this week, i discovered bastille. apparently they are trendy trendy right now, my much-cooler roommate informs me... (see my previous posts on the likes of queen, the beatles, and the glenn miller orchestra for clues on my proximity to what's new and trendy in music). i'd like to thank grooveshark for their 'top songs' suggestions for educating me.
anyways, back to bastille.
remarkable and rich vocals by frontman dan smith got my attention immediately - there's an arresting versatility in his jumps from airy to gritty, with poetic, sharp and memorable lyrics. melodies transition from lilting, synth-ey and fun to driving percussion to minimalistic cadence to orchestral, sometimes all in one song.
they're hella sing-along-able, with epic harmonies that are flawlessly displayed in the numerous live & acoustic recordings floating about the internet (including one below). with no exaggeration, i have listened to bastille for hours on end every day this week, and now that i've bought their all this bad blood album on itunes, i have no doubt that it will be on regular rotation.
enough from me - let me introduce you!
flaws
at present, this is my favourite song from the album. dig it.
pompeii
probably the most well-known single (at least here in canada), pompeii has been in the top 100 for the past year. the past YEAR. awesome. check out this beautiful acoustic live recording:
covers!
oh man! i nearly forgot to mention. bastille does some amazeballs covers - and you KNOW i love a good cover. there's something endearing about a band who isn't ashamed to put their twist on died in your arms tonight. they didn't stop at the 80s, though. check out their version of a 90s chart-topper below. (and for extra-curricular enjoyment, see their mashup of miley cyrus, eminem & achey breaky heart. yes they did.)
have i sold you on this band yet? leave a comment - let me know what you think.
a couple months ago, i played at an event that was outside of my current wedding/corporate/function norm - i was both the voice and the sounds at an afterparty for a large telecommunication company conference. more than a week before the event, i started to curate a set list to suit the client's request - high-energy, upbeat and contemporary - i had such a good time coming up with feel-good, high-energy beats that i find myself returning to it whenever i want to get amped up for a great day. here are some of my favourites - maybe they'll find their way onto your 'get amped' playlist, too!
broken machine - zowie
cute and catchy, and built off of a nokia ringtone (yep, thats the little trill that opens the song and continues in the background throughout), i love this video and everything about zowie's style choices... and she's a kiwi!
down the road - c2c
one of my favourite albums i've discovered in the past year, this video stars one of my guilty-pleasure-favourite skateboarders, ritchie jackson. had a hard time deciding whether i wanted to include this song by c2c, or the infectious positivity of their amazeballs song 'happy'.
happy - pharrell speaking of happy... this song was (very appropriately!) used in dispicable me 2 when gru is riding a new-romance high. just watch this video and try to stop your head from bobbing, i dare you.
i love it - icona pop
dropped at the right time, this song always makes the dance floor explode - its got that je ne sais quoi that makes you unsure whether you want to fist pump or conquer the world.
show me what you got - jay-z
i always forget how much i love jay-z, and how many different faces his music has, until i play his hits collection album. i love the lavish musical backing in this song - dance-able and delightful... this one goes out to my dear friend, lydia :)
pay day - classified
this is one of a few songs released in the past year that hit a perfect blend of 70s pop with the present. it just feels right!
trouble - pink
i've got nothing but love for p!nk, and she's got (almost) nothing but motivating jams... this is one of my favourites, even if it is one of her lesser-known singles. who's surprised - it was co-written by tim armstrong!
typical - mutemath
'i've lived through my share of misfortune, i've worked in the blazing sun, but how long should it take somebody before they can be someone? ... and i'm feeling like it's now or never, can i break the spell of the typical?' this song takes me back to a particular stage in my life (i call that stage....2007), and pumps me up to do all. the. things.
your turn! what did i miss? what are your go-to songs when you need to take it up a notch? let me know in the comments!
here's my gift to you - a little playlist with a song for (almost) all sentiments toward such a polarizing holiday. guess what? they're all from the same movie... i had forgotten how hilarious the wedding singer is until i had revisited these clips!
