Must be something in the water

I'm not much of a lying around the pool in the middle of summer kind of girl--give me a book and some shade, thank you very much--but a weeklong early summer vacation in a humid southern state kind of demands it. The songs that fell into frequent rotation for me this year during my "would have been more deserved any time from February to April but by this point was basically just a change in location, not leisure time" vacation (it's heavy on songs I added just before taking off and losing computer access):

Kelly Rowland, "Commander" (the song of summer, and don't pretend it's anything else)

3OH!3 feat. Kesha, "My First Kiss" (does this mean I'm giving in?)

Sean Kingston & Justin Bieber, "Eenie Meanie" (my "maybe the kids are all right" moment with today's teen pop, it's enough bubblegum fun to outweigh the awful "catch a bad chick by her toe" part)

Alexandra Burke, "All Night Long" (the only thing wrong with this song is that the best part is the backing "all night, all night, all night night night night" part, not the actual chorus melody. Other than that, it's just the sort of fun, lighthearted party song the summer demands)

Alphabeat, "DJ" (what's clearly the best song from their most recent album finally gets a single release)

Kesha, "Bootycall" (another Kesha leak/demo, this one could stand with the first few opening and final seconds getting cut, but the '80s candyfloss joy of the chorus and its overproduced '80s drums makes up for it)

Enrique Iglesias feat. Pitbull, "I Like It" (long live Enrique, even if the cynical side of me is unconvinced about staying power here. Plus, well, how can you begrudge him working with RedOne when he's the creator of what's obviously the best "RedOne + artist" tag ever in "Takin' Back My Love"?)

Baby Alice, "Piña Colada Boy" (gimmicky summer fun)

Aggro Santos feat. Kimberly Wyatt, "Candy" (the best thing about this dance-rap song is that the worst lyrics in it--heck, probably the worst lyrics all year--are the catchiest part, delivered in a staccato style so they're as easy to understand as possible, and transcend over into brilliantly awful: "girl. you. look. familiar. Where. do. I know. you. from?/Have. you. been. to. visit. me. at. AggroSantos.com?")

Taio Cruz feat. Ludacris, "Break Your Heart" (one of my favorite pop songs of 2009, so who would have thought the insertion of a couple of Ludacris raps into it could possibly make me love it even more? The best thing Ludacris has done since Usher's "Yeah!", and we all know how amazing that was)

Rogue Traders, "Would You Raise Your Hands?" (back on track after the misfire of "Love Is A War," the Australian dance-rock team delivers a song that never fails to make me pick up the jogging pace)

Katy Perry feat. Snoop Dogg, "California Gurls" (lightweight, but begging for successive summer plays...and do you know what? There's no point resisting)

Kids Of 88, "Just A Little Bit" (avoiding watching the video, loving this snappy electro-pop song from a two guy New Zealand act)

Jason Derulo, "Love Hangover" (broke down and bought his album just before leaving. It's not a must-own, but why is this not the next single instead of "Ridin' Solo"?)

Scissor Sisters, "Fire With Fire" (confession: the only Scissor Sisters song I've ever really enjoyed before this album campaign was "Paul McCartney." Maybe it's due to Jake is using his voice differently that this particular door opened up, but it's the joyous uplift of the Elton John-meets-the-Killers'-"Human"-but-better of the song itself that sealed the deal)

Mini Viva, "One Touch" (most thrilling Xenomania song since, what, at least "Miss You Bow Wow"? It's the attitude-filled fresh female sound that caused us all to fall in love with Girls Aloud)

Play, "Consequence Of You" (haven't really listened to the Swedish girl group's album, but there's no way there can be anything better than this song on it)

Throw in some random holdovers from spring--Matisse's "Better Than Her," Young Money's "BedRock" (cheesy puns are my weakness; see also: above picture), Lady GaGa's "Alejandro," Kesha's "Your Love Is My Drug," Gabriella Cilmi's "Superhot," etc.--and a few other songs--Dolly Rockers' "Automatic Girl," Taio's "Dynamite"--you've got the new additions. There's a whole summer playlist that gets rolled out, of course, but those standbys will have to compete with some great new songs from the past week or so. In fact, hmm, give me a few minutes...

(By the way, Crystal Bowersox and American Idol, you couldn't have had your hometown visit one week earlier or one week later? Really? It had to be during my previously scheduled and unmovable week away?)

#73, Enrique Iglesias, "Can You Hear Me"

Hey hey, all the way
D-J, let it play
Hey hey, can you hear me?

Enrique, one of my favorite popstars of 2007, released "Can You Hear Me" as the Euro 2008 anthem and I thought for a moment he was trying to kill me--the sheer adorableness of it was enough to put me on pop overload. Kind of like "Do You Know (The Ping Pong Song)" amped up with a choppy but constant electronic beat and designed to be sung in arenas, "Can You Hear Me" was hopelessly catchy, never failing to make me want to sing along with its chorus. Yes, Steve Morales, the co-writer of "Escape" and "Don't Turn Off The Lights," you (with Enrique) did do it again. I don't want Enrique to only do this kind of uber-cute poppy song, but he does them so well that I hope he never stops entirely. My life is not going to be complete until I have the opportunity to jump up and down and sing along with all the songs at a massive Enrique Iglesias concert.

