Music - Singles of the Week - Monday, July 19, 2010
IndieLondon gleefully checks out the cream of the week’s singles. All you have to do is click on the pictures to order them…
SINGLE OF THE WEEK: VANESSA AMOROSI – THIS IS WHO I AM: Australian sensation Vanessa Amorosi releases her debut UK single in the form of the energetic This Is Who I Am. A slice of punk-pop that’s reminiscent of the feistiness and no-nonsense approach of Pink, it’s a fun listen that suggests we’re going to like her a lot. Amorosi enjoys Kylie sized success in her home country and is poised for a UK assault with her third album, Hazardous, and she’s a free spirit (and tireless charity worker) who has plenty of energy and charisma surrounding her. This Is Who I Am is as much a statement of self-contentment as it is a call out to her fans (and newcomers alike) not to fall to peer pressure and self doubt. She sings that it’s OK to be round, OK to dress as you like, and OK to maintain your own sense of personality rather than succumbing to the pressures of those who feel they know better. Crucially, when Amorosi sings it, the message doesn’t sound preachy or pretentious, but fun, uplifting and – above all else – inspiring. Welcome to the UK!
Released across all formats
Rating: 4 out of 5
Website l Read our interview l View photos
RPA & THE UNITED NATIONS OF SOUND – BORN AGAIN: Richard Ashcroft, of The Verve fame, returns with his new outfit RPA & The United Nations of Sound and duly impresses. The aptly-named Born Again is a real statement of intent from the returning singer, which comes complete with lines such as “now I’m a man who aint afraid, I destroyed my ego just to make the space…” It’s an epic, assured offering that makes the most of Ashcroft’s distinct, powerful voice… while embellishing the background instrumentals with gospel elements, a throbbing slice of bass, and touches of strings. It’s much, much better than the singer’s solo material, immediately post-Verve and demonstrates a newfound confidence and vitality that had perhaps been missing from some of that material. If the album, United Nations of Sound, can match up to the quality of this first single, then we could be talking major comeback in a big, big way.
Released across all formats
Rating: 3.5 out of 5
PENDULUM – WITCHCRAFT: Pendulum display their commercial side with the release of new single Witchcraft from their successful Immersion LP. Opening with a melodic, sung intro, the track does drop the band’s trademark heavy-hitting drum ‘n’ bass beats along with a crunching riff and some wonky synths. It’s arguably one of the better tracks to be taken from the LP, and certainly boasts a radio friendly format. Pendulum fans, meanwhile, are treated to a remix package that commences with frontman Rob Swire’s own drum-step mix, which – if anything – works better than the radio edit. John B and Netsky also contribute workouts – the former opening things up with some ethereal flourishes early on, before layering in the swirling synth movements and eventually hitting the dance revellers with the drum ‘n’ beat loops they’ll doubtless be craving. Netsky, meanwhile, hits you with the hard stuff almost immediately… dropping a charged synth note to begin with, and then some Ibiza-sounding synth sounds to augment the drum ‘n’ bass elements. It’s the weakest one in the package. But on the whole, Witchcraft only looks set to broaden Pendulum’s growing appeal.
Released as a download
Rating: 3 out of 5
Order the album l Album review
ORPHAN BOY – POP SONG: Orphan Boy are a rock/pop trio that formed in Cleethorpes in February 2005. They soon escaped from there and moved to Manchester where they signed to Concrete Recordings. (Though two of them are now back in their beloved Cleethorpes!) But they then began by making a kind of post-post punk music in which choruses were forbidden and lots of guitar strings got snapped. This became known as Two-Chord Council Pop, the culmination of which was their (classic) debut album, Shop Local, released in 2008. In the wake of Shop Local‘s ‘cult’ success, Orphan Boy began working on a new more melodic, more musical and more introspective direction, culminating in the album Passion, Pain and Loyalty and its lead single, Pop Song. The results are pretty good. Boasting a keen sense of melody, some strong vocals and a keen mix of guitars and electronics, Pop Song can even lay claim to possessing an early James-like element to the delivery that suggests they’re here for the long haul. It’s a great little introduction to them, with the album to follow in August.
Released as a download
Rating: 3.5 out of 5
ADAM LAMBERT – WHATAYA WANT FROM ME: American Idol breakthrough star Adam Lambert releases the best track from his otherwise over-rated LP, For Your Entertainment, in the form of the Pink penned Whataya Want From Me. As much an impassioned plea for patience to his fans and critics, the song wears it’s pop-rock elements on its sleeve and benefits from the feistier edge give to it by the presence of Pink. Otherwise, Lambert is more of a self-confessed “ultra-glam, rock superstar” who prefers to do things with an element of glam-rock head-rush euphoria. Whataya Want From Me cuts to the chase and is a blistering pop-rock effort of huge fun. So, in answer to the central question posed by the name of the song: more of the same please!
