The Cold Cut

Pin Me Down- Cryptic (Link 2)
Pin Me Down- Pretty In Pink (Link 2)

This really isn't me, but all I can say is... fuuuuuuuck. Why didn't someone tell me earlier? Why did you leave me out of the party? Pin Me Down are so, so, so incredibly ace, and clearly destined for huge things. Why 'Cryptic' isn't number vexes me. It came out in May, and I've only just heard about it? Boy-girl duo's are based around a nice dynamic, and in Milena Mepris and Russell Lissack from Bloc Party, we have a combo for the ages.

I'm almost certain that there's a good story behind this duo. Since 'Flux' came out, Bloc Party interviews have been less than chilled, as if Kele was forging a path for the band that he alone wanted to take. And 'Mercury' must have been even more taxing... I like the song, but do you notice that huge gaping silence? That's the gap left by Russell- as my brother correctly questioned: what's the point of writing songs which don't use one of the best guitarists of the modern age? Nice one, Kele. Stop being moody, continue with this experimentation, but use Russell as well as those nice synth lines.

Enough of Bloc Party- Pin Me Down are, as a breaking band, in a league of their own. At this point, we can only be sure of one thing: Russell is hiding a super song-writing brain behind that killer fringe.

Visit Pin Me Down's myspace page, and buy 'Cryptic' from the iTunes store.

Unbeknownst to many, I have a soft spot inside for a bit of jazz. At school, I enjoy messing around on the saxophone, and when someone like Jon Regen gets in touch, I cannot resist indulging myself. It is fitting that he is the first jazz artist to be featured on this blog.

This isn't straight jazz, though. The songs on 'Let It Go', his new album, offer a half and half mix of jazz and pop, a la John Legend ('Get Lifted' era, not 'Once Again'). The piano is used as a focus rather than an after thought- there is a lot of instrumental versatility, moving from literally slamming the keys to mildly depressing them. And Jon's voice? Distinctive, and yet hard to compare (a good thing), the only thing obvious about it is that it is strong enough to take him upwards.

The talent is all there... all Jon needs is a lucky break. And that break must be close; 'Let It Go' has seen a host of positive reviews, and featuring artists including Andy Summers (of The Police) and Martha Wainwright suggest that his widespread ability is starting to become more apparent.

Visit Jon's Myspace for a preview of 'Let It Go'

Rating: 8/10
Truly rewarding experimentation from the Eel Pie Island troop...

Mystery Jets- Hideaway
Mystery Jets- Half In Love With Elizabeth

After the dulcet tones of 'Young Love', '21' might come as a surprise. Firstly, we weren't expecting air raid sirens as the instrument to herald its arrival, on 'Hideaway', the opening track. Secondly, for some, the fact that the quality of 'Young Love' is translated across to the album might be unexpected- from the beginning, this is already superior to their ramshackle debut, 'Making Dens'.

The Mystery Jets are not an ordinary band... their formation, appearance, music- everything has that strong sense of individuality about it. How did they come to be? Under the tutelage of Henry Harrison, lead singer Blaine's father, the band developed their brand of progressive rock as young teenagers. It was this style of music that made up 'Making Dens', unfortunately eclipsed by releases from London scenesters Jamie T and The Maccabees. It is also this style of music which is lacking on '21', but its absence is hardly noticeable. The departure of Henry was a likely catalyst. His exit, however, has left a wide open space for youthful exuberance, and in essence, that is what '21' is all about. It should be noted that whilst Henry has stopped performing live with the band, he still contributes to the live process.

Second time around, the band have taken a completely different direction: 'Young Love' made things clear- no overbearing percussion, no prog elements, and no lead singer? Yes, for the first time, Will (guitarist), stepped forward to sing lead. And does a bloody good job if you ask me. Aided by Laura Marling (who happens to be everywhere nowadays), this song is close to pop perfection, and set things up nicely for '21's arrival.

Erol Alkan's presence is felt all the way through the record, and he has done a much better job here than on the new Long Blondes album, 'Couples' (review due some time soon). The prog has been mostly discarded, but Alkan has instead coaxed out some great pop songs: this album has much more widespread appeal, and might see the band finally capitalise on their talent. Songs such as 'Half In Love With Elizabeth' and 'Flakes' are not as simple as they seem, and Blaine's vocals slide easily into place.

Whilst some will be quick to herald this album as 'good' or 'bad', it's really much more than that. On '21', we see huge signs of progression, and the prospect of what comes next is actually more exciting than the album itself. However, if I had to condense it into a sentence, this album is all about a young band with a shed-load of talent, and finally some room to breath. Once again, Mystery Jets have surprised us all...

'21' can be purchased here...

