Neon Reviews: John Mayer – Battle Studies

John Mayer - Battle Studies

It must be nice to be John Mayer. He’s an unbelievable guitarist, a pretty funny amateur comedian, and even when he makes what may be one of his least memorable albums to date, it’s still pretty damn good.

When listening to John Mayer’s previous work, its generally not hard to guess what he listens to for inspiration. Based on his style, approach, and covers during the span of his career, he’s probably gone through phases in which his ipod has been stuck on everything encompassing folk, soul, blues, and of course, rock n roll.

So what was he listening to during the months he spent recording his new album in his rented Los Angeles home? Probably a lot of John Mayer. Not that that’s a bad thing.

On Battle Studies, Mayer continues to churn out well crafted and articulate soft rock, minus some of the class and soul of Continuum or the fire and rawness of his far-too-brief trio excursion on Try!

With his latest release, Mayer tries to show us his sensitive side by likening his emotional trials and tribulations to a constant metaphorical war, often juxtaposed with upbeat, easy to swallow pop tunes. Despite Mayer’s gift for guitar, he tones it down a bit this time around. Don’t expect anything too over the top, save for a few echoed guitars that sound like they were produced by U2 themselves.

As always, he’s at his best when he drops the dramatics and sticks to his honest and quirky self. Songs like “Who Says” and “Do You Know Me” are welcomed breaks from songs about assassins of love and heartbreak-bombs. It’s the short, intimate, and honest little bursts of creativity on this album that remind us that Mayer is more than just a pop heartthrob.

The truth is, Mayer is a funky guy, no matter how hard he tries to hide it, and he lets it loose on his cover of the Robert Johnson classic “Crossroads.”  Unfortunately, right now, funky is not his prerogative.

For better or worse, the majority of the album focuses on Mayer’s failed relationship with Jennifer Aniston, or what could very likely be any number of young ladies that most people will assume are Jennifer Aniston. But no matter, after a few listens clever albeit cheesy songs like “Half of my Heart,” which features Taylor Swift, become more catchy than anything.

By the end of the closing ballad “Friends, Lovers, or Nothing,” you probably wouldn’t fight someone if they wanted to replay the album, which would be a good decision because it only gets better with more listens. Despite any personal drama he may have suffered, John Mayer clearly hasn’t been beaten up enough to stop doing what he does best. Making good music.

Alicia Keys Gives “Empire State Of Mind” A Stripped Second Version

Is rap not your thing, but you still want to get into that “Empire State of Mind”? Alicia Keys has got the answer for you.

During a performance for Clear Channel radio’s stripped sessions, the soul diva performed a new version of the song, sans Jay-Z, with all new verses. “Imma make it by any means/I got a pocket full of dreams/Baby, I’m from New York,” she sings before jumping into the original anthemic chorus.

You don’t have to be from the concrete jungle where dreams are made of to appreciate how gorgeous this piano-driven version is.

A more produced version of the track will be available on Alicia’s new album, The Element of Freedom, in stores December 15.

Live Shots: Chris Brown Gets ‘Fan Appreciation’ With Special Guests In Los Angeles

Chris Brown performs in LA - Getty Images

Chris Brown continued his trek to thank his fans for sticking by him this year, dubbed his “Fan Appreciation” tour, last night in Los Angeles with a sold out show at the Avalon.

This time around, he brought out some special guests including singer/songwriter Keri Hilson, who surprised the audience with a short medley of her own hits, and Ester Dean who joined Breezy for their club banger “Drop It Low.”

The show also included an epic dance tribute to Michael Jackson.

Check out a few shots from the show below:

additional photos: wireimage

Orianthi Performs “According To You” On So You Think You Can Dance Results Show

Singer and guitarist Orianthi is ready to step from behind the shadows of the amazing artists she’s had the pleasure of playing  for (Michael Jackson anyone?!) and into the spotlight. To continue her quest to pop/rock super-stardom, she dropped by dance show So You Think You Can Dance’s results show to perform her rocking new single According To You.

According To You is taken from her debut album, Believe, that is in stores now. Learn more about Orianthi in our Limelight Spotlight.

John Mayer On Pace For No. 1 Chart Debut, Justin Bieber’s Sales Set To Top Kris Allen

John Mayer and Justin Bieber - Wireimage

The music industry is breathing a little easier now that the lucrative fourth quarter has arrived to pick up its continuing slump. The first batch of major releases made its way to shelves this week and it looks like singer/songwriter John Mayer will come out on top.

Music industry publication HITS Daily Double is predicting sales of around 275-300,000 units sold for Mayer’s new disc Battle Studies according to one day sales from major retailers. The prediction places him well ahead of Norah Jones‘ new set, The Fall, which will more than likely slide in at No. 2 with over 150,000 records sold.

The other big chart story comes courtesy of Usher protege and teen pop sensation Justin Bieber. His debut album, My World, is on pace to sell over a whopping 100,000 copies. This number will trump American Idol champ Kris Allen’s predicted debut of 85,000 units.

Look for the chart battles to get even tougher when new albums from pop princess Rihanna and American Idol glam-rocker Adam Lambert hit stores next week.

Taylor Swift Teams With American Greetings For Card Line

Taylor Swift - Getty Images

Fragrances. Clothing lines. Too easy to Taylor Swift. Instead of following the flock, she’s breaking away and trying something new: the greeting card business.

American Greetings has announced today (November 18) that they will team with the CMA entertainer of the year winner to create a new line of cards that will help her connect with her fans even further and help them connect with people close in their lives.

