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Alphabeat - Boyfriend
Alphabeat have quickly established themselves with their first couple of singles, but Boyfriend looks like being the one to push them over the edge into pop superstardom, because it's by far the catchiest song on their debut album, sounding like early Madonna. Bound to be a hit and deservedly so. |
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Biffy Clyro - Mountains
A one-off single release from Biff Clyro and the first new material from them since last year's acclaimed Puzzle, Mountains is a suitably triumphant release from a band at their peak, who'll be performing at Reading and Leeds this weekend. |
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Sway - Saturday Night Hustle feat Lemar
Sampling the 80s pop-soul classic Saturday Love, this new single finds Sway aiming for the mainstream by roping Lemar in and making his poppiest track yet but still keeping some of his edge, and it works really well. |
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Red Blooded Women - You Made Your Bed EP
Red Blooded Women's EP comes with a lot of PR bluster about how different they are to other girl bands, emphasising their varied and impressive list of inspirations, but the music speaks for itself well enough, with a very impressive pop nous and fun 80s electro backing. |
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Maroon 5 featuring Rihanna - If I Never See Your Face Again
Cunning. Maroon 5 and Rihanna have sold plenty of copies of their recent albums, but could still do with some more cash, so why not get together on a new version of a Maroon 5 song and then add it to re-released versions of said albums? Kerching! It's a good song, but Rihanna adds nothing really... |
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Levellers - Before The End
It may start with a didgeridoo, but in almost every other way, this is an unconventional Levellers song, mainly because it's so conventional. It's even a love song, as you can tell from the single cover. It's still a great tune though, so don't worry. |
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The Pigeon Detectives - Everybody Wants Me
It's hard to imagine anyone wanting someone from The Pigeon Detectives, but they seem quite popular so maybe there's someone out there. It's the very definition of plodding pub rock, lumpen and uninspired but anthemic enough to get a load of beery lads singing along. Job done. |
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Natty - July
Its release has been delayed until July is almost over, but the suddenly sweltering weather is more appropriate now for Natty's soulful ska, so this chilled out track will probably still sound good even when it's August. |
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The Rushes - What You Waiting For
The Rushes are decent new band with a good, sound base in classic rock and soul music, and that elevates their indie tracks beyond the average. What You Waiting For is hardly up there with their inspirations, but it's still a very good tune on its own merits. |
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The Saturdays - If This Is Love
Two of The Saturdays were in tween-pop clone band S Club 8, so it's no surprise that their new group are a mini-me for another more successful act. This time it's Girls Aloud, who they supported recently. But this debut single lacks any of that group's sparkle or pop nous, leaving it just sounding flat. |
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The All-Stars Collective - All About The Music
The All-Stars Collective should be the biggest super group in the planet, but while the players here might not actually be famous, they've worked with plenty of top stars, and have Jocelyn Brown guesting on vocals in this funky summer soul anthem. They're not All-Stars yet, but maybe they should be. |
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Primal
Scream
-
Can't
Go
Back
So,
which
Primal
Scream
is
it
this
time?
The
pioneering
dance
rockers
or
the
sub-Stones
pub
rockers?
Well,
kind
of
in
the
middle,
never
reaching
the
heights
of
their
more
electrifying
work,
but
at
least
sounding
more
inspired
(apart
from
the
lyrics
of
course)
than
anything
off
their
last
album. |
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Martha Wainwright - You Cheated Me
Another impressive release by Martha Wainwright, You Cheated Me is as brutally honest and cathartic as we've come to expect, but with one of her poppiest choruses so far. You could even imagine it being from a Texas song, but of course Wainwright exudes too much class for that to be an issue. |
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Neon Neon - I Told Her On Alderaan/Trick For Treat
This double a-side single shows the two sides of Neon Neon, with the 80s pop of I Told Her Alderaan (not the best example of it from the album) mixing with the electro pop hip hop of Trick For Treat featuring Spank Rock and Har Mar Superstar. Like on the album, it would be better without the hip hop. |
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Passenger - Things You've Never Done
It feels like the eighth single to come from Passenger's debut album, but it's the last at least. And it's another decent tune too, with the Handel sample after the chorus adding to the reflective and mournful mood very well. |
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Kid Sister - Pro Nails
'Featuring Kanye West' is becoming a familiar sight on singles nowadays, and Kid Sister is the latest rising star to get his seal of approval, but unfortunately it's Kanye who steals the show, leaving her rather sidelined in her own song. |
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Jack McManus - You Think I Don't Care
Jack McManus sounds like he should be one of THOSE dull pop singer-songwriter types that have been ten-a-penny since James Blunt broke through, and he is, but You Think I Don't Care at least manages to be more fun and less winsome than most. |
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Sneaky Sound System - Pictures
Aussie dance stars Sneaky Sound System played Glastonbury last month and we can only imagine they went down well with funky summer tunes like Pictures, which really bounces along with a great electro beat and lively vocals from Miss Connie. |
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