Niki & The Dove – DJ, Ease My Mind

The BBC’s Sound of 2012, often regarded as a load of pap.

Tim: This week, the BBC have been doing their annual ‘Sound of [year]’ thing, and while it’s put together by loads of professional music industry people who should know what they’re on about, it’s often regarded as a load of pap. Last year’s top 5 did have Jessie J and The Vaccines, both of whom had a good year, but also included Clare Maguire (three singles, reaching the dizzying chart heights of 78, 23 and 91), Jamie Woon (67 and 76) and James Blake (39, 136, and four that didn’t chart at all, and that takes effort – even The Churned got to number 94).

Tom: I remember Little Boots being featured there the year before, and she’s still going – but I’m not sure about the rest.

Tim: Well, quite, and this year, they’ve chosen to include these guys, a Swedish duo who met making music for the theatre. Apparently, they’ve ‘been threatening to launch the latest offensive of striking Scandinavian pop on these shores for almost two years’. Well, you’ve got to give them points for effort, I suppose, so here’s their latest track.

Tom: Is that a bit of dubstep backing I hear during the verse? It’s like coriander – I can always taste the stuff if it’s in there, and it rarely improves anything it’s in.

Tim: Except carrot and coriander soup, I find.

Tom: Huh. You’re right, as well. I wonder why that is?

Tim: Thoughts on the song:

It takes far, far too long to do anything, and the verses are almost coma-inducing.

Tom: Yep. The chorus, while good, can’t make up for that lengthy verse.

Tim: That pause 36 seconds in makes me think YouTube has broken.

Tom: I used to hate those when I did student radio. I’d think the playback had failed, and rush to the desk in panic.

Tim: Though on a somewhat positive note, the chorus is vaguely enjoyable. Having said that, when it’s repeated for a full minute at the end it gets boring.

So, harsh as this may be, I think they’ll be lucky if they beat James Blake – at least he’s successful enough to have a Wikipedia page.

Tom: That’s not too harsh.

Takida – You Learn

Ooh. I do like a good cello.

Tim: A few months old, but I’ve only just seen it so we’ll pretend it’s new.

Tom: I’ll look the other way if you will.

Tim: That’s very kind of you. Now, if you’ll cast your mind back some distance, you’ll recall that the last time we met these guys, they gave us a slow builder of a song that I liked and you thought sounded too much like Nickelback. And this time, they’ve got cellos!

Tom: Ooh. I do like a good cello.

Tim: But, if we’re honest, not a lot else has changed. The song still builds gradually adding an instrument or two per verse/chorus trasition, although the voice has changed a it – he singer sounds a bit less like he’s about to go out and kill people this time, and more like he’s about to go out and kill himself. I’m not sure that’s a massive improvement, but I can see how it would improve attendance at their live shows.

Tom: It works for Alice Cooper.

Tim: Ooh, blimey. Anyway, I would argue that the voice isn’t really all that important – what we have here is a lot of instrumentation, and that deserves to be appreciated. Not a huge amount happens during the first verse, but then when the drums hit for the chorus it steps up a gear (and I kind of had an urge to slap the singer and tell him to liven up a bit).

Tom: A proper, slow-build emotional track. I can get behind that.

Tim: And then with the horns for the closing section, it feels almost triumphant, especially with the flames going up in the background.

Tom: Damn right. That is how you do a Proper Big Track. Pity about the lengthy and useless credits, though. It’s not a film. That’s just silly.

Tim: It is silly, isn’t it? Especially since they will never, ever get watched, because people will scroll away or close the window when the videos finished. Oh well, silly people. Musically, though, I like this, but I’d love an instrumental version.

Tom: I want to do something, backed by this instrumental. I don’t know what it’d be, but I want it to be backed by this instrumental.

Jonas Oakland – Where Were You Last Night?

Well? Where were you?

Tim: Well? Where were you?

Tom: I’m not saying. By the way, don’t ask your mum why she’s got that smile on her face.

Tim: Already have done, actually – she said she’s still smirking from when you were trying to look seductive.

Tim: To be honest, it’s none of his business whatsoever where you were – he’s only asking because he broke up with you, immediately regretted it, and now demands to know your movements of the rest of the evening.

Tom: Well, that’s one of the creepiest second-person sentences I’ve ever read. And I’ve read Rule 34. (Obscure sci-fi literary reference ahoy!)

Tim: Yeah, so actually, don’t feel you have to answer him. Rude bastard. Also weird-looking as well, I think. Wow, get me being all judgmental.

Tom: I was about to say “he looks a little bit like you”, but I think I’ll keep that under my hat for now.

Tim: Hang on, just got to make a phone call.

Yep, she’s still laughing. Now, this is actually a rather good cover of Ankie Bagger’s late-1980s (and very late-1980s-sounding) hit, although it doesn’t contain the somewhat pointless key change of the original (pointless as it comes in about half a second before the song fades out). It’s got everything it needs to be a decent CLUB BANGER etc, and it also has the feeling in the vocals that lyrics like this demand, which almost comes as something of a surprise, really.

