Today's Feature Song = 'Crazy For You' by Best Coast (2010)

Today's feature song is Crazy for You by American indie-garage-pop trio Best Coast. Best Coast are based in Los Angeles, California and its members are Bethany Cosentino ( songwriter/lead vocals), Bobb Bruno (multiple-instruments) and Ali Koehler (drums). This song appears as the second track of of their Crazy for You album, which was released in July, 2010 on the Mexican Summer Record Label. The album peaked at #36 on the US Album Charts upon its release. If you like what you hear and you want some more band info and songs to listen to then come off it and check out the Best Coast MySpace page HERE. Something tells me they like cats...

#28 of VJ Samsonite's Top 100 80's Dance Hits Countdown: 'How Will I Know' by Whitney Houston (1985)

Now, at #28 of VJ Samsonite's Top 100 80's Dance Hits Countdown is How Will I Know by American recording artist/legendary vocalist/former fashion model/actress Whitney Houston. Now it is kind of interesting that when I think of Whitney Houston I don't generally associate her with the 1980's but I do more so with the 1990's, but the fact is that How Will I Know what a #1 in 1985 on the US Billboard Hot 100, the US Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart, the US Adult Contemporary chart, and the Canadian Singles chart; while it reached #5 on the UK Singles chart, #3 on the US Hot Dance Club Songs chart, and #2 on both the Norway and Sweden Singles charts. So, essentially this song was quite big and it would be the 3rd single from her debut album titled Whitney Houston, which was also released in 1985. Whitney Houston was born in Newark, New Jersey USA in 1963, and she was actually the relative of many prominent soul-singers including her mother Cissy Houston, her cousins Dione and Dee Dee Warwick, and her God-mother Aretha Franklin (a.k.a. the Queen of Soul). Houston's 2nd album titled Whitney (1987) became the first by a female artist to debut at #1 on the Billboard Hot 200 albums chart. She also appeared in a few Hollywood films, her first one being The Bodyguard in 1992 co-starring with Kevin Costner, the soundtrack of which would win a Grammy Award for Album of the Year and contained her song I Will Always Love You, which would become the best-selling single by a female artist of all time.  All of that said Whitney Houston is also the most-awarded female artist of all-time according to the Guinness Book of World Records, holding 16 Billboard Music Awards, 2 Emmy Awards, 6 Grammy Awards, 22 American Music Awards, which are amongst a total of 411 career awards as of 2006. She has sold somewhere around 170 million albums and singles worldwide. There is quite a bit more of this sort of awards-trivia knowledge, so if you really want to know more go to her Wikipedia page HERE. Now, can you see why I simply could not leave her off of this countdown? So there it is, and now we are onwards and downwards to #27 next....

Feature Song of the Day = 'Finale' by Funeral Party

Today's feature song is a littlet track called Finale, by American four-piece indie/alternative-rock band Funeral Party. Funeral Party have been active on the music scene since 2004, they originate out of Whittier, California USA, and consist of members Chad Elliott (vocals and keyboards), James Lawrence Torres (guitar), Kimo Kauhola (bass guitar), and Tim Madrid (drums). According to their Wikipedia page they decided to form the band after hanging out together in the local park, and they named the band after a song by The Cure. Finale is a single, and it was released in December of 2010. It also appears on their upcoming debut studio album titled The Golden Age of Knowing, which is set to be released in the USA on March 29, 2011. You can, however purchase the single on ITunes or Amazon at present. If you like what you've heard then head over to their band website HERE for more band info. Hoorah!

Feature Song of the Day = 'I Wrote the Book' by Beth Ditto

Today's feature song is I Wrote the Book, by American singer-songwriter Beth Ditto. Beth Ditto (Mary Beth Patterson) is based out of Portland, Oregon, USA (originally from Searcy, Arkansas, USA) and is most well known for her work with indie-rock group Gossip. I Wrote the Book comes off of her upcoming 2011 debut solo and self-titled EP. If you like what you hear be sure to check out her work with Gossip at their MySpace page HERE.

