Eurovision 2012This weekend, while we were all watching Paul McCartney trying to remember the words to “Rhinestone Cowboy”, Hungary made their final selection for this year’s Eurovision Song Contest. Ladies and gentlemen, it is with great… … umm, with great… great… oh, whatever.
Ladies and gentlemen, meet the men of Compact Disco, a sullen bunch who make up in shoulder pads what they lack in stage presence. Sadly, I can’t see this song making it very far in a competition that rewards spectacle. It’s positively dour. It’s ESL lyrics are laughably clunky even by Eurovision standards, and, well… have a look:
The saddest part of whatever that mess was is that Compact Disco are really not a bad band. They’re just not a very good live band. (And this song is pretty horrible too, although the studio version is markedly better.) This Budapest-based quartet led by producer Benham Lofti, and featuring the vocals of former talent show finalist Csaba Walko, are coming off the regional success of their singles “Fly or Dive” and “I’m in Love”, both of which (but especially the latter) are pretty great dance songs – upbeat but with a dark thematic core. Check out the video (NSFW) for “I’m In Love” below. Then go to Amazon, where, in fact, you can actually download both their studio albums (or, y’know, just the singles) at refreshingly non-import prices!
The Forthcoming Tricked Out Reissue of Teenage DreamKaty, interrupted: midway through a performance of her single “E.T.”, just minutes after head Foo Fighter Dave Grohl speechified about celebrating the human element in music-making (specifically learning how to sing and play instruments); in the same Grammy Award broadcast that at once celebrated the power of one particular voice (the late Whitney Houston) while also inexplicably celebrating the spectacle of loathe-able mediocrity that is Chris Brown; in the middle of a performance that itself seemed, or might have seemed, aided by backing tapes, those presumable backing tapes started to skip. Or something. Something was wrong. Katy struggled – or seemed to – for a second. Live television! Recorded backing malfunction! What to do? Cross your fingers and hope the sound guys can find a quick fix? Pull an Ashlee Simpson and pretend it’s all the band’s fault? Slink off stage and announce to the nearest Entertainment Tonight correspondent that you’re entering rehab?
The lights went out. And Katy started to…
…sing her new single. O. M. G., Grammy audience! We’ve been punk’d! By Katy Perry!
Unfortunately, the song itself couldn’t live up to the cleverness of its introduction to the world. It’s called “Part of Me”, and is easily spotted as a kiss-off to her freshly exed husband Russell Brand (just as “E.T.”, the song aborted mid-performance to make way for the new single, might be easily spotted as a loopy tribute to Brand, dating back to the couple’s courtship). But the break-up aspect of the song is really the only thing newsy about it. The song doesn’t signal a new album – it’s merely being tacked on to a deluxe edition reissue of Perry’s sophomore album Teenage Dream (which has already sent a record setting six songs to the top of Billboard’s Pop Songs Chart) called The Full Confection, set for release March 27.
I was a fan of Katy’s first album One of the Boys, but I’ve found most of Teenage Dream to be, at best, generically likeable. This song is both less and more of the same. On one hand, where Teenage Dream was generally a cotton candy album (the LP edition even came out on cotton candy-scented, pink-flecked white vinyl!), this song wants to be a jawbreaker. On the other hand, as jawbreakers go, this one’s just not that tough. Think Kelly Clarkson’s “My Life Would Suck Without You” in reverse. Max Martin and Dr. Luke can toss off hitbound pop singles like this in their sleep, and it appears that’s what they’ve done here. “Part of Me” might just as well have been called “Katy Perry Radio Single #11” and come with black stripe, white block letter thumbnail artwork. But you needn’t take my word for it – hear it here:
Whitney HoustonIt’s the 54th edition of the Grammy Awards. And with the sad passing yesterday of Whitney Houston, I imagine it’s a much more somber celebration than usual. Our own Paul Lorentz wrote a nice piece on Houston earlier this morning. I participated in Popblerd’s appreciation piece earlier today as well.
They always say the show must go on. And it will, though I’m not sure I’m ready to remember Houston yet.
LL Cool J is the host for the show. Yes, a guy who was one of the first hip hop stars is hosting the music industry’s most celebratory day. I don’t imagine many would’ve predicted that when DJ Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince won the first ever Rap Grammy in 1989, that 23 years later, a hip hop star would be hosting this show.
