The Neighbourhood "Afraid"

http://i97.photobucket.com/albums/l219/Yoshi538/d24c4fc2-f511-4432-8a44-430b2707d412.jpg

"Sweater Weather" took the entirety of last year to click with me, much like "Take Me To Church" this year. I'm aware that it clicked with everyone else pretty quickly. It's definitely a good representation of The Neighbourhood's overall sound, as everything I've heard from them is very dark yet very catchy. Anyway, all it took was one listen of second single "Afraid" to have me hooked and replaying for hours. I highly prefer it over "Sweater Weather" but have yet to find someone who agrees. Not even my twin.

Needless to say "Afraid" is vulnerable and introspective. It centers around a fear of being replaced, or that things are too good to be true and you're really living in a dream, or in someone else's life. It turns out they wrote it about the moment they found a manager for the band. Their success started to feel surreal to the point where they thought it couldn't be happening to them. But the lyrics are easy to relate to your own fears, which I've certainly done. So if you're interested in hearing one more song from The Neighbourhood, make it this one.

 

The Pretty Reckless "Heaven Knows"

The Pretty Reckless "Messed Up World"

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/9/91/The_Pretty_Reckless_-_Heaven_Knows.pnghttp://data2.whicdn.com/images/113643417/large.jpg

I sure didn't expect much from The Pretty Reckless' second album, due to the long gap since their first one, their change of record labels, and their previous material doing precisely nothing in the States at the time. How wrong was I! All it took was one listen of "Heaven Knows" for them to win me over more than ever. What a song, it's absurd how well Taylor knows her way around a melody. Probably the biggest success story on the US rock format this year, and deservedly so.

Then The Pretty Reckless kept the momentum going with another brilliant single, "Messed Up World". Mostly carried by its hooks, especially "ooh, I can feel it, ooh I can feel it", it's just meant to be a fun song, which is enough to set it apart from everything else I've heard from them! It's also one of those songs that's improved by the radio edit, with "messed up world" sounding much better in the chorus than its explicit counterpart. Both of these were totally worth the wait.

 

Tinashe featuring A$AP Rocky "Pretend"

Tinashe featuring ScHoolboy Q "2 On"

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/0/0c/TinashePretend.jpghttp://0.tqn.com/y/top40/1/L/2/f/3/tinashe-2-on.jpg

Okay, so I love following all the airplay formats in the US, as you may have guessed. I just mentioned a certain highlight from the rock format, and "2 On" was another highlight when it reached #1 on rhythmic. This was after seeing it months ago on loads of personal charts and wondering where her hype was coming from! I didn't take to it at the time but found some other stuff from Tinashe that I liked. But "2 On" had undeniable potential, and I hoped it'd do well just for the sake of making Buzzjack happy. It did eventually click with me, too! The video really helps bring the song to life.

I've yet to listen to Aquarius but came across "Pretend" when it was free on iTunes and loved it right away. Like with The Neighbourhood, it's another case of me obsessing over the flop second single while not quite getting the appeal of her actual hit. The production on "Pretend" is far superior, dark with an intense drumbeat. Add Tinashe's singing, full of passion here in a way that perfectly fits the state of denial in her words. Her voice is so distinct! No guarantees that I'll ever get around to the full album but I'm aware there are plenty more gems to be heard.

 

Trey Songz "Na Na"

http://www.turntuptracks.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/12/Trey-Songz-Nana-1.jpg

As we prepare for Jameela's forthcoming departure from her chart show throne, here's a song that provided one of her forgotten moments (understandable considering the song itself is pretty forgettable). Her reaction to "Na Na" was rather amusing the few times that she introduced it. She was never sure what the title meant, or how to pronounce it, or what in the world Trey was singing about (his nan???). As for the song, my enjoyment of the verses (and the standard DJ Mustard beat) was offset by a very lackluster chorus. Getting DJ Mustard on your song doesn't give you permission to be lazy. But it did ensure an easy hit for Trey this year, although it proved to be a one-off.

 

omg I forgot Jameela's reactions to that Trey Songz track :lol: Amazing.

 

LOVING Sara Bareilles here, even if I can't remember I Choose You at all :ph34r: Shakira was fabulous this year, Can't Remember To Forget You is a HUGE jam and Empire was very impressive and different for her!

