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Posts Tagged “duffy”

television and music: sadly, my two favorite things

Our Music Quiz Loving Hearts Will Go On


As a followup to Idolator's coverage earlier this month of Bill Bailey's departure from the cast of the UK's Nevermind the Buzzcocks, we present this clip from last week's season premiere, a loving tribute to Bailey by host Simon Amstell and team captain Phill Jupitus. While Bailey was missed on the first episode, guest Mark Ronson was, at very least, an adequate substitute. My favorite moment: Welsh singer Adele openly mocking Duffy. Any comedy that at its center is fueled by a dislike of Duffy is a-OK in my book. [YouTube]

2:00 PM on Fri Oct 10 2008
By Dan Gibson
124 views, 5 comments

Latest by NotPop: "guest Mark Ronson was, at very least, an adequate substitute" !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! ????????????????????????????????? oh dear Idolator, a good nights sleep and you'll fell better I'm sure... more »

the world does not need more duffy

Making A Movie Soundtrack: No Old Dudes Invited

If a studio chose to make a film from your novel, I'd imagine you'd be somewhat protective of the final product, down to the musical choices. Then again, if you're a novelist who enjoys albums that came out before the Duffy record, your opinions about the soundtrack will probably be summarily ignored by the people financing the picture. More »

1:00 PM on Fri Sep 26 2008
By Dan Gibson
699 views, 13 comments

snap judgments

Paul McCartney Is Being Very Charitable To Duffy

Come November, the UK charity War Child will release a new all-covers album, Heroes, as a way to raise funds for its efforts to protect children in conflict-ravaged areas around the globe. So far, the tracklisting is as such: Duffy covering "Live & Let Die"; Hot Chip re-recording Joy Division's "Transmission"; Beck taking on Bob Dylan's "Leopard-Skin Pill-Box Hat"; the Kooks doing whatever it is they do to the Kinks' "Victoria"; and Rufus Wainwright constructing a medley from two songs off Brian Wilson's Smile. Perhaps unsurprisingly, the Wainwright track is the one that piques my interest most; while Paul McCartney said that Duffy's version of the Wings track was "great—I was really impressed," I'm a bit, shall we say, skeptical. I get that she's cute and can rock a romper onstage, but how much longer must we all suffer through this "next Dusty" charade? (And who picked her to be the musical guest on Saturday Night Live this week, anyway? Is this season's musical theme "artists who don't sound that great live, but it's OK because our crummy sound tech prevents even the best bands from sounding any good at all, ever?") [Billboard]

3:00 PM on Mon Sep 22 2008
By Maura Johnston
333 views, 11 comments

Latest by MrStarhead: And actually, Andrew W.K.'s from Michigan. more »

rock-critically correct

"Spin" Asks For A Little Mercy

Once again, we present Rock-Critically Correct, a feature in which the most recent issues of Rolling Stone, Blender, Vibe, and Spin are given a once-over by a writer who's contributed to many of those magazines, as well as a few others! In this installment, he looks at the new issue of Spin: More »

12:00 PM on Tue Aug 5 2008
By Anono-Critic
1,253 views, 4 comments

adventures in bandwidth

Duffy's Going To Get An Angry Phone Call From Doug Morris

Hey, Duffy! You're one of the music business's few successes this year, and you have 2008's top selling album in Britain. So why not go ahead and promote illegal downloads? Oddly, the Welsh singer, for whom I haven't had much affection in the past, makes more sense than most on the issue. She told the UK's Shortlist, "Somebody asked me the other day what I thought of illegal downloading, and I thought, 'You know what? I don't care', because I think the majority [doing it] are kids and as they get old and get more income they'll probably buy records. So it's just making music a part of everyone's lives." It's not just a one-time mental aberration for Duffy, who also told Uncut "What I've begun to think [about illegal downloading] is, when kids can get access to music, it's only a good thing." Oh, Duffy, when you suddenly disappear from public view in the next week, I won't miss your music—but I will miss your open mind. [ShortList via NME]

