Emmanuelle Querry's website says the following about her:
"Emmanuelle Querry est une autrice-compositrice-interprète émergente de la scène francophone, qui se distingue par une pop assumée et sensible, nourrie d’influences R&B et électroniques."
I don't know. I don't speak French.
I'm kidding. It calls her confident yet sensitive, and infused with electronic and R&B influences.
Her debut album, Au 10ᵉ étage, was released in early February, and I encourage you to give it a listen. It's really good.
Did I mention she was from Quebec? Yeah. She's big in the Montreal club scene.
It was important to me that I start this post like I have started no other in this blog's history - leading with the music.
In his life, Gord Downie, leader of the Tragically Hip, was a board member and vocal supporter of Lake Ontario Waterkeeper - which is now known as Swim Drink Fish after merging with other like-minded organizations - who are concerned with preserving the water and the culture of the lakes and waterways surrounding the Great Lakes and Lake Ontario specifically.
He was a great public speaker - which a lot of people did not know - and he once told a story at one of the LOW events, in April 2015 - about the drop off. Alex Lifeson heard this beautiful spoken word piece, and it stuck with him.... so when Rheostatics put together The Great Lakes Suite, they took Gord's beautiful words, and put them to music.
Gord Downie passed away in 2017, but his words from that Waterkeeper Gala are still with us. And below, they are without music.
Learn more about Swim Drink Fish at www.swimdrinkfish.ca - and donate in Gord's memory if you are able .
I did not have a new Rheostatics album on my 2025 bingo card.
I didn't have a GREAT Rheostatics album on it, at all.
You see, I wasn't really a big fan of Rheostatics before 2025.
And then they released The Great Lakes Suite, a concept album around the Great Lakes. And critics were kind to the album, such as this great one quoted below:
"I was not a Rheostatics person, which is exactly why it shocked me how hard The Great Lakes Suite landed: a sprawling, mostly improvised love letter to the lakes that turns geography into this wild, shifting soundscape. Alex Lifeson and Hugh Marsh are here, but the moment that really broke me is “The Drop Off,” built around a haunting spoken‑word recording from the late Gord Downie about Lake Ontario and water stewardship – it’s like having a ghost of Canadian music history standing in the middle of the suite, reminding you why this landscape matters.
This song, written by Kevin Hearn, closes the album, and it is a beautiful, sweeping piece about the Lakes and their status as an inland sea. Alex Lifeson of Rush joined the band on guitar.
Have they had a chance to perform the song live yet?
Of course they have, and Alex Lifeson joined them for that, too!
Honestly, I knew there was gonna be a Lights song come March. Probably today, but because things happened, I had to rearrange.
Because I WAS going to intentionally skip posting one day in February to make something happen.
And then I did not. Because I got sick of rearranging things.
And then more things happened and I just moved this back. Because it was just easier.
On January 28th, she very much told me (and all Lights fans) exactly what song that was gonna be.
You see, that's the day she released the song "COME GET YOUR GIRL" and its accompanying video, two days before she released A6EXTENDED, the deluxe edition of her fantastic 2025 album A6, about which one critic said:
More than a decade after Siberia and Little Machines, A6 is the first Lights record that really feels like it belongs beside them - not as a sequel, but as their evolved equal. It’s a neon‑soaked grief diary that shows she is still the blueprint for the new wave of alt-pop, folding the heavier, LŪN‑era electronics into synth‑pop songs about damage, numbness and clawing your way back to yourself. she manages to make the "glitch-pop" trend feel grounded and visceral rather than just aesthetic, hitting with the urgency of someone rebuilding in real time. - Literally me.
Yeah, I put A6 #7 on my 2025 list.
This video is why I put it there. If you are a Lights fan and you recognize the scenes from the "Second Go", "Toes", "Running With The Boys", "Giants", or "Prodigal Daughter" videos (guess we have our next two Lights posts written), you have a sharp eye. The scenes from those videos are recreated pretty meticulously (no idea if the scenes were redone or if these are digitally enhanced versions of the originals but I'm leaning towards the former) (Edit: I know now that they were, indeed, redone), but she's clearly singing the song, today, modern-day. It's definitely 2026 Lights, not 2011 Lights with her lips changed.
The song (after which her 2026 tour is named) is also great, but dang, the video is distractingly good.
Today is NOT the 2000th post on Wicked Guilty Pleasures. It was supposed to be, but stuff happens. #1000 was mentioned above. THAT, I did not plan.
Yeah, it was supposed to be 2000. Oh well.
But because we did some rearranging, we get to heard this song, live, from February 26th!!!!!
Yes, the band named after their neighborhood in old Toronto is probably just gonna be posted here every year now.
No, seriously, this map is from Wikipedia.
And while the rest of the world learned about them because Jordan Miller decided to write a song about Brett Emmons, they've actually been making music for more than a decade. Today's song is from their 2021 EP Future Lovers, and it has an ever-so-slightly poppier sound than their current stuff - but it's still pretty excellent.
The band doesn't play this song much anymore, but when they do, they play it as part of a medley I had to crudely edit, and yes, my sister is very excited to hear it.
