New Pop on the Block

Alien Beat Club – My Way (Listen)
On first listen, I was very disappointed by the debut single by my favourite act from Danish X Factor. On the show they were full of fun, so I was expecting them to release really jolly cheesy pop songs. However, when I returned to the song, I treated it as the sweet R&B-pop song that it actually is, and by the end of my second listen my obsession with ABC (as they’re often known) had definitely returned. My mistake was seeing them as the Danish Same Difference, when in fact they’re more of a Danish JLS, and that is a good thing if you consider those two acts’ differing levels of success! If you imagine a ballad duet between Rihanna and Taio Cruz, that’s how My Way sounds, and that is a very good sound indeed.
93% Poptastic!

Amy Diamond – Up (Listen)
I love Amy Diamond, but I’m often underwhelmed by the first single she releases from each of her albums. The only time she released the best song first was on her debut, actually. Therefore, I’m not too worried by the fact that Up is only an average quality Amy song, although it is still a bit disappointing after her fantastic recent Melodifestivalen entries. Thank You was one of my top 10 singles of 2008, so Up does have a lot to live up to, but there’s never an excuse for averageness in pop music. It’s nice to have her back, and Up is a cute, bouncy pop song, but there have already been many more than 10 superior singles released this year.
84% Poptastic!

Bashy ft. H-Boogie – Your Wish Is My Command (Watch)
I’ve always ignored Bashy’s existence so far, but when I heard he’d done a song with Jamelia, I had to give it a listen. We Can Do Anything is alright, but it turns out that his new single, featuring Estelle’s little sister, H-Boogie, is even better. It’s a futuristic urban dance song with a catchy chorus and a psychedelic video, reminding me of ace US singer Janelle Monae. H-Boogie has better songs on her MySpace, but I recommend this one anyway. Estelle’s recent work was quite overrated in my opinion, and I’m much more impressed by what I’ve heard of H-Boogie so far. I particularly recommend her song, Radio, with dance act Get Far, but her solo songs are promising too, and Your Wish is a real grower.
70% Poptastic!

0 comments

  1. I’ve been eager to hear ABC’s single since it was announced on their facebook and at first, like you, I had a feeling of “oh, that’s it?!” but i’ve listened a few times and it has really grown on me! I likey! Very smooth and sleek and definitely not the Danish Same Difference! (not to say Same Diff aren’t ace, i love them, but oh you know!)

  2. I've been eager to hear ABC's single since it was announced on their facebook and at first, like you, I had a feeling of “oh, that's it?!” but i've listened a few times and it has really grown on me! I likey! Very smooth and sleek and definitely not the Danish Same Difference! (not to say Same Diff aren't ace, i love them, but oh you know!)

Leave a Reply to Paul Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *