Year 6, Day 349

Good Morning! Today's song is I Love You (But I Hate Your Friends) by Neon Trees.

These guys have been around since 2005 and are currently made up of Tyler Glenn, Chris Allen, Branden Campbell, and Elaine Bradley. They have three albums to date, out in 2010, 2012, and 2014. Since then they've released a couple of singles including this one, before going on tour in 2015. They've released on more single from 2017, but since then there hasn't been much so we'll see what happens in the coming years.

Peace.

Year 6, Day 348

Good Morning! Today's song is Ready To Go by Panic! At The Disco.

Photo by: Silvio Tanaka

It's baby Brendon Urie! Unbelievably I'd never heard this song until today. I knew I wanted a Panic! song for today, and then I came along this gem. The video is a prime example of the chaos energy Brendon Urie exudes and I'm loving it. Also the nod to certain musicals is something I appreciate. Eight years ago I don't think I would have even noticed, but it's cool now, especially considering Brendon has now been on Broadway with his stint in Kinky Boots. Possible dreams made reality? Anyway I hope you enjoy it.

Peace.

Year 6, Day 347

Good Morning! Today's song is Best Part by The Score.

This song is about as brand spanking new as it gets. The Score is one of my favorite bands, so I'm subscribed to them on YouTube and listen to every new song right when it's posted. It just happened that this one fit kinda perfectly with today so it got to take precedence over the other 200 songs I've had saved for years. I've probably said it before about these guys, but I could listen to and like absolutely every song from them. I even have some other ones saved waiting for the right time. So if ever there was a group for you to delve a little deeper into their discography, let it be them.

Peace.

Year 6, Day 346

Good Morning! Today's song is Good Times by All Time Low.

Photo by: De'Sha Metschke

I've written about All Time Low way too many times so this will be a quick one. They've been around since 2003 and are currently made up of Alex Gaskarth, Jack Bakarat, Zack Merrick, and Rian Dawson. In that time they've had eight albums released, the first in 2005 and the most recent from 2020. This isn't part of their newest album, but it is one of their more recent songs that I've been saving since it came out. So I hope you like it.

Peace.

Year 6, Day 345

Good Morning! Today's song is Tribulation by Matt Maeson.

Matt Maeson is a singer active since 2016 when his debut single came out. He followed it up by releasing two EPs, one in 2017 and another in 2018. That year he also performed at a couple different festivals including Lollapalooza. He released his first album in 2019. His career so far is short, but really he's just getting started so I'm sure we'll hear more.

Peace.

Year 6, Day 344

Good Morning! Today's song is Not Gonna Break Me by Jamie N Commons.

Jamie N Commons is an English singer active since 2011. If you're wondering like I have been, the N stands for Nick. I haven't found a lot of information about his first EP, other than it was released in 2011, then his second EP came out in 2013. Since then he's gotten featured on songs with other notable artists, including Eminem and the X Ambassadors. His songs have been featured all over the place including for the 2016 Summer Olympics. In 2018 he started a project called Fever Dreams, which is him releasing a bunch of singles, increasing the hype for his debut album in 2018. He's also been writing some songs for other artists, which have topped the charts. So check him out.

Peace.

Year 6, Day 343

Good Morning! Today's song is Help by Papa Roach.

Photo by: Frank Schwichtenberg

Papa Roach is a rock band active since 1993 and currently made up of  Jacoby Shaddix, Jerry Horton, Tobin Esperance, and Tony Palermo. I've featured them before, and their career is literally as long as my life so once again I'm going to do just a quick summary and call it done. They have been ten albums, the first in 1997 and the most recent in 2019. They've been released consistently over the years, with never more than three years going between each album. It also leaves gap for touring, which they've done a fair amount of. I always say this when I feature a group with a long career, but it's interesting to listen to new and old songs, to see the evolution of sound. It's a good study on character, society influence, and general trend differences to some extent. You never know what kind of pattern you see until you look into it. I helped my mom with a similar study using horror movies and points in history, and it was super interesting. So give it a go.

Peace.

Year 6, Day 342

Good Morning! Today's song is Traitor by Daughtry.

Daughtry is named for Chris Daughtry, the frontman of the group. He was a finalist on American Idol, then started this band in 2006. Currently the group is made up of Chris Daughtry, Josh Steely, Josh Paul, Brian Craddock, Elvio Fernandes, and Brandon Maclin. They named the band after Chris to keep the name recognition from him being on a national television show. Their career is long so I'm just going to hit the highlights. They've released five albums through their career, the first in 2006 and the most recent from 2018. They've been nominated for at least 20 awards over the years, winning more than half of them. They split from their label in 2018 which is why there hasn't been much since, but they have been working on another album. Chris Daughtry was also on the Masked singer in the interim, getting into the finals and fooling everyone. So if you're curious about that you can look it up.

