Welcome to another round of Songs of the Week. Our reigning champion is The Red Hot Chilli Peppers and “The Adventures of Maggie Rain Dance,” but we need to crown a new winner. This week’s contestants feature tracks from the Gorillaz, Frank Ocean, Dispatch, Bad Meets Evil, and Coldplay. Check out which joints made the list then vote on your favorite after the jump!

Lady Gaga gets too much credit for merging pop and dance music. This combination can, in fact, be traced back to 2005, in which nearly electro-pop diva went for an ‘80s vibe, and Madonna, Depeche Mode, and New Order revisited their classic sounds. A playlist from five years ago wouldn’t be complete without a synthpop track or dance remix to give that 1980s-but-modern direction. Duran Duran might be dated, but the latest Madonna track? It was the ‘80s without the big hair. Check out this class’s suggested playlist after the jump.

Combining gritty guitar licks with back-breaking drum beats and a voice that seems to echo the pain of the world in its every note, The Black Keys‘ rich but simple grooves meld the wail of Southern blues with a rocked-out jam to deliver us a much-needed dose of 21st Century soul.
Take a listen after the jump!… Click to read more