Tinashe featuring A$AP Rocky "Pretend"

Tinashe featuring ScHoolboy Q "2 On"

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/0/0c/TinashePretend.jpghttp://0.tqn.com/y/top40/1/L/2/f/3/tinashe-2-on.jpg

Okay, so I love following all the airplay formats in the US, as you may have guessed. I just mentioned a certain highlight from the rock format, and "2 On" was another highlight when it reached #1 on rhythmic. This was after seeing it months ago on loads of personal charts and wondering where her hype was coming from! I didn't take to it at the time but found some other stuff from Tinashe that I liked. But "2 On" had undeniable potential, and I hoped it'd do well just for the sake of making Buzzjack happy. It did eventually click with me, too! The video really helps bring the song to life.

I've yet to listen to Aquarius but came across "Pretend" when it was free on iTunes and loved it right away. Like with The Neighbourhood, it's another case of me obsessing over the flop second single while not quite getting the appeal of her actual hit. The production on "Pretend" is far superior, dark with an intense drumbeat. Add Tinashe's singing, full of passion here in a way that perfectly fits the state of denial in her words. Her voice is so distinct! No guarantees that I'll ever get around to the full album but I'm aware there are plenty more gems to be heard.

YASSSSSSSSSSSS :yahoo: :wub: I agree about the '2 On' video now. It really helps bring the song alive and adds her wonderful personality to it moreso.

 

And the bit in bold is a challenge if ever i saw one! I will convince you to listen to it before i'm done with you Mr. :hitler:

I really like Na Na, not happy with that shade there! I'm fond of a good old urban jam and that's what is delivered by Na Na. Trey is pretty decent actually, I've liked a lot of his singles. Bottoms Up >> Touchin, Lovin >> the rest :cheer:

 

Glad to see Tinashe here too, another big Pretend fan is great to see. I agree the drumbeat elevates the song and that's what I really noticed that I loved about the track first. 2 On is very nice too, another urban jam :P

Oh yeah I need to get The Pretty Reckless' album sometime, those are the two singles from it I haven't heard and since Going To Hell/Follow You Down were so damn amazing those probably are also. I am a flop fan of theirs right now.

 

Nice to see those two highlights from Paramore's album too, Daydreaming is so lovely and while I've listened to Ain't It Fun a bit too much it still remains a cool song.

Thanks as always for the comments! Only a couple posts left after this :D

 

omg I forgot Jameela's reactions to that Trey Songz track :lol: Amazing.

 

LOVING Sara Bareilles here, even if I can't remember I Choose You at all :ph34r: Shakira was fabulous this year, Can't Remember To Forget You is a HUGE jam and Empire was very impressive and different for her!

I Choose You is the only song I've heard from the album, other than Brave :ph34r:

 

YASSSSSSSSSSSS :yahoo: :wub: I agree about the '2 On' video now. It really helps bring the song alive and adds her wonderful personality to it moreso.

 

And the bit in bold is a challenge if ever i saw one! I will convince you to listen to it before i'm done with you Mr. :hitler:

Please do convince me, I'd hate to become a sillybean :o

 

I really like Na Na, not happy with that shade there! I'm fond of a good old urban jam and that's what is delivered by Na Na. Trey is pretty decent actually, I've liked a lot of his singles. Bottoms Up >> Touchin, Lovin >> the rest :cheer:

 

Glad to see Tinashe here too, another big Pretend fan is great to see. I agree the drumbeat elevates the song and that's what I really noticed that I loved about the track first. 2 On is very nice too, another urban jam :P

Oh gosh, reading it back now I didn't mean to be so harsh :( I definitely liked it at the time but not as much now. Starting to prefer "Smartphones" of his singles from this era at least!

 

Oh yeah I need to get The Pretty Reckless' album sometime, those are the two singles from it I haven't heard and since Going To Hell/Follow You Down were so damn amazing those probably are also. I am a flop fan of theirs right now.

 

Nice to see those two highlights from Paramore's album too, Daydreaming is so lovely and while I've listened to Ain't It Fun a bit too much it still remains a cool song.

