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Monday 30 August 2010

Songs Of The Week Archive

Previous 'Songs of the Week'

2010
23rd August: One Night Only - Say You Don't Want It
30th August: Interpol - Barricade
6th September: Brandon Flowers - Crossfire
13th September: Linkin Park - The Catalyst
20th September: White Lies - Holy Ghost
27th September: The Wombats - Tokyo (Vampires & Wolves)
4th October: Kings Of Leon - Radioactive
11th October: Ladytron - Ace Of Hz
18th October: Hadouken! - Mecha Love
25th October: Heretics - Safety Net (feat. Becca Cole)
1st November: Hadouken! - Oxygen
8th November: The View - Sunday
15th November: The Wombats - Jump Into The Fog
22nd November: White Lies - Bigger Than Us
29th November: Fenech-Soler - Battlefields
6th December: Coldplay - Christmas Lights
13th December: Broken Records - A Darkness Rises Up
20th December: Manic Street Preachers - Some Kind Of Nothingness (feat. Ian McCulloch)
SONG OF THE YEAR: One Night Only - Say You Don't Want It

2011
3rd January: Hurts - All I Want For Christmas Is New Year's Day
10th January: Neon Trees - Animal
17th January: Glasvegas - The World Is Yours
24th January: Elbow - Neat Little Rows
31st January: One Night Only - Can You Feel It
7th February: The View - Grace 
14th February: Glasvegas - Euphoria, Take My Hand 
21st February: The Pigeon Detectives - She Wants Me 
28th February: Morning Parade - A&E 
7th March: The Pigeon Detectives - Done In Secret 
14th March: Arctic Monkeys - Brick By Brick 
21st March: The Wombats - Anti-D 
28th March: Friendly Fires - Live Those Days Tonight
4th April: Editors - No Sound But The Wind 
11th April: Elbow - Open Arms 
18th April: Arctic Monkeys - Don't Sit Down Cos I've Moved Your Chair 
25th April: The Wombats - Techno Fan
2nd May: Hard-Fi - Good For Nothing
9th May: Friendly Fires - Hawaiian Air 
16th May: Ladytron - White Elephant 
23rd May: Enter Shikari - Quelle Surprise
30th May: The Horrors - Still Life 
6th June: Coldplay - Every Teardrop Is A Waterfall 
13th June: Kasabian - Switchblade Smiles
20th June: The Enemy - This Is Real 
27th June: Coldplay - Major Minus
4th July: Ladytron - Ambulances 
11th July: Hard-Fi - Fire In The House
18th July: Arctic Monkeys - The Hellcat Spangled Shalalala
25th July: Snow Patrol - Called Out In The Dark 
1st August: Kasabian - Days Are Forgotten
8th August: Ladytron - Mirage
15th August: Red Hot Chili Peppers - The Adventures Of Rain Dance Maggie
22nd August: The Whip - Riot 
29th August: Ladytron - Transparent Days 
5th September: Snow Patrol - Fallen Empires
12th September: Coldplay - Paradise 
19th September: Kasabian - Velociraptor!
26th September:
Kele - What Did I Do? (feat. Lucy Taylor)
3rd October: Snow Patrol - This Isn't Everything You Are
10th October: The Whip - Secret Weapon
17th October: Coldplay - Princess Of China (feat. Rihanna) 
24th October: The Vaccines - Tiger Blood
31st October: Enter Shikari - Snakepit
7th November: Kele - Devotion
14th November: The Twang - Paradise
21st November: The Maccabees - Pelican 
28th November: Arctic Monkeys - Evil Twin
5th December: Smith And Burrows - When The Thames Froze 
12th December: Neon Trees - Everybody Talks
19th December: Enter Shikari - Gandhi Mate, Gandhi
SONG OF THE YEAR: Coldplay - Charlie Brown

2012
2nd January:
The Maccabees - Feel To Follow 
9th January: Enter Shikari - Arguing With Thermometers 
16th January: Morning Parade - Us And Ourselves 
23rd January: Feeder - Borders
30th January: Ladyhawke - Black White And Blue
6th February: The Twang - We're A Crowd 
13th February: Jack Peñate - No One Lied
20th February: The Cribs - Chi-Town 
27th February: The Enemy - Gimme The Sign 
5th March: Arctic Monkeys - R U Mine? 
12th March: The Cribs - Come On Be A No One 
19th March: Keane - Silenced By The Night
26th March: Hot Chip - Flutes
2nd April: Glasvegas - If?
9th April: One Night Only - Long Time Coming
16th April: The Enemy - Saturday
23rd April: Hadouken! - Parasite
30th April: Keane - Disconnected
7th May:
Metric - Youth Without Youth
14th May:
Linkin Park - Burn It Down
21st May:
The View - Hold On Now
28th May:
Hot Chip - Night And Day
4th June:
The Vaccines - No Hope
11th June:
Metric - Speed The Collapse
18th June:
Pet Shop Boys - Invisible
25th June:
The View - How Long
2nd July: Hadouken! - Bad Signal 
9th July: Muse - Survival
16th July: Bloc Party - Octopus
23rd July: Delphic - Good Life 
30th July: Pet Shop Boys - Winner 
6th August: Two Door Cinema Club - Sleep Alone 
13th August: The Vaccines - Teenage Icon 
20th August: The Killers - Runaways 
27th August: Muse - Madness
3rd September: The Twang - Mainline 
10th September: Pet Shop Boys - Leaving 
17th September: Biffy Clyro - Stingin' Belle 
24th September: Muse - Unsustainable
1st October: Spector - Celestine 
8th October: Bloc Party - Kettling 
15th October: The Maccabees - Ayla 
22nd October: The Vaccines - I Always Knew 
29th October: Hadouken! - Daylight
5th November: Example - Come Taste The Rainbow 
12th November: Muse - Follow Me 
19th November: Biffy Clyro - Sounds Like Balloons 
26th November: The Courteeners - Welcome To The Rave 
3rd December: Delphic - Baiya 
10th December: Biffy Clyro - Black Chandelier 
17th December: Hurts - The Road 
24th December: Delphic - Atlas 
SONG OF THE YEAR: Hadouken! - Bad Signal

2013 
7th January: The Courteeners - Lose Control 
14th January: Hurts - Miracle 
21st January: Hadouken! - Levitate 
28th January: The Pigeon Detectives - Animal 
4th February: Theme Park - Tonight 
11th February: Delphic - Memeo
18th February: Hurts - Sandman 
25th February: Biffy Clyro - Biblical
4th March: Bloc Party - Truth 
11th March: Example - Perfect Replacement 
18th March: Hurts - Blind 
25th March: Noah And The Whale - There Will Come A Time
1st April: Glasvegas - I'd Rather Be Dead (Than Be With You)
8th April: Enter Shikari - The Paddington Frisk
15th April: The National - Demons 
22nd April: Mumm-Ra - Technicolour 
29th April: Noah And The Whale - Heart Of Nowhere
6th May: Pet Shop Boys - Axis
13th May:
Editors - A Ton Of Love 
20th May: The Sunshine Underground - It Is Only You
27th May: The Courteeners - Van Der Graaff 
3rd June: Marnie - The Hunter 
10th June: White Lies - Getting Even 
17th June: Enter Shikari - Radiate 
24th June: Arctic Monkeys - Do I Wanna Know? 
1st July: Pet Shop Boys - Vocal 
8th July: White Lies - There Goes Our Love Again 
15th July: Manic Street Preachers - Rewind The Film 
22nd July: Example - All The Wrong Places 
29th July: Tired Pony - All Things All At Once 
5th August: Bloc Party - Ratchet 
12th August: Arctic Monkeys - Why'd You Only Call Me When You're High? 
19th August: MGMT - Your Life Is A Lie 
26th August: Manic Street Preachers - Show Me The Wonder 
2nd September: Kings Of Leon - Supersoaker 
9th September: Coldplay - Atlas
16th September: White Lies - First Time Caller 
23rd September: Arcade Fire - Reflektor 
30th September: The Killers - Shot At The Night
7th October: The Wombats - Your Body Is A Weapon 
14th October: Two Door Cinema Club - Changing Of The Seasons 
21st October: Mumm-Ra - Jeremy 
28th October: Keane - Higher Than The Sun 
4th November: Enter Shikari - Rat Race

11th November: The Hoosiers - Somewhere In The Distance

18th November:
25th November:
2nd December:
9th December:
16th December:
23rd December:
SONG OF THE YEAR:

Wednesday 25 August 2010

White Lies News

Wow - seems like only yesterday I was listening to To Lose My Life (was it really a year and a half ago?)

