#41 Nikki, "Bring Me Down"

I never break down any longer
I don't know why I can't move on
I really need, I really want you to

Bring me down

Pop-rock straight from the Kelly Clarkson school (well, with maybe just the tiniest twinge of that country-rock-soul genre), "Bring Me Down," a request for the return of a destructive relationship, was a song I initially felt disappointed by--the music of that chorus just felt not fleshed out enough. As the months passed, though, I returned to this first "proper" single from Dutch Idols winner Nikki again and again. It's the experience of singing along to "Bring Me Down" at the top of my lungs that probably really sold me on it.

"Bring Me Down" is a good example of how a good melody can combine with some well executed if not original production to result in something worth keeping; if the melody had been used in a more minimal ballad, I doubt I would have paid proper attention to it--it benefits from all the guitars, percussion, and power pop production done on the track--but many the Kelly Clarkson knockoff song has failed to come up with a melody strong enough to make the song worth our while--just throwing a blowout chorus together with some guitars does not a good song make. Nikki's got the voice and range to pull all of this off, her voice usually fairly clear but with a little darkness in the choruses.

Unfortunately, her debut album was disappointing. When I'm singing along with the closing "bring me down"s of this song, though, I couldn't care less.

Find it on: Naked

Jag är tillbaks?

With credit to PubliSpain, Naked, the debut album of Dutch singer Nikki, whose Kelly Clarkson-ish song "Bring Me Down" is really shaping up to be one of my favorite singles of the year, can be listened to in its entirety here. Good news: another version of "Brief & Beautiful" (though it plays as track 8, not track 9 as labeled)! Just what the world needed.

Surely Markoolio can't be imitating Lady GaGa's "Poker Face" in his new song ("The Markoolio Anthem")? I mean, the turnaround time given when "Poker Face" started taking off in Sweden...they just couldn't have done it quickly enough...could they? But what other (modern, unless we think he's going Boney M.) reason would there be for that very distinctive "ma ma ma ma" after the chorus (not the one near the chorus's beginning)? It's a heck of a coincidence otherwise.

I am beyond thrilled that finally, finally I was able to buy John Barrowman's "What About Us." My love of that song (an ultimate sing-along-in-your-car, clenched-fists sort of melodic power ballad) still remains at unhealthy levels--I'm blaming you, Gary Barlow.

Speaking of Popjustice-featured songs, I also love Britain's Got Talent winner George Sampson's debut single, "Get Up On The Dance Floor." Yes, he won for being a dancer, not any sort of musician, but that hasn't stopped me from playing this song (via its video), basically a mash-up of a bunch of famous dance tracks, multiple times. I will absolutely not back down on my love of this.



Also on the front of tracks that will probably be marketed towards British kids but that I adore, we've also got Same Difference's "We R One." Paul already analyzed the video, so instead I'll just leave it at this: fantastic song and fantastic dance routine for the chorus, especially during the whole "together, together, we're coming undone" second half of the chorus. Just as he did when writing for Marie Serneholt's solo album, Jörgen Elofsson's done a great job of making a song that harks back to '90's pure pop but that's still enjoyable for today. I wish he'd make songs like this--as opposed to the ballads he seems to mainly produce now--more often.

It's so calm and quiet without you

For lack of time, I'll just say that this song, which I've written about several times before, continues to only get better and better with time and is just fantastic to shout along with at the top of your lungs. Fantastic. There are even a few lines I can imagine Kelly singing, much as it is the opposite in sentiment of a song like "Since U Been Gone."