1. this bizarre new show, the masked singer/rob sheffield's hilarious take on it
has anyone else been watching this cosplay fever dream? i happened upon it one night when there wasn't much else on, and seriously thought i accidentally dropped acid or something. basically, the gist is that washed up celebrities sing pop songs while dressed in these elaborate animal costumes. it's supposedly based on a korean show, and i can't get enough of its craziness.
just when i thought it couldn't get any better, one of my favorite writers, rob sheffield, wrote an absolutely hilarious article about it. a preview: "how did robin thicke reach the “judging a fox singing contest with jenny mccarthy” point of his fame arc so fast? why is terry bradshaw crooning
a florida georgia line song in a deer costume? who the hell came up
with this idea and why it is so ludicrously perfect?" i'm dead.
2.the new catfish and the bottlemen song, "longshot"
NEW CATFISH! i absolutely love these brits, and both times i've seen them live, they were fantastic. they haven't released anything in a few years, so i was super stoked when they dropped this single a couple weeks ago. my first two listens, i was like "hmm, it's decent, but it's not blowing my hair back." then something just clicked on the third listen and i was aaaaall in. dig it.
3. this instagram account, theboyandhisdickies
funny, skater-inspired poetry. pure art.
4. sam and jake kiszka's sparkly vintage jackets on SNL this weekend
one of each, please. actually, can i just raid all of their closets? because they wear the best vintage shit on the regular. love me some rock stars that dress like fucking rock stars with a weird-ass hippie twist. but jake better STOP because i'm way too old for him.
also, the bassist of twin peaks endorsing them via instagram story made me almost as happy as big boi posting that "black smoke rising" was a timeless classic (it is), and alex lifeson of rush shouting them out unprompted at the rock 'n roll hall of fame the other day. they get it! haters be damned.
SPOILER ALERT: this list does not include that terrible song that glorifies mattress theft. now that we've gotten that out of the way, let's get down to it...as always, you can listen to all of these via spotify playlist as well.
16. bent shapes - "new starts in old dominion"
let's start things off local. now that my former #1 hometown act, the barbazons, have disbanded, bent shapes has risen to the top. this upbeat, jangly gem was my favorite from their 2016 release, wolves of want. unrelated, but i got so damn excited by all of the boston love in this music video, from the MIT station on the radio to that very somerville-esque apartment to that scene where he's walking by the driving school -- which was shot on my street in my town! anywho, great tune. 15. fifth harmony f/ ty dolla $ign - "work from home"
as i believe i tweeted at some point, it blows my mind that no one had thought to write a song about "working from home" as sexual innuendo. the lyrics are so ridiculous yet clever, and i'll be damned if you aren't hearing "you don't gotta go to work, work, work, work, work, work, work" in your dreams after listening to it once. the perfect example of a dumb, sugary pop nugget. and then ty dolla $ign rolls in, telling her to make it clap with no hands and look back at it. a modern shakespeare! 14. car seat headrest - "fill in the blank"
will toledo was basically the pitchfork darling of 2k16, and i'd get any cred i had revoked if i didn't include at least one his songs. this rollicking, lo-fi number got my attention, and i especially like the tough-love lyrics: "you have no right to be depressed/you haven't tried hard enough to like it....stop your whining, try again/no one wants to cause you pain." listen up, fellow millennials. 13. sia - "cheap thrills"
just a really good time with a pretty simple, straightforward message: when the company and music are good, who needs moolah? 12. snakehips f/ ZAYN - "cruel" (jay pryor remix)
maybe it's because this version was my first exposure to the song, but it's so much more fun than the sloooowed dooooown original, IMO. zayn's sexy "pillow talk" was also a contender, but it didn't turn my car and cubicle into tha club like this one did. and when that beat drops? ohhh, dayum. i do believe this is the first remix i've ever featured on this list, so you know it's gotta be good. 11. tancred - "bed case"
a few weeks ago, while watching the 1994 cult classic reality bites (again), it occurred to me that if this song existed back then, it would probably fit nicely on the soundtrack alongside juliana hatfield, lisa loeb, and dinosaur jr. given that it has that early-90s veruca salt vibe. the solo project of jess abbott from the band now, now, tancred makes catchy, fierce indie rock with sweet vocals, handclaps, and lyrics about boys and ... well, boys. what more could you want?
10. two door cinema club - "gameshow"
i never paid much attention this band; just your standard background indie pop music as far as i was concerned. but i happened across this one on a new music friday a few months ago, and it had the darkness and edginess i'd been missing from them previously. the desperate "nobody wants meeeee!" scream is my favorite moment. pro tip: use the arrows in the top-left corner to see a full 360 view of the performance. whooooa. 9. father john misty - "real love baby"
ohhh, father john misty. the famously salty, bearded troubadour took a break from his onstage rants and all-caps tweets to record this adorable, no frills appeal to the object of his affection. aww. 8. heavy hearts - "bliss"
it's been so long since i've heard a song that really captures the energy and sound of the pop-punk/post-hardcore music that i loved back in high school and college, but "bliss" gets it just right. catchy as hell, too. 7. the 1975 - "the sound"
a synth-pop banger with an ear worm of a chorus that wouldn't sound completely out of place in the mid-80s, "the sound" makes me think of one of the times when i'm the happiest, which is letting loose with people i love on the dance floor at a wedding. not that i've ever danced to this song at a reception, but i'd really like to because the song seems destined for that ... in the best sense. just listen and you'll see what i mean.
