Looks Like The End Of Days...

I hate summer. I really do. It brings nothing but misery for me. Hayfever, 4 hour long nights and the warmth that I really do hate. So with that...

The Like - June Gloom

Yeah, it's a song about hot shit summer is by a triumvirate of girls from Southern California. Doesn't really add up in my eyes, but ok, I'll give them the benefit of the doubt, seeing as we have a common hatred of Summer. The thumping bassline pounding all the way through makes me want to jig about through this midtempo ditty and lose my inhibitions. Alongside that we have the gloriously melancholy vocals by a lady who goes by the name of "Z". Hmm. Okay... The overuse of "Here comes the end of days..." lyric makes me want to slash my wrists like I was a character in Girl, Interrupted but what the hell. This is a song that takes stereotypical summer tunes and punches it in the ladygarden and then points, laughs, then repeats the actions ad infinitum.

AMAZING

Listen to it below.

Your Clever Words Mean More To Me Than Those In The Reviews...

I don't really understand what instigated this new trend for Disney's pop princesses to start collaborating with Pop Punk bands, Demi Lovato collaborating with William "massive lesbian" Beckett from The Academy Is... and some gay teen from Hannah Montana is supposedly working on his debut with former Avril Lavigne guitarist and songwriter Evan Taubenfeld. But, if they all turn out as well as this, then who cares about credibility?

Forever The Sickest Kids featuring Selena Gomez - Whoa Oh! (Me Vs. Everyone)

This is a bit of a weird thing, seeing as though FTSK have already released this song as a single and on their album, Underdog Alma Mater, without Miss Gomez, instead just having a different male vocalist singing her lines. Sure, it was enjoyable and it was insanely catchy but it seemed to lack something. Then BOOMF. Sprinkle on some Disney magic and you've got yourself a song which you can't help but love. The charm that Selena exudes while singing is incredibly smile inducing, all while embodying that fine line between sexy woman and playful teenager. Something which a certain Spears did quite well. Oh, and the chorus stays in your head for hours after listening, which is a bit of a bugger when your in public and you randomly start singing "WHOA OH! WHOA WHOA OH!". Trust me... I don't speak of fiction here.

AMAZING.

Listen to it below.

Damned If I Listen, Damned If I Don't...

Liek totes OMG. I'm totally doing a post about a song that's current and not at least 3 years old. What am I coming to?!

All Time Low - Damned If I Do Ya (Damned If I Don't)

The first proper single from All Time Low's hotly anticipated third album has been put up on their myspace. Shockingly enough, it doesn't really deviate from their pattern of making incredibly anthemic pop punk, featuring the obligatory chorus that is as catchy as one of Lindsay Lohan's STDs. After only one listen, Damned If I Do Ya (Damned If I Don't) has already joined the ranks of other songs that get stuck in my head for hours because they're just so bloody catchy, however, unlike the other songs on that list, I don't really mind about this one being stuck inside my cranium like a parasite too much. All together with me "OH OH OHHHH!"

AMAZING.

Listen to it below or at All Time Low's Myspace

It's That Same Old Song You've Played For The Day...

Not being much of a church going sort of person, unless that is The Church Of Hot Addiction, i thought i'd go for a more "church-y" song for today.

Cartel - Chroma

A bounding drum beat wrestles the listener into submission while the vocalist's lyrics, while churlish and ineffective, sweep into your ear canals and produce one of those things on your face that can sometimes be construed as a smile, or a seizure, whatever you like. Get past the stereotypical emo vocals and you can find a song that is quite frankly a really good listen.

AMAZING.

Listen to it below.

Saturday's Song.

Right. So as part of my renewed interest in this whole blogging thing, I'm going to so a song of the day thing. Or maybe a song of the week. I suppose it just depends on how often i get to update this. The inaugral song is...*drumroll*...*extended pause only seen in reality tv shows*...

The Color Fred - Empty House

Disregard the fact that the band name is a massive pun and has an americanised version of the word "colour", because they're actually quite good. I've only heard this song today. In fact, I only heard this album for the first time today. But this song instantly stood out. Shockingly, it's not a proper slow emo ballad, as normally they are the first ones to catch my interest. In fact, the whole album, Bend To Break, is really good, you should definitely go and listen to it... by any means possible.

AMAZING.

Listen to it below.

John & Jehn - Fear Fear Fear (Track)

Release Date: 14th July 2008
Label: Factory Records


Billing themselves as an amalgamation of all your favourite bands, John & Jehn have come up with a glorious ode to all things fearful, love and fear, love of fear and the fear of love. The instrumentation is just wonderful, so eclectic yet basic at the same time, the amount of nuances that make up 'Fear Fear Fear' enhances it's capability to encapture the listener into a trance state of ethereality.

The vocals are quite weird as well, very Lovefoxx from CSS, almost indistinguishable in fact. The very weird "ohm"-ing vacking vocals seem to add an extra layer to the mix, it's quite easy to think that something important would be lost without them. This is a song that should be played by scenesters all across the country, but it is hurtful to think that this song and it's amazing B-Side isn't not going to get the recognition that this genius deserves. What an utter, utter shame.

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John & Jehn: On The Internet

MySpace

These United States - A Picture Of The Three Of Us In The Garden Of Eden

Release Date: 30th June 2008
Label: United Interests

It's not often that folk seems to cross as many boundaries as These United States do on their debut ]'A Picture Of The Three Of Us At The Garden Of Eden', it's quite wonderful and thought provoking at the same time. But it's also easy to think that if the band are will to cross over to other genres that aren't very indicative of folk, are they ashamed of being pigeon-holed into such a category? Probably not.

There are many influences within the album from Garage Rock, Twee, Prog and Post Rock to name but a few. What it does give is an overwhelming sense that these guys know exactly what they're doing, they're going to take their listener on a rollercoaster ride where the twists and turns are totally unexpected.

The introduction, 'Preface: Painless', is undoubtedly beautiful and a bit misleading for the rest of the album. This ditty seems to scream "We are serious music people. Look how serious we can be." but the next track gushes in with it's plinky plonky folk and totally dissuades you from any preconceptions previously made. 'The Business' is very comparable Panic At The Disco's Pas De Cheval in that it's very cowboy, middle America, "YEEHAA!" sort of things. Straight after that it veers into 1950's motown with 'Jenni Anne', a song that's so very much like Dusty Springfield, albeit with a more masculine edge to it, needless to say, these genre turns can make for a weird experience.

'So High So Low So Wide So Long' has a bass line that is almost hypnotic, it’s understatedness is blatantly the best quality of the song. It lies there as a diamond in the rough, just waiting to be discovered and buffed up, hopefully this diamond will have a few friends there waiting for These United States' sophomore effort.

What we've got here is a band that likes to whore around different genres like certain peroxide LA A-Listers do around Greek shipping heirs. That's not to say that they don't do it well, it's just that they seem to be more of a jack of all trades but a master of none. All of the songs are pleasant but they don’t really seem to go anywhere, there’s no capitalisation on the inspiration. It would have been much more preferable if they’d have taken their talent and crafted an album with fewer genre crossovers and focussed on those rather than skipping around and falling flat on their faces.

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These United States: On The Internet
Official Site
MySpace