HEAR THIS: Little Mix Says 'Move'

(l to r) Jade, Perrie, Jesy, Leigh-Anne

Feeling like it's my birthday
Like Christmas day came early
Just what I want
So when we move
You move

My girls in Little Mix continue to do the damn thing. Almost two months after performing live here in NYC with Radio Disney, they have unveiled their brand new lead single off their upcoming sophomore disc -- and it doesn't disappoint.

"Move" continues to play to the four members of Little Mix's vocal strengths. In fact, it highlights how much of an anomaly they are in the (Western) pop game as all four are vocally competent as a lead singer. (Although, it should be said that Perrie, aka the future Ms. One Direction, really slays that pre-chorus that begins "You know that I've been waiting for you...".) The harmony vocals are not quite as prominent as they were in "Wings" or "DNA", but they really kick into high gear in the final stretch of the chanty bridge breakdown.

And, bonus! If you are like moi and found yourself utterly frazzled by that Robin Thicke/Pharrell Williams/T.I. debacle (I dare not type its name here on my column but you know the one I'm talking about and no, I do not want it. At all.) to the point of pulling your hair out because it has such a great groove but is so...rapey, never fear. Little Mix cures this conundrum. "Move" is very much in the now with less focus on EDM-inspired dance beats, opting instead for a very relaxed, more transparent back beat. Oh, it's definitely one of those everything-and-the-kitchen-sink kind of numbers, but it still manages to come off relaxed and not overwhelming -- with a cute little side-helping of 90's nostalgia to boot. Mmm-hmm.

Not unlike "Wings" before it, the hook(s plural) in "Move" are a tour de force. The Almighty Aloud have taught them well. If this is what the girls meant by a more mature & R&B-inspired sophomore LP, I am all about it. The set is due in the UK in November.

NOW PLAYING: #RunawayWithMusic with MEElectronics + GIVEAWAY ANNOUNCEMENT!

My normal postings will resume shortly -- we are just days away from October and those of you who have been reading Melismatic for longer than a year are probably already aware that October is Hell Month for yours truly as far as the day job is concerned. This year will come with a few fun perks (guess who's going to NYC Comic Con, ya'll!) so keep an eye peeled to my Twitter and my Instagram for a inside look in my crazy.

 

The main thing that will be keeping me sane this October (like the past few October's before it) is my music -- and there's plenty of new good 'uns to talk about. We'll get to that in a second but first, I wanted to share with you this beautiful new piece of equipment I will be using as my gateway device...

 

 

My friends at MEElectronics have provided me with a brand new pair of Air-Fi Runaway Bluetooth Headphones! Aren't they beyond adorable? I like to call them my "louboutin headphones" because of they are black on the outside and red on the inside. And they don't just look pretty -- they sound fantastic. Whereas with my prior earbuds the sound was much more compact, the Runaway helps separate out the wide spectrum of high and low sounds -- the overall tone and sound quality is leaps and bounds better without having to turn my volume all the way up (and damage my ears).

 

I've tried other over-the-head type headphones in the past that have been somewhat uncomfortable to wear over long periods of time and that is definitely not the case with the Runaways. The earphones themselves are very soft and the body is small and light. They can be wired to your drug of choice in terms of music player or they can function wirelessly in connection with any Bluetooth compatible device, mine being my iPhone. Using the Runaways in either way (wired or wireless), the sound quality remains great. They also fold up so they fit easily in my purse without taking up a bunch of room.

 

The best part for all of you is MEElectronics is allowing me to give away one pair of Runaways (in any color -- but if you choose black and red, we can be twinsies) to one lucky reader! I will be posting more details and the entry form later this week so be on the look out! My thanks to MEElectronics for this opportunity and for the beautiful headphones that I can't stop wearing! Maybe Hell Month won't be so bad after all...

 

For more information on MEElectronics and the Runaway Headphones, you can check out their website at www.meelec.com.

