Say It - Britt Nicole

They tell me that Britt Nicole is "Christian" music. I'm glad they told me because by listening to Say It, you wouldn't particularly guess.

Some might prefer to label her the latest in a long line of Avril Lavigne wannabees who will never make a career out of this music malarkey. Indeed, a cursory glance over her mere existence would probably lead you down that path, but that would not be doing Miss Nicole any justice.

Becuase whilst there is no escaping the fact that this sounds a lot like Avril Lavigne and her ilk, there is plenty of evidnce that Nicole has the ability to stand out from the pack (although admittedly, how much this is down to her, and how much to her "team" is not something I can answer at this stage).

Sure there is a lot that blends into the "teen-pop" pack, but there are a smattering of genuinely catchy, knock-out pop moments on her debut album.

Sunshine Girl is the sort of radio-friendly pop ditty that you can imagine blaring out of your car stereo whilst someone like Fearne Cotton (shudder) babbles on about the ususal nonsense. Holiday has a slinky electro vibe, with a lovely string riff (or whatever you want to call it) and a positively addictive drum beat. Believe has the sort of chorus that would have teen girls across the world singing along.

Of course there is a fair amount of tracks that don't really go anywhere and fit the template a little bit too tightly to really become anything memorable.

Still this has enough good stuff to give it a reccomendation, if it sounds like your kind of thing. And lets face it, if Kelly Clarkson had released this hook-laden album instead of her recent one, she might not have to be apologising to Clive Davis on bended knee...

Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga - Spoon

Ok so this is Spoon's sixth album, and I hadn't heard of them until a few days ago. Well you can't keep a track of EVERYTHING can you? So whilst most reviews of this album you will find will make great play about how good this is in respect to their vast back catalogue, I can't do that.

I can only tell you how good it is...full stop.

Clocking in at a little over half an hour, there isn't an extraneous moment on this album. From start to finish this is a delight. True, it's hard to escape the feeling that, ultimately, everything on this album, from the piano hooks to the handclaps, has been obsessively put in place on each track but the most important thing is that it never actually feels like that's the case when you're listening to it.

You Got Yr. Cherry Bomb's Mowtown feel sits alongside the minimalism of My Little Japanese Cigarette Case, which in turn sits nicely alongside the bouncy pop of The Underdog. Better still, in my case anyway, only Black Like Me sounds anything like approaching a ballad; this is half an hour of bouncy, hook laden pop-rock which, at the risk of upsetting Spoon fans across the world, reminds me a lot of The Fountains Of Wayne (which is a good thing).

If you like your pop mixed in with a bit of "indie" then this is well worth a listen.

The Con - Tegan And Sara

Whilst Tegan and Sara have been "on the radar" for some time I can't say I've ever really warmed to them all that much. A pleasant diversion they may be but they've never really done a record that had escaped purgatory in the CD cupboard, pushed to the back and only really brought out when a search for a lost classic reminds me that the CD is there.

Lead single, and album title track, The Con didn't really bode any better for their prospects with this record. Pretty forgettable really.

But then, quite by chance, I happened upon a track called Are You Ten Years Ago, which really did catch my ears. A little bit ambient, and a whole lot bleak, it may be but it sounds fresh, exciting and vital. And I'm happy to say that whilst the style of that track may not be typical of the album as a whole, the excitement of that song certainly is typical of this great album (although I would also have to admit that nothing quite matches up to this song either).

Nineteen amps up the big guitars and booming drums into power-pop territory, Call It Off is an aching ballad, which soars thanks to it's light touch of string orchestration and the bouncy pop of Back In Your Head merges guitar and keyboards to uplifting effect.

I certainly can't escape the "this sounds a lot like Laura Veirs" vibe I continually get from the album, especially in the vocals, but that's no bad thing in my view as Veirs is one of the great "lost" (as in few people have heard of her) songwriters of the modern age. More ardent fans may disagree, but I think this is Tegan and Sara's best album yet.

Galore - Dragonette

For all my liking of the Popjustice website, I don't always tend to see eye to eye with their "next big thing" proclamations. Dragonette are a case in point. None of the singles and/or songs I'd heard prior to picking up this album particularly horrified me, but neither did they particularly leap out, smack me on the head and proclaim their pop genius loudly.

And in the final analysis the album hits me in pretty much the same vein.

At times you'll find yourself thinking this would make a good, if not especially great Britney Spears single (Marvellous) or that this is a good No Doubt out-take (Black Limousine) but more often you'll be thinking what on earth Dragonette's reputation was based on.

There are a couple of moments of genius I must admit, the outright highlight being Jesus Doesn't Love Me, which comes across as exactly what would happen if Depeche Mode wrote for Girls Aloud. Sadly moments like this are outweighed by the sheer mediocrity of most of the album.

Much like the Kaiser Chiefs, in that it's a "pop" album for people who don't want to admit to liking "pop" music it actually makes me a little sad that this might well be a huge smash hit. I think I'll stick to my Girls Aloud records if it's all the same to you.

Single Releases 30/07

Gotta Work by Amerie and Pussy'Ole by Dizzee Rascal are both choice cuts off choice albums. I know I keep getting raised eyebrows when I say Dizzee's album is very good, but honestly, it is.

Green Light by Beyonce is not as good as those two, but is still the kind of song that she does best.

Gym Class Heroes do not sound at all like I expected them to given the people who were attending their concert in Manchester the other week. That isn't a compliment by the way.

Laura Veirs releases Saltbreakers this week. It was one of the highlights of the same titled album and although I realise it isn't going to be a "hit" it is a fantastic song.

Similarly, Carla Bruni isn't going to have a hit with Lady Weeping At The Crossroads, but that doesn't mean that it isn't a great track.

I still can't quite "get" Kate Walsh. Don't Break My Heart is alright, but that's about it.

I don't care that it's quite good, that new Nelly Furtado one is still the 37th single off the Loose album so I want something new.

Finally, in a shocker to end all shockers, I "quite like" the new The Coral single. Ok, so that might seem like damning it with faint praise, but it's an amazing thing for me to even contemplate....

Seastories - Minnie Driver

Quite randomly, I've never liked Minnie Driver as an actress. Don't ask me to explain as I wouldn't really know how to. And whilst her first album Everything I've Got In My Pocket didn't exactly reinvent the wheel it was shockingly competent in terms of an actress branching out into a musical career.

And that vein continues with Seastories.

Once again I doubt it is going to sonically astound most listeners, and indeed the gentle lilting alt-country vibe (it is not for nothing that Ryan Adams' Cardinals pop up on a handful of songs) is nothing new; there is however the sense that Driver is good at what she chooses to do.

Mockingbird ramps up the bluesy kind of rock that KT Tunstall could do very well, whilst the more gentle, piano driven ballad How To Be Good shows that Driver is just as adept at that side of things as well.

Granted, lyrically Driver's efforts are a little weak, but this isn't necessarily a death knell for the album as a whole. There is a kind of earnest simplicity on this collection that works really well. Go on, give it a go. You might be pleasantly surprised.

Latest 2007 Concert List

27th January - Ben Folds - Manchester Apollo
29th January - Nerina Pallot - Manchester Academy 2
30th January - The Hedrons - Night & Day, Manchester
11th February - Sandi Thom - The Lowry, Salford
18th February - The Long Blondes, Manchester Academy
222nd February - Bat For Lashes - RNCM, Manchester
10th March - Lily Allen, Manchester Apollo
28th March - Kate Nash - Night & Day, Manchester
17th April - The Pipettes - Ritz, Manchester
20th April - Lucy Porter (comedy gig) - The Lowry, Salford
20th May - Girls Aloud - MEN Arena, Manchester
3rd June - Kate Nash - Late Room, Manchester
30th June - Suzanne Vega - Philharmonic Hall, Liverpool
12th July - Bat For Lashes - Manchester Academy 3
19th July - Feist - Manchester Academy 3
16th August - Sophie Ellis Bextor - Parr Hall, Warrington
21st August - Rilo Kiley - Manchester Academy 3
9th September - Natasha Bedingfield - Manchester Apollo
27th September - New Young Pony Club - Ritz, Manchester
7th October - Frank Skinner (Comedy) - Lowry, Manchester
14th October - Editors - Manchester Apollo
19th October - KT Tunstall - Manchester Apollo
23rd October - Amy Macdonald - Barfly, Liverpool
5th November - Kate Nash - Manchester Academy 3

Teenager - The Thrills

I know I've said this in respect of a few artists lately, but really, in 2007 is anyone actually eagerly anticipating a new Thrills album? No, thought not.

Don't get me wrong; I consider Big Sur and One Horse Town to be minor classics, but to be honest, if you've heard those two songs you've prety much heard all that you really need to hear from The Thrills.

Connor Deasy's voice hasn't got any better with age by the sounds of it, and there's only so much faux-Californian melodies that this reviewer can bear. (Incidentally, the band apparently crafted this album in a Vancouver, in a conscious effort to avoid the sunny LA vibe which personified their first two albums - well all I can say is you'd be hard pressed to notice any change).

