We're beginning to become shiny. This is Diamonds by Rihanna.
Official audio, click here. Diamonds, the first single off Rihanna's seventh studio album, is very different. Not like any of her past hits, even most fans are actually agreeing with me. However, this is not a negative point, but rather, an exclusive and a plus point to Rihanna's already extravaganza career. Seven, which is the name of Rihanna's seventh studio album, will hit stores November. However, Diamonds, as said, is a very typical love song with same exact tunes of a ballad. Not saying it's not targeted in the pop genre, but it is favorable and it is a very magnificent work. Co-written by Sia, and produced by Benny Blanco and StarGate, Diamonds is going to rock the world with it's release. Already debuting on the Billboard Hot 100 with a top 20 entry, it is surely going to become a top 10 hit steadily like most of Rihanna's other songs (singles, not re-releases or promotional singles). On to the song. As the song starts, you can hear the piano being played with a voice similar to Lana Del Rey repeating 'Shine bright like a diamond / Shine bright like a diamond'. After that, the song kicks in with the drums and Rihanna's first verse. 'Find light in the beautiful sea / I choose to be happy / You and I, you and I / We're like diamonds in the sky / You're a shooting star I see / A vision of ecstasy / When you hold me / I'm alive.' Which, I must say, is also a deterrence from her past hits, which Diamonds proves to be slow, soft and very edgy on most terms. However, Rihanna's softer side showed that she was still able to deliver. And the lyrics however, also talked about love, which is very uncompromising. The pre-chorus and the chorus are what really revolved around the song. It was probably the nucleus, as I'd say. 'So shine bright, tonight, you and I / We're beautiful like diamonds in the sky / Eye to eye, so alive / We're beautiful like diamonds in the sky'. This is what Rihanna does so perfectly, that she had never done before. At least, for me, that I'd never hear her done before. She hits the notes without actually exerting too much pressure and eventually killing the song. With a slow ballad, she does it absolutely well. Filled with electronic music and soul, with touching lyrics and a positive attitude, Rihanna's direction is in great amplitude. RATINGS: ORIGINALITY: 9/10 - Rihanna's departure could mean something positive, an originality, she scores a 9. That's just one. SOUND: 9/10 - A back bone of so many soundings that felt really similar with a new direction, Diamonds is a pure, raw and soft powerful ballad. LYRICS: 9/10 - Positive, great and happy. As Rihanna has said, it is well-written, well-crafted. That is all that is, a powerful package in one. OVERALL RATINGS: 27/30 - Rihanna's new direction has got me amped for Seven. You ready? Because I'm playing Diamonds for days, since it's already on My Playlist. Let's spin it!
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David Guetta reunite with Sia again for this club banger, She Wolf.
She Wolf music video, click here. Sia Furler, or better known as her first name Sia, was a no-name to us like most artists. Just a blink of an eye in a year, she's achieved international success and has great wide-ranged success on music as well. Sia co-wrote Titanium, which was hugely popular around the world and her first collaboration with David Guetta, sparked her fame to grow. And she didn't just stop there. Wild Ones, which was off Flo Rida's Wild Ones album, also achieved international success. Of course, Sia was the singer on the record during the chorus. Rihanna's upcoming seventh album, which will also include the first single off it, named Diamonds (which I will be reviewing later), also included works by Sia who wrote the lyrics and melody of it. Lastly, Kesha's new album, Warrior, has been confirmed that Sia will also be on the record. Sia has been in the music industry for too long, and to get international status now is pretty much better than nothing. She's not only known for these few hits, so look her up when you've got the time. David Guetta is pretty much a music industry gem. Releasing his new album, Nothing But The Beat 2.0 after the highly successful predecessor, will have new collaborations including Sia (here), Akon and Ne-Yo. And while Titanium is still hitting the record stations and radio, it was a wise move for Guetta to reintroduce Sia with a new song, She Wolf. Let's get to it. She Wolf starts off with David Guetta's signature beats, while Sia's authentic voice kick-starts the vocals. The beats, sounding similar to Titanium, worked perfectly as Sia's lyrics washed some of the raw nerves away. 'A shot in the dark, a past lost in space / Where do I start, the past and the chase / You hunted me down, like a wolf / A predator / I felt like a deer in love lights'. As always, you can hear the intensity in Sia's voice as she sings the verse. Sia is no ordinary singer with just a pop status. She can sing, and she does it superbly well in She Wolf. 'You loved me, and I froze in time / Hungry, for that flesh of mine / But I can't compete, with a she wolf was has brought me to my knees / What do you see in those yellow eyes? / Cause' I'm falling to pieces'. Sia is a vocal superpower. She really is. And once again, we almost forgot David Guetta's on the record. With sublime synchronization, he kick starts his dance floor anthem with a hit. The bass, the synth and everything else fits perfectly well. It's normal if you get up to dance at this stage of the song. Perfectly normal. As always, the relations and the meaning of the song sounded astute. People are gonna' complain it's a mix of these and that, but truly, it is a masterclass in my opinion. Just like Titanium, She Wolf is going to hit everywhere. A dance club anthem with notes in it like a stack of paper. RATINGS: ORIGINALITY: 9/10 - It's D. Guetta. He's the man. He just does what no other DJ can do and he just does it so perfectly. I don't know, he's got the G-Factor. SOUND: 9/10 - It's an alternative club banger after Titanium. You can just hear it pumping at your nearest club house. LYRICS: 9/10 - Well written, well sang. That's all I can say. OVERALL RATINGS: 27/30 - Not comparing it with Titanium, She Wolf can still hold it together long enough, I believe. This song probably going to tip the scale and I see it scoring even better than Titanium, especially when Sia is much more known to the world now than she was before. Play it for days people, it's already on My Playlist. I might shred songs apart. I might.