LIVE FROM NEW YORK: Pastele and Tara Harrison at Santos Party House

Ms. Tara Harrison

There's nothing quite like a live, intimate performance in a club setting. That's exactly where I was last Thursday night -- at Santos Party House on the Lower East Side of Manhattan -- to see an artist I've supported for a long time. I went to Santos to see my girl Pastele perform and left loving a brand new artist, Tara Harrison, that you all should really get to know.

Santos Party House is one of those venues that just feels like old school New York City. It's dark, it's smokey, and some of the seats look a little worse for the wear (if you get what I'm insinuating and I think you do). Basically the whole joint looks like it's got a layer of grit and grime on it. Glittering discoballs hang all over the performance space which could fit no more than around 450 people comfortably, flanked with two bars on either side of the stage. It's a prime space for raw, indie artists to perform and flesh out their sounds -- and that's what I was lucky enough to witness.

First up was a soulful vocalist by the name of Tara Harrison. Dressed in a black and white striped, long-sleeved crop top, high-waisted cheetah print pants and some killer pumps, Tara immediately exuded a relaxed cool. Accompanied by simply an acoustic guitarist and two background singers, Tara's five-song set felt more like storytime as she warbled into the microphone while perched on a tall stool.

Her musical style was akin to a happy mixture of Rihanna's best balladry ("Stay", "Unfaithful"), Alicia Keys's controlled retro fair ("Teenage Love Affair") with a relaxed reggae-flavored flair and bite (think Brick & Lace). Tara herself is from Jamaica and raised in NYC and her sound felt authentic and honest. Much of her material was inspired from a breakup -- my favorite being the assertive "New Car".

Tara literally oozed charm -- it radiated off of her in waves. It's fair to say she won over quite a few new fans that night, myself included. Watch her perform the song via the video I took above.

Ms. Pastele

Following Tara's stellar set, my girl Pastele took the stage. Rather than flanked by two dancers like she was when I saw her last, she seemed to be developing a new stage personae that is less dance pop and more dance rock (think Gwen Stefani with No Doubt or Fefe Dobson). 

Her stage attire reflected this influence in the best way possible. Wearing a printed, cropped tank top and printed leggings and some killer, sparkly sneakers, Pastele slinked on stage with a full, all-male band at her sides (drum kit, keyboards, guitarist, bass guitar).

Eschewing previous material (including her most recent single "Art Attack" whose video premiered back in July), Pastele performed five brand new songs, four of which feature this new dance rock sound. The fifth -- a ballad called "Torn" -- was the setlist's middle and showed off a softer, more vulnerable side. My personal favorite of the night was the bouncy "Roll In It", a surefire contender for the next song to get the Pastele video treatment. Another popular pieces was the finale in "Masterpiece", a tongue-in-cheek little ditty complete with hip swivels. Her complete set list featured "Roll In It", "Jump", "Torn", "Psycho" and "Masterpiece." Check out "Roll In It" below.

Overall, it's such a fun experience to see promising new artists do their thing in such a small, intimate space. Here's to what's next! For more on Tara Harrison and Pastele, you can follow them on Twitter via @IAMtaraharrison or @CityofPastele, respectively. My thanks to Pastele and her team for their love and support!

Check out and subscribe to my YouTube channel to view all the videos I took from this fun night. As always, you can follow along with my New York adventures via my Instagram or my Twitter.

LET'S TALK/NOW KPOPPING: Girl Radical VS. Asian Girl Groups

The Girl Radical girl group project was something I've wanted to talk about for awhile and following the *NSYNC reunion at the VMA's, I figured there was no time like the present. Settle in. This is a long one.
 

For those of you who are unfamiliar with Girl Radical, they are a female, American girl group that was formed by cattle call audition last year by *NSYNC's own JC Chasez. What will be setting GR apart from your Fifth Harmony's and what have you is their member count. Currently, the group stands at 11 members, and that number could end up rising. Given I've spent the past few years dabbling into the pop music world over in South Korea, seeing "supergroups" like Girl Radical are nothing new to moi, but in the American market, it's pretty unheard of. I recall when the Pussycat Dolls debuted with six members (slightly more than the universally accepted five member quota) when I was back in high school and it felt like there were so many women dancing on screen.

