Kylie Minogue is a music business anomily. It’s hard to imagine she had no substantial hit in the 90s and that almost 15 years after her first hit, “Locomotion,” (a very mild hit we should add) she’d come back to the State-side, in 2001, with “Can’t Get You Out of My Head.” It turned out to be another mild hit and then she disappeared. Or so it seemed.

Minogue kept releasing great pop albums in 2003 and 2007 , toured the world, stayed relevant within the pop world working with Bloodyshy & Avant (Britney Spears’s “Toxic”), Tim Rice-Oxley (Keane), Cutfather (Pussycat Doll’s “I Hate This Part”), Greg Kurstin (Lily Allen, Sia, and Kesha producer), and Stuart Price (Madonna). With all this Kylie’s following seems to increase even if her June release Aphrodite is nowhere in Billboards Top 200 albums after only 3 months.

The album is on it’s 2nd single “Get Outta My Way” with a video premiere and it’s quite the piece of Pop art. It features the singer performing choreography that has her poppin’ and lockin’ while laying on a graphic grid with shirtless dancers picking-up and placing chairs around her. The end sequence has her looking like a superhero-lioness of sorts with a herd of gay cubs surrounding her. Fantastic, if you ask us.

It’s quite the eye-candy. Whether it becomes a pop-radio hit doesn’t seem to matter anymore. Did it ever?

It’s been three years since Maroon 5 released their Police/Sting inspired sophomore album It Won’t Be Soon Before Long. Now, “Misery”, the first single from their upcoming album Hands All Over (due out September 2010) has a video.

The record sounds very Maroon 5 but we like it. Never mind that the bridge (1:55) sounds almost identical to the bridge on “This Love” (2:02).

As always, the proof of a dope video is in two things: 1) Does it make you love the record more? 2) Do you watch it through to the end? In this case, the answer to both those questions is…yes.

There’s something about the shots of Adam Levine falling that makes you want to see more of it.

Plus, Adam Levine sporting a pompadour? We’re not complaining.

The window for game-changing artists is so tiny that it seems that only every 5 years we get to see the game change in some way, Kanye for Hip-Hop, Lady GaGa for Pop.

Latin music is probably twice as hard to change as Latin radio is very fixed in format and sound.

We might be crazy to think that Chilean artist Javier Mena can change it, but with the caliber of the first single off her album Mena, there’s a chance. We can hope.

Synths. Melody, on point. Electro-pop perfection. Don’t mind the long instrumental bridge.

If you haven’t met Javiera Mena yet. Well, let her make an indelible first impression.

Listen here:

The fall of 2008 held two parallel pop phenomenons: Gossip Girl and Lady GaGa.

Gossip Girl had just premiered their second season, and even though viewership had fallen 7% from a measly, 3.65 million viewers from the pilot episode, they were everywhere. You couldn’t escape the show.

Lady GaGa was just really beginning to work a buzz, because at that point, her single “Just Dance” wasn’t sellable without an album. It was right after the album release that support began to build for her first number 1 single.

In this clip, music supervision company, Chop Shop, seamlessly placed “Paparazzi” into one of the first scenes of Gossip Girl’s second season.

We remember watching this episode. Little did we know that weeks later we would fall in love with this song while giving Lady GaGa’s album a chance.

Not for nothing, but that kiss is totally bawse.

Check the placement out:

Enrique Iglesias isn’t the first thing that comes to mind when you think, “Artistic vision.” For the most part he’s been a latin radio darling and that’s all he’ll ever be. Essentially, he has a career sprinkled with some really good songs.

His latest album is due out this summer and the marketing plan is to have a Pop and Latin Pop single simultaneously out at the same time. “I Like It” features Pitbull and it’s supposed to be in Jersey Shore soundtrack. Why? Who knows? “Cuando Me Enamoro” is the Latin Pop single and is already Top 10 in the latin charts. It’s deserving since it is a simple and sweet pop song featuring a latin music living legend, Juan Luis Guerra.

We always say that a video goes a long way in making anyone love a song. The new video for “Cuando Me Enamoro” just tugs at your heart strings. It depicts several kids in an elementary school dealing with crushes. Totally made us think about our first crush…those were the days.

The video features Ana Ortiz, from Ugly Betty, and it’s quite beautiful. We like.

Check it out:

It’s a ‘Late Delivery’ because he’s been building considerable buzz for about a year.

The story with this guy is pretty interesting. He was signed to J Records, after releasing two mix tapes and performing everywhere, all while still deciding to finish his senior year at Duke University.

Mike Posner walks a mile between Kid Cudi and a singer-songwriter, by way of John Mayer.

Where we might not be all that convinced by the potential of his staying power as an artist, as a producer and songwriter, he’s got it down packed. Check his current single “Cooler Than Me.” It reminds us a bit of Sam Sparro’s “Black & Gold” but that’s okay…we’ll forgive. This track should be a hit.

Check it out:

We just recently found out about Terence Trent D’Arby. We know, we know…

Either way, as we perused through his catalog “Holding On To You” really stood out. Even more, his live version of it. Chills. So…

Here it is. Enjoy this lazy Sunday:

Robyn’s album, Body Talk Pt. 1, is due out in a couple of weeks and finally released a single. From the 8 track LP, she chose “Dancing On My Own,” an incredibly heartbreaking record.

