For the latest in new singles, albums and chart news. We will be keeping you upto date with all the happenings in the world of music as well as reviewing our old favourites.
As Tinie's unstoppable chart success continues with a cameo on JLS's Eyes Wide Shut and the release of a sixth cut, Wonderman, it would be easy to think his album has been completely rung dry. Not so! Tucked away unassumingly in the middle of his debut is this sprightly gem.
Produced by Ishi (Written In The Stars, Invincible), it has an infectious chorus sung by Range, imploring he only misses the girl 'just a little', before realising that, erm perhaps, you know, he's not so sure: 'okay maybe more than just a little bit'. It nicely captures the conflicting feelings Tinie goes on to express - 'give me space to breathe so I can deal with my emotions'. His bouncy rapping underplays quite how vulnerable some of his lyrics are - 'maybe I'm used to pain, love is a losing game'. In contrast to the wonderful swagger on display in Pass Out and Frisky, Just A Little is a welcome and revealing departure.
At 3.02, the song feels a touch short, which may be why it hasn't been released as a single. Mind you, it's a full 31 seconds longer than his Intro, which might be the most exhilarating opening to a rap album since 3 Peat on Lil Wanye's Tha Carter III.
I wrote about this track in a trio of Rihanna features at the end of last year but now this is finally getting a full release. To accompany the track we have this absolutely stunning video; essentially nothing happens but I was glued to the screen during the scenes of Kanye on the police car. Rihanna is used as a nice piece of eye candy in the mix, but I can't help but feel she looks a bit bored. In this radio edit we get less of the additional vocals but the list of illuminated features listed at the end is nothing short of impressive. The bright colours and lighting fit with the track perfectly: it's a bit trippy at times but I love it.
Chart Predictions:
Spyke 12
McLovin -
Actual 15
Original review:
After causing controversy with Taylor Swift last year at the VMAs Kanye was always going to be up against it when attempting to launch his next album. Having experienced a similar backlash to that of Chris Brown's, what he really needed was some new material to recapture his fans. Unfortunately Power was not the track to do that with, as it struggled top 40 both here and in the US. Having said that 'My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy' opened favourably in the US!
All Of The Lights is a blatant attempt to recreate the success of Run This Town, and it's better in my opinion. Rihanna is used subtly to add a bit more commercial appeal to the track and it should cross over nicely. Towards the end there seems to be an overload of artists making their input which I really don't think was necessary.
We thought she'd bring it like this for her comeback...
Spyke
A month ago we saw Britney top more itunes charts than anyone else had ever managed to do simultaneously with the release of Hold It Against Me. With some incredible first week tallies (especially in the States) the feat seemed justified - it is one of the best tracks she's recorded in years (along with Shattered Glass). Now Lady Gaga has just gone and done one better: with Born This Way only taking 3 hours to top US itunes it could be looking at the biggest download sales week ever! However, I still feel very much underwhelmed by the track.
Before making it to my 9am lecture this morning I just had to log on and watch the highlights from the Grammy Awards last night. I thought Lady Gaga would be the one to steal the show after her eccentric entrance in a massive egg. Despite a well rehearsed dance routine the performance lacked the personality and flair we have become accustomed to seeing from the star. I was hoping for a live performance that would allow me to warm to the track just as Beyonce managed with her X Factor performance of If I Were A Boy, but this wasn't to be the case. Instead the highlight of the show for me was definitely the Love The Way You Lie/ I Need a Doctor combo, plus seeing the chemistry between Rihanna and Drake during What's My Name?
In contrast Lady Gaga's 2009 VMA performance of Paparazzi is just all sorts of amazing. Although I usually prefer listening to the Moto Blanc remix of the track, this live performance highlights the quality of the single. With her incredible vocals and effective choreography she really delivers here. Using the now familiar piano break down and plenty of fake blood to emphasise the drama of the track, it's like she's still trying to prove herself as she stages this theatrical performance into a well crafted beginning, middle and ending.
With all the hype surrounding the lead single, it all just seems very underwhelming. Where's the quirky Gaga who wouldn't just have settled for arriving on stage in an egg but would have gone all guns blazing to make it a performance we wouldn't forget? I'm still holding out for the second cut to rival Bad Romance...
McLovin (DISCLAIMER: These are definitely the views of me, and not Mr. Scott, who's not feeling the lady's latest offering!).
I'm going to keep this fairly brief, as I find it pretty tricky to write coherently about a song I haven't had long to sit with. But how could we avoid talking about possibly the pop event of year?! The hype was always going outweigh the result, but when the dust has settled, people will look back and realise that Gaga has survived crushing expectations to do what she does best: writing phenomenal pop anthems.
Born This Way is brilliant in its straightforwardness - as enjoyable, energising and as uplifting a comeback single we could have hoped for. I love the way she alternates between her lower and higher singing range in the verses before reaching the thumping chorus. And what a chorus! This is definitely the most euphoric thing Gaga has ever released and (as my hardcore Gaga friend attests) it is effortlessly fun. This isn't a criticism against the single; so many songs strive towards sounding 'fun', but become so forced and heavy in trying to achieve it. And if we have to mention the 'M' word, then fine - I like this a hell of a lot more than Express Yourself.