Therefore, when you hear that JC was directly inspired by the Asian trend of "giant girl groups", I'm not exactly surprised. Whether or not I feel like it will work in the US market is another question all together -- it will require super saccharine cute music + polished performance + innocent sex appeal. JC was specifically inspired by Japan's award-winning AKB48, which currently boasts (and this is no joke) close to 90 (all female) group members. To date, AKB and it's subgroups have been smashing all competition in Japan (the second biggest music market in the world after the US), selling records left and right and snatching up awards (and wigs) like it's nobody's business. One of their biggest hits, 2010's "Heavy Rotation", has over 92 million views on YouTube. It also features its members acting super cute at a slumber party...in lingerie while singing "I need you...I love you" in English (so the view count doesn't seem so surprising now, does it?).

Personally, while I can respect AKB48's accomplishments, the music or the performances never really captured my attention -- mostly because the music is very, very saccharine (you either like it or you don't) and often dripping in a kind of sex appeal that really confuses me. There is a reason why the famous members of AKB48 have a number of potentially dangerous stalkers -- the members are often presented on a pedestal for sexual longing (with many modeling in adult magazines on the regular).

Japan's culture is different from the US (although I wouldn't say vastly) -- in that "cuteness", "innocence" and "purity" often translates itself directly to blatant sex appeal. We play the game a different way here -- our female popstars (the young ones anyway) are expected to play both sides of the line. Be sexy and innocent, the coquette and angel, the virgin and the whore (yeah, I went there). Our society is certainly patriarchal (another argument for another time), but in 2013, we are not the culture that publically encourages females to openly cater to their men -- we are the "Come & Get It", the "Since U Been Gone", the "Independent Women", the "I Don't Need A Man" culture. Herein lies an extreme difference, and it's part of where Girl Radical currently falls short by basing themselves off their Asian counterparts (so far, anyway).

We've yet to hear anything official from the girl group other than a "buzz single" in the cover of No Doubt's "Just A Girl" -- a bit of a blood-boiling choice. On screen, the set up is familiar to me -- eleven cute girls, looking popstar perfect in a variety of wardrobe choices. As an American, I appreciate the multi-racial balance presented. How they are dressed and the cutesy interactions is a direct reference to their Asian inspirations. They all look like their having fun. The soloists have passably melodic vocals.

However (and you knew that was coming), "Just A Girl" is a rallying cry for not being "just" a girl. For not being "all pretty and petite". Yet that is exactly what is visualized on screen with these eleven ladies shaking their hips, flipping their hair and smiling sweetly. The disconnect between the lyrical content (and the meaning of the song) is really off-putting to me. I'm not much older than these girls -- surely they get the reference?

If Girl Radical is going to be a "thing", they need to take their Asian inspirations and ground themselves in what works and what should appeal to young women in 2013 America. Cute wardrobe? Yes. Dynamic choreography? Yup (and we'll get to that in a second). Catchy chorus? Hell yeah. But also, you have to be more then the cutesy. Several of the girls give off a sassy, sexy mystique. Run with that but have it make sense. Translating "Just A Girl" to be an excuse to exude that "innocent" sex appeal makes no sense. None. Zip. Zero. A better song choice would have elevated this video a million points.

That being said -- I don't dislike the Girl Radical idea, I applaud it...if it is executed the right way. I look forward to seeing what's next from these gals, and if they can continue to polish up their appeal to potentially compete with the Asian Pop that has impressed me over the past few years.

Unlike the Pussycat Dolls of yore, Girl Radical's target demographic in the US isn't men in their 20's/30's (that age group is also AKB's sweet spot). From what we can see, it's young girls. This is why, bias or not, I feel like South Korea's brand of large and in-charge girl pop would be a much smarter inspiration choice.
 

