AeroLynx Music Blog

I never really heard much Foster The People beyond memes of Pumped Up Kicks before the III EP came out earlier this year. I listened to it a lot, with its captivating hip hop sound that ranged from angry to pleading to happy to hopeful to dreamy. But eventually my interest tapered off, and so did everyone else's- the songs are no longer in high rotation on alternative radio In addition, only one of the songs, Doing it For the Money, charted at all on the Billboard Alternative chart, and has only dropped. So this is a lot of pressure on Foster The People to come out with new music, and hopefully their new album. They did both today, releasing a promotional single for their new album, because the actual announcement of the album almost three weeks ago didn't get much press. When I saw the new song, I listened right away, even though there's a new album from Sir Sly, a band I like much better. The song starts with the same hip hop beats, with the addition of house-style syn...

When I heard Everything Now, the first single for the new Arcade Fire album and a collaboration with Thomas Bangalter of Daft Punk, I was transfixed. The song was a really good bass driven semi-disco track that seems to float along with the help of various keyboards, guitars and synths, meaningful but mixed up lyrics and massive choruses. Creature Comfort, the next single was a synthesized romp about society's standards and suicide, an important but unoriginal topic. Signs of Life starts off with the sounds of an ambulance and emergency radio chatter, which leads in to massive hand claps and some good notes on the bass. Then a saxophone and some glittering but urgent cascading keyboard synths come in. Suddenly, Win Butler launches into repetitious lyrics which fit their content, about how humans do the same thing over and over again and don't know why. When the second verse ends, the saxophone gears up to a background of cavernous synths, and then cuts out to give impact to l...

This song starts off very well. For a pop song, its instrumental hook is rare, with a good but looping guitar line and a driving drumbeat that actually feels like it came from a real kit, unlike some other recent Fall Out Boy music. The song continues that way, without extremely memorable vocals or lyrics, but with a driving guitar and drums. Then it slows to just a refrain of "champion, champion" and does have a memorable lyric: "I got rage everyday/ On the inside", hinting at a darker tone to the song. The lyrics then turn to a message about a young person that needs something to believe in, which is a common message but isn't explored often in pop. Then it shifts to have an uplifting message: "If I could live through this/ I can do anything" which somewhat dumbs down the message, and almost makes the song just another trying to be uplifting song. But the guitar and more classic rock focus stays, making this a great song when most "rock" so...

I've taken a lot of time thinking about how to review this album. I honestly expected it to be a lot better, but the electronics on the first three singles should've warned me. This album is a bit of an evolution in terms of style for Imagine Dragons, but it heads toward EDM, which isn't really evolution it's just trying to get more listeners by leaving behind a good style. The album starts off with the completely electronic I Don't Know Why, which is a clearly designed to be a pop and dance hit. It's not bad for a dance song, but it sets the tone for the worst songs of the album, which sound like the band listened to EDM and RnB hits from the list ten years and tries to formulate them. This is continued in the god awful herky-jerky album closer Dancing in the Dark, the RnB copy song I'll Make it Up to You(which has a decent guitar solo), and the other terrible RnB copy, Start Over. These songs have a theme to them: they copy mainstream songs, are EDM and ...

I've been pretty excited for Sir Sly's new album, with the great song High, the success of their last album, and the variation in their new singles. So when I saw that they had a new song out, I listened to it right away. It starts off with a chill, almost The Neighbourhood-esque guitar that seems to jerk along, but isn't bad, and periodic electronic claps. Then it dissolves into melancholy piano line, with Landon Jacobs singing almost lightly and pleadingly, asking his lover to stay with him. Then it goes back to the guitar, with the vocals continuing in the same fashion. At about two and a half minutes, the song appears to wind down and end. But then it comes back, in a not-so-dramatic move. Overall, not a bad song, but not a very good omen of what Sir Sly's next album will be like. The guitar is good, but hopefully Sir Sly won't mirror The Neighbourhood's Wiped Out failure, with nine gloomy and chill songs and finally at the end of the album, one great and e...