It's Friday, so here's an infectious, harmonious way to kick off the weekend.
Remember the five-people-one-guitar cover of Gotye's Somebody That I Used to Know that took the Internet by storm in 2012? For those that don't know, that group is Walk Off The Earth and they've been doing music for quite some time.
WOTE has made many innovative covers like Somebody That I Used To Know, and even has an album out with some pretty awesome originals. A couple of weeks ago, I decided to watch through all their videos. After listening to this cover of Rihanna's "Cheers (Drink To That)" I immediately added it to my YouTube music favorites playlist; it's one of those songs you can listen to over and over again without getting tired of it. Have a listen:
26 September 2014
25 September 2014
Song of the Day: September 25, 2014
At 20 years old, Meghan Trainor has been one of the hottest new names in music this summer. As of last week's Billboard Hot 100 chart, her hit debut single "All About That Bass" has spent two weeks as the number one song in America. "Bass" would have hit that mark two weeks sooner, had it not been for a more established songstress releasing the first single from her recently-announced new album. As such, Trainor's consistently high record sales had to shake off the frenzy of Taylor Swift's unanticipated new song. Once the initial clamoring to buy and hear Swift's catchy new track died off slightly, "All About That Bass" finally became the top song in America after two months on the Billboard charts.
Apparently, Trainor has no hard feelings for Swift putting off the summit of "All About That Bass" for two weeks. In fact, Trainor paid homage to "Shake It Off" recently, recording an acoustic cover of the song that was shared online last week. Trainor adds her own flavor to the song and modifies the bridge, directly addressing Swift with the lyric "So Taylor, shake 'em off/don't let 'em get to you."
Here's Taylor Swift's "Shake It Off", as covered by the remarkable Meghan Trainor:
24 September 2014
Song of the Day: September 24, 2014
Yesterday, my favorite band of all time released its third studio album, aptly titled PTX Vol. III. Naturally, I purchased a CD yesterday and have already declared I will listen to nothing else for a long time. So as not to overload you with Pentatonix greatness, I've decided every Wednesday Song of the Day will be devoted to the musical greatness that is Avi Kaplan, Kevin Olusola, Kirstie Maldonado, Mitch Grassi and Scott Hoying.
In the first installment of Pentatonix Wednesday, I present the only mashup on the seven-song PTX Vol. III. "La La Latch" is a signature PTX mashup of two songs by one of my least favorite popular artists today, Sam Smith. However, this mashup is pure gold. In true Pentatonix fashion, it is difficult to discern what parts of the song contain "La La La" and which parts come from "Latch". My favorite part of the video is its simplicity: five friends standing and singing in a circle. Have a watch and listen (or 500):
Next Pentatonix Wednesday: Papaoutai
In the first installment of Pentatonix Wednesday, I present the only mashup on the seven-song PTX Vol. III. "La La Latch" is a signature PTX mashup of two songs by one of my least favorite popular artists today, Sam Smith. However, this mashup is pure gold. In true Pentatonix fashion, it is difficult to discern what parts of the song contain "La La La" and which parts come from "Latch". My favorite part of the video is its simplicity: five friends standing and singing in a circle. Have a watch and listen (or 500):
Next Pentatonix Wednesday: Papaoutai
23 September 2014
Song of the Day: September 23, 2014
Happy autumn! After a really crappy summer in Clayton's Universe (don't know about it? Ask and if I like you enough you'll know.) I've decided it's high time to turn a new page and bring the internet along for the ride.
Music has always been a very important part of Clayton's Universe: Real Life, and I've always tried to reflect that in Blog Style. From the summer of 2010 when I replaced post titles with song lyrics - let's be honest, we've all done it - to the time Allison Stoner may have visited CUBS but I can't be sure, this blog has always delivered sports with an undertone of my musical tastes.
It's time the music takes the forefront on the Blog front, because it's been helping me cope with Real World life in recent days.
From now until I get complaints from Google for having the lowest posts-to-views ratio in Blogger history, it is my intention to share a music video a day with all three of my regular readers (here's looking at you, Mother, Dad and David).
So what can you expect? I honestly don't know; I will be doing this on the fly a lot. My current expectations are as follows:
-Strong vocals and harmonies in almost every post, because the voice is the world's best instrument.
-At least one video from Pentatonix or the Gardiner Sisters each week, because I want to be their best friend.
-Mostly happy and upbeat songs, because I like to think I'm a positive person. When you see a sad song, I'm either depressed, having an introspective moment, or the harmonies are so superb I don't care how sad it is.
-"Friday" by Rebecca Black once every month or two, because sometimes we need to remember how the days of the week go. Don't worry, though, I will never post "Friday" on a Tuesday unless I'm feeling absurdly trollish.
