Playlist Experience the ‘Burn of These 11 Songs, features music courtesy of Dierks Bentley, Foo Fighters, G-Eazy, Ro James, and Sam Smith among others.

“Can you feel it? Can you feel it? Can you feel it?” (*cues up The Jacksons*). Folks, can you feel the BURN? No, we’re not talking about working out and getting your fitness on at the gym. We’re talking about feeling a burn created by music, sigh. If you haven’t already felt that ‘burn,’ well, you’ll totally feel it after reading about and listening to the 11 songs on this playlist.  Man, oh freaking man, are they burning hot! Okay, okay, enough with the sensationalism! Hopefully, the sheer outlandish energy of this intro will totally make you want to “Experience the ‘Burn of These 11 Songs,” featuring music by Dierks Bentley, Foo Fighters, G-Eazy, Ro James, and Sam Smith.

1. Kacey Musgraves, “Slow Burn”

Golden Hour • MCA Nashville • 2018

“Born in a hurry, always late / Haven’t been early since ’88 / Texas is hot, I can be cold / Grandma cried when I pierced my nose.” Ah, two-time, Grammy-winning country artist Kacey Musgraves shines on her third studio album, Golden Hour, which arrived in March 2018.  Among many highlights from the album is the opener “Slow Burn,” which kicks things off pleasantly.  Musgraves delivers easy-going, smooth vocals.  The songwriting is solid, yet relatively simple and ‘down to earth.’

“‘Cause I’m alright with a slow burn / Taking my time, let the world turn / I’m gonna do it my way, it’ll be alright / If we burn it down and it takes all night, it’s a slow burn.”

2. AJR, “Burn the House Down”

Burn the House Down – Single • BMG Rights Management • 2018

“Should I hang my head low? / Should I bite my tongue? / Or should I march with every stranger from Twitter to get shit done? / Used to hang my head low / Now I hear it loud / Every stranger from Twitter is gonna burn this down.” It’s safe to say that fire is on the minds of pop trio AJR. The collective, comprised of three brothers, dropped “Burn the House Down” at the end of March 2018.  What’s on the minds of these boys? The current political climate, and igniting the revolution… or something along those lines.

Jack Metzger delivers clear, lovely, easy-going tenor vocals, chocked-full of charm. There are some notable musical cues throughout, including cartoonish, Dixieland brass, accentuating the novel quality of this record.  The chorus is full-blown, gargantuan pop.  This includes hard-hitting drums, as well as incorporating the aforementioned brass.  The music in itself is a sight to behold, or rather, some truly decadent ear candy. The chorus, is incredibly catchy.

“Way up way up we go

Been up and down that road

Way up way up, oh no

We gon’ burn the whole house down

Watch me stand in the line

You’re only serving lies

You’ve got something to hide

We gon’ burn the whole house down

We gon’ burn the whole house down.”

3. Dierks Bentley, “Burning Man”

Ft. Brothers Osborne

The Mountain • Capitol Nashville • 2018

“I’m a little bit steady but still little bit rollin’ stone / I’m a little bit heaven but still a little bit flesh-and-bone/ Little found, little don’t-know-where-I-am I’m a little bit holy water but still a little bit burning man.” Country musician Dierks Bentley reflects on his status in life on “Burning Man,” the opening song on his 2018 LP, The Mountain.  On “Burning Man,” he taps Brothers Osborne (TJ Osborne sings the second verse).  The premise seems to be about growing older, wiser, and more mature, yet still imperfect and searching for answers about himself and ‘this thing called life.’

4. Sam Smith, “Burning”

The Thrill of It All • Capitol • 2017

“I’ve been burnin’, yes, I’ve been burnin’ / Such a burden, this flame on my chest / No insurance, to pay for the damage / Yeah, I’ve been burnin’ up since you left.” “Burning”, a ballad from The Thrill of it All, commences beautifully, with Grammy-winning pop artist Sam Smith singing the chorus a cappella.  After setting the tone, piano accompaniment enters, performing an interlude. On the first verse, Smith’s emotional, but in the same token, matches the poise of the production.  He begins to pick up more steam on the pre-chorus, eventually leading into the stunning chorus.

“Funny how time goes by

Had respect for myself

That river ran dry

You reach the limit

I wasn’t enough

it’s like the fire replaced all the love.”

On the second verse, Smith is more liberal with his vocal performance.  By the second pre-chorus, he begins to hit his ‘sweet spot,’ flaunting his sick falsetto.  Essentially, by the final chorus, with Smith letting loose, supported by soulful backing vocals.

5. G-Eazy, “Crash & Burn”

Ft. Kehlani

The Beautiful & Damned • RCA • 2017

“Live each day like it’s your last / ‘Cause you never feel the moment ‘til it’s passed / …Time just keeps on ticking fast / Know, there’s danger in the lesson learned / Slow down before you crash and burn.” “Crash & Burn” appears on the second disc of the 2017 G-Eazy double album, The Beautiful & Damned. Here, Eazy is paired with Grammy-nominated urban contemporary standout Kehlani, who sounds radiant on the chorus (aforementioned).  Within the context of The Beautiful & Damned, thematically, “Crash & Burn” has more substance and thoughtfulness (it’s clearly more transcendent than “Gotdamn” for example). Eazy is on autopilot, spitting assured, yet easily over the beat.