Peace.

Year 6, Day 341

Good Morning! Today's song is Demons by Icon For Fire.

Icon For Fire is a rock band active since 2007. Current members are Ariel Bloomer and Shawn Jump, with former members being Joshua Davis and Adam Kronshagen. They spent the first two years touring and releasing EP's, one in 2008 and one in 2009 before Davis left the band. They got signed in 2010, and released their debut album in 2011. Their second album came out in 2013, before the band left their label and Kronshagen left the group. In 2016 they crowdfunded and released their next album. In 2018 they started uploading acoustic sessions on YouTube. Since then they've been touring, so they're still around. Keep an eye out.

Peace.

Year 6, Day 340

Good Morning! Today's song is Fire With Fire by The Letter Black.

The Letter Black is a Christian rock band active since 2006 and currently made up of Sarah Anthony, Mark Anthony, Matt Beal, and Justin Brown. It started out as a duo with married Mark and Sarah, calling themselves Breaking the Silence. They changed the name once they were signed. Since then they've toured with a lot of different groups and have released three EP's and a collection of singles. They've also had four albums come out, the first in 2007 before they were signed, and the most recent from 2017. There hasn't been much since, but they've apparently signed to a new label this year so I suspect we'll see more soon enough.

Peace.

Year 6, Day 339

Good Morning! Today's song is God Went North by Nothing More.

Photo by: GerTobi

These guys are a rock band active since 2003 and currently made up of Jonny Hawkins, Mark Vollelunga, Daniel Oliver, and Ben Anderson. They first couple years after high school they struggled to get signed, but did play shows, eventually releasing an album in 2014 and an EP in 2015. These ended up being combined into an album in 2006 before getting a different singer and releasing an album in 2007. They toured with another group and did Warped Tour, but were going too poppy so they switched singers again. 2008 saw an overhaul of what the band was, so they sort of restarted in the industry again in 2009 with a new album that they toured for two years. They were still going independently in 2011 when they started working on their new album funded through Kickstarter. It came out in 2013 and toured it, getting the opportunity to play a bigger show which got them enough recognition to earn them record deal offers. They signed in 2014 then did a ton of touring before releasing their next album in 2017. Since then it's been more touring, and some nominations for Grammy Awards so I think it's safe to say they finally found their sound. Enjoy.

Peace.

Year 6, Day 338

Good Morning! Today's song is The Drug In Me Is Reimagined by Falling In Reverse.

Okay I kept seeing this song pop up everywhere so I finally decided to listen to it and realized it has an interesting history. This is actually the second version of this song, the first being The Drug In Me Is You that was released in 2011. Then this one was released in 2020, and has a very different vibe. It's a fantastic case study on musical styling and how genre can change meaning without changing lyrics. I recommend listening to both to see what I mean. So the band has been active since 2008 and is currently made up of Ronnie Radke, Derek Jones, Tyler Burgess, Max Georgiev, and Johnny Mele. The band was actually formed while Radke was in prison. He used to be in Escape the Fate before that, but after a battery charge and failure to adhere to probation landed him behind bars, they kicked him out of that group and he formed this one. It started being called Behind These Walls, but had to be changed because of copyright, so Falling In Reverse was born. They've released four albums, the first in 2011 and the most recent from 2017. Radke has said that this version of the song wasn't meant to gain new fans, but was a kind of love letter to the lifelong fans, so they can experience the song differently. He succeeded in that, but also in gaining new fans or at least people with a new awareness of him because that would be me. We'll see which one you become.

Peace.

Year 6, Day 337

Good Morning! Today's song is Bruises by Lewis Capaldi.

Photo by: Tuomas Vitikainen

Lewis Capaldi is a Scottish singer active since 2017. He actually got discovered on SoundCloud by his manager. His first EP came out in 2017, and this was his first song which became huge. He was invited to participate in a lot of tours as he gained popularity through 2018 before releasing his second EP that year. His debut album came out in 2019 which became the best selling album in the UK in five years, a pretty impressive feat. He participated in a couple more tours before winning two Brit Awards in 2020. He's an amazing artist that is still on his way up, so check him out.

Peace.

