SimonFuller has been trying this freelance journalism lark for almost eight months now, but often finds himself giving up and listening to more music. As well as lapping up everything from electro-pop to symphonic metal, he also enjoys plotting convoluted novels and drinking decadent variants on coffee. He lives in Bedford. 
One of indie-punk crew Redtrack’s earlier gambits came in the form of ‘Pole Dancer’, a sparky, slice of sleaze and ‘oi-oi’ bravado. And while this, their debut LP, is still all about fun and youthful themes (there’s a song about memory cards—that’s how down with the kids these guys are), the band surprise with some song-writing that’s a cut above some of the toilet-circuit dross that counts for indie these days. Cue some tight melodies, and glimpses of a wider range than the ‘Pole Dancer’ single initially suggested. On ‘Perfectly Fine Intellectual’, released over the summer, tempered chav-rock aggression gives way to a melancholy chorus that keeps you on your toes. Meanwhile, closer ‘A Pretty Boy’, which harks back to the band’s Hollyoaks-invading roots (Redtrack won a band battle on the soap), finds ex-teen drama actress Hollie-Jay Bowes trading vocals with Redtrack’s own Billy Wright in what’s almost a love song. ‘Whole Town’s Heart’ has enough stomping about to keep the crowds happy, but Redtrack are at their best when they drop the faux rabble-rousing and engage their sensitive side.
The second single from the new album of the same name—the band’s seventh—‘Renegades’ finds Feeder in a furious and turbo-charged mood. The song begins slowly, atmospherically, Grant Nicholas’ clear, precise vocals restrained but crackling with something between pent-up rage and tenderness, as reverb floods the soundscape. And then the song launches into an urgent charge, all fire and electric guitars—no acoustics in sight here. With a lyric list that’s perhaps a little clichéd, Nicholas simultaneously berates the listener while seeking to uplift, firing hack-eyed but no less potent lines about the general state of society, singing ‘Things could be better, we could belong’ and ‘don’t hate…we’re not the problem’ like a cross between a hip, modern rock star and a protest singer. The song has an energized, ‘devil-may-care’ attitude to it, while still offering, between the frantic vocals and punchy guitars, a sense of poignancy.
Scot producer Burns has certainly announced his presence on the British scene, leaving his mark already via head-turning remixes of tracks by some of the bright young things of the last few years, including Ladyhawke and Passion Pit. This double-CD mix album follows a number of releases, with the latest, the ‘So Many Nights’ EP, attracting a lot of chatter in the internet dance music community. While the first disc is very much an enjoyable foray into house and techno territory, ideal for anyone looking to recreate that clubbing feeling away from the dance floor, it is this album’s second disc which provides a real insight into who and what Burns is. Hence on disc one we have classic floor-filling acts like Armand Van Helden’s ‘Ski Hard’ and a hot remix of Gossip’s ‘Heavy Cross’, while Burns gets truly diverse on disc number two, displaying a taste for quirky French dance-pop in the bubblegum-coated form of Yelle’s ‘Ce Jeu’ and funk-tinged house on his own ‘Heartbeats’, amid a myriad of other styles. Ultimately it is a trance reworking of Empire of the Sun’s ‘We The People’, ending proceedings on a high, which shows just what BURNS is capable of.
Electro sleaze, that’s what Slyde call their combination of dubstep-influenced bass and big breakbeat stylings, and as a description, that sounds bang on the money: Slyde’s latest offering, ‘Move Ya Body’, the debut release on their neatly titled Slybeats record label, is as fetid and kinetic as they come, and nicely summed up by the genre moniker. Powered by cowbells, huge beats and presented with tons of energy, the single also boasts the production values needed to fill a stadium. ‘Move Ya Body’ does everything it says on the tin: mixing electro chords with a dirty, underground-club atmosphere, the single is super-charged by party-inspiring vocals. The single also shows that Slyde are unafraid to get busy mixing genres, offering as it does glimpses of hip-hop and funk along the way. As relentless as a rabid pitbull and guaranteed to interest both the electro and dubstep crowds, ‘Move Ya Body’ is one confidently sleazy single.
