GWfA » Single Review

Late of the Pier: “Space and the Woods”

admin — Fri, 02 May 2008 11:30:51 +0000

Upon the original release of “Space and the Woods” as Late of the Pier’s debut single in early 2007, I passed it off as nothing more than a directionless mess from a band making a last-ditch effort to throw their hat into the ring of the rapidly-fading “new rave” craze. It was too schizophrenic, too derivative – Klaxons already did the whole science-fiction thing and I’m pretty sure Gary Numan’s got a copyright on those synths – and too cloying, that glorious 80’s synth riff the only thing worth even considering writing home about. But here we are one year on, with new rave six feet under and Late of the Pier’s Erol Alkan-produced debut album the subject of white-hot anticipation around town. On the strength of subsequent singles “Bathroom Gurgle” and “Bears Are Coming” and an epic performance opening for Justice last Valentine’s Day, it seems Late of the Pier have actually made a believer in me. Their schizophrenic song structures have actually become one of their major selling points, setting them apart from their by-the-book contemporaries, and between his work with Late of the Pier and his LA Priest side project, frontman Sam Prest is slowly establishing himself as one of brightest talents in all of England.

Now here we are revisiting “Space and the Woods”, which will see a re-release as a double A-side with a shiny new production job from Mr. Alkan, along with long-time live favorite “Focker” in mid-May. And GOD DAMN if this isn’t the biggest record of the year, if not longer than that. Erol’s gone and made this shit huge, that synth line standing out as one of the hottest moments in music this year and Prest actually sounding confident enough to sell lines like, “I’m shit-hot, so say what you think about me”. In fact, shit-hot would be a damn fine way to describe this song, which just might be the best dance-rock single this side of 2005.

Not content just to polish up a previously released track, the single comes with a second A-side in the form of “Focker”, the band’s most electro offering yet and fully worthy of a full-fledged single release in its own right. Erol works his magic again here, but they hold out until the song’s epic final moments to really lower the boom, getting all LA Priest on your ass and obliterating everything in sight with an all-out electro freak-out of epic proportions. Literally, this shit is incredible and might be one of the few singles I’ve ever heard where I can actually enjoy the instrumental every bit as much as the original (seriously, try it for yourself below). A double A-side automatically implies you’ll be getting more than your fair share of hotness on both sides of the record, but this is just absurd. Ten out of ten, bitches.

Guillemots: “Get Over It”

admin — Sun, 30 Mar 2008 11:38:57 +0000

In the weeks leading up to the unveiling of Guillemots’ new single, buzz around the industry was that the band had penned the perfect pop song. And guess what, they done did it.

To quote a breathless Zane Lowe after the conclusion of the first-ever radio play of Guillemots new single, “Get Over It”: “Did you see that coming?” And to be perfectly real with you, no I did not. To say “Get Over It” exceeded my already high expectations would be a significant understatement; this is some “Trains To Brazil” next-level shit right here. “Get Over It” unequivocally marks the pinnacle of the band’s commercial viability to this point in their career, while in now way suppressing their seemingly endless fountain of ambition.

Driving guitars, oscillating synths and the union of Fyfe and Aristazabal’s soaring vocals converge to create a track that, like all great Guillemots songs, is equal parts timeless and forward thinking. And just like “Trains To Brazil”, the message is beautiful: Don’t let anything get you down – get over it. But in the same way the euphoric optimism of “Trains was tempered by overt references to terrorism and the anxiety of life in a post-9/11 (or post 7/7) society, Dangerfield doesn’t hesitate to admit that his advice is not the easiest to follow, even for him. “I want you, I want you like I’m 18″, or hero confesses, before going on: “In another life I’m drenched in sweat with you”, alluding to a past love gone but seemingly not forgotten. It’s this lyrical depth that makes Dangerfield such a special songwriter – the brilliant instrumental and basic lyrical sentiment of “Get Over It” ensures it success from square one, but as always, Guillemots refuse to settle for good enough. It’s this desire to push boundaries and achieve perfection that make them such an exciting band to follow, and the single is all the better for it. An immaculate lead single then, and if the rest of the songs on Red, its parent album, are half this good, then Guillemots just might be usurping Bloc Party in my pantheon of favorite bands before the year is out.

MP3: “Get Over It” – Guillemots

Seriously, the first time I listened to this song the clouds parted, everyone around me broke into synchronized dance and I was sliding down rainbows and riding unicorns and shit. Granted, that could have been all the LSD, but I’d like to think this track has some serious magic in it.