Not surprisingly it’s fantastic, it’s clear-cut proof that dance music has feeling.

The video is fabulously shot and well lit. The sequences of her performing behind the mic are just eye-candy. We’ve watched it a couple of times and love both the video and record more and more.

In reality the concept is totally crazy. She’s stalking this guy on a club dance floor – those are uncomfortable enough.

When No Doubt’s Rock Steady came out, back in the day (December 2001), we fell in love with the sugariness of it. The band had totally gone pop and they did it shamelessly. Plus, they were the first pop act that went ‘80s’ on us.

“Underneath It All” was the first song we gravitated towards. A year later, so would a lot of other folk – it became a Top 40 #1,

In 2004, the musical supervisor for 50 First Dates used it in one of the sweetest scenes of the film. What a wonderful placement this was…created the perfect mood.

Take a look:

It has to be said that this year, album releases have been fantastic. Vampire Weekend, Sade, Kelis, Julieta Venegas, Hot Chip, Erik Hassle, Erykah Badu, Ellie Goulding, Broadcast 2000, B.o.B., The Bird & The Bee, just to name a few.

If all of these albums have been anything but stellar, at least, there was some level of anticipation. It was anticipation that made people take time out of their day to go to a record store and buy.

This past Tuesday three anticipated albums were released. Try and add this little triad to your iPods.

Janelle Monáe, Metropolis, II & III: The Arch Android

Almost four years after hearing Janelle Monáe on Idlewild, Outkast’s album/soundtrack for the movie of the same name, her full-length album finally sees the light of the day. Mixing psychedelic, funk, glam-rock…you name it. It’s in there. With a couple of key music placements and/or licensing deals, Janelle is on her way to stay.

Gotta hear: “Locked Inside” and “Oh, Maker”

Listen to “Locked Inside” stream:

Jamie Lidell, Completely Exposed

This Englishman has had his songs placed in Grey’s Anatomy and Target commercials, but it’s his blend of Soul music and electro-pop sensitivity that has made him a stand out. Now, with Compass he teams up with Beck, Feist, Grizzly Bear and Nikka Costa (among others) for an album that approaches Lidell’s beautiful melodies rustically, totally walking the line between simplicity and complexity.

Gotta hear: “Completely Exposed” and “She Needs Me”

Listen to “Completely Exposed” stream:

The Black Keys, Brothers

The year between their collaboration with Danger Mouse, Dan Auerbach’s solo album, and Pat Carney’s divorce it was unclear if the band would record again. Alas, they’ve pulled through with a critically acclaimed album. Both sonically and lyrically driven, the album has already managed to spawn two awesome viral videos.

Gotta hear: “Howlin’ For You” and “Too Afraid To Love You”

Listen to “Howlin’ For You” stream:

This video is making it’s rounds on the internets. It’s a 6th grader whose name seems to be Greyson Michael performing his own remake of Lady GaGa’s ‘Paparazzi’. Our favorite part of the whole video are the girls in the audience. Their reaction is…exactly how we wanted to impress girls, or boys, at that age. We love stuff like this, as do many others, remember the P.S. 22 videos that are STILL going around?

After watching this we couldn’t help but think, “Isn’t our educational system actively cutting music programs?”

Where’s VH1 when you need them? Save the music.

Single cover: courtesy of www.rap-up.com

Drake released his second single, “Find Your Love,” to his much awaited debut album “Thank Me Later.” The Canadian native has thrown hip-hop fans a curveball with this Kanye West produced track, which sounds like an extension of the 808s & Heartbreak sessions. How could it not? Considering it was also produced by Jeff Bhasker, who had a big role in Kanye’s last album.

We love it. It’s a vulnerable – almost pleading kind of song. At face value it’s a song that would be better suited for a woman (it was written for Rihanna), but there’s great delivery in this record. For all intents and purposes it’s a pop record. It could have easily been a come-back single for Michael Jackson. The chord progressions once the chorus hits are very familiar.

We’ve gone around to hip-hop blogs and sites who were first to break the news that this was the second single, and post the leak. Not surprisingly, the negative reactions are bathed with comments like, “Just rap already” and “This is a gay song.” What’s a little interesting about all this is that these Hip-Hop fans are quick to forget that history repeats itself.

In 1987 LL Cool J’s “I Need Love” was met with the same kind of reaction. It was after the release of this song that LL Cool J broke new ground, and the rest is history. Two weeks ago the Black Eyed Peas were on the cover of Rolling Stone, in the article Will.I.Am stated how his pop records are successful because he listens to the girls. If the girls like it, the men follow suit – hence everyone does. That LL Cool J track was a practice of this theory.

Is it questionable to use Will.I.Am and LL Cool J as examples? Sure. The results of their approach to record making cannot. It also doesn’t make these kinds of records less credible. If the song connects with a group of people, whether mass or niche, it’s all good. Nothing can stop Drake from cutting this kind of pop record then turn around to make one equally as appealing to the hip-hip circuit. Or can it?

We aren’t particularly Drake fans but this guy is consciously taking a chance: click here.

