Between The Lines: Zebra's Reviews

[Zeebz]

Between the Lines: Zebra's Reviews

Hi, all! I figured I might as well make one of these too. Anyways, I will review both songs and albums here, and they can be from any time period. I'm by no means an expert in reviewing (I've actually never done it before), but I figured it has to be worth a shot, right? Regardless, stay tuned. Thanks for stopping by! :)

Here I will give brief descriptions of some of what you can expect from this thread.

Song of the Day:

I'll try to post daily reviews of songs I'm really enjoying. They may not come every day, and if they don't, then I'll do one of two things. I may just make it a frozen day (same song is the song of the day without a review), or I'll compensate for that by doing more than one on another given day. Sometimes I'll just post more than one based on how I feel, so you can look forward to that. Oh, and songs can be from any time period. Oh, and requested songs will be their own section. 

Zebra's Recommends:

This section will be similar to song of the day, but instead I'll only review new songs I'm really loving here. It won't be daily, but maybe at least once a week. It just depends. I really hope this section can be helpful for helping others to find new music. 

Zebra's Album Reviews:

This section is where I will review albums. I will review as I feel, so this section may not be updated as frequently as the others. Again, albums can be from any time period, although I'll try to include a nice balance of newer and older albums. They'll all be my favorites (or not so favorites, in rare exceptions), regardless.

Will I take requests?

I doubt I'll actually have the time to take requests to review, as I usually want to stick to what I love, but sometimes I will. It'll just depend on my free time. I'm rather busy as of late, so requested reviews will be infrequent. If you do have requests though, you can recommend one album or two songs a week, and I may or may not get to them. Sorry if I don't. It's just a matter of time. By all means, though, do request reviews. I will appreciate the opportunity to listen to something I probably wouldn't have had it not been reviewed.

[Zeebz]

Archives!

Zebra's Song of the Day:

10/16/14 - "Fantasy" - Mariah Carey
10/17/14 - 

Zebra Recommends:

TBD

Zebra's Album Reviews:

TBD

[Zeebz]

Song of the Day - Day 1 - October 16, 2014

Song: "Fantasy"

Artist: Mariah Carey

Year of Release: 1995

Album: Daydream

Peak (US): 1 (8 weeks)
Listen here

For my first song of the day, I'd like to try to review my what is quite possibly my favorite Mariah single, ever. And that isn't an easy feat. "Fantasy" is the lead single off of Daydream, and it was released in the year I was born (1995). It debuted straight at the top of the Billboard Hot 100, becoming only the second song to do so (after Michael Jackson's "You Are Not Alone"). That's incredible. Not only did it debut there, but it stayed at number one for eight straight weeks. Talk about staying power.

What makes "Fantasy" so great? Well, for starters it has a really upbeat production. It creates a fun atmosphere for the song, and I would definitely associate this song with summer. The video doesn't help, but I'll elaborate on that later. "Fantasy" is about a person wanting a relationship with another person, although they only fantasize about it. The chorus is instantly catchy, and once it gets stuck in your head it won't let go. Her vocal delivery on "Fantasy" may not be as good as say "Emotions", but it is really amazing. The final chorus is what really makes this song stand out to me. Her vocals really stand out there. The video is really great too. She is at an amusement park and it just conveys an image of fun. It's one of my favorite videos from her. Fitting for one of my favorite songs from her.

Why did I chose "Fantasy"? Well, besides the fact that it's amazing. It recently got stuck in my head and I figured I may as well give my first song of the day review to Mariah. She is recently becoming a favorite of mine. Her 90s singles are all so good, and it is really hard to choose just one. I already stated that "Fantasy" was one of my favorites though, so of course I started out with this one. Besides, there'll be other chances to review others from her. If I had to rank this in the grand scheme of Mariah singles, it would be in my top five. Other contenders for my top five? "Always Be My Baby", "Dreamlover", "Emotions", and "We Belong Together", obviously. However, "We Belong Together" often switches with "I Still Believe", "Vision of Love", and "Make It Happen", so it changes almost daily. Regardless, "Fantasy" is an essential in any playlist.

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Sorry that this review is so informal, but this will pretty much be the format of my reviews. I really hope you all enjoy! :)

[♛ The Manticore ☯]

I like "Fantasy". I also liked the Bad Boy remix featuring Ol' Dirty Bastard. The Def Club mix was great as well.

[Zeebz]

Song of the Day - Day 2 - October 20, 2014 

I promise I haven't forgotten this! I've decided to restart this from Monday's date. For this review I'll do something a little more recent.

Song: "I'm Not the Only One"

Artist: Sam Smith

Album: In the Lonely Hour

Year: 2014

Peak (US): 25*

Listen: "I'm Not the Only One" - Sam Smith

    After I heard both "Money on My Mind" and "Stay With Me" for the first time I had the impression that I would never like a solo single from Sam Smith. I was disappointed because I had really loved "Latch" and "La La La". However, "I'm Not the Only One" really changed my opinion. My roommate kept playing it and it slowly started to grow on me. I still found it forgettable though. Recently I was listening to the Billboard Hot 100 playlist on Spotify and this came on and it just clicked. I fell in love almost immediately. It is actually my favorite song at the moment. "Stay With Me" has recently grown on me as well, so I'll probably have to check his album out.

    "I'm Not the Only One" is about a lover of Sam Smith's whom he knows is cheating on him. This is especially evident by the line "But when you call me baby I know I'm not the only one". If the theme wasn't sad enough, his vocals really make you feel for him. He sings with so much emotion and he really makes me appreciate him as an artist. His vocals are just amazing. I have no idea if this song is based on his personal experience, but he really makes it sound like it is.

    The video is another aspect of this song that I really appreciate. It stars Diana Agron from Glee (she was always one of my favorites) and Chris Messina. Agron plays a bride who finds out that her husband has been cheating on her. Eventually she starts drinking and setting his clothes on fire. In the end, however, she just welcomes him into the house without confronting him about his actions. It's really sad, and I feel like it highlights the song's theme.

[Zeebz]

Song of the Day - Day 3 - October 21, 2014



Song: "In the Air Tonight"

Artist: Phil Collins

Album: Face Value

Year: 1981

Peak: (US): 19
Listen: "In the Air Tonight" - Phil Collins

Words cannot express how much I love this song. It is timeless. It seems like it would have been a much bigger hit than it truly was. I was surprised when I found out that it had peaked at number 19. It was a much bigger hit internationally. Okay, enough harping about how much I love this. It was the lead single from Phil Collins's debut solo album, Face Value. He had previously been the lead for Genesis.

Why do I love "In the Air Tonight"? The production, mainly. It's so amazing. It is atmospheric and somber, and eventually it builds up to an explosive final chorus. It fits the theme of anger well. He is reserved initially but he explodes (symbolized by the drums) and that last chorus is brilliant. It just packs a punch. Also, those drum rolls are apparently really innovative, so there's that. His vocals have been vocoded and they really create an atmospheric production. It just feels so epic, so intense. 

I don't have much to say about this one, as it needs to be heard to get the full experience of it. It is an all time favorite of mine and an essential in any playlist, especially an 80s one. Also, I really like the video too.


Also, thanks ♛ The Manticore ☯ for your comments on "Fantasy". I'll have to check those mixes out.

[♛ The Manticore ☯]

Yes! I love "In The Air Tonight" by Phil Collins. One of the most famous scene in a TV show with the song is Miami Vice. It was in the pilot episode in 1984. The show became huge in the 80's and had a lot of great guest stars and a lot of great music as well. Also 2002's "Fastlane" on Fox used "In the Air Tonight" in one of the scenes.

Also I just remembered that Phil Collins performed this song on a video game called "GTA: Vice City Stories" in which you as a player had to take out the bad guys that were out to kill Phil Collins, no joke. Here's the video for it. He portrayed as himself in the game and did the voiceovers.