Today's Feature Song = 'Dancing With the DJ' by The Knocks

Today's Feature song is Dancing With the DJ by American electro-pop/dance duo The Knocks. The Knocks consists of Ben "B-Roc" Ruttner and James "JPatt" Patterson, who are currently based out of NYC. Dancing With The DJ was released in November, 2010 on the EP of the same title (which contains this song plus a few other remixes) and it can currently be purchased on ITunes or Amazon. Also, be sure to check out their MySpace page HERE if you want to hear more from this artist.

Song of the Day for August 7, 2010: The Drums: "Forever and Ever Amen"

And the song is.... Forever and Ever Amen, by American indie-rock band The Drums. The Drums come out of Brooklyn, New York and consist of members Jonathan Pierce (vocals), Jacob Graham (guitar), Adam Kessler (guitar), and Connor Hanwick (drums). The song comes as the 6th track of their debut studio album, which was just released on June 7th, 2010. Check out their myspace page or lastfm for more info.

#71 of VJ Samsonite's Top 100 80's Dance Hits Countdown!

We're Baaackk!! And now to present to you #71 of the TOP 100 80'S DANCE HITS COUNTDOWN (by yours truly) is the song. Now, some of these artists are already repeating and I haven't even reached down to #50 yet, so just know that I am basing these rankings on the songs, not the artists, and as you all know its done in a very professional and accurate manner with crazy mathematical formuli and....not really. So, the song is.... Point of No Return, by American duo (and married couple) Nu Shooz. Now, I know what your thinking, didn't Exposé do the hit 80's song called Point of No Return, and my answer for you is yes they did. However, Portland Oregon based 80's wonder Nu Shooz made a great dance hit by the same name which received much acclaim. Now, you may be disappointed by this, and I am not making any promises, but the Exposé song may appear on this countdown later on, unless it doesn't. So who knows...all we know for now is that #71 is the Nu Shooz, Point of No Return. As I mentioned on the previous post, which came in at #83, this hit came off of their 1986 album release titled Poolside. I encourage you to look to that previous post for more info on the band and such. Enjoy your Nu Shooz.

And the "Hot Song of the Day" is....

...Living in America, by American indie-pop group DOM (previously known as FUR). This DOM is a 3 piece band from Worcester, Maine, and the reason I said "this DOM" is because there are about 8 other bands around the globe by the name of DOM, so its not too original to say the least. Living in America comes off of their Sun Bronzed Greek Gods EP released in April of 2010. They have an interesting sound and it is an eclectic mix for sure. Check out their myspace page here.

And the "Hot Song of the Day" is....

...Cool Down, by Hawaiian-American band Kolohe Kai. Kolohe Kai is an new-island-music group from the windward side of the island of Oahu, Hawaii. They have released one studio-length album titled This is the Life, released in September 2009, of which Cool Down comes off of. I highly recommend checking this album out if you like island-music as much as I do. Mahalo!

And the "Hot Song of the Day" is....

...Twin Peaks, by American indie rock band Surfer Blood. Surfer Blood debuted in 2009 with their Swim single. They released their debut studio album in January 2010, which is titled Astro Coast, and which reached #124 on the Billboard Albums Chart. Surfer Blood are based out of West Palm Beach in the sunny and recently well oiled state (in more ways than one) of Florida. Not too much other info about them on wikipedia so look them up if your keen. Got to love that album cover, ShazaM!

And the "Hot Song of the Day" is....

...Pursuit of Happiness (Nightmare) (featuring MGMT & Ratatat), by American rapper, singer, and producer Kid CuDi.  Kid CuDi has been posted before on this vlog, but this song hasn't yet, so a brief re-hash and then the song. He is based in Brooklyn, New York and has just recently produced a new album/sequel to the album this song came off of called Man on the Moon II: The Legend of Mr. Rager (2010). This song comes off of his Man on the Moon: End of the Day album, which was released in September 2009. Blah blah blah...and now the song...

