i've said it before, but it's worth repeating: thanks for making the first year of the Pop Sucker so wonderful. we turn one on january 20 and we'll have a new logo and some new features. although new year's eve has never been a favorite holiday celebration of mine, this is the first time in a while where i'm actually not only looking forward to tonight's celebration -- a big blow-out and house party with best buddy daniel -- but also the new year ahead. 2010 was much better than 2009, and it's only up from there, right? happy new year, fellow Pop Suckers!
artist: the zombies title: "this will be our year" album: odessey and oracle year: 1968 genre: vintage pop; rock; british invasion country: england
i've always found new year's eve rather depressing. the reason may stem from this song. i discovered judy garland at a very early age -- 3, to be exact -- and immersed myself in her body of work. (yes, i'm gay.) her best album was 1957's alone on capitol records. the last song on the LP was this tune, "happy new year," a gut-wrenching ode to the holiday blues if i've ever heard one.
artist: judy garland title: "happy new year" album: alone year: 1957 genre: vintage pop; vocals; diva; gay, gay, gay! country: united states
artist: marit bergman title: "this is the year" album: 3:00 am serenades year: 2002 genre: pop; singer/songwriter; swedish pop country: sweden
it's noise pop thursdays! ok, i made that up. but here's a little noise pop to get the weekend -- and the new year -- started on the right foot. brooklyn-based little insects consists mostly of omar delarosa. he's the jack-of-all-trades when it comes to writing, performing, and producing the tracks, but is occasionally accompanied by a band when playing live. from his recently-released EP autumn skies, a concept album about the moods and feelings of the season, comes "let go of my sweater," a noise-jangle-pop tune with an incessantly catchy chorus capped with hand-clap inspiring oh-oh's. it feels good, my friends.
the music of newly-formed quartet you and others around you (YAOAY) has an interesting history. in 2007, 333 tapes of songwriter brad ikonnis were discovered in a basement in columbus, ohio. ikonnis died in 1988 at the age of 24. YAOAY got a hold of the tapes and they formed the basis of the band's music. trying to be as faithful to ikonnis's songs, music, and vision as possible, YAOAY combined elements of rock, post-punk, funk and electro to come up with six original tunes for their debut self-titled EP. the standout track is the early '80s-inspired "crooked eye," which you can check out here. you can download the entire EP at their site here.
oh erik hassle! how do i love thee? seriously, i can't think of a more perfect person to cover sly and the family stone's classic "family affair." hassle's blue-eyed soul is melt-in-your-mouth delicious. and how about that baritone? mmmmm.....
BAKER scored two songs of our top songs of 2010 list, including one in the top 10. he's prepping his first mixtape, echo, to be released soon. it'll contain tracks we've already featured on the Pop Sucker, but the new track, "heat of the night," is one of his best yet. he told me he's going for a more radio-friendly sound and the mission has been accomplished. the song is so ridiculously hooky and top 40 ready, that it begs to be heard. so listen...
bronze is apparently the new gold. the brooklyn foursome known as BRONZE, an offshoot of the former detachment kit, serves up a quintet of post-punk rock on their self-titled debut EP. the standout track, "deep freeze," is a dizzying, jittery, addictive hip-shaker. sort of like a dancefloor orgasm, with a climax around the 3-minute mark.
this treasure was buried deep within the bowels of my iTunes library. no clue where i got it, but apparently the song is a couple years old and is by japanese indie pop due naivepop or petitfool. i don't speak or understand japanese, but this song has such a pretty melody and strong hook that i couldn't resist posting it.
happy holidays fellow pop suckers! whether or not you're celebrating that dude's birthday by contributing to capitalism, i hope your day is filled with balls and mangers, myrrh and rudolph (that chick from saturday night live), egg nog and tiny tim. if this song doesn't put you in the non-holiday spirit, nothing will.
artist: emma dean title: "sincerely fearful"
album: dr. dream and the imaginary pop-cabaret genre: pop, cabaret, theatrical year: 2010
location: sydney
if ever there is a stage musical version of valley of the dolls, emma dean's "sincerely fearful" would be the perfect act one closer. it's six shades of crazy, and as addictive as a pocketful of benzedrine. the multi-instrumentalist and singer/songwriter has the pipes and personality to win you over with her brand of big, theatrical cabaret pop. "sincerely fearful" has the kind of quality that suits it to modern-day theater, old-time piano bars, top 40 radio, and saloons along the barbary coast during the gold rush days. in a word: timeless. also she was just tapped by the ny post as one of the top 10 acts to watch in 2011 (along with another Pop Sucker fave, graffiti6).
you cannot appreciate and understand songs of the present without honoring songs of the past. the kickdrums, alex and matt, are a testament to that theory. their new track "animal" clearly draws inspiration from the beatles and the moody blues, among others. it's a mini-symphony. it's big, orchestral, and messy. the brooklyn-by-way-of-cleveland duo met as co-producers and racked up production credits for other artists before striking out on their own. their debut album, just a game, came out last year. not sure if "animal" is for a future album and/or a new single. either way i'm digging it.
casey spooner (of fischerspooner) looks incredibly dashing and fuckable on the cover of his new solo album adult contemporary. the music inside the album is a match; it's an exquisite meld of pop, electro, and rock. well, almost. oddly, the track that he's giving away for free on his site, "faye dunaway," is the album's weakest song. a completely disposable, forgettable morsel, save for its title which is borderline genius. "perfecto," on the other hand, is everything "faye dunaway" isn't. it's cool, catchy. it's mommie dearest on poppers and valium.
hey kids! i'm back from a much needed blogging rest. i hope everyone had a great week. did you have a chance to check out our top songs of 2o1o posts yet (part 1 | part 2 | part 3)? all the really cool kids are doing it, so you should, too. and stay tuned: january 20 marks the Pop Sucker's 1 year anniversary, and we've got some great stuff planned! anyway, during the week off i've compiled a slew of new (and old) tunes to post. first up is a silent film. my BCB (best concert buddy) daniel and i happened to see them open for the limousines (we're groupies), sleigh bells (who were terrible!) and temper trap recently. i didn't know too much about a silent film. the oxford quartet is just starting to make waves in the U.S., although they've been around for a few years. they sound a lot like U2 and coldplay, especially on the tune featured here, but i won't hold that against them. it's such majestic pop led by robert stevenson's beautiful baritone.
hey kids! i'll be back in a few days with regular postings. in the meantime, i did a guest posting for my friend courtney's blog, living life out loud, on how to make the perfect party playlist. enjoy!
#47: "the ghost who walks" - karen elson
#46: "wall of arms" - friends electric
#45: "something in common" - free energy
#44: "worry about you" - 2AM club
#43: "obsession" - sky ferreira
#42: "under the sheets" - ellie goulding
#41: "monster" - lady gaga
#40: "a new word to say" - bright light bright light
#39: "sleepless" - eric saade
#38: "rude boy" - rihanna #37: "efficient machine" - kasper bjorke
#36: "love me to pieces" - erik hassle #35: "turbulence" - BAKER
#34: "she'll be breaking hearts" - zac poor
#33: "clap your hands" - sia
#32: "better than love" - hurts
#31: "good for great" - matt & kim #30: "one" - sky ferreira Sky Ferreira - One by the Pop Sucker
#29: "only the young" - brandon flowers
#28: "broken heart attack" - the hey loves
#27: "things that money can't buy" - mondrian
#26: "never follow suit" - the radio dept.
#25: "queen of the lot" - the spring standards
#24: "stay the same" - the shoes feat. esser
#23: "ooh ai" - liptease #22: "take care" - beach house
#21: "bigger than us" - white lies
#20: "ghost town" - first aid kit
#19: "look away" - lissie
#18: "surrounded by your friends" - hooray for earth
#17: "swimming" - florence + the machine
#16: "pick up the phone" - dragonette
#15: "the worse it gets" - penguin prison
#14: "sun of a gun" - oh land
#13: "something else" - diamond rings
#12: "when i'm alone" - lissie #11: "MY KZ UR BF" - everything everything
one of the books in my grandparents' library that i enjoyed reading when i was a kid was a tome called the book of lists. the lists within covered every conceivable subject. it was a fascinating read and ever since i've had a love affair with lists. apparently i'm not the only one. people love lists. even time magazine reinvented itself as the purveyor of lists on its website, and i'm sure they've done a list of "the top 10 reasons why people love lists" at some point. that's why this time of year is always exciting because i get to compile my top songs of the year.
how are these chosen? every song on this list is a song i discovered in 2010. that means there are a number of songs that were technically released in 2009 that appear on the list. a great song should not be left off the list just because it was released in a previous calendar year. every song that's been downloaded in 2010 is placed on a list, in random order. then songs are removed and reorganized one by one until it's a complete list of songs that represent the best of the best for the year. nearly all of the songs here have been featured on this blog, but they did not need to be blogged about to qualify. also, round numbers aren't important. you'll notice there were 57 top songs in 2008 and 76 in 2009. this year there are 98. numbers 98 through 49 will be revealed today; 48 through 11 will be revealed wednesday; the top 10 will be announced thursday.
the big winner of the year was erik hassle, who placed three songs on the list. twelve artists have two songs on the list: BAKER, broken bells, dragonette, everything everything, graffiti6, hurts, kids of 88, the limousines, liptease, lissie, oh land, and sky ferreira.
a note of thanks: 2010 was the Pop Sucker's inaugural year (turning 1 in january!). so far it's been quite an amazing experience. discovering new music and turning people on to it is one of the sexiest, most exciting things one can do. it's thrilling, and i'm so happy to have had the opportunity to do both. that's thanks to the artists, songwriters and musicians who made this one of the best years for music in recent memory. of course, i wouldn't be here without YOU! thank you so much for reading, downloading, and spreading the word about the Pop Sucker. next year will be even bigger, and i can't wait to share/cher all the exciting things i have in store! now on to the music...
#86: "lies" - fenech-soler
#85: "neon flicker" - conner youngblood
#84: "don't say oh well" - grouplove
#83: "how many times" - DATO feat. jannie linnebæk
#82: "wind up the sound" - psychic stunts #81: "naturally (radio edit)" - selena gomez & the scene
#80: "life is strange" - the gallery
#79: "teenage ballad (high school)" - computer magic
#78: "internet killed the video star" - the limousines
#77: "photoshop handsome" - everything everything
#76: "days ahead" - museum of bellas artes
#75: "bermuda" - kisses
#74: "this record sound" - lectrolips
#73: "brave" - kelis #72: "xoxo" - butterfly bones
#71: "dragons" - the green children #70: "stare into the sun" - graffiti6
Graffiti6 - Stare Into the Sun by the Pop Sucker
#69: "just a little bit" - kids of 88
#68: "lost" - safari
#67: "you can" - body language
#66: "dangerous" - liptease
#65: "cocaine" - kissed her little sister
#64: "mother nature" - hurts #63: "when i'm with you" - best coast
#62: "california on my mind" - wild light
#61: "if it takes all night" - erik hassle
#60: "cold war" - janelle monáe
#59: "love the way you lie" - eminem feat. rihanna
#58: "the soft sell" - disco nap
#57: "digging holes" - icarus himself #56: "see the light" - brett harris
#55: "white room (the art remix)" - the dirty disco
#54: "rescue" - dear euphoria
#53: "don't back down" - restless people
#52: "in the dark" - jojo
#51: "tokyo (vampires & wolves)" - the wombats
#50: "rainbow" - oh land
#49: "life's too short" - wild party
honorable mention: "bad romance"
in the holy trinity of music that is essential to my being, there is the mother (judy garland, "over the rainbow"), the daughter (nancy sinatra, "these boots are made for walkin'"), and the holy swedish ghosts (ace of base, "the sign"). i have many favorite songs, but these three are as necessary to my existence and survival as air and water. they define me.
it's too bad religions didn't think in fours, because i'm about to expand this set to the holy quad. not since "the sign" have i been been so deliriously obsessed with a song as i was/am with lady gaga's "bad romance." the song was on my top songs of 2009, so i did not include it in the official 2010 list, but it deserves to be called out.
i'm a fan of gaga as a whole, and consider myself among her little monsters, but there's just something about the perfect pop construction of "bad romance" that sends me into a state of frenetic euphoria for 4 minutes and 55 seconds. from the nonsensical ga-ga-ooh-la-la's to the perverted, sexy, and undeniably clever lyrics ("i want your psycho/your vertigo stick/want you in my rear window/baby, you're sick"), to its soaring, powerful chorus and sing-a-long oh-oh-oh-oh-oh's, to the guttural delivery by gaga, it's easily the best song she's produced so far and is probably one of the best pop songs of the last 25 years. we all have songs that touch us deeply in ways other songs cannot. "bad romance" just sends me.
the rebellion dogs are a brand spakin' new san francisco indie rock band, and they are graciously giving away two tix to see them live at the rockit room in san francisco on sunday, december 12! check out their solid pop tunes and fill out your name and email address by friday for a chance to win.
combing through the hundreds of music submissions in my inbox is a labor of love. here are a couple of great tracks that have come my way recently.
long walks on the beach is actually fritz, a DC-based DIY bedroom popster. he's played only a few shows, and released only three songs, but is building quite a solid fan base. with nearly 7,000 fans on facebook, he's well on his way! check out the new single, "metaPhysical." it's incredibly catchy and atmospheric.
we first brought you conner youngbloodback in october. he's got a great way of combining two completely disparate genre and blending them to perfection. just take a listen to his new tune, "monsters." it's chilled-out dubstep banjo. seriously. and it's good.
