The Singles Roundup - 4/20

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Chris Brown - Sweet Love
When a Chris Brown song opens with "baby, let's get naked / just so we can make / sweet love," and flows into "you start screaming when I go downtown," one has cause for concern. Sweet Love smells of pulling "a Banks," and by that we mean emulating the entertainment industry's new shock-value goddess / musical messiah, Azealia. Unfortunately, Chris's attempt at sounding sexy ends up somewhere between profane & just plain icky. You should know betta.

Timbaland - Break Ya Back ft. Dev

The good news: Timbaland is back with some dirty-dirty-bass-bass-bass. The bad news: Break Ya Back is choppy at best. The song's finer moments feature Dev, whose swagger shines over Timbaland's incoherent mumble-rap. In the long run it's alright though, because Dev assures us "I'm gonna be around for a little while / ya feel me?"

Maroon 5 - Payphone ft. Wiz Khalifa

Adam's voice has never sounded whinier. We don't even remember the song, honestly.

Cheryl Cole - Call My Name
This is a disappointing track - not because Cheryl Cole does not deliver, which she does (as much as Cheryl can) - but because Calvin put in barely a passing effort. For Cheryl, it's a radio-ready, dancefloor-friendly comeback, but for Calvin, it's a bit of a red flag. Don't go Dr. Luke on us Calvin! We're not interested in Rihanna's sloppy seconds (although, to be fair, Call My Name sounds more like In My Arms than We Found Love). Either way, Cheryl is on her way back. Prepare.
Note from Gregory: I'm SO over this! Beyonce did Say My Name, Rihanna did What's My Name, & now Call My Name? RE-DUC-TIVE.

Unapologetically,

Gregory & Minna

Whistling Our Way Through 2011

Happy New Year everyone!  

As I was looking back on 2011, it struck me that some of the year's catchiest songs had a little something in common: whistling.  Here are four songs that I believe best exhibit the little ol' whistle's mainstream success last year:

Foster the People's Pumped Up Kicks - This song was a breakthrough and a commercial hit for indie rockers Foster the People in 2011.  Not only is it a cool, calm & catchy song, but the bridge features a lovely whistled sing-along to the tune of the chorus, (you hear it approximately 3 minutes in).  With Pumped Up Kicks peaking at Number 3 on the US charts, it's safe to say that Foster the People achieved great success in 2011.  I'm very, very happy to hear a West Coast indie band on the radio. Great job, guys.

Jason Derulo's It Girl -This mid-tempo R&B ballad hit the airwaves as a successful follow up to Derulo's massive hit Whatcha Say.  Released last August, It Girl opens with what can only be described as a whistle-while-you-work melody.  The "oh oh oh oh" chant-along after the chorus also features the same whistled melody at the song's introduction.  It Girl  become Jason Derulo's 5th Top 5 hit in the UK.

Britney Spears's I Wanna Go - Britney's third single is one of my favorite songs off of Femme Fatale, featuring a very sexy (& funny) music video (quick, run from the cyborg paparazzi!). On it, Britney sings "shame on me / to need release" over an infectious whistled chorus.  Produced by hit-makers Shellback & Max Martin, I Wanna Go peaked at number 7 on America's Billboard charts. I always wondered why no one chose this song as her first single instead of Hold It Against Me, but hey! Nevertheless, I Wanna Go is a keeper.

Maroon 5 ft. Christina Aguilera - Moves Like Jagger - Anyone with a radio knows that this song stalked the airwaves in 2011.  Like It Girl, Moves Like Jagger opens with a whistled introduction over a guitar riff, eventually erupting into a massive, pulsating bassline like only Benny Blanco can give us.  The big POW moment comes, of course, when Christina Aguilera belts out the bridge. It's POP, it's rock, it's funky, & yes, a wee bit annoying - but Moves Like Jagger was born to be a hit. Love it or hate it, we simply cannot imagine it without the signature whistled hook.



So there we have it, the whistle. Gimmick or genius?  We think it depends on the song in question. That said, there's nothing like a good song to whistle along to - & 2011 gave us quite a few of them.

Unapologetically,

Minna