To put in into perspective, it's not a bad album and indeed it has its moments whilst you are listening to it, but 10 minutes later, when the CD is safely back in the rack I defy you to remember any of the tunes. If this is the last I ever hear of them, on this form I can't say I'll be particularly upset.

Whatever Happened To Romance? - Victoria Hart

You know how it goes; one minute you're singing at a private party in Cannes and then the next minute you're releasing your debut album. Of course it didn't really happen quite like that (the private party was three years ago and it was only a repeat performance recently that the record label interest kicked in) but it's still quite the story for Victoria Hart.

What might be even more amazing is that this sassy and exciting collection has only the one cover version (Sunny Afternoon - and what a corker it is too) meaning that thought has actually been put into this beyond her having a great voice and, I have to say it, a cracking pair of tits (that one's for you Gee!).

But all of you fearing that the "jazz" part of her oeuvre discounts you, then you should think again. There is a clear sense that she's positioning herself, or being positioned, as much more than that.

Her playful, sultry vocals are part of the allure, no question, but she carries a tune and comes up with some blinders. If you can resist the likes of A Girl Like Me, Je M’Oublie or Smooth Talker then you might want to check if your heart is still beating.

I don't think we'll be seeing her waitressing at the Naked Turtle for £7 an hour again any time soon.

Absolute Garbage - Garbage

There was a brief moment in time, right about the moment they performed I'm Only Happy When It Rains on Top Of The Pops, that Garbage were officially the hottest thing in music in my young mind. As you might expect, the feeling didn't last. But that's not to say that an overview of Garbage's musical output is an unwelcome thing.

At their best they were very good indeed; at their worst they were below even Republica. Well ok, maybe not THAT bad, but you get the picture.

So therefore for every Stupid Girl there's a Bleed Like Me, for every Queer there's a When I Grow Up and for every #1 Crush there's a The World Is Not Enough. Indeed, if I'm being honest, the only track past their first album I have any real interest in (#1 Crush aside, although that was from the same time, just not on that album) is the catchy Cherry Lips (Go Baby Go). That's not to say that everything past the first album is worthless, just that for me, having the debut album and that song is more than enough to satisfy my Garbage craving. Throw in a distinctly underwhelming new song and this is a collection I can well do without.

But if you liked their singles, and haven't yet got a Garbage CD in your collection, this might be a pleasant trip down memory lane.

Sexy! No No No

So the new Girls Aloud single is "out there", and trust me to be away when it's all kicking off.

Anyway, it's good.

But not as good as the introduction suggests it's going to be. Still, it's early days and no doubt I'll start loving it soon.

Whatever, it's a brave choice as a first single and proof that they're still going to absoultely amazing.

And it's a nice excuse to post a picture of my Daisy...

Single Releases 23/07

Mutya Vs Groove Amarda is brilliant. Song 4 Mutya is the best thing by a country mile on Mutya's new album and really has very little to do with her anyway. So what we are really saying is that Mutya's solo venture is a bit crap, but this song is a bloody blinder.

On the other hand, Mika is just very, very crap. Big Girls (You Are Beautiful) is so obviously channeled from Big Bottomed Girls, but someone really should point out to the cheeky chappy that he is most certainly not Freddie Mercury. In fact this song is so offensive that it may even be worse than Grace Kelly and that other god-damn awful single he released a while back.

Thankfully, Amy Winehouse was sober for a few days last year so her single releases aren't on the same "will she, won't she" level as her concerts. Mind you at least if you buy the CD of Tears Dry On Their Own she won't spit on you, forget her lyrics or have a domestic with the hubby in your living room.

At one point I thought it might just have been the "Edith Bowman" and "Jo Wiley" thing that made me not like Newton Faulkner, but upon closer inspection of his new single Dream Catch Me I think it's fair to say that's just an ironic side product.

BWO are still rubbish.

Oh sod it, I've had enough.

Popjustice £20 Prize Shortlist

Sod the Mercury's, this is the one that counts...my witticisms won't be as funny as Popjustice's but here are my opinions anwway;

'Acceptable In The 80s'
Calvin Harris
Yes, this is good. I hated it at first, but quick as a flash it grew on me.

'Rehab'
Amy Winehouse
Now if it was the Girls Aloud version....

'Beware Of The Dog'
Jamelia
The best number one single never to have got anywhere near number one. But Jamelia doesn't like it now, which has nothing to do with her being dropped from her record label.

'Catch You'
Sophie Ellis-Bextor
Well it's better than her follow up single, but not as good as some of the album tracks.

'Don't Give It Up'
Siobhan Donaghy
The days where something can be good purely because it's "that ginger one who used to be in the Sugababes" are long gone I'm afraid. As a "pop" single this is fairly pointless.

'Foundations'
Kate Nash
I love Kate Nash. That is all.

'Overpowered'
Roisin Murphy
See this is the good version of the Donaghy "classic" above.

'She's Madonna'
Robbie Williams
Well I liked it, even if most people didn't. MEMO TO THE PUBLIC - Rudebox (the album, that is) was not that bad.

'Shine'
Booty Luv
I detest this song. This winning would be akin to The View winning the Mercury.

'Something Kinda Oooh'
Girls Aloud
Their best single since, well, erm...Biology at least.

'Stop Me'
Mark Ronson
Bringing out the not-so-latent gayness of Morrissey turned out to be inspired.

'Yeah Yeah'
Bodyrox feat Luciana
Daft, but one of the few "dance" things I've enjoyed over the past year.

So yeah, it's Calvin Harris or Kate Nash for me. Probably Nash. Because she's lovely.

Planet Earth - Prince

Does anybody really need Prince's 24th Studio Album (or indeed his 46th career album)? Or perhaps more pertinently is there anyone else left who really cares? "Releasing" this free with the Mail On Sunday in the UK was a smart move if for no other reason than the fact that his last album sold 80,000 copies in the UK, whereas the Mail On Sunday has a circulation in the region of 2 million.

But all questions of whether its a good business move for himself, or for the industry at large, is not the concern here. The concern is simply, is the album any good?

And the answer is, well, yes and no.

It had been hailed as a return to form but to be honest, I don't think it's as good as his last effort 3121. And to be honest it's much like most of his recent output; there are flashes of the old brilliance but most of it sounds, at best, distinctly ordinary.

As a freebie it has a certain curiosity value, and there are moments that any Prince fan will love but on the whole there's far too much that is simply boring for it to have any real worth.

A Lily For The Spectre - Stephanie Dosen

According to the blurb at least, Stephanie Dosen's musical talent was first brought to bear when she wrote lullabies for swans and foxes on the peacock farm where she was raised (and that's before we've got to the "Stephanie composed songs for boys at school and now mostly writes for ghosts gone astray"section of the blurb...).

So far, so "kooky" then for the folk songstress. Of course it wasn't the said animals that signed her up to some George Orwell influenced record label, but former Cocteau Twin Simon Raymonde, who not only signed her up but was heavily involved in creating the musical backdrops for this album.

And it really is something quite special indeed.

Dosen has a positively enchanting voice, both beautiful and poetic, which immediately takes this out of the ordinary scheme of things.

The album isn't without faults; by the time you get to the last, and title track, you're aware that there's nothing too dissimilar to the brilliant opener This Joy and also that there's nothing that quite matches up to the magic of it either. You might also find yourself thinking that Dosen is a little too impossibly sweet and that you can't wait for that third album when she's goes for a darker sound. But the fact that I'm sat here already thinking about what her third album sounds like should tell you all you need to know.

Stephanie Dosen is quite the talent and I hope she's around for many years to come. Even with it's "faults" this is an enchanting album.

Feist LIVE

Compared to last week's Bat For Lashes pre-concert fun, this week was relatively dull, unless you count my mate Alan pulling some bird in the Oxford and the domestic squabble we witnessed in the Pizza place.

Luckily we turned up to the venue around about 9 o'clock. Luckily I say because Feist was due on at quarter past. The venue was apparently sold out (although I've been in Academy 3 when it's seemed busier) and, the few trendy bores aside who just wouldn't stop talking, most were ready for a great night.

And a great night it was too. Occasionally, and this is not necessarily a criticism, Feist can come across as a bit of a "Jazz-Lite" proposition on record but that is most certainly not the case in the live arena. The girl can rock out with the best of them.

It does create a slightly jarring effect on stage, as does the tendency to lump the more up-tempo numbers together at various points in the evening but there is no doubt that Leslie Feist it quite the talent. She's disarmingly funny as well.

The highlights of the evening include stunning versions of 1,2,3,4, My Moon My Man and a rollicking version of Sealion. She also managed to "out Tunstall" KT Tunstall at stages of the evening, using a loop to create waves upon waves of sublime harmonies.

All in all a great night with a great talent. And if her tendency to cross genre's sometimes makes for a slightly uneven evening, in the end it's just proof of how talented she really is.

Mercury Music Prize 2007 - My Thoughts...

Well the nominations are out.

I am pleased simply becuase Bat For Lashes got nominated (as I said they should be back in January when I reviewed the album) but that aside it was a pretty uninspiring list in many ways. Still I have seven of the albums, and there's only one artist I hadn't heard of, or had some musical contact with, prior to the list being announced.

I shall proffer some thoughts, in an alphabetical stylee, complete will William Hill odds (as of today's date).

Amy Winehouse (5/2) - The favourite with the bookies now (started off joint favourite with the Monkeys); it's five years since a woman won it (Miss Dynamite) so it may well be the year for Winehouse. No doubt they're taking bets on how drunk she'll be at the finals night too.

Arctic Monkeys (5/1) - It would be unprecedented if they were to win it twice in a row, and it would be undeserved too. Not that I didn't enjoy Favourite Worst Nightmare but surely it lacks the innovation compared to the debut that would heighten it's chances.

Basquiat Strings (12/1) - The token "out there" nomination. It's a stretch, given the lack of variety in the list, that it would win, but stranger things have happened.

Bat for Lashes (10/1) - My personal choice, both from the list of 12 and in general. It's now neck and neck for "most famous musician" I've met given this nomination and Nerina Pallot's Ivor Novello nomination. That aside, it's an album that, at least in my opinion, would be a deserving winner.

Dizzee Rascal (10/1) - This is another fantastic album, and I don't care what you might think of me saying that!

Fionn Regan (12/1) - I don't mean this to offend any of his fans out there, but I think this would be too much of a "middle of the road" choice for the Mercury panel. He's not got the huge success that would make him a winner, neither is his music fantastically different.

Jamie T (6/1) - This guy does nothing for me at all.

Klaxons (8/1) - This album is not very good. It's three or four good songs, surrounded by fairly poor tracks.

Maps (12/1) - Wouldn't be my choice at all, but if the judges want a surprising winner, he may be in with a chance.

New Young Pony Club (12/1) - A very good album indeed. Stands an outside chance but I can't see it winning.

The View (10/1) - Pah. I really hope this one doesn't win. I kind of liked it at the time of release, but I am now of the conclusion that it's all a bit rubbish.

The Young Knives (12/1) - The idea of this getting nominated completely passed me by when I was thinking what might get the call up, but for all that, it is a wonderful album.

So basically I want Bat For Lashes to win, (not only because they are my favourites from the list but that I genuinely think its the best British album of the year), but think that in all probability 2007 will be Amy Winehouse's year for the prize.

Now Listen - Shakin Stevens

Look, we all have our "blind spots" and Shaky is one of mine. I've loved the guy since I was two years old (as an aside I once wrote to Jim'll Fix It to get to meet Shaky - I didn't, but was sent a signed photograph AND Shaky once sent me a get well card when I was in hospital). Here we are over 25 years later and his new album Now Listen hits the shelves.

Not that anyone in the UK would have noticed, given that despite the fact its "non-releases" (this has been on the schedules at least two previous times) got plenty of publicity, this actually release doesn't appear to have been a priority.

It probably goes without saying that if you like Shaky, and his brand of Rock 'n' Roll then you'll find plenty to enjoy here. Similarly, if you don't like Shaky, this is hardly going to change your mind.

Standout tracks include the Elvis Vegas era-esque Fire Down Below (which songwriter Jerry Scheff wrote for Elvis, but who never got around to laying down vocals - which is ironic given Shaky's music career beginnings), It's A Shame, a soothing ballad, and his riotous version of Pink's Trouble.

Yes, it's like we never had the 1990's (or hell, the 2000's either) in terms of sound and attitude but as the unmistakable sound of Shaky signing what he does best it's certainly a pleasant forty minutes of good old fashioned rock 'n' roll.

Single Releases 16/07/07

Despite the fact that I'm' falling out of love with Lily Allen to some degree, I do enjoy her collaboration with Mark Ronson on Oh My God. Horns maketh the music, that's what I say. It's joyous in a way that the Kaiser Cheifs are no longer.

If you want my opinion on Joss Stone's new single, I think that my album review said all that needs to be said.

Well Thought Out Twinkles by the Silversun Pickups is quite the hidden gem. Check it out.

Jarvis Cocker is as relevant as ever on Fat Children. It's quite the song too. Not destined to see him top the charts of course, but in some cases chart positions can take a back seat.

Someone please explain the point of Biffy Clyro.

Nothing Changes Around Here say The Thrills. Well that just about sums it up. The Thrills are the sort of band that everyone sort of likes without ever really being able to say why. They're not bad, but in the final analysis they're not that good either.

I like the Victorian English Gentlemens Club, and their new single La Mer / Stupid As Wood is the kind of thrash noise stuff you'd expect from them. Not the best thing they've ever released but still something I enjoy.

In one of those regular "drunk on a Saturday night" moments I caught the video to XX Teen's Darling on MTV. Very funny video, but the song just seemed to be sub-par Young Knives to me.

Elvis Perkins is quite the talent. While You Were Sleeping is quite the tune. Ace, is how I would describe it.

Amy MacDonald is getting a lot of hype at the moment in certain places. Given the sheer ordinariness of Mr Rock And Roll, I fail to see quite why.

Icky Thump - White Stripes

I'm pretty easy going as far as the White Stripes go. I like some of their stuff and there are bits of their canon I don't care for. And whilst the pedestal on which most music critics seem to hold them on seems bizarre to me, neither would I wholly castigate them either.

The temptation is of course to subscribe to the "it's the White Stripes so automatically it must be great" thesis but first impressions are that this album is a regression after the daring Get Behind Me Satan. Indeed those that thought the last album wasn't White Stripes enough will be pleased with what they get here.

But the intriguing thing about the Stripes for me has always been that feeling that they are always searching for new ground and this album has the other effect. When it hits the spot, it's great but the overriding feeling is that they've stuck on the safe ground for this effort.

A definite backwards step then, but not one without its moments.

We Are The Night - Chemical Brothers

The Chemical Brothers have had a remarkably consistent career for a dance act, singles wise at least. Like the statistic that we're never more than 20 feet from a Rat, it seems like we're never more than a couple of months away from a great Chemical Brothers single in the charts. (Of course, before anyone starts, I'm aware that's not strictly true, but you get my meaning).

Lead singles from We Are The Night was no different. Whilst Do It Again may not have been the most outright catchy single they've ever done it was one of those that slowly but surely got under your skin, before lodging itself in your brain.

And in a sense, this consistency has applied to their albums; in an ever changing world you at least know exactly what you are going to get from a Chemical Brothers album, right down to the guest appearances.

This time around we get the likes of The Klaxons, Willy Mason and Midlake. Ironically it's the two collaborations that you would perhaps be the most wary of (Mason and Midlake) that really hit the spot and the one that everyone would have been excited about (Klaxons) that falls flat. Indeed All Rights Reserved merely sounds like the Klaxons, and not one of their better songs at that.

Mason on the other hand steps up to the plate with aplomb for Battle Scars, whilst The Pills Won't Help You Know is perhaps the perfect "come-down" track.

Ironically it's the more straightforward "dance" moments that fall most flat although the absolute nadir has to be The Salmon Dance which wouldn't sound out of place on some CBeebies under 5's show, (if one ignores the lyrics) and as such will probably be a number one hit for weeks.

So all in all it's exactly what you'd expect. Some decent songs, some dreadful ones and a couple of stormers.

Our Love To Admire - Interpol

It's tempting, given the proximity of their release, to immediately compare Interpol's new album to that of Editors. Indeed, on this very site, I compared their recent singles (The Heinrich Maneuver to Smokers Outside the Hospital Door) and I could only come to one conclusion...Interpol's superior effort almost consigned the Editors' to becoming an irrelevance.

This feeling is heightened during the opening of the album; Pioneer To The Falls is everything you'd want Interpol to be and then they throw a curve ball ( in the form of a song not being unremitting doom) in the shape of No I In Threesome. Daft title aside, for once there is actually the sense that Interpol might actually be having, you know, fun.

But despite the very promising start there's just something that is a little too hard to like about this album. It might be the lyrical clichés, or the continually transparent attempt to ape Joy Division but its more than likely to be the constant "harbinger of doom" attitude that hangs over the album.

More infuriatingly, when they lay off the daft imagery and overwrought misery, on the likes of Rest My Chemistry and The Lighthouse (even if the latter's lyrics would put it firmly in the camp of misery), they can sound very impressive indeed. Still, the sad thing is, I doubt anybody will be buying this record to hear that side of Interpol's repertoire.

Bat For Lashes LIVE

In an event not entirely unconnected to me being told off for leaving work early last Friday, it was gone half past five when I set off down Poolstock. It wasn't as bad as normal so maybe I've cracked it. I mean although I arrived later than I would have done if I'd left at five as usual, the journey itself didn't take as long...

Enough of that though because what happened when we got to the Oxford was much more interesting...we met Superman. Yes, that's right. THE Superman. Ok, so it wasn't THE Superman but it was someone who thought he was and he was surprisingly well up on his Superman life-story. The killer was when he took off his coat to reveal his Superman Cape. That was AWESOME.

As we got to the venue, some Spanish kid accused my mate Alan of dressing like a "hardcore" whatever that is. "Sneakers and combats" must have other connotations in Spain .

We had further "celeb" moments in the Manchester Academy 3 as we found ourselves stood behind "Amy Winehouse" (without the hair thankfully). Mind you this young girl in question made Winehouse look like a sober individual and I must admit that sniffing Nail Varnish Remover is a new one on me. Kids, hey?

Anyway, enough of the waffle and onto the concert. We caught some of the support act Kid Harpoon. Best described as a comedy James Blunt he ripped through his songs proficiently enough, but really just made me laugh so I can't really say much more about him.

Bat For Lashes, on the other hand, were great as ever. There isn't much I can add to my previous concert review from February. There is just a raw power about Natasha Khan and her crew that makes a great record (and still my hope/tip for the Mercury Music Prize this year) into a spellbinding live concert.

The highlights are too many to mention, but I'll always have a soft spot for What's A Girl To Do and once again Khan's solo version of Sad Eyes was hauntingly beautiful.

Second time around they were just as good and I'll definitely be there for a third time when the chance arises.

Zeitgeist - Smashing Pumpkins

My "history" with the Smashing Pumpkins is a strange one. Prior to 1998's Adore I ignored them. After 1998's Adore, I also ignored them (save for buying their greatest hits album and never listening to it). Quite why I don't know. Even back at High School people were recommending them to me, but I never bit. Neither do I know why I "bit" in 1998 but the fact I did (and it coincided with my university years) means that I have an inexplicable soft-spot for them.

Of course Zeitgeist (a naff title, and which the album itself points to Billy Corgan not being anywhere near the Zeitgeist) is hardly a Smashing Pumpkins album. The feeling from the off (their being only one other former member of the group on this record) is that this is merely a Smashing Pumpkins album because no-one would care in the slightest if it were a Billy Corgan solo album or even, god forbid, a Zwan one.

I'm sure long term Pumpkins fans will find something to enjoy here (I particularly liked Bring The Light and Tarantula) but most people will just let it pass them by. It's not particularly awful, but neither is it likely to propel Corgan back to the heights he once was at.

Fantastic Playground - New Young Pony Club

With the recent success of Cansei De Ser Sexy (I refuse to call them merely "CSS"), The Klaxons and The Gossip (as rancid as I find their music) you could argue that the New Young Pony Club have certainly picked the right time to unleash their particular form of "Disco" music onto the general public.

Indeed, the album is reminiscent of Cansei De Ser Sexy but with one major difference; on Fantastic Playground, the New Young Pony Club offer up a much more consistently fantastic album.

The highlights cover virtually everything. In fact it would be pointless trying to summarize the three or four best songs because I could never limit it to that. Quite simply, any of these songs would deserve to top the charts if they were released as singles.

There are some who criticise the album for merely being 10 fantastic hit singles on one smart package. I would say, what in the hell is wrong with that? As for the critics who suggest that they're trying too hard to be "trendy", the fact they've arguably come up with the pop album of the summer means they should be given more than the benefit of the doubt on that score.

UK Single Release 09/07/07

Well it's nice to see Bat For Lashes' What's A Girl To Do get another release. Probably the best track off the album and lets hope we get some nice success for it this time around (not that I'm holding my breath sadly).

I'm not too keen on that new Arctic Monkeys one. It's not bad, but not one of the better tracks off the album.

Wouldn't you believe it. Mere days after playing Live Earth, Razorlight are cashing in with a single release. Never in a million years will you find me saying anything other than that being a totally random coincidence.

Nerina Pallot keeps the wolves from the door this week with a cover of Steeley Dan's Peg...with Richard X at the production helm nonetheless! It's a good effort. I could of course compare this to not wanting "pop" remixes of songs of a certain other album but that would be me being churlish. And anyway folks, it's not selling out. There is nothing wrong with selling records.

Sarah Nixey releases her Human League cover The Black Hit Of Space this week as well. I like this, as readers of my album review will already be aware,

Am I the only one who doesn't see the point of Bloc Party anymore?

And Travis? Yet another dull single in Selfish Jean...thanks boys.

My Chemical Romance seem to keep getting worse as well. I know you might not have thought that possible, but The Teenagers certainly seems to point to that fact.

Keren Ann - Keren Ann

Israeli-born, French-raised and New York-based...Keren Ann has quite the varied background and it shows in her somewhat schizophrenic sound. Indeed, the thing that may most come to mind upon listening to her 5th album is a French version of the Velvet Underground, not something you would have labelled her previous efforts.

The problem is that whilst the ideas, in of themselves, are interesting and it is clear that Keren has ambition and talent, few are the times that the album really grabs your attention.

There are certainly the odd moments of genuine brilliance; Lay Your Head Down, with it's strings and handclaps, might be the best composition of the lot, whilst In Your Back, the track most like her previous work, is perhaps the best song.

But all too often the album passes by in a largely unmemorable state. If you take the time to listen you will find things to enjoy, but in the competitive world of the female singer-songwriter, Keren Ann may find that most won't have the time to listen more than once.

New Rilo Kiley Video

Hmm. I love Jenny Lewis. This new video on the other hand...well it's a little weird. If I could I wouldn't link to the twelve minute version (it's for the over 18's only shall we say) but the three minute version is worth a viewing.

Jenny Lewis is lovely isn't she?

From Paris To Berlin - Infernal

There is a moment in the track A To The B that is so laughable that you have no option but to admit to yourself that you're actually having a good time listening to this somewhat dreadful album. If the lyrics themselves ("You see, it seems to me that all us strong, independent women make men lazy. All of a sudden they think they don't have to court us properly. But boys let me tell you something: there's nothing like a man who knows how to treat a lady") aren't enough to have you giggling then the transvestite looking (although I'm sure some of you still would) singer's horribly faux posh British accent as she says it sure will floor you.

It gets better. My absolute favourite has to be "When you nibble my ear, the bass is softly pumping when caressing my rear". Crucially it proves that whilst they appear to be serious about their "art", they're not too serious.

And therein lies the rub. I am not in any way suggesting that this album is in any way good, but neither can I deny it's entertainment factor. It's cheese, for sure, but it's enjoyable cheese and a guilty pleasure if you're the kind of person who, back in the day, bought something by Aqua or The Real McCoy or Maxx but would never admit it. Not that I'm making any comment on that myself.

And anyway, to put it into perspective its a hell of a lot better than the likes of Cascada.

Tim's House - Kate Walsh

It's tempting to think that this is another one of those occasions where the hype has overtaken the actual product (naming no names...OK, I mean you Sandi Thom) but whilst I can be accused of burying my head in the sand on occasions, it was only after this album shot to the top of the I-Tunes download chart that I heard of it. Which in the long-term would appear to bode well for Walsh - it won't be a case of everyone being bored by her almost in the same instant that she's topping the charts.

So, whether or not it was helped along by an unseen hand, we're talking word of mouth here. So you would expect something spectacular wouldn't you, given that we were assured that downloads would bring respectability back to the charts.

So it's a little disappointing that whilst this is a pleasant enough album, and indeed a likable one, it's one paced and not exactly earth-shattering. Don't mistake me, Walsh has a gorgeous voice and one that you'll certainly fall in love with, but whilst in the short term this helps you to avoid the fact that the songs are all the same, mellow vibe repeated over and over again. I personally got to the stage when listening to the album for the first time of hoping that at any moment now she was going to really kick off with something different...alas that moment never came.

There is the odd moment of genuinely affecting emotion, one prime example would be Don't Break My Heart - I defy you not to moved by that one, but for the most part the album just drifts along, rarely causing you to stop what you are doing and think "wow". Of course that won't stop the critics who love this kind of thing trumpeting this album, and it's success, as another kick in the teeth for the genre's of music they don't like, but that's just life.

I've definitely heard a lot worse and there's just enough of intrigue to make me curious about what comes next, but on it's own there's not enough to entice me back for repeated spins.

Sing, Memory - Sarah Nixey

"This is Sarah Nixey talking" is hardly the most exciting of opening gambits to an album on paper, but within ten seconds of putting the CD into your player it immediately draws you in her crisp, English diction proving to be a strength, not a novelty gimmick. (Incidentally the vocals remind me a lot of Natasha "Bat For Lashes" Khan).

What is clear is that for all the "art" that Nixey brings to any project (erstwhile of Black Box Recorder) she's acutely aware that in pop music its the tunes that matter.

Strangelove and The Collector are two great singles but are only the tip of the iceberg. The likes of Nothing On Earth, Hotel Room and Masquerade (the latter of which may be the standout track) are also sublime and leave a lasting impression. Nixey even manages a winner with her cover of the Human League's The Black Hit Of Space.

If I'm being critical, at 15 tracks (albeit with two spoken interludes) it is perhaps a tad too long and could well have benefited from a couple of omissions. Having said that, that is a minor criticism at worst.

Those of you who canonise Sophie Ellis Bextor as the arch queen of detached disco pop should listen to this to find out just how wrong you really are. Those who see Siobhan Donaghy as the shining light of proper pop music should listen to this and see how "commercial" concerns can be married successfully with catchy tunes. Quite simply, this is sublime.

