Pop Music


This video and music recording is one of those pop music achievements, like a-ha's recording of "Take On Me", that I think stays with you forever. Before I heard and listened to this, I was always like "OK, George Michael is on the radio again. 'Faith' is cool but haven't we heard it enough by now?" But I never really heard him. When I first came across this video when I was watching it on cable TV some years ago my jaw just dropped. George Michael, his incredible voice, and the way that he uses it to show respect to Elton John and his song, is one of the best things I've ever heard in pop music. Brings tears to my eyes every time. One of the great popular voices of the 20th century.
 
sprinkles said:
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Can't believe it took me so long to listen to these... Thanks for sharing., 1 and 2 were good but My favourite was definitely No. 3. I like how theatrical it is, in its variations.

When I listen to this music I just feel so embarrassed and silly that I only speak english. I've been obsessed with english my whole life, but there's so much more out there. I become more aware that reality isn't identical in different languages. I've started doing French Rosetta Stone, but I think it gets more difficult to learn other languages the older you get.
 
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I post this as bad pop music. I would describe this as an unsuccessful pop music release. I guess it must have some audience, but I don't know who they would be. There's very little about this that is appealing to me.

The biggest problem that I have with it is that it seems to aim to recapture or update or reproduce or somehow represent the beauty, simplicity, and authenticity of the best work of Chris Isaak. This musician is the palest shadow of Isaak in every sense, so the makers of this should be going out of their way to avoid comparison, but they seem to court comparison.

The tone is all completely wrong. In the video clip the artist is playing acoustic instruments but all of the sound production is synthetic, it's an unforgivable clash, it just looks pretentious, as though they are trying to make him out as a bigger or better artist for his musicianship with the instruments, but the instruments were not good enough to reach the final product. This product would actually have been much better with the organic tones of the acoustic instruments. The bouncy colours of the synths are jarring with the themes of estrangement, resentment, and grief. Is this supposed to be "dancefloor ready"? Who would want to dance to this on a night out? Why would you want people in your club to feel the way that you would have to feel to want to dance to this? Too much money got spent on this product, and not enough sense.

I can't stand the vocal style. Dreadful. Whiny. It seems designed for the pathetic lyrical themes... these futile, childlike, helpless, defeated, petty competitive jabs, "At least I'm honest". Vomit

It just doesn't work. I don't expect to see more of this artist in future, this is an embarrassing failure. Who would want to relate to the things that are represented here? The team surrounding the artist don't seem to know how to represent things in a way that would have appeal to an audience.
 

An older release that has taken a long time to grow on me but that now I can't keep out of my ears.

The instrument work here is mind blowing for a pop release... Both the vocal and the guitar work. It's all about Miley for me now... I can forget all the other pop musicians.

Gorgeous songwriting... deceptively simple... this effect is heightened by the staggered and segmented instrumental arrangements... particularly the reappearing multiple guitar parts. The songwriting credit is for Miley Cyrus and Oren Yoel, I'm anticipating that this Yoel person will be someone to watch in pop music. At this point, Cyrus is making Swift look very unsophisticated... there's no musical competition from Swift for Miley. Cyrus doesn't have to worry about her, she can ignore her... (which I'm pretty sure is what she does.)

My complaint about this product is that there is too much vocal tracking. The people in the studio went for a more minimal presentation for the song, it is not exactly filled with lush orchestration... but they didn't extend this philosophy to their treatment of the voice. I disagree with this. The main vocal performance is surrounded in this elaborate vocal setting, you can hear the other vocal track recordings surrounding it. My personal belief is that this was a mistake. The exceptional quality of the voice doesn't require all of this noisy, distracting settings. These noises add superficial appeal, but on multiple listens become annoying, all I want to hear is the main vocal performance. For the treatment of the voice they should have gone for something more like "Adore You" where the effect used is a more simple echo type device. I don't really like the echo either, but it's preferable to the multiple simultaneous vocal tracking. The producers get carried away with their role, they think that their interference is required everywhere, in fact some aspects would be better left untouched. Maybe it's part of meeting expectations for a major release, a mainstream audience has been conditioned to expect the "overproduced" sound.
 

Wow. If this much money got spent on making me look good, I would at least want to be cute.

I want Justin Timberlake to go away. I don't understand how he has a career. I get nothing out of his performances or songs. Nothing... just nothing. He first turned me off with his cluelessly screamy vocal performance on "Mirrors". But now his voice is nothing, like dust. His work has become so bad that it has put a black mark on Pharrell Williams for me. Not that I was ever really crazy about Williams, but he was respectable to me before the latest Timberlake crap.
 
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I have spent a lot of time listening to this. The song is very well written and integrates musical styles that would not normally go together in a way that is unabashed and exciting. Lyrically, it gives insights on revenge that are easy to get involved with. It's an excellent song.

You get tired of it after a while because it becomes clear that Taylor Swift had very little to do with its conception or creation, and her performance range can't keep up with its complexity. It makes her look like a hungry entrepreneur rather than a musician. It seems that she has attracted the best pop songwriters and now she is keen on recording the best pop songs, even if she doesn't understand them. I can't give her much credit for her ability to recognise how good the songs are, you'd have to be deaf or silly or just not interested in pop music at all to fail to recognise the excellence of this pop song.

