Carly Rae Jepsen • Dedicated

https://shop.604records.com/shop/carly-rae-jepsen-dedicated-pre-order/

― kitchen person, Monday, April 1, 2019 2:03 PM (twenty minutes ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

New thred

― Its big ball chunky time (Jimmy The Mod Awaits The Return Of His Beloved), Monday, April 1, 2019 2:03 PM (nineteen minutes ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

lol thx for preserving the middot

It was a priority.

ooh May 17 isn't too far away

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ycBfDNaR_jM

in other carly news here's a track she co-wrote, originally from the emotion sessions (her version leaked years ago)

http://www.pmstudio.com/music/music.html?page=20160205-3452

^ demo v w CRJ

CRJ's style choices (as in fashion) in the last 6 months or so have been A++. Either that or she looks good in everything.

also, LP cover art:
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/D3FC9fzU0AEOob0.jpg

or is it? Just spotted the date in the corner

Yeah, I've been wondering if that's just placeholder art.

same

great cover if it's the real one

strangest feeling of dread for this

ITS GONNA BE A NEW JERSEY

there’s no way this will be her biggest record

stop invoking new jersey meaninglessly thanks

it may be that I'm just not sure my heart can take it!

1. TRACK 1
2. NO DRUGS LIKE ME
3. NOW THAT I FOUND YOU
4. TRACK 4
5. TRACK 5
6. TRACK 6
7. TRACK 7
8. TRACK 8
9. TRACK 9
10. TRACK 10
11. TRACK 11
12. TRACK 12
13. TRACK 13

*DELUXE*
14. TRACK 14
15. TRACK 15

interesting that "party for one" didn't make it

wonder if Track 10 is a Charli cover

tracks five through seven all written by scott walker

ILX pre-cover?

presumably "party for one" didn't make the album because it wasn't a hit (that's the usual reason labels do this isn't it?) but who on her team was seriously expecting it to be one?

including the release date on the cover is so odd

maybe that's when she'll be "dedicated"

including the release date on the cover is so odd

Makes me think of Oasis' Be Here Now.

just following in the footsteps of usher’s 8701

i don't know why album release date on cover art makes me think of this every time
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uifzJleLSbM

Was "Party for One" not a hit?? I mean certainly not on the level of anything from E-MO-TION but I've been hearing it out and about quite a bit.

there's still an outside chance it'll be one of the "TRACK 1"s and/or (more likely) a bonus track

Party For (Track) One

I thought it was pretty popular too, but I just looked at the peak chart positions thing on Wikipedia and... yknow, one of those moments you realize ILX is not the world

Even "I Really Like You" only got to #39 on the Hot 100 in the States. They even got Tom Hanks in the video, like. What more do you people need?! Ug. Goodnight

"party for one" wasn't even especially popular on ILX. it placed at #92 in last year's track poll

great song though deserved better

I like Party For One a good amount but it's my least favourite of the three recent singles.

ILX pre-cover?

Perhaps...but we need songtitles in full first.

I Really Like You got to #3 in the UK but Run Away With Me didn't even make the Top 40 and that was her last "hit" over here.

Bought a presale of the album to get a code to get presale tickets for the London gig. It seemed to sell out in under a minute, so no tickets for me yet.

Im not surenif it works the same in UK, but dometimes in the U.S. with Ticketmaster, if you keep trying you can still score. I think the deal is people will have them in their carts but then not buy them? I tried to buy tickets for something last year and when I logged on at 10 a.m., it said "no tickets available." I kept trying and gave up, but went back half an hour later out of sheer frustration and managed to get some. Dont want to fill you with too much hope but maybe keep trying for a minute.

Turns out I got a code that can only be used for US dates, and I could have got a free code for the London/Paris gigs if I had been paying attention: https://zaphod.uk.vvhp.net/vvreg/14293-637481.html

Ouch

God, the process of buying tickets sucks so much these days.

spotify presale happening now in US

Presale starts at 10:00 AM local
Offer code: DEDICATED at any Ticketmaster purchase point
Ends April 4, 2019 at 10:00 PM

there are way too many presales for this shit

let me just say that i hope everyone at ticketmaster and livenation gets arrested

lol glad crüt and I don't work there anymore

Yep, a very disappointing morning for everyone I knew trying to get tickets.

I didn't get any either :( it was gonna fall on the gf's birthday, so now she is pissed at me. Fuck ticket master.

wow i had no problem getting loge @ Wiltern almost a hour after sale began. shocked and excited

everyone move to Raleigh, looks like there are tickets left for her show here and this way I could actually go because I wouldn't be alone haha

Julien
No Drug Like Me
Now That I Found You
Want You In My Room
Everything He Needs
Happy Not Knowing
I'll Be Your Girl
Too Much
The Sound
Automatically In Love
Feels Right (feat. Electric Guest)
Right Words Wrong Time
Real Love

Bonus:
For Sure
Party for One

hello!

"julien" comes out friday

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xMP-JqFQ_l4

Fully expecting at least an interpolation.

Lekakis all the way

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xXMrDu7374Y

also, if i'm reading this instagram post correctly, this is the actual album cover https://www.instagram.com/p/BwX2Z27FBte/

Yeah, I think you're right. (I did first read it as 'Cover reveal one month away' tho)

Reminds me of Robyn doing the whole I'm pretending to make out with someone gag in Dancing On My Own.