Ten Feet High - Andrea Corr

For a brief period in 1997/98, The Corrs were one of my favourite bands (probably helped by that time in Birmingham when Caroline Corr blew me a kiss). It helped that I'd "discovered" them before they got really huge, around the time of their debut album, but of course that also meant that even as Talk On Corners was propelling them to worldwide success I was beginning to get bored of them (and the lamentable In Blue killed me off).

The first question that springs to mind is that in 2007 do we really need to hear any more from The Corrs, never mind a solo album from Andrea? Perhaps not but whilst it's clear from only the most cursory of glances that this is a far from essential project, it is considerably better than the three previous Corrs albums which has to count for something does it not?

At times, such as Anybody There, Hello Boys or Champagne Through A Straw you find yourself impressed. They are catchy numbers and whilst they may not be anything exceptionally new would you, for instance, have ever thought you'd heard Andrea Corr attempting to ape Goldfrapp (Hello Boys) or incorporating a catchy latin rhythm to great effect (Champagne...)?

The problem is that for most of the rest of the album, the effect is less pleasing. Rather than really going for it, Corr and producer Nelee Hooper have gone so far and then receded back to what you would expect to hear. So whilst some of the album is good, there's more of it that's distinctly mediocre. In a lot of ways its better than I thought it had any right to be, but also not as good as it's best tracks suggest it might have been.

One thing I can't decide on mind you is the merits of the Squeeze cover. Genius reworking or pointless novelty? Hmm...

UK Single Releases 02/07/07

So this time around Avril Lavigne has gone back to the miserable version of herself, lest we actually think she might enjoy her profession. Well done love; When You're Gone isn't awful of course, but neither is it particularly good.

Soulmate by Natasha Bedingfield makes certain people cry. I just think it's another of those decent but ultimately dull songs that she tends to turn out every so often.

Beverley Knight keeps plugging away god bless her.

I do like that new Fall Out Boy one. One of my favourites from the surprisingly good album.

The Heinrich Maneuver by Interpol is a good indication of what Editors should be doing instead of going all Coldplay on us.

That's about as far as I get, but at least it's a less cursory glance at the weeks singles than my last couple of efforts.

In closing I would just like to say how happy I am that Kate Nash is at number two in the new charts. It's astounding on so many levels, not least that by the very fact of me liking her prior to this I should currently be ecstatic that she's reached number 74 in the charts or something. In fact her presence in the top 10 makes up for the fact that The Enemy, The Hoosiers, Jack Penate (aka The Gay Lumberjack *) and Kelly Rowland are also in this weeks top 10.

* Please note the term "Gay Lumberjack" when used in reference to Jack Penate is the copyright of EG Enterprises

An End Has A Start - Editors

I never had much truck with Editors the first time around. Well no, that's not strictly true. I didn't have at the beginning, but actually quite warmed to their debut album over time (and saw them live twice). So whilst I wasn't exactly frothing at the mouth at the prospect of a follow up, I was intrigued to the point that I was quite looking forward to it.

In the space of five minutes, lead single Smokers At The Hospital Door completely turned me off. Tom Smith's strangled cat vocals sounded worse than ever, the song was dull and the attempts at meaning, never really an Editors strong point, were laughable to say the least.

But what of the album as a whole? Sad to say, I don't find it particularly exciting or thrilling.

There are certain points, Bones and the title track, that echo at the possibility of future glory, but ironically they are also perhaps the two tracks that most resemble their best work from The Back Room. At other time the monotony is startling, as is the unremitting gloom. You've heard one Editors song, you've pretty much heard them all.

After the initial buzz dies down, I'd be very surprised if this has anywhere near the same impact as their debut.

Suzanne Vega LIVE

Well the pre-concert entertainment was on a whole other level tonight. First off was Hannah's Bar, erstwhile favourite of Scottish chanteuse Sandi Thom. I don't think there were too many LIPA students in there though. There was perhaps the finest collection of barmaids in history though.

After a quick Subway we then found ourselves in an "Emo" pub. It was called Bloodshed or Deathpit or some such stupid name and I should point out that we only ended up in there because there was hardly anyone in. Everyone else who was in there mind you perfectly fitted any number of stereotypes you can come up with.

All this fun meant we missed David Ford, not that I was particularly bothered.

I was happy to see, after an acapella Tom's Diner kicked things off, that our old friend Greg Rusedski/Ben Stiller's older brother was back on the bass like he was in Warwick/Coventry all that time ago. This was a full band show, although at certain points in the evening, things got stripped down to either Vega on her own or Vega and Greg Stiller.

Given the recent release of her new album this was a night that was heavily centered around new material, but thankfully the album is a great one and the songs were just as good live (even if she missed out Bound, my favourite newbie).

There was a decent smattering of the classic (Caramel, Luka, Left Of Centre), the paeans to Liverpool (which brought up the thorny question of whether the people of Liverpool considered their city to be a man or a woman) and she finished off with a proper version of Tom's Diner which the old lady in front of me found most distasteful.

The only dampener on my evening was being sat next to a couple who obviously thought they were either a) in a cheap motel room or b) starring in some bizarre form of gonzo porn. Holding hands I can take, full on face guzzling just isn't right.

My December - Kelly Clarkson

I'm not shy about it; I have never seen the point of Kelly Clarkson. Yes there have been a good smattering of half decent singles to admire (Miss Independent, Since You've Been Gone, Walk Away) but on the whole I just don't see what makes her such a success.

But a success she has been; in fact I think that deep down even Clarkson herself probably would admit to thinking that it could never have turned out so well. One decent selling album followed by a genuine worldwide smash album.

And wouldn't you believe it, Clarkson has decided that now is the time to present the world with her own artistic vision. At a push you can see her point; her last couple of albums were tailor-made attempts to grab the zeitgeist and catch the vibe of what was deemed to be "in". It was a trick which worked for Pink and its that trajectory we're following here (in that the album they didn't want to make was followed by them making an album they "sort of" wanted to do and then following up with the album they've "always wanted to make).

Except that whilst this is definitely more "dark" than her previous efforts, its still not a million miles away from what you would expect...except in one crucial department. The tunes have pretty much disappeared.

The obvious influence would appear to be Alanis Morissete's Jagged Little Pill, the difference being of course that precious few of us knew of Morissette as the pop ingenue before she unleashed that on the world. It's angry, feisty but ultimately hollow. To pull off a chameleon trick like Clarkson has attempted you have to make sure that what you produce is better than what came before, and I don't think (as limited an opinion I have of her previous work) this does.

The record company needn't fear too much, there are a smattering of radio friendly tunes that will doubtless shift some units, but here's a little prediction; next time around we'll see the "old" Kelly Clarkson back, no doubt with a handy excuse for returning to something more accessible and catchy.

It's an interesting album, if only from a conceptual point of view, but all in all its a classic case of an artist over-estimating their importance in the overall scheme of things.

Everything All The Time - Band Of Horses

It's been out in the US for over a year, but has only been available officially in the UK for a matter of months.

Initially, the things that sprang to mind when listening to Everything All The Time were The Flaming Lips, Grandaddy The Decemberists and a tiny little bit of Neil Young.

And therein lies the problem. This is a good album, no question, but the sheer variety of influences don't quite meld into something entirely convincing as their own characteristic sound.

Another niggling downside is that it's all a little too one-paced. It's certainly not a coincidence that the stand-out track, Wicked Gil, is the moment where they most let loose and give us something a little more up-tempo than the majority of the album.

Someone on Amazon called it what Arcade Fire might sound like if they were more commercially minded. A fair point, but whilst this might be, at large, more "radio friendly" than Arcade Fire, it can't match their grandiose and enchanting sound. A promising debut but there's some way to go yet. Having said all that there is enough here to suggest that they could well really get it right next time around.

Riot - Paramore

I'd heard good things about Paramore, but was somewhat disappointed with the recent single Misery Business. It wasn't bad, but lacked a spark to set it apart from the pack. Indeed I had nightmarish visions of Papa Roach springing up in my mind.

I'm glad to say that I find the album a lot more palatable.

The star of the show is ultimately the diminutive Hayley Williams and the band provide her with enough punk-pop riffs to sink her teeth into without ever overwhelming her or relegating her to the background.

I don't find it the most original album I've heard all year and it never really becomes an exhilarating album but there is no question that, when it hits the spot, it's memorable and catchy and at around 40 minutes in length never outstays its welcome. The only problem is that, as it stands, I can't see this being an album I'll keep returning to.

Person Pitch - Panda Bear

Some reviews, indeed most of them that I've seen, would have you believe this album is an out and out work of genius...that it might be, but it's the work of flawed genius.

There are indeed moments that leap out of the stereo (do people still listen to Cd's on their stereos these days?) in a cascade of beauty, with aching melodies, sumptuous layered harmonies and arrangements worthy of Brian Wilson at his best.

The problem is that far too few of these moments actually go anywhere other than completely overstaying their welcome. Songs like Bros and Good Girl/Carrots seem to be building to something special but then you dispiritedly realise that you're four minutes in (only a third of the way) and that nothing's really changed and by then you are distinctly bored by the whole thing. Is it a coincidence that the most successful track for me on the album was I'm Not, which clocks in at less than four minutes? Probably not, although I should point out that even that one left me feeling more than a little non-plussed.