(p.s. these clips are nsfw - foul language aplenty...)
have you had a good halloweek, everyone?? i sure have... it was kicked off with two fun parties last weekend, where i embraced the corny-ness that is a couples costume for the first time ever, and you know what? it was awesome. add that to seeing my nephew in his first halloween costume - the cutest lion i've ever seen - and celebrating the birth of a dear friend's little pumpkin, and it has been a busy but fantastic week.
here's a few of my favourite dark and macabre music videos. may i suggest you pair them with leftover mini chocolate bars and a pumpkin spice latte? yes. yes i may.
blink 182 - i miss you
one of my favourite music videos of all time, this dark and morose accompaniment to an uncharacteristically sombre song from blink 182 is a bit 1930s, a bit gothic and a bit cobwebby... i love it!
the killers - bones
skeleton romance? yes please! skeleton brandon flowers? even better. fun fact - this is the first music video that tim burton ever directed... best moment? 3:12. gets me every time.
my chemical romance - welcome to the black parade
almost all of my chemical romance's videos are theatrical and dark, but this is my favourite... what can i say, i love me a good rock opera. i also adore gerard way's performance on film - i never got to see mcr live, so i can only imagine how much better he would be in person, but this is still pretty epic.... i truly have a hard time staying seated, especially when it gets to the third part of the song at 3:32. okay. time to dig out the black parade album - just watching this video reminds me how awesome it is. i recommend.
christina aguilera - fighter
not only is this song in my top 25 most played list on itunes, it's also in my personal all-time favourite music videos list... Xtina isn't just about the booty shorts and group dance routines, okay peeps? i love the alt, goth-ey look that she rocks in this video... stripe-y tights? don't mind if i do...
backstreet boys - everybody
aaaaand because i'm hilarious, i'll throw some bsb in the mix. apparently the boys wanted a chance to star in their very own horror film, and they were so committed to the idea that when their record label refused to get on board, the band funded it themselves. i kinda love how moments that could be genuinely dark and mysterious are punctuated by high-energy boy band dance sequences. and also... 90s kids everywhere still bust out the claw-hands dance move (4:02) from time to time. don't try to pretend you don't do it. i dj. i see you people on the dance floor all. the. time.
i don't know about you, but i'm a sucker for a good mashup. this may be linked back to my affinity for weird al and his polka mashups of pop songs, but i have no solid evidence to back that inkling. a few days ago, thought catalog published this list of mashups that was ok, but a little bit lacking in the awesome. i thought i'd put together a post with a few mashups that spell out "mind = blown" in my world. enjoy!
the day the music died - mashup germany
this was my favourite offering from the thought catalog list - it includes fourteen artists, from mozart to weezer, and is a super catchy slow-jam mix.
no diggity vs. thrift shop - ed sheeran & passenger
okay, as if a silky smooth acoustic rendition of no diggity isn't enough (so THAT'S what those lyrics really are....), ed sheeran and passenger manage to bring it home by blending the chorus with the chorus of one of macklemore's most catchy songs. WIN. also, this video introduced me to passenger, who i immediately fell in love with. seriously, within half an hour of seeing this video for the first time, i had internet-stalked the crap outta him, and bought his cd on itunes. check him out!
99 problems vs helter skelter - grey album - danger mouse
what do you get when you cross the beatles' white album with jay-z's black album? that's right, you get danger mouse's grey album, a killer combination of jay-z's vocals over beatles music. the online sale of this album caused controversy and tension between those who saw it as the amazing project it was, and those who see it as a massive copyright infringement - even though jay-z, paul mccartney and ringo starr approved it on personal levels. (actually, paul mccartney said that it's 'well cool'.) anyways, i dig it. you?
because we can - moulin rouge
this was a movie moment that made me pretty much jump out of my chair with an exclaimation of pure victory. i swear, when the opening riff of smells like teen spirit dropped the first time i watched this, the awesomeness made me scream. this whole movie is a masterpiece of pop music madness. if this is a tad chaotic for your liking, may i recommend the elephant love song medley, here.
blame it on the pop - dj earworm
and now, my favourite mashup of all time. i mean, dj earworm has made a ton of killer mashups, but in my opinion, this one takes the cake. i know this because i have eagerly anticipated earworm's yearly mashup every january, and each year i hear it and, though impressed, none of his year-end mashups have knocked this one out of heavy rotation in my pop music spinning. enjoy!
oh, and i'll throw this one in for good measure. who doesn't love a little 90s mixed with a little polka mixed with a little zany weird al? NO ONE! or, maybe just me. whatevs.
are there any mashups that i've missed? my ears are always open for a good one!
i've been on a punk-rock kick this week, which is not unusual. today i had my ipod on shuffle, and when blondie came on, it gave me the idea for this playlist - there's so much upbeat, airy punk and new wave music that makes for a perfect summer soundtrack. these songs were all released within a decade (1977-1987), and fall loosely into the punk, new wave or alternative genres. okay, you caught me, i snuck some ska in there too - i can't help it!
click here to listen to this playlist on youtube...
dreaming - blondie
not only is debbie harry one of my favourite sources of style inspiration, she's one of the most enduring female figures in rock and roll. this is one of my favourite blondie songs - it's perfect for rolling down the windows while cruising on a summer afternoon...
dancing with myself - billy idol
this song is almost always a floor-filler... ironic? i think so.
99 red balloons - nena
originally a smash hit in germany, nena later recorded this song in english. amazingly, the german version of this song still rose to number two on the billboard charts - behind van halen's jump. watch this video for inspiration for your up coming 80s-themed party, or watch it in german here.
just like heaven - the cure
although the lyrics are still kind of sad, this is one of the cure's dreamier and less depressing songs, and one of my personal favourites.
our house - madness
am i the only one who has a mega soft spot for vocalists who don't mask their pommy accents when they sing? i've loved this song for a long time, but it has only been just this year that two dear friends enlightened me to madness' greater music collection, which is so awesomely ska-tastic.
a message to you rudy - the specials
boys everywhere: here is some style inspiration. rude boys = all kinds of awesome. not to mention the specials' epic new-wave ska beats. i love it!
i melt with you - modern english
a few months ago i was dj-ing a kids party, and a little guy that was no more than ten years old came up to me and requested 'anything by modern english'. oh, kids and their 80s brit new-wave...
california sun - ramones
rancid's opening band, the interrupters, covered this song on tuesday night, and you know, it was the first time i actually understood the chorus lyrics - 'and i walk a little walk, i'll twist a little twist, i'll shimmy a little shimmy...'
rudie can't fail - the clash
here's a lesser-known clash song that is a perfect blend of mellow punk and ska.
a new england - billy bragg
these days, billy bragg is just as well-known as an activist as he is a musician. i love his acoustic, folk-punk sound, and this song has a quirky little lyric that stays stuck in my head long after i listen to it - i saw two shooting stars tonight, i wished on them but they were only satellites. it's wrong to wish on space hardware, i wish, i wish, i wish you'd care...
any 80s-ey new-wave-ey tunes that tickle your fancy? what are you listening to this weekend?
i've been enjoying this past week's strange weather patterns - there has been a storm nearly every night, and I absolutely love a quiet night at home listening to the rain. my soundtrack of choice? generally: sam cooke. i think he'll get a post of his own one of these days, because his greatest hits album was one of the best album purchases i've made all year. for the time being, I thought I'd dream up a soundtrack for a weekend of watching the storm clouds roll in - some sultry but sweet soul music.
click here to listen to the entire playlist (without having to press play on each video)!
without further ado, here are ten golden soul tracks to get ya in the mood for a mellow weekend...
i don't know what the summer has been like where you are? but here in edmonton, the sun is shining and the mercury is high. there's nothing quite like enhancing the summer vibes with the perfect soundtrack, and this playlist was the perfect opportunity to include a few tunes that are attached to some of my fondest sun-soaked memories.
get ya sunnies on, and crank these nostalgic summer beats!
steal my sunshine - len
i'm not sure what is more badass and endearing about these boys - their sideways ball caps or their bright orange scooters? also - spelling out L-A-T-E-R so that the syllables will fit in the second verse.... when i first heard this song back when i was fourteen, i thought that was hella cool.
summer love - justin timberlake
it may not be as well known, but it's summery, sweet, and irresistibly dance-able, just like every other jt song.
sunshine highway - dropkick murphys
i find it impossible not to smile when i'm singing along to this song! especially when i'm driving with my windows down on a sunny day. for those of you that aren't really into punk music (yet!), be forewarned - this is the gateway drug.
cruel summer - ace of base
okay, i know this is a remake, but i can't resist an opportunity to include ace of base... it just speaks to my 90s-child heart.
calypso - spiderbait
i can guarantee that the artist and title of this song rings NO bells in your memory. press play. if you watched 10 things about you as many times as i did (or even half as many), you will know exaaaaactly what scene this song is played in.
santa monica - everclear
i just want to see some palm trees... this song is a perfect belter for summer night karaoke, and a perfect beach-ey video
summer nights - john travolta & olivia newton-john
yep. i went there. #sorryimnotsorry
school's out - alice cooper
i know this is the second week in a row that i've included alice cooper in the playlist... what can i say, the dude kills it! also - fashion inspiration. nuff said.
summertime - dj jazzy jeff & the fresh prince
a little mellow hip hop, spun by the fresh prince? yes please!