Also, I realize everybody is probably ogling her back, but take a second and gaze upon those fringes! We're going to get some 70s in this album for sure.

you can hear a preview of "Julien" here, which also confirms the album cover: https://itunes.apple.com/nz/album/dedicated/1459935069

sounds really nice, in the vein of the smoother tracks from Emotion like the title track and "Let's Get Lost"

oh jeez i'm gonna love this song

if it lives up to that preview i expect it'll be my favourite so far

ILX pre-cover?

Perhaps...but we need songtitles in full first.

― Ned Raggett, Wednesday, 3 April 2019 04:19 (two weeks ago) Permalink

Julien
No Drug Like Me
Now That I Found You
Want You In My Room
Everything He Needs
Happy Not Knowing
I'll Be Your Girl
Too Much
The Sound
Automatically In Love
Feels Right (feat. Electric Guest)
Right Words Wrong Time
Real Love

Bonus:
For Sure
Party for One

― american bradass (BradNelson), Wednesday, April 17, 2019 7:06 PM (yesterday) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

Just putting this out there :D

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kYoLr2_ruLo

"julien" is indeed really nice. at this point i'm not really expecting this album to be the revelation that Emotion was but if she can keep releasing songs this nice it'll still be a worthy follow up

It's a nice enough song, I guess, but isn't it a bit of an odd choice for an album opener?

this one sounds amazing to me damn

julien
it was more than a fantasy
to the end

this is how you write a pop lyric baby

Me 4 minutes ago: Listen here, fraggle, history is filled with strange album openers! Tears of Rage from Music from Big Pink, Over & Over from Tusk, etc.

Me now: It's a nice enough song, I guess, but isn't it a bit of an odd choice for an album opener?

love the idea of the album swirling and snapping itself into place

it's amazing

i LOVE this

Hook is very prince-y :>

carly singing over what sounds like a french house edit from 2001, feels effortless and weightless in the best way

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vJA42HLg5k4

I can't listen at work so I'm just imagining it's a Dave Matthews cover.

Spice Girls cover obviously.

u guys heard this?

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/p07880pw

"Too Much" is really evocative of something else but i can't place it

it's fine but not amazing

after a few listens i love it </inevitable>

it's v "gimme love, again"

Was looking to see if the album has leaked earlier (it hasn't) and found this unofficial Through My Head EP from a couple of months ago that contains some unreleased tracks from, apparently, 2014-2017

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wWqIaSZYL5E

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5NY3iTeWmZ4

I am sad to report it does not interpolate the vengaboys

although it does have chords similar enough that I almost suspect it was gonna

boom boom boom boom, we couldn't get the clearance, the clearance for the tune

oh i know what "Too Much" reminds me of now, it feels like it's right off Tove Styrke's Sway since the stripped down synth riff with 3-3-2 thing that it does was also the basis for most of the songs on that album

also checked if it had leaked today and was rewarded with a fake leak of a guy yelling "i am carly rae jepsen i love to sing" a lot

link

lmao

it was on soulseek

I am sad to report it does not interpolate the vengaboys

although it does have chords similar enough that I almost suspect it was gonna

boom boom boom boom, we couldn't get the clearance, the clearance for the tune

boom boom boom boom, we couldn't get the clearance, the clearance for the tune

https://pitchfork.com/features/5-10-15-20/carly-rae-jepsen-on-the-music-that-made-her/

I like how with that 5-10-15-20 feature, the older the artist is, the more albums they get to list. Carly Rae only gets 6, but someone like David Byrne gets to list 13.
Anyway, the most interesting thing about her list was the old pictures: https://cdn.pitchfork.com/longform/909/carlyraejepsen4.jpg

The album has leaked for real this time

omg "want you in my room"

why is it so short though!

unrelated to the new album but i had no idea that haim co-wrote "making the most of the night"

15 tracks on mine (but all just under/over the three minute mark)

i meant "want you in my room" not the album. "for sure" and "party for one" are officially bonus tracks though

https://www.stereogum.com/2040713/carly-rae-jepsen-dedicated-album-review/franchises/premature-evaluation/

this review is pretty otm

i don't agree with it v much at all, least of all that it sorta disses kiss

nstead, we’re getting bland songs to soundtrack inspirational Queer Eye ads -- yeah

mostly i think critics projected too hard onto emotion

As a whole, Dedicated’s palette is more muted. It’s more in line with the current vogue of anesthetized songs than E•MO•TION was, which felt like a bright burst in the face of pop’s moody grays.

also this is an inaccurate description of the record

also, bad writing

shouting “firsties” shouldn’t be a command to be taken seriously. and yet

Stereogum in bad writing shocka

i think this album rules and blows emotion out of the water

but i’ve come to understand that most ppl will find that position crazy

I never considered Emotion a front-to-back masterpiece; it's its own sonic identity, different from Kiss, which I like as much.

i'll be your girl >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

i think even the one that sounds like random access memories is great

As a whole, Dedicated’s palette is more muted. It’s more in line with the current vogue of anesthetized songs than E•MO•TION was, which felt like a bright burst in the face of pop’s moody grays.

people get too affected by album cover art sometimes

The stereogum review is pretty OTM about Emotion (there really isn't a bad song anywhere on there), so i'm a little apprehensive about hearing the new one now.

