CATCALL - ON MY OWN (ORIGINAL EXTENDED MIX)

Have you heard Catcall's album, The Warmest Place?  If you have not, you are doing yourself a disservice if you do not change that as soon as possible.  It's one of my favorite albums of this weird year.  One of the highlights of her album is the brilliant "On My Own".  And apparently a version of it made an appearance on little known indie TV drama 90210.  Catcall has made this extended mix of the song available to download for free (so nice!).  It's basically brilliance squared.  Giving the song more room to breathe places it a little closer to the Glass Candy or Chromatics side of the pop spectrum.  But it still sounds like it's more focused on being a proper pop song instead of the soundtrack to an alternate universe 80s movie.  What I'm really trying to say is it's really good and you should download it and be pleased that you have made an excellent decision.

TAYLOR SWIFT - WE ARE NEVER EVER GETTING BACK TOGETHER

If you don't like this song, you can go straight to hell.

CADY GROVES - LOVE ACTUALLY

There's lots of people in the world who moan about country music being too poppy these days.  Actually, people have probably been moaning about that since the 80s.  But if you are one of the rare and beautiful breed (like me) that hears certain country songs and thinks, "This country song sure is great, but it doesn't have enough pop in it!", then Cady Groves is the girl for you.  She basically just makes straight up proper pop songs, but her voice is twangy enough and her attitude "fuck you" enough to appeal to modern country fans and pop fans alike.

Her latest single, "Love Actually", is one of those songs where I literally don't know why it hasn't sold a bajillion copies.  Sometimes you say something like that just because you like a song so much, but deep down you realize it wouldn't be a big hit even with the right kind of exposure.  But this song.  This song should be up there kicking the ass of every other song on the charts.  It is an absolute MONSTER of a pop anthem.  With it being the catchiest thing you have heard in forever and its lyrics detailing a messy romance, it's perfect for singing at the top of your lungs while punching the shit out of your steering wheel (I hope I'm not the only person that does that).  Or shouting along while getting drunk with your friends.  And I'm just assuming on that one because all of my friends are too straight to like a song as amazing as this.

Her debut full-length is one of my top ten most looked forward to releases right now.  So, hopefully we don't have to wait too much longer on that one.

Thanks, Cady Groves, for being brilliant.

JOHN ROWLEY - GUILT TRIP

John Rowley is a nice, young chap from Sydney, Australia who sent me a press release a couple of weeks ago.  I had planned on writing about him then, but I was ravaged by a merciless cold.  But I've listened to his song "Guilt Trip" a bunch since then so it's time to sit down and bang this thing out.

"Guilt Trip" is a lovely, downtempo tune about dealing with condescension and superiority in one's friends and oneself.  WHOA, slow down, John!  Where's the lyrics about loving someone or dancing with someone or dancing with someone you love?  There wasn't even one mention of being sexy or thinking someone else is sexy.  But no, all jokes aside, it's actually very refreshing to see someone making a pop song about something different (not that making songs about the same thing over and over again can't be amazing, too).  John has also accomplished the difficult task of being a male pop artist I am actually interested in.  So, bravo, John Rowley!

His youtube channel is also very much worth checking out.  He's done a bunch of cover/mashup thingamabobs.  Some of them even include him singing in a lovably awkward way in front of the camera!  Yay!  So, here is his channel.  Go nuts!

And here is Guilt Trip.  You can download it for free on his Bandcamp page or be nice and pay for it.

QUEEN OF HEARTS - ONLY LOVE

My blog needs some sort of function that automatically posts a glowing review every time Queen of Hearts releases a new song since that's obviously what's going to happen anyway.  She has done a cover of Ben Howard's "Only Love".  I had no idea who this man was, but after some wikipedia-ing and youtubing, I discovered that he is a guitar-wielder.  And makes folk music, or something.

What's interesting about this is that it's sort of the reverse of the usual "authenticizing" of pop music by men with guitars.  It's been done to "...Baby One More Time", "Beautiful", and even Ben Howard and co. are responsible for a cover of "Call Me Maybe" while they were on Radio 1's Live Lounge.  I had actually seen that video before, but I had forgotten who Ben Howard was by the time of this review.  In the comments section, there is a comment that reads, "Only Ben Howard could turn such a crap, generic pop song into something as beautiful as this."  I wonder how she would feel about Queen of Hearts covering "Only Love".

I also wonder what it is, in general, about synthesized instruments that seems to drive some "real music" fans up a wall.  They used to be accused of sounding cold and emotionless, but come on, that was the early 90s.  When I listen to this song, the first descriptor that comes to mind is 'warm'.  Followed by 'sensual', 'gorgeous', and 'absolutely fucking brilliant'.  It's the sort of ridiculously beautiful song that makes you dance around with your eyes closed making you look like a moron.  Thanks, Queenie!

It's important to remember that I'm not criticizing Ben Howard or folk music or indie rock.  Only the idea that it's any more real than something as stunning as this.  Or even something as brilliantly catchy as "...Baby One More Time" or "Call Me Maybe".

Now that that rant is over and done with, let's all rejoice in the news that Queen of Hearts has another new EP coming out in September!  Huzzah!

LANA DEL REY - PUT THE RADIO ON

Lana Del Rey continues her campaign of being perfect all the time with a new song, "Put the Radio On".  If you loved Born to Die, you'll love this.  If you hated Born to Die, you'll hate this.  So, really, unless you haven't ever heard Lana before, I'm sure you knew exactly how you would feel about this song before you ever started playing it.  Seeing as how I'm one of the ones who is head over heels in love with her album, this is right up my alley.  I especially love the line, " I like you lots, polka dots", which of course means nothing, but it sounds great.  In fact, the whole song is filled with lyrics that will make Lana fans smile and make her haters feel justified.  BUT WHATEVER, YOU JUST DON'T UNDERSTAND HER LIKE WE DO RAWR RAWR RAWR STAN RAGE.

I'm assuming this is one of the new songs that will be featured on the upcoming Born to Die: Paradise Edition.  I was already excited for that.  Now I'm more excited.

Here's a lyric video that I don't think is official.



Oh, and here's the video for "Summertime Sadness" that I never posted because I'm a dummy. It's gorgeous and sad and makes me want to be Lana Del Rey's girlfriend, no matter how tragic the results may be.



And here's another picture just 'cause.

HERE IS A PICTURE OF ANNE LILIA BERGE STRAND FOR NO REASON OTHER THAN SHE IS LOVELY

See?

PARADE - LIGHT ME UP

"Light Me Up" is the best girlband song of the year.  It is one of the top five girlband songs since Girls Aloud went on hiatus.  I'm pretty sure it will even stand up well among the Girls Aloud reunion material and Mutya Keisha Siobhan's.  It is properly amazing.  And like all truly amazing songs, it's one that you want to play again as soon as it's over.

Perfect production, perfect hooks, perfect lyrics, perfect voices.  I would go into further detail, but to be honest, I have a ridiculous cold and I just feel like listening to the song again. So, to make a short story short, Parade is amazing.

Oh, and you can download it for free!  What nice girls!  Go here.