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DARKWATER: “Easy Weakness” (Up Next Records)
RELEASED? Out now.
SOUNDS LIKE? Everything crashing into the wall at the same time. Johnny Cash metal-space-jazz-punk. Huge, swaggering riffs, effective effects, winks, wanks, indie kids slaughtered on kraut-rock altars, the flip rips Roxy Music, Steve Strange, Tom Petty and loads of good stuff.
IS IT ANY GOOD? This is a two track distillation of good rock-pop from 1971 to present. Why? I don’t know, sometimes it just happens, do I ask you about James Blunt?
WHERE IS IT? www.darkwateruk.com

JAPANCAKES: "Soon" / "Touched" (Sonic Cathedral)
RELEASED? 23rd June.
SOUNDS LIKE? Seeing
as both of these
instrumentals are covers
of My Bloody Valentine
tracks, you might, and
quite reasonably, expect
some reference to MBV,
but there's an excuse for
that. "Soon" is Death In
Vegas doing 'Happy
Talk' with very buzzy
amps and "Touched"
takes the triple sliced
shifting tone route to
monochromatic
unhappiness, very big beat fascist at the disco kind of thing and a real, ho, ho, ho, flipside to the sunnier and more manic "Soon".
IS IT ANY GOOD? Yeah, yeah it really is and also an unusual treat to get some smart, danceable instrumental stuff from our yankee chums.
WHERE IS IT? www.soniccathedral.co.uk

LISA O PIU "Whisperers, Wavers, Hunters And Sailors" (Autumn Ferment Recordings)
SOUNDS LIKE? Very, very Kate Bush in the phrasing, but wasting more than decent melody and guitar line with excessive restraint.
IS IT ANY GOOD? Yes, but it needs sorting out and, in the usual "it's insane, but it just might work" kind of way... getting some unscrupulous, money-grubbing industry people to butress these delicate constructions could pay career and creative dividends. One to watch.
WHERE IS IT? www.autumnfermentrecords.com

INNER PARTY SYSTEM: "Don't Stop" (Island)
RELEASED? 30th June.
SOUNDS LIKE? Big, big and a deserved big hit. Skittering, punkoid, neck-bulging, eye-popping droid-dance rock. Bit like the gay robot from Star Wars got hopped on steroids, downloaded some old Jam singles and shoved jumped a pomp-rocket to a Prodigy playback.
IS IT ANY GOOD? How could it not be?
WHERE IS IT? www.innerpartysystem.com

OUT FROM ANIMALS: "The National Curriculum" (Rough Edge)
RELEASED? 16th June.
SOUNDS LIKE? Everything has gone to shit and back. Slick, noodled, electro-synth whine-pop.
IS IT ANY GOOD? Clint Boon from Xfm said "You'll live longer for hearing this track", no Clint, it just seems longer with this shite for a soundtrack. Jo Wiley said "More relevant and exciting than anything I've seen today" and that's just soooooooooo Jo, eh?
WHERE IS IT? www.outfromanimals.com

THE LOVELY EGGS: “I Like Birds But I Like Other Animals Too” (Filthy Little Angels)
RELEASED? Out now.
SOUNDS LIKE? Elastica meet
Bill Oddie and gut him with a
rusty bread knife.
IS IT ANY GOOD? Pardon our
cynicism, but indie-arse two
pieces rarely release anything
you’d want to wipe your arse
on, but The Lovely Eggs are
totally wonderful and rough as
guts in their cheerful rape of
Elastica on “I Like Birds…”
This is the kind of band who are
inspired by the excellence of the past and the kind of band who will inspire the excellence of the future, we hope.
WHERE IS IT? www.myspace.com/thelovelyeggs

GREGORYZ GIRL: "Moving Mountains" EP (G.G)
RELEASED? 1st July.
SOUNDS LIKE? A lovely mismatch of country-pop-rock-jangle, probably two, maybe three times more decent singles wriggling around in the title track alone.
IS IT ANY GOOD? Yes. The lyrics are generally duff and they're ramming way too much into every track, but it's generally good stuff that's being levered in and her voice is money in the bank, dirty angel dust on honey, a sweet, saucy and strong vibrato.
WHERE IS IT? www.gregoryzgirl.com

THE HEART STRINGS: "Kids" (Grandpa Stan Records)
RELEASED? 7th July.
SOUNDS LIKE? This is wonderful, every time I turn around there's another single from The Heartstrings on the pile, it's like being stalked by someone you love. It's also very much like McCartney fiddling with 10cc in the vicininty of a fairground attraction.
IS IT ANY GOOD? This is pop mother lode material, too pure for an earless industry and brat-blitzed public, but this is excellent and effortless pop, the kind that comes from the sweat, tantrums and detailed obsession that comes from pride, passion and caring.
WHERE IS IT? www.theheartstrings.com

KORA: "Flow" (Blogs)
RELEASED?
SOUNDS LIKE? Er, sounds like a rocked up Stevie Wonder playing with Monster Magnet to me.
IS IT ANY GOOD? Of course, it's hard to imagine a situation where top notch funk-rawk would fail to rule.
WHERE IS IT? www.kora.co.nz