Each new month brings a new mixtape. Here’s 20 songs we’ve been loving over the past month.
Tag: Selena Gomez
Music Monday – Volume Eighty Four
1) Rationale – Something for Nothing
Soulful R&B track featuring fluttering synthesisers, jittering guitars, broken samples and funky bass lines.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Q79owpLDjo
2) Beachbaby – Sleeperhead
Energetic guitar-driven indie track from four-pieced band Beachbaby. It’s a moody but powerful track, integrating other genres such as shoegazing, Pop and post-punk.
3) Field Music – Disappointed
Low-key indie rock track from Sunderland band Field Music.
4) Walk The Moon – Avalanche
Energetic, catchy Pop-py track from US pop-rock band Walk The Moon. Indie-guitar riffs, synthpop synths and a driving beat makes it particularly reminiscent of the ’80’s and it works beautifully.
5) Travis Mills – Don’t Need Much
Dirty house track featuring little more than club beats, a funky bass lines and Mills’ rap. Incessantly catchy.
6) Craig David & Big Nastie – When The BassLine Drops
Craig David returns to his roots with this huge Garage track, aided by grime artist Big Nastie. It’s reminiscent of his 1999 début ‘Re-Rewind’ and is a welcome return for David after six years away from the music industry.
7) Selena Gomez – Hands to Myself
Saucy, steamy and sultry dance-pop track, reportedly inspired by Prince’s signature sound. Gomez whispers over minimalistic instrumentation comprised of little more than bouncy percussion, hand clips and tribal-pop elements.
8) Reba McEntire – Just Like Them Horses
Sweet piano-led Country ballad by American country music singer Reba McEntire from her twenty seventh album ‘Love Somebody’.
9) Nate Reuss – Take It Back
Gentle waltz-like ballad by Fun. frontman Nate Reuss. Dreamy, reserved with a delicate sprinkle of Reuss’ quirky, idiosyncratic vocals.
10) Walk off The Earth – Hold On (The Break)
Uplifting, inspiring and catchy Pop track from Canadian rock band Walk off the Earth. Ascending bass lines, clinking percussion and gorgeous layered harmonies result in an epic arena anthem.
Selena Gomez – Revival Album Review
The transformation of a former Disney star into a mature, credible pop artist was never going to be a walk in the park. Many have tried: Vanessa Hudgens, Miley Cyrus, Hilary Duff (one of the more successful acts who somehow managed to also retain her sanity) with varying results. Attempting to crack the music industry is not a new venture for Selena Gomez; her voyage into the world of pop music has been in full flow since 2009. What is new, however, is her attempt to promote herself as a viable adult artist.
Selena Gomez came to prominence as an actress in the Disney channel series “Wizards of Waverly Place”, appearing in the show until its conclusion in 2012. She then formed her own band, Selena Gomez & the Scene, in the hopes of achieving a successful crossover into music. After releasing three moderately successful albums, Gomez announced the band would be taking a hiatus to focus on other projects. Presumably ‘other projects’ was a euphemism to obscure her desire to be a star in her own right. Début album ‘Stars Dance’ was rapidly released in 2013 to mixed reviews, most of the negative focus placed on the generic production.
‘Revival’ is largely a continuation into maturity for Gomez. The teeny pop anthems have been replaced by pop influenced by bouncy EDM, tropical beach house and an overall far more mature sound. Littered with overt sex references, at times it’s all rather forced as Gomez does everything in her power to dismiss her Disney image and substantiate her new-found maturity.
Overall, however, it works rather nicely. First track “Revival” opens with Gomez reciting a poetic passage prior to the arrival of resilient beats and tropical house synths. It’s a rather low-key introductory track but one which executes its purpose efficiently. “Hands to Myself” relies on minimal instrumentation, buoyant percussion and Gomez’s supple vocals whilst “Same Old Love” utilises moody piano riffs, hip-hop beats and Gomez’s honeyed vocals. “Sober” is reminiscent of some of Taylor Swift’s best work on ‘1989’, built around fidgety vocal samples, slamming ’80’s-esque percussion and jittering synthesisers. Sultry summer smash ‘Good For You’ maintains its ascendancy, abundant with sensuality, Gomez’s breathy vocals and assistance from A$AP Rocky whilst ‘Me & The Rhythm’ is a tropical-dance pop track built around catchy pop hooks and steel-pan-like sound effects. The album’s sole ballad ‘Camouflage’ is a stunning piano ballad; the album’s best fit for Gomez’s gentle vocals.
The album’s weaker points lie in the final three tracks. ‘Survivors’ attempts to break into a club-friendly pop sound but falls flat. ‘Body Heat’ utilises Latin rhythmical influences and Spanish guitar strums but lacks character whilst album closer ‘Rise’ is a disarray of electronic elements.
The main flaw with ‘Revival’ is that Gomez fails to stamp her identity on the pop world. Whilst refreshingly avoiding the mainstream 80’s-pop revival currently very much present in the UK Singles chart, there is no innovation or trademark sound that emerges from it.
A step in the right direction but with room for improvement.
Rating: 3/5.
Revival is out now on Interscope/Polydor records.
Music Monday – Volume Seventy Two
1) Tove Lo – Moments
Emotive and powerful electro-pop ballad with brutally honest lyrics. Produced by one of the hottest production duos currently around – Mattman and Robin, ‘Moments’ is abundant with crashing percussion, reverberating vocals and eerie sound effects. One of the hottest tracks around right now.