#83 of VJ Samsonite's Top 100 80's Dance Hits Countdown!

Welcome back to VJ Samsonite's top 100 80's Dance Hits Countdown! Today we are presenting #83 of the top 100 countdown! And the song is...I Can't Wait, by American duo Nu Shooz. Nu Shooz were a husband and wife duo consisting of John Smith and Valerie Day and were based out of Portland, Oregon USA (my hometown metro-area!). Nu Shooz released 3 studio albums during the 80's, of which the album Poolside was the most lucrative. I Can't Wait was released on this album in February of 1986, which hit #2 on the R&B charts, and #3 on the Billboard Hot 100 in June of 1986, and 15 weeks in the top 40. It also hit #1 on the Hot Club Dance Play chart. They had another hit single off of Poolside titled Point of No Return, of which I was previously unaware (and no that is not to be confused with the Expose 80's hit). This song is a dance-floor filler, as we call them, maybe not to the point that #84 was, but it sure is close. They had further releases and hits on the charts but this song, I Can't Wait, is by far the most well known of their hits. So they surpass the label of being just a one-hit-wonder, as they also had Point of No Return. I would also recommend you check out some of the remixes, which change of the originals of the songs quite well. Enjoy this 80's classic, and remember to shut up and dance!

And the "Hot New Music" song of the day is....

...Tighten Up, by American blues-rock group the Black Keys. The Black Keys have been around for awhile now, they formed in Akron, Ohio back in 2001 and have released 8 studio albums a 2 EP's in that time. That is including the collaboration album they did just recently with several R&B and hip hop artists titled Blakroc, which I would highly recommend checking out if you haven't already. Also, the Black Keys are a duo consisting of vocalist/guitarist Dan Auerbach and drummer/producer Patrick Carney. Tighten Up comes off of their latest album release Brothers, which hit the scene in May 2010, so is still fairly fresh and new. *Note, I am going to start using all wikimedia images for the bands I post as I am certain they are considered public domain, so there, and enjoy the song.

And the "Hot New Music" song of the day is....

...ATX, by New York based rock group Alberta Cross. Alberta Cross was formed by Petter Ericson Stakee (vocals, guitar) & Terry Wolfers (bass), both artists are originally from UK, but now based in America. ATX comes off of their Broken Side of Time album, released in January 2010. The first time I heard this song, I thought it was Oasis, or someone who sounded a bit like them. Check wikipedia or allmusic for more info.

And the "Hot New Music" song of the day is....

...Two Weeks, by American folk-rock group Grizzly Bear. Grizzly Bear are based out of Brooklyn, New York and consist of Edward Droste (vocals, guitar, omnichord, keyboard), Daniel Rossen (vocals, guitar, keyboards), Chris Taylor (bass, backing vocals, various instruments, producer) and Christopher Bear (drums, backing vocals). Two Weeks is a single, and was released in May 2009. I've been randomly selecting songs from my playlist so hopefully you are all enjoying some of this stuff and getting some stuff you may not have otherwise heard. I have been making the little bio's (which are just summaries from Wikipedia really) shorter and shorter as I really don't find the details all that interesting, so I might just start doing the very basics like I did on this post. All though I will try to add a bit more info for the 80's posts, as they are tend to have a bit more history to them by nature. Enjoy!

And the "Hot New Music" song of the day is....

...Shadow People, by US indie rock band Dr Dog. Dr Dog are based out of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and consists of Toby Leaman (bass), Scott McMicken (lead guitar), Frank McElroy (rhythm guitar), Zach Miller (keyboard), and Eric Slick (drums). Shadow People comes off of their Shame Shame album, which was just released in April, 2010. I don't have too much to say about them as I don't really know that much, so as always look them up on wikipedia or allmusic or one of the those internet databases. All though I would point out something rather obvious and that is that I reckon that they just took Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg and combined their names to get Dr Dog (but just one "g" as opposed to two). Oh, and yipee to me for actually posting a US band, note that I do have others in mind but just haven't posted them yet, so perhaps I should, but I reckon a mix of new artists from different locales is best. Keep it real peeps!