“We are absolutely thrilled and honored to introduce Taylor Swift as the newest writer and creative contributor to the American Greetings family,” Chief Executive Officer Zev Weiss said in a statement. “Her abilities as a storyteller and songwriter make her a natural at writing cards for consumers of all ages. She has the unique ability to connect with her fans through life experiences and greeting cards do the same–cards help people express, connect and celebrate these events with the important people in their lives. We believe it’s a natural fit!”

Swift is just as excited about the partnership. “My idea of a great song is a song that says how I feel better than I could. I feel the same way about greeting cards,” Taylor says. “I’ve always been fascinated by feelings and how we express them to each other. Getting to write and design these cards is a wonderful experience.”

The cards will head into stores in spring of 2010.

Neon Reviews: Melanie Fiona – The Bridge

Melanie Fiona - The Bridge

Melanie Fiona chose the perfect title for her debut album. The Bridge is exactly what she builds to crossover seamlessly between pop and soul, new and old school.

Often lumped in with the retro-soul revivers of Britain, Amy Winehouse and Duffy, Toronto-born Fiona separates her self by trumpeting her love story without any gimmicks (no ratty beehives, thanks!) and with a genuine passion that runs through her raspy, sultry voice.

The closest you’ll come to a gimmick is “Give It To Me Right,” the first single from the set. Sampling The Zombies‘ “Time of the Season,” the unforgettable drum pattern and piano twinkles add the same pop flare it did for the band in the 60s, but the sensual theme of “please me or get lost” transforms the song into a very today anthem for women taking charge of their sexual relationships.

That same strength is echoed on tracks like “Monday Morning” (”Baby, I still need ya/but if I stay, I’ll leave ya/Cus I gotta get away”), “Walk On By” (”Fool me once, but you won’t fool me twice/Don’t say sh–, just walk on by”), and the fist-pumping, chase-your-dreams track “Ay Yo.”

The Bridge is not without its vulnerable moments. The sweetly crooned “You Stop My Heart” is one of the sappiest, yet best songs on the set, with its throwback girl-group “bum bum, bum bum” chorus. And the heart-wrenching “It Kills Me” proves while Melanie exudes strength, she’s no stranger to faltering to the allures of not-so-good-for-you love.

Listening to the album makes you forget it’s only a debut. Fiona and writing partner Andrea Martin made an album so close to perfect, it will surely help Fiona cross the bridge between an artist here for today and an artist here to make history.

Leona Lewis Performs “Happy” On Dancing With The Stars Semi-Finals Results Show

Dancing With The Stars packed in some girl power tonight (November 17) when they had both Alicia Keys and Leona Lewis drop by for performances during their somewhat shocking semi-finals results show.

Leona performed Happy, the first single off her latest album Echo. Spot on vocals or excellent lip-syncing? Not quite sure. One thing was clear: Leona looked drop dead gorgeous!

In the next few weeks, Leona will be busy making TV appearances to promote Echo, which lands in stores today.

Alicia Keys Performs On Dancing With The Stars Semi-Finals Results Show

The pressure was on for the remaining contestants on Dancing With The Stars. Tonight’s (November 17) elimination shaped next week’s finals but before all the dirty work went down, they had a night full of musical performances to get to. One of tonight’s performers was Grammy award winning singer, Alicia Keys.

Alicia, dressed in black leather and the fiercest thigh-high blue boots, performed her new single Try Sleeping With A Broken Heart for the first time on TV. Try Sleeping… is the second single off Alicia’s new album, The Element of Freedom, due in stores December 15th.

Shontelle Says Opening For Beyonce “Changed My Life”

Shontelle and Beyonce - twitter.com/shontelle_layne

For many new artists, the first year after the release of their debut albums are filled with highlights. Getting into swanky parties, meeting some cool fellow artists, maybe flying first class for the first time.

One of the biggest highlights for Barbados-born beauty Shontelle, is getting to tour alongside one of music’s most adored superstars, and her idol, Beyonce. The 24-year-old singer, who found success with her irresistible single “T-Shirt,” opened for the Mighty B on her tour across Europe and the UK last spring.

“That changed my life,” Shontelle told Neon Limelight in a recent phone interview. “Just that feeling that you’ve been embraced by one of the biggest stars in the world, and not just her, but her entire team, that made me really feel like I’m [doing this] for a reason.

“Even when it feels like everything isn’t going the way you want, or it’s moving slow, or it’s come to a stop completely, you have an experience like touring with Beyonce and it reminds you of why you do this.”

Beyonce, who Shontelle describes as “an amazing human being,” made it a point to sit down and meet Shontelle to share some kind words. “She literally looked me in the eye and said ‘You are so beautiful. I see your videos on TV all the time… I hear your voice every night and [it's] incredible. I want you to work really hard because you’re gonna do so well.’ And I’m like ‘Beyonce is telling me this!? Are you serious right now?’”

She says touring with Beyonce was a once in a lifetime experience she made sure to pay close attention to in hopes of picking up some pointers. “I watched how she’s not afraid to experiment. She’s not afraid to try different types of music and different things, and I feel like that’s why her fanbase is so huge.

“I watched her perfectionism. She won’t even hide that. She’ll tell you ‘I am a perfectionist. You had better get this right or I will get mad.’ I watched her soundcheck, her rehearsals, hung out with all of the dancers, the stylists, and everybody has a story to tell about Beyonce.”

Being on the tour with Beyonce, she says, pushed her from just being a fan of the Grammy winning singer to “stan status.” “I can’t thank Beyonce enough. It really did change my life.”

Up next for Shontelle is a promo tour in support of her new single, “Licky,” which will lead her as-yet-untitled sophomore album, in stores spring of 2010.