Anyway, White Lies have a new album due for January; I'm going to estimate 17th January for the release date. Eight tracks that will (most likely) be included are: Bigger Than Us, Holy Ghost, Is Love, Turn The Bells, The Power And The Glory, Street Lights, Peace And Quiet and Strangers. The album is set to have 11 tracks on it, but that has yet to be confirmed.

Bigger Than Us will be the first single, according to a Zane Lowe interview, and I guess it'll be out on either the 3rd or 10th January before the album.

If you want an idea of what the new songs sound like, check out these live clips:
Bigger Than Us
Holy Ghost
Is Love

EDIT (31/08/10): Another clip, this time of Street Lights. (Not great quality, but you can get an idea)

Sunday 22 August 2010

Album Review: One Night Only - One Night Only

Album: One Night Only
Artist: One Night Only
Singles: Say You Don't Want It, Chemistry, All I Want (free download)

After hearing the fantastic first single Say You Don't Want It around two months ago, I couldn't wait to get my hands on this album. Boasting a new 80s-influenced electronic sound with the synths becoming far more prominent in this album than their debut, the band return with a stunning album that really shows off their talent. The album is filled with potential singles, with all their instruments being turned up to eleven.

Say You Don't Want It
The immense first single hurtles along at incredible pace. This song sums up everything the album is keen to show off; powerful drums and guitar, the new synth-based sound, and a massive chorus to top it all off. The lyrics sound quite basic, but they work in a different way in that they stick in your head. A brilliant album opener, which should get you ready for the rest of the album.

Bring Me Back Down
Guitars and drums announce the arrival of another stadium-bound anthem, before settling down into a song that is occasionally laid-back but then changes for a heavier, rockier chorus to rear its head. However, at just over three minutes, it's over too soon. But never mind, here comes...

Forget My Name
The best song on offer here, in my opinion. Like Say You Don't Want It, it wastes no time getting going. One second in and all the instruments (bar vocals) are working at full capacity, and this sounds like it was built to played at a stadium. It's one of the more rockier songs on the album, and it would be criminal not to release it as a single - it's mindblowing.

Chemistry
Four songs in and I think I'm already in love with this album - but I remembered the band's debut, which I loved, but felt that all the best songs were thrown in at the start. Thankfully, this album's still going strong (and keeps it up). This song is the second single, and while I think Forget My Name would have been a better choice for second single, this one deserves it all the same. It's similar to Bring Me Back Down in that it sounds quite relaxed in the verses, and then turns into an epic, storming chorus complete with backing vocals.

Never Be The Same
Although now the album gives the listener a bit more room to breathe after four massive songs, this song remains an epic masterpiece. A beautiful, etheral synth sound starts up, and the first minute of the song really highlights singer George Craig's vocals. Then after the chorus of "All these clouds, high above you, I guess it's gonna rain...", a fast-paced, powerful drumbeat turns up. The song just goes up and up from there. It's probably not single material, but it is absolutely magnificent nonetheless.

All I Want
This song is great, despite not bringing anything new to the table. Maybe that's because I've grown used to it as it was a free download over a month ago, but it was a good choice for a free download as it showcases everything the album is about. The vocals are probably the best part of this song (even though everything remains at a very high standard), particularly during the chorus of "All I want is something to believe in, even if it's just to hear your name...".

Got It All Wrong
Over halfway already? What? How did that happen? Anyway... This song is quite frenetic with a racy drumbeat and another huge chorus, as well as being the longest song on offer this album at four and a half minutes. I really like this song, but it is the weakest on the album for me. But it's very hard to pick out a least favourite song, as they're all excellent!

Anything
Again, the band throw the listener straight in at the deep end with everything crashing over everything else to create another outstanding song. Like most of this album, the song was designed to be massive, and it delivers. As usual, the hook is incredibly memorable and catchy, this time with lyrics of "We could have anything, they make us all believe..." This would definitely be a good choice for a later single.