Find it on: Greatest Hits

I wanna know why you wanna throw me away

The basic premise of Enrique's latest single and music video seems to be Enrique going "Leona, you think you've got a monopoly on epic sounding production? And OneRepublic, you think you're the only ones who can make epic ridiculous videos about death? Hah! I prove you wrong!"

For him, the video's a chance to gently emote, sing while dying (haven't you already been dying on the ground next to a car in a video before, Enrique? Make sure you've seen that video before watching the bottom video in this post, by the way), and stand among fields of grain.



For the rest of us, it's an opportunity to go "Ooo, look how pretty Enrique is."

(For all my joking and talking about how "Takin' Back My Love" is more exciting, I really do like "Away.")

If that was a bit serious for you, you can watch the canceled original version of Enrique's video for "Don't Turn Off The Lights." Apparently he was given some free rein to make it, came back with this, and the label, upon seeing it for the first time, freaked out and ditched it, instead releasing a significantly less interesting less video. You want proof that Enrique doesn't take himself seriously? You got it. In fact, you want proof Enrique is probably crazy? Ditto.

I gave it all up

I was planning to write about that boy band song today but the post somehow ended up turning into a rambling mess that can't yet see the light of day (though knowing me two days from now I'll be thinking, "Whatever, just post it anyway" and it'll get posted without any revisions whatsoever); since I can't figure out how to put into words what I wanted to say there, let's just listen to another song I've been meaning to write about forever (and now can finally post in good quality), as well as what blatantly should have been the lead single from an upcoming greatest hits. I mean, really, man, what on Earth are you doing releasing "Away" when you've got this new track on the album?

"Takin' Back My Love" (feat. Ciara)

Another RedOne production and, though I'm still more than ready for him to ditch that particular sound effect he always uses, as long as he keeps making songs this great, I'll keep being glad we've got RedOne around. "Takin' Back My Love" is a song I find it a lot easier to be enthusiastic about than "Away,"at least as far as a lead single goes. It's up-tempo (world: "oh, so that's why she likes it more"), synth-backed, insistent, catchy, and actually finds this artist engaging in a change of sound (for him, not for the rest of us used to RedOne's work by this point) that really suits him. With that voice, so perfect for conveying the point near an emotional breakdown, he can pretty easily get away with doing ballads--the voice alone gives them at least a little spark--but "Takin' Back My Love" takes him into full-fledged danceable material that doesn't feel like an unnatural fit for him. In addition to shirking some of the more mismatched urban qualities in songs he may have flirted with before, "Takin' Back My Love" actually gives him a chance to be the party doing the breaking up, as opposed to bemoaning being broken up with or begging for a chance, and, do you know, he does it pretty darn well. Though that voice is of course part of the song, he doesn't play up that "just about to crack" element at all here, and really, the key to this song's appeal is just the music itself, catchy and with that strong synth-pulse that would be welcome on the ears coming out of American radios.

To preorder this artist's Greatest Hits, due out November 11, go here (physical).

Next up: probably not that boy band post--I have a feeling I'll be too on edge tomorrow to be doing any sort of thinking, which is what it needs to clean it up. Maybe a one man boy band song.

You said you will never give up on us

Given that Enrique Iglesias was one of the best popstars of 2007, I feel obligated to let you know that you can listen to his new English-language greatest hits-promoting single "Away," which features Sean Garrett, here in very good quality. It's an almost mid-tempo ballad which the production (very Sean Garrett-esque) is really trying to take up to epic level; that backing just builds and builds and BUILDS.

It's a bit frustrating to be getting another greatest hits (he just released a Spanish language one), but if you don't own an Enrique album, this really will be something worth getting--he's had some excellent (and very underrated) singles over the years. In addition to "Away," it'll feature one other new song, "Takin' Back My Love" featuring Ciara. It comes out in the U.S. on November 11. British site Play.com gives the tracklisting and cover as follows:

1.) Bailamos (Wild Wild West/Soundtrack Version)
2.) Away
3.) Hero
4.) Be With You
5.) Takin' Back My Love
6.) Rhythm Divine
7.) Do You Know? (The Ping Pong Song)
8.) Tired Of Being Sorry
9.) Escape
10.) Could I Have This Kiss Forever
11.) Not In Love Radio Mix (Dave Aude Vocal Edit featuring Kelis)
12.) Don't Turn Off The Lights
13.) Love To See You Cry
14.) Maybe
15.) Addicted
16.) Somebody's Me
17.) Can You Hear Me
18.) Hero (presumably a remix)