Personal taste is everything, particularly when it comes to music. Take the Cardinals for example. �Hold On� starts so promisingly, boasting beautifully soaring chords, contagious chorus, and some lovely cheery little lyrics on top. Great more… “The Cardinals”
Entirely rubbish dance mix double album. All it needs is Judge Jules spouting shite over the top to make it perfect bin fodder.
It�s a pretty predictable saga, really. Flailing Indie star releases largely terrible second LP , rather bizarrely finds himself on a reality show watched by millions, marries non-Celeb contestant and ends up on the cover of Now! Magazine more… “The Ordinary Boys”
There’s nothing in this entire album that warrants a second listen. Unfortunately I put myself through it multiple times just in case there was something I missed more… “David Potts”
Dolly Mixture have a habit of unearthing some serious talent(and that goes for the music as well!) But on this sampler in association with Sounds of Sweden we are treated to two excellent artists in Maia Hirasawa and Hello Saferide.
The first track is the only track by Maia Hirasawa called �Say Goodbye� and is a delicate, charming piano led song that could be compared to Regina Spektor or possibly Joanna Newsom. The half Swedish, half-Japanese singer has recently gone it alone after being a member of Hello Saferide and recently won the 2006 Roland/SAMI award(for unsigned Swedish bands) Given the wealth of talent that comes from Sweden, surely make the award even more special. The other 8 tracks are from her former band Hello Saferide(�inspired by an intelligent bus driver in a drug addicted small town�).
Led by Annika Norlin, the band churn out the sort of melodic, sweet indie pop that almost seems effortless by the Scandinavians. I mean, we have had Peter Bjorn and John, The Concretes to name but two, they really make it sound so simple. Sure there are obvious comparisons to our own Belle and Sebastien but there is a beauty to these songs that moves away from any rough edges. Not wishing to stereotype but you very rarely see an unsightly Swede and I would say it�s the same with their songs. Always extremely well produced and manicured, especially tracks like �My best friend� which includes lyrics like �Damn, I wish I was a lesbian/so I could fall in love with you� which got instant radio airplay on release(I wonder why?!) And �Long Lost Penpal� was also recently featured in HBO hit Big Love. Blending melancholy and catchy melodies can so often be an obstacle but these finely crafted gems are almost shy in their brilliance.
Okay. Let�s have a swatch at our itinerary:
Layers of duelling feedback signals? — Check more… “Plate Six”
�Not another bloody acoustic(y) singer songwriter record!� I screamed inwardly as I pulled away the press release that obscured the front cover of Sydney based Throsby�s second album. Sometimes the realisation that one is jaded and presumptuous is very welcome indeed with this most definitely being one of those times. more… “Holly Throsby”
Some bands just seem to appear blazing brain-banging pop hooks; impeccably fashioned indie numbers firing from their holsters like Sub Pop�s back catalogue loaded into an untamed oozy. Enter the Little Ones, then more… “The Little Ones”
Not my cup of tea. But, let me finish, I actually quite like this. Aside from the generic screamo-ing and undeniable eau d�Enter Shikari, I�m inexplicably impressed by this track. Well no, not impressed, �Boiled Frogs� isn�t a big steaming bowl of genius, neither is it an epic in abstract lyricism; but what it is � or what it could be � is one of those stuck-in-your-head seasonal anthems, � la �Patience� (don�t even bother to deny that you hummed along to the pop comeback of the century at least once).
Anyway, these boys have got it right: layered �whoaaa�s, hand-clapping and some deliciously ripping guitar parts in places. Then, of course, we have rasping screams and thundering drums that are necessary criterion for any successful screamo track. But, even if that turns your stomach, don�t retreat to your Bright Eyes albums. Be the bigger person and have a go at looking past it. See if you�re not stuck with the melody in your head after the first listen.
Just to finish, I felt it necessary to admit that I played this track for someone who actually likes Alexisonfire and they told me that �Boiled Frogs� wasn�t up to much�shows what I know.