I've been backing up some blog stuff tonight and have come across a post I made in January 2007 when Loz was trying to get me interested in "his scene", so this one night in January 2007 I went down the list of Napster Top Tips for 2007 - their list of who would be the breaking artists of that year, I played their albums and I reviewed them as follows...
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Napster Top Ten Tips for 2007.
The Rumble Strips - my notes say that the lead singer sounds like Kevin Rowland from Dexy's Midnight Runners, this should tell you everything you need to know - they are not bad and are worth another listen but not stand-out at the moment.
Scott Mathews - very good, listened to eight tracks of his last night and not one let me down, very laid back style, very easy to listen to, well worth looking out for.
Rishi Rich - a bangra influence, its crap.
Fields - interesting, my notes say 80's tech meets 60's "telstar" synthesizers - won't be looking them up again though.
30 Seconds to Mars - again worth a listen to but nothing special, bland is a word I use often where a band does not have a stand-out singer at the front - bland fits this band.
MSTRKRFT - absolute e, this is the sort of all encompasing techno crap that you hear being played far too loudly in bars that you have to pay to get into, where everyone thinks the music is great but no-one has a clue who it is and they certainly don't buy the stuff deliberately except for those compilation albums called "Ibiza Banging" or similar where you get four cd's for eight quid and all forty tarcks are identical - avoid this steaming pile of crap.
Director - they were interesting, their dads obviously wore sta-prest trousers and loafers and payed a non-stop diet of ska in the house when they were kids because the influence is definitely there, as is some 60's psychodelia, worth another listen definitely.
other bands that were recommended to me last night...
The Gossip - excellent, very comparable to the band "Fried" that I mentioned right at the start, in fact I stacked up a Gossip track right above Fried last night and they drifted from one straight into the other, its suprising just how alike the two female singers are - and both have R&B and Soul in quantity - I strongly recommend this band.
Just Jack - interesting, you wouldn't object if you heard them in a bar, but bland, nothing particularly stands out about this band.
Arcade Fire - very good, at last a band with a singer with a distinctive voice, listened to several tracks of theirs last night and was not disappointed - recommended.
Cold War Kids - another distinctive vocal, another fine band, well crafted, well produced, I like these.
Two Gallants - likewise, another good find, they are on my "listen" list for sure.
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I haven't heard of any of those bands since