6. twin peaks - "walk to the one you love" if you know me at all, you know that i love me some twin peaks. like a fine wine, they just keep getting better with each album, though it did take me a bit of time to adjust to the bluesier, stonesier vibe of down in heaven as i'm partial to the raw garage feel of their sophomore effort, wild onion. while there are plenty of songs to love on the new one, i kept coming back to this for the groovy riff and the understated vocals. can't wait to see them this week for the 3rd time (and 2nd time this year), because the only thing better than their music is their live show. aw, yeah.
5. DNCE - "cake by the ocean"
now, i'm not saying that this is
better than "call me maybe" in terms of pop song perfection, BUT i will
say that i still get as giddy every time i hear the opening notes. sure, there
are the ridiculous "AYAYAYAYAY-AH"s and the lyrics about licking
frosting from your own hands and a promise ring-free joe jonas dropping
the f-bomb. but i'm equally in love with the backstory about the title,
which is supposedly the result of the band's swedish producers
continually confusing the phrase "sex
on the beach." 4. pete yorn - "i'm not the one"
can we talk about how underrated pete yorn is? he's been quietly making
killer songs since the early oughts, but always sort of flies under the radar. i wasn't
the biggest fan of his latest album, arrangingtime, but this
track immediately jumped out at me as the highlight. between the lovely melody
and relatable lyrics (YES of course i tear up almost every time), it's
just a gorgeous few minutes. 3. catfish and the bottlemen - "soundcheck"
it's been so cool to watch these guys go from relative unknowns, performing to a crowd of 30 or so at great scott in 2014, to rocking a packed house at royale last year, to this year -- inevitably -- the house of blues :(. i'll always be partial to their debut album, but i was obsessed with this song for a good portion of the year. the quiet, crunchy chug of the pre-chorus leads into an epic, triumphant romantic declaration. then after the bridge, everything blows wide open and it almost turns into a completely different (but equally fantastic) song. 2. the hunna - "we could be"
this year's biggest fuck-yeah-chorus comes to us courtesy of yet another british rock quartet, the hunna. their songs all kiiiind of sound vaguely the same, but it's okay because they all kind of sound like this one, which is great. strong vocals, anthemic refrains, great production. the other thing i really like about the tune, though, is that it's a total "fuck you!" to some record company who apparently passed on them. WHO'S LAUGHING NOW?! 1. SWMRS - "figuring it out"
shout out to spotify on this; it was actually one of my discover weekly picks early this year, and i immediately fell in love with its massive "oh-oh-ohhh"s, shreddin' guitar solo, and quirky lyrics about pop rocks, cherry cola, and waking & baking on wednesdays. a little bit of punk, a little bit of pop, a whole lot of fun. the band members are already cooler at like, 19 years old than i am at 30, but that's probably because the drummer's dad is billie joe armstrong from green day. spitting image, right?
saw these guys live last weekend, and they put on a really high-energy, tight show. couldn't understand a word of the lead singer's stage banter due to his thick welsh accent, but that was my problem and he was cute as a button, so it was fine. i love that all of their songs have super catchy melodies, but still have that raw power and a bit of an edge to them. halfway through the first verse of this tune from their forthcoming album, i had one of those "I LOVE THIS SONG" concert moments and immediately went to find it when i got home. LOL at the artwork, tho. 2. ARE YOU AFRAID OF THE DARK ON YOUTUBE
'nuff said. my favorite episode is "the tale of the whispering walls." still scares the crap out of me. what's yours?
3. goldenrod cardigans
in late august, i had a dream that it was fall and i was wearing a cardigan much like this one. when i woke up, i realized that i didn't own one and was deeply unhappy. i'm pleased to say that i purchased one the following week and have been wearing the hell out of it ever since. throw on a scarf with one of these babies and it does NOT get more autumn, unless you have a candy apple in your hand. which i highly recommend as well.
4. rediscovering rock of ages
did you hear about the guy that saw the musical rock of ages 500 times? first, i was confused as to why it was even a news item, since i feel like there are muuuuch stranger things that people have done 500 times. second, i was reminded of the first time i saw the glorious show (it's ok, i've only seen it twice) and promptly went on a youtube binge. keep in mind that i detest most musicals -- at least, the showtune-y ones -- so a song-and-dance show full of hair band covers and crude humor promptly shattered all stereotypes for me. i will never, EVER see the god-awful-looking movie with tom cruise. but if this number doesn't make you wanna, um, rock/quit your job and audition for a broadway musical, i'll be damned.