I don't think her voice can go any further. I've never heard her voice develop. It's always been the same, she doesn't learn. The appeal of her voice is its "girl-next-door" relatability, like one of those supermodels that can do any look... but when you listen more closely, you realise that it's actually kind of offputtingly shrill. I'm sick of her. I'll still buy her singles digitally for the song quality, I won't buy another one of her albums on CD ever again.
 
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This is probably the best Britney song.
 
the said:

This is probably the best Britney song.
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What makes it the best in your opinion?

Big track, infectious. I remember I had to have this one at almost painfully high volume on my headphones when I was taking the album out with me on my phone. I like the bit at the end when Danja introduces "The legendary Miss Britney Spears". The whole thing is a killer opening for a great album.

Interesting video. Very sexy, but also shamelessly trashy, almost to the point of clashing with the quality of the song. I guess it's the idea of a sort of private show with Britney that is maybe suggested by the lyrics, which is very clever. Can't decide whether the blonde wig is good or hideous.
 
invisible said:
What makes it the best in your opinion?

Big track, infectious. I remember I had to have this one at almost painfully high volume on my headphones when I was taking the album out with me on my phone. I like the bit at the end when Danja introduces "The legendary Miss Britney Spears". The whole thing is a killer opening for a great album.

Interesting video. Very sexy, but also shamelessly trashy, almost to the point of clashing with the quality of the song. I guess it's the idea of a sort of private show with Britney that is maybe suggested by the lyrics, which is very clever. Can't decide whether the blonde wig is good or hideous.
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I remember it became my favorite when I was in Las Vegas and it was part of a Britney slot machine sound track. "It's Britney bitch" confidence = sexy as typical but when she says: "Gimme gimme" she tells you how much she wants you and I think there is a lot of sexiness in that. I've been seduced by the #1 seductress! May have more to say later.
 
the said:
I remember it became my favorite when I was in Las Vegas and it was part of a Britney slot machine sound track. "It's Britney bitch" confidence = sexy as typical but when she says: "Gimme gimme" she tells you how much she wants you and I think there is a lot of sexiness in that. I've been seduced by the #1 seductress! May have more to say later.
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Wow, blown away by the info about the Britney Spears slot machine.
 
For comparison: "Malibu" has 2 credited writers, and 1 of them is Miley. "Look What You Made Me Do" has 5 credited writers, and 1 of them is Swift.

So, ya wrote 1/5 of a hit pop song. Good for you. It's more than I've written, I guess.
 
sprinkles said:


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I like to imagine what these songs are about because I don't understand a thing that is being said. The first is about staying up late. The second is about putting on lipstick. The third is about meeting a boy in a video games arcade. (The last one didn't require much imagination to decide that, but the really interesting thing about the last one was the "innocent" sound of the vocal performance.)
 

One of the stand out pop tracks for 2018 so far, checks all the boxes for a solid pop music release. The chord structure is basic, but that is not exactly a crime for a pop song, it's more like what you expect. But the chord similarities and contrasts between verse and chorus are truly absorbing, I am really interested by this, probably because I am really just getting started in thinking about pop music very deeply. Standard 4:4 time signature, shared with almost every pop song, unless the vocalist is being marketed as unusually talented, as like Ariana Grande. (Compare to Tori Amos I guess, who is not a pop star but a legitimate Rock Goddess, and whose mind breaks down time signatures as easily as you and I put dinner in the microwave.) The melody is very catchy though which is what matters in pop. All the components fit together very well. There's nothing shocking, which is maybe a slightly bad thing because it means that there's limited innovation, and you would expect more from "THE BIGGEST SONG OF THE YEAR" (which this is clearly not), but it's also a good thing when everything goes together well. There is a reliable build up through verse, bridge, to the thrillingly explosive chorus. There is a minor, almost undetectable problem with the formula of the coda, "cheesy sound", which is really the weak point of the song. You'll hear it if you listen a few times.

I wonder if there's a name for the last part of the chorus that joins back to the new verse? I never thought of it before. It's not really distinct from the rest of the chorus so maybe it doesn't deserve a special name, but yet it is different from the pattern of the rest of the chorus cause it has to lead back. Anyway, just wondering...

The thing that gives this song depth and makes it memorable is the thematic content of the lyrics, about being a quiet person, but building and turning up the volume at the chorus. Romance is emotionally explosive, so turn it up! "You made me want to stop blending into the background and raise my voice." Very romantic! It's a well worn trope, but it's executed with respectable emotional finesse here. It works very well. Anyone interested in writing pop music would be proud to have created this song. Unfortunately, this song has 6 credited writers. I think that is quite sad for the writers. But I'm not sad for them. All that matters in the end is the product, so I guess they can be happy that they collaborated.

The most interesting literary feature of the lyrics is "Our heart a little clearer". Traditionally in English, I mean if you are a student of Shakespeare, you would talk about giving each other your hearts, exchanging hearts, my heart belongs to you, your heart belongs to me. It's a bit unusual to discuss a shared heart.

