SafetySuit Update

       SafetySuit's music is timeless and, though I've done a post about them before (and mentioned them multiple times), they deserve a resurgence to the top of the blog page again; because they're really freaking awesome. 

Someone Like You

Apology ("I want you to notice me, 'cause I'm already lonely and I don't know what to do" is great)

Find A Way

Stay

Something I Said ("I could take it if I knew just why I waste my time with you"; perfect)

Anywhere But Here (Click here for the orchestral version; it's gorgeous)

Down

The Moment

Annie (from that opening speech to the guitar's fade out at the end, this song is completely beautiful)

What If

Gone Away

Life Left to Go

Believe

Get Around This ("take me back to yesterday, if you can forgive me I will, stay by you only")

Let Go (Click here for the acoustic version)

Staring At It

These Times

Never Stop (Click here for the wedding version; songs like this make it impossible to not love SafetySuit)

One Time

Crash

Stranger (that opening and "I hope that you aren't thinking of us like something you could never love" are perfect)

Things to Say

Life in the Pain

You Don't See Me (another song about being friendzoned and it's too perfect; SafetySuit amazes me)

Hallelujah (The best cover of this song. Ever.)

       Listen to their music, fall in love with every song, then try to decide on a favorite (because I still can't decide; everything from "What If" and "Annie" to "You Don't See Me" and "Stranger" is amazing). The band is working towards another album release soon and I cannot wait to hear their new music.

- E

AWOLNATION

       AWOLNATION is an electronic rock band consisting of Aaron Bruno, Drew Stewart, Hayden Scott, Kenny Carkeet, and Devin Hoffman. The band was formed in 2009 when Bruno was given free use of the Red Bull recording studio and the band has since released three EP's and one full length album; they are currently working on their upcoming sophomore album and will be releasing two new singles ("ThisKidsNotAlright" and "Some Kind of Joke") from the upcoming album (you can get "ThisKidsNotAlright" on Injustice: Gods Among Us).

       AWOLNATION's first album opens with "Megalithic Symphony" and "Some Sort of Creature", setting the stage for their experimental techno rock sound before heading into "Soul Wars", a song which deserves, at least at the most primitive level of enjoyment, some sort of steady head bob for its great and solid rock beat (and if you can't appreciate that beat, you have to admit that "1,2,3 do you love me?" is a great opening line). 

       "People" comes in with a short monologue to the fans (from Bruno), followed quickly by a great beat (it's fair to say that every AWOL song has a great beat) and even better lyrics with verses that need to be danced to and a chorus that begs you to sing along with it. After lifting up the album with "People", the band continues to keep the sound upbeat (dance-able might be a better description) as they follow it up with "Jump On My Shoulders" (nothing sounds better than Bruno singing "you can jump on my shoulders" followed by the repetitive "lalala"'s that make this song irresistable) and "Burn It Down" (once again, an amazing beat from AWOL that forces you to dance and you can't deny the greatness of lyric lines like "looking through a window made of time, would you have the courage not to lie" and "some people call it crazy well I call it healing").

       "Guilty Filthy Soul" transitions from the hard rock of the previous song to a softer rock based on an acoustic guitar and reggae-ish beats, before heading into eternally great "Kill Your Heroes". "Kill Your Heroes" is one of few songs where every line is just as amazing as the last and the band cannot get enough credit for writing a song like this; lines like "never let your fear decide your fate", "I say ya kill your heroes and fly...no need to worry cuz, everybody will die", and "don't you worry we love you more than you know" are all perfect. 

       "My Nightmare's Dream" offers a soft hook (taken from "All I Need") and a short, acoustic, intermission from the rest of the songs on the album before delving into "Sail". Everyone knows the song because it's amazing and topped the charts last summer; plus, you can't not sing along to "maybe I'm a different breed, maybe I'm not listening, so blame it on my ADD baby" (and nothing is better in a song with lyric lines like "this is how an angel dies" and "maybe I should kill myself" than an entire verse of "lalala"'s; gotta love it). 

       "Wake Up" comes in slowly, featuring female vocals and sounding, in itself, dreamlike; the song also manages to mix traditional rock sounds with the underlying beats of a traditional reggae sound (and I'm a sucker for anything that can cross those genre borders with ease). "Not Your Fault" continues with that beach-y reggae sound that was re-introduced in the last song with a great opening line ("she was built with a brain and some swagger") and an even better chorus that continually repeats "it's not your fault"; it's just as wonderfully catchy as the rest of their songs and includes the bands ever amazing ability to use great lyrics in all of their songs.

       "All I Need" is an adorable song and I'll never get tired of listening to those lyrics; lines like "all I need is you smiling at me" and "all I need is life, love with you" are only enhanced by the soft piano melody that flows throughout the song and the steady beat that carries on throughout.

