Christian Paul K. posted an article on Pictures & Conversations - Feb 5, 2012, 8:00 am
While I am still not sold on the dubstep revolution that is sweeping the UK right now, this remix by the Grammy nominee Skrillex has grown on me. The original mix is a little generic, but this take some of the hydraulic sounds that dubstep is know for and sprinkles them lightly to amp the vocals and...
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Christian Paul K. posted an article on Pictures & Conversations - Feb 4, 2012, 8:00 am
My sister Naomi's birthday is today. I can always tell when she's out imbibing on adult bevs because her Facebook blows up with song lyrics from the songs she and her bestie play on the jukebox. It usually starts with the original mix of this Wheezy jam, so when an evening begins with "Shawty wanna ...
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Christian Paul K. posted an article on Pictures & Conversations - Feb 3, 2012, 8:00 am
I'm just gonna leave this here...
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Christian Paul K. posted an article on Pictures & Conversations - Feb 2, 2012, 7:00 am
Just a little something funky fresh for a Thursday morning. Chi-town boys hook up for a fresh remix of the emo classic.
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Christian Paul K. posted an article on Pictures & Conversations - Feb 1, 2012, 7:30 am
The world learned this week that erstwhile Pussycat Doll Nicole Scherzinger has been fired from the US's X Factor along with hottie host Steve Jones. (Go ahead, click on that link. I'll wait. NSFWish) She's not a great singer, but that seems to be the requirement for judging. Paula Abdul and J.Lo do...
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Christian Paul K. posted an article on Pictures & Conversations - Jan 31, 2012, 7:30 am
First off, let me just say I don't know what the fuck is going on in this trailer for The Hunger Games. I've not read the books so I don't know why Nazi Germany hired Dolores Umbridge's little sister and some bit rate storm troopers to train children to play Rollerball or whatever is going on. Don't...
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Christian Paul K. posted an article on Pictures & Conversations - Jan 30, 2012, 7:30 am
I like to think of myself as a person with broad taste. I like all kinds of music from Euro club tracks to doo wop to power ballads. I love it when genre get mangled together like musical gumbo. But I surprised myself by really digging Nickel Creek's blend of classic bluegrass instruments and altern...
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Christian Paul K. posted an article on Pictures & Conversations - Jan 29, 2012, 9:48 pm
Ke$ha is working on her sophomore full length album but since releasing her debut Animal she's popped out an EP and a remix disc. "Sleazy" was one of the highlights of the Cannibal EP and "The Sleazy Remix" (which featured Andre 3000) was a highlight of I Am The Dance Commander... And I Command You ...
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Christian Paul K. posted an article on Pictures & Conversations - Jan 27, 2012, 9:00 am
I just discovered this song, which appeared on Delerium's greatest hits album 3 years ago. I have always really enjoyed Leigh Nash's vocals with Sixpence None The Richer, her voice is unique in it's childlike tone. It is great to hear it with a chill dance sound, which is not such a stretch after so...
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Christian Paul K. posted an article on Pictures & Conversations - Jan 26, 2012, 7:00 am
Today is my sister Rachel's birthday and in honor of the day I have chosen a song that we both love. I took Rachel to see Reba when she was touring with Kelly Clarkson, we both loved it. "Fancy" is a tale of a young woman whose mother sends her off to be "nice to the gentlemen" in order to avoid a l...
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Christian Paul K. posted an article on Pictures & Conversations - Jan 25, 2012, 9:30 am
This song has been stuck in my head for a couple of days now. I really enjoyed Santi's first album and had high hopes for the next one. I don't know how I feel about the single that was just released, but I do know "Anne" is pretty cool. "My name is Anne, I have a plan. I may lack virtue but I'm pen...
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Christian Paul K. posted an article on Pictures & Conversations - Jan 24, 2012, 11:59 am
Nicki Minaj was THE breakout artist of the last year. Pink Friday finally hit number one; "Super Bass", "Moment 4 Life" and "Fly" were everywhere, as were her guest spots on singles by Sean Kingston, Big Sean, Birdman and others. She comes back with a new album performed by her alter-ego Roman Zolan...
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Christian Paul K. posted an article on Pictures & Conversations - Jan 23, 2012, 8:47 pm
I recently purchased Amy Winehouse's posthumous record Lioness: Hidden Treasures. It features some never before heard songs as well as alternate takes of her singles. I featured "Like Smoke" last week, and I can't stop digging into the late Ms. Winehouse's catalog and missing her. "Tears Dry On Thei...
