NEW SOUNDS

BETH DITTO

Beth Ditto, the fiery, big voice behind the alt-punk band, Gossip, has officially become a solo artist after the group mutually decided to come to an end last year. The Arkansas native had dabbled with EDM on her 2011 self-titled EP but has returned to her musical roots with her just released debut, "Fake Sugar". This collection of country-lite rockers and electrifying dance tunes features lyrics that touches on her Southern upbringing, life as a queer feminist artist and her almost four-year marriage to Kristin Ogata. Enjoy the video for the first single, "Fire":



PERFUME GENIUS

One way to describe the visionary music of Perfume Genius is that he is the star-child of Kate Bush and David Bowie. Born Mike Hadreas in the suburbs of Seattle, WA, he was victimized as a young child due to being openly gay and even received death threats. Hadreas found solace in music and learned to play the piano. After dropping out of high school, he moved to New York in an attempt to experience a more open-minded, creative environment. Hadreas soon returned to Seattle where he decided to pursue a life in music on his terms. Reborn as "Perfume Genius", he created songs inspired by his sexuality and the dangers that confront gay men in contemporary society. For his fourth album, "No Shape", Perfume Genius has created another bold art-rock expression on his views of love and relationships. Here are the music videos for two singles from the album, "Slip Away" and  "Die 4 You" which perfectly display this artist's inventive gift for performance art.





Finally we have some new music from the glam-disco outfit, Scissor Sisters. it's been almost five years since we last heard anything from the group, which still consists of Babydaddy, Jake Shears, Ana Matronic, and Del Marquis, and they have come together with producer, MNDR for a good cause. The song, "Swerlk" was created to pay tribute to the victims of the Orlando nightclub shooting one year ago with a sassy dance-floor remembrance. It is being released in conjunction with GLAAD with proceeds from the sales benefiting the Contigo Fund, a non-profit organization for LGBTQ individuals.

MY FAVORITE MOMENTS IN MUSIC OF 2012

Another year has come and gone but what we have left is the music; songs that inspired and some that were just plain. dumb fun.

I have already shared some of my personal favorites throughout the year, so here are the rest of the best:

Carly Rae Jepsen - "Call Me Maybe" from "Kiss"

Goyte featuring Kimbra - "Somebody That I Used To Know" from "Making Mirrors"

Chris Brown - "Turn Up The Music" from "Fortune"

Chris Brown - "Don't Wake Me Up" from "Fortune"

Marina & The Diamonds - "How To Be A Heartbreaker" from "Electra Heart"



Lana Del Rey - "Ride" from "Paradise" EP

Icona Pop - "I Love It" from "Iconic" EP

Alex Clare - "Too Close" from "The Lateness Of The Hour"

Scissor Sisters - "Let's Have A Kiki" from "Magic Hour"



Sky Ferreira - "Everything Is Embarrassing" from "Ghost" EP

Angie Stone - "Backup Plan" from "Rich Girl"

Diplo Featuring Nicky Da B - "Express Yourself" from "ExpressYourself" EP



Jessie Ware - "Sweet Talk" from "Devotion"

Miguel - "Adorn" from "Kaleidoscope Dream"

David Guetta featuring Sia - "Titanium" from "Nothing But The Beat"

Finally, I know this is old but I'm always late to the game. Enjoy Duck Sauce's "aNYway" that perfectly spoofs "The Midnight Special' and the soul groups of the 70's. I just love this song and video:

HOT AND FRESH OUT THE KITCHEN

"TRESPASSING" - ADAM LAMBERT

On his follow-up to his 2009 debut, "For Your Entertainment", "American Idol" runner-up, Adam Lambert has released the album he really should have made first. "Trespassing" still has a few rock elements but the out and proud singer is now ready to put on his dancing shoes.

With the help of producers, Dr. Luke, Pharrell Williams and disco music legend, Nile Rodgers, Lambert lets loose on some glittering, throbbing tunes that are fun and made with some serious ass-shaking in mind.

Enjoy this single from the album:

"Never Close Our Eyes" - Adam Lambert

"LITTLE BROKEN HEARTS" - NORAH JONES

"Come Away With Me", the 2002 recording that first brought Norah Jones to the world's attention in a very big way. That album sold well over twenty million copies and won the jazz-pop vocalist five Grammy Awards including Album Of The Year.

The singer's soothing sounds evolved to include country, folk and alternative rock on her following albums, so now with her fifth release, "Little Broken Hearts", Norah Jones has decided to go even further with her music. She collaborated with producer, Brian Burton (or as he is better known, Danger Mouse) for the first time on his project with Daniele Luppi with their album, "Rome". That helped opened her up to push her music in a more dramatic and experimental way. Much like Adele's hit album, "21", the songs on "Little Broken Hearts" were inspired by the sad end of a relationship.

Sample the eerie title track:

"Little Broken Hearts" - Norah Jones

"MASTER OF MY MAKE-BELIEVE" - SANTIGOLD

I honestly didn't know much about the background of singer, Santigold but I always thought that she was some musical artist from another country but I just discovered that she's actually Santi White, an American from Philadelphia. I made that assumption based on her 2008 self-titled debut which didn't sound at all like your standard American pop as she included an interesting collage of rock, punk, dub and Europop to sound.more like some otherworldly music.

Santigold is now finally back with her second release,  "Master of My Make-Believe" that was partially recorded in Jamaica which lead her to add dancehall to the mix. Inspiring and innovative, Santigold is a fascinating artist you should definitely check out.

This is a great song:

"Big Mouth" - Santigold

"A JOYFUL NOISE" - GOSSIP

Gossip, a three piece dance-punk band that consists of guitar/bassist, Nathan "Brace Paine" Howdeshell, Hannah Billie on drums and lead vocalist Beth Ditto, have come back together for their fifth album, "A Joyful Noise".

