Today, my bloody valentine Natalia Kills releases the third single off of her forthcoming debut album Perfectionist: “Free.”

Produced by Jeff Bhasker (Kanye West) and co-penned by Kills, Kid Cudi and No I.D., “Free” is one of the most fun, breezy songs off of Kills’ long awaited debut that, most importantly, contains the objectively perfect pop line: “I can look fresh in a potato sack.”

Natalia Kills – Free (feat will.i.am) by CherrytreeRecords

The single version also contains an opening verse by Will.I.Cannot.. It’s nothing too grating, but…you know. I just can’t.

“Free” was released on June 28. (iTunes)

The video for Kanye West‘s “All Of The Lights,” one of the best tracks off of his sensational 2010 album, My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy, has just premiered on VEVO.

Warning: MuuMuse will not be held responsible for any epileptic seizures caused during the viewing of this clip.

Taking a cue from the track’s title, the Hype Williams-directed clip for Kanye’s star-studded track kicks storytelling to the curb in favor of neon-colored on-screen lyrics and bright, flashing lights coming in from every direction.

Rihanna, as usual, looks absolutely incredible in her all-too-brief cameo (as does Kid Cudi!) Apart from that however, the video of “All Of The Lights” is nothing short of a disappointment; a wasted opportunity for a truly MASSIVE song.

There’s no plot nor any particularly impressive visuals, and there’s only a handful of appearances by the song’s many contributing vocalists. What gives? It seems as though Kanye was simply reaching too far (or more accurately, not nearly far enough) in attempting to create art with this clip.

I’ll be remembering this song with its appearance on West’s incredible 30 minute mini-epic, “Runaway,” instead.

My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy was released on November 22. (iTunes)

Here we go again: The end of another year in music!

2010 may well be remembered as the Year of the Future (if not the Year of All Hearts–hint hint!): A year of fembots, androids, bionic women and time-traveling adventures deep into the 22nd century.

Space-age love stories and robo-dramatics colored a large portion of the year’s biggest releases in pop, no doubt a response to the reign of the machine on the pop charts as synth-pop productions continued to dominate the digital airwaves in 2010.

Below is the list of MuuMuse’s Top Albums of 2010, which was based on a variety of factors–from individual song and single goodness, to the complete album experience, to overall artistic integrity, to an album’s ability to ‘stick’ as the year progressed. Basically I’m trying to say that it’s a bit of a hot mess, but I tried my very best.

There’s also a rather controversial dishonorable mention prior to the Top 40 list that will likely blow my chances for that much coveted position as editor of Rolling Stone. DAMN IT.

Now…LET’S DO THIS.

Without further ado…the list!

“Memories” is one of my favorite tracks off of David Guetta‘s fabulous album, One Love. Now, I’ve got some schweeet remixes to share from the song’s upcoming single release!

The first is theArmand Van Helden Vocal Mix, a relentless, squealing synthesizer ride that may or may not leave your ears bleeding. It’s massive, and probably great fun at a rave or if you’re into doing poppers and E in your living room–just don’t listen to this one if you’re looking for a late night comedown.

On the other hand, the Donae’o mix is a more chilled, vaguely ’90′s club-inspired interpretation of the track (Jock Jams, anyone?).

Two great mixes, one great price of admission: zilch!

DL: David Guetta – Memories (ft. Kid Cudi) (Armand Van Helden Vocal Mix)
DL: David Guetta – Memories (ft. Kid Cudi) (Danae’o Mix)

“Memories” is now out on iTunes.

…and that’s pretty much how this album pans out. To summarize:

Even if I’ve vetted them relentlessly for months now on MuuMuse, it bears repeating: “When Love Takes Over” and “Sexy Bitch” reign supreme on this album, though the slightly cooler, ’90′s-esque “It’s The Way You Love Me”–another Kelly Rowland-assisted track–proves just as delicious.

Spirit fingers and snaps to Kid Cudi‘s respectably controlled “Memories,” perhaps one of the more reflective, intelligent songs off of One Love. The same goes for Estelle‘s “One Love,” the shiny title track infused with subtle tropical beats and shades of reggae fit snugly between lyrics uplifting and empowering enough to make Bob Marley proud.

