NewYearsDayProject | a song a day blog

Ah! The weekend: a time when many of us can breathe that collective sigh of relief, leaving our forty hours at the office, forgetting about the boss, and maybe making some time for Number 1. Before I read into  The Weeknd ’s 2015 hit, the upbeat track reminded me of catching a fresh cup of Guatemalan iced coffee before catching a bus to meet friends for a weekend in another city. One weekend, I was in a cafe in Hongdae that was playing covers of hit songs and I heard a female version of " Can't Feel My Face " playing. I can't be sure if it was  Andie Case 's  version . However, after adding Case's version of The Weeknd's #1 hit, I think it gives an interesting, mellow take on the normally, upbeat song. It's the alternate perspectives that makes YouTube cover artists and interesting addition to your music library. SHE TOLD ME 'DON'T WORRY.  ' The Weeknd is known for his melancholy, self-destructive tunes. However, Andie Case's vibey cove

A few Saturday afternoons circa 2015-17, I went  down a rabbit-hole, looking for the best   Paper Route ,   Anberlin , and   Copeland   covers on YouTube. This was long after finding artists like   Tyler Ward   who covered pop music. I wondered if anyone had recorded high quality covers of my favorite bands. It turns out that there were   a few . These artists weren't on the level of popularity of   Kurt Hugo Schneider   or   Boyce Avenue . I had hoped to created a cover playlist of a Copeland album, but there weren't enough high-quality covers on YouTube at the time. Charles Angell's   YouTube account   has 7 videos, 77 subscribers, and the singer hasn't posted anything in 3 years. From a quick Facebook search, it turns out that Angell is still active as a musician, with a new haircut and some designer rims, now under the moniker of   Snarly  (link to his social media presence).  YOU'RE STILL A BREEZE UPON MY SKIN.   Of the Copeland covers, Charles Angell's ver

For the third year, The Weeknd 's " Blinding Lights " makes my playlist, although last year the song was represented by Sam Tsui with production by Kurt Hugo Schneider . I find the cultural discussions around the song fascinating: how a song from 2019 predicted the loneliness and isolation of the world, the greater concept in the record After Hours  complete with thematic story-telling music videos and conceptual live performances leading up to and during the release of the record. "Blinding Lights" was the omni-present hit in 2020 that worked whether you were a drug or sex addict, a celebrity dealing with the dark side of the industry, or none of those things. A lot has been said about this synth pop track a lot better than I can prepare in an evening, so I'll leave you with a podcast that talks about it pretty well. And for the rest of the post today, I'm going to leave you with a Spotify Edition of my Pseudo '80s Hits from last year. Kids make

Linkin Park 's fourth studio album, A Thousand Suns underperformed compared to the band's massive first three albums. The album produced two singles, " The Catalyst " and today's song, " Waiting for the End ," but ultimately listeners didn't like the album as most of the songs were not catchy. I always want to dig deeper into this album and its themes, but today, I wanted to introduce my AAPI Heritage Playlist, so I chose the most pop-oriented song on A Thousand Suns. If you want more information on the music theory behind this album, I'll link to The Discographers ,  an excellent podcast that explores the discography of Linkin Park in one of their seasons.  MY MOUTH KEPT MOVING AND MY MIND WENT DEAD.   May is Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month in the United States, and I wanted to make a playlist that recognized some of the amazing talent by AAPI musicians. As with my other lists, I realize that making lists like this can be pr

A few Saturday afternoons circa 2015-17, I went down a rabbit-hole, looking for the best Paper Route , Anberlin , and Copeland covers on YouTube. This was long after finding artists like Tyler Ward who covered pop music. I wondered if anyone had recorded high quality covers of my favorite bands. It turns out that there were a few . These artists weren't on the level of popularity of Kurt Hugo Schneider or Boyce Avenue . I had hoped to created a cover playlist of a Copeland album, but there weren't enough high-quality covers on YouTube at the time. Charles Angell's YouTube account has 7 videos, 77 subscribers, and the singer hasn't posted anything in 3 years. From a quick Facebook search, it turns out that Angell is still active as a musician, with a new haircut and some designer rims, now under the moniker of Snarly  (link to his social media presence).  YOU'RE STILL A BREEZE UPON MY SKIN.  Of the Copeland covers, Charles Angell's version of " Erase &q

  The Internet has launched many music careers, particularly over the last twenty years. Plug in the DSL and log on to the MySpace page, check MP3.com , visit the band's Pure Volume account, see the latest video on YouTube , watch the singer get big on TikTok , and maybe get featured on a Podcast--it's a brave new world only limited by Comcast (and certain regions of North Carolina where they refuse to lay the cable). While platforms have come and gone, YouTube has been a consistent place where singers have gotten their start. Justin Bieber, Charlie Puth , and  Rebecca Black  are some of the big-name acts that started out as YouTube stars. However, sometime in college, I started going down the rabbit hole of YouTube cover artists, starting with Tyler Ward . However, one cover has another in the sidebar, and you have to click on it. What does an acoustic version of " Like a G6 " sound like anyway? SO TIRED OF TEARS . I can now say that I love many kinds of music. W