Nothing Left
One of my favourites, it sounds slightly calmer than the last couple of tracks. In my opinion, along with Never Be The Same, the lyrics are at their peak here, and the vocals are also fantastic particularly during the bridge ("Cos I don't understand it, I always thought I would...") and the chorus ("No matter what, I'll never let you go"). The opening lyric of the song seems like a great way to describe the changes between the debut album (Started A Fire) and this one - "Don't want to stand still, gotta move ahead..." And also, the title of the song hasn't simply been lifted from the chorus for once! (I don't really care, though). It leaves a lasting impression, and is definitely one of the best on the album.

Feeling Fine
The penultimate track sounds quite poppy, with guitars only really making an appearance in the chorus, although it does turn up here and there. It's another fast song, and it feels like one last burst of energy before a slightly calmer last track (although that also has its moments). Speaking of which, it's hard to believe you've been through ten tracks; the album races past so fast. Then suddenly this song ends abruptly as the synths bring in the final song:

Can't Stop Now
The album ends with a song that starts off slow and builds up and up before a piano closes the whole masterpiece of an album down. Once again, the fast-paced drums that come in after about a minute really carry the song, a feature noticeable all over the album. And then the final note on the piano is played, and the album comes to a peaceful end.

At first I thought self-titling the album was rather unimaginative, but I now think it was done because with this reinvention, they have become the band they always should have been. Their debut was very good, in my opinion, but compared to this, a lot of the songs lacked a certain kick to really get them going, and the band have taken this on board and created one of the best albums I've heard all year. Since I love all eleven tracks and the two petty criticisms I have either don't really bother me or don't have a bearing on the music itself (The criticisms are that a) The lyrics are rather simple, but they really leave a mark and are very memorable, so it really doesn't make a difference to me, and b) The album never calms down, but it keeps up the pace fantastically and never gets boring, and the songs are all brilliant anyway), I will happily give this album a 10/10.

RATING


Previous albums: Started A Fire (9/10)

DISCLAIMER
These reviews have not been written by a professional reviewer, but they are instead my own opinions on the songs released. Details may not be as well researched, and I have no access to press releases, etc. which may help me judge the quality of the album. I am just an amateur writer and music fan.

Saturday 21 August 2010

Album Review: Klaxons - Surfing The Void

Album: Surfing The Void
Artist: Klaxons
Singles: Echoes, Flashover (released as a teaser)

Well, it's certainly been a while since Klaxons released their debut album - three and a half years - and they've clearly had their fair share of problems relating to their second album, but at last they're back! And the wait was definitely worth it.

Echoes
"Send out a sound, for the wood between the worlds" are the first lyrics we hear on Klaxons' second album, and it's good to hear they haven't lost their touch with crazy lyrics - the rest of the song talks of "the force of the ninth wave" and "true horizons". Musically, it sounds like it was cut off Myths Of The Near Future, which is no bad thing. It is a nice, big song to whet the appetite in preparation for the madness of the upcoming album.

The Same Space
Jamie Reynolds' and James Righton's vocals work very well with each other on this slightly bold choice for the second song. It seems to be a sort of love song with a sci-fi theme - something that very few bands can do well (Klaxons being one of them).

Surfing The Void
Another bold choice for a song only a few tracks in; most reminiscent of Atlantis To Interzone if you want a comparison to the first album. The song, at first listen, seems to be all over the place, but after a couple more listens, it gets better. Definitely a grower, but it's probably my least favourite on the album.

Valley Of The Calm Trees

Apparently, the only song to have been through all the original second album sessions and, at long last, survived to make it on the album. It has a good beat to it, and is quite catchy. And just when you think it's over, about three minutes in, it comes back for one great burst of energy with the words "the parhelion" being repeated several times over. Crazy stuff. It's one of the highlights of the album, and if this was the result, it makes you wonder what the original sessions sounded like.

Venusia

My personal favourite on the album, it bounces along, driven by the bass and drums, and with a typically mad Klaxons chorus of "Venusia, peculiar, nothing is out of sync...", it's one of the more radio-friendly songs on the album. Well, as radio-friendly as a song off this album is likely to get (which is not a bad thing whatsoever). And to cap it all off, typewriter noises make an appearance right at the end. Yes, I actually wrote that.