summer girls - lfo
ahhh, did you guys do that thing where you made up your own lyrics to a pop song to more aptly fit the complicated relationship dynamics in your high school years? no? just me? perhaps i listened to too much weird al yankovic? whatever. it was just as well that i changed the lyrics to this song - i was too young and canadian to know what 'abercrombie & fitch' was anyways.
did i miss anything?? what are your favourite summer songs? let me know in the comments! and have a rad weekend!
okay kids, break out your tight, ripped acid-wash jeans, let your hair go wild - bonus points for mullet-esque tendencies - and don a cropped jacket with no shirt underneath: your jam for this weekend is... glam metal!
a prerequisite for your enjoyment of this playlist is a complete disregard for taking yourself seriously. this weekend, you are IN an 80s hair band, and of this fact you are unashamed. come on. roll with it. you won't regret it.
check out these jams!
paradise city - guns n roses
i don't know how he does it, but axl rose is so rock and roll that he can make a white double denim outfit look edgy. searching for fashion inspiration? look no further.
pour some sugar on me - def leppard
ahhh, one of the most sing-along-able choruses in this niche. get into it!
we're not gonna take it - twisted sister
um, this video is hilarious. you HAVE to watch it. also: speaking of fashion inspiration.... actually no. i can't even joke about this.
here i go again - whitesnake
it takes this song a minute and twenty seconds of fluff to build up to its gritty rock ballad glory, but that's part of this song's allure. you're thinking, wait, what is this song that was accidentally put on my glam metal playlist? is this michael bolton? and just as you are about to give up on it, the rock beats drop. well played, whitesnake, well played.
rock n roll all night - kiss
i find it entertaining that the bikini-clad women in this video have the same hairstyles as the men - the only way to differentiate between genders is the lush chest hair. on the men. just to be clear.
unskinny bop - poison
the key to enjoying this song is to not try to determine what, exactly, an unskinny bop is. i've listened to this song more times than i would like to admit, and i still have no idea.
bad medicine - bon jovi
man, this song makes me think of a dear friend i used to work with - we had this song on our '80s rock' playlist, which was on heavy rotation while we folded clothes. take it from me - singing this entire song with complete commitment is a fantastic way to enhance a retail environment. just ask our boss. don't ask our boss.
kickstart my heart - motley crue
motley crue... quintessential glam rock - leather pants and all.
jump - van halen
the synth-ey beginning and similar lyrical content always makes me confuse this song with the song jump for my love by the pointer sisters. please don't tell van halen i said that, though. they are soooo much more rock 'n' roll than the pointer sisters... i mean, eddie van halen does the splits and jazz hands in the first ten seconds of this video. doesn't get much more rock 'n' roll than that.
poison - alice cooper
i'm sure i'm not the only one who was introduced to alice cooper by wayne and garth. my knowledge of alice cooper is inseparable from the scene in wayne's world where he explains the origin of the word 'milwaukee'. did you know that cooper is still touring, with a more elaborate stage show than ever, and he's 65? read an interview or two with the guy - he's quite a fascinating person.
okay, am i the only one who digs these jams? or does 80s glam metal get you pumping too??
yep, it's been ten years since kelly clarkson won the first season of american idol...
can you believe that it has been TEN years since i graduated high school? yes. this very week marks a decade since i blew that popsicle stand. although ten years sounds like a long time, i actually feel like i've been gone longer than that - when i think of all the insane adventures and amazing people and you know, natural disasters and stuff, that i've met since leaving prison high school.
this weekend's jam is a mix of music that was on the charts during my 2002-03 school year - and i still find all of it irresistibly sing-and-dance-able. enjoy!
ignition - r kelly
okay, r kelly is weird. but this song was SO the jam of the moment when we graduated - i remember dancing to this at our very last high school dance. can i get a 'doop doop'? can i get a 'beep beep'? yes, r kelly. yes you can.
get low - lil jon
oh MAN. this song is the guiltiest of the pleasures. it was released in '03, but i really fell in love with it when i was in christchurch - a few of the boys in the skate fam loved it, and would sing along with total abandon. now, when i hear it, i can't help but do the same. (note: lyrics here are pretty crass... video is definitely nsfw or nsf-sensitive wee ears.)
work it - missy elliot
missy elliot is boss. this song is clever and catchy, and i totally remember watching this video on muchmusic countdowns and pop up videos - which was definitely the coolest way to spend your evening as a teenager in 2003.
like glue - sean paul
half the fun of listening to a sean paul song is trying to figure out what he's actually saying... the other half is copying the dance moves in the video (obviously).
