Scouting For Girls LIVE

I know it's been a bit quiet around here lately but I've been a busy man; meeting a Playboy playmate has been just one way to pass the time recently. (No, really. That is the gospel truth).

But amongst all the fun I did have time to check out Scouting For Girls.

I want to say it depressed me greatly. To be honest, they're not very good. Admittedly place them side by side with the Hoosiers (just to pluck something from thin air there) and Scouting For Girls are the second coming of The Beatles.

I did however, have fun. How much of this was due to me being wasted on booze is open to question but despite the fact that the adulation for the band seemed wasted when you consider the populace virtually ignored Ben Folds Five back in the day one cannot be too churlish.

The girls in the crowd would have been out doing the rounds as sperm receptors and the lads would no doubt have been smashing car windows if they hadn't been having such a grand time with this concert.

So whilst I can hardly say it was great, everyone else seemed to be enjoying their pretty little heads off. And who am I to argue with that?

Hits & Rarities - Sheryl Crow

Just what you wanted isn't it? ANOTHER Sheryl Crow hits compilation. Ok, so the unkind amongst you might suggest that this is preferable to a new collection akin to the underwhelming Wildflower album, but closer inspection reveals this is merely a stop-gap until her new album hits the shelves in early 2008.

On the plus side it is more comprehensive than the last one (witness the inclusion of Tomorrow Never Dies for a start) but that also means that we have to put up with a guest appearance by the ever lovable Sting.

It's difficult to slate the album in terms of its quality, although it is a definite step down from the "Very Best Of Sheryl Crow" given that it adds on some less than stellar tracks. As for the second CD of rarities, it's a decent addition to your Sheryl Crow collection, but not in any way an essential one.

If you've not got a Sheryl Crow album in your collection, this, at least in terms of value for money, is the better compilation to buy. But if you've got the last one this is of no value whatsoever.

A New Hope - Minipop

Minipop might be the wrong name for the band because their sound is anything but small.

At times Minipop can sound like your typical shoegazing indie nonsense, yes, but they've got that little extra that sets them apart from the rest of the pack.

There's little doubt that lead singer Tricia Kanne voice is ethereal and dreamlike and adds a rich layer to the band's sound, but the tunes themselves are great as well. At times they remind me of The Like (and any long-term readers will know that I will regard that as a good thing), at others there is the hint of Stars.

Not everthing on the album reaches the heights that tracks such as Someone To Love and Butterflies do, but overall this is still a very good effort indeed. Certainly worth tracking down.

Heaven, Heartache and the Power of Love - Trisha Yearwood

Trisha Yearwood was one of the first country stars that I liked, way back in the mid 1990's. This is her 12th studio album, her first for a new label, and it's as if nothing has changed.

And realistically, nothing much has, her 2005 marriage to Garth Brooks aside.

But that doesn't need to be a criticism, because Yearwood had good old fashioned country and western nailed down a long, long time ago.

Equally adept at up-tempo numbers, such as the title track, as she is at the ballads, the pick of those being Help Me, Yearwood once again proves her vocal talent on this great album. She rarely disappoints, but this time she's excelled.

Red Carpet Massacre - Duran Duran

It's easy to laugh when you hear the news that Duran Duran have teamed up with the likes of Timbaland and Justin Timberlake in the making of their new album.



Whilst some might argue that working with such hot and of-the-moment producers and stars of their likes somewhat overstates Duran's importance in the 21st Century even the most po-faced reviewer would have to admit that the album has a certain vibrance and vitality that at least means it avoids the "drunken uncle at your wedding" syndrome that, by rights, this album should posess in spades.



The three Timbaland tracks are as positive as you might expect and would have made welcome additions to his recent "solo" album. Pick of the trio is Nite Runner, a slinky, breathy and funky track that will soon be crawling under your skin. The Justin Timberlake produced Falling Down is less successful, but then for all his success, Timberlake can be very much hit and miss and seems to have very few ideas. Indeed this sounds very similar to that one he did where Scarlet Johannson is in the video (sorry, but I've had a temporary mind freeze).



The only problem with it all is Simon Le Bon. It's faintly ridiculous that he's fronting an album as "fresh" as this, a problem which is exacerbated by his trite and sometime cringeworthy lyrical input.



