Mixi
The new… Fefe Dobson
Mixi is an interesting new act, because it’s so hard to place her. Vocally she is similar to Amy Winehouse, but the rockier element to her music separates Mixi from the hoardes of Amy wannabes around at the moment. Her debut single I Miss Those Days (Ghost) is excellent – really catchy and sellable, but at the same time she represents something a bit different to what’s already out there. I think the single could be a big hit in America (although I know she was on a rock reality show so I’m not sure if that will help or not), and possibly here too. However, she could also become one of those acts who, thanks to America’s hugeness, has a big enough following to carry on as long as she likes, but never really troubles the top 10. She’ll definitely strike a chord with teenage girls, but it’s possible that she’s a little too quirky for mainstream radio and not edgy enough for alternative stations, so finding a place for her in the market may be tough. Still, there is something special here, and I look forward to seeing what happens.
Poptasticness: 84% Hit potential: 45%
The New Sins
The new… Dead Disco
If you’re tired already of Little Boots and La Roux, here’s another female electro-pop act to get into, but this time it’s a girl group. The electro girl group is quite a rare set-up. The only British ones springing to mind are Dead Disco (now extra-dead), the RGBs and Robots in Disguise, and none of them have been huge successes. However, I think The New Sins might fare a bit better. Their new single Feelings Have Changed is very very good, and they’re building up a strong following already. Their look is really sophisticated and glamorous, the video is super-sleek and generally everything about them is very cool and ‘now’. Could it even be too cool? That can alienate people sometimes. I think they’re great anyway, both in sound and look, and I’m sure they will be worth keeping an eye on in the next few months.
Poptasticness: 79% Hit potential: 54%
Passion Pit
The new… Avalanches
There aren’t many ‘ones to watch’ lists which haven’t mentioned Passion Pit, and it’s not surprising, as they’re part of this (somewhat unexpected, I must admit) electro revival that everybody seems to heralding at the moment. It’s exciting because I love electropop, and hopefully the trend will help some of the ace electro acts who I’ve been supporting for years already, but bands like Passion Pit, MGMT and Empire of the Sun don’t really capture me in the same way as someone like Annie or Bertine Zetlitz or even Little Boots does. Then again, it’s certainly preferable to another influx of unimaginative guitar acts. Passion Pit aren’t too bad, but I won’t be buying their album either. What I find quite telling about them is that their music is creative and fun compared to other man bands, but they look so boring in photos! At least Empire of the Sun and MGMT bother to keep up the charade of being genuinely groovy.
Poptasticness: 60% Hit potential: 82%
Pixie Lott
The new… Natasha Bedingfield
I’ve mentioned her so many times already, but I really do believe that Pixie could be one of the biggest UK stars by the end of 2009. However, if it doesn’t work out there’ll be some very angry record execs cos they’ve obviously been spending a lot of money on her. It will be interesting to see whether, when she does release her debut single, it is one of the songs she’s put on MySpace already or a brand new one. This should let us know whether there is anything better than them on her album, or if her poptasticness peaked with Moma Do, Boys and Girls and The Fall. I think The Fall will definitely be a single at some point, because it’s brilliant, but they need to hurry up and get on with her career or all her songs will seem dated by the time they get released! She’s also getting older, and it will naturally seem more impressive if she can be marketed as a girl who would normally be still at school. Let’s have the album in 2009, not 2029, please!
Poptasticness: 97% Hit potential: 88%