More Stars | 5ive Songs

In the 48^th edition of 5ive Songs (2022), we select five songs that are associated with STARS in some form or fashion.

Welcome to 5ive Songs, where we keep things short and sweet – no extra calories or needless fluff! There’s a theme/topic, five songs, and a short blurb.  Yes, it’s a playlist, but it’s a miniature playlist that shouldn’t take much time to consume.  In the 48^th edition of 5ive Songs (2022), we select five songs that are associated with STARS in some form or fashion.  Okay, let’s get into it!

1. Panic! At The Disco, “Star Spangled Banger”

💿 Viva Las Vengeance • 🏷 Fueled By Ramen • 📅 2022

Naturally, when you see the title, 🤩 🎵 “Star Spangled Banger,” the first thing that comes to mind is “The Star-Spangled Banner”.  Of course, this is no traditional national anthem by 🎙 Brendon Urie and 🎙 Panic! At the Disco on their seventh studio album, 💿 Viva Las Vengeance.  With “Star Spangled Banger,’ Urie has penned something new and left of center.

“We are the kids from the underground

We are the new mainstream

We are the mass hysteria

In the land of the brave

Home of the freaks.”

Indeed! Brendon expounds beyond the chorus, mentioning a lip ring and an utterly average GPA (that non-conformist spirit).  He also shows pride for Las Vegas, and, perhaps, speaks about finding refuge in music.  It is a banger, indeed!

2. The Weeknd, “Starry Eyes”

💿 Dawn FM • 🏷 Republic • 📅 2022 

“I only met you in my dreams before / When I was young and alone in the world.” Interesting, 🎙 The Weeknd, interesting. Please, continue. “You were there when I need someone / To call my girl / And now, you’re my reality.” Sounds like L-O-V-E to me.  Certainly, on 🎵 “Starry Eyes,” The Weeknd makes a paradigm shift.  Throughout his fifth studio album, 💿 Dawn FM, he shows different perspectives regarding love.  Early on, he runs away from it. As the album progresses, he embraces it.

“Starry Eyes” is a perfect example where The Weeknd embraces that universal four-letter word.  This shift begins with the preceding song, 🎵 “Is There Someone Else?” but it is “Starry Eyes” where he’s all-in. The 🏆 Grammy-winning superstar wants to assure her he’ll do right by her – “Let me be there for your heart / Let me love you.”  He adds, “You weren’t touched by a man in so long / ‘Cause the last time, it was way too strong.” He wants to be here everything – “Make it my responsibility / I’ll be there every step of the way.”  Wow! There are, however, some lyrics that stand out amongst the rest at the end.  One Genius annotator hypothesizes these could be addressed to critical fans:

“Back then, I was starry-eyed

And now I’m so cynical

Baby, break me

Kick me to the curb.”

Intriguing for sure!

Appears in 🔻:

• 11 Anatomical Songs – To Some Degree º

3. Benson Boone, “In The Stars”

💿 Walk Me Home… (EP) • 🏷 Night Street / Warner • 📅 2022

“I’m screaming at a God, I don’t know if I believe in / ‘Cause I don’t know what else I can do.” Now that’s a faith crisis, right there! 🎵 “In The Stars” marked my very first-time hearing 🎙 Benson Boone.  We all know first times are special, and that was the case hearing “In the Stars.” In the context of his debut EP, 💿 Walk Me Home…, “In The Stars” marks Boone’s third consecutive ballad, which might ordinarily feel a bit monotonous.

HOWEVER, this medium – big-voiced song – is where a gifted artist like him is at his best.  Beyond his exceptional vocal on “In The Stars,” Boone’s songwriting, alongside 🎼 ✍ 🎛 Jason Evigan (also produces) and 🎼 ✍ Michael Pollack, is elite.  What makes it so elite? Thematically, it encompasses loss: “Now you’re in the stars and six-feet’s never felt so far.”

4. Bruce Springsteen, “Western Stars”

💿 Western Stars • 🏷 Bruce Springsteen • 📅 2019 

💿 Western Stars, the 2019 studio album 🎙 Bruce Springsteen, gives the by iconic, 🏆 Grammy-winning rock musician another fantastic addition to his illustrious discography.  No, ‘The Boss’ doesn’t reinvent the wheel, but he didn’t need to.  Western Stars showcases Springsteen as the ‘well-oiled machine’ of a musician that he is. Among the fine moments from this conceptual affair is the title track.

“On the set, the makeup girl brings me two raw eggs and a shot of gin / Then I give it all up for that little blue pill / That promises to bring it all back to you again.” 🎵 “Western Stars” was released as an advance single. In the context of Western Stars, expectedly, it continues the western aesthetic without a hitch.  Springsteen references canyons, the desert, Oklahoma, cowboys, and all things associated with the west.  Yes, ‘The Boss’ has done this previously, but he remains potent here.  Also, worth noting, regarding the songwriting, it’s interesting how he uses varying choruses each time; he doesn’t stick to just one form.

Appears in 🔻:

• 17 Songs Characterized by Their Place

5. David Bowie, “Blackstar”

💿 Blackstar • 🏷 Columbia • 📅 2016

The exceptionalness of the 🏆 Grammy-winning, 💿 Blackstar, the final studio album by icon 🎙 David Bowie, showcases the just how brilliant he was.  Even past his prime Bowie recorded an album that easily exhibited more ambition than most by artists half his age. Although much of the attention surrounding Blackstar focused on “Lazarus” (even more so following his death), 🎵 “Blackstar” is the centerpiece – the tour de force.

“Blackstar” is the most ambitious song on the album, hands down. Bowie truly outdoes himself.  Dark, enigmatic, and chilling, it grips the listener from the start despite its ten-minute duration. Even when “Blackstar” has ‘happier’ moments with major chords, it remains overwhelmingly dark, twisted, and hellish. Possibly, “Blackstar” was written about ISIS, but that’s unconfirmed. Despite its utter ‘blackness,’ “Blackstar” has a beauty about it, thanks to Middle Eastern musical cues coupled with elements of jazz and soul.  It’s a ‘delightful’ 10 minutes by all means.

Appears in 🔻:

• 12 Songs That Are Either Black or White
• 11 Incredibly Intriguing, Totally Black Songs
• 11 Superb Songs, Five M inutes or More

More Stars: 5ive Songs No. 48 (2022) [📷: Brent Faulkner, Bruce Springsteen, Clovis Cheminot, eberhard grossgasteiger, Fueled By Ramen, The Musical Hype, Night Street, OpenClipart-Vectors, Pixabay, Republic, Warner]