5 Songs To Play When We Lead The Revolution Against Today's Top Hits (Time To Overthrow King Ed Sheeran!)

I have nothing against Ed Sheeran, I swear.

We all indulge in a little Ed Sheeran once in a while and its no doubt that he’s a wonderful singer and lyricist. But aren’t you tired of hearing the same lyric about how Ed’s in love with the shape of you every time you hit shuffle on that Spotify playlist of yours or turn on your local radio station?

Ed's not even on here...

I don’t mean to sound judgy and surely you’re beginning to think that I’m some egomaniac with an “I’m not like other girls, I listen to hipster music!!” complex. I can’t say I’ll do much to change your perception of me (though I can assure you I absolutely despise the phrase "I'm not like other girls"), but I might as well introduce myself. I’m Nickels and welcome to The Middle Child blog! Ironically enough, I am the eldest child of my family and am probably not qualified to run a blog about “middle children” but whatever. Eldest child privileges, am I right?

 By now I hope that you, my dear reader, have caught on to what this blog will be about. There’s always been this idea that middle children are the overlooked ones, the ones that get the least amount of attention because they are neither the first-born nor the baby of the family. So in this blog, I’m taking every single overshadowed middle child of the universe, whether it be music, books, or even kinds of fruit, and shoving them into the limelight.

Well, maybe I won’t do underrated kinds of fruit. That is unless you want to hear me ramble about how delicious rambutan is.

Beautiful, tasty rambutan...

Anyway, for my first post, I’m jumping straight into music, since most people listen to some kind of music throughout their plain daily life: on their morning run, doing mundane chores, or during class in an attempt to tune out the droning teacher lecturing from the other side of the room. To win this revolution against the hottest songs on the radio as of September 2019, our plan of attack has to be pitch-perfect. That’s why I’ve picked one song for five different genres of music in what I call, a “Bite-Sized Playlist”. If we try to get as many genres as possible, we can gain as many allies as possible.

Let us band together, my pop listeners, my musical theatre nerds, my SoundCloud rappers, my k-pop stans, and everything in between to defeat King Ed Sheeran!

Indie Pop

Courtesy of Republic Records

Conan Gray’s "Greek God"! Honestly, he may be on the more popular side of these artists considering he ran a YouTube channel before beginning his recording artist career. I discovered him through his Genius interview earlier this year and let me tell you, I streamed his EP Sunset Season every single day for at least 2 months after. He’s only 20 years old and he’s already making his way up the charts. Recently, he's been releasing more and more tracks prior to the release of his debut album and I CANNOT wait!

The songs on his EP obviously target teenagers and young-adults ("Generation Why" pretty much punches you in the face with its modern-age references) but his lyrics always manage to blur the line between young and old. He writes stories for everyone, even if sonically its a more dreamy and teen-like track.

We’ve all fallen victim to and/or seen those people who act like they’re “holier than thou”. Sometimes, we are blinded by the fact they’re so cool, that they seem like Greek gods. Conan Gray tells them that he won’t be pushed around and that he can see right through their suave facade. These childish games don’t affect Gray and if these Greek gods think they can get his attention by playing around him, then they’re surely mistaken. Get what I mean by his storytelling?

According to this tweet from Gray, this song and the last song on the EP, "Lookalike", are about the same person.

Listen to both tracks and see if you can weave the two stories together. Trust me, they are both worth your attention!

Here's the track!

Pop Rock

Courtesy of 604 Records

Marianas Trench’s "No Place Like Home"! No, this is not about the huge ditch in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. This 4-membered Canadian band has been my absolute FAVORITE since the beginning of time, so perhaps I’m a little biased when it comes to recommending them to others. Fun Fact: The main vocalist of this quartet is Josh Ramsay, who was nominated for a Grammy. Why you may ask? He produced and co-wrote the biggest hit of 2012. Yeah, you know exactly what song I’m talking about.

Courtesy of Billboard

So… Call me maybe?

