Lopez Blogs

I love Christmas I do. Obviously, or I wouldn't have spunked so many posts on it recently...However, popping into town for some last minute "party favours" and christmas gifts was a bit of a mistake, as was getting a Dark Cherry Mocha first. It was blooming heaving like a fat girl's bosom. Elbows everywhere and people shuffling along at a ridiculously slow pace. I got a little bit impatient behind this one woman and muttered "Jesus Christ" a little bit too loudly. She turned around and gave me a filthy look (she was a nun - I suppose that head wimple thing should have given it away) and utterly shamed me by saying "yes, Christmas IS all about the birth of Jesus Christ" as I quickly got on the escalator, descending metaphorically into the flaming bowels of hell. Still, I soon got over it by getting some nice mulled wine from Marks and Spencers, watching the last Beautiful People (sterling job on the final episode - some great musical numbers, a tender young love story nearly coming to fruition with a smooch, and a little bit of gash. Oh there has to be a series 3!!) and wrapping Darren's christmas gifts. Tis the season to be jolly and joyful...


While i was doing a bit of Christmas wrapping, I absolutely had to pop on the effortlessly poptastic and brilliant Crackers International EP from the mighty Erasure. A festive themed EP that followed on from their career defining The Innocents album, Stop was a hi-nrg romp around the Christmas tree that still gets played at festive parties today. And don't forget to investigate the other gems on the EP too - She Won't Be Home is a maudlin little tale of families growing up and growing apart for Christmas mixed in with love and forgiveness as they move on with their lives. The morose continues with The Hardest Part and mixes well with their remake of the standard God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen. However it's all aboard the party train again for Knocking At Your Door - and there are some remixes of that and Stop widely available if you fancy boogying a bit longer. The EP as a whole always reminds me of Christmas when I was 14, shedding my hefty pounds through puberty and beginning to embrace what it meant to fancy boys. Erasure held up a shining light for that and Crackers International became my go to tape (!) when I wanted to let a whole host of emotions out that I didn't really know what to do with yet. As Erasure plowed on with their career, a couple of other songs were released during the festive season that I always add to the EP playlist. Even though they were nothing to do with Christmas, they always get associated with that time of year because that's when I played them most - You Surround Me (from Wild) is a gorgeous electro-ballad, as is the marvelous Am I Right (from Chorus), both showcasing how magnificent Andy Bell can sound in lower register and making me fall in love with a slower, more melancholy Erasure (preparing me for the amazing 1993 Erasure album perfectly). So dig out Crackers International, or go buy it. Lovely pop any time of year...

TOP 21 SONGS OF THE WEEK:

21 ~ Madonna, Revolver
20 ~ Mika, Blame It On The Girls
19 ~ Little Boots, Earthquake
18 ~ William Young, Hopes and Fears
17 ~ Whitney Houston, I Look To You
16 ~ Backstreet Boys, Bigger
15 ~ RyanDan, Can't Help Falling In Love (NE)
14 ~ Blake Lewis, I Left My Baby For You
13 ~ Darin, Viva La Vida
12 ~ The Saturdays, Ego
11 ~ Mini Viva, I Wish
10 ~ Agnes, Love Love Love
09 ~ BWO, Kings of Tomorrow
08 ~ Simon Curtis, Delusional
07 ~ Mans Zelmerlow, A Stranger Saved My Life
06 ~ Alcazar, Thank You
05 ~ JLS, Close To You
04 ~ Leona Lewis, Stop Crying Your Heart Out
03 ~ Robbie Williams, You Know Me (VID)
02 ~ Simon Curtis, Diablo
01 ~ Pet Shop Boys, It Doesn't Often Snow At Christmas 2009 (5 weeks)