Rolling Teenpop 2007 Thread

Specifically: The reviewer does a lot of lyrical analysis, likes the wordplay in the lyrics, and the depth in the lyrics, and talks about their feminism.

Only problem is where he says that it's OK to listen to it 'cause the girls wrote or co-wrote every song on the album. (and implies that it's not OK to listen to music which the artist did not write or co-write)

And he gets Antonina Armato's name wrong, and he thinks of the early Michael Jackson '80s as an "innocent" time (sometimes you wonder how it is that culture critics managed to graduate kindergarten), but he's got a good ear for the music and the lyrics. Ken Tucker is a long-time smart guy; the "not record-company puppets" thing is a lazy way to say that, look, Aly & A.J. had a lot to do with what this album is about. I'd assume his thoughts on the issue are smarter than that line makes him seem, but he should be smarter still, smart enough not to take that line at all.

(Also, feminism is a stretch.)

New Skye: <a href="http://youtube.com/watch?v=1XRbsb2RbpU";>Music Is My Boyfriend</a>. This album's gonna be all over the place and 1x total mess, but I'm still pretty excited for it.

Bah, Music Is My Boyfriend

Another thing about Aly & A.J.'s video strategy for "Potential Breakup Song" and "Chemicals React": By choosing to make the subject of those vids the girls' performance and creativity, the video makers [which I assume include Aly & A.J.] keep boys off the screen - in other words, they keep the objects of their own sexual desire out, evade the issue that the songs like "Chemicals React" and "Blush" are specifically about, and that "Potential Breakup Song" suggests subterraneously (the narrator sneaks in the point at the end that she really doesn't want a breakup): it's the girls own chemicals that are doing a big part of the reacting.

I suspect their evangelical Christianity has something to do with this evasion, but the term "evangelical Christianity" covers (up?) a whole range of nonmonolithic doctrine and behavior, and I don't want to stereotype the girls, especially given that the songs themselves aren't evasive ("we cannot deny how we feel inside"). I talk about some of this in my column this week.

Hey hey hey, Amy Diamond has a new single out "Is It Love?". This single was released almost a month ago and I just found out about it now! If this thread was like last year's, I would have known about it instantly :(.

Anyways, it's only OK, a bit of a disappointment, though I've only heard it once or twice so maybe it'll be a grower. I like the bridge. The full album is out in November.

The Veronicas are definitely twins, possibly poor video editors.

Speaking of the Veronicas, they played "4ever" in the gym as I was working out yesterday. Weird.

Music Is My Boyfriend, now with excellent <a href="http://youtube.com/watch?v=pQ20JosnbwQ";>batshit video</a>.

Gah, BATSHIT VIDEO.

Brie Larson is sick of Myspace. She is now on Blogspot.

MAN UNKIND

The new Carrie Underwood was underwhelming on first listen, but I'll certainly try again, since I like her.

The Veronicas' new alb, Hook Me Up, has no "4ever" but overall is vastly better than their first. Same probs as always (their two basic vocal styles are (1) a thin piercing wail and (2) a thin subdued wail, and lyrics add nothing interesting to the themes of wanting sex, wanting a man, wanting to get rid of the man, and hating the man) but melodies are good and arrangements even better, baroquely restless, confessional synth-rock dance, and the twins actually do break vocal patterns a few times: some nominal metal moves where they go Lita Fordish and a great, totally unexpected moment of angry agonized Kelly Clarkson phlegm-shrieking vengeance in "This Is How It Feels" where, damn, they're gonna tell the fucker how it feels. And a great Ciara-worthy line in "Popular": "My name is my credit card."

In livejournal news, the following interchange took place on poptimists in regard to Roxette:

zenith:
Not enough love for 'Sleeping In My Car', which features my favourite euphemistic use of the word "bless" ever (and pre-dates the same usage in hip hop?):

Sleeping in my car, I will undress you
Sleeping in my car, certainly bless you

Roxette were oddly obsessed with cars and driving.

offensive_mango:
Maybe the person sneezes when they get undressed because they catch a cold.

stevem78:
i thought it was 'suddenly press' you. she is talking to the trousers he's just taken off.

