| 112
f/Ludacris- Hot & Wet (WWW) The lyrics are pathetically and almost
embarrassingly sexed up, but the beat's pretty strong, plus Ludacris does
throw in a few clever lines. It all adds up to 112's best single since
"Peaches & Cream". |
| 112
f/Supercat- Na, Na, Na (W) Tell me something: how can all these
pop-R&B acts differentiate themselves if they keep on splurging the
same song (in this case about sex)? Not even the return of Supercat is
memorable. Also, what kind of a hook is "Work your body/Change
positions/Work your body/Move positions"? *sigh* |
| 24-K
f/Mashonda & Triple Seis- Skully (WW) The Just Blaze beat is pretty
cool, but this girl's "you can't handle me" rhymes and Eve-esque
delievery are just not that interesting. |
| 2B-
Uh Oh (WWW) It's a little too simple, but it's still a slammin' party rap
track. |
| 4
Strings- Let It Rain (WWWW) Great, deep raver's trance music, though it
sounds a little too much like Daniel Bedingfield's "James Dean (I
Wanna Know)" |
| 40
Below Summer- Self Medicate (W) Montonously chugging guitars, fake
screaming and "powerful" vocals=crappy nu-metal. |
| 50
Cent f/Snoop Dogg- P.I.M.P. (Remix) (W) The Latin rhythmns make for an
O.K. beat, but this rap song has all the energy of a sloth and is about as
creative as the other dime-a-dozen rappers. Really, what happened to him
and all that potential? |
| A
Perfect Circle- Weak And Powerless (W) Presenting a "Judith"
rip-off that's as boring as the original. The overrated Maynard James
Keenan strikes out again. Sorry. |
| A
Static Lullaby- Lipgloss And Letdown (W) It's kiddie rockers doing screamo...ladies
and gentleman, we have a band worse than Alexisonfire. Yes, it's possible. |
| A.18-
Broke The Blue (WW) It has a catchy pop/rock beat, but it can't decide if
it's a horribly contrived death metal or nu-metal song. Very confusing. |
| AFI-
Leaving Song Pt. II (W) The band steals the riffs from "The Boys Of
Summer" to pose as deep rockers, while Davey Havock screams and wails
things I could care less about. |
| Alabama
Thunder Pussy- Motor Ready (WW) Well, the riffs on this metal song's
catchy, but that's about it, especially because of the indecipherable
vocals. |
| Alchemist-
First Contact (WWWW) It's not Opeth, but the alternating growling/clean
vocals, the really nice and gloomy atmospheric riffs make it beautiful
death metal. Seriously. |
| Alejandro
Sanz- No Es Lo Mismo (WWW) Runs for a bit too long and it sounds more like
an American rock/pop song sung in Spanish, but it's quite impassioned, so
it works really well. |
| Alicia
Keys- You Don't Know My Name (W) Here, she comes off as a very bad version
of Erykah Badu. Who comes off as a very bad version of Billie Holiday.
"You don't know my name?" I think we do, but regardless, we
don't want to know. Sorry. |
| Alien
Ant Farm - Glow (WWW) It's pretty catchy and bouncy pop-rock- and, get
this, enjoyable. Really. |
| Alien
Ant Farm- These Days (WWW) It's enjoyable, driving rock, but it's a little
too generic for it's own good. |
| AM
Radio- Inspiration (WWW) It's interesting and catchy folk-pop number, but
it's a little dated. |
| Amon
Amarth - Death In Fire (WWW) With minimal use of the keyboards, these
death metallers try pretty hard to get an industrial sound. Whatever it
is, it's very cool. |
| Amorphis-
Alone (WWWW) It sounds like a heavier cross between Depeche Mode and
Metallica...very interesting. Good line too: "I am empty but I have
everything". |
| Amy Dalley- I Think
You're Beautiful (WWW) It's a little too predictable and reminds me a bit
too much of Martina McBride, but it's a nice, catchy slab of pop-country. |
| Amy
Grant- Simple Things (WWW) It's got a somewhat catchy pop beat and it's
pretty happy and upliftingly cheery, but one has to wonder if she's
getting a little too old to be sounding like a pop star. |
| Andrew
W.K.- Never Let Down (WW) It's a cheesy, over-anthemic attempt at a
drunken Queen, but at least it's not "Party Hard IV". |
| Anthrax-
Taking The Music Back (WWW) The guitars produce some catchy riffs and the
driving track is pretty enjoyable, but it's not very remarkable. |
| Arcarnum-
Hide 'N' Seek (WWWW) It's more Filter than Nine Inch Nails, but it's still
solid industrial-pop. |
| Arthur
Kill- It's No Good (WWWW) It's a little whiny, but the intricacies and
tricks to this industrial song more than make up for it. |
| Ashanti-
Rain On Me (WWW) Okay, so it's not as bouncy as "Rock Wit U (Aww
Baby)", but the lounge-esque song is still very beautifully smooth. |
| Atheist-
An Incarnation's Dream (WWWWW) It starts off mellow and guitar-driven, but
eventually it explodes into a fury of screaming guitars and insane
drumwork from Marcel Desantos. It sounds disorganized, but it stays
together so well. Atheist just may be the only band out there who can mae
even the most disorganized songs sound organized. |
| Atmosphere-
Trying To Find A Balance (W) I'm angry, OH SO ANGRY!!! My life is
horrible! He's Epitaph's Eminem...and a poor imitation of one. 'Nuff said. |
| Atreyu
- Ain't Love Grand (WWW) It's catchy and enjoyable enough, but I can't
shake the impression that it's extremely watered-down death metal... |
| Atreyu-
Lip Gloss And Black (W) Sub-par death metal that screams as it's trick,
with a guitar solo that shows what could have been. |
| Baby
Bash f/Frankie J - Suga Suga (WWW) So what if it's a Nappy Roots
knock-off? It's infectious, catchy and personal, plus the Nappy Roots'
sound should be emulated more, not less. |
| Bacilos- Caraluna (WWW)
Sounds more like a pop-rock song with light guitar touches and bongo drums
just to "appear" Latino, but it's catchy, so it works. |
| Bad
Boy's Da Band - Bad Boy This, Bad Boy That (WWW) It's another slammin'
party rap track with Top 40 potential, and a signal that P. Diddy's back
to form- now what happened in 2002? |
| Barenaked
Ladies- Another Postcard (Chimps) (WWWW) The Barenaked Ladies just have
fun...and it shows. One of 2003's most laid-back songs. |
| Barlow-
Walk Away (WWWW) Simply put, it's an emotional, personal, driving and
thoroughly enjoyable alt/pop-rock. |
| Ben
Harper- Diamonds On The Inside (WWW) Beautiful, soulful rock ballad. |
| Ben
Lee- No Room To Bleed (WWWWW) Presenting pop-dance that doesn't stink.
Here we have Lee penning a very personal and emotional song with simple
piano playing and drum machine loops swirling all around him. It may not
be complex, but it's interesting all the same. |
| Benumb-
Breathing Life Into Predestined Failure (W) Really, really, REALLY messy
featuring atrocious, George Pettit-like vocals. Where's Steve Flynn when
you need him? |
| Betty
Blowtorch- Love/Hate (WWW) A more thoughtful, hard-hitting and challenging
version of The Donnas? Who'd a thunkit? Good all around. |
| Beyonce
Knowles & Jay-Z- Crazy Love (W) Featuring a rather simple (and
annoying) booming and powerful "club beat", and annoyingly lame
"I love you Jay!" lyrics from Beyonce Knowles, this is just
another misguided party track. Jay-Z's rap, though is impressive, making
this the "Addictive" of 2003. |
| Big
Dismal - Reality (WWWW) Big Dismal continue to do what they've been doing
all along- making the music Creed SHOULD be making: inspirational,
uplifting music without ever going over the top. |
| Big
Dismal- Remember (WWWW) It's Nickelback with a little Metallica, but
compelling and interesting all the same. |
| Big
Tymers f/R. Kelly- Gangsta Girl (W) So they have an idea...they'll make
the sex object a "gangsta" and pass it off as a fresh idea. It
didn't work. Though Manny Fresh's rap was solid. |
| Big
Tymers- This Is How We Do (WWW) They really know how to party and it's
fun, but I still miss the rap group that brought us "Still Fly".
Oh well. |
| Billy
Gilman- I Am/Shades Of Life (WWWW): Just in time for summer, we get a
great uplifting song about the joys of life. This young voice has many
years left. |
| Billy
Talent- Try Honesty (WW) It's catchy driving pop-rock, but the screaming
in the chorus is a little unnecessary. |
| Biz
Markie f/Elephant Man- Let Me See You Bounce (W) I really wanted to give
this song to him (because how can you hate a guy who did "Just A
Friend"?), but I can't when he does a sex-ed up song that's just as
fake as every other one of them. *sigh* |
| Bjork-
Nature Is Ancient (WW) It's not nearly as annoying as her other songs, but
her voice is still annoying, eventually tiring the pop-electronica beat
and the song in general. |
| Black
Eyed Peas- Where Is The Love (WWW) Re-hashed lyrics about the pain in the
world, but a very strong beat. |
| Black
Moon - Stay Real (W) A really bad "booming" bassline-heavy beat
and some really boring rhymes about how they're so much better than
everyone else. Yawn. |
| Black
Rebel Motorcycle Club- Stop (WWW) It may not be The Music's "The
People", but this electro-rock is still pretty groovy and interesting
all the same. |
| Blake
Shelton- Heavy Liftin' (WWW) It's enjoyable, catchy "workman"
country-rock, but it has an air of familiarity to it, though. |
| Blindside-
Sleep Walking (WWW) They sound like The Used meets Nine Inch Nails meets
Chevelle. Strange mix, but it works. |
| Blink
182- Feeling This (W) ??? This is supposed to be serious, I'm guessing,
but it makes no sense...why can't they just go back to being kids. They
were fun then. |
| Blue
County- Good Little Girls (WWW) It's bouncy, it's catchy and it's upbeat
honky tonk. It's also the kind of stuff Tim McGraw SHOULD be doing. |
| Blue
October - Calling You (WWW) They sound a little dumb being a souped-up,
grunge version of Howie Day, but they're catchy enough, so it works. |
| Bobby
Seals - Time Machine (W) Someone forgot to tell them that doo-wop left in
the 1950s, because this song sounds horribly dated...and not to mention
cheesy and dry too. |
| Bond-
Fuego (WWW) Enjoyable up-tempo dance-pop-classical hybrid, even if it was
a little formulaic and similar to their past work. |
| Bond-
Shine (WWW) Yeah, it's simple and it sounds a bit too much like Enrique
Iglesias' "Bailamos" with an orchestra, but it's still great to
hear. |
| Boo
& Gotti f/Lil' Wayne- Ain't It Man (WW) The beat's good, but the raps
are just satisfactory and the chorus is really, really lame...I don't
think so. |
| Boomkat-
What You Do To Me (WW) It's a quasi-rip-off of Kylie Minogue's "In
Your Eyes" and the sexed-up lyrics are stupid, but the disco beat is
nice. |
| Boo-Yaa
T.R.I.B.E.- Bang On (WWWW) So they may not be "the best" like
they claim they are, but their rhymes challenging other rappers are solid
and so is the impressive uptempo beat. |
| Bow
Wow f/Baby- Let's Get Down (W) Poorly organized rapping by a now grown up
Bow Wow about a cliched topic like the girls he's met being famous with a
crappy South-esque beat from Baby. Calling this "crap" would be
being kind... |
| Bowling
For Soup- Punk Rock 101 (WWWW) Heehee...here's a fun little pop-rock ditty
that blasts the Good Charlotte-type punk..."same name, different
faces". |
| Boy
Sets Fire- Last Year's Nest (WWW) It's old Creed (on a positive
perspective, though), doing metal. Very interesting. |
| Brad Paisley- Little
Moments (WWWW) This song is what all those country-lover wannabes wish
they could write: an honest, heartfelt, and funny little reflections on
all those moments in love that are just too cute to get angry at. Another
winner from Paisley. |
| Brainstorm
- Highs Without Lows (WWW) So it comes off as Zakk Wylde trying to do Iron
Maiden (and I stress the "trying" part), but it's still solid
metal. |
| Brand New- Sic Transit
Gloria (WW) The chugging bassline, the throbbing drumming and the rapid
spoken-word verse were quite cool, but when the chorus comes on and the
guitars rage and the screaming starts, it just falls apart. Could have
been better. |
| Bravehearts f/Lil' Jon-
Quick To Back Down (WWWW) Unlike D-12 or G-Unit, Nas has actually led a
bunch of rappers who are NOT crappy. Oh, and unlike 50 Cent, this gangsta
rap song isn't mired in silly fake posing- just real threats, real insults
of cowardice and real good fight music. Just good stuff. |
| Breaking
Pangaea- Worst Part (WWW) Okay, so it's a whiny Jimmy Eat World knock-off,
but it's catchy and fun, so it works. |
| Brian McComas- You're In
My Head (WWW) It's a nice, somewhat catchy pop-country tune about a girl
he can't get out of his mind. Solid, but not great. |
| Bright
Eyes- Bowl Of Oranges (W) Conor Oberst may be a nice guy, but he's no Jeff
Tweedy. Here, he provides a country-esque pop song about a broken heart
that comes down too light-hearted and easy for its own good. In other
words, "blah". |
| Britney
Spears f/Madonna- Me Against The Music (W) A stale Neptunes-wannabe beat
with retread lyrics about "letting loose". "Boys"
seems to be a fluke... |
| Brooks
& Dunn- Red Dirt Road (WWW) Catchy riffs, overall enjoyable
country-pop-rock song reminscing about that "red dirt road". |
| Brooks & Dunn- You
Can't Take The Hony Tonk Out Of The Girl (WWWW) After the opening guitar
riff draws you in, you're treated to a rockin' country-rock song about a
girl who just likes causing trouble. One of Brooks & Dunn's best
singles. |
| Brooks
Buford- Trailer Fabulous (WWW) He's an Uncle Kracker wannabe rapping about
living in a trailer, but it works. |
| Brotha
Lynch Hung- Everywhere I Go (WWW) These rappers have a great message
(strength in the hard street life), and it's good, but it could be better. |
| Bruce
Cockburn- Open (WWWW) Channelling vintage Bob Dylan and Bruce Springsteen
in a mesmerizing, peaceful folk tune, "Open" is proof that
legendary Canadian folkster Bruce Cockburn still has a lot left in the
tank. |
| BT-
Somnabulist (W) This dance song is dated, too long and sounds like a trash
compactor. I'll just leave it at that. |
| Bubba
Sparxxx- Deliverance (WWWW) He slurs his words too much, but Bubba
delivers a great party track with a message about endurance. What? You
didn't think it could be done? |
| Buddy
Jewell- Help Pour Out The Rain (Lacey's Song) (WWW) Great country-folk
song about a father and his daughter wanting to be in Heaven to see their
long-lost relatives and "Jesus face-to-face". |
| Buddy
Jewell- Sweet Southern Comfort (W) It's a slowed down, carbon-copy
(nearly) of Montgomery Gentry's "My Town". No distinctiveness
whatsoever. |
| Buddy
Klein- Nothing To Lose (WWW): Teaches 50 Cent- and name drops him (and
Eminem too) how to PROPERLY do a bragging gangsta rap song. |
| Buju
Banton- Paid Not Played (WWW) May not be the greatest, but this is another
great party-reggae song fit for the summer. |
| Burnside
Project- Cue The Pulse To Begin (WWWW) Simply put, this is gloomy, if a
little simple, electro-rock who in one minute, trumps anything The Music
(or pretty much anyone else) ever did. Great stuff. |
| Busta Rhymes f/Chingy,
Fat Joe & Nick Cannon- Shorty (Put It On The Floor) (WW) The
video-game like beat from Just Blaze (though a rip off of "Pump It
Up") is pretty interesting and the inspired rap of Chingy and Fat
Joe's great rap do add some life to this project, but Busta Rhymes' and
Nick Cannon's raps and the pathetic chorus make this one stale. |
| Busta
Rhymes- Lite Your Ass On Fire (W) The Neptunes install a "toilet
beat" while Busta Rhymes raps another cliched sex-rap song. Can the
old Busta please come back? |
| Butch
Walker- Sober (WWW): Good song. Memorable hook and a great mellow alt/rock
sound, with this great line: "sooner or later we got to stop this
elevator"…I can’t get enough of that rhyme. |
| Buzzcocks-
Jerk (WWW) It's a simple but solid driving punk song. |
| Calvin
Richardson- Keep On Pushin (W) Take D'Angelo's beat from
"Untitled" and wrap it around a stale breakup song that's simply
a chorus repeated and you've got one snoozer of a soul track. Hey, at
least it cures insomnia. |
| Campfire
Girls- Buttercup (WWW) The words are a little slurred (and stupid), but
this droning, gloomy rock song makes its point. |
| Carl Thomas f/LL Cool J-
She Is (WWW) This party R&B track has an amazing beat and LL Cool J's
rap is gold, but it reminds me a bit too much like Glenn Lewis. |
| Cassidyf/R. Kelly- Hotel
(W) Yet another cliched sex-rap song, but more telling is R. Kelly's
flaccid, contrived and rehashed beat. He's officially lost it. |
| Cat
Power- He War (WWWW) So Chan Marshall borrows a little too much from
Nirvana, but she's still made a very interestingly catchy pop-rock song. |
| Cee-Lo f/Timbaland- I'll
Be Around (WW) As always, Timbaland's beat is nice, but overall, this rap
song just isn't very interesting. |
| Celebrity-
Disconnected (WWWW) It sounds like Chris Martin singing Matthew Good. Very
interesting overall. |
| Chalee
Tennison- Easy Lovin' You (W) It's no Celine Dion in comparison, but this
"baby, you've saved my horrible life" country snoozer is too
sappy for it's own good. |
| Charlotte Martin- Your
Armour (W) She's got a really nice voice, but this piano-pop ballad is a
really bad attempt at Tori Amos. |
| Cherish-
Miss P (W) "Hi everyone! I'm here!"...and we could care less.
Tell me, how many bling-bling R&Bers (like this lady) have to announce
this? |
| Chimaira
- Cleansation (W) CHUG-CHUG-CHUG-BASH-BASH-BASH-GROWWWLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL.
With a song this stupid, they make Slipknot look good; and that's saying
something. |
| Chimaira-
Pure Hatred (W) Straight out of the nu-metal notebook: "I scream
because I'm hardcore". Uh, no. |
| Chingy
f/Snoop Dogg & Ludacris- Holidae In (W) Cliched sex rap song
#1,334,223,222,554,789,555,665,443,112. How many more do we need? |
| Chris
LeDoux- Horse Power (WW) The skiffle-esque uptempo beat really helps this
traditional country song, but it would help if it were at least a little
more interesting. |
| Christina
Aguilera f/Lil' Kim- Can't Hold Us Down (WWW) Cookie-cutter "girls
can do what men do too" lyrics, but the beat's great, so it
works...really well. |
| Chynna-
Its Ky (W) The beat was decent, but does he really have to have cheesy,
lame "I'm representing Kentucky" (especially the chorus, where
he belches "it's Ky/The place where we get high") raps while
sounding higher than ODB? We have the worst rap song ever folks- yes, even
worse than PBT's "Fool With It". (Stinker Of The Week) |
| Chynna-
Mean Mug (W) You scared of his "mean mug"? I'm sure not. He
seriously is the absolute dumbest rapper I've ever encountered; and I've
encountered many. One of 2003's WORST songs. |
| Clay
Aiken- This Is The Night (WWWW) It's a little schlocky and the end could
use a bit of work, but this string-dominated pop song (belted greatly by
Aiken) is pretty anthemic and powerful- not to mention memorable. How did
he finish second again? |
| Cledus
T. Judd- Where's Your Mommy (WWWWW) It's a parody of Toby Keith's
"Who's Your Daddy", transforming the song into one of a clueless
father with a newborn baby. "Where's your mommy/You've got a dummy
for a dad" he closes. I laughed long and hard at this one, and I
haven't stopped since. |
| Client-
Rock And Roll Machine (WWW) It's interesting, gloomy synth-pop, but
Ladytron did do this better... |
| Clint
Black- Spend My Time (W) "I've been on the road a long, long time.
Let me tell you about it." No, mister country cliche. |
| Cobra Verde- Riot
Industry (WWW) This punk-meets-more-metallic-emo thing is palatable and
the message (I believe) of how rebellion is being manufactured today (not
that far off I may say) is a good one, but the vocals are barely
recognizable and overall it's just not strong enough. |
| Codec & Flexor- Time
Has Changed (WWW) They're no T. Raumschmiere when it comes to complexity,
but this techno song's pretty bouncy, so it works despite it's
uninventiveness. |
| Cody
Chesnutt- Look Good In Leather (W) "I make every woman melt/Because I
look good in leather". 'Nuff said. |
| Coheed
And Cambria- Devil In Jersey City (WWWW) This is what all those kiddie
rockers would do when they grow up and decide to actually write
interesting materail. No joke. |
| Coldplay-
God Put A Smile On Your Face (WWWW) Taking it's cues from
"Yellow" and speeding things up a lot, Coldplay prove that they
can still make the absolutely solid single. Is a likewise album to follow?
We'll see. |
| Contractor-
Affection (W): Yet another reggae "classic" about sex featuring
the "great" line "every woman needs love and affection/And
she got it in an upright erection". *smacks head in shame*. |
| Converge-
Fault By Fracture (WWW) Screamo can be pretty stupid, but here is
blindingly-fast and diverse drumwork, not to mention some fast, somewhat
dark punk-rock guitarwork. A screamo winner? Yes, it's true. |
| Count
The Stars- Taking It All Back (WWWW) They steal the intro to Good
Charlotte's "The Anthem", but it's solid, catchy and driving emo. |
| Cradle
Of Filth- Babalon A.D. (WWW) Dani Filth's voice is still an annoying yelp,
but impressive use of classical orchestration and death-metal inspired
guitarwork and drumming to create a very gloomy but interesting
atmosphere. |
| Craig
Morgan- Every Friday Afternoon (WW) It's really, really, REALLY whiny, but
I guess this country song about a father's kids leaving on him could
strike a chord with someone who's had a similar story. I guess. |
| Crash
Henry - I'm Alive (WWWW) The lyrics are a little overdone, but this
pop-rock is very infectious and catchy nonetheless. |
| Crash
Henry- Play It Again (WWW) Yeah, the "I just want to have fun"
pop-punk song's been done before, but this version works. |
| Cursive-
Art Is Hard (WW) Should it be any surprise that these punk-popsters are
about as boring as the art they rebel against? |
| Cyndi
Lauper- At Last (W) I'm waiting for this piano ballad to kick in with <i>something</i>
to make it interesting. It never does. *sigh* |
| Da
Brat- In Love Wit Chu (W) Da Brat's annoying voice + really, really simple
beat + very redundant love rap lyrics = crap. |
| Da
Razkalz Cru - So Fly (W) This party rap song is sooo dummb. |
| Dakona-
The Richest Man In The World (WWW) It's a little whiny, but it's pretty
catchy, emotive and enjoyable pop-rock. |
| Dana
Glover- Rain (WWW) Sounds like Pink singing a personal, heartfelt Amanda
Marshall song. Very cool. |
| Daniel
Bedingfield- I Can't Read You (WWWW) A little whiny, but this cross
between Bedingfield's garage roots and "If You're Not The One"
really works. |
| Darryl
Worley- Tennessee River Run (WWW) It seems out of place with the summer (
*frown* ) almost ending, but it's still an enjoyable, upbeat song about
the joys of fishing and being in the South. |
| Dashboard
Confessional- Hands Down (WWW) It's a little dumb, but the driving rock
sound makes this emo work. |
| Dave
Gahan- Bottle Living (WWWW) Even if it's a little stupid, you have to
admit, this honky-tonk inspired rock does have quite the swagger.
Impressive. |
| Dave
Gahan- Dirty Sticky Floors (WWW) Very cool driving, Nine Inch
Nails-inspired industrial track. |
| Dave
Matthews- Gravedigger (W) It's Dave Matthews trying to mix some metal in
with Coldplay and failing miserably in both. Chalk up another in his
"missed" quotient. |
| David
Banner- Cadillacs On 22s (W) It's a rarity to get a sleazy sex rapper who
has a sensitive side, and David Banner struggles here to get his life in
order. Still doesn't mean it's any good, though. |
| David
Francey- Skating Rink (WWWWW) A Scottish folk song that is as warm and as
beautiful as the crisp winter air that he's singing about at the frozen
pond. Lovely. |
| David
J- The Trees In Silence Sing (WWWW) The use of bongo drums in this simple
acoustic folk protest song give it a sense of urgency- and potency.
Powerful, moving and reflective- and simply great. |
| Days
Away- Knows My Name (WW) Yeah, the riffs are catchy to this kiddie rock
song, but it's way too much like Simple Plan for me to really take
seriously. |
| Death
By Stereo- Wasted Words (W): Couldn’t have picked better titles, because
listening to this puerile, stupid and clichéd punk-rock junk IS wasted
words AND death by stereo, especially considering the moronic yelling. |
| Death
In Vegas- Hands Around My Throat (W) The retro-electronic effects on this
pop-rock song are nice, but it still sounds WAY too much like Elastica. |
| Defari-
Spell My Name (WWW) Yeah, another rapper who's advertising "I'm here
and don't mess with me", but he does it style...really well. |
| Deftones-
Hexagram (W) They cry, often literally, about how bad their lives are.
Just like the rest of their songs. *heavy sigh* |
| Deftones-
Minerva (W): Do they ever quit? All these years and all this
crap…you’d think they’d get the message, right? Not exactly, if
their new material shows anything. This song comes out as yet another
boring and generic rock song that’s awfully repetitive, one that’s
been way too many times before and not one I’ll be embracing any time
soon. |
| Delerium
f/Jael- After All (WWW) It's still an interesting trance/dance song, but
it still sounds a little too much like a pop song for comfort. |
| Deric
Ruttan- When You Come Around (WWWW) Very catchy, enjoyable and personal
country-pop...one of the best country singles of the year. |
| DevilDriver-
I Could Care Less (W) CHUG-CHUG-CHUG, *mass distortion*,
SCREAM-SCREAM-SCREAM, fake darkness...typical nu-metal crap. |
| Dido-
White Flag (WWW) A pretty bouncy pop song laced with a confident stride.
The continuation of "Thank You"? I think so. |
| Die
Trying- Oxygen's Gone (WWW) Very cookie-cutter and slick, but it's still a
very solid, somewhat catchy, driving pop-punk song. |
| Dierks Bentley- My Last
Name (W) He reminisces in a country ballad about everything his last name
has been through- when he first wrote it down, how he beat someone up to
defend it and how it left its mark in the battlefield- and we could all
care less. |
| Dierks
Bentley- What Was I Thinkin (WWW) Really enjoyable, if a little tiring,
up-tempo country rock. |
| Disturbed-
Liberate (WWWWW) It sounds a little like KoRn in the verses, but it's
still pretty anthemic and powerful song pledging open-mindedness. |
| Diverse
f/Lyrics Born- Explosive (WWWWW) Explosive, somewhat intricate beats,
explosive rapid-fire rapping...simply blazin' |
| DMX-
Where The Hood At (WWWW) Yeah, it's another track where he's pitting
himself up against everyone else, but there are few who can match the
power of his punchlines. That and having a great beat borrowing from
"Ruff Ryders' Anthem" really helps. |
| Dog
Fashion Disco- Nude In The Wilderness (WWW) It's Guns 'N' Roses meets
Danzig's "Kiss The Skull" (with its rolling chugs) meets great
rapid-fire solo, but it works really well. |
| Dolly
Parton- I'm Gone (WWW) Great banjo-tinged, up-tempo old-school bluegrass,
tailor-made for line dancing. Just brilliant. |
| Drag-On- Put Your Drinks
Down (WWWW) May not be much lyrically, but it's still a highly effective,
really danceable and really enjoyable party rap song. |
| Dream
f/Loon- Crazy (WW) It's okay (if a little dated) pop music with a terribly
redundant "baby you need me" rap from Loon, but I prefer to
think of them in their only gem, "This Is Me". |
| Dredg-
Of The Room (WWWWW) Dredg provide what Radiohead's "The Bends"
might have sounded like if it had what it was missing. Gavin Hayes'
entrancing voice gives this track a profound surrealness, all while
driving rock guitars and drumwork play behind him. Breakthrought hit?
