Song reviews

Playful to the point of encroaching into showtune territory, Ruth Theodore goes downtown of Broadway before making a sharp left into an alleyway full of witty and quirky lyrics. I’d spend my own money on a ticket to have her play with my ears.

Harmonies are the way of Girls Next Door with “Living In The Rain” with the supremely well-seasoned gospel sentiments of the song resonating far beyond its three minute runtime. Believe your ears even if you don’t believe.

A suitably muscular rock song, “What U Wanna” plays on a riff with all of the steroid fuelled consequences. Some might even say this song is best played loud and they would be right. Hell, it’s Friday night and you know it’s the right thing to do.

Super smooth sounds from Norway with Atari layering laidback female vocals, retro synth sounds and neo jazz rhythms into a sweet song called “Fujifilm”. It’s like the past has suddenly become the present again, but in a good way.

“Angeline” has the stamp of commerciality all over it with Liverpool’s Keyside holding a steady course all the way through the song. Some neat guitar work compliments the confident vocals and the result fits neatly into any mainstream playlist.

Alex Amor puts her finger on the pulse of today and turns it, once again, into song. “Cherry Blossom Boy” is slickly produced with the emphasis on perfect numbers yet you can’t really argue with her commercial instincts. Radio friendly.

You just know when a song is more than the sum of its part and “You’re My Muse” by Xan Tyler is one such song with all those retro stylisations, grungy guitars and Ms. Tyler’s laconic vocals combining into a midnight walk on a rain soaked city street.

Sometimes the bear gets you and sometimes indie rock goes a bit showtune as is the case with “Calabasas” by Goldfinch. I’m not sure where this band is going but at least, for a change, they aren’t just playing by the rules.

Making some proper noise are Odd Robot” with their song “Anti-Revolution” mixing much in the way of guitars in with the duetting male and female vocals to make for a three minute excuse to drive way above the speed limit. Again.

Laidback but still lyrically sharp, Maya Delilah stamps some style on to her song “Necklace”. Really too good for the coffee shop crowd but likely to be forever destined to be consumed with a latté, this is one for discerning ears.

“Reciprocate” is so smooth a song that it successfully evokes the groove of back in the day FM rock radio and Alannah Moar decorates her words with both wistful melody and easy on the ear production. Smoothy smooth it is.

Ben Hemming’s song “Dark Waters” exudes the brooding torment of a song with a deeper meaning with those grinding power chords taking the song for a stroll in the shadows with the ghost of seventies blues rock. Intensly muscular.