1 day, people!

Emotion wasn't meant to be this big statement album. It, like Dedicated, was just another collection of songs that happened to be excellent across the board. It was merely just the next album. The record found its own high critical acclaim, and it resonated with a sizable audience, and a large part of that connection had to do with the internet word-of-mouth for CRJ that came out of the love for Kiss (which is still an incredible record ftr). Not only is this Stereogum review holding Decidated in constant comparison to Emotion, but it's also creating this false narrative out of what this critic remembers witnessing during the Emotion era and is furthermore imbuing Carly Rae with false intentions as to how she makes music and navigates her career.

I don't have access to this fancy-ass leak yet. Just gonna have to wait until tomorrow. In the meantime, I'm just gonna share this emotion-era brain worm that has been troubling me.


But I still love you I'm sorry
I'm sorry, I love you
I didn't mean to say what I said
I miss you, I mean it
https://i.kym-cdn.com/entries/icons/original/000/022/158/Peanut.jpg

“everything he needs” is brilliant, eagerly awaiting jepsen sings nilsson

Jepsen Schmepsen

i think even the one that sounds like random access memories is great

― J0rdan S., Thursday, May 16, 2019 8:43 AM (six hours ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

is this "feels right"? i think it is kind of a jam

i'll be your girl >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

― J0rdan S., Thursday, May 16, 2019 8:40 AM (six hours ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

YOU'RE MY
BABY

is this "feels right"? i think it is kind of a jam

― american bradass (BradNelson), Thursday, May 16, 2019 6:32 PM (nine minutes ago) Bookmark

ha no i meant the one you compared to harry nilsson

"automatically in love," a jam, "happy not knowing," a jam, album is lousy with jams

"automatically in love" is my actual favorite

ha no i meant the one you compared to harry nilsson

― J0rdan S., Thursday, May 16, 2019 3:43 PM (one minute ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

ahhh i hear it lol

i love the "automatically in love" chorus is so good that i'm not only overlooking the multiple mixed metaphors but embracing them

i think the**

should I get “Kiss” I’m sensing perhaps I should, I haven’t heard it

YES

preferably a copy with all the bonus tracks you can get

kiss is amazing

kiss rules, the japanese bonus track "melt with you" is essential

I....think I like Dedicated better than Emotion overall? At least on first blush? A more consistent vs higher highs type deal.

yeah, Dedicated is really good. I've only listened to it once so far but I can only see myself warming to it more and more

Oh my god, this is so good. This is gonna age sooo well

this was enjoyable enough and then a track began and i thought 'shit this sounds like warmed-over 1980s' and of course it's the track ilx is going mad for

yeah, imo this is a good first three tracks then a very long snooze. 'party for one' came on eventually as a bonus track and woke me up. that style for me is her strength, not the sophisti-mithering that makes the bulk of this

but anyway, go wild

This is currently one of the three headlines on the BBC front page. Amazing

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-48265955

i live for 'real love'. such a jam.

i think this album rules and blows emotion out of the water

― J0rdan S., Thursday, May 16, 2019 11:35 AM (yesterday) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

(wonder if this'll be a less uncommon opinion among kiss partisans generally)

this > kiss (there are a few mediocre tracks but at least they're mediocre solo tracks and not mediocre tracks with owl city) > emotion

this > kiss

a ranking i can’t resist

coming around to thinking this is better than emotion

oh boy

After three consecutive listens, I thought this the weakest of her records on beats alone; for me the rhythms go splat

i think this one is pretty great up until and including "Too Much" but then falls off a little. idk where it'll end up in relation to Kiss, which is mostly fantastic except for "Good Time" (which would probably be perfectly tolerable if unspectacular without Owl City's presence), "Beautiful" and "Guitar String/Wedding Ring" (just rather awkward to me).

it doesn't quite reach the same highs as consistently as Emotion did or hold together quite as well either imo but Emotion really captured a certain syncopated sophisti-pop sound perfectly for me on some tracks so i'm fine that she's done something a little different and a bit more playful.

"Feels Right" is the only one I'd ditch, I think.

<3 "i'll be your girl"

i love the way "automatically in love" unspools out of "the sound"

"Want You In My Room" is reminding me of "Heart and Soul" by T'Pau.
Great track (both of them, actually)

opener is very city pop. which i approve of.

CRJ - I'm sorry I ever doubted you. The new album is solid.

that panning shimmer in the chorus of "now that i found you" really sold me on the song

Really surprised just how much I love this album. I enjoyed the singles fine, but they did make me lower by expectations a good amount. To say she recorded 200 songs and seemed to really feel the pressure of following up Emotion, she sounds so confident and relaxed throughout this album. Nothing sounds too labored over or anything. The whole thing is such a joy.

Interview on NPR right now is totally weird, treating her super gingerly as if her parents were just killed in a bomb blast, rather than as if she has just written the 10 millionth breakup album but otherwise sounds perfectly fine.

what is “for sure” and is there any more of it

The chorus of "Automatically in Love" is so delicious

Every album I've wanted to be good this year has been bad, so I'm ecstatic about exactly how good this one is.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rJw32FXV97A

Reminds me of this

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uutT2pMEPqk

🎶 he needs me / he needs me 🎶 ^_^

Tons of filler on this thing - Julian is a terrible album opener and after that I don't like anything beyond track 5. I Want You In My Room is the obvious highlight, but as mentioned above, way too short. Hoping for a 12-inch edit.

