Timber Timbre – Black Water

August 3, 2012 — 1 Comment

Sounds Similar To: The Black Keys, Gardens & Villa, Alexander

Hi there, Dr. Whuzzerface here!

Funny story, I was up late on Wednesday night, had a whole post typed out and then, right as I was about to hit “Publish”, the page reset and my whole post went kaput.  Needless to say at that point I was far too cranky/tired/thwarted/sleep-drunk to write it all again. So here goes attempt #2, which will be shorter as a result.

I love the name of this band. It’s along a similar vein of the double band name fad that his us in 2009 with bands like Germany Germany and Blackbird Blackbird, but it’s not at the same time. Tricky tricky! Really though, it adds a quirky earthy feel to their name to think of the literal translation as “Wood Sound”, which works wonderfully with the actual character of their sound.

Even just the title “Black Water” brings to mind a backwoods swamp scene replete with rocking chair sitting, banjos and possibly a little voodoo (did I mention the name of the album is “Creep On Creepin’ On”??). The song does have that sound in addition to being a good deal rock-bluesy. I also enjoy the lyrics preceding each verse “All I need is some is some sunshine, all I neeeeeeeed.” However my favorite part is the saxophone chorus transition, it’s epic! And mark my words, saxophones are making a huge comeback. This is my serious face.

Hoping your weekend is filled with sunshine indeed, enjoy!

Timber Timbre Official Site

Charli XCX – You’re The One

July 27, 2012 — 1 Comment

This song is rated: 2 Pills – intermediate musicologist level

Hi there, Dr. Whuzzerface here,

Oh the 90’s. I look around and I’m starting to see evidences of 90’s fashion creeping into the general populaces wardrobes. Guys shirts with dramatically cut-out sleeves, velvet turtleneck dresses, neon bicycle shorts…this kinda scares me. I can think of only a handful of unique 90’s styles that were ever flatting at all. Everything else was extreme, chunky, garish, ill-fited, boxy, too loose…the list could go on. With this video though, I’m kinda contemplating dusting off my pair of platformed Doc Martin combat boots. Yeah, yikes. Not only does little Charli XCX look very awesome in her 90’s-ish garb, this 90’s tilted song is rather bodacious itself.

The first thing that stood out to me of this song was how eerily similar Charli’s voice is to Marina (of Marina & The Diamonds). However, I’d classify her as a more goth version. A lot of the similar vocal timbre is attributed to the fact that they are both British lasses. There’s something about the water over there that makes certain singers very distinctive. I’m finding that this song is kinda driving me crazy, in a semi-good way, because it sounds like a mesh of so many bands/songs from the 90’s and I can’t quite pinpoint which ones exactly. I’ve come up with New Order, Depeche Mode, Madonna, Savage Garden, and  Janet Jackson, but I know there are more I’m missing. What bands does it sound like to you? My favorite 90’s element comes in at 2:30 where she does a spoken word portion that was requisite for so many songs back in the day. Priceless.

It shouldn’t be hard to surmise from the title that this is a song about certain people making you feel a certain way, seeing things differently (perhaps with a “Golden Light”?), basically being twitterpated.  I’m gonna just cut to the chase and let you see and feel the deep electro-buzz bass for yourself. This song makes me wanna bust out all of my old dance moves, so I’m going to go have a mini dance party for one right now!

As a side note: she has been opening up for Coldplay on their tour this summer so you might want to get her songs asap before she hops on the super-stardom train (and she’s only 19!!!).

Charli XCX – You’re The One EP – Amazon

Charli XCX – Official Site

Charli XCX – Wikipedia

MVSCLES – Sweet N’ Sour

July 10, 2012

This song is rated: 2 Pills – intermediate musicologist level

Hi there, Dr. Whuzzerface here,

I don’t know about you but just the thought of good sweet and sour pork Chinese food is making my mouth water already!  I don’t know what the deal is with the spelling, but I think it’s a whimsical device. The song “Sweet N’ Sour” will probably do the same after you’ve tasted this a few times.  This Boston duo only has this one dish to offer, but it’s a punchy little number.

Heavily electronic and yet light on instruments and vocals, it contains the sweetness of a pop song without the icky sugar coma that follows. In fact, is reminds me a little of Discovery (we’ll feature them in a few months!). I’m not quite sure the whole meaning of the song but it does make one good point that can be said for many experiences in life “If I hadn’t met sour than I’d never know sweet.” I hope you enjoy this little ditty.

Usher – Climax (Them Jeans Remix)

July 6, 2012 — 2 Comments

This song is rated: 1 Pill – entry-level for music novices

Hi there, Dr. Whuzzerface here, again!

As I said in the previous post, for your immense mastery in patience, you are rewarded with Double Whammy Remix Friday (in my mind, it’s said “Double Whammy Wemix Fwiday”). “Silk” was the chill song. This is the emotional one complete with the sound of tears falling.

Usher rose like a rocket with his smooth smile, slick moves, and y’know his voice, of course. He’s had R&B slams, won some grams (7!), and topped with numerous club jams. This fella is at the top of the pop food chain so really I don’t need to bore you as to how Them Jeans hit gold with choosing his voice for remixing. What I will tell you is that this rendition, which is a notch slower than the original tempo, is a heart break. This is the most vulnerable I have ever heard Usher sing in recorded song. It makes me want to weep for his pain of reaching that “breaking point” in a relationship (which I’m sure this is in directly from his first-had experience of a divorce). Before we get to the nitty-gritty, let me also add that mad props need to be given to Diplo for producing the original. It’s a brilliant piece.

The words “It’s too late” reverb throughout the beginning. It echoes through your head, reminding you of all those missed chances you had to say sorry, do something better, try a little harder to revive a romance. While the MJ-like “Beat It” drums might seem insensitive, the chords crank up as if they’re quivering in anguish. “I’ve fallen somehow, feet off the ground, love is the blood that keeps raining down. Where are you now when I need you around? I’m on my knees but it seems we’re going nowhere fast ” The lyrics to this are actually quite profound in how sometimes you need to concede your error to repair something worth fighting for, but when no one wants to admit fault, the chasm to reconciliation seems like an ocean (you’ll hear dripping noises in this remix too). Yeah, I don’t wanna be a Debbie Downer to the weekend so would it make you feel better if I told you that yes, this song is also FREE??!! Click the “Download” button on the player below to get yours.

“Where are you now when I need you the most?”