2) Tori Kelly – Should’ve Been Us
Pop perfection with hip-hop beats and a powerful vocal performance.
3) J. Tillman – Howling Light
Gorgeous folk ballad comprised of little more than guitars and organic instruments. It’s refreshing to hear music in its natural form, free of autotune and other programmable effects.
4) The Japanese House – Cool Blue
A gorgeous and gentle intro builds into a shuffling 80’s synthpop-esque track featuring pretty guitar riffs, spacey synthesisers and auto-tuned vocals. One of the hottest tracks in the world right now.
5) The 1975 – Love Me
Yet another pop track which reinforces the return of ’80’s pop. Abundant with detuned guitar riffs, squeaky synthesisers and gated percussion, The 1975’s comeback single is an explosive and effortlessly catchy affair. Healy’s vocals are the clearest they have ever been and the lyrical content is as witty and clever as always. A fine return.
6) Drake – Hotline Bling
Utilising both hiphop and trap, Drake’s ‘Hotline Bling’ heavily samples Timmy Thomas’ 1972 song “Why Can’t We Live Together”. It may be somewhat repetitive and Drake’s vocals may not be the most powerful but it’s effortlessly catchy.
7) Kanye West – Love Lockdown
One of Kanye’s best. The ‘808’s and Heartbreak’ album is often overlooked due to West’s attempt at singing rather than rap but it contains innovation and power that could never have been projected through rap. The song’s power lies in its minimalistic pop style – piano riffs, a Roland TR-808 drum machine imitating tribal percussion and West’s heavily autotuned vocals dominate this repetitive but catchy and powerful synthpop track.
8) Olly Murs – Kiss Me
Catchy pop track featuring a punchy bass line, ’80’s-eque synthesisers, funky bass riffs and an effortlessly catchy chorus. Just try to ignore the fact it is more or less a rip off of Nick Jonas’ ‘Jealous’…
9) James Morrison – Demons
James Morrison triumphantly returns with this powerful, eerie and beautifully sincere pop-soul track. The sped-up/high-pitched “I’ve got demons” refrain which opens the track and appears throughout is heavily reminiscent of Simon Webbe’s pop hit ‘No Worries’ and adds an extra dimension to Morrison’s gorgeous track. ”
10) Selena Gomez – Sober
Gomez wails over jittery synthesisers, reverberating percussion and spacey vocal effects on this great pop track.
Music Monday – Volume Sixty Three
- Selena Gomez & A$AP Rocky – Good For You
Moody and seductive, Gomez is pulling out all the stops to emphasise her new-found maturity. It never quite reaches its full potential; it’s crying out for a huge climax towards the end of the song but with its provocative message and the inclusion of A$Ap Rocky’s rap, it’s a step in the right direction of producing more grown-up music.
2) Jack Garratt – Weathered
Jittery with fierce beats, grunge-y guitars and a silky smooth vocal delivery from Garratt. It’s a huge song with fantastic production.
3) Jennifer Lopez – Play
Throwback to when J-Lo was still producing GOOD music. Drawing upon Prince and Madonna for influence, it’s a catchy and funk-driven dance-pop track with squeaky synths and slamming beats. One of the best pop tracks from the noughties era.
4) Leona Lewis – Fire Under My Feet
Explosive comeback single for 2006 X Factor winner Leona Lewis. Unfortunately, the lead single from Lewis’ forthcoming album has fallen under the radar due to slack promotion from new label Island/Def Jam. With stomping percussion layered with hand claps and moody piano chords, it’s Lewis at her best.
5) Chris Brown – Don’t Judge Me
Sombre, sulky and aching with sincerity, this is Brown at his best. The lyrical content is straight from the heart and Brown croons passionately over stuttering percussion and remote production.
6) Mark Owen – Makin’ Out
Much of this blog discusses how underrated I consider Mark Owen’s solo discography to be but I shall continue to reinforce my point! Quirky rock-fuelled track from Owen’s 2005 album ‘How The Mighty Fall’, this single was only a moderate success and deserved to fare far better. Brilliant lyrics and powerful vocal delivery from Owen as always.
7) Taylor Swift – Bad Blood
The album version is far superior to the single version with Kendrick Lamar although Lamar’s rap does not particularly detract from the power of the song. Fierce.
8) Taylor Swift – Style
Still one of Swift’s best singles of her career so far. Moody and sultry with funky 80’s styled guitars and crashing percussion.
9) Take That – Today I’ve Lost You
One of the most underrated songs of Take That’s career. Originally written as the follow up to 1995’s massive hit ‘Back For Food’, Barlow saved this one (many other songs written for what would have been Take That’s follow up album to ‘Nobody Else’ appeared on Barlow’s debut album ‘Open Road’) and it was recorded for the band’s 2005 Greatest Hits compilation. Barlow’s gentle vocals trickle over a soft and organic backing track, comprised of soft guitar strums and piano chords, sweeping strings and an awesome guitar solo. It’s a shame this was never taken further and released as a single; it’s a beautifully written and performed song.
10) Gary Barlow – My Commitment
Schmaltz-y love song from Barlow’s début solo album ‘Open Road’ which screams ’90’s!’ with its heavily programmed drum machine and glittery pianos. Co-written with songwriting legend Diane Warren, this is a beautiful ballad with a lovely message.
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