good song: "Errors" by K.I.D. In lyrics, it's similar to "Habits" by Tove Lo (i.e., "I'm a screwed up woman). Great song, lots of fun. By the way, it's frustrating when a combination of title and artist are not search-friendly, like in this case. If you Google  "Kid" plus "errors" you get everything but this song. Reminds me, in that way, of a great 2013 song called "One" by Dearest. It was the artist's debut single, but she made it essentially impossible for anyone to find her online. In fact I just tried for five minutes and couldn't find a trace of her ever having existed. Sigh. Enjoy!

New Good Song: "Strange World," Fallulah 9.11.16

Here's a new good song: "Strange World" by Fallulah. That chord change in the third line of chorus is absolutely captivating. Not sure the lyric video needs to be quite so '80s, given how transparently '80s the sound is. Seems a bit obvious and un-creative. But a fantastic song nevertheless. Enjoy!


New Good Song: "Laid Low," The Naked and Famous 9.11.16

Here's a new good song: "Laid Low" by The Naked and Famous. This group was responsible for the 32nd best new good song of 2013, "Hearts Like Ours," and the 72nd best new good song of 2014, "I Kill Giants." "Laid Low" is very similar. "T / N / A / F," as they're currently stylizing their name, is a bit one-note, but it's a nice note. Enjoy!

New Good Song: "Gold," Kiiara 9.11.16

Here's a new good song: "Gold" by Kiiara. This isn't particularly new, granted, but after hearing the clip of the spliced-together Frankenstein chorus many times and immediately being turned off, this song was played for me from the beginning at a barbecue recently. And in the context of the evening, with friends and food, it struck me that this is a great song, once you get used to that innovative/peculiar chorus. Very Lorde-ish. Not really sure what the message is, though. She has gold fillings and therefore had sex with her lousy boyfriend's brother in a basement? All right. Enjoy!

New Good Song: "Animals," Ben Hobbs 9.11.16

Here's a new good song: "Animals" by Ben Hobbs. Certainly deserving more views than it currently has received (102 as of this writing). Very solid pop production with some unexpected melodic twists. Enjoy!

New Good Song: "Fallout," Young Summer 9.11.16

Here's a new good song: "Fallout" by Young Summer, the stage name of Bobbie Allen. Very beautiful '80s-inspired ballad, reminiscent of Lavender Diamond or Levv. Everything here is superior -- lyrics, vocal performance, melody, arrangement, production. It's sincere and intensely catchy at the same time. One of the best songs of the year so far. Enjoy!

New Good Song: "Come With Us," Sophie Ellis-Bextor 9.11.16

Here's a new good song: "Come With Us" by Sophie Ellis-Bextor. Thanks to LuisMa for this suggestions. It has a cute disco vibe with a slightly threatening underlying message that I interpret to be about a prostitution or porn ring: "Come with us. If you give us all your money, we'll give you your dreams. It’s all soft focus. You'll never want to turn away." I dunno, maybe I'm misinterpreting. Enjoy!

New Good Song: "Sudden Feeling," HalfNoise 9.11.16

Here's a new good song: "Sudden Feeling" by HalfNoise. It's actually somewhat similar to the last song I featured, "Move" by Saint Motel, but it's quieter. Just a nice piece of mildly moody alt-pop, nice (albeit repetitious) chord progression, good melody. Reminds me a bit of Paper Kites. Enjoy!

Friday, September 9, 2016

New Good Song: "Move," Saint Motel 9.9.16

Here's a new good song: "Move" by Saint Motel. This band was responsible for 2012's 33rd best new good song, "1997." Move is less muddled and a bit easier to understand, a more straightforward horn-fueled alt-pop song. The video's "360 Virtualizer" technique, which allows the view to control the point of view, is cool, and new to me (but may be old news to everyone else). Enjoy!