Somewhere in all of this there probably is the fantastic record that most have proclaimed it to be. Me? Well I got too bored of waiting to find it. Some of you might appreciate its complexity, critics might appreciate it's construction; I'd wager most would find its lack of enjoyment factor completely off-putting.

UK Single Releases 25/06/07

It seems like most of the good stuff that is out this week is what I actually reviewed last week but on we plough anyway.

Bascially though, it's all crap.

The Bees, Jon Bon Jovi, The View, The Enemy, Hoosiers, Kajafuckingoogoo?

Sometimes I wonder why I bother.

Boxer - The National

The National's previous album, Alligator, received critical acclaim but precious little commercial success. If Boxer doesn't redress the second part of the equation then there is nothing much else that they can do.

Because, make no bones about it, Boxer is a fantastic record. As subtle as the Arcade Fire are grandiose, The National are everything that a modern rock band can aspire to be. The exquisiteness of the music is more than matched by the brilliance of the lyrics and evidence of that can be found on the likes of Brainy and there are songs with a genuine chance of mainstream appeal like Mistaken For Strangers which, in the space of three and a half minutes, blows away anything that, for instance, Editors have ever come up with.

The Editors comparison is a salient one in more ways that one given lead singer Matt Berninger's rich voice. Critically though his voice may be distinctive but it's never distracting; its fits in perfectly with the ambiance of the album.

If anything "bad" can be said about the record it's that it perhaps tails off slightly towards the end, but there's been so much sustained brilliance to listen to that it doesn't really matter all that much.

Quite simply this is an absolute gem.

Travelling Wilburys

Look some would call buying your dad the new Travelling Wilburys collection for Father's day and then listening to it yourself (and putting it on your mp3 player) is a bit cheeky. But hey, it's only payback for the time he bought "me" Meat Loaf's Bat Out Of Hell II album for Christmas one year. At least my dad wanted the Travelling Wilburys.

Common consent would be Volume 1 = Good, Volume 3 =Not So Good, but really, Volume 3 isn't as bad as people make out. Yes, it does somewhat miss the presence of Roy Orbison (who added style and gravitas (even in such exalted company) to the proceedings) but it's not as bad as some critics would have you believe by any stretch of the imagination.

For the new release you only get two totally brand new unreleased tracks, but crucially both Maxine and Like A Ship are winners. It's also nice for completism's sake to have Nobody's Child and Runaway on the collection (even if they are tweaked versions from the soundtrack/b-side originals).

The DVD is ok too. All the videos (although there is some disappointment amongst long-term fans that the originals don't survive intact) and a nice, if short, documentary.

Quite frankly, if you're a music fan you should have this in your collection.

Just Me - Tiffany

It's twenty years since a tour of shopping malls and a cover of Tommy James and The Shondells' I Think We're Alone Now propelled Tiffany to worldwide fame. You may be surprised that this is her seventh studio album and so yes, she has done more than pose for Playboy and perform on ITV's Hit Me Baby One More Time in the last two decades.

Some might suggest that Tiffany has "matured" as an artist from her bubblegum pop days, and naturally that is true but that doesn't mean that his maturity (and let us not forget that she's still only 36) equates to anything worse listening to.

Granted it's not a terrible album, it's just that its a dull, uninspiring one that panders to the guitar singer/songwriter formula as if that's all that matters.

Some of her fans would tell you this is a sublime album, full of lyrical storytelling and that it's a great statement of personality. It's not. It's your average run-of-the-mill "pop" album that mistakes a "mature" sound for one that is worth anything. I'd avoid this.

Wait For Me - The Pigeon Detectives

They're from Leeds, share a producer with the Kaiser Chiefs and Embrace and are another of that long line of "hot new" Indie bands...wait, where are you going? Come back, it's not as bad as it sounds.

Anyone who's heard the singles, and there's been four of them to date, will be quite upbeat about the prospect of an album. Particularly good was You Know I Love You (with its catchy "you know I love you, take off your clothes" chorus) and I Found Out (which was, oh, at least thirteen times better than anything the Fratellis could come up with). Indeed if the Kaiser's have left a gap in the market for jaunty, jokey and catchy pop tunes having gone ultra-sensible and serious for their second album, Wait For Me must be prime meat to fill it.

Of course, and wouldn't you know it, these are also the best songs on the album by quite some way (except for the sublime Stop Or Go) and as such there is a slight tinge of disappointment in that the album doesn't quite live up to the singles that preceded it.

Still it shows a lot of promise, and kind of reminds me of XTC (which is a good thing). Needless to say it's not up to that level, but it is an indication that there could be a lot more to come from these boys.

Beauty & Crime - Suzanne Vega

It seems almost strange that Beauty & Crime is Vega's first album since 2001's Songs Of Red & Gray (she has kept busy in the mean-time with touring, and playing virtual gigs in the online world of Second Life) but almost immediately you realise that that makes it her first album since 9/11 had it's permanent effect on the place that Vega calls home, New York.

The spectre undoubtedly hangs over the album. Anniversary is the most obvious and explicit statement about the tragedy, but there are strong echoes in the likes of Zephyr And I (which includes dreamy backing vocals from KT Tunstall) and Angel's Doorway (which sees Sonic Youth's Lee Ranaldo providing some guitar riffs).

I will admit that it's nothing particularly new, but then Suzanne Vega has no need to change. Always a class act, this album is no different.

The literate lyrics are as punchy and relevant as ever and most of all the feeling as a listener is one of realising just how pleased you are she is back and the realisation that we've been missing something for the past six years. Here's hoping we don't have to wait that long for the next one.

Maths + English - Dizzee Rascal

The first salient point about this album is clear as soon as you look down the track listing and see "feat. Lilly Allen" and "feat. Alex Turner"; this is Dizzee going "mainstream", which is just as well given that "grime" is pretty much dead in the water these days.

Of course there are still those old "gang violence" references in full flow but if nothing else it's likely to be the only rap album you'll ever hear with the lyrics "Pull your trousers up!... Read a book!... Find a pretty girl and settle!"

As you might expect at times the juxtaposition of these two ideas does jar, but there are a number of fantastic moments on this album.

Chief one is Pussyole, which is the finest song of the rap genre that I've heard in quite some time, and excitement is also to be found on the likes of Sirens (think Jay Z's 99 Problems set in London) and Where's Da G's (which talks about "fake aggression" on the streets and includes the "find a pretty girl and settle" line quoted earlier).

As for the Allen and Arctic Monkeys tie-in's, they're good, but don't match up to the best moments on the album. And if I'm being really honest, Allen's appearance here grates on me for some reason.

And on the whole this is a remarkable album. The variety of it may surprise some, but it provides the album with the magic that makes it pretty irresistible.

Single Releases 18/06/07

Kate Nash releases Foundations this week. I'm not going to lie, I'm in love with her. That said, even though I am biased Foundations is insanely catchy and really very good indeed. As I've said I can see why people might be disinclined to like her, but to them I merely repeat what I've said before; you are wrong.

I really don't like that new Editors one. Whilst not a huge fan, I did enjoy their debut album but this one sounds like they've gone ever so slightly Coldplay.

4 In The Morning by Gwen Stefani is the other song from her album (alongside that last single) that is any good, so I approve!

I can't however approve of the latest Mel C single. It's awful and leaves you in no doubt as to why she's suddenly keen to reunite the Spice Girls, even if it is for one night only (Wembley anyone?).

I wanted to like Misery Business by Paramore more than I actually do. Having said that, whilst distinctly underwhelmed by the single, I do have more love for the album (review will follow at some point) so I'm not completely down on them.

I still, three singles in, don't see the point of Just Jack.

The Bravery have changed. They're still not any good though.

I'd Wait For Life is exactly the kind of crap that record companies think is "pop" and will appeal to the Radio 2 audience. Shame on you Take That.

I'm told this Robin Thicke fella is huge in the States. I hope he never makes it over here, but no doubt he will. Lost Without U is the kind of thing that would fill up space on a Justin Timberlake album, and I don't mean that in a good way.

It will of course outsell Siobhan Donaghy's sublime So You Say by about a million to one. That's just life I'm afraid.

That new Chemical Brothers one is choooooooooooooon!

I don't really find myself warming to Shame On You by Andrea Corr. It's amazing to think that for a time about 10 years, I thought the Corrs were brilliant and now I couldn't care less about them. And that's not me being "cool" or anything, I've just grown sick of them.

Marie Miller is a super-model who likes the films of Alfred Hitchcock. I'm not even going to spoil our burgeoning relationship by listening to her new single, No Ordinary Girl...ok, I thought I better listen to it. It's not too bad. Stars have been made out of a lot less.

Minutes To Midnight - Linkin Park

For some reason, I have every Linkin Park album. If pushed I wouldn't admit to actually liking any of them. At best they've had a couple of good singles and whilst I would say I enjoyed their debut album at the time, it's aged about as well as Limp Bizkit have.

