What do these next six songs have in common? Feeling. Tremendous depths of emotion in the first three, and an overwhelming sense of release in the last three.
Thank you The Singles Jukebox for bringing this into my life. That synth, as comforting and enervating as a warm bath, is something American pop music hasn't even tried to create. For shame.
That intro - Tinashe repeating what amounts to gibberish - beautifully details the feelings of being ****ed over. Anger, yes, but shock is what stays. The best "contemporary" R&B single of the year. [2 On is another kind of beast …]
When men in country music emitted genuine pathos. Not to be too much of a "back in my day" traditionalist, but Sturgill's voice is something else. Every guy not named Eric Church or Sam Hunt should take note!
Legs movin' side to side/smack it in the air!
Sarah Geronimo's recent cover performance of this troubled me for many reasons, but mostly because it cut out 7/11's best bits:
The absolute joy Bey gets from screaming "I KNOW YOU CARE!" After the year she's had, she knows we do care about anything she puts out.
That bridge - Girl I want to kick it with you/Man, I swear I kick it with you - has a reservoir of communion that greatly underlines Beyoncé's commitment to "humanism." Nowhere else in pop music last year did anyone come close to expressing the genuine joy of connecting with those you love, those you care for, and those you simply want. For all the talk of her being "impersonal," this seems to be a perfectly direct and generous mission statement.
The last thirty seconds, more forward-thinking than anything on Ariel Pink's new album.
What every "It Gets Better" song should have been. When gay men are proudly declaring "masc 4 masc/no fems/no asians/no blacks" as calling cards, it's kind of sorta the song we need?
Gah, I love "Pretend". That was one of the songs that I had to go back to and listen again after I finished the album. Going to listen to Aquarius again tonight!
"7/11" just has that certain jenna say qua. Can't describe it! But so good.
The best indie music had to offer in 2014, as far as singles go. Not a number one though! #sorrypitchfork
Honestly, if I had listened to it for the first time, say, six months sooner than I did, it would have had a REALLY good shot at #1 on my own list. And that's no mean feat. Once that song ensnares you, it's not letting go.