Off-topic, maybe I should bring this to Poptimists, but I like raising things here better. This relates a bit to the lengthy ILX thread on Sasha Frere-Jones recent New Yorker article

http://community.livejournal.com/poptimists/461829.html">Poptimists-http://community.livejournal.com/poptimists/461829.html

Frank Kogan--I'd say that the basic split is the old one of boho versus mainstream, but in this instance the mainstream - the U.S. Top 40 (incl. Fergie and Justin, for instance) - is crawling w/ "miscegenation," and to the extent that what SFJ is pointing out is even true, it's the indie guys who are resisting the commandment to dance. But my point is that this split isn't necessarily upper-middle vs. others, but rather upper-middle-niche-bohos-who-are-rapidly-being-accepted vs. mainstream, and the mainstream itself has its divisions between preps (who I'm guessing - emphasize the word "guess" - are veering emo and indie these days) and skaters etc. (who I'm guessing are going pretty emo these days)(mmm). Btw, the social reasons to resist the commandment to dance are kind of understandable.)”

Frank, do you think today's indie rock kids who are not into dancing are any greater in percentage than in 1976 or 1981 or 1993 or whatever kids that we could analogize are their boho equivalent? And why, if so? And do you think bohos always more adverse to dancing than teenpoppers (in whatever era be they preps or skater kids, American top 40 radio listeners--painting here in a broad brush stroke ala Sasha's indie-rockers that includes both beat-using LCD and non-funky beat using groups)? I haven't really researched this but am curious what you and others think.

do the bump

Steve, I should make it clear that I was responding to Carl Wilson's Slate piece, not SFJ's thing, which I haven't gotten a chance to read. Carl was specifically talking about a certain type of indie that - I take it - SFJ was bringing up. There are definitely bohemian-types who dance to house and techno and progeny, and the term "indie dance" gets bandied about, probably in relation to the Gossip and the Kooks and the Pipettes etc.; the Swede dancepop that resonates w/ Brit and Murrican critics - Annie, Robyn, Linda Sundblad, the Teddybears' STHLM gang - tends to veer left, and then there's M.I.A. and Klaxons etc. etc. What I think we get with bohemian alienation isn't a particular aversion to dance so much as it's not wanting the mainstream dance-dating-popularity thing rammed down your throat.

The point I was making was in relation to Carl identifying a subset of indie with upper-middle-class liberal-arts knowledge workers as a class. My problem with Carl's formulation is that he was talking about this in relation to what he sees as a growing disparity between economic classes, whereas to my mind indie kids aren't differentiating themselves from the working class but from other middle class kids, the ones who aren't indie. And of course there's never a strict correlation between who you seem to be and what you listen to...

So, nobody has talked about the Megan McCauley album on Wind-Up yet? Or did I just miss it? Either way, I like the record a lot. "Tap That" is by far the best song, and my press release says it's going to be the first official "single," too, which means I can put it on my 2007 top ten this year; everything else on the album lacks a sense of humor in comparison, but Megan's emotion almost makes up for it in a lot of cases. Mainly I get the idea she's going for the Evanescence/Flyleaf pop-dark-metal angst crowd, or maybe what's left of the Alanis (in "I Realize")/Pink (in "See Through") shemo angst crowd. Second best song, which I know I've also heard people talk about before (I assume it was up on her myspace ages ago?), is probably the closer "I'll Pay You To Shoot Him," where she hires somebody (as near as I can tell) to kill her dad; hence, a cross between "Janie's Got a Gun" and "Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap," though the riff comes from Nirvana. As do the riffs in most of her other best songs. (With Aly & AJ's "Bullseye," teen-poppers stealing Nirvana riffs is clearly a trend this year, assuming Megan has ever really counted as teen-pop.) Anyway, most of the other Nirvana swipeage, which (especially in opener "Migraine," where her vocal reminds me of the guy in Placebo) is way more tuneful than I'd have guessed, happens in the first few songs: The album opens really solid. A few cuts are kinda bleh, and I cringe when she makes her Norah Jones (or whatever) nostalgic-grownup-music move in "Porcelain Doll," but it's still nice that she attempted it I suppose.

