Pink Rock Candy-Entertainment

This post is— let’s see— at least a week late, but I think it takes time to fully digest an album. Since I buy my music like the rest of you— LEGALLY, when they’re released— writing about how awesome the new Kings of Leon album is, the day it came out, was out of the question. That’s a lie, because anyone who’s following my twitter would have seen multiple tweets of me raving about Only By The Night.

The album isn’t as rough as their previous albums have been, which is something I’ve heard criticized, but I for one don’t mind that it sounds a bit more produced than normal. There also aren’t any standard hipster dance-party songs and they have gradually stepped out of the country rock sound they had when I first heard of them.

I’ve listened to Only By The Night, in its entirety over 20 times in the past week, and that’s pretty good considering I have entire albums on my iTunes that I haven’t even heard once.

I love Caleb’s constantly strained and urgent vocals. I love that the guys were probably drunk while writing most of the songs making the lyrics sort up confusing. I love that the drums in “Cold Desert” are truly like a heart beat. I even love how some of the songs begin by sounding like songs by other bands, but then change into this amazing, totally KoL rhythm. I doubt there is one song on the album I wouldn’t listen to a thousand times and still adore.

However, I am a staunch advocate of hearing is believing, take a listen to their single “Sex on Fire”, and fall.

For more info on Kings of Leon head to their website or myspace.

p.s. They have a ton of Kings of Leon home videos on their youtube page. The videos are mostly really funny, and the guy’s southern accents are bound to charm your pants off, even if you don’t find them attractive in the least.

Rumor of the year— no the Jolie-Pitts aren’t allegedly feuding again— think more along the lines of Vivienne Westwood and Queens of the Stone Age. According to UK gossip rag, The Daily Mirror, Ms. Westwood doesn’t want to pigeon hole her political protestations to just fashion. She just debuted her first compilation CD Catwalk Breakdown at the London Fashion Week opening ceremony, and has actually asked the Queens guys to sing a song she wrote.

Usually, I’m quick to dismiss the claims of The Daily Mirror, due to the lack of reliability, but this came from the horse’s mouth. At the end of the article there’s a video interview with Ms. Westwood during which she said, “I spoke to these people, the Queens of the Stone Age, and they said ‘Well we’ll send you a piece of music, and you’ll have to do it.’”

Where does this leave us?

We have a song about the 42-day detention plan for suspected terrorists written by the genius Vivienne Westwood, and a potential piece of music written by Queens of the Stone Age. Now, imagine if this song is anywhere as amazing as “3s and 7s”. I know, right!

Since Westwood says she “[hasn't] got the time” to sing it herself, she chucking the Queens collaboration up to a fallen through plan, but she did say she was looking for a singer, “preferably a young black girl,” to sing the slew of songs she’s written.

If only I could sing, I might have found myself a part of Vivienne’s inner circle. How amazing would that be?

I always forget to post about new songs/bands I love, and by the time I remember, I’m really late and its sort of pointless to write about. Actually, I always seem to write about Fueled By Ramen bands, which makes me feel like a total scene girl wannabe or something, but c’est la vie, right? So, here I go again,  writing about some scene band that I’m sure most of the world hates, but they make me smile, especially when they parody summer hits like “I Kissed a Girl.”

So I’m not exactly sure how any of this came about, but yesterday I ended up on FriendsorEnemies.com after forgetting about it for a couple months, and Fall Out Boy has this viral marketing thing to support their new album Foile a Deux going on. I really don’t understand it, but that’s not the point. There’s a Decaydance Mixtape available for free download and on it are some new FOB songs and a bunch of songs from Decaydance bands and some of their friends. One of those songs is Cobra Starship’s parody of Katy Perry’s “I Kissed A Girl”, aptly entitled “I Kissed A Boy”.

Now I love Katy Perry, and “I Kissed A Girl” doesn’t bother me as much as it does other people, but Cobra Starship’s version is a thousand times better, sheerly because its making fun of the scene in the truest form. You just have to listen to it, and then you’ll understand:

Follow the jump for the lyrics. (more…)

“Oh My God!” Yup, it was one of those moments. Actually, it was almost a giant billboard OMFG-worthy moment. As I’m walking back to my job after lunch, trying hard to ignore the catcalls, I hear a familiar tune. Its the type of song that makes you trip over yourself while trying to keep from bouncing around like a crazy person, but luckily I raced back to my desk without incident and promptly IMed my sister to inform her that she’d “never guess what song I’d just heard.” I didn’t even give her time to guess the song and promptly followed my first statement with, “Jordan Knight’s ‘Give It To You’!”

WHAT? Were you expecting something else?

When I was younger and this song was actually new, that’s 1999 for those not in the know, it was my favorite song ever. What isn’t there to love? Jordan Knight was cute-ish, the beat was and still is totally legit, and the dance moves, oh the dance moves. Why don’t they make music videos like that anymore? I mean, when was the last time you saw a music video where every word/beat had a dance move to go along with it?

Speaking of words, when I first fell in love with this song, I made it my mission to learn all the lyrics so I could sing along with Mr. Knight while watching the video on MTV back when TRL was still cool, and live for that matter.  Boy, was I naive! After giving the song a good listen, or eight, I realized this is much filthier than I remembered or ever recognized considering I was just a wee sprout when this song first came out. I mean, I definitely had no idea what Jordan meant when he sang, “Anything goes when I give it to you/Without a doubt I’ll turn you out” or “Anyone can make you sweat/ But I can keep you wet”, but after hearing the song now, my jaw dropped.

Aside from the newly realized over-sexed lyrics, I still love this song as much as I did when I first heard it. Jordan may be trying to come back once again with his New Kids On The Block bandmates, but he will forever be the faux-wholesome, cable knit sweater wearing guy with the craziest, impregnate-you-through-the-screen, pelvic thrust I’ve ever witnessed (around 3:00).

Its late, and I still have to go download this song off iTunes so I can listen to it on repeat tomorrow. Good Knight…ahem, Night Lovlies!

Usually the song of the summer is by some break-out artist, and they’re about writing sins not tragedies or being in da club or something along those lines, but this summer, my favorite song isn’t by a break-out artist per se, and it isn’t even part of anyone’s album, at least I don’t think. I’m talking about the song, “My Drive Thru”  which is by Santagold, Julian Casablancas, and N.E.R.D. and was created for Converse’s summer campaign. Its fun, its about summer, and there’s finally a music video!

I’ve been lusting over this song for a little less than a month now. The beat is yet another infectious thing of genius created by Pharrell, and though there isn’t any true chorus the refrain at the end of ‘but we all wanna dance’ mimicks my life to a T. Though I have losts of important, not so fun, work related things to do, in the end I just want to dance! I know I always say songs make me want to dance, but this one doesn’t just make me want to dance it makes me actually dance no matter where I am when I hear it— on the subway, in my car, at a party, anywhere.

When I first envisioned the music video that should go with this song, I saw something with lots of bright, 80s style colors, some crazy low riders, and some sort of car show/block party, but the video is completely different than anything I could have dreamed up. Now that I’ve seen it, though, I don’t think it could have been done any other way. Not only does it fit with the Converse campaign, but the flipbook feel is a lot of fun to watch, even though there is a lack of color.

On a side note, after watching this video I’ve come to two conclusions. I really need a marching band jacket— I know I’ve said it a lot, but this time I mean it— and, Julian Casablancas is really cute in a slightly dorky, break your heart, rock star sort of way. I know that isn’t news to many, especially the diehard fans of The Strokes, but I just had a light bulb moment so leave me be!

What song has been the anthem to your summer of 2008?