1:30 PM on Tue Jul 29 2008
By Dan Gibson
166 views, 2 comments

Latest by Nunya B: @pr0FF3ss0r_j3rkwh3at's lost baseball season: I heard only good things about her set at Glastonbury. more »

jukebox heroes redux

This Just In: Americans Enjoy Listening To Lil Wayne While Possibly Getting Inebriated

We love charts here at Idolator, but sometimes they can be so elitist. Who cares what critics think, or what the program directors of America feel like shoving down peoples' throats? We want to know: What are the people demanding to hear? What songs inspire people to vote with their wallets, making them insert a dollar into a machine with one hand while holding a longneck in the other? More »

4:00 PM on Tue Jul 15 2008
By Dan Gibson
902 views, 7 comments

i'm still bitter that debby boone beat foreigner back in 78

Just Go Ahead And Give The Best New Artist Grammy To Duffy Already

Todd Martens of the Los Angeles Times is taking a midseason look at the contenders for the Grammy Awards' fourth or fifth most prestigious award: Best New Artist, which has been given in the past to such luminaries as Paula Cole, Arrested Development, and A Taste Of Honey. Looking at all the exciting music produced by those who qualify for the award, it's really anyone's guess who will take home the prize next February. No wait, the winner's definitely going to be Duffy, isn't it? More »

10:30 AM on Tue Jul 1 2008
By Dan Gibson
1,069 views, 32 comments

Latest by Rob Murphy: @UKidol: I'm not surprised to hear about either of these songs being more played. Thx for the 411! more »

everybody's a winner

"Mojo" Takes The Idea Of Everyone Being A Winner Very Seriously

The UK magazine Mojo loves to look back as it looks forward, so it's probably no surprise that its Mojo Honours, the reader-generated awards given out last night, were led by Duffy's "Mercy," a cauldron of throwbacks that flounced away with the evening's Song Of The Year Award. In addition to a few cursory nods in the direction of new-ish music (Dig!!! Lazarus Dig!!! won Best Album, while Led Zeppelin got the Best Live Act nod for its one show earlier this year), a bunch of seemingly interchangeable laurels went to Mojo staples. More »

12:30 PM on Tue Jun 17 2008
By Maura Johnston
238 views, 5 comments

Latest by anawolken: I'd love to see Duffy... oh wait. She cancelled her Austin City Limits appearance. DOH! more »

return of the real

Starbucks Soul: Now More Than Ever


Jamie Lidell's dropping the electro and bringing on the supper club in this Conan O'Brien performance, answering everyone's prayers for a less disco Jamiroquai. Meanwhile, Duffy's "Mercy" is almost mistaken for a summer jam (thank you, Tyga mafia!) and snoozy British songbirds like Adele are popping up everywhere. But why? Why, why, why? Some answers, and some predictions. More »

4:00 PM on Wed Jun 11 2008
By Anthony Miccio
573 views, 7 comments

idolator's 2008 summer jam tournament

Idolator's Summer Jam Tournament Says "Yeah," Cracks A Coconut

The second round of Idolator's quest for this year's top summertime song* enters its second round today, with the twisted Nilsson of surprise Kid Rock-beater Tyga taking on the throwback stew of Duffy. Videos and the all-important poll after the jump! More »

12:00 PM on Tue Jun 10 2008
By Maura Johnston
1,427 views, 15 comments

idolator's 2008 summer jam tournament

Idolator's Summer Jam Tournament Begs You For Mercy, Robots

The first round of our quest to find the quintessential summer jam wraps up today, with the final two bouts going live. (Voting will end Sunday night, so be sure to cast your ballots soon.) After the jump, the new Lulu takes on a pair who have made summertime magic before, only this time they're aided by cyborgs. More »

11:00 AM on Fri Jun 6 2008
By Maura Johnston
599 views, 9 comments

Latest by solanine: "Yeah, yeah, yeah" is the new "no, no, no"? more »

idolator's 2008 summer jam tournament

Duffy, "Mercy"


