Tag Archives: Grammys

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Unique artists compete for song of the year

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By Marah Harbison

 These year’s best song nominees are an eccentric bunch to say the least. From the R&B soul of Bruno Mars’ “Grenade,” to the folky, banjo-filled track, “The Cave,” from Mumford & Sons, everyone will be able to choose a song to root for.

 Lately it seems as if there is no escaping the breakthrough British musician, Adele Adkins in the media. Her songs play on virtual repeat on radio stations everywhere and have even been featured in skits on “Saturday Night Live.” The Grammys could not escape to this Adele addiction, seeing as she has raked in a total of six nominations. Up for this category is her catchy hit single, “Rolling in the deep,” off of her latest album 21.With Adele’s amazing vocals and old fashioned beat that is sure to induce toe-tapping, this song has great chances at winning.

 Also in the running is Bruno Mars’ chart-topper, “Grenade,” a song about a love that is somewhat, but not completely requited. There is doubt this song is popular with the general public. It is a classic R&B love song that is sure to attract audiences. However, I am not sure this song is refined enough to win itself a Grammy.

 On the other hand, Justin Vernon, better known as Bon Iver,  may have a song that is too non-traditional to take the cake. While his song, “Holocene,” is one of my personal favorites, I am afraid his acoustic guitar and sultry singing are not generically pleasing enough to win the award. While I find Bon Iver’s music to be scerenely satisfying, many find his low-key lyrics somewhat boring.

 A song I believe does have the chance at winning this category is, “The Cave,” by the folky- pop group Mumford & Sons. While this band initially found fame with their high-energy song, “Little Lion Man,” their nominated song is still features a signature banjo solo and is equally impressive. Not to mention, it has a great message about finding strength in pain and pushing through hard times.

My predictions:

Who Will Win: “Rolling in the Deep” by Adele

Who Should Win: “Rolling in the Deep” by Adele

Dark Horse: “Holocene” by Bon Iver

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Rockers, pop stars fight for album of the year

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By Jared Murray

This year’s Album of the Year category is looking to be a battle between pop stars and alternative rockers, with the soulful Adele, bombastic Lady Gaga, synth-pop queen Rihanna, veteran rockers the Foo Fighters and the effortlessly cool Bruno Mars all battling for the coveted golden gramophone.

Adele’s nomination for her album 21 is a no brainer due to its unprecedented popularity. While popularity alone is enough to win a nomination sometimes, the sheer power and emotiveness of her voice helped to cement her nomination for this prestigious award. The album itself is a sometimes dark and brooding lament towards past love. Powerful ballads, thunderous break-up tunes and soulful vocals and arrangements make the album a refreshing a much needed break from the pop fodder found on the radio right now. Along with being the biggest selling album word-wide this past year, the album has received mostly positive reviews further strengthening Adele’s grip on pop music and chances of winning the award this year.

Chart-topper Bruno Mars’ album Doo-Wops & Hooligans also finds itself nominated for Album of the Year at this year’s ceremonies. The album has produced three top 10 singles including “Grenade,” “Just The Way You Are” and “The Lazy Song.” The album has received mixed reviews, but that has not stopped teenage girls from buying the singles by the truckload. The album mainly consists of bouncy and sometimes goofy pop songs with reggae and soul influences.

Although not the most acclaimed album of the year, Lady Gaga’s Born This Way certainly got people talking. The 14-track album can be an exhausting listen; Gaga manages to showcase almost every style of dance music imaginable all in the first half of the album, with all the songs being bombastic in their own right. It is when Gaga slows it down and allows both her and the listener time to breath that the album truly shines and allows her to prove she does have the substance to back up her style. The album was positively received by most critics.

The Foo Fighters have had a successful Grammy season, having garnered six Grammy award nominations this year for the album Wasting Light. The album was recorded without the use of a modern recording studio, but rather in frontman Dave Grohl’s garage. Many critics cited this as a daring but positive choice in the recording of the album. Sonically the album finds the band exploring a more raw and heavy sound found in their earlier work, along with more personal lyrics. 3 singles have been released from the album, with the lead single “Rope” one of two songs to debut at the top of the Rock Charts.

Another pop star receiving a best album nomination is Rihanna for her sixth studio album Loud. The album was better received by most critics than most of her earlier work, and spawned three number one singles, “Only Girl In The World,” “What’s My Name?” and “S&M.” The album is standard Rihanna; well-produced synthpop coupled with raunchy lyrics give most the album its substance with the occasional ballad to remind people that she can indeed sing.      

Who Will Win: Adele

Who Should Win: Adele

Dark Horse: Foo Fighters

A&E, Danielle Rehor

Outstanding Newbies: 2012 Grammy Predictions

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By Danielle Rehor

With the Grammys quickly approaching, we thought it only fair to cover one of the most anticipated categories out there: Best New Artist. Throughout the years this category has held quite a few surprises, including last year’s, with little-known Esperanza Spalding beating out the famed Justin Bieber. This year the category holds many different genres and styles, including rapper J. Cole, country trio The Band Perry, Nicki Minaj, indie artist Bon Iver, and dubstep producer Skrillex.

Will Win: Nicki Minaj

Nicki Minaj will win due purely to her popularity in combination with her unbeatable rapping and catchy tunes like “Super Bass.” Her skills may not match some of the other artists selected in this category, but she is captivating, in her own sense of the word, like no other. Her popularity is undeniable; she is the first artist to have seven singles on the Billboard’s Hot 100 at the same time.

