I only have two goals for this series: 1) Introducing the masses to great new music and 2) Giving myself an excuse to listen to every single new release on the Tidal streaming service so I can stay up with new music. Doing this on a weekly basis means that I have a one week window to get this up before the Tidal feed flips to the next set of records, so by posting song reviews rather than full album reviews, it allows me to get more out there and then if you choose to dig deeper, you can.
So… songs of the week for the release date of 5/15/2020.
- Artist: Sparks
- Song: “iPhone”
- Album: A Steady Drip, Drip, Drip
- Genre: Art Rock
- Notes: This is the 24th studio record from the legendary Sparks and it plays out kind of like an Art Rock opera. As a whole, I’m not quite feeling this one but the song “iPhone” with the line “Put your fucking iPhone down and listen to me” should resonate with a lot of people.
- Artist: Charlie XCX
- Song: “Anthems”
- Album: How I’m Feeling Now
- Genre: Pop
- Notes: Still waiting, Charlie. Still waiting for that album that completely comes together for you and shows that promise that you show when you write songs for other artists. Still waiting…
- Artist: The Magnetic Fields
- Song: “The Biggest Tits in History”
- Album: Quickies
- Genre: Indie Pop
- Notes: I mean, how could a song called “The Biggest Tits In History” not make you smile?
- Artist: Alma
- Song: “Nightmare”
- Album: Have U Seen Her?
- Genre: Pop
- Notes: Debut album from this Finnish singer that was recently on Finland’s version of American Idol. Sounds like very American styled dance pop.
- Artist: Sara Evans
- Song: “My Sharona”
- Album: Copy That
- Genre: Covers
- Notes: Country artist Sara Evans covers The Knack, The Pretenders, Bee Gees, The Wallflowers, Chicago and more.
- Artist: Phlake, Mercedes the Virus
- Song: “Waited All Summer”
- Album: The Illegal Download of Your Soul
- Genre: R&B/Soul
- Notes: This is the third record from this all white R&B/Soul group from Denmark and their first collaborating with mysterious female singer, Mercedes the Virus. The album is a fun mix of R&B and upbeat soul.
- Artist: CWF
- Song: “Love in the World”
- Album: Champlin, Williams, Friestedt II
- Genre: AOR
- Notes: Well, it’s a new album from Bill Champlin, former singer of Chicago and it sounds like….wait for it… like a Chicago record. And this track also has Michael McDonald on it. 1984 all over again!
- Artist: She Hates Emotions
- Song: “Edge of the Night”
- Album: Melancholic Maniac
- Genre: Synthpop
- Notes: Totally out of the 80s, somewhere between Depeche Mode and Men Without Hats.
- Artist: Thomas Rhett, Kane Brown, Ava Max
- Song: “On Me”
- Album: Scoob! the Album
- Genre: Country
- Notes: It’s not often that I put up a song from a soundtrack but the soundtrack to Scoob! (which I read is one of the worst movies of the year) is likely better than the movie itself, even if there’s a bunch of white boys rapping on it and a weird mix of styles. I can’t even picture how some of these songs fit in the movie and I’ll likely never find out.
The Trusty Steed 