Up There: The Clouds - Roots in the Air

I don’t post music by Italian artists often enough… It’s also not often that I post instrumental rock music. I came across this track recently through YouTube surfing. This could be music on some kind of indie film soundtrack. At first I didn’t expect the song to be so moody, and it goes through various phases. It almost feels like multiple songs stitched together. In fact, surprise emo vocals at the end!
Note: HD listening available!

Up There: The Clouds - Roots in the Air:

Agnes Monica - Ku Disini

Whoa, I don’t know what happened, but apparently this Indonesian R&B artist is now collaborating with American artists and going under the name Agnez Mo. Years ago when I was into her album Whaddup A…? she was an actress in Indonesia as well, but I checked out for a while and when I looked her up again to see what was up with her, I found she has a song with Timbaland and T.I. Not small names either! However, I’m still partial to the first album I heard by her, and that’s where this song is from.

Agnes Monica - Ku Disini [I'm Here]:

Bo Burnham - Rant

This is more along the lines of what I’d expect from fellow comedian Tim Minchin, what with the railing against the church and all. This young artist/comedian’s irreverence is permitted by his talent, and his shock value is balanced out by his intellect. You don’t get to hear him sing in this track, but his rapping’s not hard to listen to. Although it starts out as a cohesive lambasting of the doctrine and kind of devolves into more random wordplay. And yes, this is the instrumental of “Believe Me” by Fort Minor. There is profanity, blasphemy, and generally offensive content.
Note: Hurray for comedy in HD!

Bo Burnham - Rant:

Rökkurró - Hún

Iceland’s going through some hard times right now. Coincidentally, I’ve also been listening to Sigur Ros, another Icelandic artist, lately, so it seems like a good time to post something else from that region. I came across this peaceful track through YouTube surfing for nothing in particular.
Note: Why, yes, there IS HD!

Rökkurró - Hún [She]:

Brother Ali - Forest Whitaker

The album this song is from, Shadows on the Sun, is one of my favorite albums and widely considered to be praiseworthy, from hip hop fans and critics alike. This song is a self-esteem booster and means a lot coming from a guy who got teased for being albino (hence the lyrics). It’s not meant to be the epitome of lyricism, just humorous and motivational.
Note: HD, with (messy) lyrics!

Brother Ali - Forest Whitaker:

Ikuko Kawai - Violin Muse Based on Two Chaconnes

This piece is based on compositions by Johannes Sebastian Bach and Tomaso Antonio Vitali. Not only does the fusing of the chaconnes work well, but the fusing of different types of instruments does as well. The flute adds an Asian or Celtic hue to an otherwise Western-sounding piece, and there are even some bells and pipe organ in there for added intensity. All this makes for a rich combination of sounds that somehow work.

 Ikuko Kawai A.K.A. 川井 郁子 - Violin Muse Based on Two Chaconnes:

Burhan G - I Stedet for Dig

This Swedish artist has SUCH a nice voice. That’s less obvious here, since this is more dance music than R&B and there isn’t much fancy stuff goin’ on with the technique. (For that, see my previous post with a song by him.) I encountered him through his more R&B-oriented songs first, but this electronic (read: European) pop song is sufficiently catchy.
Note: HD listening is available!

Burhan G - I Stedet for Dig [Instead of You]:

Julia Savicheva - Прости за Любовь

I meant to post a second song by this Russian artist a few months ago, but apparently that didn’t pan out. Better late than never, though. This song may be a little on the melodramatic side, but I’m fondest of her voice when she’s belting, and her more uptempo piano-infused pop songs have less of that.

Julia Savicheva A.K.A. Юлия Савичева - Прости за Любовь [Prosti za Lyubov’ - Sorry for Loving]:

Wali Band - Yank

This artist is an Indonesian band, but this song has a Spanish sound to it. I think I came across them through YouTube surfing. I don’t know what the deal is, but I can’t find a translation of the title anywhere.

Wali Band - Yank:

Bridgit Mendler - Postcard

I got a postcard today! That’s almost irrelevant to this song except in the title. At first I thought this was a girls’ empowerment song, which is cool since her status as a Disney star makes it relatively likely that young girls will hear this song and the message with it, but then it ended up being an even broader and rarer “gender roles are stupid” song, which I personally find even cooler. I like that this song doesn’t stop at the message, “Girls can do anything,” and goes on to suggest that boys, too, can do anything, since teaching boys it’s shameful to do “girly” things is poisonous to girls just like teaching girls they can’t excel at “boyish” things is.

