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Song of the Day #3,274: ‘Rap God’ – Eminem vs. Bob Dylan

Here’s an interesting Montauk Madness Round Two matchup, a battle between two provacateurs from very different generations. Eminem isn’t exactly the Bob Dylan of his day, but he certainly stirred up as much controversy and conversation. Can he stir up enough votes to topple a giant?

Dylan got here by defeating my beloved Miranda Lambert in Round One. Lambert managed to pick up 22% of the vote (and she didn’t get mine), hinting at a potential crack in Dylan’s armor. Eminem had an even tougher battle, besting Dave Matthews Band 60% to 40% after some last-minute votes broke a late tie. Continue reading →

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Song of the Day #3,273: ‘Kiss It Better’ – Rihanna vs. R.E.M.

One of the unfortunate trends of Montauk Madness’ first round was the failure of many women to advance. Of 32 acts appearing in Round Two, only four are female. That is down from 15 of the original 64 participants.

Chalk up the poor performance to some very difficult matchups (Miranda Lambert and Shakira faced Bob Dylan and The Beatles, respectively!) as well as a disheartening lack of appreciation for such artists as Tift Merritt and Lana Del Rey.
Continue reading →

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Song of the Day #3,272: ‘Colorblind’ – Counting Crows vs. David Bowie

It’s Week Two of Round Two of Montauk Madness, and we start with a showdown between Counting Crows and David Bowie.

Counting Crows advanced following a unanimous decision over Morrissey in Round One, while David Bowie faced stronger competition in U2 but still won easily with 82% of the vote. Continue reading →

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Song of the Day #3,271: ‘Cowboy Casanova’ – Carrie Underwood

First things first… Happy Father’s Day to all of the fathers out there, especially my own! Your randomly selected Song of the Day is a serenade by Carrie Underwood. Not bad.

Speaking of Underwood… American Idol is returning to TV less than a year after its cancellation by Fox. Today’s Random SOTD is a reminder that, unlike its cooler cousin The Voice, Idol has actually produced some stars over the course of its run. Continue reading →

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Song of the Day #3,270: ‘Country Nation’ – Brad Paisley

Here’s another track by a recent contender in Montauk Madness. Brad Paisley held an early lead over Lana Del Rey, but did he hang on to win? And will those turned off by this full-throated celebration of beer-swilling, football-watching country music fans regret voting for him over the enigmatic chanteuse?

This song is a good example of why I ultimately voted against Paisley. He’s good for one or two of these anthems per album, and that feels way too much like a formula. Continue reading →