This is good, certainly, but thinking I'll like the live show even more. (The crowd last time I saw her in 2016 was off the charts, in the best possible way.)

“happy not knowing” splits the difference between kiss and emotion side b and it’s amazing

not liking "i'll be your girl", "automatically in love", "real love" etc is completely crazy !

The “he needs me” section in Everything He Needs has got to be a nod to the Shelley Duvall song in Popeye, right?

Nilsson is credited

"julien" isn't "run away with me" but it's one of the highlights here

Julian is great, I’d love an 80s style 6-minute extended remix to DJ with.

I just keep thinking of The Shield actor and irl wife murderer Michael Jace.

Listening again and some of the other stuff is growing on me a little. I'll keep trying.

Damn, Julien murdered his wife?

I am halfway through my first listen of this album and liking it, though it doesn't seem as sticky as Emotion yet. are the guitars on "Want You in My Room" sampled? sounds like a Chameleons song or something

I'm liking it better and better. Maybe I was just feeling prickly when I listened to it yesterday.

Too Much is the only one that's really doing it for me.

Misheard lyrics file:

Automatically in love
Right away, baby, it's a real motherfucker
When the wind goes the other way

she's describing a fart iirc

Alfred!

I'm 100% in on those album now. Don' know what was going on with me on Sunday. J0rdan otm:

i've heard some songs from this and... i don't think anyone has anything to worry about

― J0rdan S., Monday, 25 February 2019 04:35 (two months ago) Permalink

the, not "those"

Too Much bangs very hard it is also an exceptional Taylor Swift song

oooooooooo ooo
NEVER GUESS WHAT CAME AFTER

Something's coming over me, I need to get a hold of you now from Real Love really jumped out at me and for some reason instantly made me think of the Wilco line His fangs have been pulled and I really want to see you tonight from Poor Places. Which is quite a stretch, yes, but Yankee Hotel Foxtrot was one of the most visible albums in that shot of Carly in front of a shelf of records that was floating around the other day.

I had a very similar experience, was lukewarm at first , but then after repeated listens the nuances in the production paired with the lyrics really made me changed my mind. So much so , that I prefer it over EMOTION.

I had a very similar experience, was lukewarm at first , but then after repeated listens the nuances in the production paired with the lyrics really made me changed my mind. So much so , that I prefer it over EMOTION.

you prefer it over REASON

really into this after one listen

besotted by the album; "on the bed! on the floor!....i don't care! anymore!" and "and i'll press you to the pages of my HEART!" are both top tier carly moments

second favourite song on the album after WYIMR is "everything he needs", it's the most glorious thing to use as a soundtrack for a sunny walk

Favorite moment of the album has to beThe second verse from WYIMR " When no one loves you like they really mean it I got you covered, under covers, Can you feel it?" There is something so endearingly cheesy but affirming about it.

Totally agree with monotony on the 2 highlights.

Dedicated: "Break up with that Ariana album, I'm bored"
Me: "You had me at 'slide on through my window'"

"I'll Be Your Girl" the clear underrated track here

so many favorite moments all over the whole record -- my most favorites have been "Julien" and "Want You In My Room"

79I've been underrating I'll Be Your Girl. It's very different from the rest of the album. It would have been cool if she had released a whole album or ep or single like that or something, but it does kinda stick out here, imo. I do agree that it's a successful pop rock song though, a la No Doubt or Paramore.

The swoopy little synth from Automatically In Love feels like when you're on the Scrambler at the county fair.

Feels Right is one of my favorites on the record now. What does everybody think about her frazzled vocals on the chorus?

(no idea where the 79 came from, sorry)

Feels Right is one of my favorites on the record now. What does everybody think about her frazzled vocals on the chorus?

I love 'em. Actually sound even better next to those generic dudebro vocals

I love them too! I just hope she isn't hurting herself as much as it sounds like. Also, I didn't realize that the backing vocals were so generic. I don't keep up with much dude pop these days.

But on a similar note, I have had a disquieting thought about Want You In My Room. I've been operating under the assumption that Carly herself provided the vocodered vox on the chorus. But what if it was Jack Antonoff and the song was more of a duet? Under so much processing - would it matter? It kind of gives me chills (the bad kind). Is there any evidence to support or debunk this?

i don't have liner notes in front of me but i've been assuming the robotic voice in the chorus is him. i... don't think this makes the song a duet any more than his "whoaaoh"s on "out of the woods" would

I guess I just don't want Jack Antonoff wanting me in his room.

I'm not seriously serious on this btw.

Want You In My Room
Written by Carly Rae Jepsen, Jack Antonoff and Tavish Crowe
Published by Universal Music Corp./Jepsen Music Publishing (ASCAP), Sony/ATV Songs LLC / Ducky Donath Music (BMI), Crowe Music Publishing (SOCAN)
Produced by Jack Antonoff
Mixed by Serban Ghenea
Mixed at MixStarStudios, Virginia Beach, VA
Engineer: John Hanes
All instruments and programming by Jack Antonoff
Engineered by Laura SiskRecorded at Conway Studios, Los Angeles, CA
Mastered by Gene Grimaldi at Oasis Mastering, Burbank, CA

deduce from this what you will

Not enough love for "For Sure" in here.

amazing song

Another song I wish they would have extended. Could have let that outro ride for another minute.

