Queens of the Stone Age, "The Way You Used To Do"
2013's ...Like Clockwork never really grabbed me (despite extensive critical acclaim), so I was pretty delighted that 2017's Villains got me pretty fired up. Mark Ronson helped to sharpen things up, and the whole thing feels pretty glam-y and fired up. This song, for instance, is just razor sharp, from Homme's guitar tone to the vamp of his lyrics.
All, "Mary"
All, the band descended from the Descendents, went through a singer every couple albums. I mean, All themselves were just the last incarnation of the Descendents minus Milo Auckerman. Dave Smalley (Dag Nasty) fronted All for two records, and he then left, replaced by Scott Reynolds. While Scott wasn't quite the belter that Dave was, Scott brought an emotional vulnerability to a bunch of the songs on Allroy's Revenge, giving a depth to things that was largely missing from the power pop of the first couple records. It was particularly pronounced on the songs Scott wrote, this being one of them. Fundamentally, All were still a pop punk band, but it was nice to have something a little weightier mixed in sometimes.
Bruce Springsteen, "It's Hard To Be A Saint in the City"
I'll level with y'all: I officially ran out of things to say about Springsteen on the first song we had. This song is pretty bitchin', though.
Devin the Dude, "Anythang"
It's been a while since we've heard from Devin. Whatcha rappin' about Devin? Weed, am I right? I'm not?
Devin, you OK man?
Coheed and Cambria, "Here To Mars"
The first seven (!) Coheed and Cambria albums were all part of some extended space rock opera thing which, let's face it, is pretty embarrassing. I never paid any attention to any of that stuff, as that would require me to really listen carefully to the lyrics, and that ain't gonna happen. 2015's The Color Before The Sun was their first album that wasn't part of that same (ugh) universe, which apparently upset some people? At least, judging by reviews. Didn't bother me in the slightest. So, how's the music? Elaborate bombast as always. Perfectly Coheed-y!