singles
october
released on the
regal label this is a real grower. 5 tracks in all, with 4 of the
5 hardly making the speaker cones move.
the instrumental backing is quieter than anything i have heard
recently. but then theres track 2 'sorry skin' which has a
subtley distorted guitar line that just sucks you in - coming
over like a lost cousin of early six by seven classic 'european
me' its simplicity is its appeal, subsequently due to this track
i listened to the other tracks and bit by bit i became
enthralled, the voice is unique and may not appeal to the masses
but given time this band could become very special indeed.
athlete -
beautiful
possibly released
on the regal label aswell, though this one track promo gives no
indication of that fact, this is out in november but i suspect
that radio airplay will raise awareness prior to that, this
should be ringing from all radio stations with any taste as of
now. opening with some strange atmospherics/found voices this
quickly becomes a long lost friend of teenage fanclubs best
glories, guitars chime, melodies sour and chorus's embed easily
within the memory, making this a wonderful track. cant wait for
the full lengther.
idlewild -
live in a hiding place
several years ago
this lot were given a lot of attention from certain sections of
the music press. i listened but never really understood the
appeal obviously they heard something i didn't. but following
last single the glorious 'american english' comes this second
track from the last lp 'the remote part', and like its
predecessor this is amazing stuff. it provides the same tingle up
the spine as prime rem tracks.
it really is that good.
the melody and the confidence in the vocals are thoroughly
supreme, and the production compliments the whole sound.
could this lot go the whole hog ? its beginning to look like it.
is idlewild an oxymoron ?
dirty vegas
- days go by.
a re-release
following the huge success stateside for this excellent club
anthem. if you haven't heard then there is an obvious way to sum
it up .. take all the best bits of underworld, wrap these around
a perfect 3 minute pop song and that becomes dirty vegas's first
classic. superb rolling bassline,phased vocals with an implied
melancholy - yet still a "hands in the air" vibe at the
same time.
i have not heard any other tracks but if they match the sheer
quality of this then they could do some long term damage to the
dancefloors. and just so you know - the packaging is
stunning, i remember not being too overwhelmed by the cover for
the original release of this .. well this time they have really
pulled out all the stops. matching the style of the cover of the
album its gorgeous and rounds the whole thing off nicely.
a perfect antidote to those autumn evenings.
just jack -
paradise (lost and found)
this is an obvious
spinoff from the streets success. while te lead track is very
listenable and pleasant i feel that this is just a little too
formulaic. and track 'nineteeneightyfour' is just a tragic
attempt at electro.but then it is just jack and his computers ..
sorry.
little hell
- everybodys cursed.
a standout track
from the forthcoming lp, this is a real audience grabber, see
full length review for more details. the single though has an
extra delight called 'eat shit president bush' which i think says
it all really. the track is as uncompromising and therefore
deserves serious attention - as for the record - as well as the
great name the track is excellent spiky indiepunkrawk.
dna doll - happy valley/everyone loves stars
new band on indie
label marshmallow records.
on first listen
'happy valley' didn't do much for me .. not that its bad i just
think that the song required a bit more production on it, there
are the guts to an excellent kula shaker meets chemical bros type
rocker but there just isn't enough oomph in the mix to grab the
listener - i guess the limited budget shows, but ..
then they seem to have add an extra dimension to track 2
as its a full on glam-rock-stomp. a total blast.
throw these guys a budget and watch this band use it to maximum
effect.