Take a listen:

www.dailymail.co.uk

My morning routine involves waking up to a Top 40 morning show. Earlier this week, the show world premiered a new Miley Cyrus record titled “Can’t Be Tamed.” The audio was catchy even if it was overly synthesized and autotuned. Really, today, what isn’t? If anything, it sounded more like a Britney Spears record and we’re okay with that.

While a track like this gets a stamp of approval from us, we knew it was going to come down to the video treatment. Boy, were we right to hold off on our love. We were going to avoid the video altogether when we received an email from a friend – Subject: Why?? She attached this gem of a video.

The video is a little of a disaster. It’s as if the record should be referred to as “Can’t Be Tamed” featuring feathers. It’s essentially Miley Cyrus playing mini-Lady GaGa pretending to be a bird and using her wings to shield herself from camera flashes. All while she’s in a cage. Way profound, Miley.

Over sexualized teenagers recording music is essentially what Generation X grew up listening to. At least, there was something non-chalent about how Britney Spears did it. More often than not if she was rubbing her leg on another dancer’s chubby, for artistic sakes, she was dressed as a human.

Another thing I find a little disconcerting is that she’s starting to look like Aubrey O’Day’s younger sister.

Here’s the peek to the hot mess of the week, aside from the Lezzy country singer, but let’s focus:

How does Juan Luis Guerra keep releasing these amazingly romantic songs without people getting tired of them? I don’t know. It must be said, we are definitely not tired of them.

“Bachata En Fukuoka” is the first single from his album due out in June 2010. It rides this beautifully soft guitar rhythm before switching into a mambo beat for the bridge.

Quite honestly, this might just be Juan Luis Guerra’s biggest hit to date. It’s a little feeling encapsulated into a 3 minute song.

We’re quite taken by it here.

Take a listen:

]]> http://themusictrail.wordpress.com/2010/04/10/811/feed/ 1 themusictrail bachataenfukuoka http://themusictrail.wordpress.com/2010/03/01/hello-my-name-is-la-quinta-estacion/ http://themusictrail.wordpress.com/2010/03/01/hello-my-name-is-la-quinta-estacion/#comments Mon, 01 Mar 2010 14:00:49 +0000 themusictrail http://themusictrail.wordpress.com/?p=802 Continue reading →]]>

La Quinta Estación hailed from Spain. In 2004, they quickly became honorary Mexicans as their sound mixed rock and mariachi music. The result of this mix: haunting songs that stay with you. Largely in part to the melodic production and indelible vocal’s of Natalia Jiménez.

Last week, the band’s main members, Natalia Jiménez and Ángel Reyero, split up in pursuit of solo endeavors.

In November, they left the Latin Grammys empty-handed but gave an unforgettable performance at the ceremony.

Take a look:

www.ezemunoz.com

The countdown to Julieta Venega’s Otra Cosa continues. This week, to hold us off, the lead single’s video was released.

The video begins with a question: “Strange girls. Can they get married, have children, be happy?” It switches to a meadow with a picnic table full of women feasting on flowers served on dishes. Those same girls then surround the made-up Julieta Venegas on a wicker chair as some kind of head of this girl-clan. To make it even more bizarre the girls blow butterflies out of their asses and nether-regions. At the end of the video there’s a supremely sweet vlog style shot of Venegas singing the last chorus in acapella. Very sweet, indeed.

Strangeness aside, the video is beautifully shot, funny, and original. We like. A lot.

Check it out:

Ben Ritter/Retna

Any Sunday seems to be a perfect time for anything Maxwell. It just so happens we were reading Time Magazine’s ’10 Questions: Maxwell’ and this little tid-bit stuck:

“Your heritage is your heritage, but your soul is truly who you are.”

- Maxwell, after being asked “How has your heritage influenced your music?”

Here’s one of our favorite Maxwell tracks from his 2001 album, Now:

Happy Sunday.

It’s been 20 years since Madonna’s ‘Blonde Ambition’ Tour and 19 years since her documentary ‘Truth or Dare’, which documented the tour from the inside of the Madonna vacuum. We caught the documentary for the first time this week. Better late than never.

Even before having watched the documentary, it was known that the ‘Blonde Ambition’ Tour launched Madonna’s habit of pushing the media’s button to the extreme. It was also the bridge between the Pepsi commercial scandal and the ‘Erotica’ era, where homegirl began her S&M based image and embarked on ‘The Girlie Show’ tour.

How ever contrived ‘Truth or Dare’ was it shows the clear parallel between how Madonna used the media as her performance art stage and the way someone like Lady GaGa, in the present day, uses a literal stage for performance art, sprinkled with using the paparazzi as the stage for her fashion. It’s definitely an upgraded approach to being a pop superstar – keeping mental health and personal integrity practically intact.

Looking at Madonna’s career without thinking of this documentary and this tour is almost impossible. The way she gave pop music a rock star edge is what practically every recording artist today emulates. Albeit, most of the time they look ridiculous, but they do try.

A tip of the pointy titty hat, to you, Madonna.

Check out this performance clip from the documentary:

Photo by: Robin Pearson

Broadcast 2000 hails from England.

Joe Steer is the primary member.

They’ve had  a couple of placements on CSI and movie trailers.

