One In A Lifetime – Monica – If there is something proforma in the production for this up and coming R&B singer, and if the lyric is entirely by the numbers, at least Monica takes her lead from no less than Aaliyah.
Thieves – She And Him – Starts off sounding like “Cupid” and ends up sounding like “insipid”.
Sara Smile – The Bird And the Bee – It is hard to go wrong on a song like this I admit, but the Bird portion is really good: it’s like a muzak version but a muzak version with a soul.
Dreaming – Goldfrapp – These guys are retro eighties synth popand I hated synth pop when it was happening (except for the Human Lague of course) and see no reason to change my mind for this dreary, strange mess.
Raised On Rock – Scorpio – “I was born in a hurricane…” yeah, and I bet it blew. This guy might be the worst metal singer I’ve ever heard not working on broadway.
That Tree (feat Kid Cudi) – Snoop Dogg – Everything I’ve heard from More Malice except for The Dream collab has been his Snoop’s best work since The Last Meal. The backing beats here are simply amazing (it is as though the beats are holding the melodic hook) and Kid Cudi holds his own.
I Am Not A Robot – Marina And the Diamonds – Quirky like Regina Spektor, but though song itself is less interesting then anything Spektor would do, it hangs tough and the melodic and Marina’s “don’t pick up the phone when it rings, rings, rings” is a curve ball worthy of a Joe Steinhardt. Song Of The Week
Deny All – Bettie Serveert – Indie rock as professional duty, this is a swirver riding a clever drummer through to the break and on to a simple and smart chorus “deny all that you like it like that…”
Vanity Kills – Codeine Velvet Club – I am a little on the fence over this Fratelli’s off shoot. On the one hand, good for them for trying something new, on the other hand Kurt Weill is doing handstands in his grave.
Devil’s Spoke – Laura Marling – Oh, no. She’s serious about it. Noah’s muse is writing hard folk with a bluesy edge. If the song was a bit better maybe it’d work.
Days Gone By – Woods – The title goes on for another minute or so but I can’t be bothered writing it. If I hadn’t seen em live last year I’d just dub em quirky assholes and move on with my life but live… live they are a psychedelic jam band with a dj rocking two cassette players like they were turntables. Given all of that I have given the song a coupla more listens and it is strange and yeah quirky. In three parts, now I’ll tell you the full name: “Days Gone By/Untitled/Days Gone By (Cont)” and it moves, almost surreptiously between what we uses to call “no new york” noise thru folk to psychedelic and back in around four minutes. Which makes it simultaneously loose and firm. So quirky, yeah, but still pretty damn good.