Extra Astronomical

This song starts off the slightly heavier second half of the album (the first half really only had Surfing The Void as a heavier song). I have no idea what it's about, but then again, I hardly ever understand what Klaxons songs are about. The song itself takes a couple of listens to get used to, but once you've done that, it's clearer why it was chosen for the album.

Twin Flames

Sounds a bit more pop, and Jamie and James' vocals play off nicely against each other again in the verse - "A burning flame / Goes by and by..." I suspect this will be a single in the near future, particularly to its chorus of "twin flames in our hearts...", which makes the song quite memorable. It's also quite catchy, even though it's one of the slowest on the album.

Flashover

The teaser for the album ends up being one of the heaviest on the album, and one of the best. Everything sounds mental yet brilliant. Five minutes of all the instruments crashing over each other, barely giving the listener any room to breathe. Fantastic stuff.

Future Memories

The calm before the storm, in a way. For those who heard some of the earlier tracks from second album sessions may recognise this as "Silver Forest". It's a good song, but it doesn't really make a massive impression, it's not as different and bold as most of the other songs on the album. But maybe it's all building up towards the huge closer:

Cypherspeed

The speed really is set to cypherspeed (whatever that is) for the last song. The previous nine songs have just been throwing bits and bobs of ideas at you, whereas here everything gets thrown into play for five minutes of pure Klaxons insanity. "Ride the pandemonium", the first lyric on the song, is exactly what the listener does for the whole of this hectic, yet excellent end to their long-awaited second album.

So, overall, I think the album is good because it takes the wondrous ideas that only Klaxons seem capable of thinking up and using them to create ten songs that are more or less all epic. There are a couple of dips, but it definitely never spoils the album, which keeps up the pace and hardly ever lets up. There are heavier moments, where the music turns into a fury of sorts (which thankfully is a success) such as Flashover and the album closer, more anthemic, radio-friendly (to a limited extent) songs such as Echoes or Twin Flames, and there is definitely a sense of audacity on quite a lot of the songs. I think the band have made a great album, and all the songs seem at home here on this album. Having said that, I would love to hear what the record label originally rejected; some songs I heard live were actually very good.

RATING


Previous albums: Myths Of The Near Future (8/10)

DISCLAIMER
These reviews have not been written by a professional reviewer, but they are instead my own opinions on the songs released. Details may not be as well researched, and I have no access to press releases, etc. to help me judge the quality of the album. I am just an amateur writer and music fan.

Monday 16 August 2010

Album Review: The Hoosiers - The Illusion Of Safety


Artist: The Hoosiers
Album: The Illusion Of Safety
Singles: Choices, Unlikely Hero

I never particularly liked The Hoosiers' first album; it had a few good tracks here and there, but mostly I found it annoying. But when I heard they were coming back with a new electropop sound, I was intrigued, and when I heard the first single Choices, I thought they'd taken a massive step in the right direction. Upon hearing the album, however, I felt they'd taken a step in the right direction, but not quite as massive as I'd hoped for. Don't get me wrong, this is far better and a much more accomplished effort than their debut, but still, it's far from perfect.

Choices
The first single is catchy and has a decent chorus; a proper pop song. The main highlight of the album is Irwin Sparkes' vocals, and he's on fine form here. Overall, this is one of the best on the album.

Bumpy Ride
This song is also quite catchy, even if the backing vocals in the chorus sound slightly cheesy. "It's gonna be a bumpy ride, but it sure beats standing still," are the lyrics for the chorus, and are quite easy to get in your head and soon you'll be singing along.

Who Said Anything (About Falling In Love)?
This song builds up slowly, starting with an electronic-sounding drumbeat, and slowly piling on various instruments and sounds as the song goes on. The chorus is good enough, but it really only catches on towards the end when the song is in full flow.

Unlikely Hero
The opening synths really have a proper electro-pop sound to them, which is good, as this song is pure pop, with a lyrically simple yet catchy hook; "I like everybody but not everybody likes me." Then towards the middle, there are some weird lyrics on the backing vocals (unless I've completely misheard the lyrics), which to me sounds like Gumbaro?! But generally, this is a good song.