All the attention lavished on this new-model Dusty Springfield/Lulu concerns the sound of her voice (say it again: more Lulu than Dusty). But what makes "Mercy" so enticing is everything swirling around it before it sings a note: the opening bassline, which retools "Stand By Me" (by way of De La Soul's "A Little Bit of Soap") for the umpteenth time; then, a bit of "96 Tears" Farfisa; and, seconds later, another layer of chewy '80s keyboards a la Prince or New Order. These hooks weave and bob around Duffy's brassy voice and transform it into one more sound effect, making this so-called "retro" piece a work of high-tech, minor genius. [YouTube]

12:00 AM on Fri Jun 6 2008
By Chris Molanphy
134 views, 1 comment

Latest by bcapirigi: i liek the talk-rappy part best, i think mostly because it's mixed so low. more »

friday chart preview

Death Cab Bounced Aside By 3 Doors Down

Death Cab For Cutie's reign at the top of the album charts was fun while it lasted, but Alabama natives and Hinder/Staind touring buddies 3 Doors Down are projected to take the No. 1 spot on Wednesday by a landslide, with around 150,000 projected sales of their new, self-titled album. Bun B's post-UGK solo album trails in the No. 2 spot, with sales likely falling just short of the six-digit mark, and squeaky clean, yet scantily clad dancer turned country star Julianne Hough grabbing No. 3 with 60,000 sales. Last week's chart slides down with Frank Sinatra at No. 4, Death Cab as the likely No. 5, and the deathless Leona Lewis at No. 6. Duffy, Mariah Carey, Toby Keith, and Madonna are the likely picks for the rest of the top 10, with all those albums projected to sell in the 40,000-copy range. [HITS Daily Double]

1:30 PM on Fri May 23 2008
By Dan Gibson
428 views, 6 comments

Latest by dr.randy: 3 Doors Down is a real band? Damn, I thought they were totally invented by the US Government. What kind of band actually does ads for the military? more »

bad teeth, dirty minds

Your "British Singers Talking About Sex" Wrapup

For some reason, my birthday brings out the naughty side in female British singers, both those temporarily relevant and those who are, well, not so much. I'm not sure why, but there's not much I can do about it, you know? In case you were wondering what's going through the minds of Mel B. and Duffy these days, here's the mildly titillating lowdown. More »

11:30 AM on Tue May 20 2008
By Dan Gibson
745 views, 5 comments

the last word

Duffy: Your Cleaner, Whiter Retro-Soul Option

From time to time, we like to round up the all-important, all-summarizing last sentences of the biggest new-music reviews. Under consideration today is the new full-length by Duffy, Rockferry, which hits stores today: More »

2:30 PM on Tue May 13 2008
By Dan Gibson
927 views, 13 comments

everybody's a winner

The Mojo Honours Help A Lazy Blogger Break Through

While I'm a good boy about keeping up with the pop singles chart, when it comes to classier, indie-oriented stuff I tend to focus on the familiar. Last night I hunkered down with Sun Kil Moon's April, The Gutter Twins' Saturnalia, and Portishead's Third, all great albums from artists who made their biggest impression well over a decade ago. So it's not a total surprise that I hadn't heard any of the five nominees for the Mojo Honours' Breakthrough Act Of 2008. But it gave me an excuse to get familiar with singles from Duffy, Foals, Bon Iver, Pete Molinari, and the Last Shadow Puppets. More »

10:45 AM on Thu May 1 2008
By Anthony Miccio
437 views, 11 comments

Latest by StuntKockSteeev: I dig Bon Iver, but I feel like most of his fan base is either people (like myself) that are from Western Wisconsin, or people who found his Unabomber-esque press release captivating. more »

thanks for the music, sorta

Two Pop Acts You Should Prepare Yourself To Hate

At this point, living in the world of Flo-Rida, you might find yourself hoping for some sort of respite from hearing "Low" or "Elevator" every hour of every day. Be careful what you wish for, however, as the music biz powers that be have focused their efforts on two new stars-to-possibly-be that will make you wistful for the days of T-Pain. More »

2:45 PM on Tue Mar 11 2008
By Dan Gibson
982 views, 14 comments