Song reviews

“Little things” has that laid back, post-midnight vibe with the shuffling electro beats and the wistful vocals combining to make a perfect soundtrack for a nighttime drive in your (hybrid) car. M.Rider knows where she is going with this one.

There will always be a place for a sentimental song and “Just Hold On” is such a song with Nico Ev singing sweetly all the way through it. The musical accompaniment may be sparse but her suitably expressed emotions fill the spaces nicely.

A solid reinvention of the brooding retro synth pop sound from Stirling band Transmission Suite with their laconically delivered song “Part of the Problem” looping the click track just like they used to do back in the bleak eighties.

Ironic in that distinctly British way, Diamond Country Dance Club steer their song “I Wanna Work in a Supermarket” straight along the river to sardonic nirvana. I’d call this song intelligent power punk and I would, as always, be right.

It Man successfully mixes some Britpop sensibilities into his quirkiness cake with “White Heat” coming out of the oven smelling like it was still 1992 whilst simultaneously proving that such sounds have a very long sell by date.

I didn’t know that soft rock still existed yet here we are with Davide Pannozzo and his song “Keep On Loving You”. The musicianship is on the money as is the melody and the polished lead vocals. That’s enough to take this song all the way from the bridge to FM radio.

“Otherworld” has a bit of that primal New Age vibe going for it with Celestial North’s almost not there voice weaving amongst the electronic fuzziness to get her message across. Not so much a song a short meditation on more ethereal matters.

It would appear that something has escaped the dancefloor again and ,replete with electro beats, stock samples and a rather curiously worded rap, Daryltron unleashes his song “Rock N Roll” on an unsuspecting world. One listen will be enough to convince you.

I have a fondness for grungy guitars and that nineties’ kick in the head vibe and Apricity duly deliver an updated version of that sound complete with bleached blonde highlights. “Allison Wonderland” is a sharply coiffured song without a doubt.

That festival friendly Americana vibe pervades “Echoes” by Sabina Chantouria making her sentimental song a sure candidate for radio playlists across the globe over the summer months. It’s a nice song that is very nicely sung.

Some songs run deeper than most and “Goodbye Song” duly does so with a near hypnotic grove soon pulling you into the arms of Erin K. This song is an elegant example of a pop song for grown ups. Melodic magic always wins.

It would appear that Jaded jane is a nom de plume for Axel Olsson and “Dreamer” swoops towards your ears on a cloud of sentimentality and synthesisers. It’s the sort of eminently mature song that would make a perfect soundtrack to a montage.