The Invisible - Rispah

Now Playing – twice every week, a roundtable of our writers will give their views on some of the recently-released new tracks. It’s as simple as that! If you want to tell us what you think of the song, feel free to leave a comment below.

Track: ‘Protection’ by The Invisible

Average grade: 5.8

Kenny: Five and a bit minutes worth of nothing particularly inspiring. The guitar sound at times made me thing of early U2 as it chunders along with the lyrics circling around ideas of shelter, protection and being taken under someone’s wing (when you can make them out). 4/10

Richard: The system is broken, everything is muffled and distorted, and the atmosphere is desperately morose. The Invisible have created an artistically minded subtle manipulation of the senses with ‘Protection’; a lesson in corrupted percussion, and intricate instrumentation.

‘Protection’ gets very special indeed around the two and a half minute mark, a genius blend of atmospheric goulash as everything whips around  and storms in through the ear canal. 8/10

Tom: The Invisible have good beats.  If you want intelligent, complex, polyrhythmic fun these guys deliver.  ’Protection’ is let down a bit by lyrics and a tune that don’t reach the same heights, rather predictable.  But the rhythms give this track all its atmosphere, and make it worth 5 minutes of your time. 7/10

Stef: I really liked their first album and thought there were some expertly crafted songs on there (I even interviewed them, mind you). This one, though, I find it hard to enjoy it. It all seems so muddled, so on one level that it just seems that everything blends together into a big mush. 4/10

Best Coast – The Only Place

Now Playing – twice every week, a roundtable of our writers will give their views on some of the recently-released new tracks. It’s as simple as that! If you want to tell us what you think of the song, feel free to leave a comment below.

Track: ‘The Only Place’ by Best Coast

Average grade: 4.9

Anna: Always happy to receive some surf pop, perfect for when driving to the beach (or riding on the train in the rain in May, thanks). As it is more polished than the previous offerings though, the weak flatness of the vocals is more pronounced and this in a way brings the infectiousness down a bit. I’m not exactly sold on the sincerity of the lyrics’ naivety either. 5.7/10

Linda: Best Coast’s previous album, though hailed as the return to surf pop by some, was never really my thing. Perhaps it is because I never really spend any time listening to that one, that this new track seems as innovating as Mitt Romney’s ideas about America.  3/10

Stuart: This is a quite cute and jangly listen that makes me wish (though just for second) that I was back in the late-’90s / early-’00s when this kind of stuff dominated the alternative charts and I could squeeze into my pair of ridiculously straight-legged pink flares. It’s fluff, but inoffensive, upbeat and clap-along happy fluff. And here’s a prediction: this summer, this track will feature on an advert for either a bank, a mobile phone network or a sanitary towel. FACT. 5/10

Harry: It’s a classic Best Coast track. A lively low-fi pop song about the west coast with a cute little melody – But that, in itself, is a problem. This shows little development or change in direction from the debut album Crazy For You. Bland, unimaginative and uninspiring lyrics about how wonderful California is coupled with a happy-go-lucky chord sequence hardly makes the “dark”, “emo” and “grown up” music Bethany Cosentino promised. Oh well. It’s a sunny Summer track for a sunny Summer’s day. 5/10

Stef: A nice jangly affair by Best Coast. However, jangly stuff has never been my thing, but it is nice enough to listen to when you go on a road trip or something, and I like the sentiment behind it (if I listened to it correctly, which might or might not be correct). 6/10

Richard Rossa – Midnight Dub (Kelton Prima remix)

By Stef Siepel

The Weekly Froth! A weekly take on six tracks, most of which have recently popped up somewhere in the blogosphere. Bit of a mixed bag with a slight leaning towards house, disco, and remixes, but generally just anything that for some reason tickled the writer’s fancy.

Track of the Week: ‘Midnight Dub’ by Richard Rossa (Kelton Prima remix)

Kelton Prima is one that likes to go deep with the beat (at least the songs I’ve heard of him), and though this is not as deep as cuts of his I already have in my collection, it isn’t quite the by SoundCloud labelled nu-disco either. I would say it is more of a mix of deep house with some lighter elements, including a tingling bell of some sorts and a quite prominent synth. Then the space sounds come in (that I do remember of him, see his fairly recently released song ‘The Dark Side of the Spoon’) and Prima makes it an intergalactic ride through the clubs. The synths give it its air and its contrast, but the thing that keeps propelling it forward is the kind of grainy beat that keeps on going furiously. Like how the drums become prominent for the first time at the tail end of an interlude of some sorts in which the song is stripped down a bit. After that, the synth and space sounds bring this to its end. If you like your deep house (but not too deep) and your space (but not too space), and if you especially like it for a club setting, than not much wrong with this one I reckon.

