Wendy_Roby has written the following articles:
This week we are heavy on strummers and very thin on massively hyped dancetypethings. This is good, because I have managed to locate a favourite new band from under a rock in Oxford. And they are very, very clever indeed. »
Faced with an embarrassment of riches in this week's singles sack, we have cheated and chosen two favourites.»
One is under pain of journalistic death to mention how the sun is shining, in order to make an amusing contrast with yesterday's free-swim Bank Holiday, when it did not see fit to make an appearance. Except it was sunny yesterday. Making today even more back-to-school and depressing than if it had rained. So while the weather can't win, the charts shall, for we have the muddy thrills of Crystal Stilts, and a enlivening (i.e. not very) mention for 1995-vintage Bobby Brown. Oh, do shut up and get on with it.»
This week sees a veritable Sheffield saviour trounce the competition, a not-new-anymore popstress finally getting her debut out, and a fair amount of lady-based hatred from art-poppers Plugs. Lots to recommend this week, then (as well as it being the third week in a row I have managed to shoe-horn in a reference to R4 programming). »
Wendy Roby ploughs her way through the stack of singles that are out this week, including Sky Larkin, Mike Bones, Magic Arm and Datarock.»
Though the ‘Silly Season’ is a term traditionally applied to news stories of the summer months in the proper presses, this week the seven inch single appears to be having one all of its own. For at least three of this week’s releases are seriously, worryingly foolish, and not all in a good way... »
Eh Oh, everyone, it is Monday, and it is time to listen to some sevens. And my, what a lovely bunch we have this week – from shamelessly retro post-punk which overcomes its redolence quite magnificently, an absolutely blinding re-issue from The Hundred In The Hands and, of course, space torpedoes, Girls Aloud.»
I am not quite the excitable teenager of last week, having had to contend with repeated exposure to the bottom of Patrick Wolf and the fact that I am, essentially, well ancient. Still, it’s not all sex, sex, sex. At least until we get to Sebastien Tellier, after which you may feel the need for a nice, hot bath.»
So, there we were, ready to untangle the heady musical knots of this week’s releases. Except that this week we were beaming loud and not-so clear from a holiday caravan in the Easter wilds. Imagine it from your urban turrets – a place where phone masts and Twitter updates make nary a dent.»
This week, not one, but two records are defined by their cuteness (and sadly only one of them successful). We also make (yet more) shameful confessions of our innately teenage disposition, enjoy some bangingness and are rather unmoved by the grandiose return of Doves.»
Having been given permission to go off-topic from the big bad bossman (thank you, Sean, you know not what you do), this week’s reviews are united by a disgusting tendency to veer into anecdotal asides like a rep theatre diarist soaked in gin. Normal service resumed next week. Probably.»
Wendy describes this week's single of the week as "really quite delightfully daft" - can you guess what it is?»
With a dizzying surfeit of noises from Passion Pit and Empire of the Sun, this week’s singles might also be evidence of the coming Spring, were a lot of these records not actually available last summer. Something needs to be done about release dates, then, and everyone apart from School of Seven Bells could do with some sort of red-pen-wielding, aural editor.»
While the snow gives everyone an excuse to sit tight and bunker down, this, fortuitously, happens to be a bumper week for staying in and listening to future pop / disgustingly good hip-hop collaborations. One might even be tempted to call it ‘blinding’ were it not for the fact that this is not Pete Tong’s Essential Mix or, at least last time I checked, 1995.»
DiS welcomes the second installment from our friends at The Lipster (thelipster.com) as they cast their expert eye across this week's new releases, including Glasgow's favourite angular foursome Franz Ferdinand making their long-awaited comeback...»
