26 Sep 2005

Eyeballkid's Single of the Week

Red Organ Serpent Sound 'In Search of Orgasmuz' (Vertigo)
These guys are from Derry. Any band originating from this part of the world has the shadow of the peerless Undertones hovering over them, thankfully the Reds havn't let this get to them and have delivered a belter of a tune. Propelled along by a great Hammond organ riff, 'In Search of Orgasmuz' seems to be a tune about kissing girls, in space. It's got octopuses, mongooses and tin cans and if that's not a basis for a quality tune I don't know what is. Red Organ Serpent Sound we like the cut of your gibberish. (SH)

New Order 'Waiting for the Sirens' Call' (London)
Proving that there's life in the old dogs yet, with recent singles hitting the top 10 ('Krafty') and showing an inspired choice of co-conspirators (Scissor Sisters Ana Matronic on 'Jetstream'), New Order smugly complete the hat-trick with this excellent little number which is the title track from their eighth studio album. Nothing revolutionary here but it's a recipe that works, with a clingy bassline, soaring strings and changes of key and melody which have resulted in what the band reckon is one of their best tracks. And who are we to argue? (NM)
Listen to 'Waiting for the Sirens' Call' here

DJ Mentat feat Skinnyman 'When I Give My Heart To You' (Beat Asylum)
One recent trend getting that's been getting on my nerves is the addition of chipmunk style high-pitched vocals to hip hop records. I guess the blame for this particular development can be squarely at Jay Z's feet. It's a testimony to the quality of Skinnymans' rhymes (all the more impressive since I've heard it was freestyled) and Mentat's beats that this isn't being used as a coaster at the moment. The Joe Buhdha mix is also worth checking out featuring a stripped-down beat with some lush strings and tasty scratching action. (SH)

Kill the Young 'Origin of Illness' (Discograph)
Kill the Young! What a great name for a band. Such high hopes we did hold for this one. I put it in the CD player expecting some epic heavy metal tales full of slaughtered firstborns, flame-throwers in primary school and chainsaws in kindergarten. Instead we have this, a rather under-whelming indie record. That's not to say it's completely without bright moments. 'Origin of Illness' starts off pretty promisingly with a nice bassline Peter Hook would no doubt approve of if he wasn't too busy phoning his lawyer. (SH)

Paul Weller 'Come On / Let's Go' (V2)
Let's take a minute to consider the title of this, the latest offering from Mr. Bowlhead himself. Could it be referring to (a) what the kids say when they hear he is to play the local McOdeon? Or (b) what they collectively decide to do after hearing a couple of retro uninspired offerings during the opening minutes of said gig? Or perhaps (c) the conclusion reached by the record execs (who were incidentally, momentarily buoyed by the rather good covers album) on hearing Weller's self-penned new material. Answers on a postcard (hint - it's not (a)). (NM)
Listen to 'Come On / Let's Go' here

19 Sep 2005

Eyeballkid's Single of the Week
The Robocop Kraus 'You Don't Have to Shout' (Epitaph)
Although Eyeballkid could never be accused of being racist (some of our best friends are racy) we generally associate the Germans with making people tok and inflicting misery on England via penalty shootouts. Musically they've been responsible for inflicting The Scorpions and Rammstein on us. Hardly an ideal spawning ground for art pop genius. But much like the window in your local McDonald's, preconceptions are there to be shattered. The Robocop Kraus have been dishing out their unique style of 80's influenced art pop since the late nineties so any accusations of bandwagon jumping can be shelved. Taken from their album 'They Think They Are. . .', 'You Don't Have to Shout' has got eighties synths, choppy guitar riffs, some James Brown style huh-huhs, handclaps, an excellent shouty along bit and some completely indecipherable lyrics. What more could a body ask for. (SH)

Franz Ferdinand 'Do You Want To' (Domino)
Franz are back with the first single from the forthcoming 'You Could Have It So Much Better With....Franz Ferdinand'. Fears they were suffering from second album syndrome were allayed by some rocking festival appearances over the summer. 'Do You Want To' has a real air of confidence about it. It's not a huge progression on the sound we've come to expect from them but has a catchy verse and chorus and some arch lyrics about loving someone's friends because "they are all so arty". This will inevitably be the soundtrack to lots of ironic frugging over the coming months. (SH)

Amadou & Mariam 'Coulibaly' (Because)
We know that Damon Albarn's tedious excursions on 'Mali Music' might have put you off ever exploring the sounds of the West African country, but this should see you right. Husband and wife duo, Amadou & Mariam have been performing and recording their lively brand of Malian funk since the 70's, but it's their recent album 'Dimanche a Bamako', produced by Manu Chao, that's been garnering them notice outside their native land. They were nominated for a MOBO award this year and there's an hour-long documentary doing the rounds at the moment (there's a screening of the film followed by a club night at the Ritzy in London on Sat 24 Sep). If this all sounds too world music worthy for you, don't worry, 'Coulibaly' is determinedly groovy, designed for ass-wiggling and one of the funkiest dance floor tracks you'll hear all year. (CL)
Check out the trailer for the film here

Body Rockers 'Round and Round' (Mercury)
These are the bods responsible for that skullfuck of a record 'I Like the Way You Move'. This is pretty much the exact same tune with a little bit of ZZ Top guitar action chucked in just so as to really get on my tits. To compound matters the lead singer sounds like Jon Bon Jovi with a severe case of piles. I think there should be some sort of quality control test for any band
attempting to release a record like this. They should be forced to listen to their song on repeat for a period of 14 days whilst standing on the edge of a very tall building. If they make it through the 14 days without jumping they can release the record. That'll learn 'em. (SH)

Bloodhound Gang 'Foxtrot Uniform Charlie Kilo' (Geffen)
Just so there's no mistake we'll explain this in a way the Bloodhound Gang would no doubt approve of:
Tango Hotel India Sierra
India Sierra
Sierra Hotel Indio Tango
(SH)

12 Sep 2005

Eyeballkid's Single of the Week
Liberation Jumpsuit 'Sound Bytes' (Bubblewrap Industries)
Isn't it great when you put on a record and one minute you're thinking, 'what the hell is this?', and the next you're bouncing around like a kangaroo with a basketball stuck up its ass? Such is the effect of Liberation Jumpsuit, a trio of producer type bods from West London, who count The Orb's Alex Paterson among their comrades. The latter's influence can be felt in the bubbly ambient sections that temper the wibbly electronic mayhem of the ace 'Hermenutic', the middle track on this EP. Opener, 'TV Holidays' sees the group adopt that Radiohead effect of having Stephen Hawking list his pastimes over a background of grinding electro noises and don't give a fuck breakbeats, while 'Du Francais' features a dark, reverberating bass line similar to the earth-shaking rumbles used by Diplo on 'Diplo Rhythm'. Overall the EP is wonderfully manic yet weirdly chilled enough so as to not upset your neighbours though it just might send their dog into a frenzy of arrhythmic barking. (CL)

Touche presents 'Body Clap #2' (All City)
Not really getting what's going on here. Touche, DJ and former member of the Wiseguys, presents 'Body Clap' (which sounds like a venereal disease with ambition), a double sided single featuring records by two other people. So let's just ignore all that and concentrate on the music. Here at Eyeballkid we get sent dozens of bland house records that we rarely bother reviewing because it's actually too difficult to explain what's wrong with them. An example is Boy 8 Bit's 'Long Jeanne Silver', the second side of this single. But every so often you hear a proper kicking track and though you are still able to explain it, it has you throwing shapes like a monkey locked in a toy cupboard. Step forward Justin Robertson, who contributes to the first side of this record. 'I'm Still Waiting' shows old Lionrock has still got it when it comes to producing effortless, upbeat house. We just don't exactly know what 'it' is. (CL)

Mystery Jets 'You Can't Fool Me Dennis' (679)
The Mystery Jets sound like a futuristic band. I guess it's just the word 'jet' -it makes things sound cool. In reality Mystery Jets hark back in time, to pastoral days of hazy nostalgia, like The Kinks but with that geezer poise of The Jam, as adopted by most UK bands these days. It's not often you hear a mandolin in pop music these days so Mystery Jets ought to be congratulated for particularly effective use of its gentle wail. Also the name Dennis doesn't get much of a look-in. Even Blondie pronounced it Den-ee. Aside from such incidentals this is a nice song, one whose sheer pleasantness should alleviate it from ever having to go through the trauma of critical scrutiny, so let's just leave it there, shall we? (CL)