I can assure you that "Call Me Maybe" is definitely not anything near the style of music that Marianas Trench themselves produce. Listening to "No Place Like Home", you might think it sounds like someone played Madlibs while producing the track. If any particular part in this track stands out to you, surprise! You can find the full version of that section within the album.

One of my favorite features of Marianas Trench’s music is that the last track of their albums is usually a huge mashup of every single track on the album. It ties in beautiful harmonies, Josh Ramsay’s powerful tenor voice, and the amazing instrumentation of the band members, Matt Webb, Ian Casselman, and Mike Ayley.

Courtesy of Marianas Trench
L to R: Ian Casselman, Josh Ramsay, Mike Ayley, Matt Webb

The lyrical content is always exceptional when it comes to Marianas Trench. The first verse of this track is already so beautiful. But further into the song, you might be asking yourself: What in the WORLD is going on with the lyrics?

The main reason why I love this track and this album, Ever After, so much is because it is a concept album, meaning there is a narrative you can follow if you listen to the album from beginning to end! It tells the story of the cold Queen Caroline of Toyland and her exiled king. Ramsay acts as the hero, as he is the lost soul who needs to save the king's daughter, Porcelain, to be able to go home.

The songs' intros and outros seamlessly flow right into one another, so if you've got the time to spare, just listen to the whole album and just let yourself be encompassed by this tale.

One does not simply listen to Ever After on Shuffle. Point blank, period.

Here's the track!

K-pop

Courtesy of Polaris Entertainment

Ladies' Code's "Galaxy"! This is a track that is for the hardcore k-pop stans to even those who don't understand the whole new K-Wave that BTS has been bringing worldwide for the past few years. It's not your stereotypical k-pop song: no flashy and sharp choreography, an R&B sound and velvet beat rather than a fresh dance one, and its performed by a trio instead of a huge group of girls.

I don't know if it's just me, but whenever someone isn't familiar with k-pop and the genre comes up in conversation, they always seem to say something along the lines of "Aren't there like a hundred people in one group?".

Ladies' Code was not always a three-member group, however. In a fatal car crash on September 3, 2014, the band lost their member EunB, then another member RiSe 4 days later. This tragedy brought k-pop fans of every idol together to mourn, even those who didn't know the group. Their song released before the crash, "I'm Fine, Thank You", ended up topping the Korean music charts proceeding this horrific event.

Courtesy of ilgan Sports/Multi-Bits via Getty Images
L to R: RiSe, EunB, Ashley, Zuny, Sojung

Their first release after the crash came over a year later with this song, "Galaxy". To be able to perform in front of the world again after this traumatic experience is so strong and I endlessly admire them for it.

I love how chill and lush this track is and don't even get me started on the vocals. Ashley, the group's leader, has such a warm tone and even when you're listening to her through a speaker, you can just tell that her voice will fill up a room. Since there are so many different K-pop idols, k-pop is all about unique voices, which the main vocalist Sojung lets us KNOW she has. The power, the huskiness, the rasp. It fits the chill vibe of this song so well and perfectly contrasts Zuny, the youngest member, with her lighter and softer voice. You know they're vo. cal. ists. when they let out that little ring of vibrato at the end of their lines.

Courtesy of Mnet
L to R: Sojung, Zuny, Ashley

Plus the way they kind of sigh into their lines. Goosebumps!! I could seriously go on talking about this song.

Irrelevant to the actual music, but the aesthetics of the music video are so well done and are astonishing. You can pick out a lot of symbolism about the loss of their members and about how they are moving on as a trio throughout the shots. Such a beautiful piece of work that deserved more attention when it was released. Please show it some love.

Here's the track!

R&B

Courtesy of RCA Records

"Adore You" by Nao featuring Abhi//Dijon! Speaking of R&B, haha! (I hope you're laughing with me) I was actually introduced quite recently to this artist by a very good friend of mine who clearly knows her stuff when it comes to music, especially R&B. This track was first released in Nao's EP So Good, then her debut album, For All We Know, which I loved in its entirety at first listen. She's not a straight-up R&B artist, fusing electronic with it. She develops such a unique sound, especially with her tone.

