I haven’t been doing these 5SFs as much as I would like, but no matter, because I CAN do one today; and as a special treat for not doing them as regularly, and to show you some MAJOR love, today will be a 10SF!!! That’s right, 10 SONGS!!! Without further adieu, let’s get to the tunes!
Will Young – Jealousy
Yes, I featured this as the song of the day a few days ago, but I cannot get enough of this amazing new track from one my favorite singers. The “new direction” he has gone into full tilt dance initially made me feel very apprehensive, because of how delicate and beautiful his previous Let It Go was, and because of how very much I loved that album. That being said, after hearing Jealousy, and now that I have heard another song The Way I See (a free download on amazon.co.uk for you UK-ers out there; sadly not for us stateside), I have to say, that my apprehension has turned to sheer excitement. I have had this track on repeat since I first heard it, and I cannot wait for August 22; the day when Will’s long anticipated new album Echoes is out. Watch the beautiful video for Jealousy here.
Owl City – Lonely Lullaby
I will be honest; I kind of waned a bit with love for Owl City when he signed to a major label. Hearing Fireflies on the radio all of the time made me crazy; it isn’t his best song, and for as long as I had sung his praises, I was a little nonplussed to have the masses licking him up so feverishly all of a sudden. Don’t get me wrong, I am very pleased with his success, and am very happy for the guy, but I feel like some of the stuff on his major debut Ocean Eyes was a bit of a rehash of the fantastic Maybe I’m Dreaming (well, some of it was just a repeat, to be honest). For whatever reason, I was just over it all. However, recently, I heard Lonely Lullaby, and it was like a call from an old friend; this song is incredible! It instantly reminded me of everything I loved about Owl City, and it was like no time had passed! While I still think a lot of the lyrics are a bit out there overall, this song is very well written, and quite touching. Great return to form Owl City! I’m glad we’ve gotten reacquainted!! Listen to Lonely Lullaby here (not super great quality; just buy it on iTunes! Also, for those of you on Spotify, here’s a better quality link/place to listen.).
William Fitzsimmons – Ever Could
I could probably go on and on about William, and how incredible he is, and how much I love his beautiful and delicate music, so I tend to do so. I was lucky enough to see him earlier this year, and it was one of the best concerts I’ve ever been to. William posted about this song being on a show recently, and I was wondering why I hadn’t heard of it; it was on a bonus 2 disc version of his most recent release Gold In The Shadow. I honestly feel a little cheated, because I bought the album the day it was released on iTunes, and there wasn’t a bonus 2 disc version, but I guess I’m over it, because I have it now. This is definitely one of the best songs on the album, and I wonder why he didn’t just put it on the original release. Either way, it’s more amazing music from this incredible artist; I’m not exactly complaining. Listen to Ever Could here.
Lana del Rey – Video Games
My buddy Stephen over at xolondon clued me into this song, which is a haunting, gorgeous, and down right impressive debut from Ms. del Rey. Her voice has some qualities that remind me of both Sia and Laura Marling, both singers that I adore, and the arrangement is spine tinglingly good. The strings, the downbeat, the booming slow bass; all of it is magic to my ears. I hope to hear more from this new artist, and a huge thanks to my buddy Stephen for letting me know about this little gem; it’s been quite an earworm since he told me about it. To listen to Video Games, visit his blog here.
Pia Toscano – This Time
All I gotta say, is fuck American Idol. This girl was definitely the best singer from this previous season, and she got kicked off way too damn early. Well, looks like she’s getting the last laugh; this is a great lead single, and it really highlights her incredible voice. She reminds me of a younger Jessica Simpson (back when everyone actually enjoyed her music), with a taste of Katharine McPhee (a fellow AI alum!) thrown in; together it makes for a pure pop sensibility that is perfectly ready for the radio. The video is a little sexed up, but Pia is incredibly beautiful, and when it comes right down to it, she can really sing to boot. I hope this is beginning of some really great things from this fantastic singer. Watch the video for This Time here. (Also, get to iTunes this week, because this song is only $.69!)
Greyson Chance – Unfriend You
Even I am sometimes surprised by how much I love blatant pop music. Greyson Chance is about as poppy as they come, and his new single, Unfriend You is just too catchy to ignore. If you don’t know the back story on this kid, he covered Paparazzi by Lady GaGa at a school concert, put it on youtube, where it caught the attention of Ellen DeGeneres, who in turn gave him a record deal. A few months later, here we are; his album was released last week, and it’s actually pretty decent! This is my favorite song from the album, and highlights this kid’s singing talent nicely. Hey Justin Beiber, watch out, this kid’s coming for your fans!! Watch the video for Unfriend You here.
Matt Nathanson – Run (feat. Jennifer Nettles)
I have been a fan of Matt’s for a few years now, and his last album even made my year end best of 2007 list. Needless to say, I was kind of excited to see that he had a new album coming out, and when I got my hands on a couple of weeks ago, I was glad to hear this guy was back and making more great music. This is my favorite song from his new album Modern Love. It is a beautiful rock song fitting with the name and theme of the album, and it transcends into amazing with the addition of Jennifer Nettles on vocals; Matt’s vocals are beautiful, but with Jennifer on board, it goes to the next level. In my opinion, this should most definitely be the next single, *hint hint*. Listen to Run here.
Mat Kearney – Ships In The Night
My goodness, this man is so swoon-able. Mat Kearney has been steadily on my radar since I heard his debut so many years ago, and with each subsequent release, it seems he only gets stronger. His previous release, City of Black and White was my number 7 album of 2009, and after hearing his new album, Young Love, which was released last week, I am sure that we will see him sitting high on the end of the year charts once again this year. This is one of my favorite songs from the new album, and truly indicative of his trademark style, something I have come to love. This song is excellent, and the entire album is fantastic from beginning to end. Apparently, it debuted in the top 10 on the Billboard 200 this week, which is awesome to see him getting the success he so truly deserves; perhaps fans like myself running out and buying the new album didn’t hurt either. Listen to Ships In The Night here.
Selena Gomez & The Scene – Love You Like a Love Song
I recently posted on twitter, “Hey Selena Gomez! Stop making songs that I like; this is embarrassing!”, which is so, so true. I was talking about this song, because it is so good; and are we really supposed to be taking Selena Gomez, a Disney-channel bred pop star seriously? I mean, do those kids ever actually make legit pop music that transcends the teen-scene? Well, dammit, it looks like they do; this song is mature, well written, and a major fucking earworm. This girl has transcended successfully into the pop music market, and if you had no idea of her Disney past, there is no need to think of it ever again; she has transcended past the teen-scene, and as far as I am concerned, into legit pop music. So long as she keeps making stuff like this, there will be no need to be even slightly embarrassed about liking a Selena Gomez song ever again. Watch the video for Love You Like a Love Song here.
Medina – Addiction
It seems like there just isn’t anywhere near as much good dance music out there as there was 10 or 11 years ago, but every once and a while, something great and new song pops up unexpectedly. This, ladies and gents is one of the great ones. I was listening to BPM on XM Radio recently, and this song came on, and I immediately grabbed my phone to Shazam it; this track is catchy, and infectious. I have to say, that when I hear this, I can’t help but think of Anges’ incredible Release Me from a few years back; both songs are radio-ready dance tracks, and both are fantastic. I have hopes that Medina’s track can gain some traction, and get some US radio play like Agnes did. Fingers crossed; this song is too good not to cross over! Watch the video for Addition here.
Whew!! So there you go!! What did you think? Did you enjoy your reward for waiting on me to get back to the 5SF? I hope you did. Let me know what you thought, won’t you? Also, please let me know what you are listening to as well! Hopefully, it won’t be so long before the next 5SF!
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