I can’t believe that this is the last five song Friday of April; 2009 is FLYING by!! Well, it is nice and warm outside, so I won’t keep you kids inside too long… let’s get right to it!
Jars of Clay – Two Hands
[audio:http://www.duanemoody.com/audio/fsf_424_jarsofclay-twohands.mp3]
I have been a fan of Jars of Clay for many, many years. I was a bigger fan when I was in college, but I have always loved their music, and still, I definitely count them amongst my favorite artists. Well, I saw that they had a new CD coming out this week, and naturally, I had to check it out. After my first listen, I was glad to discover quite a fantastic album throughout. In my opinion, this is definitely one of their strongest records, and it shows a real growth as a band. Their sound as matured over the years, and they consistently put out great music. This is the first single from their new record, The Long Fall Back To Earth, which I highly recommend.
Noisettes – Never Forget You
[audio:http://www.duanemoody.com/audio/fsf_424_noisettes-neverforgetyou.mp3]
The second of 3 albums I have been paying attention to that came out this week, was Wild Young Hearts by the Noisettes. I first mentioned them a few weeks ago when I featured their fantastic first single, Don’t Upset The Rhythm. Well, after giving the whole album a listen, I was pleased to find that they too had produced a pretty great album. This is one of my favorite songs from the record, which bears similarity to the vocal styling of Duffy and Amy Winehouse, and has a sock hop/TV soundtrack flair to the arrangement. The arrangement really makes me think of Laverne and Shirley for some reason…
Chester French – C’mon (On My Own)
[audio:http://www.duanemoody.com/audio/fsf_424_chesterfrench-cmon.mp3]
The third album released this week that was definitely on my radar was the debut album of Chester French. I have also talked about them previously, when I featured their fantastic song She Loves Everybody. My interest in Chester French shot sky high after seeing them open for Lady GaGa a few weeks ago, because they were excellent live. I liked all of the songs that I heard at the show, and was glad to get my hands on the album so that I could hear them again. This is probably my favorite song from the album, which is kind of good, but unfortunately overall, only has a handful of songs that really speak to me. Also note that he says motherfucker pretty loudly during one of the choruses.
Lady Sovereign – So Human
[audio:http://www.duanemoody.com/audio/fsf_424_ladysovereign-sohuman.mp3]
Okay, I may have mentioned it before, but I am a huge sucker for a well used sample. This is a great example of that technique; I LOVE the way she integrates the Cure’s Close to Me, and uses it to soften up her previously “uber-tough” persona. I love her accent, and how “rough” she is (ha! rough and tough!), and I am glad that she is still making her mark on hip hop. This is a fun little track that I have been enjoying since I saw the video a couple of weeks ago, and I have been meaning to feature it ever since.
Pussycat Dolls – Magic
[audio:http://www.duanemoody.com/audio/fsf_424_pcd-magic.mp3]
Finally this week, I am posting a song that I randomly heard playing in the background of a TV show; that happens to be from PCD’s Doll Domination album. I heard it, and I really liked the beat, and I did a lot of searching on the internet to find out who it was, and what song it was; only to find that I already had it on my hard drive!! No, I don’t have an iPhone, or I probably would have just used Shazam, but thankfully, my persistence and my good research skills led me to this fun little track. I have to say, PCD really keeps throwing me surprises; I’m glad that I gave in and started enjoying this girl group!
I tried to keep it brief so you kids can get out there and enjoy this fine weather. As always, please let me know what you are listening to, and let me know what you think of the five tracks that I brought you this week. Have a great evening!
I first heard Horse Feathers on the indie channel of XM, and I thought they were mellow and delightful. I downloaded their most recent release, and after hearing this song once, I freaking loved it. The vocals remind me of the smoky/raspy vocals of artists like Ray LaMontagne, which are coupled with a backing female vocal that take something beautiful and make it gorgeous. The delicate nature of this song just makes me want to close my eyes and absorb it all. The violins are achingly beautiful, and the tenderness and composition of the instrumentation is fantastic. The rest of the record is quite good, and being that this song was such an instant favorite, I am happy that I could share it this week. I love discovering stuff like this.
As I mentioned earlier this week, I was excited to snag P!nk’s newest album, which came out on Tuesday, and I will say that this record is definitely a grower. With the first listen, I liked it, but with each subsequent listen, many of these songs are really sticking with me in a great way. This song in particular is beautiful, heartbreaking, and perfect for her smoky voice. I have liked P!nk for a long time now, and with this record, she has just further solidified her fan base; it is a great album, and is already among my favorites of this year. I hate that she had to endure a break up, but at least she was able to channel some of that energy into making Funhouse such a great record.
I was originally skeptical of the Saturdays (lots of skepticism this week!); mainly because I felt like they were a bit of a Girls Aloud wannabe. However, their first single, If This Is Love, found it’s way onto my ipod, and I found myself really liking it, and even featured it on a previous five song Friday. My buddy Stu (thanks Stu!!!!!) insisted that I check out the rest of their record, Chasing Lights, and I am VERY glad that I did. There are some very well produced pop songs on that record, and Work, by far, is my favorite. That chorus is just fierce. Girls Aloud have definitely got some competition from these beauties; but I am willing to bet that the world has room for more than a few studio-produced girl pop super groups, right!? With songs like this, I know that I definitely have room for them on my ipod!
Okay, it is no secret that I love Lady GaGa. I gushed yesterday about her amazing performance on Wednesday night, as well as her CD’s release earlier this week (FINALLY!), and since it was such a GaGa week, I felt compelled to bring at least one more track from her amazing record to the table. This song was the song that she closed with the other night, and she fucking tore it up! In fact, since the show, I have been playing this banger on repeat. This song is a new song for fellow GaGa fans; it was one of the two new songs that she put on her already impressive record for release here in the states. I have to say, that she definitely has my vote for best new talent of 2008, and if she keeps churning out impressive pop like this, she is going to be bigger than huge. I am so glad that I got to see her live in such an intimate setting, and I was (and still am) starstruck by the amazing Lady GaGa. Also, make sure you go and check out the video for Poker Face, the second AMAZING single from The Fame… it is FIERCE!