Her voice is nasal, but not in the whiny brat way that you usually hear. It actually suits her music so well and cuts straight through the heavily produced track. Nao's background vocals are absolutely gorgeous, I mean, just in the intro you hear a boosted bass-line and her soft humming in harmony on top of it. And the main vocals are even more amazing. That belt in the second chorus!! We've got another vocal queen here, my friends.

There's really no other way to describe it besides *chef's kiss*.
Featured on this song is R&B duo Abhi//Dijon! Dijon's got a silky deep voice that suits the sultry vibe of this song so well. It just makes you want to be in love and if you are in love, it paints such a lovely picture of the person who has your heart.

Courtesy of Abhi//Dijon

L to R: Abhi Raju and Dijon Duentes

Honestly, there's nothing more to say about this song other than that it is basically art for the ears. Give it a listen, you'll be hooked!

Here's the track!

Musical Theatre

Courtesy of Ghostlight Records

"Pandemonium" from The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee! Now I’m really indulging in my favorites. This show used to be a high school drama club & community theatre favorite after it left Broadway back in January of 2008. It's pretty likely for theatre kids to be familiar with this musical since community theatres often do it but it's got a pretty teeny-tiny fandom when compared to shows like Be More Chill or Heathers.

Taking place at a spelling bee in Putnam County, these 6 eccentric kids all have their stories behind why they are at the spelling bee and why they need to win. Mix in a motherly host, a vice-principal with anger issues, an ex-convict who’s doing their community service hours, and you’ve got this amazing mess of a show.

Courtesy of Joan Marcus Photography

The best part? If you ever get to see a show live, you have a chance to be a part of the cast because community and high school shows, like the original Broadway version, usually ask for guest audience spellers to come and join for the first act!

Going up on stage may not be your forte or cup of tea, I get it. But just watching the show and listening to the characters’ improvisation will probably be the funniest thing in the entire world to you, no joke.

The songs are just as quirky as the characters and during Pandemonium, things at the bee get ROWDY. Hence the name, but anyway: SPOILER ALERT!! The guest spellers begin to get way easier words like “broccoli” and “Mexican” meanwhile the 6 kids get words like “omphaloskepsis”. Did I even spell that right? Who knows. Thus, a great deal of mental breakdown ensues for the kids.

Courtesy of Joan Marcus Photography

So if you’re in the mood for a bunch of kids—well, if you’re listening to the Original Broadway Cast Album, adults pretending to be kids—jumping on tables and screlting (screaming and belting, a theatre term I am all too familiar with) about how life is unfair, then you sure are in for a treat. This song is just so fun and wild, you can’t help but jump around and dance!

Just for fun, here’s a picture of me during a production of The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee when we were singing Pandemonium. Notice the rest of the kids attacking Rona Lisa, the host, at the table. Ah, fond memories.

Courtesy of Tom Russo Photography

Here's the track!

Get ready to charge!

Now that we've got our moves all planned out, its time four our first attack on those overplayed songs on the radio!

I've got to create our next strategy, the next Bite-Sized Playlist to counter whatever Ed Sheeran, or Shawn Mendes, or Camila Cabello, or Taylor Swift, or Cardi B, or—well you get the point, whoever!—throws at us next.

If you want to listen to all of these amazing songs, then here it is!

Until next time,

Nickels :)


Information Sources
https://www.grammy.com/grammys/news/conan-gray-talks-checkmate-feeling-inspired-adele-what-expect-his-darker-debut-album
https://www.grammy.com/grammys/artists/josh-ramsay
https://genius.com/albums/Marianas-trench/Ever-after
https://channel-korea.com/ladies-code-car-accident/
https://metro.co.uk/2014/09/07/ladies-code-singer-rise-dies-after-car-accident-which-killed-bandmate-eunb-4859473/
https://www.fuse.tv/2016/02/ladies-code-galaxy-mv-myst3ry-comeback
https://genius.com/Nao-adore-you-lyrics
https://www.theatermania.com/new-york-city-theater/news/spelling-bee-to-close-on-january-20_12028.html
https://genius.com/William-finn-pandemonium-annotated