‘Romantic Streams’ by Sleep Over (CFCF remix)

It is good to see that this one got so much coverage on the “big blogs”, because CFCF has done some good things recently and it is nice to see that rewarded with this kind of exposure. It’s not a total surprise that this is the track that gets it, as this, first of all, is radio length with four minutes, and second of all, it is a nice and dreamy cut indeed. Love the piano in there,that is just magnificent, and the vocals are pitch perfect for this kind of thing. You’ve got a slow and lazy beat in there to keep time I suppose, but the real strength is the serenity, the I-am-looking-out-of-the-window-of-my-midnight-train-and-hoping/dreaming-of-better-things feel it evokes. I love the angelic background vocals that you can hear and which add to the overall atmosphere of this track. A really rather beautiful thing to listen to, with a hint of guitar at the end as well to close it out.

‘Idea of Happiness’ by Van She (Sebastian remix)

Gosh, this does start, doesn’t it? Really brash sounds that immediately start coming at you. After that you hear more of Van She coming through, or in any case, you can definitely hear its synth-pop roots. And that aesthetic is quite at odds with the quite hard beat. You’ve now got this mixture of poppy synth-pop, something very slick, with sounds that just force this thing in a club where it basically doesn’t belong and, I would think, doesn’t even want to be. It are the wrong elements from both forced together to tour clubs that don’t want it, that is how it rather feels to me to be honest. Not something I’ll be having on repeat.

‘Reunion’ by M83 (Mylo remix)

I love how it starts, with that swerving sound accompanying the beat, that’s really nice. After that the synth helps the beat in giving it some structure and making sure the song keeps moving forward. The vocals sound kind of frantic though to be honest, then again, I’m not that much of a fan of M83 like some people probably are *ducks*. But it is also because of the contrast between the instrumental side and how that is produced on one hand, and how high pitched those vocals are on the other. It does seem as if the instruments are quite a tad lower in terms of sound than these vocals, which make those come across as rather squeally and sped-up. Not to throw the song in the bin completely, because it is not a bad song, and it sounds nice enough. It is just that the contrast between some elements is perhaps a bit stronger than what I personally would’ve aimed for. I also wouldn’t have aimed for that ending, which is just noise for noise’s sake.

‘Traffic’ by A.N.D.Y. & Vicente

This song is the debut single of A.N.D.Y., and the DiscoTexas label gives them a place to put it out. Like we’re used from that label (and like it kind of says in the name), this song has quite some disco elements, but it does not go all vintage on us though. Rather, it is a mix of those traditional disco elements mixed with other electronical elements. In this case there is a hint of space in there and a hint of some electronics. This makes it more of a hypnotical affair than a liberating one, but it is a fine piece nonetheless. It doesn’t mind some repetition to give the possible dancers to hang on to. The ending, that is a bit abrupt I would say. Oh well, can’t have them all, can you?

‘100’ by Filthy Dukes

The Filthy Dukes are back! Last time around they delivered an album with some very very good tracks, though on the whole I thought the effort to be lacking a bit. This song starts with a nice, melancholic synth and a pretty slow throbbing beat, which they ride for a while. After two minutes lighter key sounds come in, and that bit does sound a bit like it should be used on top of a compilation of a Tom Hanks space movie to be honest. On their first album I loved the tracks that had some deep vocals on them (‘Don’t Fall Softly’, ‘Poison the Ivy’, ‘Nonsense in the Dark’), and this isn’t that, and it just misses that one element that keeps it interesting. I think in those songs, what puts them over the top are the vocals, and I think with them lacking, the song at least needs some sort of kingmaker I would say, vocals or otherwise.

Passion Pit - Take A Walk

Now Playing – twice every week, a roundtable of our writers will give their views on some of the recently-released new tracks. It’s as simple as that! If you want to tell us what you think of the song, feel free to leave a comment below.

