…not before you go-go. single: “Wake Me Up!“ artist: Avicii Swedish DJ Avicii shuffled the deck a little vigorously when he came up with this concoction: one-half acoustic self-discovery folkiness, one-half EDM bombast. It’s quite striking. And much like “Holy Grail” either half of the record is strong enough to be a fully developed musical…

And now for a lesson in hip-hop: single: “Berzerk“ artist: Eminem Eminem is a multi-faceted, incredibly gifted rapper. But damn if he isn’t  predictable. “Berzerk” is another zany, anthemic, loony-fest opening shot, in the tradition of “Just Lose It.” But now as one of hip-hop’s elder statesman, he’s apparently added the role of historian. Most…

…and in the other corner of the Empowered Super Pop Diva Battle…. single: “Applause“ artist: Lady Gaga It almost seems scripted. Lady Gaga and Katy Perry premiere their first releases from their respective third major music projects within a week of each other, and both records are power pop anthems with noisy titles. Commercially, Katy appears…

I certainly relish the special opportunity to post about Miley Cyrus. She’s not getting nearly enough coverage nowadays. single: “We Can’t Stop“ artist: Miley Cyrus I can surely be forgiven for thinking this was a Rihanna record on the first listen. The lower female register, the Island-tinged vocal embellishments, the midtempo pop/R&B shuffle–this record emulates…

Now for the number two hit this week on the Billboard Hot 100 (and the new number one on next week’s chart): single: “Roar“ artist: Katy Perry OK, let’s get the obvious wordplay over with. Katy has “roared” back onto the charts at #2 for this calendar week. She appears to have retained her unstoppable…

The methodology here is straightforward. Review the biggest hits as they hit. So we’re starting at the top. single: “Blurred Lines” artist: Robin Thicke feat. T.I. + Pharrell Starting at the top is hard. It’s all been said. Not that Robin Thicke knows anything about starting at the top. He has had quite an organic…