"Braveheart" by Neon Jungle is my favourite big pop smash of 2014 so far

fuckin' banger

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3iJeEAZM5xk

the last drop >>>>>>>>

i dismissed them as fourth-tier uk pop based on their debut single last year and i don't have a huge connection with THEM yet but some songs just bang hard despite ostensibly being made up of exactly the same sounds as everything else and this is one of them

every bit of it stuck in my head all the time now

Is there a specific track that ushered in this sound? It seems ubiquitous but I'm not 100% where it originates and why it's caught on. Seems so...plasticky to me, so chintzy, so surface level.

I don't think they could have happened without "I Love It" but their sound is so much more abrasive and aggressive. Their impenetrable fierceness is what really sells this to me.

This has an excellent nasty bass noise and is an otherwise serviceable banger but the song and the vocal over the top is... not good at all, although briefly enlivened when the rapper turns up.

Also it's called fucking Braveheart, that should be beyond the pale.

that dawn richard influence

and otm re: fierceness, it's nice to have a girl group that's all elbows and attitude

their follow-up is pretty good as well! shameless "woah-oh-oh" bits + a rap that namechecks a$ap and a-trak?!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fa6bW4cTB2o

this is "sound of the underground" level stuff, whether they have a "no good advice"-style manifesto in them remains to be seen

re: "Braveheart", too embarrassed by the ichi ni san kaisu breaks to ever spin it publicly but otherwise yeah! great track. I like how the synth leads never actually change, they just expand and explode and flail around like a giant squid attacking

The problem with this sort of EDM pop (as opposed to actual pop-house) is that you need really good songwriters over the top otherwise you end up defaulting to the usual hacky tricks OR you need an amazing personality over the top and with the exception of the MCing there's just no charisma or charm in the performance.

breakdown after the second chorus of this song is amazing, avicii eat yr heart out

i'm surprised lex likes them though because their first (not very good) single was VERY icona pop

yes, as i said i didn't like that single at all (because of its similarity to "i love it")

Talking about big pop smashes…
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=To-yq254Yv8

I keep on thinking Lex has started a thread about Neon Trees and freaking out slightly.

haha, but the girls are right!

Interesting to hear the UK funky drum patterns on this track.

i have no idea who neon trees are

be thankful for that

Interesting to hear the UK funky drum patterns on this track.

― MikoMcha, Saturday, April 19, 2014 10:48 AM (1 hour ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

isn't that just a stripped-down version of the Will.I.Am/Calvin Harris bit in the original?

there's no thread on neon trees and i'm trying the new album and just wanted to say

i have no idea who neon trees are
― lex pretend, Saturday, April 19, 2014 12:05 PM

be thankful for that
― all is fair in love and womp (monotony), Saturday, April 19, 2014

if people are going to post itt about terrible bands can they at least show the subjects of the thread the respect of listening to and commenting on them as well, or instead of

I'm listening to the album now and am a bit confused as to what a Banks cover is doing here, especially one that uses what sounds like Banks' own backing track.

"So Alive" is decent (predictably, ty charli) but I'd say these girls need to work with some better producers to avoid being another Parade / Girls Can't Catch.

Turns out Banks is also perplexed by the use of the cover. https://www.facebook.com/hernameisbanks/posts/690526727651676

Just deleted someone on Facebook who has a big problem with this whole situation with Banks. It kept coming up on my Feed with this guy going to their page and posting. "who are these talentless fucking slags stealing other people's songs because they aren't able to come up with their own?" Under every post they made about their album being released.

I don't think Banks handled the situation terribly well, It does suck for her that whoever is doing her legals let this one slide, but the song was put out on an EP about 12 months ago and she is getting royalties so it's hard to feel too sorry for her.

The whole "issue" could have easily been avoided if Neon Jungle had left the cover for the deluxe edition and just put one of the bonus tracks on the standard tracklisting in its place. The cover doesn't add much anyway and only contributes to the air of cheapness about the whole thing.

Without being patronising / denying them agency, I'd hazard a guess at this being the brainchild of some record exec, Which frustrates me because I enjoy covers but I think it's silly that they're seen as a prerequisite for pop albums, especially by acts that are still establishing themselves.

http://radioplayer.kissfmuk.com/616/neon-jungle-cover-gotta-get-thru-this/

^I was cringing thru this

then halfway thru I decided it was awesome