Song of the Week - Hologram

No, it's not a new Jem and the Holograms song, it's the newest track from my girls Mimi, Ronny, and JC under the name XELLE. I interviewed them a few months ago where they said a new single was "coming very soon." Well, guys, it's finally here. Get into "Hologram."

Dubbing themselves the "party girls of pop," they sure did have a lot to live up to. I think it's safe to say after this new song that they definitely live up to the reputation. This song is an electronic orgasm, completely fun from start to finish. The beats are amazing, and I really am in love with Zach Adam's style, as he also is working with another rising star, Moses.

The lyrics are my favorite part of the song. The story is about a man that is nothing but an illusion, bringing about one of the best lines in a song: "You're a fiction of my affection." Is that not sickening? I also find myself randomly spouting off "Holla Holla Hologram!" Maybe I should hire these ladies to write my debut single.

As a bit of an update: I have been poking them about the video, but they still won't say a lot. On a radio interview, JC said that the video will be "one hundred times the work" that the "Party Girl" video was. She also mentioned that she didn't think anyone had used the medium like this for a music video. It sounds so exciting, but the release won't come about until March at the earliest. You better work, ladies.

Until then, why don't you buy the track on iTunes? It's killer!

Top Five: Un-Christmas Songs

Welcome to Christmas! I'm not really as happy about it as the exclamation point would lead you to believe, but it's hard not to buy into the fake cheer of the holidays. It's time to hash out more celebrity X-mas related songs. Luckily, not all of them are your traditional tunes, some being downright anti-Christmas. As part of a month-long Top Five column of random crap I deem entertaining and relevant, I will be  Let me get at you with some Un-Christmas Christmas songs.


5. Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence - FYI by Utada



Confession time: I LOVE Hikaru Utada's English albums. Back when I was a Weeaboo (Don't ask), I was all about some Utada, and she released her debut English album Exodus at the height of my Japan obsession. She released two English albums, this song from the second one. I placed it so high on the countdown mainly because it trolls you into thinking it's a Christmas song when it really isn't. She doesn't even mention the holidays at all. The only really seasonal part of the song is her saying "Jing-a-ling" a couple of times. Way to fool us, Utada. You win.
Edit: An Anon informed me she had to keep the title of the song she sampled for legal reasons. That still doesn't mean she isn't trolling you. I mean if she had to keep the title, logic dictates you should roll with the Christmas theme. She did not. Thus, troll.
(Warning: Lots of Hos under the cut.)

JohnBoyCool Unleashes "Greed"

Another pre-release track from JonhBoyCool's new mixtape, "Greed" follows in line with the theme of the "7 Sins" title. He has been teasing us with this mixtape for a while now, originally saying it would be out on Halloween. Hopefully it will be out soon. Til then, let's take a look at "Greed".

This song is more rap than anything I've heard from this artist before. I'm not sure how I feel about it, as I was madly in love with the electric sound from his first mixtape. The lyrics fall more in line with greed than the previous pre-release track "Vanity", as he is talking about wanting it all during the track. There is even a break in the song with a very distorted voice talking about how greed is actually a good thing.

The guest on the tack, Chris King, does his job well. I've never been huge on the fad of having rappers guest in the middle of your track, but at the same time, I like seeing artists able to work together. I'd never heard of this guy before, but seeing as this group is still emerging into the music scene, I'm sure I'll see him pop up again. It's just leaving me with the question if any of the "7 Sins" tracks will be just JohnBoyCool without any features.

While not as instantly lovable like the "Too Cool 4 School" mixtape, the song is growing on me. It's dubstep back beat, paired with Jonhboy's distinctive voice refuse to let me dislike this song in any way. If you want something fresh and fun, get this track. And hey, as of now, it's free!

Site News: The Universal Conquest Awards

It is finally here. The event I've been planning for months. I am so insane that I have decided to give out my own awards. There are so many great pop artists out there, and only a select few get recognized, so I've decided to take it upon myself to award some of pop music's lesser known artists, the underdogs if you will. For my first year I've started out small with six categories. A select group of my closest friends and I will determine all but one of the awards. Sound unfair? Well I've left the biggest and most important award to you guys. So you'd better vote!

Here are the non-voting categories and their nominees:

BEST DEBUT
Best Debut
Young London - Let Me Go
XELLE - Party Girl
Colette Carr - (We Do It) Primo
Chris DiSario - Could This Be Love
Black Cards - Dr. Jekyl and Mr. Fame

BEST DRAG SONG
Sahara Davenport - Go Off!
Manila Luzon - Hot Couture
Pandora Boxx - Cooter
Raja - Daimond Crowned Queen
Holestar - Queen of F***ing Everything

BEST NON-SINGLE
RuPaul feat. Jipsta - Sexy Drag Queen (Jared Jones La Push Remix)
Simon Curtis - Joshua
Frankmusik - Struck By Lightning
Demi Lovato - Hold Up
Ultraviolet Sound - Electric Misfit Love Machine

ALBUM OF THE YEAR
Frankmusik - Do It In The AM
Demi Lovato - Unbroken
Natalia Killa - Perfectionist
Nadia Oh - Colours
Aqua - Megalomania

EDITOR'S PICK - SONG OF THE YEAR
My selection based on this years Song of the Week selections.

The big one? Song of the Year. That's where I need you guys. If you are a stan of any of these artists, pick their track. Vote on the poll at the right hand side of the page. Voting will end in the wee hours of December 24th and the winners will be posted the following morning. This is your chance to give your favorite the credit they deserve!

I know, it's December, which means there's one more month worth of awesome songs to select from. Don't worry, as the column will continue, but the selections will be eligible for NEXT year's Song of the Year contest. Don't see your fave listed? Go up to the Recommendations page and shoot me an email suggesting who you think deserves the spotlight.

Song of the Week - Wallflower

Have you ever been playing a game, and out of nowhere you realize that the soundtrack is work of genius. This was exactly the case in Saints Row: The Third. From techno to reggae, every song is amazing. The best one? A dance-pop track called "Wallflower". Prepare to fall in love.

Honestly, other than it being in the game, I don't know a whole lot about the artist. Mislabled as being by "Kevin and Carrick" in the game, it made this song rather hard to find. Divalola is actually a project fronted by Heather Fogarty.  Kevin and Carrick, whom I'm not as familiar with, are involved in the project, however. I guess the name wasn't fully decided upon by the deadline for the game.

The track itself is amazing. The plot is about a girl giving her guy and ultimatum, if he doesn't get off his butt and dance, she's done. The beats are fast and fun, and the lyrics and melodies are catchy and memorable. I find myself singing this song without realizing it, and I do so a lot. If you want something on the forefront of the pop scene, this is it.

You can get it on iTunes, as usual. Do it. Or else.

Freezepop (Finally) Releases Doppelganger Video

Oh. Dear. Lord. I have been in love with this song for SO LONG! Freezepop always makes great tracks, but they've not always been consistent with releasing videos for their stuff. The last video I remember from them was for Brainpower, and was pretty close to the height of the song's success on Rock Band. But this song? It's been out for a long time. I had given up hope until they released a short teaser for it. Finally, dear lord finally, it has arrived.



The video doesn't follow the song's plot of a girl finding her ex dating a carbon copy of herself, and instead takes a very campy approach to the idea of "doppelgangers." What we get is two very different versions of the same group of four people. One set are the stereotypical perfect suburbanites, shirts tucked in and following all the rules, and the other set is a group of crazy punk rebels who probably don't have a cause, but who am I to judge?

Despite being very obviously on a budget, it is still a hilarious video and stays true to what the band is all about. Anyone who was afraid they would be too different with the new members needs to shut their faces and watch this video. It may have taken them a year to bring us a video for this gem of a single, but at least it was a fun ride. Plus, it renewed my love for the band, and gives me hope for new material from the band in the future!

Big For Boston

I may live in the Mid-South, but my heart lies in the North-East. As you may or may not know, a ton of my favorite artists reside in New England, most of which, oddly enough, live in Boston, MA. Lately, Boston has been stirring with musical news.

Freezepop, widely known for their stint on the early days of both Guitar Hero and Rock Band, made a splash at the Boston Music Awards last week. They took home the award for Electronic Artist of the Year. I'm not exactly sure what the Boston Electronic scene is like, and I didn't recognize any of the other nominees, but I'm sure this award still means a lot to the group. The band is still recording and touring today. They may be Duke-less, but they have since gained the equally sexy Bananas and the quirky and fun Christmas. They are one of the few bands that I can honestly say I liked "before they got big", and I certainly will continue loving them until the end of time.

Young London, masters at seeing if you are paying attention by slipping details via Twitter, have finally announced a December 6th release date for the new single New Reputation. I'm not yet sure if this is a good or a bad thing, as the video for their last single hasn't arrived on the net yet. For more info on the song, Sarah sent me all the juicy details that I wrote a post on not long ago. Knowing these two, it is bound to be one hell of a track. Keep it up, guys!

Jada is another Boston group on the move. Part of the resurgence of girl groups, these ladies got my attention quite a ways back with "American Cowboy" and then again with "This Party's On Fire" this past month. Having worked with Red One, it's not surprise these girls have some amazing jams up their sleeves. Earlier today, the girls announced they are going to release a new single and a new EP. The single is going to be Christmas themed, which doesn't exactly thrill me (I'm a bit of a scrooge), but I really like what they've done so far, so maybe they can win me over. It's happened before -- I mean "Christmas Tree" by Lady Gaga is one of the best X-mas tunes ever, and I'm not even a fan of hers.