Okay, so I don’t know why it’s taken me so long to write about “Show Me,” the latest single from ex-Pussycat Dolls sensation Jessica Sutta, but I deeply regret each day that has passed without proper acknowledgement. Seriously. EVERY. SINGLE. DAY.

But…better late than never, right?

Penned and produced by Busbee (Alexandra Burke, Girls’ Generation), “Show Me” is a throbbin’ club anthem full of pulsating synthesizers and slamming beats: “Love is not a gimme gimme/If you really with me/You gotta show me, show me,” Sutta sings during the chorus. And while Brit Brit might not agree with that first bit (MOAH?!), it’s still one hell of a catchy club cut.

In fact, The song’s already been added to the tracklisting of NOW 39 and an in-flight video on Jet Blue in November. (Now I know what airline I’m flying with if I travel next month!)

But the song hasn’t just gotten some sponsorship lovin’–it’s also climbing the charts. Really, really high! In fact, thanks to a bangin’ suite of remixes, it just peaked at #3 last week on the Billboard Dance/Club Play Songs. She’s even holding one spot above Scherzy Baby‘s “Don’t Hold Your Breath”! (Oh, you just know Melody Thornton‘s doing a secret happy dance for that one.) As a lifelong PCD devotee, I couldn’t be more pleased.

“Show Me” has already spent 9 weeks on the club charts. Will it chart even higher? Perhaps get some Hot 100 lovin’? You never know!

GO SUTTA, GO!

“Show Me” was released on August 23. (iTunes)

Dave Audé is a name synonymous with all things dance.

From Coldplay to Britney Spears, Madonna to U2, Rihanna to George Michael–Audé has written, remixed and produced with the best of ‘em over the past 20 years, resulting in a formidable discography of literally hundreds of remixes and original releases.

His work can be found included in nearly every pop remix package of the day (recent releases include re-rubs of Beyoncé‘s “Run The World (Girls),” Lady Gaga‘s “Judas” and Jennifer Lopez‘s “I’m Into You), firmly cementing his role as one of the industry’s most consistently in demand producers.

A few weeks ago, I got the opportunity to speak with Audé as he prepared to head into the studio with singer Sisely Treasure, formerly of both Cooler Kids and Shiny Toy Guns (who I also spoke to briefly!)

We talked at length about the state of dance music today–including current trends like dubstep–as well as many of Audé’s successes over the past 20 years, including the highs (Sting, t.A.T.u.) and the sorta-kinda highs (Madonna was “a weird moment.”) There was also ample talk about Selena Gomez.

There is even–in what was undoubtedly my greatest, MuuMuse-iest journalistic moment to date–a point at which I interrupted the prolific producer mid-sentence as he began to discuss John Lennon‘s musical impact to ask about his work with Nicole Scherzinger.

You’re welcome.

Read on…

Hi! You–yes, you. Sorry. Excuse me. I’m going to need to interrupt your non-stop Stronger listening session for just a moment. I KNOW. My apologies! There’s good reason.

Last night, our goddess Kelly Clarkson graced the stage of Dancing With The Stars to perform two songs: Her current single “Mr. Know It All” and Breakaway‘s “Walk Away.” No, I didn’t realize it was happening either!

First of all: The bangs. THE BANGS! Just gorgeous! I love me some Kelly with bangs. She looks so, so beautiful!

And as for those performances? Like the song itself, Clarkson’s “Mr. Know It All” remained calm and collected, although you could tell she was just itching to belt out a number. And oh, how she let loose on “Walk Away”! Those final few seconds..the howls! Those notes! Chills. She’s everything. Just. Everything.

I mean, honestly (Stronger reference!), is there anything that needs to be said about a live Kelly Clarkson performance? Spot on. Flawless. What else is new? She commands one of the greatest voices in pop music today. Apart from the untouchable divas–Celine, Mariah and Whitney–I do Clarkson’s got the best voice in the business.

Okay, we’re good. You can go back to Stronger now.

PS: If you are indeed one of the early birds that happened to take a listen to the album this week, please remember to support our girl when the album drops on October 24.