       "Knights of Shame" has an opening which I, of course, love ("dance baby, dance, like the world is ending"), and is long enough to really show off the bands lyrical and instrumental skills; keeping a song going for fifteen minutes without losing the listeners interest can't be easy, but AWOL does so seamlessly (with lyric lines ranging from "but here's last kiss, all suckers, they will cease to exist" to "life is whatever you think it is, what you think this is" to "is anybody really out there" and "without you, I will die" and an ever evolving beat which takes you from a slowly building electronic rock to a sweet anthem-esque reggae-rock sound to a bit of a hip-hop beat before heading into a solid rock beat, and then coming back around again to the reggae-rock sound then heading back to that electronic rock) with the song (with it's constant lyric and genre changes) offering an overall glimpse of the complete album, in one listening.

       "Swinging from the Castles" closes the album with a soft recording of watered down rock and steady lyrics that offer a great closing with lyrics like "it's not for free, it's only fit for our survival" taking it to its end, before petering out with a soft chant of "love".

       Every song this band puts out is amazing and I cannot wait to see what they have in store for us with their next album. If you don't already love them, start falling for them now because they're great.

http://awolnationmusic.com/

https://www.facebook.com/AWOLNATION

https://twitter.com/awolnation

- E

The Wombats

       The Wombats have achieved moderate success in the UK (and throughout Europe), yet their lack of popularity in the US remains an enigma (especially while bands like One Direction or The Wanted are allowed to come from the UK and be famous) to me. An indie rock band trio from Liverpool, England (Matthew Murphy, Dan Haggis, Tord Øverland-Knudsen), The Wombats have released various EP's (The Hangover Sessions, No. 3, The Daring Adventures of Sgt. Wimbo and His Pet Otter, and The Wombats EP [which acted as their introductory album to the US under their US record label, Bright Antenna, in 2008]) and three full length albums. Girls, Boys, and Marsupials was released only in Japan in 2005 while their official debut album, A Guide to Love, Loss & Desperation, was released in 2007, and their most recent album, This Modern Glitch, was released in 2010.
       Though The Wombats may not be insanely famous, their music is amazing. The lyrics are always perfect and their compositions (all with good, solid back-beats) could not be put together better. Plus, The Wombats make better use of backing vocals than any other popular artist today (check out "Schumacher the Champagne", "Kill the Director", "Last Night I Dreamt...", "Moving to New York", "Jump Into the Fog" for some examples).
       While The Wombats have, like most bands, gotten better over time, songs like "Kill the Director", "School Uniforms", and especially "Let's Dance to Joy Division" (all from A Guide to Love, Loss & Desperation) will always be great, no matter how many albums the band releases. Lyrics like "I don't know why I want to voice this out loud, it's therapeutic somehow" and "everything is going wrong, but we're so happy" and videos which feature an always apathetic  looking Murphy never fail to make these songs fun. 
       "Tokyo (Vampires & Wolves)" and "Our Perfect Disease" get better each time you listen to them because none of those lyrics in "Tokyo" are anything less than great ("we all need someone to drive us mad" is just good) and both compositions are a perfect mixture of upbeat techno and indie rock.
       The lyrics in "Jump Into the Fog" are easy and addictive and the softly building composition makes the song a little too irresistible. "Anti-D" lacks those heavy drums and fast pace, opting for a slow composition, but the lyrics are just sweet as every other song from the band.
       "Here Comes the Anxiety" is written greatly and the composition follows those lyrics around, reflecting those emotions and creating a wonderfully simple sound and, adversely, songs like "Valentine" just sound adorable (if you don't look too far beyond the lyrics) and, if the lyrics don't have you hooked in the first fifteen seconds, when that drum beat picks up at that one minute mark it will be impossible not to smile because you know that the song is about to become great.
       "1996" is just good (kind of perfect, actually) and, with lyrics like "we kiss with one eye on our T.V. set" and "the more I give the less I get", it's hardly worth mentioning the heavy bass and the strong piano melody which makes that composition as great as those lyrics.
       "Techno Fan" is just fun; with mature lyrics and a great beat, it's impossible not to move around to. Plus, no line in any song is more satisfying than "shut up and move with me, move with me, or, or get out of my face", especially when that guitar picks up and those background vocals chime in.
       No matter how much I might adore "Valentine" and "1996" or how many times I can play "Schumacher the Champagne" or "Tokyo (Vampires & Wolves)" on repeat, no other song from The Wombats will ever be as great as "Walking Disasters". The composition is perfect and the lyrics could not have been chosen or put together better; the song is altogether amazing. It is one of very few songs that can be played on repeat without becoming tired and lyrics like "right now we need some pop psychology to keep us up-beat" and every single line in that chorus (and every line in each verse and in the bridge..), combined with that great guitar riff and that constant back beat (a strong drum beat is always awesome) makes this song perfect.
       The Wombats have this innate ability to just make really good music, so make sure to check out and support the band because their music is great and they deserve to keep making more of it.
http://thewombats-2.warnerartists.com/

- E

More WOTE (with some krNfx)

       Swifty's music video for "I Knew You Were Trouble" may have been truly awful and super awkward, but Walk off the Earth makes up for it by releasing the best cover of this song that will ever be made (it's kind of better than the original; if Taylor Swift had invited Terry 'krNfx' Im to record this song with her it would be even more popular than it already is). If you do not already love Walk off the Earth, start falling for them now because they are never anything less than amazing.

http://www.youtube.com/user/krnfx

http://www.youtube.com/user/walkofftheearth

- E

DJ Earworm

       DJ Earworm is amazing and, if you do not know about him yet, then you are going to be inundated with information on him in the years to come.

       He's a DJ (erm..duh?) who finds popular songs, takes them apart, then puts them back together to make these amazing mash-ups that always turn out flawless; the lyrics and notes are lined up so perfectly that his mash-ups are usually better and more enjoyable than the original song (and he does just as great a job on the music videos). 

       He's done plenty mash-ups of popular songs ("Beautiful Mashup," "Backwards/Forwards," "Love and Wonder," "If I Were A Free Fallin' Boy," "My Life Would Suck Without You In My Place," "Reckoner Lockdown," "Fly," "Heartless in a Bottle," "Mama," and "Like OMG, Baby" to name only a few of his great mash-ups), but his most popular mash-ups may be the series titled "Music For Sport" and "United State of Pop". 

       "Victory Mix" and "Faster/Stronger" are the two mash-ups from his "Music For Sport" series and they're great. "Victory Mix" has three parts ("Don't Stop Feeling Good," "Gold," and "All Champions Do Is Win") and "Faster/Stronger has four parts ("Bulletproof Titanium," "What Makes You Born To Run," "Speed," and "Power"); they're set up like movements of music, all corresponding to that main theme of "Music For Sport".

       Personally, my favorite mash-ups almost always come from his "United State of Pop" series though. He began the series with "United State of Pop 2007" and continued to release these mash-ups yearly, all of which contained the top twenty-five songs on the charts from that year ("Viva La Pop," "Blame It On the Pop," "Don't Stop the Pop," "World Go Boom," and, now, "Shine Brighter"). 

       All of the mash-ups are great and picking a favorite is kind of difficult (and everyone has their own), but I've always played "Blame It On the Pop" (2009), "Fly," "Heartless In a Bottle," and "Don't Stop the Pop" (2010) just a few more times than the other mixes. Of course, now I am completely addicted to "Shine Brighter" (2012), but that's to be expected.

       He puts a great amount of work into creating these amazing mash-ups (and their videos) whose individual songs blend together so smoothly that you could never imagine these songs not being made with the initial goal of, someday, working together. DJ Earworm deserves far more credit for his work than other DJ's (such as Deadmau5 or David Guetta) whose music just does not sound as good as these mash-ups.

       Keep an eye on DJ Earworm's website to catch all of his new mash-ups (they are always great [and free]) and to read his analysis of each "United State of Pop" movement; he gives a great synopsis of the themes used in that year's popular music.

http://djearworm.com/

- E

FATT Announcement

       Fitz and The Tantrums announced today that their next album will be released next year (2013). Also, if you have not purchased/downloaded it previously, their always fun Christmas song, "Santa Stole My Lady," is free to download now on their website, http://fitzandthetantrums.com/, so give them your email and get the song before the holidays are over.

- E

One Direction

       The working title for this was "I Do Not Know"; I really don't. I  cannot seem to wrap my mind around the phenomena of One Direction. What is so alluring about a group of pitchy, pre-pubescent looking boys; and their songs... They're just... Well, the ones I know of are a little super overly produced. The band remains this ephemeral (hopefully) enigma to me. How did they get so famous? Why are young girls so excited over them? How are their pants that tight; how much future damage are they inflicting upon themselves? Do they know the origin of wearing your pants that low? At least one of them is gay, right? How many of them are there?
       Actually, I do like one of the songs; it's fun to play super loud and dance around whilst your neighbors curse your musical tastes. I've just never paid much attention to the band. When they first came out as this huge deal from overseas (thanks England, you could have stopped with The Wombats and Ed Sheeran, but it's fine. Really), I just figured that their fame would be on the same level as Big Time Rush, where they act like they're a really big deal but you have never actually heard any of their music on the radio; that type of deal. Now that they are everywhere, including my morning show (yes, I love the Today show), I figured I should pay a little more attention to them. This research is futile because it only creates more questions for me than answers. For instance, I upset my youngest sister after showing how oblivious I was of the group members after passing a magazine cover.

Me: "Whoa! What? There's a blond one?? When did that happen?"

Sister: "Uh, he's always been there."

Me: "No, he hasn't."

Sister: "Yes, he has!"

Me: "'Kay dude, calm down. Seriously though, they all had curly brown hair a while ago."

Sister: -audible sigh-

       Do not try to have a rational conversation about this band with someone who is a fan. Just don't. Unless you're a fan too, but then rationality probably trips over a window ledge and falls away so.... It's not just One Direction (1D? Really?) fans who are irrational about that sort of subject matter; it's any fan of any band. If someone came up to me and said "Lady Danville sucks" I would resort to my preferred vernacular. 

       I only have three of their songs, and I question the motive behind my purchases every time I scroll past them, but those three songs actually give a pretty a clear picture of how the band (though immature and annoying in theory) has achieved such great success.        

       "What Makes You Beautiful" was this mega hit because thousands of tweens lost their insecurities for a bit (then they turned on the television or saw a billboard). The lyrics are questionable though; not in a bad way, only in a way that makes me think it was written in less than an hour. "You don't know you're beautiful, that's what makes you beautiful"; so knowing you're hot would make you ugly? No, actually, I'm seeing some merit in that now, thinking about past acquaintances.... Okay, well "the way you flip your hair gets me overwhelmed" is just ridiculous; if this makes them faint, what are they going to do when they get to the bedroom? And "right now I'm looking at you" just annoys me; there is nothing I hate more than a person staring. "To prove I'm right I put it in a song"; if it's this easy, why have I worked so hard on my argumentative skills all these years? Overall though, this song is awfully catchy. That's what it all boils down to, whether or not the melody is, as one of my professors preached (Every. Class.), "is the piece hummable"? It is, terrifically horrifically so. If I hear it once, it just keeps running around my head all day. Whether or not it is some great masterpiece that will define our generation and go down as "one of the greats" has no impact on its, or the bands, popularity. The only thing that matters to consumers is the immediate satisfaction they hear in the manufactured beats which blend (and support) perfectly with the harmonies of five guys who look harmless enough to adorn your daughter's pink walls.

       I actually kind of really like "One Thing"; just a little. I think it's that voice break right as the song begins, plus the fact that it (the voice) is backed by a minimal amount of instruments and technology. I'm not even that aware of the lyrics, I just love their vocals and the composition in this song. It sounds so clean, but in that good alternative (no, I am not saying they're alternative; I'm saying that their voices do not sound altered) way; and the composition is actually great. It sounds like it took a lot more time to create the score for "One Thing" than to make it for "What Makes You Beautiful". It's the only song that does not sound like someone's fingers were hovering over the sound board in the recording studio, ready to fix any fault in the vocals or missed cue by a musician; it is so much better than you would expect from this band. So, besides the fact that I actually like this song, what about it makes the band so popular? It does not have that shiny pretentious boy band sheen all over it, it's refreshing. I mean, it's not like the other refreshing artists England has supplied (they will never be able to achieve the quality of Rosenberg or Mercury. Not much of an argument) but this song is not bad, all things considered. It's just cute enough to make younger girls (their main demographic) love it, and lines like "I'm dying just to make you see" or "I've tried playing it cool" make it a little irresistible to those who have actually had these emotions. "Get out of my head and fall into my arms instead" is too great of a refrain to even consider this song as anything less than a success. Of course, that constant back beat is timed perfectly for you to dance around to it, and only furthers any liking you may have developed for the song. As different as this song is from their first mega hit, it really only helped to further the bands success. It's refreshing and does not pander to the insecurities of immature girls.

       Then there's their most recent single: "Live While You're Young". Oh, yes, this one.... Can I just say that, after some research, maybe this song is acceptable for the band members (if you listen to this thinking that they are fourteen/fifteen, it's a little.. questionable[?]), but the average age of their fans is far too young to hear lines like "tonight let's get some," "let's pretend it's love," or "if we get together, don't let the pictures leave your phone". Excuse me, but is this nine year old with one of the curly haired guys' faces on her shirt really listening to, and absorbing, lyrics like this. I am a big advocate for not censoring songs ("Forget You" is just stupid. Fuck you if like it better than the original) and artistic freedom, and I think it's ridiculous to blame Marilyn Manson for the Columbine attack or Eminem for the continued trend of misogyny in America, but if your demographic is young children, you do not use lyrics like this. That's like giving "Glad You Came" to a five year old; eventually they will connect the dots, grow up, and be just as traumatized by the fact that they sang that song, loudly, in public at that age as I was when I grew up and found out what that Uncle Kracker song meant. I guess I have to talk about the commercial merits of this song though, don't I? The guitar in the beginning draws you in and instantly creates the melody; it's already recognizable and easy to hum. The chorus is easy to sing along to, he just says "crazy" a bunch, then makes some "whoa" sounds; despite the fact that the lyrics are questionable, they are crazy upbeat and the lyrical concepts are so basic that anyone can pick up on the rhythm and sing along with, at least part, of the chorus. People like 'party' songs, it's a fact. That's why Katy Perry will always be more famous than Momma Holler; people don't care about deep or meaningful music, they just want something they can dance along to. I'm not really one to talk; I cannot wait for Ke$ha's newest album. The thing that makes this song so popular is the fact that it played off of every stereotype of a popular song: it is upbeat, it has easy and repetitive lyrics, and just enough guitar to make people think the song is 'good'.

       This last song was a bit of a downer. Listen to "One Thing"; it's good. I'm not putting down One Direction, I am only examining the facts which make them so much more popular than any other band right now. They are great; they are crazy famous and their pictures are on every tween girls wall on multiple continents, yet they somehow manage to not sound annoying in interviews and to steer clear of scandals, all while keeping their spot as number one boy band, in the world, while so many other ones are trying to surface. Business wise, they are a terrific asset; musically, they could have potential.

- E

SafetySuit

       This band has, while achieving chart standings (number 1 on VH1 Top 20 Countdown ["Stay"] and creating amazing albums, Life Left To Go and These Times [number 7 on Billboard 200]), remained a secret. I think that everyone can agree that it's fun when no one really knows who one of your favorite bands is, but it is also disheartening; the band deserves so much more. Actually, the band has appeared to be more well known on the west coast than on the east, and their sophomore album did receive a lot more attention than their first album (even though I still think their first was better) but they still have yet to become a household name.

       The band (Doug Brown, Dave Garofalo, Jeremy Henshaw, Tate Cunningham) formed in Tulsa, Oklahoma, but is now based in Nashville (as all great artists are [Paper Route, GoodNight City]) and has toured with a slew of great artists, including Collective Soul, The Script, 3 Doors Down, Ryan Star, Daughtry, Hoobastank, and Parachute. It would be great to see them live; supposedly, they have great live performances. The band itself is pretty awesome though, and I don't use awesome often (I use fantastic, great, amazing; but awesome is awesome); they are like this wonderful mix of Sleeperstar and The Gaslight Anthem, in that they have this really great rock sound and the vocalists voice is just scratchy enough to be amazing, but in such a beautifully clean and clear form that I cannot get enough of it.

       "The Moment" is just such a great song, if only for the line "you will probably end up with someone half as good as me"; I love it. The song has that classic rock beat, but it maintains a clean sound throughout; there is not a line in this song that is not great.

       "Someone Like You" is a great song; "If I were strong enough... would you have let me come to be with you," "would you, would you be strong enough too". The music video is just as great as the song, even if it is kind of cheesy. I'm just going to make a blanket announcement that all of the songs on the albums, Life Left To Go and These Times, are great before I reiterate the same phrase throughout this post. 

       "Down" sounds like the '90's rock songs that bands like Switchfoot or 3 Doors Down used to make and, while "Gone Away" and "Life Left To Go" may be underrated, they are still just as perfectly written and composed as all of the other pieces by the band. 

       The songs all tie in with each other in a great way; "Anywhere But Here" begins with, "is this the end of a moment" and, though it would be better if it followed the song "The Moment" on the album, it still reiterates that title, tying them together and reminding you of the other songs. It's a form of, possibly subconscious, self advertising, and it's great. The song is kind of fantastic itself though, with lines like "maybe I could be all you ever dreamed 'cus you are beautiful inside... I can't see why I'd do anything without you"; why is this band not more popular? "Find A Way" does the same thing with a simple line like "make you stay" while being directly before the song, "Stay," on the album. Of course, this does not lessen how amazing the song is; "you know I'm going to find a way to let you have your way with me" is just too good.

       After all these years (four, five? oh gosh, I'm getting old... relatively) I still can't get enough of this album. I mean, "Stay" is so fantastic; "what did I do to make you say that to me... what can I do to make you say come back to me". "Apology" is just amazing, period. There are no words to describe how great the entire thing is. "Something I Said" has an amazing composition and the lyrics, combined with the breathy intro by the vocalist (which just sounds great with his scratchy voice) makes lines like "I am on your side, no matter what you do" even better. "What If" would be great for the concept alone, but the fact that the band reiterates the phrase, with such honesty, makes it great. There are no descriptions which would make "Annie" sound any better than it already is; beginning with the spoken introduction, followed by every great line and guitar riff after that. 

       "Get Around This," aside from the great lyrics ("I don't know why I make this hard for you" and the repetition of the phrase, "take me back to yesterday") begins with only the sound of violins, which maintain the same beat and notes throughout the song; I am a sucker for any modern composition which integrates the use of violins into their piece. 

       "Staring At It" composition sounds a little disjunct at the beginning, but no other sound would work with the lyrics or the emotion surrounding the song. "Never Stop" ties into that '90's rock sound that the band has been able to recreate so easily on both of their albums.

       "These Times," the title song of the album, is fantastic; it sounds retrospective and great with lines like "these times will try hard to define me," "I'm only trying to dig my way out of all these things I can't" or "these times are hard but they will pass".

       "Believe" sounds like one of the songs from the bands first album; the same thing with "Stranger" and "Crash" (both great songs, especially "Stranger"). Though I am a fan of the bands earlier sound, their newer sound shows just how much they have grown, and I am loving it more and more each time I listen to These Times. "Let Go" is a really great song, with that combination of techno to their rock sound, and the great lyrics (every SafetySuit song, regardless of the sound, has amazing lyrics; just, their lyrical ability is, amazing). 

       "One Time" shows just how far the band has come, composition wise, since their first album. The song is great and, as always, I love the lyrics. "Things to Say" switches up the composition a bit, adding a country-esque twang, but the combination of rock and country always comes out sounding great; it only makes the band sound more like The Gaslight Anthem on this song. I am not comparing SafetySuit to these bands (Sleeperstar and The Gaslight Anthem) to lessen their greatness (I think SafetySuit is better than The Gaslight Anthem), but only to try and define their sound for someone who has never listened to them before. 

       If any song is capable of showing the composition and lyrical growth which the band has achieved since their first album in 2008, it is "Life In The Pain". The song is, all together, amazing. "What you don't know, will save you from some pain" and "now you don't have a purpose, you don't let anybody in" are simply fantastic. The lyrics which this band is so adept at creating, in all of their songs, are just awe-inspiring.

       "Never Stop" borders on the edge between the sound from their first album, and the sound on their second; as does "You Don't See Me". It makes me excited for their third album, as it sounds like it will be a perfect mixture of the mature compositions of the second album, with the honest and thoughtful lyrics of the first album. 

       SafetySuit is just awesome. They deserve so much more than they have received and I can only hope that, now that their tour is coming to a close, they are going to begin work on an amazing new album that I will play on repeat, much as I have with Life Left To Go and These Times. There will be at least one song whose lyrics (or composition) will make you stop and fall for the band.

- E

Lady Danville

       After Lady Danville made their announcement that Matt would be leaving the band and they would, therefore, be changing their name, I questioned even finishing this post but, if you turn a "bands to watch" post into general information about a great "band," it is so much more subjective (i.e. easier to write). Of course, the band split up (sort of; in essence, they are going back to their Mikey G and Dan from Danville days [the songs are few, but great]), but they were still amazing, and shamelessly promoting their new and upcoming, albeit unnamed, band is important. 

       An indie pop band consisting of Michael Garner, Daniel Chang, and Matthew Frankel (incorporated into the group sometime after the trio met at Awaken A Capellla at UCLA), Lady Danville formed in 2007 and won their first contest, as a trio, with their song "Tired Magician" in the Annual 98.7 Star Lounge Competition. The band has spent the last five years developing a following in Los Angeles and touring the country with bands and artists, including Ben Folds, Jack's Mannequin, Guster, Chris Conley, and Dashboard Confessional. On October 27th, the band posted an update on the facebook page which stated that Matt was going to be leaving the band and, while they were still releasing their album and continuing with their planned 2013 tour, they would be changing their band's name.

       The band should still be releasing their music video for "Operating" before their February 12th album release, then they will, officially, be whatever band name Michael and Dan have decided on. The band members themselves are amazing; they are kind of loveable. The best way to describe the member's onstage charisma is by stating the fact that, the first time my sister and I saw them live, she leaned over halfway through the first song and said "Oh my god, I love them; they're adorable". Any live performance they have done shows just how much the members appear to love performing, and that makes it so much more enjoyable. 

       The band's latest EP (Operating [you can get it on iTunes or here]) featured only three songs, but I had been waiting years for "Ships" to be recorded so I would no longer have to rely on this cafe version and was, nonetheless, excited for the short album. "Better Side" has a great video (and is a great song) and "Operating," while slow, is reminiscent of the sound on their first album (Lady Danville EP), and I cannot help but love it. 

       I was addicted to "Sophie Roux", after hearing it on Dorm Life (a song which is now available on their Tour EP, which you can get on iTunes or here) and, while "Tired Magician" is an amazing song, it almost sounds better when performed acoustically in a stairwell than it does recorded. All of the songs from the bands first EP are great and show the amazing talent for songwriting and composition which each member has. "Anthem" is a great introduction to the band and the indie pop sound they so easily create, while "Tired Magician," "Cast Away," and "Love to Love" showcase the band's talent for manipulating words and turning them into great lyrics. "David" is, in my opinion, their best song; it may not be my favorite, with all of the new songs the band has released throughout the years, but it is still the absolute best one, because the lyrics are perfect and the song is the reason that I love the band, their music, and music in general. 

       "Carolina" is one of the best end of summer songs (with it's bittersweet lyrics and sound) and their cover of "Kids" is better than the original. I spent a year playing "Cars" on repeat when I was sixteen and got my roommate hooked on it when we were eighteen (no matter how many years go by, it is still fantastic). 

       "Bed 42" is one of their best and nothing will make you fall in love with "Frames & Moulding" more than listening to it by yourself on the highway at four in the morning. If you have seen anything from Dorm Life, you've probably heard "Spoon"; it's a great song and was featured on a really fantastic show. Of course, there's "I Want You Back" or "The Uke Song," which is great live and was never released in any other format; the audience response is always great and it's one of those songs that is better in a live format than recorded in a studio. The band did release a song last year, called "Holiday Song", which is one of the best songs to play during the holidays.

       The fact that the band may have been on the precipice of fame, with their music being featured in television shows (Royal Pains and Pretty Little Liars), their first full-length album being released in February, and the promise of a 2013 tour, makes their split all the more disappointing. As much fun as I try to poke at the situation, with comments like, "I guess this shirt is a collector's item now," I am still upset about their break-up. I can only hope that Michael and Dan will have as much more, success than Lady Danville had and that the fans who have supported them for years will continue to do so now.

       Here are some sites for you guys to check out, but there will be new sites, and a band name update, to come:

http://ladydanville.wordpress.com/

http://ladydanville.com/

https://www.facebook.com/ladydanville

https://twitter.com/ladydanville

- E

The Script

       The band's new album came out this week (10/9) and, though I was going to try, for once, to abstain from buying anything by The Script, I now own #3. I got addicted to the band one summer, somewhere in Utah, when I heard "The Man Who Can't Be Moved" (a lot; Sirius radio does not have much variety on their stations) and thought that would be the end of the band. Then, of course, "Before the Worst" and "Break Even" began assaulting the radio stations and there was no escaping the band.

       I'm not complaining about the band's popularity, but the fact that their music has become such a mainstream item had me worried that it was going to have a poor effect on anything they produced after their initial success. For a while, I continued to hear only the songs which they had released from their first album; my friend was addicted to "Break Even" (and playing it with the bass ALL the way up) the summer before our first year of college, and my roommate and I could not stop playing "If You See Kay" (watch from 8:40 on if you're wondering about the 'pronunciation' (intentional mondegreen)) for nearly an entire semester. Then "For the First Time" invaded our airwaves and, a few months later, I had bought Science & Faith. When I got hooked on "Nothing" and "If You Ever Come Back," I realized that my addiction to The Script was very close to the one I have to Taylor Swift (except The Script has better lyrics and melodies). The thing was, all of the songs were just as well written and put together as they were on the bands first album, even when they changed it up a bit on "Walk Away," featuring B.o.B (of course, I liked the song because I kind of love B.o.B). 

       I was actually planning on just buying one or two songs from their new album, thinking that, by now, they would definitely have become too mainstream, with the fame going to their heads and ruining their songs; I was wrong. I saw them perform "If You Could See Me Now" and thought, "crud, that's good," and now I have the entire album. It's worth the $10 to just buy it on iTunes or Amazon, with songs like "Hall of Fame," featuring Will.I.Am, pulling them out of their comfort zone (in a good way), and "Glowing" and "No Words" to remind you of the sound on the band's first album. The other songs, like "Millionaires" and "Gold 'Ol Days," have the indie lyrics that The Script is so good at putting forth, but infused with the pop sounds that overlay the basic piano in each track. If you think that you're going to skip over The Script's new album because they're famous now and their music cannot possibly be as good as it once was, forget your preconceptions and buy the new album; it's a little different, but it's good. 

- E

Taylor Swift

       I hate that I like, at times love, Taylor Swift; abhor it, really. She does not have an actual genre; she cannot decide between country or pop, and she can be placed in neither of these categories. Her songs are usually about the same thing and, every once in a while, she tries to write a song about something she has no real grasp on. I apologize to anyone who might think it's pathetic to like Taylor Swift, but I'm sure that person is secretly addicted to her and, as disappointing as my love of this pop country singer may be, it cannot be as bad as the gaffe I made when announcing I loved Ke$ha; or when, in the future, I admit that I am addicted to anything by, or that features, B.o.B (that future is about eight songs down).

   "Picture to Burn" I might like burning things a little too much, but this is the first Swifty song I bought and it is so fucking stupid and her producers hadn't yet decided to autotune her voice, but it is so damn catchy. Plus, guys who love their trucks that fucking much make me want to run them over with my Daewoo. Same goes for "Should've Said No"; the 'first song' thing, not the vehicular homicide bit.

   "Love Story" Even though Taylor Swift obviously never read "The Scarlet Letter" or the end of 

"Romeo and Juliet," the song is still awfully catchy. "You Belong With Me" falls under that same category; it may be about an unhealthy stalker-esque relationship, but it is the best song to sing in the car with your friends. 

   "Forever & Always" This song is kind of great and it's about time someone let Swifty know that happy endings don't exist. "Last Kiss" and some of the songs on her newer albums allude to that fact, but Taylor Swift spent a lot of time in a happy, all-is-perfect, world.  
  "Enchanted" I actually really love this song. A lot. The same goes for most of the songs on her album, Speak Now. "Back to December," for instance, was played on repeat for about half an hour on the highway once, and "Sparks Fly" is somehow great to me; I think it must be that line about "green eyes". And though I don't think Taylor Swift has ever been in an abusive relationship, "Mean" is still ridiculously addictive. 

