I stumbled upon this video describing the read-through for getting this film made and something about it just stuck with me. Not only is it a great song, but the excitement of the moment and the people in the room is hard to get out of your system. I’m not even a big fan of musicals, but this one definitely works for me.
Helios – Nothing It Can
The top comment on the SoundCloud page for this song states: “I’ve never cried this much to a song. Absolutely beautiful… I’m passing through hard times, and… My bf and this, is the only thing I’ve got… Thanks for this masterpiece.” That’s certainly more from the heart and better than I can put it. Enjoy…
Taeyang – Look Only At Me (Live From Fantastic Duo 2)
I’m really not sure how I stumble across music sometimes, and this is a great example, as I have no idea how I came across this track. In the tv show that I found this song, fans of a particular artist (who will appear later in the series) record themselves at home singing along to one of the artists’ songs. If these amateur singers are accepted by the show they then get to sing the artists songs along with the other candidates. After each song the artist picks his favorites to stay on until there is only one fan left who gets to sing a duet with the artist he/she loves. It’s a cool concept. This particular song is from the final round with just three candidates left. My personal favorite is the French expat who currently studies in Korea. Wait for her to start singing at the 1:10 mark and you’ll see why I chose her. Ultimately the male contestant won, but the music lives on. There is more to the song than is shown in the video below, but unfortunately the parent company of the show hasn’t released the full video on youtube yet.
Vera Blue – Lady Powers
This is such a funky song. Is it RnB? Hip Hop? Pop? I’m really not sure. There is no music video for this at the time of posting. All I can find are a bunch of different choreographers doing dances to this track. How does a track first gain popularity as the backing music for dance routines? That’s a bit of a mystery to me; all I can say is that this song definitely makes you want to get up and move, so maybe that’s the only answer there needs to be.
Rascal Flatts – Yours If You Want It
I first heard these guys back in 2005 with their mega cover “Bless The Broken Road” and then gained some more respect for them with another great cover of “Life Is A Highway”. I haven’t heard much from them over the last couple of years, until their newest single caught my attention. It’s catchy and enjoyable in all the right ways for a pop country tune. Good on these guys for knocking out country singles for over ten years now. Extra props for the music video with goofy band cameos, Chris Farley’s brother Kevin as the lead actor and it all being directed by William Zabka (Karate Kid).
Peking Duk & Aluna George – Fake Magic
The only thing I don’t like about this song is that there are too many verses, breakdowns, and bridges. The chorus is epic, and I want more of it! The bass line is oh so beautiful. When it hits you just go Oooooh! Waiting on the remix that just extends the chorus into an entire track…
Luke Combs – Hurricane
Really wished I would have posted this ages ago when I first heard it and not after it’s been a massive success. Oh well, at least I can hopefully turn this track onto someone that may have missed any country radio station for the past 6 months. Long story short, it’s a great pop/country track that fits the sing-a-long mold perfectly. Just try and get this one out of your head.
A Day To Remember – It It Means A Lot To You
Not sure how this gem of a song missed me when it came out in 2009. I probably overlooked it as I thought the band was a bit too metal core (too much screaming) for my taste. Granted a lot of their songs fit that description, but I’ve started looking through their discography again and I really missed out on some great songs. The best of which is their equivalent to the Green Day track: “Good Riddance (Time Of Your Life)” by which I mean that the solo acoustic track that doesn’t really fit the rest of the album and subsequently hidden at the back of the record turns into the biggest single.
HAIM – I Want You Back
After years of touring, HAIM have released what amazingly is just their second album. The rawness and uniqueness of their debut album is offset by the obvious advancement of their craft in the followup. This is a really solid album. I highly recommend you listen to the whole thing, but their first single is certainly a standout in its own right.
Porter Robinson & Madeon – Shelter
Another track I should have posted awhile ago, but I figured it would turn out to be a much bigger song than it ultimately was. Lately I’ve found quite a few people that I assumed had heard it, and I know would enjoy this track, that had never experienced it. For that reason I’m posting this inevitably good collaboration between young American producer Porter Robinson and young French producer Madeon. Honestly, combining the genius of these two could either produce a fantastic track (although not necessarily mainstream) or something so very obscure that very few could appreciate it. Luckily it was the former.