Category: Pop

  • It seems like just yesterday Little Boots — otherwise known as Victoria Hesketh — released her amazing debut album Hands, but it actually came out in 2009, and so four years have passed between Hands’ release and the release of her sophomore effort Nocturnes, which was released on May 3, 2013. There are a couple…

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  • Singer/songwriter Gabrielle Aplin’s new single, “Panic Cord,” is taken from her album English Rain, which was just released in England today on May 13, 2013. (She is, in fact, English.) It’s the opening track on the album and for good reason: it’s a highly addictive song that showcases Gabrielle’s ability to write poignant lyrics and…

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  • New York City is a place filled with unfulfilled dreams, unrealised hopes, and infinite potential. It is both exhausting and exhilarating. It’s difficult to find who sounds best and who matters in the general cacophony of the city, from open mics in the West Village to that one amazing once-in-a-lifetime concert at the Bowery Ballroom.…

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  • It’s funny that the opening track on this album is called “Sacrilege” because that’s what I initially felt about this album. Oh, like the rest of the world, I thought “Sacrilege” was a fantastic track. It’s truly amazing, the way it builds and builds, becoming something greater and more emotive as it goes on, and…

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  • When I see She & Him in concert in Boston this July the opening act will be Camera Obscura and I can’t think of a better match. For it’s Camera Obscura that immediately comes to mind when I listen to She & Him’s new album, Volume 3. A mere ten seconds into the opening track,…

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  • Bradenton, Florida’s finest are back with a red hot new single every bit as infectious as past hits like “Secret Valentine,” “Heaven Can Wait,” “Party, Fun, Love & Radio,” and “Friday is Forever.” It begins with twinkly guitars then the drums and vocals kick right in and immediately hook you. “I’m all alone / holding…

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  • Until recently, I thought that Diplo and Major Lazer were two different people. Alas, I was wrong. Diplo is Major Lazer, Major Lazer being his reggae-ish alter-ego. Although many of the songs on Free the Universe stray pretty far from reggae. And I have to say — this is a very difficult album to digest.…

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  • I really hate that there’s a hash tag in the title of this song. It was obnoxious enough when will.i.am used one in the title of his new album. We certainly didn’t need Mariah to do that. It just seems like a lame attempt to capture the attention of the Twitter generation. She’s a living…

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  • “Everybody have fun tonight, everybody have fun tonight,” will.i.am sings during “Hello,” the first track on his fourth solo album, #willpower. If that sounds boring and uninspired, well, welcome to a whole album of boring and uninspired anthems. I’m talking about songs so horrifyingly bad that they make even the worst songs he’s done with…

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  • It’s hard to believe but Norwegian singer-songwriter/DJ Annie has been releasing music for over ten years now.  OK, so technically her debut album Anniemal dropped in 2004, but she was DJing and releasing underground singles like “The Greatest Hit” as far back as 1999.  Anyway, man, time flies.  I feel like I just bought Anniemal…

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  • When English singer/songwriter Charli XCX — born Charlotte Aitchison — was 14 her parents loaned her the money to finance her debut album. The album, which Charli wrote entirely herself, was made and called 14, but it was never officially released, though promotional copies were sent out. Charli was quick to put the album behind…

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  • Patti Smith is a living legend and “Because The Night” is one of her most popular and beloved tracks. It’s such a classic that covering it would seem to be pointless because you couldn’t possibly live up to the original and to even try to would almost be an insult to Smith. Meanwhile, you’d just…

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  • Vampire Weekend put out this 7″ featuring their current single “Diane Young” and the B-side “Step” as a special, limited edition Record Store Day release. If there’s one thing you have to give “Diane Young” credit for, it’s easily one of the band’s most sonically adventurous and experimental tracks yet, which is saying a lot…

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  • Phoenix — the cool cats of Versailles — had probably given up on the idea of ever becoming popular in the States by the time they released their fourth album, 2009’s Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix. But, to everyone’s surprise, the album became an enormous success here. Its blend of irresistible pop hooks and sophisticated art rock…

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  • I started off writing a very negative review of this new Lana Del Rey single from The Great Gatsby soundtrack. I wrote about the lyrics being sub par and Lana practically slurring half of them with her peculiar pronunciation. But then a funny thing happened. After listening to the song nearly 10 times, I found…

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