Year 6, Day 336

Good Morning! Today's song is Angela by The Lumineers.

Photo by: Sachyn Mital

These guys are a rock band active since 2005, and currently made up of Wesley Schultz and Jeremiah Fraites. Previously a cellist named Neyla Pekarek was also in the group, but she left in 2018 to go solo. The two started together with lots of different names that weren't really meant to be serious, then became the Lumineers after a cancellation by another band meant they went on in their stead. The emcee mistakenly dubbed them this, and it stuck. They've had three albums over their career, the earliest in 2012 and the most recent from 2019. I featured them before right around the time they were getting popular, but this is a more recent single gaining popularity in 2017. They've also been nominated for a couple of awards through their career and gone on tour. Anyway, I hope you check them out.

Peace.

Year 6 Day 335

Good Morning! Today's song is This Far by Landon Pigg.

Photo by: Janet Dancer

So Landon Pigg is an actor and singer. You might recognize him from starring in Whip It with Ellen Page. I'm not entirely sure when he started his music career, but it started gaining traction in 2006 when one of his songs was featured on Grey's Anatomy. He's released four EP's and three albums with the most recent from 2009, although he's been releasing singles as recently as last year so he's still active in the industry. I have at least one more of his songs saved for a later date, so hopefully you like him.

Peace.

Year 6, Day 334

Good Morning! Today's song is Marry You by Bruno Mars.

Photo by: Brother Le

I have featured Bruno Mars so many times it's not funny. I think I'm going to have to go back through all the years and figure out who the top five most featured are. I have a couple guesses, but it would be interesting to know for sure. I'm apparently now using the quarantine time to watch old TV shows I'm like because I've now started Teen Wolf again because I got the box set for my birthday. Sure it's a little corny at the beginning, but the show is actually really good. What used to be a guilty pleasure is now a genuine source of enjoyment. So if you get bored give it a chance. Expand beyond the top ten Netflix list for something more than tigers.

Peace.

Year 6, Day 333

Good Morning! Today's song is Dancing In The Moonlight by Toploader.

I just finished rewatching the Umbrella Academy because why not and realized there were a few songs I had saved from it that I still haven't used. While the Luther/Allison storyline does absolutely nothing for me, this is an amazing song, so that's what you get for today. Toploader is a British band who was active from 1997 until 2003, but then came back again and has been active this time since 2009. The hiatus was their time between labels, and I don't know if it just took that long to sign with another label or if they actually took a break during that time. Currently they're made up of Joseph Washbourn, Dan Hipgrave, Matt Knight, and Rob Green. They've released four albums in their career (not including a compilation album) with the most recent from 2017. This is one of their older songs, but you should check out their new stuff too. Compare how the times have updated their sound.

Peace.

Year 6, Day 332

Good Morning! Today's song is Drunk In The Morning by Lukas Graham.

Photo by: Warner Bros. Records

Lukas Graham isn't actually a person, but a band from Denmark. They've been active since 2011 and are currently made up of Lukas Forchhammer, Mark Falgren, and Magnus Larsson. This song was on their first album, which was only released in select European countries. They spent 2012 touring around Europe, then signed a deal to release music in the States in 2013. They spent the year writing before releasing their first single in North America in 2014. The group really got fame here with the song 7 Years which came out on their European album in 2015 and on the international album in 2016. They won lots of awards for the song, and had a change in their lineup, before releasing their next album in 2018. Since then they've done some guest performances, but we'll have to wait and see if there's more to come from them.

Peace.

Year 6, Day 331

Good Morning! Today's song is This Means War by Marianas Trench.

My sleep schedule is completely backwards again so I'm actually going to sleep after posting this, but at least I'm getting it out there. I spent some time last night trying to set up Facetime on my grandparents ipad because my uncle wanted me too, presumably so he can get a video call going with the grandparents and his daughter, but my grandma was less than enthused by the video of video calling. Meanwhile my mom and sister are getting ready to head to BC on Monday, because she has to move things out of her place down there before the lease is up. I'm kind of worried about it because people in BC have been getting angry about Alberta plates, assuming everyone is on vacation and there to infect them. If there was any way to postpone her having to go, it would be done, but it's not a perfect world. I just home they get in and out without any issues. Send good vibes their way.

Peace.

Year 6, Day 330

Good Morning! Today's song is Unstoppable by Matty Mullins featuring Jordan Feliz.