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Christian Paul K. posted an article on Pictures & Conversations - Jan 22, 2012, 9:44 am
Since I missed the chance to wish Ms. Dolly a Happy Birthday on Thursday, I figured I would do so today. Happy Belated Birthday! In honor of the Queen of Country, I figured I would post one of my favorite Dolly songs. "Down From Dover" is an incredibly sad story song about an unmarried pregnant woma...
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Christian Paul K. posted an article on Pictures & Conversations - Jan 20, 2012, 9:30 am
In case you didn't know, I work retail. Which means I don't get weekends off hardly ever because someone has to man the store while the rest of the 9-to-5ers shop til they drop. Remember that, kids. When the line is long for the register and you're freaking out because you have better things to do, ...
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Christian Paul K. posted an article on Pictures & Conversations - Jan 19, 2012, 7:15 am
I have been quite obsessed with Nina Simone for the last couple of years, after hearing her haunting version of "Black Is The Color Of My True Love's Hair." Her voice is deep and throaty yet warm and her arrangements of jazz and pop classics were innovative and captivating. Most people probably know...
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Christian Paul K. posted an article on Pictures & Conversations - Jan 18, 2012, 10:04 am
I like to dance. I like to listen to music in the car. I don't usually mix those two hobbies together, which is why I surprised myself by listening to Sirius/XM's dance music station BPM quite frequently. This awkward yet bouncy track has been taking over that channel. "Loca People" is a NSFW spoken...
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Christian Paul K. posted an article on Pictures & Conversations - Jan 17, 2012, 7:00 am
Absolutely no reason why I'm posting this today. But is there any reason not to post the greatest theme song in TV history? I thought not...
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Christian Paul K. posted an article on Pictures & Conversations - Oct 31, 2011, 1:48 pm
Kelly Clarkson sings my life. I have lost count of how many times I have said that, but it remains true and not the slightest bit glib. From leaving a small town behind for bigger adventures in "Breakaway" to the tired, broken girl on "Irvine" to the mother-issues-addled child of a broken home on "B...
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Christian Paul K. posted an article on Pictures & Conversations - Oct 5, 2011, 12:37 pm
I was out this past weekend for a birthday, and we went to local gay club Stallions (so discreet!) Now this isn't the type of gay club where they play Cazwell and obscure European dance pop, it's kinda lame with it's top 40 remixes on the dancefloor. But they played a really hot remix of Adele's lat...
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Christian Paul K. posted an article on Pictures & Conversations - Sep 13, 2011, 7:59 pm
I've been reading almost exclusively non-fiction these days, which is a complete turn around from my childhood. The one genre that held my attention in between Nancy Drew then and histories of gay porn and disco now is celebrity memoirs. As a kid I devoured the entire autobiography section of our ru...
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Christian Paul K. posted an article on Pictures & Conversations - Aug 31, 2011, 3:37 pm
Kinda in love with this song!
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Christian Paul K. posted an article on Pictures & Conversations - Jul 20, 2011, 10:22 am
It's no (longer) a secret that I've been stanning for Selena Gomez over the past year or so. Starting with her glorious first minor radio hit "Naturally" (from the otherwise snoozy Kiss & Tell) through the surprisingly funny and entertaining Wizard Of Waverly Place: The Movie, I grew to really enjoy...
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Christian Paul K. posted an article on Pictures & Conversations - Jul 12, 2011, 1:31 pm
I was never much a TV watcher as a young person. We didn't have cable, so our main exposure to TV was Sesame Street, then taped episodes of Touched By An Angel and Christy (starring Kellie Martin as a turn of the century school marm in Appalachia and Tyne Daly as her Quaker mentor) that my grandmoth...
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Christian Paul K. posted an article on Pictures & Conversations - Jul 11, 2011, 11:04 am
Have you ever had a boneheaded moment when you realized that you have been singing the wrong words for years? Not just substituting "loaded gun complex" for "loaded God complex" in "Sugar, We're Going Down" or scrambling "Bohemian Rhapsody" but mis-singing the title of a popular song, over and over ...
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Christian Paul K. posted an article on Pictures & Conversations - Jul 6, 2011, 3:54 pm
KELLY CLARKSON!!!!! ZOMG I LOVE YOU LONG TIME!!!!1!! Sorry. Had a fangirl moment there. Ahem. Kelly's lead single from her upcoming, currently untitled, album is here and I am loving it. The OG Idol returns to the scorned-woman-rocking-out sound that served her well on singles like "All I Ever Wante...
