I figure we have threads for metal, hip hop, electronic music, and power pop, amongst others, so why not straight-up pop? The SOMB singles list usually includes a strong contingent of pop songs, both mainstream chart-toppers and underrated "indie favourites", so it seems like there would be enough boarders around to generate some good discussion. Doesn't have to be a YSI thing or anything, but I won't begrudge any link-posters. Not sure if it will get off the ground at all but just thought it might be fun.

Anyway, first off, what do people think of the new Kelis album? Very much a dance/club extravaganza with David Guetta and Will.I.Am producing, amongst others. I kinda wish she'd gone for more hooks - there are very few, if any, sing-along choruses, and it becomes awfully repetitive after a while; but shit like "Acapella" and "Song For The Baby" sucks me in.

Some of the better pop singles of 2010:

Mini Viva "One Touch"

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EMIKA "Drop The Other"

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Sia "Clap Your Hands"

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Robyn "Fembot"

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Class Actress "Journal Of Ardency"

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Scissor Sisters "Invisible Light" - also "Fire With Fire" (which I think is the actual single, but is nowhere on youtube due to record label copyright claims etc).

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Cults "Go Outside"

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and this isn't really pop at all but I decided over the weekend that Janelle Monáe ft. Big Boi: "Tightrope" is actually the best song so far this year so I'm going to post it anyway.

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"Starry Eyed" by Ellie Goulding is hands down the best pop song of the year, ruling the clubs as well. Pity the whole album is a wreck. The 'Jakwob' dubstep remix is even better than the original actually.

The Robyn album will probably end up the best ful pop album of the year, can't really fault it until the last couple of songs.

Most of the pop on the UK charts this year has had a very short shelf life, which seems to be the trend with the British urban/rap acts that are ruling the waves over electro beats at the minute. Stuff like Tinie Tempah and Taio Cruz only holds up over a couple of listens, still dumb fun for a while though.

One thing's for sure: "She Said" by Plan B is the most cringe inducing, horrible thing released all year, and an early candidate for worst song of the decade.

I'm sure there is usually a Top 40 (US) chart discussion thread each year, not much of a crossover with that with this stuff though.

That Emika song is one of my favourite singles of the decade for sure.

yeah I've been looking at the UK charts a little bit over the past few months, seems to be a lot of rappers that I've never heard of getting number one singles all of a sudden mixed in with stuff like Glee and Gaga. All the hyped stuff like Marina + Diamonds and Ellie Goulding doesn't seem to be selling quite as much as BBC darlings last year La Roux and Florence, which is making for an interesting chart dynamic I guess.

and on that Goulding album, I really like Starry Eyed as well and Under the Sheets is great, but boy was it disappointing. Don't know what I was expecting really but the record itself was pretty flat imo.



Yeah and MV has his singles list threads as well in which he occasionally recommends stuff. Quite happy to talk Taylor and Ke$ha as well if people are interested, anything goes really.

Record, for me was neither satisfying as an electronic one nor were the songs that interesting in their embryonic folk stage. Tried to be two things and ended up being neither.

Ke$ha, Usher, Bieber!

my interest in discussing pop music is mostly in top 40 and pop/hip-hop crossover, which no one else likes.

these threads also fizzle out every single time, but that doesn't mean i wouldn't like to see it work. someone message me if they want to talk about whether or not they like any tracks off Shock Value 2.

Ke$ha is a slut who makes shit music, nothing new.

Usher is just Usher-by-numbers at the minute, pretty boring single.

I'd quite like 'Baby' by Justin Bieber if it wasn't for that horrible Ludacris rap. Otherwise, he is really at the lower end of the teen pop scale, even with The-Dream writing for him it's hard to find any of it likeable. 'Shut Me Down' by Stevie Brock is the mould of song he should have been getting. Can't fault the sales though.

i mean, i like everything you don't like a lot.

"Your Love is My Drug", "OMG", and "Baby" are three of the better hits this year. i'm the only one that thinks that and it's cool.