So Matty Mullins has been around since 2008. He does solo stuff, but he is also part of the band Memphis May Fire. He joined the band after an audition in 2008, followed by them releasing an EP and six studio albums, the most recent of which came out in 2018. He did a lot of guest vocals for other bands, then decided to start doing some solo stuff in 2013. He has two solo albums, one from 2014 and one from 2017. Jordan Feliz is a christian musician whose been active since 2006. He started out in a band called A Current Affair, then started a solo career in 2015. He has three albums, with the most recent out in 2008 and a bunch of singles, so there's lots for you guys to look at.

Peace.

Year 6, Day 329

Good Morning! Today's song is Believer by American Authors.

Photo by: Drew de F Fawkes

American Authors is a rock band who has been active since 2006 and is made up of Zac Barnett, James Adam Shelley, Dave Rublin, and Matt Sanchez. They all met in college, and initially had performed as the Blue Pages. They used that name until 2012, releasing music and opening for Cash Cash on their tour. Then they changed to American Authors, and were signed in 2013. They released their debut EP that year, and hit 9th on the Billboard's New Artist list for 2014. The next couple years they spent working on an album that came out in 2016. They've spent the time since releasing singles and performing, then releasing another album last year. This year so far they've released a single, but I'm sure we'll hear more from them once the world gets back in order. For now check out their other stuff.

Peace.

Year 6, Day 328

Good Morning! Today's song is Take Me Home by Midnight Red.

So we talked boy bands yesterday and I mentioned that there is always at least one per generation, but in recent years there has been tons. These guys have been around since 2009 and are currently made up of Eric Secharia, Anthony Ladao, Thomas Augusto, and Colton Rudloff. There was another member, Joey Diggs Jr., who left in 2015. Originally they were named FLYTE, but changed names once they were signed. They've released a number of singles and an EP, and have also done touring with lots of groups. Some of the people they toured with include other boy bands New Kids On The Block and the Backstreet Boys. I thought it was fitting to put them after the other guys yesterday, so I hope you like it.

Peace.

Year 6, Day 327

Good Morning! Today's song is The Boys In The Band by New Kids On The Block.

Photo by: Ibolya Nyikos

And now a take on boy bands from one of the OG boy bands. I mean not for me personally because I grew up in the Backstreet and N*sync phases, but technically these guys were around first... I guess technically the Beach Boys could be considered a boy band but the term boy band didn't exist until the 1980's, despite groups being describable as them since as early as the 1930's. Each generation has at least one, but New Kids On The Block was one of the first commercially successful groups. They were active from 1985 to 1994, then made a comeback in 2008 and are currently made up of Jonathan Knight, Jordan Knight, Joey McIntyre, Donnie Wahlberg, and Danny Wood. They released five albums before they split up, and while there isn't any specific reason why they all split, it happened after Jonathan left to deal with his increasing anxiety issues. His departure seemed to be the catalyst. They all went separate ways, having families and pursuing other avenues. There were many attempts by outside forces to get the group to reunite, but ultimately the boys said if they ever did, it would be for real, not for a one-night event. They technically regrouped in 2007, and officially did in 2008 with a release of a new album and a tour. They had another album in 2013, then an EP in 2017. This song is from 2019, and is an homage to the style, with references to a bunch of other groups and even features some members from other boy bands in the video. So check it out.

Peace.

Yesr 6, Day 326

Good Morning! Today's song is Sucker by the Jonas Brothers.

I think everyone has heard of the Jonas Brothers comeback by now, in fact I might have even mentioned it around the time it happened. Personally I'm glad that they got the chance to live their own lives and made the choice to join up again. I also super approve of the fact that this is basically just a love song to their wives. It's nice seeing former Disney stars get to be happy, because most of them ended up fucked up in some way. By the time these guys were big I was at the end of my Disney phase, not the age group they were looking for, but of the stars I grew up with only one comes to mind that had a somewhat good life after Disney. So congrats to these guys for staying sane, finding love, and still doing something they enjoy.

Peace.

Year 6, Day 325

Good Morning! Today's song is Uptown Funk covered by Against The Current featuring Set It Off.

I've featured one of these groups before, but not both so I'll do a quick summary for both. Against The Current has been active since 2011 and is currently made up of Chrissy Costanza, Dan Gow, and Will Ferri. Their first EP came out in 2014, followed quickly by another in 2015. They toured for the EP through that year, then released their debut album in 2016. In 2017 they collaborated with a gaming company and made the music for the League of Legends World Championship that year. Since then they've been releasing more singles. Set It Off is a rock band active since 2008, and currently made up of Cody Carson, Maxx Danziger, and Zach DeWall. They started gaining a following through Carson's YouTube channel, releasing music independently until being signed in 2011. They re-released an EP through the label before releasing an album in 2012. Since then they've released three more albums, along with two EP's and a bunch of singles so give both bands a listen if you like the sound.