Albeit the lenght, "For sure" is a top track for me , the way the chants dispersed throughout the song always end differently, really was what drew me in.

the twin horn lines at the end of “i’ll be your girl” are wonderful and i have no way of confirming this but i suspect they’re there bc crj is a huge van morrison fan

Wow, she's finally doing a Canadian tour.

Carly Rae Jepsen’s ‘Dedicated’ has the highest Metacritic user score in history https://t.co/YwxNOrHvK1 pic.twitter.com/g21hY5ciwr

— Don't Bore Us (@DontBoreUs) May 22, 2019

Not enough love for "For Sure" in here.

― self-clowning oven (Murgatroid), Wednesday, 22 May 2019 17:05 (two days ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

amazing song

― american bradass (BradNelson), Wednesday, 22 May 2019 17:08 (two days ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

came here to etc etc

It would be tough for this to match Emotion, and it doesn't have quite the same consistency for me. Also the songs are roughly in the order of my favorite to least favorite, which is a weird coincidence that doesn't leave much to look forward to. Still, good album! Would like to hear more in the vein of "I'll Be Your Girl", which is the biggest departure

don't know if it's her confidence or my imagination but i think her singing is an asset this time around as opposed to emotion that mostly sold terrific songs

xp Would actually be interested to hear your take on it if you listen back to front?

I like this album a lot, after a few plays so far. Hard to compare to Emotion as I might've played that one out for myself

Julien my fave as well

how can you save pop music if you don't have a hit?

re:

Carly Rae Jepsen once again saved pop music last week with the release of her fourth record, Dedicated. Now, as Stereogum points out, the record now has the highest Metacritic user score of all time, beating out Kendrick Lamar and Radiohead.

saved critics' faith in pop music?

don't worry critics, carly rae jepsen will probably release even more albums in the future!

PROMISE?!

9.4 is the user score, not the actual Metacritic score (which is 79).

oh, so she just has the most internet stans?

I guess, lol. New headline: Carly Rae Jepsen Liked by People on Internet

Or they just happened to choose metacritic to focus on. Don't "Swifties" buy multiple copies of Taylor Swift albums? Step it up, Jepset!

I checked BTS (who have a notoriously zealous stanbase), and even their user scores aren’t as high. My theory is that CRJ has lots of vocal fans and no enemy fan armies showing up for negative votes.

Like who would bother downvoting a Carly Rae Jepsen album? She seems to be either loved or ignored

Like Ariana Grande before the donuts. Hmmmm

Would actually be interested to hear your take on it if you listen back to front?

Hah, that's an idea. One of the only albums I can think of where the songs go from least favorite to favorite is the Smiths' The Queen is Dead (big exception: "Vicar in a Tutu"). I think the impact of that ordering is I have more attention for the tracks I'm not as crazy about

"real love" is toward the end of this record so

xp Try reversing both. Your heart gets unbroke, the vicar gets out of his tutu, etc!

big gym sw0les (crüt) at 10:48 27 May 19

how can you save pop music if you don't have a hit?

unpopular pop music is a cornerstone of ilm

Or, as Xgau used to call it, "Semi-Popular Music".

QuasILX-pop

you do realize people actually go to carly rae jepsen shows

I wish they did one big another over here so I could go!

crj at islington assembly hall was a bit like being on e

I did make that one, contender for my gig of the decade!

Everything He Needs is my song of the summer. Not sure if it's intentional but it feels like a sunshiny flipside to Wham!'s Everything She Wants. I agree with whoever it was who said Dedicated doesn't quite hit the highs of Emotion but is much more solid overall. What a great album.

ooooooooooooooooo. oooh

NEVER GUESS WHAT CAME AFTER

Thank you for the reminder that I'm seeing her next week.

i seem to never get tired of this record

just love the way she sings "but" before the chorus of "happy not knowing"

Lost my shit at CRJ live in San Francisco tonight

Yeah that was a fucking amazing show all around. Setlist:

https://www.setlist.fm/setlist/carly-rae-jepsen/2019/bill-graham-civic-auditorium-san-francisco-ca-1b917940.html

Incredibly sequenced, she's leaning into the range of her catalog (okay fine, not the first album) perfectly at this point, and it can carry a full show easily. When you can place “Call Me Maybe” six songs in, close the main set with “Party For One” and close the encore and the whole night with a confetti cannon/ultraPride “Cut to the Feeling” you are firing on all fours. Speaking of that, Mark Kanemura really was the killer touch:

https://www.instagram.com/p/BzTFpQAJV0B/

Carly and @mKiK808 on stage tonight.📸 pic.twitter.com/G6xVi6fath

— Carly Rae Jepsen News (@carlylatest) June 29, 2019

🏳️‍🌈 @carlyraejepsen sang GAY RIGHTS (feat. @mKiK808) pic.twitter.com/PlEi8ILKet

— 𝕢𝕦𝕪𝕒𝐫𝐢𝐜𝐤 🏳️‍🌈 (@quyarick) June 29, 2019

Smart midset costume change break too.

Also, the shirts etc were a fun range. We both ended up going for the long sleeve black T-shirt with this on the front and the song title/her name on the back. Very metal.

