I was so torn! I couldn't ignore the fact that Marina + the Diamonds slayed the poll we made a few weeks ago asking who the next "Artist of the Month" should be, but I'm also trying to create a larger presence for country music on the blog. Seriously, country music singers are the best story tellers and can be just as fun as pop singers.
Both of these women put albums out in the past couple of weeks and have been among the best so far this year, so when it all boiled down to it, they were both as deserving as each other for the title.
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Carrie Underwood is definitely one of the greatest vocalists of this generation and easily the greatest female entertainer in country. She's racked of over 20 awards between the various country music associations and has even taken home five Grammy Awards (which is more than she's lost).
Most people who are interested in getting into country are more likely to crossover through Carrie, because she is somewhat of a cross genre artist. Though her music is country at hear, you often find pop and rock elements mixed in that make her stand out and reach a larger audience than, say, Sugarland or Lady Antebellum.
Plus, she's is fucking flawless. She has legs like Tina Turner and her hair is laid like the Hanging Gardens of Babylon.
With the release of her latest album, Blown Away, Carrie has come out of her shell a bit more and showcased herself as a vulnerable woman and not just a pretty pageant-like country girl. Her music has become powerfully emotional and sometimes a bit haunting. Still, she manages to shell out country hit after hit after hit and her uptempo songs become women empowerment anthems.
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Marina & the Diamonds recently caught my attention. I had heard her music from her first album The Family Jewels, but it wasn't really my cup of tea. Then she threw a curve ball and released an album full of some of the best dance pop songs that 2012 has heard, like "Homewrecker."
I really love exactly what's she's doing this era, which is almost poking fun at the state of pop music and it's image. She was really genius in combining this sound and 50s candid pinup look because altogether, she went in the perfect direction for a sophomore album. She jumped into a more mainstream sound without going so far as to not being able to revert back to the style of her first album.
She's setting herself up to potentially have a decent string of hits in the US. If she plays her cards right, she could be huge by her 3rd album, though I doubt she'd want the image change that would come with such success.
If you haven't checked out Blown Away or Electra Heart, use their search option on the blog to hear them both.
good girl Vs Primadonna
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