Lovers In My Head
This song is my least favourite from the album. It's also the closest they come to their old album, in my opinion. Musically, it's pretty weird, and some lyrics are pretty odd too ("I like the face that is hanging from your pretty little head"). My criticism of this song is that it goes on for a bit too long, and doesn't know when to stop.

Live By The Ocean

This song is catchy enough, with its piano and powerful drumbeat, but it doesn't jump at me like the first few tracks did. However, the chorus is one of their best, and so it redeems the song a little bit.


Devil's In The Detail

Another weird one, with the drummer taking on vocal duties. Nothing really happens in this song, and that's my main criticism, but the vocals are actually pretty good, and the backing instrument is a glockenspiel (I think) - an interesting idea.


Glorious

This song is fairly big, if not a little overblown in the chorus ("Make me feel GLORIOUS!"), and features a rather crazy key change towards the end. However, it is actually very catchy and has a big pop feel to it. But my favourite part is the middle, which sounds very atmospheric.

Made To Measure
The opening synth sounds slightly like an arcade game's music, but nevertheless this is quite a good song. The buildups to the chorus are the best part of the song. The chorus itself sounds like they were stuffing in all the rhymes they could think of (Better, together, forever, get hurt, upsetters and measure all turn up) with an interesting brass accompaniment, which carries on towards the end of the song. I think the end of the song outstays its welcome a bit, but on the whole this is one of the best on offer.


Giddy Up

The best song on the album by far. It is incredibly catchy, and is great to sing along to, even if I don't really have a clue what they're singing about. It knows when to stop, unlike some of the earlier tracks, and leaves a good impression.


Sarajevo

Their six-minute penultimate track is also one of the album's highlights for me, building up slowly with a driving beat and some excellent vocals, and turning into something very atmospheric and epic. Again, however, I think the song goes on a little too long. The main part of the song sort of stops four minutes in, and although I love the music that follows, I think it didn't need to take two whole minutes to reach the end. Nevertheless, this is a great track, showing some interesting musical diversity, a long stretch from their first album.


Little Brutes
The last track seems to stray from the new synth sounds, and opens with a lone guitar which is then joined by some slightly overblown vocals before turning into a slow song that I find to be slightly underwhelming as a last track, although it does build up slightly, but ends before it goes anywhere. I think Sarajevo would have worked better as a closing track.

Overall, then, this is an interesting album. The band has found a sound that works a lot better for them than the rather uninteresting debut, and there are some very catchy pop songs on offer, but sometimes when the album tries to be a bit more diverse, it stumbles. It starts off strong, goes off a bit in the middle, then comes back for some more great tracks, but the closing track is slightly off as well.

RATING


Previous albums: The Trick To Life (5/10)

DISCLAIMER
These reviews have not been written by a professional reviewer, but they are instead my own opinions on the songs released. Details may not be as well researched, and I have no access to press releases, etc. to help me judge the quality of the album. I am just an amateur writer and music fan.

Single Review: Klaxons - Echoes


Artist: Klaxons
Song: Echoes
From the album Surfing The Void

The first single off the new Klaxons album is brilliant, in short. The first note of the song contains so much power; the whole song flows wonderfully, with a massive chorus and all instruments in the song making themselves known. This is better than anything off their first album, and I thought the first album was very good. The band's crazy lyrics clearly haven't taken a turn for the worse ("Echoes, from the other world, turn horizons into endless ever-present echoes...). The sound may be pretty much the same as the first album, but I can't criticise that, really. So all in all, a fantastic first single. With this and Flashover, I look forward to getting my copy of Surfing The Void.

RATING



DISCLAIMER
These reviews have not been written by a professional reviewer, but they are instead my own opinions on the songs released. Details may not be as well researched, and I have no access to press releases, etc. to help me judge the quality of the album. I am just an amateur writer and music fan.

Hear Two New Songs From One Night Only

You can hear two new songs from One Night Only's forthcoming second album here. The four-track album sampler contains Say You Don't Want It and All I Want, which have been previously released, and then also Bring Me Back Down and Forget My Name. Sounds absolutely amazing!

