Music

Top 5 Pop Releases: January

by Aaron Zorgel

Each month, tons of new music from many taste-spanning genres is released into a fast-consuming, unforgiving market; it can be tough to get a handle on what’s new before it’s on to the next. In an attempt to highlight the standout releases, at the end of each month, AUX staff re-cap the month in Metal, Indie/Pop/Rock, Hip Hop, and Pop with the top five releases in each. Consider it your cheat sheet for year-end lists.

Top 5 Pop Tracks:
January

M.I.A. – Bad Girls

Many media outlets (including the almighty and ubitquitous hippily-dippily almanac Pitchfork) trashed Mathangi “Maya” Arulpragasam’s last anti-pop outing (titled Maya, or if you’re really into ASCII, / \ / \ / \ Y / \).  In retrospect, maybe they were right to — I can’t recall a single track from the album, singles or otherwise. M.I.A. hasn’t effectively breached the pop radio waves since 2007 smasher “Paper Planes,” and “Bad Girls” hints at her hunger for a hit far more than anything off of Maya. It’s a palatable and catchy albeit repetitive joint with quirky electro production from American record producer Danja. Danja’s recent notable credits include the #1 Keri Hilson hit “Knock You Down” and “Work” by Ciara. His radio ready production style meshes well with M.I.A.’s freaky tendencies, and makes for an interesting listen. It won’t come close to “Paper Planes,” but I don’t think even Pitchfork could condemn this banger.

Chris Brown – Turn Up The Music

Ok, yes, he’s an asshole. But this asshole just keeps pumping out undeniable hits, not unlike the way a literal asshole pumps out… I’ll stop myself there. This song is destined for the top spot on the Hot 100. As the lead single from Brown’s upcoming 5th studio album Fortune, this house-inspired dance track boasts production from seasoned R&B production duo The Underdogs. Stuttering synths are the focus musically, and a danceable house beat (that Breezy will undoubtedly bust some gravity defying moves to) makes it really hard for anyone to protest the viability of this song on today’s pop charts.

Jennifer Hudson & Ne-Yo – Think Like A Man feat. Rick Ross

I didn’t think I would be the type of guy to jam a song specifically penned for a movie written by Steve Harvey on the regular, but hey, here we are. This is your prototypical moody R&B ballad, but here’s where it gets somewhat incestuous. 1. The movie features your neighbourhood bad-boy Chris Brown starring as “Alex.” 2. Coincidentally, this track was actually written and produced by H-Money,  a producer that worked extensively on Brown’s 2011 record “F.A.M.E.” So when H-Money isn’t making beats for Breezy to sing on & dance to, he’s making beats for soundtracks that Chris Brown can ACT to. I digress, this shouldn’t be all about Brown. J-Hud and Ne-Yo sing so beautifully together on this emotional exchange between two troubled lovers. I’m not sure if I agree with the lyrical message necessarily (“When you in love, you have to act like a woman / But think like a man.”), but there’s something about this groove that hits me hard. I guess I’m getting emotional in my mid-to-late twenties. It’s ok — there’s a Ricky Rozay verse that makes me feel a little bit less soft.

Santigold – Big Mouth

Santigold has always been blessed/plagued with comparisons to M.I.A., and this song will be no different. The song opens with a recognizable sample from “Pon De Floor,” a beat popularized by M.I.A. collaborators Diplo & Switch (a.k.a. Major Lazer) in 2009. Somehow the sample isn’t done to death just yet, and Santigold gives us a strange pop song, complete with sound effects, glitchy synth lines, and afro-caribbean percussion. It kind of sounds like M.I.A., yes — but isn’t there room enough for two freaky-deaky world music inspired songstresses right now? Based on the two songs I’ve written about this month, both of these ladies are a welcome presence in my daily listening. Watch for Santigold’s sophomore EP Master of My Make-Believe, due out Spring 2012.

Rick Ross – Rich Forever

John Legend’s glorious baritone is an influential, magical instrument. When he screams out “We gon’ be rich forever!” during the choruses on this track,  for a moment I actually believe that the “we” is inclusive of me. I forget about my educational debt, and my puny bank account, and I am finally a part of the Maybach Music empire. The title track from Ricky Rozay’s mixtape is an excessively aggrandizing song in lyrical concept, but the dramatic swelling string/piano arrangement on the instrumental gives the end product a strangely melancholic tone. For my money, it’s the strongest track on the mixtape, and it’s solid enough to be an album track. That makes me even more excited for what the Bawse has in store for us on God Forgives, I Don’t.

Surprises, disappointments and tracks/albums to watch for next month

Surprise of the month:Rhi-Rhi and Chris Brown hooking up again. Tsk tsk. Good girl gone bad, gone reckless.

Disappointments: All the hate for Lana Del Ray. Get it, girl.

Out in February: Albums by Estelle, Tyga, and The Fray.