Rolling Teenpop 2006 Thread

GROUP SOUNDS -- "The only unsigned band to appear on the Fuse Network's Daily Download" toes the same dance-oriented '80s haircut-pop line as the Killers, Bravery, Hot Hot Heat, etc., and is hence as necessary as a hole in your head.

KITTY KAT DIRT NAP -- Handclappy indie fivesome from Philly, with a powerpop-to-Cars-to-Pixies bounce, a Dead Milkmen-nasal emo boy dueting with a squeaky girly, and silly song titles that mention Van Halen, Phil Collins, Tony Danza, Sparklemotion, Java Scripts, and breath mints. Every one of the nine titles on their amusingly robot-veteranarian-artworked CD has a parentheses in its title.

TAPPING THE VEIN -- A missing link between the already forgotten Drain S.T.H. and Evanescence who've yet to hit even as big as the former, these Philadelphians have never quite been beautiful, danceable, goofy, or German enough to pull off their black-clad Siouxsie-lookalike-led post-industrial power-ballad goth-shlock, though their 2002 album *The Damage* does at least start to soar at points. Tonight they headline an "electro-rock festival."

E.g. those London FAPs, and Ally's wedding.

Record of the Day - 19 April 2006
"LDN" by Lily Allen
Regal, Contact: Katherine Parrott, EMI - +44 (0)20 7605 5377
Release: 24 April (7
When a thread about Lily Allen was started on our messageboard, it provoked reaction and discussion, which good music always does. LDN is a fantastic summer record, packed with humour and that infectious ska-pop tune. This is gaining momentum in all the right places with Radio 1 support from Jo Whiley, a 6Music single of the week spot, and number 1 on Music Week's playlist. Signed by Jamie Nelson to Regal, this is feelgood music par excellence. Tipped by 'the_don'. JF London Gig: 4 May at Notting Hill Arts Club

and oh yeah (i keep remembering more reasons not to like it!), i like the IDEA of having conversations with one's 13-year-old self (though I've literally blocked most of my own age 13 from my memory), but the way Pink does it just hits me as really heavy-handed and clunky, for some reason. I mean, we don't even find out what her 13-year-old self's favorite foods or TV shows were, for Christ's sake! And I know, like Frank says, specifics like that are not a requirment in music, and only country and hip-hop tend to come up with them anyway, but here they would really really help us *care* about 13-year-old Pink. I dunno...maybe I need to go back to the two songs Frank recommended in his post up above, before I blow up.

From the blurb:
Recorded by producer Jeff Saltzman (The Killers) and James Michael (Alanis Morrissette, Motley Crue), the band wanted to evolve their sound and get back in touch with their rock 'n' roll roots. Completely enamored by '80s music and classic rock, Lillix were crossing their fingers and toes that the producer of the Killers' multi-platinum smash Hot Fuss would take a chance on them. "We sort of thought [Saltzman] would brush us off as not being 'hip' enough, but he really liked what he heard and said yes to the gig," says Burns. As for the girls hand with this, in addition to writing the material on the record, they are also credited for their production services.

To me, it's not doing much. The chorus doesn't soar the way I need from this kind of song - the yelled lines keep the range lower, it doesn't ever take flight, you know?

Putting aside the words to "Stupid Girls," which I've already talked about too much, the song is a medium-good r&b track.

In the verses of "Long Way to Happy" she plays deft handball with passing techno spazz-sounds, and the chorus is a good approximation of Bon Jovi in his Max Martin mode. (Interestingly enough, this isn't one of the Martin-Gottwald tracks.) Gets kinda boring in the break, though.

"I'm Not Dead" is another imitation Shanks or Martin style (again, no Martin on it), and lifts to a good Shanks & DioGuardi–style wailing finale (which, honestly - and I mean this every time I say it - would be better with Lindsay Lohan singing it, would have more pang and more juice [more pang and Tang?]). Also, the musical-comedy over-expressiveness when she goes to the "I'm not dead" part is actually funny.

