Album Review: Hands All Over by Maroon 5

As many of you know I have been extremely excited for Maroon 5’s newest release. When I went to their concert I was treated to some of their newer material and it did not disappoint. It was only natural that I was going to pre-order the deluxe edition of the album on Itunes (thanks to all my friends who got me gift cards for my birthday which made this possible). While I do really like the cd as a whole, a few of the songs aren’t my favorites. Let me give you a run down of the album and the best tracks. The first song on the album is Misery which I’m sure you have all heard on the radio over the summer. The second track is one of my favorites called Give A Little More. I’m pretty positive they played this at the concert, and it has a super retro vibe which I love. It sounds almost like it could be off of one of the Bee Gees old albums or belong in the Saturday Night Fever soundtrack. The third song called Stutter is pretty similar to Maroon 5’s older material. It is reminiscent of the songs Tangled and The Sun off of their first album Songs About Jane. The fourth song off of the album is called Don’t Know Nothing and is probably one of my least favorite songs off of the entire album. It has a very odd opening, which sounds Moroccan influenced. Number five is called Never Gonna Leave This Bed, and it is definitely one of my favorites. It is sweet and slow and really showcases Adam Levine’s talent. Number six I Can’t Lie reminds me of something that I really can’t pinpoint. It is definitely similar to their song Sunday Morning. The title track Hands All Over is number seven on the album. It is interesting, and darker like some of their songs from their previous album It Wont Be Soon Before Long. Again, this track isn’t as good to me as many of the others. Track eight is called How and is another slow but beautiful song. Track nine is called Get Back in My Life and is also heavily inspired by retro sounds. It is pretty 70’s in sound and definitely interesting to listen to. Track ten is called Just a Feeling. It is another slow song and is more repetitive than most of their slow songs. I’m not in love with it, but it definitely jives with the other songs on the album. Track eleven is called Runaway and is pretty decent. It is faster paced and doesn’t have the most interesting melody, but I still like it a lot. Track twelve is called Out of Goodbyes and features Lady Antebellum. I have to say that this is my least favorite track off the album and even hearing it the first time I felt the urge the fast forward it immediately. It was pretty boring, and not interesting to me at all. Track thirteen is called Last Chance which reminds me of Little of Your Time and Kiwi from their previous album It Wont Be Soon Before Long. The final (non bonus) track is called No Curtain Call. It is a little slower and has a real Moulin Rouge-y vibe to it. It reminds me of the film’s version of the song The Show Must Go On (originally by Queen) mostly because of the “curtain call” theme. Over all I like the album a lot, and the deluxe addition has a bunch of additional acoustic tracks, and the live version of If I Aint Got You. Give the album a listen and let me know your thoughts!

Lyric of the Week

Artist: Florence and the Machine
Song: Cosmic Love
Interesting/Smart Lyrics:  And in the dark, I can hear your heartbeat/ I tried to find the sound/ But then it stopped, and I was in the darkness,/So darkness I became/ The stars, the moon, they have all been blown out/ You left me in the dark/No dawn, no day, I'm always in this twilight/In the shadow of your heart

Oh Florence. Your songs are like poetry. I always find something interesting in them. Honestly this is one of the most beautiful and powerful songs ever. It is definitely my favorite song off of the entire album My Lungs. The first time I heard these lyrics I actually became teary eyed. These lyrics describe a person who has been left heartbroken. Haven’t we all be heartbroken at one time in our lives. I can definitely identify with this song. I have felt that never ending pit of darkness and despair to the point where you feel  like you are trapped in some sort of limbo and will never be able to live normally again. It is funny because I read that Florence had the worst hangover ever when she came up with this song and it took her only a half hour to create this entire masterpiece. It makes me wonder how much of this song is relating to alcohol. The video is pretty bizarre and trippy, like her other famous video for The Dog Days Are Over. Yet that doesn’t detract from this amazing bit of poetry at all.

Artist Watch: 2AM Club

I first heard 2AM Club’s song Worry About You and felt ambivalent toward it. Yet, the more I heard it, the more it grew on me. It is definitely addictive and interesting. The members of the band met and got together in 2007 during college. They named their band after a popular bar in the Bay Area. They strive for a different sound, a mix of a variety of music influences, and try to be different when performing on stage, for example making the audience active participants of the show. 2AM’s sounds are deeply rooted in funk, but they lean toward pop and electronic tendencies. Favorites off of their debut album What Did You Think Was Going To Happen (dropping this week!) are: Flashing Room which is a purely fun pop/funk number which I could see myself rocking out to in a dance club situation. Hurricane is a super fun good-charlotte-like jam. 2AM Club is for fans of Maroon 5, Travie McCoy, and Gym Class Heroes. Their debut album is available for free listening at AOL’s listening party for one week only!

