New Songs of the Week

(Apologies to Damon Albarn for that image...just makes me smile every time...)

With today's new music, you could very easily think you've fallen asleep and woken up, 'Life on Mars' style, back in the 1990s. But before you go and put on your shellsuit, we are still very much in 2012, celebrating Britpop's true genius (sorry Jarvis. Not sorry in any way Noel), and one of my favourite 90s bands.

Starting with Damon Albarn, I must say he really makes me sick. This man goes from amazing band (Blur) to amazing band (Gorillaz) to, well, amazing 'band' (the Good, the Bad and the Queen) with alarming rapidity. And now he's solo, with an album based on an opera he's written. Those of you who were secretly hoping he'd gone too far and would fail, I'm sorry to tell you it comes off horrendously well. Equal parts 'Kingdom of Doom' and 'No Distance Left to Run', it's a beautiful little acoustic song, and everything the post-Oasis solo albums weren't - i.e. good.

Song taken from 'Dr Dee', released May 8th on Parlophone


Next up, it's Garbage, the Scottish-American band known for hooks as flawless as Shirley Manson, their glamorous lead singer. They've been away since 2005 album 'Bleed Like Me', save for a nifty little U2 cover for Q last year. The NME blog this week said they were uncool, but I disagree; not only were they responsible for great songs like 'Queer', 'Stupid Girl' and 'Why Do You Love Me?', but they wrote a Bond theme. Bond themes are cool. Tom Jones did one. And Lulu.

In all seriousness, though, it's good to have them back, with new single 'Battle in Me' seeing them on top seething and bitter form - seething and bitter enough, in fact, to send the Sheeran brigade crying back to their mothers. Which can only be a good thing for the charts.



Song taken from 'Not Your Kind of People', released May 14th on Stunvolume

Upcoming Gig: O Children

One of my personal highlights from last year's 'Get Loaded in the Park', O Children are a pretty formidable band. As well as having one of the coolest frontmen in rock in Tobias O'Kandi, they make the goth rock dark enough to make Edgar Allen Poe look like JK Rowling, with songs like 'Dead Disco Dancer' sounding like The Doors meet Joy Division meet Nick Cave.

And this week, before the release of their new album 'Apnea' on May 29th, they're playing a number of gigs all over the UK for Vice Magazine. Now, I do not know if the second album will match the first (a free copy would be appreciated...), but if first single 'PT Cruiser' is anything to go by we're in for some pretty great gigs. Plus, they're free...

Dates

LEEDS - NATION OF SHOPKEEPERS

Wednesday 28th March

LONDON - THE OLD BLUE LAST

Thursday 29th March

BRIGHTON - GREEN DOOR STORE

Friday 30th March

The Futureheads do 'Meet Me Halfway' (yes, THAT one)

Certain bands will always remind you of your childhood. For me, The Futureheads are one of those bands. Their first album (best known for its inspired 'Hounds of Love' cover) was the soundtrack of my NME days. However, I must admit that after that I almost completely forgot about them.


Until now.


After a nostalgic search on Wikipedia, I found out three things; firstly, they have an album out next week. Secondly, it's completely a cappella. Thirdly, one of its tracks is 'Meet Me Halfway'. The Black Eyed Peas song. Quite frankly it had to be posted. If you can imagine 'Glee' set in Newcastle (how good would that be incidentally?!) you're halfway to imagining just how ridiculous this song is. Ridiculously listenable!

New Music Monday: 'Flutes' by Hot Chip

Hot Chip have always been more than just a dance band. Where other bands are happy just to mine the same seam over and over (Hot Chip pun intended), they have always worked to make work that is both intelligent and body-shatteringly danceable; equally happy making one of the best albums of 2010 or writing 'Ready for the Floor' for Kylie Minogue (even if they did end up keeping it). And now they're back with a new song. 'Flutes', the first single from their forthcoming album 'In Our Heads'. And it's awesome.

According to the band they've been heavily influenced by 12" singles from the '80s....no, come back! It really works in their hands, with the staples of 80s dance remixes (drum machines, , vocal sampling, bass à la 'Blue Monday') coming together to make something beautiful, held together by Alexis' voice, one of the most interesting voices in pop music today. Hear it below.

Also, see the video, which is perhaps the most dizziness-producing piece of film not to have been made for a psychological experiment;

'In Our Heads' out June 11th on Domino Records. 

Review: Madonna, MDNA

I should declare my interest here; I've been a big Madonna fan ever since I saw her the 'Beautiful Stranger' video on Top of the Pops (something about the way she grinded on Austin Powers said to me that this was someone worth watching). So in this review I cannot promise full impartiality; I've come too far, and learned too much of the 'Vogue' dance routine, for that.

So much for 'Like A Virgin'

That is not to say, however, that this album doesn't deserve a good review; after all so far it has scored 7 from NME (yes, really), 8 from Music OMH and a Metacritic score in the 70s,  the same as the new Shins and Springsteen albums. Not bad for something that starts with a song as weak as 'Girl Gone Wild', a club-by-numbers song too generic even for David Guetta, redeemed only by its use of the prayer from 'Act of Contrition', the sort of self-referencing fun that makes 'MDNA' especially great for fans (in fact, my theory is there's a reference to every Madonna album so far here - enough to give a fanboy like me palpitations).

Luckily, the album picks up quickly from this, with the psychotic 'Gang Bang', propulsive enough to get even the most conservative listener screaming along to its 'DIE BITCH...' finale, and one of the standout tracks , 'I'm Addicted' featuring a demented electro breakdown followed by a chant of the album title that is going to be incredible live.

 

Following this, it's back to the '80s, with 'Turn Up the Radio', (which has 'next single' written all over it. In day-glo.) and 'Give Me All Your Luvin'', with  M.I.A.and Nicki Minaj, who both pop up later on one song each; M.I.A. on 'B-Day Song', a bonus track which is fun but tarnished by its novelty and spanking reference (note to Madonna: it wasn't cool in the '90s and it's just embarrassing now), and Minaj on 'I Don't Give A', (whose rap, ending 'there's only one queen, and that's Madonna bitch', really shows up Madge, who delivers a rap only marginally better than her infamous attempt on 'American Life'). 

'I Don't Give A' marks a turning point - from dancefloor to divorce. Although implied on 'Gang Bang' (a wry Ritchie parody if ever there was one), Guy Ritchie is omnipresent from hereon, with Madonna attacking him (pun apologies) Lock Stock and Two Smoking Barrels, with barbs including 'I tried to be your wife/dimish myself' ('I Don't Give A') and 'I want you to hold me like you hold your money' ('Love Spent', also featuring the first banjo on a Madonna record, fact fans!). Finest of these tracks, though, is the majestic finale 'Falling Free', a song that reunites her with the producer of her most acclaimed album (William Orbit, producer of 'Ray of Light') with stunning results.

All in all, then, a pretty great album, occasional poor lyrics ('Superstar' and parts of 'I Don't Give A' particularly) aside. Certainly enough to keep a certain Lady away from her crown for now (after all, no matter how shaky some lyrics are, nothing reaching the sheer bemusement that is Gaga's 'Highway Unicorn'), and especially not bad from a woman who has been performing since Nicki Minaj was teething and Stefani Germanotta was still Baby Gaga.