(While this show has already happened since it started 3 hours ago and I get the West Coast tape-delayed version, I’m going to pretend this thing is live.)
7:59 – How many times will LL lick his lips tonight? I think the over/under is 100. I’m going over.
8:00 – The Boss opens up this show. I count three earrings. I once had an earring too … when I was 18. Come on Bruce, the gray hair, receding hairline, and earrings together aren’t a good look. Plus, you don’t need them bruh.
8:04 – In a matter of seconds after the Boss finished his song, the cameras cut to Katy Perry with blue FU Russell Brand colored hair, Lady Gaga wearing a veil, and before I could anticipate it, Fergie’s face popped up out of nowhere. I could take Perry and Gaga, but I haven’t been that scared after seeing Fergie’s butter-face since watching The Poltergeist.
8:08 – LL just gave a classy speech about “his sister” Whitney. Who says hip hop can’t be classy?
(I’m not sure how I’m going to make it through this show with all these Whitney clips.)
8:15 – Holy ****! Bruno Mars just sold a whole lotta albums tonight with his performance.
8:16 – And can we just be clear about one thing? Mars’ pompadour is nothing more than the Brandon Walsh/Dylan McKay hairdo from 1992. I may have to bust that out too. It’s coming back.
8:23 – The first Grammy Award is for Best Pop Solo Performance and it goes to Adele. I think Miss Adele is going to have a big night tonight.
8:25 – I go away to check on my dinner and I miss Chris Brown’s performance. Oh the horror. Chris Brown has a very special talent. His talent is to do some pretty impressive and athletic dance numbers and make them seem so unimportant. I don’t remember any MJ performance ever being so insignificant.
8:36 – Kanye West and Jay-Z win for Best Rap Performance and you’re telling me Kanye isn’t there? Well, he did get screwed by not being nominated for Album Of The Year. I guess I’d skip too.
8:58 – I could say that Rihanna’s wig is very Tina Turner-esque, but I’m going with Farrah Fawcett’s dry perm. I think I just dated myself twice. By the way, if you didn’t know based on the hook that was repeated about 75 times, “We found love in a hopeless place.”
9:14 – The Foo Fighters win for Best Rock Performance. New York Giants wide receivers Victor Cruz and Mario Manningham presented them with the award. I wish they had numbers on their suits so I could tell who was who.
The Grammys, where Maroon 5 does “Surfer Girl” and everyone dies a little inside.
9:37 – From Paul McCartney to Common shouting out Gil-Scott Herron? This must be 2012.
9:37 – Chris Brown wins R&B Album Of The Year and shouts out Team Breezy. Yawn. El DeBarge was robbed.
9:45 – Give out more awards, give us less Taylor Swift performances.
9:51 – Adele and producer Paul Epworth win Song Of The Year. Epworth says that he couldn’t have done it without Adele. Really Paul? You mean you couldn’t have won this without Adele’s star power and voice?
9:59 – Lady A won for Country Album Of The Year and I’m happy just so that we don’t have to see Hillbilly Taylor come up with her banjo again.
10:10 – So Adele performed and she put boots to asses on everyone. It’s her night. She better win the whole damn thing.
10:24 – Talk about catchy. “Like a rhinestone cowboy…” From @IAMJericho:
Watching McCartney clapping along to Glenn Campbell is true class. #rocknrollisfamily
10:31 – Carrie Underwood is on stage singing “It Had To Be You” with Tony Bennett. Another Tony, Tony Romo just pointed at the TV and said, “Me?”
10:33 – That’s how you pronounce Bon Iver? And I’m so confused how they are a new artist, but oh well.
10:45 – I really wanted to like Jennifer Hudson’s performance and I’m sure it came straight from the heart. But I don’t think it was very good and it was the wrong song to sing. Also, Melanie Amaro channels Whitney better than Jennifer does.
11:04 – Common presented earlier and now it’s Drake’s turn. Sweet. I mean, um, yeah.
11:08 – I think Nicki Minaj thinks this is her Lady Gaga moment. Sadly, it’s not.
11:11 – This is Adele’s year. You can’t stop Adele. You can only hope to contain her. She also wins Record Of The Year.
11:21 – And she wins Album Of The Year. She gives a raw reaction and not something preconceived or prepared, unlike a lot of what’s wrong with music in 2012.
11:25 – Sir Paul McCartney goes HAM to end the show. See you next year.