Lyric video, click here. Pitbull is back with a new song! Yes, if it goes by with any doubt, Don't Stop The Party is Pitbull's latest 'Mr Worldwide' tradition song. Like all of his previous songs, it's all about dance, club and also... girls. Sounds estranged to his past hits? No. That's because this one features TJR, it's supposed to be different. So far... it isn't. Before I go on, Global Warming, the record title of Pitbull's seventh studio album (he has come a long way people), is going to hit stores in November. Of course, the album will include the Men In Black hit Back In Time (which I've reviewed), and the Shakira accompanied Get It Started. Since Planet Pit did so well across the world, we're going to be seeing a new revolution of Pitbull right? Sadly, no. Yes Pitbull fans, I'm not saying anything, but the tiredness of his songs goes through the wire, but taps nothing. All I'm saying is that he is like an open book which we re-read thousand of times without understanding anything, therefore we re-read it multiple times. As always, I've got high hopes for any song as long as it's new, and new singles could prove to be Pitbull's forte in transforming the music industry to hip moving, club banging songs. Surprisingly, Don't Stop The Party seems eerily similar. Very similar to his old hits and it doesn't mean anything but vodka and just club dances. The song starts off with 'You don't get the girls loose, loose / You don't get the world loose, loose / You don't get money pfew, pfew'. I'm not saying anything yet, but Pitbull's first verse goes, 'I'm running through this world like a running back / Scarface world is mine running back / 30,000 people in Hannover (to see me) / 80,000 people in London, Wembley / 90,000 people Morocco and I'm just getting warmed up, papo'. Okay, this has to stop. Pitbull, we're not like you, we can't see so many people getting to see you back, but we'd like to see something that people, or fans can easily relate to. At least we have some pride left in you. With that, TJR's Funky Vodka is also the sample to the song. I am just... speechless. Probably the only thing that is best about this song is the chorus after which the guy says 'Y'all having a good old time out there', before Pitbull starts bouncing on the microphone. 'Yeah yeah yeah / Que no pare la fiesta / Don't stop the party!'. Other than that, sadly, is nothing good as it's like a re-run of everything we've heard before. I don't even want to talk about it. RATINGS: ORIGINALITY: 7/10 - Pitbull is Pitbull, and he's good at what he does best. The best way to describe it, I feel it. SOUND: 7/10 - Not like the past hits, I have to say Don't Stop The Party is the least better than Back In Time, though the chorus is much more relatable anyway. LYRICS: 6/10 - Just, just horrible. Yes, yes, some parts were good but many of the others could be fixed with better writing and a much better lacking innovation. Could be better. OVERALL RATINGS: 20/30 - Don't Stop The Party fared okay on my scale, to be honest. Is it on My Playlist? Unless it's good enough to enter the top 20 of the Billboard Hot 100 I'd say. Otherwise, I'm just gonna' give it a few more spins. Gonna' stop with all the caps for the song titles starting from this review: Your Body by Christina Aguilera.