Wow, I'm surprised both of those have passed you by! Actually I was the opposite, with Going To Hell/Follow You Down both passing me by until just recently.

 

Didn't know it was possible to listen to Ain't It Fun too much :o

Usher "Good Kisser"

http://www.usherfix.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/ushgoodkisser1-300x300.jpg

Usher has struggled to land a proper hit lately but I'm so glad he hasn't resorted to another "Scream" or "DJ Got Us Fallin' In Love". That said, there's still something missing with his recent efforts. I can't quite place it but it just seems like Usher's trying too hard. "Good Kisser" is enjoyable but comes across as a little bit forced and unnatural. "She Came To Give It To You" gave me the same impression. I'm really not surprised that they both failed to catch on. Of course, the Disclosure remix of "Good Kisser" came at just the right time to soften its plummet down the charts. But otherwise, Usher learned the hard way that it takes more than a brief coaching stint on The Voice to get your new music to sell. It seems Gwen Stefani is learning the same lesson now.

 

Walk The Moon "Shut Up And Dance"

http://musicimg.cyworld.com/ALBUM/015/411/15411129.jpg

This beautiful moment in music came out of nowhere near the end of a 2.5-hour drive, by myself, back in September. I didn't even know Walk The Moon had a new song, they just introduced it on the radio and I was NOT READY. Having previously loved "Anna Sun" and "Tightrope", my thought was that "Shut Up And Dance" was a sellout-ish song title. And then they played it, and the rest is history. An 80s arena-rock floorfiller!? Sounded like an epic smash in the first ten seconds; it was very smart of them to put the chorus at the beginning. The first line is "don't you dare look back", and indeed they do not, keeping that energy going until the very last note.

The very unfortunate BJSC incident involving this song has not affected my love for it. Considering my record, it was best left in someone else's hands anyway. The end result (top five!) was surprising, fully deserved, and a sign of how much crossover appeal "Shut Up And Dance" has. Radio really needs to take notice; some airplay would work in their favor because we're talking about a power-pop masterpiece here. But at the very least, this was a spectacular anthem for the last few months of 2014.

 

Young The Giant "It's About Time"

Young The Giant "Mind Over Matter"

http://www.volarefm.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/young-the-giant-its-about-time.jpghttp://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/a/ae/Young_the_Giant_Mind_over_Matter.jpg

My favorite rock station changed to Spanish music last year at midnight on January 1st. "It's About Time" was my last memory of that station and I've carried it with me through 2014 despite now listening to a lot less rock as a result. Young The Giant's first album was in 2011 (perhaps you've heard "My Body" or "Cough Syrup") and it sounded like they've been charging ever since, waiting to explode from the very first note of "It's About Time" (an appropriate title, lol). Just like "Shut Up And Dance" in the last paragraph, the song grabs you right away and never lets go. For a band that's already known for exhilirating music and explosive vocals, they took it up another notch this time.

After a very long time spent hammering that song I eventually checked out another one, the title track "Mind Over Matter". It's also good so I'm including it here, but I don't have much else to say really, except that it's much more subdued, trading the guitars for strings and keyboards. But nine times out of ten I'll opt for "It's About Time".

 

I haven't really been interested in the recent Usher singles, to be honest. They just kind of sounded stale to me after a year plus of hits mining retro sounds, which is potentially unfair but idk. Maybe I'll appreciate them more in a year or so. Funnily enough though, I suddenly fell in love with "Climax" this summer. I didn't pay too much attention to it when it came out, but the production is brilliant and it was unlike any of his recent work to that point. I really hope he has something as unexpected on his next album.

Good Kisser is really awful, the Disclosure remix definitely enhanced it but it's not really what I like from Usher. In fact, I'm a big fan of Scream and DJ Got Us.. :lol: I preferred She Came.. actually but probably because of Nicki..

 

Walk The Moon's track is excellent, really hoping it receives a proper push worldwide because it could be the next big indie hit. Has a lot of commercial appeal I think, shame you lost out to it in BJSC.. :(

Honorable mentions: A few songs that would've featured had I started this a little later! I'm ready to be done with this so they won't get full commentary, just a brief mention.

 

Alesso feat. Tove Lo "Heroes"

Nothing new is brought to the table here, but Alesso does the trick here nevertheless. I definitely like this more for Tove Lo's vocals but they do fit Alesso's track nicely so no shade!

