Song reviews

Showing a mastery of the ethereal comes easily to Alice Phoebe Lou and “Galaxies” further strengthens her position as a poet in the popular music pantheon. The drifting melody and trippy tone somehow make this song seem curiously sonorous too.

Now this is more like it. Offbeat and persuasive to the point of being hypnotic, Grace Acladna stirs in enough of something different to appeal to the arthouse crowd while still being close enough to the mainstream to touch the adventurous section of the urban audience.

No idea what rebellious youth might actually sound like in these corporate compliance days but I would hope that it something as noisy and full of attitude as “Coal In Your Window” by Skye Wallace. Turn it up and enjoy!

I don’t know if this song by Drinking Boys and Girls Choir signifies some sort of skater boy revival but “National Police Shit” is what it is – frenetic, raucous, straight to the point and, surprisingly, from South Korea. Another one to enjoy at maximum volume.

Worshipping Weezer (probably) isn’t a crime and Bony Macaroni are certainly guilty of such adoration with their song “France” bursting out of the speakers like songs did when retro was new. Nonetheless, a song as boisterous and upbeat as this screams summer at me.

Berlin Taxi turn out to be an American synth pop band yet their song “Last Night” resonates with musical influences from the bleaker end of the European spectrum. The result has, unsurprisingly, analogue inclinations and plenty of reverb.

Mourning Birds go back to basics with “Insane” keeping their manic punk powered music machine on track for the best part of two minutes. They’re loud, they’re raucous and they sound like they might just be beer fuelled delinquents. That works for me.

Interesting. Ghost Caravan’s “Love Me If You Dare” seems much more like the work of proper musicians than is usual in these computer assisted days. Appealing female lead vocals and the song’s pleasingly complex arrangement seal the deal.

Lost in a world of drifting melancholy, Magnetic Skies reinvent that eighties retro sound and use it to power their song “Dreams and Memories” towards the sunset. Low key vocals add some style to the five minute plus musical journey.

Make no mistake about it, “Disappear” is an endearing song that stays just this side of offbeat with Paria playing with your ears like a supercool jazz cat would play with a ball of wool. If I were a multinational technology giant, I would license this song for my next commercial. Believe it!

“Leaning on Myself” is another slice from the cake of bleakness much favoured by minimalist Scandi electropop bakers like Anna of the North. The song is, of course, nicely executed but seekers of happiness will have to look elsewhere.

It might seem rather strange to describe a song as “oddly human” yet the term seems nothing less than appropriate when considering Skyscraper Stan’s song “On Your Corners” with his fractured Americana influences soon being overcome by glorious old school sentimentality.