Vertigo Shtick

First Listen: Mason Black - "Jack the Ripper"

2012-01-27T16:29:00.000-08:00

Don't read anything into this, but though I receive an encouraging amount of unsolicited music these days (excellent! How established of me), I believe this is the first time that an artist has contacted me, sent me his music, and entertained me enough to merit a post like the one that follows. Huzzah!*

Listen Up: Meg Myers - "Adelaide"

2012-01-27T16:15:00.000-08:00

Pop fans first met Meg Myers in mid-2011 on Doctor Rosen Rosen's EP Girls, Vol. 1, (#2 on our 10 Best Pop EPs of 2011) on which she performs the self-consciously melodramatic "Poison." If you liked that (and you really ought to have), you'll love the news that we're about to hear a bunch more from Myers and her intrepid producer.

So-So Feeling: Flo Rida, Copy, and the Weaknesses of the Pop-Techno Breakdown

2012-01-26T13:33:00.000-08:00

By Techno School, Vertigo Shtick contributor and dance/electronic correspondent

I have been dying...DYING...to write about Flo Rida. For months now. Really.

Yo ho

Every time I sit in front of this computer, though, my mind goes blank. It's like the literary gods are saying “No way, Techno School. You are not ready to write this piece. Not yet.” Even now, I have to exert incredible effort just to remain focused on my own text. But I will not give up! This is too important! The zeal with which radio stations are overplaying Flo Rida's “Good Feeling” is starting to die out (or am I finally just sick of hearing it and keep switching the station?) signals the beginning of an exit from the radio mainstream of this song. Therefore! I will make haste and write about this song before it becomes last year's news. You can thank me later.

Censor Sensibility: The Scourge of the Radio Edit

2012-01-18T12:49:00.000-08:00

As I hope I have made exhaustively clear, I am not into censorship. You will not find censored music on Vertigo Shtick in any of its forms unless it is there to prove a point, and that means no "clean" or "radio edits," no matter how official.

Today, some of the major internet information companies are blocking out all or portions of their websites to protest and raise awareness of two bills currently before Congress - the Protect IP Act (PIPA) in the Senate and the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) in the House - which if passed would essentially allow for censorship of the World Wide Web. This, of course, would be very bad in countless ways and then countless more and countless more beyond that. Before you read any further, please make sure you've signed Google's petition and have contacted your members of Congress to tell them they'd better not fuck this shit up like they've been doing everything else lately, courtesy of Wikipedia, who may be unavailable for 24 hours (believe me, I have been feeling the pain like a chainsaw wound) but will still look up your House representative and your two Senators and link you right to their "Contact" pages. Unless you live in Washington, DC. Or Puerto Rico. Or anywhere else in the world besides the 50 United States - which doesn't mean you're off the hook, you know! All the web companies that mean anything are based in the States, so if the United States censors the internet, you're all DOOOOOOMED. No Wikipedia. No Tumblr. No Facebook as we know it. No YouTube.

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First Listen: Neon Hitch - "Fuck U Betta" (Uncensored)

2012-01-09T11:54:00.000-08:00

Since the exhilarating Neon Hitch unleashed her latest in a series of Things That Land Ridiculously Near Perfection, "F*ck U Betta," I've been holding out for a version without the asterisk. It's a good song, produced by partner in crime Benny Blanco* (the guy who mixed Maroon 5, dubstep and Christina Aguilera on "Moves Like Jagger," made Britney's "(Drop Dead) Beautiful" awesome enough to withstand Sabi's "steamin' like a pot full of vegetables" calamity, and produced Gym Class Heroes' "Ass Back Home," which features Hitch) and though the whole "trading up" theme has been used by everyone from the Pussycat Dolls to the Dixie Chicks, Hitch once again stands out by taking the concept to its extreme. But come on...this is a woman whose last official single was framed on a bestiality metaphor - I'm pretty sure Neon Hitch doesn't "f*ck."

Does this look like a woman who f*cks?