 

Ariana Grande feat. The Weeknd "Love Me Harder"

http://i97.photobucket.com/albums/l219/Yoshi538/4000de16-2c43-43b3-a661-2aaeeb8b4f2c.png

I'm not a fan of this style of pop. On first listen I quickly noticed similarities to "Do What U Want", which I always found overrated. But there's a lot of beauty in this collab, and I'm pretty hooked on it now! The Weeknd's verse is lovely.

 

Magic! "Let Your Hair Down"

http://i97.photobucket.com/albums/l219/Yoshi538/ed393df4-bf0b-4e2c-ba7d-cf24bdbd4cc6.jpg

This is a terrific follow-up to "Rude"; of course I'm disappointed it did precisely nothing anywhere beside their homeland of Canada. The guitar solo is even better than the one on "Rude"!

 

Meghan Trainor "Lips Are Movin'"

http://0.tqn.com/y/top40/1/L/u/q/3/meghan-trainor-lips-are-movin.jpg

Currently #1 on my personal chart, it turns out "All About That Bass" is even better in the form of its non-gimmick soundalike. The video is still an attention-grabber with Meghan's cat outfit among other things. Why Meghan can easily avoid one-hit-wonder status and Magic! can't, I'll never know :(.

 

Okay that's the end of that! Roughly 60 songs have featured, some will make my EOY countdown and others won't. Plus some songs I haven't mentioned yet will do well on the countdown. It's tentatively going to be a top 60. Still not sure how it's all gonna go but it'll be a little less effort hopefully. Ranking songs is hard. Fingers crossed I'll start tomorrow but it could be anytime this weekend. Hope you'll look out for it!

There's something about 'Heroes' that I really can't get enough of. It probably is Tove Lo's vocals tbh. It's another generic dance track, yes? but done so much better personally.

 

Looking forward to it Riser. I hope to see another comment on mine soon ;)

Selena Gomez "The Heart Wants What It Wants"

Sia "Chandelier"

The Fray "Love Don't Die"

MKTO "Classic"

Nick Jonas "Jealous" but no Chains

Imagine Dragons "On Top Of The World"

Jason Derulo "Trumpets"

John Legend "All Of Me"

Demi Lovato "Neon Lights"

Echosmith "Cool Kids"

Enrique Iglesias featuring Sean Paul, Descemer Bueno & Gente De Zona "Bailando" :cheer: Sean Paul spoils it, I prefer the Spanish original :)

Hozier "Take Me To Church"

Becky G "Shower"

Charli XCX "Boom Clap"

Christina Perri "Human"

 

Liking the selection of songs :)

Edited December 31, 201410 yr by Entea

Why Meghan can easily avoid one-hit-wonder status and Magic! can't, I'll never know :(.

 

I think Meghan has a much broader appeal than Magic!, and she also did substantial promo for "Lips Are Movin," while I don't really recall seeing Magic! anywhere after "Rude."

 

(also that HP commercial is pretty ubiquitous so that raised the song's profile at least a little bit)

Gutted to see this finish, mainly because your commentary is very detailed and so good to read but also because your music taste is pretty fab. I'll be tuning in to the top 60 countdown anyway!

 

Heroes is nice, incredibly generic and kind of a shock hit on both sides of the pond. I didn't know generic dance was really that huge anymore. Tove's vocals are fantastic, I think that's what I like most too.

 

Love Me Harder is absolutely excellent, the production is so sensual and really helps to convey the message behind the song. Wasn't huge on it as a single at first but looking back it was an excellent choice.

 

Let Your Hair Down should've been a hit I agree, obviously nowhere near as good as Rude but still a nice reggae song. I prefer Don't Kill The Magic though.

I adore lips are Movin, such am amazing follow up :wub:

Ha, love your 'Shut Up And Dance' commentary and completely agree about the song's radio/hit potential. Considering your glowing words for it and the fact you said before that you were unsure whether it'd make your countdown makes me very interested in what will make it in! Seems like it could be a bloodbath. :o

 

Really enjoyed reading your recaps and made a fair few discoveries from them so cheers for that. Looking forward to the countdown! :D

I haven't really been interested in the recent Usher singles, to be honest. They just kind of sounded stale to me after a year plus of hits mining retro sounds, which is potentially unfair but idk. Maybe I'll appreciate them more in a year or so. Funnily enough though, I suddenly fell in love with "Climax" this summer. I didn't pay too much attention to it when it came out, but the production is brilliant and it was unlike any of his recent work to that point. I really hope he has something as unexpected on his next album.