Watch the STUNNING (yes, a bolding is in order) video for ‘Rouse Your Bones’ directed by Jordan Clarke. Really, it’s stunning.

As a little bonus, take a listen to one of our favorite tracks off their self-titled debut, Broadcast 2000:

MTV Network

Julieta Venegas new album Otra Cosa is due out March 16th. Taking into consideration the experimental liberty Julieta took in making the  MTV Unplugged album, we’re excited to hear the new material.

One of our favorites from the live album – a complete stripped and revamped version of ‘Lento’.  Take a listen to the original arrangement before hand.

It’s okay to say it openly, a lot of what Rihanna does and has done since ‘Umbrella’ has been very contrived. No argument there.  We still love her, though. With that in mind, everything since the release of the Rated R album cover is starting to tippy-toe it’s way into the realm of  ‘swagger jacking.’ That album cover is a Grace Jones rip-off if we’ve ever seen one.

Now comes the “Rude Boy” video. We did a double take – something looked oddly familiar.

Somewhere, MIA wants her video back…and somewhere else, Janelle Monae wants her hair back.

Do we like it? Sure, but #justsaying.

Boyz….here:

Kevin Winter/Getty Images

Yes, we know, a week has passed since the Grammys but Pink’s performance is worth being a topic at any point in time.

“Glitter In The Air” is the last track on Funhouse, an album solely about divorce. It’s cool to see an artist take the culminating piece of a project, as opposed to a radio single, and show a mass audience (who wouldn’t otherwise check the album out) what the fuss was about for the past year. The fuss being a world tour and 1.5 million units sold. Let’s face it, that’s a lot of albums in one year.

Props also go to Pink for demonstrating the power of the ‘album cut’ by turning out a star performance in an award show driven by radio singles.

Check it out:

Photo by: Jim Larer

Aren’t they cute? Side note: No one can wear a leotard like Nicole.

Anyway, new video by Nina Sky and we’re really excited. On top of loving the song – they did great with the video.

It’s all them…with the help of Relentless Productions.

They took their blog, Nina Sky High, for a little background on the video and it’s concept:

Rolling Stone journalist, Briant Hiatt (@hiattb), just dispatched this little gem out to the internets:

“I’m told Lady Gaga and Beyoncé are in the desert filming a video today, presumably for “Telephone” from The Fame Monster.”

Well, we can’t fucking wait.

Brand new single by Tijuana-native Julieta Venegas.

Her amazing 2008 MTV Unplugged album finished giving Venegas amazing pop notoriety. It was the perfect platform to make her pop tunes artful and stripped. All in all her ability as a songwriter was the main event.

The new single, “Bien O Mal,” is cut in the same cloth. The main event are the lyrics and are an ode to a budding romance: ‘If it’s right/I’ll be grateful and I’ll reciprocate/If it’s wrong I’ll cry like I never have before/Until then I’ll bet everything to find out.’

It’s simple. It’s sweet. It’s indelible.

Esta bien, Julieta. Esta bien.

Time to gush about someone who deserves all the gushing.

Last week, Maxwell performed on Oprah as a tribute to the disaster in Haiti. While his music automatically gets clumped into the sensual dimension ‘Fistful of Tears‘ manages to be more than just about a love interest. It rests on a universal theme much like the rest of his music.

Aside from the fact that his album ‘BLACKsummers’night’ was completely cheated out of being nominated in the Album of the Year category at this years Grammys, it’s nice to see him finally get attention at this level with 6 Grammy nominations.

Check out the Oprah performance here:

Just because it’s her birthday…here’s a Leeshy post.

There’s nothing like seeing an artist who is used to being so put-together begin to show a dynamic side. Let’s face it, for the past decade Alicia Keys has been for lack of a better word…boring.

She stopped by Jonathan Ross’s show in England and was, yes, sassy.

Cute as a button…or home-wrecker. Whatever. The video is below:

The biggest fear among Rihanna fans was her potential evolution from a battered woman to a woman scorned. At the same time, after the tabloid frenzy that was her assault by Chris Brown, people were left wondering what direction her music would take. The title of the new album Rated R left very little to the imagination and soon so would the lead single “Russian Roulette.”

With the release of “Russian Roulette,” a record that seemed neither angry nor full of lament, listeners didn’t know what to make of the message. Was it literal or figurative? Was she suicidal? With the release of the video, which shows Rihanna sitting across a man, passing a gun back and forth it’s obvious that it’s more about love than it is about suicide – the notion that eventually one of the two parties will be hurt and the ultimate game of chance you’re partaking in by falling in love. Yeah, peel the onion.

“Wait Your Turn” and “Hard” play the role of radio singles really well as they fall less in the story Rihanna has been going around in her press rounds claiming she’s telling.

One of Rated R’s only homerun is “Firebomb,” another contentious song co-written by James Faunterloy and Rihanna about a lover forcefully inflicting her pain and emotions on another over meaty guitar chords.

“Rude Boy” produced by Stargate is a mid-tempo party track that has Ri-Ri embracing her dominatrix persona singing, “I like the way you touch me there, and I like the way you pull my hair.” While “Photographs” displays a softer side of Rihanna pining over old photographs with a production and feature by Will.I.Am that sounds like Rihanna was given a reject track from the The E.N.D. sessions.

