Song reviews

Old school in a good way, Plants show himself to be more than capable of infusing his song “Fervent Devise” with such good old fashioned attributes like hook and melody. Throw in a guitar solo – as he does – and it’s FM radio all the way.

Taking their song “Wrong Hands” for a walk on the wistful side of the street are Norwegian band Secret Treehouse yet there is more to this song than indie pop pretensions as the insistent beat easily takes the pretty female vocals all the way to the bridge.

Giving those old analogue synth sounds another spin round the block are Cutrone with their song “Summerland” exuding both the eighties post-romantic vibe and stylised laconicism. It might well be bleak, but the song is not without a certain poetic appeal.

It probably seems unusual to comment on a band sounding natural these days, yet it is what it is and Loudmammoth sound appealing natural as their downbeat post punk motivations drive their song “Let Go” onwards and upwards.

Formerly an inhabitant of the deeper end of the indie rock pool, Unquiet Nights have now aimed themselves at a more mature and mainstream rock audience with their song “Four Winds” being both memorable and successful in its festival friendly aims.

You can’t go far wrong with an upbeat pop song. That’s my opinion and I’m sticking to it. No surprise, therefore, that “I Just Think You’re Cute” by Australian band Scarlet Drive is a song that makes my day. I feel the need to sing along and so will you.

Locked to the electropop beat with a determination that transcends the trend, “Like U” provides Sweden’s Hannah Smallbone with a suitable platform to highlight her sharp edged lyrics whilst ticking the style boxes necessary for airplay.

Style is something that comes easily to pretty Parisian electro popsters Niki Niki and, with musical minimalism and wistful female vocals added to the mix, “Pretty Sunny Funny Walk” quickly becomes the coolest song you’ve heard this week.

The Dollyrots might well be haunted by the ghosts of pop punk yet does that really matter when they give us a song so energetic and upbeat as “In Your Face”? Not really, for this is song that will make the sun shine. Trust me on that.

There is retro and then there is dancing retro and Zuffalo have diligently dug up the past and used what they found to turn their song “Loose Cannon” into the soundtrack to adventures on a beer soaked blue collar dancefloor on a Friday night. Good times!

Upbeat pop punk from a band too young to remember the heyday of pop punk, “Locked Door” sounds as catchy and energetic as a band of that past time might have sounded which, in these locked to the misery loop days, works much to the favour of After Elmer.

It had to happen sometime and, duly, Enbers deconstructs the expectations of the singer songwriter genre with a flourish probably borne of a Spanish field trip counterpointing his inbuilt ennui to thus turn “Black Mamba into something a bit different.