Yes! "Climax" is great. There seems to be a lot of love for it on Buzzjack. I agree with the retro sounds being stale at the moment. Usher's basically hopping from bandwagon to bandwagon, when he at least used to be capable of so much more.

 

Good Kisser is really awful, the Disclosure remix definitely enhanced it but it's not really what I like from Usher. In fact, I'm a big fan of Scream and DJ Got Us.. :lol: I preferred She Came.. actually but probably because of Nicki..

 

Walk The Moon's track is excellent, really hoping it receives a proper push worldwide because it could be the next big indie hit. Has a lot of commercial appeal I think, shame you lost out to it in BJSC.. :(

Yes, "Shut Up And Dance" has LOADS of commercial appeal (compared to other rock/indie songs :P).

 

There's something about 'Heroes' that I really can't get enough of. It probably is Tove Lo's vocals tbh. It's another generic dance track, yes? but done so much better personally.

 

Looking forward to it Riser. I hope to see another comment on mine soon ;)

Haha sorry about that, it's nearly impossible to keep up with everyone's EOYs at the moment! :drama:

 

Selena Gomez "The Heart Wants What It Wants"

Sia "Chandelier"

The Fray "Love Don't Die"

MKTO "Classic"

Nick Jonas "Jealous" but no Chains

Imagine Dragons "On Top Of The World"

Jason Derulo "Trumpets"

John Legend "All Of Me"

Demi Lovato "Neon Lights"

Echosmith "Cool Kids"

Enrique Iglesias featuring Sean Paul, Descemer Bueno & Gente De Zona "Bailando" :cheer: Sean Paul spoils it, I prefer the Spanish original :)

Hozier "Take Me To Church"

Becky G "Shower"

Charli XCX "Boom Clap"

Christina Perri "Human"

 

Liking the selection of songs :)

Thanks Entea!

 

I think Meghan has a much broader appeal than Magic!, and she also did substantial promo for "Lips Are Movin," while I don't really recall seeing Magic! anywhere after "Rude."

 

(also that HP commercial is pretty ubiquitous so that raised the song's profile at least a little bit)

Yeah, I was thinking that as I typed it. Not sure if the lack of promo is due to Magic!'s label or what. They did perform "Let Your Hair Down" on Dick Clark/Ryan Seacrest on New Year's Eve but it's too late at this point.

 

I'm not familiar with the HP commercial :o! By the way, thanks for reading and commenting!

 

Gutted to see this finish, mainly because your commentary is very detailed and so good to read but also because your music taste is pretty fab. I'll be tuning in to the top 60 countdown anyway!

 

Heroes is nice, incredibly generic and kind of a shock hit on both sides of the pond. I didn't know generic dance was really that huge anymore. Tove's vocals are fantastic, I think that's what I like most too.

 

Love Me Harder is absolutely excellent, the production is so sensual and really helps to convey the message behind the song. Wasn't huge on it as a single at first but looking back it was an excellent choice.

 

Let Your Hair Down should've been a hit I agree, obviously nowhere near as good as Rude but still a nice reggae song. I prefer Don't Kill The Magic though.

Aww, thanks so much for that, I'm pretty excited for it to finish because it's pretty time consuming :lol:

I finally just listened to Don't Kill The Magic, sounds great and surprisingly not very reggae :o

 

I adore lips are Movin, such am amazing follow up :wub:

I agree :wub:

 

Ha, love your 'Shut Up And Dance' commentary and completely agree about the song's radio/hit potential. Considering your glowing words for it and the fact you said before that you were unsure whether it'd make your countdown makes me very interested in what will make it in! Seems like it could be a bloodbath. :o

 

Really enjoyed reading your recaps and made a fair few discoveries from them so cheers for that. Looking forward to the countdown! :D

You should have been there when I heard it. Ermahgerd.