So @squidita and I await @carlyraejepsen at the Bill Graham. No drug like her. Attn @randlechris etc pic.twitter.com/5asIGMLgIz

— Ned Raggett (@NedRaggett) June 29, 2019

it's crazy to me that she doesn't do "i know you have a girlfriend". it's her best song.

pretty sure she's only performing kiss bonus tracks in my dreams

the number one Kiss album track i'd wanna hear her do is "More Than A Memory"

https://www.thestranger.com/features/2019/08/28/41215406/we-cant-stop-listening-to-carly-rae-jepsen

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NY1RsDpRmIU

It's as if her production team has taken the 80s touches of "Really Like You" and gone wild, because it sounds like the great lost Five Star single.

The UK Chart Company's website lists artists alphabetically, by first name, so I learn that the most popular first name beginning with a C for pop musicians in the UK is Chris. I also learn that Chris Morris' Blue Jam got to number 97 for a week back in April 2000. For that one week, our kind triumphed.

Dedicated also spent one week on the chart, entering and leaving at number 26 (it was a lot less popular than Lemar's Dedicated back in 2003). I realise that the UK pop charts are no longer the single definitive measure of an artist's worth, but even so it feels incredibly unfair for the album to spend just one week on the chart. I spent most of the second half of last month trying not to sing "oooooh, have I said too much / I'm so in my head / when we're out of touch", and it's not often that modern pop music penetrates my brain like that ("I Really Life You" was a top ten hit over here).

I mean, usually when an pop singer in her environment has a chart dip they get dumped. I still remember when B*Witched were dropped by their label because one of their singles only got to #12 or something albeit that it was a different world back then. And yet the record company are still backing Jepsen so presumably either she's really nice, or she has a fantastic manager, or someone in a position of power recognises that she puts out consistently good records. Also she seems to be able to sing live.

Here's an 8-Bit cover of "I Really Like You":
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-qZ3RBW6OVE

It's fascinating from a song construction point of view. The verse is a lot stronger than "Call me Maybe" (the verse in that song is perfunctory - it only exists to space out the chorus), but the switch from "I feel like I could die" to "late night watching television" feels disjointed, and the chorus treads a fine line between being awesome and being a novelty, and yet it works and many years later I still remember it.

the sophistipop clash of synths and saxophone at the end of "want you in my room" is so fuckin good

the video is SO GOOD i have watched it several times

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6o0EN7CoLao

her cover of don't speak was not very good unfortunately

was listenin' to this record for the first time in awhile this week. i still LOVE it. thx for awesome vid Brad

this video made my day.
thank you.

can't imagine this will be anything less than a ton of fun
https://www.npr.org/2019/11/25/781452256/carly-rae-jepsen-tiny-desk-concert?utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=music&fbclid=IwAR3W7OEMn9dsvbkq6fij2MppA0r2tIzU86InoR6s_f9hV-tfHxRKNSMTeIk

She seems to be teasing something on Twitter

Catch you later! 💘 pic.twitter.com/wfvQcYZNzY

— Carly Rae Jepsen (@carlyraejepsen) February 4, 2020

(it's a new song on friday)

Her show here next week has been moved from a 2,000 capacity theater (that e.g. Paramore sold out in 2018 and where Taylor Swift played her one-off last year) to a 700 capacity venue :(

only the real hedz

yeah kind of a bummer for her but good news for everyone attending

tbh I didn’t even know she was playing here until I saw the story about the move. It’s a Monday night, that can’t help.

This album grew on me a lot but it took a bunch more plays than Emotion.

I'm going to see her live on Friday! That venue was upgraded from a bigger one too.

The show on Sat in London I'm going to was upgraded from under 2,000 capacity Roundhouse to 5,000 capacity Brixton Academy. I feel like nothing will live up to seeing her in the 800 size Islington Town Hall on the Emotion tour though, one of my fondest gig memories, certaining from the last 10 years.

the Assembly Hall you mean? (which is next to the Town Hall) I was there and it was like one long ecstasy rush - absolutely incredible.

That’s the one, what a night.

https://open.spotify.com/track/6tcjcJFRSdkIlThUUP39mJ

song seems great but the vocal production is horrible

every sound in this sounds weird not just the vocals

How are you listening? Spotify tells me it’s not out until tomorrow. Am I supposed to understand you all have some kind of cool guy magic that permits you to hear songs from the future?

the cool guy magic of timezones

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T_OYT396cYw

lol yeah the vocal production is v bizarre, sounds like a low quality kylie minogue demo. song's pretty cute

I'm glad this didn't make the album (assuming it's an outtake) - I'm not a big fan of CRJ in mocking mode

I'm not much a fan of the "dicks" skit in the middle.

poptimism found murdered

Turns out live she is the fucking best

the show I went to in December was absolutely fabulous

what the actual fuck has happened to carly's vocal production post-emotion

Her vocal prod sounds like my voice after screaming about her West Coast tour announcement this morning!