Saya was the daughter of classical musicians - and parents who TAUGHT music, both privately and at world-renowned institutions. She has released two albums. In 2025, she released SAYA, which was shortlisted for the Polaris Prize and, according to one critic:
"Saya Gray’s SAYA is like scrolling through someone’s brain: songs splinter mid‑phrase, guitars and strings smear into each other, and you’re never quite sure where the groove is going to land. It’s dense and sometimes disorienting - it's not an easy listen, and even took a few listens for me to connect - but once it clicks, it becomes the thing to put on when regular alt‑pop feels too tidy and you want something to gently pull your head apart and rewire it for 40 minutes." - literally me
I sincerely liked the album on first listen, but with subsequent listens, it went from pretty good album to absolutely chaotic and indispensable soliloquy on heartbreak. This song is one of the more upbeat on the album and it makes me smile, every time.
I mentioned Polaris, and yeah, she performed this song at the Polaris Concert and Award Ceremony.
I didn't get too deep into it above, because I wanted you to SEE that 1) she's an absolute wizard on the guitar and 2) her vocal range is next level
This wasn't special for Polaris. She's just that good.
And she opened her NPR Tiny Desk Concert - a year ago - with this song, too.
This time, I'm here because, as part of my 1000 albums listening project which is quickly turning into a 2000 albums listening project, I listened to Shad's acclaimed second album, The Old Prince, which is far less Kanye and far more Big Willie Style than his later work that was previously featured.
And, I posted on Instagram that I loved The Old Prince. And, to be fair, several other albums.
I got one response. Guess which London, Ontario based rapper was the responder?
To be fair, Lights liked it, too. But she didn't respond
So, yeah, that day, I said to myself, "Next March, we are telling all TWELVE blog readers about The Old Prince and how great it is." Because it is.
It's a fun, modern hip-hop classic that sounds timeless, with an award-winning video that seems inspired by a trip to Bel Air or something. The song is very much about... well, still living at home.
The Old Prince was very much short-listed for the 2008 Polaris Prize, and although he didn't win, he did perform this song at the gala.
And the performance is a classic. He does it LIVE, with instruments. In the lead-up, you can hear he credits Common and Lauryn Hill as influences, and I definitely hear it.
What happens when you mix electropop and great storytelling?
You get Baby Nova, the stage name for Kayleigh O'Connor, who has been signed to a publishing deal since she was 16. Her earlier synth-folk sound has been replaced by something a little poppier, but still telling the good stories.
She's from Nova Scotia, so.... there's that.
In January, after a lot of singles, Baby Nova finally released her debut album, Shhugar, and it is delightful. Here's a single from that album that I hope is a worldwide hit by the time you read this.
This six-piece collective that originally started off as a bunch of street performers in 2004 ended up staying together for seven years, releasing three albums and cementing themselves in Quebec folk-country lore.
This is from their 2007 2nd album Kerosene & Coal, and is about a restaurant in Montreal. The video is mostly consisting of working class scenes from along the Lachine Canal in Montreal - they were a working-class group making working-class music.
I really wish they were still around, because they made some amazing music.
I always want to try to get you a live version, so you can see the band in action. THIS was hard, but this short live performance includes this song, and you can see the mellow dynamic of the band.
Oh, and keep listening. There's a lot of great songs they play.
Marie Davidson's 2025 album City of Clowns was shortlisted for the 2025 Polaris Prize.
And rightly so. Not only was it an innovative album that merged pop, techno, and... spoken word, it was, in the words of one great critic:
"City of Clowns is what happens when Marie Davidson points her dry, dark sense of humor at capitalism and nightlife and decides to dance on their graves instead of just eulogizing them. It’s electro, spoken word, satire and genuine anxiety all tangled together, and in a year obsessed with AI and hustle culture, this record felt like someone finally saying, “This is insane, right?” over a beat you can actually move to." - Literally me
She may be from Quebec, but her songs are international hits, and his album even hit the charts in the UK.
This was one of four singles from the album, and, in my opinion, the best of the four. Co-written by Davidson, Pierre Guerineau, and Belgian producers Soulwax, the song is kind of about awkwardness.
I know that the song is kind of about awkwardness because that's literally what she said when she opened the 2025 Polaris award show with THIS song.
So, when they quickly released a follow-up EP in the summer of 2025 called PENSACOLA, I was very much expecting to be disappointed.
Nope. JUST as spectacular. Just as incredible.
This is the title song from that EP. It is dark and brooding and a work of art. The video is just as dark and brooding and leans into their indigenous roots.
And yes. They're from Montreal.
They haven't really performed the EP's song very much, but they did at this show in October, when they were opening for Wombo.
OK, I know I'm pushing it with the francophone content. I promise I'll post an English-language song tomorrow.... from someone possibly not even from Quebec.
It would be a little funny if we posted an English-language song by someone from Quebec, wouldn't it?
Today, we're going to go ahead and just put that œ right on our clipboard, because we're talking about Cœur de Pirate and I just REFUSE to type it "oe". Nope, it's "œ" or it's nœthing.
