We have a lot of awesome female writers on this blog. (And I’m not just saying this because one of them is my wife.) The ladies of the blog have taken over the Mixtape this week and are providing songs that’ll make you rock, make you dance and make you go back to December.
Fitz & The Tantrums — “MoneyGrabber”
Not since Kanye West’s “Gold Digger” have triflin’ hoes made for such terrific song fodder.
— Sue
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Crash Kings — “Mountain Man”
Lately, being wedged into the core of winter’s chill has got me feigning for July. Without a getaway budget, a plane ticket or a remote island, I’ve always found that the quickest way to summer is through music. Most recently, I’ve been getting that fix through a band of Los Angeles natives that runs three deep and goes by Crash Kings. Their current single, “Mountain Man” embodies a California-vibe that streams through the essence of pure rock n’ roll. The absence of a lead guitar allows the bassline to groove behind frontman Tony Beliveau’s sun-infused vocals in a perfect balance that keeps me going back listen after listen.
— Alexandra Johnson
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Taio Cruz — “Dynamite”
The infectious dance-pop of Taio Cruz took over the radio waves in 2010, but as I’m a little behind the times, I only recently caught the bug. Of course, some people are sick of it (or never liked it to begin with), but I can’t get enough of “Dynamite.” I love the positive, wholesome lyrics. He’s not singing about getting wasted or banging two chicks at once — he just wants to dance. And the music is upbeat, too. Good for one-person dance parties in the car. But my favorite thing about “Dynamite” is Cruz isn’t telling me what to do (i.e. “Shake that ass” or “Put your hands up”); instead, he’s saying HE puts his hands up in the air, which is a-okay with me. Cruz gets it: Us ladies don’t like being bossed around all the time.
— Veronica Slaght
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Universal Hall Pass — “Sally’s Song”
Well, I despise the radio. Everything is a horrible cover of a song that should never have been touched or something with a dance beat and one word repeated over and over. So, Ive been listening to Pandora a whole lot. I created a Bjork station and discovered quite a few fantastic artists and songs. One song Im into real hard right now is “Sallys Song” by Universal Hall Pass. If you remember the band Splashdown, its Melissa Kaplan, the former lead singer. The song has this dark but sexy sound to it and her voice …
— Ann Hale
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Natalia Lafourcade — “No Viniste”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z-8GgvJGdKs
Natalia Lafourcade is a Mexican on a major label but with a very indie song. She has worked with major Latin Rock artists such as Julieta Venegas and Cafe Tacuba and I first saw her play SOB’s in New York five years ago when she was still in a band, Natalia y la Forquetina. What I love about her music is the playful and almost dream like sound to it. Lyrically, “No Viniste (You Didn’t Come)” is about a girl who is telling a partner all the things she wanted to tell them but didn’t because they never showed up. I hope she plays SXSW again so that maybe I can motivate myself to go and see her play.
— Ilona Pamplona
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Taylor Swift — “Back to December”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=juFTc3gDkKA
Finally, a Taylor Swift song that doesn’t sound like every other Taylor Swift song. And I must admit, now I really want this country chick and that werewolf to work things out.
— Sue
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Bjork — “Unravel”
Another song I’m into right now, and I’m pretty positive I always will be. It’s all about how a piece of her disappears every time her lover goes away and they have to rebuild it when he comes back. It’s like shes saying ‘she falls in love over and over again, every time she sees him. I found a “Dolphin Mix” of it on YouTube and haven’t been able to stop watching it.
— Ann Hale
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Lil’ Wayne — “Right Above It”
I’ve been listening to Lil’ Wayne, I have to confess. The keyboard riff from “Right Above It” is always stuck in my head. But I’m painfully white, so I feel a little awkward listening (cultural appropriation?) and some of the language goes over my head. For weeks, I was trying to figure out the meaning of “boot purse.” I had mini-debates with my boyfriend about whether it’s a purse shaped like a boot or a purse for men to store guns on the outside of their boots. It’s neither. Wayne isn’t saying, “I’ve got my gun in my boot purse,” he says “I’ve got my gun in my boo’s purse.” Ooooh. Not cool, Lil’ Wayne. I still like the song, though.
— Veronica Slaght
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Circa Survive — “I Felt Free”
I saw them perform this song at The Cats Cradle in Carrboro, N.C., and it was quite possibly the most intense feeling I’ve ever had during a live song. The lights were blue and there was this thick white confetti falling from the ceiling, while this song filled every bit of space in the building. The song is about losing a love and the intensity of it but knowing that it is what is right and things will get better. If you don’t know who they are, Circa Survive is from Pennsylvania, with Anthony Green as the lead singer. He was previously in Saosin and The Sound of Animals Fighting.
— Ann Hale
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Florence & The Machine — “Dog Days Are Over”
My 2010 definitely saw some dog days, buy I like to think that mine are through as well.
— Sue