As a shameless fan of South Korea's brand of girl pop (of varying member count), I've seen polished pop at its best. No group in Korea is as large and in charge as AKB, but there are a handful that have a large gathering of girls as well as large swell of popularity. Not only is their visual aesthetic on point, their in-formation is impeccable almost on a military scale. That's because these girls weren't just put together via audition and presented to the public a year later as a group. South Korean idols all come from performance factories within their "label" -- they are accepted as trainees often as children and practice long and hard for years at a time before potentially getting to "debut", whether its as a group member or as a soloist. Groups spend sometimes years in development to ensure the correct members make up its rank. There's a reason why some KPOP is so pristine, it has a literal sheen (I rhymed and didn't even intend to!).

 

In terms of my choices for "best in class" for the ladies of Girl Radical to take a look at, I present to you these gal groups who undisputedly did it well. Only "giant" girl groups have been listed here (defined as more than the usual five members). 

 

NINE MUSES

Current Member Count: 9

Age Range: 22-26

After a few revolving door debacles with past members, Nine Muses (who debuted in 2010) are now really finding their stride in the KPOP scene, especially with their recent single "Wild". "Dolls", released in late January of 2013 took elements of AKB's "Heavy Rotation" and remixed them with a throwback, horn-assisted sound that is so popular in KPOP. The girls were dressed up both as playful innocents (and not in a creepy way) and in sexy menswear and it worked for them. The choreography is clean and relatively uncomplicated -- it's breezy just like the song. In terms of hooks & snappy choreo, take a gander at "Ticket", my absolute fave from the group.

AOA (Ace of Angels):
Current Member Count: 7
Age Range: 17-23

Taking what works for a large idol girl group and flipping it on it's head, AOA set themselves apart upon their debut in 2012 by boasting a five-member female "rock" band within their seven-member idol rank (known as AOA BLACK). This came as no surprise, given they were brought to us by FNC Entertainment, the requisite "idol band" company in the KPOP scene with FT Island and CNBlue. "Elvis" has sass, confidence and a healthy dose of humor.

AFTER SCHOOL:
Current Member Count: 8
Age Range: 19-30

Following the "member graduation" concept that AKB also uses, After School uses sex appeal to their direct advantage (their latest single, "First Love", features all of the girls pole dancing). All of this, plus their catalog's penchant for the saccharine contributes greatly to their success in Japan as well as Korea. You have to respect the work gone into making these exaggerated comebacks come to life -- After School never goes halfway. They also have a three-member subunit Orange Caramel who is very successful in the cutesy-aegyo song market. 2012's "Flashback" boasts a dark sex appeal and a Britney-esque sound. My overall fave goes to the original concept featured in "Bang!" (shown below is the Japanese version), offering its members in a sexy Drumline -- the choreo is on point. Where's my snare drum?

T-ARA:
Current Member Count: 7 (technically)
Age Range: 20-27

T-ARA is a girl group rife with scandal and flux -- dismissal of members, girl-on-girl bullying, scandalous photos on the internet. You name it, T-ARA's gone through it. Currently, they are performing as the subunit T-ARA N4 and are reportedly taking a crack at the American market (with Chris Brown as a featuring tag -- of all of the American artists to go to, the group that gets hate in Korea for bullying picks Chris Brown? Um..okay...). Their name is constantly slung through the mud following the firing of former member Hwayoung and their image has never fully recovered (to be fair, it might never recover). It was a steep tumble from the top -- the group was kicking ass and taking names in 2011 following the success of their John Travolta Wannabe/Black Eyes album. It spawned the humungo hit "Roly Poly" -- and whether you liked it or not, the song was everywhere that year (and is still considered iconic in the KPOP game). I give them props for their movie-like music videos. Like T-ARA or not, "Roly Poly" was top notch. The actual music begins at 4:21 in the video below.

