A Summer of Black and Gold

I looked up into the night sky
And see a thousand eyes staring back
And all around these golden beacons
I see nothing but black

I feel a way of something beyond them
I don't see what i can feel
If vision is the only validation
Then most of my life isn't real

Here's the deal with Sam Sparro - and I'm sure I've shared this sentiment so many times before: When I first saw the official video for "Black and Gold," I actually did wonder how a guy like that could get away with sounding like Akon and looking like a long-lost member of Panic at the Disco at the same time. And now that the song is this week's free download on iTunes - while Sam is now borrowing glasses from Kanye West - I think I won't be alone in the madness much longer.

Still love the song, though - and I still think it's a better example of electro than "I Kissed a Girl," which doesn't have the same edge. (Also, note to Katy Perry: You are so not Jill Sobule.)

Credit, though, also goes to Lauren Luke, who was already playing "Black and Gold" in the background of her videos when the single blew up in the UK. Here's her Sparro-inspired eye makeup look, which she recreated recently for the Beeb:

Cleveland-related aside: Ordering a "Black and Gold" at the Winking Lizard means getting a Guinness layered with Great Lakes Dortmunder Gold Lager. If my liver hadn't cried uncle the last time I was there, I would've tried it myself!