Peace.

Year 6, Day 324

Good Morning! Today's song is Drive It Like You Stole It from Sing Street.

I'll be honest, I had no idea this wasn't a real band until I started writing this. Turns out Sing Street is a movie musical that was released in 2016. It's a coming of age story where a boy starts a band to impress a girl, and is set in Ireland in the 1980's. It premiered at the Sundance Film Festival, and got nominated for a Golden Globe. Most of the music for the band in the movie was composed by Gary Clark, who is the frontman of a Scottish group called Danny Wilson. Other people with writing credits on the songs include Graham Henderson, Zamo Riffman, and Carney, Ken, and Carl Papenfus from the Irish rock band Relish. So if you like this and you're curious about it go check out the movie and it's soundtrack.

Peace.

Year 6, Day 323

Good Morning! Today's song is Bad Boy by Dan Croll.

Photo by: Mai Le

Dan Croll is a British musician active since 2010. When he was a student at the Liverpool Institute for Performing Arts he won a national Songwriter of the Year award and got to meet Paul McCartney. He joined a record label and first debuted on a compilation album of the label's new artists. That song was a huge success, and he followed it with more singles in 2013 that got used in various video games. His first album came out in 2014. He released another single 2015, then one in 2016, before releasing his second studio album in 2017. I don't know if there is much from after that, but for all I know he's working on more stuff so keep an eye out to see if he pops up again sometime.

Peace.

Year 6, Day 322

Good Morning! Today's song is Hard Love by NEEDTOBREATHE featuring Andra Day.

NEEDTOBREATHE is a christian rock band active since 1998 and made up of Bear Rinehart, Bo Rinehart, Seth Bolt, and Josh Lovelace. The name comes from a Greek parable from Socrates about seeking God. They released an album and two EP's independently before signing with a label in 2005. Since then they've released six albums, a number of EP's, and have toured with a lot of different artists. They've also been nominated for and won a ton of awards, so check them out. Andra Day is a singer active since 2012. She got discovered by Stevie Wonder's wife, and then he introduced her to Adrian Gurvitz who she started working on songs with. She also secured a record deal because of the popularity of her YouTube covers. Her debut album came out in 2015, leading to a Grammy nomination in 2016. Since then she's done other performances, been nominated for more awards, and released a Christmas EP. She hasn't made any other albums but there have been some singles so check it out.

Peace.

Year 6, Day 321

Good Morning! Today's song is All My Love by Cash Cash featuring Conor Maynard.

Cash Cash has been active since 2002 and is made up of Jean Paul Makhlouf, Alexander Luke Makhlouf, and Samuel Warren Frisch. Jean Paul and Sam started as The Consequence in 2002 and released music under that name before Alexander joined them in 2007. By 2008 they switched to Cash Cash because of issues from the rights to the old name. Cash Cash came from a joke about all the people after their nonexistent cash at the time. Since then they've released four albums and three EPs. Conor Maynard is a British singer active since 2012 that I've featured in previous years. He started out by releasing covers on YouTube with his friend Anthony Melo, before being discovered and mentored by Ne-Yo. His first single came out in 2012, followed by his debut album later that year. He wrote a book in 2013 about his rise to fame, the released a single before taking part in recording the 2014 English World Cup song. He kept releasing singles in the following years, but his covers on YouTube (that he's still doing) were gaining so much popularity that he decided to release an album of mostly covers. That came out in 2016. He's in limbo right now about original content because he's dealing with his contract with the label, but he does plan to make more. So keep an eye out.

Peace.

Year 6, Day 320

Good Morning! Today's song is Wolves by Selena Gomez and Marshmello.

I've written about both of them before multiple times so instead today I'm going to address what is most likely going to be happening today because pandemic + April fools = people making jokes in bad taste. I've already seen a false news statement about restrictions leading to a rickroll, and while there is a place in serious times for humor, stuff like that doesn't fly. So please remember to get your information from official sources. Look at the World Health website, your government's website, specific news sites of the ones you trust, and if you're looking into the global scale of the pandemic the Johns Hopkins University map is a great resource despite it sometimes taking awhile to update. So stay safe, don't believe things unless it's from an official source, and please don't be one of the people who I'm warning about.

Peace.