Guilty pleasure of the day: Black Eyed Peas, “I Gotta Feeling”

However you feel about “Boom Boom Pow” or the Black Eyed Peas in general, the positive energy of this song is undeniable. So what if the lyrics are only, like, 10 words? I feel like this song is perfect for a prom/high school graduation slideshow. (Or, you know, a Gap commercial.)

Rip-off of the day: Karl Wolf, “Africa” vs. Toto, “Africa”

“There are no new ideas,” say my coworkers disdainfully whenever I bring up a blatant ripoff playing on the radio. And lately, there have been a lot of songs proving them right. I’m not talking about cover songs or sampling; I mean songs that steal whole chord progressions, chorus lyrics, and even backing tracks, sometimes in well-meaning, if poorly executed tribute, but usually in order to profit off listener familiarity with the older (usually better) songs.

So we meet again, Karl Wolf. And now you’re ripping off the 80’s. Somehow, I’m not surprised.



However, I have a feeling that I might be missing the point. Maybe Karl Wolf is actually a brilliant and innovative artist who wanted to mash up Toto’s “Africa” (the choruses) and his own “Carrera” (the verses). But instead of using the same technology as all those other hack mashup artists, decided to take it to the next level or at least the Jay-Z/Linkin Park level and perform the resulting song himself. Either Karl Wolf is a genius, or I am for reading that far into the conceptual framework of his music. Actually, I think using “Karl Wolf” and “conceptual framework” in the same sentence nullifies any genius I may have.

The original:


BONUS ROUND! Forward-thinking mashup artist Karl Wolf’s album version of “Africa”, featuring vaguely nonsensical guest rap and appropriately ridonkulous video:

But OH MAN check out that intense air keyboard solo at 3:11! I think I like him now based solely on that.

BREAKING NEWS

Michael Jackson is dead??? I don't want to believe it. Rest in peace.

Video, with dancing, is here.

Guilty pleasure of the day: Sean Kingston, “Fire Burning”

Confession: I’ve heard this on the radio before and liked it, but just now I accidentally started listening to it while creeping Victor Norlander and I can't seem to press the stop button. Seriously, I’ve listened to this at least 4 times now in a loop. This might even transcend guilty pleasure and just be best song of the day, if not summer. It’s 1:51 AM. I think I’m hypnotized. SOMEBODY CALL 9-1-1

Rip-off of the day: Divine Brown, “Sunglasses” vs. Corey Hart, “Sunglasses At Night”

This is the first in a series of posts highlighting a sorry trend I’ve been hearing on the radio of late: new songs that blatantly rip off older (usually better) ones. I’m not talking about cover songs or sampling; I mean songs that steal whole chord progressions, chorus lyrics, and even backing tracks, sometimes in well-meaning, if poorly executed tribute, but usually in order to profit off listener familiarity with the older (usually better) songs.


This is the radio rip-off I dislike the least, “Sunglasses” by Divine Brown, which borrows from fellow Canadian Corey Hart’s “Sunglasses At Night”. Though it uses a sound-alike keyboard riff, it’s not really a rip-off in my opinion. It’s a decent song with a catchy chorus, and doesn’t capitalize on the famous original lyrics until the very end, where all good medleys and shout-outs belong. It’s more of a payoff than a hook in itself. Overall, the song strives to be recognized for its own merit, rather than just using the catchiness of the original songwriting to compensate for mediocrity.

For comparison’s sake, here’s the original in all its glory:

Awesome: Girl Talk Sample Guides

Someone named spongebobfan879 has put together these neat visual aids to deciphering the exact appearances of samples in Girl Talk’s tunes. Mostly I just find it funny when they pop in and out. (Song shown: “Give Me A Beat”)

Worst song of the day: 3OH!3, “Don’t Trust Me”

Or, as it is known at my workplace (and probably on Google), “Don’t Trust A Ho”. The fact that they spell their band name 3OH!3 is bad enough. This song has heavy rotation on Virgin Radio and unlike, say, “Boom Boom Pow”, it never gets to the point where I can appreciate its ridiculousness. Also, every time he talks about his tongue behind some other girl’s teeth I throw up a little.

P.S. “Do the Helen Keller and talk with your hips” is a pretty good line though. Maybe not as good as “You so two thousand and late”.
EDIT: Oh of course the only redeeming feature of this song is not in the radio edit!

Guilty pleasure of the day: Dragonette, “I Get Around”

I tried really hard to avoid this song when it first came out. Then I started listening to it (by force, as with any song on the radio) and now the chorus is stuck in my head. Not to mention that goddamn opening keyboard riff, which they used to play in an ad on 102.1 the Edge all the time and I had no idea what it was. Wasn’t Martina Sorbara a country singer, though?

Guilty pleasure of the day: Pink, “Please Don’t Leave Me”

Now this is a real guilty pleasure, because I dislike Pink (P!nk? Is she still doing that?) to a degree that I would never visit upon my girl T.Swift. But I love this song. I love the background vocal riff and the sound of the guitar. I even like Pink’s voice. But as soon as I hear “Sober” again, the fuzzy feelings will be gone, you hear?

Argh now the word “pink” looks weird

Worst song of the day: Karl Wolf, “Carrera”

The verses and choruses sound like they were written at the same time in different rooms and then some third party suggested a key change would make them fit together. I know the chorus is the only thing that people like/remember of a popular song, but that’s a little extreme.

Also, I thought “carrera” was a nickname for a girl or something and was weird and ungrammatical, but it’s a car, so I’m not going to complain about that.

Worst song of the day: Kid Rock, “All Summer Long”

This song is the worst idea ever. If I wanted to listen to “Sweet Home Alabama”, I’d listen to “Sweet Home Alabama”, okay? LINK

Worst song of the day: Lady Gaga, “LoveGame”

A coworker told me today that Lady Gaga was born a hermaphrodite. I always did think her leotards looked a little boxy in front. Anyway, I was actually starting to like her music until I heard this song. LINK

Guilty pleasure of the day: Rick Astley, “Together Forever”

I had totally forgotten that Rick Astley had a second single. It’s basically the same as the one everyone knows, but different enough that it will get stuck in your head just as deeply and you will still never mistake the two. BRB, dancing

Best song of the day: Blue Rodeo, “Try”

This is one of those songs where when you hear it, you have to stop whatever you're doing and just listen.

Then they played “Lazy Lovers” and ruined the mood.

Guilty pleasure of the day: Taylor Swift, “Love Story”

I don’t have much to say about this song except that it is perfectly constructed.

Also, if you don’t like it, you have no soul.

Worst song of the day: Theo Tams, “Lazy Lovers”

This is music for people who like Josh Groban’s voice but find his music too experimental. I just found out that this guy is a Canadian Idol winner, which makes more sense. I guess the music itself isn’t terrible (it’s no “LoveGame”), but the title makes me cringe and the lyrics are, well, lazy. One nice thing about this song: the cover of the single matches my layout nicely. LINK

Brief explanation

I work a full time job, 9 to 4, that involves a lot of filing and hands-on, mind-off work. Fortunately, I have the radio to keep me going. Unfortunately, I am a music snob who stopped listening to the radio years ago. Join me as I rediscover the highs and lows of modern popular music - mostly lows.

DISCLAIMER: Though I may name specific radio stations, I mean no ill will to the people who run them. I’m sure they have only slightly more control than I do over what music they play. No hard feelings, guys!

All songs are copyright their respective owners and are posted here for entertainment purposes only.