Song reviews

They might well be from Nottinghamshire but aspiring  rock band Desensitised sound altogether more American with Nirvana style riffs keeping “What I Was Thinking” from staying on this side of the pond while singer Charlotte goes all Evanescence just to reinforce that a transatlantic journey is on the cards. So, definite mainstream appeal and that might just be all they need to get by.

A prelude to an album of the same name it would seem, “Is Anybody Home?” is a lightweight, sparely arranged instrumental song that could best be described as organic. Handclaps drive the acoustic mood along nicely even it is more background than foreground listening.

Not many smiles here with “Love Grows” reflecting on the randomness of relationships whilst pseudo Postcard guitars keep the dour vocals company. Only the drummer sounds like he – sexist assumption but I bet I am right - is a stranger to Prozac but a wee restructure by, say, making the chorus sound like it is a chorus could make all the difference to Vanetta Valls and their chances of success with this one.

Damn, this one is smooth. I thought that the days of cocktail jazz had long gone but not, it seems, if you are Italian. Silvia Anglani puts not a, no doubt designer shod, foot wrong throughout “Odio Decembre” with the kind of confident and eloquent vocal performance that just reeks of class. Naturally, there is sax in abundance too.

“Cold Sweat” is a simple song but I suppose that it all you really need in these attention deficit days. However, this London based melodic indie rock band do sell it with some gusto but whether that is enough to make them stand out from the crowd remains to be seen.

“Nothing Wrong with Being Wrong” provides adequate proof that there is nothing wrong with being a Glasgow indie popster even in these days of cardigan wearing oversupply. Although politely performed and roughly recorded, the song nonetheless has an endearing, non-threatening quality to it but it is Nicola Rainey’s here there and everywhere vocal that saves the day and lifts the song above grey mediocrity.  For once, practice is all that will be needed to make this one perfect.

Bar-L is one Her Majesty’s holiday camps, in case you were wondering, so credit is due to The Skunnered for using it as a somewhat unusual inspiration for a song. Wry lyrics that would be Americana if this were Travis County instead of dear old Glasgow town carry this song along in a way that Ray Davies would surely approve of and I have to admit that I was soon singing the Bar-L Blues myself.

A bit retro and more than a bit rough around the edges, A Winters Education push their song “Swindling Sisters”, probably deliberately, into sub Smiths territory.  With a bit of tidying up, they could escape mere revivalism with this one. After all, that worked for the Felt Tips.

Minimalist electronic doodlings from what appears to be a one man and a laptop band from Birmingham, “North” sounds like a low budget Vangelis style soundtrack cue for the kind of movie that only ever got released on VHS and is none the worse for being that.

Full of mellow grooviness and seasoned with a tablespoonful of reverb, “The Coldest Corner” sounds like it has been pulled out a late sixties movie soundtrack and I reckon you will probably have to be of a certain age (or beyond) to fully appreciate this song. One to enjoy with a nice cup of tea methinks.

“Cruise Elroy” has an endearing, half way through a journey to retro radio friendliness, simplicity like, say, a cut back Weezer.  It is a demo so the songs suffers from a flat mix and it does drag on past its sell by date somewhat but if they polish it up then it should do just fine.

A rare occasion when a woman’s touch makes no perceptible difference at all, Elisa Luu’s “Se fosse per me” sounds like any other bit of sequenced serendipity determined to wander the airwaves without direction. Bedsit electronica, I know thy name!