-A healthy mix of newer and older songs and videos, because music is forever.
-More reasons for sharing songs than people reading said reasons, because self-depreciation shows you have a sense of humor.
-A random RickRoll now and then, because I'm Never Gonna Give You Up and you're just going to have to live with it.
Accompanying each song will be a few thoughts about why I chose the song or how I'm feeling because of the music or something along those lines. Like I said, I'm doing it on the fly. The ultimate goal of this project, at least for now, is to make sure no matter how bad your day may be, your ears will always have four minutes of good.
To kick off this music mania, here's the greatest music video of all time. There is no room for debate, because....just watch:
Obviously, I wanted a light-hearted start to CUBS Song of the Day, and what better way to begin than with the Internet's most classic running joke? And I warned you there would be a RickRoll every once in a while. I will never forget you, Rick Astley's Never Gonna Give You Up, and I hope the world will hold this video in highest esteem for years to come.
Music has always been a very important part of Clayton's Universe: Real Life, and I've always tried to reflect that in Blog Style. From the summer of 2010 when I replaced post titles with song lyrics - let's be honest, we've all done it - to the time Allison Stoner may have visited CUBS but I can't be sure, this blog has always delivered sports with an undertone of my musical tastes.
It's time the music takes the forefront on the Blog front, because it's been helping me cope with Real World life in recent days.
From now until I get complaints from Google for having the lowest posts-to-views ratio in Blogger history, it is my intention to share a music video a day with all three of my regular readers (here's looking at you, Mother, Dad and David).
So what can you expect? I honestly don't know; I will be doing this on the fly a lot. My current expectations are as follows:
-Strong vocals and harmonies in almost every post, because the voice is the world's best instrument.
-At least one video from Pentatonix or the Gardiner Sisters each week, because I want to be their best friend.
-Mostly happy and upbeat songs, because I like to think I'm a positive person. When you see a sad song, I'm either depressed, having an introspective moment, or the harmonies are so superb I don't care how sad it is.
-"Friday" by Rebecca Black once every month or two, because sometimes we need to remember how the days of the week go. Don't worry, though, I will never post "Friday" on a Tuesday unless I'm feeling absurdly trollish.
-A healthy mix of newer and older songs and videos, because music is forever.
-More reasons for sharing songs than people reading said reasons, because self-depreciation shows you have a sense of humor.
-A random RickRoll now and then, because I'm Never Gonna Give You Up and you're just going to have to live with it.
Accompanying each song will be a few thoughts about why I chose the song or how I'm feeling because of the music or something along those lines. Like I said, I'm doing it on the fly. The ultimate goal of this project, at least for now, is to make sure no matter how bad your day may be, your ears will always have four minutes of good.
To kick off this music mania, here's the greatest music video of all time. There is no room for debate, because....just watch:
Obviously, I wanted a light-hearted start to CUBS Song of the Day, and what better way to begin than with the Internet's most classic running joke? And I warned you there would be a RickRoll every once in a while. I will never forget you, Rick Astley's Never Gonna Give You Up, and I hope the world will hold this video in highest esteem for years to come.
13 August 2014
Kurt Schneider wins the Internet again...with WHOM?!?
YouTube superstars Alex G, Kurt Schneider and Sam Tsui are back with the next great viral hit. Joining the team is a blast from the past you may not recognize.
Thirteen months ago, the Pitch Perfect Cups Song was all the rage on the Internet. You remember the one; it was the stunningly beautiful Anna Kendrick's audition to join the Barden Bellas in the smash hit Pitch Perfect and, in time, became Kendrick's first hit single which sparked thousands of covers from the YouTube community. One such cover caught my particular attention one night early in July 2013. I sat down to watch new videos from my few dozen subscriptions, but spent hours stuck replaying this particular Cup Song cover.
YouTube sensation Kurt Hugo Schneider, the Yale-educated musical and video-engineering mastermind behind a number of viral cover songs, had struck gold with his Cups cover. Featuring Schneider's best bud Sam Tsui and fellow YouTube singing stars Alex G and Kina Grannis, this one-take live performance featured a twist on the traditional "cup game" which provides the percussion to the original song. Add in a perfectly-blended four-part harmony and the authentic joy of four friends in perfect musical sync, and the ultimate viral hit of Summer 2013 was born.
Flash forward to August 2014. Again, winding down for the night, I opened my YouTube subscriptions and the top video listed was titled "Epic Patty Cake Song (I'll Think Of You)", uploaded by the impeccable Kurt Hugo Schneider. I spent the rest of the night savoring the four-part harmonies and human percussion - this time provided by an advanced version of the children's patty-cake game - I had fallen in love with in the Cups cover 13 months before.
