The Wolf

I've Heard Stranger Things

The Wolf by Tyler Bates

I had no idea what to expect with this track. For one, a quick Google search turned up the result that this is a Hip Hop track. I don't know about you, but I'm going to have to disagree with that categorization.

Tyler Bates writes music for film, television, and video games. Recently, he scored Guardians of the Galaxy, and some other popular projects include Dawn of the Dead and Californication (x).

This track is from the 2007 film 300.

You may also remember it from the 1999 film Titus, since that's where it was stolen from.

No, seriously, Bates's soundtrack for 300 came under fire for plagiarism from not only the film mentioned above, but also James Horner and Gabriel Yared's Troy (x).

One critic refused to give the album even a single star out of five (x).

To be fair, Warner Bros was able to "amicably resolve this matter" with the composer of the Titus film score, Elliot Goldenthal, so who really knows what went down (x).

Anyway, I think the track does a pretty good job of setting the mood. Maybe it's an exception; a god among men.

Full disclosure: I've never seen this film, but I still feel like I know what kind of vibe we're supposed to be picking up. It features "a lot of weight and intensity in the low end of the percussion" and really creates a lot of tension (x).

Overview:

Genre:
Soundtracks

Verdict:
unsettling and creepy, but not quite scary

Patricia the Stripper

Lovely Ladies

Patricia the Stripper by The Wombats

"Some solid advice: never fall in love with a lady of the night."

This song takes you on a wild ride.

First of all, you're hearing about this desperate man who can't get over the stripper with whom he spent one single, passionate, alcohol-induced night.

Of the guitarist and songwriter Matthew Murray, the bass player said, he writes about "random stories about everyday life that he encounters. I guess trying to put a different slant on traditional themes of love and girls and all the rest of it. Try to twist that on its head and do something as original as possible with it" (x).

Second, the track has some interesting composition elements.

There's a 40-second intro with guitar trills and drums before the song begins in earnest, and the vocals don't come in until almost 50 seconds in.

It continues on in typical indie pop rock fashion, with more guitars and some background oohs and ahs, until around the 3:00 minute mark. Everything slows down for a moment and comes to a dramatic, almost choral cry of Patricia, the stripper! that sounds almost like it belongs on a Broadway stage.

After the theatrical interlude and a brief reprise of the usual upbeat stuff, the song ends on a slow, stripped-down note. A delicate plucking of the guitar accompanies solo vocals, gently pining over Patricia one last time.

Overview:

Genre:
Indie Pop / Indie Rock

Favorite Lyrics:
I didn't mean to get involved;
it was the alcohol
mixed with an empty feeling inside.

Verdict:
I don't hate it.

Moscow

Pадуга

Moscow by Autoheart

Recommended by Peaches

"Kim told me to send you a song."

Thanks, Kim. Thanks, Peaches.

This is one of the jams that I loved immediately from the first bouncy, bubble-gum notes of the intro, and it only got catchier. It's going to be on repeat for a good minute.

Sometimes you're in the mood for something pure, bright and happy, and Moscow's built on that vibe.

The band describes the feeling as "the daft optimism of being in love, when  you just want to run away with that person, dream about being together forever, the house, the dog, and nothing else matters" (x).

Nice.

As well as being a bona fide bop, this song is a political protest (x).

Back in 2013, Autoheart wrote about how this song and its music video are meant to criticize Russia's anti-gay legislation. Below are quotes the band (full commentary can be found in the description of the video embedded above - here).

"In our video, two gay Russian soldiers kiss in front of the Kremlin - yet just last month a group of same-sex couples in Moscow were violently attacked and then arrested for doing just this."

"Wouldn't it be amazing if one day all consenting adults could be free to love who they want without fear of persecution?"

Happy Pride to everyone celebrating in Atlanta :))

Overview:

Genre:
Indie Pop

Favorite Lyrics:
You've got my heart; I've got your hand.

Verdict:
It talks about warmth and magic and getting an Irish red setter, and I'm pretty sure that's the one true dream.

Temple

Temple Or Wonderland

Temple by Kings of Leon

Recommended by Kim

"After our talk I figured you needed to be able to name at least one more Kings of Leon song besides Use Somebody."

That's fair. Thanks. You would choose to help expand my knowledge of a band from Nashville.

Temple is a track from the sixth Kings of Leon album, Mechanical Bull, which was nominated for a Grammy in 2013. It actually peaked at #1 in Canada (x).

The title of this song is pretty clever, honestly. It makes me think of a building type of temple when I first hear the title - a structure used for religious or spiritual rituals (x) - which puts you in kind of a reverent mood.

