Art is the music we make from the bewildered cry of being alive. ~Maria Popova
06 Feb 2020 Leave a comment
in Songs You May Have Missed Tags: every single thing, homeshake
Homeshake: “Every Single Thing” (2017)
Montreal singer-songwriter Peter Sagar, who has been recording as Homeshake since 2012, creates a mostly spare, R&B-infused brand of indie pop.
“Every Single Thing” is lonesome, chilled-out, funky standout from 2017’s Fresh Air album.
31 Jan 2020 Leave a comment
in Songs You May Have Missed Tags: hold on when you get love and let go when you give it, stars
Stars: “Hold On When You Get Love and Let Go When You Give It” (2012)
It’s 80’s style synth pop with a message from Canada’s Stars.
There’s been a lot of talk of love
But that don’t amount to nothing
You can evoke the stars above
But that doesn’t make it something
And the only way to last
And the only way to live it
Is to hold on when you get love
And let go when you give it… give it
It’s a pretty melody
It might help you through the night time
But it doesn’t make it easy
To leave the party at the right time
If I’m frightened, if I’m high
It’s my weakness please forgive it
At least I hold on when I get love
And I let go when I give it… give it… give it
What do I do when I get lonely?
What do I do?
Hold on when you get love
What do I do when I get lonely?
What do I do?
Hold on when you get love
What do I do when I get lonely?
What do I do?
And you let go when you give it
What do I do?
The world won’t listen to this song
And the radio won’t play it
But if you like it sing along
Sing cause you don’t know how to say it
Take the weakest thing in you
And then beat the bastards with it
And always hold on when you get love
So you can let go when you give it
Take the weakest thing in you
And then beat the bastards with it
And always hold on when you get love
So you can let go when you give it… give it… give it
What do I do when I get lonely?
What do I do?
Hold on when you get love
What do I do when I get lonely?
What do I do?
And you let go when you give it
What do I do when I get lonely?
What do I do?
Hold on when you get love
What do I do?
I know it’s true, please don’t think I do
Nothing that you say or do will make you love me
Forget the song, things will go on
I keep seeing you from the dark with you above me
I know it’s true, please don’t think I do
Nothing that you say or do will make you love me
Forget the song, things will go on
I keep seeing you from the dark with you above me
Take the weakest thing in you
And then beat the bastards with it
And always hold on when you get love
So you can let go when you give it
Give it… give it… give it… give it… give it… give it
25 Jan 2020 Leave a comment
in Songs You May Have Missed Tags: jackyl, my moonshine kicks your cocaine's ass
Jackyl: “My Moonshine Kicks Your Cocaine’s Ass” (2010)
Jackyl, who debuted in 1992, missed the heyday of hairband metal, but nevertheless earned distinction on several fronts.
First, their signature hit “The Lumberjack” made use of a chainsaw as a lead instrument (Jesse James Dupree’s solo is rather amazing) and featured lyrics that would make AC/DC proud and your mom blush:
I ain’t jacked my lumber, baby
Since my chain saw you
The band also holds two spots in the Guinness Book of World Records, one for playing 100 concerts in 50 days and another for playing 21 concerts in a 24-hour period.
As of 2020 the band still tours.
25 Jan 2020 Leave a comment
in Songs You May Have Missed Tags: foreigner, starrider
Foreigner: “Starrider” (1977)
From Foreigner’s first, eponymous LP which, like that of Boston the previous year, helped well-crafted rock music–arena rock, if you will–stem the rising tide of punk and disco.
It was acts like Foreigner, Boston and Tom Petty that held the line for rock on the shifting musical landscape of the second half of the 70’s amid the raw, elemental anger of punk and the mostly vacuous lyrical thrust of disco.
“Corporate rock” took a contemporaneous critical beating, but its polish and professionalism were inarguable and the music continues to make new fans even today among kids who want an alternative to mumble rap, EDM and “bro country”.
Having said that, “Starrider” isn’t a typical Foreigner tune. While classic rock staples like “Feels Like the First Time” and “Cold as Ice” anchored the band’s debut, “Starrider”, with its harpsichord, synths, spacey effects and flanger-tinged drum propulsion, is a detour of light years from their typically guitar-and-hormone fueled and decidedly earthbound template.
I think it’s far out.
11 Jan 2020 Leave a comment
in Songs You May Have Missed Tags: muse, unintended
Muse: “Unintended” (1999)
From their debut album, which didn’t chart in the States. Thus, American listeners mostly missed out on the band the English press were comparing to Radiohead until “Uprising” landed them on modern rock radio a decade later.
And yes, there’s definitely a Thom Yorke-ish quality to Matthew Bellamy’s vocals.
See also: https://edcyphers.com/2012/11/09/songs-you-may-have-missed-217/
23 Nov 2019 Leave a comment
in Songs You May Have Missed Tags: ghost, square hammer
Ghost: “Square Hammer” (2016)
Are you one of those who opine that rock is dead, and the visceral thrill of the genre has faded with the hair on the head of your favorite Rock Hall-enshrined dinosaurs?
Maybe you just need to look a little more earnestly.
Although this certainly isn’t 1975 and the pop landscape isn’t crowded with acts like Queen, Led Zeppelin and Grand Funk, there is still music being created that can make the hair stand up on your arms.
For example, that of Sweden’s masked melodic metallers Ghost.
Though their occult music videos may go further than fans of Alice Cooper and Blue Oyster Cult may be comfortable with, Ghost’s brand of macabre, melodic rock may strike the right note. From the insistent organ riff to the two-beat timpani accent accompanying the verse’s lyric to a harmony-stacked chorus you may have stuck in your head for days, the hooks abound on “Square Hammer”.
See also: https://edcyphers.com/2021/08/14/songs-you-may-have-missed-708/
See also: https://edcyphers.com/2025/12/24/songs-you-may-have-missed-809/
PHOTO COPYRIGHT JOHN McMURTRIE 2015
Every Moment Has A Song 