A couple of crackers this week in our Singles Round Up with new material from Drums of Death, Aussie funk merchants The Bamboos and Editors synth wielding ‘Papillon’. Ireland’s Ash also return with the first single from their planned year long campaign, releasing a new single each two weeks, getting off to a good start with ‘1980 – True Love’. The Twang give us some ‘Encouraging Signs’ (see what I did there?) and Robbie Williams is back! (which should, by all rights, be accompanied by a montage of him in slow motion and that tune off ‘Kill Bill’ by RZA, or have I been watching too much X Factor).
Robbie Williams – Bodies (live on the X Factor)
Let’s get it out of the way quick. Yes, Williams is back… again. He just won’t give up will he? I thought he’d be too ashamed to show his face after the whole ‘Rudebox’ thing but tenacious is what he does I guess. Bottom line is that it’s better than ‘Rudebox’ but not as good as his ‘good’ stuff. I still think his split from that songwriting guy ages ago put paid to him reaching any kind of meaningful status in British music. Rather than getting closer to his hoped for George Michael career, he’s the boy band Ian Brown, wearing down the memories of his past glories with more and more sub-par offerings.
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The Twang – Encouraging Signs
While falling short of their initial, “They’re like the Mondays crossed with the Roses!” hype, (oh so very short), The Twang seemed to have suffered most from having Birmingham accents, not the most graceful of regional accents. Brummy rap, that might work well. Or maybe that Heavy Metal where the singer just grunts. That’d work a treat. The Twang however have opted for Indie with ‘Encouraging Signs’ a lightweight love song that fails on the inclusion of the Northside drumming (look them up kids…on second thoughts don’t) which ties the whole thing to 1990.
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Ash – True Love 1980
Setting themselves up for a long year, Ash have a great plan to release a new single every two weeks with ‘True Love 1980’ up first. Taking the alphabet as the theme, they are also off on tour, taking in towns alphabetically even when it means criss-crossing the Country needlessly. Hats off. ‘True Love 1980’ is single A and it’s a good start, sounding (obviously) 80s-ish, it’s the best I’ve heard from the band in a while and, based on the teaser on their site, there is some more great stuff to come.
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Editors – Papillon
Unveiling their new synth based sound, the first release from ‘In This Light And On This Evening’ (read ClashMusic’s review HERE) is classic Editors. Mooching about moodily before the killer line, “It kicks like a sleep twitch”, takes it all up a notch. A band always suited to the cold, futuristic nature of synthesized sounds, this is a marriage made in heaven. Bonus points for questioning the existence of God.
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Drums of Death – Got Yr Thing (Live for BBC Introducing)
Looking like that voodoo priest from ‘Live and Let Die’, Drums of Death releases ‘Got Yr Thing’ with a suitably scary video that verges on one fo those low budget horror films. Sound-wise it’s another no holds barred bout from Greco-Roman with the cherry on the top, the always intense performance from Mr Death himself.
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The Bamboos feat. Lyrics Born – Turn It Up
[ Sorry, no video available for this one but listen to it on their MySpace – http://www.myspace.com/thebamboos ]
Aussie’s premier funk outfit The Bamboos (you’ll recall their funky cover of King Of Leon’s ‘King Of The Rodeo’) unleash another faultless, retro but brand spanking new, Funk classic, ‘Turn It Up’, featuring rapper Lyric Born (of Blackalicious and Quannum). So good, you kinda wish they’d team up permanently.
