In truth, the name Jordin Sparks meant very little to me before this summer. I later found out that she had won American Idol a couple of years ago which put me off a bit - I despise reality TV just on principle - but the sheer force of Battlefield dragged me back in.
I first heard through Popjustice who made it their Song of the Day back in the summer, summing it typically succintly: "It's basically fucking amazing."
I have to agree. Sparks' voice is the very definition of powerhouse, leading the listener in gently under a twinkly piano melody. A bit of Careyesque warbling follows before the bridge sets up the explosive chorus. "Why does love always feel like a battlefield?" shrieks Sparks over and over again and by the end it's almost impossible not to bellow along with her.
Some complementary backing vocals crash in at just the right time and then, oh yes, KEY CHANGE and it's brilliant, all thumping, bumping drums and Sparks' vocals stabbing away at the heartstrings. It's stunning. The last 45 seconds or so could probably be cut but that would really be nit-picking.
Tuesday 1 December 2009
Albums of 2009: #18 Editors – In This Light And On This Evening
When Edith Bowman, the long-term beau of Editors' singer Tom Smith, proclaimed the band's new material to be a massive departure from their usual sub-Joy Division act you could be forgiven for thinking 'well, she would say that'.
But it turns out she was right after all.
After two albums of stale yet listenable pompous dark-rock Editors brought out 2009's instrument of choice - the synth. And it worked. Kind of. In This Light And On This Evening was, despite the clumpy title, much sharper than both of its predecessors, the tight nine tracks helping to eliminate filler. Smith's vocals are still in the shadow of Interpol's Paul Banks but for the first time the music from the Brummies posed a genuine challenge to the New Yorkers.
It was certainly brave, risking isolating their fans by deviating from their tried-and-tested formula, but Papillon provided the bridge between old and new, offering a hook as instantaneous as Munich or Blood, but blending in a synth line subtly to introduce the new direction to fans. The rest of the album was solid in unspectacular. The Big Exit's buzz-saw hacled through the atmosphere while Bricks and Mortar, ironically enough, laid the foundations for the record at its beginning.
Plenty of bands are too half-arsed when trying out something new but Editors went full throttle, with The Boxer's almost calypso melody a memorable highlight. In This Light And On This Evening opens plenty of doors for the band and it will be intriguing to see which one they go through.
Listen for yourself on Spotify.
But it turns out she was right after all.
After two albums of stale yet listenable pompous dark-rock Editors brought out 2009's instrument of choice - the synth. And it worked. Kind of. In This Light And On This Evening was, despite the clumpy title, much sharper than both of its predecessors, the tight nine tracks helping to eliminate filler. Smith's vocals are still in the shadow of Interpol's Paul Banks but for the first time the music from the Brummies posed a genuine challenge to the New Yorkers.
It was certainly brave, risking isolating their fans by deviating from their tried-and-tested formula, but Papillon provided the bridge between old and new, offering a hook as instantaneous as Munich or Blood, but blending in a synth line subtly to introduce the new direction to fans. The rest of the album was solid in unspectacular. The Big Exit's buzz-saw hacled through the atmosphere while Bricks and Mortar, ironically enough, laid the foundations for the record at its beginning.
Plenty of bands are too half-arsed when trying out something new but Editors went full throttle, with The Boxer's almost calypso melody a memorable highlight. In This Light And On This Evening opens plenty of doors for the band and it will be intriguing to see which one they go through.
Listen for yourself on Spotify.
Monday 23 November 2009
Singles of 2009: #17 Julian Casablancas - 11th Dimension
While his day-job band made their career from re-inventing the past to shape the future, Julian Casablancas looked firmly forwards with his surprisingly good solo record Phrazes For The Young. With a new Strokes album seemingly still some distance from being finished, fans eagerly waited to see what he'd come up with.
The answer was a lean album of just nine tracks, each and every one of them well above average. But this, the album's lead single, was arguably the best of the lot, the chiming guitars and shuffling beats suggesting a more dancefloor-orientated direction for the New Yorker and his band.
It was a brave and important move for Casablancas, who must be aware that the Strokes' days are probably numbered. 11th Dimension gave a timely reminder of his prowess as a performer, securing his musical career for the foreseeable future. Whether it turns out to be with the Strokes, on his own, or with a new band, only the future will tell.
The answer was a lean album of just nine tracks, each and every one of them well above average. But this, the album's lead single, was arguably the best of the lot, the chiming guitars and shuffling beats suggesting a more dancefloor-orientated direction for the New Yorker and his band.
It was a brave and important move for Casablancas, who must be aware that the Strokes' days are probably numbered. 11th Dimension gave a timely reminder of his prowess as a performer, securing his musical career for the foreseeable future. Whether it turns out to be with the Strokes, on his own, or with a new band, only the future will tell.
Singles of 2009: #18 Girls - Lust For Life
It's hard to put into words just how much I love Girls. I loved them from the first minute I knew of their existence, when we posted the video for Lust For Life on TMM.
The song itself was effortlessly brilliant and immediately I fell for the band, hard. Lust For Life came along just at the right time, in that week or so of summer weather we had. Its gloriously lo-fi beach sound contrasted nicely with the way my life seemed to be going and all was well in the world.