Bridgit Mendler - Postcard:

Trey Songz - Can’t Be Friends

This song was apparently released 4 years ago, but it was only a few months ago when I kept hearing on the radio for some reason. The R&B radio station was being played on the bus I rode in the mornings, so I took note of the lyrics on my phone to look up the song with later. I didn’t realize it was by this popular artist, whose name I knew of and knew another song or two by.
Note: Listening in HD available!

Trey Songz - Can’t Be Friends:

Cirque du Soleil - Alegría

I think this song was my first exposure to this artist, an immensely famous circus performance collective. I vaguely recall finding this song through an mp3 rotation site, and didn’t really get why a circus would have its own original music, but I liked it. For the record, I’ve never seen the specific show that this song came from.

Cirque du Soleil - Alegría [Happiness]:

One OK Rock - Mr.現代Speaker

I was listening to the album Zankyo Reference for the first time while multitasking, and while listening to albums as I do other things normally causes the songs to blend together in my mind, that didn’t really happen with this album, and especially not this song. This track gripped me immediately and didn’t let go. I like how varied it is, and every part appeals to me, from the verses to the chorus to the falsetto to the scream.
Note: It’s a miracle: a Japanese song available in HD!

One OK Rock - Mr.現代Speaker [Mr. Gendai Speaker - Mr. Modern Speaker]:

Émilie Simon - Flowers

I just came across some compilations of music I made years and years ago, and this song was among them. Just from the title, I called the mind the melody and lyrics with no problem. It was never one of my favorite songs, but I guess the weirdness of it made an impression.

Émilie Simon - Flowers:

Wheesung - 손톱달

This song was the theme of a Korean movie I never saw called The Restless, but I came across this song nonetheless (I think through an mp3 rotation site). Although this singer specializes in R&B of the modern variety, this song is clearly intended to have a traditional sound to it. The ancient-seeming fantasy setting of the movie accounts for this. This song is also commonly known in English as “Memories of Midair.”

Wheesung A.K.A. 휘성 - 손톱달 [Son T'op Dal - Crescent Moon]:

Zaho - Kif’n’Dir

Although most of this song’s lyrics are in French, the title and chorus lyrics are in Arabic. If you detect a tone of sadness to the track, it’s for a reason. The song is expressing the artist’s feelings of doubt and anxiety when she left her home in Algeria to move to Canada. They seem to convey both her loyalty and attachment to her home as well as the necessity to leave. You can find a translation of the French lyrics into English here: http://lyricstranslate.com/en/kif039n039dir-kif-n-dir-what-shall-i-do.html#songtranslation
Note: HD listening available!

Zaho - Kif’n’Dir [How Will I Do?]:

Sivu - Family Tree

I did not take note of where I heard this song, nor do I remember where it’s from. Nonetheless, it’s some nice, relaxing music with a pleasant accent. And of course, true to the current trend this artist is a young, British, singer-songwriter. Kids these days, with their creativity and whatnot.

Sivu - Family Tree:

Grace Potter and the Nocturnals - Tiny Light

I heard about this artist from an interview with the singer Adam Lambert; he said he’d been listening to her music lately, and that her voice was amazing. I figured that if HE of all people was calling someone else’s voice amazing, that person must really be an impressive singer. And indeed it was so! Listen to that scream!

Grace Potter and the Nocturnals - Tiny Light:

Zion I - Soo Tall

What the…? I’ve only posted this artist once before! Bay Area hip hop represent! I’ve seen these guys live a few times now. I don’t think I’ve seen them perform this song live, but it’s one of my favorites by them because of the wordplay. The switching around of words and sounds from where they’re expected to be (metathesis), repetition, linking together of lines, and so on not only adds a layer of intellectual complexity but also makes it exceptionally thrilling to the ears somehow. It’s songs like this where the poetry of hip hop really shines through. As if that weren’t enough, I LOVE this song’s production! It’s the very definition of infectious, and I love the use of the non-looped violin, like in the previous song I posted by them. There’s a little profanity.

Zion I - Soo Tall:



I wasn’t at all expecting to find a dance performance for this song, but this popped up and was too cool to not share:

Angel Haze - A Tribe Called Red

Get ittttttttt, girl! I can’t help but be proud of this young hip hop artist for making it as far as she has. It’s rare enough for a female emcee to get mainstream-level recognition at all, but for her also to be genuinely good (that flowwww!) is almost unheard of. Add to that that this success story didn’t hear music until the age of 16 and started making music of her own shortly after, and she’s nothing short of remarkable. I think the last time I posted something by her she was still relatively unknown, but now she's blowing up massively.
Note: This is the official music video, and in HD.

