Artrocker Magazine’s Single Reviews for the week commencing October 4th

Plan B
The Recluse
(Atlantic)

If this magazine was called Boogierocker we'd be pretty tempted to elevate this to single of the month status, and here's why: it sounds for real.
No, not as in 'I'm sorry Miss Jackson, I am for reeeeal'. What I mean is the instruments sound virtually untreated: the violins are allowed to do their cinematic violin-thing, the drums skip and pulsate like a real drum kit, and as for Mr B himself, he sounds like a 1960s soul star, no pitch shifting vocal extermination going on here, sir.
Of course, this is all probably cat crap: I wouldn't be surprised if the music has been treated to sound untreated, just to toy with our feeble little brains. The point is, this is a spacious, urgent and honest-sounding dancefloor classic. There's a UK tour going on this month; make it your Plan A to be there!
Ric Rawlins

Alloy Ark
To The Bottom of the Sea EP
(NRONE Records)


Take two teenagers, a creaky old piano and a Parisian sense of the carefree and there you have it: all the ingredients you need for Alloy Ark.
Here with their debut EP, the boy/girl duo are both disarmingly innocent and artistically bold, with the songs loosely sticking to the theme of a 'sister spirited away by a sailor.'
Although the band are aged 17 and 19, singer Danielle sounds a lot younger (her voice is positively childlike, which takes a minute to get used to) but it's this voice, along with Doug's honky-tonk piano playing, that sets the warm tone.
True to its name, you can imagine 'Sailor Song' being played in the bars of Penzance as the pirates roll in, while 'Owl and the Wolfe' is an autumnal waltz with some nicely melancholy trumpet echoing away in the backdrop.
A million miles away from the world of hipster insecurity, marketing budgets and PR schmooze, these two have created a record that captures the essence of romantic youth.
Ric Rawlins

Erland & The Carnival
The Derby Ram
(Full Time Hobby Records)


Following the release of their critically acclaimed album, this new single from Erland & The Carnival was originally written about an imaginary sheep (I know, I know) but later reworked into a haunting true story about a 17-year-old Derby resident who decided to take his own life by jumping from the roof a tall building.
Based on true events and with themes lifted directly from an article in a national newspaper, there’s something chilling about singer Erland Cooper’s description of the baying crowd that gathers around the building, eventually triggering the final jump.
Meanwhile, the band manage to subtly flitter around the cagey subject matter, taking on influences from The Doors to a Joe Meek-style production and offering the kind of bleeps and buzzes you might find on a 1960s sci-fi TV show.
Brad Ferguson

Oberhofer
o0O0o0O0o
(Self Release)


If you ever find yourself hitting a creative block as a musician, you can always rely on a good old “Ooh Ooh Ooh”. Essentially the lyrical equivalent of Play-doh, the “Ooh Ooh Ooh” can be moulded into anything, or indeed stuck anywhere. It may not read like Wordsworth, but hell, it’s better than nothing.
Oberhofer have taken this philosophy a step further, and given their new single a title which is basically one big extended “Ooh”.
With it’s slight MGMT zing, the music is both trippy and feelgood. It’ll probably make you smile for no apparent reason, and would therefore go down well with someone who’s either (a) high or (b) in the process of getting there. Not that we'd endorse such a thing of course – but if you're gonna do it, make sure you've got the right soundtrack.
Brad Ferguson

Maps And Atlases
Solid Ground
(FatCat)


Staring off with a countryside gentility reminiscent of ‘Strawberry Fields’, then later bursting into a wood instrument freakout, this new single from Maps And Atlases clearly belongs in a forest somewhere.
With the singer’s nasal, slightly Kings Of Leon voice and its general air of Fleet Foxes, it also rests in the classic song writing mould – despite the boost of urgency delivered by its rocky bass line.
This is a pleasant song, but also a wimpy one. God knows how Maps and Atlases would survive if they were confronted by a grizzly bear.
Stuart Gadd

Comanechi/Divorce
Split 7"
(Merok)


That's weird, I saw Comanechi a few times this summer and I could've sworn they didn't sound this evil. Meep. Their half of this seven inch is called 'Let It Bloom' and it basically features singer Akiko beating the shit out of some boyfriend or another, shouting "YOU BRING ME DOWN! YOU BRING ME DOWN!" while a demonic variation of garage rock serenades us. It's assaultive, it's confrontational, and it's good clean family fun (TM).
Over on the second A-side, and we have Divorce from Glasgow who also sound evil, in a no wave kinda way. Their track 'Amuse Bouche' prowls the speakers with seductive red eyes, and could easily make paranoid dope smokers pee their pants.
As if all that wasn't sinister enough for you, the two bands then collaborate on a cover of the Lydia Lunch/Sonic Youth song 'Death Valley 69'. By this point in the EP I've pasted Bible pages to every wall in the Artrocker office, locked the door and started watching the stars with a telescope, incase they align in the formation of Damien's unholy barcode. I'll be on voicemail.
Ric Rawlins

Idiot Glee
All Packed Up
(Moshi Moshi)


Kentucky-born James Friley takes his rural roots very seriously, putting his classical abilities and oddball choir-style vocals to good use in this unnerving but equally gripping little number.
Citing his influences as Fleetwood Mac, early Roxy Music and Brian Eno, it's easy to see where his sense of pop quirkiness comes from; this single bends round corners and sounds like it's been taped on an old video recorder on loan from the village hall.
Spooky and shadowy but also charming and accessible, this tune will space you out and leave you in a daydream.
Brad Ferguson

Bombay Bicycle Club
Rinse Me Down
(Island Records)


Bombay Bicycle Club seem completely untouchable at the moment. Whether they’re leading young crowds into sing-along frenzies or catching the imagination of a middle-aged armchair listener, everyone seems to have a space in their hearts reserved for them to fill.
‘Rinse Me Down’ is the first track on their rather audacious acoustic album, and after starting off with some delicate guitars and a steady pace, singer Jack Steadman takes centre stage, and all of a sudden we're back to the band that turns everything into gold.
With a voice as recognisable as the likes Nick Drake or Sufjan Stevens, Steadman is perfect for the style of music they've taken to producing recently. Each string is carefully strung, each lyric so delicately sung, it works on just about every level. They're far too talented if you ask me.
Brad Ferguson

Films of Colour
Actions
(Label Fandango)


With all its soaring choruses, tumbling drums and “woo-hoos”, this single lends itself abundantly to a long drive to the coast – a long drive, that is, in a Honda Prius. In grey. Where you never once venture over the speed limit.
Ok, snide remarks aside, here is a very polished, hugely accessible song. There is a space on the Radio 2 playlist with Films of Colour’s name on and if they carry on releasing such shimmering pop like this then their tenacious choruses will stick around in the minds of a nation for years to come. But it may take something a little more individual to reach out beyond those who buy just one album a year.
Dai Howells

Plants and Animals
American Idol
(Secret City)


So Wonderbra has unveiled its first ever 3D advert. Now, imagine Calvin Klein had done the same but with Peter Crouch sloping around in a white banana hammock three sizes too small, all his disjointed, pointy angles sullying something with otherwise good intentions. ‘American Idol’, for all its fuzzy, retro, recorded-in-one-take sound, is just the same – all wonky and awkward, even if it is pointing in the right direction.
There are certainly some classics within these guys, its just getting the bloody things out.
Dai Howells

Orphanboy
Some Frontier
(Concrete Recordings)


Orphanboy are the pioneers of the Two Chord Council Pop genre, if their press release is to be believed. The Mancunian three-piece's latest single from Passion, Pain And Loyalty has its eyes set on the buttons labelled 'EPIC' and 'BIG SOUNDING' and has more in common with arena-sized rock than the gritty sound of the council estate.
The lyrics to ‘Some Frontier’have one eye on the global and hint at something intriguing (“We lost our boy, in Sarajevo/He took his chances, with all that's dear/We lost our boy, in Argentina, in Kandahar/And no one knows”). However, all said and done this is a slightly paint-by-numbers song. Propelling drums? Check. Anthemic guitar lines? Check. Easily memorable refrain? Check. It's by no means terrible, but you can’t help feeling a little more inspiration wouldn’t go amiss.
Max Raymond