hot in herre - nelly
looking at this video now, i can't really fathom how anyone could take nelly seriously with that piece of first aid tape on his face. but then again, could you take him seriously when he spells 'here' with two 'r's? serious or not, this song is never far from the tongue of a twenty-something in a room where the temperature has notably risen.
family affair - mary j blige we don't need no hateration, holleration in this dancery. where is mary j blige these days, and why isn't she still slinging beats filled with her made-up words?!?
without me - eminem
oh, the days when eminem was sooooo controversial and offensive... and being a 'white rapper' was notable and unusual enough that it was a talking point. my 'favourite white rapper' affections may have been stolen by someone else, but i've always had a soft spot for marshall - so catchy and enticingly outspoken- and probably always will.
like i love you - justin timberlake & nelly
it was hard to love this song when it first came out - our love for *nsync was too great to make room for the concept of jt breaking out as a solo act. wait, did this mean that *nsync were breaking up??? fast forward to 2013, where jt is kiiiiiilling it musically, turning up on the big screen, and even delving into comedy - and i'm all like..... *nsync who?
just like a pill - p!nk
p!nk's music was always a safe haven for dramatic teenagers... of which i was chief. heck, it still is (and, lets be honest, i still am).
dirrty - christina aguilera
what was it with 2003 and adding a second 'r' to words?? i don't know. but what i do know is that this song was seriously risque at the time it was released. or maybe i should say 'rrisque'? whatever. i love you christina, fake-dreadlock extensions and all.
ahhh, the nostalgia! what songs were you jammin' to in your high school years? do they still get ya on the d-floor? leave me a comment and let me know!
hey guys, guess what? i kinda love music. just in case you hadn't picked up on that already....
anyways, because i love music so, i am starting a new tradition - your jam for the weekend!
what is it? every friday afternoon i'll be hooking you up with a playlist of 10 songs to get you amped for your weekend. you can expect feel-good beats of all styles and eras, old familiar faves and new sounds. let's get into it!
here's this weekend's jam:
your jam for the weekend is... 90s dance anthems!
when i roll up to a DJ gig and start evaluating the crowd, i can't help but grin when i see a crowd full of people in their late 20s to late 30s. oh, i know juuuuuust what's gonna get you kids on the d-floor. hellooooo 90s dance anthems.
i feel ya, 90s kids, i feel ya. here are my top picks (full disclosure: these picks are strongly influenced by the tracklist of dance mix '93, which was one of the first cassette tapes i ever owned shared in joint custody with my big sister.)
good vibrations - marky mark and the funky bunch
yes kids, before mark wahlberg was killing it in hollywood, he spent most of his time wearing personalized bling and rapping through chain link fences while shirtless...
saturday night - whigfield
a high school dance was never quite complete until this song got airplay.... does anyone remember the unofficial dance moves to this? these girls do...
move this - technotronic
ahhhh! this is my personal favourite song on the list - i always get so amped when i play this at a gig and people get into it, mostly because i can't stop myself from dancing to it, and i look less weird than usual if there are other people on the dance floor...
another night - the real mccoy
the real mccoy had the quintessential 90s eurodance sound on lock. it was pretty hard to choose between pump up the jam, run away, one more time and this song, but another night won in my eyes, because the chorus is just so catchy, and just TRY not to imitate the dude's voice when he's singing the 'i talk, talk, i talk to you... ' lyric...
push it - salt n pepa
very strangely, i actually saw salt n pepa live about a year ago at a football game's halftime show. yes, that was the only reason i was at the football game. i can assure you, those coordinated dance moves are still kicking. the matching oversized varsity jackets, i'm sorry to say, are not.
it's tricky - run dmc
this inclusion is dedicated to my brother taylor, as this is officially 'his' jam. this one fills the floor - every. time. my unsolicited advice for general improvement of your life: listen to more run dmc.
gonna make you sweat - c & c music factory
no 90s dance playlist is complete without this song, it's a no-brainer!
u can't touch this - mc hammer
not unlike many other songs in the nineties, i was first introduced to this song by way of a weird al yankovic parody. i still can't decide which i like better...
mo money mo problems - notorious b.i.g., puff daddy & mase
please watch this video. you may have forgotten how very suave a matching plastic track suit can really look, and i would hate for you to continue in your ignorance. puffy & mase model them in numerous colors, for your viewing pleasure. you're welcome.
whoomp there it is - tag team
dance mix '93 represent! i knew all the words to this rap by the time i was nine years old. i understood the words to this rap.... uh, far later in life.
any 90s dance anthems i'm missing? what were your personal faves? don't you worry, i have plenty of other 90s-inspired playlists coming your way...
