Afrojack - The Spark (ft. Spree Wilson)

"We've all got the spark tonight"

There is SO much EDM out at the moment. It's getting really hard to stand out and, quite frankly, for me to care. Since the production tends to be pretty standard throughout the genre, for me to be interested I need to either hear a great melody or a charismatic vocal. This track has both of those. Spree Wilson, the vocal on this, delivers a performance that for whatever reason reminds me of the nineties. I love the rap/singing hybrid and the organic sound of his vocals over the highly produced instrumental. It helps that the song itself is very memorable from the first listen. It could've worked just as well as a straight up pop or alternative track. Oh, and also... how can you possibly not love the name "Spree"?



(Music posted for evaluation purposes only. Buy the album here. Follow me on twitter and facebook.

Tove Styrke - Even If I'm Loud It Doesn't Mean I'm Talking To You

"Sophisticated ain't helping you to do the dance"

Tove Styrke was a contestant on the second season of Swedish Idol that I watched (season 6?) and I absolutely adored her. Honestly, no reality show spits out stars with as much reliability as Swedish Idol. It helps that Sweden has an excellent framework for up and coming pop stars, what with Melodifestivalen and all. But Tove has always been a little different than her peers. She's certainly no cookie-cutter fill-in-the-blank pop starlet. She's cool, like fellow swede Robyn is cool. And it's such a treat to hear new music from her. Her new track, the impossibly long-titled Even If I'm Loud It Doesn't Mean I'm Talking To You, is a bit jarring at first. It's more bratty Ting Tings/Avril Lavigne chant-pop than her older, icier synth-drenched music. If I'm being honest, I'm not quite sure what I think about it yet. It seemed so repetitive upon first listen, but I'm already beginning to unearth little things in the production and lyrics that are impressing me. We'll see. Either way, it's amazing to have her back (finally!).



(Music posted for evaluation purposes only. Buy the single here. Follow me on twitter and facebook.

MNEK - Every Little Word

"Please make sure I never stray"

When I first heard this song on the radio, I felt like the voice was very familiar. It took me forever to figure it out, but then I realized that MNEK's vocals (in this song at least) sound quite similar to Ola Svensson. His music's not all that similar, but it's oddly what piqued my interest initially. Now, looking past that, there's no denying that this is an amazing summer pop song, bound for great things on the charts (if there's any justice). Personally, I can't get enough of that squiggly synth flourish throughout the verses. It kind of reminds me of the kind of thing a modern-day Prince would release if he were just starting out. And I don't throw around that kind of praise lightly!



(Music posted for evaluation purposes only. Buy the single here. Follow me on twitter and facebook.

Sebastian Komor - Game Of Thrones Theme (EDM Industrial Version)

Sorry for the long break! I usually try to get a post in at least four out of the five week days, but plans got in the way towards the end of last week. Another problem, of course, is that new music tends to come in waves. I've always striven to post only music that I absolutely love, not just what's popular or what's passed on to me through email and other media. I also try not to post songs that everybody else has already written about, unless I absolutely adore them. Add the fact that I'm a RIDICULOUSLY picky listener, and it's a wonder that I manage to keep up with my own quota of 4-5 posts a week! That being said, I expect to hear a ton of new music in the next couple of weeks that I'll end up loving.

For today, I'm going to post a song that won't be on any radio playlists, but is actually really awesome. In the past few months, I have well and truly jumped on the Game Of Thrones bandwagon. I am obsessed. It's also got a kickass theme song, which is suitably epic. While searching online, I found this amazing remix of the theme, which really just beefs up the original with a bit of a dance/industrial/symphonic bent. If possible, it makes it even more epic (epic-er?). It almost sounds like Trans-Siberian Orchestra doing a cover version. Whether you watch the show or not, you'll want to give this a listen. Prepare to be impressed.



(Music posted for evaluation purposes only. Buy the actual soundtrack here. Follow me on twitter and facebook