Lianne Slavin
Film taste: Off-the-wall girls stuff like Ghost World and Me Without You, plus comedies, thrillers, y’know.
Music taste: Most things that have a bit of integrity.
Hangout: Coffee shops, dingy clubs, anywhere that is selling anything second-hand, houses of various descriptions.
Most likes (about London): The complete and utter diversity!!. Also, the shopping opportunities.
Least likes: All the horrible things people do. People playing music through their phone, the overland and any situation where i witness PEOPLE PUTTING CONTACT LENSES IN.
Me in 10 words: I still get a weird pleasure out of making lists.
Reviews
artist Ben Kweller
Wednesday, 25 March
Ben Kweller - Sawdust Man
Imagine, if you will, that you suffer the burden of having to find live bands for a barn dance put on for the local indie kids. Now five years ago, when Ben Kweller offered to step up, you were all 'get out of here' in reaction to his uber-earnest folksy indie.
But this year it's a different story; you're blown away by his newfound back-to-boots rootsy rock. It melds piano-plinking Beatles melody with some nice little slide guitar and Waylon Jennings-esque honky tonk.
Imagine, if you will, that you suffer the burden of having to find live bands for a barn dance put on for the local indie kids. Now five years ago, when Ben Kweller offered to step up, you were all 'get out of here' in reaction to his uber-earnest folksy indie.
But this year it's a different story; you're blown away by his newfound back-to-boots rootsy rock. It melds piano-plinking Beatles melody with some nice little slide guitar and Waylon Jennings-esque honky tonk.
artist Yo! Majesty
Wednesday, 18 March
Yo Majesty - Don't Let Go
Opening with a casually thumbed electro bassline and Kym Mazelle-like waaa-wailing, 'Don't Let Go' starts off sounding like a filler house track on a '90s club compilation, though it does even out.
The single chorus line 'don't let go' is used to bridge the gap to contemporary cuts of grimy, jagged goodness. Overall it provides an OK background to the vocal talents of Shunda K and Jwl B but it's no 'Booty Klap' and is essentially a disappointing foray into the sleaze of disco convention, club rap, and picking up women.
Opening with a casually thumbed electro bassline and Kym Mazelle-like waaa-wailing, 'Don't Let Go' starts off sounding like a filler house track on a '90s club compilation, though it does even out.
The single chorus line 'don't let go' is used to bridge the gap to contemporary cuts of grimy, jagged goodness. Overall it provides an OK background to the vocal talents of Shunda K and Jwl B but it's no 'Booty Klap' and is essentially a disappointing foray into the sleaze of disco convention, club rap, and picking up women.
artist Royksopp
Wednesday, 11 March
Royksopp – Happy Up Here
Royskopp are one of those bands that I unfortunately know nothing about. Well, I know they're pretty huge. It's also possible I vaguely recall 'Remind Me', but maybe not. It happens.
Fighting through uncertain expectation then, 'Happy Up Here' feels like a warm, seamlessly poppy electronic dive into twinkling night-time lights. The dreamy, listless vocals could almost be a stoned, less affected Claudio Sanchez, while the music feels indebted to Daft Punk and Funkadelic (not much of a shock, given the Parliament sample).
Royskopp are one of those bands that I unfortunately know nothing about. Well, I know they're pretty huge. It's also possible I vaguely recall 'Remind Me', but maybe not. It happens.
Fighting through uncertain expectation then, 'Happy Up Here' feels like a warm, seamlessly poppy electronic dive into twinkling night-time lights. The dreamy, listless vocals could almost be a stoned, less affected Claudio Sanchez, while the music feels indebted to Daft Punk and Funkadelic (not much of a shock, given the Parliament sample).
artist Hockey
Wednesday, 11 March
Hockey - Too Fake
Expectations are sharpened along the electro-disco punk line as soon as the opening beats (looped and stuttering) and bassline (a drawling, slippery little hook) kick in.
'Too Fake' seems to be flitting around the made-up mark of an amped-up, eyebrow-raised LCD Soundsystem until Ben Grubin's Dylan-dipped posturing vocals throw the track into Les Savy Fav/Rapture territory. There's a little freshness, a little newness, but, for the most part, it feels like a cut and paste effort.
Expectations are sharpened along the electro-disco punk line as soon as the opening beats (looped and stuttering) and bassline (a drawling, slippery little hook) kick in.
'Too Fake' seems to be flitting around the made-up mark of an amped-up, eyebrow-raised LCD Soundsystem until Ben Grubin's Dylan-dipped posturing vocals throw the track into Les Savy Fav/Rapture territory. There's a little freshness, a little newness, but, for the most part, it feels like a cut and paste effort.
artist Chris Cornell
Wednesday, 11 March
Chris Cornell (Feat. Timbaland) – Part of Me
Interscope
The amount of embarrassment I'm able to feel for people I have never met is sort of a family trait. Even as children, my sister and I could rarely make it through an episode of Neighbours without cringing and making sympathy noises. Then Hollyoaks came along and blew the competition out of the water, with crappy acting to boot.
We should all definitely look away from this song immediately. Insipid, monotonous Timbaland-shook pop that sounds like a latter day N*Sync with unbelievably stupid lyrics. Is there just no hope?
Interscope
The amount of embarrassment I'm able to feel for people I have never met is sort of a family trait. Even as children, my sister and I could rarely make it through an episode of Neighbours without cringing and making sympathy noises. Then Hollyoaks came along and blew the competition out of the water, with crappy acting to boot.