VJ Samsonite's "Hot New Music" song of the day is....

...Say Please, by American "supergroup" Monsters of Folk. Monsters of Folk is made up of Jim James from My Morning Jacket, Conor Oberst and Mike Mogis from Bright Eyes and M. Ward. The band was formed in 2004 and started playing together whilst on tour with their individual bands and groups. Their first album was finally released in 2009 and hit # 15 on the Billboard Top 200. According to wikipedia it also "reached #3 on Top Independent Albums, #8 on Top Rock Albums, #7 on Top Digital Albums, and #6 on Top Alternative Albums." I don't know about you but I am looking forward to checking out more of their stuff, and without further ado, her is Say Please ala youtube:

#89 of VJ Samsonite's Top 100 80's Dance Hits Countdown!

Welcome back to VJ Samsonite's top 100 80's Dance Hits Countdown! Today we are presenting #89 of the top 100 countdown!And the song is...Lost In The Shadows by American rock vocalist and songwriter Lou Gramm. Lou Gramm is best known for being the lead singer and songwriter of the rock band Foreigner. Lou started his solo career (apart from Foreigner) in 1987, which was the same year that he recorded his single Lost In The Shadows for the Lost Boys movie soundtrack. Now, the Lost Boys is one of my favorite 80's movies of all time, and so it goes hand in hand that I would place some songs off the soundtrack onto this list, and if you pay close attention you might just find some more songs from the soundtrack appearing later on down the countdown. If you are interested in Lou Gramm's history at all I would recommend checking out his Wikipedia page, as it lists the various eras of his illustrious career. With not much else to say, heeeerrrsss Louuuu Graaammmm...

VJ Samsonite's "Hot New Music" song of the day is....

...Repulsion, by US indie-rock band Quasi. Quasi come at us out of ever-green Portland, Oregon, regional home of the Trailblazers, great micro-brews, me, and much much more. Quasi formed in 1993, consisting of an ex-husband and wife duo, Sam Coomes (vocals, guitar, rocksichord, and keyboards) and Janet Weiss on vocals and drums, to later on add bassist Joanna Bolme (in 2007). Quasi have been fairly prolific as they have released 10 studio albums. Repulsion, comes off of their latest album titled American Gong, which was released in February of 2010. I heard this band on the radio, an internet radio station and liked it, plus they are from my hometown. The radio personality was saying that they reckoned that Quasi are lost in the 90's, which I suppose I can see as they have some guitar riffs shades of Smashing Pumpkins, and vocals a bit reminiscent of 80's band The Replacements; but all in all that is all completely subjective, and they are indie-rock, so that's enough for me. Blah!

VJ Samsonite's "Hot New Music" song of the day is....

...Little Secrets, by US electronica band Passion Pit. Passion Pit come at us out of Cambridge, Massachusetts and formed in 2007. The group consists of Michael Angelakos (lead vocals/keyboards), Ian Hultquist (keyboards/guitar), Ayad Al Adhamy (synth), Jeff Apruzzese (bass) and Nate Donmoyer (on da drums). According to wikipedia, the name is derived from slang that was used to describe drive-in movie theaters as "passion pits," due to teenage hancky-pancky that tends to go on there. Passion Pit have released an EP and one full-length studio album. Little Secrets comes off of their album titled Manners (released in May 2009). Passion Pit definitely have a unique sound and electronic style to their music that makes them stand out a bit in that realm where so many bands tend to sound, how does one say "same same, but different." There are also such a ridiculous number of remixes by so many other dj's and groups out there that it can be a chore just to sort through it all to find the original mixes. Bloody volcanoes!