Angel Haze - A Tribe Called Red:

Ed Sheeran - Afire Love

When I found out that this song about the artist’s late grandfather and his suffering from Alzheimer’s Disease was chosen as a single for the latest album, I was a bit surprised. It’s not exactly charting pop hit fare. Good on him, though, for making a song with subject matter that strays off the path that’s been beaten well beyond tedium.
Note: This is the official audio, in HD!

Ed Sheeran - Afire Love:

Utada Hikaru - Final Distance

This song has long been one of my favorites by this massive J-pop star, simply for its sound. I like the melody, even though Hikki’s voice isn’t quite enough to cover the range. I think in high school I acquired this song through a friend lending me the album it was on, but I’d heard it before that because it was quite popular. I only just now found out the story behind it, though, which is that the song was arranged into a ballad when it was dedicated to a little girl who was murdered. The young student had won an essay contest by writing about how this artist was her idol. I guess that accounts for the songs’s eerie and decidedly unromantic music video.


Utada Hikaru A.K.A. 宇多田 ヒカル - Final Distance:



You can check out the official music video here:

Megaherz - Herzblut

I believe this band’s music would be classified as industrial metal. This song seems to be narrated by a really creepy version of the Sandman. Years ago I bought the album this song is on, Herzwerk II, and paid a pretty penny for it because it was out of print AND an import. Now I come to find that in 2008 not only was the album re-released, it was released in the U.S. -_-
Note: Someone was kind enough to upload this in HD about a month ago!

Megaherz - Herzblut [Heartblood]:

Sara Jackson-Holman - Cellophane

Thank you, Netflix series Orange is the New Black, for another likeable song in your ending credits. This artist, whom I haven’t heard other music by, has a rich, jazzy voice mixed with a modern sound.

Sara Jackson-Holman - Cellophane:

Woodkid - Run Boy Run

Someone at my company uploaded this song as an audio file to our system, and that’s how I heard it. I didn’t realize this French music artist also dealt even more prominently with the world of visual art, directing music videos and working as a graphic designer in addition to writing and singing songs. This song’s music video is apparently the sequel to the previous music video I posted by this artist.
Note: Judging from the two music videos I’ve seen for his songs, which I assume he also directed, there’s a particular aesthetic to his signature style. You can watch in HD!

Woodkid - Run Boy Run:

Fever Ray - Now’s the Only Time I Know

I heard this Swedish song on a German soap opera that I watched years ago and have been reviewing lately. That show supplied me with lots of music to look into, but I didn’t notice this song until my episode reviewing yesterday because it was used to accompany a scene had skipped past previously.

Fever Ray - Now’s the Only Time I Know:

Elbow - Grounds for Divorce

This song just sounds kinda cool. I don’t know any other songs by this artist, and I can’t even remember how I heard it. It may have just been through YouTube surfing. It’s rock with a bluesy feel.
Note: Here are the lyrics in HD!

Elbow - Grounds for Divorce:

Yolda - Eski Resim

I noted down this Turkish artist some time ago because I liked her singing style. However, when I looked up her songs they have a Western-style folk flavor, which isn’t exactly to my liking. Finally I came upon this song, which is much more obviously folk leaning toward Eastern-style, and is more my taste.

Yolda - Eski Resim [Old Pictures]:

Brown Eyed Soul - 시계

Ballads are extremely popular in modern Korean music, and as much as I love a good slow song these can end up sounding pretty bland and cliché after a while. For some reason, though, this Korean ballad was a standout track to me on this R&B artist’s first album.

Brown Eyed Soul - 시계 [Shikye - Clock]:

Natalie McCool feat. Bernard Butler - Thin Air

I posted a song by this artist a while ago and then virtually forgot about her. Fortunately, a recent episode of Hollyoaks reminded me of her existence when it used this song as the intro music to an episode. Moments of this song, she sounds to me like a pleasant combination of various other female singer/songwriters I like, including Tori Amos, Florence + the Machine, and Sarah McLachlan.
Note: I could only find the official music video, and it’s in HD!

Natalie McCool feat. Bernard Butler - Thin Air:

Eminem feat. Royce Da 5’9” - Renegade

Renegaaaaaaaaaade! Em’s essentially boasting about how adept he is at offending people, and Royce is doing the typical braggadocio thing in terms of physical intimidation. Fun fact: Back in the day Em and Royce were friends and made this track, then they got in a feud and Em redid this song by collaborating with Jay-Z and replacing the Royce parts with Hova. RUDE. Supposedly Em and Royce are cool again, in case you’re wondering. Obviously, there’s profanity, violence, and other stuff intended to offend—because that’s the point. The song's not here to make friends.
Note: It’s old, but has HD!

Eminem feat. Royce Da 5’9” - Renegade: