Song reviews

I was wondering if there might one day be a Nick Lowe revival and, as if by coincidental magic, along came “Clear Crystal View” by Shem Sharples. This is the kind of song that Nick Lowe would have produced back in the day.

You can smell the money behind “Secret” and Julian Shah-Tayler pulls some neat nice later period Bowie moves to add that final spit and polish to this radio friendly song. Obviously commercial but none the worse for all that.

Interesting. “Barely” initially seems like just another laidback dream pop song but there is too much going on for this to be merely an extended venture into lo-fi land and Star Moles make this song seem, for want of a better word, twinkly.

Playing their cards straight are Edinburgh rock band Black Lesion with their song “Sins” giving genre fans exactly what they want in the way of muscular guitar riffs and purposeful vocals. Just the thing for a Friday night.

It makes a change to be able to say anything nice about Coatbridge and, for once, I can for Coatbridge band Feet of Clay have infused “Son” with enough casual confidence and guitar powered sounds of days gone to make it into a satisfying song.

Does London have soul? Maybe, for “Scarlet Woman” is the kind of song that could only come from an urban metropolis and Louise Golbey injects modern day sentiments and, dare I say it, soul into it. One for the cool cats, without a doubt.

Is this a sign of the return of the proper song? Could well be, for “Up The Nurses” relies not on technological gimmicks but instead on hook and melody as the main ingredients in Silverback’s recipe for ear candy.

There are days when you think you have played too many video games and, on those days, you want a song like “Up in Smoke” by Ænly as they, very confidently, can tick all the style boxes associated with a metal band and return you to earth.

Right on the money for the commercial ear appeal, Nienke Jansz locks her song “Sleepless” to the loop that leads to success. Catchy and upbeat, this is the kind of song that could charm both the dancefloor and the charts.

I like a bit of laconic indifference in a performance and Telquist provides just that and then uses it to drive his song “Taste” towards the land of the offbeat and downright quirky. If you have taste and style, this one is for you. Sweet.

I hadn’t expected Einar Vilberg to adopt the ways of the seventies rock band as effectively as he has and “Serve The Servants” duly resonates with musical purpose, deeper meaning and a guitar solo. A song like this needs a guitar solo.

Sensitive singer songwriters are back in fashion and Tali Shear is one of them. Her song “Fool” is one of regret and misunderstanding – which is as one might expect – but she benefits from an honest and direct approach to her performance.