Starshell – SuperLuva (Watch)
However you might expect Mary J Blige’s new protegée to sound like, it couldn’t possibly be this. SuperLuva sounds like the cheesiest summery Europop! This is no criticism of course – I love Europop and this is an excellent example. I’m guessing what she was actually going for is a Lady GaGa meets Rihanna sound, and in fact that would be a fair description of her sound, although she’s not at all ground-breaking like they are. The video isn’t great (if you only have a small budget, keep it simple!) and despite the list of top names she’s worked with I don’t have much hope her success. However, she’s piqued my interest and I’m looking forward to hearing her next single T.K.O – if it’s as good as Le Tigre’s T.K.O I’ll be more than happy.
78% Poptastic!
Hyper Crush – Kick Us Out (Listen)
Hyper Crush are part of the new ‘electrohop’ crowd, associating with The Cataracs, Far East Movement and Dev, but their sound is poppier than their friends’. They toured Europe with GaGa back in 2009 when she was still doing O2 Academy-type venues, so you may have seen them then. Lead vocalist Holly Valentine sounds a bit like Ke$ha, as do the lyrics (in this case about being kicked out of a club) so they may lose out on pop fame because that similarity makes them seem unoriginal, but actually they have a pretty strong collection of songs and the current single Kick Us Out is definitely their best. The only thing that puts me off the band is the rapper, who has a horrible 3OH!3-esque style, but luckily his involvement in Kick Us Out is minimal.
73% Poptastic!
iSquare – Hey Sexy Lady (Watch)
I presume iSquare are supposed to be a new Black Eyed Peas, but actually I’d say they’re more like a US version of Roll Deep. I already prefer them to the BEPs as they actually seem to have a sense of humour about themselves. The bit where the guy in the checked shirt leads the dancing in their latest video is hilarious, and I just love how they all get into it. It’s clear they’re having a great time and with mixed gender bands that’s always important as they need the audience to want to be part of their gang. The music needs some work but it’s a good enough start, and as they are signed to P Diddy’s label hopefully with his support they’ll be given some stronger material to release next. Then again, this one’s stuck firmly in my brain now I’ve finished listening to it, so maybe it will be a hit!
70% Poptastic!