Alsooo guess what west coast...I’m playing three special shows in addition to Coachella this spring! Oakland, Seattle, Portland – I can hardly wait! 💕
Presale starts Tuesday at 10 AM with code FRIENDS, in honor of my new song 🤩https://t.co/00Rj4ihjRc pic.twitter.com/nOBoo54sbc

— Carly Rae Jepsen (@carlyraejepsen) February 7, 2020

Rumours going around that Dedicated Side B is coming in two weeks. Twelve new songs not including Let's Be Friends.

really hope it's true

"automatically in love" greatest song of all time

pic.twitter.com/bOMFPLLd1X

— friends of pudding (@friend2pudding) May 7, 2020

Dedicated Side B out now everywhere: https://open.spotify.com/album/7oHKKCXCFIv3J1Yh5F08pu?si=PuVRmWLLSECtedhQ1vS-ww

Awesome!

how on earth did "this love isn't crazy" not make the album

wow "comeback" rules

"my home is your body, I can't stay away" <--- finally, a love song for Cronenberg fans

make that two songs! that broke my brain a bit.

not to knock the songs on this one too harshly but I think she just about nailed the song selection for the "real" album

jesus christ she did it again

there are quite a few songs on here i have no idea how she could have chosen "feels right" over for instance.

hence "just about" lol

"window"!!!!! what was that!!!!

xps Interesting, I feel the exact opposite. For me the back half of Dedicated is a bit patchy, but after one listen I love this one all the way through. Which is a pleasant surprise bc I thought Emotion Side B was significantly weaker than the og album (except for Cry, which is all-time).

Man, Now I Don't Hate California is sooo lush w/the twinkling synths and wave sound fx. I wish it went on for twice as long. Also side B is only five minutes shorter than the album proper!!

"stay away," wtf... how is this happening

i agree about the back half of dedicated being a bit patchy and this one being more consistent

back half of dedicated is all jams except "feels right" which is almost too linear of a "jam" to be a jam, but it ruled live so whatever

anyway thrilled to have another perfect collection of crj songs somehow, HOW IS SHE SO FUCKING GOOD

For me the back half of Dedicated is a bit patchy

imo "Feels Right" is the only sour note on the whole thing. "Right Words Wrong Time" and "Real Love" ar etop tier for moi.

lol xp

like "heartbeat," what's up with that glistening backdrop, where did it come from

the strings on "summer love"

Gonna have to put the entire Dedicated set on shuffle for a few days to sort this out. What a trial.

the early-new order instrumentation of "let's sort the whole thing out"

Can't wait to check this out. Dedicated never really bit me. Maybe I can cobble together my own tracklist between the two of them.

"comeback" is donna lewis-core

i like that she put "felt this way" and "stay away" together on the tracklist. variations on a theme

Oh man, this is so much better than last year's record.

I liked, didn't love, the Dedicated album and idk you guys most everything here seems left off the album for a reason. Like Dedicated is lesser than Emotion, so are the leftovers.

"summer love" is an unreal mirage of a song

dedicated isn't lesser than emotion, looking forward to hearing the b-sides

"this love isn't crazy", "window", "heartbeat", "let's sort the whole thing out", "comeback", "solo" are all great and the rest is still solid. feels about equal to dedicated in quality overall which is very good if not emotion-level

this rules

Fun interview:

https://amp.theguardian.com/music/2020/may/22/carly-rae-jepsen-lockdown-listening-my-fridge-caught-on-fire

Too early to say which songs I would have preferred to see on the A-sides release, but "Let's Sort The Whole Thing Out" would definitely have been one of my favorite tracks from that album. I might have also put "Felt This Way" on the album proper.

i would replace "feels right" with "summer love" if i cared to do such a thing

I don't love all of this (even Carly can't sell "I'll be your special somebody/God I love your body") but from "Heartbeat" through to "Now I Don't Hate California After All" makes a super solid stretch and those two particular songs (+ "Let's Sort The Whole Thing Out") are among my favourites she's done.

It’s buried near the end, but Solo is the big euphoric pop banger here.

"Solo" bugs me a bit for some reason I can't quite discern

i know we're still talking about side b but i was just thinking about how "happy not knowing" is the best song ever

Definitely a highlight

guess who also has a quarantine album in the pipeline

i put off digging into dedicated for a long time, and i just realized it was the monochromatic cover putting me off. emotion is overflowing with color, so monochrome felt like a bad turn. but i'm listening to it now and it's just. remarkable.

does anyone else have this experience with carly where she seems to have an uncanny ability to go through my mental listening history, pick out sounds i've liked but wish there were more examples of, and then make perfect songs from them? is this just me?

I can't say I feel you on the second point exactly (she does use a lot of cool sounds tho), but I used to feel like albums with black and white covers somehow made the music more drab

As for Side B, "Comeback" is my big keeper from the album

"julien" is such an incredible song

julien,
it was more than a fantasy
to the end

will a more perfect lyric ever be written?

through the
last
breath
that
i
breathe

omg the sheer euphoria of the chorus coming in after the bridge, I can't tell if it's just me but the harmony that goes up instead of down sounds like it's mixed just a biiiit louder and it gives it so much lift

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BCrxhRe2d2w

she's the greatest

How dare you (post this right before I was going to).

I will probably never listen again but this is adorable

I love them too! I just hope she isn't hurting herself as much as it sounds like. Also, I didn't realize that the backing vocals were so generic. I don't keep up with much dude pop these days.

But on a similar note, I have had a disquieting thought about Want You In My Room. I've been operating under the assumption that Carly herself provided the vocodered vox on the chorus. But what if it was Jack Antonoff and the song was more of a duet? Under so much processing - would it matter? It kind of gives me chills (the bad kind). Is there any evidence to support or debunk this?