Tom: I didn’t have high hopes for this – I thought it’d be another generic club remix of an old song. In a way it is, but you’re right – the vocals do rescue it.

Tim: The song was also covered by Finnish ‘symphonic metal’ (apparently that’s a thing) band Nightwish a while ago as a B-side.

Tom: Symphonic metal is totally a thing. It’s also awesome. In small doses.

Tim: For some reason (and not the soon to be obvious one), that’s actually my favourite version, and so we shall all listen to it now. (If it really isn’t your thing, at least skip to 3:00 and give it fifteen seconds.)

Tom: Oh, that’s just… that’s just better. Although I did try to sing “You Give Love A Bad Name” to the introduction.

Lord Est feat. Mikael Gabriel – Vuosi Vaihtuu

That’s a cracking instrumental.

Tom: “This is the New Years breaking hit here in Finland!” enthuses an anonymous reader. “Everytime its in radio volume goes up!”

Tom: Hmm. That’s a cracking instrumental that deserves much better vocals.

Tim: Something like that. Certainly is a cracking instrumental.

Tom: “Year of Change” is the title, and while translating the lyrics doesn’t help all that much, it seems to be a generally uplifting song about how the future’s going to be bright. Perfect for the New Year, then. It’s a shame that the lyrics just sound like they’re being phoned in. Put some enthusiasm in, for crying out loud!

Tim: I’m not sure it’s the enthusiasm – I think it’s just that the general tone of the voice doesn’t suit the feeling of the song. The chorus, for example, seems almost a bit military, really. Also, I’m about to say something I don’t think I ever thought I’d say: they should do more with that rapper, because his parts of the verse work better than the rest.

On the other hand, it could be a perfectly appropriate vocal for the song, but we just don’t know as we have next to no knowledge of the Finnish language whatsoever.

Tom: That’s not true. I lived in Helsinki for three months once, and as a result I know “thank you” and at least one swear word. Anyway, translate this, get someone a bit more upbeat on vocal duties, and I reckon this could actually work over here.

Tim: There, I think you’re definitely right.

Saturday Flashback: Magnus Carlsson & Alcazar – Happy, Happy Year For Us All

Like Peter Andre with sleigh bells.

Tim: Last of the festive ones and ten years old now, here’s to 2012!

Tom: Dodgy grammar in the title, and a tune that sounds like Peter Andre with sleigh bells. This doesn’t bode well.

Tim: Oh come on. It’s a lot more in the vein of tradition pop than previous weeks have been, but this still has a sizeable number of fanfares and jingly things to convey the festive spirit, as if the lyrics weren’t enough.

Tom: Despite my initial skepticism, the chorus did win me over a bit. It’s by the numbers, of course, but it’s not going to get me off the dancefloor at an office Christmas party. If I worked at an office.

Tim: Alcazar are, as we should all know, also noted for their considerable success with a cover of Last Christmas, but this has the benefit of being both original and, unusually, more about the new year than Christmas itself. It’s a very upbeat message, and who could really dislike it? Well, except for that idiot at my work who insists that if it’s not from the 80s it’s rubbish.

Tom: And a happy new year to you too, Tim.

SOJO – I Remember

It’s hard to shake off a massive feeling of resemblance

Tim: There’s not a saxophone in sight, but it’s hard to shake off a massive feeling of resemblance to Mr Saxobeat in this track from July.

Tom: Well, that’s because they’re basically the same track.

Tim: Yes – it’s such a massive feeling, in fact, that this could almost be accused of ripping it off entirely.

Tom: It’s the Jimmy Hart Version: they’ve gone “ooh, that was popular, let’s make something similar but make sure we don’t get sued”.

Tim: However, it does lack a couple of things Mr Saxobeat had, such as the male moaning about a minute in, which I always found a bit weird, and the saxophone, which to be honest I’ve been getting a bit bored of.

Tom: Really? I’m not sure it’s possible to get bored of the saxophOH WAIT YES IT IS.

Tim: Things it adds include whistling, which for some reason I seem to have started enjoying recently, like here, and her voice, which I prefer to Alexandra Stan’s, especially over the almost a capella bits. So basically, it’s like of the biggest tracks of the entire year, but a little bit better. That’s good, right?

Tom: Pity it didn’t get there a little earlier.

Foster The People – Pumped Up Kicks

“Constantly distracted by Background Percussion Man.”

Tim: Here’s a live performance. Even though we never do live performances here. I’ll explain in a bit.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yn2r48o0bs8

Tom: I was constantly distracted by Background Percussion Man during that video.

Tim: Fair enough.

Tom: Fair enough?! Have you seen the man? He’s grooving. Grooving like few men have ever grooved before.

Tim: Well, you’ve clearly forgotten what I get up to on the dancefloor, haven’t you. Anyway, I think we may be getting distracted here. I love this song, almost entirely because of that chorus. It is, in my view (and therefore it just is), utterly fantastic.