But then you get to the chorus and realize that it's referring to the anatomical temple. The song is about taking a bullet right in the side of the head for the person you love.

Dramatic. But, like. Kinda romantic.

As far as the sound, it's a pretty standard alternative rock song. You've got steady drums, prominent but not overwhelming guitars, and a catchy melody.

Solid stuff.

Overview:

Genre:
Alt Rock

Favorite Lyrics:
I've got my hands in my pockets,
And I'm crossing my fingers
I just wanna be noticed.

Verdict:
similar to The Cure (x)

Change My Head

Shooting Star Summit

Change My Mind by Autolux

Recommended by Tim

I don't love the discordant bending of the notes during the instrumental segment that makes up the first 30 seconds of the song - "subtle guitar moans groaning underneath piano chords slowly plinking out like a barroom pianist at the end of the night" (x); however, most of the whiny noises fade out as the vocals enter.

The chorus "pops off slowly like exploding stars" (x).

I'm not sure exactly what the lyrics mean, but they combine with the music to form something vaguely unsettling in a way that you can't quite place.

Overview:

Genre:
Alt Rock / Dream Pop

Favorite Lyrics:
Now soar away and give up people.

Verdict:
modern and electronic but with surprisingly retro vibes

The Ghosts of Summers Past

Metal's Not Music, It's a Mindset

The Ghosts of Summers Past by Woods of Ypres

While not as long as the 9-minute video would have you believe (the last 3 minutes are silent), The Ghosts of Summers Past is still a behemoth of a song at 6 minutes.

The track resides somewhere between abysmal gloom and resignation to an ever-present but gentle melancholia. Somewhere between wallowing in misery and learning to cope with it.

It's about the end of a relationship, the end of an era - something that's gone forever.

I wasn't sure I liked the droning vocals that start the song, but it gets better. You have to give it a chance. Around 2:25, there's some more interesting guitar action, and it only picks up after that. We get layers on layers of vocals and some lovely harmonies. 

The title of the song is accurate to both the lyrical content and the haunting harmonies that fill in the second half of the song. The Ooohs that begin around the 5:15 mark can't be described any other way.

This is definitely one of those tracks where the lyrics are meant to be heard and understood and digested. It could be read as poetry, probably.

Funny, though, this is apparently a "blackened doom metal" band (x), and I was wondering how they were going to pull it off when they're from Canada of all places. I was mistaken. This blackened doom metal is surprisingly chill. I like it.

Overview:

Genre:

Black Metal / Death Metal

Favorite Lyrics:

I long for the way it used to be.

Verdict:

I need to reevaluate my interpretation of the word "metal."

Pink + White

And Not Plus

Pink + White by Frank Ocean

Recommended by Kim

"Can we just talk about how Frank used Beyonce for back up vocals? Back up vocals. He used Beyonce for BACK UP VOCALS. Only the legend could do that. Thanks for one of the most revolutionary albums of the year, Frank."

No shade at Amir Brandon and his beautiful cover, but the only reason I embedded his video is because Frank Ocean doesn't have a music video for this track.

I highly recommend purchasing Blonde, Ocean's long-awaited second album, or streaming it somewhere, such as Apple Music. The production by Pharrell Williams is  really something, and there's nothing like the emotion from a performance by the original artist (x).

The only thing I'm not crazy about is the second-long intro which honestly sounds like it's about to launch into the Mission Impossible theme song.

Maybe it's just because I haven't listened to Ocean in four years, but this song hits me with waves of nostalgia. I'm not sure if that feeling is created by the lazy piano accompaniment, which includes a section of the same note being repeated 8 times, or the lyrics.

I was trying to figure out whether it was about a breakup, romantic or otherwise, or if it was discussing the end of a certain period of your life. I guess it doesn't matter.

When Frank croons “It’s all downhill from here,” it sounds like a resignation, an acknowledgement that this will be as good as it ever gets. But the corollary is that right now, at this moment, you’re at your peak. For a generation that struggles to live in the moment, it’s an oddly reassuring statement. (source)

That, to me, is beautiful.

Last, we do have to talk about Bey singing backup vocals. This isn't the first time the pair have worked together, but it does mark the first time that Ocean controls the song despite her presence (x).

The queen sounds great, obviously, as she harmonizes over Ocean's melody. But she lets him sit alone in the spotlight.

Overview:

Genre:
Pop Ballad

Favorite Lyrics:
This is life,
life immortality.

Verdict:
"Revolutionary" but understated