Nov 16 2010

Groove Armada reMix HURTS’ new single

HURTS’ new single is released this week and even though everybody seems to agree that ‘Sunday’ is perfect single material it is ‘Stay’, which is fair enough, it’s a pretty powerful track.

So, to the reMixes! The awesome surprise of the single is Groove Armada signing up for reMix duties, and the reMix doesn’t disappoint. Slightly less vocal than I would have liked the mix is nonetheless an enticing House track with an early 90’s feel to it. From it’s orchestral stabs to it’s floaty piano, to it’s killer digital bassline this is 1991 warehouse stuff!

♫ HURTS – Stay (Groove Armada reMix)

‘Stay’ and the album, ‘Happiness’, are out now.

Nov 15 2010

French ElectroPop from Echo

Echo is the ElectroPop/Indie-Electro project of Frenchman Rougier Armand who’s unique and raw take on the genre has been played a lot here at electronic rumors this past week.

Mixing up live instruments along with dirty sounding drum machines and old analog synth sounds, topped with Rougier’s wistful, floaty, vocals makes for a contradictory, but interesting, record. Listening to his just released third album ‘About To be A Man’ I find myself thinking of a more poppy version of Kevin McMahon’s Prick outfit, it’s that kind of combination of noisy, garage, electronics with the slightly otherworldly, slightly dreamlike vocals that is at once aggressive and calming.

Check out two tracks from the new album. ‘We Dance The Same’ is probably the track most likely to be dropped in Indie-Electro clubs and could do really well licenced to someone like Kitsuné. ‘Just Ask The Other Guy’ has, almost, touches of early IAMX about it and is a prefect example of Echo’s work.

♫ Echo – We Dance The Same

♫ Echo – Just Ask The Other Guy

‘About To Be A Man’ is available now over on Echo’s Bandcamp site and check your favoured mp3 store for his previous releases.

Echo @ Bandcamp

Echo @ Amazon

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Nov 13 2010

Listen to Chromeo & La Roux’s ‘Hot Mess’ team-up!

So here it is! The internet’s been chatting all week about Chromeo’s forthcoming single ‘Hot Mess’ which features a version of the track laid out as a duet with La Roux’s Elly Jackson and now we can finally hear it.

Annie Mac, in her awesomeness, premiered the song on her Radio 1 show last night and yours truly ripped it for you all to have a little taster. The back and forth vocals aren’t what I was expecting. I was expecting something simple and, almost, tacked on, but Elly’s parts seem both fresh and like they have been there forever. You wouldn’t necessarily think that Elly’s stark vocals would sit well with Chromeo’s slick Electro Funk, but it really does! Colour me impressed!

This might well be the last time we hear Elly’s unique vocals on an ElectroPop track. Despite riding high in the American dance charts with her US re-release of ‘In For The Kill’, Mz. Jackson has stated she wants to move on from synth music. Damn shame really, another one bites the dust, so enjoy this while you can!

♫ Chromeo (Feat. Elly Jackson From La Roux) – Hot Mess (Radio Rip)

The ‘Hot Mess’ single is out 17th January and along with the original and the new duet features reMixes from the likes Duck Sauce and Tiga.

Annie Mac’s show from yesterday is still available to listen to here.

Nov 12 2010

Fenech-Soler on the road

Fenech-Soler have just released this beautifully shot video showcasing their recent (and amazing) UK tour.

It’s set to their next single, ‘Demons’, I don’t know whether this will end up being the official music video, I doubt it, but it’s nice enough to be. It was shot and directed by Ben Thomas with editing by Gavin Kerr.

Fenech-Soler release ‘Demons’ as a single in January, their self-titled album is out now.

Fenech-Soler @ Beatport

Fenech-Soler @ Juno

Fenech-Soler @ 7Digital

Fenech-Soler @ Amazon

Nov 12 2010

Ellie Goulding video for ‘Lights’..oh no wait, it’s ‘Your Song’, from that advert

We were a little surprised to find Ellie Goulding’s next single will be her cover of Elton John’s ‘Your Song’ rather than the previously announced ‘Lights’, then we saw it was on the new John Lewis X-mas adverts and everything made sense. Sigh.

I hope ‘Lights’ still sees a single release, with some nice reMixes. Meanwhile, here’s the brand new video for ‘Your Song’.

