tom odell - magnetised
the official first single off tom's upcoming 'wrong crowd' album (we offered up the title track video a few weeks back) has a hint of coldplay's foray into 'dance' music last year, but thank goodness sounds much better! once again, elements of dance play a big part in tom's sound, yet he still gives the tune an organic songwriter vibe (and killer choir) that made us love him in the first place. nice one this!
[press play and watch in full screen] coldplay superbowl halftime show featuring beyonce & bruno mars
it's kind of interesting to see the division of star power on this massive live performance. starting with a band throwing out a mini singalong medley of songs that are borderline forgettable the second you hear the next tune, a showman who with just his buddies bring out a playful urban street corner jive and a mama bey who in an instant not only owns the whole show but also throws in a political 'X' while throwing girl power to the world. of course it all gets softened back into a playful boy v girl thing with chris martin jumping into the center with his 'hey guys... it's me' energy. was it a success? if your name begins with the letter 'B' i'm sure it was. oh wait 'C' follows that letter in alphabet right? (non-interested silence ensues)
coldplay feat beyonce - hymn for the weekend
there's something so throwaway about this song that it's almost embarrassing to be associated with it (though i'm sure coldplay and co would rather call it 'joyful') also featuring bollywood actress sonam kapoor i'm not really sure what else i can write about this song except that i know these guys can write proper music. this is not the case.
WORLD AIDS DAY CONCERT: A (RED) THANK YOU featuring U2 minus 1 (bruce springsteen / chris martin) / kanye west / carrie underwood
only announced 3 hours prior via U2's own website, times square hosted a world aids day concert in conjunction with (red) featuring U2 minus their lead singer bono (who was injured in an accident a week prior). in his place were coldplay's lead singer chris martin and the surprise bruce springsteen! oh and kanye and carrie underwood were there too. check out the 48 minute concert and remember to donate in the fight against aids at (red). we can be the generation that can bring this disease down to zero!
bondax feat tanya lacey - all i see
co-written by mnek and becky hill, this is another soulful dance gem from the UK producers!
elliphant feat skrillex - only getting younger
whoa! newbie ellinor olovsdotter (aka elliphant) really knows how to rip into that dub bass! this time skrillex gets in on the action and well... press play. it's pretty darn good!
e.n.v feat little nikki - your love
a bit of pop house for your weekend thanks to UK producer e.n.v and little nikki!
doug locke - #thiscouldbeus
honestly, anything with a # for a song title is something i try to avoid, but the pure poppery of this single by actor/songwriter doug is just catchy enough for me to forget. throw in the touching video and you've got something pretty decent here.
coldplay - true love
though the song is meh, the jonas akerlund video featuring actress jessica lucas and chris martin, is a sweet story about two big spirits just wanting to dance. LET THE PEOPLE DANCE!!
gerard way - no shows
ex my chemical romance frontman gerard way brings his love of 90's britpop as his new sound as a solo artist. setting up his upcoming 'hesitant alien' debut, this is a catchy fun indie rock number that is miles away from his previous glam rock persona. i'm digging this!
haim feat a$ap ferg - my song 5
with a video featuring a slew of guest stars including snl's vanessa bayer, kesha and ezra koenig from vampire weekend, this song is easily the odd man out from their debut album 'days are gone' (they admitted to being inspired by timbaland). i kinda dig it more because of that!
kimbra - miracle
embracing some serious disco here, this joyous new single by kimbra is just pure happiness!
katy b - little red light
released just in time for last weeks notting hill carnival in london, this reggae tinged number is just perfect for the sound stages of the day.
mary lambert - secrets
the voice of last years 'same love' anthem, gets her own catchy poppy singalong single that you'll be humming along to in no time.
coldplay - a sky full of stars
how cute! chris and co. look genuinely happy throughout this australian viral video like setup! throw in the singalong at the end and it's just kind of all sorts of sweet for you day!
coldplay - a sky full of stars
i don't know if it's because chris martin is consciously single at the moment, but i'm weirdly not irritated by coldplay these days. throw in the fact that this avicii collaboration is perfectly pop catchy and we've got a new appreciation of them all. who knew?
coldplay - magic
directed by jonas akerlund, chris martin takes on dual roles as asian star ziyi zhang (crouching tiger hidden dragon) plays the object of their affections. it's a lovely ode to silent films... and a pretty good coldplay song in the process!
coldplay - midnight
surprising their fans with an un-hyped new release, coldplay return with an electronic mood piece that hopefully showcases a more experimental (albeit, VERY bon iver) direction. curious.
