Under the Scalpel 2.19.09: Flo Rida, Skindred, The Pains Of Being Pure At Heart
Posted by Mark Ingoldsby on 02.19.2009
Flo Rida uses the hook from an 80s new wave hit to compliment a stripper, Skindred rocks down to an old, familiar avenue, and The Pains Of Being Pure At Heart bring back the upbeat, melancholy, shoegazer noise-pop sound.
"Under the Scalpel: Dissecting Pop Culture One Song at a Time" is a weekly column written by Mark Ingoldsby, songwriter and guitarist for the hard rock band A Simple Complex. For three free tracks that will rock your panties off, check out www.asimplecomplex.com
Flo Rida – Right Round
Like A Record
Flo Rida is a pop-rapper who exploded onto the club scene last year with his simple, yet addictive, club banger, "Low." The song not only spent 10 weeks atop Billboard's Hot 100 and reached #1 in four other countries, but a year later, the track still holds the record for most digital sales in a single week, despite recent attempts by Lady Gaga and Eminem to dethrone it.
This year Flo Rida is back with another pop-rap party starter based heavily on Dead Or Alive's #1 UK hit, "You Spin Me Round." Unlike the original, whose video made people raise an eyebrow (or two), not wanting to know who is spinning whom ‘round what, "Right Round" makes it crystal clear that this man is not the woman, and the woman is a stripper.
"You spin my head right round, right round,
When you go down, when you go down, down,
From the top of the pole I watch her go down,
She got me throwin' my money around,
Ain't nothin' more beautiful to be found."
This song has a similar feel to "Low" with its catchy mix of pop and hip-hop and Flo Rida's ability to cram a lot of words into each measure yet still be easily understood. However, this song has an added bonus – the borrowed (stolen?) hook from "You Spin Me Round" makes this song instantly likeable. Many commenters on various blogs around ‘teh intert00bs' have stated that they dig this song based on that factor alone.
With Producers Dr. Luke (Britney Spears, Kelly Clarkson, Katy Perry) and Timbaland (Justin Timberlake, 50 Cent, Kanye West) working behind the scenes, having a successful dance song is almost a guarantee. But this song may be even more successful than "Low." I've seen rumors that Flo Rida is poised to beat his own record for most digital sales in a single week, and beat Eminem's recent record of most digital sales in the first week of release. We'll see if this is the case in a few days.
I was unable to confirm whether or not the borrowed hook from "You Spin Me Round" was an authorized use or a case of "we changed it just enough, now we don't have to pay." I hope some money is heading to the Dead or Alive crew because, let's face it – androgynous, plastic-surgeon-suing, husband-divorcing, civil-union-bashing, sex-tape-releasing new wave/disco has-beens with big, hairy cracks need money too!
Although it breaks no new ground, this song is worth grinding to if you like clubbing. A healthy dose of the familiar will help get you into the groove right away.
If you like: Akon, Black Eyed Peas, Coolio, Nelly, Shaggy (2000-2002)
Rating: *** (3 out of 5)
Skindred – Electric Avenue
Ragga Metal Band Tries To Take It Higher
I discovered Skindred on Sirius Radio's Hard Attack (now called Liquid Metal) in 2007 when the channel put the band's island-flavored mosher, "Roots Rock Riot," into rotation. A few months later, I saw them open for Nonpoint while touring in support of the release of the Roots Rock Riot album and got to witness their bonecrushing performance firsthand.
Last month, Skindred (a reggae-metal band whose singer has roots in the Caribbean) announced they were recording the reggae-pop crossover hit "Electric Avenue," which was originally performed by Eddy Grant (a British artist with roots from just below the Caribbean). The idea of hearing this song redone with metal guitars and pounding double bass drums left me salivating in anticipation.
When I finally got to hear it, I was left somewhat disappointed. I was distracted by constant trendy production elements shoved into the song, leaving watered it down. Studio enhancements such as unneeded vocal effects, pre-programmed dancehall beats, techno-style bass drops, and random electronica noises work against making this single the driving metal track it could be.
The band also took some strange liberties with lyrics. One example is the line, "Dealing in multiplication and they still can't feed everyone" being changed to "...and no, you'll never get to feed everyone." Rather than the original intent of pointing out a problem that needs to be addressed, the message now conveys an unnecessary hopelessness.
The song is still worth checking out. It's a high-energy rocker that may make you want to pogo or headbang along. The typical elements one would expect from a Skindred single – like powerful, blaring guitars and Vocalist Benji Webber's intense style of singing – are present. But the song's flaws have done irreparable damage.