Today's song, written by the artist, is the second single from her 2026 album Cavale, which is of course very good and pretty. This song really highlights her piano skills on top of her unique vocal.
I'd love to say she's going to win the Juno for Best Francophone Album this year (we're writing this before the nominations) but there's no way she beats Lou-Adriane Cassidy. (Yep. BEFORE the nominations are made, I'm making THAT bold prediction). Which our favorite heart of a pirate, who owns and leads Bravo Musique - the label that is the home to BOTH Cœur de Pirate AND Lou-Adriane Cassidy..... so she wins either way.
Juno winner or not, this song is gorgeous, and I think I like the piano edit - without the synth accompaniment - even better.
You would not think it based on my native language, but our March francophone content really traditionally does well.
Now, I don't usually open March with three straight days of it, but....
Anyway, Bibi Club, the Polaris-shortlisted duo from Montreal consisting of Nicolas Basque (of Plants and Animals, if you are so inclined) and Adèle Trottier-Rivard, just released a new album last Friday. This song, the first single and title song from the album, is cool and trippy and gives us Phantogram-meets-.... oh, I didn't think that analogy through very well. But really, rock-electronic duo from the Snow Belt of North America.... where else did you expect us to go with that.
Anyway, it's very good, and both written and produced by the duo. It is still a side project for now, but it's quickly becoming a core part of the Montreal music scene.
I've had drafts for Ariane Roy for years. I just needed an excuse to post her music.
So why not give her an individual day and take away from the Cassidy family funfest?
Well, Ariane Roy and Lou-Adriane Cassidy are very much friendly with each other - the latter literally had a song called "Ariane" on her album Journal d'un Loup-Garou. They did a live album together! And, if anything is going to take the Francophone Album of the Year award at the JUNOS away from Lou-Adriane Cassidy, it's Ariane Roy's excellent Dogue.
This song closes Dogue and is just great. Enjoy it.
I definitely did NOT expect last year that we'd be opening Maple Leaf March (which yes, I know. We opened yesterday - but, actually, as you'll see in a minute, still applies) with an artist I had not heard of.
ESPECIALLY not a francophone.
Here we are.
Daughter of famed Quebec singer Paule-Andrée Cassidy (see what we did there?) and Serge Lacasse, who was a professor of music at L'Université Laval, both had a profound influence on her career. No, she did not attend L'Université Laval - she forged her own path.
This song is from her excellent 2nd album Lou-Adriane Cassidy vous dit: bonsoir and it holds up well against her 3rd and 4th, both released in 2025 (her third topped my Wicked 25 in 2025 and her fourth ALMOST made it on the list, too). It's a short and lively French pop song that would fit on English radio just fine.
You can see how bouncy and lively the song is is she performs it - first, just like on the record. Also, the song is a little punk, isn't it????
I usually open Maple Leaf March with someone you have heard of, because I've written about them in the past.
Well, this year, I wanted to set a table - with an artist who most people outside of Quebec would never have heard of, despite her nearly 30-year career.
And, make no mistake - Paule-Andrée Cassidy is a legend in Quebec independent music. We've talked a lot here about the chanson francaise movement in Quebec, but she was one of the early adopters. She still makes music, too - this is from her 2023 album Au bal des océans. The song - co-written by Alexandre Martel (the producer), Gabriel Desjardins, Paule-Andrée and her daughter - is an absolute masterclass on a new classic album.
Well, I screwed up. I immediately published a scheduled post. So now we start Maple Leaf March a day early.
So, Goldie's nominated at the JUNOS next month, and I think she's got a shot.
Nominated in the Breakthrough Artist category, she's making fun, compelling pop music. Getting a big break opening for Katy Perry - even at this stage in her career - has really helped her immeasurably in reaching a larger audience.
From her 2025 album Goldie Boutilier Presents.... Goldie Montana, without further ado.
We weren't kidding about that Katy Perry tour. And Ms. Boutilier made the most of her chance.
Neil Sedaka is a big enough deal that he gets TWO posts.
In 1973, he released a single called "Love Will Keep Us Together" that he wrote (with Howard Greenfield) and recorded himself.
This performance isn't from 1973, but it's still really good.
Anyway, I know you know this song. As we approach post #2000 on this blog, take a look at post #10, In 1975, pop duo The Captain and Tennille recorded a cover of this song that ended up being the literal biggest hit of 1975. It was just a monstrous song - and at the end, they paid tribute to its originator.
In 1976, they performed the song with Sedaka.
That wasn't the only time they did that.
Sedaka was a great songwriter and a delightful performer, and he will be missed.
The famed singer songwriter Neil Sedaka passed away yesterday. His music will be missed. He was probably more successful as a songwriter, but he *did* perform as well. This song, from 1960, was his first top 5 hit in the United States and a #1 in Canada! The song, co-written by Sedaka and Howard Greenfield, is really a sweet tribute to the pinups of the past.
This video is from 1966.
Sedaka never really stopped performing, and he always mentored the next generation of musicians. Here he is with Fountains of Wayne in 2007.