Tom: Now, that’s unusual for you; I’d have called you as saying it’s a bit boring. Why d’you like it so much?

Tim: Seriously? It has a brilliant tune (repeated often, but here not a bad thing), and the words – aside from not making much sense until you remember that ‘kicks’ is an American synonym for (what we two Brits, at least, call) ‘trainers’ – are great, with a ‘run run run, faster than my bullet’ sense of encouragement and enthusiasm.

Once you throw the verses in, though, it becomes a bit dodgy, because in the recorded version they’re all mushed up, so much so that it’s almost unlistenable (hence the live version).

Tom: Ah, the old Postal Service trick.

Tim: Yeah, and it’s as annoying for me here as it was there.

In their defense, there’s a good reason they’ve become mushed up: the lyrics, when listened to properly, turn the ‘faster than my bullet’ from a metaphor into an instruction*, and that’s really not radio-friendly (though that did apparently disappoint the band, who wanted it there as an anti-gun message to get people thinking and all that). But still, it goes a fair way to putting me off the whole song, which is a proper shame.

* “He’s found a six-shooter gun, in his dad’s closet, box of fun things…he’s coming for you, yeah, he’s coming for you”

Tom: You like it, then?

Tim: All in: I love the chorus, I’m not so keen on the verse. But it’s still one of my favourite tracks of the year.

Tom: How unexpected.

Stefan Raab feat. Lena Meyer – Satellite

This is how you open a Eurovision Song Contest.

Tom: Ladies and gentlemen, this is how you open a Eurovision Song Contest. And get a hit single out of it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DXNMb5DRgN8

Tom: It’s worth mentioning that Stefan Raab is also the only Eurovision host who could reliably pull this off, too. It’s hard to describe him, because there’s no British equivalent: imagine a young Bruce Forsyth crossed with Simon Cowell and you’re vaguely in the right area.

Tim: That’s quite a crossing.

Tom: It is, but it fits: he’s their Cowell-equivalent on talent shows, he wrote the now-legendary “Guildo hat euch lieb” – yes, that one – and yet he’s still popular enough to star in a 4-5 hour light entertainment special once or twice a year.

Anyway: It’s hard for me to overstate how much I disliked ‘Satellite’, Lena’s 2010 Eurovision-winner.

Tim: As a song in general, or as a Eurovision winner? Because although I never liked it that much, I didn’t think it was too bad.

Tom: Both, really. Her bizarre pronunciation, the Ting Tings-like backing, the way the melody just kept disappearing into nothing.

Tim: All fair points, I suppose.

Tom: But as a big band number, it’s perfect, and I don’t think I’ve ever seen a better Eurovision opener.

Tim: I think on that note, you could be right.

Tove Styrke – Call My Name

The mud woman in the video scared me a bit.

Tim: I can’t remember why we didn’t feature this – I think it might have been because the mud woman in the video scared me a bit. Anyway, it has since become clear that it is in fact one of this year’s better songs, so let’s put that aside and have a listen.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MbBrGicA8tA

Tim: First off, about that video: I haven’t a clue what’s going on, so I’ll leave it, although I will say that on occasion they seem to be doing that weird transition where they change the background but keep her face by sort of moving it around a bit; here, they’ve failed, but for a display of it looking excellent, check out C’est La Vie.

Tom: “Right, we’ve got enough budget for about two special effects shots. After that, it’s just going to be you on a bike.”

Tim: As for this song, well, like I said, one of this year’s better songs. The middle eight in particular, I do love, as I do the very last chorus with that same type of singing. On an energetic level, the verses aren’t really anywhere near the choruses, but they still don’t seem like filler, which I reckon would have been a challenge. And as for that chorus, well, it’s great, isn’t it?

Tom: It really is. Although ever since Aviici’s Levels came out, I keep wanting to hear “sometimes, I get a good feeling” after each chorus “whoa”.

Tim: It sounds like Robyn would be when she’s at her very best, and we’re left with a track you can dance to or listen to sitting down, and get an equal amount of pleasure doing either.

Tom: Which is pretty much exactly what we try to find.

The Strokes – Under Cover of Darkness

This sounds like the Strokes. It also sounds really good.

Tim: Well, this is nearly it for this year, but annoyingly there are some songs we never got round to writing about. I propose we spend this last week looking back at the best five tracks of what we missed. Sound good? Good. You go first.

Tom: “Last night, she said, oh baby don’t feel so down…”

This sounds like the Strokes. It also sounds really good.

Tim: Certainly does.

Tom: Okay, so it wasn’t quite as instantly memorable as some of the stuff of their past albums, but it’s a heck of a decent single.

They kept their old sound, and that’s not a bad thing. It’s exactly what I’d want a Strokes track to be: it makes me bob my head, it leaves me feeling vaguely happy, and it’s still got a drummer who’s addicted to cymbals.

Tim: Always fun. I like this too – a good track that just keeps going and going at a good heavy rate. Typical stuff, really.

Tom: Oh, and it stops really abruptl