Tried listening to the Naked Brothers album, too. Didn't get all the way through it, though I like the British invasion tuneage of "Taxi Cab", and some of the other melodies (in the fake reggae "Crazy Car" for instance) vaguely remind me of Abba/Boney M Europop (though nowhere near that good.) Sometimes I'm convinced a grown woman is singing instead of an adolescent boy, but closer "Alien Clones" is clearly a seven-year-old-ish kid saying he's going to feed snakes and spiders to his annoying older brother--kind of cute the first time through though I'm not sure what alien clones have to do with his brother. And the Coldplay or whatever attempt in "L.A." is pretty wretched, and lots of the rest is just dull.

Xhuxk, I had the impression that Megan was trying to disown "Tap That," but then again she seems to be trying to disown her parents, too, so maybe this is a general habit of hers. I interpreted "I'll Pay You To Shoot Him" as her telling a cop who's come to break up a domestic disturbance that she'll pay him to shoot her dad, the perpetrator of the disturbance.

I didn't know the album was out. The promo single that has "Shoot Him" is at least two years old.

her Norah Jones (or whatever) nostalgic-grownup-music move in "Porcelain Doll,"

Ha, this is the one she sang on "Dr. Phil."

British invasion tuneage of "Taxi Cab", and some of the other melodies

I liked what I heard of Naked Brothers Band (two or three songs), but I didn't know they had a full-length album out. Are they being promoted at all, like, as a band? Miley and Jonas are in the Billbaord Top 20, NBB never cracked 20 and are currently at 74. I'd bet from your description that NBB's batting average is about the same as Jonas Bros., half dull, a few wretched tracks, one or three worth keeping -- Jonas Bros. appeal has decreased considerably since Nick's voice changed and they decided never to attempt "Mandy" again.

"Crazy Car" was tested on Radio Disney but didn't really go anywhere, seem to remember hearing at least one other song ("Taxi Cab" maybe) somewhere (probably Youtube).

And speaking of stuff I didn't know about, Katy Rose has a new album available thru CDBaby and iTunes -- it's darker/weirder than her first one (and more consistent, I think). Goes disco at the end, goes dance throughout. Lower rent production all around (I think these are basically demos she's written since her first one came out).

Hoku's new album is sophisticatedish dance-pop/R&B, very personalityless.

Skye's new album is out in Canada, haven't gotten a copy yet but listened once. Pro: not a disaster, con: trying too hard. But I think there are probably enough good songs on there to consider it basically successful. Probably won't sell given the release so far -- maybe she will go back into the basement w/o pros and not fuss so much over some of her ideas. More when I give it a better listen.

Miley and Jonas are in the Billbaord Top 20, NBB never cracked 20 and are currently at 74.

They are being promoted decently, but NBB are Nickelodeon, Miley & Jonas are Disney. When music is concerned, that makes a huge difference.

Jordin Sparks: s/t
"Tattoo"
"One Step at a Time"
"No Air" (featuring Chris Brown)
"Freeze"
"Shy Boy"
"Now You Tell Me"
"Next to You"
"Just for the Record"
"Permanent Monday"
"Young and in Love"
"See My Side"
"God Loves Ugly"
"This Is My Now" (Bonus Track)
"Worth the Wait"

It's like Good Girl Gone Bad 'cause "Tattoo" sounds kinda similar to "Umbrella" and "No Air" will soon replace "Hate That I Love You." Also, "Freeze" sounds sorta like "Question Existing" (but not as good).

Robyn wrote "See My Side." In my heart, I feel responsible for this (see, when I met her this summer, I gave her a mix cd with songs to inspire this album, and I circled two Robyn tracks and put a note about her history/awesome songwriting ability...I did the same thing with Annie, but she didn't work on the album), and I'm happy with the results.

http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b361/tapestore/sadface.jpg

Bullshit!

I mean, I'd rather she say, "I've only been asked by this one loser" than that.

So, uh, that Lil Mama album...

Hahahahahahaha!

So your campaign to turn her into a hipster was partially successful, your campaign to go out with her, less so.

;_;

She took my Converse and left my heart.

That didn't actually take me a half an hour.

No britney discussion yet?

I think the album is solid but not spectacular. Surprisingly, the strongest track is the confessional, tabloid-bashing "Piece of Me." Surprising because I didn't suspect that this sort of song would work from Britney, since reality has never been a part of her better songs.