Top 10 Pop EPs of 2011

2012-01-09T03:25:00.000-08:00

Year-end "Best Of..." lists are fun, but they can get monotonous, especially with music journalism - how many times do you really need to see Adele's mopey portrait anyway? Then there are the "Faces to Watch" lists, which can be helpful but usually might as well be called "Lists of Artists I Know About Before You (Neener-Neener)," and how many times do you really need to see Lana Del Rey's mopey portrait anyway? To be fair, I gave a go with the prognostication thing last year, highlighting two artists I was sure would come through with brilliant performances: they were Kelly Rowland and Nicole Scherzinger. That's rough on my credit rating.

Instead, this year I'm covering the best in a field that is typically overlooked in the whole year-end list-making frenzy: pop music EPs. The EP, or extended play, is a kind of mini-album, usually three to eight tracks or so, often used by new and emerging artists to preview their work or minor artists looking to build buzz for upcoming projects. That means that while the ten EPs on this list contain music released in 2011 (which means you can listen and judge for yourself, something I feel is important), most of these artists are looking at further releases over the coming year or so. So it is a preview of faces to watch, of sorts, as well as a year-end Top 10 list. That's efficiency for you. (Hear highlights from these EPs in a Spotify playlist: Top 10 Pop EPs of 2011 – Selections)

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Femmes Fatales: Britney, Gaga and Pop in 2011

2012-01-03T21:05:00.000-08:00

By Kurt Bitter, Vertigo Shtick Contributing Writer

We all agree that 2011 was a fantastic year for pop music. Commercially, pop dominated the market. Examining Billboard’s year-end charts shows that the vast majority of the year’s top Hot 100, Radio, and Digital Songs could be considered pop, with hip hop, country, dance and rock tracks comprising the minority. 2011 also saw a large number of pop artists embark on nation- or world-wide tours, with many announcing second and sometimes third legs across the country.

We Found Pop in a Techno Place - 2011 in Review

2012-01-03T17:48:00.000-08:00

By Techno School, Vertigo Shtick contributor and dance/electronic correspondent

It's always funny to see where you find yourself on December 31. This time last year I was visiting friends on the East Coast, waiting to get back to LA and praying with all my might that 2011 would serve me as well as the latter half of 2010 had. For the first time in a long time, things were looking up, like I'd finally turned a corner that I'd been searching for over the past decade. I wanted things to stay just as they were; you couldn't have paid me to move out of California. And just look at what happened. There's snow falling outside my apartment's window right now. Ain't no snow falling in LA: that I know for a fact.

Techno/pop crossover Diplo

Coco Morier - EP (Album Review)

2012-01-01T18:53:00.000-08:00

Folks who have given a listen to any or all of Britney Spears' more recent albums may have noticed a preponderance of album tracks that are interesting and often quite good. This is unusual in the pop era, where albums by singles artists like Spears generally contain a few smash hits, a handful of backup/would-be singles, and some tissue paper - filler, we call it, which is essentially a nicer word for "crap." But certainly since her fourth album In The Zone, the crap has all but left the building (with a few exceptions, all of them on Circus). In its place are tunes written not by studio formulists but by talented and intriguing writers, often performers of indie-pop, rock, R&B, or electronica in their own right. These writers aren't called in just to pen a quick and easy hit (although some, like Bonnie McKee, Keri Hilson, and the legendary Cathy Dennis, are skilled in both arenas) - they're called in to give Spears something interesting worth her, and our, time.

One of these is Nicole Morier, whose songs include "Heaven on Earth" (Blackout), "How I Roll," "Trip to Your Heart" (Femme Fatale), and "Whiplash," the tune co-written with Spears that ended up as one of the many highlights of Selena Gomez and the Scene's excellent album When the Sun Goes Down. Morier has performed with the band Electrocute, and now she's released a stellar solo EP (as Coco Morier) that not only shows why she succeeds for Britney Spears but how her work with Spears has helped make Morier into indie-pop dynamite.

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Luciana: 'Pop My Trigger' - The Album That Got Away (Almost - Listen Here!)