 Following Ms Ditto's fiery solo EP last year, the band now has seemed to have moved even further in to a dance/pop sound with this album being produced by Brian Higgins who is part of the production team of Xenomania. They are responsible for the hits of the British all-female pop acts such as Girls Aloud, The Saturdays and The Sugarbabes. Despite this slight change in direction, Gossip retains their edge with some sparkling new songs.

Here is the first single from the album:

"Perfect World" - Gossip

This is the music video for the second single, "Move In The Right Direction":



"OUT OF THE GAME" - RUFUS WAINWRIGHT

After recording alternative-rock albums, a tribute to Judy Garland and a classical opera, Rufus Wainwright has released his most radio-friendly album in his career. "Out Of The Game" was produced by Mark Ronson who worked with Duran Duran, Lily Allen and Amy Winehouse with the songs coming from the Canadian singer's recent experiences such as the birth of his daughter, the death of his mother, folk singer, Kate McGarrigle and his new home in Montauk, NY.

I can usually only take Mr.Wainwright's voice in small doses but Mr. Ronson's production has slightly smoothed out his more eccentric impulses and surrounds his sound in a pleasing way while making sure that this remains clearly a Rufus Wainwright album.

"Perfect Man" - Rufus Wainwright

This video for the title track features actress, Helena Bonham-Carter looking unusually sexy:




"OUR VERSION OF EVENTS" - EMELI SANDE

Emeli Sande, a songwriter and soul vocalist from Scotland who is already a sensation throughout Europe with her debut album, "Our Version of Events" which hit the top of the U.K. charts on it's release in February. The album has just come out here stateside and while she's been compared to another British singer currently having huge success here, (Adele is actually Sande's first name), Emeli Sande is able to mark her own territory with thoughtful, emotionally uplifting songs and passionate vocals.

Sande opened for Coldplay on their tour in Europe earlier this year and she will return when the band hits North America later this summer.

"Next To You" - Emeli Sande

Take a look at the video for the stunning ballad, "My Kind of Love":

 

Scissor Sisters has a new album out, "Magic Hour" which includes this terrific track, "Baby Come Home". I love this very inventive music video for the song:



JLo and Pitbull have teamed up again for the song, "Dance Again" and they made a very steamy video for it.:

MY TUNE OF THE DAY

The Scissor Sisters go hip-hop!

That's what seems to be the case with a new song, "Shady Love" by the band has been released/leaked as Jake Shears raps with new artist, Azealia Banks from NYC.

The idea of this reminds me of Madonna's feeble attempt at rapping on "American Life" but this is credible and a really great tune. We'll see if this is the direction The Scissor Sisters will be taking on their upcoming album or just the band playing around.

Have a listen:

"Shady Love" - Scissor Sisters (2012)

HOT & FRESH OUT THE KITCHEN

Here are a few of my favorite new releases:

KELIS - FLESH TONE

Kelis is not afraid to experiment with different sounds and with her last four albums, she has featured r&b, pop and hip hop but now with the release of her fifth, "Flesh Tone (Amazon MP3 Exclusive Version)" she is using dance and electronica. She enlisted the help of producers and DJ's like David Guetta, Benny Benassi and Will.i.am. to collaborate on this record which features songs that will stimulate your mind and your body.

It's off to a great start with the first single, "Acapella" already topping the US dance charts. She will be on tour called All Hearts with Robyn this summer, so be sure to check them out.

Here is another song that I really like:

Scream And Shout - Kelis


SCISSOR SISTERS - NIGHT WORK

Jake Shears, Ana Mantronic, Randy Real, Del Marquis and Babydaddy are the Scissor Sisters and they are back with their third album, "Night Work". They have returned to their roots of dark and moody music for the dance floor that is still sexy and fun.

While the Scissor Sisters have topped the charts in Europe, they haven't been able to achieve that success in the U.S.but this record looks like it could be their best opportunity yet. They are well known for their wild live shows, so catch them while they tour across America.

Here is a great tune off of the new album:

Any Which Way - Scissor Sisters

ROBYN - BODY TALK PART ONE

This Swedish electro-pop artist has returned with "Body Talk Pt. 1 (Amazon MP3 Exclusive Version) [Explicit]", the first of a planned trilogy of albums she plans to release this year.

She first came on the scene as a teenager in 1997 with, "Robyn Is Here" and had a couple of top ten hits here in the US. Although she was still making music after that, she didn't reappear here until over ten years later with an U.S. edition of her album, "Robyn [Explicit]" in 2008.

I saw her on tour when she was promoting her last CD and she really puts on a great show, so by all means see her in concert with Kelis when they come to your city.

Enjoy this song off of the album:

Fembot - Robyn

KYLIE MINOGUE - APHRODITE

This Australian singer/actress has been making music since 1987 and has remained a world wide sensation ever since. She has just released her eleventh CD, "Aphrodite" which features more of the high energy, dance-pop music that we love from her.

Although she has had a few top ten hits here in the U.S. over the years, she is still much more well known elsewhere in the world, considering she has sold over sixty million albums but hopefully this latest record will change that in this country.

Here is a taste of what she does best:

Get Outta My Way - Kylie Minogue

I'm also including the sexy and provocative music video for the first single, "All The Lovers":


Kylie Minogue - All The Lovers
Uploaded by EMI_Music.


THE LIKE - RELEASE ME

"Release Me" is only The Like's second studio album but they have been around since 2001, having released several independent EPs in the meantime. This all-female alternative rock band has teamed up with producer Mark Ronson, which together they have given this new record a retro rock-pop vibe.

Here is a song from the new release:

Fair Game - The Like