Still, I'm nothing if not a glutton for punishment and whilst I may have hated the video to recent single What I've Done with a passion (but that's another rant for another time) I did find the single catchy, albeit that it signalled that whilst the message may have changed, the tune was pretty much the same.

And that's the overriding sense you get when you hear the album. They may have taken the ubiquitous "War Is Bad" road and they may have jettisoned some of the "rap" parts of their sound (and really, after that excruciating Jay-Z collaboration they had to change something) but you'd be hard pressed to notice many differences from their previous sound.

And ironically, its one of the small number of songs where Mike Shinoda contributes something noticeable, Bleed It Out, that is the standout of the set. For three minutes, at least, Linkin Park sound like a band from 2007.

Yes, they've tried to change, but as they've borrowed most of their new sounds from elsewhere, to little obvious effect, you never feel as if you're hearing nothing else. All in all, it's a rare misfire from record-producer Rick Rubin who's magic touch has seemingly been mislaid for this one.

Era Vulgaris - Queens Of The Stone Age

It's no secret that I have a strange "thing" for Josh Homme, head honcho of Queens Of The Stone Age, and I'm secure enough in my masculinity to admit it.

It's also no secret that I happen to think that the Queens are on of the most exhilarating and vital rock bands around today.

Which means that this album, whilst still "good", disappoints me quite a bit.

Whereas previous efforts have always shown some cohesion, this seems to suffer greatly from the kitchen sink approach. It's as if the decision has been made to toss everything in and see what sticks.

Sick, Sick, Sick (with Julian Casblancas on vocals; not that you'd particularly notice) and 3's & 7's are up there with anything they Queens have ever put on record and certain other tracks, such as River In The Road, easily capture your imagination as well.

But what the record lacks is any sense of consistency. Yes, we know Homme's predisposition to taking us on a wrong turn, but there is nothing that brings this album together, unlike on previous efforts where there was a certain stylistic and artistic thread running through.

So don't mistake me, I do like this album. But compared to Rated R, Songs For The Deaf and Lullaby's to Paralyze it's merely good, not great. Some bands could get away with an album like this, but Queens of the Stone Age can be expected to do a hell of lot better.

Wild Hope - Mandy Moore

Mandy Moore's cover version album Coverage is quite the lost delight. A million miles away from her bubblegum pop days, it showed an artist maturing. It wasn't just the choice of songs, it was the all-round way she handled them; nothing sounded forced or out of place.

It's a trick Moore is hoping to replicate on new album Wild Hope. Sadly she doesn't quite manage it.

That's not to say that this is an awful album. It's well conceived, admirably put together and certainly is an enjoyable listen. It's just that it's all a little similar and often comes across as the soundtrack to a particularly "worthy" American TV series.

All that said, there's nothing here that would preclude it from being a hit album. It certainly compares well with a multitude of female singer-songwriters who get shoved down our throats on a daily basis (at the risk of upsetting certain regular readers, for instance, it's a hell of lot better than Lucie Silvas' last album) and whilst I actually doubt that it's going to sell millions and millions of copies, I hope it sells enough for her to get another crack at it. I'd like to hear what she comes up with next.

Surrender - Jane Monheit

What can I say, I'm in a Jazz Hands Gee mood at the moment. ;-D

It goes without saying that you really need to be a "jazz" fan if you're really going to enjoy this. We're not taking Norah Jones here.

It's an album of two halves really. When belting out standards such as Moon River or A Time For Love, we're in Disney soundtrack land, with schmaltzy strings overpowering Monheit and stifling any sense of her personality.

But on the likes of the title track, Monheit becomes a much more enticing prospect. There's also a strong South American influence on hand, with such tracks as Caminhos Cruzados and So Tinha de Ser Com Voce showing just how good Monheit is. Bright, breezy and sexy...what more could you ask for?

Real Girl - Mutya Buena

Let it be known that Mutya Buena was the "talented one" of the Sugababes. Well at least that's what her publicists have been anxious to have everyone point out recently.

Well if that was the case why is Buena's debut solo album little different from what you would expect the Sugababes to produce? And don't try and suggest that that's the point; the "talented one" drive was pretty much a less than subtle way of suggesting that Buena was too good to stay in the Sugababes and be "held back" by the pop industry. It goes without saying that if you want to find the "talented one" in the Sugababes, you don't look any further than Siobhan Donaghy.

Perhaps mindful of the lack of success her former bandmate has had though, Buena sticks firmly to the formula that brought her to the dance. Songs like Not Your Baby (which is the pick of the bunch for me) and It's Not Easy are good but you can't help feeling that if you threw in, oh, two other singers and had them sing it you'd have something even better.

The one fresh sounding moment is the collaboration with Groove Armada on Song 4 Mutya, which flies off the stereo. More like this and we'd have had a blinder.

But no, lets fill the rest with regulation pop balladry (no matter how much "street" attitude Buena tries to inject, it doesn't work) and, worst of all, a bizarre and god awful reworking of Be My Baby with Amy Winehouse. Painful IS the word.

Much like the Sugababes then, Mutya Buena has come up with an average album, kept above water by a couple of great potential singles. Sometimes, the more things change the more they stay the same.

Good Girl Gone Bad - Rihanna

Ok, so perhaps I should have realised that whilst I was slagging off Rihanna's latest single Umbrella and telling her to give up it had actually already been number one for about three years...but as ever, I don't confuse commercial success with artistic merit. And the song is still, in my opinion at least, dreadful. I wonder how well it would have done without the Jay-Z connection?

And whilst Amerie can play the commercial game and still deliver an album packed with her own personality, it's not a trick Rihanna can replicate. Three albums in, any sign of her own personality has long been lost...although given what I've seen of her publicity drives that may not be a bad thing.

So as a "blank canvas" style idea, this isn't too bad. Timbaland pops up to give us Lemme Get That, (and indeed two other tracks), which surely should be the song of the summer and Justin Timberlake adds a touch of frisson to the proceedings on Rehab (which may just be a rip-off of What Goes Around but is still worth a listen). Given the success of SOS (with it's Tainted Love sample) the trick is repeated here on Shut Up And Drive, this time appropriating New Order's Blue Monday. It's not as good as SOS (alas, what is?) but it's still an addictively catchy tune. Don't Stop The Music is a cracker too, with its euro-dance backing.

As you might expect of course there is more than a fair share of dross on the album, but just for the great tracks alone this is worth it. She may be a somewhat dull pop-star, but with the right backing she can sound like a star.

Single Releases 11/06/07

Oh it's been lovely over the weekend, so this is going to be another one of those "short and concise" single review posts.

And this week it's going to return to that old staple...star ratings out of 5.

Air – Mer Du Japon ( * * 1/2 )
Art Brut – Direct Hit ( * * )
Blood Red Shoes – Its Getting Boring By The Sea ( * * * 1/4 )
Bowling For Soup – I’m Gay ( DUD )
Catherine Feeny – Touch Back Down ( * * * )
Damien Dempsey – Your Pretty Smile ( * 1/2 )
Enrique Iglesias – Do You Know (Ping Pong Song) (DUD)
Erasure - Sunday Girl ( * * )
Fratellis - Ole Black 'N' Blue Eyes” (DUD)
Good Shoes – Morden ( * * 1/2 )
Gossip - Listen Up! ( * )
Holloways – Generator 07 ( * 3/4)
Hot Club De Paris - Clockwork Toy ( * * * )
Kelly Clarkson – Never Again ( * * )
Kelly Rowland feat Eve – Like This ( * 1/2 )
Maximo Park - Books From Boxes ( * * * 1/4 )
New Young Pony Club – Ice Cream ( * * * 1/2 )
Norah Jones – Until The End ( * * 1/2 )
Tegan & Sara – Walking With A Ghost ( * * * )
Terra Naomi - Say Its Possible ( * * 3/4 )
White Stripes - Icky Thump ( * * * )
YourCodeNameIs:Milo – I’m Impressed ( * * 1/2 )

Make of all that what you will...

The Bird Of Music - Au Revoir Simone

It's fair to say that on paper that Au Revoir Simone are a set-up that is tailor made to my specifications; three not-unattractive women with their keyboards out peddling a line in synth-pop with little nuances of The Pipettes here and Metric there. And it appears that I'm not the only one who was reminded of the rather good film The Virgin Suicides (one of the few films that lives on now I'm past my Kirsten Dunst "phase" by the cover artwork. And although any similarities between the musical soundtrack that Air provided for that film are merely cosmetic, I got the sense throughout listening to this that this would provide an almost perfect backdrop for that film as well.

Still, that's just me waffling on about things not really to do with anything you might want to hear about. Yes, I can hear those cries of "but what is the music actually like?"

Well it's a little sad to say that the idea doesn't quite work in practise.

There are some great songs, no doubt. A Violent Yet Flammable World may well be THE highlight of the album; with a drum beat reminiscent of Bat For Lashes' What's A Girl To Do it drives along in a cavalcade of brooding and swirling synth strings to great effect. Sad Song is a simpler, but addictive, effort but it's almost impossible to resist. And Fallen Snow is quite brilliant too, although how much that has to do with my, impossible to explain here, long love of church organs is open to question.

