Sound of 2011

At the beginning of this year, I was asked to write a summary of a few bands/people that I thought would do big things in 2011. These are mine... There are more, but I ran out of space!

James Blake
Since the release of his first EP back in 2009, Blake’s work has been praised by many well-respected DJs, including Gilles Peterson and Zane Lowe. His cover of Feist’s ‘Limit to your Love’ has already stormed the Radio 1 playlist, gaining him the second place slot in the BBC Sound of 2011 poll. Not only can he produce stunning vocals like this, but listen to his other work, and you hear his talents as a dub-step producer.

Hailing from London, his experimentation with different sounds knows no bounds, making his work somewhat unique, especially as he adds more and more of his own vocals. This is shown on two tracks which feature on the BBC’s website [http://www.bbc.co.uk/music/soundof/2011/artists/jamesblake/#p00d4900], namely ‘Lindisfarne’ and ‘Wilheim’s Scream.’ As he recreates this tracks as somewhat calmer versions of their dubstep originals, the true quality of his voice shines through, as it proves to be a pleasure to listen to whether used acoustically or in a more produced manner. ‘Air and Lack Thereof,’ available on his MySpace, is perhaps a more laid-back dub-step creation, particularly when compared to ‘CMYK,’ also available on MySpace, and a track which has already gained glimmering reviews. Again, this showcases his ability to manipulate electronics, and anything else for that matter, to their full potential.  

With EPs already available, he is set to storm the charts with the release of his album in February. 2011 is set to be a good year for James Blake.

The naked and Famous

Formed in 2008, this quintet have already received recurring radio play from both Fearne Cotton and nick Grimshaw to name just two. Having also recently been nominated for the BBC’s Sound of 2011 poll, as well as being compared to MGMT and Passion Pit, this new Zealand group are in no bad place. They’ve already achieved a number single in their home country, which also won them the APRA Silver Scroll for being the new Zealand band to achieve this in 16 years. A reworked version of studio album ‘Passive Me Aggressive You’ is set for in March, which, judging by their previous singles and success, is an album that will hopefully bring some of their new Zealand magic- and sun- into the UK.

Funeral Party

This four-piece LA-based band have been making their mark on the music industry since early-2009, but with the release of their album set for later this January, Funeral Party are set to storm 2011. Formed from boredom of their hometown –Whittier-, Funeral Party set about to make the sort of high-energy music that instantly evokes partying and often mayhem. Just the way they like it. ‘new York City Moves to the Sound of LA’ was an instant radio hit, spurring on support for later singles ‘Finale’ and ‘Just Because.’ Having already supported Julian Casablancas, leading him to announce them as “the future,”  Funeral Party should have no doubts as to the success of forthcoming album ‘Golden Age of Knowhere.’

2010 End of Year List

This was just a quick little thing I wrote at the end of last year for Spark*. Nothing funny/witty/intelligent

  

Top 5 tracks of 2010 (please state song name and artist):

TOO MANY!

1) Mark Ronson- Somebody to Love Me

2) Foals- This Orient… or Miami. Or Spanish Sahara. I can’t choose…

3) Cee Lo Green- Fuck You

4) Katy Perry- Firework

5) Arcade Fire- We Used to Wait

If I’m allowed to cheekily have 6, I’ll add Hurts- Wonderful Life.

  

Favourite album of the year:

Foals- Total Life Forever

Best music video:

ANYTHING by Lady Gaga. Telephone in particular, and Bad Romance.

Most exciting live act/gig/live moment (please state artist, venue and date if possible):

General Fiasco- March 2010, Islington Academy

Worst song of the year:

Anything by Justin Bieber. Or Jedward. Or Black Eyed Peas trying, and failing, to remix ‘I’ve had the time of my life.’

Music villain of 2010:

Louis Walsh, for killing my hearing via Wagner.

Most shocking/weirdest music moment of the year:

Lady Gaga’s VMA Meat Dress. For the chunder factor.

Favourite Lady Gaga fashion moment of 2010:

The same dress, because of its wonderful weirdest

Who’s your money on for this year’s Christmas #1:

X Factor, let’s be honest.

Your music prediction for 2011:

Justin Bieber or Lady Gaga will take over the world. That, or Simon Cowell and Louis will join together to take over all record labels, and we’ll be stuck with Westlife. Forever. 

Jenny and Johnny- 'I'm Having Fun Now'

Haven't posted in far too long. Back-tracking, this is a review I did in December. Again, I really liked this, which is cool. One day I will find something I don't like! Anyway, this is my review of Jenny and Johnny...

Jenny and Johnny consists of indie-rock band ‘Rilo Kiley’ member, Jenny Lewis, and singer-songwriter Johnathon Rice. ‘Im Having Fun Now’ is their first musical outing together. All instruments, aside from drums on various tracks, are played by Jenny and Johnny themselves.

Album opener ‘Scissor Runner,’ immediately showcases the duo’s beautiful harmonising vocals. Both have softness, mixing well with the underlying instrumentals. Moving effortlessly onto ‘My Pet Snakes,’ the catchy melody grabs your attention and you can’t help but ‘bop’ along. With layered vocals and lyrics like “God it makes me queasy when you smile,” this song is surely be on the road to being a hit.

‘Big Wave,’ the first single released from the album, hosts haunting vocals from Jenny, who sings predominantly in this track. It’s obvious why this was chosen as their first single, as we can feel the sincerity in Jenny’s vocals, with lyrics such as “my blues, they won’t go away.” It’s also easy to imagine this being a crowd sing-a-long favourite, with the hook being “big wave, do do do.”

There are numerous gems on this album, such as ‘Animal,’- honing lyrics like “we must rearrange reality”- and more upbeat tracks, such as “Just Like Zeus,” to name a few. The latter brings some fun to the album, sounding like a track that could be played during summer on a beach. The track also gives us a very brief to hear Jenny and Johnny singing without melody behind them, which proves to be unmistakenly beautiful.

The album ends with ‘Committed,’ a rockier edge to finish the album. This brings out the hidden darkness in the album, with Johnny singing “I need to be locked away.” All in all, this first album from the duo is a real success, and they are a band to watch.

4/5

Spark*

I recently joined the music team of our university's newspaper, Spark*. My first review was of solo artist Kiria and her album Radio. I really liked it!

London-based solo artist Kiria is on track to bring back positive views of ‘pop-punk.’ Backed by a four piece band, she has already received rave reviews, not only for her recorded work, but for her live performances too.


Album opener Radio, with its heavy riffs and catchy drumbeats, is a song which can easily be imagined as a stadium anthem. Kiria opens the song with the “I can’t turn switch my radio on, I can’t stand the tunes,” which sums up her preference for older tunes over the hits of today. Radio gives us a great impression for the rest of the album, which doesn’t disappoint, especially with Fussy Girl. With the main hook as “I’m not one of those fussy, fussy girls,” this seems set to be a future fun, girly, sing-a-long anthem.

Lead single Jelly Baby is the perfect mix of girl power pop and energetic punk. Instantly recognisable as another future sing-a-long, it packs beefy guitar riffs from the start. Teamed with innocent vocals, including a round of “bababadada,” a hit record is made. This is followed by Love Song, a piano and violin collaboration, something which is not often seen in the charts these days. It’s a sweeter, more low key track, providing a calming break in the album. It also gives us a chance to see a different side of Kiria.

The album finishes on the rockier Live Sex on Stage. A collaboration with comedian Paul Kaye, this brings out the punk influences that Kiria often refers to. The track is raw, fresh and brilliantly neat whilst still encapturing the essence of pop-punk, with lyrics such as “just make sure your knickers get seen.” It’s a great, fun end to the album.


Radio is released on Koochie Coo Records on 25th October.


4/5