GIRL'S GENERATION (SNSD):
Current Member Count: 9
Age Range: 22-24

The undisputed KPOP Girl Group Queens -- whether it's in the large-member-count bracket or not -- Girls' Generation have walked the line from cutesy to sexy (and back again) a number of times and back again since first debuting back in 2007. Images don't get shinier than these gals, who's solidarity and friendship is shouted from the pink hilltops by their ardent SONE fandom. Its translated itself well to Japan, too -- and in my personal opinion, I find their Japanese material the most captivating since it's much more confident and sassy (latest: "Galaxy Supernova"). It's hard to top their choreography formations; strict, clean and direct. (Shocking that my faves of the troupe are it's 3-Gal Dance Line in HyoYeon, YuRi and SooYoung, right?) Even if you dislike a song, the choruses are always catchy. SM Entertainment does not eff around when it comes to their Divine Nine. You could choose any of their Korean jams to demo this ("Oh!", "Genie", "I Got A Boy") or Japanese jams ("Mr. Taxi", "Paparazzi", "Bad Girl") but for now I'll go with "Run Devil Run" (Korean or Japanese version, you choose. Below is in Korean.). The song was actually a Ke$ha demo. Imagine that.

LIVE FROM NEW YORK: It's New York Fashion Week with Neon Hitch, Austin Mahone & Lots of AMAZING

Scenes from Junk Food NFL, curated by Kristin Cavallari.

Oh, yes. 'Tis the season of very tall, very lanky, very handsome men with excellently coiffed hair (who usually don't speak English) prancing about my neighborhood.

This past week, everyone who is anyone in the world of fashion had a runway show going on somewhere on the Island of Manhattan. Because I'm lucky (and work in social media at a local beauty/hair chain that sells the brand -- Not Your Mother's -- that sponsored and did the fabulous hair at a particular runway showcase known as the Style 360 -- say that 10 times fast...or don't), I got to attend several shows this past week.

I spotted a ton of celebs (Estelle! Brittany Snow! Perez Hilton! Bow Wow! Sean Kingston! to name a few), saw two live performances (Neon Hitch! Austin Mahone!) and saw a lot of fantastic fashion for the Spring of 2014 (so take notes for the future, ya'll). And because I love you, all -- I'm here to give you all the goss, pics, and of course, the music featured at the events I attended.

First up was Junk Food NFL on Tuesday, with a collection curated by former Laguna Beach starlet Kristin Cavallari. She's gorgeous in person (like, seriously) and super tiny (like, seriously -- and didn't she just have a baby?!? Amazing.). The line was very sporty chic -- all football teams, obvi -- but was still very girly and cute. I particularly loved the New York Giants maxi dress as well as the cute belly sweatshirt with jersey lining.

Tunes Played During Runway: Rihanna "Diamonds", Daft Punk/Pharrell "Get Lucky", The White Stripes "Seven Nation Army", Europe "The Final Countdown".

Hey Sean Kingston (black leather vest) and Bow Wow (grey/black shirt) -- the back of yo' head is ridikulus.

Later that night, we arrived for Angela I Am, a line by Angela Simmons (daughter of Rev Run, founding member of Run-DMC -- he was there to cheer her on, as was her brother, Diggy Simmons). We were seated two rows behind Bow Wow and Sean Kingston (stay jelly, fam -- it only gets better from this one). The fashion was a fun mixture of textures -- lots of black, lots of white, lots of red. The cut-out trend was all over this show -- lots of scorching sex appeal. And, you don't need to wait to buy -- you can purchase all the pieces at shop.angelaiam.com.

Tunes Played During Runway: Def Leppard "Pour Some Sugar On Me", AC/DC "Back In Black", lots of Jay-Z, lots of Kanye, lots of Uffie.

On Wednesday, I attended the Malan by Malan Breton presentation, designed by Malan Breton of Project Runway fame. Celebs spotted in the front row included a former Real Housewife (you tell me which one, I don't watch these shows) and former Baywatch vixen Traci Bingham -- and, it should be noted, yours truly! Yep, I sat front row, ya'll! (Insert Started from the bottom, now we here joke.) The showcase opened with a live trumpeter and closed with a live vocal performance of "I Will Survive" (extreme melismas and all). I was beyond impressed by the formal gowns in this show -- especially one showstopping gown that, as the model first cascaded down the runway, looked like a kimono before she dropped the fabric in her hands in a flourish to reveal a gorgeous white gown. The material was actually the train of her dress held up around her.

