Pre-Lollapalooza 2008: Part III

Day 3 Tentative Schedule:
Day 3 has all the ingredients to make for the best day of Lollapalooza: Girl Talk, Kanye West, and an Ann St. Reunion. I may not make it to Office's 11:30 slot, but I hope so. A little later, I'll take a requisite visit to see Chi-town's own Kid Sister, and succumb to the "Pro Nails" chorus in the process( you all will be saying it by the end of the day, ask Laura.) At first glance, it looks like Day 3 should be easy....until 3:15 hits. Luckily, many of the artists I want to see are at both Citi Stage and Myspace Stage (right next to each other). Chromeo's bouncy electrofunk kicks off at Citi, just before Black Kids at 3:30 at Myspace. Iron & Wine and G. Love & the Special Sauce have dueling sets across the park from each other (my interest in both should make that decision easy, with a coin flip). 5:15 brings the Irish-Punk of Flogging Molly just before the toughest conflict of the weekend: Gnarls Barkley, 15 minutes before Girl Talk. Do I catch a glimpse of Cee Lo & Danger Mouse's crazy costumes or get in line for the biggest party I'll ever attend. Probably a game-time decision. I'm looking forward to Mark Ronson's (special guest filled?) set to ease the tension at 7:15. Finally, what better way to close out the weekend with Chicago's son, Kanye West. I don't care what happened at Bonnaroo, I'm expecting the best show I've ever seen (no pressure).

My Schedule

Day 3
Day 3
1. Office - Oh My
2. The Blakes - Magic
3. Kid Sister - Pro Nails ft Kanye West
4. What Made Milwaukee Famous - Sultan
5. The Whigs - Right Hand On My Heart
6. Chromeo - Bonafied Lovin'
7. Black Kids - Listen To You Body Tonight
8. Black Kids - I'm Not Gonna Teach Your Boyfriend To Dance
9. Iron & Wine - Boy With A Coin
10. Saul Williams - List of Demands (Reparations)
11. Flogging Molly - Requiem For A Dying Song
12. Flogging Molly - Float
13. Gnarls Barkley - Going On
14. Gnarls Barkley - Smiley Faces
15. Flosstradamus - Yeah Yeah (Matt & Kim Remix)
16. Girl Talk - Pure Magic
17. Girl Talk - Set It Off
18. Mark Ronson - Amy ft Kenna
19. The National - Apartment Story
20. Child Rebel Soldiers (Lupe, Kanye, Pharell) - US Placers
21. Kanye West - Touch the Sky ft Lupe Fiasco
22. Kanye West - Homecoming ft Chris Martin

Estelle: Soon To Be Shining

Newcomer songstress/rapper Estelle is preparing her sophomore album, Shine, to be released this February. After gaining mild success in her native home in London, Ms. Swaray is hoping her hybrid style will breakthrough across the Atlantic. Estelle's debut, The 18th Letter, quickly garnered the attention of then-unknown singer by the name of John Legend. When it came time to get started on her next effort, Estelle wanted Legend to executive produce, but he wanted more. Legend signed her as his first artist on Homeschool Records. Shine is scheduled to feature production from Swizz Beatz, Cee-Lo, Wyclef Jean, and current "it" producer, Mark Ronson.

I am very intrigued to hear more from Estelle. Her lead single, "Wait A Minute (Just A Touch", has generated some heat early with the help of Will.I.Am. Next up is an appearance by Kanye West on the hip-hop flavored "American Boy". I am most interested to see if Mark Ronson can duplicate his success in 2007 with Sharon Jones and Amy Winehouse. While Estelle is more hip-hop than those two singers, Ronson has shown he can make his throwback sound work with artists from many genres (see Lily Allen, Rhymefest, ODB). Carrying a soulful voice mixed with a jazzy flow and A-List backing, Estelle should have no problem glowing in 2008.

*Songs were removed by request of record company : (

2007 Wrap-Up: Covers in 2007

2007 brought a plethora of karaoke wanna bes to the mainstream. It seemed like everyone from Tegan and Sara (Rihanna's "Umbrella") to Lily Allen (50 Cent's "Window Shopper") felt the need to get their "American Idol" on and borrow a fellow artists song. I normally don't condone this kind of recycling, but the following covers are a few of the best.

#3 Tom Thumb "Atlantic City" (Bruce Springsteen)

Anyone who decides to cover the Boss is either a brave soul or a crazy fool. Luckily, newcomer Tom Thumb's chilling voice more than adequately translates to the dark tale of a couple who might be involved with the mafia.



#2 Mark Ronson "Valerie" ft Amy Winehouse (The Zutons)

As a producer, Mark Ronson blew up in 2007 by pushing Lily Allen, Amy Winehouse and Kate Nash as the next "it" girls in music. He also had success on his album of covers, Version, with new twists on old favorites (ODB's appearance on "Toxic" is priceless). Winehouse returns the favor on "Valerie". Ronson's jazzy production soars and is puncuated by Winehouse on every note.



#1 Jenny Owens Young "Hot In Herre" (Nelly)

I promoted this jam earlier in the spring, but it was consistently part of my playlist throughout the year. Young's slowed down and stripped version of Nelly's "Hot In Herre" is hilarious and as catchy as the original. Its even better to hear the ridiculous lyrics (Stop placin, time wastin/I gotta a friend with a pole in the basement (What?)/I'm just Kiddin like Jason (Oh)/Unless you gon' do it) over the plucks of an acoustic guitar.