Lopez Blogs

You can always tell when it's going to be a good weekend. I finished work early. There was hardly any queue in Starbucks. I got some great new I've got great boots boots. A backlog of Entertainment Weekly all arrived at once. Ruthiepoos & LoobieLoo and BurnIce are coming over tomorrow. Monday is two whole days away. Yes, it's all feeling quite right and proper. So here are lots of things that you might want to investigate should you have a few minutes this weekend. By the way, I heard a new song this week that is a secret. It is brilliant though.

THINGS YOU MIGHT LIKE:

The Hurly Burly Show: Miss Polly Rae isn't a new pop act per se; more of a new experience that must be seen. She launches her west end burlesque show this very weekend and with people like Steve Anderson & Terry Ronald involved (creative types that I really admire), it promises to be something quite marvelous indeed. Channelling the spirit of the amazing Ruth Wallis, but with a more curious rack, Polly Rae (Miss) has whipped up (literally I'm sure) a show full of titillation, sensation and musical delights and packed it with a stageful of buff and bronzed dancing boys and girls, whose every shimmy will have the audience tingling in delight. I hear the musical arrangements are quite magnificent so if you're in London this week, you absolutely must pop along and let me live vicariously through you. Oh, and of course fizzypop fave the gorgeous Elouise is providing a stunning support set and I have it on good authority that the Steve Anderson arrangements of her music would have sent me into a cardiac tizzy. The Stardust EP review is coming...

Diana Vickers: I wrote about her quite fine Once single not so long back so you know my admiration of her music is a bit of a turnaround for me. Well betcha by golly wow, like Alex Gardner, her album sampler promises some really exciting stuff ahead. The amazingly titled Boy Who Murdered Love is a punchy little number with a driving beat, restrained wistful verses and then it's all in for the feisty chorus with it's "shot shot shot like a bullet" refrain; My Hips is a million miles removed from that indie-rocker and places Diana in a euro-dance vein, one that she handles incredibly well - it's a lot more lively than I expected her to be and a lot more fun. And of course anything Nerina Pallot touches (in this case, the mid tempo Put It Back Together Again) is five by five with me. 4 out of the 5 songs on the sampler are more than strong enough to be future singles and I suspect I'll be quite enamoured of her full debut proper.

Heidi Cullinan: The name probably rings a bell (wife of Dan, writer of her own blog and other amazing things). What you might not know (but should) is that Heidi currently has not one, but two novels currently in print. Now I've been a bit limited in my reading of gay fiction (it's usually David Levithan or Alex Sanchez), but Heidi has lured me with tales of escaping reality through fantasy (and threesomes) in Special Delivery and mystical forces at play in Hero, a story so engrossing you are pulled in and left satisfied yet with a strange craving for more. And as they are available for e-download, you can grab them straight away. Whaddya waiting for?

QUICK BITZ PLAY LIST:

• Screaming Maldini ~ I Know That You Know That I Would Wipe A Teardrop From Your Eye: From the song title along, this new indie-esque band get a huge thumbs up from me. On their EP (And The Kookabura Sings) they have weaved an eclectic mix of sounds through their tunes that shows they are not afraid of taking chances and spicing things up with a bit of variety. For me, this song was a stand out and one i've had on repeat all week. The song is positively thrust forward by some persuasive drums and an upbeat sultry sixties brass section. It's juxtaposed with some rather sad lyrics making it a giddy, yet heartbreaking experience over all - while it works incredibly while, I yearn for a stripped down acoustic version to compare it to. Rather special indeed.
• J Marie Cooper ~ Kissing A Porn Star: Frankly I'm a bit bored of everyone trying to copy Lady G'Gah and failing to deliver anything remotely interesting. J Marie (who has recently been played on Larry Flick's Sirius OutQ) doesn't have that problem. Her ace pop tune is delivered with such verve and energy, that her personality absolutely shines through both in the energetic almost rawk verses, and singalong chorus. It's got a hook that keeps on giving and an overall feel that carefully balances the rock chick and playful pop elements of the song. Tsk on the dude who kissed a porn star, though we've all been there haven't we?! :P
• 2AM Club ~ Worry About You: 2AM Club are another act offering free downloads the more their twitter followers increase. Their latest offering remind me somewhat of Maroon 5 inasmuch as it's an instantly radio friendly, laid back band driven pop tune (with some jarring rapped middle 8 that becomes better each time you hear it) and a knack for creating a great melody and chorus. Elements of funk, hip hop and a soulful vocal performance from Marc Griffin all permeate the song and make it an utterly enjoyable after dinner treat. More please.
• Capra ~ Low Day: OK, i keep pretty quiet about loving shows like MI High, Half Moon Investigations and Aaron Stone. But I can stay silent no longer - Kelly Blatz (star of aforementioned Aaron Stone) has a band and their song Low Day (which I found about courtesy of Nick) is pretty darn corking. It's not exactly the tune you'd expect from a disney star - it's actually a confidently swaggering handclapping feel good tune reminiscent of The Days. It probably sounds absolutely immense live - it has a real "audience participation" feel about it, which is always a winner in my book. Totally made for brightening up these gloomy winter mornings...
• Jimmy Robbins ~ Gonna Get Better: Another pleasant surprise. Jimmy has the perfect face for a cheesy pop star career, ideal for churning out one faceless forgettable tune after another. Stand by to be stunned because Jimmy actually has a solid collection of guitar-centric pop tunes that rely on all the elements good pop should have - a hooky chorus, strong vocal, smidgeon of novelty in the melody and something that just makes you want to smile. His album See Through Secrets is chock full of songs like this, but if you want to check out one prior to investing, be sure to look up Gonna Get Better. It will wiggle it's way into your brain, kickstart your synapses and make sure you don't forget it in a hurry.

Back sunday with a melodifestivalen themed weekly round up!