singles
december
the silent league - breathe
gorgeous orchestrated pop music from brooklyn, sounding very much like mercury rev which is to be expected as this is justin russo, who provided extra bits-n-bobs on rev's deserter's songs.still, when you have a song as majestic as the lead track on this new release on 'something in construction' records then i couldn't care less as to the similarity. b-side 'time' is a little less polished (the track is billed as 'live'), but the opening saxophone line recalls all sorts of glam ghosts, the fact that the next 3 mins are spent in a massively romantic splendour makes this premier league material.
the go! team - ladyflash
best track off the album gets lifted for mass consumption. where things are interesting is that the b-side includes a hot chip remix where they add their electro-pop nous to the mix, stripping away the lo-fi 4 track madness and turning the track into a cutup beatbox battle. fun but not as essential as the original.
69corp - demonseed
not some nasty porn stuff, but dirty imposing electrosounds from this scottish duo who have attracted such fans as howie b, sfa, amongst others. the sound is very now, slow and low dance beats matched against some big chunky synths with hypotrance vocals. recalling the sleaze ridden grooves of two lone swordsmen, a point driven home with the dubbed up b-side. good stuff, look forward to hearing more.
temposhark - neon ?
can't beat a bit of pink vinyl to get the attention. lovingly packaged on dayglo pink vinyl with a cutout question mark comes this debut 10" featuring lots of electro styled synth noises clashing and catchy vocals. lead track starts off with spoken intro which then goes all 80's electro-funk which unfortunately shows that the band need to get to grips with their production skills a little more, in fact, get temposhark fan mark s'express moore on production duties and this will take the band into a very special area. luckily though the extended versions of the nitzer ebb homage 'crime' spices up the funk factor, and the pleasant ambient moods within 'lemonade' show that 2005 could be a lot of fun for these guys-n-gals
the longcut - transition
new name from manchester. a lot of current punk funk styled bass lines and non-melodic vocals chanting out some vitriol in the opening minute make this a very attractive opening salvo. re-arrange these buzzwords and make your own review :
fast. urgent. immediate. jerky guitars. gang of four. franz ferdinand without the pop sheen.
get on board now, cos if this track is anything to go by then this lot are going to hit the headlines soon. can't wait.
the black velvets - get on your life
new signing to the vertigo. big fuzzed up guitars and massive rock star vibes ooze out of this, though the vocal harmonies at 1 minute in (chants of 'get on your life') do veer a little too closely to 80's hair rock excess of bon jovi. luckily though the song and the heaviosity of the led zeppelin meets black sabbath noise sits on just the right side of the fence for me. just.