The Re-view
OFFICIAL MUSIC VIDEO PREMIERE: CHARLI XCX - TAKE MY HAND
British singer Charli XCX has premiered a music video for her latest ‘True Romance’ album cut ‘Take My Hand’.
The 20 year old singer, real name Charlotte Aitchison, finally scored her first smash hit by co-writing and contributing vocals to Swedish duo Icona Pop’s critically acclaimed hit ‘I Love It’. The track has to date peaked at #7 on the US Billboard Hot 100 as well as reaching the Top 10 in numeoroys other countries including Australia, Irelamd, Germany, Israel, New Zealand and Canada.
In fact it’s pretty much just her homeland who have yet to embrace the star’s moody electropop vibes but that’s not been helped by a ridiculously delayed UK iTunes release date, with the single only due to hit our shores on 30 June. Summer anthem in the waiting, anyone?
Perhaps putting it on the singer’s sophomore album would have helped it peak higher than #85 upon its release but ‘Take My Hand’ gives an idea of what to expect from ‘True Romance’, with its glitchy, bleeping electronica, whirring dance beats and video of Charli XCX seemedly high at a warehouse rave.
NEW MUSIC PREMIERE: HAERTS - ALL THE DAYS
Oh. YES!
Last year, Haerts delivered one of 2012’s greatest singles with the utterly spellbinding ‘Wings’, which was reissued earlier this year for a US market with a new Emily Kai Block-directed video and Wildcat! Wildcat! remix to boot.
Now the New York based band are back with more shimmering, synth-layered poptronica in the shape of ‘All The Days’; an utterly sublime, soul-enriching slice of retrospective balladry that fully exposes Nina Fabi’s gorgeous vocals.
Reportedly recording their debut album with the wonderful Jean-Philip Grobler, better known as St Lucia, Haerts are one of my favourite bands of the moment and they’ve only bloody released two tracks.
I. Can’t. Even.
OFFICIAL MUSIC VIDEO PREMIERE: LUCY SPRAGGAN - LIGHTHOUSE
Lucy Spraggan has become the latest contestant from last year’s series of X Factor to sign up to a major label (Columbia) and release newly recorded material, today debuting the official music video for her new single ‘Lighthouse’.
An early favourite going into the live shows, the 21 year old singer from Sheffield clearly struggled with being moulded to fit with the cheesy weekly themes, raising questions as to why she’d entered the process in the first place.
Illness forced her out of the competition, but the masses who bought into her original audition piece and downloaded her back catalogue from iTunes (including her pre-XF album ‘Top Room At The Zoo’) before it was hastily removed, should be happy with ‘Lighthouse’.
The acoustic pop ditty sees Spraggan picking up her guitar again and delivering a peppy, upbeat pop song that is much less reliant on novelty lyrics and actually delivers quite a lovely, if not slightly predictable, message.
OFFICIAL MUSIC VIDEO PREMIERE: BO BRUCE - ALIVE
Commercially, Bo Bruce is the true victor of last year’s debut season of The Voice UK, having become the only act to impact the very upper reaches of the Top 40 with her debut full length album ‘Before I Sleep’ peaking at #10 last month.
The Wiltshire-raised 28 year old has now premiered the official music video for the second promotional cut from the record ‘Alive’ which was written by the singer and her former-mentor and The Script frontman Danny O’Donoghue. It follows the release of the equally impressive ‘Save Me’ and continues to position Bruce as the thinking man’s Diana Vickers; similar in her breathy vocal technique and knack for catchy hooks, but with a little more lyrical substance.
The pedigree of the collaborators contributing to ‘Before I Sleep’ speaks volumes though. Here you have a collection of brilliant songs that have been written by some of the industry’s finest, including Greg Kurstin, Sia Furler, Ingrid Michaelson and Karen AND Shelly Poole (Alisha’s Attic for you 90s aficionados).
90s FLASHBACK: MORRISSEY - ALMA MATTERS
‘Alma Matters’ served as the lead single from Morrissey’s 1997 album ‘Maladjusted’. The track was released in the Summer of 1997 and peaked at #16 on the UK Top 40, giving The Smiths’ ex-frontman his first solo Top 20 hit in three years.
Despite only picking up moderate reviews and achieving limited commercial success, ‘Maladjusted’ acts as a fine precursor for what is still my favourite of the outspoken musician’s solo bodies of work, 2004’s ‘You Are The Quarry’, and ‘Alma Matters’ remains my personal standout on the collection. “It’s my life to ruin my own way….” sounded just about right for this hormonal, angst-ridden 16 year old.
Other tracks to check out include follow up singles ‘Satan Rejected My Soul’ and ‘Roy’s Keen” which are both absolutely superb.
Happy belated birthday, Mozza.
OFFICIAL MUSIC VIDEO PREMIERE: THE SATURDAYS - GENTLEMAN
The Saturdays have premiered the Desperate Housewives-esque official music video for their new single ‘Gentleman’.
The track is set for release on 30 June as the follow up to the girls’ first UK #1 single ‘What About Us’ and was written by 24 year old US singer songwriter Priscilla Renea who has already notched up writing credits on tracks for international artists ranging from Mika, Mary J. Blige and Cheryl Cole (‘Promise This’), to Madonna, Rihanna (‘California King Bed’) and Chris Brown (‘Don’t Wake Me Up’).
This is infectious.
OFFICIAL MUSIC VIDEO PREMIERE: SHE & HIM - I COULD’VE BEEN YOUR GIRL
She & Him are an American indie folk duo consisting of Matthew Ward (M. Ward) and US actress Zooey Deschanel, star of Hollywood movies Elf, Almost Famous, (500) Days of Summer and the hit TV series New Girl.
The pair released their third studio album ‘Volume 3’ in the earlier this month which reached #15 on the Billboard 200 and #63 in the UK. The new record follows the release of the first two instalments, ‘Volume 1’ and ‘Volume 2’ which reached #71 and #6 on the Billboard 200 respectively whilst the latter to break the UK album chart, peaking at #62 in 2010.
You may already have heard me banging on about the collection’s infectious lead cut ‘Never Wanted Your Love’ but now we have a video for the follow up promotional single ‘I Could’ve Been Your Girl’ which was first previewed on Soundcloud in April.
The new track is a wistfully-written pop song presented with the same retro charm of much of their previous. The multi-talented Deschanel continues to prove herself as an impressive all-conquering all rounder with a performance that would have bluebirds flying from the trees and rainbows popping up from behind clouds as she sings and strolls, but never at the risk of sounding saccharine.
Such is the singer’s charm and the catchy hooks on display during ‘I Could’ve Been Your Girl’, I defy anyone to raise a smile and get sucked in to its nostalgia-inducing haze of a music video.
NEW MUSIC PREMIERE: CLARE MAGUIRE - CHANGING FACES
Rewind back to 2011, if you will, when Scottish singer Clare Maguire kicked off the year ranking in the Top 5 of the BBC’s annual Sound Of poll and went on to score a top 10 album with her Fraser T Smith-produced debut album ‘Light After Dark’.
The record acted as the perfect showcase for Maguire’s gravelly, bluesy tone which drew comparisons to stars like Annie Lennox and Stevie Nicks. And although there were also mutterings that it was a bit ballad-heavy and thus aged her beyond her early twenty something years, tracks like ‘The Last Dance’, ‘Bullet’ and ‘The Shield and The Sword’ remain excellent examples of her ability to deliver songs rich in production, lyrical content and belt them out resolutely with confidence and packed with emotion.
Back to current day and Clare Maguire has just debuted a new demo on her Soundcloud called ‘Changing Faces’. Serving up another controlled and assured vocal performance, the intricate and emotional demo is rich in its simplicity and all the better for it. in addition, a track was premiered earlier this year which was the result of a studio sessionwith Streets frontman Mike Skinner and she also contributes vocals to English DJ Burns’ next single ‘Limitless’ which is set for release on 8 July and sounds quite ‘Titanium’.
It’s not clear whether next up for her solo career is an EP or an album, although the 25 year old has hinted that her new material will draw upon experiences from her own personal life and is likely to take a more bluesy, soulful route.
Personally, I’d most certainly be up for a record which combines the emotion from her debut with a Southern rootsy flavour.
What do you think?
OLD MUSIC PREMIERE: SPICE GIRLS - STRONG ENOUGH (DEMO)
A demo of an old Spice Girls track has leaked online.
The previously-unreleased ‘Strong Enough’ was reportedly uploaded to YouTube, after being discovered on a cassette tape sold by Scary Spice Melanie Brown at an auction.
Featuring vocal contributions from all five members of the all-conquering girlgroup, ‘Strong Enough’ has a funky 90s R&B pop vibe to it and interpolates Tom Tom Club’s 1981 Top 10 hit ‘Wordy Rappinghood’.
OFFICIAL MUSIC VIDEO PREMIERE: BETTY WHO - YOU’RE IN LOVE
Australian singer Betty Who has premiered the official music video for her new single ‘You’re In Love’.
The unsigned Aussie has been making waves online ever since she released her FREE four track EP ‘The Movement’, upon which you will find this glorious slice of electropop alongside her attention-grabbing debut ‘Somebody Loves You’ (video below).
Accompanied by a sun-drenched video in which the 21 year old coasts around NYC with her dishy piece of stuff, ‘You’re In Love’ blends 80s electro-heartache vibes with stunning melodies and lyrics and hooks that would make even the BIGGEST pop stars quake in their boots.