MYSTERY JETS VS EROL ALKAN VS SWITCH
In other British indie-pop news, Mystery Jets released my frontrunner for album of the year last week with their sophomore effort, Twenty One. Singles like “Young Love” and “Two Doors Down” are guaranteed to be huge records in the UK, but lead-off track “Hideaway” is the real stunner of the bunch. One of their darker, more rocking efforts to date, it’s my current favorite track on the album and the news that a Switch remix will be dropping soon and this trailer have me beyond pumped. DJ Neoteric also debuted the remix in his latest mix, but according to the Jets the track doesn’t exist as a lone MP3 anywhere outside of Erol, Switch and Neoteric’s respective hard drives. Keep an eye on this space though…

Amerie: “Gotta Work”

admin — Fri, 05 Oct 2007 12:33:22 +0000

Pop music – good pop music, rather – made a triumphant return in 2007. Mr. Timberlake began the process and established himself as the new King of Pop with Futuresex/Lovesounds in late 2006 and kept things moving right on into 2007 with “My Love” and “What Goes Around”. Timbaland made sure it was here to stay, producing solid gold hits for Nelly Furtado, M.I.A., and even the loathsome Omarion, later reaching number one on the charts himself with “The Way I Are”, pretty much the only good thing he’s ever done as a solo artist. Kanye was there doing his part, taking Daft Punk back to the top of the charts with “Stronger” and releasing another excellent LP in “Graduation”, and even Robyn made a comeback, collaborating with producer Kleerup and reaching the top of the UK charts for the first time in nine years on the strength of “With Every Heartbeat”.

No one can forget the international reign of pop supremacy Rihanna enjoyed after inviting the world to stand under her umba-rella, but the best female pop track of the year undoubtedly goes to Amerie. Vastly underappreciated in the mainstream for no apparent reason, “Gotta Work” is the pop triumph of 2007 and deserves far more recognition and acclaim than it’s received to this point.

Amerie’s mentor and the producer on the majority of the tracks on her first two records was Rich Harrison, the man responsible for taking her to the top of the charts in 2004 with “One Thing”, her first Top 10 hit. “One Thing” was a masterpiece of pop minimalism, composed of only a sharp one-chord riff, a clattering percussion section and Amerie’s saccharine vocal delivery. Any track achieving success on the back of such a sparse arrangment is worth noting, especially one able to access the upper echelons of mainstream popularity, as “One Thing” did when it reached #8 in 2005. “Gotta Work”, on the other hand, is a lesson in flamboyant maximalism, bursting at the seams with blaring brass arrangements and thunderous percussion courtesy of production team One Up. Sure, it’s very “Crazy In Love” and both songs operate within the same formula, but “Gotta Work” just does so much more for me on every occasion. I don’t think anyone saw this coming (least of all me) after Amerie failed to follow up the success of “One Thing” with the other singles off Touch, but shit – “Gotta Work” makes it clear that Amerie has the potential to be a pop force to reckon with in any music climate. Unfortunately, the track has gone largely over-looked in the US, as it was released without the company of an album here. Because I Love It, a sort of best-of compilation for the purpose of introducing Amerie to UK audiences, dropped across the pond this summer and was extremely well-received there, but the release of that album stateside would have been redundant for obvious reasons. Thus, American audiences went criminally under-exposed to the track, but that can’t really be held against it. That said, it’s nice to know there’s no danger of the track getting played to death everywhere you turn as was the case with “Umbrella”. Radio hit or not though, “Gotta Work” is a pop smash that can’t be fucked with any way you look at it.

MP3: “Gotta Work” – Amerie ((highly recommended))

And for those of you who may have somehow missed out on the pop brilliance of “One Thing” or just slept on the track because it’s too mainstream or whatever, here’s your chance to right your wrongs.

The Rapture: “Get Myself Into It”

admin — Thu, 17 Aug 2006 12:38:38 +0000

The Rapture are a very polarizing group: they have a rabidly loyal fanbase that eats up anything they release, but they have more than their fair share of haters. Though past releases have kept up this attitude with challenging instrumentation and Matty Safer’s yelp-singing, “Get Myself Into It” is, for better or worse, much more straightforward. Safer’s vocals are still urgent, and the vocal hooks are just as, if not more, infectious as on previous outings. They are, however, more glossed over, due to Danger Mouse’s slick-as-usual production. It’s a more neutral Safer on this track, and that could definitely turn off hardcore fans of the Rapture’s earlier material.

This is not meant in any way to slight “Get Myself Into It”, as the lead single for the upcoming Pieces Of The People We Love it is one of the most instantly catchy and overall fun songs so far this year. There’s no grace period with “Get Myself Into It”. The first time you hear it, you’ll either be sold or not. I was sold, and I imagine most others will be. The chorus is outrageously straightforward, which is always a hit-or-miss proposition, but The Rapture pull it off gloriously, creating an instant singalong. As usual, The Rapture add unique instrumentation to the track, most notably the striking horns that help buoy the chorus. In essence, The Rapture have created a perfect summer jam: instantly recognizable with impossibly easy lyrics and an unequivocally upbeat feel. The Rapture may not have been the first band a hipster would consider able to make a song that literally anybody could like, but they’ve certainly succeeded with flying colors; “Get Myself Into It” seems equally at home nestled between “Promiscuous” and “SexyBack” as it does “Obstacle 1″ and “In This Home On Ice”.

The b-side here is a “disco edit” courtesy of Prince Language, which, um, doesn’t change the song at all really (snooze).

MP3: “Get Myself Into It” – The Rapture
MP3: “Get Myself Into It” (Prince Language Disco Edit) – The Rapture

Bonus MP3: “I Need Your Love” (Ewan’s Stay In School Mix) – The Rapture