My favouritest pop stuff of the year


Miley Cyrus - Can't Be Tamed: I actually disliked this when I first heard it, but the refrain part where it goes "I wanna fly I wanna drive I wanna go/
I wanna be a part of something I don’t know" totally won me over.

Also, becoming a huge fan of


Drake - Find Your Love: which basically sounds like a track from 808s and Heartbreak which I'm gonna love (Cuz I think it's the best Kanye album EVAR) but others might not, as well as Over which sounded really weird the first few time I heard it, like there was something wrong with the beat or rhythm of the track but burrowed its way into my brain and is now one of my favouritest things of the year. I like Drake's completely random stream of consciousness - as the kids call it - flow, where he says stuff like "Two thumbs up...Ebert and Roeper" which would be like me trying to rap.


Quite digging Emily Osment - You Are the Only One which is basically a completely uncredible Disney Pat Benatar as nu-emo.


Justin Bieber - Baby is something that recently won me over based mainly on the chorus.

Also, the two Robyn singles are pretty awesome, but I don't have any witty pics or things to say about them.

Somehow I'd gone most of the year without hearing this yet. Just listened to it for the first time and it's pretty great. Kudos.

What's some other good stuff, Chrono.

I'm not big on Kesha, but like the Bieb and the Usher track.

Recommend!

I think this song is excellent, quite genuinely.

I'm curious as to what others think of the Bieber phenomenon, particularly now that this Greyson kid who was on Ellen the other day is pitting himself against him as the slightly more demure, "singer-songwriter" type.

Not sure I like the new Miley song, hasn't got half the charm of Party In The USA.

Christina Aguilera = total FAIL. I could strangle her. She did everything she shouldn't have and will never recover. At this point in time the world was her oyster.

Beyonce is taking things where they should go. Later in her career she finally becomes interesting.

Lagy Gaga is perpetually mediocre with some very fun moments we all have on our Ipods.

I'm so bored with the offerings these days. I've been listening to Cherrelle and Inner City for goodtime beats and lyrics.

Believe it or not, and you will immediately sneer-- the most classically crafted, sexy, catchy cumpop song of the year thusfar is an unnoticed track off Heidi Montag's new album Superficial.
Yes, believe it or not.

Heidi Montag - 'I'll Do It'


I'll be your hot mess, schoolgirl in curls

P.S. I'm in. This should def be a seperate thread from the Dancefloor one.

The Ke$ha 'Love Is My Drug' single is not good, you guys are cracked out. She is a one-hit wonder. Hipsterizing her into something of value is not going to work either. I realize I just bigged a Heidi Montag song, but you know what, 'Love Is My Drug' still sucks.

Oh, and don't forget Britney Spears - '3' on the hotlist. Sweet video too. I think this is every girls' favorite song right now, but you probably already knew that. We still want sex and kitten power. We really don't care to see you walk the red carpet carrying a dollhead... Ke$ha. Or be fat. LOL!

The most significant thing about Britney Spears as of late is that she gives the Myspace generation permission to grow up and have dip their toes into alt sex.

the chorus on "Your Love is My Drug" proves how good Ke$ha is at being both full-throated but restrained. it's a style of hook that's really anthemic but doesn't go too far.

i also like "Blah Blah Blah" and this song:

More thoughts:



this is a local sensation of sorts in Northern California. i've met this Bobby Brackins dude before at a party. he's a terrible rapper. Ray J sings like a retard and this song is robotic as hell but it has this really throwbacky 2004 hyphy-esque beat and the sense of drama is just swirling throughout the entire song. it's very captivating. a real sing along.



i really like this John Mayer song =\



i get the sense that Sean Kingston is actually a real strong manager of his own brand and projects. this song is pretty pre-teen and pretty twee, but the combination of the two of them over another beeping and blooping Benny Blanco production makes for a great song.



the lyrics really bothered me on this track at first. as did the vocal stylings. it just didn't fit together to me. i'm sort of hooked now. i still thing the songwriting is better than the execution, and Snoops verse is a throwaway but you should still probably listen to it.



mentioned upthread, i think as an example of what not to do. fuck that noise! Taio penned this song for Cheryl Cole originally, if that makes anyone down to listen. this song just rides the wave of a million other electrolove crooners, but this is one of the best ones this year.