James Murphy has done extremely well out of his electro-pop hybrid style of music: chances are you won't know he is but his latest musical project LCD Soundsystem has produced two great albums which were both well received. On top of this he runs his own music label, Death From Above, and is constantly in demand as a DJ. Don't forget the fact that in 1992 he was asked to write the script for a small new show called Seinfeld, but turned it down, citing a busy schedule as his excuse. So.... you might call him multi-talented then, what with dabbling (successfully, mind) in different projects. Unfortunately, his mettle is about to be tested by Matthew Dear, the latest contender for the multi talented go-to guy crown. And the way in which Dear is challenging him? Well, you could say imitation.... Asa Breed, Dear's new album, is very similar to the latest LCD Soundsystem release, Sound Of Silver.

Matthew Dear is an Texas-born music producer from the same mold as Murphy, although so far he hasn't managed to emulate Murphy's success. Also the owner of a record label, Ghostly International, Dear has had many successful songs and remixes but has found it hard to translate the success across to a full album. I'm not lying when I say Matthew Dear is one of the most prolific artists I've ever come across, remixing and recording hundreds of tracks under different aliases (Matthew Dear, Audion, Jabberjaw and False) and surprising everyone by constantly flitting between styles and genres of music (check out his wikipedia page if you don't believe me). The last few years have been highly exciting for his followers, who have patiently watched him changing into a first class musician/producer- there were hints of this but his style quite defined yet, so this process was a metamorphosis if you like. With his latest album, Asa Breed, I can happily say that he has found his sound, although its still hard to identify what different elements it is made up of. And there you have the fundamental reason why his music is so interesting to listen to: across Asa Breed there is a varying pace, sound and style to every track, and Dear has obviously come to terms with the fact that his most successful music has been impossible to define: genre tags like hip-hop/electronica/garage/dance are commonplace with his music, and also means that in theory, some elements of each song should appeal to everyone.

This really is a fantastic third album, and in my opinion Dear has really come into his own. If he keeps up his producing and DJing he could be a serious threat to well-established people like Murphy. The only problem is that Dear has to learn when to stop slicing and dicing music, or he could end up alienating his main fan base: Asa Breed is good because it subtly puts together the best elements of many styles of music, although on some tracks there are points where he is close to the edge in terms of how much variety you can stuff into 3 minutes. After I've listened to the album a bit more I will probably do a review of it, probably later this week. There are a couple of tracks available for download below, you should know the drill by now.

Matthew Dear- Pom Pom
Matthew Dear- Deserters

Weird Album Cover?

I don't want to take credit for the content of this post: upon recommendation from my friend Mike, I had a quick listen to Scouting For Girls... I was fairly surprised by what I heard, and felt compelled to write something brief about them. I can't quite understand why this band aren't already huge: they've been around since 2005, crafting numerous pop gems, three of which are available for download at the bottom of this post. Having just released their debut three track EP- It's Not About You- to commercial success (at it's highest point it was #31 in the charts), it seems a full length album is on the way: their catchy songs ensure that they stay in people's minds even after they've forgotten the bands name (which I think is prety damn cool: a play on words of Girl Scouts?). I- and Mike- would recommend you listen to the stand-out track on their EP, It's Not About You: I can't remember any other pop-rock song which uses harmonies so memorably. In fact, now that I think about it, this band is pretty memorable in general; they have a catchy name, some great tunes and a sound which appears to be fully mature, even when they haven't released an album yet. This full sound could be the band's selling point: there is no variety in terms of their song-quality: all three I have heard so far have been of the same calibre, whilst being different in both style and sound.

Unless something goes seriously wrong, I'm sure you will be hearing much more about this band over the next few years: given the fashion in which people bought their 10 minute long EP, a feature length album will no doubt sell well. You can download all the tracks from this project, or by clicking the links below individually. Let me use this opportunity to ask if anyone out there has been lucky enough to see this band live? Were they any good?

Scouting For Girls- It's Not About You
Scouting For Girls- Keep On Walking
Scouting For Girls- Mountains Of Navaho

Check out the band's myspace page for updates on tour dates and their latest releases...

You would have thought that after the unanimous slamming The Bravery's first album received, they would have slinked off with their tails between their legs... but no, it turns out they went away for a couple of years to begin constructing the album that their first should have been. I was one of the people expecting their self-titled debut to be excellent, but when I finally got my hands on a copy, I was massively underwhelmed. How could they go so wrong? Where were the numerous crafted disco/pop gems to match An Honest Mistake? Plus, to top it all off, they couldn't keep their mouths shut. They probably wouldn't have received so many bad reviews if Sam Endicott, their lead singer, hadn't struck up a pointless feud with Brandon Flowers of The Killers... argue all you want, but make sure you have the songs to back you up before you argue with a band as international as The Killers!

Well, that's all in the past now, and thus far I'm very happy that they didn't give up the first time around. From the two tracks that I've heard, they are yet again on track to make an outstanding pop-punk album; I can only hope they don't drop the ball so spectacularly this time, and live up to the hype. And if they fail? Well, for their sakes I hope they retire with at least some dignity.... If you want to hear a track off their album, click the link below to download Believe, my track of the day.

The Bravery- Believe.mp3

Pre order their new album, The Sun And The Moon - released on July 16th- here.