After being talent scouted by the Moshi Moshi label, Fins Juho Paalosmaa and Tomi Hyyppa are here to give us Brits a taste of how electro-pop sounds filtered through the cold of the Nordic countries; it turns out that what we’re left with is a more reserved sound than we’re used to via the likes of Chew Lips et al, littered with laid-back grooves and tinkling, frosty keys. ‘Running On’ is a slow-burner, lingering keys leading the way as the track builds momentum; gradually, archaic synths ease their way to the foreground. As a love song, B-side ‘Moving On’ lacks romance, sounding detached and too spaced out; as dreamy pop, the song has more success. ‘Ways To Be’, meanwhile, combines pulsating synths with strong vocal lines, producing what could be the soundtrack to a club night in the Himalayas: kinetic yet also offering aural glimpses of the ice of Villa Nah’s homeland. A trio of songs that won’t set the world on fire, but score points for offering a chilled out take on a genre fast becoming saturated.
Leeds label Dead Young Records have some exciting sounds they want you to hear—and this, sampler EP part deux, does well to show off the diversity of the label’s offerings. Gringo Star open up, sounding like either a modern Animals or The Libertines sent back to the ‘60s. They’re not as interesting as this might suggest, though, and despite some solid riffing and some bluesy rock and roll virtuoso, ‘All Y’all’ feels tepid and forgettable. In a song about poets and loves lost, The Cubical’s Dan Wilson’s raspy vocals instantly bring to mind the likes of Nick Cave. With its darkly romantic mood, ‘Would Be Lovers’ is a black-hearted but absorbing ballad. A kinetic mash-up of sinister drums, huge synths and rawkish guitars, We//Are//Animal’s ‘1268’ is bold and brash, accepting no prisoners—and it works a treat, an electro-indie sucker punch that’s not clever and doesn’t need to be. Finally, Paul Thomas Saunders winds things up in that way only a singer-songwriter can, all lush, dreamy soundscapes and big, cloying choruses. As a whole, this EP gets a big thumbs-up: it offers some enormous variety, and glimpses of three acts we should be keeping an eye on.
Teenagersintoyko are one chap and four ladies on a crusade to put some style and verve back into synth-rock. Here, title track ‘Sacrifice’ opens up slowly, with plenty of rumbling bass, leading to an almighty crescendo of Riot Grrrl-esque proportions, swamped by giddy feedback. But for all its sinister momentum, only the guitars here really impress, calling out in the turbulent darkness of the track. Thankfully, Teenagersintokyo soon get into their stride with the more upbeat, fantastically synth-heavy ‘Peter Pan’—recently given The Horrors remix treatment—fitting Samantha Lim’s wailing vocals much more snugly. And the musical space occupied by the band, previously dark alt-rock on the album opener, becomes more expansive—shades of disco and new wave abound, with album highlight ‘New Day’ not entirely dissimilar to the fey mystique of Bat For Lashes. There’s no denying that Teenagersintokyo like their synths: just check out ‘Long Walk Home’. And if you’re adverse to anything that sounds reminiscent of the ‘80s, you’ll probably balk at what the band are doing here. But if you’re open to synths merging—seamlessly for the most part—with alt-rock, you’re in for a treat with this debut.
Emerging mash-up merchants Curry & Coco clash genres without a care in the world on this taster of things to come from their debut full-length. ‘Sex Is Fashion’ is a ‘lads on a bender’ take on synth-driven punk/dance, with cheerfully cheeky vocals to boot. Pounding Eurodance synths usher the listener into what turns out to be an uninteresting and low-key verse, which then leads into a simple and rather obvious chorus, but one which is irrepressible if you’ve even the slightest appreciation for a synth overload. ‘Who’s Next?’ delivers more of the same simplistic, no-brainer song structure. Here, an irritating, echoing chorus ensures that while the title track had a certain charm, you’ll soon tire of this second offering. On the remix front, a treatment by the Emperor Machine injects some interesting and unexpected twists into a lengthy soundscape. Despite a mistread on ‘Who’s Next?’, the prime offering here is infectious and boisterous, riding roughshod through dance, indie and raucous punk stylings. Like a bowl of punch at a student party, ‘Sex Is Fashion’ is crude but does the job.