Still as anyone who remembers the absolute car-crash that their covers album was will testify, this could have been a lot worse. In the end it's far better than I feared it might be, and that has to count for something.

Single Releases 19/11/07

Basically, I'm short of time this week.

Suffice to say that the Spice Girls song is dreadful. But that hardly matters in the overall scheme of things.

I do like Saving My Face by KT Tunstall though. I thought I better add that in.

Rilo Kiley LIVE

Funniest line of the night? The old geezer next to me expressing his disappointment at Jenny Lewis' attire with the words "bloody hell, she's wearing trousers." Least funniest line of the night? Well take your pick from the four ignorant bastards stood in front of us.

Still, nothing can take away the magic of what was a brilliant night's entertainment (including the £5 win on Deal or No Deal).

Shortly after half past nine on Sunday 18th November I saw the most adorable thing I have ever seen in my life. It's no secret that I'm in love with Jenny Lewis, but on this particular occasion she quite simply took my breath away. There's just something about a woman in a hat.

I could go on, but I'll comment on the music instead . This was fantastic. Even better than earlier in the year. The band were on top notch form and every song was a delight.

Seriously, there's little else I can say. EVERYTHING was fantastic. I hope it's not too long before I see them again.

Tangled Up - Girls Aloud

Well you know me. Girls Aloud happen to be brilliant. And as the bloke from The Guardian said the other day, "people who don't like Girls Aloud are like people who say they hate The Beatles; they're either posturing or they're an idiot. Either way, you should pay them no mind."

Precisely.

Still as it's Girls Aloud, I'm going to crack out the "once in a blue moon" track by track review of the new album Tangled Up.

1. Call the Shots
It symptomatic of how great the Girls Aloud "non-cover version" singles are that this is seen by some as a disappointment. It's not really a ballad as such, but is still the best ballad they've ever done which, admittedly isn't saying much. But then liking Girls Aloud for their balladry is like liking the Beatles because of Ringo Starr. In the final analysis it's just too "normal" to be a great Girls Aloud tune.

2. Close To Love
This is another one that is slightly too normal to be classic Girls Aloud. The best Girls Aloud tracks sound like they really couldn't be by anyone else. This is not one of those.

3. Sexy! No No No
I seemed to be in the minority with this one, but I didn't really like this. As a single it was adventurous, but was missing that vital thing. A great chorus. It's not bad (and is better than 95% of the last Sugababes album) but "not bad" doesn't really cut the mustard in terms of the Girls Aloud back catalogue.

4. Girl Overboard
Ok so this doesn't have the manic genius of, say, Biology, but it's a bloody brilliant tune, even if it does scream out "mid 1990's dance tune". One listen is all it takes for the "Girl overboard, I thought I had it but I tumbled" chorus to lodge in your brain. A stomping big gay anthem if ever I've heard one.

5. Can't Speak French
There's a story in this one. Perhaps Xenomania were stood in Subway City on that fateful day I tried to chat up a French girl whilst some Michael Jackson classic was pumping over the PA system. "I Can't Speak French, so I'll let the funky music do the talking" seems pretty appropriate for that night of my life. History will show I failed on that particular occasion, but who knows perhaps she's sat in a Paris Café listening to this song on her I-Pod thinking back to that same night. Anyway, I don't think you came here to listen to my life story so back onto the actual song. It's one of those schizophrenic ones which doesn't really seem to know what it's wanting to be. It's good and the kind of thing that only Girls Aloud do, and whilst it might not convince in the way that some of their tracks of this type do, it's still very good.

6. Black Jacks
Oh, we're really getting somewhere now. This is a retro sounding track (like something Candie Payne would do) right from the opening drum beats. "Come and get stuck in" might be one of their finest moments ever. In all seriousness, if someone like the Kaiser Chiefs or Franz Ferdinand did this people would be hailing it as an all-time classic. But I'm not so shallow that a "cool" band has to do it for me to say this. This is wonderful,

7. Control Of The Knife
This is one of those songs that on first listen seems a little bit of fluff, but it's another one of those that just lodges itself in your brain. It's a little bit reggae (in the way that some of Gwen Stefani's stuff could be called reggae) and when they sing "you got me hook, line and sinker" that pretty much sums up the appeal of this song. Insistent beats matched to a very catchy tune. A definite winner.

