What's the frequency, Kenneth?

(Hello, how are you, I know you, I knew you, I think I can remember your name.)

Lest you think the New Pornographers are the sum total of music produced since I was born that I enjoy...they're not. There's also Oasis, for example. And (in case the lyrics above, lyrics in the title, and picture weren't enough of a clue) R.E.M..

R.E.M. recently came out with a new album, which I haven't heard yet. But I have heard the first single - Supernatural Superserious a few times, and I really like it. It's fun, catchy, exciting...it's just a good song.

But what differentiates it from other popular pop/rock/alternative/whatever music? How can this song be instantly recognized, while it takes us until the chorus to figure out which of the string of hits from Hedley/Three Days Grace/Finger Eleven/etc. we're listening to?

Well, I won't pretend to be a big-shot music producer who knows exactly what works, but I can take a few guesses. There's a catchy guitar hook at the beginning. Michael Stipe's voice isn't the gruff, modular voice you hear in every band I listed above. The song generally has a more "happy" feel to it than most music (there was a time when I could have figured out what caused that, now all I can do is guess that it's in the chords somewhere). The lyrics are accessible enough that they're easy to sing along to, but complex enough that you have no real idea what the song's about (I call this the "Louie Louie" factor). And there's lots of rhymes.

So that's my mini-rant for the day. New music isn't all bad, it's just that the most popular groups are generally the ones whose songs all sound EXACTLY THE SAME.

--Ryan