2011-12-29T20:13:00.000-08:00

As the waning days of last year faded away, the fabulous and underrated Kimberly Cole suddenly dropped a debut album so fun and brilliant it made the usual worries over all the things left undone and fear about all the things yet unknown fade into bliss. This year, the fabulous and underrated Luciana Caporaso has suddenly released the cuts from a planned US debut album meant for this year but that never saw the light of day, and it's so fun and brilliant it may well make the usual worries over all the things left undone and fears about all the things yet unknown fade into bliss. Only it'll pound them into submission first, because that's the Luciana way, and that's why we love her.

The 12 Days of Shtickmas: Day 4

2011-12-28T23:39:00.000-08:00

On the fourth day of Shtickmas, Vertigo Shtick gave to me:

Four nifty words

hateration (n.) - the display of hostility, judgment or distate, usually toward a person.

Hateration

Don't need no hateration, holleration in this dancerie. (Mary J. Blige, "Family Affair")

tragical (adj.) - extremely sad (rare usage: generally used to create imperfect rhyme with "beautiful")

Sadness is beautiful; loneliness is tragical. (Backstreet Boys, "Shape of My Heart")

clubbington (n.) - a location, typically active during evening hours, that peddles in alcohol and dance music, particularly moombahton.

We get it poppington up in the clubbington. (Nadia Oh, "Taking Over the Dancefloor")

gizzo (v.) - go (obsolete usage, late 1990s and early 2000s)

Now, ladies, here we gizzo. (Snoop Dogg, "Drop It Like It's Hot")

Three club gems

Rihanna Dave Aude Christina Milian

Two flops we love

J.Lo BSB

and an obscure song we ♥ by Britney!

Today's song:

"Can't Make You Love Me" (Oops!...I Did It Again)

The 12 Days of Shtickmas: Day 3

2011-12-27T20:29:00.000-08:00

On the third day of Shtickmas, Vertigo Shtick gave to me:

Three club gems

TaioKylie Ono GuettaEstelle

Two flops we love

Janet JC

and an obscure song we ♥ by Britney!

Today's song:

"Phonography" (Circus - Bonus Tracks)

The 12 Days of Shtickmas: Day 2

2011-12-26T23:30:00.000-08:00

On the second day of Shtickmas, Vertigo Shtick gave to me:

Two flops we love

Miley Xtina

and an obscure song we ♥ by Britney!

Today's song:

"(I Got That) Boom Boom" feat. The Yin Yang Twins (In The Zone)

The 12 Days of Shtickmas: Day 1

2011-12-25T19:02:00.000-08:00

On the first day of Shtickmas, Vertigo Shtick gave to me:

An obscure song we love by Britney!

Today's Song:

"Bombastic Love" (Oops!...I Did It Again)

Oh yeah...there's more coming. Happy holidays!

2011 Best of Pop - Nominations and Vote for your Favorites!

2011-12-17T10:34:00.000-08:00

If there's one lesson to be learned from pop music in 2011, it's that flying solo is all well and good, but nothing gets you over that final hump like a good old collaboration. Your single about sadomasochism stalling out just within the top five? Just call Britney Spears. Worried your album's fourth single might fizzle out in the afterglow of the pyrotechnic breast show you unleashed for the previous one? Sounds like a job for Kanye West! Trying to launch or re-launch a solo career alongside your night job judging a Simon Cowell reality show? That's why God invented Lil Wayne and Pitbull. Sometimes these matchups are ho-hum and forgettable, and sometimes they're ridiculously amazing - interestingly enough, they're just about never fatal.

We're Number One!

The 10 Best Pop Music Videos of 2011 (#6-10)

2011-12-13T19:31:00.000-08:00

It's been an interesting year for music videos. Vevo hasn't exactly revolutionized the art form, but it has made a place that artists can display new music videos and the general public can not only watch for free (with a commercial or two) but also embed the videos on Facebook, Twitter, and...well, blogs, without fear of copyright infringement. In a post-MTV/VH1 world (yes, it is) this is really the only reason anyone makes videos anymore, and a good video can really amp up sales and airplay for a new single. Jennifer Lopez's "On the Floor" became the most viewed music video of the year on Vevo after it debuted during American Idol, and the song hit number 3 on the Billboard Hot 100 and number 11 on the year-end chart. So let's count down the top ten pop music videos of the year, shall we?

