Category: Song Of The Day

SONG OF THE DAY: Calvin Harris ft John Newman – Blame

Here’s a song that I’ve been meaning to write up for a while. “Blame,” the followup to “Summer” featuring the soulful vocals of John Newman, sounded so familiar but I just couldn’t place what. Then I heard this mashup by DJSkillz and realize that it was quite similar to “I Need Your Love.” Granted the songs aren’t identical, but the similar melodies make the two mash together so well. On its own, “Blame” is quite strong and sounds incredibly full, one of those rare times when a dance music production is more lush and encompassing than a dance production, yet still completely ready for the dance floor. Well, maybe not all dance floors, but leave it Melbourne team Bombs Away to turn it into a bounce track. Even though official remixes should land any minute now, its doubtful that any will exhibit the frolicking energy and joy that the delightful duo serve up as a counterpoint to the dark and almost somber song. After listerning to “Blame,” I pulled up John’s debut album Tribute and can’t help but thinking how amazing a John Newman / Sam Smith duet would be.

Image courtesy of Columbia Records.

SONG OF THE DAY: Sylvane ft Sweet Melissa – Light Me Up

Living in Nashville is both a curse and a blessing for people making dance music. The curse is, of course, the overwhelming focus on country music and the traditions associated with it. The blessing is a plethora of singers and songwriters looking for a break and willing to experiment. Nashville is a songwriting town, so if you are a producer who makes a great track, finding a singer to write a topline is just an ad on a bulletin board away. Sylvane is the more upfront/aggressive pseudonym of Lenny B, who is better known for making commercial remixes. On “Light Me Up,” he flips the focus of progressive house. Whereas tracks by Zedd and Avicii are normally passive, meaning they that play in the background with a mellow energy, this track uses a lot of the familiar stadium/progressive sounds but transforms them into something energetic and aggressive with electro, but not a standard soundalike festival banger track. While you can hear a hint of country in Sweet Melissa’s strong vocals (especially in the last syllable of each line), the lyrics take the track from club to radio-friendly pop. Both remixes are similar to the original but manage to focus on a different flavor (or influence of another producer). If you are wondering what an Arty remix would sound like, check out Dennis Pederson’s mix, and if you are a fan of Walden, then Jus Jack & Oza’s will be your mix of choice.

Image Courtesy of Cloudland Music.

SONG OF THE DAY: Havana Brown – Ba Bing

The mark of a good pop artist is when they take underground sounds and make them accessible to mainstream audiences. With “Ba Bing,” Aussie DJ/singer Havana Brown melds bhangra and hard electro beats as the background of her sexed-up vocal performance. That Luciana cowrote the lyrics doesn’t come as a surprise at all. Though “Ba Bing” was featured on Havana’s 2012 album (still unreleased in the US), it sounds remarkably fresh for 2014. The mixing of Indian/Middle Eastern influences with electro has been done before – Rudenko “Everybody,” R3hab “Pump the Party,” and Diplo “Butter’s Theme” come to mind. The recently released NSFW video is sexually-charged but praiseworthy from a feminist standpoint because Havana is in control with men being just as scantily clad (if not more) than the women. That is never the case in EDM videos, at least not since Ultra Nate’s “Automatic.” Actually, the cinematography seems partially inspired by the previously mentioned “Butter’s Theme.” The video for “Babing” is part of the release of a new single “Better Not Said,” which based on previews sounds like she is trying to put a pop spin on the aggressive EDM tracks that you hear from the Spinnin’ camp. Watch for a favorable review coming soon.

Image sampled from music video. Special thanks to Julio Leonel Bonilla for song suggestion.