When their debut album, erm, Album landed a few weeks later I loved them even more. There was more to them than the casually strummed guitars, the tales of lost love dominating the record. But it was Lust For Life that introduced me to the band, all 2:25 of it seeming life-affirmingly necessary. And the video is quality, embedded with the carefree, lovelorn attitude I've come to love so much about Girls.
The song itself was effortlessly brilliant and immediately I fell for the band, hard. Lust For Life came along just at the right time, in that week or so of summer weather we had. Its gloriously lo-fi beach sound contrasted nicely with the way my life seemed to be going and all was well in the world.
When their debut album, erm, Album landed a few weeks later I loved them even more. There was more to them than the casually strummed guitars, the tales of lost love dominating the record. But it was Lust For Life that introduced me to the band, all 2:25 of it seeming life-affirmingly necessary. And the video is quality, embedded with the carefree, lovelorn attitude I've come to love so much about Girls.
Thursday 19 November 2009
Singles of 2009: #19 Frightened Rabbit - Swim Until You Can't See Land
Frightened Rabbit are a genuine word-of-mouth band. I heard about them through a friend (whose recommendations I normally try and ignore on principle) and since then have myself badgered others into giving them a try. All are now converts to the Scots' unique, iconic brand of electric folk-rock.
But this, the first cut from their upcoming third record, has more to it. Without compromising their roots it has a more mainstream feel thanks to the memorable chiming, graceful piano at the centre of the track. It seems that this is FR's attempts at breaking through.
Nobody could say they don't deserve it. The Midnight Organ Fight is a genuine masterpiece and their cover of dance classic Set You Free has to be heard to be believed.
For now though, I'm more than happy to have Frightened Rabbit as my secret little pleasure before they become massive, as they surely will, in 2010.
But this, the first cut from their upcoming third record, has more to it. Without compromising their roots it has a more mainstream feel thanks to the memorable chiming, graceful piano at the centre of the track. It seems that this is FR's attempts at breaking through.
Nobody could say they don't deserve it. The Midnight Organ Fight is a genuine masterpiece and their cover of dance classic Set You Free has to be heard to be believed.
For now though, I'm more than happy to have Frightened Rabbit as my secret little pleasure before they become massive, as they surely will, in 2010.
Singles of 2009: #20 La Roux - Bulletproof
It would be difficult to do a countdown of the year's best singles without including La Roux.
The bequiffed Elly Jackson and her producer partner Ben Langmaid came from nowhere with their uber hit In For The Kill to announce their arrival on to the growing electro-pop scene. But Bulletproof was a better song, Jackson getting closer to singing in key than anywhere else on their eponymous debut.
Better still was the way Jackson spoke her mind throughout 2009, unafraid to offer her forthright opinions on whatever questions journalists through at her. She was effectively the anti-Leona, a performer who let her personality shine through. For that, she should be commended, as well as for bringing 80s dance back into the mainstream.
The bequiffed Elly Jackson and her producer partner Ben Langmaid came from nowhere with their uber hit In For The Kill to announce their arrival on to the growing electro-pop scene. But Bulletproof was a better song, Jackson getting closer to singing in key than anywhere else on their eponymous debut.
Better still was the way Jackson spoke her mind throughout 2009, unafraid to offer her forthright opinions on whatever questions journalists through at her. She was effectively the anti-Leona, a performer who let her personality shine through. For that, she should be commended, as well as for bringing 80s dance back into the mainstream.
Wednesday 18 November 2009
Albums of 2009: #19 Idlewild - Post Electric Blues
Idlewild have a special place in my heart. Back in 2002 I was just 14, struggling to define who I was, learning all the time about what I liked. Until that year music had just really been a distraction, I didn't go out of my way to hear it, it didn't excite me, or make me feel anything.
But then one day I was listening to Jo Whiley on Radio 1 and it all changed. She played You Held The World In Your Arms by Idlewild and suddenly I 'got' music. It thrilled me and since then Idlewild have been a permanent fixture in my favourite few bands.
Annoyingly, I missed the band's early glory days, just getting into them around the time of their last great album, The Remote Part. Since then the Scots have mellowed considerably and though they are still capable of thrilling and visceral live shows, their albums haven't really pressed my buttons in recent years.
But luckily, Post Electric Blues was a vast improvement. Readers and Writers threatened briefly to be the band's biggest hit in years, City Hall became their catchiest track in, well, ever, and for the first time they achieved that difficult balance of the ROOOCCK and the lilting folk melodies that singer Roddy Woomble had grown closer to over the years.
Rekindling my faith in a once glorious band is enough to get this record a nod in the top 20.
Read my original review at The Music Magazine.
But then one day I was listening to Jo Whiley on Radio 1 and it all changed. She played You Held The World In Your Arms by Idlewild and suddenly I 'got' music. It thrilled me and since then Idlewild have been a permanent fixture in my favourite few bands.
Annoyingly, I missed the band's early glory days, just getting into them around the time of their last great album, The Remote Part. Since then the Scots have mellowed considerably and though they are still capable of thrilling and visceral live shows, their albums haven't really pressed my buttons in recent years.
But luckily, Post Electric Blues was a vast improvement. Readers and Writers threatened briefly to be the band's biggest hit in years, City Hall became their catchiest track in, well, ever, and for the first time they achieved that difficult balance of the ROOOCCK and the lilting folk melodies that singer Roddy Woomble had grown closer to over the years.
Rekindling my faith in a once glorious band is enough to get this record a nod in the top 20.
Read my original review at The Music Magazine.
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