4X4: Shape of You vs. Million Reasons vs. Bad Things vs. Paris

Spark_Of_Life Well, 2017 is off to a rough start, I'm afraid. Looks like this year we're going to have to dig to find the gems hiding in the monstrous wave of trash I see on the horizon. But I digress.

Let's jump straight to the point: Ed Sheeran sold out. His first #1 single in America is the poppy, blandly lyrical, and kind of unsatisfying "Shape of You". It features some of the worst lyrics already this year, such as the infamous bedsheets line and "we talked for hours and hours about the sweet and the sour" (what does that even mean?). So what is saving this from disaster? The production. Despite the horrendous lyrics, Sheeran's vocal performance is on point, as it almost always is. The instrumentals are great as well, with snaps, a "7 Years" esque piano piece (which isn't nearly as bad as it sounds) and few gospel elements thrown in to boot. So this is getting a 6/10. The horrible lyrics and the air of staleness (sounds like "Cheap Thrills" much?) bogs this down from what could have been an 8 or even a 9.

Lady Gaga has reinvented herself. Now, when people usually hear this, they assume the artist has gone too far and is now trying to be "edgy". Not Lady Gaga. She has actually toned down on her bizzarness and has instead opted towards a much more traditional sound. And I'm all for it. First came the instantly classic, powerhouse "Perfect Illusion". Then came...This, a small, sad, mellow song about a girl who can't leave a relationship. And WOW, is it amazing. Gaga pulls out a somber, but hopeful vocal performance I didn't know she had in her. The guitars and soft drums fit the song's theme perfectly. Honestly, this impresses me. It's a slow, somber, and melancholic masterpiece that can only deserve a 10/10.

"Bad Things" is a difficult song to talk about. Machine Gun Kelly is a rapper that I've always at least tolerated, but paired with Camila Cabello, who always sound like she's singing with a bad head cold? I wasn't sure going in, and afterwords... I honestly don't know. Kelly does not sound convincing at all, and that paired with the horrible "back tatt" line make some distrust him even more. But then comes the pre-chorus... And i've finally found something I like. While the lyrics are not that good, Kelly's actual singing is actually not that bad. And while Camila's chorus is really bad, her "the way we love" bridge is somehow the best part of the song. So, I guess this gets a...6/10? There's something good buried in the air of insencirty that hangs around it that keeps me from giving it a lower score.

The Chainsmokers are finally starting to slip back into kind of bad territory. "Paris" is both a good song and a bad song. On the good side, the drop is actually pretty nice, and and Taggart's vocal performance is not nearly as bad as his was on "Closer". However, the lyrics are horrible, and an uncredited Emily Warren provide backing female vocals that just don't cut it. But there is something I like about this besides the instrumentals. I guess I'll give this a 7/10. It's mediocre. If they decided to follow up such masterpieces like "Roses" and "Don't Let Me Down" with this, I smell blood in the water.

Until next time.

Comments

The Chainsmokers have an entire album of new stuff coming soon... - ProPanda

SHape Of You: 1/10
Million Reasons: 9/10
Bad Things: L/10
Paris: 7/10 - ProPanda

Shape Of You: 2/10
Million Reasons: 9/10
Bad Things: 3/10
Paris: 4/10 (Rhyming Paris with parents, really? ) - visitor

Lady Gaga at the Grammys was horrible, the whole Metallica part was bad. Lady Gaga isn't supposed to sing metal, it sucked a whole bunch of stuff. The thing might have been good if Hetfield's mic wasn't off. The whole tech crew for the Grammys should have been fired! Ed Sheeran was good. - visitor

Shape of You: 3/10
Million Reasons: 10/10
Bad Things: 2/10
Paris: 1/10 - AlphaQ

NO. EDIT:
Shape of You: 3/10
Million Reasons: 5/10 (damn this soured so hard on me)
Bad Things: 3/10
Paris: 2/10 - AlphaQ

Shape of You: 6/10 (Sold out but eh, it's catchy enough.)
Million Reasons: 5/10 (She repeats the phrase "Million Reasons" 30 times... This is a repetitive pop song disguised as a ballad and there is nothing about it I find remotely interesting.)
Bad Things: 9/10 (Camilla sells the track. It's seductive and timid. Only ting holding it back from a 10/10 is MGK's voice which I don't like very much.
Paris: 8/10 (I actually like this guy's voice, am I the only one? ) - visitor

Hated it in Closer, liked it everywhere else - ProPanda

I'm with ProPanda on Andrew, although the song kinda blows. - visitor

Shape of You: 2/10 - Ed, honey, we all know you can do better than this. It's like he tried to replicate "Sing" (a song that's not too bad actually) with a trop-house beat and Wonder Bread rapping. BAD IDEA! "Castle on the Hill" however, proves why Ed is a star.

Million Reasons: 10/10 - This song resurrected my inner Little Monster. It's the last thing you'd expect from Lady Gaga, yet it has seemingly all the elements of a Gaga classic; catchy chorus, a message in the lyrics, a palatable melody, and of course her powerhouse voice behind it. It just doesn't have all the synths people have come to expect which is what makes it such an amazing comeback hit.

Bad Things: 9/10 - Am I the only one who LOVES this song? I have yet to get tired of it. The production is on point, MGK and Camila have undeniable chemistry, the lyrics have a near perfect balance of eroticism and aggression while never going too far over the edge. And while MGK could be a little more convincing, Camila delivers that chorus like she was born to sing it! Best rap/sung hit in a while!

Paris: 5/10 - Nice production but everything else is just lackluster for me. It's listenable but not much more. - theOpinionatedOne

Shape of You:8/10-Amazing. Ed Sheeran is an original singer.
Million Reasons:0/10-Bad and repetitive
Bad Things:9/10-Good Job Camila Cebello!
Paris:10/10-Amazingness. The Chainsmokers is an amazing band - visitor