Back with a better view

Hi all,

Just a quick note to say that I think I'll be back tomorrow...and, more importantly, that I am overwhelmed and truly touched by the messages from all of you. Thank you so much, to each and every one of you.

It'll be good to be back, because apparently every time I take an extended break from the blog, my music taste gets increasingly dubious--over vacation in the summer, I found myself in love with Brad Paisley's "Online." Yes, the premise is incredibly overdone (look at how people make themselves seem cooler online!) and the video I could do without (though I expect it's what makes the song for some people), but the song is really catchy and the perfect laughing group singalong. Plus, the way it goes into a marching band version of itself at the end (because of some of the lyrics earlier) is too funny and, in my eyes, sort of negates any "bullying" accusations. And how can you criticize a song with the lyrics "even on a slow day, I can have a three way...chat"?

Where was I going with this? Oh yeah--well, I'm worried now because I think I like the Santana and Chad Kroeger's (Nickelback's lead singer) single, "Into The Night." And I'm anti-"Smooth," too. I'd cut the guitar break and some of the more obvious "ooo, look, Latin!" guitar touches, but it's good. Plus, despite me thinking it was a mess of sound that didn't add up to much the first time I heard it, Chris Brown's latest single, "Kiss Kiss," really intrigues me now. It's synthy, mid-tempo, "urban," and...as I said, intriguing, for some reason. I guess I'm interested to see where he goes next. Of course, ever since "Run It," I've had time for a little Chris Brown. I could see me getting sick of this quickly, though, too. Oh, but the song does continue the grand Chis Brown tradition of mentioning his age in virtually every single he releases, which still amuses me to no end. Heck, I even think the chorus to the latest R. Kelly/Kid Rock/Ludacris mess isn't bad (do not go looking for the song, though, because the chorus is not good enough to make it worth wading through the simultaneous boringness and offensiveness). Talking about rockstars is in now, I guess, what with that, the Nickelback song, and that Shop Boyz song.

Speaking of Nickelback, I quite like the latest Daughtry single, "Over You," as well--pop-rock, I suppose, of the fairly straight up sort, not innovative, but I like it. And still like Good Charlotte's sort of old by now "I Don't Wanna Be In Love (Dancefloor Anthem)," which is apparently at least doing something in the U.S. now.

For more pop-rock with alt influence, the debut single from latest Canadian Idol winner Brian Melo, "All I Ever Wanted," isn't bad either.

Oh, and the two Faber Drive songs I've heard are both good--I know I made an offhand reference to them once, but they may be possible "featured in the near future" candidates.

One more "oh": I guess "Kiss and Make Up,"the song supposed to promote MTV's new TV series Kaya (a fictional show about a singer and her struggles with fame), which I think is supposedly by Crossing Coldwater (the fictional band from the TV show) but is being listed as Kaya & Crossing Coldwater, isn't horrible, but if you're looking for that sort of girl-led pop-rock that draws from alt-rock territory, I'd go with I Nine's "Seven Days Of Lonely" (the song doesn't start until 27 seconds in; and yes, this is the song I mentioned the other day that keeps drawing Avril comparisons) which does have that cheesy title but is catchier, it works the repeated "oh"s better, and it's slightly poppier...or maybe just better. Not fantastic either, but better.

So in other words, I think I desperately need to get back in touch with the blogging world. See what happens when you're surrounded by nothing other than the U.S. mainstream music scene for even a week?

(This was just meant to be a quick, couple sentence post--oops.)