Lilly Hiatt is music royalty. Her father is famed musician John Hiatt. Her husband is Coley Hinson of Coley and the Young Go Hards fame.... plus, he's a producer. And playing the instruments Lilly isn't.
She released an excellent album - Forever - in 2025, and the first single is an absolute earworm. Why this isn't a hit song is BEYOND me. Written by Lilly Hiatt, it's a hard-rocking but country-tinged instant classic.
But my writing style has changed since then. This time, I'm going to start with Kasey Chambers, the Australian country star who wrote and released this song on her 1999 album The Captain, produced by her older brother (and acclaimed producer) Nash Chambers.
The song is spectacular.
For her 2025 album Rhinestone Requiem, Sunny Sweeney covered this song, and it is a FAITHFUL cover.
The cover is spectacular.
So, the one change I made since 2012 is that I endeavor to include live performances for all these songs. For Kasey, I decided to go with a 2011 performance that literally closed her whole US tour, from Dallas and featuring her father, musician Bill Chambers.
Sunny literally uses the song as her encore now.
And, the best part is, she gives full credit.
Now, if only they'd do a performance together! I'm not even sure they've ever met!
It's been a bit since we posted about Olivia Rodrigo, so we felt we were due, since her 3rd album is expected to drop sometime this year.
We went all the way back to the beginning - to 2021, and her debut single (not counting her High School Musical stuff), from her debut album SOUR. The song, co-written by Rodrigo and her producer, Dan Nigro, is mature and drives right into the multifaceted feelings one might feel after a breakup.
The song was a record-breaker - it debuted at #1, making 17-year-old Rodrigo the youngest artists to ever do that (Billie Eilish was younger at #1, but did not debut there). It spent its first eight weeks, in fact, at #1.
It's actually quite a sad song, lyrically. And it's not one that I initially liked, although it's grown on me.
There are so many great performances of this song. I chose her Austin City Limits performance because, well, she is very clear about how much the song means to her.... and also, that's probably the youngest audience in ACL history.
In January, Rodrigo announced a project where other artists would be covering songs from SOUR. Alongside that was this version of "drivers license" by David Byrne.
In 1995, I went to see Throwing Muses in concert in Northampton, Massachusetts. Kristin Hersh was wearing a black t-shirt that said "i hate milk".
A few songs in, she explained her shirt. It was a labelmate of hers, Air Miami - it was a name of one of their songs.
So, naturally, I had to seek it out.
Air Miami was a DC duo comprised of Mark Robinson and Bridget Cross, both formerly part of the trio Unrest. They only lasted from 1994 until 1996, but managed to get this classic song released. Their music was released on Robinson's Teen Beat Records as well as 4AD.
You know, this close to Maple Leaf March, I really shouldn't be doing another French artist, right?
Well, Roméo Elvis - the stage name of Roméo Johnny Elvis Kiki Van Laeken, and yes, that's a really long name - is Belgian, so I guess that makes it OK.
But seriously, he also makes great music.
He was born in a household where the performing arts were important and central - his father is famed singer/songwriter Marka - and yes, I know most of you haven't heard of him, but trust me. His mother is actress and musician Laurence Bibot. I think his sister did something, too.
But he's a talented rapper and producer in his own right, and since I enjoyed this song by an artist I definitely found because of Angèle, I wanted to share it with you.
And yes, he does perform live, and yes, it is entertaining.
LISASINSON is not a band you're going to understand.
They aren't like anything I've ever heard, and yet, also exactly the right kind of bright pop/rock fusion - they call it "punky pop" - I needed.
From Valencia, Spain, the band released their latest album, Desde Cuándo Todo, last month. This is a single from the album, and I think you're going to hear the bright punky pop pretty clearly.
There are actually two versions of the video (the song is remixed here by David Van Bylen and this version also features La Casa Azul).
I did not put Ela Minus's album Día on my Wicked 25 last year... although she did make the very long honorable mention list. If I was making that list today, I'm not sure that album wouldn't make it. This album is growing on me over time.
The Colombian native artist started off as a drummer, but her time in college in Boston shaped her electronic/jazz stylings that are her signature now.
This song, from Día, was co-written by Minus and Katie O'Neill (who also did sound engineering and additional production on the album).
I want to make something clear. A lot of electronic artists are DJs. Ela Minus is first and foremost a live artist, and I think this video - where she is appearing with analog equipment - illustrates that well.
So, by the way, does this actual live performance.
It takes a cast iron set to name a song after yourself.
It takes a bigger one to name it after your alter ego.
Meet Suga, best known for being a member of BTS.... you know, that Korean boy band you love. He's done some solo stuff as Agust D, his rap alter ego.
This is not BTS music.
This is just.... awesome. It's strong, angry hip-hop that happens to be mostly in Korean. Using heavily a sample from "It's A Man's Man's Man's World" by James Brown, it is unabashed and in-your-face. That sample held up its release on streaming platforms for five years - as clearance was needed to use it. That clearance finally came in 2023.