coldplay feat rihanna - princess of china
[just in case you haven't seen this video yet, here it is! meh about the song, NOT meh about the 'house of the flying daggers' inspired visuals]
coldplay - paradise
[the song is one of those perfect soundtracks for promo spots on vacation getaways or inspirational self awareness. it's also a massive undertaking for director mat whitecross to shoot in both UK and south africa plus get the band to perform for 10,000 audience members in elephant suits. the wacky world of coldplay!]
my gal robyn is usually flawless when she performs, but it sounds like our pop diva is a bit under the weather for this performance... she gives it her best and offers up a lovely cover of the current coldplay pop anthem nevertheless.
robyn - every teardrop is a waterfall (coldplay cover)
robyn - call your girlfriend (live @ bbc radio 1 live lounge)
coldplay - every teardrop is a waterfall
[i've kind of written off coldplay these past few years, but something so singalong and anthemic (even by these guys) deserves props. they're back!!]
coldplay - christmas lights
[though there's no new material until next year, coldplay offer up a dramatic xmas song to stir up your sentimental stings for the holiday. yaaay!]
darin - viva la vida (coldplay cover) [this kid has a total pop voice, but it's a good cover of an overused song
wikipedia says: darin zanyar more commonly known as 'darin' is a swedish pop singer of kurdish descent who was first runner-up in Idol 2004. zanyar has after that gone on to become one of swedens best selling singers with numerous chart topping songs and music albums.]
it's been a wonderfully strange busy summer for me careerwise and in the process, i am the first to admit that wongie's music blog has suffered along the way (ok, we basically stopped posting for two months). hopefully with fall coming, i'll be able to deal with some much needed time management and have this site back up and running regularly. if you've missed me, then here's a quickie treat of some gems that i've been in love with the past few months. more of these big postings to come this weekend, so come back again will ya!
vampire weekend - cape cod kwassa kwassa
[can you believe that we're already on single #4 off their self titled album? currently wowing them across the pond on the festival circuit, i can't wait to hear new material (fans post on youtube please!). want more vampire weekend, check out the awesome blog pretty much amazing for a lovely cover of fleetwood mac's classic song "everywhere"]
fleet foxes - white winter hymnal
[i can honestly listen to this song on a continuous loop for a good 5-6 times a day. call me choir nerd or just plain dorky, but this multi part vocal tune is just sweetly mesmerizing (still have no clue what they're singing about), much like the rest of their self titled album.]
duffy - stepping stone
[by the summer, i kind of put duffy's rockferry album aside (since i practically went to sleep with it every night throughout the spring), but all it takes is a simple moody video that brings her back in my good books. love loVE LOVE this song!]
adele - hometown glory
[the song is easily a year old, but a moving performance on so you think you can dance and the fact that the song got re-released in the uk just brought this tune back on my radar. if you haven't picked up adele's debut album 19 by now, then you really should drop everything and buy it now. i'm just saying...
coldplay - viva la vida
[the band kind of bum me out, but you can't deny just how amazing this single is. taken off the album viva la vida.]
noah and the whale - 5 years time
[the most 'fun fun fun' tune of the summer don't you think? this track might sound familiar to you stateside as the whistles playing alongside the current run of saturn car commercials. but for the rest of the world, appreciate the fact that you get to hear this daily on your top 40 radio. taken off the equally cute debut album peaceful the world lays me down.]
the chemical brothers - midnight madness
[taken off their upcoming 2cd collection brotherhood (you can also buy the solo singles only album which DOESN'T feature the full electronic battle weapon series, in which this track is taken off of) the chems celebrate their amazing career with all the hits that have rocked your speakers for the past 13 years. brilliant really.]
bloc party - mercury
[after announcing they were going to release a new album for the fall, bloc party jumped their own gun and put out intimacy as a digital release a few days later. oh the wacky world of music these days! if the fabulous current single is an indicator of what to expect, then go and get the album now!]
mates of state - my only offer
[cute cute cute song by the husband and wife team! taken off their equally sweet album re-arrange us]
css - left behind
[oh the freaky avant garde world of cansei de ser sexy, can you just imagine what an everyday conversation with this 5 piece must be like? hm... my head implodes just thinking of it. taken off their new album donkey (which rocks!!!)]
coldplay - viva la vida [link 2] [as a pre-cursor to their upcoming album of the same name, i'm actually hoping that the album will have more gorgeous tunes like this one than the less than inspiring 1st single "violet hill". though my adoration for this band has waned a bit, this is still a big release for the summer.]