The biggest dip on Rated R is “Rockstar 101” which is about as delusional and saddening as Shop Boyz’s 2007 hit “Party Like A Rockstar.” Combine the fact the U.S.is going through an economic hardship and the singer’s personal situation the song is a tragic portrait of overcompensation parallel only to a bad contestant on American Idol.

Rihanna even plays a vindictive friend in “G4L” promising her friend that she’ll stand high and that if he whips her friend he whips her. Pretty heavy for the girl HOV nicknamed little-Miss Sunshine. Sunshine went Darkshine.

“Cold Case Love” co-penned by Justin Timberlake is another work about love gone wrong. This actually could have been the sad song that could have proved Rihanna’s power as an interpreter but singing over the soft piano and strings the only thing you hear is a voice with no emotion behind it.

Rated R teeters the thin line between despair and rage and while many R&B/Pop albums have walked that line they’ve managed to co-exist with a good dose of hope – the one thing absent from Rated R.

At the end of 2008 Lady GaGa was introduced to the pop music realm. So we thought. A year later with the release of her re-release turned sophomore album, The Fame Mons†er, we can’t be so sure.

GaGa’s 2008 The Fame was less a Lady GaGa album and more the portrait of Stefani Joanne Germanotta’s transformation into Lady GaGa. The Fame finds that New York girl, fed a good dose of MTV TRL culture, riding glossy pop/techno beats, hungering for fame and obsessing over the beautiful, the dirty, and the rich.

Even “Bad Romance” serves as the perfect segue between The Fame and The Fame Mons†er as the lead single rides like an upgraded version of “Poker Face,” finding the singer begging and demanding a best friend’s love.

Another gem in The Fame Mons†er is “Dance In The Dark,” produced by Fernando Garibay. The track pays homage to the woman oppressed calling out Princess Diana, Judy Garland, Marilyn Monroe, and yes…Benet Ramsey, while managing to turn a hard club beat into something emotive.

The number one collaboration on The Fame Mons†er (trumping Fernando Garibay’s to the number two spot) is “Telephone” featuring the other pop-glam diva, Beyoncé. Both of them play out like two best friends drinking at the club putting their phones on silent for a proper night out.

“Alejandro” is the marriage of Abba’s name-calling concept and Ace Of Base’s Swedish signature pop – a song about a woman keeping true love in her pocket yet running from it. Poetic, yes, but GaGa manages to weave in “So Happy I Could Die” that no longer finds her using innuendo. She’s blatantly singing about the lavender blonde that excites her so much to the point of masturbation.

And that’s what has come to be expected from this lady: sex in poetry, in song, and in video – but not really. That’s why she can manage to write an album that explores the different realms of womanhood but not before closing the album with “Teeth” – a song that rides the idea of being desired passionately rather than the actual act.

The Fame Mons†er is the actual voice of the artistic entity we were introduced to a year ago. Mons†er is, on the surface, harder and much grittier while at the same time exemplifying softness. “Speechless” finds her swooning over a boy drunk on whiskey on top of George Harrison-like guitars with a stadium chorus.

Here she challenges the concept that dance artists choose dance/pop music because they can’t hold a note. True, sometimes, but not all the time. Once again, Lady GaGa proves to be the exception.

Hardcore punk band, The Bronx, has taken an interesting side project.

They’ve gone mariachi, a distinct kind of music from Mexico, and have managed to make one of the most dynamic albums of the year: Mariachi El Bronx. By blending the raspy vocals of lead man Matt Caughthran with the mexican musical stylings something unexpectedly catchy happens.

Their video is the best way to visualize what a hardcore punk band looks like when performing mariachi music.

Take a look:

]]> http://themusictrail.wordpress.com/2009/11/12/metal-band-goes-mariachi/feed/ 0 themusictrail mariachi-el-bronx http://themusictrail.wordpress.com/2009/11/11/5-for-13-calle-13-wins-big-at-latin-grammys/ http://themusictrail.wordpress.com/2009/11/11/5-for-13-calle-13-wins-big-at-latin-grammys/#comments Wed, 11 Nov 2009 13:00:05 +0000 themusictrail http://themusictrail.wordpress.com/?p=562 Continue reading →]]>

Photo Credit: REUTERS/Steve Marcus

Nabbing 5 Latin Grammy nominations in September, Calle 13 was awarded each of those 5 last week at the televised ceremony in Las Vegas.

The hype is well deserved. Popping out of nowhere and quickly labeled a Reggaeton group from Puerto Rico they’ve managed to shake the label away and add a refreshing sound to Latin Alternative music.

A prime example of that gift is their collaboration with Salsa’s living legend, Rubén Blades, on their album, Los De Atrás Vienen Conmigo.

Check out their Latin Grammy performance from last Thursday:

If that’s not charm, what is?

Listening to Alicia Key’s third studio album As I Am you heard every track, besides “No One” and “Go Ahead,” carry this hippie-70s-pop influence. The thumping bass lines and bluesy element that were in her first two albums took a back seat to this new sonic wave.