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Christian Paul K. posted an article on Pictures & Conversations - Jun 29, 2011, 2:27 pm
Summer started last week and it's time for hot jams pumping from hot cars on hot summer afternoons. These are the jams I've started pumping from my Kia: Selena Gomez & The Scene - "Love You Like A Love Song" You may recall that a (pre-Beibs) Selena Gomez single "Naturally" was my jam last spring. I...
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Christian Paul K. posted an article on Pictures & Conversations - Jun 29, 2011, 12:59 am
I am finally getting around to putting my feelings about Lady Gaga's latest into words. I've been been living with the album for a month now, playing in cars and at home - the true test of an album's quality. At first I wasn't sold. The industrial vibe that runs through about half the album sounds r...
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Christian Paul K. posted an article on Pictures & Conversations - Mar 9, 2011, 10:05 pm
Ok, children. American Idol has returned to my heart. I'm watching. I'm recapping. You betta read, covergurls. So, Lauren Alaina is a country girl at heart and she loves Shania Twain. I also love Shania Twain but cannot for the life of me figure out why people keep doing "Any Man Of Mine" Why can't ...
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Christian Paul K. posted an article on Pictures & Conversations - Mar 9, 2011, 12:05 pm
In the pantheon of emotional trickery in music videos, nothing beats a camera closeup that captures the tear streaked face of a (usually young, pretty) woman. Let's take a look... Of course, the granddaddy of all close up cry shots is Sinéad O'Connor's MTV Video of the Year winning clip for "Nothin...
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Christian Paul K. posted an article on Pictures & Conversations - Mar 7, 2011, 1:30 pm
I'm not going to even pretend that I am a Bielieber. I don't have Bieber Fever, but I do respect that he does know how to play drums and other instruments. His songs are catchy, and his voice is a little high pitched but so was Micheal Jackson's as his age. I am as guilty as the next guy at poking f...
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Christian Paul K. posted an article on Pictures & Conversations - Mar 6, 2011, 5:28 pm
A sermon from Febuary, in text form. We have our rituals. Our morning routines, designed to get ourselves ready for the day in a timely manner. For me, a work day ritual involves hitting snooze only twice, gathering my clothing and heading straight to the bathroom for the same cleansing routine ever...
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Christian Paul K. posted an article on Pictures & Conversations - Feb 16, 2011, 10:26 am
Yesterday I introduced two artists that have to potential to be Girls Like Us. Here is the rest of the story: After Kelly's massive success with Max Martin/Dr Luke penned singles "Since U Been Gone" and "Behind These Hazel Eyes" Pink was the next female star to hook up with the hit making duo. Her n...
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Christian Paul K. posted an article on Pictures & Conversations - Feb 15, 2011, 11:49 am
In many ways, I've felt like Kelly Clarkson sings my life. Just like Taylor Swift yesterday, Kelly Clarkson has sung so many songs that tell my story and tell the story of so many young women and men. That could make her one of the Girls Like Us. I also would posit that Pink could make the same clai...
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Christian Paul K. posted an article on Pictures & Conversations - Feb 14, 2011, 11:08 am
Anyone who knows me knew that Taylor Swift was going to be one my modern day Girls Like Us. Despite being just 21, Taylor has been telling the stories of every young woman's life. Bursting onto the country scene in 2006 with an debut album co-written by Swift with Lisa Rose. The album featured plent...
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Christian Paul K. posted an article on Pictures & Conversations - Feb 13, 2011, 12:16 pm
I recently finished reading Sheila Weller's 2008 triple biography Girls Like Us. Subtitled "Carole King, Joni Mitchell, Carly Simon and the Journey of a Generation" the book recounts in detail the turbulent life, times and interactions of three of the most influential female singer-songwriters of th...
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Christian Paul K. posted an article on Pictures & Conversations - Jan 28, 2011, 11:02 pm
Nicki Minaj plays the king of her own fairy tale in her new video for "Moment 4 Life" Nicki's solo videos have been sleek, brightly colored affairs with thin but pretty plots. Her samurai warrior in "Your Love" and the angry girlfriend in "Right Thru Me" showed the soft side of Nicki but "Moment 4 L...