Track: ‘Take a Walk’ by Passion Pit

Average grade: 5/10

Richard: I’m not really a synth man. So, a synth powered song was always unlikely to satisfy my musical needs. ‘Take a Walk’ starts out quite interestingly with a stampeding drum beat which sticks around throughout the song; though it does get a little jarring when combined with whiney little girly man vocals and a horrendously dour chorus, which should in theory be anthemic, yet comes across quite anodyne. 4/10

Kenny: Not a band I knew ’til now beyond their name. This sounds like it’s got a bit of a message behind it although it’s quite an upbeat treatment for the story of a family/business breakdown. Hear it enough on the radio and you’ll probably find yourself humming it in the shower but it’s not really got any longevity so 5/10

Thomas: Take a Walk exceeded my admittedly low expectations of lightweight indie synthmongers Passion Pit, by being rather bizarrely about the impacts of capitalism and recession on US families. It’s peculiar combination of Hudson Mohawke-esque chunky electro tune and parochial social consciousness.  Quite endearing. 7/10

Stef: Listening to it now it doesn’t sound so bad as I first thought it was. It’s a nice summery, radio pop tune, but it lacks catchiness to really dance to for me (Cut Copy it is not), and the longer the song goes on, the more cheesy it starts to feel to be honest. That chorus in particular just lacks the oomph to keep it going. 4/10

Twin Shadow - Confess

Now Playing – twice every week, a roundtable of our writers will give their views on some of the recently-released new tracks. It’s as simple as that! If you want to tell us what you think of the song, feel free to leave a comment below.

Track: ‘Five Seconds’ by Twin Shadow

Average grade: 4.8

Anna: Whilst this is a. really ’80s b. generic in terms of new wave and c. repetitive lyrics wise, I enjoyed it. I feel dirty for having done so and for admitting it, but there you go. 7/10

Craig: Yes, this is very ’80s.  Now that the elephant in the room has been addressed, this is a pretty cool song in its own context.  Though the tone is gloomy, the beat doesn’t drone and make everything just a total bummer.  Plus, the singer’s voice is unique in that he wavers in and out of tune artfully which prevents him from sounding like a robot, or Interpol. 6/10

James: I’m pretty indifferent about this one, nothing really stands out. It’s just quite predictable and the chorus doesn’t really go anywhere. There’s some nice layering going on but I could easily live without it. 3/10

Harry: ‘Five Seconds’ isn’t really anything interesting at all. It’s not especially exciting, inspiring, evocative or ground-breaking, and it certainly isn’t memorable. It is cheesy and it is unimaginative – Another track with an obvious ’80s drum beat and a vaguely catchy melody. To be perfectly honest, I had to double check that this wasn’t a previous X Factor contestant attempting to reinvent their dwindling career by going a bit “disco”. 2/10

Stuart: Okay, now I might well be one of Musos Guide’s elder statesmen (or knackered and decrepit hacks, you decide) but I really can’t see whom this track is aimed at. The synth riff sounds as if it was nicked off an early demo for Berlin’s ‘Take My Breath Away’ and the guitar licks sound like Per Gessle covering ‘Owner of a Lonely Heart’ by Yes. The lyrics (and believe me even labelling them as such is a terrific stretch) are a repetitive insipid puzzle and about as entertaining as listening to an entire t.A.T.u. album whilst being molested by Dermot Murnaghan on crack.

I guess if you’re a big fan of Berlin – and a big fan of Roxette – and a big fan of Dermot Murnaghan – then ‘Five Seconds’ is the track for you. Personally, I can only wish it lasted only five seconds and Mr Shadow had stayed true to his name and never darkened my door with his horrible schtick. Oh, and he looks a bit like Craig David too – and that’s never a good thing. 2/10 (Yeah, and that’s because I quite like Roxette. ‘Look Sharp!’ is a belter of an album: put on ‘Sleeping Single’ rather than listening to this nonsense.)

Stef: I love this (I’m ignoring the beating the track gets above me). There’s something about that voice that really appeals to me, to me it is so full of emotion. Love how he goes from slightly bombastic to really understated, like the guitar and the layers, I think it is top notch stuff. Can’t wait for that album. 9/10

Metric - Youth Without Youth

Now Playing – twice every week, a roundtable of our writers will give their views on some of the recently-released new tracks. It’s as simple as that! If you want to tell us what you think of the song, feel free to leave a comment below.

Track: ‘Youth Without Youth’ by Metric

Average grade: 7.5

Kenny: One of Canada’s greatest acts. This stomp-along is hopefully bettered on the forthcoming album as they’ve done better in the past but it’s still worth 8 out of 10 any day of the week.