For a band whose philosophy is, "I can't stress enough how this music we are making is to make the crowd jump up and down and enjoy it," I'd say, "Mission accomplished." But I probably won't hear this song again unless it coincidentally happens to be playing where I am, because I won't be going out of my way for it.
If You Like: Fishbone (1991-1993), Infectious Grooves, Rage Against the Machine (2000), Stuck Mojo (1995-1999)
Rating: *** (3 out of 5)
The Pains Of Being Pure At Heart – Everything With You
Return Of The Upbeat Somber Pre-Grunge Shoegazer Noise-Pop Sound
"YOU like The Cure?" is a phrase I've heard many times. "You don't LOOK like someone who would listen to The Cure!" And they're right.
In the 1980s, I was a ripped-jean-jacket-wearing fist-pumping kid who scoffed at anything "less" than music that boldly shoved both balls directly in the world's face. I lived on a steady diet of any full-tilt Glam Metal band that knew three or four chords – until the scene started getting stale with songs like Twisted Sister's embarrassing cover of "Leader of the Pack," and Van Halen's terrible "Feels So Good."
My taste in rock music was forced to evolve not only into heavier metal, but also into exploring alternative music, which at the time was a big no-no for balls-in-the-world's-face hard rockers. That was a one-way ticket to getting your "cool dude" card revoked and being publicly labeled a wuss and weirdo. This axiom was well documented in a Journal of the American Mathematical Society from 1990 as follows:
Spandex + Teased Hair + Makeup = Manly and Cool
Striped Shirt + Mushroom Hair + Makeup = Wussy and Not Cool
So therefore we deduce:
Spandex + Teased Hair + Makeup > Striped Shirt + Mushroom Hair + Makeup
Despite the aforementioned risks, I started listening to alternative rock bands like REM, The Church, Love and Rockets and especially The Cure. Hell, I was even able to stomach a song from The Smiths. Only one though.
Although I never dove headfirst into the college rock scene, I listened long enough to not miss the one brief shining moment of a genre called Shoegazer music, a style of upbeat, melancholy noise-pop that hit the scene in the late 1980s before quickly fading into obscurity when Grunge and Britpop arrived.
Shoegazer music is called such because unlike the wild, jumping, guitar-spinning, tongue-waggling rockers of the late 1980s, these musicians often stood idly and stared at their guitar pedals (and shoes), often through walls of hair draped over their faces. Over the years, I've enjoyed a number of infectious pop songs by bands that were inspired by the Shoegazer era, such as Yo La Tengo, Mazzy Star, Sleeper, Thurston Moore, The Posies, and many, many others.
That is why I'm thrilled when a band like The Pains Of Being Pure At Heart (TPOBPAH) can deliver an instantly addicting noise-pop number like "Everything With You," a song that sounds like it was recorded two decades ago. Its overdriven, fuzzy guitars buzz like a bumblebee while wispy vocal harmonies float delicately in the background. Simple, upbeat drums and a melodious guitar solo that sounds like it was played on a single string complete the vibe.
The song's lyrics fit the bill perfectly for melancholy Shoegazer poetry, which almost always has the theme of: "I'm sad. You're sad. Let's be sad together because the world is so cold and I think you're beautiful."
"Strange teenager, waiting for death at 19,
Are you with me?
I'm with you and there's nothing left to do,
Tell me it's true,
I'm with you and the stars are crashing through,
Tell me it's true,
I want everything with you."
A couple comparisons to explain the sound of this song (besides the obvious Lush and My Bloody Valentine references) would be a darker, noisier version of Modern English's "I Melt With You" or The Cure's masterpiece "2 Late," the underappreciated b-side to their biggest U.S. hit, "Lovesong."
TPOBPAH and other modern Shoegazer artists are casually being referred to as Nu-gaze. Artists like Glasvegas, M83 and TPOBPAH are bringing upbeat, somber, noise-pop back to the forefront. TPOBPAH's self-titled album, for example, sold enough copies to debut at #9 on Billboard's Top Heatseekers chart this week.
Despite the fact that I never grew the wall of hair over my eyes, and I am definitely not one to gaze at my shoes on stage, sometimes you've had enough chocolate cake and crave a bite of tiramisu, just to switch it up. So hang up the torn jean jacket for a few minutes, crank this song up and be drearily placid... and then smile for a second.
If You Like: Cure (1989-1992), Glasvegas, Lush, M83, My Bloody Valentine, Slowdive
Rating: ***** (5 out of 5)