Pendulum
The Island
(Warner Bros)


So this is what it’s come to, huh Pendulum? After carving a name for yourself as a reasonably good drum 'n' bass outfit you decide it’s time to convince every kid in the country you’re the new Prodigy? Tch tch.
Despite all this, ‘The Island’ isn't really as offensive as some people might make it out to be. If a drunken teenager shouted this melody at me, it would be remotely bearable. They’ve steered clear of bizarre chants. In fact, it's the closest thing Pendulum will ever get to a ballad.
The main problem here is that the song fails to ignite, despite the fact it’s clearly aiming to be an emotional clubbing anthem.
Max Raymond

SHe’s HiT/Jacob Yates & The Pearly Gate Lockpickers
Re:peater/Can’t Stop
(Re:peater Records)


Two of Scotland’s emerging bands go side-by-side with this split 7” single.
SHe’s HiT, on whose new label imprint this is released, lead off with ‘Re:peater,’ a massive wall of noise constructed from prefabricated slabs of Jesus and Mary Chain, Suicide and The Cramps. Shrill guitar, deep, pounding drums and mono-toned vocals drenched in reverb are the basic components. All that’s missing is the ASBO!
So what’s not to like?!
Jacob Yates & The Pearly Gate Lockpickers offer a complete contrast with ‘Can’t Stop’ - it’s a kind of ‘swamp stomp’ with Jacob’s rather menacingly growled vocals blending with the backing, kind of like a Glaswegian Dan Sartain.
So what’s not to like?!
Colin Jackson

The Kabeedies
Come Out Of The Blue
(NRONE Records)


Ah The Kabeedies, we all know what to expect here. Hang on, what's this?! The record starts with an echo voice shouting "Skiddy Bop!" as if we're about to hear a ska song, then Caribbean rhythms kick in, singer Katie howls as if she's suddenly grown up by ten years, and the band bring it all together as a rum party on the beaches of San Juan.
Hmm, The Kabeedies. Never know what to expect.
Ric Rawlins

School Of Seven Bells
Heart Is Strange
(Full Time Hobby)


In the past, School Of Seven Bells have been called ‘dream pop’ and ‘nu gaze’ – but such labels alone can’t quite describe this compelling new single.
‘Heart Is Strange’ begins with ominously growing Terminator synths, metallic rattlesnake snare drums and a juddering, cyberpunk bass in hot pursuit. After this faintly
mean start, we’re suddenly soothed by two fairy girl singers, who begin cooing mysterious words about “the machine of will”.
It’s all deeply weird and a little unsettling. But with an undercurrent of Krautrock tranquillity to it all, it’s also strangely uplifting: a part human, part android rush of a song.
Stuart Gadd

The Naked And Famous
Young Blood
(Neon Gold)


Put simply, this is a memorable pop song which could cause some euphoric havoc on the dancefloor. Its cavernous electro, thunderous drumming and doomy synth-bass lines recall the pop nous of ‘Kids’ era MGMT. Meanwhile, the Kate Bush ‘Cloudbusting’ shouting on the chorus is great too. Clearly to hear this song is to love it.
Stuart Gadd

The Strange Death of Liberal England
Rising Sea
(Republic of Music)


Somewhat like the Arcade Fire if they were out on a Saturday night with top hats, canes and twinkling gold teeth, 'Rising Sea' is a lively trumpet-boosted waltz with one eye on 'ye olden times' and the other on your ass, which might well proceed to shaketh upon hearing it. Yes sir, there is panache to be found here.
Walt Disney Pictures, if you're reading this, sign up this band immediately to soundtrack Pirates of the Caribbean Part 7!
Ric Rawlins