Music Review: Singles

My process for previewing music in this little project of mine is as follows:
1. Every Tuesday, I sort through the new releases according to Napster, my personal music service of choice.
2. I select one track from each newly released album, and add it to a playlist. I then listen to it as an A&R man would; if something doesn't grab me immediately and rock my world, I delete and move on. The songs that DO grab me, I keep on the playlist.
3. I upload that playlist to my handy-dandy Creative Zen mp3 player, and listen in my car, and around the office. Sometimes after multiple hearings, songs begin to irritate me.
4. If I like a song enough, I go back to Napster and download the entire album. If I love the album, I keep it and write about it. If I don't like the album, but I still like the initial song that brought me to it, (As with Cake's newest), I delete only the offending tracks.

Herein lies the rub. Some of the new releases are singles. Often, single tracks will be released prior to the release of an album. So, a new album is coming... But for now I only have a single. I create a special playlist for just the lone singles. I also, if I'm unfamiliar with the artist, do some more research and look up past albums, and preview them. Sometimes it pans out, sometimes not.

Here are some singles that have been released in January 2011 that have caught my fancy:

A Man Who Can Dance - Star De Azlan. Star De Azlan is a country singer. I can tell because her earlier singles and EP reminded me of that old joke: What do you get when you play a country song backwards? Her previous single, "Like a Rose" is a classic country waltz. Schmaltzy and icky. I didn't like it in English OR Spanish. Her new single, "A Man Who Can Dance," on the other hand, is peppy, energetic and much more well written. While resembling the chord progression of "Walking In Memphis", which you can't really copyright, the song is fun, and catchy.

Build Us Back - Know Hope Collective. Stay tuned for a blog entry about my feelings on Christian Music. Since returning to the church, I've really grown to appreciate it, when it's good. Know Hope Collective is good. Their website features little more than a link to a charity, but with some searching you can find out more about them. Apparently, this is a supergroup of Christian artists who have collaborated on this project: to write songs based on discussions about faith, and real life scenarios. "Build Us Back" has a nice pop sound, singing about recovering from a disaster, and pleading for help in returning to normalcy. Also good is their previous single, "Attention." They plan to release an album soon. Definitely worth checking out.

Douchebag - Denis Leary. Yep, I went from Christian music to a song called "Douchebag!" That's just how I roll. This song accompanies Leary's Standup Special, "Douchebags and Donuts." It's a fitting followup to "Asshole," and great to vent to. Its rockabilly blues feel is deceptively fun, and believe it or not, Denis Leary can really sing! Crank it up when someone at work pisses you off.

Gone and Never Coming Back - Melanie Fiona. A real surprise here. I'm ashamed to say this, but I tend to racially profile R&B/Hip-Hop songs as being mostly terrible. Melanie Fiona, however, is different. And I'm trying to figure out exactly why. First off, she can sing. No auto-tune, or sexual moanings here, just true R&B vocals. Her previous album, "The Bridge" is excellent, and although it features obvious samples, elevates the process of Hip-hop to a new level. "Gone and Never Coming Back" has more of a slow Gospel-R&B style to it, and a hook that is instantly addictive. Even if Rihanna and Beyonce annoy you, as they do me, check Melanie Fiona out.

More to come, I have two weeks of qualifiers to sort through. And keep on listening. In fact, if you hear of anything new that I don't mention, please bring it to my attention. I'd love to discover my new favorite album.