I was actually not expecting to find a live performance of this song.
So, with rumors of a BLACKPINK comeback having Blinks everywhere apoplectic, and with Rosé nominated for three Grammys a few weeks ago, I felt like looking back at the first US hit for the group was in order.
Indeed, this was the first BLACKPINK song to hit the US Hot 100, peaking at #52 in 2018, which was practically unheard of for a non-novelty Korean single at the time. Now, not so much. Written as a combination of pop and trap, it was designed by Teddy Park to suit the voices and styles of the four women, and accomplished that well.
The influence does not stop there. Rolling Stone named it the sixth most influential K-Pop song of all time in 2023, as well as one of the 250 best singles of the century so far in ANY genre. It won a Kid's Choice award! In the UNITED STATES. This song tore down walls and changed pop music forever, more than any of their others.
And now, you're humming it and yelling "BLACKPINK!"
They also got to perform the song - actually live, with a full band - at Coachella in 2019.
And yes, Dua Lipa and Angèle do stop their video in the middle to talk about Dexter, who is clearly Dua's pet, getting his balls cut off. In English.
The song is from Dua Lipa's huge hit album Future Nostalgia and was a huge #1 hit... and now most of you are thinking "but I don't remember this song being a huge hit and in fact my copy of Future Nostalgia doesn't have this song." Well, while it did eventually get a lot of streaming play in the US, it was a HUGE hit in France and Belgium - both Flanders AND Wallonia, and if you know Belgium, you know that's a BIG deal - and was originally included only on the French version of Future Nostalgia. It was eventually added to worldwide versions of Future Nostalgia and also the expanded Future Nostalgia (The Moonlight Edition).
The song itself is a lot of fun, and was written by the artists and their songwriting teams.
So both artists actually play the song live, and I wanted to share a few of those performances. I'll start with one from June 2025, at a Dua Lipa show in Antwerp. For those not up on their world cities, Antwerp is the largest city in Belgium, in the Flemish region of the country a.k.a. Flanders.
So yeah. There was a special guest who happened to be in the neighborhood, and by in the neighborhood, I mean a 33-minute train ride away in Brussels. No word on whether or not Angèle drove or took the train.
Unlike that 2025 performance, the crowd KNEW Angèle was in the building, as she was the opening act for that show and several on the Future Nostalgia tour... .so it would have been weird for Dua to not bring her out, right?
By the way, they're really good on stage together.
Now, Angèle also has toured, and she also performs the song live.
She unfortunately can't get Dua Lipa to show up most of the time - and certainly not in New York City for her Nonante-Cinq tour, so a larger-than-life projection of her had to suffice.
So, this is an artist we've talked about before, and an artist we undoubtably will talk about again - as we expect a new album out of her this year.
I hope she doesn't let me down.
We, of course, are talking about Belgian artist Angèle, who debuted in 2018 with the album Brol, which is Belgian slang that's a little hard to translate, but generally means a heap of random small objects. But there was nothing random about the album.
This was her fourth single from that album, and, well, I think even my non-polyglot readers can figure out what the title is about.
If you're having trouble identifying Angèle in the video, she's the one without the mirror box on her head.
I know we focus on a lot of pop artists and then we like to go "wow, look at how talented they are live" but I think this performance, which completely changes the song from slightly spirited and angry to more meloncholy, shows her great range.
By the way, she also co-produced and self-released the album, and wrote and composed almost the whole thing herself. She's a TRUE talent.
From her 2025 album Man's Best Friend, the song, written by Carpenter, Amy Allen and John Ryan, this song, the 2nd single from the album, is very disco-inspired (on brand for her).
It's also very dirty, which is also kind of on brand for her.
The single peaked at its debut point, #3 on the Billboard Hot 100, having run into the juggernauts that are Taylor Swift and KPop Demon Hunters. It is STILL in the top 40 as of this writing, though - because the song is excellent.
The video is clearly inspired by The Rocky Horror Picture Show and also features Colman Domingo in drag.
There were a few alternative endings to the video. Spoiler: the boyfriend dies in all but one of them:
Look, this song is all about the performance... including the dance break. The pregnant pause before the dance break is incredible.
But she added it to her tour setlist, and the performance is entertaining, as it was at this show in Pittsburgh. Let us know in the comments if you were there.
Do you think that it grinds Victoria Justice's gears that Leon Thomas and Ariana Grande both won Grammys this year, and Victoria Justice never even won a Kid's Choice Award?
I don't think it does. And it shouldn't. She's doing her thing and making solid pop music in her own right.
This single from 2024, cowritten by the artist, Toby Gad and Will Jay, is an example of that solid pop music she is making. She's got a bigger voice than I think she gets credit for, and I suspect that the accolades are going to come soon.
This post keeps getting shuffled around, and today, I decided I was done doing that.
Blondshell had a breakout 2025 with her album.... correction, albumS. If You Asked For A Picture was absolutely one of the best albums of 2025. On my Wicked25, it was literally the LAST cut and I don't think I would have cut it if I made that list today.
This song, one of the singles from the album, is a large reason why I thought so highly of the album. Cowritten by Sabrina Teitelbaum (AKA Blondshell) and Sam Stewart, it's a upbeat album about being judged for having a kid too soon.
I mentioned two albums. She also released Another Picture, which contained a lot of reimagined versions of the same songs.... including this one, reimagined as a duet with Samia.
Live in Boston in 2025, Blondshell opened her show with a rousing performance of this song.
The crowd loved it.
Also, stick around for the whole thing. The whole show is great and there's a reason you're going to see the same show posted on Totally Covered today.
The acoustics were a little better in the KEXP studios.
Also, I'm pretty sure those are prescription sunglasses.
Brad Arnold - lead vocalist and drummer - passed away yesterday at age 47 after a relatively short battle with cancer. The entire music community paid their respects, so I left it was time for us to do the same.
This 2008 single, from their self-titled fourth album, made it to the top 20 on the US Pop Charts - their last visit to those heights in this country on pop radio (although they continued to garner rock radio airplay consistently), was originally written for the remake of the movie The Poseiden Adventure, but the filmmakers ended up not wanting it.
The band kept it. And it ended up being a hit. This song about resilience, written by the band, ended up resonating with people.
The band never stopped touring even after their hitmaking days were behind them. Here they are performing this song on a cruise in 2024. They still bring the same energy.
Brad Arnold will be missed. Our best wishes go out to him, the band, and his family.
I wanted to end this week with another Best New Artist nominee from the Grammys - and I had three choices, really.
I went with the most glittery one.
I struggle with liking sombr a little bit - but it may just be because his music doesn't fit into a nice genre-box like I want it to - kinda falling into the same box for me as Tame Impala. But his album I Barely Know Her (Sombr? But I barely know her!) is excellent. His voice is huge, and his music is fun and disco-tingled.
Since I could not find a suitable Grammys performance, I went with his SNL performance of this song.... which, really, had him bringing just as much energy.
I am personally impressed by his ability to go seamlessly between deep growl and significant falsetto.... live!
Leon Thomas was nominated for the Best New Artist Grammy and was part of the medley.
So yeah. Of course I am going to.
Because he is making excellent R&B music.
And also, because he was nominated for six Grammys and WON two of them..... and one of the nominations he didn't win was Best New Artist, but since he WON a Grammy in the Best R&B Song category in 2024, his was possibly the most baffling nomination in the category.
His two wins were for Best R&B Album - which was for the album for which this was the title song - and Best Traditional R&B Performance. He absolutely deserved them for Mutt.
As an aside, he was one of two Victorious alumni to win Grammys this year - Ariana Grande being the other. Which is kind of a weird statistic. No other TV show to my knowledge can claim that this year.
And "Mutt" is a great song. Thomas wrote the song (there are other cowriters for the music) while microdosing on psychedelics and watching his dog and cat fight. True story.
Thomas has released several versions of his hit, including a couple of official remixes. Here is one of them.
One of these versions was the one he recorded he recorded for the NPR Tiny Desk Concert series.
This VERSION was specifically nominated for a Grammy (that it did not win - but it's pretty great).
But you're here for the Grammy performance, right?
Well, goody. But we can't. It was an R&B/rock fusion, for sure - and starmaking. And we can't show it to you.
We CAN show you the equally good BET Awards performance, though.
So, seems like we're talking about Best New Artist nominees this week. I guess.
I actually didn't like this song until Sunday.
That's when I heard his Grammy performance as part of the Best New Artist medley. And, despite his earpiece issues (which are preventing me from finding a suitable video of the performance just yet but I still have a couple of days), he killed it.
So, I gave the song another chance.
And, you know what? I get the criticism of his vocals being bored and/or bland.... but also, I don't think they are. He CLEARLY enjoys performing this song. And, being a social media guy - one of the founders of the same Hype House that spawned Addison Rae - he's occupying an interesting spot in music right now.
By the way, this song has been a top 5 hit for almost a year. As of this writing, it still sits at #5 on the US charts. (Edit: as of publishing, still #7)
And the song is actually pretty sweet lyrically.
So, OK, I'm a fan now.
I know I didn't get his Grammy performance in here, but I *did* find a kind of similar one, from The Tonight Show.
But I had this free day, and I was watching the Grammys..... and this song won Best Pop Solo Performance. Lola Young was so charming in her speech, I couldn't skip it.
She had no speech prepared.
I'm very happy for her.
From her second album This Wasn't Meant for You Anyway, Lola wrote the song just before her ADHD diagnosis..... which makes sense, because this song is, no joke, an anthem to ADHD. It is a thing of beauty. It is, indeed, just as messy as its title.
Lola won a Grammy, but she was nominated for two - the other being Best.... New Artist. For her second album. And, by the way, her third album (I'm Only F**king Myself) was released in September.
But, as a nominee, she was part of the fabulous BNA medley. And she took full advantage of her two minutes!
Unfortunately, the Grammys won't let us use that video. But we found a way.
This is Lola Young's only US hit song to date - something that I expect to change. She's still really young - and this Tonight Show performance is a lot of the reason why it was a hit.