Tunes Played During Runway: Bee Gees "You Should Be Dancing", Depeche Mode "Personal Jesus", Gloria Gaynor "I Will Survive" (live cover).

Malan & his gorgeous model in that fab gown I was talking about. Plus bonus Real Housewife & Traci Bingham to your left.

Finally, Thursday brought two SHOW STOPPING shows. The first was my fave of all five -- the Tumbler and Tipsy showcase, designed by Michael Kuluva. There was so much color, whimsy, sequins and epicness rolled into this -- it's overwhelming. (Also -- Dear Sexy Male Model with Abs That Are No Joke And Who Walked Around Everywhere Shirtless, please marry me.) Celebrity models included Perez Hilton and Olympian Johnny Weir -- the latter looking fresh to DEATH both on the runway and off. But in a surprise twist of UTTER AMAZING, Neon Hitch opened the show, performing a stripped down version of "F*ck U Betta". With. A. Harp. YOUR FAVES COULD NEVER.

Tunes Played During Runway: Beyoncé "Diva", Azealia Banks "212", Selena Gomez "Come & Get It", David Guetta/Nicki Minaj "Turn Me On", M.I.A. "Bad Girls", will.i.am/Justin Bieber "#thatPower", Kreayshawn "Go Hard (La La La)". Live intro with Neon Hitch "F*ck U Betta".

Prior To Runway: Mariah Carey "Last Night A DJ Saved My Life", LOTS of Britney.

The last show was featuring Boy Meets Girl designing an exclusive collection for the video game Just Dance (you know the one where you dance to pop songs according to the moves show on the screen?). UK R&popper Estelle sat frontrow. Brittany Snow and Wimbleton finalist Sloane Stephens walked in the show, featuring lots of sequins and netted patterns. And it was opened by teen pop sensation, Austin Mahone (SCREAM!) performing "What About Love". Justin Bieber, watch your back -- this kid was slick and charming.

Tunes Played During Runway: Pitbull/Christina Aguilera "Feel This Moment", Nena "99 Luftballons" (cover), David Guetta/Sia "She Wolf". Live intro with Austin Mahone "What About Love".

Upon the finish of the Boy Meets Girl/Just Dance showcase, the sky literally opened up (perhaps Mother Nature was also tired and hungry, just like the rest of us who attended Fashion Week events, and just decided to throw a fit). Estelle walked right by us and her team asked us if she could borrow our umbrellas to get into her car (! -- my other moment of fame, right there). Estelle smiled and said thanks. She's fantastic.

Ahh, the glamour, right?!? But to be quite honest, my feet hurt from my heels (and so does my back). Is it the weekend yet?

Interested in any of these designers? You can follow them on Instagram via: @JunkFoodTees, @AngelaSimmons, @MalanBretonHomme, @TumblerAndTipsy, and @BoyMeetsGirlUSA.

Happy Fashion Week, lovelies! My many many thanks to the crew at Not Your Mother's for the invite! For more photos/videos from my week (with more to come!), follow me on the Instagrams via @melismaticdiva!

MIXTAPE: VV Brown, Annie, Ariana, FBR, ZZ Ward & More...

What's currently cookin' on the ol' Melismatic Radio? I'm glad you hypothetically asked...

 

ANNIE - "Invisible"

Norwegian dance-popster Annie finally bridged the gap of her absence since 2009's Don't Stop with the stellar, 80's synth-inspired The A&R EP in late July. All five cuts are utterly fantastic and my favorite changes with the hour. Currently it's the downright Kylie Minogue-esque in "Invisible".

ARIANA GRANDE - "Honeymoon Avenue"
This album cut from Ariana's stellar debut, released this past week, is the perfect example of how well she pulls off this new school female crooner mindset and stands apart in a league of her own. Threads of "Honeymoon Avenue" are obviously 60's-based but the vast majority is grounded in 2013. I have my fingers crossed so hard for her -- it's highly possible she could be our new vocal go-to in a sea of AutoTuned female popstars (not hating, just saying).