Another non-shocker: The album’s most annoying numbers stem from collabos with Black Eyed Peas members will.I.am and Apl de Ap, including the over-indulgent, tuneless “On The Dancefloor” and the entirely unnecessary Guetta mix of “I Gotta Feeling.” Only “I Wanna Go Crazy” proves to be a crazy good time, but let’s face it–shitty club songs about getting “stupid,” “crazy,” and/or “retarded” are kind of the only thing the Peas can do “right.”

The biggest and only surprise from all this comes at the album’s end with Makeba‘s “If We Ever,” a near beat-less, digitized swoon providing the massive breath of relief needed after one sweaty, screech-heavy dance session of an album. The song’s chorus is also ever-so-slightly reminiscent of a super-slowed rendition of Jordin Sparks‘ “Watch You Go” off of her latest album, Battlefield. Wait, where are you going? Did I just lose my credibility again?

Oh well…’twas nice while it lasted.

Total Score: 72%

Just one long day ago, I headed off to Central Park to watch Ms. Santi Santogold White perform at SummerStage. I took some time in advance to brace myself for the sheer volume of gun necklaces, desert scarves, and neon-glow, retro eighties wear directly off the shelves of the local Urban Outfitters, but the heat made it so that even the most hipster-ish of hips couldn’t bare the thought of those skin-tight jeans.

The show started at three, though the anticipated headliner didn’t take the stage until around six. To fill the void, a cast of DJ’s and MC’s including Diplo (rather attractive in person), A-Trak, Kid Cudi and Blaqstarr blasted beats for three whole hours. I don’t remember much of it after the first hour, mainly due to Blaqqstar’s every-other-minute repetition of “Get it, Shawty! Where all the hot ladies at NYC?” and a general tickling feeling all throughout my palms and feet. I’m not sure why all the hot ladies weren’t representing (perhaps there was some fronting going on), but I kept praying that one of them would just answer that obnoxious, obnoxious man’s calling for sanity’s sake.

It was miserably hot, and I must have lost around eight pounds through my pores alone. But alas, like anyone who knows me can attest to, I remained stoic. Just as I began to turn to my friends to say, “Fuck you all, I’m leaving,” Santi’s emotionless, Ray-Ban donning dancer/singers arrived on stage, staring down the crowd in preparation for Santogold. I think that was about when I decided to stick it out. Lacking a grand entrance or exit, Santogold walked out onto stage and began her hard-hitting offering of the Santi experience.

Within moments, she zoomed through “You’ll Find A Way (Switch & Sinden Remix)” which I personally thought was her best performance of the afternoon. Call me a sucker for dramatics, but I absolutely loved the fierce little dance breaks between the “run for cover” chorus skip that drones on like an damning, industrial machine gun.

She quickly plowed through “L.E.S. Artistes” and “Say Aha,” and then opted to take down the BPM a bit for “Anne,” which was a curiously tame choice to me. “Shove It” was next, and was just as punchy as I hoped it would be live; a real kiss-off bout of attitude that the crowd seemed to gobble up as much as she did. As a person, Santogold seemed rather genuine on stage, so it felt good to watch her giggle to the crowd and jump around. From there she continued onto a downbeat streak with the Brooklyn anthem “Unstoppable” and “Starstruck,” her lusciously crawling seducer.

By this point the crowd was still eager to move, though evidently a bit fatigued at that point. “Don’t do an encore,” she laughed to the crowd before starting the final track, “because I seriously don’t have any other songs.” With one final pull for energy from the audience, Santi and crew went into full celebration mode to launch her final hands-in-the-air grinding groove, “Creator,” as the show came to a close as quickly as it had opened.

And so, that was that. It felt like twenty minutes, and I think it actually was. Looking back, I guess no one could be mad that the show flew by so quickly. She essentially performed her entire album, save about three tracks. Santi announced that she’ll be on tour with Coldplay next, which may sound strange until you remember that it was Björk who invited her on tour last year.

To the top right is an ultra high quality photograph of the performance. To the top left, a sassy photograph. I’ve circled the Santi in red in case you can’t quite locate her there. Yes, I was that close. Jealous?