Hey hey hey
As promised here are the new shiny things that I reckon you all need in your lives! In no particular order:
Polar Bear I heard Polar Bear ages ago on Colin Murray’s radio show. He mainly deals in spoken word, and ‘Jessica’ is a perfect example of the genre. It’ll make you laugh, it might make you cry (it did me) but if this doesn’t get you into it, nothing will. If music-backed tracks are more your thing, ‘Moves’ and ‘SevenThirty’ will grab your goat (or farmyard animal of your choice) firmly by the horns (or appropriate bodily part… I said appropriate remember).
Akira The Don As recommended by Dan Le Sac and that’s got to be good. For a voice that sounds so not bothered and monotone, it’s impossible to stop listening to it to hear what he has to say. ‘In The Morning’ sounds like brit-pop rap and it’s possible that ATD is the result of a Jay-Z/Damon Albarn love-in. Which is fine by me. Joey2Tits remix of ‘On The Roads’ is punchier than Amir Khan, and deserves to be massive. In the Music Like Dirt top 200 tracks of 2008, ATD’s remix of Gonzales’ ‘Working Together’ came top, and deservedly so! Also if you go to
Dan Le Sac’s blog (worth a read) you can hear/watch ATD’s remix of… well you’ll see.
The King Blues I ordered their album as soon as I heard their MySpace tracks. They’re a band who have absolutely been through the mill, individually and together. The more you read about them, the more you need to know and the more you understand their songs. One of the most dedicated and honest bands of our time as far as I can tell, their single ‘Save The World, Get The Girl’ is on Radio 1’s A-List. ‘Let’s Hang The Landlord’ will I’m sure strike a chord with many people. In time of economic downturn, I think it’s fair to say the King Blues have found their moment. Comparable to a punk influenced Jamie T. Please listen to ‘What If Punk Never Happened’ – it’s probably scarily close to the truth.
Foals If you haven’t been listening to the Foals, seriously, why not? The mistake everyone seems to make is thinking that they’re just another Indie band. Well, you couldn’t be more wrong. Staccato guitars, unexpected drum rhythms and perfect structure, set the Foals apart from everyone else. Cassius is probably – nay, definitely – one of the best tracks of 2008. The album Antidotes consists of track after track of Math-rock gold, and is a must have for all of you. I dare you all to disagree.
Friendly Fires Another one of those ‘you-must-have-heard-of-them’ bands. One day… Were gonna live… In Paris… Does that sound familiar to you? Yes, that’ll be Friendly Fires and their most well known track ‘Paris’. They’re on a massive tour at the moment, currently as part of the NME awards shows, and then they’re off round Europe and the US. Indie-dance doesn't get much better.
So that’s quality over quantity. There may only be five, but they’re five of the best.
Love
xxxx