The countdown is a bit of a bloodbath, probably not as much as yours but it is getting ugly! :S

 

This is probably a jump-the-shark kind of post but let’s hype the forthcoming song countdown by counting down my top signatures of the year :magic:

 

6. Beyonce “Drunk In Love”

http://i58.tinypic.com/1zg9j7m.jpg

“Drunk In Love” was the first EVER #1 on Riser Monthly back in January, and it was largely due to the excellent video. I recall having two favorite moments in that video, and this was the only one I could find in a GIF :P

 

5. Crab

http://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/s--QhiSaA4H--/g27hdkumlg9tt6tdmsqe.gif

Despite only making an impact in the last month of 2014, Crab makes a respectable 5th place for the year. It comes from an emoticon on Gmail and it’s super adorable.

 

4. As Seen On ATRL

http://i97.photobucket.com/albums/l219/Yoshi538/asseenonatrl.jpg

This comes from the iconic “Favourite emoticon?” thread in which many wished for Buzzjack to upgrade its emoticons to be more like ATRL. I was reading it hours after Bal created it and noticed 39 guests were also reading it, which seemed like a lot so I pointed it out! Then I think Bal saw ATRL was discussing our thread, posted the link, and I saw my Buzzjack post was quoted on ATRL. I was still an impressionable new member at the time and overreacted to that (by making it my signature), but it was very fun (until the invasion) and I’m glad I got a screenshot of it :D They see us. :rofl:

 

3. Ice Cream GIF

http://shandyfiles.s3-us-west-1.amazonaws.com/images/body/39.gif

I don’t THINK I was looking for another food GIF but the thought of the pizza one getting old had been in the back of my mind. When I found this it was completely on accident, and it just happened to be completely like the pizza GIF, only with ice cream! They weren't even from the same website or anything. I’m so glad to have found it because I really didn’t know how I was going to follow up the pizza sig!

 

2. Trippy Cat

http://38.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_m70n8nTuu41qfo8jho1_250.gif

I think Trippy Cat was the first signature of mine to get any kind of reaction from people. Even Jester reacted to it in a chart show thread, which means it even has an effect on the colorblind :o.

 

1. Pizza GIF

http://s3-ec.buzzfed.com/static/2014-06/26/7/enhanced/webdr05/anigif_enhanced-buzz-8409-1403781238-11.gif

An obvious winner but very much deserved! I found pizza GIF completely by chance but immediately I knew it had to be my signature. But I definitely didn’t anticipate how much of a reaction it would get! Pizza GIF took on a life of its own, and it also inspired my rate concept. But judging from people’s rate comments it seems a lot of members overestimate my supposed pizza obsession. It’s not even my favorite food…that would be pulled pork. But if you’ve ever had pulled pork on a pizza…*.*!!!

 

Here’s to more amazing signatures in 2015…maybe, if I find any cool ones :unsure:

 

Crab ROBBED.

Pizza gif winning!? :rolleyes: :nono: :nocheer: #justice4drunkinlove #justice4trippycat #justiceforATRL!!!!!

 

4. As Seen On ATRL

http://i97.photobucket.com/albums/l219/Yoshi538/asseenonatrl.jpg

This comes from the iconic “Favourite emoticon?” thread in which many wished for Buzzjack to upgrade its emoticons to be more like ATRL. I was reading it hours after Bal created it and noticed 39 guests were also reading it, which seemed like a lot so I pointed it out! Then I think Bal saw ATRL was discussing our thread, posted the link, and I saw my Buzzjack post was quoted on ATRL. I was still an impressionable new member at the time and overreacted to that (by making it my signature), but it was very fun (until the invasion) and I’m glad I got a screenshot of it :D They see us. :rofl:

*.*

 

What a MOMENT. You got it at 39, but at its peak there were around 139 guests!! :o i suspected that they had found the thread when i saw the huge number of guests and a bit of snooping on ATRL confirmed this :heehee: it was quite the crazy period and i remember having to take my dog for a walk but literally sprinting back to catch up on more developments lol. I am glad it had such a personal effect on you too !! truly a buzzjack moment that will go down in history forever more :cry:

 

"They see us. :rofl:" - :rofl: (o )(o )