#42: Friendly Fires

These guys have been in my playlist for far too long without recognition. So I'm starting with the song that first addicted me to them.

I'll continue with quite possibly my favourite:

and the best ever remix:

Followed by the most melancholy:

The most get-the-fuck-up-and-dance:

The most awesome:

And the coverest:

...You get it. These guys are awesome. But it ain't usually my thing, so what the hell happened to make me addicted to them? So, I'll start with Kiss Of Life. Apart from the fact that it's been used by The Aston Shuffle (love!) in one of their MoS discs, it's one of those things where there's a lot of people singing (or it sounds like it, at any rate) and a lot of people singing sounds awesome. Something I call sound saturation. Two things make sound saturation: lots of music, or lots of voices. In this case, it works both ways, except the voice aspect is more prominent. It's like hearing a choir that makes you tear up, except this don't make me tear up. It makes me... um, want to get up and dance and, um... it evokes... emotions of... um... alright fuckit, when I'm in the right mood I tear up at this too. But it ain't a bad tearing up, nor a sad one. It's the best damn tearing up I ever did, and it's all happy emotions.

I just tried to pause it right now so I could move on to the next song. The silence sounded crap.

So what's so big about Paris? Apart from the Eiffel Tower, I mean. I can start with the fact that they love Au Revoir Simone (love!) enough to include them as backing vocals in the original, then they sang the lead vocals in the Aeroplane (love!) remix. It's pretty obvious that there's a huge difference and my gods, it's amazing. Well, they're both amazing in their own way. The Aeroplane (love!) remix is seven minutes long, and at ~4'16" it drops into moar sound saturation! The only gripe I have is that it's ultra slow, but hey, it means there's more time to listen to the liquidness that is the music. Otherwise, I melt whenever I hear Au Revoir Simone (love!), no matter what the song is. They have such beautiful voices. And beautiful... aw hell, they're all beautiful all over. But anyway. I wouldn't mind finding that French girl, but hell if I wouldn't mind five minutes with one of the girls from Au Revoir Simone (love!). But pressing on, and ignoring my hormones.

I love Hurting. Somewhat literally too. The best feeling in the world is making myself feel lonely (without actually being alone). It's the same kind of catharsis as punching a pillow just to get rid of excess rage and testosterone. Hurting isn't one of those songs, so I will say no more on the topic. Hurting is an amazing synthpoppy tune that gripped me as soon as I heard it. Melancholy lyrics <3. Matter of fact, take a Gem Line award for "Gotta let this go, gotta feel some warmth on my own." This is what you must do after a heartbreak. Stay single. Heal thyself. Possibly have a bit of fun in the meantime. Not a bad thing to be able to do that. And also the video is kinda cool.

There's no Friendly Fires song that inspires more energy in me than Hawaiian Air. Year or so old - in fact, I remember waltzing up to my friends' place in my suburb last year (they don't live there this year) with this playing on the radlio. It runs along similar lines to Zimbabwe by New Navy (love!) - take a fuckin' holiday. I wouldn't mind a bit of Hawaii. It's also just so dancy. Fast dancy, but I ain't complaining about that. Also wouldn't mind hearing this song on repeat for a little while. In fact, I'mma go do that after this review is done. And then I might grab a glass of freshly-squeezed orange juice in one of those tall glasses and ice and an umbrella... and you know the rest. BEACH. SUNSET. ORANGE JUICE. Who doesn't love that stuff?

So what of Blue Cassette (Tiga Remix)? Well, I gotta confess, I never heard the original. But in all honesty, I don't need to. There isn't much about this song that isn't awesome, though probably a bit bass-heavy at the start of the song, then it melts into a beautiful summer song. And it mentions cassettes! I mean, hell, who uses cassettes any more? Okay, so vinyl is making a re-surface, but cassettes aren't. Vinyl was the bomb, so faithful. Cassettes weren't. The tapes twisted and stretched (though some funky sounds were made when that happened). Don't get me wrong, I loved cassettes (video and audio), but I was relieved when they took a step back for CDs and mp3s. Much love for Blue Cassette (Tiga Remix). Not overly fond when it gets bassy again near the end, but I can cut that out if I ever want to use it.

Wow. One to go. And what better way to end than by covering a cover? IMO this sounds better than the Lykke Li (love!) version, but that's probably a matter of taste more than anything. Hell, it's piano and it's a dude whose falsetto is actually not too bad. Don't ask me what the cover was in aid of, mind; it completely escapes me. It also escapes my best Internet tracking efforts (at 2am). I am happy that the song is this fun and pianoey, but it's over way too fast. Sad now. Which means the review is also over. Very sad now. But hey, there's heaps more Friendly Fires stuff. In fact, I'll just leave this here and begone.

