Stuck In My Skull 431 -- "Same Love"

Song: "Same Love" || Artist: Macklemore & Ryan Lewis feat Mary Lambert || http://youtu.be/hlVBg7_08n0 ||

Comments: Good morning, everyone! In celebration of the landmark decision by the US Supreme Court yesterday, I bring you today's song, "Same Love." Truly, this song is beautiful -- its message is powerful, and the song that carries it is a more-than-fitting vehicle. Brass and a subtle drum section propel this tune through four-ish minutes (4:09 for the radio edit, according to Wikipedia) and into my head for hours. By the way, I love how wikipedia is calling this genre 'conscious hip hop.' I wasn't aware there was such a term, and while I'm not sure that such a term needs to exist, it certainly amuses me that it does. Ryan Lewis was responsible for producing this song, which (to the surprise of nobody) perfectly accents and complements the vocals provided by both of the other artists in the track. Macklemore's verses are spoken quickly and clearly, in a style that's closer to spoken word than rap and makes this song surprisingly user-friendly to all comers. My mother -- a long-time oldies listener with little interest in modern music --told me that she found this song to be even easier to understand that Adele. I particularly like his free-flowing and almost free-verse style in this piece. Don't get me wrong, I love "Thriftshop" and "Can't Hold Us" as much or perhaps even more than the next person, but seeing this change in style is a refreshing cool breeze on a hot day. The sung verses in this track are provided by singer-songwriter Mary Lambert, no relation to Adam Lambert. I have to say, I like her voice, and will be looking up more of her in the future. This song used to leave me hopeful, but after the SCOTUS ruled against Prop. 8 and DOMA yesterday, more than a little bit of that hope has been replaced by a feeling of warm satisfaction. This is one of those songs that both opens my eyes, and leaves me feeling good to be alive. Enjoy it, folks.

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Stuck In My Skull 430 -- "Safe and Sound"

Song: "Safe and Sound" || Artist: Capital Cities || http://youtu.be/47dtFZ8CFo8 ||

Comments: Good morning everyone! I apologize for not writing a blog yesterday, but my stomach was bugging me and I was running on less than four hours of sleep. The blog would have been "Song. Watch." at best, so I elected just to skip it. Today, however, we've got an excellent track. I heard this originally some time ago (I think it was thanks to Newt), and heard it just yesterday on the radio. I was so thrilled -- hearing a pop radio station playing this song restores my faith in humanity. I'm still waiting on "Clarity", though -- it's charted, but I've yet to hear it on the radio... Oh well. Enjoy the awesome song!

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Sorry :(

Hey guys, I officially feel like crap today, so no Monday edition of Stuck In My Skull. Check back tomorrow, or see what our other awesome authors have been listening to!

--Chris

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Stuck In My Skull 429 -- "I Need Your Love"

Song: "I Need Your Love" || Artist: Calvin Harris feat. Ellie Goulding || http://youtu.be/AtKZKl7Bgu0 ||

Comments: Hello, everyone! If you're here for the first time by way of DJ Abso-Newt-ly, welcome! If you have no idea who he is, look here for some sweet songs. Speaking of sweet songs, let's talk about this track. To quote said DJ, Ellie Goulding has the voice of an angel and the beats of a god. I literally had this song stuck in my head most of the afternoon, and it's hardly a surprise. The hook on this track is ridiculously catchy, that synthesized piano backed by thrumming bass that I just can't get enough of. Simply put, this song is epic -- if you haven't heard it already, go listen. Enjoy!

If you have a song you want me to talk about, hit me up! Comment on this post, drop me a line on https://www.facebook.com/stuckinmyskull, or email musictourettes@gmail.com!

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Stuck In My Skull 428 -- "Dancing On My Own [Robyn Cover]"

Song: "Dancing On My Own" || Artist: Robyn || Performed By: Carousel || http://snd.sc/11GXEUc ||


Comments: Good morning and happy Tuesday, everyone! Today's song comes to you by way of my friend Newt -- better known as DJ Abso-Newt-ly -- a man with exceptionally amazing taste in usic, and a virtual deity of electronic music. This track is the famed electronic duo Carousel covering Robyn's iconic "Dancing On My Own," with masterful results. The instrumentation somehow manages to be hauntingly clos e to the original but still have its own unique tone and feel, while the vocals give the song an overall mellow tone that I just love. This song is amazing -- check it out!

