Song reviews

“Lonely” by Moviestar is an intelligent pop song with a downbeat vibe and that noughties sound as if The Hush Sound had abandoned the piano in favour of the kind of lyrical obliqueness that is notably less empty that it initially seems to be.

Holy Now have that unmistakeable indie pop vibe and their song “Pearl” ticks all the expected boxes with wistful vocals, jangled up guitars and enough lyrical depth to earn popularity in student unions throughout the land.

Odina has a little girl voice that seems at odds with the introspection that pervades the lyrics of her minimalist song “Nothing Makes Sense” and yet the result is rather more endearing than you might expect.

A rather downbeat example of the retro synth pop style, “Benny Is A Heartbreaker” nonetheless deserves to escape the shadows and bring Alex Highton some attention. His future is indeed sequenced to the grey beats of the past.

Distinctly old fashioned in feel, “Time Immemorial” by The 286 is also downbeat and slow to get moving but, once the band overwhelms those plaintive lead vocals, the song starts to gain a sense of purpose.

There was a time when I thought, like many, that the days of synth pop were gone forever yet, fortunately, 10 O’Clock Chemical demonstrate that there is still life in the old genre with their song “Babylon Is Fallen” also ticking the box marked drama.

The latté drinkers will surely take this song to their heart but the truth is that “Terribly True” is just too good for the coffee shop with Deanna Petcoff nudging herself instead into the rather more intellectual arena inhabited by connoisseurs of proper pop songs.

Rough and ready Riot Grrrl style aplenty from Brighton’s Arxx as their song “Tired of You” revs you up for the traffic lights grand prix and, thanks to an unexpected attack of tempo change at the three-quarter point, stays with you all the way to your destination

Folk music normally goes straight by me into the blue yonder but “Four Letter Words” by Reema had the mark of modernism stamped upon it and, with a theme from today driving the song firmly forward, it wasn’t long before this understated gem became something of an intoxicant.

I would even go as far as calling “Do It All Again” by Praa a cool tune – not something I am prone to doing at the best of times – for there is something hypnotic about this entirely commercial yet entrancingly emotional song.

Americana is an international musical language with Croatian band She Brought Me Gasoline making their bid for the spotlight with “Since I Don’t Have You”. The song and performance walk the line but the banjos, as always, have it.

“Soveraine” is the kind of song that exudes an excess of melodrama, but Midas Fall succeed on keeping the song on track for its extended duration whilst evoking the ghosts of times long forgotten.