The wave continues with the flagship single to the new album due out in November: “Doesn’t Mean Anything.” It carries the same resonance as “No One.” It’s fast paced yet soft. It’s an arena anthem. In it Alicia once again makes the point that the marriage of simple lyrics with a powerful melody makes it impossible for a simple message to fall on deaf ears. Lyrically, the record takes you on a journey of lament and realization that loneliness is the only dream killer.

At this point, Alicia is doing whatever she wants. A memorable impression on radio outlets (and charts) during the coming months will also be a clear reflection of the real impact we’ve claimed Alicia Keys has made.

Damn shame.

Photo by Christopher Polk/Getty Images

]]> http://themusictrail.wordpress.com/2009/09/16/in-retrospect-lil-mama/feed/ 0 themusictrail 58337618 http://themusictrail.wordpress.com/2009/09/15/hip-hop-remembers-commemorates-and-honors/ http://themusictrail.wordpress.com/2009/09/15/hip-hop-remembers-commemorates-and-honors/#comments Tue, 15 Sep 2009 12:00:23 +0000 themusictrail http://themusictrail.wordpress.com/?p=521 Continue reading →]]>

The concert event of the year was Hip-Hop’s. Let’s rephrase. The day to honor and revere New York belonged to Hip-Hop.

In commemoration of the 9/11 attacks on U.S. soil Jay-Z partnered with Madison Square Garden and The Fuse channel for a concert on September 11th that would give all proceeds to the New York Police & Fire Widows’ and Children’s Benefit Fund.

Watch HOV open the show up:

Additional highlights of the night came when Jay relinquished the mic, at different times during the night, and let Beyoncé, Kanye West, and Mary J. Blige get a moment of shine.

Watch Beyoncé’s performance of “Diva”:

Sad to say, but 9/11 has become a part of the New Yorker’s identity. The silver lining: it showed how a city came together and held it down while its country was attacked. It’s a beautiful thing when the place to be to observe and honor such an event belonged to the very genre that was born in the city’s sidewalks and that would, in turn, personify its tenacity.

Jay did it. And did it well.

Thoughts, dreams, and weed are the theme of Kid Cudi’s Man On The Moon: The End Of Day an album narrated by Common that melds Hip-Hop beats (“Hyyer”) with House (“Enter Galactic (Love Connection Part 1)”) and Rock (“My World”). If you will, it’s an upgraded “808s & Heartbreak,” which Kid Cudi wrote on.

The parallels to Kanye West only seem to get stronger as the album plays. The chorus to “Heart Of Lion” loops the line, “My mama told me don’t let no one break me” bringing back memories of how Ms. Donda West played an important role in Kanye’s life and professional career.

“Soundtrack 2 My Life” is the declaration that brings the album into context with the chorus: “I’ve got some issues that no one can see and all of these emotions are pouring out of me.” Dark, heavy, and at times uncomfortable the album plays with the serious mental topics with the lightness of a stoner, who is stoned. And that’s what Kid Cudi does. He wears his weed habit on his sleeve. It’s very much like any other hipster you meet on the Lower Eastside of Manhattan. Except, in this case, it’s endearing.

“Up Up & Away (The Wake & Bake Song)” is the best album closer since the last track on “The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill.” With kick drums that are reminiscent of N.E.R.D.’s “She Wants To Move” you find Cudi’s unique approach to songwriting in full-effect in lyrics that show him not really caring what people say to his morning ritual and relishing in the liberation it provides. By the time Common finishes narrating you’ve just listened to something meticulously mastered, sonically sharp, and epic.

Mr. Mescudi, by way of Cleveland, Ohio, has thrown unto our retail racks a rare mini-masterpiece that music lovers crave on Twitter. Time for the music lovers to do their job.

Man On The Moon: End Of The Day goes on sale Tuesday, September 15th, 2009.

Photo by Getty

Someone took the line “…but Beyoncé had one of the best videos of all time” and ran with it to make this little YouTube sensation.

Pretty funny stuff.

]]> http://themusictrail.wordpress.com/2009/09/13/taylor-interrupted/feed/ 1 themusictrail kanyewest_taylor_swift_getty16951148 http://themusictrail.wordpress.com/2009/07/02/happy-freedom/ http://themusictrail.wordpress.com/2009/07/02/happy-freedom/#comments Thu, 02 Jul 2009 23:00:11 +0000 themusictrail http://themusictrail.wordpress.com/?p=497 ]]> Happy 4th!

Celebrate, celebrate, celebrate.

Little Jackie is a band composed of producer Adam Pallin and singer/MC Imani Coppola – quite frankly, an amazing duo. Their album The Stoop, released last year, is the quintessential summer album packed with guys texting the wrong person (“LOL”), Imani giving up on men and marrying a woman (“Guys Like When Girls Kiss”), reminiscing about the stoop in Bedstuy (“The Stoop”), and a huge diss to Amy Winehouse (“Cryin’ For The Queen”). Well, the last one is a toss-up but, what else can it be?

On your way to work on a humid day – precursor to an amazing 4th of July weekend – pop this sucker in your Subway/commute mix.

Jayme Gutierrez hails from Spain. Born in England.  A fan of harmonies. He makes his own videos. Classifies his music as Plop Rock.