The New Kylie is better. I actually prefer the earlier demo of "In My Arms" that leaked a few months back (they teased the hook longer), but all the songs I liked in demo form are still great. In typical Kylie form, the "bonus tracks" are a blast- "I don't know what it is" is the kind of inspirational, driving pop rock she's so good at.

and come on, Jordin is hot. Boys know this. But they also know she's way into Jesus, and probably super high-maintenance.

Commentary by a couple of teenpop thread regulars...Frank and Tom on the album. And I wrote about it all over the place (except here).

Amy Diamond's new single w/ Max Martin deserves a mention, I think (h/t Jessica Poptastic). I think this is the closest he's come to old-school Max since...what, 2002 or before? And weirdly, I think Amy might have had more of an influence on him than he had on her.

Ummmmmm other things. Keke Palmer's album is officially underrated teenpop album of the year, I think (other contenders? Megan McCauley? Lil' Mama -- haven't even heard this yet, woops). I'm going to put it (Keke) in my Top Ten just because no one else will.

Feel the opposite Matt, think that Britney's alb is spectacular but not...solid. It's uneasy, there's something a little off about it. I dunno.

Britney had her own thread.

The Teenpop thread bows to no one.

Publicist: Jordin, if you mention that Tape Store kid one more time, I swear, I'm walking straight out of here.

Jordin (in whiny voice): But I want to go with him...

Publicist: Tell the newspapers no one asked you. We're still working on your virgin image.

Britney just forged past Miranda Lambert as my number two album of the year. Both Brit and Miranda are hitting my Velvet Underground buttons.

I wonder what Jordin would think of Stacey Q?

Keke Palmer album looked promising if you can judge a book by its cover, I thought; isn't it supposed to have one song that applies to that newfangled Chicago subgenre that Kelefa talks about sometimes -- juke or whatever it's called? But anyway, I haven't heard the record -- along with Skye Sweetnam, the Venonicas, Britney Spears, Hanna Montana, Rihanna, Kelly Clarkson, Kate Nash, and High School Musical 2, it falls into the category "teenpop-associated 2007 albums there's a very good chance I might like but I haven't got ahold of a copy yet and I've been too lazy and/or busy to seek one out."

I do like "It's My Turn Now," Keke's track on the Jump In! compilation (which I finally, after it's been out for like 11 months or something, got around to paying attention to this week), but I like it more for the background party voices than for Keke herself, I think. Good album, though. (The soundtrack, I mean.) Favorite track is probably the J-Faddish electro-girl bubble-rap "Gotta Lotta" by Prima J, whoever she is (anybody know?), followed by "Jump To The Rhythm" by Jordan Pruitt (whose own album really hold up and looks like it may actually squeak its way into my year-end top 10 as things stand now) and the double-dutching Kris Kross update (but not cover) "Jump" by Lil Josh. (Three songs about jumping on the album -- four if you count "Go! [Jump In mix]" by Jupiter Rising, which has cute gang-shout-type things that go "go! go! go!.") "Let It Go" by Kyle is a sweet, vulnerable gospel-pop closer; "I'm Ready" by Drew Seeley has more aerobic electro beats underneath. Anyway, what do other people think of this album? Tried to search, but looks like it was barely discussed on this thread...

(Maybe I should add Jordin Sparks to that might-like-if-I-heard -them list too, come to think of it. Frank, are you saying she's Stacey Q-like? If so, how?)

And I meant J-J-Faddish, obviously.

(among other typos.)

(As of now, I have no Jordin Sparks opinion at all. As for Kelly, Britney, and Rihanna, I've liked but not loved what I've heard from their albums, which is one reason my motivation has been a bit lacking.)

Prima J (Wiki sez Mexican-American duo based in California discovered by a Wild Orchid member who isn't Fergie) was on the Bratz soundtrack linked a few months ago, Rockstar. Haven't heard "Jump In."

Keke is kinda scattershot, but I really like about half of it. Kinda dug the Soulja Boy album I just got (there's a pretty good teenpop-friendly track on there about yelling YAAAAAAH in someone's face when they won't leave you alone, also I saw a couple of kids doing the Soulja Boy the other day, not nearly as easy as the Chicken Noodle Soup).

They even go so far as to affectionately refer to each other as “chilosa", a made-up word that they feel defines Prima-J: two sassy, classy, spicy and feisty girls. They may be the girls next door, but they’re also fun and fearless, with an independent spirit and deep sense of inner confidence.

Soulja Boy LP was okay; not as good as the Shop Boyz or Pack LPs (or Rich Boy or Crime Mob LPs) (or Pack EP, which is better than their LP) (or the Webstar LP with "Chicken Noodle Soup" on it for that matter) (didn't get around to absorbing the new Pitbull or Federation LPs yet), though. I did think the song at the end of the Soulja Boy album, about how parents shouldn't be mad just 'cause all the kids only want to talk about Soulja Boy these days, was somewhat amusing though. (And Soulja Boy's album is no worse than Hurricane Chris's.) And yeah, it's fun watching teenagers do the Soulja Boy dance on the subway -- especially the "superman" part, though the youtube videos where people substitute other super-heroes (such as for instance "we don't superman no mo/we just spiderman that ho") are pleasingly goofy too.

How is the Lloyd album? ("You" featuring Lil Wayne will probably make my top ten singles.) I never got around to hearing that album, or the new Ne-Yo album either, for that matter. (I liked Ne-Yo's first one.)

And oh yeah, does the Lil Mama album actually even exist? It kept getting pushed back, but I've seen no evidence that it's actually out. I really need to hear that one, seeing how she's got my two fave singles of the year (as in "Lip Gloss" and the remix of Avril's "Girlfriend" with her on it.)

Mira Craig's "Leo" and Dragonette's "I Get Around" (both burned for me by Frank, as was "You" actually) will probably make my top ten singles list, too. I have no idea who either of them are, really; I think AMG compared Dragonette to the Scissors Sisters, which suggest maybe I should avoid their other stuff.

Also never heard Cupid's album, come to think of it; I doubt it's very good (and "Cupid Shuffle", though I like it, won't make my top 10), but who knows?

And with another one of my likely top-ten-list teen-rap choices (D.B.’z featuring E-40's "Stewy" from Hyphy Hitz), I'd very much like to know if anybody has any concrete evidence that it was ever actually a single (i.e., an airplay song, ringtone, whatever.) Though I'll probably vote for it anyway.

Just vote for Hyphy Hitz, that's what I'm doing. (And use your token hyphy singles slot for Mistah F.A.B.'s "Ghost Ride It". C'mon, I need backup.)

But Hyphy Hitz is not good enough! (Rap album of the year, obviously, but it still does not pass the "can be played from beginning to end" test.)

Jordan Pruitt now vying for Kid Rock for # 10 spot on my album list. I am thinking that maybe I should give Kid the benefit of the doubt affirmative-action-wise for being a talented guy in a year of talented girls (seeing how Taylor Swift, Miranda Lambert, the Gore Gore Girls, and Aly & AJ -- not to mention the Sirens and Little Big Town and the Motel Lovers Southern soul compilation, all of likely mixed-gender persuasion) are likely the make my list. On the other hand, the Sirens and Gore Gore Girls might make my list a bit too Detroit-heavy, which would work against Kid Rock's favor. (Jordan might be helped a bit if my copy of her CD actually had a CD cover on it, which would give me more of an idea of her personality. But alas, it is only an advance.) (She did push Lily Allen out of the running, though.)

I don't understand the Jordan Pruitt album at all. Maybe it's just that I keep getting stuck on "Outside Looking In," but it's way too mopey and sad-sack for me. Jordan Pruitt = the indie artist of teenpop?

Contrast to Aly + AJ, Britney, Hannah, or even Taylor Swift, all of whom have an explosion of: exuberant explosive emotion - snarling disgust - youthful wide-eyed naivety - lyrical heartbreak. Like, Pruitt is pretty music, but pretty stripped bare, and like my problem with Paris last year, she doesn't sell her emotions at all. "I'm sick of wasting all my time," she breaths out as though she can barely bother to articulate the sensation (or worst, that she believes that exasperation is a great interpretation.)

Mirroring the thread on Frank's blog, I think I've found out this year that I need music that risks something (or, alternatively, to revive a buzz word that always slips definition; that feels authentic). And Jordan definitely doesn't do it. But I'm posting this because I'm hoping someone can make the opposite argument. Cause I want to hear what you all are hearing. (I didn't like Taylor Swift the first time I heard her, but you guys converted me in February.)