"'Cuz I Can" is very good, my second favorite on the album, a stomp and a hoedown on the verse which leads to a really tuneful John and Kara–type thing that this time is Martin & Gottwald. Also there's a part of it where she seems to be chanting either "Ice cream ice cream we all want ice cream" or "high school high school want high school," though I don't think it's either. (The lyrics do a double attitude towards a parody fantasy of bling-style showoff that she wants/doesn't want, though she doesn't pull off her mixed attitude nearly as well here as on "I Got Money Now." In fact, she's downright confusing.)

"U + Ur Hand" calls to mind the Veronicas at their very best, given that it's a blatant copy of the Veronicas at their very best. It's not nearly as good as the Veronicas at their very best, but it sure calls them to mind. And on its own merits it's reasonably enjoyable, even if - as David Moore (no relation) points out - it ends up as something of a mess.

And "I Got Money Now" is a great song, the one where she doesn't sound as if she's thrashing around in search of a style, the one where the r&b and the emotionality never seem forced, where the contradictions don't seem like obvious irony but really do point to mixed feelings: she's worked so hard not to need people, and now she doesn't need them, but she does... well, I'm making it sound stupid, but it's not; there's both a triumph and a loneliness in not having to care what other people think of you.

(Also, you can think of "I Got Money Now" as a rebellion against the shorty-can-pay-her-own-rent platitudes of 1999's "Most Girls," which she didn't write and which could well be the sort of song she aimed her 2001 rebellion against.)

And "Runaway" is OK, and the duet with dad is touching and it's a pretty good song as well.

I feel absolutely no guilt about despising "Dear Mr. President." Calling the guy out on the results of his policies is one thing, inventing attitudes for him that he doesn't hold is another, and it doesn't help that the melody is a drag.

Each member of Girl Authority also has her own distinctive personality and sings a solo track in her unique style. Country Girl loves country music; Party Girl is always up for a good time; Rock-n-Roll Girl has a fun-loving wild side; Urban Girl adores city life; Preppy Girl is a cute schoolgirl; Boho Girl has all-natural flair; Glamour Girl is a young sophisticate; Fashion Girl is crazy for clothes; and All-Star Girl loves sports. From soul to country, r&b to rock 'n' roll, classic favorites to pop hits of today. Girl Authority has a song - and a girl - for everyone!

These are not my definitive comments on "Let U Go" either. Or maybe they are.

Also, I really see a difference within the 'sound' to do with the genre pitch and influences, so I'm looking for development within those threads rather than lump them all in together (which is tempting, I know); 'Behind these hazel eyes' was their goth-lite nod, and didn't do it for me the way 'End of Me' by Marion Raven does now, because Marion's bridge and the cellos are just amazing; the darkness BTHE way pitching for but somehow more visceral (although Kelly's vocal of course is great). Similarly, '4eva' was the Donnas nod, and I see it in a different strand to 'Let U Go' which in my head is the direct descendent of 'Just Want U To Know' - only of course, now shinier and newer and they've got the riff thrum influences of say, the Fall Out Boy material thrown in and acting more as the dominant force than the typical Backstreet Boy harmony style, which bodes well for that 'spin-off' direction.

So the way I see it, is that from 'Since U Been Gone' we're getting distinct derivatives, so that for each new 'generation' of the songs, they're honing the particulars that bit more.

http://cureforbedbugs.blogspot.com/

"Dave," (Dave Moore?) you have to be on this thread, right? Because here is the middle of your "recent music" list:

Marit Larsen - Under the Surface
Miranda! - Sin Restricciones
Hope Partlow - Who We Are
Marion Raven - Who I Am

ah...and jojo is and/or was not a grown up, i guess. but still. (alicia keys is not old, either, but she makes old people music anyway, and i have yet to hear a song by her i liked.)

also, um, they do not do a queen song! i meant "dancing queen" BY abba. (though on the subject of queen, my daughter says that a country girl on *american idol* did a great version of "bohemian rhapsody" during an all-queen tribute episode a couple weeks ago. i would love to see that; sounds wacky. does anybody know if she did the entire song??)

"Leave (Get Out)" is a good song - a great song, actually - and I think JoJo was age-eligible for Girl Authority when she recorded it. I agree that it's indistinguishible from "adult" r&b, but I'll also point out that some 13-year-olds do fuck around and then get pissed when you leave "her number on my phone" etc.

I've only played the first Girl Authority track and it's not pointless in that you have a bunch of different girls spelling out banana one after the other, which you don't get in the Gwen Stefani version.

