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Well well. All hail the nation’s most celebrated junkie - the ‘venerable’ Pete Doherty - has got his shit together for long enough to release a single with Babyshambles.
I have to admit to being one of those tabloid readers who scratches my head at every Doherty story and wonders if I’ve ever heard one of his songs. Well, now I have.
Despite being a bit behind all the latest British Indie bands (there are so many of them!!!), I enjoyed Hard-Fi’s music when they hit the charts in 2005 with Cash Machine.
The fact of the matter is that Hard-Fi come across as more direct and less pretentious than their Indie-label bedfellows, and their music is always, well harder than them too.
Worried about Ray? The Hoosiers should be worried about their drummer - that’s one seriously dodgy moustache!
About the song: a large part of me wants to hate Worried About Ray. It’s irritatingly upbeat, the video’s hugely geeky and the lead singer, Irwin Sparkes, is extremely cheesy.
The first and most important piece of information about Reverend And The Makers you’ll hear is that they’re tightly linked to the Arctic Monkeys. So what? Who cares?
My first reaction to Heavyweight Champion was instant dislike. I don’t know why. Maybe it’s because I’m not a big fan of boxing. Maybe I don’t like overhyped bands.
Regardless, it wasn’t long before I succumbed to the charms of this single. You’ve got the funky, bass-led intro and verses and that unabashed Northern accent that permeates most Indie music in the charts these days. Do I detect a scene? Or am I late to the party?
Anyway, I love the theme behind this song. It’s all about lost opportunities, taking the safe route through life and getting “stuck in the rat race”. The best bit it that repeated chant of “just be like everybody else”. Of course, it’s a bit grim as a result. The Reverend isn’t giving away much hope with this tune, is he?
Nevertheless, it’s a cracking track, just don’t mention the Monkeys, eh?
I’ll save the rant about Paolo Nutini’s name for another day. (Is it a stage name? It must be.)
Bizarrely, New Shoes seems to be the kind of song you either love or hate. It’s certainly attracting a lot of negative reaction.
The Glaswegian act that are Camera Obscura will release Tears For Affairs on 16 April 2007. Tears For Affairs is the first song I’ve heard by the band - it’s an authentically 60’s sounding track with a video to match. Tracyanne Campbell’s vocals are drenched in a dreamy reverb effect and the track is laced with classic organ and accordion lines.
Unfortunately, it’s all a bit too depressing. The cumulative effect of Tracyanne’s monotonous singing and the tortuously slow tune add up to one big misery-fest! You get free bonus extra depression just by watching the video. In fairness, the video is a pretty good pastiche of performance videos from the 60’s onward.
I am tempted to draw comparisons between Camera Obscura and their fellow Scots, Belle And Sebastian. Chalk and cheese are the words I’ll use. While I found The Life Pursuit to be a great, upbeat album, Tears is the complete opposite. Dreary, dull and uninspiring.
I don’t like doing negative reviews of any band - if you’re a fan, tell us what you like about Camera Obscura in the comments…set the record straight!
Razorlight are one of those hateful bands that are usually more hype than substance. The frontman, Johnny Borrell struts around like the living reincarnation of Liam Gallagher, except Gallagher (to my mind) was always the more convincing asshole. So you could be forgiven for thinking that Razorlight was a whole lot of hot air and not much else.
That’s probably why Razorlight’s debut album Up All Night caught me completely off guard. On a few recommendations, I borrowed a copy to listen to in the car. This album didn’t spark with me on the first listen: Trendy indie-rock normally turns me off. Oh, and as a rule I avoid over-hyped bands like they’re diseased anyway.
It took a couple of listens to get into Up All Night, but this is good stuff. The album starts off inconspicuously with a single piano line then bursts into the radio-friendly Leave Me Alone. Frenetic drumming, crisp clear guitar lines and that English-Indie accent set the pace for the rest of the album. Anthemic indie pop.
Up All Night is a strong debut, and it’s hard to pick out a track I don’t like. There’s something urban and sleazy in the sound, the lyrics, the delivery. The music is pounding and passionate.
As well as Leave Me Alone, the most outstanding tracks on the album are Rock N Roll Lies, Which Way Is Out, Don’t Go Back To Dalston and the title track, Up All Night.
Critics of Razorlight (or more specifically, Johnny Borell) have pointed out that they’re not the most original of bands on the scene today, but they’re missing the point. The obvious comparison here is Oasis. Their sound wasn’t particularly original, but there was something in the chemistry that people liked.
All hype aside, Razorlight’s debut is a cracker album packed with memorable Indie-Rock tunes.
I don’t know how I have managed to miss this band completely, but The Guillemots are releasing a new single this week called ‘Annie, Lets Not Wait’
Written by Fyfe Dangefield and co-produced with Adam Noble, ‘Annie, Lets Not Wait’ is the fourth track to be taken from the debut album and follows the hit singles ‘Trains to Brazil’, ‘We’re Here’ and ‘Made-Up Lovesong #43′.
I’ve wanted to shout about this Belle & Sebastian album for months - it’s nothing short of fantastic! The Life Pursuit got serious airplay a few months back, especially around the release of Funny Little Frog.
The Life Pursuit seemingly ignores the past twenty-odd years of music, setting it’s course on a 70’s glam vibe. Some reviewers are likening the album’s sonic approach to T-Rex and Glitter Band. When I first heard The Life Pursuit, my first comparisons were to Ziggy Stardust-era David Bowie. It’s almost as if the 80’s didn’t happen! Read more & comment »
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