Stronger will be released on October 24. (iTunes)

Ever since she began shooting the video for “We Found Love,” Rihanna repeatedly said that she was crafting her deepest video to date, and that the Melina Matsoukas-directed clip would be all about “love being like a drug.”

As it turns out, that was to be taken literally.

“We Found Love” might be the stuff of an Ibiza dream sonically, but its accompying video is something far more sinister.

The clip follows RiRi and her beau in Belfast–played by the gorgeous Dudley O’Shaughnessy–both caught in a love that’s littered with trouble (a bad romance, if you will): “You almost feel ashamed that someone could be that important–that without them, you feel like nothing,” the narrator explains during the video’s chilling opening monologue.

They start off as nothing more than a rebellious duo: Skating, lighting fireworks, twirling on restaurant tables and getting hot and heavy in a cornfield. But quickly, things take a turn as the video exposes the darker side of their relationship.

When the duo isn’t running around and laughing, they’re blazing up, drinking heavily and dropping all sorts of pills in their dingy flat–all perfectly rendered in a way that feels chilling and real, with just enough symbolism (eyes dilating) and shock (the drugged tattooing of “MINE” on RiRi’s rump) to tell the tale. And as the video goes on, it only gets worse–they bicker and fight, make up, fight again, and dive dangerously deeper into their addictions until Rihanna finally walks away from it all. Or is it only temporary?

It’s difficult to deliver such a heavy narrative in the vein of other addiction stories a la Requiem for a Dream without coming across as either campy or disingenuous, but Rihanna’s done it with “We Found Love.” In fact, I think it’s completely genius.

I love that she avoided anything even close to a half-assed club affair of laser lights and smoke machines. I love that she’s stepped up her game as an artist and challenged herself as an actress. But what I love most about the video for “We Found Love” is that, as with “Man Down,” she tells a story free of preaching, hand-holding or hitting her fans over the head with a certain message. You watch. You react. You draw your own conclusions.

While she’s delivered some truly stunning videos in the past, “We Found Love” is probably her first actual larger-than-life moment as a pop star, or–dare I say, a rising icon. This is the next level for Rihanna…and she’s only just beginning. As a fan (and a card-carrying member of the Rihanna Navy), I couldn’t be more proud of the girl.

Now, Let’s see the VMA’s try and snub her for THIS one next year.

“We Found Love” was released on September 22. (iTunes)

Nicole Scherzinger is putting in work.

Our beloved PCD-lead-turned-emotionally-unstable-judger-of-talent has been working her buns off on the judge’s panel on X Factor USA. But when she’s not busy getting all emotional while guiding lesser beings toward their path to superstardom, she’s preparing for her next big move as a solo star across the pond.

On November 14, Mizz Scherzy Baby will re-release her debut album Killer Love in the UK, including several new tracks: “Trust Me I Lie,” “Tomorrow Never Dies,” the 50 Cent remix of “Right There” (oh joy), and lead single: “Try With Me,” due out on October 30.

Penned by the 100% objectively perfect NERVO twins, “Try With Me” is Scherzy’s most heartfelt dance floor offering since “Don’t Hold Your Breath.” It’s an all-out dance floor anthem, complete with rather unusually specific lyricism (“you said, leave your keys on the counter/And you said, call me back at eight”), rave-y synthesizers, an explosive chorus and an UNSPEAKABLY gorgeous bridge (“Don’t say a word/You know that it hurts”).

In short, it’s (mostly) amazing (ish).

And as for the video? Well, it’s stunning visually–and insane.

Shot in the remote jungles of Xilitla, Mexico, the video kicks off with Scherzy Baby borrowing Brit Brit‘s Onyx Hotel Tour “Everytime” piano to play a few choice notes in front of a gorgeous waterfall.

And then comes the magical jungle romp, as the beautiful diva goes exploring deep into the greenery for a little adventure. Sadly, it seems like Scherzy’s been affected by jungle fever or something, because she spends the duration of the video manically spinning ’round like she’s Florence Welch trying to shake the Devil from her back. Purge those demons, Scherzy! PURGE ‘EM!

Then again, “Try With Me” is quite an ear-worm of a song. Perhaps it’s just that infectious, you know? Like, Scherzy was just too overcome? That chorus has been echoing in my head for hours, after all…

WISE IT FEEEEEYULL…LIKE YUH THAAAYUH?!

