Songs about bad habits

 

Amy Winehouse:  “Rehab”

Amy seemed to know her alcohol addiction would kill her. Here she defiantly sings about why she won’t go into rehab:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KUmZp8pR1uc

 

 

Sofi Tukker: “Batshit” (suggested by Jeff M.)

Compulsively drawn to bad news?  This is for you.  If it sounds familiar, that’s because the G-rated version was used in an Apple advert.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?app=desktop&v=VDndE432GpU

 

 

Lou Reed:  “Perfect Day”

Some people think this is a sad song.  Others think it's a happy song. A few think it’s about heroin addiction.  Lou said it’s just a simple song about a nice day and we should stop analyzing it and get a f***ing life.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QYEC4TZsy-Y

 

 

Hanabie: “We Love Sweets”

Dessert buffet, sugar death stare, rapping strawberries, cake-fu....  If you have a tortured relationship with sweets, this song will finally make you feel understood.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G18yyvPCiTM

When the cover is better than the original (1)

 

 

Of course, it comes down to personal taste, but here are some obvious candidates:

 

Joan Jett:  “I Love Rock and Roll”  (The Arrows)

The original version had almost been forgotten when Jett got hold of it.  She turned it into one of the biggest rock hits of all time.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vPGG69wB4ys

 

 

The Pretenders:  “Creep” (Radiohead)

Chrissie Hynde is known for her goth look, punk vibe and occasional snarl.  So it’s a bit of a shock to see her turn in something this vulnerable.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lML2N4xB9GU

 

 

Floor Jansen:  “Shallow” (Lady Gaga)

This was the hit from the soundtrack to “A Star is Born”.  Jansen is usually identified with her huge, operatic sound and her role as frontwoman for the symphonic metal band Nightwish.  Here, after weighing various options, she decided to go small, and ended up giving the song even more emotional punch than the original.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M68pe4a_9zk

 

 

Floor Jansen and Tim Akkerman:  “Shallow” (Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper). This time, Floor and Tim go big, and they crush it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Pf7Xd3IVtU

 

 

Watch for more of these. If you have some you want to nominate, please send me links!

Best new artists of the past decade: Your picks (6)

 

Here are more of your recommendations for best new musical acts of the past decade. Leaning into soul and blues.

 

Lake Street Dive (suggested by Mark W.)  “What I’m Doing Here”

I didn't know about this group before, and now I'm wondering why.  A group of talented musicians, on the same wavelength, able to do a wide ranges of styles and moods, and featuring a great lead singer? That should be gold. They mix up funky beats, jazz instrumentation, and a variety of vocal stylings, but the one I picked is a bit different: a straight-up blues that just hit me right away. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lcUeothSPyc

St.Paul and the Broken Bones (suggested by Mark W.) NPR Tiny Desk concert

Funniest comment I saw on this group: “Who seasoned this man’s chicken?” Seriously, in these days fraught with political sensitivities, is a group like this doing homage to the great blues and soul artists of yore, or merely engaging in "cultural appropriation"? Whatever they are doing, they're not faking it. What do you think?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6vpXX5BjltM

 

Gary Clark, Jr. (suggested by Robert A.) “If Trouble was Money”

I was lamenting the passing of all the great old Black blues musicians, and Robert pointed me to a couple of younger ones who are still keeping the flame lit.  Here is Gary Clark, Jr. doing a cover of the Albert Collins classic, stripped down to its essentials. Eric Zapata adds an anguished, distorted solo that fits the song perfectly. It’s the most traditional of blues, and yet thoroughly modern.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?app=desktop&v=xH_Z8xb2gvs

Favorite new artists? Here is one of mine

I'll be coming back to more of your recommendations.  Meanwhile, here is one of my favorite bands founded last decade.  Jinjer are a Ukrainian group formed in 2010.  Their instrumental foundation is a simple power-trio format (drums, bass, guitar), but they bring a rare level of musicianship, something akin to mid-1970’s King Crimson.  They play a dense mix of bass and guitar leads over jazz-infused drumming.  Floating above it all is one of my favorite vocalists of this or any time.   

Personnel: 

Tatiana Shmailyuk (Vocals)

Roman Ibramkhalilov (Guitar)

Eugene Abdukhanov (Bass)

Vladislav Ulasevich (Drums)

 

 

“Pisces” (studio live one-take)

I included this in an earlier post, for International Women’s Week, but if you didn’t see it then, it’s worth seeing now.  This is the youtube video that broke them to the world outside Ukraine, and also a good introduction to the group because the mix lets you hear each member of the band clearly.  Tati wrote this song about her own battles with depression and inner conflict.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SQNtGoM3FVU

 

 

Teacher, Teacher (official video, with footage of live shows)

This is a protest song, in several movements.  It features the band playing with multiple time signatures and Tati transitioning fluidly among three different styles of vocals.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oRkRwL0vjOg

 

 

“Judgement and Punishment”  (studio one-take)

Do reggae and metal go together? Of course. Here Tati dons the Jamaican colors to honor the home of reggae.  As one person said, "This song makes me want to break into someone's house and water their flowers".

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q5rg_63Shqg