Going Steady: New Singles 6-3-22 – 6-9022 Reviewed

Losing My Mind – Big Gigantic, Brooke Williams – as a rule of thumb EDM ballads are the elevator music of the 21st century, but Brooke has co- written a song strong and the beats are elastic with a promise of a form of ecstasy – B

Where Is The Sun??? – Blue Hawaii – the beats are strong and unobtrusive and the dreaminess is by genre born – B+

Disco Maghreb – DJ Snake – you probably know Maghreb from the constant war, the cities name means setting sun and you can see why, Snake adds beats to Arabic belly dancing sounds – B+

Mrs. Davis – Gucci Mane – ever since he got out of prison, Gucci has seemed a little lazy (at the 2017 Billboard show he was a disgrace here) and musically he has been spinning his wheels, but this has one of the most haunting samples and the lyrics and lyricism are brilliantly rapped ode to his wife – SINGLE OF THE WEEK – A-

I Love It (feat. Charli XCX) – I Don’t Care 2022 Re-Edit – Icona Pop – I Love It (feat. Charli XCX) – Icona Pop – I always believed the great duo deserved more than one hit and out, and here is the hit and the re-edit is a mistake (they slow it down) but I am still happy to hear it again – B+

CHEMICALS – Kasabian – the hook? “whatever don’t kill you makes you stronger”… yeah, perhaps a little more thought – D+

Colors – Alternative Version – Kulick – the original is such an anthem of sexual desire that Kulick tends to close his concerts with it , and listening to this superlative alternative version it is clear it has even more to give – A

SHUT UP – LUIS SAINT ROSE – Toronto rapper, young guy, has the flow but not the voice – B-

Want Want – Maggie Rogers – her voice sounds like Chrissie Hynde and the singer songwriter rocker brings the heat on a sweet little rocker – B+

Will Of The People – Muse – an uninspired “Beautiful People” rip – C

Androgynous – Nation of Language – a low key repeat of all things Replacements but welcome nevertheless from the indie poppers – B

Marijuana’s A Working Woman – of Montreal – arty psychedelia progginess ugh, though quite exciting on stage – C

This Happiness – Of Monsters and Men – the Iceland band sounds exactly like indie americana circa 2010s – C+

Attention – Omah Lay, Justin Bieber – more astringent live, on record it is the meeting ground of Afro beats and soul, with two excellent singers – B

Viva Las Vengeance – Panic! At The Disco – we haven’t heard from Brendon Urie in four years but the grand return is a new wavey rocker with operatic vocal and a Clash lick that should satiate some – B

Farewell, Angelina – Paul Anka – he uses an arrangement that reflects Frank Sinatra circa the mid-70s on a fair take on Bob Dylan’s “excellent ballad enhanced by miles of strings – B+

Alpha Zulu – Phoenix – the French indie rockers with a minor winner but still a winner with an addictive Afrikaner beat – B+

Nerve Flip – Red Hot Chili Peppers – a dreary outtake from their relatively harmless current album – C

Cold December – Rod Wave – Rod Wave – a beautiful r&b autotuned by the unique singer who always ends up at the top of the charts – A-

Funkytown – From ‘Minions: The Rise of Gru’ Soundtrack – St. Vincent – an excellent cover of the Lipps, Inc one hit wonder disco track from the 1970s – B+

Free – Tove Styrke – the Swedish popstar with mainstream EDM – C

Wait Too Long – Turnover – awful indie rock over arranged whateva – E+

Every Side Of You – Vance Joy – painful indie folk in the face of romantic dystopia whatever he might claim – MUST TO AVOID – E

Mr. Regular – What So Not, Killer Mike, Olive Tree – Australian DJ sucks big time and Killer Mike helps not at all – D

How Do You Love Somebody – Why Don’t We – US boy band pop guys, not as such – D+

A Stranger’s House – Will Butler – if he left Arcade Fire because he wanted to perform his own lousy indie prog he might well want to rethink his foreign policy – C-

Spitting Off the Edge of the World – Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Perfume Garden – their first new material in nearly ten years and it handily maintains the brand on a haunted by Perfume Garden track – B

Big League (with Yo Gotti, Moneybagg Yo, CMG The Label feat. Mozzy & Lil Poppa) – Yo Gotti, Moneybagg Yo, CMG The Label feat. Mozzy & Lil Poppa – Yo Gotti’s label is getting bigger all the time (Here) but this indifferent kitchen sink won’t tell you why – C-

See Me Now – YoungBoy Never Broke Again – the beats are so trap and brittle it is more like rap fusion – B