Player - Baby Come Back
Friday night, I was arguing with a friend over the technical definition of Yacht Rock, particularly as it pertains to "Sara Smiles" by Hall & Oates. I contended it fell more in to the Blue Eyed Soul realm and, further, that Hall & Oates' lack of nautically-themed album covers disallowed them, by definition, from the category. She was throwing a much wider net with her definition and, basically, giving full Yacht Rock status to any soft rock from the 70s (including The Carpenters... sigh). Feel free to offer your thoughts on this highly charged issue in the Comments. Regardless of definition, I think we can all agree that "Baby Come Back" sits near the top of the 70s Yacht/soft/lite rock heap. What does a mustache sightly damp with pool water and sprinkled with cocaine cruising in the driver's seat of a custom van down Sunset Boulevard in search of daytime friends and nighttime lovers sound like? I think the search ends here.
Paul Weller - Echoes Round The Sun
Like that fitted cap you wear to cover your receding hairline, there are certain boxes that, when checked, show that your hipster card is getting worn around the edges. I dare say the most obvious checks for a lot of you of my vintage sit next to the boxes labeled "Britpop" and "Post-Britpop." We might stand next to the kids at the club while they spazz out to their noise rock and street wear rap, but during that moment of indecision while grabbing a CD for the car our hands invariably stray towards some Charlatans UK or Cast's debut album, not the new No Age. If any of that sounds familiar, "Echoes Round The Sun" should fit you like a well-tailored Ben Sherman button-down. Part of the double A-side single (along with "Have You Made Up Your Mind") previewing the Modfather's new album, 22 Dreams, this song is the first co-write for Weller and the other big dog of Dadrock, Oasis' Noel Gallagher. I know, so far, so 1997, but instead of being the Traffic-by-way-of-The Beatles pastoral ballad one might expect (and, no doubt, kind of like), "Echoes Round The Sun" is a surprisingly heavy psychedelic number with a heaping helping of guitar nastiness that one might be so bold as to call "Stooges-esque." If this is any indication of their respective forthcoming full-lengths, 2008 may turn out to be the inevitable hipster reevaluation year for Blokerock in general. The 18 year olds will be soooo envious of your vintage Ocean Colour Scene t-shirt.
V.I.C. feat. Soulja Boy, Bun B, E-40, Pitbull, Pollow Da Don, Jermaine Dupri, Arab, DJ Unk, Big Kuntry King, and Tech - Get Silly (Official Remix)
Just in time for a new summer, a new Mr. Collipark protege is, like Soulja Boy in 2007, eating up the charts with a track that hip hop purists decry as the death of the art form while kids in their bedrooms dance to it for YouTube cameras. You may have already heard V.I.C.'s track enough for this lifetime already, but, as is the way in 2008, a rap hit can't leave the scene without the inevitable seven minute remix featuring a bunch of rappers who seemed to have been drafted in based on their names being drawn from a hat. As far as these things go, this one is pretty solid with quality showings from most of the featured artists and what has to be one of my favorite guest spots from Bun B so far this year. In a few quick lines, the King of Trill chops the legs out from under the "ringtone rap" label and encourages anyone who disparages Southern rap to eat the proverbial dick. All in all, a quality victory lap for a fun track that will probably hang around for another couple of months. Just wait until your Mom is gettin' silly with it!
Stat Quo feat. B.O.B - My Ride Double Bubble
Making this new Stat Quo track the official Summer Jam '08 has been pretty high on my agenda for the past month and a half, but so far I feel like that's been pretty unsuccessful. With that in mind, I'm using this forum as my last ditch effort to drive it in to the public consciousness and reap the reward of pulling up to a stop light and hearing B.O.B's guest verse flowing over this borderline bizarre doo-wop/Beach Boys-like backing track blasting out of a car next to me. Download it. Take it to your car. I'll meet you at the corner. You'll thank me.
This track has been floating around for a few months now, but given the title I thought it would be a perfect time to post it up. We Shot JR and the NBA, that's what you call cross-marketing (or at least that's what my philosophy degree would have me believe you call cross-marketing). With this one, Chicago's Willy Joy freaks Capcom's redux of a painfully recognizable (just plain painful?) 80s rock staple (I won't spoil the surprise) in to a hard and fast peak time monster aimed squarely at drunkenly amped up white people of all ages. Throw this on at your next hipster meet and greet, Becky/Chad bro down, or late night at your cousin's wedding and watch the dance floor fill with the sloppy sing-along. I can smell the beer sweat already.
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