My only gripe with Friendly Fires is that Ed Macfarlane can't dance well in the videos. But he looks like he's having fun so I'm not complaining any more.

#41: Polar Opposites

Let's go from one extreme to the next here.

Number one was heard on the radio the other morning. Stayed in bed for a few minutes longer than I usually do (which is usual), deciding "I'll get up after the next song" - which just happened to be this one. After the song, however, I couldn't get up. I had melted. Simply melted away at the beautifulness of Bat For Lashes and this probably best ever song from their lineup. It even beats out the haunting Daniel. I'm also going to say this is gonna be in my best songs lineup for a long time, as well as a song that I really want to learn how to play myself. The song, seemingly about a superstar who just wants to be human, has echoed and resonated in me like nobody's business. For different reasons, obviously, since I'm no superstar. But hell... I ain't complaining. Anyway. If you want to melt, this is probably my Melting Song Of The Year. Also, have a Gem Line award: "you're the train that crashed my heart". Mwah. So much love. And speaking of love, let's jump to the other end of the scale for a bit.

I AM A NINETIES BITCH. I CRASHED MY CAR INTO THE BRIDGE, I WATCHED, I LET IT BURN. I DON'T CARE. I LOVE IT. Can you imagine anyone more badass? No, because Icona Pop are just as badass as Nathan Fillion, Morgan Freeman and the fucking honey badger. I fell in love with this song and it has just been playing nonstop on my speakers for the last hour. Non. Stop. Hurry the hell up and get your album out Icona Pop, because I seriously want to hear more of this amazing stuff. This may be a short, sharp shock of a song, but hell if I'm complaining. Sometimes all you need is short, sharp shock. At least they don't drag crap out - it hits you, then instead of being all "ooh, lookit me, I'mma hugely popular song so I'll make a longer version of myself and outstay my welcome", it leaves you aching for more. And more you shall receive, as you play the song non-stop for an hour like a crazy sumbitch of a song should be played. I don't think I'll get sick of this song either.

#39: CJ's Addictions 7

Alright, let's get this shit going. I've got a lot to catch you up on.

I really want to play the song "Runaway (Yelle DJs rmx)" by Mr. Little Jeans, but there is no YouTube Link. I'll just say that it is markedly bouncier than the original and leave it at that. Instead, have these three:

We'll start with building a pyramid. This song fits in perfectly with the CJ Song Pattern - which means obviously that I love it without question. Having said that, there's a lot about it that works quite nicely. Key changes - perfect. Dancy rock - perfect. The only gripe I have is that the lyrics can get a bit incoherent at times, but I suppose that's half the point. And it's an interesting song too: "I'm counting crystals in my sleep while you're sitting there on that broken chair. I don't even know what colour it was. While we're still young, let's echo, echo..." gets a Gem Line award. Well played Nightbox, well played. Nothing wrong with this addiction. Now bring on the next one. Something even more incoherent.

Older. But Australian, and quite brilliant. Sampled from a bunch of different places, including an orchestra; fun music, including the word "rannygazoo"; visually funny, including a fucking coconut. CRAZY IN THE COCONUT. You can tell I love this song. A lot. I want that coconut. Who knew such an old(ish) song was so awesome. First came across it via a flash video which turned into an obsession to find the song which was actually satisfied rather quickly. And now I want to know how they made everyone look black and white with those spotlights. Suppose I'll find out one day. This is a lot of fun to listen to, despite being terrible to dance to. Triple J have gotten something right yet again. Winning!

Last one for now. Bit of cognitive dissonance (again).

"She mixed paint at Menard's". A freebie with WinAmp, and probably the best freebie I've come across, short of Evaporate by Rocket Empire (which was with my HTC). Despite the fact it's rap, it's also electronic and minimalistic. And it tells a lovely story about becoming friends - possibly even more than friends - with someone met in a hardware store. Ordinary, average love. Not fairytale stuff or mopey melodrama, just pure, unadulterated love. (Also I give props for "(mixing) the perfect black" because I love the colour black, but that's a different story y'know.) And I love the fact that the girls in the background are laughing. They're not laughing at him, they are genuinely laughing with him as he enjoys his new-found awesomeness with the girl who mixed paint. Your face when this song weaved its way into my collection, heavily laden with house and trance, but I love this song to bits. And that's pure, unadulterated love too.

#37: CJ's Best Addictions

My favourite numbered post deserves my favourite songs that I haven't yet posted. So, have these: three songs that have some kind of importance to me and have been my biggest addictions evar. First things first: the song that is most played in my playlist.

Should NOT be confused with the alarmingly similarly-titled "Sunday (The Day Before My Birthday)". This one is more upbeat and fun to listen to than the mopey (but no less artistic) "Day Before My Birthday" and my god, does it sound brilliant just before sunset. I love the way the background noise wobbles at a slightly faster rate than the beat of the song. No idea why it's a good thing, but it is. First time I heard this song, I honestly thought it was a fake song, but one Shazam later and it's confirmed that it's Sunday from Moby's B-sides. It deserves to be an A-side. Seriously, Moby, get on it. Unrecognised brilliance, right here. Unrecognised brilliance that is in at least three of my five major playlists and is the most-played individual song in my library. Time to turn to some brilliance a little more recognised (though I suggest not watching the video unless you are decidedly NOT a bigot):

I post this video merely because it's the radio edit and gets the point across quickly, not because of the hot chicks (although no complaints about the hot chicks!). The song is one hell of a reminder of summer, and in particular summer of 2010-11 (when things were amazing and I bought Wii Sports Resort, which this song constantly reminds me of and vice versa). And hell, the video has hot chicks. And one hell of a message. Note the flag that one girl drapes around her at ~0'23". That, there, is the message. Gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender people exist and aren't going to stop existing, so get used to them and start giving them the same rights that OTHER normal people can take for granted. Yes, I said OTHER normal people, because those people are normal people too. ...ahem. On that note, finally:

It MUST be the Amp&eacute;re remix, otherwise it is Simply Not Good Enough. This song has managed to get me through a million and one nights in Melbourne and out. And it has infected my brain for just as long. The best bit, of course, is the bit from ~3'0" to ~4'50. (Wow, it lasts nearly two minutes?! Amazing! Thought it was longer!) I love it to bits and I will never lose sight of this song. In fact, I will never lose sight of any of these songs. Big house, tropical house and microhouse were never better than these three songs. And I have many many more addictions... soon to come. Have a break from my rambling.

#32: Look Inside - 4Hero ft. FACE

Alright guys, I said I'd feature it last post. Here it is: 4Hero's deep house track Look Inside, in three flavours: original, Izmabad, and Nu:Tone.

Honest opinion: in comparison to the others, the Plain version is what it says on the box. A bit bland. But this wasn't the first version I heard. This was:

The Izmabad remix. And a hell of a win it was too. As I said last post, I blame Nando's Bundoora. I heard it, noted the lyrics "searching every pot of gold, running out of rainbows". And here is the result of an extensive Internet search afterwards:

So what is it about this liquid music that attracts me, again and again, like a motherfucking magnet? Apart from the fact that it's liquid music? I'd say the memories associated with the songs. Each and every one makes me think of summer (tick), Melbourne (tick), spicy chicken (tick) and being happy (HUGE TICK). Simply because I was happy in a Melbourne summer, eating spicy chicken when I first heard this. And kept hearing it all throughout summer '10-'11. Winning harder than Charlie Sheen (which isn't hard. But still).

I love Melbourne. I have an entire playlist, 150 songs long, devoted to it. I have also mixed two 1h20' sets based on thirty-nine songs from that playlist. I also love summer. Same deal, except no mixes and a playlist that is 100 songs long. The fact that both are miniscule compared to the size of my library (nearly 9,000 songs) is offset by the sheer amount of times I have played those songs. And hell, those playlists are totally incomplete. One thing's for sure: this song is in them all.

Finally, I mentioned the lyrics before: "searching every pot of gold, running out of rainbows". This gets a Gem Line award. Just like that. And I'm retroactively awarding one to Feather by Little Dragon, for the line "You are airborne, you've got silver rays". Enjoy.

#26: Why Must I Cry (Tosh.0 rmx) - Reh Dogg

Mike sent me this along with a "Problem, officer?" so I'm treating it as a challenge.

At first, I listened to this song, and I thought "OSHIT MY HEAD IS FULL OF FUCK". But that was the first ten seconds or so and I, like a juvenile, switched it off because of the graphic and gratuitous use of Vocoder and very quiet lyrics. Then, after about a minute, I realised that this is the entire point of this beautiful, haunting, and all in all impressive song.