I mean, not when I'm writing this. They're weeks away. I am in fact writing this in mid-January, when this song re-entered the Billboard Hot 100 because, well, it's fantastic.
But I can only assume that GRAMMY nominee Addison Rae won Best New Artist. She certainly deserved it. (I will edit this to reflect whether or not she did, don't worry).
(Edit: she did not win. She DID perform, though).
This song was her third to hit the Billboard Hot 100 (I told you it was coming) and now, it's done it twice. Again co-written by the artist and producers Luka Kloser and Elvira Anderfjärd, Addison really sells the hell out of this one. They set out to write a straight-ahead pop song - inspired by Addison's early and consistent aim for fame - and got something a little unintentionally darker and deeper.
The song is a synth-pop masterpiece, and the video is gold.
Let's go once again to the New York GRAMMY Museum for an absolutely sublime performance of the song. One of the comments implied that you can tell Addison really wants to dance..... and I agree. She very much does.
In two weeks - literally from today - Charli XCX releases the long-anticipated followup to her 2024 breakthrough album brat. This song, the second single from that album, is to my ears a throwback to her earlier days - when True Romance was a thing - when I was a fan of hers and posted about her all the time.
Oh, and the album is called Wuthering Heights, which not coincidentally shares the name of a movie released that weekend (since the album is the soundtrack). The movie is loosely based on the Emily Brontë novel - and Charli, who was inspired by the screenplay after being asked to write a song for the movie, wrote an entire soundtrack instead.
So why not wait two weeks to post this? Why post today?
Because, TODAY, Charli herself is in a movie called The Moment, a mockumentary about a musician about to embark on a headlining world tour. Charli XCX plays a character named (*checks notes*) Charli XCX. Yeah, it's a fictionalized version of herself.
So, yeah, here's the trailer for that. The movie looks amazing.
And yes, I know. This has become a very British week. I'M SORRY. I DIDN'T MEAN IT.
But Olivia Dean has been getting a huge ton of attention in the last few months because of this song- which is a soulful and joyful highlight of her debut album and it makes me happy to know she's performing this weekend at the Grammys.
There's nothing really ground-breaking about the song - Londonbeat were - and are - a dance-pop group who wrote a huge hit single that became a worldwide hit in 1990. From their second album In The Blood, it was their biggest hit by FAR.... but they were NOT a one-hit wonder, as their followup single was also a pretty solid hit song. It was written by the group - which was pretty typical for them.
The song, however, WAS a sensation, and it was unescapable. And now, you're singing it, too. As you should be - it's a fun, sweet song.
I did mention that Londonbeat are still together, and they are - and they still perform live. Here they were in 2023, STILL singing the hell out of their biggest song.
The Butterfly Lounge was a nightclub in Orange County, California. It closed in 2014 after a short run, and left a cultural impact. It was known to be a size acceptance club, where skinny women were turned away.
It also wasn't classy. It was next to a highway and smelled of sweat and stale beer. But that was part of its charm!!
MIKA - the stage name of Michael Holbrook Penniman Jr.- happened to be flying to Los Angeles and, the night before his flight, he couldn't sleep. So he turned on Channel 4 and saw a documentary in the middle of the night about The Butterfly Lounge, which he thought was spectacular. So, he wrote the song THAT NIGHT.
He wrote the song because Victoria Wood went to the Butterfly Lounge.
Released as a single in 2007, it was a UK hit - and got a mixed reception because, well, something something making the world go 'round.
So, from his debut album, Life In Cartoon Motion, here's MIKA.
You know, MIKA had a new album out last week. Hyperlove. Go listen to it. It's pretty good.
That doesn't mean he doesn't perform this very fun song live, still. This performance is from 2023.
Of course the crowd loves it.
And of course he still holds the Butterfly Lounge in high regard.
Also, I LOVE that he's got the balls to go right into the crowd.
"Holding Back The Years" was NOT a song for teenage me. It was too mature, and I didn't enjoy it.
Looking back at their whole catalogue, I can see now how good Mick Hucknall's voice and understanding of soul really was (is, I suppose. He's not dead).
This 1991 song - from Simply Red's 4th album of the same name - reached #44 in the US - the last time the band reached the Billboard Hot 100. It was a much bigger hit in Europe, where Simply Red continued to have hits.
The song was written by Mick Hucknall and is an upbeat pop-soul song.
You know, Simply Red is still around - I mean, it's Mick Hucknall that really embodies who the band is and what they are all about.
Speaking of Merge Records, let's talk about a 2025 signing.
This isn't a band from North Carolina, though. They're from Chicago, Illinois and they make alt-country music. The band consists of vocalist Casey Walker, guitarist Max Subar, bassist Jason Ashworth, fiddle player Scott Daniel, and drummer Spencer Tweedy. Put a pin in that drummer. We'll come back to him.
They released their debut album, Last Missouri Exit, in 2025. This song was written by Casey Walker - the vocalist - and produced by Spencer Tweedy - the drummer.
