Lady Gaga, whose name is inspired by Radio Gaga by Queen in case you were wondering, has moved pretty swiftly from dance clubs in New York to the mainstream. Apparently she’s also the creative director for Polaroid, which seems like a snub towards Andre 3000. Anyway, Paparazzi was the fourth single (in the U.S.) from 2008’s The Fame. It follows the Gaga formula of a dark, ominous verse mixed with a very hooky, grandiose chorus. In this case, the chorus is pretty similar to the chorus of By The Way, the title track to the Red Hot Chili Pepper’s 2005 album. By The Way actually has a similar formula with it’s frantic, almost demonic sounding verse, leading into the pure cane sugar chorus. Does this make Anthony Kiedis mad? He could always start ripping off her fashion sense.

Take a listen to each chorus side by side:

The song’s lyrics tell a vague story of a girl named Dani. The concept developed starting with Californication, in which the lyrics refer to an unnamed “Teenage bride with a baby inside”. This story was continued in By the Way, and concluded in Dani California.

I guess the true dogfather as far as the courts are concerned is George Clinton, who now legally owns Bow Wow Wow Yippie Yo Yippie Yay. The phrase, which he originally wrote in the Parliament song Atomic Dog in 1982, has become part of the pop culture vernacular since Snoop Dogg and Dr. Dre resurrected it for the 1992 gangsta rap smash hit crossover Nothin but a G Thang from The Chronic. Apparently, Clinton drew the line when the backup band for R Kelly, Public Announcement, tried to get away with it in their song D.O.G. in Me in their 1998 album All Work, No Play. He raised the funk flag and dropped a lawsuit on the group, and the courts saw it his way awarding Bridgeport Music, the company that handles Clinton’s work, around 89 large. Bridgeport is also pursuing 476 (holy cripes!) other copyright lawsuits against various artists who borrowed from Clinton, though he is not seeing any of these funds since he is in a royalty dispute with Bridgeport.

Lifehouse originally started as a Christian Rock Band with frontman Jason Wade in Los Angeles called Blyss in 1999, but changed their tune when they realized the power of the darkside and became reborn as…wait for it…LIFEHOUSE…in 2001 after seeing their favorite film from that year Life as a House starring Kevin Kline (unverified). They had mucho success in top 40 land with the single Hanging by a Moment which, in turn, left us all hanging from bridges. OK, so I faintly overheard Whatever it Takes in a shopping mall browsing through the clearance clothing rack and actually thought it was Oasis. They both have a meloncholic but hopeful melody, as well as lyrics, with one song asking not to leave while the other is claiming to do whatever it takes to fix things. Here’s an idea…stop writing songs and we can talk about it.

Here’s a sample audio starting with Oasis:

Here’s Oasis playing Don’t Go Away live in Manchester in 1997:

Jenny Lewis takes a relatively safe turn in the chorus with a major chord and “here’s the chorus,” while Young has a subtle but effective retooling of the verse’s melody for his more delicate refrain. It’s interesting to note that the melody for Love Is A Rose was taken from one of his unreleased songs, Dance Dance Dance, which eventually saw its release on 2007’s Live at Massey Hall 1971. Also, Linda Ronstadt had a #5 country hit with the song on her Platinum 1975 album Prisoner In Disguise. I also hear a bit of That Thing You Do by The Wonders (written by Adam Schlesinger from Fountains of Wayne and The Tinted Windows) in the intro.

Here’s an audio clip of the two melodies:

Here’s a video of Neil Young playing Love is a Rose in Portland in 2007:

I found a nice mash up by DJ Paul V. Click here to listen to it. (mp3)

Start spreading the news, I’m leaving today for Paradise City with anyone else but you.

Franz Ferdinand formed in Glasgow, Scotland in 2001 and delighted history teachers throughout the U.S. that instantly gained 2% street cred for knowing all about Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria. Take Me Out became a big hit in the UK and a modest hit in the US in 2004, with it’s unique composition and catchy guitar hook. Finger Eleven lifted this idea in Paralyzer which was a big hit for the band in the U.S. in 2008.

