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METRO is a very pleasant surprise coming from Japan. Yuka (she) plays piano an sings; Shinsuke (he) takes care of programming, playing guitar and bass and singing backing vocals. Their music evokes the golden moments of sixties easy-listening music: think of sweet Claudine Longet humming to a Francis Lai soundtrack and you’ll get pretty close to the sound of METRO. A real exquisite treat, embellished by Yuka’s breathy, sexy but sort-of-aloof vocals. SING-SING (UK) joins the talents of Lisa O’ Neill and Emma Anderson. Lisa had previously worked with the likes of Locust and Mad Professor, whereas Emma was part of the deservedly well-known Lush, a band that recorded three excellent albums in the nineties for 4AD label. Simultaneously to the release of SING-SING debut album in Poptones label, we release this seven inch with one of the best tracks in the album (“Panda eyes”) plus an exclusive acoustic track (“Office party”). Also from the Uk, THE RELICT is the personal project of Innes Philips. He used to collaborate with The Clientele -which also recorded a single for our club some time ago- and his music as THE RELICT is also wonderfully based on the most evanescent, pastoral side of sixties acoustic pop music. This single features vocal collaborations by Pam Berry (Glo-Worm, Belmondo) and Abi Marvell. Four fragile and truly beautiful tracks.
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WINTERBRIEF are from Philadelphia, The States. A two piece formed by Julian and Jen, lovers of the underground, riot grrl, and wacky techno pop. If there was a Huggy Bear Gameboy videogame to be released, “Trash this town” would make a very adequate soundtrack. But WINTERBRIEF can also get dancey and cool as B-52’s or Bis. Four songs of teenage disco rebellion, cheeky as hell and irritably cool.
Want some more girl-boy techno-pop American bands? Try BOOTHBY, a two-piece formed by Jason Corace (aka A boy named Thor) and Kelly Slusher. He writes wonderful electronic bubbles, she supplies tons of charm and angelical vocals, making songs like “Everybody knows” soar really high, as if The Softies had chosen to dress their sensitiveness with sequencers and bleeps. If we are still needing some more electronic stuff, we can always count on LES FRÈRES CHECKOLADE, A French-German threesome with headquarters in Hamburg. The Checkolade Bros bring us “Superdisko”, a true indie hit thanks to its simply irresistible rhythm, equally close to eighties techno pop and seventies disco music. And it’s sung in French, as the other two tracks in this single, all of them as dancey, funny and cool as the title track. Hail the new kings of Eurodisco!!!
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Ok, that’s enough dancing Let’s get quiet for a while and listen to some of the new finest acoustic pop makers around! You know, gentle-stroked guitars, classically structured pop songs, soft, moving vocals. This description perfectly suits ALLY KERR’s music. He’s a Scottish young man that has chosen Elefant as the label to release his very first songs. If he keeps on writing such excellent tracks such as “Midst of the storm”, the sky’s the limit for him. Three wonderful tracks for fans of acoustic, pastoral pop music, r.i.y.l. The Byrds or Belle and Sebastian. Ally was help and assisted in the studio by our pal Duglas from Bmx Bandits plus Duncan Cameron, who has engineered recordings by Teenage Fanclub or Travis among others. From Scotland to Ireland: that’s where GREG MURRAY is from, though he lives in London. Another debut single, four acoustic tracks that bring to mind the best tradition of folk-pop, from Simon And Garfunkel to Kings of Convenience. Title track “Go honey” boasts a really catchy chorus. It’s amazing that such a wonderful song can still be created with so very few ingredients: just vocals, guitars, some drum tracks and little else. The three other tracks in this single are equally awesome. To end with 2001 singles, a really big name: CRANES. True survivors from early nineties Uk indie scene, Alison and Jim Shaw still create shiny pop jewels. In the beginning they had a penchant for gloomy, oppresive moods, but their latest albums are lighter and brighter. This single includes two songs recorded in 1998 and never released so far. Two hidden gems in which Alison Shaw’s unmistakable vocals reveal as seductive and mysterious as always.