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The ongoing saga of Amy Winehouse has taken another sad turn with reports that she’s working on her next album.

You might think that Amy getting back to work is a positive thing, but the word is that her latest batch of songs are wrist-slashingly depressing affairs reflecting the last 12 months of turmoil she’s been through.

On the positive side, there are claims that this is Amy’s best work to date. But increasingly I’m getting the feeling that this is one artist who’s burning up much too quickly and we (the public/her fans) can only watch helplessly from the sidelines as she self-destructs. Part of me wonders if there’ll even be an Amy Winehouse in 2 years’ time.

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Whew. Strangest pop-related thing that happened me this week was Denial by the Sugababes came on the radio and I liked it before I realised what I was listening to. Guess that blows smoke all over my review!

Not a bad top ten this week. Most of the songs are actually listenable, even the Madonna/Justin Timberlake collaboration. Having said that, when two major stars release a single backed by Timbaland, surely the end result should be 10x more stunning than this?

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Miss Leona Lewis should be celebrating in a big way today as Bleeding Love has hit the top of the US pop chart. According to the BBC, this makes her the first British female in over 20 years to do so.

I think a moment’s silence is called for. [Insert silence here]

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BBC Radio 1 DJ Zane Lowe is calling for bands from Maidstone and across Kent to get in touch with Radio 1 for the chance to be part of Radio 1’s Big Weekend – The Fringe Festival. The Fringe will celebrate the local music scene, from guitar bands through to bedroom DJs, MCs and everything in between. The event takes place in the town in the week preceding Radio 1’s Big Weekend.

Bands can apply by going to bbc.co.uk/radio1/bigweekend where all the details of how to get your band on to the Fringe Festival are explained.

A panel made up of BBC Kent Introducing presenters James Bursey and Tom Kirkby, Radio 1 DJ Huw Stephens, the Radio 1 Live events team and Radio 1 producers will be responsible for selecting the bands to play live at the Fringe. Read more & comment »

Was Duffy’s caterwauling driving you up the walls too? Thankfully, Estelle has knocked her off the #1 spot this week, with a little help from her friend, Mr West. Just another reason to love Kanye.

In other news, the big names are still holding steady in the chart - Leona, OneRepublic, Nickelback. Alphabeat, unfortunately, slip out of the top ten this week. Darn.

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Panic weren’t behind the door about wearing their Beatles influences on their sleeves for their new album, but I didn’t expect this. Nine In The Afternoon is a veritable tribute to the Not-so Fab Four, something which I’m not comfortable with.

Is this the same band that gave us the amazing I Write Sins Not Tragedies?

Panic fans, don’t get me wrong, I like the song. But it’s Beatles-esque to a disturbing degree. From the piano-pounding verses through to the cellos on the outro, it’s obscene really. And let’s not overlook the trippy video and the pretty odd (geddit?) Sgt Pepper’s style outfits.

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Scouting For Girls are releasing another identikit single on April 10th called Heartbeat. Oh boy, I can hardly contain my excitement or, indeed, my bladder.

And why should I hold back the putrid waves of urine? Because Scouting For Girls are surely taking the piss with this blander-than-bland nonsense. Simon Reynolds over at DS poses an interesting question:

how long can Scouting For Girls push this factory-line indie sound before their fans tire of it?

The thing is, there’s not even a pretence of coming up with an original song. Each single they’ve released over the last few months has been a watered down regurgitation of the one before it. Heartbeat is just awful, and no amount of positive spin can change that.

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Lovable 48-year-old scamp Richie Sambora went out for a drive in California’s Laguna Beach last night after having a skinful. He was spotted driving erratically in his little Hummer and pulled over.

Naturally, he failed the usual drunk driving tests and spent a fair bit of time down the cop shop explaining himself. In a more serious turn, it seems his daughter was in the car at the time with another child and an adult. TMZ are suggesting that he may face child endangerment charges.

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This news is worthy of at least a raised eyebrow. Fleetwood Mac are planning to reform and release new material and may be joined on this outing by erstwhile warbler Sheryl Crow.

Fleetwood Mac always had two female vocalists until Christine McVie retired from the band in the 90’s, so the idea of bringing Sheryl Crow in as a replacement is sharp thinking, both for the ‘Mac and for the ‘Crow. I’d imagine it would bring together their respective audiences and open up some interesting musical possibilities.

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I love this! After years (and years) of stalling on the release of Chinese Democracy, Dr Pepper has taunted Axl Rose by offering everyone in America a free drink if he releases the album in 2008.

What a slap in the teeth when a major soft drinks company takes a ‘pop’ at your expense!

Rose has stalled on releasing Chinese Democracy numerous times and Guns N’ Roses fans have almost given up hope of ever seeing the album released. I personally believe it doesn’t actually exist and is a marketing gimmick to keep a lingering interest in GNR in order to shift their wonderful back catalog. Let’s face it, Rose could not release an album today that would sound anything like the GNR we all fell in love with back in ‘88.

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