Song reviews

“Ithaca” is a rather endearing bot of retro style synth pop that would surely have dented the charts if it had been released twenty years ago and would no doubt have put this London band on the trail of Depeche Mode if it had. Unfortunately, today is today but this song nonetheless has an appealing innocence in its favour.

There’s a bit of everything in “Mountains Define You”. There are smoky vocals, a Scottish indie pop jangle to the guitars, a harmonica solo and an overwhelming sense of the getting out of the dustbowl and into the city decorating the lyrics.  You could almost call it country if it were not for the knowing quirkiness of it all. I’m sold on this one.

“Dodos” turns out to be a mid paced and surprisingly mainstream rocker from this Glasgow band. Not that I’m complaining as it sounds professional and radio friendly without being obviously commercial and that, my friends, is usually the mark of true quality.

New Edinburgh band Very Well take the Idlewild road with “Dead Happy”. What you get is a melodic, vaguely retro, song that sounds more expensive than it should and is further distinguished by Daniel Abercrombie’s confident vocal. However, I am once again forced to comment on the lack of decent guitarists in dear old Scotland even if the end result was actually easy on the ear.

Leeds band doing a bit of old time indie pop. Little Victories’ song “Staring at The Ground“ might not stray far from the expected but they nonetheless manage to bring both warmth and bit of subtlety to its execution with the end result being quite endearing in its own way.

When you have the voice of a tormented angel like Marina Skiadaresi has, you can’t help but soar high above the norm. “500 days” is theatrical in both intent and delivery and simply overcomes you. Marina Skiadaresi may have been around a while and she might well live in the arthouse but she is magnificent.

You can’t go wrong with a bit of dance floor oriented synth pop and that’s what Rebel Rebel, from Sweden it would seem, give us with “Project Runaway“ with the female vocals drifting in an appealingly world weary way over the solidly sequenced beat.  Grudgingly, I have to admit to quite liking this song.

Scottish boys show themselves to be the jaggy bunnet wearing sons of Blur as “Sweeten The Deal” whoops it up with harmonies and, you heard it here first, an actual melody. This is a properly constructed pop song just like they used to make before the music business went power chords and unsuccessful beards. It’s enough to make you forget there is a recession.

Juba are from Lisbon and actually manage to make indie rock sound interesting with their song “Bloodvessels”. The pounding drums, cascading guitars and moody male vocals fall into place nicely and the end result responds well to being cranked up to full volume.

I like a bit of melodic metal as much as the next guy and “When I’m Not Around” is indeed a bit of melodic metal forged from the best hair rock that time travelling can buy. This song is a good effort with plenty of attitude but it lacks a certain something and that something is a great big guitar solo. Perhaps, underneath all the macho posturing, Senate of Prevail are actually vegetarians?

“Drop Dead Shoes” is the kind of song that I should hate. It’s got plastic drums, power chords on overdrive and a malevolent growl substituted for vocals but it still kind of got to me. Don’t get me wrong for this song is crude stuff but it is also probably an antidote to my shit don’t stink indie rock. I feel some cautious enthusiasm coming on.

Indie going on retro for this Dundee band but “Was She A Pro” doesn’t really convince. The simplistic guitars and cheesy synths seem at odds with the quite frankly painful vocals and, to tell the truth, the whole song just sounds unfinished. In fact, the song pretty much fell apart at 1:40.