When the song ends repeating the line 'same DNA, born this way', I'm positively licking my lips in anticipation for the rest of her album. Born This Way proves not only that Gaga can handle the pressure of being the biggest star on the planet, she's not going to be burdened by her past successes. Go Gaga Go!
With the build up and hype mounting to hysterical levels for Lady Gaga's Born This Way premiere this coming Friday, I thought it would be interesting to look back at I'm a Slave 4 U. It was the launch single for Britney's third album, aptly named Britney, and joined ...Baby One More Time and Oops!...I Did It Again as defining her oncoming output of singles and videos. Although Born This Way will technically be Gaga's second album after The Fame, the eight track Fame Monster is such a wonderfully cohesive body of songs. As such, itfeelsfeelsfefflike Gaga's third time out. In this way, Born This Way will join Just Dance and Bad Romance to complete her hat trick of launch singles.
I'm a Slave 4 U was the first time a Britney song had been overtly sexual rather than naughtily suggestive; as such, it caused quite the stir. Her performance of it with a giant snake and all at the MTV awards in September 2001 created a media frenzy, with animal rights group, parental concerns and a general dismay at the sexual exploitation of a 19 (!) year old singer. From my perspective (and 13 year old eyes), it is no exaggeration in saying that this performance was a seminal moment in my life. But separated from the performance and video, my overall feelings about the song at the time was a disappointed 'meh - what kind of a chorus is "I'm a slllaaaaaaaaave for you" anyway?'. As a Neptunes production, it didn't have the instant appeal of Max Martin's bombastic late 90s/early 00s work (the second single from the campaign Overprotected did the job there). Ten years on, how has time treated this sweaty dancefloor filler?
I'm a Slave 4 U is a far more interesting and subtlety complex song than I appreciated at the time, and the apparent lack of immediate hooks may well be its most enduring aspect. Although I still think the chorus is the weak link, I've started to find a lot of pleasures elsewhere. The spoken word intro has a mission statement-like quality, playing with Britney's established image ('I know I may be young') whilst firmly statingthat this song is going to be a departure from her previous recordings (the spoken intro trick was repeated a year later in Justin Timberlake's debut solo single Like I Love You, another Neptunes production). The 'get it get it, get it get it' part, which still sounds like 'kitty kitty, kitty kitty', has a tight rhythm in line with the hypnotic beat, and an almost imperceptible harmony is heard when it's repeated for the second and fourth time, adding a delicate variation to the proceedings.
But the real high point is her questioning 'baby don't you wanna dance upon me?' (or is that 'up on me'?) followed by the whispered 'I just wanna dance next to you', which to my horny hormonal ears, I’m embarrassed to say, sounded like ‘I just wanna have sex with you’, but I’m sure I wasn’t the only one! Accompanied by the rising synths, it’s the most expansive moment of the song and the only time that it threatens to leave the grimy dancefloor behind and take us ‘to another time and place’. That it is only repeated twice demonstrates the incredible restraint of the song. Aside from a couple of overplayed moans and groans, everything is held back. The excessive display of sexuality is in her dancing and revealing costumes; away from the images, the song revels in the play of suggestion over explicit description.
With this track, ‘Innocent’ Britney past the point of no return – each new album campaign launched with a single and video designed to provoke and outrage (Me Against The Music– snogging Madonna! Gimme More – arse hanging out whilst pole dancing! Womanizer – naked in a sauna!). Sweet ballads like Sometimes and Born To Make You Happy were condemned to the past. Although I nostalgically yearn for those heady days of pre-Slave 4 U Britney where not every single had to be ‘controversial’, I honestly believe that without this song, her 2007 masterpiece Blackout wouldn’t exist.
Lady Gaga has already achieved so much and gone so far in the past two years, I’m struggling to think how she will manage our expectations. But if Born This Way causes the same fuss as Britney did with I’m a Slave 4 U ten years ago, then very exciting times lay ahead for all of us.
If you imagine Christina Aguilera's Voice Within or Evanescence's My Immortal then you're not far off the mark with this track. The main difference being Perri refrains from going full pelt and showing off her vocal scales in the final verse, which in my opinion adds to the beauty of the song.
The video is very haunting and modest, complementing the track and emphasising how humble the lyrics are. It reminds me of the James Bond advert for The Quantum Of Solace which saw Daniel Craig walking in slow motion as buildings exploded in flames behind him. It's a very intense and emotive song and the video emphasises the personal bitterness felt for the soulless heart breaker in question.
This track is not exactly going to set the charts alight with excitement; it'll be lucky to creep into the top 40 here in the UK, but it's fairing relatively well in the states. However, an emotive X Factor performance of this could see it hitting the top ten as we've seen happen with Hurt, Listen and Make You Feel My Love in the past.
With a name which isn't all that fresh to the pop world, a style like Amy Winehouse and a video and vocal with could have performed by Avril Lavigne, I think this has been packaged all wrong and lacks any kind of identity. But after having Adele's 21 on repeat for the past few weeks this track fits in perfectly with my current playlist.
Here comes the fourth single off Katy Perry's sophomore album 'Teenage Dream' and with it this amazing remix. Whereas the original version doesn't quite have the edge to compete with the first three singles from the album, this Tiësto remix works a treat. It completely surpasses the Tinie Tempah remix I had been listening to, which, like JLS' Eyes Wide Shut, features Tinie just giving a one verse rap in the latter part of the single.
The increased production and synths in this remix build up the momentum and makes the track sound much more futuristic and trance like, which seems more fitting with the content and lyrics of the song. I can't distinguish why but the production sounds like a high budget Calvin Harris track; but maybe that's related to the fact I was listening to him a lot last night.
Anyway the chart geek in me would love for this track to chart at #4 in the UK, just to see her consecutive singles chart in descending positions:
After giving you a review of all the #1s of 2010 we thought we'd just conclude by posting our top 10 of the year. It's been fantastic year in pop; this time for us Drake and Rihanna come out on top - but they're not topping the charts together this time...
McLovin
#1 Drake - Find Your Love.
Not only is this my number one of 2010, it may even be in my top ten OF ALL TIME!
#2 The Wanted - All Time Low.
I have a deep love of this song as you all know!
#3 Tinie Tempah - Pass Out.
Definitely the biggest breakthrough song of the year.
#4 Usher Feat. Will.i.am - OMG.
Closed a phenomenal live show last week in birmingham with this massive anthem.
#5 Alicia Keys - Try Sleeping With a Broken Heart.
Such a beautiful performance.
#6 Alexis Jordan - Happiness.
Went mushy over the song in my blog entry.
#7 Esmée Denters - Bigger Than The World.
Loved this for a full year, standout track from her highly underrated debut album.
#8 Rihanna - Only Girl (In The World).
The most enormously wonderful chorus of 2010.
#9 B.o.b & Bruno Mars - Nothin' On You.
Perhaps a bit sappy, but this hit all the right spots for me.
#10 Roll Deep - Good Times.
I don't think a song made me smile as much as this one did. GOOD TIMES INDEED.
Spyke
#1 Eminem & Rihanna - Love The Way You Lie.
Pop perfection - With an epic video, Part 2 & Megan Fox this #2 topped the year end and my chart.
#2 Kids In Glass Houses - Matters At All.
My most played song of the year, definitely helped me through my exams :D
#3 30 Seconds To Mars - Closer To The Edge.
"It was a thousand to one and a million to two"
#4 Rihanna - Only Girl (In The World).
2010 was her year (again), both Rude Boy and What's My Name? deserve a mention, but this came up trumps.
#5 Katy Perry - Firework.
Epic feel good track, just pipped the Summery Smash Teenage Dream for a position.
#6 Taio Cruz - Dynamite.
Taio can certainly write a good Pop Tune, his second top 2 hit on both sides of the pond!
#7 Jason Derulo - In My Head.
What a fantastic debut album filled with Pop Hits (love the Mayday Parade cover of this)
#8 Ne-Yo - Beautiful Monster.
It comes close but it's not quite up there with Closer!
#9 B.o.b & Hayley Williams - Airplanes Part II.
When he enhanced this song, we all knew Eminem was back on form for a great year!
#10 Take That - The Flood
Epic come back single! Robbie couldn't have asked for a better track to re-join the lads with.
Over the past couple of years Lady Gaga has really showed us the benefit of having 'event' high production videos; her nine minute epic with Beyonce sent Telephone flying to #1 here in the UK. However Rihanna has never been far behind, Disturbia being the turning point - going from average pop videos to creating masterpieces which allowed tracks to chart where they haven't even been released (Disturbia was just meant for the US). With Melina Matsoukas directing her videos they went from strength to strength - Hard, Rude Boy and Rockstar 101. This has to top Disturbia to become my 2nd favourite video after the epic LTWYL featuring Megan Fox.
So if anyone was under any doubt as to what S&M is then I'm sure they'll have a better idea by the end of the 4 minute video. Watching Rihanna strut her stuff in bondage, wearing latex, walking a man like a dog and deep throating a banana (3.45) this is about as in your face and filthy as music videos come. Where this video could have quite easily fallen into the seedy mild porn category I think the bright colours and flashing screen shots make it seem slightly more abstract and fun. With Rihanna being the talk of the press this week with her 'C**T' remark on twitter and leaked nude photos this seems a very fitting way to make a mockery of her paparazzi.
Since the track has been sitting top 50 on itunes since the release of Loud, it has just been waiting to blow up. Let's just watch it race up the itunes chart this next week and if it hasn't hit the top in the chart by Sunday there's something wrong. Could this be Rihanna's second #1 of the year?
