Volume 14: Bollywood and Bouncy Beats!

Hidy ho there, poptarts. Had the pleasure of watching a Bollywood movie last week, and since then, I cannot get songs from the soundtrack out of my head. Yes yes yes, it was "3 Idiots" -- a classic, I've heard, and one of the best-selling Bollywood films of all time. A great movie with a great message. Meanwhile, on the internets, a certain Ellie Goulding released her new song, "Burn." While I didn't love "Burn," a youtube commenter turned me on to the greatness that is "Figure 8."



Aal Izz Well - 3 Idiots
Ah, yes. Bollywood's greatest. There is just enough silly in this song to make it 100% fun and no regrets. I can dance my ass off to this all day, ever day. So what makes it so great? One word: Indians. "Life o Out of control"! "Aaaaal izzzzz welll!" I love the intermittent English splashed in with lines in Hindi. All is good. The drumming and the horns are on point also. Not sure about the guitar. LOVE the lyrics.

"Confusion hee confusion ha! Solution kuja buta na hee! Solution yup minna ta salad Question fiyat ha na hajja hi!"

Isn't that enough to make you want to watch it?

*Dances like crazy, complete with arm-flailing!*

Giggu-gigga-ga ga! All of the different voices and sounds in this song make it so detailed and delicious. If you don't like it the first time, I encourage you to listen to it a couple more times. There are some real gems in terms of vocals and mouth...sounds.

Worth watching?: It's damn funny and crazy.
Downloadable?: Def.


Ellie Goulding - Figure 8
This song is straight up powerful. It gives you the sense of buildup, urgency, and fear at times. I like haunting stuff like this, and I am so glad it exists. Her sound is somewhat similar to Goldfrapp or Imogen Heap, so if you like them I think you'll like this, too. There's a bit of dubbysteppy thing going on, which is always fun. I picture really awesome landscapes when she breaks into the chorus, which I love. The little melodies and electro-sounds throughout out are fresh and very, very welcome.

In terms of the vocals, I'm not totally sure if they are unique. I do like "Lovers hold on...to everything/ Lovers hold on...to anything." BECAUSE IT'S SOOOO TRUE.

In general, I think this a good bedroom track, a good riding the ferry to work song, and in general a very spiritual and moving piece of work. It echoes some of that celestial sound that is so popular nowadays. IF YOU'S A POPTART, you'd better appreciate! :) Toward the end of the song there are some serious keyboard jams going on. Not to be missed.

Worth watching?: Haven't seen it yet. At work.
Downloadable?: Very much.

That's all for now!

Volume 13: American Pop!

After a 1-month hiatus (I'm sorry! I've been in the US!), I bring you my top three favorites from the US and Canada top 40 radio. I'm usually very out of touch with the music scene in the US, and for just a few weeks I'll feel relatively up to date. YAY.

P!nk - Just Give Me a Reason

I find this song to be incredibly moving. I'm not sure what it is that I like about it; a friend of mine in New Jersey absolutely hates it, and I'm pretty sure a lot of other people do, too. I think it speaks to the hearts of people who have been in this situation before, though. In a relationship that you can kinda tell may be ending, but hanging on to a strand of hope that may/may not ever prove real. I understand P!nk in this song. Sometimes it's really hard to feel like that person you "love" is worth "loving" and whether or not you still "love" each other. Every time this song came on the radio in my rental vehicle I belted it out. I think that's another reason I like it. It's in my vocal range!

Worth watching?: The video is a bit melodramatic.

Downloadable?: Definitely. It grows on you, man.

Selena Gomez - Come and Get It

This song should not be as catchy as it is. As much as I like the African drumming thing and the ethnic vibe, her vocals are not that great and the chorus has probably been done 1,034,322 times. But oh well. I like the male backup vocals and many other things about this song. Mostly I love how strong it sounds, and anything that is electronic that can be danced to. I just like stuff like that man, I'm a goddamned pop tart after all.

Lyrics are really mismatched with the sound of the song, which is a shame. I wish she had kinda kept the spiritual Africa thing going throughout the track. Hey, you can't have everything.

Worth watching?: Dunno, haven't seen it yet.

Downloadable?: Deffo. But expect to skip it on occasion due to cheesiness.

Icona Pop - I Love It

Let me preface my praise for this song by saying that my mom does not enjoy it. Aforementioned New Jersey friend loves it, though, so that makes it okay for me to make it my jam. I will admit I was a bit drunk that day when we rocked hard to this song in her car. But that was so fun that I will always attached extreme fun to this song. I also heard it about 1 million times on my way from Maine to Toronto. So, it's engrained in my brain.

Why do I love it? I just love it. I love it. I also enjoy the premise of kinda destroying everything and going crazy because you love it so much. Also, I think this is the perfect example of 2010s music--super electro dance funky. Thumbs up from me.

Worth watching?: Yes, it's fun.

Downloadable?: Absolutely!

That's all for now, pop tarts. I'll try to keep in touch next week. Until then, keep it poppin'!