― ☮ (peace, man), Wednesday, May 22, 2019 12:41 PM (one year ago) bookmarkflaglink

i don't have liner notes in front of me but i've been assuming the robotic voice in the chorus is him. i... don't think this makes the song a duet any more than his "whoaaoh"s on "out of the woods" would

― american bradass (BradNelson), Wednesday, May 22, 2019 12:45 PM (one year ago) bookmarkflaglink

I guess I just don't want Jack Antonoff wanting me in his room.

― ☮ (peace, man), Wednesday, May 22, 2019 12:48 PM (one year ago) bookmarkflaglink

I just got around to listening to the CRJ interview on the Switched On Pop podcast from last May. Not a favorite podcast of mine, to be honest, but I went back to it since it's an interview. Anyway, relevant passage: "Jack's so gifted at the vocoder." I am at peace with this fact though. It doesn't bother me like it did back then.

what a great friday album

Gonna be time for a new thread soon. Just not sure if Western Wind is a song or album title.

https://www.stereogum.com/2182604/carly-rae-jepsen-western-wind/news/

Just a reminder to whoever gets to it first - preserve • the • middot

lol thx for preserving the middot

― Johnny Fever, Monday, April 1, 2019 10:25 AM (three years ago) bookmarkflaglink

It was a priority.

― ☮ (peace, man), Monday, April 1, 2019 10:27 AM (three years ago) bookmarkflaglink

Yes!

western wind let's do this!!!!

very promising

you know it’s spring🌸 pic.twitter.com/m9IPigPoAt

— Carly Rae Jepsen (@carlyraejepsen) April 11, 2022

Jesus that sounds good.

Single out next week

But could you give me peace of mind
if I return to you in time
my golden arrow pic.twitter.com/0TxalNRl1G

— Carly Rae Jepsen (@carlyraejepsen) April 28, 2022

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gZiEvY6d8Y4

here it is at last, going for 90s downtempo vibes

not bad but feels like a weird single choice?

very pleasant

I like it. It was pretty underwhelming when she played it in the middle of her Coachella set the other week, so I'm glad that the recorded version sounds better to me. I hope we get word about an album soon, rather than having to wait in interminable silence or through several more sporadically released singles.

i really like this. some cool credits, too: rostam, angel deradoorian, shawn everett

Woah, I had never heard of any of them, but looked them up and yeah, that is an interesting group of collaborators!

new crj just dropped

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tH4p_MX4YG8

ok jokes aside (that decker song gets stuck in my head every time i hear it anyway)

wow!

what a song!

production is something else, spacious, breezy

this is very "I Love You Always Forever" and therefore very good

great song

this is very "I Love You Always Forever" and therefore very good

― boxedjoy

First song that came to mind as well

This feels like what Lorde was trying to sound like in her last album but actually nailing it.

Another new album released today that I'm excited about, needs it's own thread and almost missed this news

Album not out yet just a single

But if its any indication it’s going to be really good.

Haha was looking through new releases and they must've mixed singles and albums together

Beautiful song

Whew I'm relieved. From the title and some of the photography leading up to this, I thought she was going to go down a Folklore/Evermore path and I wasn't into that idea AT ALL.

Quite nice! The Decker song, I mean. crj song is pretty nice too

Great Lush Song, very "Warm Blood" that was also produced by Rostajm, love it honestly.

Which also not hard to imagine fitting in a Vampire Weekend album, most likely Modern Vampires of the City.

As far as album teasers go,
Western Wind >>>>> Party For One

I hope Rostam is involved with more songs on this album. Warm Blood is peak CRJ.

Perhaps it’s partly the song title but I am getting strong early Saint Etienne vibes from this.

"western wind" is so good

https://www.instagram.com/p/Cgw2bmzuB0P/

new album the loneliest time out october 21

time for a new thraed

I have tix to see her on Oct. 4, I guess I'll be hearing some new stuff.

the new thread preserves the middot, but our pop savior's name is now Carly Rae Jensen. Sorry folks, it's official.

Carly Rae Jensen • The Loneliest Time

We wanted to be Jetsons, but instead we're all Jensens.

I suppose you could say that people who go to see her live will intercept 'er. Hahaha.

Get it? Interceptor? Jensen Interceptor? The car? There was a four-wheel drive version as well. I mean technically it was called the Jensen FF, but humour me.

No, I'm just David Kid Jensen-ing. Kid-ding. Kidding. They've changed the thread title now so it does't work.

still really prefer this record to emotion, def a minority position but even the songs i once thought sounded like reheated ideas ("now that i found you") are sick jams

"happy not knowing"... pure bliss

agree with you 100% brad and if you say this to any jepsen fan they’ll look at you like you have three heads

Probably not as crazy my assertion that Tug of War is one of her best songs.

still think this falls off in the last third, there was definitely material on side b that deserved to be on here instead

but you do have to love her generosity, having released double albums worth of material from the sessions for each of her last 3 albums, makes for fun sequence it yourself exercises

What gets bonkers is that, despite releasing these "double albums", for certain CRJ die-hards, there's still an entire rabbit hole of unreleased CRJ songs that have since been leaked to the internet, such as Disco Darling (which uses a lyric that ended up in Window).

give us the 8-disc boxsets already