So far all three of Gaga's "Born this Way" singles have made it to my blog and that's no coincidence, they're all incredibly remarkable in their own ways. Sadly, "The Edge of Glory" is a bit of a miss in this case. Overall it's another awesome song from Lady Gaga, but the timing of its release creates a few issues.
Lady Gaga almost always has something shocking and surprising, "The Edge of Glory" is good but not super; and since we just had the really unusual "Judas" it doesn't look so good in contrast. However "The Edge of Glory" is now going to take attention away from "Judas" which deserved a full run. Now though people will me interested in "The Edge of Glory" and "Judas" will lose its momentum, while "The Edge of Glory" probably won't be a super smash hit.
But with that aside I'll now look at the actual song. Like I said before it's not exactly anything particularily exciting, however it is a little something different from Gaga. She's showing us now that she's not just a dance-pop diva as has a little rockier and edgier sound. The chorus is sung with a rough sound which is also a little different from Lady Gaga's normal smooth vocals. The song builds after a big start to a bridge featuring a blasting saxophone. So it might not knock your socks off but there's still quite a lot of quality in it.
Lyrically the song isn't perfectly clear, but Gaga seems to be speaking to a lover. Judging by the line "I'm on the edge of glory with you" I get the idea of sharing a special moment with a special moment, I could be wrong but the important thing is that there is a meaning behind the song and it isn't a cliche or nonsensical. Ironically Gaga recently announced that she is now single, so maybe it wasn't the best time to release a love song.
Overall I can see that this could be another one of Gaga's many hits. There are many of reasons to love it, but we may have been expecting something a little more surprising from Gaga. But then again I guess not all her songs can be shocking since that would defeat the service.
Thursday, May 26, 2011
Friday, May 20, 2011
Rihanna - California King Bed
It's taken three singles from "Loud" for Rihanna to finally achieve a song that really gives us something special. So far her last three songs have had success yet they lack anything new aside from typical Rihanna sound, but "California King Bed" truly goes out with something different. It brings us back to "Take a Bow" another slower, pretty song from Rihanna.
"California King Bed" starts with a tender sound, almost a lulling whisper. Already that's something that we don't see from Rihanna too much, but the greatest thing about the song is that it builds gradually throughout the song. By the first chorus Rihanna has already picked up the pace into something a little more intense, which then continues to longing lament and always growing into an explosive ending.
This song is not a dance track, but it still has a way to get stuck in your mind. No longer is Rihanna singing about getting on the floor or sex, but just a relationship that's hit struggles. It's really much more true and heartfelt than most of her other work. It combines beautiful sounds with Rihanna's signature blaring sound, but it works incredibly well to make a pleading love song. Experimenting with a new sound can be a little risky but we've already seen that Rihanna can slow things down with "Take a Bow" and I don't see any reason why this song shouldn't have any less success.
The lyrics are sweet and loving, but there is small flaw to be found here. The repition of the word "California," seems a little out of place and unnecessary. I don't know what a California King Bed is, but I can accept that; however when you add in California King, California Wishing, California Dreaming, it gets a little weird. I'm not sure what the idea behind this was as California really has no connection to a dying relationship. This song will be at its peak during the summer which does have a common theme of California, but this is far from a summer anthem.
Over all I'm really glad that Rihanna finally got it right and gave us somthing a little different. "California King Bed" is incredibly beautiful and has a lot more emotion than a generic dance song. I don't think it has a shot at song of the summer though since people want something a little more upbeat and dancy. Still I think it will be a big hit.
"California King Bed" starts with a tender sound, almost a lulling whisper. Already that's something that we don't see from Rihanna too much, but the greatest thing about the song is that it builds gradually throughout the song. By the first chorus Rihanna has already picked up the pace into something a little more intense, which then continues to longing lament and always growing into an explosive ending.
This song is not a dance track, but it still has a way to get stuck in your mind. No longer is Rihanna singing about getting on the floor or sex, but just a relationship that's hit struggles. It's really much more true and heartfelt than most of her other work. It combines beautiful sounds with Rihanna's signature blaring sound, but it works incredibly well to make a pleading love song. Experimenting with a new sound can be a little risky but we've already seen that Rihanna can slow things down with "Take a Bow" and I don't see any reason why this song shouldn't have any less success.
The lyrics are sweet and loving, but there is small flaw to be found here. The repition of the word "California," seems a little out of place and unnecessary. I don't know what a California King Bed is, but I can accept that; however when you add in California King, California Wishing, California Dreaming, it gets a little weird. I'm not sure what the idea behind this was as California really has no connection to a dying relationship. This song will be at its peak during the summer which does have a common theme of California, but this is far from a summer anthem.
Over all I'm really glad that Rihanna finally got it right and gave us somthing a little different. "California King Bed" is incredibly beautiful and has a lot more emotion than a generic dance song. I don't think it has a shot at song of the summer though since people want something a little more upbeat and dancy. Still I think it will be a big hit.