Sunday 15 August 2010

Single Review: One Night Only - Say You Don't Want It



Artist: One Night Only
Single: Say You Don't Want It
From the album One Night Only

In a word... wow. I thought their first album had some good songs, and I liked all of them, but nothing jumped out at me as amazing. This, on the other hand, when I first heard it on Radio 1, jumped at me immediately. There is an instant and huge change recognisable in the band's sound, and they have improved to the extent that it's almost unbelievable. This song boasts an incredibly catchy chorus, which I found I was singing along to without realising a few minutes later. I cannot find fault with it, personally, and if this is a sign of things to come on their new album, I reckon I could be in for one of the best listens of the year.

RATING



DISCLAIMER
These reviews have not been written by a professional reviewer, but they are instead my own opinions on the songs released. Details may not be as well researched, and I have no access to press releases, etc. to help me judge the quality of the album. I am just an amateur writer and music fan.

Thursday 12 August 2010

New Albums - Roundup

Information for all these upcoming albums can be found by clicking on their respective links.

The Hoosiers - The Illusion Of Safety
Klaxons - Surfing The Void
One Night Only - One Night Only
Interpol - Interpol
Brandon Flowers - Flamingo

Brandon Flowers - Flamingo

For those that don't know, Brandon Flowers is the lead singer of The Killers.

Artwork:


Tracklist:
01. Welcome To Fabulous Las Vegas
02. Only The Young
03. Hard Enough
04. Jilted Lovers And Broken Hearts
05. Playing With Fire
06. Was It Something I Said?
07. Magdalena
08. Crossfire
09. On The Floor
10. Swallow It

The first single is Crossfire, due out on 23rd August in the UK.

The album is due 6th September.

Interpol - Interpol

Artwork:


Tracklist:
01. Success (03:28)
02. Memory Serves (05:03)
03. Summer Well (04:05)
04. Lights (05:38)
05. Barricade (04:11)
06. Always Malaise (The Man I Am) (04:15)
07. Safe Without (04:41)
08. Try It On (03:42)
09. All Of The Ways (05:18)
10. The Undoing (05:11)

The first single is Barricade, out now.
Lights has been released as a free download.

One Night Only - One Night Only

Artwork:


Tracklist:
01. Say You Don't Want It (04:08)
02. Bring Me Back Down (03:21)
03. Forget My Name (03:52)
04. Chemistry (03:51)
05. Never Be The Same (04:04)
06. All I Want (03:33)
07. Got It All Wrong (04:30)
08. Anything (04:05)
09. Nothing Left (03:44)
10. Feeling Fine (03:47)
11. Can't Stop Now (04:26)

The first single is Say You Don't Want It, due out 16th August.
All I Want has been released as a free download.

The album is due out 23rd August.

Despite a rather disappointing album title, the songs actually sound absolutely stunning, a real progression from their first album. Have a listen here:

Klaxons - Surfing The Void

The rather awesome artwork:


Tracklist:
01. Echoes (04:06)
02. The Same Space (03:12)
03. Surfing The Void (02:38)
04. Valley Of The Calm Trees (03:17)
05. Venusia (04:08)
06. Extra Astronomical (03:18)
07. Twin Flames (04:12)
08. Flashover (05:17)
09. Future Memories (03:43)
10. Cypherspeed (05:09)

The first single is Echoes, released 16th August.
Flashover has been released as a teaser for the album.

The album is due 23rd August.

The Hoosiers - Illusion Of Safety

Artwork:


Tracklisting:
01. Choices (02:48)
02. Bumpy Ride (03:59)
03. Who Said Anything (03:05)
04. Unlikely Hero (03:50)
05. Lovers In My Head (03:39)
06. Live By The Ocean (04:03)
07. Devil's In The Detail (03:13)
08. Glorious (04:46)
09. Made To Measure (04:21)
10. Giddy Up (02:59)
11. Sarajevo (05:44)
12. Little Brutes (03:21)

The first single is Choices, out now.
The second single will be Unlikely Hero.

The album is due out 16th August.

New Look

Welcome to the new look Music Madness!

Hopefully updates will become a bit more regular this time round!

Quick rundowns on upcoming albums will be up soon:
The Hoosiers - The Illusion Of Safety (16th August)
Klaxons - Surfing The Void (23rd August)
One Night Only - One Night Only (23rd August)
Interpol - Interpol (6th September)
Brandon Flowers - Flamingo (6th September)
Kings Of Leon - Come Around Sundown (18th October)