First Listen: Ke$ha - "Sleazy Remix 2.0 Get Sleazier" (feat. Lil Wayne, Wiz Khalifa, T.I., and Andre 3000)

2011-12-12T22:49:00.000-08:00

Ke$ha. Wiz Khalifa. Andre 3000. T.I. Lil Wayne. (In order of appearance.) That phenomenal beat by Bangladesh. Penis cleaners. Cleopatra's pussy. A lot of marijuana.

Filthy. Amazing. $leazy as hell.

The Best Version of "Santa Baby" (Hint: It's Not Taylor Swift)

2011-12-07T20:29:00.001-08:00

I heard Taylor Swift recorded "Santa Baby." This is not welcome news.

I'm countering this with my favorite version of the song (apologies to Eartha Kitt): ladies and gentlemen, Kylie Minogue.

Naughty.

Ooh!

First Look: Nicola Roberts - "Yo-Yo"

2011-11-30T02:10:00.001-08:00

Nicola Roberts this week unveiled the music video for "Yo-Yo," the third single off her rather nifty debut album Cinderella's Eyes. As I watched I wrote down some notes, which turned out to be more interesting on their own than the sum of their parts, so here they are.

I Came for the Boobs: Sak Noel, NERVO Make Us Dance, Think

2011-11-29T16:40:00.001-08:00

By Techno School, Vertigo Shtick contributor and dance/electronic correspondent

"I came for the boobs; I stayed for the music"

I KNEW boyfriends were good for something other than sex and free dinners. Sometimes they find you music!

Boyfriend came back from an across-the-pond business trip with fabulous Euro singles in tow! The second he pulled Sak Noel's "Loca People" up on YouTube, I was sold. It's the "We No Speak Americano" of 2011! How have I not heard of this before?!?!

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Submit Your Nominations for the 2011 Readers Poll (Giveaway!)

2011-11-22T22:13:00.001-08:00

This year Vertigo Shtick will host its first end-of-year readers' poll, with nominations from me, fellow pop music bloggers/big-shots, and readers at large (that's you!).

First Look: Anjulie - 'Stand Behind The Music'

2011-11-18T18:18:00.000-08:00

In perfect timing with this site's excellent interview with pop rebel Anjulie (or was it the other way around? You decide), the "Brand New Bitch" singer premiered her new single "Stand Behind The Music" along with its politically charged music video based on the "Occupy Wall Street" protests.

Boom! She's a Brand New Bitch: An Interview with Anjulie

2011-11-16T16:32:00.001-08:00

After a technical issue on my end and then a mixup in time zones on theirs, on our third try I managed to connect with dance-pop singer Anjulie for a phone chat on a gloomy late afternoon a couple weeks ago. The Canadian-born singer of Guyanese descent released the pounding dance single "Brand New Bitch" early this year, and a remix by DJ/producer Laidback Luke dropped about a month ago (hear it below). Before I got into my questions I told her that I had been introduced to her music when a friend randomly texted me that Anjulie's song "Boom" made her "want to rape my boyfriend," to which Anjulie replied "I love it." She was fun to talk to, and very smart. Here's what went down.

Dr. Luke & The Women (feat. Ke$ha, Katy Perry & Britney Spears)

2011-11-15T11:29:00.001-08:00

This started out as a reply to a comment (below) on the post "The Ke$ha Project: 'The Harold Song' and Social Single Strategy" from the creator of the new blog Pop Messiah. It quickly became much more.

The Ke$ha Project: 'The Harold Song' and Social Single Strategy

2011-11-14T19:44:00.001-08:00

All right, folks, the Messiah of Pop has called upon us, and we have some work to do.

The electro-pop closeted genius Ke$ha resurfaced this weekend on Twitter after a relatively quiet period of touring, recording with Alice Cooper, and "camping in the woods," which could very well be the newest euphemism for "recording the biggest sophomore album of 2012" but we don't want to get ahead of ourselves.

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