It ticks all the right boxes, I have to say, but as a whole just lacks that little spark that would really set it apart from the chasing pack. Whereas We Are The Pipettes was transformed by a little personality, this one is treading water where that is concerned. I'd recommend it, but with a caveat not to expect TOO much from it.

Updated Concert List

27th January - Ben Folds - Manchester Apollo

29th January - Nerina Pallot - Manchester Academy 2

30th January - The Hedrons - Night & Day, Manchester

11th February - Sandi Thom - The Lowry, Salford

18th February - The Long Blondes, Manchester Academy 2

22nd February - Bat For Lashes - RNCM, Manchester

10th March - Lily Allen, Manchester Apollo

28th March - Kate Nash - Night & Day, Manchester

17th April - The Pipettes - Ritz, Manchester

20th April - Lucy Porter (comedy gig) - The Lowry, Salford

20th May - Girls Aloud - MEN Arena, Manchester

3rd June - Kate Nash - Late Room, Manchester

30th June - Suzanne Vega - Philharmonic Hall, Liverpool

12th July - Bat For Lashes - Manchester Academy 3

19th July - Feist - Manchester Academy 3

16th August - Sophie Ellis Bextor - Parr Hall, Warrington

9th September - Natasha Bedingfield - Manchester Apollo

19th October - KT Tunstall - Manchester Apollo

I Created Disco - Calvin Harris

The problem with jumping to prominence with a song as great as Calvin Harris' Acceptable In The 80's is that it creates such a high anticipation for the subsequent album.

And whilst there isn't anything quite as immediately catchy as that tune, there is a fair few tracks on I Created Disco that are almost as good.

Merrymaking At My Place (which must be an "homage" to/piss take of LCD Soundsystem's Daft Punk Are Playing At My House) is fun and funky, Neon Rocks is a slower song, but still insanely catchy and Vegas takes the same chord structure as Acceptable In The 80's and yet comes up with something largely different and altogether wonderful.

There's few moments that don't delight on some level, and whilst some may level criticism at Harris' singing, for me the fact that he isn't a great (or even good) singer just adds a level of charm to the whole thing. Also a plus point is that the lyrics, whilst never trying to be as important as the tunes, are quite funny too and there's often a wry smile to be had.

Yes, it is unashamedly "80's" and "pop" but like the much underrated Darkdancer by Les Rhythms Digitales, it's a great "retro" treat that manages to sound fresh as well.

Quite simply this is a monster of an album, and if I had any talent at all it's the sort of angle that I'd want to make. Whether that's much of a recommendation for you is open to question, but obviously, it's more than enough for me.

Men's Needs Women's Needs Whatever - The Cribs

Try as I might, I've never really warmed to The Cribs. To be honest they are more memorable for crazed, one might say drunken, appearances on TV rather than for anything about their music. They seem a likeable, and rascally, bunch but that doesn't really count for a lot does it?

And despite calling in Franz Ferdinand's Alex Kapranos for production duties, they've not made me warm to them on their third album. It polishes up their sound, without making it too polished though, and that's a plus point but it doesn't change the opinion that they are nothing but a poor man's Franz.

As ever there are a couple of moments that rise above it all, such as recent single Men's Needs and Be Safe, featuring Sonic Youth's Lee Ranaldo but there is not enough to maintain your interest throughout. The one word that permeates through the air, as ever with The Cribs, is average. That about sums up this album.

Blue Alert - Anjani

Two things came to mind when listening to this rather fine album; firstly, for all the, deserved, plaudits afforded to the likes of Diana Krall, Norah Jones and Madeline Peyroux, Anjani Thomas is the real "real deal" in terms of a jazz sound. Secondly, its debatable whether or not this album would have received quite so much hype and press if it wasn't for the Leonard Cohen connection.

Still it's not for me to dissect the why's and how's of the music press and at heart it is definately a good album. In lesser hands the formula of Anjani and her piano might deliver a boring album, but with typically interesting Cohen lyrics to work with and neat little changes of pace throughout (the sax on the title track, the guitar on Half The Perfect World, the gospel tinges of Never Got To Love You) it never becomes a chore to listen to.

Cynics will decry the definite "lounge" sound that the album carries, but those with a bit more of an open mind will find much to enjoy here. Anjani has the voice and Cohen delivers a perfect lyrical backdrop for it.

Carry On - Chris Cornell

Despite initial indifference to Cornell's Casino Royale effort, You Know My Name, I did actually grow to like it. It encompasses everything that you would want from a Cornell solo track; it's cool, raw and rocking...and sadly there's not enough else on the album like it.

There's also the lack of dark brooding that permeated his best work with Soundgarden; he may well be a happier, and perhaps more importantly sober, Chris Cornell these days but that doesn't make for a particularly thrilling album.

There are highlights; alongside the Bond theme there is No Such Thing, a vivid reminder of Cornell's Soundgarden days and Poison Eye. It's far from a coincidence that these heavier songs are the best of the bunch and indeed taken out of context of the album as a whole they could convince you in isolation that this is going to be a great album indeed.

Sadly it all falls apart from there somewhat. Avid fans have been labelling the album as triumph of moving away from his previous sound and whilst this may be half true (he has attempted to spread his sonic wings) the plain fact of the matter is that what he tries simply doesn't work consistently enough.

Indeed there's far too much of it that resembles Bon Jovi-meets-American Idol style posturings; too much of it is reminiscent of MOR rock that pleases the radio but please few listeners. And that's before I've got to his cover version of Billie Jean, which it is safe to say doesn't work on any level you might choose.

Carry On is not a dreadful album, and is quite listenable, but a sense of disappointment hangs over it. You would like to think Chris Cornell is capable of much more than this.

Singles 04/06/07

There are quite literally only two singles that I have in any way got any love for this week.

First up is Calvin Harris' The Girls. Yes, it's not as great as Acceptable In The 80's, but it is still very good and insanely catchy.



The only other thing is the much welcomed comback from Queens Of The Stone Age. 3's and 7's isn't the best thing they've ever done, but I do like it a lot. And it's not just because if I was a homo, Josh Homme would be the man for me!



I can't really bring myself to slag off any of the other dozen singles I've attempted to listen to this week, so I'll stop it there.

Kate Nash LIVE

I tell you. Never in the history of my concert-going career have I ever seen such a prominence of out and out tossers in an audience.

You know I bet Kate was thrilled you knew some of her songs, and I bet she was pleased that you knew some of the words. She might not have been pleased to see you incessantly chatter about absolute bollocks throughout the songs.

It was annoying enough on the "loud" songs, but when there were "quiet" songs it was at times a struggle to hear what she was singing due to the ever-so-cool wankers who obviously take great pride in "discovering" new music whilst paying a tenner to go and chat all the way through a concert whilst shouting how awesome and brilliant it was. I must say I didn't think the scant attention you were paying the concert was enough for you to actually form an opinion on what was going on. I can see them now at their water-coolers in the morning; "yeah, me, Darren and Tarquin went to see Kate Nash last night...what's that, you've never heard of her. Oh you really should be as cool as we are and check out her myspace page."

Rant over.

Not that it spoiled the performance. Nash is just lovely, and I still think I want to marry her. Her reaction to the crowd's delight when she introduced her next single ("you like it, that's a good thing) was just one funny and endearing moment during the set.

It's a testament that songs I'd barely heard before seem like long lost friends and the songs that have received more-airplay/been knocking around online like Birds, Foundations and Merry Happy seem as exciting as they did when I first heard them.

I can certainly see why she might not appeal to everyone; but to those people I merely have three words. You. Are. Wrong.

Cubism - Pet Shop Boys (DVD)

This concert, filmed in Mexico in November 2006 is very handily close enough to being the Summer Pops gig I went to, enabling it useful as a tool to remember that great concert by, and also has a number of differences in the set list, which means it also offers something new.

As you will all know by now, I am biased when it comes to the Pet Shop Boys (Britain's greatest pop act of the last 20 years by far don't you know) but if you've any liking of them at all, this is a very worthwhile DVD.

It's not the "spectacle" that Performance is/was (then again, it's not the boring "PSB as a real band" show that was the Release Tour) but it makes up with it by having the best set-list that the PSB have ever done live, taking from 20+ years of hits, with some classic album tracks thrown in for good measure. It also serves up the highlights from the most recent studio album Fundamental.

Throw in the high-definition filming (a vast improvement on the picture quality from the Discovery and Nightlife tour videos/dvd's) and THE best sound quality that I've heard on a live DVD from anybody and you have a wonderful must-have package. Just don't expect much from the Extra's.

Heart Turned To Dead - Switches

I hate The Fratellis. So it will pain me greatly that this minor gem of an album will not get close to selling as many copies as Costello Music and has not received half the hype. No, I do not foresee a Brits 2008 win for these boys.

Which is a great shame. Because the fantastic Lay Down The Law is not the only fantastic song that Switches have done.

Drama Queen, The Need To Be Needed, Give Up The Ghost...all great tracks.

Yes, it's hardly the most original album ever, and yes, there are a couple of dodgy moments but for the most part it's fun, disposable pop (in the very best possible way) with an attitude. And I love it.