 

VV BROWN - "The Apple"
We all were waiting for things to break wide open for British avant-garde soloist VV Brown after the lovely "Shark In The Water" back in 2009. With her second official release, VV did a total 180 and when single "Samson" finally surfaced back in May, we were all kind of left shaking our heads at her dark sound. "The Apple", released a few weeks back during the Gaga/Katy chart debate, calms all fears. It's still dark, but dark in a smokey-dance-club-at-midnight-with-a-discoball-spinning kind of way.


 

YYZ - "Lost In the Mix"

If you find yourself missing Robyn like I do, give "Lost In The Mix" a spin. Her vocals are incredibly reminiscent and it's got a hard, driving beat.

 

CIARA - "Overdose"

I know all the jokes about Ms. Ciara -- I might have even said a few myself. But "Overdose" is no joke. It's a straight up pop jam, released as a mere album track (blasphemy!) from her most recent album, Ciara, released back in July. She needs to send this to the clubs, stat. This is a genuine hit waiting to happen, so long as she's willing to give up this R&-wanna-B flygirl shtick.

CHER LLOYD - "I Wish" (feat. T.I.)
I never expected to be Team Cher Lloyd when we were first handed "Swagger Jagger" back in 2011, and yet here I am. Her latest, "I Wish", is a punchy little pop gem -- a little bit of a retread of "Want U Back", but more polished and with horns. It still has its cringy bits ("wish I woke up with a butt and a rack" in the chorus...uck), but overall, it's hard to diss it.

 

EMINEM - "Bezerk"

I could keep spinning this for the samples alone (Beastie Boys, Billy Squiers). It seems to be a return to the Eminem of old -- how I grew up remembering him. While I do prefer his more emotional pieces, "Bezerk" has glimmers of the silly-but-you-still-sing-it-anyway Em. Fitting, since it's the first single from the upcoming The Marshall Mathers LP 2, a sequel to his breakthrough debut. Produced by Rick Rubin, as well.

 

GOODIE MOB  - "Special Education (feat. Janelle Monae)"

Goodie Mob's latest album in Age Against The Machine (get it?) reminds me quite a bit of when the Black Eyed Peas were innovative and exciting mixed with the Gorillaz. It's all over the board -- dancey, quirky, cartoonish, a little bit off the wall. It also has Cee-Lo's now iconic, Cheshire Cat-like vocals running all through it. First single "Special Education" adds do-no-wrong Janelle Monae to the mix. Album cuts "Vallelujah" and disco jam "Ghost of Gloria Goodchild" are also worth some listening to.

 

ELLIE GOULDING - "You, My Everything"
Ellie's re-release of Halcyon (as Halcyon Days) is a worthy effort indeed -- the new tracks could easily stand on their own as a new EP and they are all beautiful. New single "Burn" was co-written with Ryan Tedder and Brent Kutzle of OneRepublic along with long-time collaborator Greg Kurstin (P!NK, Kelly Clarkson, Lily Allen). Other co-writes of the new material include "Goodness Gracious" with Nate Reuss of fun. and "Under Control" with Bonnie McKee.  "You, My Everything" is my favorite of the new cuts, co-written with Eg White (Duffy's "Warwick Avenue", Adele's "Chasing Pavements). It it's Ellie to her core -- shimmery, punchy, electronic background with a soulful delivery.

BASTILLE - "These Streets"
I've really warmed up to British pop/rock troupe Bastille. Their solid debut album, Bad Blood, finally hit shelves Stateside and it makes me very happy. It's hard to trump the hooky, anthematic "Pompeii", but "These Streets" is fun little ditty, if only for its xylophone-y bits alone.