It's minimalistic in terms of music (despite the amazing juxtaposition of the rap with the sweeping strings) because the guy's obviously trying to place emphasis on his lyrics: a song about a guy who, quite obviously, is sick of crying over his losses and his life. He's also made the lyrics deliberately unintelligible, because clearly he's trying to show just how bad he's feeling by making it sound as if he's actually struggling with his life. You know, like a singer crying during a song, except Reh Dogg is taking it a step further and making it sound like he's doing more than cry (which is layer #1 of the song) - he's also struggling to understand why he's crying (layer #2), struggling to come to terms with this lack of understanding (layer #3) and crying out about the fact that he's struggling and crying and struggling (layer #4). Four layers of emotion, all wrapped up in one neat tiny little fun-sized package called Why Must I Cry. Hauntingly beautiful, and well deserving of a mention in the next Grammy or ARIA or whatever the hell music award this thing deserves, presentations. In fact, I'm gonna say that the line "why must I cry why must I cry why must I cry" is a Gem Line.

Also, here's one other special gift from me:

#21: CJ's Addictions 4

Man oh MAN there's a lot of songs to catch up on. I have addictions and a challenge, plus a feature. May as well start with the addictions.

I'm going to be honest: I have absolutely no idea why I like this song. None at all. It's a very bizarre song, which is probably why because I tend to like the bizarre stuff. The bizarre nature is rooted in the singer's distorted voice - whether this is deliberate or not is irrelevant - and the fact that it seems "harder" than it really is, especially given the subject of the song - Gabriel, who is apparently this guy who was an arsehole to the narrator. Well, that's my take on it, anyway. It does evolve, albeit fractionally. The full version does it better justice at 5'36" and the video is an interesting take (albeit boring). I also have to award a Gem Line to "he was stronger than I was but it's strength you can't sustain" - lines that mention strength (or, rather, lack thereof) always are good candidates for Gem Lines. Humble. I guess that's why I like this song. Bizarre nature, evolution, Gem Line. That'll do. Anyway, enjoy it while it lasts - I can't see this being big for long, despite its all-around awesomeness. Unlike this one:

If "having an argument with myself down Elizabeth Street" doesn't tip you off as to the location of the song, then you deserve to not know anything. Come on, now. Elizabeth Street? Victoria Street? Queensberry Street? Don't make me bash you over the head with a Melburnian sledgehammer. Which, oddly enough, is what the song is about. Streams of consciousness always rate high in my books, and I've got to say this is a pretty nifty one. Not sure what Jens Lekman is trying to say about his mind but I'd say the "fuck you! no, you fuck you!" bit was a bit of comic relief. I'd rate this along with Northcote [So Hung Over] as one of contemporary Melbourne's iconic songs. Bugger Man From Snowy River, this is REAL Australiana. Wait, actually, don't bugger Man From Snowy River. I do actually like that. There was movement at the station...

Hm. I usually give you a three-fer. So here we go:

Just realised that I'm giving you these vids in 4:3 instead of 16:9. But that's irrelevant next to the awesome power of Cut Copy's video. The music has even more power: starting out soft, the song slowly reaches crescendo and is belted out by either the lead singer or a chorus behind him. Or both. Hell, I could say that about most Cut Copy songs, and I can also say that every single one of them is different. Yeah, that's right. They follow a pattern, but they're different. Fuck you, RnB music, you are not different. Anyway, Cut Copy have always been a good blast back to the 1980s and I reckon this song has some sounds amazingly similar to Vangelis. Not a bad thing. I like Vangelis. And I like this song. No idea what the lyrics' interpretation are but that's irrelevant. I'm also going now, but that's also irrelevant.

#15: Amanæmonesia - Chairlift

This song is dangerous.

It's dangerous because it's only been in my playlist for a week and I've played it like 20 times. It's a song I can't even begin to classify except as "addictive" - it's synth, but not synthpop; it's catchy, but it's not offbeat-alternative; some of its lyrics are indecipherable, but it's not by The Presets; it's fun and boppy, therefore it's not Justin Bieber. (Yeah, that's right! I've moved from David Guetta to "teen" "pop" "idols" now! BRING IT ON!) Oh, and one of the lyrics I can decipher earns a Gem Line award: "mistaken for magic". Occasionally I can use that one line to describe myself, but that's another story. This is another Zan Rowe-alarm-half asleep find (I've had about half a dozen in the last few months alone - that might be a topic for another day). The thing that anchors the song for me is the key it's in just after the backing vocalist says "chasing the rabbit". (On a related note, remind me to share some Melbourne songs and some "utopia" songs next post. Maybe also my Back To Mine playlist.) That said, the song as a whole is amazing and distorts my sense of time (on another related note, I'm going to share Catcall with you one day) by making five minutes seem like three and a half. And yes, the song EVOLVES! Check it out at ~3'10", it turns into something somewhat somehow strange but seriously awesome. Keychange, synth change, and that haunting chorus of voices or synthesised voices or whatever and that deep-voiced bridge and WOW. Now this, my friends, is orange juice served freshly squeezed and chilled on a Hawaii beach. Liquid music. Deeeeeeeelicious. Got any more of those oranges?

Oh, and if you're masochistic enough to read this, here's a challenge. Feed me the name (and YouTube or SoundCloud link, too, if you please) of a song via comment, Facebook, email, whatever. I will accept the challenge and review it. I'll either rip it to shreds or love it to bits; either way, it's going to end up as tiny little pieces after I've picked it apart. But hey, don't let that bother you. I'm fair and reasonable. Go on. Try me.

#8: CJ's Addictions 2

Your face when you realised this was in my collection:

For some reason when it came on the airwaves it resonated through my body, despite the fact that it's rap/hiphop. I'm told that the main reason is because it's an electronic song if you strip away the rap in the foreground. Yes, true, but the same can be said about the most disgusting RnB/hiphop songs that are hitting mainstream radio stations even as I write this post. Just because it's got a few bells and whistles doesn't mean it's a good song (yes, David Guetta, that means you too). In fact, I'm even less likely to like the mass-produced garbage that it is, so that makes this song almost literally a diamond in the rough.

I suppose what I like about it is that it's not a stereotypical song that either trash-talks someone (or a group of people), doesn't have the words "fuck" or "nigga" or "bitch" or "DAYYYYYYYUM" in it (though it does make copious references to fairy tales), and actually evolves. It's also damn catchy, has a little more substance than just beep and bass, and sounds like a Melbourne night. Alright, maybe not a typical Melbourne night, but my Melbourne night. Idealism FTW!

Speaking of Melbourne nights, that's the theme as I carry on to Crave You.

Dayyyyyyyum, unfortunately this version isn't the full version (only the radio edit) but all you really miss is a bit of fluff that DJs use to mix songs into and out of this song. Every other element is there - the minimalistic synths that manage to avoid being beep and bass, evolution of the music over time to a resounding climax, and the lyrics - oh, the lyrics! - that resonate with me so much, especially during my high school years. The only difference was that everyone didn't stare at me. I stared at her and I simply wanted her more because she looked the other way. The song is a very charming observation about humanity, if purely because of that one line. Perhaps that's why I love it. It's so easy to grab some delicious "Gem Lines" out of it. In fact, the line "I simply want him more because he looks the other way" is deserving of one of my Gem Line awards - the first for this blog. Another one (which I can't award here as I haven't reviewed its parent song) is the rather accidental "everybody wants somebody everybody wants" from a Kid Sister song. I might chuck it up here at some stage, who knows. But at the moment, I'm sticking with Crave You - a song that's a year old but still reminds me of the room in which I first heard it, at night time. Love it. Seriously, love it. And love Giselle Rosselli's voice.

Finally, here's one without a voice.

I discovered Dewdrops when I was listening to an album full of morning psy, at some stage in 2009/10 (can't remember now). Perhaps it's not morning psy, or even psy (I'd go so far as to lump it in under house or dream trance, perhaps). Either way, it's delicious. And it's Vibrasphere. Ooh boy, do I love Vibrasphere. Not just because of the really funky name ("VIBRASPHERE"! Who comes up with this gold nuggets?) but because of the really kickass songs, most (if not all) of which have absolutely no vocals to get in the road of a really class-act... erm, act. I'd also hugely recommend Follow Me, Erosion, Autumn Lights (ooh baby! I wet myself with delight when my iPod shuffles onto that song), Morning Breeze, Forever Imaginary (Owl City should put some lyrics to that song...), and Seven Days To Daylight. Vibrasphere know how to tickle my fancy, by a long way. Light, fluffy soundscapes that, while they're not necessarily going to make it huge (even on Triple J or even Rage), still take me away to my private little fantasy world and love me in almost every way possible. They don't over-emphasise bass, percussion or... anything, really. The music is subtle. Dewdrops (a collaboration with Ticon) is sublime in that sense - a shining example of why I love morning psy. Too bad Vibrasphere have split up. Oh well. Legacy time!