We should all definitely look away from this song immediately. Insipid, monotonous Timbaland-shook pop that sounds like a latter day N*Sync with unbelievably stupid lyrics. Is there just no hope?
artist Black Lips
Wednesday, 11 March
Black Lips – Short Fuse
Psychedelic garage rock kids The Black Lips describe themselves as a 'flower punk band'. This description seems right on the money. It is laid to bare on this track as a soft, dream-like haze floats atop the rather nice, dirgy surf riff, and chokes it to death.
This track has both that shouty kid quality, and a toothy DIY shine. But it also feels kind of dull. It doesn't go far enough in any direction, but listlessly plugs away at common denominator punk, rock and noise references.
Psychedelic garage rock kids The Black Lips describe themselves as a 'flower punk band'. This description seems right on the money. It is laid to bare on this track as a soft, dream-like haze floats atop the rather nice, dirgy surf riff, and chokes it to death.
This track has both that shouty kid quality, and a toothy DIY shine. But it also feels kind of dull. It doesn't go far enough in any direction, but listlessly plugs away at common denominator punk, rock and noise references.
artist Tinchy Stryder
Wednesday, 11 March
Tinchy Stryder feat Taio Cruz – Take Me Back
Why is everyone buying into this electro-pop bullshit? It used to feel sort of fresh and edgy, but the mechanical handling of disparate elements of house and grime with the sole intention of garnering mass appeal is getting really offensive, first with that obnoxious T.I track and now this.
I love Tinchy's softly skittering voice, and, for me, that saves the song a bit. But there's no getting away from the fact that not only is this very by-numbers, but they have also rhymed 'mistreated' with 'misleaded'. For shame.
Why is everyone buying into this electro-pop bullshit? It used to feel sort of fresh and edgy, but the mechanical handling of disparate elements of house and grime with the sole intention of garnering mass appeal is getting really offensive, first with that obnoxious T.I track and now this.
I love Tinchy's softly skittering voice, and, for me, that saves the song a bit. But there's no getting away from the fact that not only is this very by-numbers, but they have also rhymed 'mistreated' with 'misleaded'. For shame.
artist Underground Railroad
Wednesday, 11 March
Underground Railroad – NYC
This track starts off sounding an awful lot like Fugazi, with Raphael Mura essentially doing his take on the drawling Kim Gordon thing. It ends up however, bearing more resemblance to Liars; essentially dark, hazy shrieks of indie noise.
I find the idea of this band singing a song with the lyrics 'you say you're cool but you're not cool' baffling. Hipsters? Mocking hipsters? It messes with my head. I like this song though; despite such accusations of post irony allusions, the band retain a Pavement down-to-earthiness.
This track starts off sounding an awful lot like Fugazi, with Raphael Mura essentially doing his take on the drawling Kim Gordon thing. It ends up however, bearing more resemblance to Liars; essentially dark, hazy shrieks of indie noise.
I find the idea of this band singing a song with the lyrics 'you say you're cool but you're not cool' baffling. Hipsters? Mocking hipsters? It messes with my head. I like this song though; despite such accusations of post irony allusions, the band retain a Pavement down-to-earthiness.
artist The Game
Wednesday, 11 March
The Game feat. Ne-Yo - Camera Phone
A sort-of self-parodying song which pokes fun at the public personas of The Game and Ne-Yo in a clever way, this essentially reduces 'thug culture' to women and money. Some people might construe a chorus built on the idea of taking a phone picture as kind of a cheap dig, but, y'know, whatever.
Musically this song strikes a balance between chilled and charged. The skittering beat and heavy bass will rock car stereos and dancefloors alike, and the distorted choral sample links Ne-Yo's soft vocal arches to The Game's slick Compton drawl nicely
A sort-of self-parodying song which pokes fun at the public personas of The Game and Ne-Yo in a clever way, this essentially reduces 'thug culture' to women and money. Some people might construe a chorus built on the idea of taking a phone picture as kind of a cheap dig, but, y'know, whatever.
Musically this song strikes a balance between chilled and charged. The skittering beat and heavy bass will rock car stereos and dancefloors alike, and the distorted choral sample links Ne-Yo's soft vocal arches to The Game's slick Compton drawl nicely
artist Pulled Apart By Horses
Wednesday, 11 March
Pulled Apart By Horses – I Punched A Lion in the Throat
This song is just a load of awesome post-hardcore nonsense from Pulled Apart By Horses.
Picking through its lyrics makes the whole thing far less interesting, since you'll soon realise that though the story of a man getting his kicks out of fighting lions might be a bit funny, it isn’t funny enough to carry a whole song. What is fucking fantastic is the anarchic audio representation of said brutal act: messy, bleeding lines of The Jesus Lizard and Fugazi strangle a noisy, perishing Pavement. Fun times!
This song is just a load of awesome post-hardcore nonsense from Pulled Apart By Horses.
Picking through its lyrics makes the whole thing far less interesting, since you'll soon realise that though the story of a man getting his kicks out of fighting lions might be a bit funny, it isn’t funny enough to carry a whole song. What is fucking fantastic is the anarchic audio representation of said brutal act: messy, bleeding lines of The Jesus Lizard and Fugazi strangle a noisy, perishing Pavement. Fun times!
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