But someone should do a girl group that's a cross between Girl Authority and Weird Al Yankovic.

xpost

http://www.villagevoice.com/music/0247,saunders,39983,22.html

By the way, has anyone here heard the first Destiny's Child CD, which they released when Beyoncé was 16? Sheffield once told me that he loved it.

OK, I just listened to the Girl Authority version of "Leave," and the thing is that, except for the girl who does the "oh-ohs" at the end, they might as well be reading the lyrics off a teleprompter for all the meaning and conviction they give the song. So it's just a weak performance, a bunch of kids singing a pop hit. Whereas Jo-Jo nails the song. Anyway, xhuxk, it might not be that the song feels disturbingly grown-up but that the kids sound disturbingly not-grown-up when they sing the "grown-up" lyrics. Whereas Jo-Jo may sound young but she doesn't sound like a kid, so I don't feel the cognitive dissonance in the sound. (Though for me, the Girl Authority version isn't disturbing, just thin.)

I'm still kicking myself for leaving "Leave" off my 2004 Pazz 'n' Jop ballot.

(But the Girl Authority "Hollaback Girl" really works, may be more bananas than the Gwen version, and less mannered in its bananasicity.)

Xpost I'm sure nameom has read everything Metal Mike's written for the Voice.

Pretty much. From that review:

Aaron Carter's older and Backstreet Nick's younger sister, Leslie Carter

Hasn't been mentioned but she's been making new music recently, available at her Myspace. (Type of Label: None)

(and also - -see above -- i really don't like that Amy Diamond hit all THAT much. I think it's okay -- a 7.5 or 8.0 on the old *Radio On* scale, I guess. And since we're now on the subject of songs-Frank-burned-for-me, I will now say that my favorite song so far on the Marion Raven album is "At the End of the Day" [is that the one with the Art Alexakis duet?], though most of it, for instance "For You I'll Die" and "Six Feet Under" [I just finished season five, I think, though they all run together when you have to wait for DVDs to hit Netflix] are fine, though I have barely listened to it so far and my opinions are fairly worthless. Clearly, However, "Ch!pz in Black" by Ch!pz blows pretty much the entire Marion album out the water. Also, "Complicated" by Bon Jovi wouldn't necessarily have been the *worst* song on *Slippery When Wet* had it been on there, but would've been close. Though it's pleasant.)

(and also, approximately 50 percent of all bubblegum songs in history, all the way back to the Archies and the Ohio Express, can be taken to be about oral sex. This is old news.)

I never thought I would be right where I am now getting ready for a showcase that I hope will change my life and bring me closer to all of my dreams. Doing this without my families help and unfortunatly without there love and support its been hard and at times I didnt want to continue on like this but I have realized that the only thing that keeps me going is all of my fans support throughout the years. You guys have been great to me, even just a friendly little reminder saying I can do it gets me through the day, I love yall. So many people want to know whats going on and I want everyone to know the truth because I hate LIARS but no one really likes a liar right? Anyway, I left my mom 3 months ago and it was hard to do but I had to. After my parents divorced my whole world changed and I had to take responsibility for myself. My mom was alone and I couldnt just leave her alone. Someone had to be there to help her heal and I love my mom no matter how confused she is...deep down she is a good person and no one should hate her. I have to continue on and be strong for myself now. I am up here in Canada all by myself...I havnt spoken to anyone of my family members in a while. No one answers my calls. I take care of myself and it sux but its for the best in the long run. Now I am not writing this so that anyone feels sorry for me believe me. I am just telling the truth and maybe I am doing a little healing myself...who knows. All I know is that with all the effort that you have inside you or you think you may have inside you, you have 100% more that you may not even know about or know you had. Doesnt matter what happens from here on out what matters is I am alive and I have the ability to make myself happy. As long as I dont let anyone get me down...thats the key!

Biopic to come?

Well, not a girl group, but there is Devo 2.0. Although, listening to the Girl Authority clips on iTunes, Girl Authority sound like crap (Chuck: "It would be better here if the girls's voices were more out of tune, i would think" - Indeed) and Devo 2.0 sound great.

(More Leslie Carter. Don't know if this is an inadvertent double post, as I keep getting poxy fuled.)

Well, I think you hit the nail on the head. It's like some perverted creep i holding a gun to their backs, forcing them to blankly recite grown-up words they don't understand, with no bubblegum in the corner of their mouths whatsoever. (Not that the song had much gum to begin with, apparently.) (also, remember, ohio express and archies songs *weren't* sung by teenagers. and neither were poison's, or the jesus and mary chain's, or ????'s. had the jackson five or osmonds had sung about oral sex, that may well have creeped me out, too.) (which is not to imply that the jojo song is about oral sex. if it is, i haven't noticed.)

Coming from a family of famous entertainers (Nick and Aaron Carter), Leslie is ready to showcase her dream of being a songwriter and entertainer. With her unique and exciting brand of Punk/Rock/Pop, come witness Leslie’s Showcase live at the Lions Den in NYC...Wright Stuff Management has brought you the Backstreet Boys, NSync, and Pink.

Also, her Myspace has since moved to this address, where it turns out she's doing some kind of reality show.

I just talked to my family and I am leaving Canada on March 31st to get ready for this reality show. I finally have more information on it and hopefully Nick gave me the correct info anyway its going to be on the E channel and we start filming June 1st. So up until then I will probably be getting into shape. I really dont know what I am actually getting myself into with all of this but at least it will be a fun expierience and hopefully it will bring my family closer together.

Sound Soldier, Music Is My Boyfriend, I'm in My Pink Bulldozer, and Gonna Knock You Over. Jeez, and they're selecting from 70 songs.

now all of you can get to hear my ongoing breakdown critical analysis of Mylie Cyrus aka Hanna Montana. ha hahaah just kidding.

actually the single sounds GREAT on the radio disney, altho on TV i thought it was lame...funny. boombox spkr radio > TV speaker

what're the BEST old 70's - 80's silver-face intergrated power amps? (at the flea markets or thrift stores).

i used to love my old PIONEER 100-watt, which eventually got stolen i guess. have made do with a dumb Kenwood and a Akai (?) for my two stereo amps. i need to upgrade.

i just bought (used) the Kelly Clarkson album, and the 100 watts of Kenwood power aren't getting it done. I need to make actual dents in the wall facing the 4 speakers (two bookcase Sonys as mega-tweeters, on top of two name brand thrift store floor speakers...total cost maybe $29) in order to do justice to Max Martin - Dr. Luke's productoin values and PLAYING VALUES.

"all instruments (excepting drums) played by = Max Martin and Dr. Luke (aka whatever his swedish name is"

let's just nickname them "DrMx" (as in Doctor Max")

they are the gods of modern rock

and Max is still my #1 musical hero of all time

does he shoot heroin like John Lennon?
burn his brain out like Brian Wilson, John Lennon?
fake dumb motorbike wrecks like Bob Dylan?
is a asshole who's mean to his younger brother like Ray Davies?

no!

Dr-Max shits on all of them.

c'mon, let's hear johnboy, surfer brian, bob or ray try to write, produce, AND PLAY ALL THE INSTUMENTS on "Behind These Hazel Eyes" / "Since U Been Gone."

man now i'm only 18+ months behind the "New Pop Generation" curve!

skye sweetnam needs to hook up with Dr/Max next time out (3rd album) d'you think? no duh.

oh and here is the link to Dave's very swell and huge long "underground radio 2006" article. yeah man kick the f'n jams for the kids! kick em out! kicked em out!

i'm stunned at how great hannah montana's voice sounds on the radio ( = pure country accent like her daddy Billy Ray). and how dorkwad she looks on TV. lose the Hilary Duff wig, girl! get a Mohawk or a mullet! anything but that stupid blondie wig!

great "underground radio 2006" cover feature article from the Ithaca Times. a must read for anyone who still thinks that (pick just one) Phil Spector, the Ohio Express, ABBA, Max Martin,

http://72.14.207.104/search?q=cache:T2KEnzr7jcMJ:cureforbedbugs.blogspot.com/2006/04/first-ever-lovemarks-photo-shoot-in.html+cure+for+bedbugs+%2B+%22thursday,+april+20%22+%2B+%22radio+disney%22+%2B+%22mike+saunders%22&hl=en