“I’m living like the villain does / They say karma’s comin’ ‘round but until it does / I’m a do these drugs ‘til I feel a buzz / I ain’t slowin’ down, I’m tryna live it up.”

6. Ro James, “Burn Slow”

ELDORADO • ByStorm Entertainment / RCA • 2017

“Oh…shit / Girl, that Honey Jack put us on our back / When we on our back we get to that action / Pour up, pour up.”  Grammy-nominated R&B singer Ro James has a fun, sexy, and substance-filled night (and morning) with his girl on “Burn Slow.” Basically, they’ve been drinking, smoking, and of course, having sex.  On the falsetto-filled chorus of this slow, grinding ballad, James sings about how awesome the experience is.

“Waking up to you in the morning

It’s better than sunrise

So we can keep the curtains closed

Just light a few more candles and burn ‘em slow

Baking up with you in the morning

Trying to get a little rewind

‘Cause I ain’t really ready to let you go…

Just light a few more candles and burn ‘em slow.”

7. Radiohead, “Burn the Witch”

A Moon Shaped Pool • XL • 2016

“This is a low flying panic attack / Sing the song on the jukebox that goes / Burn the witch / Burn the witch / We know where you live.” What happens when you combine Radiohead and witches? Awesomeness, of course! “Burn the Witch” served as a promo single from the band’s 2016 effort, A Moon Shaped Pool.  Furthermore, it’s the opening record from the album.  An intriguing, mysterious affair, “Burn the Witch” makes for a clever, dramatic, and dynamic listening experience. “Stay in the shadows / Cheer at the gallows / This is a round-up.” Thom Yorke’s vocals are splendid, never forced, yet, pack a punch.  Instrumentally, the strings are the crowning achievement. “Red crosses on wooden doors / If you float you burn.”

8. Jazmine Sullivan, “Let It Burn”

Reality Show • RCA • 2015

“Have you ever felt warm on a cold, cold night? / That’s how it get you when you least expect it, and you can’t reject it.” Woo! Grammy-nominated R&B artist Jazmine Sullivan is among the most soulful musicians of present times.  Her dramatic and husky voices is awe-inspiring. It is easy to be mesmerized by her effortless, immense skill.  Following a five-year hiatus, Sullivan returned with her third studio album, Reality Show in 2015.  Among highlights from the LP is “Let It Burn,” where she asserts herself through a combination of strong lyrics and gut-wrenching vocals.  “Let it Burn” is all about love, where Sullivan believes she’s found the love of her life. “You feel that fire, just let it burn,” she sings on the memorable, prudent refrain, “There’s no runnin’ when it’s your turn.”

9. Thomas Rhett, “Crash and Burn”

Tangled Up • Valory • 2015

“Do you hear that? / It’s where I’m at / It’s the sound of teardrops falling down, down, / A slamming door and a lesson learned / I let another love crash and burn.” On his sophomore album, Tangled Up, Thomas Rhett seems like he’s anything but a pure country artist at times, experimenting with a little bit of this and a little bit of that.  On title track “Crash and Burn,” he shines, showing off his lower register before ascending to that twang-driven upper register.  Basically, he sings about flunking at love.  Of course, in real life, we know that’s not the case – Rhett is a married father, something he’d sing about on “Life Changes” from his 2017 album, Life Changes.  Focusing on “Crash and Burn,” this record definitely doesn’t fit the mold of your ‘father’s country music’ – it’s eclectic with the current generation in mind.

10. Sadistik, “Chemical Burns”

Ft. Eyedea & Lotte Kestner

Ultraviolet • Fake Four Inc • 2014 

Seattle, Washington alt-rapper Sadistik slaughters the competition on his impressive 2014 album, Ultraviolet, a thrilling, psychological affair.  Showing unwillingness for conformity threatening creativity, he paves his own way with rhymes truly exemplifying going “H.A.M.” Perhaps his eschewal of pettier topics won’t appeal to everyone, but from the jump, Cody Foster’s talent speaks for itself. “Chemical Burns,” featuring Eyedea and Lotte Kestner, ranks among the highlights, characterized by its twistedness. “Veins like a roadmap, black cold grasp on a throat that / Won’t hold back old habit, Kodak moments go past,” Sadistik spits.  The late Eyedea matches the intensity: “Let’s make this storm feel clean, coward man war machine / Sour plans, plots and schemes, rotten fruit, rotten dreams.” Throw in Kestner on the hook, and “Burns” is a must-hear, gloomy masterpiece.

11. Foo Fighters, “Bridge Burning”

Wasting Light • Roswell / RCA • 2011

“Down crooked stars and sideways glances / Comes the king of second chances / Now throw him in the flame.” Dave Grohl and Foo Fighters are turned-up to the nth degree on “Bridge Burning,” the epic opener from their 2011, Grammy-winning rock album, Wasting Light.  Arguably, Wasting Light is the band’s best rock album of the 2010s, and among the best of their entire discography.  What stands out about “Bridge Burning” are the awesome guitar layers, the loud dynamics, the harmonic progression, and of course Grohl’s roaring, hella assertive vocals.  The chorus is everything – “Your bridges are burning down / They’re all coming down / It’s all coming ‘round.” A killer bridge only adds to the sweetness, in a most hellish, rock and roll sort of way.

Photo Credits: BMG Rights Management, ByStorm Entertainment, Capitol, Capitol Nashville, Fake Four Inc., MCA Nashville, RCA, Roswell, Valory, XL