VMA Performance Roundup

Let me just say I was extremely excited for this years Video Music Awards. Not only was I excited because of the immense amount of awards Lady Gaga was nominated and sure to win (8 wins total! Congrats GAGA!) but also because of the performances. I was particularly interested to see both Kanye and Taylor Swift after last years extreme stage faux pas, not to mention Eminem, and many of the other performers. So I will take a few minutes to mention my performance highlights from last night’s music event.

1)   Eminem: When he began singing it almost looked as if he were in rapping in an underground club ala 8 mile. Em did a mash up his two songs Not Afraid and Love the Way You Lie feat Rhianna. Not only was Rhianna probably the best I have ever heard her live, but I was just incredibly impressed by their collaboration. It made me wonder whether or not Rhianna showed up on tour with Eminem, as a guest surprise, because the sheer power of her performance would be sorely missed.

2)   Bieber: Now I know there are about 1,000,000 Bieber haters out there, but I love him. I think he is incredibly talented. I mean there was a reason he went from youtube star to ACTUAL star. Theoretically he is this tween generations Michael Jackson (of the Jackson 5, not solo career). I can admit, his dance moves leave a lot to be desired, especially in front of really talented dancers. My favorite part of his performance was how his dance moves were out shown by actual children. Hilarious.  

3)   Usher: It happens to be that I HATE the song OMG so I wasn’t really looking forward to this performance much. I have to say Usher surprised me by starting with DJ Got Us Falling In Love Again. His performance was mostly dance moves, which were great. But, I found his performance to seem the most unnatural/ not believable live.

4)   Florence and the Machine: I was pretty excited to hear Florence, because her voice is ridiculously unique and I find it’s hard to translate that uniqueness while still sounding as good live. Staying true to herself, Florence was good. Not as good as the recorded version, but still good. To top that, the bizarre dancers and choir were a page out of her music video. She also didn’t need a lot of crazy dancing to make this performance a great one.

5)   Taylor Swift: Most people who know me know of my extreme dislike for Taylor, and my crazy love for Kanye. When this happened last year I was disappointed in Kanye and sad for Taylor, but I didn’t feel the need to shun Kanye like most others did. In my mind this was not a Chris brown situation. Nevertheless I was proud of how Taylor handled herself tonight. She wrote a song about the situation Innocent referring to Kanye’s innocence. I’m still not in love with her voice or her songwriting ability, but I was glad at how well she handled herself in the face of all that drama.

6)   Drake: Drake performed the new song Fancy with Mary J Blige. I hadn’t heard this song ever before, which I was surprised about. The beginning started out amazing. Mary J sounded fabulous as ever. My problem with Drake is that I don’t think he is one of the greatest rappers of our generation. In fact he pales in comparison to Eminem.

7)   B.O.B/Hayley Williams: Ok, so here’s my deal with these performances. I could really take or leave B.O.B always. His songs aren’t so great to me. I know a lot of people like Airplanes, and I really should like it because I love Paramore, but I don’t like it that much. B.O.B reminds me of a pale imitation of T.I who I also love. So this mash up was only ok for me. My favorite part of the entire performance was when Hayley started singing The Only Exception which is my favorite song off of Paramore’s most recent album. In fact I have been recommending this song to my friends since the albums release in late 2009. All I can say is that Paramore saved this performance for me.

8)   Linkin Park: Linkin Park sang the song Catalyst. Honestly I don’t like this song. Linkin Park is always hit or miss for me. I never love their entire album and need to be really in the mood to hear one of their songs. This time I guess I wasn’t in the mood because I wasn’t really into this performance at all.

9)   Kanye West: Kanye sang the song Runaway and, not so surprisingly, I loved it. I loved how he began the song alone in a stage of black and white while he was dressed in red. I loved how he kind of explained or showed how much of a douche he was, and I was just frankly impressed with the entire song. It definitely made me excited for his new album.

For full High Quality versions of last nights performances check out MTV.com. What were your favorite moments at MTV’s VMAS?

Lyric of the Week

Song: Love The Way You Lie 

Artist: Eminem and Rhianna

Smart Lyrics: “You don't get another chance/ Life is no Nintendo game/ But you lied again/ Now you get to watch her leave/ Out the window/ Guess that's why they call it window pane”

I love this lyric and look forward to it every single time I hear this amazing rap song. I honestly couldn’t wait for Eminem’s most recent album “Recovery.” I expect great things from Em because I think he is one of the greatest rappers of my generation. I like this lyric a lot because of the smart play on words. Em’s introspective song about an abusive relationship is great to listen to, in general, because of all of its cleverly worded lyrics. For example he says “Maybe that’s what happens when a tornado meets a volcano,” which clearly expressive the volatile and explosive nature of these two individuals in their doomed relationship. However the fact that Eminem uses the words window pane to express window “pain” is really smart and interesting to me. I also like how he says that he doesn’t get multiple chances to prove himself, much like in a Nintendo Game. I am always impressed with his ability to take something hard to discuss and meaningful to him (see Stan) and turn it into a lyrical/rhythmic master class. Good job Em.

TV’s Top Ten Theme Songs

With the new highly anticipated TV season fast approaching I wanted to write a TV-Music focused post. During the fall I plan to dissect episodes that use current music (and music supervisors) and express my opinions on the usage of those songs, but until then let me focus on one of the most important parts of the television show: The theme song. Many LOST lovers will argue that one doesn’t need a theme song to set the tone of the show. But the mere fact that LOST had random floating white lost letters in a black abyss plus eerie music makes me believe my point. What would have happened if LOST decided to use let’s say….Weezer’s Island in the Sun for their theme song? Wouldn’t you have expected a fun and relaxed show about people hanging out on an Island instead of the terror of being alone and in a place you don’t understand? So without further adieu here are my top ten themes:

1. Charmed: How Soon is Now cover by Love Spit Love original by The Smiths: It was obvious that I had to choose this song that was an original smith’s song. Not only did the lyrics fit perfectly, but the theme song sets the tone for something weird and awesome. I know it’s kind of a cop-out considering this cover of the Smiths song was commissioned for the movie The Craft (yet another medium about witches) but I still can’t help but love Charmed and their amazing theme.
2. The O.C.: California by Phantom Planet: Ohh C. how I loved you, season one. Yes I was one of those screaming giggling girls who couldn’t wait for Josh Schwartz’s show to come on every week. This song definitely made that possible. Not only was it the theme, but it was shown in its entirety during the Pilot episode setting the tone for the entire season. California, here we come.
3. Veronica Mars: We Used to Be Friends by the Dandy Warhols: If any of you have spoken to me lately you know of my obsession with Veronica Mars. This theme song worked perfectly for season 1. Veronica was an outsider in her school and with her popular former friends. Yet, this song has such a kick-ass attitude that you can completely understand Veronica’s mind frame. Yeah we used to be friends? So what? She doesn’t need them.
4. The Fresh Prince of Bel- Air: The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air by Will Prince and Quincy Jones: This is one of the few theme songs on this list that was actually written specifically for the show in question, yet its brilliance remains unquestioned. I would dare say that if you ask any person from my generation (with cable) to name all the lyrics to the theme song they would be able to in about 3 seconds. Not only was Will super cool at the time but he was also “fresh” and interesting.
5. Sesame Street: Sesame Street by Joe Raposo: If you have ever heard my mom talk about Sesame Street you will know how much it stinks since Raposo’s death. Yet this theme song remains a classic and integral part of each episode on “The Street.”
6. Smallville: Save Me by Remy Zero: Smallville was one of the first shows where I really appreciated the value of the soundtrack. In fact, this show can be credited for most of my music repertoire while it was on for the mere fact that I wanted to listen to the songs from the episodes in their entirety. The theme song is no exception. It is poignant in the fact that Clark Kent does in fact save everyone on the show, but it is also moving in the way the images and sights interact with the sound.
7. Dawson’s Creek: I Don’t Want To Wait by Paula Cole: Every time I hear this song on the radio nowadays I always pump up the volume. I did love Dawson’s creek (at least seasons one and two) and definitely identified with the idea that everything must happen when you are a teenager because that is the first time you feel as if you are really living for yourself.
8. Baywatch: I’m Always Here by Jimi Jamison of Survivor: From what I understand this show had 3 theme songs, but this one is the most present in my mind. Forget for a minute the fact that majority of the intro is slow motion women in bathing suits/men in speedos and all you hear is something awesome that you want to rock out to. In fact many people who have played taboo with me know that I break into this song whenever the clue “lifeguard” comes up.
9. The Golden Girls: Thank You For Being a Friend cover by Cynthia Fee original by Andrew Gold: What song could better fit this ridiculously awesome TV series? It sets the tone for the show in the sense that you know these people are different but that they will always be there for each other no matter what. Which Golden Girl are you? 
10. Cheers: Where Everybody Knows Your Name by Gary Portnoy and Judy Hart Angelo: This is a definite must for the top 10 list. I am sure that even if you haven’t seen the show Cheers you still can identify its theme song. When you go to a bar you really want to get the homey feeling and warm atmosphere that cheers provided- a place where everybody knew your name and what you liked to drink.

What are your favorite TV themes?