Should Win: Bon Iver

The indie band has two albums, and their first album, “For Emma, Forever Ago,” was mostly recorded in a cabin in Wisconsin. Obviously, they are the coolest. Their two albums have won them a loyal following and they have been nominated for three other awards, Best Alternative Music Album, Song of the Year, and Record of the Year. They may seen the clear and obvious first choice, but because they are not mainstream, they could get overlooked for Best New Artist.

Dark Horse: The Band Perry 

The Band Perry is not much of an dark horse with their triple platinum single “If I Die Young” and quickly rising fourth single “All Your Life,” but they seem to rank just below Nicki Minaj. The sibling band has released only one album, self-titled The Band Perry. They are the only artist nominated for Best New Artist, that only has only one album, no EP’s or mixtapes. With a twangy country-pop sound, the trio could easily win this award as well.

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Chart-toppers versus Indie rockers: 2012 Grammy Predictions

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By Jared Murray 

This year’s Record of the Year category is shaping up to be a battle royal between chart topping artists and indie folk bands. The coveted Record of the Year award goes to the producers of the song, whereas the Song of the Year award goes to the songwriters. Nominees for this award include Adele, Katy Perry, Bruno Mars, Mumford and Sons and Bon Iver.

Record of the Year marks one of three awards Adele’s gospel-tinged thumper “Rolling in the Deep” has accrued at this year’s ceremonies. The song opens with just Adele and a guitar, but soon transforms into a piano-driven, hand clap heavy musical behemoth. This, however, is all background to Adele’s powerful, scorn-ridden vocals, which add a sense of calamity to this excellent track.

Also nominated is Bruno Mars’ number one single “Grenade.” Lyrically, the song tells the tale of unrequited love between Mars and a lady friend, whom he is willing to risk his life for. Sonically, the song features strained, heartbroken vocals from Mars and pulsating synths that add to the emotional strain.

Bon Iver’s “Holocene,” the second single from his Grammy nominated album Bon Iver, Bon Iver, is one of the more indie songs to be nominated in this category. The song opens with guitar on a simple melody and is soon joined by Bon Iver’s idyllic falsetto.  Two minutes in and the song has grown into a wall of sonic bliss, with Iver’s vocals being supported by a march-like drum pattern and more guitars.

While not as popular as their breakout single “Little Lion Man,” “The Cave” by Mumford and Sons managed to nab a nomination for Record of the Year. The song showcases a horn solo that floats over the cascading background of bluegrass-style guitars and lead singer Marcus Mumford’s melancholy vocals.

Last and certainly least to be nominated is Katy Perry’s third hit single “Firework.”  The song starts off with Perry singing lyrics about feeling bad about oneself, but by the chorus the song has morphed into a pulsating, very danceable self-empowerment anthem tailer-made for teenage girls who enjoy singing into their hairbrushes while jumping on their Justin Bieber bedspreads.

My Predictions:

Who will win: Adele

Who should win: Adele

Dark Horse: Bon Iver

A&E

Pop Rocks! : 2012 Grammy Predictions

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By Jared Murray

This year’s Best Pop Solo Performance category is more of a dumping ground for the most popular songs of the year rather than a heated race between the actual best pop songs of the year. Songs nominated in the category include: “Someone Like You” by Adele, “Yoü And I” by Lady Gaga, “Grenade” by Bruno Mars, “Firework” by Katy Perry and “F***in’ Perfect” by P!nk.

British singer Adele has had a record breaking year, both in album sales and chart performance. Her plaintive second single “Someone Like You” garnered her much critical acclaim and commercial success thanks to her large fan base of forlorn teenage girls. Her simple yet emotive performance definitely makes her a contender for the award.

Lady Gaga’s “Yoü And I” finds the pop star in her natural habitat: heartbroken and playing the piano. While that combination may boring to some, the result is truly a genuine sounding pop song from a woman known for being anything but. Featuring some top-notch belting from Gaga, and honky-tonk vibe along with an impressive guitar solo from Queen’s Brian May, “Yoü And I” is not a song to underestimate or sing along with quietly.

Another song about love, “Grenade” by the smooth singing Bruno Mars is the only song sung by a male to be nominated in this category this year. The synth-driven song finds Bruno trying to make his lover feel bad for their lack of dedication in the relationship. Despite the excellent vocals and an irresistible chorus, “Grenade” is unlikely to be a serious contender for the coveted gramophone.

Whether you like it or not, Katy Perry had a stellar year. Her self-empowerment single “Firework” is a delectable slice of dancepop that had everyone singing their heads off. Sadly, even the song’s catchy beat could not save itself from some questionable lyrics (plastic bags, really?) and Katy’s near-yelling vocals in the chorus. Hopefully her nomination was not meant to be serious, especially when looking at many better pop songs having come out last year.

Following the trend of self-love anthems seen this year, P!nk’s “F***kin’ Perfect” is a fun and energetic song from one of pop music’s veterans. Clearly written for her fans, the sometimes electropop song doesn’t have many distinct characteristics to set itself apart from everything else on the radio today, making it an extremely unlikely winner.

My predictions:

Who Will Win: “Someone Like You” by Adele

Who Should Win: “Someone Like You” by Adele

Dark Horse: “Yoü And I” by Lady Gaga