Music video for your viewing pleasure can be seen here. Lotus. What is that? We all know what that is. But what we should know, is that Lotus is Christina Aguilera's seventh studio album. More than that, it paid tribute to a decade at the top of the music industry. Christina Aguilera has been more than just our artist, giving us hit, after hit after hit. Aguilera, also a music judge alongside Cee Lo Green, Adam Levine and Blake Shelton on The Voice, it clearly showed she never left her music path despite all she's done. Though it is clear that Bionic, her previous studio album, which was still a commercial success despite her canceled tour and disappointment overall, still reminded us of her singing prowess. As always, Xtina's voice is remnant to her past songs and is still as devastating and loud as ever. Your Body marks her comeback, and with that a volatile message to the underlying music industry that they still have a vocal superpower in their ranks. However, does it really show she still have what it takes? Let's go on with the song. Your Body starts off pretty slow, but when Christina kicks in with her vocals, it starts drumming your ears. The chorus, which was the most powerful part of the song, totally ripped what Christina could do into fractions. It was one of the most authentic and clear chorus she has ever done, and was definitely very different from her past hits. One thing is for sure, her vocals tore the song apart, as always. With that, it seriously deterred from her past singles and songs on Bionic, and this was just meant for something bigger. Anybody else hyped up for Lotus? I sure am. Christina Aguilera pulls it off once again, but does she does so overall? Let's find out. RATINGS: ORIGINALITY: 8/10 - An 8. You don't get songs like these that just chokes your ears. SOUND: 8/10 - Aguilera's vocals are on fire, while otherwise a contemplating electronic background would be rather disturbing. LYRICS: 8/10 - Doesn't dither, nope. Xtina's writing still means she's got it. However, some parts lacked flair while others were commendable. OVERALL: 24/30 - The song just enough makes it, and I can somehow sense Your Body go into top 20 of the Billboard Hot 100, though I might be wrong. However, Your Body goes into My Playlist, which makes sure that I'll be playing it for days. Kesha is back! With her new album on the way, let's get a taste of her new single, DIE YOUNG.
Songs as usual, DIE YOUNG's lyric video can be seen here. Classic Kesha, as people have called it, is classic Kesha. Not referring to anything, but this is what Kesha was good at before we found her other non-release singles disappointing. Following the trails of her success from her previous two albums, Animal and Cannibal, spawning hits such as TIK TOK, BLAH BLAH BLAH, YOUR LOVE IS MY DRUG, TAKE IT OFF, WE R WHO WE R and BLOW, Kesha was phenomenal no doubt. With Warrior, her second studio album (Cannibal was an EP), she looks set to take over the world once more. And DIE YOUNG is a pretty good damn way to reintroduce yourself to the world, again. DIE YOUNG, electro-pop and seemingly a dance club banger, is what Kesha is back to her best at. Although Warrior is going to be more 'personal and vulnerable', we can still say that DIE YOUNG could be chalk of the end of the road for Kesha's club banger, for this album at least. On to the song now! Starting off with acoustic guitars, pause it. Does it sound freakishly similar? Yes, a reminiscent hit of GOOD FEELING by Florida, it does reminds you of that club banger. Other than that, it's one hell of a mix. Not known for her singing prowess though, Kesha however delivers in DIE YOUNG with her personality spread over the song, layered upon it. 'Young hearts out our minds / Runnin' till' we outta' time / Wild childs lookin' good / Livin' hard just like we should'. Y'know what I mean? What we know about Kesha is not the way she delivers, but actually the way she has her whole heart on the record. No auto-tune on her part of the song which makes it even more remarkable. Nonetheless, this is going to be a short review of Die Young, which makes it more compelling. How does it fare? RATINGS: ORIGINALITY: 7/10 - Freakishly similar to her past songs and other club mixes, this song was on the average scale. SOUND: 8/10 - Kesha lives again, but once it skydives, there was no coming back. It was good for the bass and all of that, but Kesha's voice is what stood out the most. Her catchy, fun, messy attitude splattered over the record. LYRICS: 8/10 - Like her past songs, however, Kesha collaborated with people such as Nate Ruess (fun.) for the songwriting, it worked quite well. The lyrics were dependent however. Heavily dependent on the overall record. OVERALL: 23/30 - Disappointed as it is, however, this song will still make it on My Playlist for sure. It is Kesha, anyway. For all it's worth, I'm going to have to say play DIE YOUNG for days! From his upcoming Unorthodox Jukebox album (damn, that is hard!), comes the new single LOCKED OUT OF HEAVEN. I assure you, this is very unsophisticated.
As always, the official audio (lyrics unreleased. Search up the web if you want to) for the new single can be found here. LOCKED OUT OF HEAVEN, written, produced and created by The Smeezingtons. Who are the Smeezingtons? They consist of Ari Levine, Phillip Lawrence and the one and only, Bruno Mars. Known for their songwriting prowess (BILLIONAIRE, ROCKETEER, LIGHTERS, just to name a few), they come again for Bruno's second album, Unorthodox Jukebox. With LOCKED OUT OF HEAVEN, a stamp in the music industry is needed. With highly successful singles such as JUST THE WAY YOU ARE, GRENADE, THE LAZY SONG and IT WILL RAIN, Bruno Mars was pretty much a no-name to the industry 2 years ago. Right now, he's a pop superstar, selling millions of records and a household name. I am not kidding on that last one. LOCKED OUT OF HEAVEN produces one seemingly distorts itself from some of Bruno Mars' previous works, deterring from the usual sort of pop sound he embarked on. With that said, it featured a very different sound tone and it felt very risky as a first single. On to the song. The song starts off with what seems like Mark Ronson's voice ('1,2,3'). Well, that is not surprising since he co-produced the song. Talented people at work. The sticks of the drums clap, before Bruno's strained voice kicks in. Not lying, he does seemed he like he had recorded too much for the album and he was really starting to strain his voice. However, I'm not complaining, it's just a little whine. The lyrics go, 'Never had much faith in love or miracles / Never wanna' put my heart on the line / Swimming in your water's something spiritual / I'm bored again every time you spend the night', which goes to 'Cause' your sex takes me to paradise / Yeah your sex takes me to paradise', which kind of stunned me hard. As he mentioned in his live chat, this song was subtly sensual, but the term sex had seemed indefinite to come at such a juncture. That's when the best part comes in. 'Cause you make me feel like / I've been locked out of heaven / For too long / For too long'. Bruno Mars' traditional curtain raiser worked every time, here as well. It was the perfect timing, cut-cross to the song and it made the song feel nothing less than catchy. And being catchy, it stayed on my mind for quite a few hours. For an artist like Bruno Mars, the originality of the song was the main prowess it contained. Seemingly a mix between The Police and Bruno Mars, people definitely will get mixed up when they hear this song on the radio. With that said, everything else is a pretty good get-go and original. RATINGS: ORIGINALITY: 9/10 - Mark Ronson produced it, what more can I say? SOUND: 9/10 - Other than what sounded like the sirens, I had no doubt in this song after hearing the song repeatedly. It gets stuck in your head, and stuck in your head, and stuck in your head. It just does. LYRICS: 9/10 - I wasn't disappointed, but rather surprised. Bruno Mars, congratulations for another song well done. I mean, The Smeezingtons to be precise, working very hard for their album Unorthodox Jukebox. OVERALL: 27/30 - LOCKED OUT OF HEAVEN is a radio smash hit. I'm not going to be surprised if it debuts in the top ten of Billboard Hot 100. In fact, I predict it! Play it for days as it's on My Playlist for sure! Fun, friends, and a lovely song to accompany with us for this year-end. Here comes the friendly-powered song, OATH by Cher Lloyd featuring Becky G. I'm starting my official review marathon, so stick close!
Music video (just released) can be viewed here!: Before we actually know Cher Lloyd, she was in X-Factor, the UK version I mean. She has reached the finals of the competition before actually winding up third place. And just to let you know, runners-up One Direction also was in the same round. They did better (of course), but how we can ever forget the lovely Cher Lloyd? From unknown songs like SWAGGER JAGGER, which she was almost hated as an artist, to flying WITH UR LOVE featuring Mike Posner, to getting her fame and status through WANT U BACK and now she's running over the globe with her album Sticks + Stones. What better way to deliver another song, titled OATH? For those who didn't know, OATH was written by Becky Gomez (or Becky G), which is the featured artist to Cher Lloyd. Cher heard the song, liked it, and the rest as they say - is history. OATH starts off with the lyrics: '(yo), my best friend, best friend till' the very end / cause' best friends, best friends don't have to pretend / you need a hand, and I am right there beside you / you in the dark, and I'm the bright light to guide you.' What hooked me in though, was the pre-chorus and pretty much the entire chorus. Cher Lloyd has the way to make things work. The chorus, like a thematic anthem for all friend-lovers, goes, 'Wherever you go, just always remember / That you got a home, for now and forever / And if you get low, just call me whenever / This is my oath to you'. Yes, it gets you hooked when you least expected it. Though Cher is not known for her singing prowess, she is still a pop artist true to what she does best. That is the cutting edge lacked in most artists these days; mainstream or not. Not forgetting the creator, Becky G, though unknown, still kills her verses well. Before I saw the video, I didn't even know she was singing the second verse! On an originality scale, OATH does a pretty good damn job. The way the melody and everything else fits perfectly like a puzzle. The best thing is, OATH is probably going to be a hit around for some time. 'And that's no lie'. RATINGS: ORIGINALITY: 9/10 - Now I'm not gonna' lie (again), OATH is definitely different and much more original than most other songs with a cached-up melody. With a theme around friends and all that, it deserves a 9 in this department. SOUND: 9/10 - Cher Lloyd and Becky G killed it. They absolutely did. LYRICS: 9/10 - Powerful, well-written, it felt deep. That's all I thought, really. OVERALL: 27/30 - OATH, the latest edition to My Playlist (previously HALL OF FAME), is a hit. Ready or not, but OATH will be on my ears for some time as I will be playing it for days! |
AuthorBenny Ong: Just your regular guy who likes soccer more than most people, and also a little downtime is pretty nice. Archives
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