Here’s a nice mash up from SKRATCH N SNIFF:

Mason Jennings played a sold out show at First Avenue in Minneapolis on December 27th, 2007. He usually plays First Ave every December, and this concert came closely after the soundtrack to I’m Not There was released, in which he provided two excellent Bob Dylan covers - Times They Are a-Changin’ and The Lonesome Death of Hattie Carroll. Surprisingly, both songs were left off the setlist.

Perhaps he was too busy tending to his family. Brother Matt Jennings, who has a striking resemblence to Mason and opened the show with his own set, came out to play on a few songs including an old song the pair had written about riding bikes intoxicated at night. Wife Amy Jennings (formerly of Astronaut Wife ) came out to provide backing vocals on a few songs including the poignant tribute The Ballad of Paul and Sheila about the untimely death of Minnesota Senator Paul Wellstone. Finally, in an out-of-left-field and refreshing move, he brought out his proud and understandibly nervous father to sing a couple songs including Go Tell it on the Mountain.

Former bassist and current John Lennon circa 1970 lookalike Robert Skoro joined him onstage with an acoustic guitar for a soothing cover of the Everly Brothers’ All I Have to Do is Dream followed by Heaven, a song from Skoro’s 2002 solo album Proof. The set ended with the entire group (sans father) for a performance of Sorry Signs on Cash Machines from Mason’s 2002 album Century Spring. By this time, the show had a very Grand Ole Opry feel to it, and it was nice how he slowly built to that point from starting with just an acoustic guitar.

The encore started with the wisely chosen Big Sur from his first album, leading into the poorly chosen Keepin’ it Real. The song, which I could do a songs alike post about seeing as it’s a slight ripoff of Bob Dylan’s You Ain’t Going Nowhere, was written for Shrek 2. The producers nixed it for Accidentally in Love by the Counting Crows , which had a lasting love affair with the Billboard charts. Mason ended the show with the stark and beautful Adrian from Century Spring.

Another highlight was a laid back cover of Waiting by Tom Petty with accompaniment on the upright bass. Maybe he included this in lieu of the Dylan songs? Either way, it was well executed and placed nicely in the middle of the setlist. All in all, another great show from one of Minnesota’s favorite singer/songwriters and truly unique talents.

Tegan and Sara, my favorite lesbian identical twin sister Canadian band, came to the Pantages Theatre in Minneapolis on November 30th, 2007, in support of their phenomenal record The Con. The album is on my best of 2007 list. They played a nice mix of this record and their older material.

Overall, the show was very good, with some minor distractions.

The first of which are intended for the crowd.

Much like Nancy Sinatra’s boots are made for walking, theater shows are made for sitting. You can stand for the encore only. Also, it’s not a free for all, and you can’t run up to the pit. Sorry kids. Stay off my damn lawn.

You can take a few pictures with your click click click click camera, phone, or James Bond spycam. You can’t take a google (look it up on google) of pictures or hold your gadget up for the entire concert. It feels like a search party pointing flashlights at me all night. Why even go to a live show if you plan to watch it through your 3 inch lens? I realize I will probably be using video from these rapscallions in this post, and I understand the irony.

OK, now on to the talent.

1. The drums and bass were way too loud, and the bassist had some kind of fuzz effect which did not jive with the songs in my opinion. C’mon ladies. Listen to your album. Pretend that your capable producer Christopher Walla is in the room, and persuade the album’s bassist Matt Sharp (Weezer, The Rentals) to join you on tour. Throw some Loonies at him since they’re worth something now (at least when this post was published). You write smart, well-crafted pop songs with an emphasis on vocals and simple but effective instrumentation. That’s what we want to hear at your concerts. I also think a second rhythm guitarist is overkill. I know you’re young and you want to rock (and I salute you), but don’t compromise the music.

banter:

walking with a ghost: