Mulan (2020)

Mulan is the latest live-action remake of a beloved 1998 animated classic from the giant Disney. Originally set to release on March 9th of the year, but had to be pushed back for obvious reasons. At first, it seemed like it was going to be released theatrically later this year or next year in 2121, but Disney decided to make it an exclusive title on their big streaming platform Disney+. Not only that but also they decided that they would charge 30 dollars on top of the monthly fee for the platform you're already paying for, though you will get to keep the movie in your library for as long as you still have Disney+. So, that's a bit strange, especially considering that it's most likely going to be free in a few months anyway. But besides the steep cost, is the movie at least good? 

If you've seen the original then you already know the basics of the story here. Mulan grew up as a young girl in China most likely around the years 300-600. She was an adventurous girl who often found trouble for herself and her family, unlike the other young girls who were proper and well mannered. She showed a lot of promise in her movement and agility, something that wasn't really important for women to have, but a future warrior to have. As a woman Mulan was set to find a husband, be a great wife, and bring honor to her family in that way. It's something she wanted no part it, but honoring the family is important in Chinese culture. Everything changes though when China faces a big threat in northern invaders with a very powerful army led by a man with great power and a woman with supernatural abilities by his side. All families in China must provide one male to join the army and create a force big enough to fight off the invaders. Mulan's father is the only man in the family and must go to war, but he's already fought for his country in the past and suffered an injury to his leg that forces him to walk with a cane. Mulan sneaks off with his armor and blade to take his place and pretend to be a man in an army that doesn't allow women. 

It's a classic story, one that's already set up pretty well in its message of equality. The movie does that part well, making that message loud and clear while still being true to the culture it's taking a part of. The movie also stars a Chinese cast, with some big names like Jet Li, Rosalind Chao, Tzi Ma, and Donnie Yen as well as a lot of newcomers (at least in Hollywood). All the actors do a great job, though some don't really get a lot of screentime. Then there are the visuals which are at times pretty amazing and other times a little too CGI, but it's not too bad, it's something you'll probably be used to from big studio movies like this now. Some of the sets are pretty spectacular though, but you'd expect that from a high budget Disney movie, but even knowing that it's still really nice to see. 

All that to say that I felt pretty whelmed by this movie. With its recent quality of live-action remakes being pretty poor (Aladdin, Lion King, Dumbo were all pretty bad) I went into this with lower expectations than usual. I think that those expectations were surpassed, but not by much. The movie is entertaining for sure and it was pretty easy to sit through its two-hour runtime. I guess the problem for me was with the characters, as I didn't really care about most of them very much. The movie doesn't really take a lot of time to get you to really know who most of them are outside of Mulan, especially her fellow soldiers. They aren't really given enough time or dialog for you to really care about them individually, I had a hard time remembering which one was which since they don't really do a good job at making any of them unique outside of their appearances. The main villain also feels pretty generic and doesn't really feel very threatening at all. 

The action is pretty well done, with a mix of more realistic sword battles and over-the-top choreography where people are running on walls and doing a bunch of flips and kicking spears mid-air or catching arrows with their hands. It can be pretty fun to watch, though sometimes the over-the-top stuff felt a bit much for me, almost like Star Wars levels of crazy action. There were a few times where the screen would rotate along with the action that felt more disorienting then they probably meant it to, it was an interesting gimmick but one that I didn't particularly love. Overall though it was mostly well-constructed action scenes that were pretty enjoyable. Though, there are some supernatural abilities that I wish they had explained a little more. At times it feels like Mulan is just superpowered to move the story along without having to show her growth too much. Instead of showing her get better through training and hard work, it's more about her learning to stop being afraid to use her superpowers in front of people, which is a little less relatable to me. 

One thing this movie felt like it lacked was a bit of humor, though they did try to put some in there now and then it mostly fell pretty flat. Not that every movie has to be funny, but I think a movie like this probably needs it. I know it's probably hard to translate a lot of the humor of the original to this new one because a lot of it was animation based or featured a talking dragon as comic relief. None of that is in this new one, it would have felt out of place if it had been, but the movie just needed a little more light-hearted tones in the story to maybe make the characters more likable and the movie less dark and overly serious. Mulan herself lacked a bit of personality too and that hurt the story and the flow of the movie too. Thankfully she did have some strong moments of growth and learning that made a lot of sense. 

The Mulan remake is overall a solid movie, definitely one of the better ones (though I guess the bar is pretty low). It almost feels like this would have been one of the first live-action remakes that Disney made because it feels like a good blueprint for live-action remakes along with Cinderella or Jungle Book. But after so many misses it's nice to see one that actually hits and actually tries to do different things, even if it doesn't always work. There's still the problem of Disney's failure at making new and interesting movies/franchises. To me, this movie feels like it was what it needed to be, but it didn't try to exceed that or be something bigger. There was the potential here for a great movie somewhere here. At the end of it, I still find myself just wanting to go back and watch the original, and if I ever want to see this story told again that's exactly where I'm going to go back to, the original. 

Overall Grade: C-

An okay movie that's worthy of a single watch. Not worth 30 dollars though, so if you can wait a few months until it's free on Disney+ or maybe cheaper I'd say do that. Definitely good for families with children, they'll probably enjoy this a lot more. It yet again feels like Disney doesn't fully understand what made those original animated movies so good, to begin with. If you're going to make a movie, it should be because you have an idea for a different take or a way to make it better. It shouldn't feel forced just because it's a sure-fire way to make tons of money out of a beloved classic movie that people are going to go see by name recognition alone. This movie doesn't improve anything from the original and all its new ideas mostly fall flat or are comparatively worse than the animated. It's competent sure, but it's nothing beyond that and it fails at leaving any sort of lasting impression beyond its good message about women, equality, and being true to yourself. 

Bill & Ted Face the Music

 

It's been about half a year since I've written any movie reviews here. I think the reason is pretty obvious if you've lived through this year, that I just don't have enough free time... also all movies have been canceled and moved to next year or put into some movie release purgatory. Although it's not all bad, just mostly bad. Some movies have seen the light of day by being released straight to video-on-demand (VOD) or streaming services like Disney+ or Netflix. While it seemed like a risky thing to do it's kinda been successful for some companies, like Universal who after finding a good audience with Trolls World Tour decided to start focusing on releasing more movies straight to VOD. This did lead to a bit of a feud between AMC and Universal where AMC banned all future movies from Universal in anger of their new focus on VOD. Ultimately this did lead to a questionable deal where Universal can release new movies on VOD after it plays at least 17 days in an AMC theater, but AMC will get a cut of the money from those VOD sales. This is pretty bad for any other theater chain outside of AMC who won't be getting that money and also will lose sales to people renting at home versus going to the theater. Even worse for independent theaters that have even less power in the industry. It's safe to say the movie-going experience could be changing a lot in the next few years and not for the better (at least for theatergoers). 

So that leads to this new Bill and Ted movie, which was originally going to have a wide release in theaters and a full run until the big COVID came and ruined everything. So instead the movie is now available for rental through many different services for 20 dollars and can be owned for just 5 more on top of that. But is it even worth it? 

These kinds of movies don't exactly have the best track record. That is to say, comedy sequels that come a decade or more after the originals. Think of movies like Dumb and Dumber To, Zoolander 2, Indiana Jones 4,  Blues Brothers 2000, and Super Troopers 2. All movies that came over a decade after the original and were pretty awful, especially compared to the originals. But there have been some that were at least good recently like Incredibles 2, Trainspotting 2, Blade Runner 2049 and Mad Max Fury Road. So where does Bill and Ted Face The Music fall? Honestly kind of in the middle. 

Bill and Ted Face the Music does a good job at bringing everything you liked from the originals back, bringing it all together to make a pretty decent movie. Keanu Reeves and Alex Winter fit back into their roles perfectly and both feel like they've been ready to come back into these characters for a long time. The story picks up in modern times with a much older Bill and Ted. They found big success in their music careers and became big rock stars, but that only lasted a while. They eventually washed out and started making more experimental music that drove them out of fame. They were never able to make the song that would bring the world together. But once again Bill and Ted are summoned to the future where the leaders are desperate for the Wild Stallions to make the song that will save the world because they only have a few hours to do it before the universe collapses. So Bill and Ted travel to the future while their two daughters travel to the past to try to find the song and the perfect musicians to make it all come together before the world falls into total chaos. 

It's safe to say that if you loved or even liked the first two movies, you'll most likely get a lot of enjoyment here. The movie does a good job of paying homage the first two movies while still adding some new elements to keep things pretty interesting. Though, this is still a Bill and Ted movie, so don't expect anything that's groundbreaking. But, just like the first two movies, this one has a lot of heart, and seeing Bill and Ted back on the screen just feels kind of right. It's probably because of Reeves and Winters just playing their parts so well and everyone on screen knew exactly what kind of movie they were making. I'd imagine the cast had a lot of fun making this movie and it shows. The humor is exactly what you'd expect with lots of "dudes" and cheesy jokes and silly characters. 

This movie is exactly what it needed to be as a sequel to the original Bill and Ted movies. It's the kind of dumb, but still really fun at times and feels like it was made with care and love for the first two movies. Basically, it feels like it should exist and wasn't made simply as a cheap cash-in using a recognizable name. If you weren't a fan of the originals, this one probably won't change your mind about the series. And if you haven't seen them, I'd recommend checking them out before going into this one cause it does have a lot of references to those that I think boost the enjoyment. 

Overall I'd say this gets at least a C+, it's not a movie I see myself coming back to often, but I did enjoy watching it. It's a great example of how to make a sequel to a loved series after being away for so long. It should please all the fans of the original while hopefully bringing in some new ones. Now I wouldn't say it's worth the 20 dollars rental price, but it might be hard to find any movie that actually is. 

Disney: The Art of Being (un)Original

Disney. The studio that's responsible for all your childhood memories. The studio that brought some of the most beautiful animations brought to the big screen and made us all fall in love with so many different characters and stories. At one point in time, Disney was releasing hit after hit and seemed unstoppable. That was in the late 80s and most of the 90s. Then came a slump in the later 90s and 2000s, which was before they officially bought Pixar, who was making massive hit after hit in the 2000s. Instead, Disney was making the beloved films Dinosaur, Brother Bear, Treasure Planet, and... Home on the Range? Okay, so maybe beloved is too strong a word. It might be more fun to just put a list of some of the Disney movies from this era and you can see if any of them are ones you like or even remember at all. I'll also try to put in the budget and how much it made. 

         Movie                        Budget                 Gross

- Home on the Range |   110 Million      |   104 Million

- Treasure Planet        |   140 Million      |   109 Million

- Country Bears          |   38 Million       |    18 Million

- Mars Needs Moms   |   150 Million     |    39 Million (Jesus)

- Dinosaur                   |   128 Million     |    350 Million (wasn't expecting that)

- Brother Bear             |   46 Million       |    250 Million

- Lilo & Stitch            |   80 Million        |    273 Million

- Atlantis Lost Emp.   |   120 Million      |    186 Million

Some of those aren't too bad, but when compared to the Disney Renaissance period, it's a lot weaker. Here's a look at the original animated movies of that period. 

        Movie                        Budget                 Gross

- Beauty and the Beast  |   25 Million    |      440 Million

- Aladdin                       |   28 Million    |      504 Million

- Lion King                   |   45 Million    |      Pretty much a Billion

- Pocahontas                 |   55 Million     |     350 Million

- The Hunchback          |   100 Million   |    326 Million

- Mulan                         |   90 Million     |    305 Million

Lion King alone pretty much gave Disney enough money to make terrible movies for a decade and not be too worried. But you can see the huge difference not only in the quality of the movies but the amount of money coming in from them. There were more flops in the 2000s and not a lot of big hits to make up for those flops. And that's not including a lot of the live-action flops around that time like "Around the world in 90 Days" and "John Carter". Although they did have the massive Pirates of the Caribbean franchise. Also around this time were a couple of other failed launches in their entertainment/parks side with the disappointing launch of California Adventure next to Disneyland and the closure of Club Disney. But that was just a bump on the road to becoming the biggest studio in the entire world that would make billions and billions of dollars every year in the parks, merchandise, and movie business. 

With the acquisition of Lucasfilm, Marvel Studios, Fox, Pixar, and every child's soul, Disney has now become a juggernaut in the industry. It's an unstoppable force of money so strong that no one can dare to even try to stop it, lest they be swallowed by the black hole that is every franchise they ever loved. Because that's exactly what they're using to draw you in, your nostalgia. The past few years Disney has been chugging out sequel after sequel and remake after remake of all your beloved childhood favorites. Seriously, looking through the list of movies they've released the past few years, it's mostly been either a remake or a sequel of a big franchise. Here's another list of theatrical movies released the past few years (not including Lucasfilm and Marvel, those are all part of one franchise anyway):

2020:

Artemis Fowl (original), though was moved to Disney+ for COVID reasons

Onward (original) Also moved to Disney+ for COVID

2019:

Frozen II (Sequel)

Maleficent II (sequel)

Lion King (Remake)

Toy Story 4 (Sequel)

Aladdin (Remake)

Dumbo (Remake)

2018:

Mary Poppins Returns (Sequel / Reboot)

Ralph Breaks the Internet (sequel)

Nutcracker and the Four Realms (original?)

Christopher Robin (Sequel/reboot)

Incredibles 2 (sequel)

Wrinkle in Time (Remake/Reboot)

2017:

Coco (original)

Cars 3 (sequel)

Pirates of the Caribbean 5 (sequel)

Beauty and the Beast (remake)

14/18 movies there are either sequels or remakes of some kind. And the few originals made there were not very good movies. Really the only good original in the past few years has been Coco. 

Most of the remakes being made aren't better than the originals anyway, but they sure make as much money as they did back then (usually more). That combined with the massive amounts of money from the Marvel and Star Wars movies allowed them to buy one of the other largest studios in the world in Fox. Pretty much giving Disney a stranglehold in Hollywood and also giving them majority share in the big streaming service Hulu along with their own Disney+ service they released recently. You think with all this money they could try more new things not only in the film world but in their own theme parks and treat their employees better. In 2019, Disney held around 38% of the market share of all the leading film studios, the closest competitor was Warner Bros at around 14%. That is insane. What's even more insane is that they only released 13 movies in 2019 to get that number while Warner Bros released 43 movies to get their 14%. 

"No one man should have all that power". But I guess it's pretty easy when all you're really doing in re-releasing everyone's childhood memories knowing they'll go and watch it with their kids now. Because it seems that whenever they try something a little different and new it doesn't go so well. Which for Disney means not making a billion dollars at the box office. And even though I love the Marvel movies, I think it would be nice for them to take a little break, let me get excited to see more of them later on. But that's not about to stop anytime soon, especially with all the new characters they acquired with the Fox deal. Here's hoping they don't also get Spider-Man from Sony (probably not the majority opinion). It's bad enough they got the other biggest selling movie in the world James Cameron's Avatar and it's 50 upcoming sequels.  

I'm honestly not sure what I'm even trying to say here. I guess it's that I see this company and all the power it has and it kind of worries me a little. Now that they own even more beloved franchises from the Fox deal, are they gonna start remaking and rebooting all of those as well? Are they gonna keep supporting the smaller filmmakers with the Fox Searchlight projects? Will they use their massive amounts of money to actually try to make big original ideas from great filmmakers young and old? Or will they keep hiring the big up and comers for their remakes and big franchise sequels? I just hope they stop relying so much on the past and actually start to invest in new ideas from great creators. And please don't let them buy another major studio. PLEASE. 

Alternative music in the Age of Corona

I figure these days it's hard to really stand out in the music world. With the rise of streaming comes the rise of the indie artist and the millions of songs you can browse through on Spotify or Apple Music and much like Netflix leaves us with so many choices that it ends up being difficult trying to find something new to enjoy. At least that's kind of a problem for me anyway. As someone who enjoys albums more than just singles, it can be hard to find an album that feels worthy of investing in with multiple listens if not one listen at all. So my taste in music is kind of all over the place, but it kind of started with rock and alternative music back in the mid-2000s. Of course, that meant something entirely different in the mid-2000s than it does now in 2020 and even a lot of the 2010s. Alternative music has just chilled out a lot over the last decade+ and it's a trend that has continued into this 2020 year, probably going to last a lot longer too. So I'll be looking at the most popular songs in the genre and seeing if there's anything interesting or at least pretty good. Just looking at the list I can confirm I've never heard of most of these artists. 

Powfu / beabadoobee: "Death Bed"

So I actually have heard of beabadoobee before, kind of hard not too since she's one of the most popular artists in the world I guess? But I do actually like her music, she's a fantastic singer-songwriter with a lot of great songs in her catalog. Actually, this song is by far her biggest hit and also Powfu's as well. Two solo acts coming together to make a giant mega-hit is pretty interesting, too bad the song itself isn't really. It's not a bad song but it's pretty boring and Powfu's style of rap/singing doesn't really keep my attention for too long. It's the kind of song you might put on in the background while you do other things, which is fine, there's definitely a need for this type of song and there's plenty of them that I do like. Still, it's not something I'll be putting on anytime soon again. I do actually like the music video though, it does fit perfectly with the song and actually made me like the song more. I'd at least recommend checking out beabadoobee's other songs because she actually has songs that are a lot better than this. 

Overall grade: 3 out of 5 song rating score things. 

Billie Eilish: "everything i wanted"

I have talked about this one before, and in my previous statements, I talked about liking this song a lot. Even after months I still feel the same, though it's not a song I often find myself coming back too. It's got a very specific mood to it, making it hard for me to put it on at any time, but that can probably be said about all her music. I just really like it when songs can capture a specific feeling through the music and lyrics, and this song does just that. 

Overall grade: 4.5 out of 5

BENEE / Gus Dapperton: "Supalonely"

Another artist I had never heard of until this very moment. A lot of the artists on this list actually seem to be bigger in other countries more than the USA. It's also possible that this list might not be going off of just USA streams, but I'm not entirely sure. The song though starts off like any other alternative song from the past few years at first. I thought maybe this was going to be another slow/melancholy one until thankfully it kicks in with the upbeat funky beat and music. As the song goes on past the first verse though, it starts to lose some momentum and adds some little things that take away from my enjoyment. There's some autotune that isn't something I've ever been too into. The chorus isn't that great with some lalala's, but the funky upbeat music at least keeps it interesting. Also, Gues Dapperton does something, but it's not interesting enough to go into. 

I will say that BENEE does have some good music outside of this big single. I did listen to her EP "FIRE ON MARZZ" from last year, and it's actually quite good. So if you find this song interesting definitely check that one out. 

overall grade: 3 out of 5

Tones and I: "Dance Monkey"

N O P E. This has to be one of the worst things I've heard in a long time. The music is pretty average for the genre, nothing bad there. BUT oh my god the vocals. Some of the most frustratingly annoying vocals. I don't know who told her this was a good idea, or that this sounded good, because it is not anything close to good. It's like the entire world is playing a joke on her, telling her that her vocals are amazing and ground-breaking. But then the joke went too far and she got a huge following and now everyone is too afraid to tell her the truth and hurt her feelings so they just keep playing along. 

At this moment this song has over ONE BILLION streams on Spotify alone, and she's in the top 40 most popular artists in the WORLD. I don't get it. Maybe I'm just wrong, maybe this is amazing? I feel so lost. Don't do drugs kids. Unless it makes this song any good, then do all of the drugs.*

Oh man, even the video sucks. 

overall grade: 5 out of 100

*nothing can make this song good. So don't do drugs. 

Twenty One Pilots: "Level of Concern"

The quarantine inspired hit by Twenty One Pilots. Twenty One Pilot's rise to fame is an interesting one, mostly because I never expected this band to become as big as they have. I guess maybe they filled a void that was left when bands like My Chemical Romance and Fall Out Boy went away or got too old. Seems for younger people they kind of fit into that same category even though their music isn't exactly the same. The "Hot Topic" band maybe shifted into a more hip-hop sound since that's were a lot of music seemed to be headed anyway. Here we are 5 years after their big rise and they seem to still be going strong. This song pretty much confirms that not only because of it's popularity, but because it's a good song as well. I love the great use of bass in this song along with the small details like synth and guitar. It all comes together so well like, which is something that Twenty One Pilots have always been really good at. While they don't always hit it out of the park, I think this one is at the very least a triple. I don't know enough about baseball to know if that's the correct analogy, but basically, this is a very good song.

I forgot to mention how much I love the beat. Also, the video is a lot of fun. 

overall grade: 4.5 out of 5

AJR: "Bang!"

If there was ever a band that was the perfect embodiment of mediocrity it's AJR. Honestly, those words are probably way too nice for this band. AJR is a band that has always had terrible production that never fails at producing mild headaches to its sane listeners. But hey, if the production doesn't scare you off, the terrible lyrics and vocals are sure to finish the job. It all just feels like a bunch of random sounds thrown together, the final product being something that kinda resembles music? Like there's a checklist they have to go through with annoying production choices. 

- Autotune [x]

- Random horns to make the song seem bigger than it actually is [x]

- Random vocals thrown in at random to be funny or surprising [x]

- Anything else to make the song sound louder and "epic" [x]

This song does seem to tease a farewell of sorts, "Go out with a bang!" as if it were their last hurrah. Not that it matters too much, cause I will continue to avoid this "band" for the foreseeable future. 

Wouldn't even let me put the video on my post here, such failures ; )

overall grade: doesn't even deserve one

Machine Gun Kelly: "Bloody Valentine"

MGK is here with his Blink-182 style rock song, featuring Travis Barker from... Blink-182. Never thought I would hear MGK doing something like this in my life. Musically, it's not too bad, especially with Travis doing his thing on the drums. It does sound VERY similar to the music that Blink-182 has been putting out lately in the post-Tom era. I'd say this song is okay, really the only thing holding it back is MGK himself with his weak vocals. They just don't sound that great in this style of music, because he's lacking a certain something I can't quite put my finger on it. Maybe he lacks certain energy in the chorus where it feels like he should be going all-out. He does sound a bit monotone throughout not really changing things up at all for the verses, pre-chorus and chorus. Really all this song ends up doing is making me want to listen to the actual Blink-182 and not this.

Overall grade: 2.5 out of 5

jxdn: "Angels & Demons"

Speaking of Travis Barker, here's an artist he signed to his label recently for some reason. Actually, that reason was because of his already established fanbase from Tik Tok. That and he already had a successful single with the song "Comatose", which is... pretty mediocre. But that's all it really takes to be an artist these days as long as you already have an established fanbase that will follow your work in whatever you choose to dabble in next. So here comes his newest single "Angels & Demons" where he has a chance to set himself apart and really shine with his new label. He does that by releasing a really generic song about how crazy his "rockstar" life is because artists talking about their rockstar lifestyles has not been done to death already.  There was definitely some potential here, and there still is. It has an interesting vibe to it musically, you can hear the Travis Barker influence there for sure. But the lyrics aren't interesting enough to make this worth coming back to and the vocals are just fine. jxdn himself doesn't seem to be that different than any other YouTube or Tik Tok personality that's trying to do this. He has a decent voice, but his presentation and style is not as original as he thinks it is. I mean his Spotify profile just talk about how groundbreaking and genre-bending his music is when he only has two mediocre songs. 

overall grade: 2.5 out of 5

Best of 2000s Pop Song Bracket Part 2

Continuing from last time, to sum it up quickly:
All The Small Things beat I Write Sins Not Tragedies
Seven Nation Army beat Smooth
Bring Me To Life beat How You Remind Me
The Middle beat Kryptonite

Leaving these matchups for round 2:
All The Small Things VS Seven Nation Army
Bring Me To Life VS The Middle

Now for the final four round 1 matches of the rock section.

Match 5: The Killer's Mr. Brightside VS. U2's Beautiful Day

Ah, a great start to break my heart with two iconic rock songs that have some really amazing live concert moments. A band that had been around for a few decades getting another huge smash hit in U2 taking on a newcomer with the biggest hit of their careers The Killers.

So The Killers are a huge band nowadays, but before this big hit, they were just a struggling band from Las Vegas who was trying to make an album inspired by the big Post-Punk Revival of the late 90s and early 00s. Lead singer Brandon Flowers and guitar player Dave Keuning wrote this song about one of Brandon's exes who cheated on him. The first part of the song that was created was the iconic riff that is played throughout the song. The Post-Punk Revival brought many fantastic bands that would change rock music in a lot of ways from The Strokes, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, to The Killers themselves. The song Mr. Brightside would launch The Killers into stardom and would push them as the most popular band in the genre, still to this day. The album that the song came from, Hot Fuss is still considered one of the best albums ever made in the Post-Punk genre and Indie Rock. If you truly want to feel the impact this song has on people watch a live performance of it, I recommend the Royal Albert Hall show in 2009. Many bands after have been inspired by their 80s throwback style with a modern spin. What can I say about the actual song though? It's got the iconic riff I mentioned and some of the most memorable lyrics of any modern rock song. Tell me your heart doesn't skip a beat whenever you hear that opening riff starts playing somewhere you weren't expecting. It's just that good.

U2 has a much longer history in the world of music, one that would take way too long to go into. To sum it up a bit, they became a huge worldwide act in the 80s though they had been around since the later 70s. The big album that pushed them to the top was in the late 80s, the now-iconic Joshua Tree. From that point, they stuck around in the 90s too, but their biggest hit wouldn't come until 2002 with Beautiful Day.  It's also their last big hit, though they still have plenty of success outside of this, including an album on Itunes that nobody could figure out how to delete. One difference they have from Mr. Brightside is that Beautiful Day isn't really their one defining song. U2 is one of those bands that has enough hits that no one really stands out too far above the rest. With or Without You is their most recognizable song, but Beautiful Day had the most chart success.
The song itself doesn't start off as explosive as Mr. Brightside, instead slowly building slowly through the verses and releasing all the energy in the choruses. The song keeps building more after that until after the second and third chorus where Bono just sings his heart out with all the emotion he can. It's a really... beautiful moment (sorry). There's this amazing moment during the first Super Bowl after 9/11 where they perform this song and it's one the most memorable tear-jerking performances of all time. It's a moment where the music sort of transcends into something more important than you ever thought it could be... at least from a band like U2?

It's tough to choose between two iconic songs like this, but they are very different in their strengths. While that emotional Super Bowl performance will always be one of the most memorable moments in live music history, I think U2 just overall had more influence and success in the 80s and 90s. If this was With or Without You versus Mr. Brightside than it might be a different story. But there's no denying that Mr. Brightside was a huge change to rock music in the 2000s. While The Killers will probably never be as big as U2, this song (Mr. Brightside) and the album it came from changed the 2000s. So the slightest edge goes to Mr. Brightside. But man, it could have been a coin-toss.

Match 6: Kings of Leon's Use Somebody VS. Coldplay's Viva La Vida

Here we have two big arena rock songs that are crowd sing-along favorites. Both these songs also happen to be from both band's 2008 albums.

Kings of Leon got their start in 1999, but they weren't really anything like the King of Leon that would become huge hitmakers. In the early 2000s, they were more of a throwback blues style rock band that sounded like something straight out of the late 60s. Over time they would polish their sound more and get better production and modernize themselves up a bit. But their big success came when they released their 2008 album Only By The Night, followed by a big hit in Sex On Fire. But it was their next single Use Somebody that would be their biggest. The crowd favorite song is the perfect big arena rock song that gets crowds going with the "ooh" chants throughout the song. It's a song about the feeling of loneliness, and just wanting to have somebody to be with. The song wouldn't reach number one here, although the Billboard website says they have 5 number one hits, it must be glitched out at the moment. Even Coldplay, one of the most popular bands of the decade, only had 1 number one single.

Coldplay is a band that doesn't really need an introduction, but here's one anyway. Probably the biggest rock band of the 2000s had their fair share of hits this that decade. It all started with Yellow right at the start of the decade in 2000 and would continue with every new album they released. Their biggest hit to this day came on their fourth album, Viva La Vida, with the title track.
Viva La Vida was unlike anything they've done before in a song. The song starts with a string section right away that plays throughout the entire song and a different style of percussion as well. Before this, they had a more piano focused sound, but this would be the moment they would make a change for a new sound. I think it's a great mix of the old style of Coldplay mixed with what would be their newer more pop-friendly sound. The song was inspired by artist Frida but revolves around the French Revolution and King Louis XVI. Ask me if I know what any of that means, the answer is NO. The subject does make for interesting lyrics that fit perfectly with the more simplistic/classical style music. 

I think this is the first matchup where the winner is a very easy choice. Kings of Leon are a decent band that has found much success in a genre that doesn't really provide that as much as it used to. That being said "Use Somebody" is in my eyes a lesser song than "Viva La Vida". "Viva La Vida" is arguably the best song from a band that has many great songs in their catalog and I think it's just on a higher level than "Use Somebody". So the choice is easy: Coldplay's Viva La Vida. 

Match 7: Gorillaz' Feel Good Inc. VS. Linkin Park's In The End

My heart is torn in two and it feels so bad. Two songs near and dear to me collide as Nu-Metal legends Linkin Park and their massive hit, In The End, takes on one of the most unique songs of the 2000s in Feel Good Inc. 

Gorillaz was started as a side-project by Damon Albarn the frontman of one of the biggest Brit-Pop bands Blur. The idea was to create a virtual band using art from Jamie Hewlett to create fictional members and stories to go along with the music that would be created. The music would be a mix of many different genres and styles, like rock, hip-hop, electronic, and art-pop. The band was successful and caught on pretty quickly, but their success would skyrocket thanks to the massive hit from their fantastic album Demon Days. So in comes "Feel Good Inc." with it's flipping amazing bass line and guitar work. Hewlett teamed up with hip-hop artists De La Soul to bring in rap verses alongside his singing. Which now that I think about it, it is pretty interesting considering that's what Linkin Park was really known for as well in the early days. 

I think a lot of people remember the iconic music video that was released with this song as well. But for a virtual band that is an important aspect of the music, the visuals that go along with the music. That's one aspect that's always made Gorillaz stand out in the world of music and make them one of the most popular acts in the world. There really isn't anything else like this group out there, at least not on the same level. Feel Good Inc is pretty much a musical masterpiece and it's a song that I think will never feel dated because of how unique it is and how masterfully crafted it is.

It starts with one thing. Linkin Park has a long story, one that is full of high highs and low lows. But right now I'm going to focus on the highs because In The End was a game-changer for the music scene in the early 2000s. Nu-Metal was already a thing, but this really took it to a whole new level and really gave it a huge boost in popularity. Linkin park always felt unique even in the Nu-Metal scene with their mix of electronic and heavy rock sounds along with hip-hop fused to make a really interesting sound that just worked so perfectly. When you put Chester's incredible and passionate vocals into the mix you got yourself something really memorable. It's interesting to know Chester himself didn't want this song to be released because he didn't like it originally. Of course, as we know now, it ended up being their biggest hit and made it all the way to the number two spot on the charts. It was just the start of what would be a huge career for the band. Their influence was strong for rock music in the 2000s, as noted in a previous entry on this list "Bring Me To Life" by Evanescence. The album Hybrid Theory that In The End was from actually ended up being the best selling album of 2001. 

I can't really ignore the importance this song had in my own life, it was one of the first songs I remember really listening to over and over again, along with the entire first album. It was so different than any of the other rock bands at the time and this song really shows off their style perfectly. From the opening keys to the rap verses and Chester belting out the choruses, it was the Linkin Park formula for the first two albums at least. On top of that, you get some great production, with solid guitar and percussion work to match. It all comes together to make something pretty freaking great. 

Now having to choose between these two songs is incredibly hard because they both just feel like perfect songs in their genres. One feels like a perfect time capsule of the time it's from (In The End) and the other feels like a song that could easily be a huge hit even if it was released today or anytime in the future. It feels like my heart says Linkin Park but my mind says Gorillaz. It's actually sad to think that these two groups never had a big collab song because it might be one of the best things that could happen. So since I can't decide on one, I guess the bracket will end here. It was good while it lasted and fun to learn more about these songs, but in the end, it didn't even matter. 

Linkin Park wins.

Match 8: RHCP's Californication VS. Green Day's BLVD of Broken Dreams

Two bands that found their first big success in the '90s and carried that momentum on into the new millennium with many more hits. 

Red Hot Chili Peppers, or RHCP as I'll refer to them as from now on, have been around since the 80s.  They found their first big success in 1992 with their huge hit "Under the Bridge", which made it all the way to number 2 on the charts, the closest they would ever get to a number one hit. But don't feel too sorry for them as they would go one to become one of the biggest rock bands in the world and still continue to be to this day. It's kind of weird how this bracket turned out to have a lot of ideal matchups in the first round considering it was all randomized. But RHCP and Green Day have a very similar timeline in a way. Both bands most popular songs reached the number two spot on the charts. Both bands also had their biggest albums come out about a decade apart from each other, albums that would bring both bands back into the charts with many hits. But it would seem that as of today both of these bands have kind of struggled to stay relevant in the mainstream. 

I actually kind of struggled to decide which song to pick from RHCP because they've had many big hits in the 2000s. Californication seemed like the obvious choice but it technically came out in 1999. Then I saw that it technically wasn't a hit until the year 2000 so I decided to call an audible of sorts and pick Californication. Which actually makes this way harder for me to pick. Californication kind of has it all when it comes to a rock song. The iconic bass line from Flea along with the great work on guitar and drums. The very memorable lyrics that only kind of make sense at first. RHCP would probably be known for all their songs about the "great" California, but this is definitely their most memorable one. Although this song isn't so much praising California as it was using it as an example of fake people and superficiality. 

Green Day, on the other hand, didn't see much chart success in the '90s. But outside of the charts, they did find a lot of success by making great albums that would make them one of the most popular rock bands to this day. It all started with 1994s Dookie and their popularity would explode in 2004 with the giant mega-success American Idiot. The album was a rock-opera with lots of political themes throughout. The album was very relevant in a post 9/11 world of 2004 and somehow a lot of it feels relevant today still. Boulevard of Broken Dreams isn't so much a part of that political theme. The song feels more personal, more about a person's struggles with themselves and the outcome of their choices. It was definitely a different style of song that Green Day had never really done before. It's a slower song but it still packs a punch with the distorted guitars and especially the crazy guitar outro at the end that just works so perfectly in this song. This song truly did change my life and the way I see music on a personal note, this whole album really did actually. 

This would be an easy choice if I hadn't changed the song to "Californication" at the last minute. But now that it is that song, it makes it harder to choose. Both of these are incredible and important songs to the genre they belong to. Both songs coming from albums that really helped change rock music in the 2000s. But I think I'd have to give it to Green Day this time. This song was really what helped launch them to the biggest heights of their careers. Not only that, but it really did feel like a change in rock music at the time, leading the way for new things down the road. For RHCP it's arguable that Californication is their biggest song or not, they would go on to have bigger hits outside of that song. 

Which ends round 1 of the rock songs. It also means that there are two new matches for round 2.

Mr. Brightside VS Viva La Vida

In The End VS Blvd of Broken Dreams 

along with

All The Small Things VS Seven Nation Army
Bring Me To Life VS The Middle

Join me next time as I start diving into the Hip-Hop/R&B songs of the 2000s, something I totally know a lot about and won't be out of my element in... yep. 

Get Low (Lil Jon) VS Beautiful (Snoop Dogg and Pharell)

Empire State of Mind (Jay-Z) VS Stronger (Kanye)

Yeah! (Usher/Luda/Lil Jon) VS Work It (Missy Elliot)

What's Luv? (Fat Joe/Ashanti) VS. Temperature (Sean Paul)

Modern Music in the Age of Corona

It's been a while since I've checked in on modern music, for good reason. Every time I take a peek at the Billboard Hot 100 I get a little sadder. So of course music, at least the pop charts, haven't really moved much recently. That may be because of all the delays in albums/singles thanks to this pandemic going on, though I don't fully understand that myself. It's true most artists if not all are stuck right now at home like the rest of us. For a pop artist, that's the way they promote their new singles and albums: through tours, interviews, radio appearances, music videos and most of that just can't be done right now. So music has come to a bit of a halt here and lots of the singles here are just... old news. But hey, I'm going to listen to them and see if things are looking up this new decade or if things are just getting worse. Starting off with the number one song in the USA... oh god...not you again.

Number 1: Drake - Toosie Slide

Ugh, he's back with another number one single. At this point, Drake could release a 10-minute track of him eating chips loudly and still get a number one single... that comes across strangely complimentary. The point is that this song is Drake being extremely lazy like he's been doing for the past 4-5 years now. Boring beat backing Drake's unenthusiastic vocals as he tells you how to do some kind of dance and compares his moves to Michael Jackson. Dance music? This is dance music? Am I just like, getting too old to understand all these trends? So this song was also kind of created to be a viral TikTok song, which a lot of songs these days have gained lots of popularity through TikTok like Vine used to do back in the day (back in the day, a few years ago, same thing). 

So yeah, this song is boring and Drake is going to make tons of money from this so it doesn't really matter what I think. And look, if it brings fun to people stuck at home by letting them make dance videos on TikTok, then that's fine. Just as a song alone, it doesn't really have a lot to offer as a listener and there's plenty of other great dance music I'd rather listen to.

Overall rating: 1 ghostwriter out of 5

Number 2: The Weeknd - Blinding Lights

The Weeknd is an interesting artist. When he's on he is on, meaning that he clearly has lots of talent and when he's really showing it off he makes some really great songs. But, there's also the side of Weeknd that makes some pretty boring/questionable choices in his songs. This song though, definitely on the great side. Actually, Weeknd has been hitting it out of the park with his last few singles for his new album. This song has some good energy with Weeknd's vocals doing some awesome things. The song and the album have a nice 80s synth-pop beat/music throughout, which fits well with the lyrics. It also has a track called "In Your Eyes" that sounds like Japanese city-pop from the 80s which is really awesome. The song is about the singer's distractions by I assume the city nightlife, where he can only find comfort when he's with his lover. The 80s synth music really fits in with this theme, at least in my mind it does. The rhythm is upbeat, but the synth sounds present a kind of darkness that matches the tone of the lyrics. 

Overall rating: 4 out of 5 Uncut Gems.

Number 3: Roddy Ricch - The Box

Not really sure how to feel about this one. I am forever thankful to this song for keeping Justin Bieber's trash single "Yummy" from reaching number one. Besides that, this song is actually pretty decent despite being a genre that's usually very hard to reach me. The beat is pretty good, but I really like Roddy's style of rapping, at least in this song. He's got a good flow that keeps the song interesting and it feels different enough from others in this genre that it's kind of a breath of fresh air. After listening to a few other songs, I do enjoy his style not just on this song. It's a nice surprise, and maybe he'll find more success in the future. But since I like him... probably not.

Overall rating: 3.5 Yummys out of 5

Number 4: Dua Lipa - Don't Start Now

ahh yeah, Dua Lipa's back with a new album and this is her big single from that one. Look this song is great and Dua Lipa is great and that's all that I need to say right? 

Well, the song has a fantastic bass just slappin' and poppin' joy right into my ears. Dua Lipa's vocals are fantastic as you'd expect from her. The song is just incredibly fun and upbeat, something I crave more from modern pop music. It's also nice to get a more 70s style disco track at a time where so many things are sounding like the 80s (not that I really dislike that trend). Can I just listen to this song 6 more times instead of the rest of the list?

Overall rating: 4.5 disco balls out of 5

Number 5: Drake/Future - Life is Good?

NOOOOOOOOO. NO. Another Drake song? This time featuring the one person more boring than Drake in Future? This should be a masterpiece right? The worst part about this is that it's actually two different songs on one track, one by each artist... sorry, "artist". 

So yeah, it's boring. Not much else to say. I usually listen to each song a few times to really dive in and get my thoughts in order, but I just can't do it here. That's enough Drake for now.

Overall grade: Life is meaningless. 

Number 6: Post Malone - Circles

I've never been a big Post Malone fan, but after listening to the last song, this one comes across so much better. I know in reality it's a pretty mediocre song though, it's got a decent little bassline and beat that keep the flow of the song going with a nice tempo. It's nice to hear a Post Malone song with a little bit of energy behind it instead of just really slow and boring delivery and music. His vocals are still pretty boring though, he's not like a great singer or anything, at least not in this song. The melody in the chorus has some potential, but Post's delivery just doesn't give it enough to make it what it needs to be. 

Overall grade: A can of Diet Coca-Cola.*

*I know some people like it, but I think it's quite gross

Number 7: Jerry Styles - Ah Door You

Harry Styles makes a song about that feeling you get when you first romantically connect with someone, the joy, and the bliss. Harry's last big single "Watermelon Sugar" was one that took me some time to really get into, at first I kind of hated it. This one is a bit different for me as I instantly liked it upon first listen. After a few listens I feel like this song might have the opposite effect on me as Watermelon Sugar though, in that I think I'll like it less over time. Harry Styles is so very talented though, and I still look forward to seeing what he'll make as he gets older because he just seems to be getting better and better. This song has a lot of great music much like a lot of the other tracks from this album. A great bassline with some good guitar work and Style's passionate vocals doing what they need to do to set the mood the song is going for. Some nice touches throughout like backup vocals and a nice guitar solo. 

Overall grade: 3.5 watermelons out of 5

Number 8: Doja Cat - Say So

Oh yes, another heavy bass 70s/80s style pop song with some very catchy melodies and even some good rap verses. I got to say I'm really liking this new trend of throwback style heavy bass pop songs, at least for now. It's just so much fun to listen to and actually kinda makes you want to dance... unlike a certain Drake song that's also supposed to be a dance hit. I've never heard of this Doja Cat until recently, but this was a very good first impression. I hope she continues to do whatever this is. 

Overall grade: 3.5 Who are you's? out of 5

Number 9: Intentions - Justin Bieber w/ Quavo

The only interesting thing about this song is my computer trying to auto-correct Quavo to queso, which isn't even an English word. Porque no hay queso? El queso tiene mas talento de Justin Bieber y Quavo. 

But seriously this song is bad just like the rest of Bieber's new album that already feels outdated in less than a year. It is at least a little better than his last failure of a single "Yummy", which is quickly falling off the charts at the moment. At least the lyrics are slightly less cringy. With amazing lyrics "picture-perfect, you don't need a filter" the bar can only go so high. This is what professional writers are for, earning those big bucks. The sad part is that his last album showed a lot of potential for his future. But instead of continuing that improvement, he releases his most boring album that can't even get a number one single. At least we got that going for us. 

Overall grade: 0.5 Quesos out of 5

Number 10: Billie Eilish - everything i wanted

Back when I was making my best of 2019 list I really wanted to put this song on there, but it just wasn't a big enough hit yet as it was released a little late into the year. But I do love this song actually, it's just so different from everything else on the charts. I think a song like this really sets Billie apart from the other pop artists on the charts. It just feels really raw and kinda beautiful in a strange way. It continues some of the themes from her album last year about sleeping and dreaming. The song deals with some heavy topics and feels very honest and real, probably because it is to her, or at least was. Dealing with dark times in her life is where this song came from and you can really feel it in her delivery along with the soft, but pretty music that almost feels haunting in a way. This is my favorite song by Billie, and it's just fantastic. 

Overall grade: 5 A+'s out of 5

I have to say I'm actually surprised by how good some of these songs were, especially the upbeat dance songs by Weeknd, Dua Lipa, and Doja Cat. Like I said before, I'm really digging these 70s and 80s style pop songs with a modern twist. All three artists have lots of charisma and vocal talent that is backed by song fun music, and isn't that what you want in pop music? But there's also some variety here with Harry Style's newest single, which has a little of that throwback style as well. Then there's Billie Eilish's song that really invokes different emotions than the rest of the songs on the list (in a good way). Even a surprise with that Roddy Ricch song was nice. And despite all this good music on the charts, we still have another number-one single by the prince of boredom himself, Drake. On top of that, he has another top 10 hit with Future this week that's also mediocre as hell. Then there's Bieber who also gets another top 10 hit too from his boring album. I didn't even get to number 11 this week which was "Someone You Loved" by Lewis Capaldi, that one song I called my least favorite of last year that's still kicking it near the top 10 for some reason. But I'll take the positives here and hold them close, maybe one of the good ones will climb up to number 1 (hopefully Dua Lipa, but maybe Harry Styles can finally get a number one here in the USA).

And this is my 99th post here so... I guess the big 100 is next?

Best of 2000s Pop Song Bracket Part 1

It was a new millennium. The music that dominated the 90's was on it's way out and new trends were about to take over the airwaves. It was 10 years of many different new trends coming and going, some longer than others. New stars would emerge and become A-list mainstays while others wouldn't make it out of the decade without losing that status. Looking back at it, there was so much good and it's all so nostalgic to me now. It was in that decade that music really started to hit me in a different way, and slowly started to become an important part of who I am. And while the pop songs on the radio/charts weren't the only thing that caused that love to grow, today I thought I would look back at some of the most popular and iconic songs of that decade and decide which one was truly the best. I'm not going to try to just pick my personal favorite but actually look at the song in many ways.

1. How popular it was during its peak

2. How it influenced the music around it at the time

3. How long it stuck around in the mainstream

4. What kind of legacy it left behind (if any)

5. What it did for the artist behind it

6. How it stood out in its own genre
7. If it holds up today

The first section will be the rock section which will include rock songs put up against random songs in the same genre. I tried to pick the most popular rock songs of the 2000s, of course, there's plenty missing, but it would be impossible to fit them all. 16 songs that I feel were important in one way or another to the decade. Also, only one song per artist so that there are not 3 Linkin Park songs or more than one Nickelback song (gross). This time I'll be covering the first four matchups. 

Match 1: Blink 182's All the Small Things VS. Panic! at the Disco's I Write Sins...

Starting off the bracket with a really tough one right away. Both songs probably shared a decent amount of fans, though they were separated by about 6 years. Blink 182's from their 1999 album Enema of the State and Panic's from their 2005 album A Fever You Can't Sweat Out.

Starting with Blink on this one, the song was their biggest hit at the time and it helped catapult them to new heights. The band had been around for most of the 90s slowly growing their fanbase and finding their sound. It wasn't until this album that it felt like they truly found their sound and would go on to release several other great albums, though no song would be as big as All The Small Things was. The song is pretty simple in its execution, but it's also incredibly catchy and smart in its musical choices. The two notes starting of the song always felt like something really iconic and memorable that no other song had really done at the time. Those two notes just kick the song off into high gear instantly and it's one of those moments that works great at live shows. Travis also does a fine job on the drums, nothing special (sarcasm). Also worth remembering the music video which made fun of all the boy bands of the late 90s.
Blink-182 used the success of this song to continue making great music for the first half of the decade before splitting up into two new bands, eventually reuniting and changing their lineup. Their influence in music is still really important to the music scene especially in the mid-2000s where the big pop-punk movement was all the rage until the late 2000s. Funny enough, Panic! at the Disco themselves started as a Blink-182 cover band before finding their own success. It's safe to say that Blink's influence in music was pretty big and lots of great bands came after them taking a little of their style and making something new. I think a lot of that is owed to the success of All The Small Things because a lot of people wouldn't have found them without that huge hit.

Now on to Panic's overly long titled song I Write Sins Not Tragedies. In some ways, you could say this song was the peak of the pop-punk movement of the mid-2000s. At the time Panic! consisted of four members all from the original line-up, who are all gone as of now, the only member left being Brandon Urie. It was honestly tough trying to decide between Fall Out Boy's music or Panic's music to put on to the list here. Ultimately I felt this song was more popular and lead to a bigger career in Brandon Urie's Panic! at the Disco. Over the years he's had multiple hits, but it wasn't until just last year he finally had a song bigger than this one with High Hopes.
Much like All The Small Things, I Write Sins also has a really memorable intro with a subtle instrumental before breaking into the rock sound. Panic! became known for their use of many different instruments/orchestral sounds in their albums, which made them feel a lot different than other pop-punk bands at the time, not even sure you could call them a pop-punk band, but they hung around that scene earlier in their career.  While the song was the peak of pop-punk in some ways, I don't think its influence is as strong as Blink-182's. Maybe because other bands at the time were doing similar songs with some success, it's tough to say how strong their influence was on the scene. Especially since that scene is far less popular than it was in the 2000s though it's still around.

Verdict: It's a tough choice really, trying to pick either of these songs as the better one. I think Panic! at the Disco's song is better in its lyrics and music, but I think Blink's is far catchier and probably more important to the decade and the music landscape. So I think I'd give the slight edge here to All The Small Things.

Match 2: White Stripe's Seven Nation Army VS. Santana's Smooth

In what feels like a pretty strange matchup, we got two big rock song staples here. The big arena rock hit Seven Nation Army takes on the inescapable song that crushed the charts in Smooth. Seven Nation Army made it's debut early in the decade in the year 2003, while Smooth was the song that transitioned to the new millennium in mid-1999. 

So Seven Nation Army wasn't really that big of a hit when it first came out, actually, it didn't even make a dent on the pop charts here until the year 2014 (though it was a bigger hit in the UK). The song has been adopted as a chant in many arenas all over the world, you'll probably have heard it during football matches and other sporting events. The opening "bass" line has become a very iconic riff in music. Though the original recording was actually not a bass guitar just an electric guitar with a pedal used to get that deep effect. That iconic riff might actually be the most well-known riff in all of music it seems. The song just feels so raw and when the guitar really kicks in it's pretty damn amazing, but that's what Jack White does with a guitar in his hand. The style of guitar playing was very influential to many future artists. Groups like Alabama Shakes, Black Keys, and Kings of Leon all used that style of raw distorted guitar among many others. The White Stripe's influence in music through this song is important and clear. 

Next up we have the Latin-rock crossover hit Smooth by music legend Santana. The thing about Santana is, he was already a hugely influential rock star at this point and he'd already been around for many decades. The thing about him is that he hadn't really been relevant to the popular music scene in a very long time as well. When he decided to make an album where he would collab with younger artists it seemed like a great idea, but I don't think even he knew how big it would actually be. Smooth would become the most successful modern song and it still holds that title. But it's weird that a song this popular wouldn't really influence the way pop music went moving forward. Hip-Hop and R&B were still coming in strong and would eventually be the most popular genres. Smooth was huge, but it also feels like a song that was the perfect send off to the style of the 90s. Its success will live on in the record books, but its influence maybe not so much. Still a great song with lots of great music played by amazing musicians and the weird vocals by Rob Thomas can't be forgotten either.

I think for me, the winner is clear. Seven Nation Army is a far more influential song that holds a special place in pop culture and many people's lives. The song is also very good, and while Smooth is the biggest hit and still a lot of fun to listen to, Seven Nation Army is just a slightly better song overall in my opinion. Making the next round All The Small Things taking on Seven Nation Army.

Match 3: Evanescence's Bring Me To Life VS. Nickelback's How You Remind Me

This is an interesting matchup of early 2000s rock music. The biggest post-grunge band Nickelback takes on another heavy hitter in the same genre. While they kinda fit the same genre, these songs actually feel totally different from each other. That might be because Bring Me To Life had a heavy influence from the very popular genre at the time in Nu-Metal. 

Bring Me To Life was released in 2003, and was probably influenced by Linkin Park's huge hit In The End. Originally the song was only going to feature Amy Lee's vocals, but the rap style vocals were added to ensure the song would become a bigger hit. That and, the label apparently thought it would be easier to get airplay if it had male vocals because that's what post-grunge was dominated by. I guess we'll never know if an Amy Lee only version of this song would have been as popular, but regardless the song hit it big in 2003 over here in the US, reaching number 5 in the hot 100 and becoming the 10th best selling song of the year overall. 

Amy has said the song was dedicated to her boyfriend who would go one to marry her in 2007. Amy's vocals are pretty incredible in this song (and in general) as she sings passionately with the heavy guitars backing her up. Paul McCoy of 12 Stones is the male vocalist in the song, who never had any hits of their own, but had a strong following. 

While maybe the song itself isn't incredibly unique in its sound, it's Amy Lee's vocals that really change the game here. Amy Lee would go on to become a pretty big legend in the rock scene as a female vocalist she no doubt inspired many other great female vocalists in the rock world and music in general. And yes, she has done the song without a male vocalist and yes, it's still really great. 

Any other post I'd start with a joke at Nickelback's expense... I guess I kind of already did that earlier a little. But no, this time I'll give them a bit of respect and talk about their biggest hit EVER. Back in 2002, this was actually the biggest selling song of the year, and despite that, it was still a pretty good year. Oops, I guess it's hard not to make fun of this band, isn't it. The album this song was from was released on September 11, 2001... yep. Actually, this song really isn't bad, it's actually pretty good overall. The song was written by frontman Chad Kroeger about his ex-girlfriend and their dysfunctional relationship. Musically the song doesn't really feel all that special, just lots of basic sounding progressions and starts and stops to kinda change it up here and there. The vocals by Chad are fine too, really this song's strong point is the catchy melodies that get stuck in your head long after you're done listening. 

How You Remind Me isn't a bad song, but it's nothing special. Bring Me To Life brought Evanescence on the map and also Amy Lee who is a fantastic vocalist and important to the rock world. So with a better song that's also more important and influential to music, Bring Me To Life has to win this one no? 

Match 4: Jimmy Eat World's The Middle VS. 3 Doors Down's Kryptonite

It's emo-pop rock group Jimmy Eat World taking on the last post-grunge act on this first round 3 Doors Down. Kryptonite was a huge hit that dominated radio and spent an entire year on the Billboard Hot 100 from 2000-2001. The Middle came shortly after in 2002, with much less success only reaching number 5 on the charts and slowly fading in a 33-week span.

Jimmy Eat World is one of those bands that's been hugely influential to their genre over the years. The pop-punk and emo scene has many bands influenced by the sound heard on this song and the other early Jimmy Eat World albums. It was only a few years before this song that they released the album Clarity, which was kind of an emo music masterpiece in a way. But it wasn't until Bleed American, the album that featured The Middle, that they say huge success. Similar to Blink-182 and White Stripes, this one huge hit song put them on the map and that's when more people saw how good they were even before the hit song.
The Middle is a song about acceptance and fitting in. It's all about finding the people or the crowd you belong to that accept you for who you are and forgetting about anyone that doesn't accept you. It has a pretty memorable intro with the guitar and the vocals kicking in with a simple "Hey". It's also got a really memorable guitar solo that's not an easy one to just bust out. Overall it's a catchy tune with some great musical moments that kicked off the career of a very influential band that continues to make great music to this day.

Then there are 3 Doors Down, a band I enjoyed quite a bit back in the day. Kryptonite was also their biggest hit, which I think a lot of these songs will be for the artist in question. The thing is, 3 Doors Down had a ton of hits in their peak period of the early 2000s. With at least 10 songs hitting the Hot 100 and six of those making it to the top 40 or higher. While Kryptonite is their most well-known song, they also had two other massive hits in Here Without You and When I'm Gone.
Continuing the trend of memorable intros, this one starts with that picking of the Bm chords that flows throughout the verses before the heavily distorted guitars kick in for the chorus. The song also has a pretty catchy solo, but it's not very impressive even by post-grunge standards. Also important to note that frontman Brad Arnold wrote this song when he was only 15 years old bored in math class, which is pretty impressive considering it would go on to be their biggest hit of many.

Well, one song is clearly bigger and leads to a great career with many hits and the other is The Middle. But Jimmy Eat World was arguably more influential to the musical landscape of the 2000s and further on, plus made a better song. It's tough, but I think the choice has to be The Middle here. This leads to a future matchup with Bring Me To Life. 

Future matchups include: