Raging Contagion
Music so good it will make you sick!
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Jamie Lidell – Multiply (A Minor)
February 1, 2013
Sounds similar to: John Legend, Stevie Wonder, Raphael Saadiq
Hi there, Whuzzerface here.
You are in for a treat with this one! Maybe it’s something in the water or in the way they talk that makes some British artists impeccable soul singers. Take Dusty Springfield for example. “Son of A Preacher Man” was a massive hit on the radio waves. Did anyone fathom that it was a white Brit chick on the other end of that record?! No they did not. Now, Jamie Lidell may not be a woman, but her certainly carries soul music like an American. It’s surprising really. I know that this song had a great deal of sucess when it was first released, but this particular version I’m sure you’ve never heard before. I firmly believe this is how the song should be forever remember in the annals of time. This key fits the melody better than a custom-made glove. Add to that the sweet sweet ivory stylings of Chilly Gonzales and you know this song will get your toes a’ tappin’. The message of the lyrics? When you feel like everything in life is eating away and reducing you down to size, take a break, “multiply” and come back swinging.
Do just that this weekend – GO MULTIPLY YOUR AWESOME SELF!!
Jamie Lidell – Multiply ( In A Minor Key) – Amazon MP3
Tooting his own (little) horn
HAERTS – Wings (FREE DOWNLOAD FRIDAY)
January 25, 2013
— 2 Comments
Sounds Similar to: Washed Out, Ghost Beach, On An On
To be truthful, I know pretty much next to nothing about the actual history, mission, or overall awesomeness of the band HAERTS. I was introduced to them via RAC‘s SoundCloud favorites, which I follow on a regular basis because they have prodigiously good taste. Anywho, can’t find much more info on them as of yet but I will update this post when I do.
Until then, enjoy this lovely tune. It has a chillwave essence to it with bluegrass vocals (i.e. the gluttoral stops – when she quick-changes notes). Even though the song is longish, hold out to the end because they introduce a samba beat that will teleport you straight to Brasil. Enjoy and have a carnival of a weekend!!
**To download, you simply have to “Like” their Facebook page. This song is worth the 5 seconds it will take!**
Imperial Guards love their pets.
Mark Ronson & The Business Int.’l – Bang, Bang, Bang
January 23, 2013
— 2 Comments
Sounds similar to: Amy Winehouse, Miike Snow, Q-Tip
Hi There, Whuzzerface here,
Mark Ronson. You may say “Huh? Nooooo idea who the chap is.” Oh yes you, you do indeed. He is the genius responsible for Amy Winehouses catapult launch into fame with “Rehab” (he produced half of that album by himself!) and even contributed a track to Adele’s freshman debut album “19”. He has a retro-ific soul that even keeps a bit of whit about itself, doesn’t take itself too seriously. By the way, i’m kind of a lot in love with Mark Ronson, we are kindred spirits.
“Bang Bang Bang” combines his insane drum riff (can you hear the use of MULTIPLE toms? that’s not normal, most people are too cowardly to utilize them all), synthesizers, MNDR’s attitude and red lips (is that a jedi padawan braid I spot??) and the timeless elegant stylings of Q-Tip. How can this song not be made of win with that lineup?! This video could very well be a glance into a paradoxical past that is also the future. That possibility alone makes my head spin. The Japanese talk-show host conducts the interview in French, Ronson responds in Japanese and then gets down to business with his Voltron-esque weapons of mass de-funktion. The little b-boys that pop up win my heart over in no time flat! The song is just as much fun and chaos as the video so enjoy!!
Mark Ronson & The Business Intl – “Record Collection” – Amazon MP3
Magic Hour – My Kind (Free downloads!)
January 16, 2013
Sounds Similar to: Walter Meego, Chromeo, Apples In Stereo
Hi there, Whuzzerface here,
This song is LOOOOONG overdue to be featured on here. Colin, reached out to us months ago and asked Raging Contagion to take a gander at his new his new project MagicHour (Colin was part of the now dissolved, and much loved by R.C., Walter Meego). He was even so kind as to give us a few freebies to entice us, and you know how we love our freebies. The only excuse I can offer as to why we haven’t shared this little gem sooner is because we’ve been jealously holding it back and unwilling to share. Well, we cannot be so greedy any longer, this little bird needs to be free. When it comes to heavy vocoder use, sometimes it can be overdone but the fact that “My Kind” is a sort of vocoder-lite and breathy, it is quite delicious to the ears. The peppy synthpop disco beats are nothing short of infectious so after nabbing “My Kind” from Amazon, click on the image below for a free EP as a gift directly from Colin!
Cheers kiddos.
Lee Hi – 1, 2, 3, 4
January 10, 2013
I’ve been telling Whuzzerface I would post something for about the past week now. Whoops. So, picking something rather randomly, I give you Lee Hi. This 16-year-old singer just debuted in South Korea under one of the biggest entertainment companies there with this song. Her acting in the music video is absolutely awful; she’s stiff and boring. You can still enjoy the dancers and the sets though.
