STUCK RECORDS

SINGLE OF THE WEEK

Rose Elinor Dougall: ‘Start/Stop/Synchro’ Listen to the song on Myspace

In terms of production it’s a definite progression from her debut ‘Another Version of Pop Song’. This song started life as a primitive bedroom demo posted on her Myspace almost immediately after her departure from The Pipettes. It’s been fleshed out yet still retains a wonderful haunting quality. What Rose’s vocals lack in power she makes up for in feeling and delicateness. Deserves to be heard.

RUNNER-UP SINGLE OF THE WEEK

The Saturdays: ‘Work’

‘Work’ was an immediate standout upon the release of their good but patchy ‘Chasing Lights’ album and definitely deserves to be showcased as a single. Probably their most collaborative effort in terms of all the girls getting a decent chunk of the song to sing. It’s not quite as innovate and instant as ‘Up’ was and has lost a little of its appeal in the eight months since its initial release but it still works as a showcase for their potential to be a GA-esque conquistadors of quality, timeless pop. But thumbs down for the video, what happened to all the colours?

Pixie Lott: ‘Mama Do’

Already this is proving very popular in the download stakes and will definitely be charting high on Sunday. It’s a mid-tempo bass-heavy bouncer with quite a pleasant chorus but overall fairly forgettable. Pixie’s vocal skills are undeniable, but one could argue that there’s still some work to be some optimising her voice to the right musical style. But not a bad first effort, and she’ll certainly won’t be disappearing anytime soon.

Vagabond: ‘Sweat (Until The Morning)’

Nicely understated mellow song with funk and soul undercurrents. It’s a shame that the melody doesn’t do much apart from meander aimlessly. It’s audio wallpaper, albeit a relaxing pastel shade.

Yeah Yous: ‘15 Minutes’

Remember Robbie Williams’ first album? Had it not been for ‘Angels’ the answer would most likely be ‘no’. But the Yeah Yous certainly do as they’ve perfectly captured Bob’s past attempts at latching onto whatever musical trend he could find, and the song is almost as annoying as he is (only joking Robbie). It’s very ‘last days of Britpop’, particularly with its bouncealong chorus. Is this group manufactured by the Labour government in order to subconsciously remind people of a time when they liked them?

Dinosaur Jr: ‘Over It’

Proving there’s life in the old Dinosaur yet, Mascis & co return with a unadventurous but exhilarating number. Like the Yeah Yous they’re also stuck in a timewarp, but this effortlessly blends their mid-90s alt-rock heyday with some tasty retro guitar licks that are heavy on the wah-wah pedal. It won’t change the world but it’ll make three minutes go a lot sweeter.

Jonas Brothers: ‘Paranoid’

Is that an analogue synth I can hear in the pre-chorus? This isn’t that bad, though it’s very kiddy-rock by numbers. We seem to have had something of this ilk every week, but if the artists themselves are shameless are running out of things to say then so am I.

Mika: ‘Songs For Sorrow (EP)’ Listen to the songs on his site

The archetypical stage school brat makes a low-key return with this collection of mainly acoustic numbers. Anyone that’s heard him sing will know his voice is not the least bit suitable for acoustic instruments, and the results are somewhat awkward. A couple of nice touches, particularly a lovely chord change and vocal sweep on ‘Lady Jane’. But I can see why he’s intent on keeping this release a secret, it’s certainly not strong enough for his big pop comeback (which is looking more and more unlikely).

Linkin Park: ‘New Divide’

Taken from the new ‘Transformers’ movie this song follows a well-trodden path of stadium-rock – the slow build-up to the epic chorus. The verses are not actually that bad, a lot of reverb is used to create a feeling of space and it comes across more as a guitar-led Depeche Mode. But the chorus is your usual clichéd affair, not terrible as such but totally interchangeable with a thousand other songs.

Gossip: ‘Heavy Cross’

Those who have found Beth Ditto to have the subtlety of a chainsaw in her many interviews may be surprised that this is quite a considered affair. The verses in particular feature a nice blend of Ditto’s softer vocals to a subdued but catchy guitar hook. Admittedly the chorus sounds like its come from an indie disco five years ago but that’s doesn’t mean it’s not a pleasant record.

Carolina Liar: ‘Show Me What I’m Looking For’

The record made for people who thought the first two Keane albums were a bit too raucous….ok, it’s not THAT bad, it breezes along inoffensively, ticks all the boxes in terms of chord and tempo changes etc. But it has no reason to exist based on the fact that there’s nothing original or interesting about it. The song title is all too prophetic.

Gavin Midgley