There’s a quirk in his music that’s undeniable from the moment you listen. Check it out:

Two years ago Juan Luis Guerra released the amazing and popular merenge/salsa/bachata album La Llave De Mi Corazón (The Key To My Heart) and the title track as a single.

If you don’t know who Juan Luis Guerra is you should because even this girl, Zoë Saldaña, knows he’s so cool that she even played “video girl” for “La Llave De Mi Corazón” video. Check it out:

Here’s the 3rd installment of DJ Ni**Sky’s ‘Short N Sweet’ Mixtape Series: The “Don’t Hate, Celebrate” Edition.

START YOUR FRIDAY/WEEKEND RIGHT!

Happy Pride, by the way!

Click HERE to download the 20 minute mix

Photograph courtesy of Getty Images Michael Ochs Archive

Photograph courtesy of Getty Images Michael Ochs Archive

Photo: Hogan / Getty

You’ve left an indelible legacy.

Michael Jackson, 1958 – 2009

Jazmine Sullivan is one of the few amazing artist that’s come out in the past two years. Her album Fearless was an amazing songwriter’s album – perfect R&B which also means really amazing Pop music.

The talent in this newcomer could be seen in the following video taped when she was 11 years old. It takes place in her elementary school. She’s playing Dorothy in The Wiz and performing “Home.”

Breathtaking.

Then you fast forward 10 years. Ashanti has been going around promoting her Broadway role on The Wiz with a string of performances of “Home.”

The sharpness is stomach churning.

Ashanti, you were turned out before you even started – 10 years ago. Epic fail, epic fail.

Jason is crossing over to Hispanic territory. His duet with Colbie Caillat has been revamped for spanish-speaking audiences by adding Latin Grammy-nominee Ximena Sariñana.

The funny thing is, yes, we would name her the mexican Colbie Caillat but Ximena has a darker groove than Colbie. Definitely more edgier. Let’s add Fiona Apple to the mix to sleep better at night.

Breakdown:

Fiona Apple + Colbie Caillat = Ximena Sariñana

Check the video below:

For the original video, check under the cut:

Ed Westwick (Gossip Girl) is in this month’s GQ . Here’s a couple of bits and pieces of his spread…just because:

…we couldn’t help but think of Madonna’s “Take A Bow”…

…and Madonna’s “Bad Girl” video…

Here’s the breakdown just in case you missed it:

“Take A Bow” + “Bad Girl” = “Thinking Of You”

No, MusicTrail.com isn’t being fresh with the above equation. Math is math. Argue with that.

It’s been close to 20 years since Mariah came into it all – curly haired, flat-chested, and wearing a black leotard. Don’t believe me? Check the 2:00 minute mark here: http://bit.ly/gexqb.

Mrs. Cannon found a creative home, it seems, in The-Dream & Tricky. The flagship single for E=MC2 was produced and penned by the dynamic duo and the same goes for the first single off her August 2009 release, Memoirs Of An Imperfect Angel.

The record sounds like it’s going to build into this dynamic hook but that doesn’t happen. The most interesting part is that she’s dissing Eminem. So, let’s see how far this will go.

Since it’s release on Tuesday the response seems to be mixed.

Click Here to listen to “Obsessed”

Twin-duo Nina Sky, hailing from Queens, NY, posses all kinds of talent. In between recording sessions and performances Nicole DJs all over the world – Ni** Sky. Via twitter (twitter.com/NINASKY) they’ve been posting Ni** Sky’s “Short N Sweet” mix series. Here’s her latest:

START YOUR FRIDAY/WEEKEND RIGHT!

Click HERE to Download the 20 minute mix

Exhibit A, “Battlefield”:

Exhibit B, “Energy” by Keri Hilson:

The common denominator in these records: composer/writer Louis Biancaniello.

What do you think? Have we gone deaf here at MusicTrail?

The chorus class has a series of YouTube videos singing various popular songs. Their latest is a performance of Lady Gaga’s “Just Dance.” Though, that’s not the one that hooked TheMusicTrail.com. It was watching them perform Journey’s “Don’t Stop Believin’” that really did it for us.

I mean, look at them! They’re completely lost in the song – and that’s the awesomeness of watching this.

The kids are graduating and entering junior high next year and the school they’re moving on to doesn’t have a music program. Let’s hope my sources are incorrect.

Daniel Merriweather is a wonderful Aussie. He really is. Some of you might have heard him in Mark Ronson’s “Stop Me.” His debut album Love & War was finally released in the UK and parts of Europe. It’s packed with Mark Ronson’s sonic signature of horns and vintage strings. The star of the show is evidently Daniel with his incredibly rich voice. It’s almost as if he is singing this Contemporary Pop/R&B with the skill of a Jazz/Blue’s singer, which is why his duet with Adele (Water And A Flame) is an amazing fit.

Essentially, Love & War is a bluesy record with the obvious classic R&B feel tackling war (“Red”), break-ups (“Cigarettes”), and politics (“Change” featuring Wale) making it painfully obvious that love and war aren’t that different from one another.

Check Love & War‘s second single, “Red”. The video was shot in Brooklyn by Anthony Mandler:

There’s nothing that makes me feel more lazy than watching the Madonna video for “Hung Up.” It’s so Olivia Newton-John in “Physical” but on steroids. I mean, look at her! We should all be lucky to do ish like that at that age.

Stretch, hit the treadmill, and play this:

In watching it, the background music didn’t quite fit. So, MusicTrail advises you to play the below video:

Then MUTE and play this one, while the above one plays:

You’re welcome.

According to Kanye West:

“I DIRECTED THIS VIDEO FOUR YEARS AGO BUT I WASN’T SATISFIED WITH IT SO I NEVER RELEASED IT. BUT NOW LOOKING BACK AT IT I LIKE IT.”

Click on picture to watch:

]]> http://themusictrail.wordpress.com/2009/06/03/the-ol-new-kanye-video/feed/ 0 themusictrail Picture 2 http://themusictrail.wordpress.com/2009/06/02/the-noisettes/ http://themusictrail.wordpress.com/2009/06/02/the-noisettes/#comments Tue, 02 Jun 2009 19:00:42 +0000 themusictrail http://themusictrail.wordpress.com/?p=198 Continue reading →]]> Without a doubt, England has a gift of spitting out amazing musical acts. The latest of these is an indie band named The Noisettes. In a nutshell they fuse pop/rock and funk for something totally unique.

Two weeks ago they performed at Def Jam’s spring release party. Their audience included Rihanna, Chrisette Michele, among others.

Besides the hairdo that looks like…well, you can see that for yourself, this song is a pretty rad summer jam. Check out their live performance of “Don’t Upset The Rhythm” at BBC Radio 1 Live Lounge:

Top 40 Material:

Before “I Kissed A Girl,” in 2006, Max Martin and Dr. Luke collaborated with Kelis on a track called “I Don’t Think So” that was released on her album Kelis Was Here:

What do you think?

“Laughing With” is beautiful religious-based song questioning the agnostic belief system. The video is just as visually driven as “Fidelity.”

Actually, this video is amazing.

This week her Rolling Stone cover is announced. Quite frankly, it was surprising. Before it happened it was a great theory, but the kind of theory an ol’ school magazine like Rolling Stone would never embrace. For example, they have a clear disdain for Pink. There’s never been a cover or a feature interview.

Then, Wednesday night Perez Hilton premiered the “Paparazzi” video – a mini movie. “Paparazzi” is probably the best record on “The Fame” album. Thus it makes sense that it inspired her best video so far. For that reason it’ll sore as a single in the UK, and probably won’t touch Top 10 in the U.S. Prove me wrong U.S. of Aer’s, c’mon!

Their second single “Friend Lover” fuses Prince elements with vocals that take it back to 1999 when Kelis first came out. What’s up, summer track?

1971 - 2002

The eccentric and hilarious, Lisa “Left Eye” Lopes, would have turned 38 today.

Her best musical quality, besides her one-of-a-kind rap cadence and tone, was her fearlessness towards Pop Music.

Take a gander at her pure-pop features.  Lisa told us Justin Timberlake was cool before we believed her.

Check the 2:50 mark:

…and a Mel C (aka Sporty Spice) feature on the Spice Girl’s debut solo album, Check the 2:40 mark:

Though this hate comes from simply not seeing the video. Well, after months of avoiding it I gave in and gave it a look.

It was hypnotizing with all the cameos.

That’s it…I was suckered it.

It features our favorite good girl/bad girl, Gossip Girl’s, Blair Waldorf a.k.a. Leighton Meester. Or is it the other way around?

Get your beach gear ready, put it in the car, and play this:

Calle 13 was interviewed by Jazmine and they were so funny. Something interesting even came out of this interview – how Reneé writes his lyrics.

Case and point:

Women, you’re putting your face on.

Fellas, you’re shaving and ironing your boxers.

Put this song on:

The movie takes place in 80s NYC and focuses on a girl who has the most miserable life but has an incredible outlook towards it. Let’s not spoil it…

Mo’Nique was unbelievable. The main character was incredible. Mariah Carey added to the movie. Paula Patton gave a riveting performance. It was simply a great ensemble.

Hanging out with my friends is fun. Listening to them while they’re on the phone with people they’re dating – super fun. Them telling me what they were hearing during that phone conversation – super duper funny.

Anyway, apparently, guy said to girl that “Halo” reminds him of her. At first I was like, “Okay, so?” Then I turned on my iPod and remembered it was a deep song, even if Beyonce does sing it. More than deep its beautiful. My underwhelming reaction came to fruition when I saw the video – let’s admit, at first glance it’s just…blah. At a closer look, the video is as tender and beautiful as the record.

Now the funny part. As I remembered all this I thought, “At the moment, the only thing on top of the guy’s head is a good head of hair.” Sorry guy, no dice on that dedication.

If he listens to my friend as good as he listens to song lyrics, friend, you’re in bad shape. Or homeboy is just deluded. In which case, do what you got to do, because a shoty song dedication is a bigger red flag than when you look at his phone and see obscene text messages from his “cousin.”

It’s fair to go out on a limb and say that Lady GaGa is one of the hardest working artists in music at the moment.

"...and I have no money because I spend every dime I make on my show."

Just Dance-rs: GaGa in a heavily choreographed spaz

The pianist sits on the instrument that made an appearance on American Idol more than a month ago