Song reviews

Austrian duo, although you’d never know it from the very American indie pop sound that infuses “Key Biscayne”,  Chronic City manage to stay this side of twee (but only just) as they go all wistful over those well practised laptop loops.

OK, it’s a grunged up bit of psych flavoured wandering musical indulgence but “Catalytic Conversion” convinces more than most in the all important area of musical competence. Given the right drugs this might just work for you.

“And I’m Not Alone” is a vaguely ambient example of a man and his sensitivity with Riddley Walker spinning out a limited lyric out – a chant really – for the best part of five minutes. The song is best compared with George Harrison in his solo hippie days and would therefore benefit from an attack of the digital razor blade. Less is often more when it comes to music.

Determined to walk once more the path of deeply meaningful eighties style retro, The Tranq head for your conscience with “Dissident”. Insistent repetition gets the point across but the rather unexciting male vocals fail to deliver the passion such a song needs.

"Die großen Scheine“ is a somewhat rigid take on that American power pop meets indie rock sound so beloved of American bands of the nineties by German band Rau. Rau, perhaps unsurprisingly, do a thoroughly competent job with this song.

Typically lilting and endearing, the ever adorable Lorraine McCauley and her stalwart colleagues The Borderlands set out to charm with their folk flavoured “What If”. Wistful when done right – as here – is simply wonderful.

It would seem that Sweden does more than electro pop with The Slytest rocking it out like a cross between Deacon Blue and S Club 7. It’s that classic power pop sound in other words so welcome it with open arms (and ears).

Middle of the road, mid paced and moody plastic pop from Top Less, “Danger Love” is rather less interesting than the band’s name might suggest. Nice vocals just about keep the interest going but you would have had to have been kept in a cupboard for the last twenty years not to have heard this kind of thing before. However, a brutal remix may let the song find friends on the dance floors of Europe.

Matthew Collings seems to have confused repetition with construction in his unimaginative urban – it would be inappropriate to call this a song - soundscape “They Meet On The Subway”. Nothing much happens and you will have pressed the stop button long before the song’s end.  Simply tedious.

“Way Down South” is a refreshingly energetic rock song that evades originality and instead heads off down the road to redemption land armed with a commendable sense of purpose, cigarette infused vocals and looking for a fight guitars. Just add a beer or six to enjoy this one.

There seems to be no shortage of light and fluffy sentimentality in Edinburgh these days and “White Rooms” by Stampede Road provides a further example to entice those east coast cardigan wearers out into the daylight. It isn’t the kind of song that would scare your granny but these purveyors of fey melody should be able to buy a few more lattés on the proceeds of this release.

Deep and meaningful in that way that only the truly deep an meaningful can be, Unkle Bob mixes up a cocktail of spot the influences and  one too many Starbucks lattés to make “Home” into the song it was truly meant to be. To hear is to forget.