(Here, watch it again because you didn't get enough the first time.)
Schneider's Epic Patty Cake Song is an original song written and arranged by Schneider and Tsui, entitled "I'll Think Of You." "I'll Think of You" brings back Cups' four-part harmony accompanied solely by man-made percussion, shot live and in one take. Alex G joins the duo for a reprise performance, but Grannis is this time not a part of the quartet. In her place is a girl who at first glance is unfamiliar, but once you learn her name is unmistakable.
Remember 10 years ago when Disney Channel was still somewhat enjoyable for the preteen demographic? There was a certain supporting actress in a number of those Disney Channel shorts, shows and movies who - at the time - I referred to as That-Cute-Girl-On-Disney-Whose-Name-I-Still-Haven't-Learned.
Her name, as I eventually made an effort to discover, is Alyson Stoner. While she never really stopped being active as an actress and - like just about every other 2000s Disney star - singer, Stoner's work became less relevant among the younger half of the millennial generation.
Thirteen months ago, the Pitch Perfect Cups Song was all the rage on the Internet. You remember the one; it was the stunningly beautiful Anna Kendrick's audition to join the Barden Bellas in the smash hit Pitch Perfect and, in time, became Kendrick's first hit single which sparked thousands of covers from the YouTube community. One such cover caught my particular attention one night early in July 2013. I sat down to watch new videos from my few dozen subscriptions, but spent hours stuck replaying this particular Cup Song cover.
YouTube sensation Kurt Hugo Schneider, the Yale-educated musical and video-engineering mastermind behind a number of viral cover songs, had struck gold with his Cups cover. Featuring Schneider's best bud Sam Tsui and fellow YouTube singing stars Alex G and Kina Grannis, this one-take live performance featured a twist on the traditional "cup game" which provides the percussion to the original song. Add in a perfectly-blended four-part harmony and the authentic joy of four friends in perfect musical sync, and the ultimate viral hit of Summer 2013 was born.
Flash forward to August 2014. Again, winding down for the night, I opened my YouTube subscriptions and the top video listed was titled "Epic Patty Cake Song (I'll Think Of You)", uploaded by the impeccable Kurt Hugo Schneider. I spent the rest of the night savoring the four-part harmonies and human percussion - this time provided by an advanced version of the children's patty-cake game - I had fallen in love with in the Cups cover 13 months before.
(Here, watch it again because you didn't get enough the first time.)
Schneider's Epic Patty Cake Song is an original song written and arranged by Schneider and Tsui, entitled "I'll Think Of You." "I'll Think of You" brings back Cups' four-part harmony accompanied solely by man-made percussion, shot live and in one take. Alex G joins the duo for a reprise performance, but Grannis is this time not a part of the quartet. In her place is a girl who at first glance is unfamiliar, but once you learn her name is unmistakable.
Remember 10 years ago when Disney Channel was still somewhat enjoyable for the preteen demographic? There was a certain supporting actress in a number of those Disney Channel shorts, shows and movies who - at the time - I referred to as That-Cute-Girl-On-Disney-Whose-Name-I-Still-Haven't-Learned.
 |
| You couldn't go two hours on Disney Channel without seeing this face. |
 |
| Alyson grew up like the rest of us, and quite possibly better than most of us. |
Stoner just celebrated her 21st birthday, and appears to be finally emerging from the pre-teen "life in high school" genre of film, focusing on more age-specific roles....and music!
Does this collaboration with YouTube royalty mean Stoner is once again becoming relevant among the late-teen/early-20s age group she is a part of? Let's hope so; not only was she able to avoid going off the deep end like many other child stars our age (read: Cyrus, Miley), Miss Stoner also has an enjoyably pleasant singing voice.
If you need to catch up on That-Cute-Girl-On-Disney-Whose-Name-I-Still-Haven't-Learned like I did writing this post, Stoner is on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, etc.
Kurt, Sam and Alex are continually producing content for their respective YouTube channels. Thirteen months from now, perhaps the trio will have released the next installment in what should certainly be a long-lived video series.
Does this collaboration with YouTube royalty mean Stoner is once again becoming relevant among the late-teen/early-20s age group she is a part of? Let's hope so; not only was she able to avoid going off the deep end like many other child stars our age (read: Cyrus, Miley), Miss Stoner also has an enjoyably pleasant singing voice.
If you need to catch up on That-Cute-Girl-On-Disney-Whose-Name-I-Still-Haven't-Learned like I did writing this post, Stoner is on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, etc.
Kurt, Sam and Alex are continually producing content for their respective YouTube channels. Thirteen months from now, perhaps the trio will have released the next installment in what should certainly be a long-lived video series.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)