HK119 'Pick Me Up' (One Little Indian)
HK119 is the futuristic alter ego of a Finnish artist called Heidi. 'Pick Me Up' is dedicated to the perils of mobile phone technology (better to be safe than sterile kids) and clearly isn't taking itself too seriously, this is best illustrated when a robot voice pipes up "Let's radiate baby, let's radiate" at one point. Sadly this is the highlight of this particular single and it's all downhill from there. HK119 claims to be following in the footsteps of the great Grace Jones. Sadly our Heidi ending sounding more Swiss mountainside than Studio 54. (SH)

C-Jags 'Sandy' (Voluptous)
The eponymous Sandy seems to be having a quite hard time of it as she is being mistreated by her cad of a lover. C-Jags, being fine upstanding young gentlemen, are unhappy with this situation. However as Eyeballkid gets older and more cynical it occurs to us the Jags may just be giving poor Sandy a shoulder to cry on because she's feeling a bit vulnerable and they think they'll have a better chance to get into her knickers. So ultimately we can't recommend this song because it's immoral. And crap. (SH)

05 Sep 2005

Eyeballkid's Single of the Week
Lazarus 'Fashion / Murder' (Something in Construction)
Having made a bit of a splash at SXSW this year Lazarus releases his first single in these parts. It's a double A side and for a nice change both tracks are worthy of the billing. 'Fashion/Murder' is a gentle folky song which seems to be a lament about the perils of slavishly following fashions. It breaks the shackles of the singer songwriter territory by bursting into angelic harmonies, which propel the song to a lilting finale. AA side 'Singing to the Thieves' is a ramshackle affair that chugs along in a highly satisfactory manner. If you get your kick from the likes of Bright Eyes and the Eels this will be right up your street.

Coldplay 'Fix You' (Parlophone)
Our friends Coldplay are back with the second release from 'X & Why?' and we find them coming over all Jimmy Saville. 'Fix You' manages to perfectly encapsulate everything that's good and bad about Coldplay. It starts off with a plaintive high-pitched vocal backed with an organ as Chris laments the fact that he can't fix something (the remote for the DVD perhaps). Just as your thinking they're covering a Celine Dion b-side, the band's indie sensibilities kick in and the song launches off on the anthemic epic path that characterises their best moments. The problem is the first half of this song was so sickly sweet I was too busy booking a dental appointment to enjoy the second half.

The Subways 'With You'
(City Pavement / Infectious)
Now this is more like it. The Subways have made a reputation for themselves with two well-received turns at Glastonbury. 'With You' is the sound of young people who have fallen in love but who have decided not to let that fact turn them into a bunch of saps (are you listening Chris?). The chorus is ridiculously catchy and backed with some crunching guitar riffage. If I hadn't gone and lost my voice at Electric Picnic I'd most likely be singing along. This is the cocky sound of a band who haven't a care in the world. Getem while their hot.

Shout Out Louds 'The Comeback' (EMI)
Those crazy Scandinavians are at it again. Their cars are boxy, their weather's crap and a pint costs as much as a mortgage on the Med. So what is in the air up there that makes them so good at this indie pop lark. The Cardigans, Wannadies, Kings of Convenience, Feist and The Hives have all beaten a path to my stereo in recent times and all have made their mark. This is a poppy little number that sounds like a slightly less geeky version of The Shins and be assured it's no bad thing. It opens with a nice retro synth riff that seems to be all the rage these days, but it works perfectly with the singer Adam's vocal. Poor Adam sounds like he's just been woken up three hours too early by the sound of a hoover, but that's love for ya. So I hear you ask will I be hearing more of thesh guysh. The answer is yhesh!

Richard Hawley 'The Ocean' (Mute)
Richard is going to the ocean. He'd better not stand too close to the edge if I'm around.

words: Shane Herraghty

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