Like this! See that sign up at the top left? Lollerskates.
BUT that’s not what really matters anyway. This is a fun, laid-back, retro song that has a tendency to get stuck in your head with its simple chorus of “1 and 2 and 3 aaand 4, ooh~” Don’t be frightened that the song is in Korean. If it bothers you that much, this song is popular enough to find translated lyrics of it somewhere online, if knowing the meaning of the lyrics will determine whether you like the song or not (because it does for some, silly enough as it is). Unfortunately, it is only available to buy through iTunes at this time. If you like to avoid iTunes and their steep prices as much as I do, you know who to call.
– cheerlubber
Kaiser Chiefs – I Predict A Riot
December 29, 2012
Sounds similar to: The Clash, Kasabian, Blur
Hi there, Whuzzerface here.
Are you, like me, getting ready to get all Crazy-Go-Nuts on New Years?! I’m looking forward to kissing 2012 goodbye and was scoping through my “crazy”-type songs and brushed the dust off of this golden nugget direct from 2005. Yeah young-in’s, it’s an oldie, but this song still packs a wallop in the form of a feather pillow fight and mosh pitting to this song is a MUST. The anthemic nature of this cannot be denied or ignored and you will give in to the riot mentality and sing along when the chorus rolls around. Enjoy!
Tame Impala – Mind Mischief
December 26, 2012
Sounds Similar to: The Beatles, The Cardigans, Toro Y Moi
Hi there, Whuzzerface here,
With Christmas having just passed us a mere few hours ago, it’s time to start thinking about New Years already. And what word is synonymous with New Years: MISCHIEF (or mischief managed for you HP geeks)! As far as the referenced “Mind Mischief” though, I supposed New Years midnight kisses could create plenty of this afterwards. I am sure everyone has gone through the whole hullaballoo with misreading another persons actions and interpreting them as positive signals. Here’s an excerpt:
How optimism led me astray,
Two hundred things I took the wrong way.
But I saw her love gauge running low,
I tried to fill but it overflowed.
Yeah, been there, done that. Never will again…I hope!
Enough of that though, let’s talk about the sounds! Seriously, this song is incredible Beatle-esque via the “Sergeant Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band” era with it’s psychedelic rock. Interestingly enough though, the album that “Mind Mischief” is on is named “Lonerism”. Similarities there?? What I love most about this song, and there are a lot of them to begin with, is the beat. The drums really kick the song up a notch! Tame Impala – they got the beat!!
Shim Kyu Sun – Redribbon Foxes (A Fine Frenzy cover)
December 19, 2012
Got a lil’ Christmas song for ya’ll! Now don’t freak out just yet because it’s a foreign name. To be honest I don’t know much about Shim Kyu Sun, except that she’s Korean and I think she mainly sings ballad songs. But her label did a Christmas cover album a few years ago and I stumbled upon her cover of a song by A Fine Frenzy and fell in love. I heard it from Shim Kyu Sun first and then listened to the original version. Now, Shim Kyu Sun’s version obviously has some slight pronunciation errors, but honestly I like how she sings it better (also, this version has really neat visuals). If you’d like to hear the lyrics more clearly, however, you can check out the original here. Either way you like to listen to it, it’s a beautiful little song, and–for someone who usually gives more credit to the music than the lyrics–I think the lyrics are beautiful too (you can read them here). Hope you remember what really matters as Christmas approaches this year!
– cheerlubber
art by lxyra of deviantart.com
Foster The People – Helena Beat
December 13, 2012
Sounds similar to: MGMT, Two Door Cinema Club, Phoenix
Hi there, Whuzzerface here.
Hey now, don’t you be rollin’ your eyes at me! Be honest, you loved Foster The People’s “Pumped Up Kicks”. Don’t even act like you’re one of those “I liked it until…” because I bet you STILL do, you just won’t ever admit to it until your collection of deep v-neck shirts is being held captive for ransom of said admission. Truth be told, I actually heard this tune first and loved it, but didn’t understand why it got eclipsed. Granted, today is only a Thursday, but let’s pretend it’s Friday because this is the kind of song that makes Fridays incredible.
Lest you forget, lead man Mark Foster did a heavy collab with A-Trak and Kimbra back in April that was nothing short of awesomeness especially since the video was chock-full of luchadors. Check it out here.
Foster The People – Amazon MP3
Foster The People – Official Site
Big Boi Feat. Little Dragon – Mama Told Me (FREE DOWNLOAD)
December 11, 2012
Sounds similar to: Prince, Outkast &….Little Dragon!
Hi there, Whuzzerface here,
I love brilliant collaborations. I love Outkast. I love Little Dragon. All of these loves together, when I found out about this song, “love” was an understatement for my feelings. Sadly, this song got help up in some legal mumbo jumbo. Big Boi however, in his benevolence, released the song for everyone to have and hold and cherish. What a great Christmas present this is!
Raging Contagion 