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Stuck In My Skull 427 -- "Skinny Love"

Song: "Skinny Love" || Artist: Bon Iver || http://youtu.be/UrMmr1oMPGA ||

Comments: Welcome to hipster music. There's just one problem -- it can't be hipster music, because you've probably heard this song at least once. Whether or not it can still be called hipster-riffic is a question best left for linguists and philosophers. If all hipster music were this good, it wouldn't be hipster music anymore, because it would have gone mainstream as this song did. "Skinny Love" is as lyrically deep (or supposed to sound like it) as any decent indie track. This is musically less complex than many indie tracks, as Bon Iver favours the minimalist side compared to the big-band sound of some other outfits. But enough trying to analyze it -- it's a good track, so enjoy.

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AMANDA-- "FAT BOTTOMED GIRLS" by QUEEN

Hey all! Forgive me for not posting sooner but I had house cleaning to do and kinda sorta maybe forgot a little bit. In terms of new music, nothing has really caught my eye in the last couple days so I thought I'd share a classic as I'm one to do. On that note, I give you the timeless rock ode to bodacious butts everywhere, "Fat Bottomed Girls" by Queen. No one and I mean no one harmonizes better than the guys of Queen. Except for maybe the Bee Gees but that's debatable. Apart from the magnificent harmonization, Brian May, the one responsible for writing this beauty, kills it on guitar. That riff is downright unforgettable. At its best, rock music can be deep, poignant, meaningful, and even inspirational. But occasionally, all of us, myself included, need something a little lighter and more simple from our music and there's nothing wrong with that. Here's some good clean fun. Enjoy!

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Stuck In My Skull 426 -- "Beautiful"

Song: "Beautiful" || Artist: P.O.D. || http://youtu.be/fX506PWT0dA ||

Comments: Good morning, everyone! I heard this song yesterday on the radio, and immediately knew that I had to post it here. I haven't heard a P.O.D. song since someone gave me "Youth of the Nation" about a million years ago. At this point, I have to wonder what they've been up to in the mean time, because this song is epic. Seriously, it's the right blend of calm piano and guitar and thrumming riffs. The lyrics are about as uplifiting as you can get without being P!nk's "F***ing Perfect," and I'm not sure how this song could get much better. If you're feeling down, just give this song a listen. Enjoy, and smile, okay?

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AMANDA--"ONLY TEARDROPS" by EMMELIE DE FOREST

Hey everyone! Today I've got some delightful Danish pop for y'all. The winner of last month's Eurovision contest held in Sweden was up-and-coming singer and songwriter Emmelie de Forest. She represented her home country of Denmark and won with her only single to date "Only Teardrops," beating out Germany's Cascada and the U.K.'s Bonnie Tyler, among other top acts. That is one hell of an accomplishment for a twenty year old artist. Once you've seen the live performance you should understand why. She has a fantastic look and stage presence and, more importantly, she can sing. Every year I forget Eurovision is a thing, chide myself for missing it, and vow not to next time, then repeat. It's ridiculously fun to watch and a great reminder that Europe is one giant bag of talent and crazy, mostly crazy. Seriously, check out some of the other finalists. But back to the song. From the second I heard the flute at the opening I knew I was in for something amazing. Then she opened her mouth and the drums kicked in and I fell in love. Her voice is so crisp and refreshing and really compliments the instrumentation, which in my opinion makes the song. The production is just right so as to show off her voice but not overpower it while demonstrating how awesome truly folk instruments can be. I would love to see more American pop artists incorporating elements of folk into their music. Moreover, "Only Teardrops" is insanely catchy and an excellent debut by Emmelie de Forest. I look forward to seeing the official music video for the single later this month and hearing more from her soon. Happy listening!

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Stuck In My Skull 425 -- "Karma"

Song: "Karma" || Artist: Kamelot || http://youtu.be/Tjh0HEe22ys ||

Comments: Hello, everyone! Sorry for the missed post -- I was beyond exhausted, and I just asked Amanda to cover for me. So, for today's post, I figured it was high time to step back into some metal, and "Karma" is the perfect song to do it with. The title track off Kamelot's album of the same name, "Karma" is one of the songs that originally piqued my interest in Kamelot when I was first exploring metal. It is a masterful showcase of Roy Khan's magnificent voice and the instrumentation really brings out the more melodic side of Kamelot. Even if I weren't such a sucker for concept albums, I would be all over both this album in general and this track in particular, because it sounds amazing. Check it out!

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