8. Fling
"Its just a bit of ding-a-ling baby, don't want relationships, so swing baby, swing baby." I think that might get Dave a bit hot under the collar. Whilst this once again proves that Nadine shouldn't attempt to rap there is no denying it's power. My only downside about this one is that parts of the guitar backing sound depressingly close to the worst song ever (which as you should all know is that god awful I Like The Way You Move).

9. What You Crying For
Well I bet you never thought that GA would go drum'n'bass? Not particularly my cup of tea, but not bad.

10. I'm Falling
We're continuing the techno style beats here, but to much better effect than on the previous track. My only real criticism is the relatively weak chorus.

11. Damn
It's like someone has unearthed a previously unreleased outtake from the movie Grease. I can see the Arctic Monkeys doing this one really well you know. It's got that insistent, nagging groovy guitar beat that is their trademark.

12. Crocodile Tears
So we finish off with the closest thing to a ballad on the album. For some reason I can see them hanging around in a Western town in the video to this one. If they did a video for this one. It's very good.

So overall? Well it's clear to see that in it's first flush of youth it's no Chemistry, but then that was one of the classic pop albums of the 21st Century so far. No really.

To put things into perspective, it's easily a "four star" album and has a smattering of "five star" tracks. It's also convincingly better than the recent effort by the Sugababes (their closest "contemporaries" I suppose). For the most part it's also the kind of thing that only Girls Aloud could give us (let's face it, Xenomania save their best stuff for the Girls).

No covers, no real soppy ballads...what more could you ask for from a Girls Aloud album?

Greatest Hits - McFly

It would have been easy to dismiss McFly as just another one of those dreadful boy bands when they first hit the airwaves. The problem was that debut single, Five Colours In Her Hair was one of those undeniably catchy pop tunes that you hear once and then have it lodged in your brain for days.

Of course it would be remiss of me to suggest that all their songs were as catchy, or as good, as that one but it's by no means the only McFly song that stands up remarkably well.

The likes of All About You, Obviously and Please Please were all perfectly good pop songs too. And if they lost their way with attempts to prove they were a "serious" musical act on albums two and three (it can't be a coincidence that Ultraviolet and The Ballad Of Paul K don't make it onto the regular version of this album) you have to say that their attempts at being serious musicians come out better than you'd expect, if never quite convincing you enough. Hell, I'd take them over James Blunt any day of the week.

Any anyway, one of them has "done" Lindsay Lohan...I've got to respect that.

The Trick To Life - The Hoosiers

One review of this album suggested that this is exactly the kind of non-threatening album that seems almost perfect for Virgin Radio Drivetime.

And no, that's not a compliment.

And if I'm being honest there's not an awful lot more that I can add to that description. It sums up the entire Hoosiers project entirely.

I'm not sure if it's the incessant "wackiness" the band seem intent on proving that they have, the idea that they seem to think that they're just so much "fun" to listen to, the terrible singing or the ripped off melodies that annoy me the most with this album.

I was brave; I saw it through to the end. But at the end of it all a great violence was welling up inside me. I hope I never have to listen to this again.

The Feeling have an awful lot to answer for by making 70's style AOR pop music "fashionable" again.

Spirit - Leona Lewis

It's a year since Leona Lewis was taken to the nations bosom, or some such nonsense, as the winner of the 2006's X-Factor. If we're to listen to Simon Cowell it's been time spent making sure that Lewis will be a long-term superstar, globally, rather than cashing in on the one album made whilst her success would be in the minds of the record buying public and then pushing her off into oblivion.

Whatever you choose to believe on that respect the one thing they haven't really done in that twelve months or so is get her some tunes.

First off, irrespective of your feelings on how she was "discovered", there is no denying that she's got a great voice. The problem is that a lot of the time it's surrounded by melodies and tunes that even Des'ree might reject as being a little too bland. Indeed I can't help but think Lewis is missing a trick by not doing a version of Life.