Stephanie: I could not be happier that I’ll be treated to a new Metric album this year! ‘Youth Without Youth’ gives us a taster of what to expect and it blows my synthing socks off! It’s everything I would expect from a Metric single – trudging percussion and bass brought to life by Emily Haines forever perfect vocals teamed with sweeping space synth. The countdown to Synthetica begins! 9/10

Richard: Somewhat of a departure from what they’ve previously recorded Metric have provided us with a synthy glam stomper. Emily Haines will always bring the goods vocally, and this track is no exception to that rule. The song’s political message seems relevant, since things aren’t so much different today, as they were in the seventies. The Youth are in trouble, and grow weary quick.

I can’t honestly say that it stands up as a single, and on repeated listens ‘Youth Without Youth’ sounds more like a ropey Marilyn Manson cover then a track that will get you excited about the band’s prospects in 2012 5/10

Tom: Metric’s energetic electro-sleaze single aims to channel youth disaffection but, although they claim to have identified the zeitgeist, their lyrics about razor blades and fire-starting are straight out of the ’70s.  Fun, but not as original either musically or thematically as it would like to think.  Also notable for referencing Gary Glitter in the accompanying interview, which is a brave move. 7/10

Rob: This track’s stupidly catchy. Whether it’s due to the gritted-up glam feel that’s going on or that looping bass rhythm, ‘Youth Without Youth’ sets up camp in your head and refuses to leave. Emily Haine’s seductive vocals take the forefront of the track making it an ideal soundtrack for a sleazy strip-club movie scene. 8/10

Stef: I like the stomping, almost glammy start here. It’s got spunk. The same goes for the lyrics, which talks about children’s games that are, instead of innocent what they should be, mature and violent and Rebel-without-a-causy. Whatever the prose might be telling you, it is also a nice song with bravado. 8/10

Fiona Apple - Every Single Night

Now Playing – twice every week, a roundtable of our writers will give their views on some of the recently-released new tracks. It’s as simple as that! If you want to tell us what you think of the song, feel free to leave a comment below.

Track: ‘Every Single Night’ by Fiona Apple

Average grade: 6.6

Craig: What a wonderful little song. I like the simple instrumentation that underscores her masterful voice. It’s dynamic. It’s very identifiable, lyrically–who hasn’t sat up at night wondering what the hell to do with his/her life? A winner!  I’ll admit I don’t know much more about Fiona Apple than her few singles (which were good enough) and that strange rant at the MTV Awards show, but this tune has intrigued me to find out some more about her. 8/10

Harry: This track is gloriously minimal and sparse, allowing Fiona to showcase a distinctive and versatile voice through beautifully poetic lyrics whilst haunting chimes capture the imagination and drag you back to a time when Edith Piaf ruled supreme. Just wonderful. 8/10

Rosie: This is a lovely, poetic song. It reminds me a little of something you’d hear in a music box with the vibraphone-sounding keys plinking away throughout the song. The sparse nature of the track captures your attention, and the changes in mood – from strength to vulnerability – kept my concentration all the way through on several listens. Fiona’s voice is a bit Florence-like; it’s very powerful, particularly in the bits that are harmonised.  It’s quite an unusual song, but I really like it.  8/10

Anna: The arrangement in this one is spectacular, flowing from delicate to uplifting, the vocals from low notes to chants. The melody crawls under your skin and infuses you with Apple’s great lyrics. I really want to hear this in the context of an album, as I feel it’s a part of a story, rather than an individual offering. 7/10

James: Such an intriguing blend of powerful and vulnerable. She seems to operate in her own space, not being blemished by any musical developments around her, in the best possible way. Great track for the revision season, too.  7/10.

Linda: Less is more, that’s what Fiona Apple must have thought when writing this song. With just her voice and some minimal backing she really pulls off this track. Good to see that women with great voices can also create little, restrained gems like this (I’m looking at you Florence and Adele). 7/10

Stuart: Don’t get me wrong, I’m a fan of female pop singer-songwriters. I adore Kate Bush. I worship Tori Amos. I revere P.J. Harvey. And I regularly pray at the altar of Madonna (stop snickering – ‘Cherish’ is one of my Desert Island Discs). But…what…what the fuck is this? Does anyone remember Willis? She was big in the early ’00s – predominantly because she was a white girl that sounded like a black girl – not because her songs were necessarily any good. To me, Fiona Apple is popular in a similar way – because she is quite fit – not because her songs are necessarily any good.

‘Every Single Night’ sounds like a baby’s mobile on loop, then good ol’ Fiona whimpers a little, then there’s a bit of guttural chest-beating-terrace-stomping gurning and then good ol’ Fiona whimpers a little more. Lyrically it reads like a pissed teenagers diary (think Veronica Sawyer in ‘Heathers’) and is every bit as vacuous.

