Owl City - Good Time

Summer has officially started and the song that'll be the anthem of the next few months is probably already on its way to the top.  This is an example of a song that seems to be trying really hard to fill that spot.  While there are songs like "Payphone" carry a meaning and just happen to be released strategically at the right time, "Good Time" feels like it was simply released to be a summer fun song.

Owl City teams up with big breakout girl, Carly Rae Jepsen, for this song.  I saw this coming a while ago really.  Aside from "Call Me Maybe" it's unlikely that Carly Rae's other Canadian hits are going to reach international success, so they're going to have to stick her on already international stars.  

Both of them shine equally, though, so it truly is a duet.  They trade verses while they blend together for the chorus.  They do sound good together, they are both fun voices and this song is all about fun.  Adam Young takes a deeper, smooth tone for his verses, while Carly Rae still sounds chipper and girly.

The problem is, this is a really big setback for both of these artists.  People like Owl City for something incredibly different from what they're used; Carly Rae shines in simplicity.  This song is a generic dance song.  The lyrics sing about having a good time, surprisingly enough, and feature the same old "oh whoa" on repeat. The whole song gets rather repetitive fast, though.  It's something that  you've heard before, and it doesn't even try to bring anything special.

I can understand the logic behind it.  Owl City really only had "Fireflies" and Carly Rae no doubt wants to bring out into the more mainstream style.  But if they're going to do what everyone else is doing, then they have to make it interesting.  I would have liked to see a little more of their individuality in this song.  They both put strong personalities into their previous songs and that's what made them great.

I can't say for sure how this song will do once or if it hits the charts.  Carly Rae Jepsen is big right now, so I'd imagine that a poppy song like this would gather good attention.  But can it keep that attention?  It's a pretty boring song, and yet that hasn't stopped songs from going to number one before.  I'm willing to just wait and see how it plays out.

B.o.B - Both Of Us

B.o.B. seems to have an unpredictable history when it comes to hit singles.  He's had ones that top charts like "Airplanes" and he's had songs that felt like they might be hits, but never really made it, like "So Good."  It's very clear that he's trying to get another "Airplanes" with this new song.

We've got the tender voice of Taylor Swift doing the chorus this time.  Sound familiar?  That's right, it's basically the role that Hayley Williams did on "Airplanes."  Taylor may be a bigger name than Hayley, but really she doesn't bring anything different.  And it's just her singing the same lines over and over again.  It's pretty the first time, it gets a little redundant after a while though.

Then we've got the rap verses from B.o.B.  They're good, they're catchy, they've got meaning; yet it's nothing new.  A common thing you'll notice with pop rap songs is that you really have to depend on the pop part to make things interesting; since most rappers sounds same once you've heard their sound once.  Taylor isn't sounding too exciting in this song, and the rap is all stuff we've heard before.

Lyrically, it seems to have a good meaning; it's just a little tricky to figure out what it is.  From Taylor's lines I would guess it's about not being strong enough to maintain a relationship.  Yet B.o.B. raps about unfortunate people in general.  Taylor sounds like she's longing to hold onto someone, B.o.B. sounds annoyed at the world.  There's a bit of a dissonance there, which doesn't help the song.

With all that said, though, it's not really a bad song.  B.o.B. still sounds good rapping, and it's clear that he does have his message in mind that he's trying to get across.  Taylor still sounds pretty, I just don't think she was the right choice for this particular song.  Still, I suspect that it'll be enough to make another big hit for B.o.B.

Alexandra Stan - Lemonade

With Summer nearly upon us, the song of the summer should be just around the corner.  Right now the frontrunners are "Payphone" (yay!), "Where Have You Been" (meh), and "Scream" (please, no.)  And then we've got Ke$ha coming back a little later; she'll probably take over once her next single arrives.  But for me personally, I think "Lemonade" is my summer anthem.  It's just the kind of song that would be so nice to sprawl out and relax to.

It's basically a sexier version of Colbie Caillat's "Brighter Than The Sun."  It's a mellow tune about throwing your cares away.  Alexandra sounds very exotic and very sexy as she sings the lyrics.  And yet the song doesn't build up into anything.  It remains at that chill momentum, which works for me.  It's not the kind of song you dance to, but more just the kind that you bob along with.

It does have serious dubstep featured in it, though.  The vocals are very distorted which just help to make it sound more exotic.  The background is a little cluttered of electronic noises, but again, it's something different and refreshing.  The entire song is just pure bouncy fun.

It's not likely that it's going to break out into the Americas at all, and if it does it'll probably be too late for Summer.  But it's still a great song and you can't stop me from listening to it as I relax in the sun.  I suggest you do the same.

Gym Class Heroes - The Fighter

In today's music their are several names that you will see collaborating with
 everyone.  Rappers need singers to make their songs more poppy.  Singers need rappers to make their songs more exciting.  Nicki Minaj, Pitbull, and Rihanna are showing up on everyone's songs.  So what combo have we got this time, it's Gym Class Heroes with Ryan Tedder.

The song delivers pretty much exactly what you'd expect.  The typical playful rhymes of Travie McCoy mixed with Ryan Tedder singing a tender chorus.  We've already heard the rhymes are songs like "Stereo Hearts" and we've already heard the tender chorus on songs like "Rocketeer," so really we're not getting anything new.

It's still a nice song though.  The smooth vocals have a nice contrast with the gritty rap verses.  It's not a dance song, but it's still got a nice bounce to it in the verses.  And it's easy to the have the hook and chorus stuck in your head and humming it for the rest of the day.

Lyrically, it's something interesting.  It's got the message of keep on fighting, which in itself isn't too new, but it's delivered well.  It takes a much more aggressive approach then your typical uplifting song.  The speaker asks for pain and scars to make him a fighter. It's something a little more unique and makes the song a bit better overall.

So, the song itself is nothing too special.  We've heard the tune before so it's not likely to make too much of an impact.  But it's still a sound that people like and it's got good lyrics so the song should achieve some success with that.