Do you think Ke$ha has gotten a good look at Mick Jagger recently? 
The dude is pushing 70’s and, don’t get me wrong he’s way cool, but by no means in his prime. Imagine if he were to approach a 20-somethings girl at a nightclub. Do you think they would let him “try to touch my junk,” as Ke$ha suggests. Yeah maybe if she was sporting some serious beer-goggles and plastered beyond recognition. Well I guess by the tone of the song it could be entirely possible. Sounds to me like a story from Texts From Last Night.
It’s a catchy song, but I have had enough.
I ask myself questions like these when songs like “Tik Tok,” Kesha’s top 40 single, become so popular that it literally creeps its way into my ears on a weekly basis and like a Pavlovian dog I react every time I hear it, generally not in a good way. Please pardon my “indie pretentiousness.”
So here it is: Years ago I have embarked on the mission of finding alternatives and have completely rejected AM/FM radio (the shutdown of Indie 103.1 was when I lost all hope ::sigh::) and have since gone to the Internet, the new underground if you will, in search of music that is new, noteworthy and good … in my opinion at least.
The track “What Would I Want? Sky” from the Fall Be Kind EP shows that the Animal Collective are still making great strides as musicians even after the huge success of Merriweather Post Pavilion last year. The song starts off with a slow drone that lulls you in and gives way to grooveable drum beats and an uplifting harmony. You might not be able to do the “Guido fist-pump” to it but it has that pleasant feeling that when embraced with lyrics and overlapping harmonies reminds me so much of the style of Brian Wilson from the Beach Boys. Total feel good music.
But maybe you just like songs that make you want to ‘just dance’ and Animal Collective just isn’t your style of booty shakin’ music. Or perhaps you think it sounds too much like hippie, drum circle music. Fair enough.
If you like something that’s funky and has hip hop swagger then I recommend “Let There Be Horns” by RJD2 on his freshest album The Colossus. Coupled with the music video consisting of a pill-popping water buffalo and you got yourself some entertainment. He’ll be playing live at the El Rey Theatre in LA in April. RJD2’s debut album, Deadringer, was also pretty good too if ya dig the funky dance beats.
“There’s no lyrics in that song, I need to hear the singer tellin’ me to rock that body,” you say? Well you seem like the type that might enjoy Timbaland’s “Carry Out.” I, unfortunately, cannot recommend it, except for maybe The Chipmunks remix. Seriously though, how can you write a song inspired by the extra value menu at McDonalds? “Take my order ‘cause your body like a carry out,” You must be kidding me. It’s this kind of top 40 slop that needs to stop.
Here’s a song that is uplifting, danceable, has lyrics and doesn’t use fast food as a metaphor for getting laid: “I Will Be Here” featuring Sneaky Sound System on Tiesto’s new album Kaleidoscope. The single is littered with bits of trance which makes this collaboration intriguing. Typically in dance songs the bass stomps out most vocal harmony but in “I Will Be Here” Tiesto seems to work in tandem with the lyrics and work the song around the soulful vocals rather than just layering it over the top. The result is a song that could be a club thumper and has meaningful lyrics. Eat that Timbaland.
For the next one, I’m knowingly throwing out some hater-bait when mentioning anything indie-pop related, but here goes. Surfer Blood is an awesome indie rock band from Florida that has the same, echo-ey vocals as Animal Collective so I considered saving them until later, but this new track is undeniably good. Somehow they got together with Allen Blickle, the drummer from Baroness (a heavy metal band from Georgia) and created an incredible remix to the song “Swim (To Reach The End);” Surfer Blood’s number one track from Astro Coast. I like to think of it as hard-indie, same thing you get when you have a hipster at a Vampire Weekend show … zing! But seriously it’s an infectious amalgam coming from both sides of the rock spectrum that I can’t stop listening to.
I hope these suggestions are acceptable alternatives if you are tired of hearing Jason Derulo’s embarrassing rip off of Imogen Heap or the same Nirvana songs for the millionth time. If not, at least you can say you attempted to broaden your horizons. Suggestions welcome 