If that drummer's last name looks familiar, it should. His dad's name is Jeff and they had a band together called Tweedy. I think Jeff was in another band, but I don't remember. Anyway, Spencer has been in bands since he was 13 (he was 18 or 19 when he did Tweedy with his dad) and brings a maturity to Case Oats that serves them well.
Also, Casey Walker is a hell of a country vocalist and she's going to go far.
UNCLE TUPELO! That's it!
Anyway, here's what is essentially a solo acoustic performance of the song by Casey Walker at Rough Trade. It's a great highlight for her voice and shows that she's more than a vocalist.
I was talking to Courtney about Superchunk one night recently - recalling a post about a Kay Hanley cover of a Superchunk classic - and she told me that she didn't know who they were.
So, given that I was lucky enough to see the lo-fi Chapel Hill, NC natives live in 1995, in Hartford CT - at Lollapalooza - I figured it was high time that I posted something they did.
I felt the best way to represent them would not be a current song - because they're still making great music - but rather an older one, from their 1997 Indoor Living album. This was released on the Merge Records label, which has been the home of Superchunk since the late 1980s..... but also, Mac McCaughan, the vocalist for Superchunk, owns Merge Records, so that's probably a big reason why.
The song, written by the band, is a light lo-fi pop-rock sound that is really excellent and engaging. The video is SUPER high tech.
Yes, the band is still around and still making music.... and they still perform the songs of their early days. Here they are in Carrboro, NC - which is literally next to Chapel Hill. It's like they're the same town.
Anyway, I think they sound better now. And I look forward to what comes next.
I know what you're all thinking if you don't live in Wales.
Who the hell is Don Leisure?
Don Leisure is the winner of the 2025 Welsh Music Prize, for his album Tyrchu Sain. In English, the title literally means "sound tunnelling" and that's what he's doing - building beautiful tunnels of sound and burrowing into them - laying acoustic guitars and folk sounds with electronics and modern music.
This song - which translates to "light a fire" - is a highlight of the album for me. Leisure is joined by longtime Pretender Carwun Ellis on this one, as well as a couple of samples you are certain to recognize if you are huge Welsh music fans (I didn't know them).
The Sundays made trippy dream-pop music and made it for a masses that wasn't ready for them.
This song, which was never released as a single per se but was their first real video released to MTV in the United States, was my introduction to them. Their whole Reading, Writing, and Arithmetic album, released in early 1990, was an eye-opener and changed my musical fandom forever.
They broke up in 1998, but starting in 2014, there started to be some rumblings that there would be a return. It has not yet materialized, but I am hopeful.
They did perform live an awful lot, and this show from 1997 - where they beautifully performed the song - is one of my favorites. Harriet Wheeler's voice is full of a lot of passion that is far more apparent in this live setting.
This may be one of the weirdest collaborations of all time.
Max Headroom was a digital character played by Matt Frewer, meant to be some sort of a digital presenter or talk show host or something. He's hard to explain. However, he was everywhere at a certain point of the 1980s.He had a British talk show. He sold New Coke after the return of Coke Classic.
Art of Noise was an avant-garde noise experimentation electronic group that got a little bit of attention from MTV and finally hit the US top 40 with this weird collaboration with a digital talk show host.
The song, written by Art of Noise with a title that is a mashup of "paranoia" and "insomnia", is weird early electronica.... and somehow, it just worked.
The song was remixed in 1989 by Ben Liebrand for a greatest hits album for the band. It lacks the Max, but doesn't leave out the electronica.
Despite being a very electronic group, they did perform live, like this performance from Tokyo in 1986. I personally find it interesting how they could create future beats live on instruments like they did.
It's mid-January and I'm still struggling to write 2026 on my posts.
Anyway, I felt like going with an underappreciated follow-up single. You see, Sinead O'Connor was best known for "Nothing Compares 2 U", her megahit Prince cover.
However, she didn't stop releasing singles. This one, the single that followed, was not a cover at all, but rather, written and produced by Sinead O'Connor herself. Outside of the US, this was a huge pop hit - and in the US, it made a splash on modern rock radio and made a ripple at pop radio.
It should have been a bigger hit here. It wasn't, because it was an angry song, odd for its both acoustic and electric guitar backing tracks. The song is a harder-edged pop-rock song trying to appeal to an audience who wanted another Prince ballad.
Which is a shame. Because this song is straight fire.
And when this song was released as a single, she was 23 and singing THIS hard.
You can see her performing the song with an acoustic guitar with a similar hard edge in 1990.
She's arguably coming off even angrier live.
If you want my PERSONAL favorite performance of this song, it's this much quieter but just as angry one from 2010.
You can hear every single lyric. I want you to listen to this one and feel every single word.
That doesn't mean she lost her edge. In this Parkpop performance from 2013, she's back to louder and harder - and angry.
But also, happier. And the crowd loves her.
This show is from 2020, and was one of her very last shows, as her tour would be shut down less than a week later thanks to the pandemic. She would literally only perform this song four more times before the abrupt end of the tour.
She still had every last bit of emotion and left it all on that stage.