Anyways...Occasionally, such as on the recent single Bleeding Love, we get a glimpse that if she was hooked up with some top notch producers this could have been something reasonably special. As it is, they've pitched her somewhere between Westlife and the worst bits of Whitney Houston. And neither side of that equation is particularly enticing.

Greatest Hits - Spice Girls

I'll admit to multiple live concert trips to see The Spice Girls (both pre- and post- Geri), including that immensely awesome coach trip to Sheffield when me and my mate Gee were the only people on the coach over the age of eleven not there because they were taking their kids to the concert. Indeed the bus driver picked on me as the conscience of the bus to do the head count.

Of course I probably would have gone to see them this time around if it wasn't SEVENTY-FIVE fucking pounds for a ticket. As it happens I won't even be spending the tenner on the CD.

But that doesn't stop me taking a look back at some pop history does it?

Like most throwaway pop (for want of a better term) things are never likely to seem as good as they were 10 years later (though I'd wager I'll still be sat here in 2017 telling you how great Girls Aloud were) but there are a number of songs that still hold up relatively well, most of them from their second album Spiceworld.

Spice Up Your Life might still be their finest moment, Viva Forever and Too Much remain their finest ballads (with one possible exception, which we'll come to in a moment) and Stop is the epitome of a pop party track that appeals to one and all, young and old.

Songs from the debut fare less well. Wannabe, as crucial as it was to the rise of the Spice Girls at the time, hasn't aged well and Mama sounds even more cringeworthy in 2007 than it did at the time. Everything from this period beats virtually all of the dog that was Forever. That was the classic moment when a fantastic pop act gets idea's above their station and don't want to be pop anymore.

The only saving grace from the dreadful final days was Goodbye, quite possibly my favourite Spice Girls ballad if only for the fact that I once used it to make my, soon to be ex, flatmate cry at University when it was on in a club saying that once we left uni, that would be it. For those keeping score I think I've seen her about three times since then (in seven years).

But anyway, whilst perhaps damaging the memory of The Spice Girls in some ways (and seriously, what's with putting that bloody Pepsi advert song on here) when they were being a pop act, they were pretty damn fine. Some people may suggest it was only ever about the hype, but this proves that for at least the first two thirds of their original career they usually had the tunes as well.

I just hope they've no inclination to get "naked" during their tour this time around.

Single Releases 12/11/07

I don't really think that on the surface I'm going to have any better luck with this week's singles than I did last week. But this week I am at least going to make an effort.

So yes, the new Fergie one is absolutely atrocious. But then I ask you people, what did you expect? The Black Eyed Peas are bad enough at times but rarely do they collectively sink to the level of a Fergie solo track for sheer awfulness.

As for Hard-Fi, well let's just say I find them annoying and leave it at that.

They are probably less annoying, just about, than Nickleback. Their new one, Rockstar, is absolutely lamentable. I can only spend a brief moment each day wishing that they hadn't decided to become "rockstars".

That new Rhianna one is awful as well. But it seems that life goes along the lines of "if Matt likes a Rhianna song it scrapes into the top 10, if Matt doesn't like it it storms to number one and stays there for a year." So what do I know?

Love's Not A Competition (But I'm Winning) was one of the most abysmal tracks on the latest Kaiser Chiefs album so only releasing it on a 7-inch through their website is probably a good idea. It doesn't let them off the hook though. If I was genetically engineering a set of lyrics to make Ricky Wilson even less likable, I couldn't come up with anything much better than this I'm sure.

I'm not keen on hellogoodbye either if I'm being honest. And I am.

Maximo Park have sneaked up on me though this year and Karaoke Plays is another winner. There are few bands who, lyrically, seem to hit the right spots on a personal level in terms of my life as Maximo Park. I'm not saying they are particularly insightful in global terms, but they seem to sum up a lot of my life. But that's probably telling you more than you want to know about my miserable love life.

Dizzee Rascal's Maths And English album was awesome (and I'll keep saying that until more people agree with me); Flex is another winner. Not that anyone will listen to me.

To end I suppose we must tackle the new Kylie single, 2 Hearts. It's ok, and at least in terms of her own output is something different. She'd have been better off getting the people who worked on Britney's album though if you ask me. Not that any of these comments will stop the juggernaut that is her career.