Saturday, May 14, 2011
Emily Osment - Hush
I was going to post about Wynter Gordon's new single "Till Death" but Blogger was down for some reason and it deleted my saved post, so I don't feel like rewriting it. The most of it was that it was a good dance song and would have done good if it had been sung by Ke$ha or Britney, but will go unnoticed with Wynter.
Anyways onto today's main event, "Hush." Emily Osment may be a little overshadowed by the much more famous "Hannah Montana" star, Miley Cyrus, but she's defintely talented enough to deserve her own hits. Emily's sound isn't necessarily unique, but it is her own sound and not a rip off of someone else. The song's not another dance track which is also nice; it's bouncy and danceable, but it's more than just replay of dance beats. Emily immediately opens up with a perky sound that builds into something that is strong, yet not explosive. But then we get to the real heart and soul of the song, Josh Ramsay.
The song continues in the same style, but Josh is a thousand times stronger, more exciting, and more interesting. His pressence alone improves the already good song by that much. But Emily isn't pushed to the side completely, she and Josh trade lines through the always growing song which also adds to the song since it takes to two voices to put it all together. Using Josh is actually a really smart move since Emily hasn't had much success in the U.S. but with a familar Canadian voice she's presenting herself to Canada.
The song doesn't stop though, after the catchy duet between the two the song enters a Britney-esque electronic switchup while continuing the same vocal sound still present. The song clearly is well-written using many different techniques to keep you interested and it really works. It's too bad Emily isn't attracting too much attention, but maybe Josh's fame will allow her some success in Canada.
Anyways onto today's main event, "Hush." Emily Osment may be a little overshadowed by the much more famous "Hannah Montana" star, Miley Cyrus, but she's defintely talented enough to deserve her own hits. Emily's sound isn't necessarily unique, but it is her own sound and not a rip off of someone else. The song's not another dance track which is also nice; it's bouncy and danceable, but it's more than just replay of dance beats. Emily immediately opens up with a perky sound that builds into something that is strong, yet not explosive. But then we get to the real heart and soul of the song, Josh Ramsay.
The song continues in the same style, but Josh is a thousand times stronger, more exciting, and more interesting. His pressence alone improves the already good song by that much. But Emily isn't pushed to the side completely, she and Josh trade lines through the always growing song which also adds to the song since it takes to two voices to put it all together. Using Josh is actually a really smart move since Emily hasn't had much success in the U.S. but with a familar Canadian voice she's presenting herself to Canada.
The song doesn't stop though, after the catchy duet between the two the song enters a Britney-esque electronic switchup while continuing the same vocal sound still present. The song clearly is well-written using many different techniques to keep you interested and it really works. It's too bad Emily isn't attracting too much attention, but maybe Josh's fame will allow her some success in Canada.
Thursday, May 5, 2011
Pitbull - Give me Everything
Pitbull's been having a lot of success lately helping out everyone else like Jennifer Lopez, Usher, and Enrique Iglesias, but he's got another hit of his own and it's one of his best works. "Give me Everything" combines a little bit of..well, everything that's popular today to make a great dance smash. With catchy verses in the signature Pitbull style and a smooth dance chorus from Ne-yo combined with the interesting sounds of DJ Afrojack and Nayer, the song covers a vast variety of dance styles.
The rap verses feature clever lyrics, my personal favorite, "I'm not locked up like Linday Lohan." While Ne-yo's part takes on the more dance-centric theme of dance like there's no tomorrow. So whether you prefer catchy rap or dancy pop you'll be dancing all the way through this song. The song is a guaranteed hit since Pitbull has always had success with this style and, of course, dancy pop songs are all the rage.
It's certainly one of the best songs this year, but the question now is, is it a candidate for song of the summer? I think it will definitely be a huge summer smash, but it's going to competing with "Judas" and Katy Perry's new single, "Last Friday Night." While we're on the topic I'd like to say that I think Katy has a very good chance at earning this honour, "Last Friday Night" is a perfect summer song, and she's working on remixes with Dr. Luke to make it even more dancy. I may or may not give a more in depth review later.
The rap verses feature clever lyrics, my personal favorite, "I'm not locked up like Linday Lohan." While Ne-yo's part takes on the more dance-centric theme of dance like there's no tomorrow. So whether you prefer catchy rap or dancy pop you'll be dancing all the way through this song. The song is a guaranteed hit since Pitbull has always had success with this style and, of course, dancy pop songs are all the rage.
It's certainly one of the best songs this year, but the question now is, is it a candidate for song of the summer? I think it will definitely be a huge summer smash, but it's going to competing with "Judas" and Katy Perry's new single, "Last Friday Night." While we're on the topic I'd like to say that I think Katy has a very good chance at earning this honour, "Last Friday Night" is a perfect summer song, and she's working on remixes with Dr. Luke to make it even more dancy. I may or may not give a more in depth review later.
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