By Rachel Miele
Hello all, it’s that wonderful time of the week again where we cast our ears over a selection of hot to trot releases so you don’t have to. Think of me as an Xfactor judge but faced with an array of recordings as oppose to live auditions and a majorly smaller wardrobe budget – oh the glamour of it all. Plus the ever so exciting moment of finding out the winner comes straight away so you don’t have to sit through never ending ad-breaks and Dermot O’Leary’s ‘Presenting.’ Anyway there’s a lovely bunch here for you so without further ado let’s get on with it shall we?
First up is Angular Records’ last signing This Many Boyfriends with Young Lover’s Go Pop. Reminiscent of…well…most indie bands coming out circa-2007 This Many Boyfriends could fill that black hole in the lives of Wombats fans…Young Lovers Go Pop is catchy and shouty and stampy so will no doubt sit well within indie night playlists down your local basement. I am sure their nice enough lads, and it’s not that the song is particularly ‘bad’ music but there are artists out there doing the football chant style chorus thing a lot better.
Next up is Sensorites with their catchy new jingle Slipstream. Now I won’t lie, I am slightly bias as I love a band from the north so I won’t become too overly gushing. The intro to this song is happy and bouncy like a cbeebies version of Supergrass. I’ll mention the Hoosiers comparison for you but let’s forget that and stick with the Supergrass one yeah? YEAH? The lyrical content however is far from what you’d find in a Tweenies script, it’s probably safe to say it’s all about getting naughty but that’s fine (because their northern and undoubtedly have sexy accents.) The single wouldn’t be out of place on most British comedy Channel 4 serials – The Inbetweeners for example; and with the viewing figures programs such as them notch up it wouldn’t do the band any harm would it?
Up next is hardware loving youngster Flume with new single Sleepless. I really do try (and mostly fail) not to sound cynical and mean when writing this round-up, but seriously, sometimes words just fail me. If you were to go by online love alone then this would be single of the week. However that’s not how it works here (on my laptop of power…) so er… It isn’t! Sleepless isn’t necessarily bad it just isn’t as brilliant as it is attempting to be – see Avalanches or even Flying Lotus for the best (and better) version of what Flume is currently doing. Access to too much synthetic programs and plug-ins can do more damage than good and that is what appears to have happened with Sleepless.
Sometimes you just want music that does exactly what you want to hear without sounding overly samey and isn’t rubbish. In walks the lovely sound of Benjamin Shaw with new single When I Fell Over the City. It is how acoustic-based song writing should be – a story being told through means of a listenable tune. He manages to add extras without overloading the song with out of place electric effects and I challenge you to listen to this and not have the tune stuck in your head for at least the remainder of the day! The single is just lovely, a proper pub sing-a-long.
Like Australians? Like people that probably use the word ‘Epic’? Then Me (no, not me) might just be what you’ve been looking for. If you enjoy dipping your toe in the pit that is Janes Addiction and Muse then the chances are you’ll probably enjoy Like a Fox. The song makes good musical sense for the theme their going for and will no doubt suit packed, sweaty venues with ridiculously large stereo stacks. It has promising moments but unfortunately suffers from having too much going on at the same time. Sometimes having too many themes and ideas in a track can be detrimental, plus they have pretty much nicked the guitar ideas from Janes’ Just Because…
On paper it is fair to say Kismet Ryding sound basically brilliant, described as “…a storm of melodic and powerful sounds that marry the talent of Led Zeppelin with the modern day force of Kasabian.” You ask yourself YES, I want to hear this! Play it NOW! Then you do, and then the sad face appears. British made Kismet Ryding show a little promise in debut single Hangin, however just because you wear 60s-style clobber and listen to Primal Scream this doesn’t automatically induct you into the hall of fame… Plaudits from BBC 6Music will no doubt boost interest but they’ll have to tread carefully if they intent to be here for the long run as there is such a thing as too much repetitive indie with Topman suits and not enough originality. I’m sure they’ll take a fantastic photo for their NME shoot though…
Now the moment you have all been waiting for. This week’s winning single is… (Imagine I’m Dermot O’Leary, take a five minute screen break to induce proper pre-result suspense please) The positively gorgeous tones of Brooklyn-based Chalk and Numbers with new single Summer Nights (not to be confused with the brilliant John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John duet). Nancy Sinatra-esque vocals from singer Sable Yong are what really make this song, a gorgeous addition to anybody’s music collection. Chalk and Numbers manage to include obvious 60s pop influences without sounding over-zealous or cheesy with it , which can only be a good thing in an age where every other artist sights Beach Boys or Doors as an influence on their music. The thing that lets it down is the abrupt ending, the song is essentially a misty-eyed sex-track (I know – if only that was a genuine musical genre.) Summer Nights could get away with being twice as long and still be great, maybe even better.
Summer Nights is out now.