Carnival Ride - Carrie Underwood

Carrie Underwood was once described to me as the proof that even reality shows could introduce us to talent. That would nicely avoid the fact that Underwood, on her second album, only contributes co-writing on three songs. But then again, Underwood isn't pop, she's country. Except pop is exactly what she is, even if she had no real desire to be a pop star.

Second album time is either more of the same in an attempt to consolidate your strengths or the time when the more adventurous might strike out in a fresh direction to prove they're not one-trick ponies (and I'm not saying either route is necessarily incorrect). Underwood has taken the former route but luckily for her she (or those who make the music) has come up with a collection which is better as a whole than her massive debut.

It's telling perhaps that the best moments are the more upbeat songs such as Flat On The Floor and Last Name. That's not to say that her voice cannot carry the slower, torch, songs because it certainly can, but they fail to convince in the long-run. It almost seems as if the producers have similar misgivings given how many of the seemingly more mellow moments suddenly crank up a gear half way through.

It's not likely to give her the worldwide crossover as a Shania Twain as it's a little bit too country for some tastes, but it is a good album which should offer plenty to any country aficionado's out there.

Acoustic Hearts Of Winter - Aly & AJ

Yes, it's coming up to Christmas so over the next six or seven weeks I shall be reviewing random Christmas CD's as and when the mood takes me.

Now if there's one thing guaranteed to strike dread into my heart, its an album with the word "acoustic" in the title. Even worse when it's a manufactured pop band committing that heinous crime.

Well fear not, this is actually pretty awesome as Christmas albums go.

Funnily enough its not the "pop"ed up attempts to continue their trademark sounds that most capture me, but the more traditional fare. God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen, We Three Kings and Let Snow quite simply but me instantly in the Christmas mood and more upbeat reworking of Little Drummer Boy and Deck The Halls are superb as well.

Sure some of the rest is cringeworthy, but it's Christmas. Well worth grabbing hold of a copy for your Christmas morning.

The Very Best Of...Diana Krall

If you've heard of Diana Krall then you'll know instantly whether this is the CD for you or not. If you haven't heard of her, or only know her as Mrs Elvis Costello, and feel in the mood for a bit of mellow jazz then you might be well advised to put this on your shopping list.

Fans would probably never agree over which 15 songs should have made the cut from her 14 year career (and consider that three of those are brand new Krall recordings) but on the whole I think it does an excellent job of cherry picking some of her finest moments.

Particular favourites of mine include Peel Me A Grape, Frim Fram Sauce and Let's Fall In Love. Of the new tracks, the only bad thing I can say about them is that it's a pity that Only The Lonely isn't the Roy Orbison classic.

If I was entertaining this weekend, this would be the CD being played as the soundtrack.

The Mary Onettes - The Mary Onettes

Well anyone who likes 80's music, and specifically the likes of New Order, The Cure and The Smiths (or even A-Ha) will be intrigued by what they find on Sweeden's The Mary Onettes album, but they might not necessarily be entranced by it.

There's nothing wrong with wearing your influences on your sleeve but over the course of this debut album you might find yourself wishing that they'd taken the care to marry them to some substantial chops of their own.

There are times when the approach works; the one truly outstanding track, Lost, is a case in point. Just when you think it can't soar any higher, it leaves that assessment trailing in the dust with,

Sadly it's not a trick they can pull off again, at least on this collection. There are other diverting moments, but often your only thought it what New Order song they're sounding like for this three minutes (the most blatant example of this being Slow).

It's a decent effort, but has little to make you come back for repeated listens. Nothing is really an out and out stinker, but precious little of it sails to the stars.

Mutha' 'Uckers

You won't belive me but "you fee me 'cause of your mutha 'uckin fee" is the funniest line uttered on television in 2007.

Thanks to r8dkid.

Kate Nash LIVE

Well all praise my new job. Five minutes after driving off the work car park I was on the motorway. Compare that to the at least 30 minute run from my previous workplace (which lest you people don't realise was only about half a mile further away from the motorway than my current position) and we're already onto a winner.

That said, it led to a problem eventually. After a few games of golf (and having to lend some money to Gee who had spent all his money at the weekend going out with his future wife) and a kebab we headed to Academy One ridiculously early. I did attempt to suggest Kro Bar for a drink, but we pressed on regardless, eager to check out the new and improved venue.