Interesting vocal performance. At first listen the performance seems incredibly limited (and it is difficult to discriminate organic performance aspects from digital postproduction) but further listening rewards with greater detail. The standout moments are the conversational flexibility on the surprising phrase "I wanna get drunk with you", the (digitally assisted) non-verbal vocal run at the coda, and the background double-track in the final refrains where Steinfeld reaches into her upper register. She is definitely above the achievement level of an ensemble vocalist but it's interesting that it's not immediately apparent that she is. Her voice sounds so ordinary at first. The defining feature of her voice is a slightly husky quality, as though she has been screaming a lot or as though she has been smoking. This quality is very "now", very chic, very fashionable, like a popular runway model. Perhaps she has been smoking to achieve this but it's impossible for me to tell with my very humble expertise, it could be a natural quality of her voice. If it is not a natural quality, her voice may not survive it for long, there's a possibility that the voice will lose its commercial value. I know from what I have done to my own once beautiful voice how easy it is to wreck a voice forever. But the vocalist would be aware of the peril, it's her choice what she does with her voice. Anyway, like I said, could be a congenital feature of her voice, I don't really know. Anyway, part of the charm of this song is how easy it is to sing in the shower, but how difficult it is to perform really well. It's deceptive.

The wealth display in the music video does not appeal to me, detracts from the romance of the song, but it is to be expected because of the film soundtrack that this song is for, which is philosophically very laissez-faire. (I shouldn't complain, I love commercial music.) Anyway, I don't know what else is on the soundtrack but I can't really imagine a bigger bang than this song. I remember Ellie Goulding's "Love Me Like You Do" was the commanding pop track from the first film in the series, so I guess this is the equivalent track to that for this film. (The big single from the second installment, from Taylor Swift and Zayn Malik "I Don't Wanna Live Forever" didn't appeal to me much, largely cause Malik's falsetto is putrid.)

Very satisfying. A solid achievement. Really excels in the pop music genre, a good example of the genre for 2018. For other people I realise that this music is probably very silly, but it's times like this, when I am fully engaged in some sort of pop confection, that I feel that I am really living. I admire the skill and talent and dedication of the writers to create some coherent and fully resolved artistic object. It's like a little capsule, we can enjoy it now for what it is, which is a very fashionable product, but it's so self-contained and fully realised that in the future people will be able to listen to it and enjoy it for what it is just the same way we do now.

Wow, I can't believe I wrote so much about that. Sorry for the flood. If you read this far, you must truly be interested in pop.

The only other thing that I have to say about this is about how difficult it would be to arrange for piano. There is a lot of effects, but very little articulation. Extremely electronic, little traditional instrumentation. Parts are very articulated, other parts are poorly articulated, all you can hear is percussion and a sort of formless sound-wall. For writing piano, a traditional instrument, articulation is basically all that matters. Piano depends on articulation to make sense. So this would be a really challenge to adapt to piano, because you would be rewriting it for the instrument rather than just transposing the existing instrumentation to the piano, as you would be for a more organically arranged pop production say featuring a lot of guitar work. I would like to try to perform this song for piano and voice though, it would be a lot of fun.
 
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I think the reason I love pop so much and why it sends me into such a state of ecstasy and bliss is because it goes against everything that I've been taught is acceptable. It's my ultimate rebellion against everyone always telling me what to do all the time. Because none of them can interfere in the intense pleasure and joy that I get out of it. And the more they try to interfere, the more they will be confronted with how passionately I love it, and how immune to interference my love of it is. And their challenges just make me justify my freedom to love it more. It's my big fuck you to everyone I know who refuses to accept me the way I am.
 
All of the big releases for first quarter 2018 are now out.

Drake - "God's Plan". You have more cash than you give away, and we all know the problem is systemic rather than a cash giveaway, and we all know it costs big money to mount a systemic resistance, so...

Taylor Swift - "Delicate". Nothing can stop this girl right now. All publicity is good publicity for her. Great dance vid, beautifully choreographed.

Scott & Lewis - "You Are The Reason". Nice to hear a duet. Wow, Leona is a star here. Unsurprising given her repertoire. Good supporting performance from Scott.

Meghan Trainor - "No Excuses". Great job. A very fun track.

Maroon 5 - "Wait". Just what we all expect now from Adam Levine, Master of Falsetto. He manages his lower ranges pretty well too. Justin Timberlake's aspirations.

Hailee Steinfled - We can look forward to more from this very fashionable artist. The marketing machine clearly intends her for "It Girl" status. Will she make it? Does she have the voice? Can she write?

Carrie Underwood - "The Champion". Her voice has a complicated nasal quality, but great vocal performance. Ludacris has obtained awesome musicianship. Worth a listen.

P!nk - "Whatever You Want". She can still sing gospel better than any other white woman, she just made a few production errors in her new album. Not as smart an album as anyone couldve expected. Wake up P!nk, think more and do better.

Yes I am listening to Chainsmokers, Niall Horan, Justin Timberlake, and others. I just need a little more from them to get interested.
 
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