Released as a download
Rating: 3.5 out of 5
Order the album l Album review
THE PIPETTES – CALL ME: The Pipettes have never your typical pop band and now they’re back to remind us why. Call Me is the second single to be taken from their forthcoming and eagerly anticipated second album Earth Vs The Pipettes, which looks set to see them build on the staggering success of their 2007 debut with an image makeover. The track sees the now London-based six-piece in full-on power pop overdrive and follows their ebullient comeback Stop The Music. Like that track, it’s a disco-tinged offering fuelled by energetic synth flourishes, catchy harmonies and a punchy chorus that invites the listener (and the subject) to pick up the phone and dial. Thanks to a change of line-up and a hop, skip and jump into 2010, they’ve reinvented themselves as a big shiny pop group, leaving behind the realm of the three female harmony girl-group and moving towards the sounds of Chic-inspired seventies disco and eighties chart music. It’s a promising new sound that looks set to win them ever more friends.
Released as a download
Rating: 3.5 out of 5
JAMIE LIDELL – I WANNA BE YOUR TELEPHONE: Jamie Lidell releases one of the weaker tracks from his latest album, Compass, in the form of I Wanna Be Your Telephone. A slightly disjointed mix of funk, beats and soul, it almost sounds like the singer is channelling the off-kilter energy of Prince at times (both conceptually and vocally), as well as traces of Beck. But while it’s not exactly terrible, it’s not the best possible representation of an artist who can do so much better. Indeed, the more coherent B-side, Gypsy Blood, offers a fuller blooded mix of funk and rock that’s spearheaded by a blistering vocal and some excellent guitar flourishes. For the Lidell followers, though, the single itself comes with a Tiga Party Like It’s 19909 remix that is actually a little more engaging than the original (and yes, the remix name suggests that Lidell is well aware of those Prince-like qualities!).
Released across all formats
Rating: 3 out of 5
Order the album l Album review
BEATSTEAKS – JANE BECAME INSANE: Berlin-based five-piece Beatsteaks are all pacifists. The goal for the band’s latest album Limbo Messiah was thus: “We wanted to set off another couple of bombs again”, says singer Arnim Teutoburg-Weiss. Hence, this new single – released on the same day as the album – is a signal of that intent. Packed with raw, ragged and powerful guitar hooks (think punk and grunge), some angsty, fury-lade vocals and a pent up intensity, it’s a piledriver of a single that, admittedly, does also possess some radio-friendly elements. If The Strokes adopted some German origins, really let go with the punk elements and threw in some Sex Pistols, the result may sound similar. Arnim may sing that he has “everything under control”, but he also laments “it’s going to hit me” on several occasions – providing ample warning of just how the song sets about you. It suggests control, but keeps punching you with waves of riffs, ragged vocals and incessant beats. Surprisingly, it does it well.
Released across all formats
Rating: 3.5 out of 5
FRANCESQA – WE LIVED EP: Rockers Francesqa may hail from Oxfordshire, but they have a very American sound, which would explain why they’ve been able to capture the attention and support of Angels & Airwaves front-man, Tom Delonge. He liked them so much, in fact, that he picked them from thousands of entries to open the Slam Dunk Festivals on the Introducing stage. Building on that success, the band now release their We Lived EP, which is kick-started by the track Ghosts. The formula is pretty safe for this kind of thing: big guitars, stadium-sized wall of sound, and emphatic choruses that are designed to have big crowds chanting along. The sentiments are sweet (lyrics include “and make this world seem a better place, if only to ourselves”), but there’s grit to be found, while lead singer Ashley Wilkie definitely has presence and a great set of lungs. The guitar work, too, is tight… mixing melodic strains with some heaviness. Delonge seems to have got behind a promising new act; and if you like your music loud and hard rock styled, then Francesqa are worth checking out. Ghosts is the pick of the five tracks… although Years shows some nice restraint, Crooked Little Sun allows them to cut loose and indulge their wilder tendencies, and We Lived ends things on a sombre, reflective, ballad-esque note that shows they also have a sensitive side (and, dare I say, a Third Eye Blind element).
Released as a download
Rating: 3.5 out of 5
DIANA VICKERS – THE BOY WHO MURDERED LOVE: Diana Vickers releases another slice of cheesy disco pop from her debut album, Songs From The Tainted Cherry Tree. Built around a somewhat generic disco synth backdrop, The Boy Who Murdered Love is a playful teenage take on a broken heart that showcases some promise in Vickers’ lyrical skills. But the polished production values and hopelessly mainstream feel to the track place it on the back foot, suggesting that younger listeners and Capital FM subscribers are the ones who are really the target audience. Breezy enough, but instantly disposable.
Released as a download
Rating: 2 out of 5
Heard a great single, but yet to buy it? Well, we may have reviewed it. Previous reviews:
Right Content
Related Links
- Music Home
- Music Archives
- A/V Room
- IndieLondon Gig Guide
- Singles of the Week
- Music Gallery