Well basically it was shit. It might just have been the five deep queue for the bar and the irredeemably shit support band (think the Klaxons doing a piss poor Kraftwerk impersonation and you're not even half way to how bad they were) but somehow I doubt it. Unless the venue has something up its sleeve for the final stretch of "improvements" one of my favourite gig-going venue seems to have shot itself in the foot.

As for the concert itself, which is kind of the point, I have mixed feelings. On the one hand it wasn't as captivating as Nash's earlier gigs this year at Night & Day, although at least in a bigger venue it was easier to avoid being stood next to pretentious wankers. The problems I have with Made Of Bricks are well known by now and I have to say that Nash is better when uncluttered by superfluous musical arrangements (read that as a "live band").

That said, despite a feeling of disappointment when the evening was over, I've been singing We Get on ever since the concert. And I dare say that not one of the teenage girls who left the concert into the cold night Manchester air thought that the concert was anything less than one of the best nights out they've ever had.

Single Releases 5/11/07

So amongst others this week we have Paul McCartney, Wet Wet Wet, Bedouin Soundclash, Elvis Presley, The Proclaimers, Nicole Scherzinger , Shitdisco Boy Kill Boy and David Gray.

I tell you what folks, I'll give it a miss this week.

Better Than Blood - Megan McCauley

If the cover of this album, and indeed its' title, suggests emo goth is in store, then Tap That, the lead single, from Megan McCauley's debut album initially defies that description. Indeed it starts off more like some attempt to mix Rap with P!nk (and if that's not a dreadful idea on paper I don't know what is), yet within minutes we're into the kind of chorus that sent The Offspring into the mainstream. And despite initial reservations, I have to say it's really rather good.

And so the experience of the album goes. Yes there are the Amy Lee cast-off's (Reverie, taken from the Fantastic Four soundtrack, is a case in point) but there is more to Megan McCauley than first impressions might suggest.

Wrong Way Out is the kind of uplifting anthem that could "save" Robbie Williams career (for the, erm, record, by the way I don't think his career needs "saving" - Rudebox was his most inventive and interesting album) and if it's in danger at times of veering a little too close into Anastacia territory its saved by an uplifting and soaring chorus.

Labelling Migraine as Nirvana with a female singer might be pushing the point a little too far, but you get the idea, whilst I'll Pay You To Shoot Him (a true tale of McCauley telling police officers to "deal" with her Father) shows that she cuts the mustard lyrically as well.

Some people probably won't be able to look past the album cover (although some people may well be enamoured by thoughts of a busty redhead) and that's a pity. McCauley proves on this really rather good debut album that she's a talent to be reckoned with.

Delta - Delta Goodrem

I did like the lead single from this album, In This Life.

Indeed, I have a soft spot for Delta, for no real apparent reason, and whilst I would never suggest her albums are brilliant, they always contain enough to keep me going.

Delta, her 3rd album, is pretty much the same.

Yes, as the single showed, there is a slightly "edgier" slant on occasions but for the most part its just as you'd expect; good but not great.

The one real exception to that is future single, Believe Again. If the people of Britain didn't hate her for taking McFadden away from Kerry Katona, this would have number one written all over it. It's comfortably the best thing she's ever done and even if you don't feel like you can stomach the entire album, at the very least check that out if you can.

The Donnas LIVE!

Well at least the Gee got a taste of the heavy traffic I usually have to put up with when driving to these things. Lovely to see sweat towel bloke waiting outside the venue as we drove past.

I lost at Golf, but discovered that Peeterman Artois is absolutely deadly for me. Seriously, three pints and I was more drunk that I was at the weekend when I'd partaken in a share of about six jugs of Fosters for starters!

Anyway, onto the concert.

And may I just say...I love The Donnas. This was so much better than being Academy 2 last time around and if the turn out was a little on the poor side (and lets be honest, it was) everyone seemed determined to make up for it.

Old hits sat alongside the new album tracks with the pace never really being allowed to slow down. All four of them seemed bang on form and this has to go down as one of the most entertaining concerts of the year!

I dare say the fact I'm in love with Alison Robertson didn't hurt matters either.