i love Sean Garrett's songwriting style. i love keys. i love THUNDER on the low end. his vocalizations are so precise and perfectly placed. great Nicki verse too!



this song is insane. it's the biggest, most ludicrous song T-Pain could ever imagine. not even sure what to say. let it sweep you off your feet or not.


shocking to me, i like both of the last two Timbaland singles. Drake has been annoying the hell out of me as of late, but "Say Something" he does pretty well. the beat is just damn hypnotic. it's amazing to me that Timbaland still has fresh ideas. they're all still very Timbaland, but they they don't feel as recycled as say "Give it To Me" was after "Promiscuous". i still think that JT has a pretty cool pop singing voice. it's just so frail and white, and i think there's a place for that. anyways, both songs:






Happy listening!

I feel like "California Gurls" is just a "TiK ToK" rehash, and an inferior one at that. I guess that's to be expected given it's a Dr Luke/Max martin production, but still.

you already answered the question yourself. but i would say that "California Gurls" is more different from "TiK ToK" than i think "Party in the USA" is. Luke/Martin are wary of people becoming bored with their formula, but also wary of rocking the boat too much when it keeps selling.

Timbaland videos are the most laughable things in the world; does he not realise how ludicrous he looks in them, bizarre facials and clunky dance moves and all? Is everyone in agreement he should have stayed behind the mixing desk?

Having said that, the song with Timberlake is passable, I can tolerate it on a dancefloor but not something I'd ever be likely to have on my MP3 player.

Love that Heidi Montag song that was posted, anything else similar to recommend?

i'm not anti-Autotune or anything but wow...couldn't tell if that was man, woman, boy or android "singing" there.

Has anyone tried the Kelis yet?? Still can't decide if it's laudable or horrible.

I quite like the new Kelis. I've somehow managed to acquire all of her albums on CD (not hard, you can pick most of them up for £0.01 plus a little postage from Amazon sellers) and this is pretty much the same quality, a couple of standout tracks then the rest is just decent.

I don't really like her voice, but she always seems to score some good beats, it's definitely worth a listen, though not at the expense of the Erykah Badu and Janelle Monae albums which are much better.

the unintentional hilarity of Timbo in those two videos is more than enough to justify their existence for me


and having heard "Carry Out" on the dancefloor, i would agree with you on that

Re: Timbaland's unintentional hilarity

I will never forget that ongoing VMA thread where Jigga said "Wtf happened to Timbaland, nigga looks like a drugged-up ninja turtle". Timbaland really did look like a ninja turtle, with those roided-up arms in his little tanktop.

Also, this is one of my favorite scenes in anything ever, because of Timbaland's (and Jay-Z's) ridiculous faces, the Timbo-drink-from-the-jug head-bob and his iconic banana-eating dance.

.

Great remix that got very little airplay on B96.

I would still fuck Mariah Carey every which way. It's not a view shared by many, but I think she's the most attractive celeb, love the curves and you can bet she knows a few moves as well.

moves, huh?

So, the new Christina record is a bit odd. Sounds like she's trying to be Santigold, Lady Gaga and Rihanna all at once. Not sure if it works, but there are some fun tunes on here for sure, some of which don't even sound like her at all ("Elastic Love" particularly). The ballads are pretty pedestrian/dull and it's also way too long. Not bad, but nothing that will leave Lady Gaga quaking in her boots/stilettos.

Genius, he's coming in for some flak as well for swearing and insulting a worker on an Aussie TV show. Sounds like a bit of a cunt to be honest, though I suppose you would be if you got that popular that young.

On another note...

http://lesbianswholooklikejustinbieber.tumblr.com/

haha yes I've seen that tumblr. I'm just surprised at the bit at the end. "I hurt my forehead"...didn't know he had one. Kid's hair is outta control.

So...this is a fairly enjoyable tune, espesh if you enjoyed the singles from Saturdays=Youth



This has ridiculously awful lyrics but the chorus is a bit of a jam.



And...there's a new Lady Gaga video on the way.

New Gaga video is awful.