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Christian Paul K. posted an article on Pictures & Conversations - Jan 24, 2011, 10:33 pm
K-Dolla's latest EP Cannibal is pretty much an extension of her trashy debut. But possible second single "Sleazy" has a really hard beat and finds Ke$ha rapping. It's fine as-is, but once you add Andre 3000's verse it's really hardcore hotness. Listen:
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Christian Paul K. posted an article on Pictures & Conversations - Jan 23, 2011, 2:50 pm
While we're waiting around for Britney to finish the new video for "Hold It Against Me" (and release the second single from her upcoming album) let's enjoy some hot covers of her greatest hits, mkay? Lily Allen - "Womanizer" All-American Rejects - "Womanizer" Yael Naim - "Toxic" Marty Casey - ".....
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Christian Paul K. posted an article on Pictures & Conversations - Jan 20, 2011, 2:18 pm
Trashy Thursdays will be happening every Thursday and will feature the trashy pop songs I kinda love. Don't get it twisted, I think pop music is an art form. But like all art, there are brilliant artistic works that are fresh and dynamic and new as well as less inspired pieces of art. Someti...
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Christian Paul K. posted an article on Pictures & Conversations - Jan 19, 2011, 3:18 pm
I finally got around to seeing the much-discussed movie musical Burlesque the other afternoon. The film is a delightful romp, if you don't look too close at the weak and overplayed plot. Christina Aguilera is perfectly serviceable as Ali, a young girl from Ohio who drops her job as a waitress and bu...
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Christian Paul K. posted an article on Pictures & Conversations - Jan 18, 2011, 3:43 pm
OK, back in 2003 when I was huminahumina years old I was a TRL junkie. A little old for Carson Daly and boy band mania, but I wasn't allowed to watch MTV as a kid so I had to make up for lost time. Anyhoo, I remember this Canadian pop/rock singer (kinda like Avril with a darker complexion) named Fef...
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Christian Paul K. posted an article on Pictures & Conversations - Jan 13, 2011, 1:42 pm
Trashy Thursdays will be happening every Thursday and will feature the trashy pop songs I kinda love. Don't get it twisted, I think pop music is an art form. But like all art, there are brilliant artistic works that are fresh and dynamic and new as well as less inspired pieces of art. Sometimes ...
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Christian Paul K. posted an article on Pictures & Conversations - Jan 12, 2011, 12:14 pm
There are lots of superstars and indie faves slated to release new albums this year! The one I'm most excited for is Lady Gaga's Born This Way, due May 23. Elton John says the title track will be a gay anthem like no other, that single releases on the eve of Valentines Day and rumor has it Gaga will...
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Christian Paul K. posted an article on Pictures & Conversations - Jan 11, 2011, 11:15 am
Did you ever get the feeling a rapper is just filling a couple bars with idiotic nonsense for C.R.E.A.M.? What, they all do it? Well, let's explore: "I heard you good with them soft lips" Aww, thanks. I pride myself on my ability to... kiss. Wink, nudge. "Yeah, you know word of mouth" Word of mouth...
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Christian Paul K. posted an article on Pictures & Conversations - Jan 10, 2011, 8:01 pm
Britney Spears' new single has arrived! The lyrics are classic Britney: tarty, flirty and bouncy. Yeah, the chorus is a repeat of a classic pick up line, but who cares? I'm kinda digging it. And she looks so pretty in the single cover.
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Christian Paul K. posted an article on Pictures & Conversations - Jan 9, 2011, 4:10 pm
OK people! I have been writer's blocked (pick a reason: too happy in love to write/semi-stupefied with depression/kidnapped by vampires that sparkle/all of the above) for too long! So here goes my favorite blog exercise: list-making! 30. "Sticky With Champagne" - Semi-Precious Weapons You Love You G...
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Christian Paul K. posted an article on Pictures & Conversations - Nov 7, 2010, 1:42 pm
In the wake of teen suicides nationwide, it's easy to wonder where these teens can turn. For the first time that I can recall, pop radio may hold the answer. OK, I may be putting pop songs on a pedestal, but pop stars are releasing songs that people can dance and sing along with but also encourage y...
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Christian Paul K. posted an article on Pictures & Conversations - Oct 31, 2010, 1:23 pm
I don’t usually agree with Maggie Gallagher. As the founder of the National Organization for Marriage, a leading opponent of marriage equality, we have very little in common. However, in a Op/Ed piece for the New York Post, Ms. Gallagher made an interesting point. After attempting to absolve herse...
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Christian Paul K. posted an article on Pictures & Conversations - Sep 21, 2010, 1:33 pm
One-time Christian rock singer Jennifer Knapp releases her first album since coming out as a lesbian, and her fourth major-label studio album overall. Letting Go should play well to her old fans, sounding very much like her albums on Christian label Gotee. Lyrically, the music has a spiritual bent b...
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