Maybe. |
| Dropkick
Murphys- Walk Away (WWWW) Upbeat, melodic with catchy riffs that blasts
"the other", telling them, "you don't have the heart to
finish what you started". |
| Dudley
Perkins- Money (WW) The beat's nice on this funk tune, but the falsetto
vocals and the incoherent lyrics are stupid. |
| Dwele-
Find A Way (WWWW) It's a really beautiful and smooth upbeat R&B track,
perfect for the dancefloor. |
| Dwight
Yoakam- The Back Of Your Hand (WW) It's emotional and heartfelt, but this
old warbler doesn't have a "Hurt" in him like Johnny Cash did. |
| E-40
f/Clipson- Quarterbackin' (W) Yet another boring "I'm better than
you" (essentially) gangsta rap song with a crappy hook. The veteran
should know better. |
| E-40-
One Night (W) I've experienced this "bling-bling" kind of night
way too much...very uncreative rapping. |
| Eels-
Saturday Morning (WWW) Really lame falsetto chorus, but this is enjoyable,
catchy guitar-pop. |
| Electric
Six "Dance Commander" (W) As if "Danger! High Voltage"
wasn't annoying enough, we get an annoying, lame sample of Nirvana's
"Smells Like Teen Spirit" with the same thing over and over
again. Next to Chynna, they have to be the dumbest act I've encountered
all year. |
| Electrocute- Kleiner
Dicker Junge (W) Coming to a radio station near you: a really dumb
Euro-dance-pop with even stupider, sexed-up German lyrics. Don't worry:
they'll have their fifteen minutes and fade away. Fast. |
| Elephant
Man- Pon De River (WWW) Simply put, this reggae song is pretty bouncy and
vibrant. |
| Elvis
Presley- Rubberneckin' [Paul Oakenfold Remix] (WWW) It's very bouncy,
catchy and danceable, but the track's sheer simplicity considering who's
behind the remix leaves me wanting more. Not the result the mixing of two
Kings should produce. |
| Enon-
In This City (WWWW) Really cool rock-influenced effects (including the
rhythmic pounding drums) and Esthero-like vocals to create a gloomily
great electronica track. |
| Enrique
Iglesias- Addicted (W) Overwrought, canned and just plain stupid "I
really need you" ballad. |
| Erasure-
Make Me Smile (Come Up And See Me) (WW) It's cheeky and cheery, but this
really poppy song is really, really stupid. |
| Escape
Engine- This Jagged Alibi (W) This sounds like P.O.D. doing an up-tempo
Ataris with zero continuity...in other words, CRAP. |
| E-Town
Concrete- Punch The Walls (W) The biggest P.O.D. rip-off ever continue
with yet another whiny, fake-angst nu-metal song. I cry just listening to
it. |
| Evanescence-
Going Under (WWWWW) It's kind of like Linkin Park meets Lacuna Coil meets
sweet (but short) guitar solo but in a song where Amy Lee (and her
alternating creepily spoken/booming vocals) finds strength within herself
to have life after love. (Single Of The Week) |
| Evanescence- My Immortal
(WWWWW) Take away the guitars, the drums, etc. and leave Amy Lee's voice
and give Ben Moody a piano and you're left with a breathtaking, reflective
ballad that's both personal and beautiful. Another stunner from one of
2003's best new acts. |
| Fabolous- Think Ya'll
Know/Make U Mine (WWW / WW) Both have really strong beats, but the
"I'm better for you girl" raps on "Make U Mine" is
weak compared to what's he's capable of, like on "Think Ya'll
Know". |
| Faith
Hill- You're Still Here (W) The Celine Dion of country is at it again,
serving up another cheesy, sappy and overwrought ballad...ugh. |
| Fall
Out Boy- Dead On Arrival (WWW) It's pop-punk to the "kiddest"
extreme, but it's still very enjoyable. |
| Fam-Lay-
Rock N' Roll (WWW) It's good rap song about the hood with a great dark
beat, but it has been done better before. |
| Fannypack-
Cameltoe (W) Pathetically stupid disco beat and even worse lyrics about a
"frontal wedgie" (the proported "cameltoe" that
repulses everyone from this one woman the singers are obviously jealous
about). This isn't bad, it's pathetic. Compared to this The Cheeky Girls
sound like a work of art. Seriously. (Stinker Of The Week) |
| Fantasy-
Again (WWW): Yeah, it’s a little dated, but it’s still a thoroughly
enjoyable euro-pop/disco track. |
| Fe
Fe Dobson- Bye Bye Boyfriend (W) It starts off well, but then the hook
(the title repeated three times) shows up and it becomes an irritatingly
whiny rock song that sounds like an obvious Avril Lavigne knockoff. One of
the worst songs of the year. |
| Feeder-
Come Back Around (WWWW): The band with a simple but good name strike with
a great punchy, driving and straight-up rock song. Only good times with
this one. |
| Fefe
Dobson - Take Me Away (WWWW) Fefe's proper start...an explosive, driving
and upbeat rocker that's simply a lot of fun to hear. |
| Felix
Da Housecat - Sinnerman (Remix) (WWWW) It would have been nice if there
was a lot more to this dance song, but it's still very bouncy and
infectious all the same. One of pop-dance's first true winners in a while. |
| Finch-
Worms Of The Earth (W) Yet another boring kiddie rock-meets-nu-metal song
from this band. Sigh. |
| Finger
Eleven - One Thing (WWWW) It's mellower, but it's heartfelt and
emotional...and very catchy. Brilliant single. |
| Finger
Eleven- Good Times (W) Okay, so it's got a great hook...but the rest of
the song just spells "dumb". |
| Finley
Quaye- Dice (WWW) It's a little too "overpowering", but it's
still a solid, emotional and uplifting alt/pop song. |
| Fischerspooner-
Sweetness (W) With sounds ripped right off from the NES (yes, <i>that
NES</i>) and the same cliched booming up-tempo sound, they've
created the exact opposite of what they wanted- an electronica snoozer. |
| FlamBey-
Destiny (WWW) Talib Kweli did the "keep your head up" street
anthem better with "Get By", but these guys still provide some
solid stuff. |
| FlamBey-
Hot Girl (WWWW) On the surface, it seems like another standard sex-rap
song. However, dig deeper and it seems contemplative and unsure and almost
serves as a warning, telling the girl "you don't know what you're
getting into (with this thug)". That and the beat is really
impressive. Proof that party tracks can still sizzle and be smart too. |
| Flashlight
Brown- Ready To Roll (WW) It's catchy and upbeat, but it really lacks the
bite it needs to stay interesting. |
| Fleetwood
Mac- Peacekeeper (WWW): They may be old physically, but here they don’t
sound a day over 20. The guitars still sizzle, Stevie Nicks’ voice is
still endearing and the band’s again up to their enjoyable alt/pop
tricks. In this one, the band tackle peace, and do so with an enjoyable
hook (Nicks playing around with her voice at the end of the chorus) and a
mellow-country-esque sound. Another winner from them. |
| Floetry f/Mos Def- Wanna
B Where U R (WWW) They should do more collaborations with Mos Def, because
his beat brings them a lot of life and they just sound more inspired. |
| Floetry-
Getting Late (W) Well, they can sing, but it's still a dreadfully boring
soul ballad. |
| Foggy-
In Your Eyes (WWW) Great use of the bassline and tension-release in this
simple, mid-tempo dance song. |
| Foo
Fighters- Low (W) They wanted to write a dark, brooding and reflective
song, but it just comes out as dull, lifeless rock. |
| Forty
Foot Echo- Save Me (WW) It has good intentions as a simple, driving rock
tune, but it's really nothing more than a boring, stale generic rock song. |
| Freeway
f/Peedi Crakk- Flipside (WWWW) This party rap track rivals only one song
this summer in quality- Joe Budden's "Pump It Up"...and that's
pretty good company. |
| Freya
- As The Last Light Drains (WWW) The vocals are a little whiny, but this
grunge song's pretty upbeat and energetic, so it works. |
| Fuel-
Falls On Me (WWW) Finally, Fuel are back to what made them good:
heartfelt, emotional Nickelback-like songs. What took them so long? |
| Fun
Lovin' Criminals- Lost It All (WWW) Palatable, but this rock tune isn't as
fun as "Scooby Snacks" or "100% Unlimited". These
Criminals are capable of MUCH better. |
| Gamma-
Killer Apps (WWW) Great rhyming and an amazing video-game like beat for
this reggae slammer. |
| Gary
Allan- Tough Little Boys (W) "When tough little boys grow up to be
dads, they turn into babies again". Uhhh...yeah. Yet another country
snoozer. |
| Gavin
DeGraw- Follow Through (WWW) It's entertaining alt/pop, but it sounds too
much like a Jason Mraz/Coldplay cross. |
| Ginuwine-
In Those Jeans (W) It's not "Hell Yeah" crappage, but this
overdone, cliched and plain old boring sultry sex song is still crap. |
| Girls Aloud- Jump (WWWW)
Presenting yet another reason why European pop is so much further ahead of
the Americans: here, we have an infectious and completely danceable groove
met by some pretty competent singing from the girls. The lyrics are a bit
discombobulated, but it's still a whole lot of fun; and that's all it has
to be. |
| Glenn Lewis f/Kardinall
Offishall- Back For More (WWWW) Strong beat, catchy, bouncy...a solid
club-ready R&B track. |
| Goldfrapp-
Train (WWW): Not that compelling, but it’s an interesting lounge-esque
goth-tronica track. |
| Goldfrapp-
Twist (W) Allison Goldfrapp may have a sexy voice, but there's a point
where it becomes too much. This electronica has passed that point- by a
mile. |
| Good
Charlotte- Girls And Boys (WWWW) Nice '80s feel overtop a catchy punk-ish
tune with, essentially just a chorus- but what a good one it is-
"Girls don't like boys/they like cars and money/Boys laugh at girls
even when they're not funny". Excellent. |
| Good Charlotte- Hold On
(WWWW) Yeah, you can pretty much guarantee that you'd hear at least one
pop-punk song about suicide every year, but Good Charlotte sound as though
this really did affect them. So it's not as emotional as "Adam's
Song", but it's still very heartfelt. |
| Good
Company- GC Anthem (WWW) Yeah, it's a personal advertisement, but at least
these guys' raps are very interesting and the gungy, punchy beat add a
whole new enjoyable level to this track. |
| Grade
8- Brick By Brick (W) This puerile, messy and plain-old annoying rock junk
by supposedly fully-grown adults sounds as if it should have stayed in
Grade 8. |
| Grandaddy-
Now It’s On (W): Boring, generic emo-pop/rock. |
| Gregory
Scott - Spark (WWWW) Okay, so it's a bit sexed up, but this teen pop has a
really strong and catchy beat. |
| Hatebreed-
This Is Now (WWW) Believe it or not, the growled vocals are actually angry
and the riffs are actually heavy and menacing. Dare I say it, Hatebreed
are now a metal act. |
| Hey Mercedes- Quality
Revenge At Last (WWW) It's not overtly gripping, but this upbeat, driving
emo is still pretty solid. |
| Hitman
Sammy Sam- Stepdaddy (WWW): Pretty fun old-school party-rap song that
pokes fun at being a step father. |
| Holly
James- I'm In Heaven (WWW) May not be overtly complex, but it's pretty
entertaining and bouncy pop-dance. |
| Holly
Palmer- Just So You Know (WWWW) It's uptempo, bright and at the same time
yearning pop that can get convincingly seductive at times. Kylie Minogue
has met her match. |
| Hoobastank- Out Of
Control (WW) It's catchy (both lyric-wise and riff-wise), but the
uptemponess and the hook sound really forced. Could have been better. |
| Hot
Action Cop- Don't Want Her To Stay (W) Since he didn't get the message
from the last single, I'll say it again: THE RED HOT CHILI PEPPERS ARE THE
ONLY ONES WHO CAN DO THE RED HOT CHILI PEPPERS. Thank you. |
| Hot
Hot Heat- No Not Now (WWW) Okay, so it's a little dated (with its synth
pop undercurrents), but it's catchy and a lot more entertaining than
"Bandages" was. |
| Hot
Hot Heat- Talk To Me, Dance With Me (WWW) It's a pretty funky and entirely
danceable pop-rock..."Bandages" seems to be a fluke. |
| Hotwire-
Not Today (WW) The riffs are catchy, but this generic nu-metal meets The
Used song is as stale as they come. |
| Ian
McCulloch- Sliding (WWW) Sounds way too much like The Beatles, but it's
still a good, heartfelt piano ballad nonetheless. |
| Iggy Pop f/Sum 41-
Little Know It All (WWWW) It's the old meeting the new: Iggy Pop's
familiar snarl gets intertwined with Sum 41's youthful enegry and
exhubrance. The result? One brilliant rock song. |
| Ill
Nino- How Can I Live (WWW) The riffs are catchy and this nu-metal is
pretty emotive (not to mention the use of bongo drums here are pretty
cool), but it still sounds too much like Disturbed's "Prayer"
and 3rd Strike's "No Light". |
| Impromp2
f/Kim Fields- Mocha Soul (WWW) Like FlamBey's "Hot Girl", this
song shows what all those cliched sex songs the big labels push lack-
honesty. The rapper raps about a girl blowing his mind, and she actually
does, communicating it without the fake, over the top sleaze the
mainstream rappers use. That, and the beat is pretty good too. |
| In
Essence- Friend Of Mine (WWWW) Yeah, it's not particularly deep, but the
bassline-heavy beat is still pretty creepy- and interesting. |
| Ja
Rule- Clap Back (WWW) Yeah, it cribs (essentially) the beat from Ashanti's
"Rock Wit U", but that beat was solid, and it makes for a very
fun party rap tune. |
| Jack Johnson- Taylor
(WWW) It's a nice, warm slab of "surfer pop" that reminds one of
Jack Johnson's home in Hawaii, if only a little unassuming. |
| Jack
Johnson- The Horizon Has Been Defeated (WWW) Would have been nice if there
was a hook, but I'll give him this reggae-like alternative track if only
for the political and social undertones. |
| Jackyl-
Billy Badass (W) This sounds like AC/DC doing a very bad Kid Rock
impersonation...no, it DOESN'T work... |
| Jae Millz- No, No, No
(W) Reason #34,221,221,689 as to why the other major labels can't get a
hit: here we have Reprise bringing us a rapper who's trying WAY too hard
to be a reggae-fied DMX, instead coming off as a bad rip-off. Next! |
| Jagged
Edge- Walked Outta Heaven (W) Canned emotions combined with a sappy beat
sink this R&B ballad. |
| Jaheim
- Backtight (WWW) It's a heartfelt R&B ballad with just enough push to
give it a lot of life. May not be a classic, but it still works well. |
| James Taylor f/Allison
Krauss- How's The World Treating You (W) "Baby, come back to me now.
Can't you see what you've done to me? I'm blubbering...PLEASE!!!!"
Next. |
| Jane's
Addiction - True Nature (WWWW) It sounds quite a bit like Brainstorm's
"Highs Without Lows", but it's heavier and not nearly as dumb.
If "Just Because" didn't re-introduce the band, this song will. |
| Jarabe De Palo- Yin Yang
(WWWW) It may not be as infectious as "Depende", but this is
still a cute little Latino pop number. |
| Jason
Mraz- You And I Both (WWWW) He follows "The Remedy (I Won't
Worry)" with a song that's equally as bouncy, infectious and catchy.
He's going to make it for sure now. |
| Javier-
Crazy (WWW) Recalls vintage Boyz II Men with vigour and crosses it with a
little Glenn Lewis. Very interesting. |
| Jay
Jay Johanson- Automatic Lover (WWW) It's a little dated, but this poppy
Euro-disco song is a hit. |
| Jay-Z
f/Pharrell Williams- Change Clothes (WW) Well, Jay-Z brings his usual
amount of fire to his raps, but the collaboration with Pharrell Williams
fails to produce something as catchy as "La-La-La (Excuse Me
Again)", plus the chorus really stinks. |
| Jay-Z-
La-La-La (Excuse Me Again) (WWW) Infectious Neptunes beat meets great
rapping by Jay-Z- just like Danzig does in metal, Jay-Z does in rap:
keeping redone topics interesting. |
| Jeff
Bradshaw- Bouncin' Back (Bumpin' Me Against The Wall) (WWWW) It does drag
a little, but this jazz song is pretty catchy and the dark, intricate solo
two-thirds the way through is pretty cool. |
| Jeff
Bradshaw f/Jill Scott- Slide (WWW) It's a pretty funky and bouncy
soul-jazz number, but it's not very compelling. |
| Jennifer
Hanson- This Far Gone (WWW) It's simple and a little whiny, but this
love-lost country ballad has some bite. |
| Jennifer
Lopez- Baby I Love You! (W) It's no "Dear Ben", but this song
where J.Lo calls out to her lover is dangerously close in schlockiness and
stupidity. That and it feels like it takes forever to finish. Ugh. |
| Jesse
Malin - Queen Of The Underworld (WWW) It's bouncy and somewhat catchy
pop-rock, but it's a little too unassuming. |
| Jessica Simpson- With
You (WWW) She has a knack for re-using old pop beats, but they have a
knack for working. Plus she sounds really really happy at finding Nick
Lachey; and this song's all the better for it. |
| Jet-
Are You Gonna Be My Girl (WWW) These garage rockers recall Bill Haley
& The Comets in an infectious song that makes the past seem new again. |
| Jet-
Take It Or Leave It (WWW) The catchy, driving rock beat saves this song
from it's simplicity, whininess and annoying yelling from the lead singer. |
| Jewel-
Stand (WW) It works well as a single and is a plausible hit, but it's
still a little unsettling to hear Jewel imitate Madonna. |
| Jimmy
Wayne- I Love You This Much (WWWW) It's a really powerful and to-the-point
country ballad- though the final verse, though solid, feels thrown in
there- proving that Jimmy Wayne just may have a bright future making these
kinds of songs. |
| Joan Osborne- Love's In
Need Of Love Today (WWWW) The title's a little confusing, but this is a
nice slab of soul-tinged pop-jazz, sung very well to boot. Rock-pop songs
may have given her success, but jazz songs are where she's more at home,
and she's all the better for it. |
| Joe
Budden f/Busta Rhymes- Fire (WWWW) Two slamming party tracks at the hands
of Just Blaze and a solid flow. The next Fabolous? *keeps fingers crossed* |
| Joe-
More And More (WWWW) A very beautiful and emotional love ballad.
Pop-soul's most honest and beautiful singer strikes yet again. |
| Joe
Nichols- She Only Smokes When She Drinks (WWW) It's a little mundane
country ballad about a girl who's "hard to get", but it works. |
| Joe
Strummer & The Mescaleros- Coma Girl (WWW) It's peaceful and somewhat
catchy folk-pop-rock, but the lyrics are not that strong and it's a little
dated. |
| John
Michael Montgomery- The Little Girl (WWW) Touching, reflective country
story about a little girl and how her parents didn't care for her at all. |
| Josh
Groban- You Raise Me Up (W) He's got a GREAT, emotive and powerful
voice...but the simplistic and cliched strings and piano arrangements
right up to the choir's appearance for the final chorus make this song
really shlocky and really overdone. |
| Josh
Turner - Long Black Train (WWW) Some parts are stupid and the
"B" section is a little confusing, but it's still an upbeat,
catchy country-pop song that stresses spiritual rebirth and not to take
the wrong path- or the "Long Black Train" |
| JS
f/R. Kelly- Love Angel (W) Soul duo: playing on the sexual fantasies of
those who just can't get "it". Since 2003. |
| JS-
Ice Cream (W) The waterdrop beat is nice, but this is WAY too sexed up.
Sample lyric: "31 flavours ain't got nothin' on me". |
| Juelz
Santana- Santana Town (W) Hitting new lows with the cliched sex rap song:
this toilet beat features parts where a woman screams "oww". Oh
why... |
| Julio- Dejame Volar (WWWW)
Whether or not you can understand a word he's saying, you can surmise this
Latino rocker is steamming mad; and it leads to a very impassioned and
inspired rock song. |
| Junior
Senior- Move Your Feet (WWW) It's really, really stupid disco, but it's
still a lot of fun anyway. |
| Junior
Senior- Shake Your Coconuts (WWWW) It's a song that's as goofy- and fun-
as the title. Yeah, the Euro-pop/rock song can be a little too silly, but
what did you expect? They just want to have fun, and you should too. *hrmph* |
| Junior
Varsity (KM)- Shorty (WWW) Pretty catchy, bouncy and honest kiddie-party-rap. |
| Justin
Timberlake- Seniorita (WWWW) The Michael Jackson impersonator does it
again, providing a simple, fun little party track just in time for the
summer. |
| Juvenile f/Manny Fresh-
In My Life (WWW) Juvenile may not add much to the Southern party rap
genre, but he's competent here, plus Manny Fresh's Neptunes-inspired beat
is really solid. |
| Kanye
West- Through The Wire (WW) The beat is cathcy, but it's a little too
stupid and the rhymes are delivered too sarcastically considering they're
meant to be serious personal struggle rhymes. |
| Kathleen
Edwards- One More Song The Radio Won't Like (WWWW) The title is stuck in
there a little too confusingly, but it's still a solid country-esque
folk/pop song and sounds like what Liz Phair might have if she didn't go
with The Matrix. |
| Keith
Murray- Candi Bar (WWW) Doesn't add much on The Rascalz's sample for
"Movie Star", but Murray's "I can't get enough of you"
raps are solid..."you could make The Grinch love Christmas". |
| Kelis- Milkshake (W)
"My milkshake brings all the boys to the yard/They're like it's f***ing
better than ours/Damn right, it's better than yours/I could teach you, but
I'd have to charge". With a chorus like that, I need not explain
more. Then again, she's the one responsible for "Caught Out
There" (you know, the song where the chorus goes "I hate you so
much right now/AAARRRRGGGHH!!!") so, what'd you expect... |
| Kelly
Clarkson- Low (WWWW) It borrows just enough from Avril Lavigne's
"Losing Grip" (the guitarist in this song, Clif Magness,
co-wrote "Losing Grip") to make enjoyable rock-ish pop whose
vocals Clarkson just nails. |
| Kelly Lange- Goodbye
Darlin' (W) You know, it's nice she did this for Conway Twitty; but unless
you knew the guy personally, you really could care less about this shlocky
country ballad. |
| Kelly
Willis- Don’t Come The Cowboy With Me Sonny Jim (W): Wants to be Dolly
Parton, but comes out a horribly dry, dull and boring country-folk song. |
| Kenny
Chesney- No Shoes, No Shirt, No Problems (WWWW) With a light, breezy
country tune about getting away, he writes the perfect ditty for the
Mexican tourism industry- and just about every other vacationer. |
| Kevin Denney- A Year At
A Time (WW) The country-rock riffs are pretty catchy, but this song sounds
way too much like Mark Wills and Deric Ruttan. |
| Kevin
Montgomery - Let's All Go To
California (WW) It's catchy, but the lyrics (about going to California to
'start over') don't really fit the mood of this pop-rock song (dark,
reflective). |
| Kevin Shields- City Girl
(WW) Well, I was kind of drawn into this Clark Nova-meets-Coldplay-esque
song...but it's still kind of boring. |
| Kid
Koala - Basin Street Blues (WWWWW) Lots of interesting jazz loops, and
then the bassline kicks in and it's like "whoa". Brilliant,
simply brilliant. |
| Kid
Rock- Feel Like Makin' Love (WWW) The rockin' guitars during the chorus do
sound a little discombulated at first after a country-esque rock-pop
verse, but you realize he's at home doing it and it just fits- and very
well. |
| Kiley
Dean f/Timbland- Make Me A Song (WW) The song has Dean asking Timbaland to
make her a song in the mold of Timbaland's old hits (like Missy Elliott's
"Get UR Freak On"), but her average voice and good (but not
great) beat from Timbaland really hurt it. |
| Kindred-
Far Away (WWWW) Deeply personal but up-tempo soul song. A winner every
time. |
| Kings
Of Leon- Molly's Chambers (WWW) Well, this Brit-pop is not The Beatles
(who they're very similar to), but this song is still pretty fun and
catchy. |
| KoRn-
Did My Time (W) More trash compactor rock, more whiny lyrics...just your
typical nu-metal garbage. *sigh* |
| Korn- Right Now (W) This
is KoRn's ode to self mutilation, complete with the cliched anger and the
monotonously chugging guitars. You know, I'm angrier that they even decide
to put out such fake crap. Ugh. |
| Kraftwerk-
Tour De France (WWW) The electronica legends prove they can still make
instantly danceable songs, though it would be nice if the bassline was
stronger here. |
| Kristine
W- Fly Again (WW) This synth-pop is bouncy enough, but I refuse to believe
this was released in 2003 when it sounds like 1983. |
| La Costumbre- Como
Olvidarte (W) With a carnival-like, cliched bongo-drum and accordian beat,
these Latino popsters sound as though they've crafted the next annoying
Menthos jingle than an enjoyable pop song. Make it stop, make it stop! |
| Ladytron-
Blue Jeans (WWWW) So the hook's pulled right from the Sugababes'
"Round Round"...so what? This rock-tinged synth-pop is still
very interesting, albeit less catchy than "Seventeen". |
| Laibach-
Tanz Mit Laibach (WWWW) To the unwitting, they're Rammstein knockoffs, but
they precede Rammstein actually. This song in particular is particularly
catchy and simple, thus getting right to the point (even if you need to
learn Slovenian to get it). Very effective. |
| Lasgo-
Alone (WWW) Very good loopy, Something-esque send-up of old school
dance-pop. |
| Latif
- I Don't Want To Hurt You (WW) It's emotional and very personal soul, but
this isn't too compelling. |
| Laura
Turner- Soul Deep (WWWWW) It sounds like DJ Krush doing an Enya
song...very, very, very interesting. |
| LEN-
Do Whatcha Wanna Do (W) You ever get those summer songs that are just too
stupid for their own good? This is one of them. I mean, this song is so
cheesy, it makes Fannypack look good... |
| Less
Than Jake- The Science Of Selling Yourself Short (WWW) It's a bit of a
Sublime knockoff, but this is still pretty enjoyable summery ska. |
| Lil
Jon & The East Side Boyz f/The Ying Yang Twins- Get Low (W)
Disorganized beat and structure, cliched lyrics and rappers who sound as
though they're constipated...no, it won't work. |
| Lil'
Wayne- Get Something (WWW) His voice is a little annoying, but it's fun
hearing him blast all those bling-bling wannabe rappers. 'Bout time too. |
| Lillix-
What I Like About You (WWWW) Very catchy, enjoyable, fun pop-punk send-up
of the pop classic. |
| Limbeck
- Julia (WWW) It cribs the melody from the Foo Fighters' "Big
Me", but I think it comes off as a re-write- one which is ten times
better than the original. |
| Limp
Bizkit - Behind Blue Eyes (WWWWW) Yes, it's a Who song, but hey, Fred
Durst sings it with such a conviction that it's his too. The acoustic feel
and the electronic drums also add a nice touch. Limp Bizkit's best single
ever. |
| Linkin
Park- Faint (WWWW) Chester Bennington's yells are annoying, but the
up-tempo, DJ Krush meets Rammstein effects are still very cool. |
| Live-
Heaven (WWW): Simple, but compelling, driving punchy bare-essentials rock
song. |
| Lonestar-
I’m Already There (Message From Us) (WWW): It’s a bit contrived, but
these country veterans still ring out a great song that answers loved ones
from afar. |
| Longwave
- Tidal Wave (WWWW) So it's a bit too much like Sloan...big deal. It's
still a nice, breezy summery rock tune. |
| Longwave-
Wake Me Up When It's Over (WWWW) Irresistable guitar-driven New Wave song
that sounds '80ish but always feels fresh. |
| Loon-
Down For Me (W) One word describes this "I Need A Girl"
knockoff: boring; and terribly so. |
| Loon
f/Kelis- How You Want That (W) P. Diddy's beat rips off The Neptunes, and
the song's a cliched bling-bling party rap song...*shaking head*. |
| Loose
Cannon - 2 Late (WWWW) A compelling rap song about a man rushing to find
half a million dollars to rescue his wife. It lags a bit in parts, but
overall, this story is mesmerizing. The video's cool too. |
| Lordroc-
Roccolypse (WWW) It starts off weak, but eventually it becomes a solid
song where the rapper asserts his dominance. |
| Los Lonely Boys- Heaven
(WWW) Yeah, these Christian rockers sound a bit too much like
Santana-wannabes, but they've still made an entertainingly upbeat
Latino-tinged rock song. |
| Lo-Tel-
Teenager Of The Year (WWW) Solid, emotional and personal teen angst rock
song. |
| Louie
Loc- Thug Song (W) *yawn* This gangsta rap song is an excellent sedative. |
| LSG
f/Loon- Friends (WWW) Yeah, it's a P. Diddy meets Neptunes beat and the
topic (the transition from friendship to relationship) has been done to
death, but somehow, this works... |
| Lucky
Boys Confusion - Hey Driver (WWWW) Okay, so it's another of the "New
Found Glory" bands...but they're insanely catchy and- get this-
ACTUALLY LIVELY. One of the few "in" bands who actually deserve
to blow up- and stay there. |
| Lucy Woodward- The
Trouble With Me (WWW) It's a fun, vibrant piece of driving rock-pop, and a
whole lot better a single than "Dumb Girls" ever was. |
| Ludacris-
Act A Fool (W) To reference the lame chorus: "If the song's a
shameless 'Move B****' rip-off about the speed of cars, what you gonna do?
Shut it off!!!" |
| Ludacris
f/Bow Wow- P-Poppin (W) Another "toilet beat" + another cliched
sex song = another Ludacris song. Enough said. |
| Ludacris-
Stand Up (W) With yet another excruciatingly stupid, cliched bling-bling/sex
rap track, I can only wonder: when will the guy who did "Southern
Hospitality" come back? |
| Luis Miguel- Te Necesito
(W) Presenting...a really, really, REALLY bad attempt at being the Latino
Barry White. One of the WORST songs of the year. |
| Lumidee- Crashing A
Party (WWW) It's a solid, bouncy enough R&B party track, but she
sounds a bit too much like Ashanti here. |
| Lumidee
f/Busta Rhymes & Fabolous- Never Leave You (Uh Oooh, Uh Oooh) (WWW)
Arguably it's better without Busta, but the catchy, stripped-down, almost
raw version of the "Get Busy" beat makes it worthwhile. |
| Luther
Vandross- Dance With My Father (WWWW) It's a beautiful, emotional and
personal ballad from the R&B veteran that proves he still has what it
takes. |
| Lynyrd
Skynyrd - Red White & Blue (WWW) This power ballad could use a bit
more life, but it's still a solid song where the band declares their love
for the U.S.A. |
| M.V.P.
f/Stagga Lee- Rock Ya Body Mic Check 1, 2 (WWWWW) African bongo drums may
not be new to rap music in general, but here the infectious drumwork by
M.V.P. and great rhymes by Stagga Lee make this one of the most
interesting party rap tracks to come along in a long, long time. (Single
Of The Month) |
| Macy
Gray- She Ain't Right For You (W) It's a cheesy ballad with a lot of
overwrought instrumentation that brings out Macy Gray's biggest weakness-
her raspy voice. |
| Madonna-
Hollywood (WWW) Simple and re-done lyrically (about dreams of fame), but
the sped-up "Don't Tell Me" beat make it work. |
| Madrid
"Stereostar" (W) This one sounded just like The Dandy Worhols'
"You Were The Last High"...only that it lacked the substance The
Dandy Worhols' song did. |
| Mana- Te Llevare Al
Cielo (WWW) It sounds like a bad attempt at a Spanish version of Bob
Marley, but it's still a solid Latino-rock song. |
| Mandy
Moore- Have A Little Faith In Me (WWWW) I admit, I'm liking this new,
grown-up Mandy Moore. With age, her ballads have become more powerful and
beautiful. Just great. |
| Manowar-
Call To Arms (WWWWW) Just in time for the summer, there's an energetic,
up-tempo "battle cry" power metal song from these Americans to
really lift one's energy level. Great guitarwork to boot. |
| Maria-
I Give You Take (WWW) It's a little whiny, but the bassline-heavy pop beat
is pretty impressive. |
| Marilyn
Manson- This Is The New *Hit (W) I find it vaguely ironic that in a song
that's supposed to slam the "standardness" of contemporary music
it is in itself "standard". This song has been done WAY better
before, and the lyrics themselves don't escape the constrains of the hook.
That and Manson's singing is really, really irritating. *sigh* |
| Mark
Geary- Adam And Eve (WW) The simple, booming drumwork makes for a gloomy
experience and the lyrics are heartfelt, but I get this feeling this
"God doesn't love me" despair song has been done way better
before. |
| Mark
Ronson f/Ghostface, Nate Dogg, Trife & Saigon- Ooh Wee (WWWW) The raps
are mainly simple party rhymes ment to introduce a new DJ, Mark Ronson
(though Ghostface gets in a rap about China's corrupt state of affairs),
but what an introduction it is, creating a slamming party track that will
no doubt be played much more in the years to come. |
| Marques
Houston f/Jermaine Dupri - Pop That Booty (WWW) The lyrics are awful, but
the "What Da Hook Gon Be"-like beat is pretty strong. |
| Marques
Houston f/Joe Budden- Clubbin' (W) I think I've made up my mind: R. Kelly
should stop producing songs and people should stop using his bass-only
production techniques, because they're just awful. Add to that pathetic,
cliched lyrics (and rap by Joe Budden) and you have a song
tailor-made...for the trash bin. |
| Martina
McBride - This One's For The Girls (WWW) Okay, so it's probably been done
before, but you can't deny Martina McBride's vitality or honesty- and that
means the most in this fun country-pop song. |
| Marty
Stuart- If There Ain't There Ought'a Be (W) With dime-a-dozen philosophies
that essentially lead to "you should be with me", this country
song essentially defines "cliche". |
| Mary J. Blige f/Eve- Not
Today (WWW) It's weirdly structured (the "B", with Eve's rap,
comes right after the first verse and the last minute and a half or so of
this 4:31 song is just the chorus repeated ad naseum) and joins in with
the multitude of other "guys are mean cheaters" songs, but it's
not contrived or stupid, plus the beat's pretty strong. Not a landmark,
but it makes up for "Love@First Sight". |
| Matchbox
20- Bright Lights (WWW) I'll admit, I'd much rather have Matchbox 20
rocking out, but this strings-heavy power ballad still hits the mark. |
| Mates
Of State - Ha Ha (W) Parody or not, this, uh, "dance/synth-pop"
is pretty stupid. I describe it as "when Bjork is high...REALLY
high..." |
| Matt
Mays "City Of Lakes" (W) Is it just me or did he come off as the
exact male copy of Kathleen Edwards? Regardless it was still very boring
"countryfied" rock. |
| Matthew
Good- Near Fantastica (WWW) It's an interesting and thought-provoking song
about the "robotics of humanity", but it's just not as
compelling as it could be. Still solid, though. |
| Maxeen- Love Goes A Long
Way (WWW) The ska-tinged rock beat is quite entertaining, but they sound
way too much like cheap Less Than Jake wannabes. |
| Me
First And The Gimme Gimmes- I Believe I Can Fly (WWW) Punks covering R.
Kelly? Really. A winner every time. |
| MercyMe-
I Can Only Imagine (WWWW) Simply put, it's really beautiful
Christian-faith affirmation piano ballad. |
| Meshuggah-
Rational Gaze (WWWW) Yeah, it's a little whiny, but the drumwork and
guitarwork are infectious and it's very punchy, so it works very well. |
| Mest-
Jaded (WWW) For once, we get personal and heartfelt catchy pop-punk
instead of childish pop-punk from Mest. |
| Metallica-
Frantic (W) It starts off so well, with furious drumwork and guitarwork,
but soon degerates after James Hetfield opens his mouth, going into a
monotonus continum of chugging guitars, clashing drums and eventually
embarassing caveman-like vocal delivery from Hetfield, not to mention
really stupid lyrics. Whatever happened to the real Metallica? |
| Metallica-
St. Anger (WWW) Metallica return to their thrash roots for an all-out,
gutsy and energetic performance...smashing. |
| Metric-
Calculation Theme (WWWW) A bassline might have helped, but it's still a
very interesting spacey, loopy electronica song. |
| MF
Doom- My Favorite Ladies (WWW) This rapper has an unorganized rant (but a
good one) about a girl giving him problems, but the gloomy dark beat is
cool. |
| Michael
Franti & Spearhead- Everyone Deserves Music (W) This sounds like an
infomercial telling everyone that we just "need" music, set to a
commercial-ready guitar-pop beat. I know there's plenty of music simply
about commercialism, but this sets new lows. (Stinker Of The Month) |
| Michael
McDonald f/Nicholas Ashford & Valerie Simpson- Ain't No Mountain High
Enough (WWWW) It's a spot-on,
brilliant cover of the funk classic, still fun and vibrant after all these
years. |
| Michelle
Branch- Are You Happy Now? (WWWWW) She's done it again. Just splendid work
on this driving alt/pop/rock song, where an angry Branch asks her
departing boyfriend if he's really happy in leaving. "You can have
everything you want but can you run away from yourself?" she asks.
Regardless, she tops her own hit, "All You Wanted", and shows
herself to be the strong player many thought she'd be. |
| Michelle
Branch- Breathe (WWWWW) Another of Michelle Branch's signature songs:
infectious, catchy, light-hearted and fun. With light-rock touches and a
free-spirited vibe, this song just may land Branch on the country charts
as well, and what a joy that will be. (Single Of The Month) |
| Michelle
Branch f/Dave Navarro- Are You Happy Now? (Naked Remix) (WWWW) It's an
interesting, trance remix that's retains just the chorus and the
introduction of the song and brings out Dave Navarro's guitar, but it can
be too strange to stomach at times. Still great work, though. |
| Minus
- Romantic Exorcism (WWWW) This punk's looking for love, and he does it in
style, with an energetic, upbeat and driving rock tune. |
| Missy Elliott- Pass That
Dutch (WWW) Finally...a Missy Elliott song that's catchy and NOT
infuriating to listen to. About time because her beats (like in this one)
can get pretty interesting. |
| Molotov-
Frijolero (WW) These Latin rappers are funny, but the salsa-esque beat is
really really lame. |
| Molotov-
Here We Kum (WWW) It won't change the world, but the '80s-synth beat met
with the Spanish raps make for a mildly entertaining experience. |
| Moneen- Are We Happy
With Who We Are Right Now? (WWW)
It's catchy and fun enough, but this garage rock-meets-emo is a little too
discombobulated. |
| Monica
f/Missy Elliott- So Gone (W): Like me after the track. Featuring
R&B’s worst female singer (Monica) and one of rap’s worst rappers,
period (Missy), the pair do the expect and cook up a clichéd stinker
about Monica’s choice to break-up with her man. Sigh. |
| Montgomery
Gentry- Hell Yeah (WWW) It sounds a little canned, but it's still
thoroughly enjoyable country rock. |
| Morcheeba
- What's Your Name (WWWW) The distinctive pop sounds of Morcheeba strike
again with an up-tempo, hip-hop-esque beat which has a solid rap to boot. |
| Motion
City Soundtrack- My Favourite Accident (WWW) It reminds me of The Ataris'
"In This Diary" but only with keyboards...very interesting punk. |
| Motion
City Soundtrack- The Future Freaks Me Out (W) "Hi! We're (later)
Weezer with synthesizers! Yeah!" No. |
| Motograter-
Down (WWW) Sounds like the Black Label Society's "Stillborn"
(without the solo) crossed with tiny bits Chevelle, but all parts
interesting (though really watered down) metal. |
| Motograter- Suffocate (WWWW)
The song starts, "I'm gonna die" then explodes in a fury of
chugging, up-tempo guitars and quite impassioned and dreary (if a little
too whiny) lyrics. This is the way all those depressed nu-metallers SHOULD
be- honest rather than fake. Meanwhile, somebody give this guy a hug- he's
too depressed. |
| Mowett
f/Loon- Tru Rider (WWWW) Okay, so P. Diddy is ripping himself off (this
beat is taken right from Mase's "Tell Me What You Want"), but
can you blame him? This beat is amazing...making this one of the year's
better party-R&B tracks. |
| Murderdolls
- White Wedding (W) "Hi. We copy Marylin Manson because he's oh so
hardcore!" Try again. |
| Mushroomhead
- Sun Doesn't Rise (WWWW) It's a combination of Mudvayne and Tool, but
it's actually catchy, actually real and actually vibrant. Universal's
getting pretty good with their nu-metal. |
| Musiq- For The Night (WWWW)
Simple, fun, catchy- proof that Musiq can make a slamming party R&B
track too. |
| MxPx
- Everything Sucks (When You're Gone) (WWW) It's a bit whiny, but this
pop-punk is really bouncy and catchy, so it works. |
| Mya-
My Love Is Like...Wo (W) Yet another pop-R&B song attempting to be
sultry but just coming out as a bad, sex-ed up cliche. In other words,
this song is like...no. |
| Nada
Surf- Inside Of Love (WWW) From the band that brought you the high school
spoof "Popular", here they write an adult song about not being
in love. The mellow, heartfelt and personal pop rock song ends up winning
in the end. |
| Nappy Roots- Sick And
Tired (WWWW) The one rap group that's the antithesis of mainstream rap
provide another song about hardships being "tired of being sick and
tired". Plus, the chorus shouldn't work, but it does...it's odd, but
great too. |
| Natural-
What If (WWW) It's a little overwrought and the lyrics are cliched
inspirational ones, but the piano, strings and their overall vocals do
lead to a lot of conviction, so it works. |
| Nelly Furtado- Powerless
(Say What You Want) (WWWW) Ditching the cheesiness of the last album,
Nelly Furtado finally finds her groove, lets loose and has fun over a
folk-tinged pop beat. If there isn't a better way to infuse Canadiana in a
pop song, I don't know what is. |
| Nelly- Iz U (WWW) The
"What's Your Phantasy"-like beat may not really fit the song,
but Nelly's got quite a bit of fire and charisma to this one, so it works
real well. |
| Neurosis-
The Tide (WWW) Sounds a bit too much like The Tea Party, but these
metallers get it right, with drums and guitars flailing all over the place
and with references to a freeing of an unnamed "they". Solid
stuff. |
| Nevermore
- Enemies Of Reality (WWWW) Speedy guitars, impressive gunshot-like
precision drumming, an Ozzy-like vocal touch and a really memorable song
to boot. Really, what more could you want with thrash metal? |
| New
Found Glory- Understatement (W): With a stupid up-tempo punk-ish rock
musical backdrop and whiny, clichéd and even stupider lyrics, it’d be
an "understatement" to call this one bad. |
| Newsboys-
He Reigns (W) Simple, overwrought (especially with the chior at the end)
and cliched inspirational Christian worship song targeted for the world's
ills. |
| Nick
Cannon f/B2K - Feeling Freaky (W) This is just pitiful, almost reaching
new lows in the cliched sex-rap song. Cliched lyrics, lame chorus (by B2K)
and a rehashed "Where The Party At?" beat...*shakes head* |
| Nick
Cannon f/R. Kelly - Gigolo (W) Cliched sex/bling-bling rap song No.
1,233,44...I've lost count. We've had too many. |
| Nick
Cave & The Bad Seeds- The Mercy Seat (Live) (WWW) It's a little too
long, mundane and stupid, but this rock ballad is emotional, so it works. |
| Nickel
Creek- Smoothie Song (WWWW) Who cares if their brand of bluegrass-folk has
been infected with pop? It's still a wonderfully upbeat and uplifting
instrumental. Very beautiful overall. |
| Nickelback-
Someday (WWWW) Chad Kroeger basically repeats the same verse and chorus
three times, but he still does it with a lot of emotion. Plus, it
continues with using Nickelback's calling card of late- simple, no-frills
rock that finds its way of soaring no matter what. It may not please
"The State" crowd, but it's still great all its own. |
| Nile- Sarcophagus (W)
It's well-intentioned as a gloomy death-metal track, but the chugging
guitarwork and drumming makes it, uh, deathly boring. |
| No
Doubt- It's My Life (WWW) Recalling the '80s with a vengenance (with all
those synthesizers), No Doubt create one of their strongest singles since
"Don't Speak". |
| Nodesha
- Get It While It's Hot (WWW) The sex is a little over the top, but it
sounds like what Beyonce Knowles might have if she had much stronger
production. Very strong party-R&B track. |
| Northern
State- At The Party (WWW) They sound like The Donnas doing
rap-metal...only without the infuriating lyrics. |
| Nothingface
- Ether (WW) It's driving and energetic, but this whiny, Deftones-like nu-metal
is as bland as it comes. |
| O.A.R.-
Hey Girl (WWW) Parts remind me of the Spin Doctors' "Two
Princes", but regardless, this blustery, summery light acoustic
rock/pop works well on it's own. |
| O'2L
- Stolen Beat Box (WWWW) A very interesting industrial drum 'n' bass tune
with a mesmerizing piano undercurrent. One of 2003's better electronic
songs. |
| Obie
Trice- Got Some Teeth (W) Simply put, this has a confusing carnival beat
and confusing rhymes (which are cliched party rhymes anyway).
Simply...confusing. |
| Outkast-
Hey Ya (WWW) They strike again with another interesting beat and party
song (this one done exclusively by Andre Benjamin), though I miss the
really quick rhymes and the great interplay these two had between each
other. Oh well. |
| Overkill-
Damned (WWW) It's a song against the horrors of today's society in a
catchy...pop-rock song? It's great, but it seems really odd for this to
come from the former thrash metallers. |
| Ozma-
Bad Dogs (W): Very generic and poorly organized. Solos come after both
choruses and there really only seems to be one verse, with none of it ever
gelling. |
| Ozomatli f/Kumbia Kings-
Mi Gente (WWWW) Catchy, upbeat, fun with a touch of substance and depth-
these Latino rap/rockers show what Santana WAS capable of. |
| P.
Diddy f/Lenny Kravitz, Pharell Williams & Loon- Show Me Your Soul (WWWW)
It's a comeback of sorts for both P. Diddy and Pharell Williams...Diddy
who's given new life with a Neptunes beat (and shows some of the rapping
skills he had from "No Way Out"), and Williams, who, after all
these clunkers, has finally found a way to make his sound fresh again. It
would have been nice if Lenny Kravitz did more than sing the hook, but
it's still an excellent party track nonetheless. |
| P.
Diddy, Nelly & Murphy Lee- Shake Ya Tail Feather (WWW) The chorus is a
little stupid and only Nelly's rap is golden, but P. Diddy's
bassline-heavy beat is actually blazing. |
| P.O.D.
- Will You (WWWW) The yelling
in the chorus is a little lame, but it follows P.O.D.'s singles tradition:
heartfelt, emotional and lively. Just wish "Satellite" played
out like that too... |
| Paloalto-
Fade Out/In (WWW) Yeah, it's kiddie rock, but it's enjoyable, catchy and
driving kiddie-rock. |
| Paul
Oakenfold- Hypnotised (WWW) The vocals are nice and it's a solid pop-dance
track, but he's no longer the king of dance music as he doesn't seem
interested in the intricacy that brought him fame in the first place. |
| Paul
Van Dyk f/Hemstock & Jennings- Nothing But You (WW) It's for hardcore
clubbers and there are some tricks in this trance song, but's just too
mundane. |
| Pepe Deluxe- Girl (WW)
So the concept (a danced-up version of soul) is pretty interesting, but I
can't shake this idea that it's "missing something". |
| Pepe
Deluxe- Salami Fever (W) What? A turntablist that's messier than DJ
Shadow? Say it isn't so...but it is...pitifully. |
| Pepper-
Too Much (WWWW) It's harder-edge, Bob Marley-tinged ska and is one of the
most interesting ska songs to come out in a while. Just what the doctor
ordered for the beleagured genre? Maybe. |
| Pete
Holly- There Will Be Glory (WWW) Well, this country pop-rock song is
pretty catchy and has a nice retro undercurrent about it, but it feels
just a little too dated. |
| Pete
Miser- Toothbrush (WWW) A two-and-a-half rapped rant about, eventually,
the joys toothbrushes have in solving problems. Genius. That and the
complex, Kid Koala-type beat is pretty impressive. |
| Peter
Gabriel- Growing Up (WWW) Great industrial-goth-pop song, but it's another
song that sounds way too much like Nine Inch Nails. |
| Pharrell
f/Jay-Z- Frontin' (W) Not even a stellar (but short) rap from Jay-Z can
save this pathetic snoozer of a relationship R&B song, made even worse
by Pharrell Williams' weak falsetto vocals. Stick to producing, Pharrell. |
| Phil
Collins- Look Through My Eyes (WWWW) If there's anyone who can make
heart-tugging, emotional, string-laden anthems, it's Phil Collins; and
he's struck gold yet again. |
| Phil
Vassar- This Is God (WWWWW): Great, mellow but driving country song that
has Vassar role-playing God and asking "why are you people (that
would be us) hurting yourselves?" Excellent job. |
| Pillar-
Fireproof (WWW) It's dated and redone nu-metal, but it's catchy and
somehow very interesting nonetheless. |
| Pink-
Feel Good Time (W) This "whoop-it-up" disco tune's so bad, not
even "That 70's Show" would take it. |
| Pitch Black- It's All
Real (WWWW) Nice to see Universal bring up the sounds of the underground.
It may not be the best ever from it, but it's still much better than a lot
of what's on the radio. Plus, the raps are delivered with force and, as
stated, the beats are really nice and fairly complex. We just may have
some more innovators on the horizon. |
| Plastikman
- Disconnect (WW) The string-like sounds add a nice touch, but it's just
not as interesting as the video it comes with. |
| Poison
The Well- Apathy Is A Cold Baby (W) Half boring mainstream rockers, half
KoRn knockoffs, this should have been sent right to the trash bin- and
KEPT there. |
| Powerman
5000- Action (WWW) Catchy but hard-hitting nu-metal urging people to take
some "action" to fix their problems. It may not be profound, but
it works really well. |
| Presence-
Remember (WWWW) With a driving rock beat combined with lots of catchiness
and smart, personal rapping, this is proof that rap-rock- if nothing else-
can be done VERY well. |
| Pretty
Tony- Down In Tha Dirty (WWW) It's not very compelling, but it's a bouncy,
fun Southern party-rap track. |
| Puddle
Of Mudd- Away From Me (W) Probably the only thing Puddle Of Mudd are
destined to do is confuse everyone into thinking they're Nirvana...and
annoy everyone doing so. |
| R. Kelly- Step In The
Name Of Love (Remix) (WWWW) THIS is the R. Kelly we came to know before
2003: a maker of nice, smooth songs filled with emotion and honesty and
with a strong beat, this one being moderately up-tempo and very danceable.
Now, can we have an explanation for "Chocolate Factory", please? |
| R.
Kelly- Thoia Thoing (W) Note to R. Kelly: sticking Japanese influences in
a cliched party/sex R&B track doesn't make it any better. |
| R.E.M.-
Bad Day (WWWW) It's catchy, very upbeat, pointed and carries a "It's
The End Of The World (As We Know It)" vibe. In other words, R.E.M.
are BACK! |
| Rachel
Farris - I'm Not The Girl (WWW) Yeah, she's a Michelle Branch copycat who
rips the melody (in the first two verses) of Alanis Morissette's "You
Learn", but it's still a catchy, vibrant and fun song nonetheless. |
| Radiohead-
Go To Sleep (WWWWW) Sounds like a Sam Roberts impersonation, but with
mind-numbingly addictive drumwork and Thom Yorke's entrancing voice, it
brings the "radio-ready" single to a whole new level...just
brilliant. (Single Of The Week) |
| Radiohead-
There There (WWW) Great, entrancing but completely rockin' song that's
reminiscent of Dredg. Solid stuff. |
| Rah
Digga- Party And Bullsh*t (W) Here, she comes off as trying to be this
macho rapper, when it's plainly obvious that it's just not her. *sigh* |
| Rainer
Maria- Ears Ring (W): Starts promising, but the punchy repetitive
simplicity of this rock track eventually gets tiring. |
| Rancid-
Fall Back Down (WWW) It borrows a bit too much from Tim Armstrong's other
project, The Transplants, but it's still very nice, summery, upbeat
punk-pop-rock. |
| Rancid- Red Hot Moon
(WWW) Maybe not be overtly compelling, but it's still a sunny ska-punk
song about grabbing life by the horns and not letting the little things
get to you. Solid stuff- just like before. |
| Randy
Travis- Three Wooden Crosses (WWW) Beautiful journeyman's country ballad
that says "it's not what you bring with you/It's what you leave
behind". |
| Ranjahz
f/Cee-Lo - Inspiration (WWWW) Exhibit C in "How to make a love-rap
song": have the raps be genuinely inspired (not forced) and have a
beat that's vibrant, not contrived. |
| Rascal
Flatts - I Melt (WWWW) The mellow, heartfelt and personal follow-up to
"Love You Out Loud" (literally), this country ballad delivers
and then some. |
| Ray
Stevens- Thank You (W) Yet another overtly patriotic chest-thumper of a
country ballad thanking the American soldiers for their hard work. Not
that being patriotic is bad: it's just that this Ray Stevens tune has all
the air of insincerity. |
| Reba
McEntire - I'm Gonna Take That Mountain (WWW) Okay, so it's not that bad.
Determined, carefree, exhubrant, fun- why can't her comedy be like that
too? |
| Reckless
Kelly - Nobody's Girl (WWW) It's a somewhat catchy, bouncy and upbeat
piece of country rock, simply put. |
| Red
Cafe - May I (WWW) The rapping may not be strong, but the bassline-heavy
beat is and the rapping is at least good enough to keep the whole song
together. |
| Red Hot Chili Peppers-
Fortune Faded (WWWW) If The Red Hot Chili Peppers were supposed to grow
up, why couldn't they make songs like this? It's a somewhat gloomy,
somewhat metallic take on their funk-tinged rock sound, and it's
excellent. Makes up for "By The Way" in an instant. |
| Relient
K- Chapstick, Chapped Lips And Things Like Chemistry (W): Really stupid
New Found Glory-ish pop-rock song that’s about the singer’s fights
with his girlfriend. *another sigh*. |
| Renee
Zellweger f/Ewan McGregor- Here's To Love (W) Where to begin? It's a
cheesy, overdone and very stupid lounge song that packs zero originality.
Oh, and don't even get me started on the lyrics...I'd be here all day
telling you all the bad ones. |
| Rhonda Vincent- If
Heartaches Had Wings (W) If this country ballad had wings, it'd fly right
into the toilet. Because glop this bad shouldn't ever be played again. |
| Rhonda
Vincent- You Can't Take It With You When You Go (W) This country snoozer
has Vincent pleading to her departing lover to stay, but if I was that
lover, I'd say "I'm still not buying it". |
| Rick
Trevino- In My Dreams (WW) It's personal, but this country-pop ballad
sounds way too familiar... |
| Ricky
Martin- Yo La Tengo (W) It's another of Ricky Martin's
"classics": stupid sex lyrics, stupidly contrived Latino pop
beats and overall just stupid. Can we ever get the "La Copa Della
Vita" Ricky back any time soon? |
| Rjd2-
The Horror (W) It has very good anti-Multi-National corporate lyrics, but
if it wasn't for the DJ Shadow-esque beat... |
| Rob
Dougan- Furious Angels (WWWW) It takes about a minute and a half to really
get going, but this furiously up-tempo dance/electronica song eventually
delivers the goods. |
| Rob
Zombie - Demonoid Phenomenon (WWWW) Catchy, heavy, menacing...plus a
couple of nice industrial touches. Just good ol'metal. |
| Robert Palmer- Why Get
Up (WWW) This stripped-down acoustic-pop song is pretty catchy, but the
tuba makes it sound like an Austin Powers reject song. It works but...meh. |
| Robert
Plant- Big Log (W) Okay, so the lyrics and the guitarwork are good, but
it's just way...too...DATED. Get over it man, the '80s are not coming
back. |
| Robert
Randolph & The Family Band- I Need More Love (WWWWW) It's just a
great, upbeat blues song with funk influences and amazing guitarwork from
Robert Randolph. Simply put, music like this hasn't been this fun
since...ever. |
| Robinella
& The CC String Band- Man Over (WWW) Just like Natalie Maines,
Robinella is an instrument-playing (banjo) girl who's signed to Sony,
making pop songs in the veil of country, this time being bluegrass. Still
works, though. |
| Rod
Stewart- Time After Time (WWW) Obviously trying to jump on the Norah Jones
bandwagon, Rod Stewart crafts a beautiful and peaceful blend of jazz-pop.
Yes, Rod Stewart made a good song in 2003. Now get over it. |
| Rodney
Atkins - Honesty (Write Me A List) (W) Can a love country ballad get any
more schlocky and sappy? Yes, but not by much. |
| Rodney Crowell-
Earthbound (WWWW) It's a nice, simple, catchy and fun little banjo-tinged
folk country. Destined to be a hit. |
| Ronald
Isley f/Burt Bachrach- The Look Of Love (WWW) The old crooner proves he's
still got lots left, doing this old classic justice with a soul backdrop. |
| Rooney-
Blueside (WWW) They sound way too much like Sloan, but it's catchy, upbeat
and the closing guitar solo's enjoyable. So, it works. |
| Rosco
P. Coldchain- Delinquent (W): Really, really stupid gangsta rap song that
pledges his "street prowess". Sigh. |
| Roscoe-
Smooth Sailing (WW) The beat's good, but the "I'm so fly"
lyrical content by this rapper is really lame. |
| Rubber City Rebels-
Pierce My Brain (WWWW) A snot-nosed, rebellious anthem against all those
employers who fire for body-piercing, these punkers show a lot of
attitude. In fact, it's the attitude all those pop-punk wannabes WISH they
had. |
| Ruben
Studdard- Flying Without Wings (W) Just like Kelly Clarkson's first
single, this song is contrived, overwrought, simple and slow snoozer of an
inspirational song. |
| Ruben
Studdard- Superstar (W) Utterly boring, schlocky and lifeless cover of the
Carpenters' tune. |
| Rufio-
White Lights (WWW) It's catchy and upbeat punk-pop, but it would be nice
if the vocals were a little clearer. |
| Rush-
Working Man (live) (WWWW) The rock legends prove why they've always been
legends, with a song that matches it's intricacy and complex musicianship
with top-flight songwriting. Absolutely brilliant. |
| Ryan
Malcolm - Something More (WWWW) Finally, a winner's single on the Idol
shows that's actually celebratory, vibrant and happy- and not forced.
Great work by Ryan Malcolm to make it his own song. |
| RZA-
We Pop (W) The raps are cliched bling-bling, "we're better than
you" raps, while the beat seems to be only tailor-made for tech geeks
who have huge sound systems. Clunker all the way. |
| S.T.U.N.-
Movement (W) They want to be profound punks, but they're really just
stupid, incoherent and messy punks. In other words, not good. |
| Sahara
Hotnights - On Top Of Your World (WWW) Catchy, upbeat, bouncy, fun...just
good ol'clean garage rock. |
| Sammy
Hagar - Hallelujah (WWW) He turns up his amps, records a hard, driving
rock song, gets all anthemic and rediscovers his swagger. You had to
admit, knowing he was once Van Halen's lead singer you saw this coming,
but it's still good, though not as good as the mellower "Things've
Changed". |
| Santana
f/Alex Band- Why Don't You And I (W) The talentless Alex Band's whiny
vocals and the removal of the solo after the first chorus desecrate the
solid song written by Chad Kroeger. Sigh. |
| Sarah
Brightman- Harem (WWWW) It's just an interestingly dark, Native-tinged
pop-tronica. The song pretty much sells itself. |
| Sarah
McLachlan - Fallen (WWWW) MacLachlan comes back after six years with an
alt/pop song that's as beautiful as most of her previous work. She hasn't
missed a beat. |
| Sarai-
Ladies (W) It's a Ludacris song sung by a female rapper. No
kidding...*hangs head in shame* |
| Satanicide-
Heather (WWWW) The New Jersey metal jokesters do a spot-on parody of Bon
Jovi, including exaggerating Jon Bonjovi's overwrought delievery,
declaring their intentions of wanting to get into Heather's pants and, at
the end, mumbling the chorus except for "Heather". Solid stuff. |
| Seal-
Get It Together (WWW) It's a little uneven, but's still a very bouncy,
catchy and ultimately enjoyable dance-pop. |
| Sean
Paul f/Sasha- I'm Still In Love With You (WWWW) Just in time for the
winter, we get a summery, breezy, light-hearted, old-school reggae to heat
things up. Just wish it could actually change the weather... |
| Sean
Paul- Like Glue (WWW) Yeah, it's embarrassing at times, but it's got a
nice, sultry summertime beat...just in time too. |
| Seether
- Gasoline (WWWW) Yeah, all these rockers are angry...but few mean it
quite like Seether do. Here, they complain about a girl who throws her
life away trying to look pretty...while ignoring the guy who could save
her. Great stuff. |
| Seether-
Gasoline (WWWW) Channeling what was good about Nirvana (the anger) and
penning some pretty emotional and personal lyrics about a girl who wastes
her life on beauty products and not on Shaun Morgan. Impressive stuff. |
| Sepultura
- Bullet The Blue Sky (WWWW) The metallers get deep and reflective,
wonderfully reflecting on a world that's gone horribly wrong. |
| Seven
Witches- Dance With The Dead (WWW) An upbeat metal song with brilliant
guitarwork from Jack Frost. Solid stuff. |
| Shadows
Fall- Destroyer Of Senses (WWWW) It's a bit disjointed in its attempt to
be an Atheist song, but it's still solid and beautiful (in it's own way)
death metal. |
| Shadows
Fall- Thoughts Without Words (WWWWW) It's punk-ish death metal with one,
mesmerizingly, amazingly great guitar solo (...I'm speechless about this
one really...)...these guys could school Alexisonfire ANY day... (Single
Of The Week) |
| Shania
Twain- Forever And For Always (WWW): Well, Shania always has at least one
winner on her albums, and this one’s the one. It’s a joyful in love
song that’s aided greatly by the mellow, country-esque backdrop.
Question: why can’t she do more of these songs and less of her crap? |
| Shania
Twain- She's Not Just A Pretty Face (WWWW) Catchy, vibrant, and a lot of
fun. Why can't Shania's other tunes be as enjoyable? |
| Sheryl
Crow - The First Cut Is The Deepest (WWWW) Sheryl Crow gets all personal
and writes a really strong country-pop song, reminding us that she can do
those songs right too. |
| Simple
Plan- Perfect (WWWWW) So what if all the lyrics are essentially
monosyllabic? It captures the tortured feeling a teen who just can't
impress and plain old get respect from their father very, very vividly.
That and it's highly emotional too. One of the best singles of the year. |
| Simply
Red- Sunrise (WWWW) It's synth-pop meets classic George Michaels, but it
really, really rocks. |
| Six
Feet Under - Amerika The Brutal (W) Maybe it's political, but this death
metal is really boring and (perhaps the pun is intended) deathly
unoriginal and uninventive. Where's Cynic when you need them? |
| Skalpel-
Sculpture (WWW) Very interesting gloomy, Sigur Ros-esque rock
instrumental. |
| Slick
Shoes - Now's The Time (WWWWW) Catchy, upbeat and really powerful emo. One
of the better rock singles of the year. |
| Smile
Empty Soul- Nowhere Kids (WWWW) So what if it's a retread of all those
other kid rebellion songs? The driving nature of the guitarwork/drumming
makes this a lot of fun to hear. |
| Smilez
& Southstar- Now That You're Gone (WWWW) Touching, reflective and
personal rap song about dealing with a loss...just brilliant. |
| Snapcase
- A Synthesis Of Classic Forms (W) Or, presenting our Tool ripoff! Let's
mumble a few things as a "verse" then nonsensically scream and
call it a "chorus". *rolls eyes* |
| Snapcase
"A Synthesis Of Classic Forms" (W) Or, presenting our Tool
ripoff! Let's mumble a few things as a "verse" then
nonsensically scream and call it a "chorus". |
| Snowdogs
- Drive (WWW) The singing's annoying, but this simple rock song is pretty
catchy, so it works. |
| Somehow
Hollow- Kamloops (WWW) It would have been nice if the hook's grip was
better, but the riffs are catchy and it's upbeat rock, so it's enjoyable. |
| Something
Corporate - Space (WWW) It's simply just a catchy and enjoyable emo
pop-rock. |
| Sparks-
The Rhythm Thief (WW) It's an interesting concept (modernized classical
that's SUPPOSED to be a ripoff (according to the lyrics at the end) and
it's catchy, but I can't say it's an interesting song. |
| Spineshank-
Smothered (WWW) It chugs with the rest of them and is another cliched
whiny nu-metal song, but it's enjoyable, catchy and emotional (honestly),
so I'll give it to them. |
| Stacie
Orrico- (There's Gotta Be) More To Life (WWWW) On the surface, it's a
run-of-the-mill pop song. Deep beneath, it's a tale of a girl who wonders
if there is more to life than the material world. Way more enjoyable and a
more entertaining vehicle for her message than "Stuck" was. |
| Staind
- So Far Away (WWWW) Believe it or not, this song's actually emotional,
powerful and very memorable. FINALLY they channel their emotions right. |
| Stellastarr- In The
Walls (WWW) The throbbing guitarwork and drumming make this song pretty
catchy and entertaining, but the operatic vocals during the chorus REALLY
don't fit with this soft-rock song. |
| Stephanie
Urbina Jones- I Am Home (WW) This alt/country is peaceful enough and there
is heart in this, but the songwriting is way too predictable. |
| Stereophonics
- Maybe Tomorrow (WWW) Catchy and potent, it continues where Oasis left
off. It may not be "Have A Nice Day", but it's still good. |
| Steve Earle- What's So
Funny About Peace, Love And Understanding? (W) First of all, this up-tempo
folk-rocker is very dated. Second of all, maybe I'd get the song's message
if I could understand what he said first. |
| Sticky
Fingaz- Can’t Call It (W): Horribly clichéd sex raps ruin a good beat. |
| Sting
- Send Your Love (W) Recycled, rehashed and just plain boring dance-pop.
Sorry, but I just don't feel it. |
| Storm
Gordon "Twilight World" (W) Presenting a "Kid A"
reject song...sorry, but you've got to have something behind those
effects. It's not enough just to use them. |
| Strapping
Young Lad- Relentless (W) "Disconcerting" and
"disorganized" wouldn't even begin to describe what this metal
song's about. In fact, it kind of sounds like a trash compactor, which is
where this junk belongs... |
| Suburban
Legends- High Fives (W): Really stupid ska song about having fun that’s
too similar to The Mighty Mighty Bosstones. |
| Sugar
Ray- Is She Really Going Out With Him? (WW) It's catchy, but this is a
stupid send-up of the Joe Jackson cover that sounds as though it should
have remained an oldie. |
| Sum
41- Over My Head (Better Off Dead) (WWWWW) Combining radio-friendly hooks,
an up-tempo beat and very personal and emotional lamentations over things
Deryck Whibley said that went horribly wrong, the band has recorded one of
2003's true winners. |
| Sunday
Driver- Forever Again (W): Personal lyrics lost in a boring, generic rock
sound. |
| Supagroup
- What's Your Problem? (WWWW) So they're a little dumb...but they're
supposed to be. Really upbeat rock + endearing silliness = slammin'
single. |
| Supersuckers-
Rock And Roll Records (Ain't Sellin' This Year) (WWWW) It's an explosive,
upbeat and fun punk tune that berates the current state of the music
industry. One line even blasts hip-hop for taking all the money away from
the rockers...ooohh. Well, they don't "supersuck"- they "superrock"
(okay, that was lame, but I HAD too...) |
| T.
Graham Brown- Which Way To Pray (WWWW) Touching, heartfelt gospel-country
song about a girl who's in despair. |
| T.
Raumschmiere- Monstertruckdriver (WWWWW) With alarm clocks, screw drivers
and a really interesting booming beat, this electronica has even The Blue
Man Group beat. Impressive. |
| T.H.E.M.
(Three Human Ego Maniacs) - Let Me See Your Underwear (W) The song starts
off with heavy breathing, soon devolves into cheesy Euro-beats and guitar
riffs and has an annoyingly catchy chorus that goes "c'mon, c'mon,
c'mon baby/show me what you got/let me see your underwear". Michael
Franti, you're spared the distinction of worst song for 2003. (Stinker Of
The Month) |
| T.I.-
24’s (W): You’ve heard this bling-bling song before, in all of it’s
1,324,543,772,352,745,323,689,333,221,883,332,990 versions. |
| T.I.-
Be Easy (W) Toilet beat + uninteresting gangsta rap rhymes = crappy rap
song. |
| Takashi
Matsumoto- Koi-Uta (WWWW): With Japanese influences, this rock
instrumental comes out as a beautiful and entrancing experience. Good
work. |
| Taking
Back Sunday - You're So Last Summer (WWW) The vocals remind me way too
much of Tyson Ritter's and it's an awfully whiny emo song, but it's
catchy, so it works. |
| Tamia-
Officially Missing You (WW) Contrived and a little dull, but this R&B
ballad isn't a total write-off. |
| Tech N9ne- Imma Tell
(WW) The Dr. Dre-like beat is pretty nice, but these gangsta rappers only
seem capable of making random threats and thus lose every ability to
actually shock. |
| Tenacious
D- Explosivo (WWW) It's a metal parody song, with a reference to
"(writing) as many riffs as fast you can" and growled vocals,
but with a twist: they're doing it on an unplugged acoustic guitar. Not
pure comedic gold, but it's pretty funny. |
| Terri
Clark - I Wanna Do It All (WWW) Here, Terri Clark muses about travelling
the world and experiencing everything...and having a lot of fun doing it. |
| Terri
Clark- Three Mississippi (WWWW): Catchy but deep country song that has
Clark leaving her dysfunctional family. |
| Thalia-
Baby I'm In Love (WWW) So it sounds like Jennifer Lopez doing Britney
Spears (yes, that's possible)...but it never gets too lame, so it works. |
| The A.K.A.S (Are
Everywhere!)- Generation Vexed (WWW) It's catchy and bouncy enough, but
this punk-rock sounds a bit too much like Green Day's
"Longview". |
| The
Alkaline Trio- We've Had Enough (WWW) Great AFI-like, gloomy punk song. |
| The
All-American Rejects- Last Song (W) *shakes head* Another boring, whiny
pop-punk song about a broken heart. Look, she left you. Get over it. |
| The
All-American Rejects- Time Stands Still (WWW) Featuring Howie Day-like
drum machine work, The All-American Rejects manage to cook up an
interesting single. No joke. |
| The
Ataris- Boys Of Summer (WWW) Completely rockin', driving and fun remake of
the classic Don Henley song. |
| The
Ataris- The Saddest Song (WWWW) Almost sounds like the perfect follow-up
to "The Boys Of Summer", continuing to reminisce and reflect on
days gone by under a mid-tempo rock beat. May not be original, but they
feel it, so it's effective. |
| The
Black Dahlia Murder - Contagion (WWW) It would be nice if the vocals were
a little clearer, but this death metal song is crushing, visceral and
potent, so it works. |
| The
Black Keys- Set You Free (WWW): Enjoyable yet messy White Stripes-esque
rock. |
| The
Black Label Society- Stillborn (WWWW): Great, catchy punchy
industrial-metal featuring another great solo from Zakk Wylde. |
| The
Blue Man Group f/Gavin Rossdale- The Current (WWWWW) Pop's most
interesting group strike again with a "rocked-up" Mission
Impossible-like sound that's very dark and mesemerizing. |
| The
Cash Brothers- Shadow Of Doubt (WW) The melody is nice, but this country
pop-rock song is just boring. |
| The
Chemical Brothers f/The Flaming Lips- The Golden Path (WWW) It's not as
adventurous as the pairing might suggest, but it's still solid pop-tronica/ |
| The
Chynnamin- All About The Paper (WWW) The lyrics are cliched and sexed up,
but the beat's nice and upbeat...so I'll give it to him. |
| The
Chynnamin- Come For You (W) Now auditioning to be worse than 50
Cent...horrible, lifeless beat and cliched street rhymes. |
| The
Clipse f/Roscoe P. Coldchain & Ab-Liva- Cot D**n (WWW): Very personal
and somewhat deep rap song about struggling on the streets. |
| The
Constantines- Nighttime Anytime (W) The riffs are stolen right from
AC/DC's "Thunderstruck" and The Tragically Hip's
"Courage", and the vocalist sounds like he should be doing
Cynic. Ugh. |
| The
Crush- Here Is Where I Cross My Fingers (WWW) Solid, upbeat, driving
punk-ish rock. |
| The
Dandy Warhols - You Were The Last High (WWWW) The Dandy Warhols go back to
the basics and just rock out, but with mesmerizing space-effects.