Maybe I’ve subconsciously got something against Apple because the last time I ate one, I was seven years old and it resulted in projectile vomiting of such extraordinary quality that I should have been cast in a smorgasbord of ‘Exorcist’ sequels, but nah…this ain’t one for me. 2/10 (And that’s because she’s fit.) (Yes, I can be vacuous too.)

Stef: It, on one hand, is a nice little chamber piece, with Fiona playing with soft&delicate versus strong. However, it does hit one of my pet peeves, as I like my songs smooth, and her vocals almost have a sort of start-stop rhythm to them, which I don’t particularly fancy. 5.5/10

Little Boots - Every Night I Say A Prayer

Earlier this week, a few of our writers gave their views on the new Little Boots single and the result was mixed – to our (editorial – ha) ears, ‘Every Night I Say A Prayer’ sounds like one of the year’s better singles – we This Is My Jam’d it yesterday, if that means anything to  you.

‘Every Night I Say A Prayer’ now has a video and, well, if you heard a fair amount of late ’80s/early ’90s Madonna in the song, prepare to see a lot more of Madge’s influence in the video. And to be honest, if Madonna’s going to insist on being so shit at the moment, then Victoria might as well step in and show her how it’s really done. Belly tops, voguing and lyrca below:

Little Boots - Every Night I Say A Prayer

Now Playing – twice every week, a roundtable of our writers will give their views on some of the recently-released new tracks. It’s as simple as that! If you want to tell us what you think of the song, feel free to leave a comment below.

Track: ‘Every Night I Say A Prayer’ by Little Boots

Average grade: 4.8

Kenneth: Moody stuff to begin with. Couldn’t help thinking of Madge’s ‘Like A Prayer’ in the livelier parts though as it’s not really got much substance to it (which is probably the whole point). Ultimately quite forgettable though so 4/10.

Richard: Evidently Little Boots has done some homework. After getting left in the trail blazed by a variety of female popstars from the UK since her breakthrough in 2009 Miss Boots has decided she needs to get serious and make a credible pop song. ‘Every Night I Say a Prayer’ is a bit Kylie, and a bit Robyn, and if I’m honest a bit of alright with a morose house beat, and a wee tinkle on the KORG complementing Little Boots’ cutesy vocals. 8/10

Tom: Little Boots returns with a tinny, late ’80s dance track with its spiritual roots in Stock, Aitken and Waterman.  It also steals the riff from ‘Ride on Time’, ripping it right off in broad daylight presumably on the basis either that its a touchstone of electro cool or that no-one would notice.  Neither of these explanations reflects very well on Boots. 2/10

Stephanie: After the first listen ‘Waiting For Tonight’ by Jennifer Lopez lodged itself in my head, which put me off pressing play again. I blame the cheesy chorus. Minus that out of the equation and we’re left with an infectious comeback single with some dominant piano key pounding resembling Tensnake’s ‘Coma Cat’ signature sound. A good dance record that’s screaming for a big remix. 5/10

Stef: You know what, I really liked the start, with those kind of mysterious, seductive vocals and this what deeper sound. Than that chorus comes in and its just this huge hit of bubblegum pop that gets thrown in your face. And she sure sticks with it, and not even the Cut Copy-ish synths can help her then. 5/10

Kindness - 'House'

Now Playing – twice every week, a roundtable of our writers will give their views on some of the recently-released new tracks. It’s as simple as that! If you want to tell us what you think of the song, feel free to leave a comment below.

Track: ‘House’ by Kindness

Average grade: 6

Rosie: This is a rather dreamy track from Kindness, gentle synths and drum beats float along underneath the vocals.  It’s not an outstanding track – it’s a good one to have on in the background – but it’s nice.  Nice being the operative word there; it doesn’t stir too much emotion and is a bit bland in places, but it’s…well, nice.  5/10

Anna: This brought on so many happy memories. I love the fading electronic tones combined with the piano, the rhythm’s spine and the fact that it makes me think of tired yet happy dawns after a night out. 7.5/10

Craig: Very reserved and laid back.  Understated in a way that underwhelms and perhaps allows listeners’ attention to drift.  Clean production, though. 4/10

Stef: Don’t be fooled by the title, this isn’t exactly dancefloor fare. But it sure is a lovely song, especially the chorus that kicks in at 1:44, and that female backing vocal at the end of that is a nice little touch. Lots of nice little elements are melodically put together to craft a lovely song indeed. 7.5/10