   "Mine" She kind of fell a little short on the (previously stated) album here, because she does not know what she is talking about; we all know Taylor Swift did not recently live in some small town and fall in love with a guy, have kids, and live happ-fuck-ily ever after. 

  "Better Than Revenge" She redeemed herself on Speak Now with this song; I think I played it more than any other song my freshman year (no one likes the first sorority girl they befriend in college, unless maybe they're in a sorority...no, those girls are all bitches; they'd be the type of girl that would hate other girls...). "Speak Now" was also kind of awesome, I mean, completely unrealistic, but in a slightly good way. And I love "Long Live"; I have no explanation for this.

   "If This Was A Movie" I listened to this song far too often last year... around winter break? Anyways, Swifty does sing about waiting for guys in the rain an awful lot, but the song is too catchy and was a nice hold over between her album in 2010 and Red. The same goes for "Ours," even though it's sickeningly adorable, you have to love the music video. 

   "Both of Us" It's actually B.o.B's song (he is great; his lyrics are better than Taylor Swift's, and so much more fun to sing), but Taylor Swift's appearance should not be overlooked too much; it's her first really good summer release song and she has to be given credit for being anywhere close to B.o.B. Honestly, I fucking love this song. 

   "I Knew You Were Trouble." It's one of those songs where I sit there with iTunes asking me if I'm really sure I want to buy the song thinking, "why do I like Taylor Swift," but damn this song; I love it. And all of her singles, well, most of her singles, coming from her new album. "We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together" is awful, but Rolling Stone describes why I love it, perfectly, as they usually do. I held back on purchasing "Red" for a while actually, but when I listened to it again while writing this, I broke down. 

       Taylor Swift is the epitome of an abusive relationship; I don't want to love her, but I'm sucked in by the promises she makes with her catchy songs and lyrics, so I forget all of the shit she gave me on her first album and a few of the other songs along the way. Her songs have gotten progressively better over the years though; there's a big jump from "Picture to Burn" to "We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together". Judge me if you want, but if you listen to any of these songs, you'll be singing them for a week. Red comes out October 22nd, and there is no doubt in my mind that I will be just as excited to get this album as I was to get Lightening. 

- E

Lightening

       Matt & Kim released their new album today... an hour(ish) ago. Anyways, aside from the creep factor of my staying up to buy a digital album (one that cannot sell out so there is no real need for me to put in that much effort to retrieve the album), it is great. I had forgotten how much I really loved hearing a solid piano base in a song; it was the first instrument I fell in love with and will always be better than the others. And Matt & Kim is the first techno/alternative band I fell in love with. And without expanding on their album in the least, I'm going to curl up in a ball with my Snuggie, ginger ale, and iPod full of Lightening and let this flu kill me, as it appears to want to do so desperately. Listen to it and get it, or at least get this song, and this one...and this one...and this one, and this; just buy the entire thing.

Lightening
- E

Ke$ha

       No matter how 'good,' relatively, your taste in music is, everyone has that one band or artist they cannot get enough of. My friend used to refer to this person as "forbidden fruit" and would walk around saying "Taylor Swift is my forbidden fruit," which was kind of funny, until she came out (erm, my friend, not Swifty), then it just got a little weird (she realized this before we did though, and decided that the term, guilty pleasure, was more socially acceptable).

       My guilty pleasure is Ke$ha. She kind of got overlooked in the whole Katy Perry/Lady Gaga era, but Ke$ha is amazing all on her own. She puts on a great show, without the incredible weirdness of Lady Gaga or the awful sweetness of Katy Perry. She's just better, overall, because she's crazy weird (without reaching the awkward stage), has some really nice songs (without being sickeningly sweet), and does whatever the fuck she wants (without being annoying about it). I kind of stomped on Lady Gaga a lot in that sentence but, really, she's just annoying. Who wears a meat dress or heelless heels (the fuck came up with that torture device; I prefer my heels to have heels)? That's the same as screaming, "PAY ATTENTION TO ME; I AM INSECURE". Ugh, Lady Gag.

       Back to the greatness of Ke$ha- if you can make a music video like this and dress up Simon Rex like this, while still writing a song like this...or this... you're pretty great; being diverse is a strength, not a weakness. And turning around from the dirty look and feel of "Tik Tok" to make something that's, literally, sparkling and bursting with color in "Take It Off," is kind of impressive (plus, if you don't feel like singing along to "gonna get faded, I'm not the designated driver, so I don't give a, I don't give a,--supreme auto-tune-- I don't give a," then you're just not fun).

       That's the point of Ke$ha, just to be fun. There is the occasional serious song ("The Harold Song," "Dancing With Tears In My Eyes"), but Ke$ha's music is more concerned with getting you to dance than in getting you to think about deeper issues. Every once in a while you need to listen to an upbeat artist like this. I know that, after an hour and a half of listening to all of her songs in my iTunes, I feel kind of great (either that or that fourth cup of coffee finally kicked in...). Either way, I cannot wait until Warrior is released December 4th.

- E