As much as I love Ellie and her music, the record label are just making blander and blander decisions when it comes to videos. At least this one isn’t a literal interpretation of the lyrics like the previous

I’m off to see Ellie and the awesome Bright Light Bright Light and Sunday Girl tomorrow, gonna’ be pretty rad!

Ellie Goulding @ Neon Gold

Ellie Goulding @ 7Digital

Ellie Goulding @ Amazon

Nov 12 2010

Chromeo premiere ‘Hot Mess’ video

I’m still reeling from Chromeo’s mind-blowingly awesome live show in Bristol last week, I’ve seen a lot of gigs this year and this was probably the best.

One week later and the duo drop the video for their forthcoming single ‘Hot Mess’, taken from their current album ‘Business Casual’. The video, directed by Jérémie Rozan, see Dave and Pee struggling to make it as cops in a woman’s world…a sexy woman’s world!

The single is out 17th January and, as I’m sure you’re all aware of by now, will feature a duet version of the track with La Roux’s Elly Jackson and contains reMixes from the likes of Duck Sauce and Tiga.

Nov 11 2010

Some Anoraak reMixes

As you probably know, French ElectroPop guru and Valerie main man Anoraak is currently running a reMix competition over on SoundCloud featuring the track ‘Crazy Eyes’.

We’ve got a couple of our favourites right here for you. Egotomb produce this amazing, electronic organ based, ElectroPop track that has a certain atmospheric quality to it that we can’t help but find compelling. Mr. Mæn, on the other hand, turns in a deep and chilled retro, almost Dreamwave, House mix with a laidback Disco bassline. It’s an almost perfect example of mid-temo House with some of the sweetest pad you’ll ever hear.

♫ Anoraak – Crazy Eyes (Egotomb reMix)

♫ Anoraak – Crazy Eyes (Mr. Mæn reMix)

‘Crazy Eyes’ is taken from Anoraak’s album ‘Wherever The Sun Sets’ is out now.

Nov 11 2010

Selebrities’ new single

I hate the term New Wave, I’m pretty sure it doesn’t exist. If you ever meet me in real life, buy me a beer and I’ll give you my ‘new wave rant’.

However, if there is a band for who the term (begrudgingly) fits it’s Brooklyn’s pretty awesome New Wave act Selebrities who have a new 12” on the horizon. They are just that right combination of Post-Punk and SynthPop that New Wave is supposed to be.

The new single,‘We’ve Been Foolish’/’When I Look At You’, sees more of their really authentically 80’s sounding tunes that mash up influences from New Order to Bauhaus to Kim Wilde. All this is complimented so well by Maria Usbeck’s ability to vocally slip in and out of the track.

♫ Selebrities – When I Look At You

‘We’ve Boon Foolish’/’When I Look At You’ is released 23rd November on Cascine.

Selebrities @ Juno

Selebrities @ Amazon

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Nov 11 2010

LexiconDon’s ‘December Sunset’ video

If you’re looking for something the humourless masses can get freaked out about in the new LexiconDon video you’re gonna’ be sorely disappointed.

After the internet got it’s collective blogging panties in a bunch over LD’s last video, ‘December Sunset’ holds no surprises. It is, however, a slick, interestingly filmed performance video that makes me wish that a) the weather was better and b) that LexiconDon would come tour the UK.

Check out LexiconDon’s album, ‘Pink + Blue’, out now on dubFrequency/Binary.

LexiconDon @ Beatport

LexiconDon @ Juno

LexiconDon @ 7Digital

LexiconDon @ Amazon

Nov 11 2010

Parralox’s ‘Metropolis’ album

Australia’s beacon of pure SynthPop light in the darkness, Parralox, are releasing their third studio album this month.

‘Metropolis’ is a totally well crafted album that shows a definite progression in Parralox’s sound, slowly moving away from the generic Modern SynthPop (of which they were always better than the pack) to encompass more contemporary electronic music styles. Of course there is still shades of Depeche Mode et al in the mix, but this time around it all sound so much more fresh. This is an electronic Pop album that has come from the Modern SynthPop scene but can stand toe to toe with some of the greats of current ElectroPop or Indie-Electro, and that is a rare and special thing indeed.

Just check out ‘Don’t Listen To Me’, a top quality ElectroPop track that fuses twenty first century Electro production techniques with an 80’s influenced songwriting style that also nods toward Disco-Pop in a way that is pretty flawless. This could be the album that sees Parralox playing in the big leagues.