Sophie Ellis Bextor ~ Catch You
A sparkling glittering diamond of a track that marks the return of Ms Bextor and hopefully a return of classy effortless pop to the chart. The other songs I've heard from her upcoming album also have a definite shine to them. And it was certainly the pick of the other bloggers who listened to the tracks this week…
(Veronica Mars): catchy but classy dancey pop. Excellent--what more is there to say?
(Dan): I have to say I've fallen for this song – hook, line and sinker. It's a great little piece of pop and it's inspiring me to listen to a little bit more Sophie Ellis Bextor. (I haven't really heard anything of hers aside from "Murder on the Dancefloor.") I guess I just mostly find myself echoing what others have said about this song. It's the best Blondie song they never recorded – and that's meant as a compliment!
(Digital Technique): Already a contender for my song of 2007 and it's only the middle of January!! This song manages to sound both fresh and new but also reassuringely retro at the same time. It reminds me a bit of Blondie (or maybe thats just me!) - could Sophie EB be the next Debbie Harry?? An interesting thought!! A definite return to form, after the slightly dissapointing Shoot From The Hip, bring on the album and the return of pop in 2007!!
Mark Ronson ~ Toxic
Last week we looked at how Mark put together a riveting remake of Stop If You've Heard This One Before by Daniel Merriweather. His version of Britney's Toxic (a song I adore) isn't quite as magnificent but is still an interesting enough interpretation that I am looking forward to his album out in March…
(Veronica Mars): I loved "Stop Me If You've Heard This One Before," but I'm not feeling this one as much. It does what it wants to do well; I think it's just my general preference for uptempo pop that means, while listening to this, I just wanted to go listen to Britney's version
(Dan): I was never a huge fan of this song in its original incarnation, but it was used brilliantly in the first series of the new Doctor Who. When I first heard this song, I thought "ugh, I don't really want to hear this song again and especially with rapping and other such stuff." But surprisingly, I warmed to it a bit over the last week. However, the best cover version of "Toxic" will always be now defunct bluegrass group Nickel Creek's live cover. Something about hearing a Britney Spears song played on fiddles tickles me in just the right way!!
Evan ~ Under your Spell
I didn't even know about Evan until recently when I rather randomly happened upon what turns out to be his second album. This track reminds of erasure in the late 80s when they were at the peak of their game, yet bought bang up to date. Utterly addictive and entrancing!
(Veronica Mars): I love this--it's all big and sweeping and orchestral and beautiful. His Melodifestivalen performance might not have been amazing (though he wins bonus points for his outfit), but as a studio version, this is gorgeous and, though I'm not sure I would necessarily call it "fun," it's not the sort of song that demands a serious listening experience.
The Click Five ~ Pop Princess
Not a particularly new song, but I don't feel that The Clicks ever got the launch they deserved in the UK and this could be just the track to launch them. So I am taking control of their career and kicking off their chart domination with this jaunty little ditty beloved by all ;)
(Digital Technique): So much more than just the 'American McFly' that they are often described as, they manage to mix the guitar pop sound of McFly with a slight electropop twist. They remind me a bit of Swedish popsters Melody Club, never a bad thing!! Such an addictive song, listened to it in the car driving into work this morning and was singing the chorus all day - which I am sure my friends loved!! Definitely time they tried to break the UK - give McFly a bit of competition!!
(Dan): Wow, I'd never heard this song before. It sounds like if Green Day were a boy band in the traditional sense of a boy band, this is what they would produce. And that's not a bad thing. While I'm not a huge Green Day fan, they have put out some good songs. Perhaps this is the direction they should go?? :)
(Veronica Mars): now, you could say I'm biased towards the Click Five, but the reason I'm so biased towards them is because they make absolutely amazing songs like this. This is exactly the sort of song that deserves to rule the radio--catchier than should be allowed, more fun than a barrel of monkeys, and with all the elements good guitar pop should have (handclaps, synths, nonsense syllables [here, "ah"'s], and guitars that never overpower the vocals or the melody). Given the current environment, this would probably flop, but it shouldn't, and, if it was released, "Pop Princess" would easily be one of my favorite singles of the year. And you know what's scary? They have a whole album full of songs this good or better.
Deborah Gibson ~ MYOB / Until You're All Mine
I'll let the other bloggers comment on MYOB other than to say this six year old track is still as fresh and perfectly pop today as it was in 2001. It's tragic that it wasn't the huge hit it deserved to be. I'd remix and re-release in a flash and pop UYAM on the flip – one of the most gorgeous ballads I've EVER heard. Simply perfect (and only a demo!!)
(Dan): Leave it to Deborah to work kids on a playground into a pop song. If this song had been released in the late 80s when Deborah was Debbie and at her peak here in the U.S., it would have been a huge hit. It's very fashionable to mock Deborah here in the States, but really, I do think that she's very talented and really has written some top notch pop songs. This is one of them, although I think I probably prefer the dance mix over the original album version – it cranks the tempo up a bit and makes it seem a bit more urgent.
(Veronica Mars): this would work great as a double A-side, as they're two great songs. I really love "MYOB," though. The schoolyard chants work well and don't come off as gimmicky, and I love how the jump rope-esque beat continues through the whole song. Also great: the various voices Deborah uses.
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Thanks to Digital Technique, Dan and Poppostergirl for their comments on this weeks selected tracks! Much appreciated. Email me if you want to be included in future weeks!