New Iyaz is not too bad. 'Solo' or something. Caught it in the advert break while watching '100 Greatest World Cup Songs' or some shit.

Can't say I even like the song in the first place, but yeah, OTM. Not sure what all that rosary bead swallowing and gay white dudes in speedos/wigs had to do with the song itself.

i'm not sure why the criteria for a good music video would be the connection between the lyrical themes and the visual themes. most Lady Gaga videos and videos in general are only loosely based on anything at all.

that being said, despite the near perfect cinematography, i would say it's less visually interesting than previous Gaga videos and overall not that enjoyable. especially given that it's my favorite song from the record.

Has anyone else heard the new Kylie album? Thoughts?

Quite enjoying Lissie's debut.

Not heard it but would like to (hint). I'm not at the point in my life where I actually want to physically pay for a Kylie album that isn't 'Body Language' or 'Ultimate Kylie'.

In other Pop opinions...

- The 'Wavin' Flag' world cup song is quite fun, though I'm not sure I'll enjoy it nearly as much now England are out

- The Professor Green song is horrific, it just makes me want to see Lily Allen do a proper cover of 'Dub Be Good To Me'

- Related to the above, why is everyone ripping off all the early vocal house classics? 'You Got The Love', 'Dirtee Cash' and 'Dub Be Good To Me' in just a couple of months

- Rihanna has one of the most grating voices of all time

- New Robyn has held up after several listens, except the last two tracks that are awful

There's a 320 available on magiska.tk, or at least there was last night. Seems almost embarrassing to admit but I'm enjoying it a fair bit. It's more or less a series of whopping synthpop tunes, like an Annie record really but with the euphoria factor turned up several notches. The lyrics are dreadfully mundane but it's hard to care with production so lush and huge.

her hook on the new Eminem single is definitely one of the worst ever

Nothing embarrassing about liking Kylie, she has some stellar tracks, much better career that someone like Madonna who is touted as the greatest pop star of the modern age. She's a lot slicker, cooler, classier and less desperate as well.

At least five of her singles will probably place on the 00's poll, had we ever done it.

Haha I guess she does...in Australia she has a certain reputation though.

On a completely unrelated note:

Yeah, when I took a Gap Year travelling round Australia I was surprised by how little love she gets out there, everyone seemed embarrassed about her. Guess I never saw her Neighbours stint.

Just heard Aphrodite by Kylie in full. It's pretty boring to be honest, not as good as 'Body Language' or 'Fever'. The first couple of songs do a job, then it all just merges into one long similar sounding decent dance album. It's OK., better than Lady Gaga I suppose.

A few musings from pop land:

- The only tracks worth listening to from Aphrodite, having now had it in my iTunes for a few weeks, are "Get Outta My Way" and "Can't Beat The Feeling". The former is already the scheduled second single, the latter a Daft Punk-y euphoric closer. The rest is fairly run-of-the-mill stuff.

- Probably my favourite new pop album is...



...Ceo's White Magic, which, despite a glowing review and BNM from that website, seems to have gone unnoticed around these parts. Sweet Swedish balearic beats, a bit like last year's jj album only slightly more overbearing and with more obvious hooks. RIYL jj (as mentioned) and The Tough Alliance (for obvious reasons).

- Robyn's new single is a souped-up rework of ballad "Hang With Me" and it is not bad at all.

- The Professor Green single is however very very completely bad.

- Quite disturbingly, my favourite single of recent times is the new Mark Ronson one. Full of charmingly nonsensical French and with hooks all over the fucking place. A lovely surprise.

it's a pretty good album, but nowhere near as great as new chance is. but then again, i fucking love tta, and it'll be hard ceo to stack up to their/his former band.

but yeah, excited for that mark ronson album. i feel no shame in admitting this. isn't mndr doing something on the record?

I guess this was expected after the "accoustic" tag given to the track on Body Talk Part 1, but this dance mix is a bit mundane on one listen...

Looking forward to hearing this. jjno2 is legitimately once of my favourite albums of all time at this point, must have listened to those songs time and time again and they're still melodically incredible.

I hate anything Mark Ronson does to be honest.