New Musick Monday

Right, is this some kind of pathological disorder we're dealing with here? Do you want to make us track down each and every one of you (yes, all twenty!) and talk sternly at you for ten minutes? For fucks sake, what's going on? How can a song as instantly catchy and indescribably amazing as 'Better Than Love' by Hurts enter the charts at number 50? How? It defies belief. Sure, Villagers missed out too and the chances of Sleigh Bells denting the charts was up there with Susan Boyle's next covers album featuring a cover of Aphex Twin's 'Windowlicker', but Hurts! Seriously, come on. We should put an end to all this, but we love you and we forgive you.

BUY THIS

Gemini by Wild Nothing

Chillwave or Dream Pop or Summer-sounding Songs With Fey Boys Singing Them is big business right now. Well, when we say 'big business' we mean it sells very little but it generates a lot of press. Wild Nothing, aka Jack Tatum, has been lumped in with the rest of them and for the most part it's a fair comparison, but there's something a bit more '80s indie about him then, say, Toro Y Moi. Gemini is his debut album and it features the stone-cold amazing, 'Summer Holiday', a cover of the Cliff Richard single...KIDDING. It's not as good as that. The rest of the album doesn't quite live up to it, but it's a slow week and we're running out of energy, so just buy it, yeah.

IT'S A REALLY QUIET WEEK, SO MAYBE JUST LISTEN TO AN OLD ALBUM

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'Five Trees (The Horrors Remix)' by Chapel Club

The original version is fine too, but a bit too Editors-esque for our liking. The Horrors remix adds some nice keyboard effects, puts some distortion on the vocals and generally makes it all sound less Editors-esque. We're not sure if this version is available to buy but if not you could either listen here or buy the original and play it simultaneously with something off Primary Colours and you'd get the idea.

New Musick Monday

We've noticed that our daily numbers have been dwindling quite dramatically so more and more this all feels slightly fruitless, but at the moment we're still enjoying it, so for now New Musick Monday returns to fight another week. This weeks edition isn't quite the bells and whistles bumper edition of last week, but it does feature a TRIPLE album. But, first, let's deal with the relative successes and failures of the past seven days. LoneLady, Toro Y Moi and Brigadier Ambrose all missed the top 75, but they're all amazing and the latter actually sold out in most of the HMV shops that stocked it, so music is the winner. Marina & The Diamonds album crashed in at number 5 and was looking good for the number 1 slot at the midweek point. Giggs, despite all the twittering, landed outside the top 60. It seems a lot of listeners literally didn't go there...THIS IS WHY NO ONE READS THIS!!

BUY THIS

Have One On Me by Joanna Newsom



A confession; we haven't heard this yet. It's waiting for us when we get home, but for now, our ears have not been lightly grazed by Newsom's latest three CD extravaganza. We're urging you to buy this on the fact that her last album was a masterpiece, every review of this has been glowing and because even if it isn't something you'd normally listen to, it still means you have three extra coasters in your house should you be silly enough not to love it. Plus, it comes in a box and has a lyric sheet as long as the Bible (but better). THIS IS WHY NO CHRISTIANS READ THIS!!

CHERRY PICK SOME OF THIS

Lights by Ellie Goulding



We reviewed this album for another website and you can read it here. It kind of sums up our feelings towards what is a solid pop album, but one that feels a bit emotionless and is in no way the future of music. But we knew that already.

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'Mr Peterson' by Perfume Genius



Perfume Genius, aka Mike Genius (may not be his real surname), makes fragile, haunting piano ballads that make Antony Hegarty seem like H from Steps. His lyrics are so stark that they sometimes border on the hilarious in that did-he-just-suggest-his-teacher-was-sexually-attracted-to-him kind of way. In fact, it's exactly that storyline that runs through 'Mr Peterson' and the song ends with the titular character killing himself. Yay, Spring is here. THIS IS WHY NO ONE READS THIS!!

You can download this single and the b-side from here.

New Musick Monday

Last week was a bit of a struggle, wasn't it? We mean musically of course and not just because the grey skies and general malaise are making everyone look like death warmed up (only not that warm). Unbelievably, the Lightspeed Champion album managed to miss the Top 75 altogether, which is a real shame as it's a definite grower and worthy of some ear time. The Glee soundtrack crashed in at number 1, which should be something to celebrate and yet we're kind of depressed about it. Jedward proved us all wrong by climbing one spot to number 11 (those 5 extra CD singles clearly doing the trick). This week is a bit of a bumper, fuck the recession type affair, so hold onto your hats...

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Nerve Up by LoneLady



Perfect for the current climate, LoneLady's debut album is all chilly, skeletal guitar figures and simple beats with Julie Campbell (for it is she) crooning mysteriously about "fading to white" and some other bleak things we've yet to really decipher. Despite it's chilly exterior there's a lot to love here and what can initially seem simple and slight soon becomes hypnotic. Weirdly, there are moments where she sounds a lot like Kylie does when she does that English speak-sing voice of hers. Ergo, if you've ever wondered what Kylie would sound like if she signed to Warp, then wonder no more.

TRUST US AND BUY THIS

Fuzzo by Brigadier Ambrose



We plugged this when it came out to download, but it's out in the shops now (and still amazing) so here it is again. Read more about it here.

BUY THIS ONE TOO

Causers of This by Toro Y Moi



We did a very short thing on this guy just the other day and we were so taken by what we heard that we went out and brought the album (yep, we PAID for the music, in a shop and everything). Causers of This has been lumped in with all that chillwave, dream pop malarkey and though there are definite elements in there - none of the songs really race to get anywhere, there are some nice keyboard washes - the whole thing feels more intricate and closely produced then some of the stuff from Washed Out for example. Hell, Lissoms even sounds like a bit of a rave up in comparison to some of that other stuff. All in all, a lovely, dense album by a very talented individual.

THIS IS OUT TOO

The Family Jewels by Marina & The Diamonds



This has been picking up some very strange reviews which seem to range from 'this is the future of pop music' to 'LOL her voice is funny' to 'how fucking irritating is this woman'. We did a thing on it here so we won't write much else if it's all the same to you.

DOWNLOAD THIS

'Don't Go There' by Giggs



We've chosen this one for two reasons; firstly, it's a great song with a brilliant video and it has a strange nostalgic charm about it, what with all the early '90s, Dre-inspired staccato strings and the loping beat. Secondly, Giggs is on twitter and won't stop imploring people to buy it and his passion for the single to do well is infectious quite frankly. It's nice to see someone making music that isn't all 'well, I make music for me and if anyone else likes it, well that's a bonus'. Get a real job in that case.

C'est moi?

This is a rather lovely track by a gentleman who goes under the somewhat perplexing moniker of Toro Y Moi. 'Low Shoulder' is taken from his forthcoming album, Causers of This, which may well appear in next week's New Musick Monday. You can barely wait for that, huh?



He's been lumped in with acts like Washed Out and all the other 'chillwave' people, but from what we've heard this seems a bit lazy. We'll get back to you on this though...