“Try With Me” will be released on October 30. (iTunes UK)

It’s been a long time coming (and something that’ll make my K-pop Krazy friend Prophet Blog wet himself with delight), but it’s time I finally acknowledged the wonder and splendor of the force known as Girls’ Generation.

Now, I myself am more of a J-Pop connoisseur than K-Pop girl group guru (I go hard for Utada Hikaru, Namie Amuro, Koda Kumi and Ayumi Hamasaki in particular), but it’s all but impossible not to notice the extraordinary influence of Korean girl groups making their way overseas.

Girls’ Generation–sometimes referred to as SNSD (an acronym based on their Korean name)–is by far one of South Korea’s most popular acts. After their debut back in 2007, the nonet (that’s nine members) has gone on to win countless awards and smash dozens of records in both Korea and Japan, most notably for their 2009 international smash hit “Gee,” the Ke$ha-penned “Run Devil Run,” as well as their #1 Japanese hit from earlier this year, “Mr. Taxi.”

(By the way: Think a nine member group is crazy? Check out AKB48, a J-Pop group consisting of 59 members to date. Go ahead. Just try and remember their names.)

Now, quite excitingly, Girls’ Generation are set to make their official mark stateside (well, worldwide really) with the release of their third studio album The Boys, due to hit iTunes on October 19, followed by a US single release via Interscope Records sometime in November.

“The Boys” is the album’s lead single, which was recorded in both Korean and English. Today, the full song hit iTunes and the video has premiered (in both languages) and…well, it’s absolutely incredible. (To be fair: J-Pop and K-Pop videos usually slay Western videos. This is certainly no exception.)

Featuring some truly ferocious choreography, the ladies work it out in some sort of icy snow palace while rocking sky-high stilettos and killer haute couture threads. For fans of girl groups of any kind, the video relentlessly delivers everything that a good girl group video should: Fierce poses, glamorous looks, glossy styling…it’s everything!

And as for the song itself? Crafted by Teddy Riley (Michael Jackson, Lady Gaga), “The Boys” is a solid modern R&B/dance-pop effort with some attitude–a welcome change from the all-too-grating sugary-sweet sound that K-Pop girl groups tend to churn out on the regular. The chorus is an instant ear-worm. Plus, for those easily offenced by a foreign tongue hitting their ears, their accents aren’t even that strong at all–a key factor in helping them to crossover to the West.

As an English debut, “The Boys” is a pretty massive introduction for the group. I’m incredibly excited to see what the international response is to Girls’ Generation–especially in America. Yay for global pop recognition!

“The Boys” was released on October 19. (iTunes)

SIT DOWN AND SHUT THE FUCK UP RIGHT NOW BECAUSE LITERALLY NOTHING ELSE MATTERS.

A calm, level-headed review awaits…

Meet Catcall.

Née Catherine Kelleher, the Australian chanteuse released her first single, “Swimming Pool,” last year to rave reviews. “Swimming Pool” is an uncanny slice of Italo disco-referencing indie dance in the vein of Sally Shapiro or the Golden Filter; the track was helmed by GLOVES, the producer who has remixed fellow down-under acts like Bag Raiders, Van She, and Kimbra.

Now, Catcall’s ratcheted up the pop on her new single, “Satellites,” a pounding piece of ‘80s nostalgia with a melodically potent chorus that invites comparisons to Ladyhawke and I Blame Coco. “Maybe we are satellites/Maybe we are meteors,” she sings over layers of melancholy guitars and resonant drums.

I first heard a clip of “Satellites” during an episode of 90210 way back in May (yes, I watch 90210; yes, I know it’s an execrable show; no, I don’t care), but it’s only just being released now — and it was well worth the wait. “Satellites” has the same kind of reflective, downbeat energy as a Xenomania ballad, with a luminous spaced-out quality that’s both referential and futuristic. Basically, it’s synth-spangled gorgeousness that’s already one of my favorite tracks this year — and it bodes extraordinarily well for her debut album, The Warmest Place, due out at the top of 2012 via Ivy League.

Take a listen below:

Catcall – Satellites by rosequartzblog

“Satellites” was released on October 14. (iTunes)