 

ZZ WARD - "Put The Gun Down"
I'm a bit late to the ZZ party. Go with me on this -- imagine a country-fried, bluesy Adele, as if she joined the troupe over at Little Big Town and was hanging out with KT Tunstall near her "Black Horse and A Cherry Tree". ZZ (it's short for Zsuzsanna and if you don't think that is a fabulous name, you are LYING) has got herself a big voice and despite being country down to her core, she's got an ear for hooks that can really sink themselves into you deep. She's signed to Hollywood and is represented by pop gem extraordinaire Kidd Bogart. Her debut disc, Till the Casket Drops was released back in October (!) and features Kendrick Lamar amongst others. The fab "Put The Gun Down" was a bonafide hit on AAA (Adult Album Alternative) Radio. This could be something huge.

FRENCH HORN REBELLION - "Dancing Out (feat. Jody Watley & Young Empires)"

I'll be honest. Anything with Jody Watley's name attached to it (Best New Artist at the Grammy's the year I was born -- 1987), I'm gonna listen to it ("Looking For A New Love", anyone?). French Horn Rebellion (another epic name) are another one of those now dime-a-dozen intrinsically hipster electro groups but "Dancing Out" is so downright 80's that a featured tag with anyone but Jody Watley would feel inauthentic. Seriously. It's time travel back to the 80's that needs to be heard to be believed.

JOJO - "Anything (2013 Remix) (feat. Casey Veggies)"
As we sit tight and continue to wait for album #3, JoJo continues to be kind and drop along crumbs to us. She re-recorded her last major label single release -- the Toto's "Africa"-sampling "Anything" -- with a fresh rap by Casey Veggies, and it's available for free download so get on that ish.

 

ICONA POP - "In The Stars (Galaxy Mix)"

I lot of the material from my favorite Swedish twosome is starting to sound the same at this point but the sameness is all awesome, so I won't fault it. "In The Stars" breaks from the mold a little bit -- a little more ethereal and less petulant. It's is a great outro for summer. Enough said.

HEAR THIS: Travis Garland Steps Out Of The "Clouds"

September 10th. It's just over a week away.

 

That is the date when all of the time spent waiting for a tangible Travis Garland record to formally drop for sale ends. Considering how excited and anxious I am after waiting, I can only imagine the excitement he is feeling now that his official album release date is so close you can taste it.

 

Travis's vocals first hit my ears back in 2007 thanks to the underappreciated boy band NLT. After three fantastic singles and countless album pushbacks, the group fizzled out and went their separate ways. The group's unequivocal lead singer kept his nose to the grindstone, what with a rumored deal with Interscope and a plausible solo project on the horizon. Perez Hilton and Ryan Seacrest sung his praises and not long after, the Danja-produced, super shiny "single" in "Believe" hit iTunes -- complete with a performance aired on 'American Idol' in 2010. Still no album in sight.

 

2011 brought us the first of Travis' self-written mixtape projects, the James Bond-influenced The Last Man Standing. Fashionably Late followed a year later, along with its sequel in early 2013. This brings us to now, with the release of the single "Clouds" and, finally, the self-titled solo album release date. Basically, this is your last chance to jump on the bandwagon before it leaves the station.

"Clouds" reinforces the worthy comparisons to R&B of yore or the meteoric rise of Miguel or Frank Ocean. The progression of Travis' work has decidedly veered in this direction the past few years -- taking a right turn from earlier, more slick, pop-tingled tunes (like "Believe" -- an utter red herring). Considering Trav's big pipes, it was more than a smart decision. It was and is the right decision. His pop sensibility isn't gone -- it continues to live and breathe in his penchant for memorable and catchy hooks. This style let's his raw, melismatic (HELLO) vocal tendencies run wild. Obviously, I'm pretty okay with that.
 

Travis Garland will include a handful of pre-released-via-mixtape favorites in steamy "Neighbor" and "Homewrecker", cerebral "Blue Electric Roses", and my personal favorite (so far) in the soulful "Abby Lee". But the vast majority of the tracklist will be completely new, unreleased material. Considering his track record, I'm literally salivating at the thought.

 

While we wait, check out my 'Live From New York'  (complete with video of Travis' entire set!) from back in March. Travis Garland will be available for downloadable purchase at iTunes on September 10th.