Brilliant. |
| The
Dandy Warhols- We Used To Be Friends (WW) There's some interesting tricks
to this electronic/rock hybrid, but the chorus is excruciatingly dumb and
overall it sounds like a Simple Minds ripoff. |
| The
Decemberists- The Soldiering Life (WWW) It's a blatant ripoff of The
Turtles' "Happy Together" set to louder guitars and drums, but a
weird one: instead of it being a happy song, it's a sad song about being
stuck in the battlefield. Weird. |
| The
Donnas- Too Bad About Your Girl (WWW) The lyrics are stupid, but it's
still a light-hearted, fun pop-rock song that borrows just enough from one
of their major influences- KISS- to make it work. |
| The
Dyslexics - Rock Soul (WWWW) May not be as interesting as single No. 1
"Illingual" but it's still an interesting mix of punk and
old-school hip-hop. |
| The
Eagles- Hole In The World (WWW) This folk-pop song is a little overbearing
and doesn't exactly rival the classics like "Take It Easy", but
it proves The Eagles have returned...brilliantly. |
| The
Exploited- Never Sell Out Dreamcatcher (WW) Well, uhh...it's up-tempo and
energetic...but this punk song and uses the "we'll never sell
out" cliche past it's expiry date. |
| The
Flaming Sideburns- Street Survivor (WWW) They're like The Hives...only
that THEY'RE NOT ANNOYING. Plus, anyone that can make a "read the
Bible" quote fun gets my props. |
| The
Good Brothers f/Aceyalone, Ahmad & Pep Love- Give It Here (WWW) The
lyrics are a bit dumb (asking for the legitimate return of their stuff),
but the beat (similar to Benzino's "Rock The Party") makes it
really work. |
| The
Isley Brothers f/JS- Busted (WWWWW) It's a very biting and angry tune
where a father (Ronald Isley) throws her persistently truant daughter (JS)
out of the house despite her pleas. It's really convincing too, making
this a real shocker to hear. Absolutely brilliant. |
| The
Libertines- Up The Bracket (WWW): Enjoyable cheeky punk-ish rock. |
| The
Mars Volta- Son Et Lumiere, Intertiatic E.S.P. (WWWW) There may not be
much vocally after the singer's wails, but it's still an interesting mix
of "when Dredg meets punk". |
| The
Mavericks - Would You Believe (WWW) It's a catchy Sloan-esque song, but
I'm a little tired of all these doom-and-gloom songs. |
| The
New Pornographers "All For Swinging You Around" (WWW)
Well...it's energetic, but, like Spoon, The Sounds, etc., it's just a
catchy melody and little substance. I know they're capable of better. |
| The
Polyphonic Spree- Light And Day (WWWWW) 22 voices. Tons of strings and
horns. Lots of positivity and trippiness. It doesn't get any more
endearingly silly than this. |
| The
Postal Service- The District Sleeps Alone Tonight (WWWWW) Presenting...a
really mind-blowingly intricate, personal
and ultimately interesting electronica/pop song. In other words,
the way "Kid A" should have sounded like. |
| The
Pretenders - The Losing (live) (WW) The soul tinges give this pop song a
bit of spunk, but overall, it's very lifeless. |
| The
Question- I'm Feeling You (WWWW) It's a very intricate Moloko track with a
female rapper over it...very interesting and very different. |
| The
Rapture- The House Of Jealous Lovers (WWWW) The vocals are a little
annoying, but this ultra-catchy, potent, vibrant and very danceable
dance-rock. |
| The
Raveonettes- That Great Love Sound (WWW) It's a great synth-rock song with
some gloomy undercurrents, but it still sounds as though it should have
stayed in the '80s. |
| The
Reunion Show- Television (W) Note to the band: if you're going to create a
catchy hook, please do not use a vocalist who thinks wailing is a good
idea. Thank you, DG. |
| The
Revolution Smile- Bonethrower (W) It's Strapping Young Lad meets Limp
Bizkit...isn't it fun? I didn't think so either. |
| The
Rising- Cradle (WWW) Channelling The Verve Pipe's "The
Freshmen", this driving rock song becomes very emotional, personal
and enjoyable. |
| The
Roc Project f/Tina Arena- Never (Past Tense) (WWW) It's merely simple
pop-dance with Euro and disco influences, but it's still interesting and
enjoyable all the same. |
| The
Rocket Summer- Skies So Blue (WWW) Infectious and catchy guitar riffs and
honest emotions save this kiddie rock song from being an embarrassment. |
| The
Rolling Stones- Sympathy For The Devil (Nepture Remix) (WW) The African
rhythms are nice, but this song just reeks of commercialism... |
| The
Saucers- Late Bloomer (WWW) Catchy but dark surfer-rock with great female
vocals. |
| The
Shins "So Says I" (WWW) They were much better doing
Beatles-esque songs ("The Past And Pending") than doing garage
rock, but this one works...barely. |
| The
Shins- So Says I (WWW) They were much better doing Beatles-esque songs
("The Past And Pending") than doing garage rock, but this one
works...barely. |
| The
Snowdonnas- Edison (WW) Stale, distortion-heavy art/"space"-rock
song. |
| The
Starting Line- Leaving (WW) Okay, so it's driving and catchy, but all
those tempo changes make it incoherent, not to mention they sound out of
their element trying to be older. |
| The
Strokes - 12:51 (WWW) Pretty catchy and fun, though the production is
noticeable and a little too domineering. |
| The Thrills- One Horse
Town (W) With the opening piano chords (and the hook) pulled right from
the Beach Boys' catalog and having a song that sounds like all those surf
bands of the '60s wouldn't sing, The Thrills make a song that isn't, um,
thrilling. |
| The
Used- Blue And Yellow (WW) It's personal, heartfelt and mellow, but it
sounds too much like Saliva. |
| The
Waifs- Lighthouse (WWW) No clear song structure, but it's still a light,
catchy and enjoyable folk-pop song. |
| The
Warlocks - Shake The Dope Out (WWW) The vocals are almost indecipherable
except for the chorus (which is just the title repeated), but it's catchy
and very enjoyable rock-pop. |
| The
Weakerthans- Our Retired Explorer (WWW) It's a little bland, but this
ska-punk song still has quite a bit of bounce. |
| The
White Stripes- The Hardest Button To Button (WW) It's a palatable hit, but
the song seems to follow the leads of their previous two smash hits
("Seven Nation Army" with its simply instrumental chorus and
"Dead Leaves And The Dirty Ground" with its "all over the
place" messiness) way too much. Simply put, it's failed potential. |
| Therapy?-
If It Kills Me (WWWW) A metal act that has Nickelback-like tendencies?
Really. Only here, the biting but catchy lyrics and in-your-face style of
the really impressive drumwork and the heavy guitars make it all the more
haunting- and alluring. |
| Threat
f/Hip Joint- Dirty Girl (W) This sounds like a sexed-up 5ive reject...so
stupid. |
| Three 6 Mafia- Ghetto
Chick (WWW) Okay, so there's better rap songs about a girl
"saving" their boyfriends. Still, though, this one's honest
enough, so it works well. |
| Three
6 Mafia- Ridin Spinners (W) They want to be old-school rappers, but they
turn out as just a cliche and horribly dumb... |
| Three
Days Grace- (I Hate) Everything About You (WW) The pulsing drumwork and
guitarwork are catchy, but it's a very whiny song whose beginning rips off
Seether's "Fine Again" a bit too much. |
| Thrice
"Stare At The Sun" (WWW) Not as angry as "All That's
Left", but it's nice to see a sensitive side from them. |
| Thursday-
Signals Over The Air (W) This is emo at it's worst: a whiny deliverey with
TRL-ready riffs. Cry me a river. |
| Tiga-
Hot In Herre (WWW): Similar to Nelly’s version, but without Nelly’s
moronic vocals and a much more elaborate beat…well done. |
| Tiger
Army- Incorporreal (WWWW) The guy lashes out at a girl with blinding rage
all while his punk band's speeding riffs and drumwork play around him. |
| Tim
McGraw- Real Good Man/The Ride (both W) The first song is an absolutely
stupid song where Tim McBlah tries convincing his lover that he's not as
bad as he looks. The second one is just a dull tune about taking a ride
McBlah knew he shouldn't have taken. Essentially, they're just
"classic" McBlah- "blah". |
| Timbaland
& Magoo f/Missy Elliott & Sebastien- Cop That D (WWW) For once,
there's a varied, complex party track from Timbaland and Missy Elliott
that ACTUALLY WORKS. Even Missy gets to deliever a clever rhyme (you say
I'm ugly/Yeah, just like your mother). |
| Timbaland & Magoo
f/Sebastian- Indian Flute (WWW) The use of the Indian flute (I presume)
and the Indian girl's vocals adds an interesting effect to this party-rap
song, but I can't shake the impression that it's used only for commercial
purposes (i.e. "look at us! We appreciate culture because we put an
Indian flute in our song!"). Whatever. |
| Tipper-
Over The Coals (WWWW) It's not DJ Krush by any stretch of the imagination,
but the gloomy stop-go effects of this electronica song are still very
interesting. |
| Tipper-
The Glasshouse (WWW) This sounds like it has a pig grunting over some
light xylophone beats...not phenomenal, but interesting. |
| To
My Surprise - In The Mood (WWW) Somebody asked the question: what if ODB
did metal? The answer: To My Surprise. Not Manowar, but still fun. |
| Toby
Keith- I Love This Bar (WWWWW) Simply put, it's another of Keith's
classics: an emotive, sarcastic view of a bar from an alcoholic who just
wants to get away but can't. Through it, he details all the people who
show up to it- mentioning twice the "hookers and dancers"- and
why he just can't leave. Sure to be a bar anthem in the near future. |
| Today Is The Day- The
Descent (WWWW) They're not as coherent as Atheist were, but all the tempo
changes and the roboticized, prog-elements to this death metal song make
it really really interesting. Next to Shadows Fall, it's one of the genres
first true winners in a while. |
| Tom
Jones f/The Stereophonics- Mama Told Me Not To Come (WWW) It's just a
nice, catchy slab of lounge-esque rock, one of the first instances where
old sounds actually sound new. |
| Tori Amos- Mary (WWWW)
It may not be as biting or as
haunting as "A Sorta Fairytale" was, but it's still what Amos does best- interesting tales of tortured souls. |
| Toure
Kunda- Rapada (WWW) It borrows a bit too much from previous salsa works,
but this is still fun and pretty interesting stuff. |
| TQ
f/Baby with Gotti Dialogue- Keep It On The Low (W) It's a cliched sex rap
song (with the "classic" line "let me put Terrence Junior
in ya") with a redone, "Where The Party At?" beat...so
you've heard this before. Trust me. |
| Trace
Adkins- Hot Mama (WWW) Here,
he channels Toby Keith in coming up with an endearingly silly sex
song...his wife complains her kids changed her for the worst, but he's
still "turned on". Makes up for his previous recent efforts. |
| Trace
Adkins- Then They Do (W) To reference the really, really lame chorus:
"you hear a sappy, overwrought song about your kids growing up and
everyone wants to turn it off/Then they do." |
| Trapt- Still Frame (WWW)
It's a bit of a System Of A Down rip-off, but the catchy guitarwork and
drumming make it palatable. |
| Tre
6- Just Dance (WWW) It's not quite Talib Kweli's "Waiting For The
DJ", but it's still a solid party-rap song from "The Dirty
South" that disses Ginuwine's "Hell Yeah" in the second
verse. Brilliant. |
| Trent
Summar & The New Row Mob- I'm Country (WWW) The lyrics are stupid
"I'm the realest country person around", but it's still solid,
driving raw country-rock. |
| Triumph The Insult Comic
Dog- I Keed (WWWW) He may be "keeding", but his biting satire on
many of today's pop stars really hit the mark. Like "I sniffed J.
Lo's a** and I got a bomb that was bigger than 'Gigli'". Classic
stuff. |
| TTC-
De Pauvras Riches (WWW) Very quirky and endearing quasi-old-school beat
with very good rhyming by the rappers, who rap in French. |
| Turbonegro-
Sell Your Body (To The Night) (WWW) It overuses the "don't
sellout" cliche (delivered as a sarcastic acceptance of the
practice), but this pop-rock song works well- especially with that
enjoyable solo. |
| Twista f/Kanye West
& Jamie Foxx- Slow Jamz (WWW) If we could cut out Jamie Foxx's
forgettable first verse ("I'ma put on some Vandross/You go take your
pants off"), we'd get an banging party rap track, as Twista's raps
are off the hook, and Kanye West's production is brilliant. Still good as
it is, though. |
| Ty-
We Don't Care (WWW) Solid "I'm better than you" rapping coupled
with a quirky, heavy bassline beat...solid all around. |
| Tyrese-
Signs Of Making Love (WWWW) Beautiful, heartfelt and personal love R&B
ballad about a girl Tyrese really wants. |
| Underworld-
Born Slippy [Remix] (WWW) It's still great with a piano and a bassline,
but it was much better as a drum 'n' bass-esque song. |
| Vaux
- Switched On (W) This one's another Alexisonfire knockoff, only this time
it's a lot more whiny and childish. Ugh. |
| Vince
Gill- Someday (W) The guitar solo's nice, but it can't save this sappy
love-lamentation country ballad from rivaling Diamond Rio's "I
Believe" as the worst country song of 2003. |
| Warren G f/KRS-One &
Lil' AL- Let's Go (WWWWW) Warren G, KRS-One and Lil' AL: three warriors
off to fight corporatization in the name of real hip-hop. They pull no
punches, with firey rhymes and a slammin' beat, but the final verse is the
true genius: Lil' AL is Japanese (or so I presume) and her verse is in
Japanese, so, presumably, it's to kill any chance for commercialism. In a
song about being against the trends, this is a stroke of genius. One of
2003's best songs for sure. |
| Warren
Zevon f/Bruce Springsteen- Disorder In The House (WWW) It's a nice slab of
country-rock, with a bit of a swagger and some excellent guitarwork. Worth
the hype. |
| Wayne
Marshall- Marshall Town/Check Yourself (W) The first song uses Shaggy's
already horrific beat for "Hey Sexy Lady" for the backdrop to a
song where he announces that he's here for about oh, three million times
(we get the picture already...). Then the second song is just a lame
attempt at positivity. *sigh* |
| Wayne
Wonder - Bounce Along (WWW) Get past the stupid, sexed-up lyrics and you
get a pretty bouncy and enjoyable party track. Still doesn't beat "No
Letting Go" though. |
| Wayne
Wonder- Friend Like Me (WW) It's bouncy- using the same sample as Ashanti-
but it's too cookie-cutter to really make it appealing. |
| Ween
"Even If You Don't" (W) You know, I laughed at this love song
spoof, but not for the reasons they wanted me to. |
| Weird
Al Yanokovic- Couch Potato (WW) It's good for the odd laugh, but this
parody of Eminem's "Lose Yourself" becomes a rudimentary cliched
attack on T.V.'s "mind-rotting" effects. |
| Westside
Connection f/Nate Dogg- Gangsta Nation (WWW) A strong "sinister"
beat and some strong rapping make it a party hit, though maybe not the
classic they'd wanted. |
| Wild
Horses- Safely Home (W) It's slightly touching, but this country ballad
about death is still very very gloppy. |
| Willa Ford f/May- A
Toast To Men (W) What's wrong with this song? A) the canned-electric
guitar beat went out with the '90s and B) it's an overtly (and contrived)
sex song. Because, you know, Britney isn't "providing"... *rolls
eyes* |
| Willie Nelson f/Leanne
Womack- Mendocino County Line (WWW) It's a nice, heartfelt reflection on
the past, but this country ballad sounds way too "modern" for
Willie Nelson. |
| Wyclef
Jean f/Missy Elliott- Party To Damascus (WWW) The lyrics are really,
really stupid, but the beat's really, really strong, making this great for
a party to Damascus. |
| Wyclef
Jean- Industry (WWW) It could be better, but it's still a great tune where
Wyclef Jean laments about the state of hip-hop and asks for order to
restore the chaos. Highlight: when Jean blasts G-Unit for wielding their
guns and continuing the chaos "but hey, they gotta make it to the
magazine covers". |
| YahZarah-
Wishing (WWW) It's not too too compelling of a R&B song and doesn't
exactly differentiate her from any number of fly-by-night R&B singers,
but it's still good. |
| Yeah
Yeah Yeahs - Maps (WWWW) Slowed down, with bouncy drumwork and guitarwork
and with simple crooning from Karen O, proving she can sing. Basically,
the way The Yeah Yeah Yeahs SHOULD sound like. |
| Yeah
Yeah Yeahs- Date With The Night (WWW) Karen Oh's vocals remind me way too
much of Bif Naked, but the punk band's got a nice electronica vibe with
this one, so I'll let it pass. |
| Year Of The Rabbit- Last
Defense (WWW) Yeah, it's another of those all-too-predictable quiet-loud
verse/chorus rock-pop songs, but the riffs are cool, so it works. |
| Ying
Yang Twins- Naggin (W) It's supposed to be a rant against their girl for
always nagging them, but they sound like cavemen and their words
("make you wanna say 'kiss my pants'") are not much better. WHY? |
| Young Gunz f/Chingy-
Can't Stop (Remix) (WWW) Add The Neptunes' beat from "Grindin'",
more inspired rapping and a really cocky Chingy and you have what the
original SHOULD have sounded like. |
| Youngbloodz
- Damn (W) The raps make absolutely no sense and the beat is a crappy
redition of the Southern beat. This is BEYOND stupid... (Stinker Of The
week) |
| Zarina-
Habibi (W): Please…Mary Zilba worked once. It won’t work again. |
| Ziggy
Marley- True To Myself (WWW) It reminds me of Bob Marley's uplifting,
lighter tracks, though it's nowhere near Bob's work. Works though. |
